ey would go
down the canyon, over the ridge, then swing round and come back high on
the hill, so as to completely lose Sleepy, who would be placed where
both parties could see him by his light, but, of course, he could not see
any of them out in the shadows and the night.

"If any fellow makes a stir," continued Ham, "the game is up. Remember,
Phil, you are boss of that crowd."

A difference of opinion had broken out among the rest while Ham and the
others were getting the sacks, for Willis, in a sly way, had suggested
that the game was a fake, but Sleepy scoffed at the idea.

"You do just as Ham says, and you'll see it's all true," cried Sleepy
hotly. "He knows more about camping than all the rest of us put together.
If you don't want to go, stay here. I'll hold a sack myself, and if I
don't get it full of birds before I come home I'll treat every one of
you." Fat entered just in time to hear the foregoing conversation.

"I'm with you, Sleepy," he cried. "We'll have snowbirds for breakfast in
the morning."

"O shucks," scoffed some one, "there aren't enough snowbirds in Colorado
to fill a sack like that!"

"Well, of all the quitters," snorted Sleepy. "Just because you haven't
seen the birds is no sign they aren't there. If you don't see and hear a
lot of things to-night that you never saw before, I'm badly mistaken. All
that's the matter with you fellows is you're afraid of a little work."
Ham sneezed several times in quick succession, and Fat suddenly hurried
out, slamming the door behind him. Mr. Dean turned his face from the
crowd and energetically poked the fire. From the smiles, it was evident
that some had caught on and wanted to go along to see the fun, while
others declared it was a trick, and wouldn't move a step.

"Too bad we haven't a dozen bags so we could give them all a chance,"
laughed Ham, as he and Fat entered the cabin.

Four remained, the rest trailed off to a little grove of young firs and
cut themselves branches to drive snowbirds with. Then up the slope they
went, winding in and out among the tall, silent trees, over snowy logs
and around great, jutting boulders, until the top was reached. Then
they hurried along the narrow ridge until it ended in a stone cliff. Here
they descended again through the trees until the trail on the south side
was reached. Ham picked out an open place entirely surrounded with a
heavy growth of young firs. Just at the edge of the little opening, its
bulk back i