, with some black, swept to one side
of them.

"Can it be a pig?" gasped Chet.

"A pig? No, it's a badger, out on the forage. Don't you smell him?"

Chet recovered and unslung his gun. He tried to take aim in the gloom.

"Don't fire!" said Paul. "What is the use? It's only a waste of
ammunition. The badger isn't hurting anything, and he's a good distance
from the ranch. Let him go."

By the time Chet had listened to all this the badger had disappeared.
The animal was not used to being aroused and was more frightened than
any one.

They passed on. The very bottom of the Hollow was at hand. The horses
proceeded slowly, realizing the peril of the place.

Once Rush went down into a hole nearly throwing Chet over his head. But
the youth held on, and Rush arose all right, with nothing but a slight
scrape on his left foreleg.

They peered with watchful eyes up and down the silent pass. Not a sign
of any life was there. The water flowed on with a muffled murmur and
the wind sighed through the deep opening, and that was all. In another
five minutes the pass was left behind.

For some reason both boys drew a long breath of relief when the high
ground beyond was reached. The strain was gone, and now, by contrast,
the road looked as bright to them as if the sun was about to rise.

"Come to think of it, we may as well take it easy," remarked Paul. "It
isn't likely that Dottery will care to make a move before daylight."

"Yes; but if we get there sooner, we'll have a chance to rest up a bit,
and we need that, and so do the horses."

"I didn't think of that. Well, forward we go."

An hour passed and then another. Soon after Chet gave a joyous cry.

"There are Dottery's outbuildings! We'll soon be there now!"

"Right you are, Chet. I wonder----" Paul stopped short. "Oh, look over
there!" he cried.

He pointed to a barn not a great distance back from the road.

The door of the structure was open and within flashed the light of a
lantern.

"Dottery must be up, or else----" began Chet.

"Horse thieves!"

Both boys uttered the word simultaneously. Could it be possible that the
thieves were raiding their nearest neighbor?

"Wait. Let us dismount and investigate," whispered Paul. "Don't do
anything rash," this as Chet started to run toward the barn.

Thus cautioned, the younger boy paused. The horses were tied up behind
some brush, and, guns in hand, the pair crept across the road and over a
wire fence into the fi