In spite of the protests of the others, the little fellow insisted on swinging down the rope, now stretching from top to bottom, and making a search for the two bodies. When he returned to the top, his face was a little paler than usual, and he started away without a word.
“Who are they?” asked Ned, provoked at the boy’s silence.
“One of them is the man called Huga by the fellows in the old mission cave,” he answered, “and the other is just a common mucker.”
“With Huga dead,” Ned said, “the way is easier.”
CHAPTER XIX
A BOY SCOUT ENCOUNTER
When the boys started back over the long and difficult route to the camp, the moon was shining brightly on the mountains. There were no indications of strife anywhere. There were no sounds to break the stillness save those made by the boys in their passage over the loose rocks.
They had proceeded only a short distance when Jimmie darted away from the group and disappeared behind a crag which jutted out to the west. Ned and the others stopped in their tracks and looked about in wonder and perplexity.
“What’s that little monkey up to now?” asked Frank rather impatiently.
“He may be trying to get a rabbit for breakfast,” Jack replied with a grin. “We haven’t had anything to eat for a long time, you know, and I presume that Jimmie is about ready to make a meal out of granite.”
“Well,” Ned said in a moment, “we’ll go right on and leave the little rascal to his own devices. If he gets a squirrel for breakfast, we’ll help him eat it, and that’s the best we can do!”