Los Angeles herald., 1907-03-31

call hlrk everything about the camp was se-
cure and in perfect quiet.
The boys stood two-hour watches until it
was Time to call Bart, when they both lay
IoWn ana slept until he aroused them, lust as
DAY was beginning to dawn.
,,.s,,1t Vow step around lively" he said, "for
Maht you TO start as soon as possible. We've
goI TO collect firewood enough to last tomor4
70 tow night Tor after you've gone | shall have
70 stay behind the rock heap all the time, and
m going to bring the prisoner in here. too
50 that L can feed him without giving them
c, cnance to to shoot, in case they've got any fire.
plJf Dfery vas placed on guard over Tom, while
nNa parC ana hlrk gathered firewood. The bur-
,o ros were brought behind the barricade and
l1:aued, ..:, and the guide called for one more re-
view on the cliff.
II Il m m going to take your partner behind the
Iev lev bn,u, nvi, part SAID, when three men, Crow
icy having come up during the night, appear
eu, and thought I'd tell you, so you
would1nt get excited when you couldn't see
II we'd never seen him, we should be bet
ter OIL, said Dick, surlily.
And then the interview was ended.
1.-THE boys helped carry the road-apent be-
@ nlnu Che barrlcade, where he was placed in
one corner In as comfortable a position as a
man ll,an Dound as he was could assume, and Bart
pro PROMISED to give him his breakfast as soon as
yhe boys mad gone. The robber was complete
~ coWed, and was as nervous and trembling
as he had previously been bold and swapcers
| ing. '"'eeN
Bart had selected from the provisions as
t much a. as ne ne thought he should need until he
na inet Cne poys again, and everything was in
readiness for the start
a. Goodbye, Bart!" said Kirk, as he shook
the guide by the hand. "We're leaving YOU
mere e p because you say it must be done in order
know besfg so geI out OF the scrape safely, and you
go together or not at all"
~ why, this don't amount to anything" said
oart, ,cheerlly,. though it was plainly to be
seen That Kinks desire to be with him as long
as .em Inere was any danger affected him deeply.
we, won't say here what it was told you
TO 40, he added, as he glanced at Tom, "but
you know the plan, and you must carry it out
exactly; This separating for little while is
Only, what's bound to hapren in this kind of
Dory shook hands with the guide in silence,
ana then Kirk, not daring to look back, lest
ms heart should fail him at the last moment.
led the way through the canyon.
We've got to do our best if we want to
gee @ out OF this business alive" Kirk said, as
they began the descent of the mountain
We must look carefully ahead so that we
shan make any false moves, and get over as
much ground as possible before night"
AS matter of course, the boys could not
rlde down hill any better than they could up
and each one took charge of two donkeys,
close behind.
1ney had not been on their journey half an
hour when the wisdom of Bart's plan was
made fully apparent.
The pack-animals, careful about where thew
stepped lest they should slip, moved even more
slowly than when making the ascent and
twenty-four hours start of the road-agents
was no more than they reilly needed to insure
their escape.
When they first set out, Kirk thought Bart
had made grand mistake when he estimated
that they would need the entire day in which
to make the descent; but after they had trav-
eled short time he understood that it would
be quite as much as they could do to reach
the valley before dark.
The treasure which they had taken from the
ROBBERS was fastened securely to the saddle
of Kinks burro, while Dory's carried the am
munltion that had been seized, a package Of
no mean weight.
Their progress was so slow that the bows
thought it best not to make halt for dinner.
more especially as they could find no water
until they were in the valley below, and they
continued on, the way being SO difficult at
times as to make the descent seem almost i'm
! possible.
In apparently impossible places they allowed
the burros to pick their own course, while
they followed in the animals trail
In this manner they travelled all day, their
efforts being rewarded short time before sum
set by their arrival in valley near a sluggish
stream, that sank directly in the earth near
the base of the mountains
| Here was grass in abundance for the burros
as well as water for all, and preparations were
at once made for encampment