king for deer that are miles away and overlooking ducks
that are trying to fly into the pot."

"I'm not overlooking much, Neddy, since that turkey biz. I've got my
gun in my hand this minute and here's a chance to use it."

As Dick spoke he raised the gun to his shoulder and fired. A little
black creature, thirty yards away in the grass, sprang into the air
and fell to the ground. Both of the boys started for it, but Tom was
ahead and looked back upon them, growling fiercely, with his fangs
fixed in the throat of the dying creature. Dick tried to coax the
lynx to give up the creature he had seized, but the animal was
filled with the fierceness of his race and even Dick dared not touch
him. The creature which the cat held in its claws was clearly a
rabbit, little and jet black, unlike anything which either of the
boys had ever seen before.

"I've heard of these little Everglade rabbits," said Ned. "Tommy
told me of a key in the Everglades where there were plenty of them.
If we had time we might look it up."

"How much time have you got, Neddy?"

"Another month will use up the time I said I would be gone. I left
that word for Dad in Myers. Guess he's there now and maybe my sister
with him. He won't worry a minute till the time I set is up, after
that there'll be trouble."

"What kind of trouble?"

"'Most anything," laughed Ned. "Might be a lot of nurses out looking
for a lost baby."

"He won't be frightened about you if you're not quite up to time,
will he?"

"Not exactly frightened, but he will want to see me, and I'll be
glad enough to see him, and sis, too."

"I knew you had a sister, but you never talked about her much."

"She's a nice child, alle samee. I think you're going to like her.
She's a little your style of foolishness."

"What's that?"

"Oh, it isn't very bad. But you haven't had much to say about your
own self, lately. You never told me exactly what took you around by
Key West. Why didn't you come straight to Fort Myers instead of
taking the tiny little chance of finding me in the big Everglades?"

"Well, I'll tell you. You see, mother knew how much I wanted to go
with you on this hunt and she begged me to let her foot the bills.
Of course I couldn't stand for that, you know, and--"

"Oh, Of course not, you stuck-up little donkey," interrupted Ned.

"So I started as a stowaway on the Key West steamer--"

"You cheeky little imp! Did they put you in command of the ship when
they found y