“We can’t do much gold seeking to-night,” said Jerry, as he guided the aircraft to a comparatively level spot where he intended to anchor her. “It’s getting darker every minute, and it doesn’t look very inviting to go traveling around among those rocks, not knowing what moment they may come rolling down on you.”
“That’s right,” agreed the man who had hidden the gold. “We’ll wait until morning. Anyhow, I don’t believe I’d be able to pick out the landmarks by which I’ll have to be guided to the cache. I’ll need daylight for that. You see, after I found out that I was being spied upon, I made several bluffs at hiding the gold. That is, I pretended to put it in two or three different places. But it’s all hidden in one spot, and I’ll locate that to-morrow.”
“Then we’ll dig up the gold, and spend a few days hunting before we go back East,” said Ned.
“Maybe it won’t be as easy finding it as you think,” put in Bob.
“Oh, I think I can walk right to it, when we get near enough,” asserted the miner; “but it’s several miles from here—more in the center of the valley.”
“Well, there’s one comfort,” said Jim Nestor. “We won’t be troubled by the Blackfeet to-night.”
“No, but we may be troubled by cold feet!” exclaimed Ned, with a chuckle. “It’s getting chilly. I guess we’ll have to start the furnace to-night, Jerry.”
It was quite cold up among the mountains, even though they were almost at the bottom of a deep valley, and the tall young pilot closed the windows of the airship.
“We can start the electric heaters,” he said, for the Comet was equipped with all the latest improvements in the way of comforts. “Bob, turn ’em on when you go back to finish supper.”
“That’s so! I forgot about that cake!” cried the stout lad, as he made a dash for the galley. “I left it in the oven, and it smells as if it was burning!”