ch good, so
I reckon we'd better leave him, daughter. Time I was gettin' back to the
mine."

He turned to go, but Betty was before him, hand outstretched
impulsively.

"Oh, but you must let us thank you," she cried. "If you and your
daughter hadn't happened along just then I don't know what we should
have done."

"Oh, thet's all right, thet's all right," said the old miner, too
embarrassed to meet her eye. "Glad we could be some use to you, ma'am.
But ef you'll take an old man's advice," he added, as he and his
daughter started through the woods in the direction of Gold Run, "you
won't go roaming around in these parts without a gun onto you. 'Tain't
safe, noways."

"We won't," they promised.

Once their protectors were gone they were wild with impatience to get
out of this place of dangers. Their fingers trembled as they untied the
horses, and it was as much as they could do to get the animals to stand
still long enough to mount them.

However, once in the saddle, they galloped along that narrow trail at
full speed, regardless of rocks and old stumps of trees and treacherous
holes, their one thought to reach the open road--and safety.

When at last the plain stretched before them, level and red hot in the
blazing afternoon sun, they all uttered a silent prayer of thankfulness.

"You were right, Amy," said Betty suddenly, as Amy came up abreast of
her, "when you said the mountains could be cruel too."

"We'll not ever dare tell the folks," said Grace, shuddering at the
memory of their close escape. "They would never let us out of their
sight again."

"It was mighty lucky for us that Meggy and her father happened along
just as they did," said Mollie. "I know I couldn't have held on very
long where I was, and once on the ground I'd have made a lovely tender
morsel for the little wolves."

"You flatter yourself," retorted Grace, and Amy shivered.

"I don't know how you girls can joke about such a thing," she said. "I
was about frightened to death."

"I suppose you think the rest of us enjoyed it," said Mollie, and at
this point Betty thought it was about time to interfere.

"Wasn't it odd--Meggy's speaking of our friend the musician and calling
him the Hermit of Gold Run?" she said. "I'm glad the poor lonely fellow
has a nice girl like Meggy to befriend him."

"Huh, he didn't seem to want befriending very much when we saw him,"
said Mollie. "We couldn't have been frozen more completely if we had
dropped