untain
stream came tumbling over some great rocks. Here they found Phil's
fishing rod and also the string of fish he had caught.

"Gracious, Dave! Supposing some wild animal has carried him off!"
ejaculated the senator's son.

Dave did not reply, for he knew not what to say. He advanced to the top
of the rocks and peered over on the other side.

"There he is!" he shouted. "Phil! Phil! Are you hurt?" he called.

Only a faint moan came back, and scrambling up the rocks beside Dave,
Roger saw the trouble. Phil had slipped from the rocks into the mountain
torrent. In going down his legs had caught in an opening below, and
there he was held, in water up to his knees, while the water from some
rocks above was pouring in a steady stream over his left shoulder.

"Can't you get up, Phil?" asked Dave.

"Hel--help!" was the only answer, delivered in such a low tone that the
boys on the rocks could scarcely hear it.

"He can't aid himself, that is sure," murmured Dave. "Roger, we have got
to get him out of that--before that water pouring over his shoulder
carries him down!"

Both boys looked around anxiously. Phil was all of fifteen feet below
them and there seemed to be no way of reaching the locality short of
jumping, and neither wanted to risk doing that.

"If we only had a rope," said Roger.

"We might double up a fishing line," mused Dave. Then his face
brightened. "I have it--the pole!"

He ran back and speedily brought up Phil's pole, and around it he wound
the line, to strengthen it and hold the joints together. Then he leaned
down.

"Phil, can you take hold?" he questioned.

The youth below raised his hands feebly. But his strength was apparently
gone, and he could do little to save himself.

"Hold the pole, Dave, I'll go down!" cried Roger. "But don't let me
slip!"

While Dave braced himself on the rocks as best he could and gripped the
pole and line, the senator's son went over the rocks and down, hand over
hand. This was easy, and in a minute he stood beside Phil in the water.
The torrent from above poured over his back, but to this he paid no
attention. He saw that Phil was on the point of fainting, and if he sank
down he would surely be drowned.

Letting go his hold on the fishing pole, Roger felt down in the water,
and then discovered that Phil's feet were crossed and held by a rock
that was balanced on another rock. In coming down, Phil's weight had
caused the space between the two rocks to wide