“It will be perfectly safe to leave the ponies on the other side,” said Dick. “There’s plenty of grass where we have them picketed. I don’t believe anything will come to disturb them.”
“We have our own pack-horses on this side,” laughed Factor MacClaren. “We left them in charge of three half-breeds up there on the level ground above the canyon. I thought it would be better not to make the descent with the horses until we had looked around a bit.”
“Did you have much difficulty in following our trail?” Dick enquired.
“No, not very much. Malemute Slade is a good tracker and we found many of your campfires. Once we picked up an old pair of moccasins that we thought had been discarded by Sandy. They were small—about the size he usually wears.”
The camp was astir early on the following morning. When Dick and Sandy tumbled out of the blankets they had borrowed from Factor MacClaren, a pan of bacon sizzled over the fire and the odor of strong black coffee blended with the smell of spruce and balsam. Malemute Slade and Corporal Richardson nodded a cheery greeting as the two young adventurers, still rubbing their eyes, stumbled down to the river for an icy-cold plunge.
Shivering for a moment in anticipation, Dick raised his arms above his head, darted for a few paces over the smooth white sand and shot straight out into the gurgling current. Sandy hit the water almost simultaneously. As the two boys came blowing to the surface, Dick made a playful swipe at his chum’s head. Instinctively Sandy ducked.
“I’ll race you down to that big rock, you big, overgrown puppy,” he called out mockingly. “I’m in my natural element now. Try to catch me!”
They plowed through the water. An expert swimmer, Sandy won the race by a wide margin. He was sitting on the rock, feet dangling above the surface of the stream, when Dick came puffing up. But instead of the look of triumph on his face that Dick had expected, Sandy’s countenance was distorted painfully.
“Why, Sandy—what’s the matter? Did you get cramps?”
The other did not reply. He was staring at Dick now with eyes that were wide with horror. He slipped from the rock in a sort of panic and struck out for shore. Hastily, Dick followed him.
Wading out, Dick approached the trembling figure.