"Oh, wasn't that awful!" gasped Roger, and felt of his forehead, where
the cold perspiration had gathered.

"I--I kind of hated to do it," answered Dave. "She was mourning over her
mate!"

"Shall we send the other body down, too?" went on the senator's son.

"Might as well," was the quick answer, and soon the other lion was
dragged to the opening and dropped down. Abe Blower looked on at the
work and smiled grimly.

"I suppose ye are sorry for thet lioness, but I ain't," he said. "They
are wicked critters, I can tell ye, an' they do a whole lot o' damage."

"I suppose they live according to their nature," replied Dave, softly.
In his mind's eye he could still see the tawny lioness licking the face
of her dead mate.

On they went again. The cave was narrow here but presently broadened
out. The roof was, for the most part, less than ten feet high, so the
boys felt just as if they were "walking between big pie crusts," as
Roger quaintly expressed it. The cave seemed to be dry, although when
they stopped once more to look around, they heard the distant gurgle of
a stream of water.

"Wall, I can't see as it looks anythin' like a mine," announced Abe
Blower, presently. "Nothin' like a shaft around here."

"I wonder how long the cave is?" came from Dave. "It must end
somewhere."

"Say, wouldn't this make a good place to camp out in?" asked Roger, of
the old miner.

"Not much!" was the quick answer.

"Why not? It would be cool in the daytime and warm at night, with a
little campfire."

"Maybe, lad. But wot if some o' these rocks should shift? They'd squash
ye as flat as a flapjack!"

"I didn't think of that."

"I don't believe it is very safe in here," said Dave. "This cave must
have been formed by that landslide, and, if so, perhaps the dirt and
rocks haven't finished settling yet. I don't want any rocks to come down
on my head!"

"Nor on any of us!" added the senator's son.

"I've got an idee thet we are a-comin' to another openin'," remarked Abe
Blower, a few minutes later, after they had made a sharp turn to the
right.

"Why so?" asked Roger.

"I kin feel some fresh air from somewhere."

"I feel it too," returned Dave. "Doesn't it come from overhead?"

"Mebbe, lad; although I thought it was ahead."

"Here is that stream of water!" cried Roger, as they made another turn.
"But we can't get at it," he added, somewhat disappointedly.

"Why?"

"It's down below the split in the rocks. Look!"