pick from. But of these Blaze, so called from a white streak down his
head, was the favorite of Nort. Blackie was Dick's choice, and the
selection of the name was due to the color of the horse, it being
almost perfect black.

Blaze and Blackie were safe at the ends of their tether ropes--the
lariats the boys carried coiled on their saddle horns during the day.

Breakfast over--and it was not a very substantial meal--the boys
saddled their steeds and then looked at one another.

"What are we going to do?" asked Dick.

"Hit the trail--for somewhere," answered Nort.

"The trouble is there doesn't seem to be any trail to hit," spoke Dick,
rather grimly. "It would be easy, if there was only a cow path, to
ride along it until we came to some place. But here, as soon as we
ride out of one swale we're in another, and we don't get a sight of Bud
or the cattle we set out to haze back."

"I wonder what he thinks of us?" mused Nort.

"Oh, he must have sized up the situation, and so knows what has
happened to us," declared Dick. "He's probably out now, with some of
the cowboys, looking for us."

"I hope they bring something to eat," spoke Nort. "We'll be on mighty
short rations at noon, unless we can eat grass, the way the ponies do."

"Or knock over a jack," added Dick. "They seem to be plentiful."

As he spoke, one of the long-legged and longer-eared rabbits shot past,
having paused to look at the strangers, who, doubtless in his mind,
were usurping his land.

"Tell you what we ought to do," suggested Nort as they mounted, having
made fast their packs and trampled out the fire.

"What?" asked Dick.

"We ought to ride to the top of the highest hill, and take a look.
That ought to show something besides a mirage. I s'pose, if we had our
wits about us, we'd know whether we ought to ride north, south, east or
west," Nort went on. "But, as it is, I don't know which way Diamond X
lies."

They urged Blaze and Blackie up the slope of what they judged to be the
highest hill in their vicinity. And as they gained the summit, and
looked down into a valley on the other side, they saw something that
caused them to both exclaim in surprise.

"Look!" cried Nort. "There's some of our bunch!" He pointed to men
and horses in a camp, of which white tents formed a part.

"That isn't our crowd!" exclaimed Dick. "That's the outfit of the two
professors, and they're up to some mighty queer doings!"

"Digging for gold!" d