take what furniture you've got in
that little room back there, and put it with your stock in the print
shop."

"Thank you a thousand times, Max," said the old cripple; and somehow
those four lads fancied that they had been repaid many times over for
what they had done as they saw his wrinkled face lose its look of worry
and taken on a smile of fresh hope and gratitude.

It happened that Max did run across their hired man busily engaged in
carrying some one's furniture up the hill; and he agreed to look after
the cripple the very next thing.

"Be sure you make him ride with you, Conrad," was the last thing Max
told the man, who faithfully promised to look after the little old
storekeeper, and see that he got to a place of-safety.

It was now getting along toward noon. No sun shone above, indeed, they
had seen nothing but a leaden sky for a number of days; which of course
added to the gloom that surrounded the unfortunate town, as well as the
farms and hamlets strung along the valley through which the Evergreen
River flowed.

"Get together again after we've had some lunch!" Steve told his three
mates, as they started for their respective homes--rather reluctantly;
because so many exciting things seemed to be happening every half hour
that none of them wanted to miss any more than they could help.
Indeed, it is a question whether anything less serious than satisfying
the cravings of hunger, always an important subject with a growing boy,
would have induced them to go home at all.

"How high was it the last report?" asked Bandy-legs; for somehow there
always seems to be a peculiar fascination about learning the worst,
when floods rage, and destruction hovers overhead.

"Two feet, nine inches above the danger line, and still coming up an
inch an hour, with another big rain promised soon!" replied Steve,
promptly, though he did not seem to take any particular pride in the
fact that all previous records had already been broken by the usually
peaceful Evergreen stream.

"G-g-gosh!" gasped Toby, "there never was, and never will be again such
a fierce time in old Carson. B-b-beats that morning I found all them
animals from the c-c-circus a gathered in my back yard where I had my
own little m-m-menagerie. S-s-see you later, everybody," and with that
he actually started on a run for home, doubtless only thinking that he
might in this way shorten the time he would be forced to stay away from
the river front, where thing