noon
Two or three small pearls had been found , it is true , but the majority of the seekers had to be satisfied with steamed mussels , or fresh-water clam chowder , as a reward for their hard work . The wide-awake boys who first conceived the idea had taken the cream of the pickings . And from a portion of the money secured through the sale of these beautiful pearls they had purchased everything needed to fill the heart of a camper with delight . Here , as the afternoon sun headed down toward the western horizon , the boys , having arrived by way of a buckboard wagon at noon , were looking into the flames of Trapper Jim 's big fire in the log cabin , and mentally shaking hands with each other in mutual congratulation over their good fortune . There was a decided tang of frost in the air , which told that the summer season was gone and early fall arrived . It might seem strange that these boys , who in October might be expected to be deep in the fall school term , should be away from home and up in the wilderness . That was where Good Luck remembered them again , and the explanation is simple enough .