Part 5 (2/2)

Sandy laid a hand on his friend's shoulder to invoke silence

”Listen,” he said, ”that's no bear!”

”Perhaps it's a rattlesnake, then!” scorned Tommy

”It's a boy!” declared Sandy ”That's what it is!”

Both lads darted into the darkness, waving electric searchlights as they advanced, and calling out in such words as a Boy Scout would be apt to understand They ran for soround, and then stood looking toward a point in the darkness froo on back to camp,” whispered To, and talk to yourself, so he'll think we're talking together I'll put out uess I can do it all right!”

”Aw, let's both go,” pleaded Sandy

”One's got to go back to ca, like a good little boy, now,” he added with a grin

Sandy departed, talking to hih for two boys, while Toht and crept forward in the darkness in the direction of the sounds he had heard

For a ti his way some hundred yards or ht, the sound of footsteps gradually died away, and there were only the sounds of the night in the boy's ears

He paused, after a time, and threw himself down on the rocky slope The ca distance away, now, and the boy had just decided to give over his search at that time and return to the camp

When he started to rise, however, he found a heavy hand pressed down on either shoulder His areat that for a ilantes, train robbers, and detectives somewhere in the hills, so the boy was not quite so sure of the personality of the other as he had been at the first instant of contact

”Well?” he said in a moment

”Who are you?” caruff tones of a ood impression

”A boy from the ca fast This ht be one of the train robbers, or it ht be the escaped convict hi there for?” was asked

”Vacation!” was the reply

”Which way did the cowboys go?” was the next question

To to his shoulders with a grip that was positively painful No one but the train robbers would be apt to be interested in the direction taken by the cowboys Toht up on his head when he realized that he was talking with one of the hold-up ht

”The last we heard of the cowboys,” he answered, ”they were going straight north I thought you went that way, too,” he added

”We couldn't get too far away froh ”We were just thinking of going back to your ca up the slope You'll have to feed us for a few days, young fellow!”

CHAPTER V