"Rather risky," observed the miner. "You couldn't stop until you got to the end of it and it's a long ride. Have to look out for the cross pieces, too."
A sudden light seemed to come into Jack's eyes as he turned away. He motioned to Nat to follow him, and, when they were out of earshot he whispered:
"That's how we can escape."
"How?" asked Nat in an excited whisper.
"Wait," answered Jack, "Here comes Sid."
"Haven't got away yet, eh?" the man asked with a sneer.
"Not yet," was all Jack answered.
That night, as he tossed restlessly on the pile of skins in the cave, Jack thought over a plan of getting away. It seemed practical enough, if he could only elude the vigilance of the men. But there was the hard part. He got up softly about midnight to see if he could sneak from the cave. No one was in sight. He called Nat and both crawled out into the open.
"Now we're free!" whispered Jack. "Come on, Nat."
"Where?"