me as we did before," answered Sid
Todd, briefly.

"I don't think you'll drive that steer," answered Tom Yates. "Blinky and
I tried it, and we couldn't do a thing with him. Blinky wouldn't stay
here. He thinks the steer is crazy."

"Got a rope?"

"Sure," was the answer, and the cowboy who had been working to get the
cattle out of the ravine, swung a strong lasso into view. "But you ain't
goin' to use that on that steer," he continued. "Leas'wise, not if you
want to live to tell it."

"We'll see," answered Sid Todd, briefly, as he dismounted and took the
lasso.

"Can we help?" asked Dave.

"Sure you can," answered the cowboy who had accompanied the boys. "Just
you keep out of the way, an' that will be all the help we need."

"But perhaps we could do something," grumbled Roger. "I want to get into
a regular round-up of cattle some day."

"This ain't no round-up, my boy. If you go down into the hollow those
cattle will be wuss frightened nor ever. You just stay up here and watch
things. I'm going to get 'em out--or know the reason why," finished Sid
Todd, and he walked away with Tom Yates, and presently the pair were
joined by a third hand, the fellow who had said he thought one of the
steers was crazy.

With nothing else to do, the three boys dismounted, tethered their
steeds, and walked slowly and cautiously to the edge of the ravine. The
ground was very uneven, and treacherous holes were numerous.

"You would think there would be a lot of game around here," was Dave's
comment. "But so far I haven't seen a thing."

"I think the cattle and the cowboys have scared the animals away,"
answered Roger. "For hunting we'll have to go where it is even wilder
than this--Todd said so."

"My, but this air is the finest ever!" cried Phil. "I declare, it makes
me feel young!"

"As if he were old!" protested the senator's son. "But the air is
great!" he added.

"I know what it does to me," declared Dave. "Makes me mighty hungry."

"Same here," answered the shipowner's son. "I think I could eat about
six square meals a day. When we go out hunting, for a full day or more,
we mustn't forget to take plenty of food along."

"Oh, we'll eat what we shoot, Phil," said Dave, with a wink at Roger.
"They always do that out West, you know."

"Huh! And if we don't shoot we can starve, eh? Not much! I'm going to
take plenty of good things along when I go out."

"I wonder if we'll see much of Link Merwell," said Roger, after a