from its place
on the rock, and, running swiftly along the ledge, concealed
itself in the clump of cedars above the trail on the southern side
of the mountain. A moment later the almost exhausted horse and his
rider passed, and the figure, slipping from the ledge, followed
them unobserved down the mountain.

Nearing the house Sammy began to wonder what she should do next.
With all her heart the girl believed in her father's innocence.
She did not know why those men were at her home. But she did know
that the money that helped her father over the drought had come
through the shepherd; the Matthews family, too, had been helped
the same way. Surely Dad Howitt was incapable of any crime. It was
all some terrible mistake; some trap from which her father must be
saved. But Sammy knew, too, that Wash Gibbs and his companions
were bad men, who might easily be guilty of the robbery. To help
them escape the officers was quite a different matter.

Leaving the trembling Brownie in a clump of bushes a little way
from the clearing, the girl went forward on foot, and behind her
still crept the figure that had followed from the Lookout. Once
the figure paused as if undecided which course to pursue. Close
by, two saddle horses that had carried their riders on many a long
ride were tied to a tree a few feet from the corner of the barn.
Sammy would have recognized these, but in her excitement she had
failed to notice them.

At first the girl saw no light. Could it be that the officers were
wrong? that there was no one at the cabin after all? Then a little
penciled gleam set her heart throbbing wildly. Blankets were
fastened over the windows.

Sammy remembered that a few days before a bit of chinking had
fallen from between the logs in the rear of the cabin. She had
spoken to her father about it, but it was not likely that he had
remembered to fix it. Cautiously she passed around the house, and,
creeping up to the building, through the crevice between the logs,
gained a clear view of the interior.

Seated or lounging on chairs and on the floor about the room were
eleven men; one, the man who had been with Wash Gibbs at the mill,
carried his arm in a sling. The girl outside could hear distinctly
every word that was spoken. Wash, himself, was speaking. "Well,
boys, we're all here. Let's get through and get away. Bring out
the stuff, Jim."

Mr. Lane went to one corner of the cabin, and, pulling up a loose
board of the flooring, drew