the men.

There were rejoicings in camp that morning, and soon after breakfast
Bart started off once more, taking with him Joses, Juan, and Sam, all of
whom were exceedingly willing to become the bearers of the meat in which
they stood in such great need.

The Doctor had gone off in another direction, taking with him Maude as
his companion, and after the little party had returned to the camp, Bart
was standing thoughtfully gazing at a magnificent eminence, clothed
almost to the top with cedars, while in its rifts and ravines were
dark-foliaged pines.

"I wonder whether we should find anything up there, Joses," said Bart.

"Not much," said the frontier man. "There'd be deer, I daresay, if the
sound of your rifle and the coming of the sheep hadn't sent them away."

"Why should the sheep send them away?" asked Bart.

"I don't know why they should," said Joses; "all I know is that they do.
You never find black-tailed deer like you shot and mountain sheep
living together as neighbours. It arn't their nature."

"Well, what do you say to taking our rifles and exploring?"

"Don't mind," said Joses, looking round. "Horses are all right, and
there's no fear of being overhauled by Injuns up here, so let's go and
take Sam with us, but you won't get no more deer."

"Well, we don't want any for a day or two. But why shouldn't I get
another?"

"Because they lie close in the thickest part of the cover in the middle
of the day, and you might pretty well tread upon them before they'd
move."

They started directly after, and for about two hours did nothing but
climb up amidst cedar and pine forest. Sometimes amongst the trunks of
big trees, sometimes down in gashes or gullies in the mountain-side,
which were full of younger growths, as if the rich soil and pine seeds
had been swept there by the storms and then taken root.

"I tell you what it is, Master Bart," said Joses, suddenly coming to a
halt, to roll up and light his _cigarito_, a practice he never gave up,
"it strikes me that we've nearly got to the end of it."

"End of what?" asked Bart.

"This clump of hills. You see if when we get to the top here, it don't
all go down full swoop like a house wall right bang to the plain."

"What, like the place where the mountain sheep went down?"

"That's it, my lad, only without any go up on the other side. It
strikes me that we shall find it all plain on this side, and that if we
can't find a break in the wall with