ous task was virtually ended.

And they did continue. Not once did the eagerly-feeling hands fail to
grasp a projection of some form which could be made to serve his
purpose. Up, up he went, until the clear, cool air fanned his temples,
when, with a last effort, he drew himself from the canyon, and, plunging
forward on his face, fainted dead away.

He lay in a semi-conscious condition for nearly an hour. Then, when his
senses slowly returned, he raised himself to a sitting position and
looked around. It was too early for the moon, and the gloom prevented
his seeing more than a few paces in any direction.

But how the pain racked him! It seemed as if every bone was aching and
every muscle sore. The feet had been wholly worn from each stocking, and
his own feet were torn and bleeding. He had preserved his shoes, but
when he came to put them on he groaned with anguish. His feet were so
swollen that it was torture to cover them, and he could not tie the
strings; but they must be protected, and he did not rise until they were
thus armored.

He was without any weapons, but the torment of his wounds drove that
fact from his mind. All that he wanted now was to get away from the spot
where he could not help believing he was still in danger of recapture.
But when he stood erect and the agony shot through his frame, he asked
himself whether it was possible to travel to the plateau without help;
and yet the effort must be made.

He had a general knowledge of his situation, and, bracing himself for
the effort, he began the work. It was torture from the first, but after
taking a few steps his system partly accommodated itself to the
requirement and he progressed better than he anticipated. He was still
on the wrong side of the canyon, which it was necessary to leave before
rejoining his friends. He was wise enough to distrust his own capacity
after the fearful strain, and did not make the attempt until he found a
place where the width was hardly one-half of the extent leaped by him
and Jack Dudley. As it was, the jump, into which he put all his vigor,
landed him just clear of the edge, a fact which did much to lessen the
sharp suffering caused by alighting on his feet.

He yearned to sit down and rest, but was restrained by the certainty
that it would make his anguish more intense when he resumed his tramp
toward camp. Furthermore, as he believed himself nearing safety, his
impatience deepened and kept him at work when he shoul