much education. And he would want some o' his
clothes."

The boys read the letter a second time. All were convinced that Link
Merwell had gotten ahead of them and had perpetrated the fraud by
impersonating Roger.

"It was certainly a bold stroke," was Phil's comment.

"Yes, and a clever one too, in a way," replied Dave. "From our talk in
the summer-house Link must have learned that Blower and the late Mr.
Harrison were warm friends, and, that being so, Blower would be willing
to do almost anything for Mr. Harrison's nephew. And Link rushed Blower
away in a hurry, so that we wouldn't get at him."

"I wonder if Haskers is with him?" mused Roger.

"I shouldn't wonder. If the mine is found, Link can't claim it, for he
would be arrested on sight. But he could let Haskers claim it, and then
turn it over to somebody else and thus mix it up, so that you would be
out of it," answered Dave.

"What do you think I had best do next?" asked the senator's son. The
unexpected turn of affairs had bewildered him almost as much as it had
bewildered Mrs. Carmody.

"I don't see what you can do, Roger, excepting to start on a hunt for
the Landslide Mine without Blower."

"Yes, let us do that!" cried Phil. "Who knows but that we'll run across
Blower and Merwell? And if we do, we can easily prove that Link is a
fraud."

"Well, we'll have to get some sort of a guide," answered Roger. "It
would be utterly useless for us to start out alone in such a country as
this."

"We might ask Mr. Dillon to recommend somebody," said Dave. "He
appeared to be a reliable man."

The boys talked to Mrs. Carmody for a few minutes longer. They were on
the point of leaving the house when there came a loud rap on the front
door.

"Perhaps Blower has come back!" cried Phil.

"I don't think he'd knock," answered Dave.

"No, it isn't Abe," said Mrs. Carmody. "I'll go and see who it is."

She went to the door and opened it,--to find herself confronted by a
tall, leathery-looking individual whose breath smelt strongly of liquor.

"Is Abe Blower home?" demanded the man, in a thick voice.

"No, he isn't," replied Mrs. Carmody, stiffly. She did not like the
appearance of the visitor.

"When will he be home?" went on the man, and tried to force his way into
the house.

"I don't know. You can't come in here, Sol Blugg!" And Mrs. Carmody
tried to shut the door in the man's face.

"I am a-comin' in," stormed the newcomer. "I'm a-comin' in to wait fer