mber-jack from the Michigan pine woods, were
free or a prisoner, living or dead?

And poor Eli was wrestling with these puzzling questions as he trudged
wearily after Stackpole; nor did he seem to get any nearer a solution,
though approaching the matter from all sides.

Darkness overtook them while they were still tramping through the woods,
having covered some miles since leaving the spot where the deer was
shot.

And then by degrees Eli began to guess what they had in view in holding
him.

It would be only natural for the two worthies to try and hide their
trail when thus passing through the woods and bound for the place where
according to Stackpole the other had some sort of a dugout or shack.

To the surprise of Eli not only did they fail to take any precautions in
this respect but on the contrary actually seemed to leave as plain a
trail as possible.

It took Eli some time to understand the meaning of this, and then it
broke upon him like a thunderclap--these fellows were laying a trap, and
expected Cuthbert to walk into the same just as the fly enters the web
of the spider.

Of course in due time Cuthbert and Owen would feel it necessary to look
him up, and as the latter was a good trailer they would follow the
course now being taken by himself and his captors, follow it until the
door of the trap was sprung shut, making them also prisoners.

Eli grunted his disgust when he saw all this spread out before him.

Eli was so utterly helpless to prevent it.

And while he walked he was busying his mind in the endeavor to invent
some clever scheme whereby he might get the better of the twin rascals
and turn the tables upon them.

But Eli did not possess a very brilliant mind and suggestions came
slowly to him; all his life he had been in the habit of allowing some
one else do his thinking for him, and when thrown upon his own resources
he found it difficult to fully grasp the situation and conjure up any
possible remedy.

At the same time he was stubborn by temperament and not given over to
despair, no matter how black the circumstances seemed.

Perhaps presently things might take a turn; all he wanted was to keep
his eyes about him, and his wits sharpened, so that if the occasion
arose he would be in shape to reap the benefit.

Stackpole must have been joking when he said the shack was close by, or
else they had purposely made a circuit in their walk, for it was a full
hour before they arrived at their