lded, and his eyes
gleaming where the lamplight shone on them through the twin holes in the
sable mask.

The other moonshiners had disappeared, and the boys were alone in that
room with the chief of the mountain desperadoes.

There was something strikingly cool and self-reliant in Muriel's
manner--something that caused Frank to think that the fellow, young as
he was, feared nothing on the face of the earth.

At the same time there was no air of bravado or insolence about that
graceful pose and the quiet manner in which he was regarding them.
Instead of that, the moonshiner was a living interrogation point,
everything about him seeming to speak the question that fell from his
lips.

"Are you-uns revernues?"

"Why do you ask us?" Frank quickly counter questioned. "You must know
that we will lie if we are, and so you will hear our denial anyway. That
can give you little satisfaction."

"Look hyar--she tol' me fair an' squar' that you-uns warn't revernues,
but I dunno how she could tell."

"Of whom are you speaking?"

Frank fancied that he knew, but he put the question, and Muriel
answered:

"Ther gal that saved yore lives by comin' ter me an' tellin' me ther
boys had taken you outer her mammy's house."

"Kate Kenyon?"

"Yes."

"God bless her! She did save our lives, for if you had been one minute
later you would not have arrived in time. Dear girl! I'll not forget
her!"

Muriel moved uneasily, and he did not seem pleased by Frank's words,
although his face could not be seen. It was some moments before he
spoke, but his voice was strangely cold and hard when he did so.

"It's well ernough fer you-uns ter remember her, but ye'd best take car'
how ye speak o' her. She's got friends in ther maountings--true
friends."

Frank was startled, and he felt the hot blood rush to his face. Then, in
a moment, he cried:

"Friends! Well, she has no truer friends than the boys she saved
to-night! I hope you will not misconstrue our words, Mr. Muriel."

A sound like a smothered laugh came from behind that baffling mask, and
Muriel said:

"Yo're hot-blooded. I war simply warnin' you-uns in advance, that's all.
I thought it war best."

"It was quite unnecessary. We esteem Miss Kenyon too highly to say
anything that can give a friend of hers just cause to strike against
us."

"Wal, city chaps are light o' tongue, an' they're apt ter think that
ev'ry maounting girl is a fool ef she don't have book learnin'. Some
c