was there. His ear would not deceive him.
Doubtless it was a stray hunter or scout from the bands, and, while he
did not fear him, he was annoyed by the delay. It might keep him from
reaching his comrades that night.

He waited a long time, using all the patience that he had learned, and
he began to believe that his ear after all might have deceived him.
Perhaps it had been merely a rabbit in the undergrowth, but while he was
debating with himself he heard a faint stir in the bush, and he knew
that it was made by a man seeking a new position.

Then his intuition, the power that came from an extreme development of
the five senses, reinforced by will, gave him an idea. Still lying on
his back he uttered the lonesome howl of the wolf, but very low. He
waited a moment or two, eager to know if his intuition had told him
truly, and back came the wolf's low but lone cry. He gave the second
call and the cry of the wolf came in like answer.

Then he stood up with rifle at trail and walked boldly forward. A tall
figure, rifle also at trail, emerged from the bush and advanced to meet
him. Two hands met in the strong clasp of those who had shared a
thousand dangers and who had never failed each other.

"I thought when I made the call that it would be you, Sol," said Henry.

"An' I knowed it must be you, Henry," said the shiftless one, showing
his double row of shining white teeth, "'cause you're the only one in
the woods who kin understan' our signals."

"And that means that Paul, Long Jim and Tom are safe in the cave."

"When I left two nights ago, hevin' gone back thar after we separated,
they wuz safe, but whether they are now I can't tell. Decidin' that they
wuz foulin' the water too much, part o' the band has moved up to a place
mighty close to our own snug house. They don't know yet that the hole in
the wall is thar, but ef they stay long they're boun' to run acrost it.
That's why I've come out lookin' fur you, an' mighty glad I am that I've
found you. I'd a notion you'd take this circuit, after doin' all the
deviltry you've done."

The shiftless one's mouth parted in a wide grin of admiration. The two
rows of white teeth shone brightly.

"Henry," he said, "you're shorely the wild catamount o' the mountains."

"Why?"

"Well, I'm somethin' o' a scout an' trailer, ez you know, an' that ain't
no boastin'. I've been hangin' 'roun' the Injun camp, an' they're
terrible stirred up. An evil sperrit has been doin' 'em a po