ome prints. If not, possibly he might succeed with
his little electric hand-torch after darkness had come.

In the end he managed to secure all he required, and just as Toby had
said they turned out to be splendid pictures.

When morning came Jack started off along the logging road, bound for the
thoroughfare which led to Chester, many miles away. He found the farmer
ready to make twenty dollars for a day's run to Chester, and reached
town inside of two hours after leaving camp. His chums were pleased to
see him show up before four o'clock that afternoon and his radiant face
told that everything had gone well with him.

"Miss Priscilla was delighted with my report, and the pictures," he went
on to tell the others, as they came crowding around him. "She promised
not to do anything until we came back to town, for she didn't want to
spoil our vacation outing, she said, and if her vicious nephew once
learned that his big scheme for a fortune had fallen through on account
of our work up here, he might feel disposed to do us some bodily injury.
But she says she'll keep him on the anxious seat yet awhile. She is
quite angry at him for this nasty trick of his. If he had come to her
honestly and told her of his discovery, she says she would have gladly
given him a good interest in the property, and allowed him to have
charge of the opening of the new oil district; but since he tried to
cheat her out of the whole business she will turn him down flat."

"Just what he deserves, for a fact!" ventured Toby. "He's a bad egg,
according to my notion; and I guess his aunt knows it pretty well, too.
I warrant you she's had some unpleasant experiences with Mr. Maurice
before this. But I'm glad we're all on deck again. Now tomorrow we'll
start in to enjoy ourselves after our own fashion. Playing the spy may
be very exciting work, but say, it isn't just what appeals to me as the
finest thing going. You feel a bit cheap looking in on folks, just as if
you were peeping through a keyhole. Steve, are you with me for a turn at
the black bass in the morning?"

"I'm feeling fish hungry, if that answers your question, Toby," replied
the other: "and I'm laying out to go across country with you tomorrow to
see what the Paradise River looks like away up here."

It can be seen from this that the three boys had now cast all anxieties
to the wind, and meant to have a jolly time of it during the remainder
of their stay up among the Pontico Hills. It w