nyon. A man went by
on horseback, driving some cattle, who told us that we could find a
spring down about half a mile.

"Can we get any hay down there?" I asked him. "We're out of feed
for the horses, and the grass seems pretty poor here."

"Down a mile beyond the spring I have a dozen stacks," answered the
man, "and you're welcome to all you can bring up on your pony.
Just go down and help yourselves."

We thanked him and he went on. As soon as we could we started
down. It was beginning to get dark, and grew darker rapidly as we
went down the ravine, as its sides were high and the trees soon
became numerous. There was no road, nothing but a mere
cattle-path, steep and stony in many places. We found the spring
and watered all the horses, left Blacky and Browny, and went on
after the hay with the pony, Jack leading her, and Ollie and I
walking ahead with the lantern. It seemed a long way as we
stumbled along in the darkness, all the time downhill. "I guess
that man wasn't so liberal as he seemed," said Jack. "The pony
will be able to carry just about enough hay up here to make Snoozer
a bed."

We plunged on, till at last the path became a little nearer
level. It crossed a small open tract and then wound among bushes
and low trees. Suddenly we saw something gleam in the light of
the lantern, and stopped right on the river's bank. The water
looked deep and dark, though not very wide. The current was swift
and eddying.

"We've passed the hay," I said. "Ir must be on that open flat
we crossed."

We went back, and, turning to the right, soon found it. I set
the lantern down and began to pull hay from one of the stacks,
when the pony made a sudden movement, struck the lantern with her
foot, and smashed the globe to bits.

"There," exclaimed Jack, "we'll have a fine time going up
that badger-hole of a canyon in the dark!"

But there was nothing else to do, and we made up two big
bundles of hay and tied them to the pony's back.

"She'll think it's tumbleweeds," said Ollie.

"If she's headed in the right direction I hope she will,"
answered Jack.

We started up, but it was a long and toilsome climb. In many
places Jack and I had to get down on our hands and knees and feel
out the path. The worst place was a scramble up a bank twenty
feet high, and covered with loose stones. I was ahead. The heroic
little pony with her unwieldy load sniffed at the prospect a
little, and then started bravely up