rriors apiece, to seek revenge, but they found nothing.

Henry and his comrades had found a remarkable camp at the edge of one of
the beautiful small lakes in which the region abounds. The cliff at that
point was high, but a creek entered into it through a ravine. At the
entrance of the creek into the river they found a deep alcove, or,
rather, cave in the rock. It ran so far back that it afforded ample
shelter from the rain, and that was all they wanted. It was about
halfway between the top and bottom of the cliff, and was difficult of
approach both from below and above. Unless completely surprised-a very
unlikely thing with them-the five could hold it against any force as
long as their provisions lasted. They also built a boat large enough for
five, which they hid among the bushes at the lake's edge. They were thus
provided with a possible means of escape across the water in case of the
last emergency.

Jim and Paul, who, as usual, filled the role of housekeepers, took great
delight in fitting up this forest home, which the fittingly called "The
Alcove." The floor of solid stone was almost smooth, and with the aid of
other heavy stones they broke off all projections, until one could walk
over it in the dark in perfect comfort. They hung the walls with
skins of deer which they killed in the adjacent woods, and these walls
furnished many nooks and crannies for the storing of necessities. They
also, with much hard effort, brought many loads of firewood, which Long
Jim was to use for his cooking. He built his little fireplace of stones
so near the mouth of "The Alcove" that the smoke would pass out and be
lost in the thick forest all about. If the wind happened to be blowing
toward the inside of the cave, the smoke, of course, would come in on
them all, but Jim would not be cooking then.

Nor did their operations cease until they had supplied "The Alcove"
plentifully with food, chiefly jerked deer meat, although there was no
way in which they could store water, and for that they had to take
their chances. But their success, the product of skill and everlasting
caution, was really remarkable. Three times they were trapped within a
few miles of "The Alcove," but the pursuers invariably went astray on
the hard, rocky ground, and the pursued would also take the precaution
to swim down the creek before climbing up to "The Alcove." Nobody could
follow a trail in the face of such difficulties.

It was Henry and Shif'less Sol