e.

The long-legged man sat in Turkish fashion, and his eyes were intent
upon his oven and steaks. One hand rested in a rude sling, but the other
held a stick with which he now and then poked up the coals. It was
obvious that he was interested and absorbed as no other task in the
world could interest and absorb him. The soul of an artist was poured
into his work. He lingered over every detail, and saw that it was right.

"Now, ain't that old Long Jim through an' through?" whispered Shif'less
Sol to Henry. "Did you ever see a feller love cookin' ez he does? It's
his gift. He's done clean furgot all about Injuns, the fort, the fleet,
us, an' everything except them thar rabbit steaks. Lemme call him back
to the world, that good, old, ornery, long-legged, contrary Jim Hart,
the best cook on this here roun' rollin' earth o' ours."

"Go ahead," said Henry.

Shif'less Sol raised his rifle and took a long, deliberate aim at Long
Jim. Then he called out in a sharp voice:

"Give 'em up!"

Long Jim sprang to his feet in astonishment, and uttered the involuntary
question:

"Give up what?"

"Them rabbit steaks," replied the shiftless one, emerging from the
bushes, but still covering Long Jim with his rifle. "An' don't you be
slow about it, either. What right hev you, Jim Hart, to tickle my nose
with sech smells, an' then refuse to give to me the cause o' it? That
would be cruelty to animals, it would."

"Sol Hyde! and Henry Ware! and Tom Ross!" exclaimed Long Jim joyfully.
"So you hev come at last! But you're late."

They grasped his hand, one by one, and shook his good arm heartily.

"Was that where you caught the bullet?" asked Henry, looking at the bad
arm.

Long Jim nodded.

"Broke?"

Long Jim shook his head.

"Thought so at first," he replied, "but it ain't. Bruised more'n
anything else, but it's been terrible sore. Gittin' better now, though.
I'll hev the use uv it back all right in a week."

"It seems that you haven't been faring so badly," said Henry.

Long Jim looked around the little valley and grinned in appreciation.

"I knowed I couldn't do anything about the fort with this bad arm," he
said. "Weakened ez I wuz, I wuzn't shore I could swim the river with one
arm, an' even ef I ever reached the fort I'd be more likely to be a
hindrance than a help. So I found this place, an' here I've stayed,
restin' an' recuperatin' an' waitin' fur you fellers to come back. I
didn't want to shoot, 'cause them tha