d
Tom. "There are plenty of youngsters here to do the fighting
and to take the chances."

"Surely, there appear to be enough men," chuckled President Newnham,
who, since he realized that rifles and ammunition were at hand,
appeared to be wonderfully relieved. "Professor, don't think of
running yourself into any danger. Look on, with me."

"Rifles are all given out, now, anyway," called Dave Fulsbee coolly.
"Now, youngsters, I'm going to show you where to station yourselves.
Mr. Reade, have you seen anything through the glasses that looks
interesting?"

"By Jove," Tom admitted, flushing guiltily, "I quite forgot to keep
the lenses turned on the hills to the west."

He now made good for his omission, while Fulsbee led his young men
away, stationing them in hiding places along the westward edge of
the camp. Each man with a rifle was ordered not to rise from the
ground, or to show himself in any way, and not to fire unless orders
were given. Then Dave hurried back to the wagon. Something else
was lifted out, all canvas covered, and rushed forward to a point
just behind a dense clump of bushes.

"Reade, I want to apologize to you," cried the man from Broadway,
moving quickly over to where Tom stood surveying the hills beyond
through his glass. "I thought, for a few minutes, that you had
suspected some such rascally work afoot, and that you had failed
to take proper precautions."

"If I had failed, sir," murmured Tom, without removing the glass
from before his eyes, "you would have arrived just in time, sir,
to turn out of the camp a man who wasn't fit to be in charge.
Yet it was only accident, sir, that led me to suspect what might
be in the air."

Thereupon Tom hastily recounted to the president of the company
the story of how he had accidentally overheard fragments of talk
between 'Gene Black and Bad Pete.

"That gave me a hint of how the wind was blowing," Tom continued,
"though I couldn't make out enough of their talk, on either occasion,
to learn just what was happening. I telegraphed to the nearest
town that had a sheriff in it, and that put me in touch with Fulsbee.
Then Dave, over the wire, offered to bring arms here and to help
us to defend our camp."

"Mr. Reade," exclaimed President Newnham hoarsely, "you are a
wonderful young man! While seeming to be idle yourself, you have
rushed the work through in splendid shape." Even when our enemies
plot in the dark, and plan incredible outrages agai