The excitement over, the boys went to breakfast. Mr. Post insisted on going with them, and in fact he did not seem to want the boys out of his sight. He was continually referring to his narrow escape at the hands of the fake professor. The boys got to like him better as the hours passed, for he showed that he had a good heart, beneath a rather rough and repelling exterior.
At noon the train arrived at the center of the Pennsylvania oil region. The evidences of the great industry were on every hand, and the sight of the tall derricks, the refineries, the storage tanks, and the pipes where natural gas was continually burning, were such interesting ones that the lads never grew tired of looking from the windows.
They delayed longer than usual at a small station, and some of the passengers going out to see what the trouble was, reported that the locomotive had broken down and that it would take three hours to repair it.
"Here's a chance to get out and see the country," suggested Jack.
"What do you say?"
"Fine," replied John. "I've always wanted to see an oil well."
"Any objection to me going along?" asked Mr. Post, who had overheard the talk.
"Guess not," replied Nat heartily. "Come along."
The four had no sooner alighted from the train than a roughly-dressed man rushed up to the miner, grasped him by the hand, clapped him on the back with a sound like a small explosion, and exclaimed:
"Don't tell me this is Josh Post!"
"All right, Jim Baker, then I'll not do anything of the sort if you don't want me to," was the answer.