F. PANCCAST. 
 
\C !<w- ! IV Ur I V 
 
 THE 
 
 MYSTERY 
 
 OF 
 
 LOST RIVER CANYON 
 
 BY 
 
 HARRY CASTLEMON\ p^ 
 
 AUTHOR OF " ROCKY MOUNTAIN SERIES," " GUNBOAT 
 
 PHILADELPHIA 
 HENRY T. COATES & CO. 
 
COPYRIGHT, 1896, 
 
 BY 
 HENKY T. COATES & CO. 
 
 LOAN STACK 
 
CONTENTS. 
 
 CHAPTER PAGE 
 
 PROLOGUE, 5 
 
 I. GEORGE AND HIS UNCLE, . . . .11 
 
 II. UNCLE EUBEN LEARNS SOMETHING, . . 22 
 
 III. A SURPRISE, . . . . . . .34 
 
 IV. A HOME IN THE WOODS, .... 46 
 V. A CAPSIZE, 58 
 
 VI. DICK LANGDON'S SENTIMENTS, ... 70 
 
 VII. A PERSEVERING DIVER, 81 
 
 VIII. UNCLE KUBEN CALLS AGAIN, .... 92 
 
 IX. LOST IN THE WOODS, 10 1 
 
 X. THE MASKED KOBBERS, 116 
 
 XL AN ANGRY MISER, . . . . . .129 
 
 XII. A VISIT FROM THE SHERIFF, . . . .141 
 
 XIII. THE TABLES TURNED, 154 
 
 XIV. THE UPSHOT OF THE WHOLE MATTER, . .166 
 XV. THE RENDEZVOUS, 179 
 
 XVI. How ONE TELEGRAM WAS RECEIVED, . . 192 
 
 XVII. Two NEW CHARACTERS, L'03 
 
 XVIII. How THE OTHER WAS RECEIVED, . . .215 
 
 (iii) 
 
 887 
 
IV CONTENTS. 
 
 CHAPTER PAGE 
 
 XIX. BOB HEARS SOME STARTLING NEWS, . . 226 
 
 XX. A MERITED KEBUKE, 239 
 
 XXI. THE MYSTERY OF THE CANYON, . . . 251 
 
 XXII. THE IDEA SUGGESTED, 204 
 
 XXIII. OFF FOR CAMP, 276 
 
 XXIV. THE TERRORS OF THE CANYON, . . . 288 
 XXV. SAM ASKS FOR HIS PAY, .... 302 
 
 XXVI. ARTHUR TRIES TO HELP HIMSELF, . .315 
 
 XXVII. THE LISTENER IN THE GROVE, . . . 328 
 
 XXVIII. A HURRIED FLIGHT, 340 
 
 XXIX, THE MYSTERY SOLVED, .... 353 
 
 XXX. IN THE MOUNTAINS, 366 
 
 XXXI. "ALL'S WELL THAT ENDS WELL," . . 376 
 
THE 
 
 of Lost $W damjon, 
 
 PEOLOGUE. 
 
 ONE hot, sultry August afternoon, a weary 
 horse, whose heaving sides and foam- 
 flecked breast bore evidence to the fact that 
 he had been driven long and rapidly, was 
 reined up in front of a little station on the 
 Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railroad. 
 His rider a tall, broad-shouldered, full- 
 bearded man -was dressed in clothing which 
 seems to have been chosen by the ranchmen 
 of the country of which we write, as a badge 
 distinctive of their calling a red shirt, wide- 
 brimmed hat, corduroy trousers and heavy 
 top boots, 
 
 He was armed and equipped as the law of 
 the plains directs a heavy Winchester rifle 
 
 (5) 
 
6 THE MYSTEEY OF LOST RIVER CANYON. 
 
 being slung at bis back, and a brace of navy 
 revolvers buckled about his waist. 
 
 Before his horse had fairly come to a stand- 
 still, he swung himself from the saddle, 
 hurried into the telegraph office, drew a 
 couple of blanks toward him, and, after writ- 
 ing a hasty dispatch upon each, handed them 
 to the operator. 
 
 The latter read them with great delibera- 
 tion, counted the words they contained, and 
 no one would have imagined, by looking at 
 his impassive face, that he had made himself 
 master of a piece of news that was destined 
 to work the most remarkable changes in the 
 lives of some of the characters who are to 
 appear in our story. 
 
 Having received pay for the dispatches, 
 the operator seated himself at his instrument 
 and sent them off, while the horseman sprang 
 into his saddle and rode slowly away. 
 
 Let us go with these telegrams and see 
 where they went, and how they were received 
 by those to whom they were addressed. 
 They both sped over the same wire until 
 they reached the city of Chicago, and then one 
 
PEOLOGUE. 7 
 
 turned off and made its way to the little town 
 of Bolton, in Indiana, where we will leave 
 it for the present, while we follow the other, 
 which finally reached its journey's end in a 
 thriving village in one of our Eastern States. 
 
 The operator at the latter place, when he 
 heard his " call " sounded, seated himself at 
 his table with his usual nonchalance ; but, 
 before he had written half a dozen words, a 
 surprised and grieved expression settled on 
 his face, and, when the dispatch had been 
 copied, he leaned back in his chair arid sighed 
 deeply. 
 
 " By George ! " he exclaimed aloud. 
 
 " What's the matter ? " asked a messenger 
 boy, who stood at his elbow. 
 
 " That's telling," was the answer. " If you 
 are ever able to run a ticker of your own, you 
 will know that it is against the law to reveal 
 the contents of the messages you receive. 
 Take this up to Mrs. Butler's, and be quick 
 about it. It is for Bob Howard all the way 
 from Arizona." 
 
 " By George ! " repeated the operator, when 
 the messenger boy was out of hearing. " It's 
 
8 THE MYSTERY OF LOST EIVER CANYON. 
 
 too bad. It will pretty near kill Bob and 
 this is Ins last day at school, and he is going 
 to start for the West to-morrow morning. 
 He'll go to a desolate home, poor fellow ! If 
 I had the money he is heir to, I wouldn't 
 spend many more hours at this table, I bet 
 you ! " 
 
 The messenger boy broke into a run as 
 soon as he was out of the office, and presently 
 mounted the steps leading to the door of a 
 modest house in a quiet street. 
 
 His pull at the bell was answered by a 
 motherly-looking old lady, who took the 
 message, signed her own name to the receipt 
 book, because she didn't believe that Mr. 
 Howard had yet come from the academy, 
 and then went up-stairs and laid the dispatch 
 upon the centre-table in a nicely furnished 
 room, propping it up against a book, so that 
 it would be sure to meet the eye of the person 
 for whom it was intended as soon as he 
 entered at the door. 
 
 He came a few minutes later a tall, dark 
 youth, with coal-black hair and eyes, and a 
 countenance so striking, that, when you had 
 
PEOLOGUE. 9 
 
 taken one look at it, you always wanted to 
 turn and take another. You knew that he 
 was a young gentleman as soon as you put 
 your eyes on him. 
 
 He was a favorite with the girls because 
 of his handsome face and figure ; with his 
 teachers, because of his studious habits and 
 strict regard for the rules of school ; and 
 with his fellows, because of his kindness of 
 heart and his proficiency in every athletic 
 sport. 
 
 Frail as he looked, he took the lead of 
 them all. No academy boy had ever taken 
 his measure on the campus, and as for spar- 
 ring and fencing, his superiority was acknowl- 
 edged by everybody. He was a good oars- 
 man, a lightning pitcher, a terrific batter, 
 and dead sure of making a double shot on 
 quails or snipe as often as the opportunity 
 was offered. Many a poor student had his 
 money helped out of a tight place; and, 
 although Bob never let one hand know what 
 the other hand did, those who were the recip- 
 ients of his favors could always tell where 
 they came from. 
 
10 THE MYSTERY OF LOST KIVER CANYON. 
 
 The companion who followed at his heels 
 was a different sort of boy altogether. He 
 was short and thick-set, and as homely as he 
 was good-natured, and his whole appearance 
 indicated that he had not been born with a 
 silver spoon in his mouth. 
 
 His name was George Edwards, and he 
 was janitor of the academy. His lot had 
 always been a hard one how hard you will 
 see as our story progresses and George 
 could not remember the time when he had 
 not been dependent upon his own exertions 
 for his daily bread. 
 
 Up to the hour he made the acquaintance 
 of Bob Howard, his life had been one fierce 
 and constant struggle with poverty ; but, 
 since that memorable afternoon, his pathway 
 had been made smoother for him. 
 
 Having introduced our heroes, whom we 
 hope you will like, we will describe the cir- 
 cumstances under which they first met, and 
 then we will go back to the telegrams, which 
 bear an important part in our story. 
 
GEORGE AND HIS UNCLE. 11 
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 
 GEORGE AND HIS UNCLE. 
 
 * "TTTELL, George, it is either that or the 
 V? poorhouse." 
 
 "There's where I differ with you, Uncle 
 Kuben." 
 
 "You are an ungrateful scamp. Here I 
 am, offerin' you a good home " 
 
 " I know you offer me shelter, food and 
 clothing, but you can't give me a home. I 
 shall never have one again, now that my 
 mother is dead." 
 
 "And your father in prison for stealin'." 
 
 " You might have spared me that, Uncle 
 Ruben. I know he is in prison, and there is 
 no need that you and everybody else should 
 constantly remind me of it. I am in no way 
 to blame for what he did." 
 
 " Mebbe you hain't. But can't you see 
 how it's a hurtin' of you ? Who is there 
 
12 THE MYSTEKY OF LOST KIVER CANYON. 
 
 about here that would be willin' to hire the 
 son of a thief?" 
 
 "I don't care to talk to you now, Uncle 
 Ruben. Leave me alone for a day or two, 
 and then I will tell you what I have decided 
 to do." 
 
 " Might as well decide now as any time. 
 I reckon you know that this house an' 
 everything what's into it belongs to me, 
 don't you? I didn't say nothing to your 
 mother about it when she was alive, 'cause 
 she was my brother's wife, and I didn't want 
 to pester her ; but now " 
 
 " I know you didn't say anything about 
 the mortgage, but I notice that you always 
 demanded the interest the moment it was 
 due. You took it, too, when you knew that 
 my mother didn't have money enough in the 
 house to buy a sack of flour." 
 
 " Well, it was my due, an' I wanted it." 
 
 George Edwards uttered an exclamation 
 of disgust, and, leaning his elbows on the 
 railing that surrounded the porch, he rested 
 his chin on his hands, and gazed off toward 
 the distant hills; while Uncle Ruben paced 
 
GEOEGE AND HIS UNCLE. 13 
 
 up and down in front of the house, thrashing 
 his cowhide boots with his riding whip, and 
 taking a survey of the buildings and grounds 
 that were soon to come into his possession 
 by virtue of the mortgage he held upon 
 them. 
 
 He was a very mean man, this Ruben 
 Edwards the meanest man in all that coun- 
 try, so everybody said and you would have 
 known it the minute you looked at him. He 
 loved money, and not unfrequently resorted 
 to questionable means in order to get it. 
 
 He owned several farms in the neighbor- 
 hood, and was now congratulating himself 
 on having secured another. True, it was 
 not much of an acquisition. All he saw, 
 as he looked about him, were a few acres of 
 stony, unproductive land, a small, unpainted 
 dwelling-house, and a few out-buildings, all 
 of which showed signs of decay, in spite of 
 the efforts the industrious George had made 
 to keep them in repair. 
 
 It was no wonder that George did not 
 want to talk to his uncle on this particular 
 morning. He did not believe that there was 
 
14 THE MYSTERY OF LOST RIVER CANYON. 
 
 a boy in the world who was so utterly miser- 
 able as he was, or who had so little-" to live 
 for. 
 
 He had always been looked down on and 
 shunned by the boys of his acquaintance on 
 account of the conduct of his father, who 
 was one of the village vagabonds ; and, since 
 the latter had been shut up in the peniten- 
 tiary for breaking into a store and stealing 
 money that he was too lazy to work for, poor 
 George had had a hard time of it. No one 
 in that village would have anything to do 
 with him. 
 
 He left school and tried to find something 
 to do in order to support his mother, who 
 was an invalid ; but nobody needed his ser- 
 vices. 
 
 "There's work enough to be done," he 
 often said to his mother, when he came home 
 from his long tramps, weary and dusty; 
 "but they won't give me a chance. They 
 are all suspicious of me. But never mind; 
 you shan't suffer. I have long been thinking 
 of something ; and, since no one will hire 
 me, I shall go into business for myself." 
 
GEOEGE AND HIS UNCLE. 15 
 
 And he did, just as soon as he could make 
 the necessary arrangements. 
 
 The people who would not let him saw 
 their wood, because they were afraid he 
 would steal something, did not refuse to pur- 
 chase the delicious trout and yellow perch 
 that he peddled from door to door, and 
 neither did the luscious berries he brought 
 in from distant fields and pastures ever 
 remain long on his hands. 
 
 He made money ; but he often became dis- 
 heartened, and angry, too, when he drew a 
 contrast between his circumstances and those 
 of the boys about him, and then all that was 
 needed was a smile or a word of praise from 
 his mother to bring all his courage and deter- 
 mination back to him again. But now she 
 was gone the only friend he ever had. She 
 had been dead just a week, and George was 
 lonely, indeed. 
 
 He wanted to get out into the woods by 
 himself, and stay there, and he was already 
 making preparations to take a final leave of 
 the house which he could no longer call his 
 home, when Jie saw his Uncle Ruben's old 
 
16 THE MYSTERY OF LOST RIVER CANYON. 
 
 clay-bank pacer coming down the road, and 
 Uncle Euben himself in the saddle. 
 
 George was not at all pleased to see him, 
 for he knew pretty nearly what the man 
 would have to say to him. 
 
 " 'Taint no great shakes of a place," said 
 Uncle Ruben, after running his eye over the 
 house and its surroundings. "But mebbe I 
 can sell it for enough to save myself. Then 
 you won't go home with me an' work for 
 your board and clothes ?" 
 
 " No, I won't," replied George promptly. 
 
 He did not thank his relative for his offer, 
 for he knew the object he had in making it. 
 
 George was very strong for a boy of his 
 age, and fully capable of doing a man's work 
 in the field ; and he knew that his services 
 there would be worth much more than his 
 board and clothes. So did Uncle Ruben ; 
 but the latter thought it would be a good 
 thing if he could induce his nephew to agree 
 to his proposition, for it would be a saving to 
 him of twenty or thirty dollars a month. 
 
 " If you will stay with me till you are 
 twenty-one years old, I will give you a yoke 
 
GEOEGE AND HIS UNCLE. 17 
 
 of oxen an' a good suit of clothes to begin 
 life with," added Uncle Euben. "That's 
 customary, you know." 
 
 " I know it is," answered George. " But 
 if I live to see the age of twenty-one, I 
 shall have more than a yoke of worthless old 
 oxen and a suit of shoddy clothes, / tell 
 you!'' 
 
 Uncle Ruben winced a little at this. 
 
 " I saw the outfit you gave to one of your 
 bound boys, who had served you faithfully 
 for six long years," continued George. " The 
 oxen were not worth the powder to blow them 
 up, and the clothes fell to pieces in less than 
 a month. You can't palm any of your old 
 trash off on me. I can do better." 
 
 " I don't see how. Whose goin' to hire 
 you ?" 
 
 " I don't ask any one to hire me. I've got 
 a business of my own that enabled me to 
 support my mother, and to pay your interest 
 on the very day it became due." 
 
 " But you shan't foller it no longer," said 
 Uncle Ruben, decidedly. " Boys like you 
 don't know what's best for themselves. You 
 
 2 
 
18 THE MYSTEKY OF LOST EIVEE CANYON. 
 
 need a guardeen, an' I shall ask the select- 
 men to have you bound out to me until you 
 are of age." 
 
 " I don't care if you do," replied George, 
 in a voice choked with indignation. " Hav- 
 ing no property, I do not need a guardian, 
 and I won't have one, either. I can take 
 care of myself." 
 
 "I know what you want to do," said 
 Uncle Ruben, with a sneer. "You're too 
 scandalous lazy to work for a livin', an' you 
 want to go back to that shanty of yours in 
 the woods, an' live there, trappin' and fishin', 
 jest for all the world like a wild Injun. But 
 that ain't a respectable way to live that way 
 ain't an' I shan't consent to it." 
 
 " I haven't asked your consent. I have a 
 right to make an honest living in any way I 
 can, and I intend to exercise that right. I 
 am not too lazy to work ; but, as you say, 
 there is no one about here who will give me 
 anything to do. I am not going to starve and 
 go ragged, however, for all that." 
 
 " Be you goin' to stay up there in the 
 woods all your life?" inquired Uncle Ruben. 
 
GEORGE AND HIS UNCLE. 19 
 
 "No, I am not. I want to be something 
 better than a hermit. I intend to stay up 
 there until I can save money enough to take 
 me to some place where I am not known, and 
 then I shall make a new start." 
 
 " Well, we'll wait until we hear what the 
 selectmen have to say about that," answered 
 Uncle Ruben, with a grin and a wink which 
 seemed to indicate that he felt sure of his 
 ground. "Mebbe they'll think, as I do, that 
 it's best for you to go with me, so that you 
 can have somebody what knows something to 
 take care on you. You can stay here till I 
 can have time to go an' see 'em." 
 
 " I don't care to stay in this house another 
 night," replied George, quickly. " I was 
 getting ready to leave it when I saw you 
 coming. If you -have got through talking, 
 I'll go now." 
 
 So saying, George disappeared through 
 the open door, and, when he came out again, 
 he carried over his shoulder a heavy bundle, 
 at which Uncle Ruben gazed with suspicion. 
 
 " Everything in here belongs to me, and 
 was purchased with money that I earned 
 
20 THE MYSTERY OF LOST RIVEK CANYON. 
 
 myself," said the boy, who understood the 
 look. " If you don't believe it" 
 
 Here George threw the bundle down upon 
 the porch within reach of his uncle's hand. 
 
 But the latter did not offer to touch it. 
 Mean as he was known to be, and anxious as 
 he was to secure every article about the house 
 that would clear him a dime or two at public 
 auction, he could not bring himself to make 
 an examination of his nephew's bundle. 
 
 "Well, then," said the latter, once more 
 raising his property to his shoulder, " I will 
 bid you good-by." 
 
 He hurried out of the yard, and up the 
 road toward the hills, while Uncle Ruben 
 stood in front of the porch and shook his 
 riding- whip at him. 
 
 "That's a powerful bad boy," said he to 
 himself, " an' he's goin' to be a no-account 
 vagabond, like his father was. But there's 
 a heap of strength in him, an' it's a great 
 pity that he should waste it by foolin' about 
 in the woods, instead of puttin' it on my 
 farm, where it would do some good. He'd 
 oughter be taken in hand, that boy ought." 
 
GEORGE AND HIS UNCLE. 21 
 
 Uncle Ruben gave emphasis to this thought 
 by hitting his boots a vicious cut with his 
 whip, and then he went into the house, to see 
 what he could find there. 
 
22 THE MYSTEEY OF LOST BIVEB CANYON. 
 
 CHAPTER II. 
 
 UNCLE RUBEN LEARNS SOMETHING. 
 
 WHILE Uncle Ruben was wandering 
 about from one room to another, tak- 
 ing a mental inventory of the different articles 
 they contained, and trying to figure up how 
 much ready cash they ought to bring under 
 the auctioneer's hammer, Jonathan Brown, 
 who was one of the selectmen, stopped his horse 
 in front of the bars, and hailed the house. 
 
 "Mornin', neighbor Edwards," he ex- 
 claimed, as Uncle Ruben appeared at the 
 door. " 'Pears to me you look sorter blue, 
 don't you ?" 
 
 " I'm so blue it'll rub off," replied Uncle 
 Ruben, as he walked out to the fence and 
 rested his arm on the top rail. "Silas 
 cheated me fearful. I let him have too much 
 money on that mortgage, an' I shan't get it 
 
UNCLE RUBEN LEAENS SOMETHING. 23 
 
 back into a good many dollars. Then there's 
 that there boy, George " 
 
 " Yes, I seen him a little while back/' said 
 Mr. Brown, facing about in his wagon and 
 looking up the road in the direction in which 
 George had disappeared. " He had a big 
 bundle on his back, an' when I asked him 
 if he had found work anywhere, he said he 
 hadn't, an', what was more, he wasn't goin' to 
 look for any. Where do you reckon he's 
 goin' ?" 
 
 "Up into the hills, to live like a wild 
 Injun," replied Uncle Ruben, in a tone of 
 disgust. " But I told him that that wasn't 
 no respectable way to live, an' that I wouldn't 
 never consent to it." 
 
 " I wouldn't, neither," said Mr. Brown. 
 
 "I offered to give him a good home, an' 
 all he could eat and wear, if he would work 
 for me till he was twenty-one; an' do you 
 s'pose he would do it? No, he wouldn't," 
 continued Uncle Ruben. " He jest as good as 
 told me that he didn't ask no odds of me nor 
 anybody else. Now, Jonathan, don't you 
 think that, seem' as how I shall lose twenty- 
 
24 THE MYSTERY OF LOST RIVER CANYON. 
 
 five, and mebbe fifty dollars of the money I 
 loaned my brother Silas on this property 
 don't you r'ally think that that there boy 
 had oughter make it up to me? Couldn't 
 I force him to do it ?" 
 
 Mr. Brown scratched his head vigorously, 
 and assumed an air of profound wisdom as 
 he replied : 
 
 " I disremember jest now what the law 
 has to say on that p'int; but I'll look it 
 up." 
 
 "An' don't you think, Jonathan, that the 
 boy was a fool to refuse a good home when I 
 offered it to him ?" 
 
 " Well/' replied Mr. Brown, slowly, " to be 
 honest with you, Ruben, I don't know who 
 was the biggest fool you or George." 
 
 " I know what you mean by them words, 
 Jonathan, but I don't take no offense at 'em. 
 I know that there ain't no other man about 
 here who would be willin' to take him into 
 his house ; but somehow I couldn't forgit 
 that he's my brother's son. He hain't got no 
 livin' relations except me, as one may say 
 seein' that his mother is dead an' his father 
 
UNCLE EUBEN LEAKNS SOMETHING. 25 
 
 locked up in prison an' so I thought I had 
 oughter do something for him." 
 
 " That shows your goodness of heart," said 
 Mr. Brown, who was well enough acquainted 
 with his friend Ruben to know that the 
 latter never would have, offered George a 
 home under his roof if he had not believed 
 that he could make something by it. " But 
 it's my opinion that that there nephew of 
 yourn will be shut up in prison, same as his 
 father is, before many days more have passed 
 over his head." 
 
 " Sho !" exclaimed Uncle Ruben, who was 
 greatly astonished. u You don't tell me ! 
 What's he been a-doin' of?" 
 
 " I don't say that he's been a-doin' of any- 
 thing," said Mr. Brown. " I'm only givin' 
 you my opinion ; an' it's the opinion of 
 more'n one man in town, too. Now jest 
 listen to me while I tell you. You know 
 that there was a heap of stealin' goin' on 
 about here a while back, don't you ?" 
 
 Yes, Uncle Ruben knew all about it. He 
 knew that burglaries had been of so frequent 
 occurrence that the village merchants had 
 
26 THE MYSTERY OF LOST RIVER CANYON. 
 
 clubbed together and hired a couple of night 
 watchmen to patrol the streets. 
 
 "Well," continued Mr. Brown, "you 
 remember that while all them stores were 
 bein' broke into an' robbed, our hen-roosts 
 an' spring-houses didn't escape, don't you ?" 
 
 Uncle Ruben remembered it perfectly, and 
 he thought of it now with no little bitterness 
 of heart. 
 
 He had missed more than one tub of butter 
 from his spring-house, and nearly all his fine 
 Plymouth Rock chickens had disappeared, 
 and left no trace behind. 
 
 " All that was mighty curious, seein' that 
 we couldn't find no track of the robbers; 
 but something that happened arterward was 
 still more curious. When George's mother 
 was took sick, an' he had to stay to home an' 
 look out for her, there wasn't no more steal- 
 in' done. You remember that, too, don't 
 you?" 
 
 Uncle Ruben fairly jumped from the 
 ground, so great was the surprise occasioned 
 by these words. 
 
 " You you don't mean to say that George 
 
UNCLE KUBEN LEAENS SOMETHING. 27 
 
 had a hand in robbin' them stores an' hen- 
 roosts, do you ?" he asked, as soon as he had 
 recovered the use of his tongue. 
 
 " I don't mean to say nothing," was Mr. 
 Brown's reply. " I'm only jest a-tellin' of 
 you." 
 
 " Well ! well ! That bangs me," said Uncle 
 Ruben, looking reflectively at the ground. 
 " I never thought that of George ; but 
 then" 
 
 The speaker paused, but his silence spoke 
 volumes. It was plain that the selectman 
 understood what he meant by it, for he said, 
 with some earnestness : 
 
 "That's jest what I thought, an' jest what 
 I said. A boy whose father is a thief will 
 bear watchin'. Now see here, Ruben. It's 
 a mighty disagreeable thing to talk about, 
 but I jest want to tell you. In less'n a week 
 arter the doors of the prison closed behind 
 your brother, George an' his mother began 
 livin' on the fat of the land. Why, I have 
 seen him in Chandler's store, more'n once, 
 spendin' money for oranges an' lemons an' 
 canned peaches things that never come into 
 
28 THE MYSTERY OF LOST KIVER CANYON. 
 
 my house, 'cause I can't afford 'em an I'd 
 like to know where he got that money." 
 
 "He used to sell fish an' berries, you 
 know," Uncle Ruben ventured to remark. 
 
 " Do you s'pose he made all his money in 
 that way ? " inquired Mr. Brown. " Don't 
 you reckon he made more out of something 
 else butter an' chickens, for instance an' 
 that this fish an' berry business was jest a 
 blind ? I do ; an' I ain't the only one who 
 thinks so, neither. An' I'll tell you another 
 thing. You can make up your mind to hear 
 of stealin' an' plunderin' about this village 
 before a week has passed away. Sich doin's 
 wasn't never heard of till George built that 
 shanty of his'n up there in the hills. There 
 wasn't none of it goin' on while he was to 
 home here, 'tendin' to his mother; but now 
 that he has took to the woods, it'll begin ag'in. 
 You wait an' see." 
 
 So saying, Mr. Brown touched his sleepy 
 old horse with the long hickory switch which 
 he always carried instead of a whip, and drove 
 off, leaving Uncle Ruben to his meditations. 
 
 The latter did not look like a man whose 
 
UNCLE EUBEN LEARNS SOMETHING. 29 
 
 only nephew had just been accused of being 
 a thief. He did not appear to be either sorry 
 or vexed, and, in fact, he wasn't. 
 
 The expression of his countenance showed 
 that he was surprised, and the sinister smile that 
 lingered about his lips, and the gleeful way in 
 which he rubbed his hands together, seemed 
 to indicate that he was delighted, as well. 
 
 " Much obliged to you for your visit, Mr. 
 Brown," said he, as he mounted the steps that 
 led to the porch. " So George was the one 
 that stole my Plymouth Rocks, an' cut up all 
 them other shines, was he? I'm glad I found 
 it out afore I spoke to the selectmen about 
 havin' him bound out to me, for now I can 
 save the cost of havin' the papers drawn up. 
 I'll go home an' speak to Polly Ann, an' then 
 I'll ride up to the lake an' have another talk 
 with George. I guess he will listen to me this 
 time." 
 
 Having made sure that all the doors and 
 windows were securely fastened, Uncle Ruben 
 mounted his horse and set out for home. 
 
 At the end of a quarter of an hour, the 
 fast-walking clay-bank carried him through 
 
30 THE MYSTERY OF LOST EIVER CANYON. 
 
 an open gate and past the back door of a thrifty 
 farmhouse. 
 
 On the porch stood his wife, who looked 
 surprised, and gave a somewhat incoherent re- 
 ply to his cheerful greeting. 
 
 On ordinary occasions, Uncle Ruben was 
 not an agreeable person to have about the 
 house. He was always sullen and morose, un- 
 less he had been fortunate in some way, and 
 then he had a smile and a pleasant word for 
 everybody. 
 
 " Your father is in luck to-day, Sally/' said 
 Mrs. Edwards, as she went into the kitchen to 
 assist her daughter with the dinner that was 
 ready to be served up. " I know when he has 
 made a good trade as well as he knows it him- 
 self." 
 
 " Well, then," replied Sally, joyously, " he 
 must give me money enough to buy one of 
 them new hats I seen down in the village 
 t'other day. I can tell him that much." 
 
 Having put the clay-bank in his stall and 
 performed his ablutions at the horse-trough in 
 the barn-yard, Uncle Ruben came in and an- 
 nounced that he was ready for dinner. 
 
UNCLE RUBEN LEARNS SOMETHING. 31 
 
 While he was seated at the table, he talked 
 about almost every subject except the one that 
 was uppermost in his mind to tell the truth, 
 he stood a little in awe of his wife, and 
 dreaded the explosion which he knew would 
 follow when he spoke of his nephew, and told 
 of the arrangements he had decided to make 
 with him and it was not until he had got up 
 from his chair and put on his hat that he said 
 to her : 
 
 "By the way, Polly Ann, I guess you 
 might as well do a little something t' wards 
 fixin' up that bed in the garret, for I shall 
 most likely bring a boy home with me to- 
 night. 7 ' 
 
 "Who is he?" demanded Mrs. Edwards, 
 rather sharply. 
 
 Bound boys and Uncle Ruben never had 
 any other were her pet aversion. 
 
 " George," said her husband. 
 
 " Not your nephew, George Edwards ?" 
 exclaimed Polly Ann, in shrill tones. 
 
 Uncle Ruben nodded, and moved nearer 
 to the door. 
 
 " Well, if that don't beat anything I ever 
 
32 THE MYSTERY OF LOST RIVER CANYON. 
 
 heard of, I wouldn't say so. Ruben Elias 
 Edwards, have you gone an' took leave of 
 your seven senses ? Don't you know " 
 
 "Yes, I know all about it," interrupted 
 Uncle Euben. " I know that by bringin' him 
 here I can save enough money durin' the 
 next six years to buy you an' Sally all the 
 nice dresses an' hats you want." 
 
 Sally's face grew radiant, but her mother 
 was not deceived. She had listened to just 
 such promises before, and knew how much 
 they were worth. She settled back in her 
 chair, with a determined look on her face, 
 and Uncle Ruben, knowing what was coming, 
 hastened to the barn to saddle his horse. 
 
 When he rode by the porch the storm was 
 at its height. His wife was crying and scold- 
 ing at an alarming rate, and her shrill tones 
 rang in his ears long after he had passed 
 through the gate. 
 
 " Women is curious things," said Uncle 
 Ruben to himself, as he urged the clay-bank 
 forward at his best pace. " I knowed Polly 
 Ann would raise a harrycane when I told her 
 about George ; but, in course, I couldn't help 
 
UNCLE KUBEN LEARNS SOMETHING. 33 
 
 that. She'll do as I told her, all the same, 
 'cause I am the head boss in that house. 
 When I once make up my mind to a thing, it 
 has got to go through." 
 
 This was probably true, so far as his wife 
 and daughter were concerned, for they were 
 dependent upon him; but George wasn't, 
 and when Uncle Ruben came to deal with 
 that young gentleman, he found that he had 
 undertaken more than he could accomplish. 
 
34 THE MYSTERY OF LOST RIVER CANYON. 
 
 CHAPTER III. 
 
 A SURPRISE. 
 
 ' AT^ doubt, I ought to feel very grateful 
 1.M toward Uncle Ruben for the offer he 
 has just made me, but I can't say that I do," 
 soliloquized George Edwards, as he trudged 
 along the dusty road, with his heavy bundle 
 slung over his shoulder. " I am almost seven- 
 teen years old now, and I am getting too big 
 to work for my board and clothes. I am not 
 obliged to do it, for I can clear a dollar a day 
 up here in the woods, and, as my living will 
 not cost me anything to speak of, I can save 
 enough money by next spring to take me so 
 far away from this miserable place that I shall 
 never hear of it again. I know I shall be 
 very lonely, but I shall have peace and com- 
 fort, and be well out of the reach of Aunt 
 Polly Ann's sharp tongue." 
 
 Here George turned off the main road, and 
 
A SURPRISE. 35 
 
 letting down a pair of bars that gave en- 
 trance into an extensive sheep pasture, once 
 more shouldered his bundle and directed his 
 course along a blind path which ran through 
 a thick grove of evergreens. Fortunately he 
 did not know what the future had in store 
 for him. 
 
 The peace and comfort he hoped to find in 
 his forest home were to be denied him. Al- 
 ready skillful plots, that were intended to 
 work his ruin, were being laid against him, 
 and George was destined to see the day when 
 he almost wished that he had accepted his 
 uncle's offer ; but then it was too late. 
 
 " It seems to me that things might be made 
 to work smoother and easier for some of us," 
 said George, to himself, as he took off his hat 
 and stopped for a moment under the wide- 
 spreading branches of the evergreens to en- 
 joy the grateful shade. " Dame Fortune has 
 nothing but smiles for some folks, and, as she 
 hasn't got enough to go round, the rest of us 
 have to take frowns. Now, look at those fel- 
 lows ! If I had as much money as their guns 
 cost, I could get an education that would en- 
 
36 THE MYSTERY OF LOST EIVEE CANYON. 
 
 able me to be of some use in the world. Never 
 mind ; I'll have it yet. 
 
 George settled his hat on his head with a 
 vigorous slap, and, running down the path, 
 presently emerged from the evergreens, and 
 found himself on the outskirts of a little 
 field, which had been cultivated in the years 
 gone by, but was now given over to briers and 
 huckleberry bushes. 
 
 On the opposite side of this field, which 
 was entirely surrounded by woods, was a 
 huge rock, at whose base a spring of pure, 
 cold water bubbled up. 
 
 Stretched at their ease on the grass near 
 this spring were the " fellows," the sight of 
 whom, as he caught a momentary glimpse of 
 them through the trees, had started George on 
 the train of thought with which he closed his 
 soliloquy. 
 
 Their dress and accoutrements seemed to 
 indicate that they had come out for a hunt ; 
 although it is hard to tell what they intended 
 to shoot, it being too late in the season for 
 ruffled grouse and quails, and too early for 
 young squirrels. They were all the sons of 
 
A SUEPEISE. 37" 
 
 rich men almost inseparable companions 
 and were rapidly acquiring the reputation of 
 being a " hard crowd." 
 
 Careful and judicious fathers cautioned their 
 sons against associating with them ; but that 
 did not seem to trouble these young fellows, 
 who kept on enjoying themselves in their own 
 way, and paying no heed to what others might 
 say or think of them. 
 
 They were engaged in earnest conversation, 
 and so deeply engrossed were they in the sub- 
 ject under discussion, whatever it was, that 
 they did not hear the sound of George's ap- 
 proaching footsteps until he had come quite 
 near to them. 
 
 "I tell you, boys," he heard one of them 
 say, "that will be a ten-strike, and we can 
 start on our western trip as soon as we 
 please. You know that old Stebbins will not 
 trust any of the banks, and consequently he 
 must have the money in his house." 
 
 " But, of course, he keeps it stowed away 
 in some snug hiding-place," said one of his 
 companions, " and we don't know where 
 that is, What good will it do to break 
 
38 THE MYSTERY OF LOST EIVER CANYON. 
 
 into the house if we can't find the money 
 after we" 
 
 The boy finished the sentence by uttering a 
 cry of alarm and springing to his feet. 
 
 His two companions, who were no less 
 alarmed, also jumped up, and were astonished 
 beyond measure to see George Edwards stand- 
 ing within a few feet of them. 
 
 For a few seconds they stood regarding him 
 with eyes that seemed ready to start from 
 their sockets, while their faces grew whiter 
 and their knees trembled beneath them. 
 
 The one who had last spoken was the first 
 to recover his speech and power of action. 
 Snatching up the hammerless gun that lay in 
 the grass at his feet, he called out in savage 
 tones : 
 
 " What are you doing here ? Make your- 
 self scarce at once, or I'll " 
 
 " What are you about, Benson ?" cried one 
 of his companions, seizing the double-barrel, 
 and giving its owner a look that was full of 
 significance. " Why, man alive, have you 
 taken leave of your senses ? Don't you see who 
 that is ? Its Edwards George Edwards." 
 
\ 
 A SUKPKISE. 39 
 
 " So it is," said Benson, lowering his gun, 
 and calling a sickly smile to his frightened 
 face. " You'll not feel very highly compli- 
 mented, I know, George, but the fact is I took 
 you for a tramp." 
 
 His two companions laughed loudly, and 
 George smiled and threw his bundle down 
 beside the spring. 
 
 " That's a good joke on you, Benson," said 
 one of the young hunters who answered to 
 the name of Wallace. " When we return to 
 the village, you'll have to set up the cigars, if 
 you want us to keep still about it." 
 
 " It's a bargain," replied Benson, laying his 
 gun on the ground and seating himself be- 
 side it. " Are you travelling, George, or just 
 going somewhere ?" 
 
 " I am going somewhere," answered George, 
 as he took a tin cup from his bundle arid 
 dipped it into the spring. 
 
 "Got a job?" 
 
 " No don't want any, as long as I remain 
 in this country." 
 
 " Going out to your cabin by the lake?" 
 
 George replied that he was ; and, having 
 
40 THE MYSTERY OF LOST EIVEE CANYON. 
 
 drained his cup, he leaned over to fill it again, 
 the three hunters improving the opportunity 
 to exchange glances that were full of mean- 
 ing. 
 
 " How are you going to make a living out 
 there during the winter?" inquired Benson. 
 " In summer you can fish and pick berries ; 
 but when the snow covers the ground, and the 
 lake is frozen clear to the bottom, then what ?" 
 
 " The lake doesn't freeze clear to the bot- 
 tom," said George, with a laugh. " I can sup- 
 ply the village with the muskalonge that I 
 shall spear through the ice I shall have a 
 monopoly of that trade, you know, for the 
 lake is so far away that no one thinks of go- 
 ing up there in winter and the snow will 
 afford me the means of tracking minks, rac- 
 coons and hares. 
 
 " Hares ! You mean rabbits, I suppose ?" 
 
 " No, I don't. There are no wild rabbits in 
 America." 
 
 Benson opened his eyes, and showed a dis- 
 position to argue that point, but he was 
 checked by a look from Wallace. He evi- 
 dently understood just what it meant, for he 
 
A SUEPEISE. 41 
 
 settled back on his elbow and relapsed into 
 silence. 
 
 None of the hunters had anything to say 
 after that, and George, believing that his ab- 
 sence would suit them better than his com- 
 pany, shouldered his bundle, said good-by, 
 and struck into .the path that led to the 
 hills. 
 
 " You're a good one, Benson, you are !" ex- 
 claimed Wallace, as soon as he had satisfied 
 himself that George was out of hearing. 
 " You gave us dead away, in the first place, 
 and then kept him here by talking to 
 him." 
 
 " I wanted to allay his suspicions, if he had 
 any," replied Benson. " That was the reason 
 I talked to him." 
 
 " Was that the reason why you pointed 
 your gun at him ?" inquired the hunter who 
 had not spoken before, and whose name was 
 Forbes. 
 
 " I was a little too hasty, that's a fact," said 
 Benson. " But you remember what we were 
 talking about, do you not? Well, when I 
 looked up and saw him standing there, almost 
 
42 THE MYSTERY OF LOST RIVER CANYON. 
 
 within reach of us, I was so badly frightened 
 that I didn't know what I was doing. Do you 
 suppose he heard anything ?" 
 
 " Of course he heard something," growled 
 Wallace, in reply. " He must be deaf if he 
 didn't." 
 
 " But do you think he suspected anything?" 
 
 " Ah, that's another question ! I hope not; 
 but there's no telling. I can tell you one 
 thing, however. There isn't room enough in 
 the hills for George Edwards and our party, 
 too, and one or the other must go." 
 
 " I was thinking of that myself," said Forbes. 
 " He might discover something, you know, 
 while he's prowling around in search of his 
 minks and coons. Couldn't we drive him out 
 by burning his shanty ?" 
 
 " We might put him to some trouble, but 
 we couldn't drive him out in that way," replied 
 Wallace. " George is handy with an axe, and in 
 two days' time he could build another cabin, 
 and perhaps he would be smart enough to keep 
 watch of it. But I shall not draw an easy 
 breath as long as he is up there. If he should 
 happen to stumble upon our cache ? Whew ! 
 
A SUEPEISE. 43 
 
 We must think about this, boys, and decide 
 upon something." 
 
 Meanwhile, George Edwards was plodding 
 along towards the lake, and while he walked 
 he pondered deeply. The incidents of the 
 last half hour perplexed and astonished him. 
 What was the meaning of Benson's unwar- 
 rantable excitement ? and what was it that had 
 caused the alarm so plainly visible on the 
 faces of the three hunters when they first be- 
 came aware of his approach ? 
 
 " Benson never took me for a tramp," said 
 George to himself. " That story was a fraud 
 on the face of it. And, then, what business 
 had they to be talking about old man Steb- 
 bins, and the money he is supposed to have 
 in his house ? It is a wonder to me that he 
 hasn't been robbed a dozen times." 
 
 There were one or two other points in the 
 conversation he had overheard that came into 
 the boy's mind, but to which he did not then 
 attach any importance. He did not think of 
 them again until some days had passed away, 
 and then they were recalled to his recollection 
 in a most unexpected manner. 
 
44 THE MYSTERY OF LOST EIVER CANYON. 
 
 It was fifteen miles from George's old home 
 to his home in the woods, and, as the road 
 that led to it (if the blind path he followed 
 could be called a road) ran up hill nearly all 
 the way, it took him a long time to cover the 
 distance much longer than it usually did, 
 for he was encumbered by his heavy bundle. 
 
 The sun was sinking behind the trees when 
 he came out of the bushes and stopped to rest 
 for a moment on a little promontory that 
 jutted out into the deep-blue bosom of Lone 
 Lake a beautiful sheet of water, nine miles 
 long and half as wide, and situated twenty- 
 five hundred feet above the level of the sea 
 at least, that was what the young surveyors 
 at the Montford Academy said. 
 
 George gazed upon its mirror-like surface 
 as one gazes upon the face of a friend from 
 whom he has long been separated. It had 
 yielded him and his mother a support and 
 kept a roof over their heads for two long 
 years, and it was his main dependence now. 
 
 If any one had told him, that before the 
 sun had again been reflected in those calm 
 waters half a score of times, some scenes 
 
A SUEPEISE. 45 
 
 would be enacted there that would change 
 the whole course of his life, George would 
 not have put the least faith in the statement ; 
 but it would have been the truth, neverthe- 
 less. 
 
46 THE MYSTERY OF LOST EIVER CANYON. 
 
 CHAPTER IV. 
 
 A HOME IN THE WOODS. 
 
 HAVING taken time to cool off and re- 
 cover his breath, George once more 
 lifted his bundle to his shoulder and resumed 
 his journey. He had not more than two miles 
 to go now, and as he followed the beach, where 
 the walking was good, it took him but a short 
 time to cover the distance. 
 
 The next time he threw down his bundle 
 it was in front of a snug little cabin, built of 
 rough logs, and situated on a little rise of 
 ground that commanded a fine view of the 
 lake. 
 
 " Things are all right outside," said George 
 to himself, as he took a key from his pocket 
 and inserted it into the padlock with which 
 the heavy slab door was secured ; " and that 
 is something to wonder at. There are lots of 
 mean boys in the village, and I was afraid 
 
A HOME IN THE WOODS. 47 
 
 that some of them had been up here during 
 my absence. Everything seems to be all 
 right inside, too," he added, as the door swung 
 open and the interior of the cabin was dis- 
 closed to view. 
 
 George stepped across the threshold as he 
 spoke, and this was what he saw : A room 
 twelve or thirteen feet square, with a heavy, 
 ungainly-looking scow turned bottom upward 
 in the middle of it ; a wide fire-place with a 
 stick chimney and a stone hearth ; over it a 
 rough mantel-piece, on which stood a lamp 
 and several books ; at the opposite end an 
 open cupboard piled with bright tin dishes ; 
 under the cupboard a table and two or three 
 stools, all made of slabs and neatly made, 
 too ; in a corner, near the door, a pair of oars 
 and a small sprit-sail made of unbleached 
 muslin ; and lastly, a cord hammock, with 
 two quilts, as many blankets, and a pillow 
 in it. 
 
 There was no floor in the cabin, and neither 
 were there any windows. The ground, which 
 was almost as hard as the stone that formed 
 the hearth, was easily kept clean, and the door, 
 
48 THE MYSTERY OF LOST EIVER CANYON. 
 
 being allowed to stand open during the day- 
 time, except in very stormy weather, admitted 
 all the light that was necessary. 
 
 Some boys would have thought this a very 
 cheerless and uninviting home, and so it was, 
 but it was the only one George had. He 
 had lived in the hope of some day being able 
 to provide himself with a better. 
 
 " There's one thing about it," thought the 
 boy, as he placed several sticks of round 
 wood upon the ground and made prepara- 
 tions to roll the heavy scow out of the 
 cabin, " I am my own master. There is no 
 one to tell me what I shall do and what I shall 
 not do, and all the money I make is my own. 
 If I had agreed to Uncle Ruben's proposition, 
 I should have to go hungry and half clad, 
 listen to a scolding from Aunt Polly Ann 
 every hour in the day, and now and then I'd 
 have to take a cowhiding from Uncle Ruben. 
 I'd much rather live here alone than with 
 them, and I don't care if I ne Tr er see " 
 
 George's soliloquy was in . apted by a 
 sound that startled him the clatter of a 
 horse's hoofs on the gravelly beach. He 
 
A HOME IN THE WOODS. 49 
 
 looked out at the door, and was astonished 
 to see Uncle Ruben riding toward the cabin. 
 
 If one might judge by the expression of 
 his face he was in very good humor about 
 something. Dismounting, he drew the bridle- 
 rein over his horse's head, and dropped it to 
 the ground so that the animal could not stray 
 away, at the same time greeting his nephew 
 with : 
 
 " Well, George, I don't reckon you expected 
 to see me ag'in so soon, did you ?" 
 
 " No, I didn't," replied the boy. 
 
 And Uncle Ruben would have been dull, 
 indeed, if he had not been able to see that 
 he was not wanted there, 
 
 " I didn't expect to see you, nuther," con- 
 tinued the man, seating himself on the scow, 
 which had been rolled part way through the 
 door. "But I thought mebbe I'd better 
 have another lee tie talk with you" 
 
 " It's of no use," said George " of no use 
 whatever. If f l had to live in the same house 
 with you, I w$uld not work for you for fifty 
 dollars a montn " 
 
 " another leetle talk with you," repeated 
 
50 THE MYSTEEY OF LOST EIVEE CANYON. 
 
 Uncle Ruben, paying no heed to the inter- 
 ruption, " for I think you will be willin' to 
 listen to me now." 
 
 " Well, you are mistaken. I shall never 
 agree to your proposition. I know you too 
 well." 
 
 " I wouldn't git up on a high hoss, if I was 
 in your place. Tain't becomin'," said Uncle 
 Ruben, in a significant tone. " Hold on now," 
 he added, seeing that George's face began to 
 flush with indignation. " I ain't speakin' of 
 what your father's done. I'm speakin' of 
 what you have done yourself." 
 
 " I have done nothing to be ashamed of. I 
 have tried to behave myself, and to deserve 
 the respect of those around me. I have 
 always made an honest living " 
 
 " Have you, though ? Well, there's them 
 right here in this town as says you hain't," 
 interrupted Uncle Ruben, with a triumphant 
 air. 
 
 " Oh, I know that there are those who 
 make a business of saying all sorts of unkind 
 things about me," answered George, in a 
 voice that was choked with indignation, 
 
A HOME IN THE WOODS. 51 
 
 " but all they can say will not alter the facts 
 of the case. I say now, and I don't care 
 who disputes it " 
 
 He suddenly paused, for there was an ex- 
 pression in his uncle's eyes that he could not 
 understand. He looked steadily at him for a 
 moment, and then seated himself on the 
 other end of the scow. 
 
 " There, now !" said Uncle Ruben, in a 
 tone of satisfaction. " I kinder thought that 
 mebbe you'd be willin' to listen to reason 
 after while. It's the gospel truth, an' folks 
 do say it." 
 
 " What do they say ?" 
 
 " They say they don't know where you got 
 the money you used to spend at the store 
 for the oranges an' trash you used to buy for 
 your mother." 
 
 "Well, if you hear anybody asking any 
 questions about it, you can just tell them, for 
 me, that it's none of their business !" replied 
 George, angrily. 
 
 " But folks '11 make it their business. You 
 can't expect that they'll stand by an' let their 
 stores be broke into an' robbed, an' their 
 
52 THE MYSTERY OF LOST KIVEE CANYON. 
 
 butter an' chickens stole, without making a 
 fuss about it. Don't stand to reason." 
 
 "Uncle Euben, explain yourself/ 7 said 
 George, jumping to his feet. " You don't 
 mean to tell me " 
 
 " Yes, I do," broke in the man, who knew 
 what his nephew was about to say. " Every- 
 body knows that you have been spendin' a 
 heap of money sence your father was locked 
 up, an' that you didn't make it by sellin' fish 
 an' berries." 
 
 " How did I make it, then ?" asked George, 
 who was utterly bewildered. 
 
 " How can I tell ? I don't know where all 
 that nice butter an' them fine chickens an' 
 silk goods went to. True, that's jest what 
 folks say about you," continued Uncle Ruben, 
 who saw that George was almost overwhelmed 
 by the hints he had thrown out, "an' they'll 
 keep on sayin' it as long as you live up here 
 in this wild Injun fashion. Your Aunt Polly 
 Ann, who sets a heap of store by you, has 
 been to the trouble of fixin' up a nice bed- 
 room for you, an' I promised her, sure, that 
 I'd bring you home with me." 
 
A HOME IN THE WOODS. 53 
 
 " Well, when you see her again, tell her 
 that the reason that you didn't keep your 
 promise was because I wouldn't go home with 
 you," said George. 
 
 "You won't?" You'd better. Jest see 
 how people are talkin' about you." 
 
 " Let them talk until they get tired, and 
 then, perhaps they will stop. I'll not go," 
 declared George, shortly. 
 
 " But you must. I've set my heart on it, 
 an' so has your Aunt Polly Ann." 
 
 " I can'Uielp that." 
 
 " The constable might come up here an' 
 arrest you for a thief." 
 
 " I know he might, but he won't. At any 
 rate, I'll take the risk. Now, Uncle Euben, 
 you might as well understand, first as last, 
 that you can't scare me into going home with 
 you. Let me shove the boat out, please. 
 There is a storm coming up, and I want to 
 go out on the lake and catch some fish for 
 supper before it gets here." 
 
 " Well, George," said Uncle Ruben, as he 
 arose to his feet, " I have tried to do my duty 
 by you. I have offered you a good home, an* 
 
54 THE MYSTEEY OF LOST KIVER CANYON. 
 
 give you fair warnin' of what will be sartin 
 to happen to you if you hold to your fool no- 
 tion of livin' up here all alone by yourself. 
 Folks will think there's something wrong 
 somewhere." 
 
 " They needn't trouble themselves about me. 
 Let them attend to their own business, and I 
 will attend to mine." 
 
 " If you git into trouble through your mu- 
 lishness, you mustn't blame rne for it." 
 
 " I won't. Good-by !" 
 
 " He's a bad boy a monstrous bad boy !" 
 soliloquized Uncle Ruben, as he mounted his 
 horse and rode away ; " an' he'll surely come 
 to some bad end, jest as his father did before 
 him. He shan't stay up here wastin' his time 
 when he had oughter be at work, an' that's all 
 there is about it." 
 
 George watched his uncle as long as he re- 
 mained in sight, and then went to work to get 
 his scow into the water. He was surprised 
 and bewildered, but he was not frightened, 
 for he could not bring himself to believe that 
 the man had told him the truth. What reason 
 could anybody have for saying that he was 
 
A HOME IN THE WOODS. 55 
 
 the thief whose depredations had caused so 
 great an excitement in the village ? 
 
 " Uncle Ruben made it all up out of his 
 own head," said George to himself, as he 
 pushed the scow into the water and made the 
 painter fast to a convenient tree, "and it is only 
 one of the many mean tricks of which I know 
 him to be guilty. The village people know 
 where I live, and if they suspect me, let them 
 come up here and find some of the stolen goods 
 in my possession. That's a thing they can't do." 
 
 Consoling himself with this reflection, 
 George went into the cabin again, and when 
 he came out he brought out with him the 
 oars belonging to the scow, and also a stout 
 fishing-rod. It was not a jointed lancewood 
 rod, with German-silver mountings, wound 
 butt, and nickel-plated reel-seat, but simply a 
 hickory sapling he had cut in the bushes. 
 
 George could not afford a fancy outfit, and 
 this rod, which had cost him nothing at all, 
 answered the purpose for which it was in- 
 tended, and if he chanced to break it while 
 playing a heavy fish, he could in five minutes 
 provide himself with another just as good. 
 
56 THE MYSTERY OF LOST EIVEK CANYON. 
 
 Having filled his box with bait, which he 
 found under a log behind the cabin, George 
 stepped into his scow and pushed her off from 
 the beach. 
 
 Just then a loud peal of thunder echoed 
 among the hills, and the smooth surface of the 
 lake was ruffled by the first breath of the on- 
 coming storm. A thick, black cloud which 
 had been hanging in the horizon all day long, 
 was now rising rapidly, and, during the five 
 minutes that George had been employed in 
 getting his boat into the water and digging 
 his bait, it had covered the whole sky. 
 
 It was growing dark, and the lake looked 
 black and threatening. It was a treacherous 
 body of water a capful of wind was enough 
 to raise a sea that would try almost any boat 
 and George knew better than to trust him- 
 self upon it while a gale was raging. 
 
 " I guess I don't want any fish for supper," 
 said he, as he shifted his oar to the other side 
 of the boat, and pushed her back toward the 
 beach. " I shall have to be satisfied with 
 what I brought with me in my bundle. It's 
 going to be a hard one," he added, as a strong 
 
A HOME IN THE WOODS. 57 
 
 gust of wind lifted his hat from his head and 
 carried it toward the cabin ; " and I thank my 
 lucky stars that I have a tight roof to shelter 
 me. What in the world was that ?" 
 
 Having drawn his scow high up on the 
 beach, and fastened the painter securely to a 
 tree, George ran to recover his hat ; and just 
 then, something that sounded like a cry for 
 help came faintly to his ears. 
 
 Believing that the appeal came from the 
 woods, George listened intently, and in a few 
 seconds the cry was repeated. This time the 
 wind brought it to him very plainly, and he 
 caught the words : 
 
 " Help ! help ! Our boat is sinking !" 
 
 George looked in the direction from which 
 the voice sounded, and was greatly astonished 
 as well as alarmed, to see a cockle-shell of a 
 boat dancing about among the waves, which 
 had already grown to formidable proportions. 
 While he gazed, she sank out of sight, and 
 nothing but the top of the little shoulder-of- 
 mutton sail she carried in the bow remained 
 in view to show that she was still above water. 
 
58 THE MYSTERY OF LOST KIVEB CANYON. 
 
 CHAPTER V. 
 
 A CAPSIZE. 
 
 EORGE EDWARDS held his breath in 
 suspense. The hull of the little craft was 
 so long out of sight that he began to fear he 
 would never see it again ; but, all of a sud- 
 den, it bobbed up as buoyantly as a cork, 
 and once more that frantic appeal for assist- 
 ance was borne across the lake. 
 
 George was now able to see that there were 
 two boys in the boat. One was clinging to 
 the mast, waving his handkerchief over his 
 head as a signal of distress, and the other 
 was seated in the stern, wielding a clumsy- 
 looking paddle, with which he endeavored to 
 keep the boat before the wind. 
 
 George looked at them, and then he looked 
 toward the promontory on which he had 
 stopped to rest when he first reached the lake. 
 
 This promontory was about fifty feet in 
 
& CAPSIZE. 59 
 
 height, and its base was thickly lined with 
 rocks, over which the waves were dashing 
 with great violence, throwing the spray high 
 in the air. It was not more than half a mile 
 distant, and the wind was driving the boat 
 toward it with fearful rapidity. 
 
 " What lunatics those fellows must be to 
 venture out on this lake when they don't 
 know how to manage a boat!" exclaimed 
 George. " If they hold that course they will 
 be dashed to pieces on the rocks, as sure as 
 they are living boys." Then, bringing his 
 hands to his face, and using them as a speak- 
 ing-trumpet, he shouted with all the power 
 of his lungs, " Haul down your sail and pull 
 for the beach !" 
 
 The boy who was holding on to the mast 
 waved his signal of distress over his head, and 
 then the boat sank out of sight again. 
 
 When she reappeared, George once more 
 shouted to her crew to haul down the sail, at 
 the same time striving to warn them of their 
 danger by pointing toward the rocks and 
 beckoning to them to come ashore. 
 
 But his instructions must have been mis- 
 
60 THE MYSTERY OF LOST EIVEE CANYON. 
 
 understood, or else the boat's crew could not 
 obey them, for their little craft kept driving 
 on toward the rocks, while one of the boys 
 continued to wave his handkerchief, and the 
 other to ply his clumsy paddle. 
 
 It was plain that they could not save them- 
 selves, and that George was the only one who 
 could render them any assistance. The boy's 
 face grew pale when this fact flashed upon 
 him, but it wore a very determined look. 
 
 " It's almost certain death," said he, as he 
 cast off the painter and pushed the scow into 
 the water ; "but I can at least make the at- 
 tempt. If I go under, there is nobody to miss 
 
 me." 
 
 Pushing his scow through the surf, and 
 wading until the water was nearly up to his 
 waist, George clambered in, shipped the oars, 
 and pulled out into the lake. 
 
 When Uncle Ruben was at the cabin, he 
 had shown a disposition to turn up his nose 
 at his nephew's boat, which was the boy's 
 own handiwork ; but if he could have seen 
 how she behaved now, he would have learned 
 that she was much better than she looked to 
 
A CAPSIZE. 61 
 
 be. Being broad of beam and light of draught, 
 she seemed to skim over the top of the waves 
 instead of breaking through them, and, heavy 
 as she was, George was able to send her ahead 
 with considerable speed. 
 
 He rowed fast enough to intercept the sail- 
 boat when she was within less than a quarter 
 of a mile of the threatening rocks and then 
 he found, greatly to his surprise, that she was 
 a canoe, so lightly built, apparently, that a 
 boy of ordinary strength could take her on 
 his back and walk off with her with all ease. 
 
 She was making bad weather of it, for she 
 was half-full of water, and every time she 
 struck a wave she would bury her nose in it 
 almost out of sight. If her two occupants 
 realized the danger of their situation, they did 
 not show it. They were as cool as boys could 
 possibly be. 
 
 The one in the bow watched George's 
 movements with a good deal of interest, while 
 the dignified young fellow in spectacles, who 
 was sitting in the stern and using the butt 
 of his double -barrel for a paddle, issued his 
 orders with great calmness and deliberation. 
 
62 THE MYSTERY OF LOST RIVER CANYON. 
 
 " Bring your boat around head to the wind, 
 if you can, and let us come alongside of you," 
 said he, addressing himself to George. "You 
 will have to do all the work, for I have lost my 
 paddle; and if the canoe should broach to, we'd 
 be tumbled out into the lake before you could 
 say 'General Jackson' with your mouth open." 
 
 George saw at a glance that the dignified 
 young gentleman knew how to handle a ca- 
 noe, and that in keeping the sail hoisted he 
 was doing the best that could be done under 
 the circumstances. If he had attempted to 
 make the beach, he would have brought his 
 cranky little craft broadside to the waves, and, 
 having no centre-board, and scarcely any 
 bearing, she would have been overturned in 
 an instant, leaving her crew to sink, or drift 
 helplessly toward the rocks. 
 
 That very thing did happen to her soon. 
 Although George tried hard to place himself 
 directly across her bows, the canoe shot wild 
 of him ; and in his efforts to bring her along- 
 side the scow, the skipper lost control of her, 
 and over she went, turning completely bottom 
 upward. 
 
A CAPSIZE. 63 
 
 The rocks were now but a short distance 
 away, and the noise made by the waves as 
 they dashed over them was enough to frighten 
 anybody. George was frightened, and his 
 pale face showed it. 
 
 It would have been a work of no little diffi- 
 culty to row a light boat away from that dan- 
 gerous spot ; but to wait there long enough 
 to pick up a couple of boys who were tossed 
 about by the waves, now here, now there, and 
 always just out of reach, to rescue them and 
 then save himself, was a task requiring great 
 skill and prudence. 
 
 George looked at the rocks and then he 
 looked about for the canoe's crew. To his 
 great joy they arose to the surface, one after 
 the other, and they were close ahead of him, 
 too. One was near enough to seize the gun- 
 wale of the scow, while the other promptly 
 laid hold of the oar that was thrust out to- 
 ward him. 
 
 " Where's Goggles ?" asked the first, wiping 
 the water out of his eyes, and looking around 
 to find his companion. 
 
 " He's all right !" answered George. " Climb 
 
64 THE MYSTERY OF LOST EIVEE CANYON. 
 
 in quick ! Not over the side, for your weight 
 will capsize the scow. Go around to the stern. 
 Be lively now, or the waves will throw us on 
 the rocks." 
 
 The boy looked toward the breakers, but 
 the sight of them did not seem to terrify him 
 in the least. He worked his way around to 
 the stern, climbed into the scow, and then 
 turned to assist his companion, who was 
 clinging to the oar with one hand, while in 
 the other he held a light double-barreled 
 shotgun. 
 
 " Say, Goggles !" said the boy in the boat ; 
 " I am just a hundred dollars out of pocket, 
 by this day's work. Give us your gun. Mine 
 is at the bottom of the lake. I told you your 
 cranky little egg-shell wasn't seaworthy I" 
 
 " The canoe is all right, so far as her sea- 
 going qualities are concerned/' was the reply. 
 " If I hadn't lost my paddle overboard, she 
 would have taken us ashore without shipping 
 so much as a cupful of water. But we have 
 taken our last ride in her. She will be 
 smashed into kindling-wood on those rocks." 
 
 " Haul him in I haul him in !" cried George, 
 
A CAPSIZE. 65 
 
 in great excitement. " We shall be smashed 
 into kindling-wood, too, if we don't get out of 
 this ! Now, then/' he continued, as the boy 
 who had been addressed as " Goggles " was 
 dragged aboard, " take an oar, one of you, and 
 pull for your life." 
 
 The boys had no light task before them, 
 and if Goggles had not been a capital oars- 
 man, it is hard to tell how the struggle would 
 have ended. 
 
 For a long time the heavy boat seemed to 
 remain stationary. With all their exertions, 
 they could make no perceptible headway ; 
 but finally they began to gain a little, and, 
 after half an hour's hard pulling, they suc- 
 ceeded in beaching the scow about half-way 
 between the promontory and the cabin. 
 
 George landed there, because he thought it 
 would be easier to walk a quarter of a mile 
 than it would be to pull the boat that dis- 
 tance against the wind and the waves. 
 
 " Now, then," said Goggles, as he and his 
 companion assisted in securing the boat, so 
 that it would not drift away; "the next 
 thing is something else. A fire to dry our 
 
 5 
 
66 THE MYSTERY OF LOST EIVEE CANYON. 
 
 clothes by and something good to eat, would 
 be very acceptable just now. Do you live 
 far from here, my friend?" 
 
 " Only a short distance away," answered 
 George. " If you will go up to my shanty, 
 you can have both the fire and the supper. 
 I can't promise you that the grub will be 
 very good " 
 
 "Say nothing about that," interrupted 
 Goggles. " I hope we shall not put your 
 folks to any trouble." 
 
 " No," replied George, sadly ; " you'll not 
 put them to any trouble." Then, seeing the 
 expression of surprise and inquiry on the 
 faces of the rescued boys, he added, " I am 
 my own cook and housekeeper. I am living 
 up here alone." 
 
 " Oh, you're out for a holiday, then ! You 
 came here to hunt and fish, I suppose?" 
 
 " Yes, I came here to fish ; but I am not 
 taking a holiday. It's a matter of bread and 
 butter with me." 
 
 " You don't say so ! Can't you find any- 
 thing to do in the village ?" 
 
 " No, I can't," replied George. 
 
A CAPSIZE. 67 
 
 But he did not tell the boy the reason 
 why. 
 
 " Well, there's no use in standing here in 
 the rain any longer. Let's go up to your 
 ' shanty,' as you call it. You have rendered 
 us a most important service," said Goggles, 
 with much feeling, as he took George's hand 
 in both his own and shook it warmly. " I 
 never saw anybody exhibit as much pluck as 
 you have shown to-day. What can we do 
 for you ?" 
 
 "Take a big bite while you are about it," 
 said the other boy, who had stood by, listen- 
 ing in silence to this conversation. " We owe 
 our lives to you." 
 
 " You owe me nothing but your good-will," 
 replied George. " I am sure you would have 
 done as much for me." 
 
 " I don't know about that," replied Goggles, 
 as the three hurried up the beach toward 
 the cabin. " One needs courage, and a good 
 share of it, too, to enable him to go deliber- 
 ately into danger for the sake of helping 
 somebody ; and that's a quality I don't pre- 
 tend to possess. Now, perhaps you would 
 
68 THE MYSTERY OF LOST RIVER CANYON. 
 
 like to know who we are. My friend here is 
 Bob Howard, and he lives away out of the 
 world, in a place called Arizona. I am Dick 
 Langdon, at your service, and live in a white 
 man's country, my home being in Connect- 
 icut." 
 
 "There's where the wooden nutmegs come 
 from !" observed Bob Howard. 
 
 " My name is George Edwards, and I live 
 there," said our hero, pointing to the cabin, 
 which was now in plain sight. 
 
 It looked mean and forbidding now. It 
 was good enough for him, for he had never 
 been accustomed to luxurious surroundings ; 
 but, if there was any faith to be put in 
 appearances, the boys who were to be his 
 guests until the storm was over, were the 
 sons of wealthy parents, and he thought 
 they would look out of place under his 
 humble roof. 
 
 He did not then know that one of them 
 was more familiar with life in the woods than 
 he wa,s, and that he had many a time been 
 glad to crawl into a hollow log for shelter. 
 George didn't know, either, that his life and 
 
A CAPSIZE. 69 
 
 Bob Howard's were destined to run along in 
 the same channel, and that they were to be 
 the heroes of an adventure that is talked of 
 on the frontier until this day ; but such was 
 the fact. 
 
70 THE MYSTERY OF LOST EIVEB CANYON. 
 
 CHAPTER VI. 
 
 DICK LANGDON'S SENTIMENTS. 
 
 ' TT7E are students at the Montford Aca- 
 YV demy," said Dick Langdon. "Yes- 
 terday we asked for a short leave of absence, 
 and came up here in search of fun and 
 adventure." 
 
 "And we got all we wanted of both!" 
 chimed in Bob Howard. " Dick lost his 
 canoe, and I lost my gun, but we caught a 
 splendid string of fish, and I had a twenty- 
 minute fight with a muskalonge, that I shall 
 remember as long as I live." 
 
 "You don't say anything about the nar- 
 row escape we had from having our brains 
 dashed out on those rocks," observed Dick. 
 
 " There's no need that I should speak of 
 that, for George knows as much about it as 
 we do. By-the-way, do you suppose the 
 
DICK LANGDON'S SENTIMENTS. 71 
 
 waves will leave anything of that canoe? 
 Our fishing-rods were stowed in one of the 
 lockers." 
 
 " I am afraid you have seen them for the 
 last time," replied George. "But I don't 
 think your gun is lost beyond recovery." 
 
 " How shall we go to work to get it ?" 
 
 " If the lake is quiet to-morrow, we can 
 dive for it. I think I can go right to the 
 spot where your boat was capsized." 
 
 " How deep is the water?" 
 
 "About thirty feet." 
 
 "You don't pretend to say that you can 
 bring up bottom at that depth, do you ?" 
 
 " Oh, yes ! I can go deeper than that, 
 when I have a high place to take a plunge 
 from." 
 
 "Well, you are better at diving than I am, 
 and I will make it worth your while to get 
 that gun for me. I value it highly, for it 
 was the last thing my father gave me before 
 I left my Western home to come to this 
 academy. So this is where you live, is it?" 
 said Bob, as George entered the cabin door 
 and invited them to enter. 
 
72 THE MYSTERY OF LOST EIVER CANYON. 
 
 Wood was already laid upon the hearth, 
 and it was but the work of a moment to 
 touch a lighted match to it and set it 
 going. 
 
 Then George and his new friends pulled 
 off some of their wet clothes, and, having 
 wrung the water out of them, they hung 
 them over the stools to dry. 
 
 The fire was soon blazing merrily, and, as 
 the boys turned themselves slowly about in 
 front of it and listened to the howling of the 
 storm and the beating of the rain on the roof, 
 they felt a sense of comfort and security that 
 was decidedly refreshing after their recent 
 experience. 
 
 " Now, isn't this glorious ?" said Dick 
 Langdon, adjusting his spectacles and spread- 
 ing his hands over the warm blaze. " I be- 
 lieve there must be some Indian about me, 
 for do you know, fellows, that I have often 
 thought I should like to live this way all my 
 life?" 
 
 Without waiting for an answer, Dick 
 straightened up, turned his back to the fire 
 and sung, in a clear, mellow voice : 
 
DICK LANGDON'S SENTIMENTS. 73 
 
 "I've a home in the woods, the dark green woods, 
 
 'Neath the shade of the old oak tree, 
 Where the wild birds warble their songs of praise, 
 
 In tones so wild and free. 
 A lovely place is this home of mine 
 
 A quiet, a dear little spot ; 
 And over my casement the vine doth entwine, 
 
 Like an angel, to watch o'er my cot !" 
 
 "The sentiment is very fine, no doubt/' 
 said Bob Howard. " But if that dear little 
 home of yours was covered with snow, so 
 that you couldn't stir out of it for months ; 
 and your firewood gave out, and the wolves 
 came and serenaded you every day and 
 glared down at you through the chimney ; 
 and your provisions run short, and you saw 
 starvation staring you in the face! I tell 
 you what's a fact, Dick ; I know something 
 about that. There has been a good deal of 
 nonsense written about life in the woods. 
 You could not stand it three months." 
 
 " I'd like to try," said Dick. 
 
 " I'll change places with you," said George. 
 " I'll give you my house, if you will give me 
 your seat at the academy." 
 
74 THE MYSTEEY OF LOST BIVER CANYON. 
 
 " Would you like to go there ?" 
 
 "In deed I would." 
 
 " Then, why don't you go ?" 
 
 George was so surprised at this question, 
 that he did not reply to it. 
 
 Why didn't he go ? Where were his 
 guest's eyes and ears? Would he, or any 
 other boy, who was in full possession of his 
 senses, be likely to make a hermit of himself 
 from choice ? 
 
 Of course, he could not tell them that he 
 had no money to pay for four years' tuition at 
 the academy, and so he held his 'peace ; but 
 his silence told his new friends all they wanted 
 to know, and they then and there made up 
 their minds to act accordingly. 
 
 After the two boys had warmed themselves 
 and dried their clothing, Dick proceeded to 
 overhaul his gun, and Bob assisted George in 
 laying the table and preparing supper. 
 
 It was not much the latter had to place 
 before his guests nothing but bread and 
 butter, a few vegetables and a cup of tea ; but 
 there were half a dozen young squirrels in 
 Bob's game-bag, which the owner had saved 
 
DICK LANGDON'S SENTIMENTS. 75 
 
 simply because it happened to be slung over 
 his shoulder when the canoe was capsized ; and 
 when these had been cleaned and roasted 
 over the coals, the meal was ready. 
 
 George's long walk had given him a good 
 appetite, and the ducking Dick and Bob had 
 received must have had a similar effect upon 
 them, for the edibles rapidly disappeared, 
 and in a few minutes every bone had been 
 picked clean. 
 
 " How did you two fellows happen to find 
 your way to this lonely region ?" asked 
 George, as he threw more wood on the fire and 
 drew one of the stools into the chimney corner. 
 
 " Oh, we have often heard of this lake and 
 the fine fishing that could be enjoyed here, if 
 one had a boat to go about in ; so I sent home 
 for my canoe/ ' replied Dick Langdon. 
 " When it came, we hired a team to bring us 
 and our trappings up here, and asked the 
 professor for a holiday. We are to go back 
 to-morrow night, for no student is allowed to 
 be away from the village over Sunday, unless 
 he is known to be at home, where he can't 
 get into mischief." 
 
76 THE MYSTERY OF LOST EIVEE CANYON. 
 
 " Where is your camp ?" 
 
 " We havn't any. We slept in Mr. Steb- 
 bins' barn last night." 
 
 " In his barn !" repeated George. " Why 
 didn't you go into the house?" 
 
 " Because the old fellow wouldn't let us," 
 said Dick, with a laugh. "We gave him abun- 
 dant proof that we were able to pay for our 
 supper and lodging, but he would not listen 
 
 to us." 
 
 " And while he was talking to us, he held 
 
 the door open just about two inches," observed 
 Bob. " He acted as if he was afraid of us." 
 
 " Very likely he was," said George. " If all 
 reports are true, he's got a pile of money hid- 
 den away somewhere in his house." 
 
 " Ah, that accounts for his suspicions, then. 
 For a while, we thought we would have to 
 stay out of doors all night," continued Dick ; 
 "but finally, the old fellow said we might 
 sleep on the hay, if we wouldn't smoke. And 
 just before dark he brought us a mouthful 
 of bread and butter and about half a pint 
 of milk." 
 
 " And charged us a dollar for it !" said 
 
-v 
 
 DICK LANGDON'S SENTIMENTS. 77 
 
 Bob, in a tone of disgust. " He's a regular old 
 skin-flint. But if he keeps so much money in 
 the house, I shouldn't think he and his wife 
 would want to live there alone. If some tramp 
 should happen to find it out, it might be bad 
 for them, for they are too old to defend them- 
 selves, and there isn't another house on the 
 lake is there ?" 
 
 " Yes, there is one at the lower end," re- 
 plied George ; " but I am his nearest neigh- 
 bor." 
 
 When bedtime came, George spread all his 
 quilts and blankets on the floor in front of 
 the fire, and he and his guests went to sleep, 
 lulled by the howling of the storm, which 
 continued to rage with unabated fury until 
 long after midnight ; but the morning broke 
 bright and clear, and at the first peep of day 
 the boys were astir. 
 
 They looked out at the door, and saw that 
 the lake was as smooth as a mill-pond. There 
 was nothing to prevent them from making 
 an attempt to recover Bob Howard's lost fowl- 
 ing-piece. 
 
 "But first, I must have a good breakfast 
 
78 THE MYSTEEY OF LOST EIVER CANYON. 
 
 of fish," said that young gentleman. We lost 
 those we caught yesterday, but fortunately, I 
 have both hooks and lines in one of the pockets 
 of my game-bag." 
 
 "And there's an axe, and you will find 
 plenty of poles behind the cabin," said George, 
 " While you are cutting them, I will go down 
 and bring up the scow." 
 
 " Did you save any cartridges ?" asked 
 Dick Langdon, who stood just outside the door, 
 with his head turned on one side, as if he 
 were listening intently. 
 
 "I did; and as they are loaded in water- 
 proof cases, they are not injured in the least." 
 
 " Well, your gun is the same calibre as 
 mine, and if you will give me some of those 
 cartridges, I'll see if I can get a squirrel or 
 two for breakfast. I hear one barking out 
 there in the woods." 
 
 Bob handed his game-bag to Dick, who 
 slung it over his shoulder and set out in 
 search of the squirrels, while George hurried 
 down the beach to bring up the scow. 
 
 By the time he returned, Bob had rigged 
 a pole and dug a supply of bait ; and when 
 
DICK LANGDON'S SENTIMENTS. 79 
 
 he had got into the boat, George pulled him 
 to the nearest fishing-ground. 
 
 "There's nothing like knowing where to 
 go to find the best places," said Bob, half an 
 hour later, as he surveyed with no little sat- 
 isfaction, the fine string of yellow perch which 
 was floating in the water alongside the scow. 
 " Yesterday, Dick and I tried all the likely 
 spots along the opposite shore, but we didn't 
 get a bite until we got down to the lower 
 end of the lake." 
 
 " That was because you didn't understand 
 the habits of the fish," replied George. 
 " When the season first opens, you will find 
 them along the beach, just outside the weeds ; 
 but as the weather grows warmer, they draw 
 off into deep holes, and at this time of the 
 year you will find the best fishing in about 
 forty feet of water." 
 
 While Bob was engaged in hauling in the 
 perch, almost as fast as he could bait his 
 hook, Dick Langdon was not idle. His gun 
 spoke at short intervals, and as Dick was a 
 fine marksman, he did not throw away a single 
 charge of shot. 
 
80 THE MYSTERY OF LOST KIVER CANYON. 
 
 When the fishermen returned to the cabin, 
 they found him sitting on a log in front of it, 
 with half a dozen gray squirrels at his side. 
 He might have secured as many more if he 
 had felt so disposed, but being a thorough-bred 
 young sportsman, he did not believe in killing 
 more game than he could use. 
 
 Breakfast was soon cooked and eaten, and 
 then Dick and Bob announced that they were 
 ready to see George make an attempt to re- 
 cover the lost fowling-piece. 
 
 The lake being quiet, they had a fair view 
 of the rocks on which they had so narrowly 
 escaped being wrecked, and they shuddered 
 as they looked at them. 
 
A PERSEVERING DIVER. 81 
 
 CHAPTER VII. 
 
 A PERSEVERING DIVEK. 
 
 BOB rowed the boat, George stood in the 
 bow, divested of his clothing and all 
 ready to make the plunge, and Dick sat in the 
 stern and looked at the rocks. 
 
 " I tell you, they look ugly !" said he, with 
 another involuntary shudder. " If it hadn't 
 been for you, George, there would have been 
 two vacant seats at the Montford Academy 
 next Monday. What's that wedged in be- 
 tween those two high rocks, a little to the left 
 of the point ? It looks to me like a piece of 
 my lost canoe." 
 
 " That's just what it is I" answered George, 
 " We'll go up there and take a look at it as 
 soon as I find out whether or not I am going 
 to get that gun. We are pretty near the spot 
 now. Steady! There!" 
 
 As Bob ceased rowing and faced about on 
 
 6 
 
82 THE MYSTERY OF LOST EIVEE CANYON. 
 
 his seat, there was a splash in the water, and 
 George had disappeared. He was gone a good 
 while so long that the two boys who were 
 awaiting the result of his experiment, began 
 to look at each other with some uneasiness. 
 
 At length, Dick asked suddenly : 
 
 " I say, Bob, what are you going to give 
 him if he finds your gun for you ?" 
 
 " That's exactly what I wanted to speak to 
 you about," was Bob's reply. " I don't think 
 it would be quite the thing to offer him money, 
 for he doesn't look to me like a boy who would 
 go to all this trouble for the sake of earning 
 a reward." 
 
 "That's my opinion, and I will tell you 
 what I have been thinking of. You know he 
 said he would like to go to the academy ; and 
 he said it in a way that led me to believe that 
 the only obstacle that stands in his way is a 
 lack of money. Now you and I have more 
 spare change than we can use, and if you will 
 pay half his tuition, I'll pay the other half. 
 He needn't know that we're doing anything 
 for him, for I have an idea that he would re- 
 fuse" 
 
N 
 A PERSEVERING DIVER. 83 
 
 Before Dick could finish his sentence, 
 George's head bobbed up out of the water, a 
 short distance away ; but the only thing he 
 brought with him was a handful of gravel, to 
 show that he had been to the bottom. 
 
 A few long, sweeping strokes brought him 
 alongside the boat. He climbed in over the 
 bow, and, after taking a moment's breathing 
 spell, he went down again. 
 
 This time he was gone longer than before, 
 and Dick and Bob had ample leisure to de- 
 cide upon something. 
 
 What it was, you will learn as our story 
 progresses. 
 
 The second attempt to recover the lost 
 weapon resulted in failure, and so did the 
 third and fourth ; but the fifth was success- 
 ful. A hand, grasping the little double-bar- 
 rel, suddenly appeared above the surface of 
 the water, followed an instant after by the 
 persevering diver, who was as highly elated 
 over his achievement as Bob Howard was 
 himself. 
 
 " George," said he, as he grasped the gun 
 and began rubbing it briskly with his hand- 
 
84 THE MYSTERY OF LOST EIVER CANYON. 
 
 kerchief, "I don't know how to thank you 
 for the service you have rendered me." 
 
 "Then you had better not try/' advised 
 George, with a laugh. " That's a beautiful 
 little piece, and well worth saving. Now, I 
 wish I could give Dick his canoe in good or- 
 der." 
 
 " Thank you ! But that is something that 
 nobody this side of Troy can do. She is made 
 of paper." 
 
 George, who had never before heard of such 
 a thing as a paper canoe, opened his eyes and 
 looked incredulous ; but when he had pulled 
 over to the rocks and taken a look at the 
 wreck that was stranded there, he found that 
 Dick had told him nothing but the truth. 
 The little craft had been torn completely in 
 two. The stern was nowhere to be seen, and 
 the bow was wedged so tightly between the 
 rocks that they could not get it out. 
 
 " I say, Bob, take the butt of your oar and 
 break a hole through the bottom," said Dick. 
 " Perhaps we shall find something in there." 
 
 And so they did. 
 
 Through the opening that Bob's heavy oar 
 
A PERSEVERING DIVER. 85 
 
 speedily made in the frail covering he gained 
 access to the forward locker, from which he 
 drew forth two jointed fishing-rods, and also 
 a liberal supply of canned goods, such as sal- 
 mon, lobsters, condensed milk, and fried brook 
 trout. 
 
 He likewise brought to light a canister of 
 ground coffee, about half a peck of potatoes, 
 and lastly, a water-proof bag, which, on being 
 opened, was found to contain a quantity of 
 crackers, bread, and ginger-snaps, and also 
 two blackberry pies. 
 
 George looked on in wonder. 
 
 " Did I understand you to say that you are 
 going back to the academy to-night ?" said he. 
 
 " You did," assured Bob, panting from his 
 exertions. " Why do you ask ?" 
 
 " I don't wonder that you had to hire a 
 team to bring you up here," continued George. 
 " You had your canoe provisioned for a four- 
 weeks' cruise." 
 
 " That shows how much you know about an 
 academy boy's appetite," said Dick. " When- 
 ever we go into the country for a holiday, we 
 always make our entertainers open their eyes. 
 
86 THE MYSTERY OF LOST EIVEE CANYON. 
 
 Find anything more, Bob ? Well, then, shove 
 off. We'll stop at the cabin long enough to 
 unload our cargo and give our poles a good 
 rubbing, and then, perhaps, George will be 
 kind enough to show us where we can catch 
 a good string of bass. We don't want to go 
 back to the academy empty-handed, you 
 know ; for if we do the fellows will laugh at 
 
 us." 
 
 George's guests thoroughly enjoyed them- 
 selves that day. 
 
 Having caught a pailful of minnows for 
 them, George rowed them down to his favorite 
 fishing-grounds, and by the time the fish 
 stopped biting they had sixteen black bass 
 to show to the academy boys as trophies of 
 their skill. 
 
 George offered to increase the size of their 
 string by adding to it the fish he had caught 
 himself being an expert angler, he had 
 caught an even dozen while the others were 
 catching sixteen but Dick and Bob would 
 not listen to it. When they exhibited their 
 fish they wanted to be able to say that they 
 had caught them all themselves, and they 
 
A PEESEVEEING DIVEE. 87 
 
 couldn't say that if they accepted any help 
 from George. 
 
 The dinner that was served up in the cabin 
 that afternoon was the best that George had 
 eaten for many a day, and he disposed of his 
 full share of it. 
 
 When they had satisfied their appetites, 
 Dick and Bob began to get ready to start 
 for home. 
 
 " Now, George/' said the latter, as he 
 shouldered his gun and fishing-rod, which 
 he had tied together so that they could be 
 easily carried, " how much do we owe you ?" 
 
 " Not a red cent," was George's reply. 
 
 " Cheap enough," said Dick. " We'll come 
 again." 
 
 " I hope you will. I shall be glad to see 
 you at any time that is, if you can be satis- 
 fied with such poor accommodations as I have 
 to offer you." 
 
 " Say nothing about that !" exclaimed Bob. 
 " What better accommodations can we ask for 
 than a tight roof, a good bed and plenty to 
 eat and drink ?" 
 
 "And good hunting and fishing within a 
 
88 THE MYSTERY OF LOST KIVEK CANYON. 
 
 stone's throw of your door," chimed in Dick. 
 "You may expect us next Friday evening. 
 We can get away every week if we only be- 
 have ourselves during study hours, and I am 
 perfectly willing to be good for five consecu- 
 tive days for the sake of enjoying such 
 squirrel shooting as I had this morning." 
 
 As the nearest way to the village was 
 through Mr. Stebbins' sheep pasture, George 
 took his guests across the lake in his boat, 
 thus saving them a three-mile walk. 
 
 After putting them on the road, and giving 
 them explicit directions regarding the course 
 they were to follow in order to reach the 
 academy, George said good-by, and set out 
 on his return to the lake ; but while he was 
 crossing the sheep pasture he was confronted 
 by Mr. Stebbins, who, in no amiable tones, 
 demanded to know what he was doing there, 
 and what business he had to bring those 
 young vagabonds on his grounds. 
 
 " They are not vagabonds," replied George, 
 with some spirit. " They are gentlemen, and 
 that is more than I can say for some other 
 people I know." 
 
A PERSEVERING DIVER. 89 
 
 " I don't want none of your sass !" snapped 
 the old man, angrily, at the same time whisk- 
 ing a heavy black snake whip he carried in 
 his hand. " I tell you that I don't like the 
 looks of them fellers." 
 
 " I can't help it, can I ?" asked George. 
 
 " I never slept a wink t'other night," con- 
 tinued Mr. Stebbins, " 'cause they was in my 
 barn, an' I was expectin' every minute that 
 they would break into my house an' rob me. 
 I don't want them to come foolin' round here 
 no more. You hear me ?" 
 
 " Yes, I hear you. They will be up here 
 again next Friday night, and I will tell them 
 what you say." 
 
 " Wai, they shan't sleep in my barn ag'in, 
 if they do come up here, 'cause I'm afeared 
 of 'em. Why don't they stay to home, where 
 they belong? They've got no 'arthly busi- 
 ness up here. An' I tell you another thing 
 I don't like," went on Mr. Stebbins, flourish- 
 ing his whip over his head. " Be you livin' 
 over there on t'other side of the lake ?" 
 
 The boy replied that he was. 
 
 " I thought so, 'cause I seed a smoke com- 
 
90 THE MYSTEEY OF LOST KIVEE CANYON. 
 
 in' out of the cliimbly. Now I don't want 
 you nor nobody else over there, an 7 I won't 
 have it, nuther." 
 
 " Is my cabin on your grounds ?" ques- 
 tioned George. 
 
 " No, it ain't," said Mr. Stebbins, emphati- 
 cally. 
 
 " Then you have nothing to say about it. I 
 had permission from the man who owns that 
 land to build my cabin there, and so long as 
 he does not object, you have no right to com- 
 plain." 
 
 " Hain't I though ?" Mr. Stebbins almost 
 shouted. " Wai, I shall ask the selectmen 
 about that. There's a poorhouse pervided for 
 them that ain't able to make an honest livin' 
 for themselves." 
 
 " I am able to make an honest living," said 
 George, with no little indignation in his 
 tones, " and I shall not go to the poorhouse 
 to please anybody." 
 
 "You ain't your own boss yet by a few 
 years," reminded the man, with a sneer; 
 " an' if you're too stuck up to earn a livin' 
 by hard work, like an honest boy had 
 
A PERSE VEEING DIVEE. 91 
 
 ougliter do, you may find yourself in jail, the 
 first thing you know. Iv'e been a-lookin' for 
 it, 'cause there's been a heap of stealin' 
 Wai, go on ; but remember what I'm a-tellin' 
 
 you." 
 
 George, who was too angry to listen to 
 another word, hurried down to the beach, 
 sprang into his boat, and pushed off into 
 deep water. 
 
 His little cabin was lonely enough now. 
 He missed his new friends, whom he had 
 learned to like during his short acquaintance 
 with them, and his interview with Mr. Steb- 
 bins had thrown a gloom over him that he 
 could not shake off. 
 
92 THE MYSTERY OF LOST EIVEK CANYON. 
 
 CHAPTER VIII. 
 
 UNCLE KUBEN CALLS AGAIN. 
 
 DURING the next few days, George was 
 permitted to live in peace, but we can- 
 not say that he enjoyed himself, for at times 
 he felt very lonely, and bitter, too. 
 
 While other boys in the village were given 
 every opportunity to work their way up in 
 the world, he had been driven into exile by 
 force of circumstances, and just now he did 
 not see how he could better his condition. 
 
 " I have heard people say that it is always 
 darkest just before daylight, and if that is 
 the case, my day must be close at hand," 
 George often said to himself. " Things 
 couldn't look darker to me than they do now ; 
 but if a canal boy can become President, I 
 don't see why a fisher-boy cannot become a 
 decent, respected member of society, if nothing 
 
UNCLE KUBEN CALLS AGAIN. 93 
 
 more. I shall work hard for it, and if I fail, 
 it will not be my fault." 
 
 Every other day George carried to the vil- 
 lage a nicely-dressed string of fish, for which 
 he found ready sale, bringing back with him 
 such supplies as he happened to need. 
 
 He always found everything in and about 
 the cabin just as he had left it, and there was 
 nothing to indicate that there had been any 
 one there during his absence. 
 
 But, for all that, there had been visitors at 
 the cabin on two different occasions. These 
 visitors were in no way connected with each 
 other, although they had the same object in 
 view, as we shall presently see. 
 
 The first to come was a party of three boys 
 the same ones that George had met at the 
 spring a few days before, and who had ex- 
 hibited so much surprise and alarm at his 
 sudden appearance. 
 
 Two of them carried bundles under their 
 arms, and the third was provided with a 
 spade. 
 
 That they did not want to be seen by any- 
 body was evident. They spent an hour or 
 
94 THE MYSTERY OF LOST RIVER CANYON. 
 
 more in reconnoitering the premises. Having 
 at last fully satisfied themselves that George 
 was nowhere in the vicinity, they made their 
 way hehind the cabin, and the one who 
 carried the spade set to work to dig a hole in 
 the ground. 
 
 This being done, the other two deposited 
 their bundles in it, the earth was thrown 
 upon them, and finally dead leaves were 
 spread evenly over the spot, to hide all traces 
 of their labor. 
 
 " That's about the idea/' said one of the 
 party. We've put evidence enough there to 
 remove all suspicion from ourselves." 
 
 " I don't think much of it," said another. 
 "If those bundles should be discovered be- 
 fore the rest of the work is done, it would 
 spoil everything." 
 
 " So it would," admitted the first speaker. 
 " But we must not wait long enough for that. 
 We must pay our visit to Stebbins' some 
 night this week. Besides, I don't see that 
 these bundles are in any immediate danger of 
 discovery. The constable won't go to prowling 
 about there until we put him on the track." 
 
UNCLE BUBEN CALLS AGAIN. 95 
 
 "And we must do that as soon as we can," 
 said the one who had not spoken before; 
 " for the sooner George is compelled to leave 
 this neighborhood, the better it will be for 
 us. If he should happen to stumble on our 
 headquarters during his rambles, we might 
 find ourselves in a pretty mess." 
 
 The boys left the cabin as cautiously as 
 they had approached it. 
 
 And the next visitor who came was none 
 other than Uncle Ruben, who looked better 
 natured now than he did the last time we saw 
 him. 
 
 "I'll fix him," he kept muttering to himself. 
 " I'll Tarn him to throw away the chance of a 
 good home, when he might have had it jest as 
 well as not. I am his only livin' relation, so 
 to speak, an' I had oughter be his gardeen 
 an' have the profits of his work till he comes 
 of age ; but he wouldn't let me, an' now I'll 
 put him where he'll have to work for noth- 
 ing." 
 
 Uncle Ruben also carried a bundle under 
 his arm, and, as it was not very neatly made 
 up, the contents of it could have been named 
 
96 THE MYSTERY OF LOST RIVER CANYON. 
 
 by any one who had chanced to meet him on 
 the road. The heads of a couple of chickens, 
 whose necks had been wrung, stuck out of 
 one end of it, while two pairs of yellow legs 
 projected from the other. 
 
 The man made his appearance late on 
 Friday afternoon. He was not as stealthy in 
 his movements as the first visitors were, for 
 he knew that the coast was clear, having seen 
 his nephew sail up the lake toward Mr. Steb- 
 bins' farm. 
 
 What business the boy had up there Uncle 
 Ruben did not know ; but of course his sus- 
 picions were aroused, and it was not long 
 before those suspicions gave way to positive 
 conviction. 
 
 Having hitched his old clay-bank back in 
 the bushes, out of sight, Uncle Ruben has- 
 tened to the rear of the cabin, and, picking 
 up a sharp stick, he began raking away the 
 leaves and digging in the ground, thus mak- 
 ing it evident that he was preparing a place 
 of concealment for the chickens he had 
 brought with him. 
 
 By the merest accident he struck upon 
 
UNCLE EUBEN CALLS AGAIN. 97 
 
 the very spot on which the boys of whom 
 we have spoken had hidden their bundles, 
 and he was not long in bringing them to 
 light 
 
 "What on 'arth is them?" soliloquized 
 Uncle Ruben' as the bundles were thrown out 
 of the hole one after the other. 
 
 His eyes opened to their widest extent, his 
 under jaw dropped down, and he seemed to 
 be very much disconcerted by the discovery 
 he had made. 
 
 He looked all around to make sure that 
 he was alone, and then, after a moment's hesi- 
 tation, he dropped down on his knees arrd 
 began untying the strings with which the 
 bundles were fastened. 
 
 The first was found to contain half a dozen 
 new pocket-books, and a bolt of fine linen 
 that had never been cut ; and the second was 
 made up principally of razors, revolvers, 
 powder- and shot-flasks and jack-knives. 
 
 "Now, I am astonished," said Uncle Ru- 
 ben ; and the word he used conveyed but a 
 very faint idea of the bewilderment and con- 
 fusion into which his mind had been thrown 
 
 7 
 
98 THE MYSTERY OF LOST EIVEK CANYON. 
 
 by the sight of the articles upon which he 
 had so unexpectedly stumbled. " I never did 
 b'lieve that George was to blame for them 
 stores bein' broke into, but what is a feller 
 to think of this, I'd like to know?" 
 
 Right on the heels of this question came 
 others that were just as hard to answer. 
 
 Should he put the bundles back as he found 
 them, and let matters take their own course ? 
 or, would it be better to await George's re- 
 turn and confront him with the evidence of 
 his guilt, at the same time promising never 
 to lisp a word of it to anybody if the boy 
 would consent to be bound out to him until 
 he was twenty-one years old ? 
 
 "There's objections to both them plans," 
 thought Uncle Ruben, after he had spent 
 some minutes in trying to find a way out 
 of his quandary, " George had oughter be 
 punished for refusin' to go home with me like 
 I wanted him to do, an' if he is shut up for 
 a thief I want him to know that I had a hand 
 in it. That's what I bring them chickens up 
 here for. But if he is shut up, he won't never 
 come nigh me arter he gets out, an' I ain't 
 
UNCLE KUBEN CALLS AGAIN. 99 
 
 by no means sart'in that I want him to ; for, 
 jest as like as not, he'll go to stealin' from 
 me. Mebbe I had better go home and sleep 
 on it." 
 
 Having come to this conclusion, Uncle Ru- 
 ben hastily tied up the bundles again, tossed 
 them back into the hole and covered them up. 
 
 He had already wasted considerable time, 
 and being anxious to reach home before dark, 
 he did not stop to bury the chickens. He 
 simply threw them into the bushes, marking 
 the spot on which they fell, so that he could 
 easily find them again if circumstances should 
 require it, and then he mounted his horse 
 and rode away. 
 
 Meanwhile, George Edwards was sitting on 
 a log by the side of the road that led from 
 the village to Mr. Stebbins' farm, waiting as 
 patiently as he could for the coming of his 
 exuected friends, Bob Howard and Dick 
 Langdori. 
 
 Remembering his last interview with the 
 choleric old man, and the orders he had given 
 regarding his " vagabond " acquaintances, 
 George had landed with his scow in a little 
 
100 THE MYSTERY OF LOST EIVER CANYON, 
 
 cove near the promontory, and made his way 
 by a roundabout course to the road, in order 
 to intercept his expected guests before they 
 crossed the sheep pasture. 
 
 He did not want them to be insulted, as 
 he knew they would be if Mr. Stebbins should 
 catch them on his grounds ; but still he need 
 not have taken so much pains to prevent it, 
 for he did not see Dick and Bob that night. 
 
 He waited for them until long after dark, 
 and then went back to his boat and pulled 
 for the cabin, feeling very lonely indeed. 
 
 " I have looked forward to this night with 
 many pleasurable anticipations, and it is hard 
 to be disappointed," thought George. " The 
 shanty will look as gloomy now as it did 
 last Saturday when those fellows first went 
 away. Well, I will hope for better luck next 
 week." 
 
 George slept but little that night, and he 
 was up the next morning long before the sun. 
 
 Having lighted the fire, he opened the 
 door, and the first objects that attracted his 
 attention, as he stepped across the threshold, 
 were two boys who were coining down the 
 
UNCLE EUBEN CALLS AGAIN. 101 
 
 beach at a rapid walk. He recognized them 
 at a glance. 
 
 " There they are now !" he exclaimed, pull- 
 ing off his hat and swinging it about his head. 
 " They have brought their guns and fishing- 
 rods with them, and each one has a pack of 
 something on his back. More provisions, I 
 suppose. They haven't come from the village 
 this morning, and consequently they must 
 have laid out all night." 
 
 The approaching boys answered his greet- 
 ing by flourishing their caps in the air, and 
 George hastened to meet them, fully prepared 
 to laugh at them for losing their way, when 
 the road that led from the village to the 
 lake was as plain as the beach they were 
 then following ; but as he drew nearer to 
 them he saw that something had gone wrong 
 with them. 
 
 Their faces were flushed, and their quick, 
 nervous movements showed that they were 
 excited and angry. 
 
 " What's the matter ?" asked George. " And 
 where did you stay last night ? Did you miss 
 your way ?" 
 
102 THE MYSTERY OF LOST RIVER CANYON. 
 
 " I should say so/' answered Bob, in a tone 
 of deep disgust. 
 
 " And you had to stay in the woods, I sup- 
 pose ?" 
 
 " No, we didn't. I wish to goodness we 
 had. We camped in old Stebbins' barn ; and 
 ' thereby hangs a tale ' one that will astonish 
 you, too." 
 
 " I am very sorry you went near that barn," 
 said George. " If you had come up here last 
 night I waited for you at the road until after 
 dark I should have told you that the old fel- 
 low gave me fits for taking you across his 
 sheep pasture last Saturday. He had a good 
 notion to horsewhip me." 
 
 " He had a good notion to serve us worse 
 than that this morning," said Dick Langdon. 
 " But don't waste any more time in standing 
 here. Bob and I went to bed without any 
 supper to speak of, and we are as hungry as 
 wolves." 
 
 While they were on their way to the cabin, 
 George came to the conclusion that his friends 
 must have had a very animated interview with 
 Mr. Stebbins, during which the latter had said 
 
UNCLE KUBEN CALLS AGAIN. 103 
 
 some things that were in the highest degree 
 exasperating ; for they grumbled at him every 
 step they took, and gave full and free expres- 
 sion to the opinions they had formed concern- 
 ing him. 
 
 Having relieved himself of his heavy pack 
 a neat camper's basket, which was pro- 
 vided with straps like a soldier's knapsack, 
 and filled so full of something that a cloth 
 had been tied over the top to keep the con- 
 tents from falling out and deposited his 
 gun and fishing-rod in one corner of the 
 cabin, Bob Howard took possession of the 
 bench beside the door and said, abruptly, ad- 
 dressing himself to George: 
 
 " You remember of saying something to 
 us about the money that Mr. Stebbins is sup- 
 posed to have hidden in his house, do you 
 not? Well, sir, three masked robbers came 
 there last night and tried to get it. At least, 
 they tried to break into the house, and we 
 suppose they were after the money." 
 
 George was profoundly astonished. 
 
104 THE MYSTERY OF LOST EIVEK CANYON. 
 
 CHAPTER IX. 
 
 LOST IN THE WOODS. 
 
 * * T suppose you don't know who the rob- 
 
 J_ bers were?" said George, as soon as 
 he had recovered his power of speech. 
 
 " No, we don't," answered Bob Howard. 
 " They wore masks, as I told you ; and, be- 
 sides, the night was so dark that we could 
 not have recognized our most intimate friends 
 at the distance we were from them." 
 
 "The most provoking part of the whole 
 business was this/' said Dick Langdon. 
 "After Bob and I became satisfied that the 
 masked parties, whoever they were, had come 
 there for no good purpose, we opened fire on 
 them and drove them away. And what did 
 the old miser do to repay us for the assistance 
 we rendered him ?" 
 
 " Did he ask you in to breakfast ?" inquired 
 George, who knew very well that he had 
 done nothing of the kind. 
 
LOST IN THE WOODS. 105 
 
 " Not much !" was Dick's reply. " If he 
 had, we wouldn't be as hungry as we are now. 
 We went to sleep on the hay, after we had 
 frightened the robbers away from the house, 
 and the first thing we heard this morning 
 was a war-whoop, and the first thing we saw, 
 after we had got our eyes open, was old Steb- 
 bins, who was standing in the barn door, with 
 a shotgun in his hands." 
 
 " It was pointed straight at my head, too," 
 said Bob ; " and I really thought, by the way 
 the old fellow talked and acted, that he was 
 going to turn loose on me. I believe he 
 would, too, if it hadn't been for Dick, who 
 You don't understand it, do you ?" he added, 
 seeing that George was greatly surprised and 
 bewildered. " Sit down here, and I will be- 
 gin at the beginning, and tell you all about 
 it. Breakfast can wait." 
 
 Bob settled back into an easy position on 
 the bench, while George seated himself by 
 his side, and listened with much interest to 
 the story of his friends' adventure, which was 
 related substantially as follows : 
 
 When Dick and Bob returned to the vil- 
 
106 THE MYSTERY OF LOST KIVEK CANYON. 
 
 lage, with the fine string of bass they had 
 caught on the preceding Saturday, they 
 quickly found themselves surrounded by a 
 crowd of their schoolmates, who asked a 
 thousand and one questions regarding their 
 experience in the woods, and demanded the 
 privilege of accompanying them on their 
 next excursion. 
 
 There were some in the crowd whom the 
 lucky fishermen would not have taken out to 
 the lake with them under any consideration 
 whatever mean, overbearing fellows, who 
 always wanted their own way in everything, 
 and who would not have seen any pleasure 
 in the trip themselves, or allowed their com- 
 panions to see any. 
 
 Others there were, whose presence would 
 have added to everybody's enjoyment ; but 
 George's quarters were small, and, as he had 
 not told them to bring any of their friends 
 with them when they came again, the boys 
 did not feel authorized to issue any invita- 
 tions. They gave away the most of their 
 bass, the principal, of course, coming in for 
 the lion's share. 
 
LOST IN THE WOODS. 107 
 
 It is probable that the good man enjoyed 
 his Sunday morning breakfast, or else Dick 
 and Bob behaved themselves better and gained 
 a greater number of credit marks than the 
 rest of the students, for they were the only 
 ones among a dozen or more applicants who 
 received permission to spend the next Satur- 
 day at the lake. 
 
 They packed their baskets on Friday morn- 
 ing, gave their guns and fishing-rods a good 
 rubbing up, and at a quarter-past four in the 
 afternoon they were on their way to the 
 woods ; but they got lost before they were 
 fairly out of sight of the village. 
 
 They were quite certain they had taken 
 the right road, but it did not seem at all 
 familiar to them. When Bob said this, George 
 broke in with : 
 
 " When you were traveling that same road 
 last Saturday, did you stop every now and 
 then to look behind you ?" 
 
 No, Bob couldn't say that they did. In fact, 
 he couldn't see that there was any need of it, 
 for they were going toward the village, and 
 not toward the lake. 
 
108 THE MYSTERY OF LOST RIVER CANYON. 
 
 " That was the very reason why you ought 
 to have taken your bearings occasionally," 
 said George. " Hereafter, when you are 
 traveling through a piece of woods with which 
 you are not acquainted, make it a point to 
 stop every quarter of a mile or so and look 
 hack, heing careful to note the shape of the 
 trees and the lay of the land. If you will do 
 that you will never get lost, for your eye will 
 be sure to rest on some landmark that you 
 will recognize when you return.'' 
 
 Bob remarked that he would bear that in 
 mind, and went on with his story. 
 
 They must have strayed away from the 
 main thoroughfare, he said, for all of a sudden 
 the road they were following came to an 
 end in a brush-heap. 
 
 They tried to retrace their steps but found 
 they couldn't do it; and the longer they 
 walked, the more hopelessly bewildered did 
 they become. 
 
 Knowing that the lake lay somewhere to 
 the north of them, they took the points of 
 the compass from the sun, which had by this 
 time sunk so low in the west that his beams 
 
LOST IN THE WOODS. 109 
 
 just touched the tops of the tallest trees, and, 
 making no further effort to find the road they 
 had lost, they drew a bee-line through the 
 woods, scrambling over fallen logs and forc- 
 ing their way with difficulty through the 
 dense thickets of trees and bushes that lay 
 in their path. 
 
 For a time, they held their course with 
 tolerable accuracy, but when the sun set and 
 the woods became so dark that they could 
 scarcely see each other's faces, Dick Lang- 
 don, who was a city boy and entirely unac- 
 customed to severe and long-continued exer- 
 tion, declared that he was completely fagged 
 out, and that he could not possibly go any 
 further. 
 
 " My back aches under this heavy pack, and 
 my gun and rod seem to weigh a ton," said he, 
 with a despairing groan. " We can't find 
 George's cabin to-night." 
 
 " And I have my doubts about finding it in 
 the morning/' said Bob, cheerfully. " If you 
 want to camp here all night, scrape some of 
 these dry leaves together and start a blaze, 
 while I look around for some firewood." 
 
110 THE MYSTERY OF LOST EIVER CANYON. 
 
 " I wish now that we had shot some of the 
 squirrels that had the impudence to bark at 
 us as we came along," said Dick, depositing 
 his heavy basket at the foot of the nearest 
 tree, and drawing together a pile of leaves, 
 as his companion had requested. " They 
 would have made a good supper for us ; but, 
 as it is, we shall have to be satisfied with 
 bread and butter and a cup of tea. Hand out 
 the matches." 
 
 " I have none. Didn't you bring some with 
 you?" 
 
 " No. I didn't suppose we should need any." 
 
 Bob uttered a low, long-drawn whistle. 
 
 " Here's the mischief to pay, and nothing 
 to pay it with," said he. " We've got a gloomy 
 night before us, Dick, but that needn't worry 
 you any. It's nothing when you get used to it." 
 
 " No matches !" exclaimed Dick, trying to 
 pierce the almost impenetrable darkness with 
 eyes that must have been very badly fright- 
 ened, for they persisted in transforming every 
 tree and bush into some dangerous beast that 
 was about to open hostilities. " No matches !" 
 he repeated, shivering all over as the mourn- 
 
LOST IN THE WOODS. Ill 
 
 ful hoot of a distant owl came faintly to his 
 ears. " Bob, I wouldn't stay here all night 
 without fire for all the money there is in 
 America." 
 
 " Why, what's the matter?" asked Bob, who 
 was very much surprised. 
 
 As it was nothing new for him to pass a 
 night in the woods, he didn't care whether he 
 had a fire to sit by or not, and he could not 
 imagine why his companion should exhibit 
 so much timidity. 
 
 "There is nothing in this country bigger 
 than a raccoon " 
 
 " I know that," interrupted Dick ; but I 
 don't want to stay here in the dark. I would 
 much rather go on, tired as I am." 
 
 " All right," replied Bob, who thought so 
 much of Dick that he was willing to do any- 
 thing that would add to his comfort. Grab 
 hold of my coat-tail, and I will lead you out 
 of this, if I can. Keep your arm before your 
 face, so the bushes will not hit you when they 
 fly back." 
 
 " He'd make a good one to spend a night 
 in the mountains, where grizzlies and pan- 
 
112 THE MYSTERY OF LOST EIVER CANYON. 
 
 thers are plenty, wouldn't he?" added Bob 
 to himself. " If he is startled by the hoot of 
 an owl, how would he act while listening to 
 such a serenade as a pack of gray wolves could 
 give him ?" 
 
 Bob was hungry and tired, too, and would 
 have preferred a cold bite and a sound sleep 
 under the lee of some friendly log to a fa- 
 tiguing tramp through the woods that were 
 almost pitch dark ; but still, he did not com- 
 plain. 
 
 Using the butt of his fishing-rod as a cane, 
 he felt his way through the darkness, and 
 presently, to his great surprise, as well as de- 
 light, he found himself on solid ground, and 
 saw the stars looking down at him through 
 an opening in the trees. 
 
 " I declare, Dick, we have stumbled upon 
 the road at last," he said ; and in order to 
 make sure of it, he bent down and passed his 
 hand over the ground. " It is the road," he 
 repeated, " for I can feel the ruts made by the 
 wheels. Now, let's hurry on, and we will soon 
 find out how far we are from Mr. Stebbins' barn. 
 I don't suppose the old fellow will like it " 
 
LOST IN THE WOODS. 113 
 
 " We don't care whether he likes it or not/' 
 broke in Dick, who was so weary that he 
 could hardly drag one foot after the other. 
 " We'll sleep there, all the same, and if we 
 leave in the morning before he comes out, 
 he will never know that we have been near 
 his old barn." 
 
 Fortunately, the sheltering roof of which 
 they were now in search was not far away. 
 
 About half a mile further on, they came to 
 the sheep pasture, and, when they had crossed 
 it, they found themselves standing in front of 
 Mr. Stebbins' barn, which was no whit darker 
 or gloomier than the dwelling-house that was 
 but a short distance away. 
 
 It was evident that the owner of the pre- 
 mises had gone to bed, and, as they knew 
 better than to arouse him in order to obtain 
 permission to sleep on the hay, they opened 
 the door and entered without ceremony ; but 
 they could not close the door behind them, 
 for the only fastening that had been provided 
 for it was a wooden pin, which fitted into an 
 auger hole on the outside of the casing. 
 
 Having seen the inside of the barn in broad 
 
114 THE MYSTERY OF LOST RIVER CANYON. 
 
 daylight, the boys knew just how it was ar- 
 ranged, and consequently they had no diffi- 
 culty in finding a way to the hay-mow. 
 
 Dick threw himself down upon it with a 
 sigh of relief, and prepared to go to sleep ; 
 while Bob, whose empty stomach had long 
 been calling for something nourishing, thrust 
 his hand into his basket and finally fished 
 out a sandwich. 
 
 " Better take a bite before you go off into 
 the land of dreams," he said to his companion. 
 " We shall have no breakfast until we reach 
 George's cabin, and that is at least two miles 
 from here." 
 
 Dick was too sleepy to make any response ; 
 so Bob left off bothering him, and sat there 
 in the dark, munching his sandwich and won- 
 dering what the academy fellows would say 
 when they learned that he, a born backwoods- 
 man, had been lost in a little piece of timber 
 that was scarcely larger than one of his father's 
 sheep-farms. 
 
 He came very near falling asleep while he 
 was thinking about it; but, all on a sudden, 
 he was aroused to full consciousness by the 
 
LOST IN THE WOODS. 115 
 
 sound of voices and footsteps outside the barn. 
 An instant later, a head was thrust in at the 
 open door. Bob could see it very distinctly, 
 because it was between him and the light ; 
 but the eyes that belonged to the head could 
 not distinguish Bob's form, for the barn was 
 as dark as a pocket. 
 
 "It is a party of our fellows who have 
 taken French leave, found their way up here 
 by accident, and who intend to have a day's 
 sport at fishing, in spite of the principal's 
 prohibition," thought Bob, as he rested his 
 elbows on his knees, and waited to see what 
 the newcomers were going to do. "As the 
 owner of this hotel is not present, and Dick 
 is fast asleep, I think it nothing more than 
 fair that I should act as master of ceremonies 
 and give them a hearty greeting." 
 
 Before he could act on this resolution, the 
 newcomers entered the barn. There were 
 three of them, and Bob saw at once that 
 they had come there with a well-defined ob- 
 ject in view, for they said and did some 
 things that astonished and alarmed him. 
 
116 THE MYSTERY OF LOST KIVEK CANYON. 
 
 CHAPTER X. 
 
 THE MASKED ROBBERS. 
 
 * * rpHIS is a good place to put on our dis- 
 JL guises, fellows," said one of the in- 
 truders, in a low tone. u In ten minutes more 
 we shall be rich men. All we have to do is 
 to act quickly and silently, and the money 
 is ours." 
 
 As he spoke he drew from his pocket some- 
 thing that looked like a piece of cloth, and, 
 after shaking out the folds, he went through 
 with some manipulations, which Bob, owing 
 to the darkness, could not distinctly see. 
 
 The others followed his example, and when 
 one of them stepped into plain view in front 
 of the open door, Bob saw that his face was 
 concealed by a bag drawn over his head. 
 
 " What in the world is the meaning of that, 
 I wonder ?" soliloquized the silent watcher, 
 
THE MASKED BOBBERS. 117 
 
 who was utterly bewildered by these strange 
 proceedings. " It looks suspicious, to say the 
 least. It's a lucky thing for Dick and me 
 that I didn't speak to them ; and in order to 
 be on the safe side " 
 
 " Listen ! listen I" suddenly exclaimed one 
 of the intruders, in an excited whisper. 
 
 The speaker and his companions instantly 
 became as motionless as so many blocks of 
 wood, and Bob Howard held his breath in 
 suspense. 
 
 He had tried to draw his gun toward him, 
 intending to put a cartridge into each barrel, 
 and so prepare himself for any emergency 
 that might arise. 
 
 The rustling he made in the hay, slight as 
 it was, reached the ears of one of the intruders 
 and alarmed them. 
 
 " I was certain I heard something," con- 
 tinued the latter, in the same cautious whisper. 
 
 "No doubt you did," replied one of his 
 companions, with some impatience in his tones. 
 "I have heard something ever since I have 
 been in the barn. I have heard horses stamp- 
 ing and the cows eating their hay." 
 
118 THE MYSTEEY OF LOST EIVEE CANYON. 
 
 " But I heard something else I know I 
 did. It was a faint, rustling sound " 
 
 " Oh, come now ! We have heard enough 
 of that. You are altogether too chicken- 
 hearted for this business, Benson. How will 
 you act when you get on the plains, among 
 those " 
 
 " Careful ! careful ! That is not my name." 
 
 " Well, young Jesse James, then, if that 
 suits you any better ! But I must say that 
 if your prototype were here, he would be 
 ashamed of you." 
 
 " I have just as much right to take that 
 name as you have to take the name of Wild 
 Harry," was the spirited retort. 
 
 "I can't see it! I have always done my 
 share of work, without any croaking ; and 
 you haven't. Mark my words ! If we ever 
 get into trouble, it will be through you, and 
 nobody else." 
 
 " That will do, boys !" said the third mem- 
 ber of the party, who had not spoken before. 
 "Don't let's have any quarreling. If we are 
 ready, let us be moving. The sooner we begin, 
 the sooner we shall get through with it." 
 
THE MASKED ROBBERS. 119 
 
 " I am ready," said the one who had done 
 the most of the talking, and whose voice 
 seemed strangely familiar to Bob. t( Now, 
 remember that this night's work is going to 
 be a test of our courage. If we can't make 
 it successful, we have no business to think 
 of going out West. Stebbins and his wife 
 are as deaf as posts, and if we move with 
 due caution they will not know that we have 
 been in the house until we are out and gone. 
 If they chance to wake up well, we all know 
 what to do in that case." 
 
 The speaker led the way out of the barn, 
 and he and his companions moved toward 
 the house with stealthy footsteps, leaving Bob 
 Howard trembling all over with excitement 
 and alarm. 
 
 As soon as he was certain that they were 
 out of hearing, he laid his hand on his friend's 
 shoulder and shook him gently. 
 
 " Dick ! Dick ! Wake up here!" said Bob, 
 in a suppressed whisper. " Do you hear me, 
 Dick ?" 
 
 Yes, Dick heard him, but he didn't want 
 to wake up. He was too tired. He muttered 
 
120 THE MYSTERY OF LOST EIVEE CANYON. 
 
 something in reply, and rolled over to find an 
 easier position. 
 
 " I say, Dick, wake up here !" repeated 
 Bob, throwing more strength and energy 
 into his efforts. " There's robbery going on !" 
 
 "Who cares?" said Dick, drowsily. "I 
 haven't got anything worth stealing." 
 
 " But Mr. Stebbins has," urged Bob, retain- 
 ing his hold of his companion's shoulder and 
 rolling him from side to side, in spite of the 
 latter's efforts to shake him off. " He's got a 
 lot of money in the house the money that 
 George Edwards told us about, you know 
 and three robbers have come here to get it. 
 You've come to your senses at last, have 
 you?" he added, as Dick straightened up, 
 with an exclamation of astonishment. 
 
 Seeing that he had succeeded in making 
 his friend understand the situation, Bob pro- 
 ceeded to give a hurried account of what he 
 had seen and heard during the last few min- 
 utes, adding a piece of information that fairly 
 stunned the listener. 
 
 " The voice of the one who had the most 
 to say, and who seemed to be the leader of 
 
THE MASKED BOBBERS. 121 
 
 the gang, sounded wonderfully like Arthur 
 Wallace's," said Bob, "and he called one of 
 his companions ' Benson !' ' 
 
 " Good gracious !" exclaimed Dick. " It 
 couldn't have been Jim Benson ?" 
 
 "Answer the question for yourself," re- 
 plied Bob. "All I know about it is this: 
 Whoever they are, they have been engaged 
 in business of this kind before to-night, and 
 when they are out on their raids, they drop 
 their own names and answer to others. One 
 of them, the timid one, is young Jesse James, 
 and the leader is Wild Harry. Who the 
 third one is, I don't know ; but I would almost 
 swear that his right name is Will Forbes.'' 
 
 " It can't be possible I" said Dick. " Do 
 you suppose that any of our academy boys 
 Bob Howard, you have been asleep and 
 dreamed it all !" 
 
 " Have I, though ? Dare you go out of 
 the barn with me and see for yourself? If 
 we don't find some robbers about that house 
 I will give in, and admit that I fell asleep 
 without knowing it." 
 
 The answer that Bob received to this chal- 
 
122 THE MYSTEEY OF LOST BIVER CANYON. 
 
 lenge was the click of Dick's gun as lie 
 opened the spring and released the barrels. 
 He pushed a cartridge into each chamber, 
 buckled his belt about his waist and crept 
 toward the ladder, Bob following silently 
 after him, and marvelling greatly all the 
 while. 
 
 The boy who was afraid to camp all night 
 in the woods without a fire, even though he 
 knew that there was nothing there that could 
 harm him, was brave enough to face a party 
 of robbers, who would doubtless fight to the 
 death rather than allow themselves to be 
 captured. 
 
 Having felt their way down the ladder, 
 the two boys went to the door and looked 
 cautiously out of it. A single glance was 
 enough to satisfy Dick that his companion 
 had not been dreaming. There were three 
 dark forms standing in the shadow of the 
 wood-shed. 
 
 They had made good progress with their 
 work, for just as Dick thrust his head out 
 at the door, the shutters that protected the 
 window swung noiselessly open, and a ninute 
 
THE MASKED BOBBERS. 123 
 
 later- the window itself was heard to slide 
 back from its place. 
 
 " They are robbers, sure enough/' whis- 
 pered Dick, excitedly. " What shall we do 
 now ? Rush out there and try to take them f 
 
 " By no means !" replied Bob, who, judging 
 the marauders by the desperadoes that were 
 so common in his own country, considered 
 that the attempt would be foolhardy in the 
 extreme. " They are armed, of course, and 
 they would shoot us on sight. Let's drive 
 them away. That's all we can do." 
 
 There was no time to discuss this proposi- 
 tion, for while Bob was speaking one of the 
 robbers clambered through the window. The 
 others were about to follow, when they were 
 frightened almost out of their senses by the 
 roar of a fowling-piece behind them, accom- 
 panied by a shower of bird-shot, which rattled 
 harmlessly among the chips at their feet. 
 
 They stood silent and motionless for a mo- 
 ment, and then another report and a sec- 
 ond charge of shot completed their discom- 
 fiture. 
 
 The two who were on the outside of the 
 
124 THE MYSTEKY OF LOST EIVEB CANYON. 
 
 wood-shed took to their heels in short order. 
 The one on the inside came out of the win- 
 dow with such haste that he missed his foot- 
 ing, and measured his length on the ground, 
 and soon all three of the robbers darted 
 around the corner of the house and disap- 
 peared. 
 
 " There !" said Bob, with a sigh of satisfac- 
 tion. " We have done one good deed if we 
 never do another as long as we live. We have 
 saved the old man's money, but I don't sup- 
 pose we shall get ' Thank you !' for it. Let's 
 go and shut that window." 
 
 It was a fortunate thing for the two boys 
 that Bob thought of this, and they found it 
 out presently. 
 
 While they were walking across the yard 
 toward the wood-shed, a window in the main 
 part of the building was cautiously raised, a 
 stream of fire issued from the opening, a re- 
 port, like that of a small cannon, rang out 
 on the air, and a handful of buckshot went 
 whistling toward the barn. 
 
 " The old fellow was prepared to defend 
 himself, wasn't he ?" said Dick. " A charge 
 
THE MASKED ROBBERS. 125 
 
 from that blunderbuss would clean out a 
 dozen robbers." 
 
 Then raising his voice, he called out : 
 
 " No use in wasting any more ammunition, 
 Mr. Stebbins. They are gone." 
 
 " There's no use in wasting your breath in 
 that fashion, either," said Bob. " He's so deaf 
 he can hardly hear it thunder. Come back 
 into the barn and let the window go." 
 
 " Hold on !" replied Dick. " Perhaps he 
 will come out, so that we can explain matters 
 to him." 
 
 " No, he won't," said Bob, earnestly. " He 
 is frightened half to death, and he will not 
 show his head before daylight. It would be 
 dangerous for his most intimate friend to come 
 near the house now, for he will stand guard at 
 that window, and shoot at every living thing 
 he sees, without stopping to ask questions." 
 
 It was with a good deal of reluctance that 
 Dick consented to follow his friend's advice, 
 for he thought it looked like a confession of 
 guilt on their part ; but he did follow it, and 
 he afterwards learned that it was the very best 
 thing he could have done. 
 
126 THE MYSTERY OF LOST RIVER CANYON. 
 
 If he and Bob had attempted to approach 
 the house in order to explain matters to its 
 terrified inmates, one or the other of them 
 would have been killed beyond a doubt. 
 
 They retreated to the barn before Mr. Steb- 
 bins could reload his ponderous musket, felt 
 their way to the mow, and sat down on the 
 hay to think over the events of the night. 
 
 " When we left school this afternoon, we 
 didn't dream of such a thing as this did 
 we ?" said Dick, who was the first to break 
 the silence. " I say, Bob, it's a lucky thing 
 for Mr. Stebbins that we got lost. If we had 
 come straight to the lake and gone on to 
 George's cabin, there's no telling what these 
 robbers would have done after they gained a 
 footing in the house." 
 
 "If they didn't show more pluck in the 
 house than they did out of it, they wouldn't 
 have accomplished anything," replied Bob. 
 " I didn't expect we could drive them away 
 so easily ; but they showed themselves to be 
 perfect cowards. There's one thing that bangs 
 me completely," added Bob, pulling off his 
 hat and digging his fingers into his head, as 
 
THE MASKED ROBBERS. 127 
 
 if lie were trying to stir up his ideas. " Who 
 were those fellows ? That is what I want to 
 know." 
 
 " There's something queer about that. You 
 thought you recognized Wallace's voice, and 
 Forbes', and you heard one of the party ad- 
 dressed as Benson ?" 
 
 " I did, and his voice sounded like Ben- 
 son's, too." 
 
 " But you don't think it was he ?" 
 
 " Why, of course not," replied Bob, who, 
 now that his excitement was over, was able to 
 take a calmer and as he thought more 
 sensible view of the situation. " There is more 
 than one fellow in the world by the name of 
 Benson." 
 
 But this reflection did not satisfy Bob, or 
 Dick either. 
 
 They fell asleep while they were talking 
 .the matter over, and slumbered peacefully 
 until daylight, when they were awakened by 
 a series of frightful yells, and started up to 
 find Mr. Stebbins standing in the open 
 door. 
 
 His wrinkled face was distorted with rage, 
 
128 THE MYSTERY OF LOST RIVER CANYON. 
 
 and he held in his hands an old flint-lock 
 musket, which he pointed straight at Bob's 
 head. 
 
 He looked dangerous. 
 
AN ANGRY MISEE. 129 
 
 CHAPTER XL 
 
 AN ANGRY MISEK. 
 
 " I say !" shouted Mr. Stebbins, in a sten- 
 torian voice. " Be you gone clean deaf you 
 two ? Come down from there, I tell you, or 
 I'll send you to kingdom come afore you can 
 bat your eyes." 
 
 The astonished boys lost no time in waking 
 up. The sight of the cocked gun and the 
 angry man's face was enough to banish sleep 
 most effectually. 
 
 " I knowed you was here for no good the 
 first time I seen you," continued Mr. Steb- 
 bins. " Your gun and your poles is only a 
 blind to make folks b'lieve that you come up 
 here to hunt and fish ; but I know you. I 
 seen you run in here after shootin' off your 
 guns to skeer me ; but I've got a gun, too, an' 
 I know how to use it. Come down from there, 
 I say ! Come down, an' clear out !" 
 
130 THE MYSTERY OF LOST KIVER CANYON. 
 
 The boys began to understand the matter 
 now, and Dick saw at once that it was neces- 
 sary to take some precautions for the safety 
 of himself and his friend. 
 
 The old man was so highly excited that he 
 hardly knew what he was doing. His finger 
 was resting on the trigger of his ancient 
 flint-lock, and, if the weapon should be dis- 
 charged by any accident, Bob Howard would 
 never ^now what hurt him. 
 
 In order to avoid this danger, Dick thought 
 it best to compel Mr. Stebbins to lower his 
 gun, which he did by picking up his double- 
 barrel and resting it across his knees in such 
 a way that its muzzle was directed toward the 
 old man's head. 
 
 "What are you about there?" yelled the 
 latter. 
 
 He took the flint-lock down from his 
 shoulder, sprang through the door with sur- 
 prising agility, and then turned around and 
 looked back, keeping his body concealed, and 
 showing nothing but his eyes and two little 
 tufts of stiff gray hair. 
 
 " Turn that we'pon t'other way," said he, 
 
AN ANGRY MISER. 131 
 
 his rage giving way to alarm. " I don't like 
 it." 
 
 " Do you suppose that we like to look into 
 the muzzle of a cocked gun any better than 
 you do ?" demanded Dick. " Come on, Bob ; 
 let's go down there." 
 
 The boys slung their baskets on their backs, 
 picked up their fishing-rods, and descended 
 to the barn floor. 
 
 As they passed out into the open air, they 
 took note of the fact that the door was riddled 
 with buckshot. If they had stood there in- 
 stead of going toward the house, to close the 
 shutter which the robbers had left open in 
 their hurried flight, one or the other of them 
 would have received some of those shot in 
 his body. 
 
 When they got out of the barn, they were 
 surprised to find that Mr. Stebbins had beat 
 a hasty retreat. He had taken refuge in the 
 wood-shed, and all they could see of him was 
 the top of his head above the window-sill. 
 
 He held his gun so that he could bring it 
 to his shoulder very quickly if circumstances 
 should seem to require it. Believing his posi- 
 
132 THE MYSTERY OF LOST EIVEK CANYON. 
 
 tion to be impregnable, he had grown savage 
 again. 
 
 "Now, then, clear out!" he shouted, as 
 soon as the boys came into view. " But 
 mind what I say this thing ain't a-goin' to 
 be dropped here." 
 
 " We'd rather it wouldn't be dropped here," 
 replied Dick. " If you will put down your 
 gun, and come out here so that we can talk to 
 you, we shall be glad to explain matters." 
 
 " They don't need any explainin' !" snarled 
 Mr. Stebbins. "I understand 'em already. 
 I can see as fur into a grindstone as the next 
 man, old as I be. Clear yourselves." 
 
 " Don't waste any more time with him," 
 said Bob, who was utterly disgusted at the 
 old man's obstinacy. " You might as well 
 argue with a pig." 
 
 " But he thinks we are the ones who tried 
 to rob him," replied Dick. 
 
 " I know it ; and he will continue to think 
 so, no matter what you say to him." 
 
 "Be you goin' to clear out, you two?" 
 shouted the old man, in impatient tones. 
 "I'm a' most tired of waitin' to see the last 
 
AN ANGRY MISER. 133 
 
 of you ; but I'll tell you ag'in that this thing 
 ain't a-goin' to be dropped here. I won't 
 have you prowlin' around my house no more." 
 
 " You need not worry about that," yelled 
 Bob in reply. " You may be sure that we 
 shall take particular pains to steer clear of 
 you in future." 
 
 " I bet you will ! I'll have you locked up 
 so tight that you won't never try to break 
 into any other house. Mind that !" 
 
 Having no desire to prolong an interview 
 that could bring forth no good result, Dick 
 and Bob made no further effort to induce the 
 angry old man to listen to the explanation 
 they had to offer. They turned about and 
 walked away. 
 
 As Mr. Stebbins saw the distance between 
 them and the house increasing, his courage 
 all came back to him, and he began to show 
 more of his precious anatomy above the 
 window-sill, and to shout after them the most 
 abusive words. 
 
 Twice he made a movement indicative of 
 a desire to bring his flint-lock to bear on the 
 boys ; but, as often as he did so, Dick and 
 
134 THE MYSTERY OF LOST RIVER CANYON. 
 
 Bob dropped their double-barrels into the 
 hollow of their arms, so that the muzzles 
 covered the window, and then the old man 
 would draw himself down out of sight. 
 
 In a few minutes the bushes that lined the 
 shore of the lake shut the house out from 
 their view ; but it was not until a long time 
 afterward that the yells and maledictions of 
 the half-crazed occupant of the wood-shed 
 ceased to ring in their ears. 
 
 This, we repeat, was the substance of the 
 story that Bob Howard told George, while 
 they were sitting on the bench in the cabin. 
 The only portions of it that he left out were 
 those relating to the supposed identity of Mr. 
 Stebbins' nocturnal visitors. 
 
 He did not mention the name by which one 
 of the robbers had been addressed by the one 
 who. seemed to be the leader of the trio, nor 
 did he refer to the fact that the voices of all 
 three of them had sounded familiar to him. 
 
 He and Dick had talked these matters over 
 during their walk down the shore, and de- 
 cided that they would say nothing about 
 them. They were merely coincidences, and, 
 
AN ANGRY MISER. 135 
 
 if they so much as hinted at them, they might 
 be the means of placing three of their school- 
 mates in a most unpleasant situation. 
 
 George paid the closest attention to the 
 story, and Dick Langdon noted, with no little 
 astonishment, that at times an expression of 
 intelligence would light up his countenance, 
 and a meaning smile linger about his lips. 
 
 When Bob ceased speaking, George asked 
 abruptly : 
 
 " You say those robbers engaged in a long 
 conversation in your hearing. Did you rec- 
 ognize their voices ?" 
 
 This question took Dick and Bob so com- 
 pletely by surprise that they could not speak ; 
 but the blank look in their faces told George 
 all he wished to know. 
 
 " You needn't answer me if you don't want 
 to; but I'll just tell you what's a fact," said 
 he, striking his open palm with his clenched 
 hand. " I'll bet a million dollars, or half I 
 am worth, that if I felt at all revengeful if 
 I had any desire to punish three boys who 
 have repeatedly gone out of their way to in- 
 sult me I could put my hands on those rob- 
 
136 THE MYSTERY OF LOST RIVER CANYON. 
 
 bers before sundown, unless they have skipped 
 the country. What do you say to that ?" 
 
 "/ say if you know who they are, you 
 ought to point them out to the officers of the 
 law," answered Dick Langdon, with the ut- 
 most promptness. " Who do you think they 
 are ?" 
 
 " I don't think anything about it, Dick ; 
 I know. Now, let me tell you a story a very 
 short one." 
 
 So saying, George, in a few words, told of 
 his accidental meeting with Wallace, Benson 
 and Forbes at the rock beside the spring, and 
 repeated the conversation he had overheard. 
 
 While he was speaking, he kept a close 
 watch of his guests' faces, and he would have 
 been blind, indeed, if he had not been able to 
 see that they knew more about the robbers 
 than they cared to tell. 
 
 When he had finished his story, he leaned 
 back against the cabin and waited for one of 
 them to say something; but Bob kept his 
 eyes fastened on the ground, while Dick 
 Langdon stood with his back toward the 
 bench, and appeared to be deeply interested 
 
AN ANGEY MISEE. 137 
 
 in watching the motions of a fish-hawk that 
 was slowly winging its way across the lake. 
 
 Beyond a doubt, these three boys were the 
 possessors of a secret that was destined, at 
 no distant day, to make a commotion in the 
 village. 
 
 "Put your story and mine together, and 
 what do you make of them ?" continued 
 George, who was anxious that his compan- 
 ions should express an opinion, in order that 
 he might know how nearly it agreed with his 
 own. 
 
 " I make just this of them/' answered 
 Bob. " Mr. Stebbins believes that Dick and 
 I tried to rob him last night, and he told us 
 more than once that he didn't intend to let 
 the matter drop. That means that he is going 
 to have us arrested. If he does that, it may 
 be necessary for Dick and me, in order to 
 protect ourselves, to make three fellows, who 
 shall be nameless, show where they passed 
 the hours between sunset yesterday and sun- 
 rise this morning. If he lets us alone " 
 
 "Don't build any hopes on that," inter- 
 rupted George ; " for if you do you are bound 
 
138 THE MYSTERY OF LOST EIVER CANYON. 
 
 to be disappointed. He is one of the most 
 vindictive old misers that ever lived." 
 
 "Well, as to that," said Bob, slowly, "I 
 don't call a man vindictive because he asks 
 the help of the law when he has been 
 wronged." 
 
 " Neither do I ; but he might have listened 
 to your explanation." 
 
 " Well, fellows, what did we come out here 
 for?" said Dick. ''It is a most unfortunate 
 piece of business altogether, and I wish to 
 goodness that we were well out of it; but see- 
 ing that we are not, and that we can't settle 
 it among ourselves, I say let's drop it and go 
 fishing." 
 
 The others said so, too ; but the first thing 
 in order was breakfast, and that was very soon 
 made ready. 
 
 The water in the kettle, which George had 
 placed over the fire before he opened the door, 
 had had plenty of time to come to the boil- 
 ing point while they were sitting there on 
 the bench, and it was but a few minutes' work 
 to make the coffee, lay the table and place 
 upon it some of the delicacies that were 
 
AN ANGEY MISEE. 139 
 
 brought up from the capacious depths of the 
 camp -baskets. 
 
 " Now, if we only had some squirrels for 
 George to broil over the coals, what a break- 
 fast we would have !" exclaimed Dick. 
 
 " Don't grumble with what is set before 
 you, young man," said Bob, sternly. " It's not 
 polite. You can't have any broiled squirrels 
 this morning. The time consumed in shoot- 
 ing and cooking them would be just so much 
 time taken away from our fishing, and we 
 ought to have been anchored over that bass- 
 hole when the sun first touched the water this 
 morning ; then we would have caught some 
 fish." 
 
 That was quite true ; but still the best part 
 of the morning had not all been lost. Hun- 
 gry as they were, there were but a very few 
 minutes devoted to breakfast. 
 
 There was no time spent in catching min- 
 nows for bait, George having been thoughtful 
 enough to procure an ample supply the day 
 before, and neither did it take him long to 
 row the scow out to the bass-hole and bring it 
 to an anchor in the proper place. 
 
140 THE MYSTEEY OF LOST EIVER CANYOK 
 
 The fish were evidently as hungry as the boys 
 had been a short half hour before, and the 
 struggles that ensued between them and their 
 captors were numerous and exciting. They 
 took the bait almost as quickly as it was offered 
 to them, and, although some succeeded in 
 effecting their escape, the most of those that 
 were struck were safely landed, by the aid 
 of the folding dip-net that had found a place 
 in Bob's basket ; and by the time ten o'clock 
 came, George's guests had caught a larger 
 string than the one they had carried to the 
 village with them the Saturday before. 
 
 George himself did not do much fishing. 
 He did not believe in wasting such good 
 things as black bass, so he caught only enough 
 for dinner, and then sat down and watched 
 the others. 
 
 When the fish stopped biting he drew up 
 the anchor and pulled back to the cabin, 
 where a great surprise awaited both him and 
 his friends. 
 
A VISIT FEOM THE SHERIFF. 141 
 
 CHAPTER XII. 
 
 A VISIT FROM THE SHERIFF. 
 
 * rpHAT is as fine a string of fish as I care 
 _1_ to take to the village/ 7 observed Dick 
 Langdon, as George rowed away from the 
 bass-hole ; " and if you want any more you 
 will have to catch them yourself, Mr. Bob. 
 I'm going to spend the afternoon in the woods, 
 shooting squirrels. 
 
 " All right ! " responded Bob. " If you can 
 see more sport in killing an innocent little 
 animal, that has no chance for its life, than 
 you can in having a hotly-contested battle 
 with a black bass, go ahead. I shall do some 
 more fishing, find I'll warrant Hallo ! Who 
 are those men?" 
 
 George and Dick turned about on their 
 seats, and looking toward the cabin, saw there 
 a party of a dozen or more horsemen, who 
 seemed to be waiting for them. George took 
 
142 THE MYSTERY OF LOST RIVER CANYON. 
 
 just one glance at them, and then resumed 
 his work at the oars. 
 
 " Do you suppose they have come up here 
 to hunt for fish ?" continued Bob. " I don't 
 see anything that looks like a gun or rod 
 among them. Why, George, what makes you 
 look so sober all on a sudden ?" 
 
 " Do you recognize any of the party?" asked 
 George, in reply. 
 
 Bob and Dick shaded their eyes with their 
 hands, and closely scrutinized every one of 
 the horsemen in turn, but they could not see 
 a single familiar form among them. The dis- 
 tance was so great that they could not see their 
 faces. 
 
 " They are all strangers to me," said Dick, 
 and Bob echoed his words. 
 
 "There's where you are mistaken/' said 
 George, still tugging at the oars. " The one 
 on that cream-colored horse is my Uncle Ru- 
 ben though what should bring him up here 
 I don't know and those black horses are 
 ridden by Mr. Stebbins, and Mr. Newton the 
 deputy sheriff. 
 
 George expected that his friends would be 
 
A VISIT FEOM THE SHERIFF. 143 
 
 surprised at this announcement, and they cer- 
 tainly were. Their eyes grew to twice their 
 usual size, their faces changed color, and, 
 after looking at each other for a moment in 
 silence, they turned about and looked at the 
 horsemen again. 
 
 " You have certainly seen those white po- 
 nies before," added George. 
 
 " I believe I have," said Bob. " Don't they 
 belong to Wallace ?" 
 
 " They do ; and he is riding one, while 
 Forbes is mounted on the other. That fellow 
 who is standing near the cabin, holding his 
 horse by the bridle, is Benson." 
 
 " Whew !" whistled Dick. " I say, Bob, we 
 are in for it." 
 
 "So am I," said George, calmly. 
 
 " You !" exclaimed Bob. " What have you 
 done ?" 
 
 " Nothing at all. But you wait and see if 
 my respected uncle does not exert himself 
 to the utmost to prove something against 
 
 me." 
 
 " Let him exert and welcome," said Dick. 
 " Bob and I are the ones who must stand the 
 
144 THE MYSTERY OF LOST KIVER CANYON. 
 
 brunt of this business. Mr. Stebbins has 
 brought the sheriff up here to arrest us, I 
 suppose." 
 
 " Of course he has," assured George. 
 " Didn't I tell you that he wouldn't let you 
 alone ?" 
 
 " I think that Wallace and his friends have 
 good cheek," said Bob, who had by this time 
 succeeded in identifying every one of the 
 horsemen. "Their safest plan would have 
 been to stay away from here." 
 
 " I can't agree with you there," observed 
 Dick, "/think, taking everything into con- 
 sideration, that the boldest course was the 
 best, and it seems they have adopted it. 
 More than half that party came up here out 
 of curiosity, and it wouldn't have looked well 
 for Wallace and the rest to remain behind." 
 
 George knew what his friends meant by 
 these remarks ; but he made no reply to them. 
 He pulled steadily for the shore, and, when 
 the boat had almost reached it, Bob leaned 
 forward and said, in an earnest whisper : 
 
 " You do the talking, Dick, and I will keep 
 a close watch of Benson. Judging by what 
 
A VISIT FEOM THE SHERIFF. 145 
 
 I heard last night, and what George told us 
 regarding the way he acted down there at the 
 spring, he is very timid and will be very 
 likely to betray himself while Mr. Newton is 
 questioning us." 
 
 Just then the voice of Mr. Stebbins, who 
 had been gesticulating wildly ever since the 
 boat and its occupants came into view around 
 the point, reached their ears. 
 
 " I tell you, Newton, them's the very fel- 
 lers who tried to rob me last night," he 
 asserted. " They broke open the winder in 
 my wood-shed, shot their guns at the house, 
 an' then had the imperdence to go into my 
 barn an' 'go to sleep in the hay j-^n' there's 
 where I found 'em this morning." 
 
 At this moment the bottom of the boat 
 grated on the sand, and Mr. Newton took the 
 painter that Dick tossed to him, and drew the 
 bow up on the beach. 
 
 The officer seemed to be highly amused ; 
 Uncle Ruben looked triumphant; Mr. Steb- 
 bins was furious; Wallace and Forbes tried 
 to appear indifferent ; Benson's face was as 
 
 white as a sheet ; and the countenances of the 
 
 10 
 
146 THE MYSTEEY OF LOST EIVER CANYON. 
 
 others expressed nothing but interest and 
 curiosity. 
 
 Mr. Newton, who was experienced in his 
 calling, and had gained something more than 
 a local reputation as a thief-taker, knew very 
 well that Mr. Stebbins had put him on the 
 wrong trail ; but he could not make the old 
 man think so. 
 
 As the boys sprang out of the boat, he 
 shook them all warmly by the hand a pro- 
 ceeding on his part that increased the ire of 
 Mr. Stebbins, who called out : 
 
 " Don't tech 'em, Newton. Two on 'em is 
 thieves, an' George Edwards ain't no bettor, 
 'cause he harbors 'em !" 
 
 " What do you say to that, boys !" inquired 
 the officer, good-naturedly. 
 
 "I say he lies!" replied Bob, forgetting in 
 his rage that Dick Langdon was to do all the 
 talking. 
 
 " I know he is mistaken," said Mr. Newton, 
 in a low tone. 
 
 " Now, look here. I ain't a-goin* to have 
 no sich work as that," declared Mr. Stebbins. 
 " If you've got anything to say, speak it out 
 
A VISIT FROM THE SHERIFF. 147 
 
 so't we can all hear it. You've no business 
 to be standin' there whisperin' to them vaga- 
 bonds an' givin' 'em aid an' counsel." 
 
 "I am not giving them aid and counsel/' 
 denied the officer, with some dignity. " They 
 stand in no need of either. If I had known 
 that these were the boys you wanted rne to 
 arrest, I shouldn't have been fool enough to 
 come up here." 
 
 " Oh, I know you're all ag'in me !" cried 
 the old man, whose face was fairly black 
 with rage. " I hain't got a friend among the 
 hull kit of you." 
 
 " We'll not stop to discuss that point," said 
 Mr. Newton. " What do you know about 
 this affair, Dick ? Did you camp in Mr. 
 Stebbins' barn last night ?" 
 
 " I know all about it," answered Dick, 
 promptly and with emphasis. 
 
 There were two in that party who knew 
 that these words contained a deeper meaning 
 than the officer supposed, and there was a 
 third who suspected it ; for when Bob How- 
 ard suddenly recalled to mind the part he had 
 set himself to perform, and began to look 
 
148 THE MYSTEKY OF LOST EIVER CANYON. 
 
 around for Benson, he found that that young 
 gentleman had sought concealment in the rear 
 of all the horsemen, so that he could listen 
 unobserved. 
 
 But Bob was not to be balked in any such 
 way as that. He seated himself on the bench, 
 where he could hear every word that passed 
 between Dick and the sheriff, and at the same 
 time keep a sharp eye on Benson's counten- 
 ance. 
 
 " I know all about it, and I did sleep in 
 Mr. Stebbins' barn last night," said Dick. 
 
 And then he went on to tell the story of his 
 night's experience, just as Bob Howard had 
 told it to George that morning. 
 
 He did not mention Benson's name ; he did 
 not say that the voices sounded familiar to 
 him ; nor did he so much as hint at his sus- 
 picions; but, nevertheless, his narrative pro- 
 duced a startling effect. 
 
 Benson's hand trembled so violently that 
 he could hardly retain his hold upon the stick 
 he was trying to cut with his knife, while the 
 expression of indifference on Wallace's face and 
 Forbes' gave place to a look of genuine alarm. 
 
A VISIT FKOM THE SHERIFF. 149 
 
 " They are the guilty 'ones, as sure as I am 
 a foot high," said Bob Howard to himself; 
 " but, I declare, I can hardly bring myself to 
 believe it. Why should they want to steal 
 the old man's money, when their fathers are 
 so rich and give them all they want to spend ?" 
 
 "What's the matter, Bob?" inquired the 
 officer for the boy, all unconscious of what 
 he was doing, had brought both his hands 
 down upon his knees with a ringing slap. 
 " Do you wish to add anything to what Dick 
 has told us ?" 
 
 " No, sir ; he has told you everything I 
 mean that is to say pretty nearly every- 
 thing that happened last night." 
 
 " Suppose you tell what he left out ?" 
 
 " Dick is a better talker than I am, and he 
 will do it himself when the time comes." 
 
 " Well, Mr. Stebbins," said the sheriff, "our 
 young friend has told a straightforward story, 
 hasn't he?" 
 
 " Oh, 'most anybody could tell a smooth 
 tale, if he thought he could keep himself out 
 of the penitentiary by doing it," replied the 
 old man, who had made several persistent 
 
150 THE MYSTERY OF LOST EIVEK CANYON. 
 
 but unsuccessful attempts to interrupt the boy 
 while he was speaking. " There hain't a word 
 of truth in what he said, except about sleepin' 
 in my barn. 
 
 " Do you suppose that if we had been guilty 
 of an attempt to break into your house, we 
 would have gone to sleep in your barn ?" de- 
 manded Dick. 
 
 " That was only a blind. You wanted me 
 to suspicion some innocent persons." 
 
 " But Dick says there were three of the 
 robbers, and you saw only two," said Mr. New- 
 ton. " How do you account for that ? Who 
 was the other, and where did he go ?" 
 
 " I reckon mebbe it was George Edwards, 
 an' that he took himself safe home. He looks 
 kinder guilty." 
 
 " There, now, what did I tell you, young 
 man ?" spoke up Uncle Ruben, shaking his 
 riding whip at his astonished nephew. " Didn't 
 I say that you had better take up with my 
 offer and go home with me ? Didn't I say 
 that all the folks in the village suspicioned 
 you of knowin' how all them stores got broke 
 into an' robbed, an' that you'd be sartin' to 
 
A VISIT FKOM THE SHERIFF. 151 
 
 git yourself into trouble by livin' up here in 
 the woods like a wild Injun eh ?" 
 
 George was so utterly bewildered by this 
 unexpected turn of events that he could not 
 utter a word. 
 
 He stood speechless and motionless, growing 
 red and pale by turns, and almost any one 
 would have said he looked guilty. Bob How- 
 ard was the first to recover himself. 
 
 " Mr. Newton," said he, earnestly, " we did 
 not see George last night. If he had met us 
 at the road, as he would have done if we had 
 not got lost in the woods, we should not have 
 been obliged to sleep in that barn." 
 
 " Uncle Ruben/' said George, who had 
 managed to get a few of his wits together, 
 "you don't suspect me of being dishonest; 
 and I know it as well as you do. Your object 
 is to drive me away from this lake, under the 
 impression that if you succeed I shall be 
 forced to work for you for nothing ; but you 
 may as well give it up, for I will never do a 
 hand's turn for you as long as I live." 
 
 " I've always heard," replied Uncle Ruben, 
 running his eye over the cabin and its sur- 
 
152 THE MYSTERY OF LOST EIVEE CANYON. 
 
 roundings, as if he were looking for something 
 " I've always heard that when thieves steal 
 anything they hide it somewheres, most gin- 
 erally in the ground. I think it would be a 
 good plan to s'arch the premises." 
 
 " But they didn't git my money," said Mr. 
 Stebbins. " They only tried to get it." 
 
 " I wasn't thinkin' about you, neighbor," 
 was Uncle Ruben's reply. " There's been a 
 heap of stealin' an' thievin' goin' on about the 
 village, an' if George is the one who done it, 
 I say he had oughter suffer for it, if he is 
 my nephew." 
 
 " But I can't search the house," said the 
 sheriff. " I have no warrant." 
 
 "That's your own fault," rejoined Uncle 
 Ruben. I told you, when we was down to 
 the village, to take out a s'arch warrant the 
 very first thing." 
 
 " And I didn't do it, because I knew I 
 shouldn't find anything." 
 
 " Never mind the warrant, Mr. Newton," 
 said George, whose face was red with indigna- 
 tion. " Come right in and go to work. But 
 perhaps you had better let Uncle Ruben do 
 
A VISIT FROM THE SHERIFF. 153 
 
 it. He seems very anxious to prove me guilty 
 of something." 
 
 As he spoke, he threw open the door of the 
 cabin and stood aside, so that the officer could 
 enter; but the latter did not seem disposed 
 to do anything of the kind. 
 
154 THE MYSTEEY OF LOST EIVER CANYON. 
 
 CHAPTER XIII. 
 
 THE TABLES TUENED. 
 
 UNCLE RUBEN EDWARDS was so 
 highly exasperated at his nephew, and 
 so fully determined to punish him for his 
 refusal to live with him as a bound boy, that 
 he had thought of nothing else during the 
 past week, and he could think of nothing else 
 now; consequently, he did not notice the 
 peculiar look with which the sheriff regarded 
 him. 
 
 Mr. Newton knew very well why it was 
 that George's relative took so much interest 
 in the boy's affairs ; he did not believe Mr. 
 Stebbins' story, except in so far as it was cor- 
 roborated by Dick Langdon's; and he had 
 already made up his mind that he was wast- 
 ing time there, and that he would return to 
 the village and look elsewhere for the robbers ; 
 but he did not do it, for lie was nearer to 
 obtaining a clue than he thought he was. 
 
THE TABLES TURNED. 155 
 
 " 'Tain't worth while to go into the shanty, 
 seem' that there ain't no place there to hide 
 things in," said Uncle Ruben, as he got off 
 his horse and picked up a stout stick. " Take 
 this here, an' poke around in the leaves, an' 
 jest as like as not, you'll find something." 
 
 " I don't want it," answered the officer. 
 " If you think there is any stolen property 
 concealed about here, you had better look 
 around and find it yourself." 
 
 This was a decided snub, but Uncle Ruben 
 was not at all abashed by it. He took a peep 
 into the cabin, and then went around behind 
 it, followed by the sheriff and all his party. 
 
 Bob Howard held back, and, by the aid 
 of some mysterious school-boy telegraphy, 
 brought his friend Dick to his side. 
 
 " Well, Bob, isn't that a nice uncle for any 
 decent boy to have ?" said Dick. " If I were 
 in George's place, I wouldn't acknowledge the 
 relationship. He acts for all the world as 
 though he wanted to find some evidence 
 against his nephew. But what is the matter 
 with you ? Your face is a yard long." 
 
 "They're going to find something around 
 
156 THE MYSTERY OF LOST EIVER CANYON. 
 
 there," replied Bob, in an earnest whisper. 
 " You hear me ? As sure as you live, they 
 are going to find something I" 
 
 " No !" exclaimed Dick, who knew by the 
 expression on his friend's face that the latter 
 had some good reason for being so positive. 
 
 " But I say they are. Look here. While 
 you were telling your story, those three fellows 
 acted as though they were frightened nearly 
 out of their wits. Benson trembled like a 
 leaf, and Wallace and Forbes were as white 
 as ghosts. They showed their guilt so very 
 plainly that it is a wonder to me that those 
 around them didn't notice it." 
 
 " Perhaps they were giving all their atten- 
 tion to me," observed Dick. " They certainly 
 stared at me very hard." 
 
 " But that isn't all," continued Bob. " Just 
 the minute that Uncle Ruben, as George calls 
 him, proposed that the premises should be 
 searched, the appearance of those three boys 
 changed as if by magic. They looked relieved 
 at once, and I heard Wallace say, * If I were 
 Mr. Newton, I would search the shanty, war- 
 rant or no warrant. It is plain that George 
 
THE TABLES TURNED. 157 
 
 can't live on nothing, and as he has no visible 
 means of support ' What's that ? Didn't 
 I tell you that they would find something ? 
 Let's go around there." 
 
 Bob was interrupted by the sound of Uncle 
 Ruben's voice, which came from behind the 
 cabin. It was pitched in a high key, and 
 there was a triumphant ring in it. 
 
 Being fully satisfied in his own mind that 
 the man had succeeded in finding some 
 damaging evidence against his nephew, Bob 
 was not very much surprised at the sight 
 that was presented to his view when he ran 
 around the corner of the house. 
 
 A hole had been dug close under the rear 
 wall, and near by lay a couple of open bundles 
 that had just been taken out of it. 
 
 Uncle Ruben's face was fairly radiant. He 
 seemed to be struggling to assume an expres- 
 sion of countenance suitable to the occasion, 
 but his delight was so great that he could not 
 possibly conceal it. 
 
 George Edwards was fairly overwhelmed 
 with astonishment, while Wallace and his 
 two friends looked as though a mountain 
 
158 THE MYSTERY OF LOST EIVER CANYON. 
 
 of anxiety had been removed from their 
 minds. 
 
 Bob's sharp eyes took all these things in at 
 a glance, and then they turned toward the 
 sheriff. 
 
 The latter looked solemn, but he did not 
 appear to be at all astonished. He knew that 
 George Edwards had never put those bundles 
 in that hole ; and there were other men in 
 the party who knew it, too. 
 
 But the question was : Who did do it ? 
 
 It was answered in a very few minutes, 
 and in a most unexpected manner. 
 
 " George, I am astonished at you !" said 
 Uncle Ruben, drawing the back of his hand 
 across his eyes, and wiping away the tears 
 that would not come at his bidding. " Neigh- 
 bor Newton, these things come from some of 
 the stores that's been robbed." 
 
 The officer nodded his head, but said 
 nothing. 
 
 " There's been a heap of this sort of work 
 goin' on," continued Uncle Ruben; " an' 
 who knows but there's something else hid 
 away about here ? Let's take a look through 
 
THE TABLES TURNED. 159 
 
 the bushes, all of us, an' see if we can find 
 anything in ? ern." 
 
 Some of the party complied, moving about 
 in a listless sort of way, and showing by all 
 their actions that their hearts were not in the 
 matter, while the others held the horses and 
 awaited the result of the search in silence. 
 
 Uncle Ruben kept clear of the thicket into 
 which he had thrown the chickens, hoping 
 that some one would stumble upon it. Two 
 or three men did walk through it, but they 
 found nothing. 
 
 Then Uncle Ruben went in himself; but 
 he, too, came out empty-handed. Beyond a 
 doubt, some prowling fox or raccoon had been 
 there before him and carried off the chickens. 
 
 " Well, Mr. Edwards, you don't seem to be 
 having very good luck," said the sheriff, who 
 was growing tired of this " spite work busi- 
 ness," as he afterward termed it. 
 
 " No, I don't seem to find nothing that's 
 a fact," replied the man, as he came out of 
 the bushes, looking rather surprised and 
 crestfallen. " Queer, too, I must say for 
 my hen-roost was robbed t'other night." 
 
1GO THE MYSTERY OF LOST BIVER CANYON. 
 
 While Uncle Ruben was wondering whether 
 or not it would be safe to accuse George of 
 having stolen and eaten the chickens, the rest 
 of the searching party came out of the woods, 
 one after the other. 
 
 And when they were all assembled, and 
 were waiting for the officer to speak, Bob 
 Howard, after holding a short consultation 
 with Dick, stepped out where all could see 
 him. 
 
 " Now, then, I've got the floor," said he, 
 " and I will show you how to go to the bottom 
 of this business in less than two minutes." 
 
 Everybody seemed to know that there was 
 something coming now. The sheriff looked 
 expectant, and those who had accompanied 
 him to the cabin, merely out of curiosity, led 
 their horses closer to the speaker and formed 
 a complete circle around him. 
 
 As Bob uttered these words, he fastened 
 his eyes upon Wallace and his two friends, 
 and kept them there so long that the rest of 
 the party began to look toward them, also. 
 
 Wallace, who showed himself to be pos- 
 sessed of uncommon nerve, met his gaze with- 
 
THE TABLES TURNED. 161 
 
 out flinching ; Forbes moved about uneasily 
 and smiled in a sickly sort of way ; and Ben- 
 son, utterly unable to endure his close scru- 
 tiny, walked off as though he had no par- 
 ticular object in view, leading his horse by 
 the bridle. 
 
 " Don't go away, Benson/' said Bob. " You 
 are just the fellow I want to talk to. Come 
 back here." 
 
 "Why, Bob, you're crazy!" exclaimed 
 Wallace. " What does Benson know about 
 Mr. Stebbins' money ? I mean " 
 
 Wallace saw that he had made a false step, 
 and he intended to correct it ; but Bob was 
 too quick for him. 
 
 " Who said anything about Mr. Stebbins' 
 money ?" he demanded. " That subject was 
 dropped long ago ; but Benson knows all 
 about it, and so do you and Forbes." 
 
 The horsemen moved up closer to Bob, and 
 exclamations of astonishment were heard on 
 all sides. Forbes would have been glad to 
 run away with Benson, but Wallace stood 
 his ground manfully. 
 
 " If I know all about it, why don't you 
 11 
 
162 THE MYSTEEY OF LOST KIVEB CANYON. 
 
 question me instead of Benson ?" he inquired, 
 with a sneer. 
 
 " Because I don't choose to, just now. I 
 may have a few questions to ask you, by- 
 and-by." 
 
 " Well, I shall do as I please about answer- 
 ing them." 
 
 " Of course ; that's your privilege. But 
 you'll not do as you please about answering 
 them, when you find yourself hauled up be- 
 fore Judge Baker. Come back here, Benson." 
 
 But Benson paid no attention to him. He 
 did not think it would be quite safe to go 
 back, for he knew too well what was coming. 
 He led his horse around the corner of the 
 cabin, and there is every reason to believe that 
 he intended to mount him and ride away ; 
 but his purpose was defeated by Dick Lang- 
 don and George, who sprang around the 
 opposite end of the cabin and ran along the 
 front of it, just in time to seize the bridle 
 of Benson's horse as the young fellow was 
 about to swing himself into the saddle. 
 
 " Look here, Benson ! You're only making 
 a bad matter worse," warned Dick. 
 
THE TABLES TURNED. 163 
 
 " Let me alone !" protested Benson, whose 
 eyes filled with tears as fast as he could wipe 
 them away. " I don't know anything about 
 Mr. Stebbins' money." 
 
 " Yes, you do," said Dick, firmly. " Bob 
 Howard and I were there, and we drove you 
 away just as you were about to go into the 
 house through the woodshed window. I am 
 sorry for you ; but if you think that Bob and 
 I are going to stand still and let somebody 
 accuse us of a crime of which you are guilty, 
 you will find that you are mistaken/' 
 
 When Dick took him by the arm and at- 
 tempted to lead him behind the cabin, Benson 
 showed a disposition to resist him, and it is 
 probable that he would have done so if the 
 sheriff had not put in an appearance. 
 
 The latter had been looking for something 
 strange and unexpected to come of this morn- 
 ing's work, but he had little dreamed that it 
 would be the means of putting him on the 
 track of the burglars for whom he had been 
 so long watching. 
 
 He knew now, as well as he knew it ten 
 minutes later, that Benson and his two friends 
 
164 THE MYSTERY OF LOST RIVER CANYON. 
 
 had made an effort to steal Mr. Stebbins' mo- 
 ney that they were responsible for at least 
 one of the burglaries that had been committed 
 in the village and he was astounded by the 
 discovery ; but his face did not show it. 
 
 The culprits were the sons of the wealthiest 
 and most prominent men in the county, and, 
 although the officer did not approve of their 
 idle, shiftless ways, and watched their conduct 
 with some concern, as many other good men 
 in the village did, they were the last ones he 
 would have suspected of any crime. He won- 
 dered what it was that had led them to it, 
 and the next Monday he found out. 
 
 " Benson, come with me," said the officer, 
 kindly, but firmly. " I should like to have a 
 few words with you in private. Dick, you and 
 George go around where the others are, and 
 tell them that I don't want to be interrupted." 
 
 " Well, smart Alecks, what have you ac- 
 complished?" asked Wallace, as Dick and his 
 companion joined their friend, Bob Howard. 
 
 " We kept Benson from running away," re- 
 plied Dick, whose even temper was not in the 
 least ruffled by the other's insulting tones. 
 
THE TABLES TURNED. 165 
 
 "We couldn't afford to let him get out of 
 sight, you know, because we shall need his 
 evidence. You said last night that if you 
 ever got into trouble, it would be through him, 
 and I guess you hit the nail right on top of 
 the head." 
 
 "I never said any such thing," denied 
 Wallace, hoping by an assumption of rage, 
 which he did not feel, to hide the alarm he 
 did feel. " Now, I am sick of all this non- 
 sense, and I want to know what you mean 
 by it." 
 
 " You will find out all you want to know 
 as soon as Benson has finished his confes- 
 
 sion." 
 
 " Confession !" gasped Wallace. 
 
 That was the thing of which he stood the 
 most in fear. If Benson's courage gave way, 
 there was no hope for them. The bare thought 
 was enough to terrify him beyond expression. 
 
 His face was fairly livid, while Forbes could 
 only maintain an upright position by cling- 
 ing to the horn of his saddle. 
 
166 THE MYSTEEY OF LOST EIVER CANYON. 
 
 CHAPTER XIV. 
 
 THE UPSHOT OF THE WHOLE MATTER. 
 
 ( f TTTHERE is Benson now ?" asked Wal- 
 VV lace, as soon as lie could speak. 
 "What did you do with him ?" 
 
 " We left him on the beach with the sheriff; 
 but I wouldn't advise you to go around there," 
 said Dick, as Wallace handed his bridle to 
 Forbes and moved away. " Mr. Newton de- 
 sired me to say to all of you that he doesn't 
 wish to be interrupted." 
 
 " You shut your mouth, and keep your ad- 
 vice until you are asked for it !" said Wallace, 
 fiercely. 
 
 Knowing Benson as well as he did, he dared 
 not leave him alone with the officer ; so he 
 kept on, and presently those who remained 
 behind heard loud voices on the other side 
 of the cabin. 
 
 An animated conversation was kept up for 
 
THE UPSHOT OF THE WHOLE MATTER. 167 
 
 a minute or two, and then the officer appeared, 
 bringing Wallace with him. The latter was 
 angry and excited, while the sheriff's face wore 
 a determined look. 
 
 " Steve," said he, addressing one of the 
 horsemen, and speaking in an authoritative 
 tone of voice, " I shall have to ask you to take 
 charge of this young man." 
 
 " Hello ! He's been arrested," whispered 
 Dick. 
 
 " And I ask you once more, and for the 
 last time, to take your hands off me !" howled 
 Wallace, trying in vain to twist his arm out 
 of the officer's grasp. " You want to look 
 out for me, for I'm dangerous when I'm 
 riled." 
 
 " Arthur, if you don't behave yourself, I 
 shall put you under close restraint," said Mr. 
 Newton, sternly. 
 
 " You mean by that, that you will put the 
 bracelets on me, I suppose!" yelled Wallace, 
 who acted for all the world like a crazy boy. 
 " You can't do it. Now, I am going to show 
 you what Wild Harry is made of." 
 
 Before the officer could prevent it, Wallace 
 
168 THE MYSTERY OF LOST EIVEE CANYON. 
 
 thrust bis hand into his hip-pocket, and when 
 he brought it out again, he brought with it an 
 ivory-handled revolver. 
 
 The spectators looked at it with the utmost 
 consternation depicted on their countenances, 
 and Mr. Stebbins, uttering a cry of alarm, 
 started up his horse, from which he had never 
 once dismounted, and almost ran over Bob 
 and George in his eagerness to get out of 
 harm's way. 
 
 There is no doubt, whatever, that Wallace 
 intended to use the weapon he had so unex- 
 pectedly produced ; but fortunately for him- 
 self and all concerned, he had to deal with 
 men who were not easily intimidated, and 
 who did not allow their astonishment to pre- 
 vent them from acting quickly and promptly. 
 
 Before Wallace could think twice, the re- 
 volver was wrenched from his grasp, and the 
 broad-shouldered Steve, rushing upon him 
 from behind, clasped him around the arms, 
 pinning them securely to his side. 
 
 A moment later there were two ominous 
 " clicks," and when Steve, in obedience to a 
 sign from the officer, released his hold upon 
 
THE UPSHOT OF THE WHOLE MATTEK. 169 
 
 the captive, the latter was powerless, his 
 wrists being encircled by a pair of hand- 
 cuffs. 
 
 " This is the most extraordinary thing I 
 ever heard of. I don't understand it at all," 
 said the sheriff. 
 
 And the reason he did not understand it 
 was because he had not yet gone to the bot- 
 tom of the matter. He knew more about it 
 before two days more had passed over his 
 head. 
 
 " Forbes," shouted Wallace, after he had 
 made several desperate but unsuccessful at- 
 tempts to pull off the hand-cuffs, " where's 
 your gun ? Why do you stand there looking 
 
 instead of helping me ?" 
 
 This question very naturally suggested the 
 idea that possibly the youth appealed to had 
 something dangerous about him, and two or 
 three of the party at once moved toward 
 him, with the intention of satisfying them- 
 selves on that point. 
 
 But Forbes did not wait to be searched. 
 The ease with which his companion had been 
 conquered took all the courage out of him, 
 
170 THE MYSTEEY OF LOST EIVEE CANYON. 
 
 and lie handed out his "gun" a nickel- 
 plated revolver before he was asked for it. 
 
 The sheriff put it into his pocket, to keep 
 company with the one he had taken from 
 Wallace, and then went back to the front of 
 the cabin to hear the rest of Benson's con- 
 fession, leaving two prisoners intead of one 
 in Steve's charge. 
 
 He did not think it necessary to put Forbes 
 under " close restraint," for the latter was 
 thoroughly cowed, arid quite as willing to 
 make a clean breast of the whole matter as 
 Benson was. 
 
 All these things, which we have been so 
 long in describing, occupied but a very short 
 time in taking place probably not over ten 
 minutes. 
 
 The spectators had had but little to say, 
 because their astonishment held them speech- 
 less. They had barely time to recover from 
 the surprise occasioned by one startling dis- 
 closure before they were called upon to be 
 surprised at something else. 
 
 They were all satisfied on one point, and 
 that was that the events of the preceding 
 
THE UPSHOT OF THE WHOLE MATTER. 171 
 
 night had been the means of unearthing the 
 thieves of whom they had so long stood in 
 fear. 
 
 But, like Bob Howard, they could not for 
 the life of them see why boys in their cir- 
 cumstances, who had indulgent parents, com- 
 fortable homes and everything in the way of 
 benefits and amusements that reasonable boys 
 ought to ask for, could become criminals. 
 
 When the sheriff came back, accompanied 
 by Benson, who was crying as though he had 
 been whipped, they stared at him very hard, 
 in the hope of seeing something in the offi- 
 cer's face that would enlighten them on this 
 point ; but they were disappointed. 
 
 They could only judge of the result of his 
 long interview with Benson by his actions. 
 Without saying a word, he tied the bundles 
 which Uncle Ruben had dug out of the 
 ground, fastened them to the horn of his 
 saddle and mounted his horse. 
 
 When he was ready to start, he said, address- 
 ing himself to George and his friends: 
 
 " Now, boys, I am going back to the vil- 
 lage." 
 
172 E MYSTERY OF LOST EIVER CANYON. 
 
 " Do you want us to go with you ?'' asked 
 Dick. 
 
 " No, I do not," answered the officer. " I 
 shall probably " 
 
 At this point Uncle Ruben interrupted 
 him. He was no less astonished than the 
 others were by the incidents that had trans- 
 pired during the last few minutes, and he 
 was angry and disgusted, too. 
 
 He had come up there on purpose to find 
 the chickens, which he had killed himself, in 
 order that he might have some excuse for 
 accusing George of robbing his hen-roost, 
 and his failure to produce the evidence he 
 had so carefully prepared exasperated him. 
 It looked now as though his nephew was 
 going to get off scot free. 
 
 " Look here, Newton," exclaimed Uncle 
 Ruben, " ain't you goin' to arrest George, too?" 
 
 The officer replied very decidedly that he 
 was not. 
 
 "What for?" demanded Uncle Ruben. 
 
 " Because I understand my business, and 
 have no desire to put an innocent boy to any 
 trouble." 
 
THE UPSHOT OF THE WHOLE MATTER. 173 
 
 " Well, it's mighty strange where my two 
 Plymouth Rock chickens have gone to. 
 They was wuth two dollars/' whined Uncle 
 Ruben, who thought quite as much of money 
 as Mr. Stebbins did. 
 
 The sheriff made no reply. Addressing 
 himself to George, he said : 
 
 "I shall probably need your services on 
 Monday morning." 
 
 " Very good, sir,' 7 answered George. " Do 
 you want me to go down to the village?" 
 
 " No, I will come up here. And, Dick, I 
 shall no doubt find you and Bob at the aca- 
 demy if I have occasion to serve a summons 
 on you ? All right. Good-by ! I am sorry 
 that we have put you to so much trouble and 
 anxiety." 
 
 " I am not," said Bob cheerfully. " This 
 thing was bound to happen, sooner or later, 
 and now it is over." 
 
 The sheriff and his party rode away, and 
 the three boys went around to the front 
 of the cabin and seated themselves on the 
 bench. 
 
 " Do you know, Dick, that we had a very 
 
174 THE MYSTEEY OF LOST RIVEK CANYON. 
 
 narrow escape last night ?" said Bob, who 
 was the first to speak. 
 
 "Of course I do. Didn't you see that 
 window this morning ? It was full of holes, 
 and if we had been there " 
 
 " I wasn't thinking of that. I mean it was 
 a lucky thing for us that we didn't try to 
 approach the house after we drove the robbers 
 away. While you were telling your story to 
 the sheriff, I heard Mr. Stebbins say to a man 
 near him that he stood guard at that window 
 all night, ready to shoot the first one of us 
 who showed himself." 
 
 "And he would have done it without realiz- 
 ing what he was about," replied George. 
 "His fright took away all his sense. But 
 what do you suppose the sheriff is coming up 
 here for on Monday morning ?" 
 
 That was a question that neither Dick nor 
 Bob could answer. Like the causes that had 
 impelled Wallace and his companions to take 
 up stealing as a pastime, it was a mystery, 
 and so it would remain until time unravelled it. 
 
 While they were discussing the matter, 
 Dick Langdon caught a momentary glimpse 
 
THE UPSHOT OF THE WHOLE MATTER. 175 
 
 of something that brought him to his feet and 
 sent him post-haste into the cabin. When he 
 came out again, he carried his double-barrel 
 in his hands, and his cartridge-belt was 
 buckled about his waist. 
 
 "Have you fellows forgotten that we are 
 hungry, and that dinner was to be served 
 immediately ?" he asked. " Now make your- 
 selves useful as well as ornamental, while I go 
 out and shoot a squirrel. I just saw one run 
 up that hickory tree." 
 
 Dick moved away with stealthy footsteps, 
 holding his gun in readiness for a shot, and 
 Bob and George went about their work in 
 that listless, die-away manner that boys al- 
 ways assume when they are compelled to do 
 something in which they feel no interest. 
 Their excitement had taken away their appe- 
 tites. 
 
 Their tongues were busier than their hands, 
 and as soon as Bob found an opportunity to 
 do so, he asked George why it was that Uncle 
 Ruben had manifested so strong a desire to 
 get him into trouble. The latter replied by 
 telling as much of his private history as he 
 
176 THE MYSTERY OF LOST RIVER CANYON. 
 
 cared to reveal to a boy who was almost a 
 stranger to him, and when he ceased speaking, 
 Bob said : 
 
 " You may have the satisfaction of knowing 
 that from this time on you need never see him 
 again, unless you are willing to do so. Wallace 
 and the others will be brought to trial, of 
 course, and you will have to appear as a wit- 
 ness. When you go down to the village in 
 obedience to the summons, be sure and take 
 all your clothes with you, for you are not 
 coming back here to live like a wild Injun," 
 he added with a laugh. 
 
 " What do you mean by that?" 
 
 " I mean that our old janitor is going to 
 leave next Monday night he's real hateful, 
 and the boys played so many tricks on him, 
 that he can't stand it any longer and you 
 are to take his place. Dick and I have set- 
 tled it." 
 
 George could hardly believe that he had 
 heard aright. If Uncle Ruben had suc- 
 ceeded in proving that he was a chicken-thief, 
 he could not have been more amazed. He 
 saw a bright prospect opening before him. 
 
THE UPSHOT OF THE WHOLE MATTER. 177 
 
 All he asked was an opportunity to get an 
 education, and lie would answer for his own 
 future. 
 
 " Lend me your knife long enough to open 
 this can of milk," said Bob. "It's bigger 
 and stronger than mine. That's the way the 
 thing stands. You are to take care of the 
 buildings there is another fellow there who 
 looks out for the grounds ring the bell at 
 certain hours, and see to it that the boys 
 don't run off with it, or the ropes belonging 
 to it, every chance they get. You'll have to 
 report us for every violation of the rules, and 
 take a good thrashing every time you do it. 
 You'll have to attend to lots of things that 
 I can't think of now, and, in return, you'll 
 get your books and schooling free, and money 
 enough to keep you in clothes. Professor 
 Boyle says he thinks you are just the boy he 
 has been looking for." 
 
 " But I don't know him," stammered 
 George. 
 
 " No matter. I know him, and so does 
 Dick. My father knew him well when they 
 
 were boys together, and that is the reason 
 
 12 
 
178 THE MYSTERY OF LOST RIVER CANYON. 
 
 he sends me so far away from home to go 
 to school." 
 
 " You are at the bottom of this, Bob you 
 and Dick but I don't know how to thank 
 you for it," said George, at length. 
 
 " Do you remember what you said to me 
 when you brought my gun up from the bot- 
 tom of the lake ?" asked Bob. " You needn't 
 try." 
 
 George thought it best to act upon this ad- 
 vice, for he could not find words with which 
 to express his gratitude. 
 
THE RENDEZVOUS. 179 
 
 CHAPTER XV. 
 
 THE RENDEZVOUS. 
 
 EORGE'S unexpected stroke of fortune 
 VJT put new life and energy into him, and 
 he worked to such good purpose that in less 
 than three-quarters of an hour the dinner was 
 ready and waiting. 
 
 Neither of them had much to say, each 
 being fully occupied with his own thoughts. 
 George was telling himself how good he was 
 going to be, how hard he was going to study 
 when he was fairly installed at the academy, 
 and had learned how to perform the duties 
 that were required of him, while his com- 
 panion was looking a little further into the 
 future. 
 
 Bob Howard had as good a home as any 
 boy ever had, and, unlike a good many of his 
 age, he knew and fully appreciated the bene- 
 fits of it ; but it was a lonely home in some 
 
180 THE MYSTERY OF LOST RIVER CANYON. 
 
 respects, for he bad no mother, and not a 
 playmate within many miles of him. Here 
 was a boy who had saved his life at the im- 
 minent risk of his own, who was also mother- 
 less, who had no father worth mentioning, 
 and if he found that George, speaking in 
 schoolboy parlance, " wore well " if, after 
 summering and wintering him, he became sat- 
 isfied that he was as good a fellow in every re- 
 spect as he seemed to be why shouldn't he 
 take him home with him when they had both 
 completed the* course at the academy, and 
 make a brother of him? The house was 
 large enough for them if it were not, the 
 mountain range around it was and Bob was 
 sure that his father would give his friend a 
 cordial welcome. 
 
 Bob was resolved that he would think the 
 matter over when he could devote more time 
 to it. 
 
 "What shall we do now?" said George, 
 breaking in on his reverie. " Dinner is ready, 
 but Dick hasn't returned." 
 
 " We'll not waste any time in waiting for 
 him," replied Bob. " The last time he shot he 
 
THE RENDEZVOUS. 181 
 
 was so far away that I could hardly hear 
 the report of his gun. Let's eat our dinner 
 and go back to the bass-hole. Dick won't 
 come back as long as he can find a squirrel 
 to shoot at, and when he does come he can 
 help himself." 
 
 The boys did not have as good luck that 
 afternoon as they did in the morning, for 
 they were on the ground too early to get the 
 evening fishing. Still, they added a few fine 
 bass to their string ; but, about the time the 
 fish began to show a disposition to take the 
 bait promptly, they were obliged to pull up 
 the anchor and start for the cabin. 
 
 They found Dick sitting on the bench, 
 picking the bones of a squirrel he had broiled 
 over the coals on a forked stick. He had 
 eighteen others to carry home with him. 
 
 Having a long walk before them, he and 
 "Bob decided to start for the village at once. 
 They wanted to get through the woods before 
 dark. 
 
 " We'll leave our surplus provisions here, 
 so that it will not be necessary for us to bring 
 a new supply when we come again," said 
 
182 THE MYSTERY OF LOST RIVER CANYON. 
 
 Dick, as he proceeded to pack his squirrels 
 and some of the fish away in his basket. 
 " Has Bob told you that you are to be janitor 
 at the academy ? All right ; but remember 
 that you are to be easy on the boys. If we 
 are out after ten o'clock, you are to be at the 
 gate to let us in ; and you are not to report 
 us, no matter what we do. We'll see you on 
 Monday, I suppose, and you must tell us 
 what the sheriff wanted of you." 
 
 George took his friends across the lake in 
 his boat, put them on the road leading to the 
 village, and returned to the cabin, feeling 
 lonely, indeed, but at the same time very 
 much elated and encouraged. 
 
 Monday morning came at last, and with it 
 came the deputy sheriff, accompanied by two 
 constables. They were all mounted, and one of 
 the constables led an extra horse, which George 
 soon learned was intended for his own use. 
 
 "This is my idea of a hunter's home," 
 said Mr. Newton, who seemed to enjoy the 
 view that was spread out before him. "I 
 shouldn't mind living this way myself, if I 
 could make a support by it." 
 
THE EENDEZVOUS. 183 
 
 " You would find it a dog's life," said 
 George. "At least, I have found it so. I 
 didn't come here from choice, and I am 
 heartily glad that this is my last day here. 
 How is everything in the village?" 
 
 " Oh, the excitement is intense, and the 
 fathers of those young rogues are very indig- 
 nant ! I have been called everything but a 
 decent man by them and their friends ; but I 
 was justified in arresting them, for Benson 
 and Forbes have made a full confession. 
 Wallace is as defiant as ever, and neither de- 
 nies nor acknowledges anything. Now, 
 George, do you know where Dungan Brook 
 is?" 
 
 George said that he did. 
 
 " It's a wild place, I understand. Have 
 you been there lately ?" 
 
 "Not since last May, and then I caught 
 the finest string of trout there I ever saw." 
 
 " Well," continued the officer, " there's one 
 place in the ravine through which the brook 
 runs, that bears a striking resemblance, in 
 everything except grandeur and extent, to a 
 famous valley somewhere out West, and when 
 
184 THE MYSTEEY OF LOST EIVEE CANYON. 
 
 some of the academy boys were botanizing 
 there, a few years ago, they named it the Little 
 Yosemite." 
 
 " I know right where it is," said George. 
 
 " Then take us there by the quickest and 
 shortest route." 
 
 George closed the door of the cabin, 
 mounted the horse that had been provided 
 for him, and led the way around the head of 
 the lake. 
 
 The shortest route to the place they wanted 
 to find was a long one, and a rough one too ; 
 and, for almost the entire distance, it led 
 through a thick wood, where every step of the 
 way was obstructed by bushes and fallen logs, 
 which were piled upon and across one another 
 in every conceivable shape. 
 
 After two hours of slow and laborious rid- 
 ing, George dismounted, pushed aside the 
 bushes, and gave his companions their first 
 view of the Little Yosemite. Dungan Brook 
 they could not see. It was so far below them 
 that the ripple of its waters could be but 
 faintly heard. 
 
 "As long as I have lived in this county I 
 
THE KENDEZVOUS. 185 
 
 never knew before that it could boast of 
 scenery like this/' said the sheriff, as he 
 drew back from the edge of the gulf, after 
 trying in vain to see the bottom of it. " How 
 are we going to get down there ?" 
 
 " Hitch your horses, and I will see if I can 
 find the path I cut the last time I was here," 
 said George. " Here it is now, and, I de- 
 clare, it looks as though it had been used," 
 he added, in a tone of surprise. 
 
 The officers smiled, but said nothing. They 
 followed their guide, as he scrambled down 
 the bluff, and in a few minutes more they 
 were standing beside the brook. 
 
 " There's Le Capitan," said George, point- 
 ing to a huge rock on the other side of the 
 stream, which rose to the height of two hun- 
 dred feet without a single break or crevice. 
 
 " I recognize the captain from the descrip- 
 tion I have received of him,'' said the sheriff, 
 as he drew a note-book from his pocket, and 
 consulted a diagram that he or somebody else 
 had drawn on one of the pages. " He is in a 
 bad business for he is standing guard over 
 stolen property." 
 
186 THE MYSTERY OF LOST EIVER CANYON. 
 
 The officer led the way across the brook, 
 and around the base of the rock, to a thick 
 cluster of bushes, in front of which he 
 stopped long enough to light a dark lantern 
 he had brought with him. Then he dived 
 into the bushes, and when George and the 
 constables followed him they could not find 
 him. 
 
 He had disappeared in a small opening in 
 the ground, which seemed to run back under 
 the rock. Presently a bundle of something 
 came sailing out, then another and another, 
 until there was a small cartload of them 
 piled up before the opening. 
 
 The constables examined them as fast as 
 they came out, and found that they contained 
 a quantity of ready-made clothing, under- 
 wear of all kinds, boxes of cigars, tobacco, 
 jewelry, jack-knives, pistols, cutlery, buffalo 
 robes, blankets, cloaks, and a lot of other 
 articles too numerous to mention. 
 
 The constables opened their eyes in sur- 
 prise when the sheriff came out, and told them 
 that these were not half the goods that had 
 been stolen. The rest had been sold to enable 
 
THE EENDEZVOUS. 187 
 
 the thieves to raise money enough for their 
 Western trip. 
 
 " What were they going to do out West ?" 
 asked George. 
 
 " What do people of this stamp generally 
 do out there ?" asked the constable, in reply. 
 "Benson and Forbes would have died of 
 home-sickness, and Wallace would have been 
 in the hands of a vigilance committee in less 
 than a week. Now let's go up to head-quar- 
 ters, and see what we shall find there." 
 
 After taking another look at his diagram, 
 the sheriff moved up the ravine, closely ex- 
 amining the base of the bluff as he went, 
 and when he stopped, it was in front of a 
 little pole cabin, which was so effectually 
 concealed by the thick shrubbery and trees 
 that surrounded it that one might have passed 
 within five feet of it without knowing that 
 there was any cabin there. Having opened 
 the door, which was formed of half a dozen 
 saplings that fitted loosely into holes in the 
 ground, the sheriff went in and flashed his 
 lantern around. 
 
 " This is where they used to come to hold 
 
188 THE MYSTERY OF LOST EIVEE CANYON. 
 
 their revels and plan their expeditions," said 
 he. 
 
 Wallace and his two friends had passed the 
 preceding Saturday there, perfecting their 
 scheme for driving George Edwards away 
 from the lake, and securing possession of Mr. 
 Stebbins' money, and everything in the cabin 
 was just as they had left it. 
 
 There were the dishes from which they had 
 eaten their dinner, the hammocks in which 
 they had swung while talking over their plans, 
 and the books and papers that had helped 
 them while awaj" their leisure time were scat- 
 tered about. 
 
 The officer picked up one of the books, and 
 turning to the title-page, read the words, " The 
 Life of Jesse James." Throwing it aside with 
 an exclamation of disgust, he picked up an- 
 other, which was entitled, " Wild Harry, the 
 Black Valley Demon." 
 
 " Here is the secret of the whole matter, 
 and I can now understand some things that I 
 couldn't see through before," said the officer. 
 " Those foolish boys have poisoned their minds 
 by reading dime novels, and are anxious to 
 
THE RENDEZVOUS. 189 
 
 imitate the heroes of them. I see that Wal- 
 lace's name is on some, and that Forbes and 
 Benson own the others. Pick them up and 
 be careful of them, for they will do for evi- 
 dence." 
 
 George accompanied the officers to the 
 village, not forgetting to take his clothes with 
 him, as Bob had directed, appeared as one 
 of the witnesses at the preliminary examina- 
 tion which was held that afternoon, and that 
 night he slept at the academy, so that he 
 could be ready to assume his duties the next 
 morning. 
 
 The arrest and trial of the guilty boys 
 created a greater sensation than the quiet 
 little village of Montford had ever known 
 before. 
 
 Their fathers exerted themselves to the 
 utmost in their behalf; but their efforts to 
 clear them were entirely unsuccessful, and 
 the most they could do was to secure a miti- 
 gation of the punishment they so richly de- 
 served. 
 
 As soon as the excitement was over, our 
 three friends settled down to business, work- 
 
190 THE MYSTERY OF LOST RIVER CANYON. 
 
 ing hard for five days in the week, and spend- 
 ing every pleasant Saturday at the lake. 
 
 George Edwards proved to be an apt pu- 
 pil, and very soon became one of the most 
 popular students at the academy. At first, 
 the boys played tricks upon him, in spite 
 of all his caution ; but George submitted so 
 good-naturedly, and did his full duty in so 
 manly a way, that they finally left off both- 
 ering him. 
 
 At the end of his second school year, Bob 
 was permitted to take up his abode at a pri- 
 vate house in the village, and, at his earnest 
 solicitation, George consented to room with 
 him. 
 
 They studied, worked, and played together, 
 and it finally came to be understood be- 
 tween them, that, if they could possibly pre- 
 vent it, they were not to allow themselves to 
 be separated as long as they lived. 
 
 George did not know what he was bring- 
 ing upon himself by consenting to this ar- 
 rangement. 
 
 Having described, as rapidly as we could, 
 the various incidents that had operated to 
 
THE EENDEZVOUS. 191 
 
 bring these two boys together, let us go back 
 to where we first found them to the day on 
 which that telegram arrived from Arizona. 
 
 It was the last day they ever expected to 
 spend in Montford, and it had been big with 
 events. They had passed their examination 
 with flying colors, the base-ball club to which 
 they belonged had established its claim to 
 the championship, after a hotly-contested 
 game, and the two friends there were only 
 two of them now, for Dick Langdon had com- 
 pleted the course a year before were in high 
 spirits. 
 
 Having exchanged their uniforms for their 
 ordinary clothes, and taken a run around the 
 bases for the last time, they set out for their 
 boarding-house. 
 
192 THE MYSTERY OF LOST RIVER CANYON. 
 
 CHAPTER XVI. 
 
 HOW ONE TELEGRAM WAS RECEIVED. 
 
 BOB HOWARD and bis companion had 
 other reasons besides those of which we 
 have spoken, for feeling at peace with them- 
 selves and all the world. 
 
 By hard work and strict attention to their 
 books, they had succeeded in winning an en- 
 viable position in their class, and this night 
 was to wind up their connection with the 
 academy in a blaze of glory. 
 
 George had written an essay on " Uncon- 
 scious Influence," which was a very creditable 
 effort for a boy of his years, and Bob had been 
 chosen, without one dissenting voice, to de- 
 liver the valedictory. 
 
 Their trunks were packed, their tickets had 
 been purchased, and their landlady had pro- 
 mised to give them an early breakfast, so that 
 they could reach the depot in time to catch 
 
HOW ONE TELEGKAM WAS EECEIVED. 193 
 
 the western-bound train that passed through 
 the village at six o'clock. 
 
 " "The time draws near/' said Bob, with a 
 tragic air, as he glanced at the little clock on 
 the mantelpiece. " In five hours we shall have 
 made our last bow to a Montford audience. 
 The only thing I regret is the absence of my 
 father ; but he was not at all well when I last 
 heard from him, and he didn't feel as though 
 he could stand the journey. By this time 
 to-morrow, if nothing happens "to delay us, 
 we shall be hurrying to meet him as fast as 
 steam can carry us. I tell you, George, you 
 may make up your mind to see some fun 
 when we get out there in that wilderness, and 
 for once in your life you will have hunting, 
 fishing, and horseback riding until you are 
 heartily tired of them all. Father has a pack 
 of splendid hounds, and it will make you laugh 
 to see them in pursuit of an antelope or prairie 
 wolf. When you grow weary of that sport, 
 you can go out with a double-barrel and shoot 
 grouse and sage-hens over as fine a brace of 
 setters as ever drew to a scent. Trout streams 
 are plenty, and any one who can throw the 
 
 13 
 
194 THE MYSTERY OF LOST EIVEE CANYON. 
 
 fly can snatch out such beauties as you don't 
 see here in the Eastern States this side of the 
 Rangeley Lakes. There is one thing we must 
 do, George, as soon as we can gain father's 
 consent we must clear up a certain mystery 
 that hangs over those mountains." 
 
 " I have often heard you speak of it," re- 
 plied George, with a smile ; " but you have 
 never told me what it is." 
 
 " If I could tell you, it wouldn't be a mys- 
 tery, would it ? You needn't laugh about it, 
 for there is a mystery there, and in all that 
 country there is no one who has ever been 
 able to solve it. The Indians or some of 
 the trappers might do it, but they won't 
 try, for their superstition makes them timid. 
 Several parties, composed of settlers and sol- 
 diers, and one or two scientific expeditions 
 from Eastern colleges, have started out from 
 our valley, declaring that they wouldn't 
 come back until the thing was cleared up; 
 but they have always returned, after a few 
 weeks' absence, in a most dilapidated condi- 
 tion." 
 
 " There must be a good many obstacles to 
 
HOW ONE TELEGRAM WAS EECEIVED. 195 
 
 be overcome/ 7 said George, " but you may 
 count on me every time." 
 
 "All right. I shall some day put your 
 courage to the test. Now I will tell you 
 what I have decided to do. If my father is 
 no worse when I reach home, I shall go to 
 college. He wants me to do it, and I should 
 like to carry out his wishes, although I ex- 
 pect to be a ranchman all my life. If he re- 
 quires my presence at home, I shall remain 
 there, and you must stay with me. I will 
 give you a position as herdsman at good 
 wages, and will pay you in money or sheep, 
 or both, just as you prefer. You can make 
 enough in a few years, by steady work and 
 economy, to start a ranch of your own on a 
 small scale." 
 
 " You are very kind, Bob/' said George. 
 
 " No, I am not. I am only selfish. I am 
 thinking quite as much of my own comfort 
 and pleasure as I am of yours. I don't want 
 to stay out there with no congenial com- 
 panion to help me while away the time. It 
 is lonely, especially in winter, when we are 
 snowed up or confined to the house for days 
 
196 THE MYSTERY OF LOST EIVER CANYON. 
 
 at a time by those furious storms that we 
 call ' blizzards/ And since you have no 
 home of your own, and no father or mother, 
 why shouldn't you go with me?" 
 
 " Wouldn't it be more agreeable for you to 
 take your Cousin Arthur out there with you ?" 
 asked George. " I have often heard you 
 speak of him." 
 
 " No, it wouldn't," answered Bob, quickly. 
 " His father Uncle Bob, after whom I was 
 named treated my father most shamefully, 
 and they have not seen each other for years. 
 Father has forgiven him, and Uncle Bob now 
 and then writes him very friendly letters ; 
 but I am afraid of Uncle Bob, for I know 
 that he is cunning and vindictive, and always 
 on the lookout f )r a chance to work some in- 
 jury to those he does not like, because my 
 mother often told me so. I have seen him 
 and Arthur several times, but I did not like 
 either of them. There is too much 'Oily 
 Gammon' about Uncle Bob, while Arthur is 
 Well, the less said about him the better. I 
 wouldn't take him into my father's house 
 under any consideration, for his presence there 
 
HOW ONE TELEGRAM WAS RECEIVED. 197 
 
 would be enough to rob life of all its pleas- 
 ure. I say, George!" exclaimed Bob, sud- 
 denly, " What is that on the table there by 
 your elbow ?" 
 
 George raised his arm, and, discovering the 
 brown envelope, he picked it up and looked 
 at it. 
 
 " Why, it is a telegram, addressed to you !" 
 said he, handing it over to his friend, whose 
 face had suddenly grown as pale as death. 
 
 "A telegram !" gasped Bob. " It can mean 
 but one of two things. My father is worse, 
 or else he is " 
 
 Bob could say no more. With trembling 
 hands, he tore open the dispatch, and, with 
 one swift glance, made himself master of its 
 contents. Then he pressed his hand to his 
 forehead in a bewildered sort of way, reeled 
 a moment, as if some one had dealt him a 
 stunning blow, and, falling heavily back upon 
 the sofa, he covered his face with his hands 
 and burst into tears. The telegram fluttered 
 out of his nerveless fingers. 
 
 George picked it up, and read the follow- 
 ing fateful words : 
 
198 THE MYSTERY OF LOST KIVER CANYON. 
 
 " Your father died very suddenly this morning. 
 Come home immediately, and telegraph me from 
 Leavenworth when to meet you at the station. 
 
 G. H. EVANS." 
 
 We will not speak of the scene that fol- 
 lowed. Such sorrow as this, which had come 
 upon Bob Howard like a clap of thunder 
 from a clear sky, is too sacred to be intruded 
 upon, even by a sympathizing pen. 
 
 It will be enough to say that after the first 
 overwhelming burst of grief had passed away, 
 Bob acted more like a caged tiger than a 
 human being. He longed to fly on the wings 
 of the wind to his far-off home, in order that 
 he might gaze once more upon that loved face 
 before the darkness of the grave shut it out 
 forever from his view. 
 
 But steam was the only power that could 
 take him there. The next train left the vil- 
 lage at six in the morning, and that was the 
 one Bob had intended to take. 
 
 He ate no supper, and when the time came 
 he began preparing himself for the evening's 
 festivities. What a mockery they seemed to 
 him now ! 
 
HOW ONE TELEGRAM WAS RECEIVED. 199 
 
 "Don't go," said George, who had tried 
 his best to say something comforting to his 
 almost heart-broken friend. " The professor 
 will not expect anything of you to-night." 
 
 " I shall go and deliver my speech that is, 
 if I have brains enough to remember it," 
 said Bob, quietly but firmly. " This sorrow 
 is my own. No one in the wide world has a 
 share in it, and you will see that I have self- 
 control enough to take me through the exer- 
 cises without detracting in the least from any- 
 body's enjoyment." 
 
 And he kept his word. 
 
 The news of his bereavement had spread 
 all through the village by this time, and not 
 one of the vast audience that crowded the 
 Academy Chapel expected to see him on the 
 stage. 
 
 When the valedictory was announced, and 
 the young orator appeared before the foot- 
 lights, a silence that was almost oppressive 
 fell upon the assembly. They all sympa- 
 thized with the boy, and their sympathy was 
 so intense that, like the darkness that covered 
 the land of Egypt, it could be felt. 
 
200 THE MYSTERY OF LOST RIVER CANYON. 
 
 Bob's voice was husky, and trembled a 
 little at first, but he gradually regained the 
 mastery of himself as he proceeded, and, 
 when he ended his peroration, the applause 
 that followed fairly shook the building. 
 
 It was a spontaneous outburst of admira- 
 tion, not for the oratorical effort of the student 
 which was something better than common 
 but for the wonderful nerve he exhibited. 
 Few boys could have passed through such an 
 ordeal. 
 
 Bob set out for his boarding-house as soon 
 as he left the stage, and when George entered 
 the room, an hour later, he was pacing the 
 floor, with his hands buried deep in his 
 pockets, and his chin resting on his breast. 
 He was calmer now, and he even smiled as 
 he gave his chum an approving slap on the 
 back. 
 
 " You did yourself credit to-night, George," 
 said he. " If I could write an essay like that, 
 I should feel proud of myself. Now, go to 
 bed, and I will have you up at five o'clock 
 in the morning. I will lie down on the sofa 
 when I get tired. I know how to sympathize 
 
HOW ONE TELEGEAM WAS RECEIVED. 201 
 
 with you now, for I am alone in the world as 
 you are." 
 
 " There are your uncle and your cousin/' 
 George ventured to remark. 
 
 " They are no more to me than they are to 
 you/' replied Bob. "I shall drop them a 
 line, telling them of father's death, but be- 
 yond that, I shall have nothing to do with 
 them. They can stay at their home in In- 
 diana, and you and I will live on the ranch. 
 You are all I have, and you must stick to 
 
 me." 
 
 Neither of the two boys slept a wink that 
 night. Bob walked the floor, and George lay 
 in bed, watching him through his half-closed 
 eyes. 
 
 At half-past five they disposed of a hasty 
 breakfast, said " good-by " to their landlady, 
 and to a few friends among the students who 
 had come to the depot to see them off, and 
 then the fast express whirled them away to- 
 ward St. Louis. 
 
 Up to this time, Bob Howard's career had 
 been rather an uneventful one ; but now, ca- 
 pricious fate had taken him in hand, and 
 
202 THE MYSTERY OF LOST RIVEE CANYON. 
 
 ordered that during the next few months his 
 life was to be crowded full of such excite- 
 ment and adventure, such perils and start- 
 ling surprises, as never before fell to the lot 
 of any boy. 
 
 He was to be given ample opportunity 
 for the exercise of the extraordinary nerve 
 and pluck which he had exhibited while 
 delivering his valedictory, but with this dif- 
 ference : 
 
 Then, he was in the presence of friends, 
 who would willingly have made every allow- 
 ance for him, had any forbearance or consid- 
 eration on their part been necessary; but 
 hereafter he was to be surrounded by ene- 
 mies, who were already plotting his ruin, 
 and who stood ready to take every possible 
 advantage of him. 
 
 Let us follow that other telegram to its 
 destination, and see who some of these ene- 
 mies were. 
 
TWO NEW CHARACTERS. 203 
 
 CHAPTER XVII. 
 
 TWO NEW CHARACTERS. 
 
 TF my last half-hour's experience isn't 
 JL enough to disgust any one with the 
 dry- goods business, and everything connected 
 with it, I wouldn't say so." 
 
 Arthur Howard suspended for a moment 
 the distasteful work of rolling up the bolts of 
 goods with which his counter was covered, and 
 gazed after a party of ladies who had just 
 gone out. 
 
 While they were in the store he was all 
 bows and smiles, struck imposing attitudes, 
 fumbled with the watch-chain that hung 
 across his vest, rested his white hands on 
 the counter, so that the immense seal-ring he 
 wore on the third finger of his left hand 
 could be plainly seen, and tried in various 
 other ways to make himself appear interest- 
 ing in the eyes of his fair customers ; but 
 
204 THE MYSTERY OF LOST KIVEK CANYON. 
 
 now he frowned fiercely, and slammed the 
 heavy bolts about as if he were in no amiable 
 frame of mind. 
 
 He grew angry every time he looked to- 
 ward the street. The day was bright and 
 pleasant, and not too warm for comfort, and 
 everybody in town seemed to have come out 
 for a ride or a promenade. 
 
 " Everybody except me sees some pleasure 
 in this world," said Mr. Arthur Howard, re- 
 suming his work. " I have to toil and slave 
 all the time for wages that are barely enough 
 to keep me in cigars ; and, more than all, I 
 can't look forward to anything better. I shall 
 lead a dog's life as long as I live. If I had 
 money I should be perfectly happy, and I 
 would do anything in the world to get it. 
 What did you say, sir ?" 
 
 This question was addressed to one of the 
 proprietors of the store, who leaned over the 
 counter and said something in a tone so low 
 that Arthur did not catch the words. 
 
 " Mr. Allen desires your presence in the 
 office," was the reply. 
 
 The clerk's under jaw dropped, and he grew 
 
TWO NEW CHARACTERS. 205 
 
 red and pale by turns, as he left his counter 
 and walked toward the office, where the head 
 of the firm, a stern old gentleman, with gold 
 eye glasses perched on the top of his nose, sat 
 in an easy chair waiting for him. 
 
 "Howard," said the merchant, when the 
 clerk in obedience to a sign from his em- 
 ployer, had closed the door behind him, 
 "how much do we pay you for your ser- 
 vices ?" 
 
 " Twenty-five dollars a month, sir," was the 
 answer. 
 
 And the tone in which it was given was 
 humble enough. The clerk was always 
 cringing in his demeanor toward his superi- 
 ors, and haughty and overbearing when in 
 the presence of those whom he considered 
 to be beneath him in the social scale. He 
 was just the sort of person that tyrants are 
 made of. 
 
 " Well, now, what I want to know is this/* 
 continued the senior partner. " How can you 
 afford to dress as you do, and sport a watch 
 and chain, and rings, and patent-leather shoes, 
 on twenty-five dollars a month ? I can't afford 
 
206 THE MYSTERY OF LOST EIVER CANYON. 
 
 so much finery on ten times that amount. 
 Then, your billiards and cigars must cost you 
 a tidy sum, and you don't get those livery 
 horses that you drive out into the country 
 every Sunday for nothing." 
 
 " It takes all my salary, sir," replied the 
 clerk, pulling out his handkerchief and ar- 
 ranging his moustache, not because it needed 
 arranging, but because he wanted to conceal 
 his face from his employer. 
 
 He knew that it was as red as fire, for he 
 could feel it burn. 
 
 "Are you sure that you don't spend more 
 than your salary ?" asked the merchant, in a 
 very significant tone of voice. 
 
 "Oh, yes, sir! yes, sir! quite sure!" re- 
 plied Mr. Howard, with more earnestness 
 than the occasion seemed to demand. 
 
 He wanted to add, " You surely do not sus- 
 pect me of dishonesty ?" but the words stuck 
 in his throat. 
 
 " Well," said the merchant, after looking 
 sharply at the clerk for a moment, " all I have 
 to say is, that you can make twenty-five dol- 
 lars go much further than I can. I cannot 
 
TWO NEW CHAEACTEES. 207 
 
 permit so much extravagance among those 
 in my employ, for, to say the least, it looks 
 suspicious. So I have called you in here for 
 the purpose of telling you that we shall have 
 no further occasion for your services. There 
 is the money we owe you. Good-day !" 
 
 " I am welt out of that scrape," said Mr. 
 Howard to himself, as he walked rapidly 
 away from the store. " I have been looking 
 for it for a long time, and I am glad it is over. 
 They can't prove anything against me, for I 
 have been very careful, and never took more 
 than two dollars at a time. Of course, when 
 the receipts ran up to two or three hundred 
 dollars a day, so small an amount as that 
 wouldn't be missed. Now, where shall I, 
 look for another situation ? Well, I'll not 
 think about that now. ' Sufficient unto the 
 day is the evil thereof/ as Shakespeare says. 
 I guess I'll smoke." 
 
 This soliloquy would seem to indicate that 
 trouble sat very lightly on Mr. Howard's 
 shoulders, and that he was not very well 
 posted in either Shakespeare or the Bible. 
 
 It would also seem to indicate that the sus- 
 
208 THE MYSTERY OF LOST RIVER CANYON. 
 
 picions liis late employer entertained regard- 
 ing his honesty were well founded. 
 
 Mr. Howard did not care a snap of his fin- 
 ger for those suspicions ; but he did care for 
 the loss of his situation, for he knew that if 
 he did not work he could get no money to 
 spend. 
 
 He turned into a little cigar store while he 
 was communing with himself, and when he 
 came out, with a freshly-lighted Havana be- 
 tween his fingers, he saw a sight that en- 
 raged him. 
 
 An elegant top-buggy, drawn by a pair of 
 stylish, high-stepping horses, which moved 
 as if they were proud of the gold-mounted 
 .harness they wore, dashed along the street. 
 
 The reins were held by an exquisitely- 
 dressed young gentleman who managed them 
 adroitly with one hand, while with the other 
 he saluted the friends and acquaintances he 
 saw on the sidewalk. But there was no salute 
 for Mr. Howard only a barely perceptible 
 nod of the head, which the latter pretended 
 he did not see. 
 
 " I declare, it's enough to make one do 
 
TWO NEW CIIAEACTEKS. 209 
 
 something desperate," thought he, as he threw 
 his cigar spitefully into the gutter and re- 
 sumed his walk. "Look at me, and then 
 look at Coal Oil Tom ! I have just seventy 
 dollars in my pocket, less what I paid for that 
 cigar, and no prospect of getting any more. 
 Five years ago Tom was a hostler in a hotel 
 stable, somewhere in Pennsylvania a low, 
 ignorant hostler and all he had in the world 
 was a little, rocky farm that he couldn't give 
 away. But oil was discovered on that farm, 
 and to-day Tom is worth half a million dol- 
 lars. He doesn't know enough to keep him 
 over night, but his money takes him into the 
 best society, while I I wish those horses 
 would run away, and throw him out and break 
 his neck !" 
 
 Mr. Howard stopped, and looked back at 
 the carriage that contained the object of his 
 envy, as if he fully expected that his amiable 
 wish would be gratified. But the rapidly- 
 moving trotters were kept under perfect con- 
 trol, and in a short time took their driver 
 safely out of Mr. Howard's sight. 
 
 A quarter of an hour's walk brought the 
 
 14 
 
210 THE MYSTERY OF LOST RIVER CANYON. 
 
 clerk to his home a little cottage in an ob- 
 scure street, whose surroundings bore testi- 
 mony to the poverty or shiftlessness of its 
 occupants. 
 
 The house, as well as the fence in front of 
 it, was sadly in need of paint ; some of the 
 blinds hung by one hinge, disclosing to the 
 public gaze windows with broken panes and 
 sashes heavily festooned with cobwebs ; and 
 the flower garden, once the pride of Arthur's 
 mother, now dead and gone, had been given 
 up to weeds, which also covered the walk that 
 led from the gate through a narrow alley to 
 the back door. 
 
 " This is a pretty place for a white man to 
 call home, I must say!" said the clerk to 
 himself, while bitterness rankled in his heart. 
 " When I come here, after passing the fine 
 houses on Crosby Street, where those happy 
 young people spend every afternoon in play- 
 ing croquet on the finely-kept lawns, I tell 
 you it makes me feel wicked when I contrast 
 their circumstances with my own. No one 
 ever thinks of inviting me to make one of 
 such a party, and yet I am just as good as 
 
TWO NEW CHARACTERS. 211 
 
 the best of them. It's the ready cash that 
 determines one's position in this world. I 
 wonder what the governor will have to say to 
 me ? Of course I shall not tell him why I 
 was discharged." 
 
 Passing through the kitchen, where a slov- 
 enly servant girl was moving leisurely about 
 making preparations for supper, Arthur en- 
 tered the sitting-room, and found there a 
 shabby-genteel old man, who was slowly pac- 
 ing the floor. This was Arthur's father the 
 " Uncle Bob " after whom our hero had been 
 named. 
 
 He was not a man to inspire confidence at 
 the first glance, and the longer you looked at 
 him, the less you would like him. He had an 
 insinuating or rather, a sneaking air that 
 he could not shake off, and his movements, 
 as he trod the thread-bare carpet with his 
 well-worn gaiters, reminded you of the 
 stealthy actions of a fox. 
 
 He had a high and very narrow forehead, 
 a pair of piercing gray eyes, which looked at 
 you from under shaggy brows, and a long, 
 thin nose a nose that seemed formed for 
 
212 THE MYSTEEY OF LOST EIVER CANYON". 
 
 thrusting itself into other people's affairs, 
 and for finding out secrets that its owner had 
 no business to know. 
 
 Uncle Bob, as we shall call him in this 
 story, had once been in business for himself; 
 but he was a gentleman of leisure now. 
 
 Following the example of more respected 
 men, he had gone as heavily in debt as his 
 limited credit would allow, and failed when 
 the proper time came. But it is a dangerous 
 thing for one to fail in business with his 
 pockets full, unless they are very full, and 
 Uncle Bob's creditors had looked so closely 
 into his way of doing business, that he barely 
 escaped being taken in hand by the law. 
 
 It was from this man that Arthur had in- 
 herited his great desire for wealth and his 
 utter abhorrence of any kind of work. 
 
 u You are home early to-night," said Uncle 
 Bob, pausing in his walk. 
 
 "Yes," was the indifferent reply. "And 
 I shall probably be at home earlier to-mor- 
 row night. I have got my walking-papers." 
 
 " Ah !" exclaimed Uncle Bob, elevating his 
 shaggy eyebrows. " What for ?" 
 
TWO NEW CHAEACTEES. 213 
 
 " Too many clerks." 
 
 " And what are you going to do now ? You 
 can't live without work." 
 
 " I know that ; but I shall not look for 
 another place until the seventy dollars I have 
 in my pocket are gone. I am going to make 
 believe that it is two thousand, and live like 
 a gentleman for awhile. It is hard to be 
 poor. You don't respect yourself and no one 
 respects you. What is it, Jane ?" he added, 
 turning to the servant girl who just then 
 opened the door. 
 
 "A letter for Mr. Howard," replied the 
 girl. 
 
 " A letter ?" repeated Uncle Bob, with a 
 shade of anxiety in his tones. " Why, it's a 
 telegram. Who in the world " 
 
 He closed the door behind the girl, and 
 stood with his eyes fastened on the envelope 
 as if he hoped to find something there that 
 would tell him where the dispatch came from 
 and what it contained. 
 
 " Hand it over here and I will read it for 
 you," said Arthur, after he had waited until 
 his patience was all exhausted. 
 
214 THE MYSTEEY OF LOST EIVEE CANYON. 
 
 His father probably did not hear the re- 
 quest, or, if he did, he paid no attention to 
 it. He seated himself in the nearest chair 
 and tore open the envelope with the most 
 exasperating deliberation. 
 
 Like Micawber, he had long clung firmly 
 to the hope that something would " turn up" 
 in his favor that the fickle goddess who had 
 hitherto frowned upon him would change her 
 frowns to smiles and he little imagined how 
 near he was to seeing his fond dream realized. 
 
HOW THE OTHEE WAS RECEIVED. 215 
 
 CHAPTER XVIII. 
 
 HOW THE OTHER WAS RECEIVED. 
 
 "|3 Y the piper that played before Moses!" 
 J3 exclaimed the telegraph operator at 
 Bolton, when he had received and copied a 
 message that had come over the wires all the 
 way from some little place buried in the wilds 
 of Arizona. " If that old villain, Bob How- 
 ard hasn't struck it rich this time, I am beat !" 
 
 Here the operator read the message over 
 again to make sure that he had made no mis- 
 take in copying it, shaking his head and 
 sighing deeply all the while, and then he put 
 it into an envelope, which he handed over to 
 a messenger boy who happened to enter the 
 office at that moment. 
 
 u Wonders will never cease !" he added, as 
 he walked up and down the office, with his 
 hands buried deep in his pockets ; " but this 
 is a little ahead of anything I ever heard of, 
 
216 THE MYSTERY OF LOST KIVEK CANYON. 
 
 and it doesn't seem possible. 'And the whole 
 of your deceased brother's property, roughly 
 estimated at ' Whew! I wouldn't give 
 much for it by the time old Bob and that 
 scapegrace son of his get through handling it. 
 I guess that man out in Arizona couldn't have 
 known his brother as well as we in Bolton 
 know him. I pity that nephew, whoever he 
 
 is." 
 
 The messenger boy readily found his way 
 to the little cottage in that obscure street, of 
 which we spoke in the last chapter, and there, 
 as we have seen, he found the man for whom 
 it was intended. 
 
 " G. H. Evans," said Uncle Bob, slowly 
 reading the name that was signed to the dis- 
 patch. " Who is he ?" 
 
 " Why, it is from Arizona !" exclaimed 
 Arthur, who was looking over Uncle Bob's 
 shoulder. " Listen to this : ' Your brother, 
 Eben Howard, died very suddenly this morn- 
 ing.' Humph !" he ejaculated, walking back 
 to his seat with an air of disgust. " They 
 probably expect you to send money to bear 
 his funeral expenses ; but, if I were you, I 
 
HOW THE OTHER WAS RECEIVED. 217 
 
 would see them Why, father, what is the 
 matter ?" 
 
 It was no wonder that Arthur asked tins 
 question, and asked it, too, in a tone of anxiety, 
 for Uncle Bob suddenly grew as pale as a 
 ghost, and all the while keeping his eyes 
 fastened upon the telegram which he held at 
 arm's length before him. 
 
 The astonished Arthur spoke to him several 
 times, but finding that no attention was paid 
 to him, he jumped up and snatched the tele- 
 gram. Pushing back his father, who, scarcely 
 realizing what he was doing, tried, in a feeble 
 way, to regain possession of the paper, Arthur 
 read as follows : 
 
 " Your brother, Eben Howard, died very suddenly 
 this morning. By the terms of his will, which, in 
 accordance with his dying request, was opened at 
 once, I find that you are appointed guardian of your 
 nephew, Robert Howard, and that the whole of 
 your deceased brother's property, roughly estimated 
 at four millions of dollars is willed to you " 
 
 Arthur gasped for breath and reeled heavily 
 against the wall, but he quickly recovered 
 himself and read on a few words further : 
 
218 THE MYSTEEY OF LOST EIVEB CANYON. 
 
 " is willed to you, to be held in trust until the said 
 Robert Howard is twenty-one years old, when it is 
 to be given up to him ' 
 
 Something that sounded very much like an 
 imprecation escaped from Arthur's lips when 
 he came to this part of the message. His 
 hopes were crushed to the ground in an in- 
 stant, but he managed to go on with the 
 reading: 
 
 less a generous sum, which you are at liberty to 
 retain, for the faithful performance of your duties as 
 guardian and trustee. As Mr. Howard's intimate 
 friend and confidential adviser, I shall be glad to 
 give you every assistance in my power. Telegraph 
 me from Leavenworth when to meet you at the 
 station." 
 
 When Arthur had finished the telegram, he 
 threw it on the floor and stamped upon it, in 
 his rage. 
 
 " What fools we are !" said he, in a voice 
 that was rendered almost indistinct by intense 
 passion. " Look here, old man ! If you 
 haven't taken leave of your senses, sit down 
 and tell me why it is that you are so worked 
 
HOW THE OTHER WAS EECEIVED. 219 
 
 up over this dispatch. Can't you see that 
 these four millions will never do us any 
 good ? They are not yours to keep. They 
 are only willed to you ' in trust/ and must 
 be given up to Bob as soon as he becomes of 
 age. Who ever heard of such miserable 
 luck ?" 
 
 These words seemed to call Uncle Bob back 
 to earth, and he instantly became himself again 
 cool, level-headed and calculating. " This 
 accident and flood of fortune " had upset him 
 for the moment, but now he was able to think 
 about it and to gloat over it without the dis- 
 play of any emotion whatever. 
 
 "I know that I am to hold the property in 
 trust. But don't you see that I am to be 
 Bob's guardian ? that I am to have the man- 
 agement of all these millions, and the rev- 
 enues that may accrue from them?" said 
 Uncle Bob, spreading his hands over the 
 table, as if he were in reality, as he was in 
 imagination, fingering his nephew's big pile 
 of gold and silver. 
 
 " How old is Bob now ?" asked Arthur. 
 
 " About eighteen, I think." 
 
220 THE MYSTEEY OF LOST EIVER CANYON. 
 
 "Then we shall be rich for three years ?" 
 
 " Yes, and a great deal can be accom- 
 plished in that time," said his father, in a 
 meaning tone. " Besides, there is the ' gen- 
 erous sum ' which I shall keep to pay me for 
 my services." 
 
 " What would you call a generous sum?" 
 
 " Well, taking into consideration the 
 amount of property involved, and the har- 
 assing responsibilities that will probably be 
 thrown upon me, I should say half a million." 
 
 " Hurrah for us !" shouted Arthur, " That 
 will put us above some people who now look 
 down on us because we can't show as much 
 style as they do, and if I don't Say, father, 
 you are not going to live out there in that 
 wild region, are you ?" 
 
 " I don't see how I can help it. I must 
 look after Bob's interests, you know." 
 
 " Can't you hire an agent, and let him 
 look out for them ?" 
 
 " I suppose I could ; but I don't want to," 
 said Uncle Bob, who had already determined 
 upon the course he intended to pursue. " I 
 can please myself better." 
 
HOW THE OTHER WAS EECEIVED. 221 
 
 " Must I live out there, too ?" inquired 
 Arthur. 
 
 " For a while, yes. Where do you want to 
 go?" 
 
 " I want to stay right here, and take satis- 
 faction out of some of these people who 
 think themselves better than I am." 
 
 "It is getting quite fashionable now for 
 young men of means to go to college,' ' ob- 
 served Uncle Bob. 
 
 " How much does it cost ?" 
 
 " That depends upon the depth of one's 
 pocket. In your case I should say that fif- 
 teen or twenty thousand dollars would be a 
 sufficient sum. Of course you would want 
 to go among the best of the students, and 
 it would take money, and plenty of it, to 
 enable you to do that." 
 
 " Well, no college for me, if you please !" 
 declined Arthur. " I've done my last day's 
 work at books or anything else. Give me 
 the money, and I will spend it in a way that 
 will bring me some satisfaction. I will have 
 a top-buggy and a span of steppers so fine 
 that Coal Oil Tom's will bear no comparison 
 
222 THE MYSTERY OF LOST RIVER CANYON. 
 
 to them. How soon can we get ready to 
 start ?" 
 
 " By to-morrow night," replied Uncle Bob, 
 promptly. " All I've got to do is to put our 
 little property here into the hands of an agent, 
 with orders to do the best he can with it, and 
 then we will pack our trunks and be off. Of 
 course I can't stay to attend to the sale myself." 
 
 " Of course not," said Arthur, looking 
 about the poorly-furnished room with an ex- 
 pression of contempt in his face. " If you 
 can't sell the place, give it away. You don't 
 need it any longer, and it isn't worth much 
 anyway." 
 
 If Uncle Bob had received an offer for his 
 house and lot an hour before, he would have 
 demanded more, and held out for the last 
 half-dollar that he could have induced the 
 purchaser to pay. But he felt differently now. 
 He was as highly elated as Arthur was over 
 his unexpected fortune, although he did not 
 show it so plainly, and the money his prop- 
 erty would probably bring him, if it were 
 thrown upon the market, seemed a mere baga- 
 telle in his eyes. 
 
HOW THE OTHEE WAS EECEIVED. 223 
 
 " By-the-way," said Arthur suddenly, " if 
 anything should happen to Bob, who would 
 inherit this property ?" 
 
 " Being next of kin, it ought to come to 
 me," replied his father" provided there are 
 no legal obstacles in the way," he added, as 
 Arthur began dancing a jig in the middle 
 of the floor. " My brother may have pro- 
 vided for that ; but if he did not, or if Bob, 
 after becoming of age and taking possession 
 of the property, should die without making 
 a will, my right to inherit would be clear and 
 indisputable." 
 
 " I declare, it almost takes my breath away 
 to think of it !" said Arthur, whose delight 
 and excitement would not allow him to keep 
 still for a moment. " I don't feel as I did 
 when I came into this house a little while 
 ago, I tell you. I guess I'll go out and get 
 
 a cigar." 
 
 " Sapper will soon be ready," said his 
 father. 
 
 " I don't want any supper, and I shouldn't 
 think you would either. How you can sit 
 there and take it so coolly, passes my compre- 
 
224 THE MYSTERY OF LOST EIVER CANYON. 
 
 hension. If I did'nt stir about I should go 
 all to pieces." 
 
 Arthur went into his room long enough to 
 draw on a pair of kid gloves, which never saw 
 the light except upon extra occasions, and to 
 put under his arm the slender little cane he 
 was accustomed to carry on his Sunday prom- 
 enades, and then he went out to get his cigar. 
 
 He seemed to be treading on air, so buoyant 
 were his spirits. He carried himself very 
 stiffly, looking neither to the right nor left 
 of him ; and, to quote from an acquaintance he 
 passed on the street, but whom he did not 
 deign to notice, one would have thought by 
 the frills he put on that he was worth at le.ast 
 a dollar and a half. 
 
 Contrary to his usual custom, Arthur took 
 his way down Crosby Street, on which were 
 located nearly all the fine residences the town 
 could boast of, and where the gay croquet and 
 lawn-tennis parties, some of whose members 
 he had so often envied, were to be seen every 
 pleasant afternoon. These parties were out in 
 full force, but Arthur never looked toward 
 them as he passed. 
 
HOW THE OTHEE WAS EECEIVED. 225 
 
 " What do I care for such people as they 
 are?" said he to himself. "My father will 
 soon be handling more money than they are 
 all worth, and the allowance I know he will 
 give me will enable me to outshine any fellow 
 on these grounds. I wish they knew of the 
 luck that has befallen me since I passed along 
 this way an hour ago. I have but a short 
 time to stay in Bolton, and before I go, I want 
 to have the gratification of knowing that 
 somebody envies me. Ah, here comes Wig- 
 gins! I will tell him, and that will be as 
 good as though I posted it on the door of the 
 town hall." 
 
 Wiggins was one of the errand boys in the 
 store in which Arthur had formerly found 
 employment. He had by this time learned 
 that the clerk had been discharged, and he 
 had lost no opportunity to spread the news. 
 
 He was full of gossip, and if there was any- 
 thing going on in the town he was pretty sure 
 to know it, and to tell it, too. 
 
 15 
 
226 THE MYSTERY OF LOST EIVER CANYON. 
 
 CHAPTER XIX. 
 
 BOB HEARS SOME STARTLING NEWS. 
 
 * TTALLO, Art!" exclaimed the errand- 
 JLL boy, as soon as he came within speak- 
 ing distance. "Got the sack, didn't you? 
 You're out looking for another job, ain't 
 you?" 
 
 "Look here, young man," said Arthur, 
 with some dignity in his tones, " you are quite 
 too familiar, if you did but know it. It would 
 be becoming in you to show some respect for 
 your betters." 
 
 " Hallo ! What's come over you all at once ?" 
 cried Wiggins. 
 
 " It is true that I have left the store," con- 
 tinued Arthur, without replying to this ques- 
 tion ; " but I am not looking for another 
 situation. I don't have to." 
 
 " What are you going to live on the inter- 
 est of your debts?" 
 
BOB HEAES SOME STARTLING NEWS. 227 
 
 " I am going to live on the interest of my 
 money," answered Arthur, loftily. " By the 
 death of a relative who lived out West, my 
 father and I have come into possession of a 
 very nice little fortune." 
 
 " How much ?" asked Wiggins, incredu- 
 lously. 
 
 " About four millions." 
 
 " Aw ! Get out !" 
 
 " I didn't expect you to believe it, but those 
 are the figures. So you will readily see that 
 I am not obliged to earn my living by stand- 
 ing behind the counter. I've given him 
 something to talk about," soliloquized Arthur, 
 as he walked away with a slow and dignified 
 step, " and in half an hour the news will be 
 all over town." 
 
 Having provided himself with a cigar, 
 Arthur took a long walk toward the outskirts 
 of the town, in order to give the errand-boy 
 time to " get in his work," as he expressed it. 
 
 And he was not a little flattered by the 
 attention he received when he came back. 
 
 Wiggins must have labored industriously, 
 for everybody seemed to have heard the news. 
 
228 THE MYSTEKY OF LOST EIVER CANYON. 
 
 People who had seldom taken the trouble to 
 speak to him when he was nothing but a dry- 
 goods clerk, stopped to congratulate him on 
 his good fortune ; and among those who were 
 the most cordial in their greeting was the 
 tailor to whom he was indebted for the clothes 
 he had on his back ; the cigar-vender who had 
 been confiding enough to furnish him with his 
 Havanas ; and the jeweller, who had not yet 
 been paid for the seal-ring that adorned the 
 third finger of his left hand. 
 
 " I tell you, money makes a big difference 
 in the position one occupies in the world and 
 in the estimation of those around him," said 
 Arthur, as he bent his steps towards his cheer- 
 less home, after spending an hour in airing 
 himself on the principal streets. " But didn't 
 I snub some of those fellows in fine style? I 
 wish I could stay here, so that I could snub 
 them every day." 
 
 Time seemed to move on leaden wings, but 
 the night and the ensuing day wore away at 
 last, and, long before the hour for starting 
 arrived, Arthur had packed his valise and was 
 ready for the train. 
 
BOB HEARS SOME STARTLING NEWS. 229 
 
 From some hidden source, Uncle Bob had 
 produced money enough to purchase tickets, 
 and furnish himself and his hopeful son with 
 brand new travelling outfits and a few articles 
 of comfort and utility, and, when they took 
 their seats in the drawing-room car, they were 
 quite prepared to create a sensation among 
 the passengers they found there. But to Ar- 
 thur's disappointment, the passengers at whom 
 he gazed through his gold eye-glasses he 
 needed eye-glasses about as much as he needed 
 another ring were not at all impressed by 
 his fine clothes and the graceful attitudes he 
 assumed. 
 
 They had papers and books to read, and 
 matters of their own to think about, and some 
 of them never once looked at him. 
 
 The only one in the car who paid any par- 
 ticular attention to him was a handsome, dark- 
 haired youth, who all that day had ridden 
 with his arms folded and his chin resting 
 on his breast. He looked up when Arthur 
 and his father entered, gave a start of sur- 
 prise, and said, in a whisper, to his travelling 
 companion : 
 
230 THE MYSTERY OF LOST RIVER CANYON. 
 
 " That's my Uncle Bob if I ever saw 
 him." 
 
 " And a very fine-looking old fellow he is, 
 too," said the other, who would hardly have 
 recognized in this pompous gentleman who 
 gazed about him as if he were monarch of all 
 he surveyed the Uncle Bob whom we intro- 
 duced a short time ago. That fine feathers 
 make fine birds was fully exemplified in his 
 case. " Who is that young chap with him 
 your cousin Arthur ?'' 
 
 " I think so," replied Bob Howard for it 
 was he " but I'm not sure. A good many 
 years have passed since I last saw them, and 
 Arthur has had plenty of time to grow out 
 of my recollection, but Uncle Bob hasn't 
 changed at all." 
 
 " What are they doing on this train, I won- 
 der?" asked George Edwards. 
 
 " I'm sure I don't know. Say, George, I 
 didn't write to Uncle Bob about my father's 
 death, as I meant to do, and perhaps I'd bet- 
 ter speak to him about it now, while I have 
 the chance. Then I shall be done with him 
 forever." 
 
BOB HEAES SOME STAETLING NEWS. 231 
 
 " Well, if it is an unpleasant piece of busi- 
 ness, go about it at once, and have it off your 
 mind," suggested George. 
 
 " It is unpleasant, for I don't want to speak 
 to the man who went deliberately to work to 
 ruin my father," said Bob, with no little bit- 
 terness in his tones. " But I will do as you 
 say. I suppose I shall have to address him 
 as ' Uncle Bob/ but I assure you I never 
 would do it if my father had not always spo- 
 ken of him in that way in his letters." 
 
 So saying, Bob arose and walked over to 
 the seats that were occupied by his relatives. 
 They looked up in surprise when the boy 
 stopped before them, Arthur assuming a 
 haughty stare, while his father seemed try- 
 ing to remember where he had seen Bob be- 
 fore. 
 
 " Pardon me," said the latter. " Do I ad- 
 dress Mr. Robert Howard, of Bolton, Indi- 
 ana?" 
 
 "Bless my soul!" cried Uncle Bob, jump- 
 ing to his feet and shaking his nephew's 
 hand with both his own. " I thought I knew 
 you and you are my brother's son, who was 
 
232 THE MYSTERY OF LOST RIVER CANYON. 
 
 named after me, are you not? Arthur, this 
 is the cousin, of whom you have so often 
 heard me speak. Shake hands and be friends." 
 
 The two boys did not greet each other with 
 the cordiality that might have been expected 
 of relatives who had long been separated. 
 Each knew instinctively that the other was 
 an enemy to him. Uncle Bob saw this very 
 plainly, and he knew that much depended on 
 securing his nephew's good-will ; but he went 
 about it in the very best way calculated to 
 excite his contempt. 
 
 " Sit down, Bob," said he, taking the boy 
 by the shoulders and trying to push him into 
 the chair he had just vacated ; " sit down, and 
 let us have a family talk. Do you know that 
 it is a long time since Arthur and I have 
 seen you ? How you have grown, and how 
 well you are looking ! You are getting to be 
 quite a spruce young gentleman," 
 
 " Thank you ; I'll not sit down," said Bob, 
 coldly. " I have a seat of my own in this 
 car. I simply came here to tell you that my 
 father was dead." 
 
 Uncle Bob drew on a long face at once, 
 
BOB HEAES SOME STARTLING NEWS. 233 
 
 and Arthur tried to do the same, but made a 
 failure of it." 
 
 " Sad very sad !" said the former. " I 
 was greatly shocked to hear it. Very sud- 
 den, was it not?" 
 
 " Have you heard of it ?" asked Bob in 
 surprise. 
 
 " Certainly I have ; and I am now on my 
 way to Arizona to settle up his affairs. I 
 know it is very hard, my dear boy ; but try 
 to bear up, and not look so depressed." 
 
 Bob didn't look depressed he looked as- 
 tonished and bewildered. 
 
 What business had this man, who had 
 tried to swindle his father and cast dishonor 
 upon his name, to have anything to do with 
 money and property that would one day be- 
 long to himself? 
 
 " There there surely must be some mis- 
 take," he stammered. 
 
 "There's no mistake whatever," said Arthur, 
 glibly. " We've got it in black and white." 
 
 His father silenced him with a frown, and 
 continued, as he thrust his hand into his 
 breast-pocket and drew out a note- book : 
 
234 THE MYSTERY OF LOST KIVEK CANYON. 
 
 " I don't wonder that you are a little sur- 
 prised. I was surprised myself; but what 
 Arthur says is quite true. My brother hav- 
 ing every confidence in my fidelity " (Uncle 
 Bob put a good deal of unnecessary emphasis 
 into these words), "appointed me to act as 
 your guardian, and to hold your property 
 in trust for you, until you are able to take 
 care of it yourself. The responsibility is 
 great, but I have cheerfully accepted it. I 
 assure you although it is hardly necessary 
 that I shall do all I can to make our inter- 
 course as guardian and ward pleasant and 
 agreeable, and I know you will do the same. 
 Here's the paper I want. Read that, arid 
 you will know as much about the matter as I 
 know myself." 
 
 Bob was thunderstruck. His mind was in 
 such confusion that he did not understand 
 half a dozen words of this long and carefully- 
 prepared speech. All he heard was that his 
 uncle was his guardian, and that fairly stunned 
 him. Was his father crazy, when he made 
 his will ? He must have been, or he never 
 would have done this. 
 
BOB HEAKS SOME STARTLING NEWS. 235 
 
 He took the telegraph dispatch that Uncle 
 Bob handed him, and, having made himself 
 master of its contents, he passed it back 
 without saying a word and returned to his 
 own seat. 
 
 Uncle Bob looked after him with an ex- 
 pression on his face that cannot be described, 
 and then buttoning his ulster with great de- 
 liberation, he settled back in his luxurious 
 chair with an air which seemed to say : 
 
 " Help yourself, if you can, young man." 
 
 He drew a long breath as if he felt re- 
 lieved, and yet his face wore a look of anxiety. 
 He saw that his ward was a boy of spirit- 
 any one who looked into Bob Howard's eyes 
 could see that and told himself that he was 
 bound to have trouble with him sooner or 
 later. 
 
 Arthur must have been of the same opin- 
 ion ; for, after waiting a long time for his 
 father to speak, he broke in upon his reverie 
 by saying : 
 
 " That boy is altogether too independent to 
 suit me. I shall have to bring him down a 
 peg or two." 
 
236 THE MYSTERY OF LOST KIVEE CANYON". 
 
 " You had better mind your own business 
 and let him alone/' said Uncle Bob, roughly, 
 "My position will be hard enough at the 
 best, and if you expect me to be liberal with 
 you, you must be careful to do nothing to in- 
 crease the weight of the burden I shall have 
 to bear." 
 
 Arthur opened his eyes when he heard 
 this, and relapsed into silence. He had made 
 up his mind that he was going to do pretty 
 near what he pleased with his cousin and 
 everything that belonged to him ; but now 
 he saw that he would have to defer to his 
 father in some things, or run the risk of 
 having his allowance of spending money cur- 
 tailed. 
 
 There had been no conversation between 
 them regarding the amount of that allowance, 
 but Arthur took it for granted that it was to 
 be a liberal one. 
 
 The face that Bob Howard brought back 
 to his companion surprised and alarmed the 
 latter, who knew, as soon as he looked at it, 
 that something unpleasant had happened. 
 
 He was not kept long in ignorance, for 
 
BOB HEARS SOME STARTLING NEWS. 287 
 
 Bob, feeling the need of sympathy, made all 
 haste to unburden his mind. 
 
 George listened in astonishment while his 
 friend told what had passed between him 
 and Uncle Bob ; but when his story was fin- 
 ished there was nothing he could say to com- 
 fort him. 
 
 " It seems that the same name is signed to 
 both the dispatches," he ventured to remark, 
 when he saw that Bob was waiting for him 
 to speak. " Do you know the man ?" 
 
 Yes, Bob knew him well. He was their 
 nearest neighbor, and the first friend they 
 made when they settled in Arizona. 
 
 " Then he is the one you want to talk to," 
 said George. "No doubt he will be able to 
 explain everything to your entire satisfac- 
 tion." 
 
 "No, he can't," said Bob, bitterly. " He 
 can't make me understand why my father 
 gave his property into this man's keeping, 
 and made him my guardian. That's a mys- 
 tery that I shall never be able to see into." 
 
 " Well, this Mr. Evans can tell you more 
 about it than anybody else, can't he?" said 
 
238 THE MYSTERY OF LOST KIVEK CANYON. 
 
 George, encouragingly. "You can't gain 
 any more insight into the matter until you 
 see him, can you ? Then all you've got to do 
 is to wait patiently until we reach the end of 
 our journey, when everything will be made 
 clear to you." 
 
 It was very easy for George to give this ad- 
 vice ; but it was by no means so easy for Bob 
 to follow it. Besides, the latter did not be- 
 lieve that it lay in Mr. Evans' power to make 
 everything clear to him. 
 
A MERITED EEBUKE. 239 
 
 CHAPTEE XX. 
 
 A MERITED REBUKE. 
 
 UNCLE BOB would have been glad to 
 put himself and Arthur on a friendly 
 footing with his nephew, but the latter would 
 not give him the opportunity. 
 
 As soon as the train stopped, he and 
 George went into another car, and stayed 
 there. When they reached Leavenworth, 
 Bob telegraphed Mr. Evans, as the latter had 
 instructed him to do, winding up the mes- 
 sage with the following words : 
 
 " Bring two saddle-horses besides your own, and 
 see that there is just room enough in the wagon for 
 two persons." 
 
 " I want nothing to do with the old hypo- 
 crite," said Bob, as he and George went back 
 to the train, " and by sending for two saddle 
 horses I have made it possible for you and 
 me to have a little private conversation with 
 
240 THE MYSTERY OF LOST RIVER CANYON. 
 
 Mr. Evans. Uncle Bob and Arthur will have 
 to occupy a seat in the wagon." 
 
 When they reached Dixon Spring, which 
 was as far as the track was laid at the time 
 of which we write, their journey by rail was 
 ended. 
 
 Now came a ride of a hundred and sixty 
 miles, part of the way lying through the south- 
 western portion of New Mexico and the rest 
 through Arizona. 
 
 Mr. Evans was on hand when the train 
 stopped at Dixon Spring, and when Bob had 
 greeted him cordially, he presented his friend, 
 George Edwards. He paid no attention to 
 Uncle Bob, but that gentleman was not to be 
 put off in any such way. 
 
 He kept a sharp eye upon his nephew, and 
 seeing him in the act of shaking hands with 
 a roughly dressed man, who wore a brace of 
 revolvers about his waist, he walked up and 
 broke in upon the conversation without offer- 
 ing an apology for so doing, thereby commit- 
 ting a breach of etiquette, which, under dif- 
 ferent circumstances, would have been pretty 
 certain to bring him into trouble. 
 
A MERITED EEBUKE. 241 
 
 " Have I the honor to speak to Mr. Evans ?" 
 inquired Uncle Bob, holding out his hand. 
 
 " You have," replied the owner of that 
 name, running his eye over Uncle Bob's fig- 
 ure, and then over Arthur's, taking in at a 
 glance, their fine clothes, gloves, canes, patent- 
 leather shoes, and all their ornaments, but 
 making no move toward accepting the prof- 
 fered hand. 
 
 Like all men of his calling, he heartily de- 
 spised finery of every sort, and he was sus- 
 picious of it, too. There was only one class 
 of persons in that country who dressed in that 
 way, and they were rascals without a single 
 exception. 
 
 " I supposed that my nephew would intro- 
 duce me," said Uncle Bob, throwing off a 
 hint of his haughtiness and pomposity, and 
 speaking in his ordinary tone of voice ; " but 
 as he seems to have forgotten me, I must do 
 it myself. I am Robert Howard, at your ser- 
 vice, the brother of the late Eben Howard, 
 who, I believe, was " 
 
 "Oh, why didn't you say so?" interrupted 
 Mr. Evans. " I received your telegram^ and 
 
 16 
 
242 THE MYSTERY OF LOST EIVER CANYON. 
 
 was looking for you when I found Bob ; but 
 I didn't suppose that you were Mr. How- 
 ard." 
 
 He looked inquiringly at the boy as he said 
 this, and then he reluctantly took the out- 
 stretched hand ; but he did not shake it as 
 though he was glad to see Uncle Bob. And 
 indeed he wasn't. He knew more of the 
 man's history than the latter thought he did. 
 
 " Now, then/' said Mr. Evans, who had no 
 desire to prolong the interview, having al- 
 ready seen as much of Uncle Bob and Ar- 
 thur as he cared to see, " I will bring up 
 the wagon, and while I am gone, you can 
 present your checks and get your trunks. 
 We have about twenty-five miles to go to 
 reach our camping-ground, and, if we want 
 to get there before dark, we have no time to 
 waste." 
 
 " Camping-ground !" repeated Arthur. "Do 
 you mean that we must sleep out of doors ?" 
 
 " Oh, no! Knowing that you were tender- 
 feet, I took the liberty to stop at Bob's house 
 and get his tent." 
 
 " Why, I was under the impression that a 
 
A MEEITED KEBUKE. 243 
 
 stage-line ran within a short distance of my 
 brother's ranch, and that there were hotels 
 along the way, at which we could put up at 
 night," said Uncle Bob. 
 
 " Hotels in this country !" exclaimed Mr. 
 Evans. " There are stations along the route, 
 if they are what you mean ; and if you want 
 to eat soggy potatoes, green biscuit, and oleo- 
 margarine butter, and be eaten up with fleas 
 when you go to bed, you can do it and wel- 
 come; but I won't. Well-cooked camp-fare 
 and a bed of clean prairie-grass are good 
 enough for me." 
 
 Mr. Evans hurried away, and when he re- 
 turned a few minutes later, he was driving a 
 span of mules, which were hitched to a light 
 spring wagon with a canopy top. 
 
 There was one seat in the wagon, placed 
 in the extreme forward end, so that the 
 driver's feet hung out over the pole ; and the 
 body of the vehicle was filled with camp- 
 equipage. 
 
 Still, there was room enough in it for Bob's 
 trunk and George's, as well as for the valises 
 which the others had brought with them. 
 
244 THE MYSTERY OF LOST RIVEB CANYON. 
 
 " All ready !" said Mr. Evans, when all 
 these articles had been safely stowed away. 
 "Jump in, Mr. Howard, and keep the trail, 
 which is as plain as the nose on your face. 
 The boys and I will follow on horseback." 
 
 Arthur was not at all satisfied with this 
 arrangement, and neither was his father. The 
 former was wondering what his aristocratic 
 acquaintances in Bolton would say if they 
 could see him dressed in his fine clothes 
 and perched behind a span of lazy mules ; 
 while Uncle Bob told himself that he was 
 losing something by leaving his nephew and 
 Mr. Evans together. He wanted an oppor- 
 tunity to tell his story before Bob could say 
 anything to prejudice the man against him. 
 
 " So that's tho man who is to act as your 
 guardian, is it?" said Mr. Evans, as the 
 wagon moved off. " He is the chap who 
 borrowed money of your father to start him 
 in business, and then failed and cheated him 
 out of the most of it?'' 
 
 " Yes ; and when father came out here, in 
 the hope of recovering the health he had lost 
 by overwork, Uncle Bob industriously cir- 
 
A MERITED REBUKE. 245 
 
 culated the report that he had run away from 
 his creditors," added Bob, in a voice that 
 was husky with indignation. " Father couldn't 
 have forgotten all this, and yet he made this 
 man my guardian, and gave him control of 
 the property." 
 
 " No, he didn't forget it, but he forgave it," 
 said Mr. Evans. " I know that the fierce 
 quarrel he had with his brother was the cause 
 of much sorrow to him ; and as soon as he 
 had paid all your Uncle Bob's debts, he went 
 to work to heal the breach " 
 
 "And Uncle Bob helped him ; and this is 
 the result," broke in the boy. 
 
 " That seems to be about the way the thing 
 stands. I know what sort of a will he made, 
 and I know, too, that it was his intention to 
 speak to you about it when you came home 
 this fall, and to change it, if you raised the 
 least objection to it." 
 
 " I shouldn't have done it," said Bob, with 
 tears in his eyes. "As it was his wish that 
 my uncle should act in his stead, I shall sub- 
 mit, and be as dutiful and respectful as I can ; 
 but, unless he changes very much, I shall be 
 
246 THE MYSTERY OF LOST EIVER CANYON. 
 
 heartily glad to see the last of him. Now, 
 let us drop the matter. I don't want to talk 
 about it any more." 
 
 Neither did Mr. Evans. Regrets could not 
 change the situation. 
 
 He was sorry for Bob, and he made the 
 mental resolution that he would keep an eye 
 on this guardian of his, and at the very first 
 sign of tyranny or unfaithfulness, he would 
 raise a storm about his ears that would drive 
 him from the country. 
 
 The journey from Dixon Spring to Bob 
 Howard's home consumed the best part of 
 five days, and during that time Arthur and 
 George had opportunity to learn what West- 
 ern life, of which they had often read the 
 most glowing accounts, really was. 
 
 George was delighted with it, but Arthur 
 did not like it at all, and told himself over 
 and over again that he would make his way 
 back to Bolton just as soon as he could induce 
 his father to give him money enough to take 
 him there. 
 
 There was no fun in sleeping on the hard 
 ground every night. The tent which he 
 
A MERITED KEBUKE. 247 
 
 thought ought to be devoted to the exclusive 
 use of himself and his father, was crowded 
 every night, all the strangers they encountered 
 on the way (roughly-dressed, loud-talking 
 fellows they were, whose words and actions 
 seemed to indicate that they were spoiling 
 for a fight) being given a hearty welcome and 
 urged to make themselves perfectly at home ; 
 and he had so much to say about the food 
 that was served up to him, that he finally ex- 
 hausted all the patience of Mr. Evans, who 
 one day took him to task in the following 
 style : 
 
 " Young man," said he, shaking a piece of 
 hardtack at Arthur, " I have traveled a good 
 deal, spent some years in the army, associated 
 with all sorts and kinds of people, and I have 
 always noticed one thing that those who 
 never have anything worth eating at home 
 are the very ones who growl the loudest at 
 what is set before them when they are away 
 from home." 
 
 Arthur would have been glad to make an 
 angry reply to this merited rebuke, but some- 
 thing in the clear brown eye that was fastened 
 
248 THE MYSTERY OF LOST EIVEE CANYON. 
 
 upon his own told him that it would not be 
 quite safe to do so. 
 
 Both he and his father took the hint, and 
 from that time forward conducted themselves 
 like reasonable beings. 
 
 The result was just what might have been 
 expected. Mr. Evans became more sociable 
 and communicative, and instead of following 
 behind the wagon, as he had formerly done, 
 he rode beside it, patiently answering all Uncle 
 Bob's questions and trying his best to en- 
 lighten him on every subject on which he 
 sought information. 
 
 The latter was astonished at his knowl- 
 edge, and could hardly believe his nephew 
 when the latter told him that those rough 
 clothes covered a Yale College graduate. 
 
 While Mr. Evans was devoting himself to 
 the senior member of the party, Arthur was 
 not neglected. As soon as he threw off his 
 assumed dignity which did not set well on 
 him, anyway George and Bob met him 
 half-way, and the latter, having come to the 
 sensible conclusion that it was useless to 
 fight against the inevitable, went to work 
 
A MERITED EEBUKE. 249 
 
 to place himself on friendly terras with his 
 cousin. 
 
 He gave him his horse when he saw that 
 he was tired of riding in the w r agon, took 
 pains to direct his attention to all the interest- 
 ing objects along the trail, and showed him 
 his new home while they were yet ten hours' 
 journey distant from it. 
 
 " What a grand view this is !" exclaimed 
 Arthur, as he drew rein on the brink of a 
 frightful precipice and gazed down into the 
 valley below him. 
 
 He was riding Mr. Evans' horse, that gen- 
 tleman having taken his seat in the wagon. 
 Bob did not object to this arrangement now. 
 He knew that Mr. Evans was his friend, and 
 it mattered little what his uncle said to him. 
 
 " Yes, it's a splendid sight," said Bob, who 
 was thinking of the lonely grave there was 
 somewhere in that valley, and not of the 
 beauty of the scenery. "People who have 
 traveled among the Alps say 'that Switzerland 
 has nothing that can beat it. Every foot of 
 that valley belonged to my father." 
 
 "And if anything should happen to you 
 
250 THE MYSTERY OF LOST BIVEK CANYON. 
 
 during the next three years it is quite possi- 
 ble that every foot of it will belong to me," 
 said Arthur to himself. 
 
 This thought had been uppermost in his 
 mind ever since the day that telegram was 
 received. He had pondered upon it day and 
 night, and he continued to ponder upon it 
 until it led to something something that 
 created the greatest excitement, and came 
 pretty near ending in a fearful tragedy. 
 
THE MYSTEBY OF THE CANYON. 251 
 
 CHAPTER XXL 
 
 THE MYSTERY OF THE CANYON. 
 
 valley toward which the three boys 
 JL directed their gaze was quite ten miles 
 long and a little more than half as wide. It 
 was almost oval in shape, and was surrounded 
 on all sides by rocky bluffs, which, in some 
 places, arose to the height of nearly two 
 thousand feet. 
 
 The base of these bluffs was lined with an 
 almost unbroken forest of cottonwood trees, 
 which in addition to supplying the numer- 
 ous inhabitants of the valley with fuel, gave 
 secure protection to the ranchman's sheep, 
 that sought shelter there when the cold winter 
 winds swept down the gorges and blocked all 
 the trails with snow. 
 
 The valley was watered by a deep stream, 
 which, entering at one end by a succession 
 of lofty cascades, and running through the 
 
252 THE MYSTERY OF LOST EIVEE CANYON. 
 
 verdant fields with an almost imperceptible 
 current, finally disappeared in a cavern so 
 dark and gloomy that it made one shudder to 
 look at it. 
 
 Near the middle of the valley this stream 
 widened into a lake of considerable size. It 
 was on the bosom of this lake that Bob How- 
 ard had cast his first fly to tempt the wary 
 trout from his hiding-place ; and among the 
 weeds and rushes that lined the further 
 shore he had killed his first wild duck. 
 
 By the aid of a powerful field-glass which 
 Bob had brought with him, Arthur and 
 George were enabled to make a close exami- 
 nation of all the objects he pointed out to 
 them. Something which, at the first glance, 
 looked like a cobble-stone, turned out to be a 
 roomy rancho ; a little patch of white in the 
 middle of one of the fields the glass showed 
 to be an immense flock of sheep ; small 
 clumps of bushes became extensive groves 
 of scrub oaks ; things that looked no larger 
 than a sprig of clover changed into horse- 
 men ; and the dark lines that ran across the 
 valley in every direction took the form of 
 
THE MYSTERY OF THE CANYON. 253 
 
 rail fences, staked and ridered, and strongly 
 built to withstand the violence of the winter 
 winds. 
 
 The atmosphere was so pure that the 
 smallest object could be seen and described. 
 George and Arthur could hardly believe that 
 ten hours would elapse, and that they would 
 be obliged to spend another night in camp, 
 before they could take a nearer view of the 
 valley. 
 
 "How are we going to get down there?" 
 asked the former. " I hope you don't intend 
 to lower us over these cliffs with a rope ?" 
 
 " Oh, no ! There's a road that leads to the 
 bottom, but it is a long and winding one. 
 The building of it was equal to all the labors 
 of Hercules, and I have been told that he had 
 some pretty difficult tasks to perform." 
 
 Arthur, who had never heard of Hercules 
 before, would have been glad to know who 
 he was and what he had to do, but he was 
 ashamed to ask for information. 
 
 His companions, who seemed to know a 
 little of everything, had more than once put 
 him to the blush, and, rather than let them 
 
254 THE MYSTERY OF LOST EIVER CANYON. 
 
 see how ignorant he was, he maintained a dis- 
 creet silence. 
 
 "My father laid it off," continued Bob, 
 with some pride in his tones, " and not one 
 of all the college professors who have been 
 here has been able to make any improvement 
 in it. Hark I" he added, a moment later, 
 raising his forefinger in the air and turning 
 his head to one side. " Now you are going to 
 hear it." 
 
 There was something in Bob's tone and 
 manner that affected his companions rather 
 unpleasantly, awed as they were by the 
 grandeur and sublimity of their surround- 
 ings. 
 
 They listened intently, and all they could 
 hear was the sighing of the mountain breeze 
 through the branches of the evergreens that 
 lined the trail on both sides ; but presently 
 there came floating on that same breeze a 
 sound that cannot be described a sound 
 that seemed to chill the blood of the two 
 boys, who now listened to it for the first time. 
 
 It was faint, yet it could be distinctly heard. 
 Like the noise that sometimes accompanies an 
 
THE MYSTERY OF THE CANYON. 255 
 
 earthquake, it seemed to come from no partic- 
 ular direction, but filled the air all around 
 them. It continued for a few seconds, grow- 
 ing neither louder nor fainter, and then sud- 
 denly ceased. 
 
 Arthur and George drew a long breath, 
 and looked at their companion with eyes that 
 were full of curiosity and alarm. 
 
 *" What is it?" they asked, almost involun- 
 tarily sinking their voices into a whisper. 
 
 " It is the mystery of Lost River Canyon," 
 replied Bob, solemnly. " Here's Mr. Evans. 
 Ask him." 
 
 The boys turned about in their saddles, 
 and saw that the wagon had come up and 
 stopped close behind. They knew that both 
 of its occupants had been listening to the 
 strange sound that had just died away. Mr. 
 Evans looked indifferent, but Uncle Bob was 
 visibly affected. 
 
 " What is it, Mr. Evans ? and where does it 
 come from?" asked George, as he rode up 
 beside the wagon. 
 
 " It undoubtedly has its origin somewhere 
 in the mountains," was the reply ; " but just 
 
256 THE MYSTEEY OF LOST EIVEE CANYON. 
 
 where it comes from, and what causes it, are 
 questions that no one has yet been able to 
 answer." 
 
 " What is your theory ?" asked George. 
 
 " I have none.'* 
 
 " Why doesn't somebody go into the moun- 
 tains and solve the mystery ?'' 
 
 " Haven't I told you over and over again 
 that the attempt has often been made, and 
 that nothing ever came of it?" said Bob. 
 " I gave you to understand that there was a 
 mystery connected with these mountains, and 
 now you know as much about it as I do." 
 
 " Couldn't one follow up the sound, and so 
 find its source ?" inquired Uncle Bob. 
 
 " Which way did it come from ?" asked 
 Mr. Evans in reply. 
 
 Uncle Bob was obliged to confess that he 
 didn't know. 
 
 " Neither do I know," said Mr. Evans. 
 " No one knows, or ever will know. I sup- 
 pose that there is no better hunting to be 
 found anywhere under the folds of the Stars 
 and Stripes than right here among these 
 mountains, and yet you could not hire a pro- 
 
THE MYSTERY OF THE CANYON. 257 
 
 fessional hunter or an Indian to penetrate as far 
 into them as a week's journey would take him." 
 
 " Why not ?" asked George. 
 
 " Because of his superstition. The Indians 
 about here have a legend to the effect that 
 this country once belonged to a giant, who, by 
 some means or other, succeeded in getting 
 into a row with his nearest neighbor another 
 giant who overcame him in single combat, 
 hurled him into a canyon, and put a mountain 
 on top of him to hold him down. When we 
 get into the valley, Bob will show you where 
 that mountain is, and, when you see it, you 
 will say that it really looks as though it had 
 been thrown in there bottom up. The giant 
 is still a prisoner, and the sound we have just 
 heard is the heavy breathing he makes dur- 
 ing his struggles to free himself. At the 
 time the fight took place, there was a small 
 stream running through the canyon ; but the 
 mountain blocked it up and made a lake of it. 
 As the lake grew in size, the pressure became 
 so great that the water finally broke a hole 
 through the mountain and ran out, leaving 
 the valley as you see it now." 
 
 17 
 
258 THE MYSTERY OF LOST EIVEE CANYON. 
 
 " How often have we got to listen to that 
 unearthly noise?" asked George. 
 
 " Just as often as the giant tries to throw 
 off the mountain, and he does that regularly 
 every three hours," replied Mr. Evans. 
 
 " Great Scott !" exclaimed Arthur. 
 
 " Oh, that's nothing !" said Bob. " You 
 will soon become so accustomed to it that you 
 won't notice it." 
 
 "I don't suppose that such a thing was 
 ever heard of before," observed Uncle Bob. 
 
 "This is by no means an isolated case," 
 answered Mr. Evans. " Many strange sounds, 
 real or imaginary, have been heard in the 
 workings of nature's processes. Travelers 
 tell us that on a distant island in the Bay of 
 Bengal there exists a phenomenon known as 
 the ' Barisal guns/ which is frequently heard 
 at the beginning of a rain-fall, and is like the 
 sound of the firing of a cannon. Some have 
 decided that these sounds are atmospheric, 
 and owe their origin to electricity. A traveler, 
 whose name I have forgotten, writing about 
 the villages of the Himalayas, describes ex- 
 ceedingly powerful noises heard in some of 
 
THE MYSTERY OF THE CANYON. 259 
 
 the mountain peaks, to which the natives can 
 ascribe no cause. Near one of these villages 
 is a pond which the natives carefully shun, 
 because frightful noises issue from its depths. 
 Well, you have seen your new home at a 
 distance, and now we will go down and take 
 a nearer view of it." 
 
 Arthur scarcely closed his eyes in slumber 
 that night. He consulted his watch at short 
 intervals, and heard that strange noise every 
 time it was repeated. 
 
 It sounded indescribably weird and dismal 
 in the stillness of the night, and Arthur be- 
 came so worked up over it at last, that, when- 
 ever his watch told him that the imprisoned 
 giant was about to resume his efforts to free 
 himself, he drew the blankets about his head 
 and held his hands over his ears, so that he 
 might not hear the captive's agonized breath- 
 ing. 
 
 Daylight brought some of his courage back 
 to him ; but as often as the three hours drew 
 to a close, he became visibly nervous and ex- 
 cited. 
 
 The travelers resumed their journey at an 
 
260 THE MYSTERY OF LOST EIVER CANYON. 
 
 early hour, and at one o'clock in the after- 
 noon they entered the valley. The newcomers 
 were not at all disappointed in it. It proved 
 to be even pleasanter than it looked from the 
 distance at which they viewed it through their 
 field-glasses. 
 
 Arthur thought it would be a nice place 
 to live if that giant would only give up his 
 useless struggles and die, and the country 
 was settled by people of his own class, so that 
 he could have somebody to associate with. 
 
 He knew little about books, and cared less. 
 He took no interest whatever in the hunting 
 and fishing to which Bob and George were 
 looking forward with so much eagerness. He 
 was too lazy to ride on horseback for pleasure, 
 and for the life of him he could not see how 
 he was going to put in the time. 
 
 The ranch was much more comfortable and 
 better furnished than the little house in 
 which he had formerly lived, but Arthur did 
 not at all like the appearance of those who 
 took care of it. 
 
 They were all men, rough in dress and man- 
 ners, and loud and familiar in speech, and the 
 
THE MYSTEEY OF THE CANYON. 261 
 
 greetings which they and a small army of 
 dogs extended to Bob Howard were boister- 
 ous in the extreme. 
 
 Bob stood among them, giving one hand 
 to be shaken by the men, stooping down 
 now and then to caress a favorite hound or 
 setter with the other, utterly unable to speak, 
 but smiling all the while through the tears 
 that would come into his eyes in spite of all 
 he could do to keep them back, while Uncle 
 Bob and Arthur were entirely unnoticed. 
 
 When Bob found opportunity to present 
 them, and tell who they were, and what they 
 had come for, they were very coldly wel- 
 comed, but George Edwards was doubled up 
 more than once by the hearty grasps he re- 
 ceived. 
 
 These men were neither blind nor deaf. 
 They knew all about that provision in the 
 will by which Uncle Bob had been brought 
 there, and they knew, too, how dishonorably 
 he had acted toward his brother, for Mr. 
 Evans had given them a full history of it. 
 Their late employer had held a high place in 
 their estimation, and they could not bear to 
 
262 THE MYSTEEY OF LOST EIVEE CANYON. 
 
 have a stranger, and a man like this, step into 
 his shoes. 
 
 " I am satisfied of one thing," said Uncle 
 Bob, as he and Arthur took possession of the 
 room to which they had been conducted. 
 " We have got into a bed of thorns. Some- 
 body has been slandering me, and these peo- 
 ple have made up their minds to hate me, 
 without giving me time to show them what 
 manner of man I am. Now, Arthur, let me 
 caution you. You have come out here in- 
 tending to carry things with a high hand, 
 but that will never do. For a while, at least, 
 you must conduct yourself in all respects as 
 though you had no more rights here than 
 a casual visitor, and I will do the same. Our 
 first hard work must be to learn something 
 of the way in which a sheep ranch is con- 
 ducted, and while we are doing that, we must 
 make all the friends we can. After we have 
 firmly established ourselves here, we can take 
 the position to which we are entitled by the 
 terms of the will." 
 
 Arthur, who had hoped to be recognized 
 at once as one of the " bosses " of the ranch, 
 
THE MYSTERY OF THE CANYON. 263 
 
 did not like to wait ; nor was he at all pleased 
 at the idea of playing visitor when he thought 
 he ought to have some authority, but he saw 
 the wisdom of the course his father had 
 marked out for him, and reluctantly prom- 
 ised that he would follow it. 
 
264 THE MYSTEEY OF LOST EIVEK CANYON. 
 
 CHAPTER XXII. 
 
 THE IDEA SUGGESTED. 
 
 A RTHUR and his father lost no time in re- 
 _1A- moving some of the travel-stains from 
 their hands and faces, and when they had 
 put on plainer suits of clothes and taken off 
 some of the jewelry they had worn during 
 their journey, they went out Uncle Bob to 
 find Mr. Evans, and Arthur to hunt up Bob, 
 who had promised to show him and George 
 the mountain under which the vanquished 
 giant was imprisoned. 
 
 The former found Mr. Evans waiting for 
 him in a little room in which the late owner 
 of the ranch had transacted all his business, 
 and which was known as the office. 
 
 There was a desk and safe there, arm-chairs 
 in abundance, and two large book-cases one 
 being devoted to works on agriculture and 
 stock-raising, while the other was filled with 
 
THE IDEA SUGGESTED. 265 
 
 histories, biographies, and works of like char- 
 acter for Ebeu Howard, unlike his brother 
 Robert, was a hard reader and a man of con- 
 siderable attainments. 
 
 The safe was open, and piles of papers and 
 note-books relating to the business of the 
 ranch were scattered about over the desk. 
 
 Uncle Bob, assisted by Mr. Evans, at once 
 went to work to make himself master of the 
 contents of the books and papers, paying par- 
 ticular attention to his brother's will, of course, 
 while the boys walked down the river-bank 
 toward the canyon, with a score or more hunt- 
 ing-dogs at their heels. 
 
 Arthur, who hadn't soul enough in him to 
 like either a dog or a horse, couldn't see the 
 use of such a pack of mongrels, some of which 
 looked savage enough to tear him in pieces, 
 and he did not hesitate to say so. 
 
 " There's not a single mongrel in the whole 
 lot," said Bob, who was not accustomed to hear- 
 ing his favorites spoken of so slightingly. 
 "These two," he added, putting his arms 
 around a brace of glossy-coated setters, which 
 sprang up, one on each side, and placed their 
 
266 THE MYSTERY OF LOST RIVEK CANYON. 
 
 paws on his shoulders, "are the best bird- 
 dogs I ever saw, and cannot be beaten as 
 land and water retrievers. That fellow is a 
 Scotch deer-hound, and he and his mates can 
 overtake and pull down a prong-horn in a 
 fair race. In fact, there's nothing in this 
 country they can't catch, except the mule- 
 rabbit sometimes called the jack-rabbit 
 although it is no more a rabbit than I am, 
 for it doesn't burrow." 
 
 " What gives it its name ?" asked George. 
 
 " Its ears, which are the biggest part of the 
 animal. I tell you they are fleet. One writer 
 says they can run so fast that the whizzing 
 sound they make in passing through the air 
 can't keep up with them. The savage ones 
 in the pack are wolf-dogs. We have about fifty 
 of them altogether, and we couldn't get along 
 without them. They keep the gray wolves 
 which are much more abundant in the moun- 
 tains than we wish they were from killing 
 off the sheep. 
 
 While Bob was describing the character- 
 istics of the different members of the pack, 
 and relating some interesting hunting stories, 
 
THE IDEA SUGGESTED. 267 
 
 of which they were the heroes, he and his 
 companions were walking slowly along the 
 bank of the river, which was as smooth as 
 a mirror and as black as ink ; but its color 
 was owing to the nature of the soil through 
 which it flowed, for, when Bob dipped some 
 of it up in his drinking-cup, they found that 
 it was as clear as crystal. 
 
 Boy-like, they amused themselves by skip- 
 ping stones over its glassy surface, and finally, 
 Arthur threw in a stick and tried to induce 
 one of the retrievers to go in and bring it 
 out ; but the dog only dropped his head and 
 tail, and moved further away from the bank. 
 
 " You can't make them go into the water 
 this side of the lake," said Bob, with a laugh. 
 " You can't even make them wet their fore- 
 feet, unless you take hold of them and push 
 them in." 
 
 "Why not?" inquired Arthur. 
 
 " Because they have been whipped for it 
 too many times. I tell you some of them 
 cost a lot of money, and they are too valu- 
 able to be lost. You may not think so, but 
 if the best swimmer in the pack should ven- 
 
268 THE MYSTERY OF LOST RIVEK CANYON. 
 
 ture as far out into the water as you threw 
 that stick, he would never come ashore again." 
 
 " Where would he go ?" 
 
 " Down into the bowels of the earth, if 
 that's where the river goes, and the Indians 
 say it is. If you don't believe it, just look 
 there." 
 
 At this moment the three boys emerged 
 from a little grove of scrub-oaks, which lined 
 the bank of the river for a hundred yards or 
 more. It was one of Bob's favorite resorts. 
 He always kept a hammock swung there 
 when he was at home, and during the hot 
 days in summer, when the rays of the sun 
 beat down into the valley with merciless fury, 
 and the panting sheep sought refuge in the 
 cottonwoods, and all nature seemed gasping 
 for breath, Bob would take possession of that 
 hammock, and while away the sultry hours 
 with some interesting book, or swing himself 
 to sleep, lulled by the drone of insect life, 
 with which the branches above him were 
 filled. 
 
 As Bob spoke, he pointed toward the lower 
 end of the valley, which was not more than 
 
THE IDEA SUGGESTED. 269 
 
 five hundred yards distant. The boys looked, 
 and an exclamation of amazement burst from 
 their lips. 
 
 " Why, where does the river go ?" cried 
 Arthur, as soon as he could speak. 
 
 "It goes into that hole, of course," replied 
 Bob. "And look here. Do you see those 
 two cracks that run diagonally up the bluff 
 each side of the hole ? They show the shape 
 and size of the mountain that the victorious 
 giant threw upon his foe to keep him down." 
 
 " He must have thrown it into the canyon 
 with force enough to split it," observed George ; 
 " for I can see a third crack running up the 
 cliff from the top of the hole." 
 
 The " hole " to which the boys referred ap- 
 peared, at first glance, to be the mouth of an 
 enormous cave, but it was not so in reality. 
 The " crack," to which George directed the 
 attention of his companions, pointed out the 
 position of a canyon a very narrow one, to 
 be sure, for, if the boys could have contrived 
 any way to get to the top of the cliff, they 
 would have found that they could almost 
 jump across it. 
 
270 THE MYSTERY OF LOST EIVEE CANYON. 
 
 The other two " cracks " were simply wide 
 and deep fissures, which had been cut in the 
 face of the cliff by the action of the ele- 
 ments, but still the space between them did 
 look wonderfully like a mountain turned bot- 
 tom side up. 
 
 The mouth of the canyon did not seem to 
 be so very large, after they came to look at it 
 awhile, and Bob's companions were much 
 surprised when he told them that, according 
 to his father's measurements, it was four hun- 
 dred feet wide, and more than half as high. 
 
 It was shrouded in an impenetrable dark- 
 ness, and not a sound came forth from its 
 depths. Swiftly and silently the river sped 
 on its way, and so smooth and deep was its 
 channel, so free from hidden rocks and every 
 other obstruction, that there was not even the 
 smallest ripple on its surface. 
 
 " I'll tell you what's a fact," said George, 
 who had been awed into silence by the terrific 
 grandeur of the scene. " If I had just half 
 a grain more of superstition, I could put full 
 faith in that Indian legend." 
 
 " His story fits the place pretty well," an- 
 
THE IDEA SUGGESTED. 271 
 
 swered Bob, "and in making it up he did 
 better than any white man can do he ac- 
 counted for everything in a way that was per- 
 fectly satisfactory to himself. How do you 
 suppose he knew that there was a time when 
 this valley was all under water ?" 
 
 " He didn't know it," replied George. "He 
 only guessed it." 
 
 "And geology bears him out in his guess," 
 said Bob. " If you are persevering and en- 
 during enough to climb about half-way up 
 some of these cliffs as a party of Eastern 
 college students did a few years ago you 
 will find shells that were left there when the 
 water receded." 
 
 " If a fellow got into this current, he 
 wouldn't have much show for his life, would 
 he ?" said Arthur, who marveled greatly at 
 the rapidity with which the sticks he threw 
 into the water disappeared in the black mouth 
 of the canyon. 
 
 " He might as well be in the rapids at 
 Niagara Falls," answered Bob, " Now, while 
 I think of it, I want to give you two a word 
 of caution and advice : The lake and the 
 
272 THE MYSTERY OF LOST RIVER CANYON. 
 
 river above it, as far up as the falls, are per- 
 fectly safe for boating and bathing, but this 
 end of the stream will be the death of the 
 first person who ventures upon it, I don't care 
 how good a boatman he may be. So, when 
 you go out on the river, remember that con- 
 stant vigilance is the price of your life ; and 
 do not, under any circumstances, allow the cur- 
 rent to carry your boat below that big cotton- 
 wood you see up there on the opposite bank." 
 
 Having taken a good look at the canyon, 
 the boys bent their steps toward the rancho. 
 As they were passing through the grove, 
 they met a roughly-dressed but intelligent- 
 looking man, who greeted Bob cordially, and 
 was introduced to George and Arthur as Mr. 
 Jacobs, the superintendent. 
 
 He had had full charge of the ranch ever 
 since it was started, and that he cherished a 
 deep-rooted affection for his late employer, 
 and anything but kindly feelings for those 
 who had come there to take his place, was 
 made very plain by his actions. 
 
 He greeted Arthur coolly, and did not offer 
 to shake hands with him, but when he spoke 
 
THE IDEA SUGGESTED. 273 
 
 to Bob of his father the tears came into his 
 eyes. 
 
 After telling the boy how glad he was to 
 see him again, and how deeply he sympa- 
 thized with him in the great loss he had sus- 
 tained, he began talking about the affairs of 
 the ranch. At length he said abruptly : 
 
 " By-the-way, Sam has come back again." 
 
 " He has !" exclaimed Bob, in a tone of 
 disgust. " What does he want ?" 
 
 " He wants a job of herding sheep/' an- 
 swered the superintendent. 
 
 " Well, he can't have it ! We don't want 
 any such men as he is. I thought my father 
 told him never to show his face about here 
 
 again." 
 
 "So he did, but Sam knows that your 
 father is not here now to drive him away." 
 
 " That doesn't make any difference. I am 
 here, and my father's wishes shall be re- 
 spected. This Sam is a bad fellow," said 
 Bob, turning to his companions. "He and 
 three other cowboys once rode into Dixon 
 Springs and began shooting right and left at 
 everybody they saw on the streets." 
 
 18 
 
274 THE MYSTERY OF LOST RIVER CANYON. 
 
 "What did they do that for?" asked 
 George. 
 
 " They did it out of pure bravado nothing 
 else for the citizens hadn't done anything 
 to them." 
 
 " Why didn't they arrest them ?" inquired 
 Arthur. 
 
 "Arrest them !" repeated Bob, smiling at 
 Mr. Jacobs, who smiled in return. " They 
 couldn't, and besides that isn't the way 
 things are done in this country. The citizens 
 returned the fire, killed two of the cowboys 
 and captured another, whom they hanged to 
 the nearest tree. Sam was the only one who 
 escaped. Of course father discharged him 
 at once, and Sam sent him word that he was 
 waiting for a chance to take vengeance on 
 him. Now he has the impudence to come 
 back here and ask for a job. Kick him off 
 the ranch, Mr. Jacobs." 
 
 " I don't think it would be quite safe to 
 attempt that, Bob," said the superintendent. 
 "Sam's temper is rather uncertain, and he 
 is very fond of using his revolver; but, if 
 you say so, I'll not give him work." 
 
THE IDEA SUGGESTED. 275 
 
 " I do say so, certainly. I don't want liim 
 around." 
 
 "All right. And I say, Bob," added the 
 superintendent, in a lower tone, "we can't 
 get rid of him until he chooses to go, and, 
 while he is hanging about here, I would be a 
 little careful of myself, if I were in your 
 place. Sam is treacherous and vindictive, 
 and there is no telling what he may make up 
 his mind to do." 
 
 Mr. Jacobs went off about his business, and 
 the three boys kept on to the ranch. When 
 they reached it, Bob and George went to their 
 room to overhaul their fishing-tackle, pre- 
 paratory to a day's sport on the lake, while 
 Arthur lingered on the porch. He wanted 
 to see Sam. 
 
276 THE MYSTEEY OF LOST EIVER CANYON. 
 
 CHAPTER XXIII. 
 
 OFF FOR CAMP. 
 
 " T THINK Bob is taking a good deal 
 JL upon himself when he presumes to 
 say who shall be employed on this ranch, 
 and who shall not," said Arthur to himself. 
 "He has no right to open his head. My 
 father is boss here now, and Bob and Mr. 
 Jacobs will find it out before they are many 
 days older. I wonder if that's Sam ?" 
 
 While these thoughts were passing through 
 Arthur's mind, he was walking slowly along 
 the porch. As he turned the corner of the 
 building, he saw a broad-shouldered, smooth- 
 faced young fellow, leaning against a door- 
 casing, and talking with somebody in the 
 kitchen. 
 
 He did not look like one who would risk 
 his life by raiding a town of a thousand in- 
 habitants, "just for the fun of the thing;" 
 
OFF FOE CAMP. 277 
 
 but still, there was something about him 
 which told Arthur that he was the man he 
 wanted to see. 
 
 The earnest manner in which Bob had 
 cautioned him and George Edwards to be- 
 ware of the current in the river, and the su- 
 perintendent's words of warning, had sug- 
 gested an idea to Arthur, and it had sud- 
 denly occurred to him that Sam would be 
 just the man to assist him in carrying it into 
 execution. 
 
 " Bob and George are going over to the 
 other side of the lake to-morrow, to spend 
 two or three days in camp," he had said to 
 himself. " And if, while they are going up 
 the river, their oars should break and their 
 boat should float down into the current, why, 
 then" 
 
 He did not follow out this train of thought, 
 for it frightened him ; but it was easy enough 
 to tell what he looked forward to. 
 
 As Arthur approached, the smooth-faced 
 young fellow bowed to him very civilly ; and 
 that was more respect than any other person 
 about the ranch had yet shown him. 
 
278 THE MYSTERY OF LOST EIVEE CANYON. 
 
 All those to whom he and his father had 
 been introduced seemed to look upon them as 
 interlopers, and would not even shake hands 
 with them ; but this man was polite, if he was 
 a desperado. 
 
 " Are you Sam ?" asked Arthur. 
 
 " That's what they call me, when they tell 
 me that dinner is ready," was the simple 
 reply. 
 
 " You are one of the men who raided 
 Dixon Springs awhile ago, I believe?" con- 
 tinued Arthur, who saw that Sam was waiting 
 to hear what he had to say next. 
 
 The man replied that he was, and he did not 
 appear to be at all ashamed of it either. On 
 the contrary, one would have thought, from 
 the way he answered the question, that he 
 was rather proud of his exploit. 
 
 " What did you do it for ?" Arthur wanted 
 to know. 
 
 "Oh, just to see what we could make out 
 of it. A fellow needs some sort of excite- 
 ment to stir up his blood once in a while, you 
 know." 
 
 Arthur walked toward the farther end of 
 
OFF FOR CAMP. 279 
 
 the porch, and Sam who showed himself to 
 be quite willing to continue the conversation, 
 turned away from the door and went with 
 him. 
 
 " I am Arthur Howard," said the youth, 
 as soon as they were out of earshot of the man 
 in the kitchen. 
 
 "So I supposed. You and your father 
 have come here to take charge of the ranch, 
 haven't you? Well, I will tell you, for 
 your satisfaction, that you are not wanted 
 here." 
 
 " I know it ! I has been made very plain 
 to me since my arrival, about three hours 
 ago. But I don't see how these men are going 
 to help themselves. The estate is willed to 
 my father, to be held in trust until my 
 cousin Bob is twenty-one years of age, and 
 we are going to stay and run things to suit 
 ourselves that's all there is about that! You 
 are not wanted here, either, if you only knew 
 it. Bob says you shan't have employment 
 on the ranch." 
 
 "He does, does he?" said Sam, his eyes 
 flashing with anger. " He wants to be care- 
 
280 THE MYSTERY OF LOST KIVER CANYON. 
 
 fill. If he knows when he is well off, he 
 will have little to say about me. I'll pitch 
 him into the river and let the current take 
 him down to the Lost Canyon, the first thing 
 he knows." 
 
 " He told Mr. Jacobs, in my hearing, that 
 he wouldn't have any such man as you on 
 the place," declared Arthur. " He said that 
 the fact that his father wasn't here to drive 
 you away, wouldn't make any difference. He 
 doesn't want you around." 
 
 Sam looked mad, but said nothing. 
 
 "But neither Bob nor Mr. Jacobs has a 
 word to say in regard to the way this ranch 
 shall be conducted," added Arthur. " My 
 father is the head man, now, and they will 
 find that he knows how to assert his au- 
 thority, too. You look like a good fellow, and 
 I don't see why you shouldn't stay here if you 
 want to." 
 
 " I am good enough to those who treat me 
 well," answered Sam. " I stand by those who 
 use me right, and serve them in any way I 
 can, but anybody who riles me wants to give 
 me plenty of elbow-room. Your father would 
 
OFF FOE CAMP. 281 
 
 step into quite a nice little property if Bob 
 was only out of the way, wouldn't lie ?" 
 added Sam, abruptly. 
 
 This was the beginning of a long conver- 
 sation between these two worthies ; but we 
 need not stop to repeat it, for the results of 
 it will speedily be developed. It will be 
 enough to say that when the conference was 
 ended, Sam walked off with the assurance that 
 he should have employment on the ranch 
 as long as he cared to stay there, while Ar- 
 thur went into the house and made his way 
 to his room, taking with him a face that 
 was pale with excitement and alarm. 
 
 " I didn't suggest it," thought he, laying 
 his hand on his heart, which thumped loudly 
 against his ribs. "Sam proposed it himself. 
 He takes all the risk. But if it should ever 
 be found out great Scott ! I wish I hadn't 
 given my consent to it." 
 
 Arthur paced up and down the floor, wring- 
 ing his hands, and giving other indications of 
 a very agitated state of mind ; but he made 
 no effort whatever to undo the wrong to 
 which he was a silent but willing accessory. 
 
282 THE MYSTERY OF LOST KIVEE CANYON. 
 
 He was so terribly frightened, and trembled 
 so violently in every limb, that he dared not 
 go to supper, pleading a headache as an ex- 
 cuse for his non-appearance. He went to 
 bed at dark, but not to sleep. He lay there, 
 tossing restlessly about, until he was called 
 up to witness a scene the memory of which 
 went with him to his dying day. 
 
 Meanwhile, Bob and George were busy 
 with their hunting and fishing outfits wip- 
 ing out rifles and shotguns, critically exam- 
 ining flies and leaders, and making all the 
 other preparations necessary for their so- 
 journ in camp. 
 
 The only weapon that Bob intended to 
 take with him was a three-barreled Baker 
 gun (two shot barrels, with a rifle barrel un- 
 derneath), that had once belonged to his 
 father; while George was to use the little 
 fowling-piece he had brought up from the 
 bottom of the lake, and a heavy, muzzle- 
 loading rifle that had bowled over more than 
 one lordly elk on his native heath. 
 
 Bob had spent an hour or more in loading 
 shells, and, when lie got through, the Creed- 
 
OFF FOE CAMP. 283 
 
 moor cartridge-case he placed upon the table 
 was about as heavy a weight as he cared to 
 lift. 
 
 " Why, Bob, what makes you take so much 
 ammunition ?" asked George, casting aside a 
 frayed leader that had parted while he was 
 testing its strength. " We can't use it all up 
 in two days. One would think that we were 
 going off on a regular campaign." 
 
 "So we are. We shall have need of every 
 cartridge in this case before we come back," 
 replied Bob, little dreaming how true were 
 the words he uttered. " I wish we could 
 take a couple of the wolf hounds with us. 
 We shall be almost certain to catch a wolf 
 in the valley, and I should like to have you 
 see how easily the dogs could overtake and 
 pull him down. But by the time we get the 
 tent and all our provisions and a brace of 
 setters crowded into the boat, it will be pretty 
 well loaded, I tell you. Now, if Dick Lang- 
 don were only here to go with us, we would 
 have a time of it, wouldn't we ? By-the-way, 
 George, we must write to him as soon as we 
 come back. 53 
 
284 THE MYSTERY OF LOST EIVER CANYON. 
 
 Poor Bob was destined to " have a time of 
 it," as it was, and on more than one occasion 
 he told himself that he and George would 
 never live to write a letter to Dick Langdon. 
 
 As the boys intended to make an early 
 start, they made all the preparations they 
 could that night, so that they would not be 
 delayed in the morning. 
 
 Bob gave his orders to the cook, who pro- 
 mised that they should not suffer for the want 
 of something to eat while they were in camp ; 
 and after supper the skiff was hauled from 
 its moorings at the boat-house, and made fast 
 to a tree on the bank, in front of the ranch. 
 
 The little tent, which had sheltered Bob 
 and his companions during the journey from 
 Dixon Springs, was put into it, together with 
 a goodly supply of canned goods enough to 
 last them a month, George said and then 
 the two setters that Bob intended to take 
 with him were separated from the rest of the 
 pack and shut up in the kennel, so that they 
 could be found when wanted. 
 
 After that the two boys went to bed and 
 slept the sleep of the innocent and healthy, 
 
OFF FOB CAMP. 285 
 
 while Arthur, tormented by his fears, rolled 
 uneasily about on his couch, utterly unable 
 to close his eyes in slumber. 
 
 Bob was up at the first peep of day, and in 
 a very few minutes he and George were ready 
 for the start. As soon as they were dressed, 
 they made their way to the kitchen, and 
 there they found the cook and a cup of hot 
 coffee waiting for them. One of the tables 
 was loaded with the bread, pies and cookies that 
 had been baked for them the evening before. 
 
 " There isn't room enough in the skiff for 
 all that pro vender, " said George, who was 
 fairly astonished. 
 
 " It's got to go in," replied Bob. " My 
 schoolboy appetite clings to me yet, and I 
 never go into camp without plenty to eat. 
 If the fish don't bite, we've got a side of 
 bacon and a whole ham to fall back on." 
 
 Having eaten breakfast and packed the 
 bread, pies and cookies away in baskets which 
 the cook brought out of the storeroom, 
 they bade the latter good- by and left the 
 ranch. 
 
 " Look out for the current, boys," said the 
 
286 THE MYSTERY OF LOST RIVER CANYON. 
 
 man, as he stood in the door watching them. 
 " There must have been a heavy fall of rain 
 somewhere in the mountains yesterday, for 
 the river is just a-boorning this morning." 
 
 "All right, Ike," replied Bob, cheerfully, 
 " I know too much about this stream to take 
 any risks." 
 
 Notwithstanding George's prediction, there 
 proved to be room enough in the skiff for all 
 the baskets, as well as for the two setters 
 and everything else they had to take with 
 them. 
 
 After the guns and fishing-rods had been 
 put in, and Bob had satisfied himself that 
 nothing had been forgotten, he cast off the 
 painter, hauled the boat broadside to the bank, 
 and motioned to George to jump in. The 
 latter looked dubiously at the water and 
 hesitated. 
 
 " Hadn't we better pull the skiff up the 
 river a little before we get in?" said he. 
 " This current runs like lightning, and I am 
 afraid we can't stem it." 
 
 " Don't be uneasy," assured Bob. " There's 
 not the least danger. I have many a time 
 
OFF FOR CAMP. 287 
 
 pulled this boat from this landing alone 
 against a worse current than this. We are 
 perfectly safe as long as we don't allow our- 
 selves to be carried below that big cotton- 
 wood you see over there. If we do that, we 
 are doomed." 
 
 George's fears were by no means set at 
 rest ; but, nevertheless, he got into the boat. 
 When he had shipped his oar, Bob threw in 
 the painter and jumped in after him, push- 
 ing the skiff away from the bank as he did 
 so. A second later the current caught the 
 bow of the little craft, which, in spite of all 
 George could do to prevent it, swung around 
 as if she had been hung on a pivot, and 
 started with railroad speed toward the black 
 mouth of the canyon, which seemed to yawn 
 close in front of them. 
 
 " Steady ! There is no danger," said Bob, 
 encouragingly, as his companion suddenly 
 faced about on his seat, revealing a face that 
 was as pale as death itself. " You back water 
 strong, while I give way." 
 
 The struggle was destined to end most dis- 
 astrously. 
 
288 THE MYSTERY OF LOST KIVEE CANYON. 
 
 CHAPTER XXIV. 
 
 THE TERRORS OF THE CANYON. 
 
 i T\ON'T stop to look behind you, but 
 _L/ back water the best you know how," 
 said Bob, seeing that his companion now and 
 then ceased his exertions, and faced about on 
 his seat to gaze at the canyon. "A few strong, 
 steady strokes will put us all right." 
 
 George dropped his oar into the water 
 again, and pushed it from him with all his 
 strength, while Bob exerted himself to the 
 utmost to turn the boat around with the bow 
 up stream. 
 
 For a long time the contest seemed doubt- 
 ful, but gradually the skiff began to turn, 
 and George was beginning to take heart 
 again, when suddenly he heard an ominous 
 snap behind him, followed by a cry of alarm 
 from Bob. 
 
 The cold chills crept all over him. With 
 
THE TEEEOES OF THE CANYON. 289 
 
 an indescribable feeling of terror, he turned 
 quickly about, and saw his companion hold- 
 ing the stump of his oar in his hands, while 
 his eyes were riveted on the blade, which 
 was floating off with the current. 
 
 The two boys looked at each other in 
 silence, and then they looked toward the 
 mouth of the canyon. 
 
 " We are the victims of treachery, George," 
 said Bob, as soon as he could speak. " Some- 
 body removed this leather, sawed the oar 
 half in two, arid then put the leather back 
 again, just as it was before. Give me your 
 oar. If I can keep her broadside to the 
 stream, perhaps the current will throw us 
 against the bank." 
 
 He did not speak nor act like a boy who 
 stood in momentary fear of a violent death. 
 His face was very pale, but his voice and his 
 hands were steady, and his words were uttered 
 with the greatest calmness and deliberation. 
 He was as cool, apparently, as he was while 
 scudding before the gale in Dick Langdon's 
 water-logged canoe. 
 
 George, on the contrary, was almost par- 
 
 19 
 
290 THE MYSTERY OF LOST RIVER CANYON. 
 
 alyzed with terror. His hands trembled vio- 
 lently, and while he was trying to unship 
 his oar, in order to pass it back to his com- 
 panion, it slipped from his grasp and fell 
 into the water, and although they both made 
 such frantic efforts to recover it that they 
 came within a hair's breadth of capsizing the 
 heavily-loaded skiff, it floated quickly out of 
 their reach, carrying with it the last particle 
 of their courage and all their hopes of escape. 
 
 Being left at the mercy of the current, the 
 skiff gradually veered around, until her bow 
 pointed down stream, and once more started 
 with terrific speed toward the yawning mouth 
 of the canyon. 
 
 " It's all up with us, George," said Bob, 
 still speaking with wonderful calmness. " No 
 power on earth can save us now from, going 
 into that canyon. What are you going to 
 do?" he added, as George suddenly arose to 
 his feet and began pulling off his coat. 
 
 " I am not going under without making the 
 best fight I can," replied George, in despera- 
 tion. " I am going to see if I can tow the 
 boat to the bank." 
 
THE TERRORS OF THE CANYON. 291 
 
 " Sit down r said Bob, earnestly, at the 
 same time seizing his friend, and pulling him 
 back into his seat. " Are you tired of life ? 
 You couldn't stem this current for an instant. 
 It will be time enough for us to take to the 
 water when the boat is smashed on the rocks 
 in the canyon." 
 
 The boys were so completely stunned by 
 their fearful peril, that they had been blind 
 and deaf to everything else ; but now they 
 turned their eyes toward the shore, and saw 
 that there was a terrible commotion there. 
 
 When Ike saw the oar break in Bob's 
 hands, he had raised his voice in frantic ap- 
 peals for help, and soon succeeded in arousing 
 all the inmates of the ranch. 
 
 There were a dozen or more of them, all 
 stalwart, courageous men, who would have 
 risked their lives any day to save Bob How- 
 ard. 
 
 But what could they do but stand help- 
 lessly there on the bank and see the boat 
 and its terrified occupants disappear in the 
 canyon ? 
 
 Some seemed to be urging one thing, and 
 
292 THE MYSTERY OF LOST EIVER CANYON. 
 
 some another all except Uncle Bob and Ar- 
 thur. 
 
 The former, who was of about as much 
 use in. an emergency as a wooden man would 
 have been, walked aimlessly up and down 
 the porch, calling loudly upon the herdsmen 
 to do something and be quick about it, while 
 Arthur stood off by himself and gazed at the 
 flying boat as if he were fascinated. 
 
 The only ones who did not seem to lose 
 their heads altogether were the superintend- 
 ent and Mr. Evans. As they ran swiftly 
 along the bank to keep pace with the boat, 
 Bob saw that they were knotting together a 
 couple of long lariats. 
 
 " That's our only chance, and it is a very 
 slim one," said he. " If we can catch that 
 rope when it is thrown to us, and they try to 
 pull us up against this current, they will draw 
 the boat under." 
 
 A moment later, a clear strong voice was 
 heard above the excited gabble of the terror- 
 stricken herdsmen. 
 
 " Silence I" it cried. " I want to make those 
 boys hear me. Bob, stand by to catch this 
 
THE TERRORS OF THE CANYON. 293 
 
 lasso, and we will haul you ashore. Are you 
 all ready ?" 
 
 " Let it come !" shouted Bob in reply. 
 
 In an instant the herdsmen became silent 
 and expectant. Mr. Jacobs swung the coiled 
 lariat around his head a few times and then 
 launched it out over the water. Anxious eyes 
 watched it as it flew through the air not in a 
 direct line for the boat, but several feet in ad- 
 vance of it. 
 
 "It's going wild!" cried George, in dis- 
 may. 
 
 " Don't be alarmed," was Bob's encour- 
 aging response. " The current will take us 
 under it." 
 
 And so it proved. The lariat fell squarely 
 across the middle of the boat, and the two 
 boys threw themselves upon it and held fast 
 to it. 
 
 A wild cheer burst from the men on shore, 
 and was echoed by George Edwards, who now 
 looked upon their rescue as a thing beyond a 
 doubt. But Bob did not cheer, for he knew 
 that the worst was yet to come. 
 
 The lariat was slipping through his fingers 
 
294 THE MYSTERY OF LOST EIVEE CANYON. 
 
 in spite of all he could do to prevent it ; so 
 he took a turn with it around the nearest 
 thwart, and looked up to see what Mr. Jacobs 
 was doing. 
 
 He and Mr. Evans who held only about 
 four feet of the other end of the lariat in 
 their hands, were running at the top of their 
 speed toward the grove, evidently with the 
 intention of using one of the trees as a snub- 
 bin g-post. 
 
 " On shore, there," shouted Bob, whose ex- 
 citement was greater than it had been at any 
 time since his oar broke in his hands. " Make 
 another lariat fast to your end, so that you 
 can give us plenty of slack when the strain 
 comes. If we don't have a good deal of slack 
 the current will certainly carry us under, un- 
 less something breaks. 
 
 "All right !" shouted Mr. Jacobs. " Hold 
 fast to your end, and we will bring you 
 ashore safe and sound." 
 
 He turned and said something to one of 
 the herdsmen, who darted off toward the 
 ranch. When Bob saw that he gave up all 
 hope. 
 
THE TEREOES OF THE CANYON. 295 
 
 " It's no use, old fellow," .said he despair- 
 ingly. " If that man must go to the house 
 for another lariat before they can give us any 
 more rope, we might as well make up our 
 minds that we've got to go into that canyon. 
 As this is the last chance, I shall have to bid 
 you good-by. I'll say" 
 
 Just then came the strain which Bob so 
 much dreaded. The line was suddenly 
 whipped up out of the water and drawn as 
 tight as a bow-string, the spray flying from 
 it in a perfect shower. 
 
 The stern of the skiff was jerked violently 
 around toward the bank ; but, instead of 
 swinging in, as everybody hoped and be- 
 lieved she would, she careened until the 
 water came in over the gunwale, and she 
 seemed to be on the very point of capsiz- 
 ing. 
 
 The boys threw themselves as far a.s they 
 could over the opposite gunwale to right her ; 
 but just then there was a loud crash, the line 
 was torn from their grasp, and Bob and his 
 companion recovered themselves just in time 
 to see the thwart, to which the lariat had 
 
296 THE MYSTEEY OF LOST EIVEE CANYON. 
 
 been made fast, fly out of the boat and land 
 in the water twenty feet astern. 
 
 The men on shore stood aghast, and the 
 boys clutched the gunwales of the boat, which, 
 after rocking from side to side for a moment 
 or two with the greatest violence, finally came 
 to an even keel, and shot toward the canyon 
 with accelerated speed. 
 
 It was too late now to do anything more. 
 Escape was impossible, and even George had 
 given up all hope of it, and nerved himself 
 to meet his fate. He and Bob had just 
 time to take one short farewell glance at 
 their agonized friends on shore, and then 
 the boat was swept into the canyon, and dark- 
 ness, impenetrable darkness, closed about 
 them ! 
 
 No pen can describe the anguish of mind 
 experienced by these two boys as they sat 
 there on the bottom of their boat, clinging 
 to the gunwales with a death-grip, holding 
 their breath in suspense, and waiting for 
 their frail craft to be smashed into kindling 
 wood against some unseen obstruction. 
 
 The wind whistled past their ears, and 
 

 
THE TEEEOES OF THE CANYON". 297 
 
 deeper and blacker grew the darkness of the 
 canyon cs their boat sped on its way. 
 
 There was no sound heard save the rush of 
 the water against the bank on either hand, 
 but the speed with which they were moving 
 was simply appalling. 
 
 Believing that a recumbent position was 
 safer than an upright one as the darkness, 
 was so intense that it seemed as though the 
 walls and roof of the canyon must be within 
 easy reach of his head Bob threw himself 
 backward, and, with his head resting on the 
 tent and his eyes directed toward the top of 
 the canyon, awaited the issue of events with 
 a calmness that surprised himself. 
 
 Now and then a little patch of light, far 
 above him, would shoot by with such surpris- 
 ing swiftness that his hair would fairly stand 
 on end, and he would clutch the sides of the 
 boat with a firmer grip, and wonder how much 
 longer this wild ride must continue, and how 
 long it would be before the catastrophe would 
 come. 
 
 The slightest obstruction in their course a 
 bush leaning over the water and striking the 
 
298 THE MYSTERY OF LOST RIVER CANYON. 
 
 bow of their boat, and turning it from its 
 course by so much as a hair's breadth 
 would have ended all this suspense and anxi- 
 ety in an instant of time. 
 
 But there was no bush nor anything else 
 in their way. The channel was as smooth 
 and deep here as it was in the valley they 
 had left how long ago ? Was it an hour or 
 a day ? Bob did not know, for he could take 
 no note of the flight of time. 
 
 The interior of the earth must be a long 
 way off, he thought ; and that he was draw- 
 ing nearer to it every minute seemed proba- 
 ble, for these little patches of light he had 
 noticed a while back were no longer^ to be 
 seen. Above, around and beneath him was 
 darkness. 
 
 He could not even see the water by which 
 he and his companion were borne along. He 
 wasn't certain that he had a companion in his 
 misery, for he had not heard anything from 
 George since they entered the canyon. 
 
 He was about to pronounce his name, when 
 a blinding glare of light shot down upon him 
 so suddenly that it frightened him. Was he 
 
THE TEEEOES OF THE CANYON". 299 
 
 awake or dreaming ? He raised himself to a 
 sitting posture and looked about him. 
 
 Behind him was a black opening between 
 the mountains, looking exactly like the one 
 on the other side of the range, and in front 
 and on each side of him was a broad and fer- 
 tile valley, through which the boat was flying 
 with undiminished speed. 
 
 Bob rubbed his eyes and looked again; 
 and at the same moment, George Edwards, 
 who had also lain down in the boat to avoid 
 hitting his head against the rocks, which 
 were at least two hundred feet above him, 
 straightened up, revealing a face so pale and 
 haggard that Bob was startled. But he was 
 not so near dead as he seemed to be, as his 
 actions proved. 
 
 The river, where it entered the valley, 
 made a sudden turn to the right, and of 
 course the current set into the bight of the 
 bend, taking the boat with it, and carrying it 
 within ten or fifteen feet of the shore, which 
 was thickly lined with bushes. 
 
 George's first act was to catch up the 
 painter and jump overboard with it; and, 
 
300 THE MYSTEEY OF LOST EIVEE CANYON. 
 
 although the current whirled him along as if 
 he had been a feather, he succeeded in cross- 
 ing it and reaching the slack waters near the 
 bank. 
 
 The rest was comparatively easy. A turn 
 of the painter around a convenient sapling 
 held the boat until the current swung it into 
 the eddy, and the instant it touched the shore 
 Bob Howard sprang out. 
 
 He and George had just strength enough 
 to make the painter fast to the sapling, and 
 then they sank down side by side on the 
 grass, and lay there panting and exhausted. 
 
 They were so dazed and bewildered by 
 their escape from the grasp of the current, 
 which they regarded as little short of miracu- 
 lous, that they could not speak. 
 
 They did not move until they were brought 
 to their feet by a low, rumbling noise, fol- 
 lowed by an explosion so terrific that it would 
 have drowned the discharge of a battery of 
 the heaviest artillery. 
 
 " What in the name of wonder was that ?" 
 gasped Bob, who was so weak that he shook 
 like a leaf. 
 
THE TERRORS OF THE CANYON. 301 
 
 George did not answer. He was looking 
 over Bob's shoulder, with eyes that seemed 
 ready to start from their sockets. 
 
 Bob faced about, and saw a sight that 
 well nigh extinguished the little spark of 
 vitality which the terrors of the canyon had 
 left in him. 
 
302 THE MYSTEKY OF LOST BIVER CANYON. 
 
 w 
 
 CHAPTEE XXV. 
 
 SAM ASKS FOR HIS PAY. 
 
 * * TTTE did our very best to save him, but 
 he's gone, and my father is a mil- 
 lionaire." 
 
 This was the burden of Arthur Howard's 
 thoughts, as he wandered restlessly about the 
 grove, with his hands in his pockets, and his 
 eyes fixed on the ground. The bank of the 
 river was deserted by all save himself. 
 
 The herdsmen were gathered in little 
 groups about the ranch, conversing in hushed 
 tones, and now and then there was an omi- 
 nous growl among them that boded no good 
 to somebody, and threatening eyes and scowl- 
 ing faces were turned toward the window of 
 the office. 
 
 The superintendent and Mr. Evans stood 
 off by themselves, occasionally exchanging a 
 word or two, but generally remaining silent 
 
SAM ASKS FOE HIS PAY. 303 
 
 and thoughtful. Uncle Bob sat alone in the 
 office, thinking sometimes of his lost nephew, 
 but more frequently of the bright and daz- 
 zling future which had so suddenly and un- 
 expectedly opened before him. Like Arthur, 
 he was entirely unnoticed, the men about him 
 having no sympathy for him. Their thoughts 
 were with Bob and his companion. 
 
 " The old fellow seems to take it very much 
 to heart," said Mr. Jacobs. " But it's my opin- 
 ion it is all put on for the occasion.'' 
 
 " That seems to be the opinion of the herds- 
 men, too, if one may judge by their looks 
 and actions," answered Mr. Evans. " If they 
 had the least excuse for it, they would put 
 the dogs on him and his son and drive them 
 out of the valley." 
 
 " I know their temper better than you do, 
 and I am riot far from right when I say 
 that they would serve them worse than 
 that," said the superintendent. " If the men 
 thought that Arthur and his father were in 
 any way mixed up with this morning's work, 
 a regiment of soldiers could not save them." 
 
 " I would give the world, if I owned it, to 
 
304 THE MYSTERY OF LOST RIVER CANYON. 
 
 know whether or not they suspect anything," 
 thought Arthur, who now and then stopped 
 behind a tree or a clump of bushes to take an 
 anxious survey of the groups about the ranch. 
 " Why don't they go off about their work, 
 and let me go to my room ? They needn't 
 blame me for anything that happened, for I 
 didn't suggest it, and I had no hand in car- 
 rying it out. Sam did it out of a desire to 
 be revenged on Bob for telling Mr. Jacobs 
 that he could not have employment on the 
 ranch. But, great Scott ! what a sight that 
 was I" said Arthur, covering his eyes with 
 his hands. "I don't think. I shall ever for- 
 get it." 
 
 And he never did. The pale, despairing 
 face which the helpless Bob had turned to- 
 ward the shore, just before his boat took its 
 final plunge, haunted him day and night as 
 long as he lived. 
 
 Just then Arthur was startled by a rust- 
 ling in the thicket close by his side (he was 
 so timid now, that every little thing fright- 
 ened him), and turned quickly, to find Sam at 
 his side. 
 
SAM ASKS FOR HIS PAY. 305 
 
 The latter was as serene and smiling as 
 usual, and did not look at all like a man who 
 had been guilty of a crime for which his life 
 might at any time pay the forfeit. 
 
 Arthur was glad to see him on some ac- 
 counts, and on others he wasn't. As he could 
 not bear to be alone with his accusing con- 
 science, he wanted somebody to talk to, but 
 he would rather it had been somebody besides 
 Sam. 
 
 It would have been a great relief to him if 
 the herdsman had saddled his horse and left 
 the valley, never to return ; but something 
 told him that Sam did not intend to do any- 
 thing of the kind. He was more familiar in 
 his manner than he was the day before, and 
 not quite so civil. 
 
 " Well, what do you think of it ?" said he, 
 at the same time backing up against a tree, 
 so that he could not be seen by the men about 
 the ranch. " You've got your cousin's for- 
 tune, and I have had my revenge." 
 
 " I wish you hadn't done it," was all Arthur 
 could say, in reply. 
 
 " That's a pretty way for you to talk, now, 
 20 
 
306 THE MYSTERY OF LOST EIVER CANYON. 
 
 when it is too late isn't it?" said Sam, in 
 disgust. " Yesterday, you were eager for it. 
 I saw it very plainly, and that was the reason 
 I proposed it." 
 
 " But I didn't suppose you would do it." 
 
 " That was because you didn't know me. 
 I never fool about such things. You were in 
 dead earnest, and I knew it, and acted accord- 
 ingly." 
 
 " Do you suppose that the men suspect 
 anything ?" 
 
 " If they did, they would make short work 
 of us," assured the herdsman with a grim 
 smile. " We wouldn't be here to see another 
 sunrise, I bet you." 
 
 Arthur winced at this, and he was greatly 
 alarmed, too. 
 
 Sam's use of the personal pronoun seemed 
 to indicate that he was not willing to shoulder 
 all the responsibility himself. According to 
 his way of thinking, Arthur was as deep in 
 the mud as he was, and Sam did not mean to 
 let him forget it, either. 
 
 "Everything is in our favor/' continued 
 the herdsman. " I have heard Bob's father 
 
SAM ASKS FOE HIS PAY. 307 
 
 tell him more than once that he didn't look 
 for anything but to see him lost in the can- 
 yon some day, and there are others who have 
 heard him say the same thing. So, why 
 should they suspect that we had anything to 
 do with it ?" 
 
 " I don't know, I am sure. I asked the 
 question because the men up there," here 
 Arthur nodded his head toward the ranch 
 " seem to be angry about something." 
 
 " Probably they are ; for, as I told you yes- 
 terday, they don't like you or your father. 
 They know that you will come into possession 
 of this property now, and they don't want to 
 have it so." 
 
 " I don't see how they are going to help it." 
 
 "I don't either; but they can make this 
 a hot country for you, if they set about it. 
 Now, then, to business ! I have come for my 
 pay." 
 
 " For your pay !" echoed Arthur. 
 
 "That's what I said. You don't suppose 
 that I am going to put you into possession of 
 a property worth millions of dollars, and 
 take the risk of a lynching for nothing, do 
 
308 THE MYSTERY OF LOST RIVER CANYON. 
 
 you ? What kind of a hair-pin do you think 
 I ain, anyway ?" 
 
 Arthur was almost overwhelmed with 
 amazement and terror. He had never 
 dreamed of this. 
 
 " I don't owe you anything," he managed 
 to say at last. " I told you that I would use 
 my influence with my father to have you em- 
 ployed on the ranch ; and so I will, just as 
 soon as Mr. Evans goes away and I can 
 find an opportunity to speak with him in 
 private ; but, beyond that, I can do nothing 
 for you." 
 
 " It ain't enough, pilgrim !" replied Sam, 
 in quiet, but decided tones. " Must have 
 
 more." 
 
 " But I say I don't owe you anything." 
 
 " I reckon I could make you change your 
 mind in just two minutes, if I should set 
 about it," said Sam, looking at Arthur in a 
 way that made him shiver all over. 
 
 " How much do you want ?" 
 
 " Well, five thousand dollars will do to 
 start on !" 
 
 " Five thousand dollars !" gasped Arthur, 
 
SAM ASKS FOE HIS PAY. 309 
 
 who thought he would surely have fallen to 
 the ground, if he had not placed his hand 
 against the nearest tree to steady himself. 
 " Why, I haven't got five thousand cents to 
 my name." 
 
 " No, I suppose not," replied Sam, indif- 
 ferently. " Clerks, who sport such dry goods 
 as you had on your back when you first came 
 here, don't generally have any loose change 
 laying around. But your father's got it. 
 He must have twenty or thirty thousand dol- 
 lars in that safe of his." 
 
 " But he wouldn't give any of it to me," 
 said Arthur, who was every moment growing 
 more astonished and alarmed. 
 
 " Oh, I guess he would, if he knew all the 
 circumstances," answered the herdsman, sig- 
 nificantly. 
 
 " But I don't want him to know all the cir- 
 cumstances," protested Arthur, quickly. 
 "And what excuse can I make to him for 
 demanding so large a sum of money ?" 
 
 "That is a matter in which I am not at all 
 interested. I don't care how you get it, so 
 long as you get it; and I fancy you will 
 
310 THE MYSTERY OF LOST RIVER CANYON. 
 
 make up your mind to do it after you've had 
 time to think the matter over." 
 
 " No, I won't/' said Arthur, his fears giv- 
 ing away to anger. " You had no right to 
 ask it of me, and I shall make no effort to 
 get it. I shouldn't succeed if I did. You 
 proposed this thing yourself, and did the work 
 alone and unaided, and I 
 
 "Well, why don't you go on?" inquired 
 Sam, when the other paused and looked at 
 him. " See here, my friend," he added, 
 shaking his finger at Arthur, while his eyes 
 flashed threateningly, " you have had your 
 say, and now I am going to have mine. I 
 want that money, and I am going to have it, 
 too. You hear me ? If you won't get it 
 for me, I will go straight to your father, and 
 tell him the whole story. I think he would 
 rather give me the money than lose all Bob's 
 millions don't you ?" 
 
 "Oh, don't do that!" implored Arthur, 
 whose anger was all gone now. " I'll ask 
 him for it the first chance I get." 
 
 " But if he wouldn't if he doesn't fork 
 out on demand, I will see that the boys get 
 
SAM ASKS FOE HIS PAY. 311 
 
 wind of the whole affair, and what do you 
 suppose would be the result? They are just 
 in the right humor for business now, and if I 
 should leave a little note where one of them 
 could find it, you and your father would 
 be-" 
 
 Here Sam stopped, and looked up at the 
 branches over his head. It needed no words 
 to explain what he meant. 
 
 "Don't! don't!" cried Arthur, who was 
 trembling in every limb. " I will ask for the 
 money before I go to sleep to-night honor 
 bright, I will." 
 
 " I knew you would change your mind after 
 you had thought the matter over," said Sam, 
 with a meaning smile. " Now, how soon may 
 I expect to get the five thousand ?" 
 
 " Just as soon as I can induce my father to 
 give it to me," promised Arthur. 
 
 " Well, say to-morrow, then. I will meet 
 you here in the grove right away after break- 
 fast. I don't want a job at herding sheep, 
 now, and I don't want to hang around any 
 longer than I can help ; so don't waste any 
 time." 
 
312 THE MYSTERY OF LOST EIVEE CANYON. 
 
 "Are you going away ?" asked Arthur, 
 eagerly. 
 
 " You bet ! I don't think my constitution 
 can stand this climate." 
 
 "And will you promise that you'll never 
 come back and make any more demands 
 upon me ?" 
 
 "Not much! I've struck a bonanza, and 
 I'm going to work it as long as the lead holds 
 out. I know what you are thinking of, young 
 man ; but you'll find that I'm nobody's fool. 
 Now, remember, I shall be on hand to-morrow 
 morning, and I want to find you here with 
 that money." 
 
 Sam disappeared, and Arthur resumed his 
 wanderings about the grove. He was fright- 
 ened almost out of his senses, and wished 
 from the bottom of his heart that he had 
 never seen or heard of his companion in guilt. 
 He even went further than that, and wished 
 that his uncle had given his property into 
 the keeping of somebody else, and that he 
 and his father were back in Bolton, where 
 they came from. What in the world could 
 he say that would induce his cousin's guar- 
 
SAM ASKS FOE HIS PAY. 313 
 
 dian to give him the five thousand dollars 
 that Sain demanded as hush-money ? He 
 knew very well that he couldn't get it ; and 
 even if he did, what good would it do him ? 
 
 There was evil coming upon him ; he was 
 sure of it. And this money would only post- 
 pone it for a little while. It would not avert 
 it, for Sam had said very plainly that he was 
 not going to be satisfied with the amount he 
 had named that he intended to make de- 
 mands as often as he felt like it. 
 
 Arthur grew almost wild when he recalled 
 the man's words. He wrung his hands, and 
 even quickened his steps to a run, as if he 
 hoped to leave his haunting fears behind 
 him. 
 
 " There is only one thing I can do," said 
 he to himself, after he had bestowed as much 
 thought upon the situation as the perturbed 
 state of his mind would permit. " I must 
 get away from here. Father must give me 
 money enough to take me back to Bolton. I 
 say must do it, or I shall help myself to what 
 I need. There goes Mr. Evans, and father 
 is probably alone in the office. If he is, I 
 
314 THE MYSTERY OF LOST EIVEE CANYON. 
 
 will settle this matter with him before I am 
 an hour older." 
 
 So saying, Arthur wiped the big drops of 
 perspiration from his face, put on as bold a 
 front as he could, and started toward the 
 ranch. A few of the herdsmen had dis- 
 persed to their work, but those who remained 
 scowled at him so savagely as he passed that 
 Arthur made all haste to get into the hall out 
 of their sight. 
 
ARTHUR TRIES TO HELP HIMSELF. 315 
 
 CHAPTER XXVI. 
 
 ARTHUR TRIES TO HELP HIMSELF. 
 
 A RTHUR found his father alone in the 
 JLJL office, pacing the floor, with his hands 
 in his pockets, and a look of triumph and ex- 
 ultation on his face ; but, when his son entered, 
 he sank into the nearest chair, and tried to 
 appear very sorrowful, indeed. 
 
 " That was a sad event, Arthur," said he, 
 with a long-drawn sigh " a very sad event. 
 I don't wonder that you look frightened. I 
 was frightened myself, and so was every- 
 body else ; but we have the satisfaction of 
 knowing that we used our utmost endeavors 
 to save him." 
 
 We have already told how hard Uncle Bob 
 and Arthur worked to keep the boat from 
 going into the canyon. The former did 
 nothing but shout out orders, to which no- 
 
316 THE MYSTEKY OF LOST EIVEE CANYON. 
 
 body paid the least attention, while Arthur 
 stood by and looked on, without uttering a 
 word. 
 
 " Yes, I know we did all we could/' replied 
 Arthur, faintly ; " but we couldn't help him. 
 Bob knew as well as we did that he was 
 doomed. He told me yesterday, while we 
 were down the river looking at the canyon, 
 that if I went out in a boat, I must be care- 
 ful not to let that current get hold of me. If 
 I did, I might as well be in the rapids above 
 Niagara Falls, for nothing could save me. 
 Now, father, I can't stay here any longer, and 
 I want you to give me money enough to take 
 me back to Bolton." 
 
 " I should like to go there myself, or some- 
 where else, and stay until time has somewhat 
 effaced the memory of this terrible occur- 
 rence ; but, under the circumstances, I don't 
 think it best for either one of us to leave," 
 answered Uncle Bob. 
 
 " Why not ?" asked Arthur. " Why can't 
 we both go ?" 
 
 " Because our absence might give people 
 occasion to say hard things about us." 
 
ARTHUR TRIES TO HELP HIMSELF. 317 
 
 " I don't see why it should. "We had noth- 
 ing whatever to do with it." 
 
 " Certainly not. But that wouldn't make 
 any difference to these herdsmen, who are as 
 unreasonable as so many pigs. I can see very 
 plainly that they don't like us, and don't 
 want us here ; but, to tell you the plain truth, 
 Arthur, I should be afraid to go away after 
 what has happened.'' 
 
 " Why would you ?" 
 
 " Because these ignorant men would take it 
 as a confession of guilt on my part." 
 
 All unaccustomed as Arthur was to reason- 
 ing a posteriori that is, from the effect to 
 the cause he told himself that his father 
 never could have reached this conclusion if 
 he had not felt guilty. 
 
 Although Uncle Bob tried to believe that 
 he was sorry his nephew was gone, he did 
 not succeed in deceiving either himself or 
 those about him ; and it was not at all im- 
 probable that an attempt at flight on his 
 part would have resulted in something serious. 
 
 Whenever Uncle Bob allowed his mind to 
 dwell upon this matter, he became as badly 
 
318 THE MYSTERY OF LOST RIVER CANYON. 
 
 frightened as Arthur was. Dearly as he loved 
 money, he loved life better, and he would wil- 
 lingly have surrendered his nephew's millions 
 if, by so doing he could have transported 
 himself and Arthur back to Bolton, where he 
 knew they would be safe. 
 
 " And must we stay here in the midst of 
 these lawless men, who may at any moment 
 take a notion to hang us?" exclaimed Arthur 
 in great alarm. 
 
 " It seems to be our only chance," confessed 
 Uncle Bob, in agitated tones. " I have thought 
 the matter all over, and I don't see that we 
 can do anything else. If we could only make 
 these men believe that we take the matter as 
 much to heart as they do, they wouldn't think 
 so hard of us; but they are very obstinate and 
 set in their ways, and it will take time to ac- 
 complish that." 
 
 " But, father, I can't stay here," insisted 
 Arthur, jumping to his feet, and walking ner- 
 vously up and down the floor. " I shall go 
 crazy if I do I know I shall. If you won't 
 go with me, give me money and let me go 
 alone. You've got plenty of it. I heard one 
 
AKTHUR TRIES TO HELP HIMSELF. 319 
 
 of the men say that there were twenty or 
 thirty thousand dollars in that safe/' 
 
 u There's more than that in there," said 
 Uncle Bob. " But it isn't the money I care 
 for. I was thinking of you. It would not 
 be best for you to leave now." 
 
 " I will take all the risk," pleaded Arthur. 
 " Don't refuse, for if you do, there is no tell- 
 ing what may happen." 
 
 " Don't get excited over it," advised Uncle 
 Bob, who was anything but calm himself. 
 " Be governed by me, and hope for the best." 
 
 Arthur who became almost frantic when- 
 ever he thought of Sam, and the interview 
 he had appointed for the morrow, " right 
 away after breakfast," said everything he 
 could think of to induce his father to grant 
 his request, but he urged and begged in vain. 
 
 When Uncle Bob once made up his mind 
 to a thing, he was fully as obstinate and un- 
 reasonable as the herdsmen to whom he had 
 referred in tones so contemptuous, and Arthur 
 might as well have argued with the stone 
 walls of the ranch. 
 
 Finding that he could make no impression 
 
320 THE MYSTERY OF LOST EIVER CANYON. 
 
 upon his father, the boy grew angry, and was 
 more than once on the point of declaring 
 that Sam had made a demand upon him for 
 five thousand dollars, threatening, in case of 
 refusal, to publish a story of his own getting 
 up, that would induce the herdsmen to make 
 short work of both of them. 
 
 But his guilty fears would not allow him 
 to do it, and, besides, he had some other plans 
 in his head that he wanted to try first, so he 
 bolted out of the office, banging the door be- 
 hind him. 
 
 " He's the meanest old hulks of a father 
 that any fellow ever had," thought Arthur, 
 stopping in the hall long enough to shake 
 his fist at the door, " and I don't care what 
 happens to him. As he is too pig-headed to 
 do as I want him to do, I'll help myself to 
 every cent there is in that safe this very night 
 if I can get in. If I succeed, I will give 8am 
 his hush-money to-morrow morning, and hire 
 him to show me the way to the railroad sta- 
 tion. I have seen quite enough of Arizona, 
 and if I can only get aboard a train of cars 
 that is headed for the East, the prospect of 
 
ARTHUR TRIES TO HELP HIMSELF. 321 
 
 owning four times four million dollars won't 
 bring me back here." 
 
 While Arthur was talking to himself in 
 this way, he looked cautiously out of the door, 
 and, having satisfied himself, by a few min- 
 utes' reconnoisance, that the herdsmen had all 
 dispersed, he walked across the porch, and 
 bent his steps toward the grove. 
 
 He wanted to be alone, and this was the 
 most retired spot he could find. It was utterly 
 impossible for him to keep still, and here he 
 could walk about among the trees without 
 being seen by anybody. 
 
 Arthur had been in the grove, perhaps 
 half an hour, keeping his thoughts busy with 
 the plans he intended to put into operation in 
 case his attempt to steal the money in the 
 safe did not prove successful, when he saw 
 the superintendent stop in front of the porch 
 with a couple of horses that were saddled and 
 bridled. 
 
 After he had stood there for a minute or 
 two, Uncle Bob came out of the ranch, with 
 his hat on his head and a riding-whip in his 
 hand. He mounted one o,f the horses, Mr. 
 
 2; 
 
322 THE MYSTEKY OF LOST EIVEE CANYON. 
 
 Jacobs sprang upon the other, and together 
 they rode away. 
 
 " They are going off somewhere on busi- 
 ness," soliloquized Arthur, " and this is as 
 good an opportunity as I shall have to take 
 a look at that safe. I wish the money in it 
 belonged to me, and that the old man wanted 
 some of it. He shouldn't have a cent if he 
 was starving." 
 
 Arthur gave the horsemen time to get out 
 of sight, and then he left the grove and walked 
 toward the ranch. 
 
 He went into the office, and having locked 
 the door to prevent interruption, he began an 
 examination of the safe, which was set into 
 the wall so that nothing but the face of it 
 could be seen. 
 
 If it had been provided with a combina- 
 tion lock, Arthur would have set to work 
 upon it at once ; but as it was an old-fashioned 
 article, requiring a key to open it, he could do 
 nothing. 
 
 Thinking it possible that his father might 
 have left the key in the room, he began 
 looking for it in the bookcases, under the 
 
ARTHUR TRIES TO HELP HIMSELF. 323 
 
 lounge, along the edge of the carpet in 
 every place, in fact, that seemed to offer the 
 least chance for concealment, but his search 
 was in vain. 
 
 " It is in his pocket, most likely," said Ar- 
 thur, as he unlocked the door, sat down in 
 one of the easy chairs, and opened a book, 
 which he had taken at random down from 
 one of the shelves. " I'll just hang around 
 the rest of the day, and satisfy myself on 
 that point. That key is the only thing that 
 stands in my way. If I can get my hands 
 on that, the rest will be easy enough, for I 
 know how to open the safe." 
 
 Arthur turned his chair about so that he 
 could not see the river when he happened to 
 glance out of the window somehow, he could 
 not bear the sight of it now and tried to 
 amuse himself by looking at the engravings 
 in the book he held in his hand ; but the 
 excitement and suspense which had taken the 
 place of his fears were too much for him, 
 and sometimes he would spring to his feet 
 and rush about the room like some caged 
 wild animal. 
 
324 THE MYSTEEY OF LOST RIVEK CANYON. 
 
 But he was quiet enough when his father 
 returned about dinner-time, and came into 
 the office, accompanied by the superintendent. 
 
 Some argument had arisen between them 
 regarding the business of the ranch, and, in 
 order to settle it, they had to refer to the books 
 that were in the safe. 
 
 Arthur suw his father take the key from 
 his pocket and insert it in the lock, and took 
 particular notice to the way he twirled the 
 knob. 
 
 When the door swung open and the interior 
 of the safe was disclosed to his view, Arthur 
 was not a little astonished. 
 
 One of the shelves was piled full of green- 
 backs, and on the shelf under it were four 
 large tin boxes, which were filled to the brim 
 with bright, shining gold pieces. 
 
 As he did not care to stay there and listen 
 to a discussion about matters of which he knew 
 nothing and cared less, Arthur put away his 
 book and went out into the hall. 
 
 He walked about for a few minutes, with 
 his eyes fastened thoughtfully on the floor, 
 and then hurried to his room and began to 
 
AETHUK TEIES TO HELP HIMSELF. 325 
 
 unpack his valise. He had not thought of it 
 before. 
 
 " There's a lot of money in that safe," said 
 he to himself, " and I must have something to 
 carry it in, for I couldn't get the tenth part 
 of it into my pockets. I don't know what 
 the old man will say when he finds that his 
 safe has been emptied ; and, in order to keep 
 it from his knowledge as long as I can, I 
 will take the key with me when I go. I wish 
 now that I had told Sam to meet me about 
 midnight. If he conies to the grove this af- 
 ternoon, I will make new arrangements with 
 him." 
 
 Arthur spent the entire afternoon in the 
 grove, with his thoughts for company ; but 
 Sam did not put in an appearance. He knew 
 better. 
 
 He had made some threats against Bob in 
 the presence of some of the herdsmen, and the 
 valley was not a safe place for him. He was 
 idling away the time in the seclusion of a 
 deep ravine a short distance away, waiting im- 
 patiently for the morrow. 
 
 Arthur went to bed as soon as he had 
 
326 THE MYSTERY OF LOST EIVER CANYON. 
 
 eaten his supper, and when his father came 
 into the room, about eleven o'clock, he lay 
 with his face to the wall, apparently fast 
 asleep. The two had but little to say to each 
 other since the interview in the morning. 
 
 Uncle Bob tried to be sociable while they 
 were at the table, but Arthur would scarcely 
 listen to him. 
 
 " I was the only friend he had on the 
 ranch," the youth kept saying to himself, 
 " and I want him to see that he has made 
 an enemy of me. If he doesn't know it now 
 he will find it out very shortly." 
 
 It was long after midnight before Arthur 
 made any move to show that he was awake. 
 Then he turned over very cautiously, and, 
 after listening intently for a few minutes, he 
 made up his mind that the time for action had 
 arrived. 
 
 Noiselessly he arose from the bed and moved 
 towards the chair upon which his father had 
 deposited his clothing. 
 
 After a little fumbling in the dark, he found 
 the pocket of which he was in search, and his 
 fingers closed tightly on the coveted key. 
 
AETHUE TEIES TO HELP HIMSELF. 327 
 
 Hardly able to repress an exclamation of 
 triumph, Arthur picked up his valise, which 
 he had placed at the foot of his bed, unlocked 
 the door and passed through the hall into the 
 office. 
 
 Feeling his way to the safe, he put the key 
 into the lock, turned the knob, and the door 
 opened for him. 
 
 " It's all mine," thought he, as he opened 
 his valise and proceeded to stow the green- 
 backs away in it. " If father wants to stay 
 here, and run the risk of being hanged, he 
 can do it and welcome; but I'm off for Bol- 
 ton, this very " 
 
 All on a sudden, the door of the office 
 creaked on its hinges, and the room was bril- 
 liantly illuminated. With a piercing cry of 
 terror, Arthur looked over his shoulder and 
 saw his father standing behind him, holding 
 a lamp in one hand and a big revolver in the 
 other. 
 
328 THE MYSTEEY OF LOST EIVEE CANYON. 
 
 CHAPTER XXVII. 
 
 THE LISTENER IN THE GKOVE. 
 
 IT is hard to tell which was the more aston- 
 ished by this unexpected encounter the 
 father, who having been aroused from un- 
 easy slumber by the stealthy closing of his 
 bedroom door, and growing alarmed for the 
 safety of the large amount of money in his 
 possession, had aroused himself and come into 
 the office to make sure that everything was 
 right there, or the son, who had so suddenly 
 been interrupted in the very act of robbing 
 the safe. 
 
 The two looked at each other for a mo- 
 ment in silence, and then Arthur put back 
 the package of greenbacks he had been on 
 the point of stowing away in his valise, while 
 Uncle Bob placed the lamp on the table and 
 sat down. 
 
THE LISTENEE IN THE GEOVE. 329 
 
 "Arthur, what in the world does this 
 mean ?" said he, sternly. 
 
 " It means that if you hadn't come in here 
 just as you did, I should have been miles on 
 my way toward Dixon Springs by this time 
 to-morrow," replied the son, rising to his 
 feet and boldly confronting his father. 
 
 "And did you intend to rob me ?" 
 
 " I certainly intended to take some of this 
 money to help me along," answered Arthur, 
 without the least tremor in his tones. " I 
 asked you for it this morning, openly and 
 above board, and you wouldn't let me have 
 it, saying, as an excuse for your refusal, that 
 you were ' afraid that the herdsmen would 
 do something to me if I attempted to leave 
 the valley so soon after Bob's disappearance.' ' 
 
 "And I tell you so now," said his father. 
 
 " Didn't I assure you that I was willing to 
 take all the risk ?" demanded Arthur. 
 
 "And didn't I tell you, in effect, that if 
 you would only be governed by me and con- 
 sent to stay here until this thing had time to 
 blow over, it would then be perfectly safe 
 for both of us to go East ?" asked his father, 
 
330 THE MYSTERY OF LOST EIVER CANYON. 
 
 in reply. " I am as anxious to see the last 
 of Arizona as you are. I had a long talk 
 with Mr. Jacobs about it yesterday, and de- 
 cided to employ him to manage the ranch for 
 me, while you and I would go back to Bol- 
 ton to live. I should have told you about it 
 as soon as I came home, if you had shown 
 any disposition to talk to me." 
 
 " Why don't you go at once ?" growled 
 Arthur. 
 
 " I have already given you my reason. I 
 think I ought to stay here for a few months, 
 at least : and Mr. Jacobs thinks so, too." 
 
 " Well, then, won't you give me some 
 money and let me go ?" 
 
 " I answered that question yesterday," 
 said Uncle Bob, in very decided tones. 
 " Have you got any money in that valise ? 
 Then put it back where it belongs, and we 
 will go back to bed." 
 
 Knowing that his hopeful son could not be 
 trusted, Uncle Bob took the precaution to 
 see that these instructions were obeyed to 
 the very letter. 
 
 He took his stand beside the open valise, 
 
THE LISTENER IN THE GROVE. 331 
 
 and closely watched Arthur, as lie took the 
 packages out of it and piled them on the 
 shelf. Then he closed and locked the safe 
 and took possession of the key, telling him- 
 self the while that Arthur would never be 
 able to get his hands upon it again. 
 
 The two did not speak as Uncle Bob took 
 up the lamp and revolver and led the way to 
 their room. 
 
 He did not appear to be angry, either; but 
 Arthur was almost beside himself with fury. 
 He was more he was desperate. There was 
 still one plan to be tried, and, if that failed, 
 it was all over with him and Uncle Bob. 
 
 " Perhaps, when it is too late, he will wish 
 he had let me have that money," thought 
 Arthur, as he tumbled into bed and turned 
 his face to the wall. "His excuse for re- 
 fusing me is a very flimsy one. He's got 
 Bob's money, and I believe he would rather 
 risk his life than lose his grip on a single dol- 
 lar of it." 
 
 Arthur slept in spite of the exciting scene 
 through which he had passed, but his slum- 
 ber was disturbed with frightful dreams, in 
 
332 THE MYSTERY OF LOST EIVER CANYON. 
 
 which the angry herdsmen and Bob How- 
 ard's broken oar, which, in some mysterious 
 way, was brought forward as evidence against 
 him, bore prominent parts. 
 
 His father greeted him in the morning as 
 cordially as he always did, but Arthur was too 
 angry and sulky to be civil. He ate but little 
 breakfast, and as soon as he arose from the 
 table he went to the grove to keep his ap- 
 pointment with Sam. 
 
 He would have been glad to postpone the 
 interview indefinitely, but he was afraid to 
 do it. He believed that Sam would have 
 something to say to his father, now, and, be- 
 fore he did that, Arthur wanted to make a 
 few suggestions. 
 
 He found the herdsman in the grove, wait- 
 ing for him. It is probable that he fully ex- 
 pected to receive the money he had demanded 
 for holding his tongue ; for, when he saw 
 Arthur approaching, he advanced to meet 
 him, at the same time extending his hand, as 
 if he thought the latter was going to put 
 something into it. 
 
 " I haven't got it," said Arthur, shortly. 
 
THE LISTENER IN THE GEOVE. 333 
 
 Sam scowled fiercely, and looked mad 
 enough to do almost anything. 
 
 " I can't help it," continued Arthur, " I 
 did the best I could for you. I asked my 
 father for it yesterday, as I told you I would, 
 but he wouldn't give it to me ; and last night 
 I tried to take it out of the safe, but he caught 
 me at it." 
 
 " Whew !" whistled Sam. 
 
 "It's a fact," said Arthur earnestly. "I've 
 tried every plan I can think of, and can do 
 nothing more." 
 
 " What did you say you wanted to do with 
 the money ?" 
 
 " I told him that I wanted to go back East, 
 but father said he was afraid that if I at- 
 tempted to leave the ranch now, I would get 
 myself into trouble with the herdsmen." 
 
 " Very likely you would," replied Sam, in- 
 differently. " I talked with some of them 
 yesterday, and, although they don't know 
 that you had any hand in sawing the oars " 
 
 "And I didn't, either," interrupted Arthur. 
 " You sawed them yourself, and I never knew 
 a thing about it." 
 
334 THE MYSTERY OF LOST EIVER CANYON. 
 
 11 Look here, young man," exclaimed Sam, 
 in a tone of voice that frightened Arthur, 
 " you needn't try to throw all the responsibility 
 upon my shoulders, for I won't stand it ! You 
 are just as much to blame for what happened 
 to Bob Howard and his partner as I am !" 
 
 " Didn't you propose it?" faltered Arthur. 
 
 " Didn't you consent to it?" retorted Sam, 
 looking at Arthur so savagely that the latter 
 dared not deny the accusation. " You did ! 
 and if the boys ever find it out, they will 
 make things hot for you, I tell you." 
 
 " But of course you will not tell them," 
 implored Arthur. 
 
 " If I can get my five thousand dollars, no. 
 If I can't, yes. I suppose I shall have to talk 
 to the old man now." 
 
 " I don't see what else you can do," as- 
 sented Arthur. " But I say, Sam, don't men- 
 tion my name to him, will you ? Just tell 
 him that the boys suspect that he knows how 
 Bob's oar was broken, and that will frighten 
 him so that he will hand the money over to 
 you without saying a word." 
 
 "That's worth thinking of," admitted Sam. 
 
THE LISTENER IN THE GROVE. 335 
 
 "If you want money to keep still about 
 this thing, that is the only way to get it," de- 
 clared Arthur. " I can't raise it for you, and 
 that's all there is about it. I have tried and 
 failed." 
 
 " Well, I shan't fail," said Sam, emphati- 
 cally. " If I do, the old man may make up 
 his mind that something disagreeable is going 
 to happen. I'll sleep on what you have told 
 me, and perhaps I shall be down again to- 
 morrow morning. Good-by !" 
 
 " But, Sam, promise that you will not even 
 hint that I know how Bob's oar was broken," 
 begged Arthur. 
 
 "All right!" answered the herdsman. 
 
 But he did not give the promise. The 
 time might come, he told himself, when the 
 youth would be of use to him, and he thought 
 it best to retain a hold upon him. 
 
 " I've done it," soliloquized Arthur, as he 
 once more began his aimless wanderings 
 about the grove, " and now we shall see what 
 will come of it. It was the only course that 
 was left open to me, for I could see very 
 plainly that Sam is fully determined to make 
 
336 THE MYSTERY OF LOST EIVER CANYON. 
 
 trouble, unless his demands are complied with. 
 I hope he will frighten father so badly that 
 he will pack up and leave for Bolton at once." 
 
 Arthur was so deeply engrossed with his 
 meditations that he did not hear the slight 
 rustling in the thicket behind him, which was 
 made by a man an unintentional listener to 
 the conversation that had taken place between 
 himself and Sam as he arose from a log on 
 which he had been sitting, and shook both 
 his fists in the air. It was old Ike, the cook. 
 
 He was the first man who had found em- 
 ployment on the ranch, and, like the rest of 
 the hired help, he thought everything of Bob, 
 and looked with distrust upon those who had 
 come there to take his dead father's place. 
 
 Leaving an assistant to attend to his duties 
 in the kitchen, Ike retreated to the grove 
 shortly after the boat went into the canyon, 
 and he had been there ever since. He liked 
 to be there. It had been the lost boy's favor- 
 ite resort, and, while he was hidden among 
 the trees, he could give full vent to his sorrow, 
 for there was no one looking on to accuse him 
 of a lack of manhood. 
 
THE LISTENER IN THE GROVE. 337 
 
 Ike peeped cautiously through the bushes 
 to see where Arthur was, and then he shook 
 his fists at him, and moved away from his 
 place of concealment with long, noiseless 
 strides. 
 
 He walked with that firm, determined step 
 that men sometimes adopt when they have 
 made up their minds to do something ; but, 
 when he reached the porch, he came to a sud- 
 den stop, pulled off his hat, and scratched his 
 head vigorously. 
 
 The operation must have put new ideas 
 into his mind, for he went on around the 
 house, and made his way to the corral in 
 which the riding-horses were kept. 
 
 Putting a saddle and bridle on the first 
 horse he caught, he forded the river at the 
 place where the lake emptied into it, and as 
 soon as he reached the opposite bank, he 
 started on a gallop for Mr. Evans' ranch. 
 
 " So that's the way my poor Bob come to 
 go into that awful hole, is it ?" said Ike, 
 speaking in a loud voice, as if he were ad- 
 dressing some one at a distance. " Sam sawed 
 the oars so that they would break when the 
 
 22 
 
338 THE MYSTERY OF LOST EIVEB CANYON. 
 
 boys laid out their strength on them he did 
 it because he knew that Bob didn't want him 
 on the ranch, most likely and that scoun- 
 drel, Arthur, knew all about it, and never 
 said a word. Of course, he didn't, for he 
 wanted his cousin's money. I knew them 
 two would make trouble sooner or later, but 
 I didn't think they would be at it for a while 
 yet." 
 
 It was a strange and startling story that 
 Ike had to tell when he reached Mr. Evans' 
 ranch. 
 
 That gentleman listened calmly, and the 
 narrator noticed that he did not seem to be 
 at all surprised at what he heard. He, too, 
 had been expecting trouble, but he had not 
 looked for it so soon. 
 
 " When I saw that Bob's oar was broken, 
 I told Jacobs that I would give anything for 
 a chance to examine it," said Mr. Evans, 
 when Ike finished his story. " It was made 
 on purpose to stand that current, and I knew 
 the boy could not have broken it unless it 
 had been tampered with." 
 
 " Well, them are the facts of the case, Mr. 
 
THE LISTENER IN THE GROVE. 339 
 
 Evans, just as I have been telling 'em to 
 you," said Ike. " Will you come down and 
 boss the hanging ?" 
 
 " I will come down immediately ; but there 
 will be no hanging no violence whatever. 
 Do you understand me ?" replied Mr. Evans, 
 quietly, but firmly. 
 
 Old Ike was profoundly astonished. 
 
 " Do you mean to say that we honest men 
 have got to live in the same valley with them 
 rascals ?" he demanded, fiercely. " I won't 
 do it, and that's flat !" 
 
 " I don't mean to say anything of the kind. 
 Their presence will not trouble you after to- 
 day. Leave everything to me, and don't lisp 
 one word to any of the boys about what you 
 heard in the grove. You will only make 
 trouble if you do." 
 
 Ike was too angry to reply. He wheeled 
 his horse and rode rapidly away, while Mr. 
 Evans stood gazing after him with a face that 
 was full of apprehension. 
 
340 THE MYSTERY OF LOST EIVER CANYON. 
 
 CHAPTER XXVIII. 
 
 A HURRIED FLIGHT. 
 
 TTNCLE BOB sat alone in his office, think- 
 \J ing over the events of the preceding 
 night, when, all of a sudden, he was aroused 
 from his reverie by the sound of a horse's 
 hoofs, and looked out at the window to see 
 Mr. Evans coming toward the ranch at a 
 furious gallop. 
 
 He rode up to the porch, turned his horse 
 over to Ike, who was there to receive him, 
 and, after saying a few earnest words to the 
 man, and shaking his finger at him warn- 
 ingly, he came into the hall, and entered the 
 office without ceremony. 
 
 Uncle Bob was astonished, and not a little 
 alarmed as well. There was an expression 
 on his visitor's face that he did not like to see 
 there. 
 
 "Mr. Howard," said the newcomer, de- 
 
A HUEEIED FLIGHT. 341 
 
 positing his hat on the table, and helping 
 himself to a chair, "the whole thing is out 
 on you, and you want to make your stay in 
 this country as short as you possibly can." 
 
 " Bless my soul !" cried Uncle Bob. " What 
 do you mean ?" 
 
 Mr. Evans looked sharply into the man's 
 face before he made any reply. He must 
 have been satisfied with what he saw there, 
 for he said to himself: 
 
 "This man is in no way mixed up in this 
 dreadful affair. Arthur and Sam are at the 
 bottom of it, but he will have to go, all the 
 same, for the boys never can be made to be- 
 lieve that he is innocent." Then, aloud, he 
 continued, " It is my unpleasant duty to in- 
 form you that Arthur has got himself into 
 serious trouble, and that he is as good as 
 lynched already." 
 
 Uncle Bob's face grew as pale as death. 
 He sank helplessly back in his chair, and his 
 hands fell by his side. 
 
 " Not not my Arthur?" he gasped. 
 
 " Yes, your son Arthur, the very boy who 
 tried to rob that safe last night." 
 
342 THE MYSTERY OF LOST RIVER CANYON. 
 
 " It's false !" cried Uncle Bob, with a des- 
 perate but unsuccessful attempt to look indig- 
 nant. " My son never tried to rob my safe." 
 
 Mr. Evans smiled incredulously. 
 
 He had had his doubts on that point, but 
 he had none now. Uncle Bob's face told him 
 that Ike's story was all true. 
 
 " He has confessed in the hearing of one 
 of your men that he tried to steal five thou- 
 sand dollars to shut up Sam's mouth," said 
 the visitor. 
 
 " Who is Sam ?" Uncle Bob managed to 
 ask. " Now, Mr. Evans, I don't understand 
 you at all, and I wish you would be more ex- 
 plicit. You surely do not mean to hint that 
 Arthur had anything to do with the accident 
 that befell his cousin ?" 
 
 "It was no accident, Mr. Howard," said 
 the visitor, bluntly. " It was a put-up job, 
 and I mean to say, in just so many words, 
 that Arthur knew it was going to happen be- 
 fore it did happen. Sam I don't think 
 there is any one on the ranch who knows 
 what his other name is used to be one of 
 your brother's herdsmen. He was discharged 
 
A HUERIED FLIGHT. 343 
 
 for cause, and ordered never to show himself 
 in the valley again ; but on the day you ar- 
 rived, he came back, and sought employment. 
 Managing in some way to scrape an acquaint- 
 ance with Arthur, he proposed a plan to get 
 rid of Bob, and your son consented to it. Sam 
 carried out that plan by sawing the oars that 
 belonged to the skiif, so that they would break 
 when the boys tried to pull up out of the 
 current." 
 
 " I don't believe a word of it," declared 
 Uncle Bob, who, during this long explana- 
 tion, had managed to collect a few of his 
 scattered wits. Then, seeing that his visi- 
 tor's eye began to sparkle threateningly, he 
 hastened to add, "I beg your pardon, Mr. 
 Evans, but somebody has been imposing upon 
 you with a story that cannot have the least 
 foundation in fact. According to your own 
 statement, Arthur took no active part in this 
 thing, and neither did he have any hand in 
 sawing the oars if, indeed, they were sawed 
 at all." 
 
 " But he was an accessory," said Mr. Evans, 
 earnestly, " and he is a doomed boy, unless 
 
344 THE MYSTERY OF LOST KIVER CANYON. 
 
 you take immediate steps to protect him. 
 My advice to you would be to see him with- 
 out the loss of a moment. You will probably 
 find him in the grove at any rate, that was 
 the place where he held his interview with 
 Sam this morning." 
 
 Uncle Bob thought this a suggestion that 
 was worth acting upon. He put on his hat 
 and left the office, while Mr. Evans seated 
 himself in front of the window and watched 
 him as he hurried toward the grove. 
 
 Just then the door opened, and old Ike 
 thrust his head into the room. 
 
 " Mr. Evans/' said he, in a cautious whis- 
 per, " I can't keep this secret in much longer. 
 It's growing bigger every minute, and I shall 
 have to tell it pretty soon, or bust !" 
 
 "You hold your tongue that's all you 
 have to do," said Mr. Evans, sternly. 
 
 " But what will the boys do to me, when 
 they find it out ?" asked Ike, anxiously. 
 
 " The boys needn't know anything about it 
 until the law gets ready to take hold of Sam 
 and Arthur. Mr. Howard is entirely innocent." 
 
 Ike was both astonished and disgusted 
 
A HURRIED FLIGHT. 345 
 
 astonished to learn that the new master of 
 the ranch was in no way responsible for the 
 occurrences of the preceding day, and dis- 
 gusted to hear that the guilty ones were to be 
 punished by process of law. 
 
 The United States marshal, who would 
 probably take the matter in hand, was much 
 too slow and deliberate in his movements to 
 suit Ike, and, besides, the punishment he would 
 inflict upon the culprits would not be com- 
 mensurate with their offence. 
 
 Ike lingered a moment, as if he wanted to 
 say something more, and then disappeared, 
 closing the door softly behind him. 
 
 Uncle Bob was gone a long time so long, 
 in fact, that Mr. Evans began to grow anxious, 
 and even alarmed. He did not at all like the 
 look he saw in Ike's eye, and he knew that 
 every moment was of the utmost value to 
 Arthur and his father. 
 
 To his great relief, Uncle Bob appeared at 
 last, and Mr. Evans noticed that when he 
 emerged from the grove he was mopping his 
 face with his handkerchief, and that he 
 moved with very unsteady steps. 
 
346 THE MYSTERY OF LOST EIVER CANYON. 
 
 He staggered into the office and threw him- 
 self into his chair without speaking. There 
 was no need that the visitor should make any 
 inquiries, for his appearance and actions told 
 in plain language that he had passed through 
 a trying ordeal in the grove, and that, during 
 his long interview with Arthur, he had 
 learned some startling things. 
 
 " I have not another word to say," he man- 
 aged to gasp, at length. " What do you ad- 
 vise me to do ?" 
 
 " To leave the valley at once this very 
 hour, and put yourself and Arthur under the 
 protection of the troops at Camp Clark." 
 
 " Do you think the danger as great as 
 that ?" asked Uncle Bob, who, frightened as 
 he was, spoke calmly. 
 
 " I know it," said Mr. Evans, with em- 
 phasis. 
 
 " Do you think the herdsmen will allow us 
 to leave the ranch ?" 
 
 " We must take our chances on that ; and 
 it is now or never. They are scattered all 
 over the valley ; but a great many of them 
 will be in at dark, and I will not attempt to 
 
A HUEEIED FLIGHT. 347 
 
 say what the consequences will be if they 
 find you here. I will act as your guide, and 
 no doubt get myself into trouble by doing it. 
 If you are going to take my advice, be quick 
 about it. If you are not, I will go home." 
 
 These words aroused Uncle Bob, who 
 jumped up and put his hand into his pocket, 
 at the same time turning toward the safe. 
 
 " I will order two horses saddled at once," 
 said he. 
 
 " Give no orders whatever/' replied Mr. 
 Evans, quickly, " unless yon want to arouse 
 Ike's suspicions. Go to the corral and get 
 your own horses, and act as if you were 
 going to ride about the ranch." 
 
 " Well, we shall need some money to help 
 us along," said Uncle Bob, picking up a pair 
 of saddle-bags that lay on the table. " I 
 suppose I have a right to take what is in the 
 safe? It's mine, isn't it?" 
 
 " I suppose it is," replied Mr. Evans. 
 
 And, although Uncle Bob would not have 
 confessed the fact, even to himself, the tone 
 in which the words were spoken removed a 
 heavy burden of anxiety from his mind. 
 
348 THE MYSTERY OF LOST RIVEK CANYON. 
 
 Although no attempt had been made to 
 assist Bob and his friend after their boat 
 went into the canyon, simply because every- 
 body knew it would be useless, Uncle Bob 
 had been constantly haunted by the fear that 
 the boy might escape death in some miracu* 
 lous way, and come back to rob him of the 
 millions of which he believed himself to be 
 the owner. 
 
 But Mr. Evans did not seem to think that 
 such a thing could possibly happen, and so 
 Uncle Bob breathed easier. 
 
 "But you mustn't take those things with 
 you," added the visitor, as Uncle Bob walked 
 toward the safe with the saddle-bags in his 
 hand. " You will never get out of the valley 
 if you do. Be content with what you can 
 carry in your pockets, and leave the rest here 
 until you can communicate with Mr. Jacobs." 
 
 Uncle Bob thought it best to act upon this 
 suggestion ; but, after he had stuffed his 
 pockets as full of greenbacks as they could 
 hold, he did not seem to have made any im- 
 pression upon the contents of the safe. It 
 looked as full as ever; and the greedy old 
 
A HURRIED FLIGHT. 349 
 
 man could not bear the thought of leaving 
 any of his ill-gotten wealth behind. 
 
 u These packages are so large that I can- 
 not take many of them with me," said he, 
 with a deep sigh of regret. " Will you carry 
 some of them ?" 
 
 " I wouldn't touch a dollar of that money," 
 answered Mr. Evans, adding, mentally, "I 
 don't see how you can do it, either." 
 
 " By-the-way," said Uncle Bob, as he 
 locked the safe and put the key in one of 
 the bookcases, so that Mr. Jacobs could find 
 it when he wrote to him for the rest of the 
 money, " you spoke about acting as our guide 
 as far as Camp Clark. Why don't you show 
 us the way to Dixon Springs while you are 
 about it ? I want to go back to the States as 
 soon as I can." 
 
 " Camp Clark is about eighty miles nearer, 
 and I want to see you surrounded by the 
 boys in blue before I leave you," replied Mr. 
 Evans. " They are the only ones who can 
 save you. Now, if you are ready, come on 
 and act I meant to have told you yester- 
 day that we never think of shearing our 
 
350 THE MYSTERY OF LOST EIVEE CANYON. 
 
 sheep on our ranches. It is much easier and 
 cheaper to drive them to the nearest station 
 and shear them there, than it would be . to 
 buy or hire wagons enough to haul the wool 
 over these mountains.' 7 
 
 These last words were spoken in a loud 
 tone of voice, and were intended for Ike's 
 especial benefit. 
 
 As Mr. Evans opened the door rather sud- 
 denly, he saw that worthy but suspicious in- 
 dividual beat a hasty retreat along the porch 
 and dive into the kichen. He banged the 
 kettles and pans about for a moment or two, 
 and then he stopped and looked out at the 
 door, 
 
 Mr. Evans and Uncle Bob were walking 
 slowly toward the corral, stopping now and 
 then to look about them. They did not act 
 as if they were in a hurry, but Ike was not 
 deceived. 
 
 " Mebbe that plan will work, and then 
 again mebbe it won't," said the latter, shak- 
 ing his head knowingly. <( Mr. Evans is 
 pretty smart, but there is them in the world 
 that are just as smart as he is." 
 
A HURRIED FLIGHT. 351 
 
 Having put saddles and bridles on three of 
 the best horses they could find in the corral, 
 Mr. Evans and his companion mounted and 
 rode toward the grove, Uncle Bob leading 
 the animal that was intended for Arthur's use. 
 
 The latter was on the lookout for them, 
 for his father had told him that Mr. Evans 
 advised immediate flight. He was trembling 
 all over, and his terror made him so weak 
 that he could hardly mount his horse ; but, 
 with his father's assistance, he managed to 
 get into the saddle at last, and then Mr. 
 Evans led the way across the valley toward 
 the road that ran to the top of the cliffs. 
 
 " Mebbe that plan will work, and mebbe it 
 won't. The fellows who sent poor Bob down 
 to the inside of the earth ain't going to get 
 off as easy as they think they are. Mr. Evans 
 is gone now, and I'll tell my story to Mr. Ja- 
 cobs the very first thing I do." 
 
 The speaker was old Ike, the cook, who, 
 from his place of concealment behind one of 
 the outbuildings, saw all that went on in the 
 grove. He knew that Mr. Evans intended 
 to lead Arthur and his father to a place of 
 
352 THE MYSTERY OF LOST RIVER CANYON". 
 
 safety, and he was determined to prevent it 
 if he could. 
 
 With this object in view, he turned about 
 and ran toward the corral at the top of his 
 speed. 
 
THE MYSTERY SOLVED. 353 
 
 CHAPTER XXIX. 
 
 THE MYSTLflY SOLVED. 
 
 f f YTTHAT is it George?" asked Bob How- 
 VV ard, turning his eyes in every di- 
 rection except the right one. " I don't see 
 anything strange." 
 
 Still George made no reply. He simply 
 raised his hand and pointed with his finger 
 toward the middle of the valley. Bob looked, 
 and then his own eyes began to open, and his 
 pale face grew still paler. 
 
 It did not seem to him that his nerves 
 could possibly stand another test just then, 
 all unstrung as they were by the terrors cf 
 that long voyage in the dark ; but now he 
 was about to witness an exhibition of the 
 wonderful powers of nature that would have 
 made the heart of the bravest and strongest 
 man beat rapidly with excitement and appre- 
 hension. 
 
 23 
 
354 THE MYSTEEY OF LOST EIVER CANYON. 
 
 About three hundred yards from the spot 
 on which he and his frightened companion 
 stood, was something that looked like a long, 
 natural ridge. It arose to the height of thirty 
 feet or more, and was bare of vegetation. Be- 
 yond this ridge, extending the whole length 
 of it, and gradually rising into view above 
 the top of it, was an immense body of water, 
 which was broken into innumerable cone- 
 shaped billows, with broad, flat bases, and 
 smooth, round tops. 
 
 These billows, which were of enormous size, 
 were violently agitated, and, although they 
 were tossed about in every direction, they did 
 not change their positions, lose their shape, 
 nor run together, each one, apparently, being 
 independent of its neighbor, and owing its ex- 
 istence to a different power. 
 
 Slowly and majestically the billows grew 
 in size and height, and still the boys gazed 
 as if they were fascinated. Suddenly, there 
 was another deafening report, which made 
 the ground tremble beneath them, and up 
 from the midst of the troubled mass arose a 
 single column of water about as large around 
 
THE MYSTERY SOLVED. 355 
 
 as a hogshead, smooth as glass, and as clear as 
 crystal, and shot toward the clouds. 
 
 It went up to an almost incredible height, 
 and stood as motionless as if it were carved 
 out of stone. Then, the power which created 
 and sustained it ceasing to act, it crumbled 
 to pieces, like a column of sand, and fell 
 back among the billows, which, broken by its 
 weight, rolled from one end of the ridge to 
 the other, dashing the spray high in the air. 
 
 This continued for two or three minutes, 
 after which the water subsided as suddenly 
 as it had arisen, its disappearance being ac- 
 companied by a low, rumbling noise, which 
 sounded like the muttering of distant thun- 
 der, and when that died away all was still. 
 
 The two boys drew a long breath, looked at 
 each other in silence, and then they seated 
 themselves on the ground again. 
 
 " Old fellow/' said Bob, who was the first 
 to recover his power of speech, " we have 
 solved the mystery of Lost River Canyon. 
 That's a geyser, and its the grandest sight 
 I ever saw. I have been through the Yel- 
 lowstone Park with my father you can count 
 
356 THE MYSTERY OF LOST EIVEE CANYON. 
 
 geysers up there by hundreds, you know 
 but that famed place can't show anything to 
 compare with this. It was my good fortune 
 to see all the big ones in operation, but none 
 of them equalled this in grandeur, although 
 the ' Giant' beat it in duration. I saw it play 
 for three hours, and throw a column of water 
 to the height of two hundred feet." 
 
 " Did they all make such a terrific noise as 
 this one does?" inquired George. 
 
 "Some of them did, and some didn't. The 
 ' Castle,' which not unfrequently plays for 
 an hour at a time, and sends up a jet of water 
 two hundred and fifty feet high, shakes the 
 ground like an earthquake, and makes a noise 
 louder than this one. When it gets ready 
 to go to work, it begins to pulsate and throb 
 at the rate of seventy beats a minute, which 
 grow stronger and stronger all the while, and 
 finally culminate in a blast that is almost 
 deafening." 
 
 " Do you suppose that the explosions made 
 by this geyser during its eruptions were the 
 sounds we used to hear so regularly while we 
 were at the ranch ?" 
 
THE MYSTERY SOLVED. 357 
 
 " I am sure of it, and, in order to test the 
 matter Why, George, it is twelve o'clock !" 
 exclaimed Bob, as he drew his watch from his 
 pocket. "What time was it when we started 
 for the lake? It couldn't have been much 
 later than five o'clock could it ? Then, 
 we must have been in that dreadful canyon 
 almost seven hours. It didn't seem so long 
 to me." 
 
 "Well, it did to me!" answered George, 
 with a shudder. " I thought we were never 
 going to see daylight again." 
 
 " So did I," answered Bob, who was fast 
 recovering his usual spirits. " But here we 
 are safe and sound, and none the worse for 
 our terrible fright. More than that, we have 
 solved the mystery which, like the source of 
 the Nile, was ' so long a hidden thing to 
 earth.' " 
 
 " And our discovery will die with us," said 
 George, looking up at the tall cliffs which 
 surrounded the valley on all sides. " We shall 
 be prisoners here as long as we live." 
 
 " Not by a great sight," replied Bob, cheer- 
 fully. " We may not get out this week, or 
 
358 THE MYSTERY OF LOST EIVEE CANYON. 
 
 this month, but we shall get out you may 
 depend upon that. Now, then, let's unload 
 the boat, pitch the tent, and get some din- 
 
 ner." 
 
 " I don't want anything to eat," said 
 George. 
 
 " Neither do I ; but I thought that perhaps 
 a cup of coffee and a sandwich would put a 
 little life and strength into us. Besides, if 
 we keep busy at something we shall have no 
 time to think, you know." 
 
 George was fully sensible of that fact, and 
 so, when he saw Bob jump to his feet and 
 start toward the boat, he got up and went 
 with him, although it required the exercise of 
 all the will-power he possessed to enable him 
 to do it. 
 
 His courage and fortitude had never before 
 been so severely tested, and if he had been 
 alone he would probably have thrown him- 
 self down upon the ground and abandoned 
 himself to despair. But he could not do that 
 while his companion was so sanguine and full 
 of hope. 
 
 He lent his aid in pitching the tent on a 
 
THE MYSTERY SOLVED. 359 
 
 little natural lawn, a short distance from the 
 river, and it was not long before he became 
 so interested in his work, and in listening to 
 Bob, who kept up an almost incessant talk- 
 ing, that he forgot all about his wild ride 
 through the canyon, and his narrow escape 
 from death. 
 
 When the tent had been put up, George 
 lingered to tighten the guys, while Bob went 
 back to the boat again. Presently, he called 
 to his companion, and threw something out 
 on the bank. 
 
 " Didn't I tell you that we were the vic- 
 tims of treachery?" said he. "Just take a 
 glance at the stump of that oar and tell me 
 what you think about it?" 
 
 " Who did it ?" said George, when he had 
 examined what was left of the oar, and found 
 the marks of a saw upon it. 
 
 "You tell/' replied" Bob. "I didn't sup- 
 pose I had an enemy on the ranch ; but that 
 proves that there is somebody there who 
 wanted me to go into that canyon, believing 
 that if I did, I would never get out alive. 
 He will find that he reckoned without his 
 
360 THE MYSTEEY OF LOST EIVER CANYON. 
 
 host, will he not? Put it away in some safe 
 place, George. We must take it home with 
 us, even if we have to leave everything else 
 behind us in order to carry it there. Now 
 perhaps we had better load our guns, for we 
 don't know who or what are neighbors are." 
 
 " What do you mean by that? 
 
 " I mean that there must be wild animals 
 of some sort in the valley," replied Bob. " If 
 they know how to get in, of course they 
 know how to get out again, and all we've 
 go to do is to find a trail, put the dogs on it, 
 and let them follow it up. It will be sure to 
 lead to some gulch or canyon that we can't 
 see from here, and, by using that as a high- 
 way, we shall be able to get out." 
 
 " That's the very idea," said George, stoop- 
 ing down to caress the setters, which had 
 taken possession of the blanket their thought- 
 ful master had spread upon the ground for 
 their accommodation. " Do you know I had 
 wholly forgotten that we had brought any 
 dogs with us ?" 
 
 " So had I. I was so taken up with other 
 matters that I didn't even see them get out 
 
THE MYSTERY SOLVED. 361 
 
 of the boat, nor did I notice how they be- 
 haved during that eruption. We must take 
 the best of care of them, for they are our 
 sole dependence now. You thought we 
 couldn't find use for all this grub, didn't 
 you ?" added Bob, surveying the long row of 
 well-filled baskets he had placed upon the 
 bank. " We may go hungry yet before we 
 see home again." 
 
 " How far off do you suppose it is ?" 
 
 " I will answer that question, if you will 
 tell me how fast our boat traveled when she 
 was shooting through the canyon." 
 
 " She went like a flash of light," replied 
 George. 
 
 " Well, then, seeing that light travels from 
 the sun to the earth a distance of ninety- 
 one millions of miles in eight minutes, we 
 must have passed around our little planet a 
 good many times during our seven hours' 
 ride. But, for all that, I don't think we are 
 more than sixty or seventy miles from home." 
 
 " That's far enough," said George. " We 
 shall be weary and footsore before we get 
 there, I tell you." 
 
362 THE MYSTEEY OF LOST EIVER CANYON. 
 
 Having loaded their guns and laid them 
 where they could be readily seized in case of 
 emergency, George busied himself in gather- 
 ing a supply of light-wood, while Bob started 
 a fire and placed a kettle of water upon it. 
 
 By the time their provisions and bedding 
 were under cover, the water was boiling and 
 Bob made the coffee, while George unpacked 
 one of the baskets and spread its contents 
 upon a snow-white napkin in front of the 
 tent. He said he wasn't hungry ; but his 
 actions told a different story, and so did Bob's. 
 
 "Now, then," said the latter, when the last 
 sandwich had disappeared and the coffee pot 
 had been squeezed dry, " we'll clear away the 
 wreck and take a survey of that geyser." 
 
 " I believe I am as close to it now as I care 
 to be," replied George. "The old thing 
 might boil over on us." 
 
 Bob laughed, heartily. 
 
 " There's no danger," said he. " We have 
 a whole hour in which to make our observa- 
 tions. Since we are here and can't get away 
 to-day, let's see everything that we can that 
 is worth looking at." 
 
THE MYSTEKY SOLVED. 363 
 
 George lent willing and effective aid in 
 " clearing away the wreck ;" but it was with 
 a good deal of reluctance that he shouldered 
 his gun and followed Bob through the mes- 
 quite bushes toward the geyser. 
 
 He stopped when he reached the ridge, 
 but Bob fearlessly made his way to the top 
 and looked over it. 
 
 " Great Scott !" were the first words that 
 escaped his lips. " Come up here, George. 
 This mound is a silicious deposit, which has 
 been thrown up by the spring, and it is as 
 solid as rock." 
 
 " It ought to be," replied George, " for it is 
 flint" 
 
 "Then what are you afraid of?" 
 
 Bob's companion would have found it hard 
 work to answer this question, for he did not 
 know just what he was afraid of. 
 
 Laying his rifle on the ground, he climbed 
 to the summit of the ridge, and saw below 
 him an extensive, oval-shaped basin, partly 
 filled with water, which was so clear that the 
 smallest pebbles on the bottom could be 
 plainly seen. 
 
364 THE MYSTERY OF LOST EIVEE CANYON. 
 
 Its surface was as smooth as a mirror, and 
 there was nothing in or about the basin to 
 tell of the terrible commotion that had taken 
 place there a short time before. 
 
 " This bangs the great geyser of Iceland," 
 said Bob. " That famous spring, in its calm 
 periods, appears to be a circular basin about 
 seventy-two feet in diameter and four feet 
 deep ; but this one is two or three hundred 
 feet wide, and the water must be twenty feet 
 deep. Do you see those little holes, about a 
 foot in diameter, that are scattered all over 
 the bottom? There is where the stream 
 comes from that raises these round-topped 
 waves, while the power that threw that huge 
 column of water so high in the air must have 
 come from somewhere over there," added Bob, 
 jerking a piece of flint as far as he could 
 toward the centre of the basin. " I wish I 
 had pluck enough to put my skiff in here and 
 take a better look at it." 
 
 " Good gracious !" exclaimed George, back- 
 ing down the mound. " If you do that, you 
 will have to go alone." 
 
 " Why, such things have been done," said 
 
TlIK GKYSER HOLE. 
 
THE MYSTERY SOLVED. 365 
 
 Bob. " The shaft of that Iceland geyser has 
 been measured, and found to be nine feet in 
 diameter and seventy feet deep." 
 
 Bob took another long look at the yawning 
 gulf below him, and then crawled down the 
 ridge and joined his companion. He picked 
 up his gun, and was about to say something 
 more to him, when he noticed that one of the 
 setters had come to a point, and that the other 
 was backing him beautifully. 
 
 "A flock of quails for a dollar !" said Bob. 
 " Now look sharp. It is almost impossible 
 to flush them, and so you will have to shoot 
 them running." 
 
 As Bob ceased speaking, his gun spoke 
 twice in rapid succession. No birds arose at 
 the reports, but a couple of mule deer, which 
 had been enjoying their mid- day nap in a 
 thicket not more than twenty yards away, 
 broke cover, and set off toward the farther 
 end of the valley at the top of their speed. 
 
 " Don't shoot !" cried Bob, as George's 
 light double-barrel arose to his shoulder. 
 "You'll only wound them, and, besides, we 
 want them to show us the way out." 
 
366 THE MYSTERY OF LOST EIVEE CANYON. 
 
 CHAPTER XXX. 
 
 IN THE MOUNTAINS. 
 
 EEK dead !" commanded Bob ; where- 
 upon the setters began beating the 
 bushes to find the two birds that had fallen 
 to their master's gun. 
 
 "Didn't I tell you that there were wild 
 animals in this valley? The presence of 
 those black-tails proves that there must be 
 some way of communication with the outer 
 world, and if we are smart enough to find it, 
 we are all right." 
 
 "They have found another flock," said 
 George, who was closely watching the move- 
 ments of the setters. 
 
 " They are pointing the dead birds now," 
 was the reply. " Fetch 1" 
 
 In obedience to this command, each of. the 
 dogs seized a bird and deposited it in Bob's 
 outstretched hand. 
 
IN THE MOUNTAINS. 367 
 
 "Some folks call them Gambel's par- 
 tridges," said the latter, as he handed one of 
 the birds to George for examination ; " but 
 those who are better posted in natural history 
 call them Arizona quails. Now, you carry 
 the guns, and I will look out for the dogs." 
 
 So saying, Bob drew a couple of light 
 chains from his game-bag, and, after fastening 
 them to the collars the setters wore around 
 their necks, he led them to the thicket in 
 which the deer had been concealed, and put 
 them on the trail. 
 
 The intelligent animals, which seemed to 
 know just what was expected of them, took 
 it up readily, and would have followed it at 
 a keen run if they had not been held in check 
 by the chains. They did not give tongue, 
 but kept at their work in silence, and at the 
 end of two hours brought the boys to the 
 mouth of a densely-wooded ravine which ran 
 back into the mountains. 
 
 During this time the geyser had been at 
 work again, its approaching period of activ- 
 ity being heralded by the quaking of the 
 ground and the same terrific explosion that 
 
368 THE MYSTERY OF LOST EIVER CANYON. 
 
 had frightened them so badly three hours be- 
 fore. 
 
 The boys could not see it as plainly as they 
 did before, because they were much further 
 away from it, and there were too many bushes 
 in the way ; but they had a better view of the 
 column that shot up from the basin, and they 
 saw that, instead of being round like a hogs- 
 head, it was very broad and flat. When it 
 crumbled to pieces and fell back into the 
 basin, the sight was grand and awe-inspiring. 
 
 "What's that?" asked George, suddenly 
 facing about and looking toward the ravine. 
 
 " That was the echo," replied Bob, " and 
 it is probably what we heard while we were 
 at home. Of course, I am not positive on 
 that point, and I don't suppose it will be set- 
 tled until some scientific men have been here 
 to look into the matter. That shaft in the 
 middle of the basin must be a frightful place 
 to look at," added Bob, at the same time tell- 
 ing himself that he had half a mind to say 
 that he would not leave the valley until he 
 had paddled over that same shaft and dropped 
 a line into it to see how deep it was. 
 
IN THE MOUNTAINS. 369 
 
 Bob was an enthusiast, and if he had had 
 a companion who was at all like himself, he 
 would have known more about that geyser 
 before he left it. 
 
 He was formed of the same sort of material 
 that those daring travelers and explorers who 
 have done so much to add to the knowledge 
 of the world are made of. 
 
 He would have been one of the first to 
 climb the Matterhorn without a guide ; to 
 enter a newly -discovered cave ; to go up in a 
 balloon or down into a coal mine ; to plunge 
 into the depths of some unknown wilderness 
 in short, he was ready to undertake almost 
 anything that was exciting or dangerous, but 
 he wanted backing. 
 
 " Now I will mark this ravine so that we 
 can find it again, and, bright and early to- 
 morrow morning, we will begin our home- 
 ward journey/' said Bob, adding, when he 
 saw the look of delight on George's face, 
 " Don't shout until you are out of the woods, 
 old fellow. We have a long and tedious jour- 
 ney before us ; but you can't realize the diffi- 
 culties of it, because you have never lived 
 
 24 
 
370 THE MYSTERY OF LOST KIVEK CANYON. 
 
 among the mountains. This ravine looks as 
 though it might take us somewhere, but it 
 may lead us slap into a pocket." 
 
 " What's a pocket ?" asked George. 
 
 " It's a place in the mountains that you can't 
 get out of except by the way you came in. If 
 this valley was walled in as solidly as we thought 
 it was, it would be a pocket, and a bad one, 
 too ; for we could not possibly get out of it." 
 
 Bob then went on to explain that a moun- 
 tain stream is like a tree pressed flat, the only 
 difference being that the branches do not 
 cross one another. The tributaries are the 
 branches, each one being a perfect tree in 
 itself and leading to the parent stem. 
 
 It was perfectly safe, he said, for a tender- 
 foot to leave his camp alone and hunt up 
 stream, so long as he did not cross any of the 
 "divides" he found in his way; but if he 
 went down the stream, the chances were that 
 he would get lost when he tried to find his 
 way back, for he would be almost sure to 
 turn up one of the tributaries instead of fol- 
 lowing the main current. If he crossed a 
 " divide," and got into another system of 
 
IN THE MOUNTAINS. 871 
 
 ravine, lie might wander about for weeks, 
 and starve to death at last. 
 
 While Bob was speaking, he took the 
 chains off the dogs, and marked the ravine 
 by breaking a branch off an evergreen and 
 leaving it hanging by the bark. 
 
 Then he and George went back to camp 
 shooting three quails on the way, which, 
 added to the two Bob had in his game-bag, 
 made an excellent supper for them. 
 
 They sought their blankets at dark and en- 
 joyed a good night's rest, in spite of the fact 
 that the geyser awoke them regularly every 
 three hours by the discharges of its subter- 
 ranean artillery. 
 
 After they had eaten breakfast, which was 
 served up at daylight, Bob, who had bestowed 
 no little thought upon the matter, proceeded 
 to select the articles they were to take with 
 them on their journey. 
 
 He filled his double cartridge-belt with ball 
 and shot cases; saw that George's powder- 
 horn and bullet- pouch were well supplied, and 
 put into his game-bag all their lines and hooks. 
 
 As much of their provisions as they could 
 
372 THE MYSTERY OF LOST RIVER CANYON. 
 
 conveniently wrap up in their blankets were 
 next laid aside ; but these bundles were made 
 very light, for Bob knew that before they had 
 spent two days among the ravines, the weight 
 of their packs would begin to tell upon their 
 progress. 
 
 The next thing was to take care of the nu- 
 merous articles they were compelled to leave 
 behind them. They might not succeed in work- 
 ing their way out the first time trying, and if 
 they were obliged to return to the valley to 
 take a rest and make a new start, they wanted 
 some supplies to fall back on. 
 
 The rest of the provisions were wrapped up 
 in a blanket and hoisted into the branches of 
 a sapling ; the tent was taken down and con- 
 cealed in a thi ?ket where it would be some- 
 what protected from the elements ; the skiff 
 which had carried them safely through the 
 canyon was hauled out on the bank and 
 turned bottom up, and the little fowling-piece 
 and the ammunition-box which contained the 
 rest of their cartridges were wrapped in a 
 rubber poncho with their fishing-rod, and hid- 
 den under a log. 
 
IN THE MOUNTAINS. 373 
 
 When all this work had been done, Bob fast- 
 ened the coffee-pot to his belt, tied the stump 
 of his oar to his pack, and led the way toward 
 the ravine, the geyser favoring them with one 
 of its grandest eruptions by way of a "send off." 
 
 It would take a story longer than this to de- 
 scribe all the incidents of the journey that was 
 begun that morning, and which continued for 
 three long, weary weeks. 
 
 Such trials and privations, such severe tests 
 of their endurance and fortitude, they had 
 never known before. 
 
 Bob was experienced in mountain travel, 
 and he knew as much, in a general way, re- 
 garding ravines and " divides " as the men 
 with whom he had hunted could tell him ; 
 but he often found himself at fault. 
 
 After stumbling over rocks and logs all day 
 long, it was certainly discouraging to find them- 
 selves in a " pocket " at night to ascertain 
 that the stream they had been following had 
 its source in a little glen which was hemmed 
 in on all sides by rocks so precipitous that a 
 big-horn could not have scaled them. 
 
 Bob traveled entirely by the sun, and 
 
374 TEE MYSTERY OF LOST RIVER CANYON. 
 
 tried hard to keep the points of the compass 
 in his mind ; but when George began to 
 affirm with vehemence that was not natural 
 to him that the sun had fallen into a habit 
 of rising in the north, he lost faith in himself, 
 and his courage all left him. 
 
 For a while, George bore up manfully. He 
 was cheerful and confident, and ready to fol- 
 low as long as Bob was willing to lead ; but 
 when the last morsel of their provisions was 
 gone, and they saw their supply of ammuni- 
 tion growing smaller, and they were obliged 
 to go supperless to bed, in spite of all their 
 efforts to secure some of the mountain sheep 
 that occasionally showed themselves on the 
 cliffs far above their heads, and their boots 
 and clothing began to show unmistakable 
 signs of the rough treatment they were re- 
 ceiving, and the ravines all the while grew 
 darker and gloomier, and the "pockets" be- 
 came more numerous then things began to 
 look serious indeed, and George to show the 
 first symptoms of what frontiersmen call 
 "plains insanity " that is, an uncontrollable 
 desire to " keep moving." 
 
IN THE MOUNTAINS. 375 
 
 While Bob insisted on deliberation and the 
 exercise of extreme caution, and used his best 
 endeavors to keep his own thoughts and his 
 companion's from dwelling upon their almost 
 hopeless condition, George wanted to rush 
 ahead ; he didn't care where he went, so long 
 as he was in motion. He could not bear to 
 sit down for a moment. 
 
 These alarming symptoms increased every 
 day, and finally things came to such a pass 
 that Bob could not induce his companion to 
 stop for the night, until he had threatened 
 to tie him hand and foot. It was a necessary 
 precaution, but he neglected it too long. One 
 morning he awoke from a troubled slumber, 
 and started up in his blanket to find that 
 George was missing. 
 
376 THE MYSTERY OF LOST RIVER CANYON. 
 
 CHAPTER XXXI. 
 
 "ALL'S WELL THAT ENDS WELL." 
 
 BOB became terribly excited and fright- 
 ened when he found that his companion 
 was gone, for he knew very well what it meant, 
 and what it was likely to lead to. He did not 
 believe that he could follow his trail and over- 
 take him, and even if he did, it was not at all 
 probable that he would be able to manage the 
 insane runaway. 
 
 He was experienced enough to know that 
 being lost, or even "turned around," in an 
 unknown wilderness, has an effect upon some 
 minds that is simply appalling. In the lan- 
 guage of one who has passed through such 
 an ordeal, and who earnestly prays that he 
 may never be called upon to pass through 
 another : 
 
 " Everything seems changed and unnatural. 
 
"ALL'S WELL THAT ENDS WELL." 37? 
 
 The most ordinary events appear to possess an 
 unusual significance. The nerves become un- 
 strung, and the man soon loses control of him- 
 self entirely. I have been told of two in- 
 stances where lost men when found and ap- 
 proached by parties sent in search of them, 
 made off in the greatest terror, escaping by 
 almost superhuman efforts from their friends, 
 to die of starvation in the mountains." 
 
 It was no wonder that Bob became alarmed 
 when he thought of these things, or that it 
 was only by a great effort of will that he kept 
 control of his own mind. 
 
 " Poor George is as crazy as a loon/' cried 
 Bob, jumping to his feet, and bundling up 
 both the blankets, preparatory to setting out 
 in pursuit of his friend. " I haven't any too 
 much sense myself, but I'll not desert him so 
 long as I have the strength to follow his trail. 
 Here, fellows," he added, holding out to each 
 of the setters in turn the boots that George 
 had left behind in his hurried flight. " Take 
 a sniff at these, and then hunt him up." 
 
 As Bob said this he ran his hand along the 
 ground, and waved it toward the " divide " in 
 
378 THE MYSTERY OF LOST KIVER CANYON. 
 
 front of liim. He knew bis friend had gone 
 that way, for he could see the prints of his 
 feet in the soft earth. He hardly expected 
 that the dogs would obey him, for they had 
 never been called upon to do such a thing 
 before. Besides, the faithful animals had 
 been but scantily fed during the last few days, 
 and they were in no condition for work. But 
 they took up the trail, nevertheless, and fol- 
 lowed it straight to the " divide,' 7 up which 
 they scrambled as rapidly as their strength 
 would permit, Bob keeping close at their 
 heels. 
 
 When he reached the top he was all out of 
 breath, and had to stop and sit down ; but the 
 dogs began the descent at once, and soon were 
 out of sight in the bushes. Five minutes 
 later they gave tongue joyously, and their 
 loud yelps were mingled with another sound, 
 which made Bob tremble, and wonder if his 
 own mind were not wandering. It was a 
 human voice. He was sure of it ; but yet he 
 could not make himself believe that he was 
 not mistaken, for it sounded so strange and 
 unreal. He could not catch the first words it 
 
"ALL'S WELL THAT ENDS WELL." 379 
 
 uttered, but presently he heard it say, in 
 strong, cheery tones : 
 
 "Them must be his huntin' dogs. Poor 
 things, they look to be pretty nigh tuckered 
 out. Let's put 'em into the wagon with their 
 master." 
 
 " Who-whoop I" shouted Bob. 
 
 He put all his remaining strength into that 
 shout, but his voice was as weak as his body, 
 and he hardly expected that it would reach 
 the ears of the men below him. It did, how- 
 ever, and, after a moment or two of silence 
 and suspense, an answering shout came back 
 to him. 
 
 " Hold on a minute, please !" cried Bob. 
 " I need assistance !" 
 
 He staggered to his feet and stumbled down 
 the " divide." It seemed to him that he never 
 would reach the bottom at least, alive, for 
 now and then his strength would all leave 
 him, and he would go rolling down the steep 
 declivity, until he was stopped by some log, 
 rock or thicket of bushes. It was in this way 
 that he made his appearance among the men 
 who were waiting for him falling headlong 
 
380 THE MYSTERY OF LOST EIVEE CANYON. 
 
 through the willows that lined the base of the 
 hill, and landing in the road all in a heap. 
 They hastened to pick him up; but when 
 they had taken one look at his face, they 
 dropped him as if he had been a coal of fire. 
 
 " It's Bob Howard !" gasped one. 
 
 " Or his ghost/' said another. 
 
 " I am no ghost, boys," was the faint reply. 
 " I am Bob Howard or all there is left of 
 him. I went down Lost River Canyon ever 
 so long ago, and I have just got out." 
 
 The men waited to hear no more. They 
 rushed forward in a body to help him there 
 were a dozen of them in all and while one 
 took his gun, to which he had held fast in 
 spite of his hurried descent of the hill, and 
 another put a canteen of water to his lips, 
 Bob looked around and saw that he was 
 among friends. He had stumbled upon a 
 party of Mr. Evans' teamsters, and he knew 
 every one of them. 
 
 " My king !" exclaimed the grizzly old 
 mule-driver, pulling off his hat, and drawing 
 his shirt sleeve across his forehead. " This 
 beats my time all holler ! It is Bob Howard, 
 
"ALL'S WELL THAT ENDS WELL." 381 
 
 ain't it ? An' he ain't all smashed to pieces, 
 nuther, like we thought he was. I say, Bob," 
 he added, nodding his head toward one of the 
 wagons, " is that crazy feller we lassoed just 
 now the boy who went into the canyon with 
 you?" 
 
 " Don't make him talk," said the wagon- 
 master. " Hold him up, some of you, while 
 I fix a place for him." 
 
 The wagon-master worked with a will, and 
 in a few minutes strong hands raised the ex- 
 hausted boy tenderly from the ground and 
 placed him upon a comfortable bed. 
 
 When this happened it was broad daylight, 
 tut when Bob came to himself again it was 
 pitch dark. He had slept all day. At first 
 he did not know where he was, but after he 
 had gotten his wits together he became aware 
 that the light of a camp-fire was shining 
 through the canvas cover of the wagon, and 
 that the odor of boiling coffee filled the 
 air. 
 
 After a few attempts to get upon his hands 
 and knees, he managed to crawl to the for- 
 ward end of the wagon and look out. The 
 
382 THE MYSTERY OF LOST RIVER CANYON. 
 
 teamsters were seated around a cheerful blaze, 
 eating supper. 
 
 " Any of that coffee for me ?" asked Bob. 
 
 The men made no reply in words. Two of 
 them arose to their feet, helped Bob out of 
 the wagon, and to a seat by the fire, and a 
 quart cup, filled to the brim with the refresh- 
 ing beverage, was placed in his hands. 
 
 "That makes me feel better," said Bob, 
 after he had taken a long and hearty drink. 
 
 " Well, then, if you're all right, mebbe you 
 can tell us something about that canyon ?" 
 suggested the wagon-master. 
 
 " Did you see the giant ?" asked several of 
 the men, in concert. 
 
 "No, I didn't see the giant; but I know 
 what it is that makes that noise we hear so 
 regularly," replied Bob. "It is the echo, 
 awakened by the eruptions of the biggest hot 
 spring I ever saw or heard of. But, before I 
 tell my story, I want to ask you a question. 
 Didn't you say something about a crazy fel- 
 low this morning ?" 
 
 "I should say so!" exclaimed the wagon- 
 master. " Me an' the boys was drivin' along 
 
" ALL'S WELL THAT ENDS WELL." 383 
 
 the road, thinkin' of nothing, when, all to 
 onct, a chap, with ragged clothes an' streamin' 
 hair, come rushin' out of the willows. He 
 tuk just one look at us, an' then he streaked 
 it acrost the plains, as if all the wolves of 
 Arizony was clost to his heels. In course we 
 didn't know who he was, but we seed in a 
 minute what was the matter of him. Some 
 of the boys who think themselves jist a trifle 
 swifter nor lightnin', tuk arter him on foot, 
 but they might jist as well have tried to catch 
 the wind. The feller run like a deer. Then 
 four of us tuk a mule apiece outen the har- 
 ness, an' lit out arter him, and finally Jaspar 
 thar tripped him up with a lariat. But he fit 
 like a tiger, an' it tuk all four of us to hold 
 him." 
 
 " Where is he now ?" inquired Bob. 
 
 " In that wagon, fast asleep." 
 
 " You don't think that anything serious 
 will come of it, do you ?" 
 
 " That's hard to tell. While I was post- 
 hunter at Camp Clark, I was sent out with a 
 party to look for a soldier who had got lost. 
 When we found him he tuk to a tree, an' it 
 
384 THE MYSTERY OF LOST RIVER CANYON. 
 
 was all we could do to git him down ag'in. 
 We tuk him to the post, but he must have 
 left some of his brains somewhar in the mes- 
 quite bushes ; leastwise, he never had a level 
 head on his shoulders arterward, an' he was 
 discharged from the service fur disability. 
 But we'll do the best we know how fur this 
 friend of your'n, an' if anybody kin bring 
 him around all right, I reckon Mr. Evans is 
 the man. Now, Bob, fire away I" 
 
 There was no need that the boy should in- 
 dulge in flights of fancy to in order to make 
 his auditors understand that he and George 
 Edwards had had an exceedingly hard time 
 of it, but he could not help growing eloquent 
 when he told of their voyage through the 
 dark canyon and described the geyser and its 
 eruptions. 
 
 " I marked every ravine we passed through," 
 said he, in conclusion, "and some day I am 
 going to take an exploring party back there. 
 But first I am going to make the country 
 about here warm for somebody. By-the-way, 
 I brought a piece of an oar down the hill 
 with me. Have any of you seen it?" 
 
"ALL'S WELL THAT ENDS WELL." 385 
 
 " We tuk keer on it," said the wagon-mas- 
 ter, while all his companions scowled and 
 looked very savage indeed. "Do you know 
 who sawed that thar oar ? It was Sam. He 
 done it kase you wouldn't give him a job, an' 
 your cousin knowed he was goin' to do it, an' 
 he never said a word.'' 
 
 It was now Bob's turn to be astonished, 
 but before he could speak the wagon-master 
 began and told his story, winding up with the 
 words : 
 
 " They wanted Mr. Evans to take 'em to 
 the railroad station to onct, so that they 
 could go back East, but the ole man wasn't 
 fool enough to do it. He said that if Arthur 
 reckoned he could come here to Arizony an' 
 cut up sich shines as them an' git off scot- 
 free, he had made a big mistake ; so he tuk 
 'em to Camp Clark an' give 'em up to the 
 United States Marshal. I tell yer, they had 
 to run for it. They hadn't more'n got inside 
 the lines afore the boys came scootin' down 
 arter 'em. If the post had been five miles 
 further off, the soldiers couldn't have saved 
 
 'em." 
 
 25 
 
386 THE MYSTERY OF LOST EIVER CANYON. 
 
 It was late before any one in that camp 
 thought of his blanket. There was much to 
 talk about, a thousand and one questions to 
 be asked and answered, and it was midnight 
 before the wagon-master told Bob that he 
 had better go back to bed. 
 
 Before he went, he took a look at George ; 
 but, as the latter was slumbering peacefully, 
 he did not disturb him. 
 
 When they reached Mr. Evans' ranch, two 
 days later, the scenes we have just described 
 were re-enacted. The same surprise and joy 
 were expressed over their unexpected return, 
 the same stories were told on both sides, and 
 the same questions asked and answered. 
 
 George had by this time so far recovered 
 that he was able to sit up and put in a word 
 now and then, to help Bob on with his nar- 
 rative ; but he was very nervous, easily 
 frightened, and so Mr. Evans put him to bed 
 and left him there under his wife's care, 
 while he and Bob rode down to the valley. 
 
 We shall not attempt to describe the meet- 
 ing between Bob and his herdsmen, for we 
 could not do justice to it. They were fright- 
 
"ALL'S WELL THAT ENDS WELL." 387 
 
 ened at first, and some of them were more 
 than half inclined to take to their heels at 
 the sight of him ; but when they found that 
 it was really Bob, and not his ghost, who had 
 come back to them, they broke out into the 
 wildest kind of Indian yells, and made the 
 most extravagant demonstrations of delight. 
 
 Affairs moved smoothly at the ranch after 
 that. 
 
 Bob refused to appear against his cousin, 
 and so did Ike, who did it simply because he 
 knew his young employer desired it. Conse- 
 quently, Arthur was discharged from custody, 
 and he and his father made all haste to shake 
 the dust of that Western country from off 
 their feet. Bob does not know where they 
 are now. 
 
 George Edwards did not leave any of his 
 brains behind him in the mesquite bushes. 
 He gained health and strength rapidly under 
 Mrs. Evans' skillful nursing, and he is to-day 
 as good a boy, both physically and mentally, 
 as he ever was. 
 
 Bob expects, next summer, to act as guide 
 to a party of scientific men, who have ex- 
 
388 THE MYSTERY OF LOST RIVER CANYON. 
 
 pressed a desire to have a look at that geyser. 
 "We should like much to accompany them, 
 for they will be sure to hear some thrilling 
 stories of that wonderful ride in the dark, 
 which resulted in solving the Mystery of Lost 
 River Canyon. 
 
 THE END. 
 
THE 
 
 FAMOUS 
 
 CASTLEMON 
 
 BOOKS. 
 
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 CASTLEMON. 
 
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 vols., I2mo. Fully illustrated. Cloth, extra, printed 
 
 in colors. In box $3 75 
 
 Prank's Campaign ; or, The Farm and the Camp . i 25 
 
 Paul Prescott's Charge i 25 
 
 Charlie Codman's Cruise I 25 
 
6 HENRY T. COAXES & CO.'S POPULAR JUVENILES. 
 
 BRAVE AND BOLD SERIES. By Horatio 
 Alger, Jr. 4 vols., I2mo. Fully illustrated. Cloth, 
 extra, printed in colors. In box $5 oo 
 
 Brave and Bold ; or, The Story of a Factory Boy . . i 25 
 Jack's Ward ; or, The Boy Guardian i 25 
 
 Shifting for Himself; or, Gilbert Greyson's For- 
 tunes i 25 
 
 Wait and Hope ; or, Ben Bradford's Motto .... I 25 
 
 PACIFIC SERIES. By Horatio Alger, Jr. 4 
 vols. I2mo. Fully illustrated. Cloth, extra, printed 
 in colors. In box $5 oo 
 
 The Young Adventurer; or, Tom's Trip Across 
 
 the Flairs I 25 
 
 The Young Miner ; or, Tom Nelson in California . I 25 
 The Young Explorer ; or, Among the Sierras . . I 25 
 
 Ben's Nugget ; or, A Boy's Search for Fortune. A 
 
 Story of the Pacific Coast I 25 
 
 ATLANTIC SERIES. By Horatio Alger, Jr. 4 
 vols., I2mo. Fully illustrated. Cloth, extra, printed 
 in colors. In box $5 oo 
 
 The Young Circus Rider; or, The Mystery of 
 
 Robert Rudd I 25 
 
 Do and Dare ; or, A Brave Boy's Fight for Fortune . I 25 
 Hector's Inheritance ; or, Boys of Smith Institute . I 25 
 Helping Himself ; or, Grant Thornton's Ambition . I 25 
 
 WAY TO SUCCESS SERIES. By Horatio 
 Alger, Jr. 4 vols., I2mo. Fully illustrated. Cloth, 
 extra, printed in colors. In box $5 oo 
 
 Bob Burton 12$ 
 
 The Store Boy I 25 
 
 Luke Walton i 25 
 
 Struggling Upward I 25 
 
 NEW BOOK BY ALGER. 
 
 DIGGING FOR GOLD. By Horatio Alger, Jr. 
 
 Illustrated 1 2mo. Clcth, black, red and gold ... I 25 
 
A 
 
 New Series 
 of Books. 
 
 Indian Life 
 
 and 
 
 Character 
 
 Founded on 
 
 Historical 
 
 Facts. 
 
 Specimen Cover ot the Wyoming 
 Series. 
 
 By Edward S. Ellis. 
 
 Any volume sold separately. 
 
 BOY PIONEER SERIES. By Edward S. Ellis. 
 3 vols., I2mo. Fully illustrated. Cloth, extra, printed 
 in colors. In box 
 
 Ned in the Block House ; or, Life on the Frontier. 
 
 Ned in the Woods. A Tale of the Early Days in 
 the West 
 
 Ned on the River 
 
 DEERFOOT SERIES. By Edward S. Ellis. In 
 box containing the following. 3 vols., I2mo. Illus- 
 trated ' ' . . . 
 
 Hunters of the Ozark 
 
 Camp in the Mountains 
 
 The Last War Trail 
 
 C.OG CABIN SERIES. By Edward S. Ellis. 
 3 vols., I2mo. P'ully illustrated. Cloth, extra, printed 
 in colors. In box 
 
 (7) 
 
 $3 75 
 i 25 
 
 i 25 
 i 25 
 
 #3 75 
 i 25 
 i 25 
 i 25 
 
 75 
 
8 HENRY T. COATES & CO.'S POPULAR JUVENILES. 
 
 Lost Trail $i 25 
 
 Camp Fire and Wigwam i 25 
 
 Footprints in the Forest i 25 
 
 WYOMING SERIES. By Edward S. Ellis. 3 
 vols., I2mo. Fully illustrated. Cloth, extra, printed 
 
 in colors. In box $3 75 
 
 "Wyoming i 25 
 
 Storm Mountain i 25 
 
 Cabin in the Clearing i 25 
 
 NEW BOOKS BY EDWARD S. ELLIS. 
 
 Through Forest and Fire. I2mo. Cloth ... i 25 
 On the Trail of the Moose. I2mo. Cloth . . i 25 
 
 By C. A. Stephens. 
 
 Rare books for boys bright, breezy, wholesome and instructive ; full of 
 adventure and incident, and informal! n upon natural history. They blend 
 instruction with amusement contain much useful and valuable information 
 upon the habits of animals, and plenty of adventure, fun and jollity. 
 
 CAMPING OUT SERIES. By C. A. Stephens. 
 6 vols., I2mo. Fully illustrated. Cloth, extra, printed 
 in colors. In box . $7 50 
 
 Camping Out. As recorded by " Kit " i 25 
 
 Left on Labrador ; or The Cruise of the Schooner 
 
 Yacht Curfew." As recorded by " Wash " .... i 25 
 
 Off to the Geysers ; or, The Young Yachters in Ice- 
 land. As recorded by *' Wade ' I 25 
 
 Lynx Hunting. From Notes by the author of 
 
 " Camping Out " i 25 
 
 Fox Hunting. As recorded by " Raed " 125 
 
 On the Amazon ; or, The Cruise of the " Rambler." 
 As recorded by " Wash " i 25 
 
 By J. T. Trowbridge. 
 
 These Ftories will rank among the best of Mr. Tnwbridge's books for the 
 young and he has written t>ome of the beat of our juvenile 1 terature. 
 
 JACK HAZARD SERIES. By J. T. Trowbridge. 
 6 vols., I2mo. Fully Illustrated. Cloth, extra, printed 
 in colors. In box $7 50 
 
HENRY T. COATES & CO.'S POPULAR JUVENILES. 9 
 
 Jack Hazard and His Fortunes $i 25 
 
 A Chance for Himself; or, Jack Hazard and his 
 
 Treasure i 25 
 
 Doing His Best i 25 
 
 Fast Friends i 25 
 
 The Young Surveyor ; or, Jack on the Prairies . i 25 
 Lawrence's Adventures Among the Ice Cut- 
 ters, Glass Makers, Coal Miners, Iron Men and Ship 
 
 Builders i 25 
 
 GOOD BOOKS 
 
 Suitable for Girls between the Ages of 12 and 15. 
 
 'Ways and Means. A Story for girls. By Mar- 
 garet Vandegrift. "With four illustrations. I2mo. 
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 The Queen's Body-Guard. A Story for Girls. By 
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 Rose Raymond's "Wards. A Story for Girls. By 
 Margaret Vandegrift. Illustrated with four engravings 
 on wood. I2mo. Cloth, extra I 2 3 
 
 Doris and Theodora. A Story for Girls. By Mar- 
 garet Vandegrift. Illustrated with four engravings on 
 wood. I2mo. Cloth, extra I 25 
 
 Dr. Gilbert's Daughters. A Story for Girls. By 
 Margaret Harriet Mathews. Illustrated with four en- 
 gravings on wood. I2mo. Cloth, extra I 25 
 
 Esther's Fortune. A Romance for Girls. By Lucy 
 C. Lillie. Illustrated. I2mo. Cloth, extra, brown 
 and gold I 25 
 
 Helen Glenn ; or, My Mother's Enemy. A Story for 
 Girls. By Lucy C. Lillie. Illustrated with eight illus- 
 trations. I2mo. Cloth, extra I 25 
 
 The Squire's Daughter. By Lucy C. Lillie. I2mo. 
 
 Illustrated. Cloth, extra i 25 
 
 For Honor's Sake. By Lucy C. Lillie. I2mo. 
 
 Illustrated. Cloth, extra I 25 
 
 Marion Berkley. A Story for Girls. By Lizzie B. 
 Comins (Laura Caxton). I2mo. Illustrated. Cloth, 
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 Hartwell Farm. A Story for Girls. By Lizzie B. 
 Comins (Laura Caxton). I2mo. Illustrated. Cloth, 
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THE HANDSOMEST AND CHEAPEST GIFT BOOKS. 
 
 ' 
 
 gells" Aeries. 
 
 The " BELLS '' Series has been undertaken by the publishers with a view 
 to issue original illustrated poems of a high character, at a price within the 
 reach of all classes. 
 
 Small 410 $i 50 
 
 Ivory surface i 50 
 
 Embossed calf, gilt edges i 50 
 
 GEMS FROM TENNYSON. 
 
 By ALFRED TENNYSON. Elegantly illustrated by Hammatt Billings. 
 
 BEAUTIES OF TENNYSON. 
 
 By ALFRED TENNYSON. Elegantly illustrated with twenty engravings, from 
 original drawings by Frederic B. Schell. Beautifully printed on the finest 
 plate paper. 
 
 FROM GREENLAND'S ICY MOUNTAINS. 
 
 By BISHOP HEBER. Elfgantly illustrated with twenty-two engravings, from 
 original drawings by Frederic B. Schell. Beautifully printed on the finest 
 plate paper. 
 
 LADY CLARE. 
 
 By ALFRED TENNYSON. Elegantly illustrated with twenty-two engravings, 
 from original drawings by Alfred Fredericks, F. S. Church, Harry Fenn, 
 F B. Schell, E. P. Garret and Granville Perkins. Beautifully printed on 
 the finest plate paper. 
 
 THE NIGHT BEFORE CHRISTMAS. 
 
 By CLEMENT C. MOORB. Never before has this popular poem a favorite 
 with both the old and the young been presented in such a beautiful dress. 
 It is elegantly illustrated with twenty-two engravings, from original draw- 
 ings by F. B. Schell, W. T. Smedley, A. Fredericks and H. R. Poore. 
 
 BINGEN ON THE RHINE. 
 
 By CAROLINE E. NORTON. Elegantly illustrated with twenty-two en- 
 gravings, from original drawings by W. T. Smedley, F. B. Schell, A. 
 Fredericks, Granville Perkins and E. P. Garrett. 
 
 THE BELLS. 
 
 By EDGAR ALLAN POE. Elegantly illustrated with twenty-two engravings, 
 from original drawings by F. O. C. Darley, A. Fredericks, Granville 
 Perkins and others. 
 
 THE DESERTED VILLAGE. 
 
 By OLIVER GOLDSMITH. Elegantly illustrated with thirty-five engravings, 
 from drawings by Hammatt Billings. 
 
 THE COTTER'S SATURDAY NIGHT. 
 
 By ROBERT BURNS. Elegantly illustrated with fifty engravings, from draw- 
 ings by Chapman. 
 
{^'stories. 
 
 History of England, from the Accession of 
 James the Second. By Thomas Babington 
 Macaulay. Standard edition. With a steel portrait 
 of the author Printed from new electrotype plates 
 from the last English edition. Being by far the most 
 correct edition in the American market. 5 vols., 
 
 I2mo. Cloth, extra, per set $5 oo 
 
 Sheep, marbled edges, per set 75 
 
 Half Russia (imitation), marbled edges 75 
 
 Half calf, gilt , , . . 10 oo 
 
 History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman 
 Empire. By Edward Gibbon. With notes by Rev. 
 H. H. Milman. Standard edition. To which is 
 added a complete Index of the work. A new edition 
 from entirely new stereotype plates. With portrait on 
 
 steel. 5 vols., I2mo. Cloth, extra, per set 5 oo 
 
 Sheep, marbled edges, per set 75 
 
 Half Russia (imitation), marbled edges, 75 
 
 Half calf, gilt, per set ...,,,, 10 oo 
 
 History of England, from the Invasion of 
 Julius Caesar to the Abdication of James 
 the Second, 1688. By David Hume. Standard 
 edition. With the author's last corrections and im- 
 provements, to which is prefixed a short account of his 
 life, written by himself. With a portrait on steel. A 
 new edition from entirely new stereotype plates. 5 
 
 vols., I2mo. Cloth, extra, per set 5 oo 
 
 Sheep, marbled edges, per set 75 
 
 Half Russia (imitation), marbled edges 7 50 
 
 Half calf, gilt 10 oo 
 
^Miscellaneous. 
 
 A Dictionary of the Bible. Comprising its An- 
 tiquities, Biography, Geography, Natural History and 
 Literature. Edited by William Smith, LL.D. Re- 
 vised and adapted to the present use of Sunday school 
 Teachers and Bible Students by Revs. F. N. and 
 M. A. Peloubet. With eight colored maps and 440 
 
 engravings on wood. 8vo. Cloth, extra $2 oo 
 
 Sheep, marbled edges 300 
 
 Half morocco, gilt top 3 50 
 
 History of the Civil War in America. By the 
 
 Comte de Paris. Translated with the approval of the 
 author. With maps faithfully engraved from the origi- 
 nals, and printed in three colors. 8vo. 
 
 Cloth, extra, per vol 35 
 
 Red cloth, extra, Roxburgh style, uncut edges, per vol. 3 50 
 
 Sheep, library style, per vol 4 50 
 
 Half Turkey morocco, per vol 6 oo 
 
 Volumes I, II, III and IV now ready, put up in a neat 
 box, or any volume sold separately. 
 
 The Battle of Gettysburg. By the Comte de Paris. 
 
 With maps. 8vo. Cloth, extra i 50 
 
 Comprehensive Biographical Dictionary. Em- 
 bracing accounts of the most eminent persons of all 
 ages, nations and professions. By E. A. Thomas. 
 Crown 8vo. 
 
 Cloth, extra, gilt top 2 50 
 
 Sheep, marbled edges 3 oo 
 
 Half morocco, gilt top 35 
 
 Half Russia, gilt top 4 50 
 
 The Amateur Photographer. A manual of photo- 
 graphic manipulations intended especially for begin- 
 ners and amateurs, with suggestions as to the choice ot 
 apparatus and of processes. By Ellerslie Wallace, 
 Jr., M.D. New edition, with two new chapters on 
 paper negatives and microscopic photography. I2mo. 
 
 Limp morocco, sprinkled edges .,,,,,,,. I oo 
 
 13