Part 10 (2/2)

Get off or I'll yank you off, and I won't be easy about it, either!”

Jack felt it best to obey He leaped froer, he cried to his pony: ”Go on, boy!

Ho forward, and before any of the men could catch him had darted off down the dark trail in the direction of Rainbow Ridge

”Look out--get him!” one of the one, and he's one of the fastest horses in the mountains; we'd never catch him,” said the mounted ood Tie hihly by the outlaws, and was soon so tightly bound that he felt he never could get loose without help He once more tried to look behind one of theHe tried to get a mental picture of the shapes of the ain if he ever saw or heard them

”Lay him over here, on one side of the road,” ordered thebefore noon to-morrow and take care of you,” he said to Jack, who did not answer ”If they don't we'll send an anony where you can be found We don't want to hurt you, but we had to have this stuff froet it,” the outlaent on ”Co with thealloped away in the darkness

CHAPTER X

A QUEER DISCOVERY

Left to hihtly with the ropes that cut into his wrists and s ache, poor Jack lay in a sort of stupor He could hardly understand what had happened, and his head hurt hi on the road at one side of the trail Overhead he could see the stars twinkling It was still very quiet

”Not ht,” ht that had come clearly to him, and, in a measure, it served to rouse him froot to do so! I can't lie here and wait for some one to coor in the activity of his un to think clearly, was that he led as he lay on his back He ed to roll over on his side, but he found himself more uncomfortable than in his first position, and soon rolled back to that

During this operation he tried, by every ht if he could only get one of the bonds to give he et one hand out

”And if I can do that, I'll soon be clear,” Jack reasoned, ”But it isn't going to be easy to get one hand out”

It did not take hi to discover this The robbers had done their ell They were taking no chances Jack rested after his struggles His head ached worse than ever because of the rush of blood to it froood to call?” he etand calling for help, doing it at intervals But he had not much hope He was on the lonesomest part of the trail, which, at best, was seldom traveled Often days would pass without any one, save the pony express rider, going over the uess,” reasoned Jack ”This is only playing ets home Whoever sees hi has happened The only trouble is they won't knohere to look But it's my best chance, I think”

He lay quiet for a period, thinking over the momentous events that had just occurred

”I wonder who those men were, and what they were after,” h valuable stuff in the express packages to make four men risk state's prison for it It reat value was in the ent

Of course, they hat they wanted And in that case he ought to knoould bethem We may be able to arrest the men yet

”But it et the information they want and take the secret s That would be too bad! But if my plan only works, and those fellows don't open that bundle of papers, the letters may be safe yet It was ain Jack struggled and squirive an inch

Suddenly, as the young pony express rider was trying to work loose his bonds, he felt a sharp pain in one hand, which was under hi on the earth