oping to his chest. "Are you boys hungry?"

The boys were. So Dad sought out a comfortable place where they might
sit down, a shelf some twenty feet above the edge of the river, whence
they could see the turbulent stream for a short distance both ways. It
was a wonder to them where all the water came from. The Professor
called attention to his former statement that the river drained some
three hundred thousand miles of territory. This explanation made the
matter clearer to them.

Coffee was made, the ever-ready bacon quickly fried and there in the
very heart of the Grand Canyon they ate their midday meal. Never
before had they sat down to a meal amid such tremendous forces.

The meal having been finished and Dad having stretched himself out on
a rock after his dinner, the boys strolled off along the river,
exploring the various crevices.

"Isn't there gold down here?" asked Tad, returning to the shelf.

Dad sat up, stroking his whiskers thoughtfully.

"I reckon you would find tons of it in the pockets of the river if she
were to run dry," was the amazing reply.

"But," protested Tad, "is there no way to get it?"

"Not that man knows of. The Almighty, who made the whole business here,
is the only one who is engineer enough to get that gold. No, sir, don't
have any dreams about getting that gold. It isn't for man, at least not
yet. Maybe He to whom it belongs is saving it for some other age, for
folks who need it more than we do."

"Nobody ever will need it more than we do," interposed Stacy. "Why, just
think, I could buy a whole stable full of horses with what I could get
out of one of those pockets."

"Maybe I'll show you where you can pan a little of the yellow out, before
you finish your trip."

Later in the day the guide decided that it was time to start for the
surface again. But the boys begged to be allowed to remain in the
Canyon over night. It was an experience that they felt sure would be
worth while. For a wonder, Professor Zepplin sided with them in this
request.

"Well, I'll go up and water the stock, then if you want to stay here,
why, all right," decided Dad.

"I will go with you," said Tad.

"Professor, I'll leave the rest of the boys in your charge. Don't let
them monkey with the river. I don't want to lose anybody this trip.
Fall in there, and you'll bring up in the Pacific Ocean---what's left
of you will. Nothing ever'll stop you till you've hit the Sandwich
Islands o