man saw Allan kneeling there, and holding his gun
leveled. The sight did not give him any too much enjoyment, either,
judging from the way some of the color faded from his face. He
spluttered quite as much as before, but he had lost a good part of his
make-believe courage. In fact, Thad believed he had the big bully on
the run; and he meant to press his advantage.

"If I don't get him this time, I will later on," said Kracker, giving
Aleck a look of intense hatred.

"Don't you believe it," declared the scoutmaster, cheerfully. "We're
going to see him through, and if it's necessary, we'll find a way of
sending word to the fort, and bringing a bunch of hard-riding
cavalrymen here to chase you out of the mountains. And just remember,
Colonel Kracker, there are eleven of us, all told, well armed, and
knowing how to take care of ourselves. We're no city greenhorns,
either, but scouts who have had a whole lot of experience in hard
places. Now, if you know what is good for you, keep away from our
camps, wherever they may be. Our guide, Toby Smathers, who knows you
like a book, says that lots of good people would throw up their hats
and cheer, if they heard you'd crossed over the line. You understand
what I'm saying, I guess, don't you?"

"You're doing a fool play, young feller, believe me," spoke up the man
called Waffles, thinking it was up to him to stick in his oar. "They
ain't many men as would dar' talk to the kunnel like you done. Better
hand the boy over to him; he's his uncle, and has a right to take
charge of him."

"That's a lie!" burst out Aleck, angrily. "He came around our home,
and tried every which way to get mother to just tell him what she knew
about the mine, promising all sorts of shares if only she'd trust him;
but since she didn't know a single thing about where it lay, and
wouldn't believe him on oath, either, course she didn't make any
arrangement. But he ain't any relation of mine."

"It wouldn't make any difference if he was, Aleck; when you say you
don't want anything to do with Kracker, that settles it," and Thad all
this while kept his eyes fixed on the big man, because he believed
the other to be just full of treachery and all kinds of trickery, so
that he would be ready to do something desperate if only he thought he
could take the young scoutmaster by surprise, and off his guard.

"You don't understand the matter at all," complained the big man, with
something like a whine in his gruff voi