n
till we see Hank. We will let him know everything that has taken place
and rely upon him."

This was a wise conclusion, but the fact remained that there was no
expectation of seeing their guide until night, which was a number of
hours distant, and, since the Indians were in the vicinity, there was
plenty of time for a great many things to happen. It would seem, indeed,
that the advantage was almost entirely on the side of Motoza, for, with
his superior woodcraft, he could keep track of the movements of the boys
without their discovering or suspecting his presence. Altogether, it
looked as if a meeting with their guide could not take place too soon.

From a point perhaps a mile away came the faint report of a rifle,
followed in the same second by another report. The fact suggested more
than one startling supposition, but the youths were in no mood to
speculate thereon, for it will be admitted that the incidents of the
forenoon were sufficient to engage their thoughts.

It was a hard fact, however, that when they looked at their watches and
found that it was noon, the most interesting subject that presented
itself was as to how they could secure the meal which they felt was
overdue.

"Let's make a hunt in a different direction," said Fred. "It is best to
keep away from the neighborhood of those Indians, so far as we can
locate them from the shots we occasionally hear, for the game isn't
likely to stay where they are."

"Off yonder to the north appears to be a valley," remarked Jack, after
the two had studied their surroundings for some minutes through their
glasses. "I can't tell how extensive it is, for it is shut out by that
mountain peak on the right, but I suppose one place is as good as
another."

Having agreed as to their course, they wasted no time. It was a long and
severe tramp to the locality, for again the peculiar purity of the
atmosphere misled them, and what they took to be one mile proved to be
fully double that length. Finally the hungry lads reached a ridge from
whose top they could look down in the valley that had first caught their
attention, but which for the last hour had been excluded from their
sight by the intervening obstacles.

"Now, we can't tell whether any game is below waiting for us," said
Jack, "but we can't lose anything by acting as if there is."

It was a wise precaution, as speedily became apparent. As carefully as a
couple of Indians they picked their way up the slope, and