y word, you are Bob sure enough now," he exclaimed.

"Comfy! No matter, you men like it."

"We certainly like it on you," he remarked in surprised admiration.

"Here's Bill," she interrupted him, as the guide rode up leading the
ponies. He stared at Bob with delight.

"Got an extry boy in this party, ain't we? How many of ye is there?"

"According to my appetite there's six of me," she laughed. "I can't wait
to go up any mountain before breakfast."

"Wa'al, I got to thinkin' 'bout that, and I jest made a camp up the
trail 'bout a mile, and the coffee's bilin' right now. Git yer blankets
and knapsacks out, and we'll strop 'em on, an' git up there before it
biles over."

In ten minutes they were off after Bill, the ponies on the run. The air
nipped with a touch of frost in it. The mountains stood out as clear as
if they were cut out of coloured paper and pasted on the flat sky. As
they neared Bill's camp the smell of coffee and bacon greeted them.

"All the perfumes of Arabia can't touch that for smell," laughed Paul.

Bill and a cowboy assistant served a breakfast that no New York hotel
could surpass; the mountain air gave a zest that no hothouse fruit ever
produced, as appetizer. They ate like hungry hounds, and an hour later,
all packed and mounted, they said good-bye to the cowboy chef and
started on their way.

Bill rode well in advance, then Bob, then Paul. Bob's pony was a
constant amusement, he was too nervous for the average, inexperienced
rider, so he had not been ridden much. He had a distinct suspicion of
rocks, overhanging trees, and things that darted across the road.

"He's a dancer. The equine Vernon Castle," Bob laughed, after a _pas
seul_ in a narrow and most inconvenient spot.

"Little too fresh. Don't you want to change with me?"

"Not I."

Sometimes the trail permitted them to ride side by side for a few
minutes, and look off over the world spread below.

"It's incredible--such peace," he said, as they drew their ponies to a
halt.

"That passeth understanding," she nodded.

"I suppose this sense of awe, of rest, _is_ worship, _is_ religion."

Barbara took a deep breath.

"Yes, it makes you feel purified."

The trail wound up and up. Every instant the view changed. There were
difficulties to be met, where washouts had made the road almost
impassable. It seemed only an hour or two later that they caught up with
Bill, clearing a space to make a fire and cook the lunch.

"Not lun