h feelings of mutual regret. They
had not had much faith or confidence in each other at first, but in the
end each group knew the worth of the other. The parting between the boys
and Seth was particularly heartfelt. Although Sheriff Pete had been
trying to reach information he sought in his own way, the deputy had
faced him down when he believed that the boys were to be lynched. There
was many a good laugh after that, in the room of the Sheriff at Lander.

When at last the boys reached their camp and the two men who had brought
the escaped convict down had disappeared, Sandy came creeping out from
under a pile of blankets in one of the tents.

"What do you know about that?" asked Tommy, pointing to the boy.

Sandy yawned and rubbed his eyes.

"Say, what time is it?" he asked.

"Four o'clock!" replied Will.

"Is it yesterday or today?" asked Sandy.

"It's the day after tomorrow!" grinned Tommy.

"Don't get funny, now," Sandy advised. "Whatever day it is, I've been
asleep ever since you boys went away."

CHAPTER XXI

CONCLUSION

"You never have!" declared Tommy.

"Honest!" replied Sandy. "I filled myself up with provisions and crawled
under the blanket and went to sleep just after you went away to get some
bear steak for breakfast. Did you get the steak?" the boy added with a
grin.

"You bet I did," answered Tommy, "and I brought it back with me," he
added, stroking the waistband of his trousers. "How's your shoulder?"

"Fine as a fiddle," was the reply. "I'm not going to have any trouble
with it after this! Did you find Chester's fond parent," he added,
glancing in the direction of the escaped convict.

"Sure we did," replied Tommy. "And, do you know," the boy went on, "that
we needn't have bothered about finding him at all. Chester knows
everything about the Fremont case that the father does."

"Is that right, Chester?" asked Sandy.

"Now you come on over here to father," Chester said, "and we'll ask him
what took place in the private room of Fremont's bank that night, and
we'll see if his memory of the things which occurred there is the same
as mine."

The boys now all trooped to the tent where Mr. Wagner had been placed
and Chester asked:

"Do you know why these boys are here, father?"

"To take me back to prison, I suppose," was the almost sullen reply.

"They are here to establish your innocence," the son went on. "Do you
know why?"

The father glanced keenly from his son to the