want."

"You bet I hev."

"Then you aren't looking for any more. So what is there to scare
us?"

"Not a blame thing. But you boys is plucky. There's men 'd fight shy
o' staying 'round here."

"Well, it doesn't worry us. We didn't suppose there was any one
around here, though, and we wondered who it was we heard shooting
last night and we are glad to find out. Did you get any big
alligators?"

"'Twasn't me shootin'. I didn't shoot las' night. Say! You've gotter
look out! I know them fellers. One on 'em's bad and you boys ain't
safe. I'm goin' ter hang 'round, 'n if you smell trouble jest fire
two shots 'nd trouble'll cum a-humpin' fur them fellers,"

"All right and much obliged, and if anything does come that we can't
manage we'll remember you, sure."

Whenever the boys passed a pond on the prairie they stopped and
grunted till the young 'gators came to the surface. One day Dick
fired a shot near enough to splash one that had come up, but in ten
minutes the reptile had forgotten his scare and again answered the
call. Dick was disposed to wade in the pond and catch the little
'gator, but Ned coaxed him out of the notion and proposed that they
find a cave and rope another 'gator to cheer up Dick's pet, which he
said was getting lonesome. This pleased Dick and the boys spent
half a day finding an inhabited cave, when they secured its occupant
with no trouble excepting that, as the alligator came out of his
hole, Dick slipped on the muddy turf and was dragged into the pond.
The 'gator was soon brought out on the prairie and its jaws tied. It
was larger than the one first captured, and Dick didn't try to carry
it on his back, but led and dragged it the entire distance.

As the boys approached their camp they saw a skiff, with two
rough-looking men in it, just being pushed from the bank. Ned called
to the men, but received no reply, and the skiff was rowed rapidly
away.

"That spells trouble," said Ned. "Those are the fellows that our
outlaw warned us against."

The boys found their stores in some confusion and a lot of them had
disappeared, and with them had gone Ned's rifle, which he had left
in camp. Ned was quite too angry to speak and walked quickly to the
canoe, followed by Dick.

"What are you going to do, Ned?"

"Going to get that rifle."

"All right. I'm with you."

"Dick, I'm going alone. It's a fool's errand and I don't want you
mixed up in it."

"Maybe it is a fool's errand, I guess it is, a