tart out upon his face.
Suddenly, as if a giant hand was lifted, the effects of the shock
resulting from his fall passed away. He opened his eyes, and there was
Madge, with her face buried upon his breast, in brief oblivion from
fears that threatened to crush at once hope and life.

To his great joy he found that he could move. Feebly, and with great
difficulty, he lifted her head and tried to regain his feet. He found
this impossible, and soon realized that his leg was broken. He now
saw that he must act wisely and carefully, or their plight would be
serious indeed; and yet his mind was in such a tumult of immeasurable
joy at his discovery that he would not in the least regret the
accident, if assured of her safety.

At last, in response to his efforts, she began to revive. The sense
of responsibility, the necessity for action on her part, had been
so great immediately before she had fainted under the stress of one
overwhelming fear, that her mind, even during unconsciousness, may
have put forth effort to regain its hold upon sense. She found herself
leaning against a prostrate tree, and Graydon sitting near, speaking
to her in soothing and encouraging tones.

In response to her bewildered, troubled look of inquiry, he said,
cheerfully, and in natural tones, "Don't worry, Madge, or be
frightened."

"What has happened, Graydon?"

"I'll tell you what I know, and you must supply the rest. We were
proceeding along that ledge above us, and trying to find a safe place
to climb down."

A slow deep color began to take the place of her pallor, showing that
her own memory was supplying all that had occurred.

"You know I fell, Madge. Thank God, I did not carry you down with me!"

"Any other man would," she said, almost brusquely. "You threw my hand
back around a tree."

"Did I?" exclaimed Graydon, very innocently and gladly. "Well,
everything became very confused after that. I must have been
unconscious. I do remember grasping at the branches as I passed
through these low trees above us--"

"You must have caught one of them, Graydon," she said, eagerly,
turning toward him again, "for a large limb had broken off and was
lying upon you."

"Was it so? Perhaps I owe it a good turn, for it may have so broken
my fall as to have saved my life. Well, in some way, you, true, brave
little girl, you must have reached me, and, finding that you could not
restore me, and imagining I was dead or dying, you fainted yourself
from