killed!" yelled Harry.

His face was deadly white.

"Help me!" came faintly from Blumpo.

Before the others could realize it, Jerry had leaped back to the other
side of the opening. Catching hold of a jutting rock with one hand, he
grasped Blumpo's wrist with the other.

"Now let go below and I'll haul you up, Blumpo," he said.

The frightened youth did as requested, and slowly but surely Jerry dragged
him up to a safe spot.

"Good for you, Jerry!" shouted Harry.

"By golly! but dat was a close call!" shuddered the homeless youth.

Then, with tears in his big, honest eyes, he wrung our hero's hand.

"You dun sabed my life, Jerry!" he declared solemnly. "I won't forgit dat,
neber!"

The nervous boy was averse to attempting a second jump, and so the party
walked along the opening until a much narrower spot was reached.

Once over, the upward climb was again begun. By noon they reckoned that
they were within half a mile of the top. But all were exhausted, and glad
enough to rest and take a bite to eat.

A fine spring was found, and here they washed up and quenched their thirst
before resuming the journey.

They found a large quantity of huckleberries growing on the hillside, and
these made very acceptable eating.

"A fellow could put in a month here," remarked Jerry. "But, heigho! the
vacation will soon be ended, and then for school again."

The rest over, they went up and up again.

"Beat you to the summit!" cried Jerry, and started up the last stretch on
a rush. Harry followed, and Blumpo was not far behind.

What a splendid panorama was spread before them! They could see clear to
either end of the lake and off to the hills east and west.

"I see the church steeple!" cried Jerry.

"Look! look!" exclaimed Harry, suddenly.

He pointed down the lake to where a yacht was bowling along before the
breeze.

"Si Peters' boat!"

"I wonder if Peters knows we are still on the island?" mused Jerry.

"I reckon he does."

"It's a wonder he and his crowd never came up to make more trouble for
us."

"Perhaps he dun got scared at dis hoss pistol ob mine," put in Blumpo.

To him that "hoss" pistol was a mighty weapon, greatly to be feared.

A little back of the summit of rocks was a grassy plateau, and here the
boys decided to camp for the night.

"What a beautiful place for a picnic!" said Harry.

"Rather hard to get to, though," returned Jerry. "I wonder if there is a
spring handy?"

"A spring awa