"Yes, sir," answered Tommy. "Proud of it!"

"Then perhaps you can tell me where those train robbers are hiding."

"I would if I could!" replied the boy.

"What are you kids out at this time of night for, anyway?" was the next
question. "You ought to be in bed."

"We came out to gather a couple of bear rugs for a Boy Scout clubroom in
Chicago," answered Tommy, with a slight grin in Will's direction.

"And what did those boys come out for?" the sheriff asked, pointing at
Will and George and the boy in whose interest they had left camp.

Tommy had no means of knowing what stories the boys might have told
regarding their presence in the mountains, and so he decided to dodge
the question. This seemed the only safe way.

"Ask them!" he said after a short silence.

By this time the whole party was out in the gulch, standing full in the
moonlight. The men conferred together for some moments, and then the
sheriff turned to the other members of the party.

"Get your ropes, boys," he said. "We haven't got time to fool with these
boys any longer."

"I protest against this action," shouted Seth. "You, Pete, are sheriff
of this county, and it is your duty to enforce the laws. If you permit
this lynching to take place in your presence, you'll be guilty of the
crime of murder, and I warn you that you'll be prosecuted."

Tommy and Sandy looked at their chums questioningly. They did not at all
understand what was going on. Will and George were binding up the wound
with bandages which they had long carried for use on just such an
occasion as this.

"I think I know my duty," answered the sheriff. "Wyoming officers are
being made the laughing-stock of the whole world because of the
frequency of these train robberies. In nearly every instance, lately,
the outlaws have escaped, principally because of assistance given them
by such people as we have here under arrest."

The men removed ropes from under their coat and began to unwind them.
Seth drew his revolver and waited.

CHAPTER XI

A WYOMING HOLD-UP

The four men stepped forward toward the boys with the ropes in their
hands. The boys stood facing the crowd with unflinching eyes.

"I warn you!" shouted Seth.

"Wait!" Chester cried, stepping forward. "If you're doing this because
my friends won't tell why they are in the mountains of Wyoming, and why
they are out in the hills tonight, you may as well hold your hands. I'll
give you all the information on the sub