, old top!" called out Bluff, carried away by his
enthusiasm, and acting as though he had known the other a long time.
"Now just give us a little time and we'll run you up here in great
shape. Here you come, then! Heave-oh, boys!"

It required their united strength to raise the boy who dangled at the
end of the grape-vine. This was on account of the fact that their
make-believe rope refused to bend very well, thus making its hauling
up a clumsy business.

Still every foot helped, and all the while some of them kept calling
out encouragingly to the boy below. In the end his head appeared in
view, upon which he was seized by the arms by Frank and Bluff, and
dragged over the edge.

Somewhat to the surprise of the boys, he immediately started to
brushing himself off, as though the dust on his clothes bothered him
more than any slight bruises he may have received in his ugly fall.
Frank made up his mind when he saw this that the other was certainly
nonchalant, or, as Frank himself expressed it, "a cool customer."

"I hope you're not hurt by your tumble?" Frank asked, at which the
other shook his head, and continued dusting his coat as he replied:

"Don't think I got even a scratch, which is about my ordinary luck.
But only for your coming I'd have dropped the rest of the way down to
the bottom of the hole, and that might have changed things some. Thank
you very much for helping. And that scheme of the wild grave-vine was
a corker, too. I'd never have thought of such a thing, I'm positive."

"Oh! trust Frank for hitting the right nail on the head every time,"
boasted Will, who never lost a chance to magnify the deeds of the one
he admired above any among all his friends.

The other now took occasion to look them over curiously, as though he
had begun to wonder who they were, and what brought four boys up into
this region. Frank guessed this much, for he immediately introduced
himself and his chums.

"We're from Centerville, a town that's a good way off from here. My
name's Frank Langdon, this is Will Milton, the one next to him is
Bluff Masters, and the other fellow, Jerry Wallington. We have always
been mighty fond of camping, and just now mean to put in a few weeks
on the shore of the big lake at a place called Cabin Point. Our stuff
has gone ahead of us on the stage that came along here yesterday."

Somehow Frank thought the other started a little and looked keenly at
him when this announcement was made. He could