ed that the
detective had sent for food, since there was no longer any doubt about
his having regularly besieged the house.

All this time Bob had continued his work, assisted by Dick, and it was
not until the setting sun had distorted the shadows of the trees into
dark images of giants that he announced its completion.

"There!" he cried, triumphantly, as he laid the last tin tube by the
side of the other two, "we are all ready, and in two hours more we will
start."

"In two hours Newcombe and his men will be there just as they are now,"
said Jim, rather impatiently, for he thought Bob was assuming to be able
to do very much more than was possible.

"I suppose they will," was the quiet reply, "and I should not be very
much surprised if we should see them there twenty-four hours later."

"What is it you propose doing, Bob?" asked George, who, thoroughly tired
of the inactivity as was Ralph, was only anxious to know when their
irksome captivity would come to an end.

"I'll tell you. In the first place, how far is Hoxie's well from here in
a straight line?"

"Directly through the woods, I suppose it is not more than half a mile.
I surveyed the next tract to it, and I fancy that is about the
distance."

"And if we should start from the back of the hut, traveling in a
straight line, we should come to it?"

"Yes; there would be no difficulty about that."

"Then I propose that we simply go out through the back window, unless
Newcombe has sufficient wits about him to station one of his men there.
We can, by making two trips, carry enough glycerine to shoot the well in
good style, and by midnight we should be all ready for the work."

The plan was so simple, and with so many elements of success about it,
that Bob's audience testified to their appreciation of it by vigorous
applause, which must have mystified the worthy Mr. Newcombe
considerably.

"In an hour from now we can begin work. Ralph, who might possibly have
some compunctions about carrying a couple of cans of glycerine through
the woods, where to strike one against a tree might result in his
immediate departure from the world, shall carry the cartridges. Then
there will be four of us, each of whom can carry eight quarts. Two trips
will give us sixty-four quarts, and that will be enough to start the oil
from Mr. Hoxie's well, if there is any there."

Bob's plan was quite as dangerous as it was simple. To carry eight
quarts of glycerine through the woods