ts as learned by his chum,
and as of old they discussed the situation, for while the boy from the
lumber regions lacked the education and polish that were Cuthbert's
birthright, he did possess a shrewd mind and had homely ideas of what
was good and true--this had been the very thing that attracted the
Virginian to him in the start, and the more he saw of Eli the stronger
grew his affection, until it bade fair to become another David and
Jonathan relationship.

On his part Eli was more excited than usual, because he had made a
discovery during his friend's absence, which was to the effect that
certain specimens of ore which he had somehow managed to pick up and
thrust into his pockets while in the woods were very rich with a
greenish mineral which Eli knew well enough to be virgin copper, and he
felt convinced that he had at last struck the bonanza for which he had
so long been searching--a genuine copper lode.

When they had partly arranged their intended plan of action and fixed
matters so that on the morrow they could open the game, the two young
conspirators began to get ready for turning in.

There was certainly no need of keeping watch here, for they were in the
stockade bounds of the fort and within a biscuit toss of the factor's
headquarters; surely no prowler would dare molest them here, and if he
did there would always be the chances of his running up against a 30-30
from the forceful little Marlin repeater that must discourage his
sneaking propensities.

Once they had heard a great disturbance around on the other side of the
main building, with many loud excited voices chiming in, but Cuthbert,
believing that the affair did not concern them and was probably only a
dispute among some of the unruly employes of the trading company,
restrained the impulsive Eli, who was for bolting out and learning the
cause of the fracas.

Where could Owen be?

Surely the boy would not sneak away, after so boldly accompanying them
to the Hudson Bay post--he had as much as promised to stick by them up
to the time they expected to return to civilization, and if Cuthbert was
any judge of human nature Owen Dugdale was not the one to go back on his
word.

And it was very unlikely that anything could have happened to him off in
the dense forest, where he was so much at home--the men connected with
the post were now aware that the factor frowned upon such a thing as
kidnapping one who showed the utmost reluctance to visit his r