The blow aroused all of the lion in the youth's makeup. As quickly as he
could he leaped up.

"You brute!" he cried. "Why don't you fight fair? Take that, and that
and that!"

Each "that" meant two blows, for Dick could not separate his hands, and
therefore struck out with both at a time--two in the chest, two on the
chin and the final pair on either side of Tucker's big and reddish nose.
The cavalryman, taken by surprise, let out a cry of rage and pain.

"You imp!" he screamed. "To hit a man in uniform! I'll show you what I
can do! How do you like that?"

With incredible swiftness he drew his heavy Sabra and leaped upon Dick.
The boy tried to retreat, but slipped on the wet ground and went down.
On the instant Tucker was upon him, and, with a fierce cry, the
infuriated cavalryman raised his blade over Dick's head.

CHAPTER III.

A CAVE AND A CAVE-IN.

Let us go back and see what happened to Pawnee Brown at the time the
lariat parted and he found himself going down into what seemed
bottomless space.

Instinctively he put out both hands as far as he was able, to grasp
anything which might come within reach and thereby check his awful
downward course.

The lantern fell from his fingers and jingled to pieces on a protruding
rock.

Then his right hand slid over the ends of a bush growing out of a
fissure. He caught the bush and held on like grim death.

The bush gave way, but not instantly, and his descent was checked so
that the tumble to the bottom of the hole, fifteen feet further down,
was not near as bad as it would otherwise have been.

Yet he came down sideways, and his head striking a flat rock, he was
knocked insensible.

Half an hour went by, and he opened his eyes in a wondering way. Where
was he and what had happened?

Soon the truth burst upon him, and he staggered to his feet to see if
any bones had been broken.

"All whole yet, thanks to my usual good luck," he thought. "But that's a
nasty lump on the back of my head. Hullo, up there!"

He called out as loudly as he could, but no answer came back, for Dick
and Pumpkin were already gone.

"Well, I always allowed that I would explore the Devil's Chimney some
day, but I didn't calculate to do it quite so soon," he went on. "What
can have become of those boys? Have they deserted me or gone off for
help? If I can read character I fancy that Dick Arbuckle will do all he
can for me--and, by the way, can his father's corpse really b