st
this was better than having the raccoon's weight descend upon him
without warning, and the Hermit permitted him to remain. Sometimes he
even used Ringtail for a pillow, a liberty which the animal never
resented.

As has been mentioned, Ringtail was extremely fond of bright objects. A
bit of glass or tin glittering in the light would draw him irresistibly.
And one night this attraction led him into serious trouble. At dawn
Ringtail was still absent, and as the morning passed and he did not
return, the Hermit grew uneasy. Pal, too, seemed to miss his playmate.
He wandered aimlessly about and at last disappeared into the forest.

Late in the afternoon Pal returned and signified by his actions that his
master was needed in the forest. Remembering the plight in which Dave
Lansing had found himself, the Hermit carried his axe with him into the
wilderness. Pal ran on ahead but his eager barking enabled his master to
follow. Coming to a mossy spot under a big pine, he beheld a sight which
moved him to pity.

Long before, a trap had been set under the tree and forgotten. It was
covered from sight and badly rusted save for one spot, where a moonbeam
had made a dazzling point of light in the darkness. Lured by its gleam
Ringtail had stopped to investigate and his foot had been caught fast in
the trap.

For hours he had torn at the thing which held him so tightly, until,
bleeding and exhausted and almost dead with thirst, he had crouched down
among the leaves in despair. Thus Pal had found him and, unable to do
anything for his playfellow, had brought his master, confident that to
him all things were possible. When the Hermit came upon them, Pal was
licking the face of the big raccoon who seemed much comforted by the
dog's presence.

The Hermit, with his axe, soon freed Ringtail. As the latter limped
painfully, he carried him in his arms to the cabin, Pal frisking
joyfully about them. Ringtail had the best of attention and in a few
days was as lively as ever, his spirits undampened by his harrowing
experience. He worried Pal continually, but the dog bore it all with a
look of mingled resignation and pleasure which was comical to see.

About this time a new trick which the big raccoon had developed became
very annoying to poor Pal. When presented by his master with an
unusually fine bone, the dog would sneak off back of the cabin, look
suspiciously around and then quickly bury his prize, concealing all
traces of its locat