eet in the rear of the old
house.

"Now," Ned said, as he stepped out on the beaten course of the unpaved
street, "we shall have to take chances. The trail has disappeared, and
we can only depend on our enemies for guidance."

"That's fine!" said Jimmie. "We may as well go back!"

Ned pointed to a little group of Chinamen standing not far away, at the
corner of a street lined with miserable huts.

"We'll walk about here," he said, "and if we get somewhere near any
point of information to us or danger to the others, I have a notion that
that nest of Celestials will begin to buzz."

Jimmie laughed and the two passed on, merely looking in the direction of
the group as they passed it. They moved on down the street on the
opposite side. The Chinamen did not move.

When they turned back, however, on the other side of the thoroughfare
and stopped, on speculation, for an instant before a hut somewhat larger
and more dilapidated than the others, a pair of the watchers suddenly
detached themselves from the group and hastened away in opposite
directions. Two more strolled toward the boys.

"What next?" asked Jimmie, in a whisper.

"Seems to me that our halting here indicates that there may be something
doing in this house," Ned replied. "Suppose we go in and ask some
ordinary question?"

"An' get kicked out!" grunted Jimmie.

"That will be all right, so long as they let us out at all," Ned replied
with a smile. "I just want to know why our stopping here excited the
Chinks who were watching us."

As Ned turned toward the house the little fellow caught him by the
sleeve and held him back.

"You look out," he said, "there's a snake in there, that black-eyed
snake who claimed to be Lieutenant Rae! Do you want him to know that we
are wise to his game?"

Ned turned and started away from the house, but there came a call from
the structure, and the next instant two men were running out to greet
him. More by gestures than by words they informed the boys that there
was a man in the house wished to see them.

In a moment they stood facing the man who had called himself Lieutenant
Rae. He advanced to meet them and pointed to chairs as they entered the
room.

"Out for a walk?" he asked, with a smile.

Ned nodded and Jimmie grinned.

"The owner of this house," Rae went on, "is an old friend of mine. We
met first, years ago, in San Francisco. I'm staying here while in the
town. By the way, I was about to visit y