"Does our auto ride end here?" he asked.
The clerk shook his head.
"A few rods further on," he said, "you can turn into the bed of a half dry stream which runs out of the hills almost at the rocky wall of the mountain itself."
"And the bottom of the stream?" asked the chief.
"Sand and fine gravel. The grade is not steep."
"And how far from the summit shall we be when we get to the end of the water route?" asked the chief.
"Not more than three miles, but it is a stiff climb."
"Get under way then," was the order, and the motors sang their tune in the hills once more.
"What time does the moon rise?" the chief asked, after a few moments of splashing in the bed of the stream, which at that season of the year was not more than three inches deep, except in places, which were avoided.
"About twelve," was the reply.