been keeping such a close watch on us. He wanted
to see who had the map."

Then another thought came to Tom.

"If it was the map he was after," he whispered to himself, "he must
know what it's about Therefore the Fogers must have told him. I'll
wager Andy or his father put this man up to steal the map. Andy's
afraid he hasn't got a copy of the right one. This is getting more
and more mysterious! We must be on our guard all the while. Well,
I'll see what I'll do in the morning."

But in the morning the man with the black mustache was not aboard
the train, and on inquiring of the conductor, Tom learned that the
mysterious stranger had gotten off at a way station shortly after
midnight.

CHAPTER IX

A VANDAL'S ACT

"Bless my penknife!" exclaimed Mr. Daman, the next morning, when he
had been told of Tom's experience in the night, "things are coming
to a pretty pass when our enemies adopt such tactics as this! What
can we do, Tom? Hadn't you better let one of us carry the map?"

"Oh, I guess not," answered the young inventor. "They have had one
try at me, and found that I wasn't napping. I don't believe they'll
try again. No, I'll carry the map."

Tom concealed it in an old wallet, as he thought it was less likely
to attract attention there than in the new case he formerly used.
Still he did not relax his vigilance, and his sleep for the next few
nights was uneasy, as he awakened several times, thinking he felt a
hand under his pillow.

At length Ned suggested that one of them sit up part of the night,
and keep an eye on Tom's berth. This was agreed to, and they divided
the hours of darkness into watches, each one taking a turn at
guarding the precious map. But they might have spared themselves the
trouble, for no further attempt was made to get it.

"I'd just like to know what Andy Foger's plans are?" said Tom one
afternoon, as they were within a few miles of Seattle. "He certainly
must have made up his mind quickly, after he saw the map, about
going in search of the gold."

"Maybe his father proposed it," suggested Ned. "I heard, in our
bank, that Mr. Foger has lost considerable money lately, and he may
need more."

"I shouldn't wonder. Well, if they are going to Sitka, Alaska, to
assemble their ship, I think they'll have trouble, for supplies are
harder to get there than in Seattle. But we'll soon be on our way
ourselves, if nothing happens. I hope all the parts of the RED CLOUD
arrive safely."