there is a spring in there. Let's go down and take a look at
it."

They shouldered their packs, whistled the pup to their heels, and went
down to the thicket. In a space not less than a hundred yards in diameter
rhododendrons grew in indescribable density, while above them towered some
huge hemlocks. The two boys came close to the thicket and peered into it.
Even now, in the bright glare of the full sun, deep twilight reigned
beneath the rhododendrons. Evidently they were growths of great age. Their
stems were like young saplings. Their tops rose high and spread wide. And
their branches were laced and interlaced and twisted and grown together so
as to make a mass almost impenetrable.

"Great Ned!" cried Lew. "A passer-by would have about as much chance of
seeing us in there as we have of discovering China from this hillside. The
question is, how are we going to get into the place?"

Charley dropped on his hands and knees and crawled slowly under the low
rhododendron branches.

"Keep right in my tracks, Lew, if you come in," warned Charley. "If there
are any snakes in here, they'd bite a fellow before he could see them.
I'll look sharp for them and if you follow me, you won't run any risk."

He picked up a fallen branch, trimmed it, and crept on, stick in hand.
Suddenly he crowded back hard on Lew, almost kicking him in the face. At
the same time he began to thrash about in the leaves ahead of him.

"Great Caesar!" he exclaimed. "I almost crawled on a big rattler. He was so
near the color of the ground that I didn't see him until he coiled and
raised his head. Gee! That was a close shave."

"As long as you didn't get bitten," said Lew, "It's a good thing it
happened. We'll be on our guard now."

"Yes, indeed. Did you put the potassium permanganate in the first-aid kit,
and the hypodermic syringe?"

"Surest thing you know."

"We'll just carry them with us, Lew. We won't take any chances on death by
snake-bite. These mountains are full of rattlers and copperheads."

"And we won't take any chances on being bitten in this thicket, either,"
answered Lew. "We'll put the pup in ahead of us."

They whistled in the dog and sent him scouring through the thicket. But
either there had been no more snakes within it or else all had fled, for
the dog raced eagerly about but found nothing to alarm him.

Confidently the boys now pushed into the interior of the thicket. At the
very heart of it lay the spring. It came bubbli