Part 12 (1/2)

You'll find, my lad, that you will need all your nerve and backbone to withstand what is before you Perhaps I did wrong in urging you to join lad I cah,” answered Earl, hastily ”Oh, look!” he pointed to where a flock of birds were circling far overhead ”Shall I give them a shot?”

”No! no!” cried Foster Portney, hastily ”I forgot to tell you I arranged with the Indians that no shot should be fired on the trip excepting some one was in trouble and needed assistance I'll inform the others” And he halted for the others to come up

Captain Zoss provided the dinner at about one o'clock, all hands taking it easy on some clear rocks in the sunshi+ne As may be supposed, the fare was a plain one, yet to Randy and Earl nothing had ever tasted better, for cliave them enormous appetites They could have eaten more than was provided but understood that from henceforth until further supplies were assured, rations would be dealt out with a sparing hand

As soon as the dinner dishes had been cleaned and repacked the journey to Sheep Ca-place was called, was renewed The trail was now steeper than ever, and more than once the strea from wet feet, but as all had on several pairs of heavy socks, this did no further dae than to render theher the Indians, who knew every footstep, forged ahead, and the others were allowed to shi+ft for themselves

It was about theone behind the other, with Captain Zoss and Dr Barwaithe just in the rear The captain had been relating one of his experiences inin Colorado, to which all had listened with interest

The story was finished, and they were congratulating themselves that the end of the day's tramp was close at hand, when Randy suddenly looked around in alarm

”Where is Earl?” he asked

”Earl!” exclaimed Mr Portney ”Why, he is ahead, isn't he?”

”No, he dropped behind, to fix his boot,” was the quick reply ”Earl!

Earl!”

The cry was repeated, and the others also took it up Then they waited for an answer, but none came Earl had disappeared They waited for five minutes for him to make his reappearance, but he did not come; and then they started on a search for him

CHAPTER XII

EARL HAS AN ADVENTURE

As Randy had explained, Earl had stopped on the trail to fix his boot

In crossing the mountain stream he had shi+pped a lot of water, and he sat down on a rock and held up his foot, to allow the water to run out on the ground

Unfortunately for the youth he had rested on a rock which was by no means secure on the bank of the stream, and now, as he leaned to one side, the rock slipped fro-place, and doent poor Earl into the water head first As luck would have it, he struck in some loose sand, otherwise he would have been seriously injured Even as it was he was stunned for the reat deal of water He was nearly blinded by soan to flounder around as though in the midst of an ocean instead of a watercourse less than fifty feet wide and five feet deep

It took several e rock in the centre of the strea his scattered senses, he cleared his eyes as best he could and took a view of his situation

The rock was six feet in diameter and two feet above the top of the water On either side flowed the stream at a rate which he kneould be quite sufficient to take him off his feet should he atteency he did not at first know

The others had gone on ahead, and although he called to theun he would have fired it, had the weapon been in condition But less than quarter of an hour before he had passed the fowling-piece over to Captain Zoss, the captain having asked to inspect it Heon the rock, he saw that escape to either side was out of the question, and escape up the stream was also cut off Beloever, were a series of rocks running off to shore, and after some hesitation he dropped into the stream and allowed himself to be carried down to these rocks

Fivein the current found him safe on the opposite shore to that upon which the lower portion of the trail to Chilkoot Pass lay The question noas, how to get back to the other side of the river

”I'll walk along on this side until I get a chance to cross over,” he said, half aloud, and then the loneliness of his situation dawned upon him He struck out without delay, determined to catch up with the others of the party as quickly as possible

For the first quarter of a mile Earl did very well, but soon he noted to his dis, and that, consequently, he was getting further and further away fro a cliff lined with short firs Now the cliff ca but a h which would be next to impossible

”Stumped now!” he muttered to himself, and his face fell as he surveyed his situation The stream at this point was all of one hundred and fifty feet wide, and the trail opposite was not close to the water's edge, but wound in behind the rocks and fir trees