Relieved of the thorn, the little animal frisked about, limping but slightly. He fawned upon Charley and seemed to be trying to express his gratitude.
The two boys shouldered their packs again and started on. Charley whistled to the pup, but the call was unnecessary. The pup stuck to their heels as close as a sticking-plaster.
"They say two's a company, but three's a crowd," laughed Charley, "but I guess it doesn't apply to dogs."
"You never can tell," replied Lew. "A pup of that age may get you into all sorts of difficulty."
"I'll take a chance on it," smiled Charley, as he bent and patted the dog.
They went on. For a long time they traveled in silence, the little dog trotting and frisking at their heels. From time to time they stopped to rest. Their packs were growing heavy and neither felt like talking. They settled to their tasks and plodded on. When they came to the fire trail, they turned to their right and went straight over the first mountain. The way was smooth enough, but the grade was very steep and it tested their endurance to the utmost. Every few minutes they were compelled to rest. Finally they topped the ridge and went down into the next valley.
The bottom here was very wide, for the mountains had drawn far apart. Apparently the valley soil was rich. It seemed to be deep and black, and the trees grew to massive size. Ordinarily the two boys would have taken keen enjoyment in the sight of such fine timber, but by this time they were too tired to care much about anything except reaching their destination.
At the foot of the last ridge they took a long rest. They were just starting on when Lew heard a peculiar little sound behind some bushes just off the fire trail. Curious to know what might have made the sound, he dropped his pack and went to investigate. Behind the bush he found a cunning, little black animal that did not seem to be at all afraid of him. He picked it up and rejoined his comrade.
"Charley," he said. "See what I have found. What is it?"
"It's a bear cub," said Charley. "You had better leave it alone. If its mother came along, she might make it hot for us."