ky you made it. Me and my
friend don't stand no insults. We don't take no back talk. We're bad men
when we get into a scrimmage--eh, Tom?"

"I don't doubt your word in the least," said Dewey. "It gives me
pleasure to assent cordially to the description you give of yourselves."

Tom Hadley, who was rather obtuse, took this as a compliment, but Mosely
was not altogether clear whether Dewey was not chaffing them. "That
sounds all right," said he, suspiciously, "if you mean it."

"Oh, set your mind quite at rest on that subject, Bill, if that is your
name. You may be sure that I mean everything I say."

"Then you won't give us a hint where to dig?"

"I am sorry to disoblige you, but I really couldn't."

"Do you hear that, Ben?" said Jake Bradley, his mouth distended with a
grin. "Dick's chaffin' them scoundrels, and they can't see it. It looks
as if they was huntin' for the gold-dust. They haven't found anything
yet, and they haven't hurt Dick, or he wouldn't talk as cool as he
does."

There was a brief conference, and then the first movement was made by
the besieging-party.

Ki Sing, by Bradley's direction, walked to the entrance of the hut and
looked placidly in.

As Mosely looked up he saw the Chinaman's face looking like a full moon,
and for an instant he was stupefied. He could not conceive how his
victim could have escaped from his captivity.

"Tom," he ejaculated, pointing to the doorway, "look there!"

"I should say so!" ejaculated Tom Hadley, no less surprised than his
friend.

"How did you get here?" demanded Bill Mosely, addressing the Chinaman.

"Me walk up hill," answered Ki Sing, with a bland smile.

"How did you get away from the tree? That's what I mean, you stupid."

"Fliend come along--cut stling," answered the Chinaman, pronouncing his
words in Mongolian fashion.

Bill Mosely was startled. So Ki Sing had a friend. Was the friend with
him? "Where is your friend?" he asked abruptly.

"That my fliend," said the crafty Ki Sing, pointing to his master on the
pallet in the corner.

"Yes, Ki Sing," said Dewey, "we are friends and will remain so, my good
fellow."

Though he did not quite understand why Ben and Jake Bradley did not
present themselves, he felt sure that they were close at hand, and that
his unwelcome visitors would very soon find it getting hot for them.

"Look here, you yellow baboon!" said Bill Mosely, angrily, "you know
what I mean. This man here didn't free you from the