The Camp-out Mystery (8 page)

The door opened a crack. Andy Watts peeked out.

“Oh, children,” he said. “I'm sorry I didn't hear you.” He yawned. “I was napping.”

“We're looking for Hildy,” Henry told him. “Have you seen her?”

“No, no, can't say that I have,” he answered.

A muffled thump sounded from inside.

Mr. Watts cleared his throat loudly and began coughing.

“I—uh—can't talk to you right now,” Andy said. “You run along and I'll see you later.”

He closed the door but not before they heard someone yell, “Help! Help! Help me!”

“That's Hildy's voice,” Jessie said.

Henry knocked furiously. “Mr. Watts! What's the matter?! What's going on in there?!”

Henry started away from the cabin. “Come on!” he said. “We'll get the ranger!”

Just then they heard a car approaching.

“It's coming from over there!” Benny ran toward a thick stand of trees. He dashed through them, the others close at his heels.

Beyond was a dirt road. The children waved frantically at the oncoming truck. It pulled up beside them and stopped.

Doris hopped out. “What's the matter?” she asked.

“Hildy,” the children said at once. “She's locked in Andy's cabin!”

Doris leaped out of the truck.

They all ran back the way they'd come.

Doris pounded on the cabin door. “Andy Watts, come out here this instant!” she demanded. “Or we're going to break this door down!”

The door flew open. “All right! All right!” Andy said. He came outside, trembling.

Doris dashed into the cabin.

The children waited at the door.

Andy Watts paced back and forth. “Oh my, oh my,” he kept mumbling to himself.

Finally, Doris came out with Hildy at her side. Hildy looked furious.

“Now, Andy Watts, let's hear your explanation for all of this!” Doris demanded.

CHAPTER 16

The Confession

A
ndy took a deep breath. “I didn't mean any harm,” he said. “I just wanted to give them a taste of their own medicine.”

“Who are you talking about?” Doris snapped impatiently.

“Those awful campers,” Andy said. “The litter everywhere. They don't care about the forest. They just come here to make noise and mess things up.”

“He stole a lantern from the Aldens,” Hildy piped up.

“But our lantern is at
your
cabin,” Henry said.

“Mine's broken,” Hildy explained. “There's no electricity in my cabin. Without a lantern it gets awfully dark. Andy gave me one to use. When I saw your name on it, I began to wonder how he got it.”

“So you came over here to question him?” Doris asked.

“I did,” Hildy answered. “But when I started asking questions, Andy pushed me into the bathroom and locked the door. I
knew
then that he was the guilty party.”

“When did you take the lantern?” Henry asked. “It was there in the morning and, later, it was missing. But Grandfather was at the camp the whole time.”

Andy Watts shrugged. “I just waited until he fell asleep. Then I sneaked over and … took it. I figured without a lantern, you'd go home.”

“You played the loud music, too?” Violet asked.

“Yes, yes,” Andy said. “For years, I've had to listen to it. Loud music, loud voices—any time of the night. The forest is a quiet place. People should respect that. I just wanted to let people know how it sounded. But I never meant to cause Mr. Alden's accident. That made me feel real bad!”

“And the lights?” Jessie asked. “Why did you do that?”

“To scare people away,” Andy explained. “That's why I took the food. People get edgy when strange things like that happen. It worked, too. Word got around. Campers have been staying away.”

“But how could you take our food when we were right there?” Jessie asked.

“You were difficult,” Andy admitted. “I dropped the honey when I heard someone rustling around in the tent.”

“That was me,” Violet said. “I thought I heard something. I came out to look.”

“I just got away in time,” Andy said. “And the morning when I took the stew—”

“I saw you!” Jessie interrupted. She turned to Henry. “Remember, Henry? Watch woke me up and then I saw something moving in the mist.”

“I was sure you'd catch me that time,”Andy said.

“And the arrows? Did you do that, too?” Benny asked.

“That's the first thing I did: turn the wooden arrow that pointed to the ranger's station in a different direction. A few people got so confused, they left. But most people figured it out,” Andy said.

“I mean the arrow in the maple tree,” Benny persisted.

“Yes,” Andy admitted. “I did that, too. When I returned from your campsite, you children were at my cabin.”

“That was the morning we found Grandfather in the ravine,” Henry said putting the pieces together.

“I only meant to scare you … nothing more,” Andy said.

“You know, you weren't the first to complain about strange things happening,” Hildy said to the Aldens. “I never believed it. Thought it was nonsense. Imagine my surprise when I realized the lantern was yours. And then to find out that Andy Watts of all people was causing so much trouble!”

“She wanted to tell the authorities what I'd done,” Andy said. “I couldn't let her do that, could I? They'd put me in jail!”

“And that's why you locked her in your bathroom,” Doris concluded.

“I would've let her out,” Andy said. “I decided to pack up—get out of here. Go someplace where no one could find me. I would've let her out when I was ready to go.” He looked from one to the other. His eyes were sad. “I didn't mean any harm,” he said. “Please, believe me.”

“Mean it or not, Andy Watts, you did cause harm,” Doris said. “You ruined people's camping trips and the park's reputation. Something has to be done about it.”

“Oh, I know,” Andy said. “It was foolish of me to think of running away. I knew that even while I was packing to go. This is my home. I'd never be happy anywhere else— especially after what I've done.” He sighed deeply. “I'll go turn myself in to the ranger.”

CHAPTER 17

A Problem Solved

T
he next night, Doris and Hildy joined the Aldens around the campfire.

“It's hard to believe that Andy Watts caused so much trouble,” Doris said.

“I think I understand what he did,” Hildy said. “I've felt the same way about some campers. So many of them just don't appreciate the beauty around them.”

The children stared at her. She seemed an entirely different person than she was before.

She smiled at them. “Are you having trouble believing old Hildy likes nature?”

“We didn't think you liked anything!” Benny said.

“Now, Benny, mind your manners,” Grandfather warned, but he said it lightly, and Benny knew he was amused.

“Hush, James Henry,” Hildy said. “I deserved that. I wasn't very nice to your grandchildren—or to anybody for that matter. But I've learned my lesson. These children taught me. Independence is important, but so is knowing people care.”

“You know, Hildy,” Doris said, “for a while I was afraid you were the one causing all the trouble.”

Hildy chuckled. “My own sister!” she teased. “You should have known better. My way of dealing with the campers was to ignore them. Keep my distance.”

“Well, things will be different now,” Grandfather said.

“They sure will be,” Doris said. “Andy did a good thing by turning himself in. Things went easier for him because of it.”

“I hope they aren't going to put him in jail,” Benny said. “He might have done bad things, but he's a good man.”

“That's exactly what the ranger said,” Doris told him. “He came up with a plan to have Andy educate and help campers. It'll accomplish a lot more than a jail sentence would.”

“What exactly will he teach the campers?” Violet asked.

“He knows all about the forest,” Doris answered. “He'll take people on nature hikes, and teach new campers about safety procedures and anything else they might want to know.”

“I hope he teaches them about neatness,” Benny piped up. “This place was a mess when we got here.”

“I wish we could help,” Jessie said.

“You already have,” Doris reminded her. “You solved the mystery. Now, campers won't be afraid to come here.”

“But we'd like to do more,” Violet said.

“Maybe we can,” Grandfather said. “Andy mentioned the need for more trees to keep the soil from eroding. I'll donate some.”

“We could come weekends and help plant them,” Henry suggested.

“That's a fine idea, Henry,” Grandfather said. “I'm sure the ranger would approve.”

“And the park needs more garbage cans,” Jessie said. “That would help people to be neater.”

Mr. Alden nodded. “We'll get those, too.”

“Maybe we could set up a recycling center with different bins for bottles and cans,” Henry said.

“I'll talk to the county officials,” Doris offered. “They have special trucks to collect recyclable material.”

“I have another idea,” Benny said. “Something we can do right now to help some campers.”

They all looked at him.

“Roast marshmallows and have some more s'mores,” he said.

They all laughed.

“Now, that's what I call an excellent idea!” Grandfather said.

And everyone agreed.

About the Author

G
ERTRUDE
C
HANDLER
W
ARNER
discovered when she was teaching that many readers who like an exciting story could find no books that were both easy and fun to read. She decided to try to meet this need, and her first book,
The Boxcar Children,
quickly proved she had succeeded.

Miss Warner drew on her own experiences to write each mystery. As a child she spent hours watching trains go by on the tracks opposite her family home. She often dreamed about what it would be like to set up housekeeping in a caboose or freight car—the situation the Alden children find themselves in.

When Miss Warner received requests for more adventures involving Henry, Jessie, Violet, and Benny Alden, she began additional stories. In each, she chose a special setting and introduced unusual or eccentric characters who liked the unpredictable.

While the mystery element is central to each of Miss Warner's books, she never thought of them as strictly juvenile mysteries. She liked to stress the Aldens' independence and resourcefulness and their solid New England devotion to using up and making do. The Aldens go about most of their adventures with as little adult supervision as possible—something else that delights young readers.

Miss Warner lived in Putnam, Connecticut, until her death in 1979. During her lifetime, she received hundreds of letters from girls and boys telling her how much they liked her books.

The Boxcar Children Mysteries

T
HE
B
OXCAR
C
HILDREN

S
URPRISE
I
SLAND

T
HE
Y
ELLOW
H
OUSE
M
YSTERY

M
YSTERY
R
ANCH

M
IKE'S
M
YSTERY

B
LUE
B
AY
M
YSTERY

T
HE
W
OODSHED
M
YSTERY

T
HE
L
IGHTHOUSE
M
YSTERY

M
OUNTAIN
T
OP
M
YSTERY

S
CHOOLHOUSE
M
YSTERY

C
ABOOSE
M
YSTERY

H
OUSEBOAT
M
YSTERY

S
NOWBOUND
M
YSTERY

T
REE
H
OUSE
M
YSTERY

B
ICYCLE
M
YSTERY

M
YSTERY IN THE
S
AND

M
YSTERY
B
EHIND THE
W
ALL

B
US
S
TATION
M
YSTERY

B
ENNY
U
NCOVERS A
M
YSTERY

T
HE
H
AUNTED
C
ABIN
M
YSTERY

T
HE
D
ESERTED
L
IBRARY
M
YSTERY