et.

"Why, keep on, of course," answered the guide, in a tone of mild
surprise. "To-morrow we reach the top of Mount Washington; then we go
down the other side, and so on till we get through."

"All of which isn't getting our supper," Harriet reminded him laughingly.
"Jane, will you please shave some of the smoked beef? And don't spoil
your appetite by nibbling, please."

"Why, darlin', I never did such a thing. It was the beef that flew right
into my mouth. Now, what could poor Jane do under such circumstances,
except to swallow hard?"

"Nothing but thubmit grathefully and thwallow the beef," commented Tommy.

"And I did just that," grinned Jane.

Their table was a rocky shelf elevated about ten inches above the ground
and standing on a sort of standard, so that the girls were able, by
sitting down beside it, to tuck their feet under the rock, which made an
excellent board for the purpose. The night had not yet fallen, but
shadows hung over the valleys and the distant mountains, the purple tinge
creeping slowly up the side of the mountain which they were climbing,
enveloping the campers before they had finished eating their supper.

The evening, on the side of the mountain in their comfortable camp, was a
delightful one. They sat on their blankets beside a blazing campfire
amid the great silence, broken only by the voices of the campers and the
occasional cry of a night bird. Janus, after having made a thorough
patrol of the ground surrounding the camp, returned to the campfire and
entertained the girls by telling of the early Indian days, stories that
had been handed down by generations, and that had grown and grown until
they had assumed startling proportions.

All at once Harriet, in the midst of one of these remarkable tales,
tilted her head back, her eyes apparently studying the stars that hung
over the mountain range to the south of them. She gazed thoughtfully.
After a few seconds of this, she shifted the position of her head,
supporting the latter with her clasped hands. After remaining in this
position for several minutes the girl got up, yawned and began walking
slowly back and forth, the while listening to the guide's story.

"Harriet, are you nervous or tired?" questioned the guardian, eyeing her
shrewdly.

"I believe it must be nerves," answered Harriet laughingly. She strolled
off into the shadows, there to sit down on a rock within easy sound of
the voices of her companions, who soon