l, of all the chumps!" cried Snap in disgust. "Why didn't
somebody let drive?"

"Why didn't you?" asked Shep.

"I couldn't---the rocks were in the way."

"Well, the rocks were in my way, too."

"How can a fellow shoot at a streak of greased lightning?" asked
Whopper. "That buck was making a hundred miles a minute!"

"Well, that's the end of that game," muttered Snap, much crestfallen.
"Boys, it looks as if we were going to be skunked to-day."

"Oh, we've got a couple of hours yet," said the doctor's son. "But
I guess we had better turn back toward camp. We don't want to miss
our way in the dark."

"Let us go on a little," said Whopper. "I imagine that buck got
scared at something, and I'd like to know what it was."

"Maybe a bear," said Snap. "And if it is, you can be sure Mr.
Bruin will walk right away from us while we are thinking about
a shot," he added bitterly. He was disgusted to think they had
allowed both the rabbits and the deer to get away from them.

All of the boys were curious to know if anything had really frightened
the buck, and they went forward, but this time more cautiously
than ever. Passing the cliff, they came to a hillside, overgrown
with cedars and brushwood, with many loose stones between. Here
they had to progress even more slowly, for walking was treacherous
and none of them had a desire to twist an ankle or break a leg.

"I don't see a thing," said the doctor's son presently. "It's
a mighty lonely place, isn't it?"

"I fancied I saw something move, just beyond yonder clump of cedars,"
said Whopper, pointing with his hand.

"Whopper is seeing things," said Snap, laughing. "I guess the
wildcats and the deer got on his nerves."

"Well, don't believe me if you don't want to," answered Whopper
rather testily.

"We'll see if there is anything in it, anyway," answered the doctor's
son. "But I am not going any farther than those cedars. I am
getting tired---and it is high time we turned back, unless we want
to remain away from camp all night."

"No, I want to get back, too," answered Snap. "Sleeping out of
doors is all well enough once in a while, but I prefer to be under
some kind of a roof, even if it's only canvas."

The three boys moved forward once again, each with his gun ready
for use, should anything worth shooting appear. They came up
to the cedars and were then able to look beyond, where the mountain
side was full of rocks, with numerous holes between.