coast, and I suppose it's the same here."

"We'd better not eat up all our crackers right away," suggested Jesse,
hesitating.

"No," said Rob, who seemed to drop into the place of leader. "We'll have
to do the way people do when they're shipwrecked and cast away. We'll go
on short rations for a while."

"Well," said John, "let's have a cracker, anyway, and the rest of that
last can of tomatoes we opened. I'd like a cup of tea pretty well; but
it may be some time before we see tea again."

"Worry enough for the day," said Rob. "And what we ought to be is mighty
thankful we got off as well as we have. Anyhow, we're alive; and,
anyhow, we'll camp here to-night. Now you boys go over to the boat and
get the bedrolls, while I pick up some wood and get some fresh grass for
the beds. It'll be dark now before long. We'll make a fire and cook the
tomatoes in the can."

Following Rob's advice, each now busied himself at these different
tasks. In the course of an hour they had a fire glowing at the centre of
the barabbara, which now would otherwise have been quite dark. The smoke
did not seriously trouble them after they had learned to keep down low
on the floor. Each unrolled his blankets on the deep, sweet-scented
grass near-by the fire. Thus, alone and far from home, in a situation
stranger than any of them had ever fancied himself about to see, they
lay about the fire at midnight of the short Alaskan darkness. Each
without instruction took his rifle from its case and put it on the
blankets beside him, taking care that it was loaded. Outside they could
hear the calls of flying birds; otherwise deep silence reigned. They
felt, although they could not see, the presence of the surrounding walls
of the great white mountains. Now and then they could hear the faint
boom of the sea on the opposite side of the inner wall. It was a wild
and new experience for them as at last, one by one, each nodded and
dropped back upon his blankets for such sleep as he could find in his
first night in camp on the unknown Kadiak coast.

VIII

THE SALMON RUN

Worn out as they were by the adventures of the preceding day, the boys
slept long and soundly. When at length Rob awoke he saw that the sun was
shining brightly down through the smoke-vent in the roof. He called the
others, who rolled over sleepily in their blankets.

"Time for breakfast, John," said he, laughing.

"Yes, and no breakfast," grumbled John--"at least, nothing but