ned his head to one side. There, near the temple, was a purplish
blot, from which a few drops of blood were trickling. At the same time
certain movements, not unlike muscular tremors, were evident in body and
limbs.

"Why, he's alive!" said Paul. "Let's get him more comfortably placed."

While this was being done Worth picked up a tin cup, ran to a rocky
puddle in the dried brooklet where some water was left, and returning
with the filled cup bathed the fellow's face and head, very gently now
that they knew life was not extinct.

This, aided by the more comfortable position in which he had been
placed, had such effect that the man's eyes soon opened. He groaned as
he breathed, while with one hand he attempted to feel his head near what
was now seen to be a bullet wound. Paul, wiping his head, felt a
protuberance under his hair, and directly thereafter drew forth a small
pointed bullet, such as is much used with pocket pistols of the Smith &
Wesson type.

"Well, well!" exclaimed that lively youth. "If here ain't a regular
twenty-two pistol ball. It must have glanced along under the skin near
the temple and come out again. Who could have done it?"

When the man felt Paul's hand extracting the ball from his mass of
touzled hair, he clutched at the place, saying:

"I always--told--Dippy--that gun--was no--good--" A scuffling sigh, and
the fellow was again in a swoon.

What had they better do now? Here was their car, all right except for
some scars and bruises incurred during the last flight after Billy was
captured and stowed away in the old tavern. Where was the other man? As
usual in such stress, Phil again took command of the situation.

"This man's not dead. He may recover. He's either been shot by someone
or he's shot himself, which isn't likely."

Here the man struggled into a half sitting position, as he murmured:

"Didn't sh-shoot myself! Dippy shot--me! Dippy always--poor--shot--"

Then with a groan he fell back again into a state of coma. Phil, looking
hastily over the car, now said:

"Help right the car, boys."

This was accomplished almost as soon as said, by simply easing the upper
side down so that the Six again stood on "all-fours," as Paul expressed
it. It stood squarely across the brook-bed, headed towards the railroad
which here was not more than an eighth of a mile distant.

"Now, Paul," resumed Phil, "you hike across through the brush to the
railroad, if necessary. It may be the real high