a feeble effort to keep from his face those long, sharp fangs.

Bullet and knife had done their work and the panther was dead. But
Dick was unconscious and covered with blood which was flowing from
deep gashes in his arm and a side that was torn from shoulder to
waist. Ned half carried and half dragged the unconscious Dick a few
yards to a level piece of dry ground and examined his wounds. Bad
as they looked, there was no spouting of blood from an artery, or
heavy flow from a large vein. With simple bandaging and care the boy
would get well, and Ned's relief was so great that he was almost
happy. He removed what the panther had left of Dick's shirt, which
was sodden with blood, and tearing off his own, bandaged the wounds
from which blood was still flowing. He then filled his cap with
water from the river and sprinkled Dick's face, but failed to bring
him to consciousness. He was wondering what next to try when Dick
opened his eyes and smiled weakly.

"Did he hurt you, Neddy?"

"No, he didn't hurt me, thanks to you, Dicky boy. Now I'm going to
bring the camp here, in the canoe. Can you get along without me for
half an hour?"

"Sure. Don't forget Tom."

Ned didn't forget Tom. He thought so much of him that he took his
rifle with him when he went to move the camp. For he was without a
shirt and was stained with Dick's blood and therefore very doubtful
how the lynx would behave. But Tom merely sniffed at him and when
the canoe was loaded stepped aboard as coolly as if his passage had
been paid for. When the canoe landed at the new camping ground Tom
took a few steps toward Dick and then suddenly sprang into the woods
and away, as if witches were after him. Ned was surprised at first,
but remembered that Tommy, the Seminole, had once said to him:

"Wildcat eat 'coon, panther eat wildcat," and he ceased to wonder
why Tom had run away.

Ned stretched the canvas over Dick, built a camp fire, got out a
clean shirt for himself and tore up another for bandages. He washed
Dick's wounds, which had ceased to bleed, with warm water and soap
and put fresh bandages on them. After he had gathered a lot of moss
and made a soft bed for the invalid, he picked up Dick's gun and
walking a few steps down the river bank, shot a curlew that sat on a
branch by the stream and was young enough to make a broil or stew
for the invalid.

"Been breaking the law, have you, Neddy?"

"I'd break anything, to get you some nice chicken broth su