ten o'clock
cried Snap . `` Well , you know what I mean , '' answered the youth who loved to exaggerate . Shep and the others had expected to start off directly after breakfast , but Snap had to fix one of his shoes , and this delayed them . But by ten o'clock they were on the way , the others waving them a fond farewell . `` We 'll look for you by to-morrow night , '' said Tommy . It was an easy matter to climb down the mountain side , but the walk up the hill that separated them from the lake was another story . Yet , as they had only their guns to carry , they made good progress , and by the middle of the afternoon they were in plain sight of the body of water where they had left the boat .