king
his bearings, Tad climbed the mountain until he was able to look over
the tops of the trees. It was like a level green sea. He sat down in the
sunlight, gazing out over the wonderful landscape.

"A world of silence," he murmured. "If Chunky were here he would say I
was getting softening of the brain. Hello!" Tad froze himself. There was
scarcely a perceptible flicker of the eyelids as his gaze became fixed
on a point of rock just across the pass. There, poised with one foot in
the air, stood an antelope. It was a young doe, as Tad surmised it to
be. His position was not a favorable one for shooting because he was in
plain sight, and the least move on his part no doubt would be discovered
by the antelope.

"She must have scented me or else she has got a whiff from the camp. If
I don't make any false moves she will be over in that camp within the
next hour."

Tad raised his rifle slowly. Yet slow and cautious as he was, the
antelope's head went up sharply. So did Butler's rifle. He took quick
aim and pulled the trigger. The report of his shot went crashing from
wall to wall, like a series of heavy shots.

[Illustration: He Raised His Rifle Slowly.]

The freckle-faced boy leaped to his feet, and to one side, with rifle
ready for another shot in case he had missed. But he had not. The
antelope had leaped into the air, turned a complete somersault, and went
crashing down into the gulch out of sight.

"Hooray! Maybe it was a chance shot, but it was a dandy just the same.
Now I wonder if I am going to be able to find her. I think I know how."

The boy took out his compass and got a bearing on the point where he had
last seen the antelope. Noting the course he started down the mountain
side, sliding and leaping in his haste. Crossing over the pass was more
difficult, for a broad glacial stream was rushing through the center of
it. Nothing daunted, Tad plunged in, but was swept off his feet almost
instantly and carried several rods down before he was able to check
himself by grabbing a rock.

The rifle had been held out of the water most of the way, though it got
a pretty good wetting. The water was less swift from the rock on, and
Tad essayed another crossing. He fell only once on the way over. This
time he went in all over, rifle and all, but he got up grinning.

"It doesn't matter much now. I can't be any wetter, and I guess the gun
isn't any the worse off, though I shall have to give it a pretty
thorough clea