UC-NRLF 
 
 B M IDS 
 
 OYS 
 
 IN THE 
 
 YU5EMITE 
 
 EVERETT T. TOML1NSON 
 
FOUR BOYS IN THE YOSEMITE 
 

 F()K A FEW MINUTES THEY REMAINED STANDING IN SILEM K. 
 
 ."<!>/< 210. 
 
FOUR BOYS IN 
 THE YOSEMITE 
 
 BY 
 
 EVERETT T. TOMLINSON 
 
 AUTHOR OF 
 
 FOUR BOYS IN THE LAND OF COTTON. FOUR 
 
 BOYS IN THE YELLOWSTONE, FOUR BOYS 
 
 ON PIKE S PEAK, FOUR BOYS AND 
 
 A FORTUNE, FOUR BOYS 
 
 ON THE MISSISSIPPI, ETC 
 
 ILLUSTRATED BY GEORGE A. NEWMAN 
 
 GROSSET & DUNLAP 
 
 PUBLISHERS :: :: NEW YORK 
 
Published, August, 1911 
 
 COPYRIGHT, 1910, BY A. J. ROWLAND, SECRETARY 
 COPYRIGHT, 1911, BY LOTHROP, LEE & SHEPARD Co. 
 
 All Rights Reserved 
 
 FOUR BOYS IN THE YOSEMITE 
 
 Tlorwood prces 
 
 BERWICK & SMITH Co. 
 
 Norwood, Mass. 
 
 U.S.A. 
 
PEEFACE 
 
 AT a time when Americans are traveling 
 abroad as they never have before, it is not 
 inopportune to call attention to some of the 
 wonders and glories of America. The towering 
 ranges of mountains, the majestic waterfalls, 
 the broad plains, and prosperous cities of our 
 own land are well worthy of the visits of all 
 who are in love with travel. Best of all, they 
 are our own. " See America first " is an ap 
 peal not merely to a sentiment of patriotism, 
 but also is based upon many things that are 
 true especially true in the realm of natural 
 scenery. A man who has recently returned 
 from a trip around the world said that, in all 
 his journey ings, he found nothing to compare 
 with the sublimity, impressiveness, and beauty 
 of the Yosemite Valley. 
 
 Many do not realize the advantages which 
 the nation has provided in setting apart great 
 * parks, such as the Yosemite and the Yellow 
 stone, for the benefit of the people. They are 
 ours, and foreign travelers seldom fail to visit 
 
 3 
 
 MS34B38 
 
4 PREFACE 
 
 them when they come to our land. Americans 
 ought not to do less. The true appreciation of 
 our country cannot be had merely by listening 
 to the descriptive words of others. 
 
 This book, as the reader at once will see, is 
 not a book of travels, but is rather the story 
 of the travels of four boys. It requires slight 
 knowledge of live American boys to understand 
 that, when they visit such a place as the Yo- 
 semite Valley, they will discover many things 
 not described in the guidebooks, and will have 
 many experiences unlike those of their elders. 
 Many of the incidents incorporated in this tale 
 actually occurred. The foremost purpose of 
 the writer has been not only to interest his 
 young readers in the doings of four boys, but 
 also to inspire within them a desire and a pur 
 pose to see with their own eyes some of the 
 marvelous possessions of America. Intelligent 
 patriotism must be based upon knowledge, and 
 " seeing is believing." 
 
 EVEEETT T. TOMLINSON. 
 
 ELIZABETH, NEW JERSEY. 
 
CONTENTS 
 
 CHAPTER 
 
 PAGE 
 
 I. ON THE TRAIN 9 
 
 II. AN UNEXPECTED STOP 21 
 
 III. THE EXCITEMENT AMONG THE PASSENGERS . 33 
 
 IV. ACROSS THE CONTINENT 45 
 
 V. THE INTERVIEW 57 
 
 VI. AN AUTOMOBILE ...... 69 
 
 VII. THE START FOR THE YOSEMITE ... 81 
 
 VIII. THE OCCUPANT OF UPPER SEVEN ... 95 
 
 IX. AN EVASIVE TRAVELER 107 
 
 X. COACHING 120 
 
 XI. INTO THE VALLEY 132 
 
 XII. THE SENTINEL 143 
 
 XIII. AN INTERRUPTED QUOTATION .... 155 
 
 XIV. IN THE TORRENT 167 
 
 XV. INVESTIGATING 179 
 
 XVI. THE BURIAL OF THE INDIAN . . . .191 
 
 XVII. UNDER THE FALLS 204 
 
 XVIII. A NIGHT LETTER 216 
 
 XIX. THE ASCENT 228 
 
 XX. THE TRAIL .241 
 
 XXI. THE CLIMB 253 
 
 5 
 
6 CONTENTS 
 
 CHAPTER PAGE 
 
 XXII. A MESSENGER 266 
 
 XXIII. THE YOSEMITE CHIEFTAIN . . . .278 
 
 XXIV. To CLOUD S REST 291 
 
 XXV. THE DISCOVERY IN THE CANON . . . 303 
 
 XXVI. COACHING AGAIN 315 
 
 XXVII. A MOUNTAIN LION 327 
 
 XXVIII. THE ROAD IN THE FOREST . . . .340 
 
 XXIX. WAWONA 352 
 
 XXX. JOHN S BEAR 364 
 
 XXXI. AMONG THE BIG TREES 376 
 
 XXXII. CONCLUSION , 389 
 
FOUR BOYS IN THE YOSEMITE 
 
 CHAPTER I 
 
 ON THE TRAIN 
 
 " WHAT does this mean? " demanded 
 cum Brown, as soon as he and his three friends 
 had seated themselves in the dining-car of the 
 train which was swiftly bearing the four boys 
 toward San Francisco, now not more than 
 thirty miles away. 
 
 " What does what mean? " responded Lee 
 Harris lightly. 
 
 " Listen to this, fellows," continued Larcum, 
 ignoring his friend s question and reading from 
 the card which he found on the table before 
 him. " Bean soup, one dollar; Mexican beef, 
 prime cut, a dollar and a half; beef, up long, 
 one dollar and a half; beef with one potato, fair 
 size, a dollar and a quarter; tame beef, from 
 the States, a dollar fifty; baked beans, plain, 
 are seventy-five cents; and baked beans, 
 
 d 
 
10 FOUR BOYS IN THE YO SEMITE 
 
 greased, are a dollar. Now, what do you think 
 of that? " 
 
 " What are you talking about, Larc? " de 
 manded John Adams Field, Jr., who was fa 
 miliarly known to his friends as " Jack/ 
 
 " I thought the price of beans would bring 
 a response from our learned companion from 
 Boston," laughed Scott Gordon. "I ll tell you, 
 Jack," he added, turning to his friend as he 
 spoke, " what you ll have to do. You give an 
 order for three beans and a potato skin. That 
 will be enough to remind you of home and 
 mother, anyway." 
 
 "I m not done yet," broke in Larcum, still 
 holding in his hand the card from which he was 
 reading. " Here are some of the entrees. Per 
 haps they ll suit you better: Sauerkraut is only 
 a dollar, fried bacon is the same price; hash, 
 4 low grade, is seventy-five cents; and hash, 
 c eighteen karat, is dealt out at the trifling sum 
 of one dollar. No, hold on! Here s what Jack 
 craves, he added lightly. Here s the game, 
 codfish balls, double, at seventy-five 
 
 " Cents or dollars? " interrupted Lee, with a 
 laugh. 
 
 " Cents, of course," replied Larcum de 
 murely. " What did you think? Then, if cod- 
 
ON THE TRAIN 11 
 
 fish is too far from its native air or lair, you 
 can have a grizzly roast for a dollar, or grizzly 
 fried for a quarter less. Ah, here we have it: 
 here s a whole jackass rabbit for only a hun 
 dred cents. One order ought to be enough for 
 all of us." 
 
 " Any pastry, Larcf 1 inquired Scott so 
 berly. 
 
 " There certainly is," answered Larcum. 
 " Rice pudding, plain, can be had for the tri 
 fling sum of three-quarters of a dollar; but, if 
 you want it served with molasses, it will cost 
 you a quarter more. With brandied peaches, 
 the price is still one dollar higher. Here we 
 have what we ve been looking for * square 
 meal with dessert, price, three dollars. How 
 does that strike you? " 
 
 " I know where it strikes me," said Scott. 
 "I d have neither the heart nor the pocket for 
 much of that bill of fare. "What are you doing, 
 anyway, Larc? What is that you are read 
 ing? " 
 
 " Hold on a minute," responded Larcum, as 
 he clung to the card he was holding. " It says 
 here, Everything is payable in advance/ and 
 that Gold scales can be found at the end of 
 the bar. " 
 
12 FOUR BOYS IN THE Y08EMITE 
 
 " What is that card? " asked John, once 
 more. 
 
 t i This card is a souvenir a reproduction of 
 a bill of fare at the El Dorando Hotel, Placer- 
 ville, Cal. It was in use in the good old days 
 when the 49 gold excitement was the prevailing 
 distemper. The railroad people have printed 
 this card as a souvenir, which I intend to take 
 home with me and keep for our party." 
 
 66 More likely it s a reprint to make us feel 
 a little more easy in our minds when we face 
 the prices of to-day. What does l gold scales 
 at the end of the bar mean? 
 
 " They were doubtless used in weighing the 
 gold-dust of the miners," explained John. 
 " You know, the miners didn t have much 
 money they usually paid in gold-dust in those 
 days." 
 
 11 I know an old gentleman in New York," 
 said Scott, * who took a schooner full of onions 
 around Cape Horn in the time of the excitement 
 over the discovery of gold in California 
 
 i Onions ! interrupted Lee. l What in the 
 world possessed him that he wanted to take a 
 whole cargo of onions out there! Why, if he 
 had taken pickaxes, or 
 
 " He knew what he was about," retorted 
 
ON THE TRAIN 13 
 
 Scott, breaking in upon his friend. " He knew 
 the miners would be suffering from scurvy, and 
 that onions would be in demand. He sold out 
 every onion he had at twenty-five cents apiece. 
 He never did a stroke of work after that." 
 
 " Why not? " demanded Lee. 
 
 " Had all the money he wanted," explained 
 Scott. 
 
 " That was blood money," said John sharply. 
 
 " I suspect it might have been a bit tainted, 
 Jack," laughed Scott. " But, then, compared 
 with some of your New England cargoes of 
 Jamaica rum or slaves stolen off the coast of 
 Africa, it wasn t so bad." 
 
 " Now, see here, Scott Gordon," began John 
 sharply, " you know just as well as I do 
 that " 
 
 " I know I m hungry," broke in Scott. 
 What I want is my breakfast. I ve been 
 rolling around all night in that upper 
 berth " 
 
 " And kept it up till morning, if the blasts 
 from upper seven were any indications of your 
 occupation," declared Lee. 
 
 " Why didn t you wake me? Why didn t you 
 call me down? " 
 
 " Because you weren t up." 
 
14 FOUR BOYS IN TEE YO SEMITE 
 
 " Why didn t you call me up? " 
 
 " Because you weren t down." 
 
 " Quit that," growled Larcum. " Here, how 
 will this do for an order for our breakfast? " 
 he added, and read aloud from the slip of pa 
 per on which he had been busily writing. 
 
 < It s all right, Larc," said Scott, without 
 looking at the order. " After a man has had 
 five nights on a sleeper, he s ready to take al 
 most anything l unsight, unseen. I ll trust 
 you." 
 
 As the other boys quickly agreed, the order 
 was given by Larcum to the waiter, and the 
 boys settled back in their seats to await the 
 preparation of the breakfast which Larcum had 
 selected for the four. 
 
 While they are waiting, with such patience 
 as they possess, we can take a hasty glance at 
 the quartet. Several years before the time 
 when this story opens, the four boys had been 
 classmates in a famous preparatory school in 
 New England. Larcum Brown, sometimes 
 called " Cupid," and more commonly known 
 as " Larc," was the giant of the band. On 
 the football field his fame was great, for his 
 huge size and immense strength had served the 
 school in more than one apparently hopeless 
 
ON THE TRAIN 15 
 
 plight. Wearied of college, at the end of his 
 freshman year he had withdrawn, to enter the 
 offices of the T. Gr. & P. Eailroad, a corpora 
 tion of which his father was a vice-president. 
 Larcum s home was in Chicago. 
 
 John Adams Field, Jr., the " Jack " of the 
 party, was from Boston. In scholarship, he 
 easily outstripped his friends, leading his class 
 in the preparatory school, and now, after three 
 years in college, winning a place in the front 
 rank of his college class. And yet Jack was not 
 " bookish," for his love of sport and of 
 travel had already become manifest to his 
 companions. 
 
 The third member of the party, Lee Harris, 
 was from the South. Tall, slender, dark of 
 hair and eyes, his gracious ways had made him 
 one of the most popular students in college, 
 although his warmest and most intimate 
 friends were those that were with him at 
 this time. 
 
 Scott Gordon s home was in New York. Not 
 so studious as Jack, nor so athletic as Larcum, 
 he yet stood high in scholarship and games. 
 His well-knit, muscular frame was indicative 
 of his continued good spirits, and the complaint 
 which he had made of his quarters in the sleep- 
 
16 FOUR BOYS IN THE TOSEMITE 
 
 ing-car was looked upon as more or less of a 
 joke by his companions, who were aware of 
 Scott s propensity to sleep " standing, walking, 
 reciting, on horseback, or on foot," as Lee 
 laughingly described his friend s tendency. 
 
 In preceding summers the four boys had 
 made journeys together, 1 and now they were 
 all together again for one of their enjoyable 
 trips. 
 
 This time their destination was to be the won 
 derful Yosemite Valley, in California. On this 
 morning, when we find them seated about a ta 
 ble in the dining-car, their long journey of five 
 days across the continent is almost at an end. 
 San Francisco is less than thirty miles distant. 
 Not one of these boys has ever seen the Pacific 
 Ocean, and, although every day of their long 
 journey has had its own interesting experi 
 ences, their keenest interest has been aroused 
 by the thought that they now were near their 
 journey s end. 
 
 " Too bad I couldn t get away a little 
 longer," said Larcum, while waiting for their 
 breakfast. " As far as I am concerned, I 
 
 Four Boys in the Yellowstone," "Four Boys in the 
 Land of Cotton," "Four Boys on the Mississippi/ and "Four 
 Boys and a Fortune." 
 
ON THE TRAIN 17 
 
 might have managed it, but it isn t quite fair 
 to the T. G-. &P." 
 
 " What salary do you have now, Larc? " 
 asked Lee. 
 
 " I ve risen from the ranks of the more 
 humble toilers. I started in at six per " 
 
 " If we don t know it, the fault isn t yours, " 
 broke in Scott. 
 
 " I started in at the humble stipend of six 
 per," resumed Larcum, ignoring the interrup 
 tion, " and now I " 
 
 " Didn t your father suggest that that was 
 just six dollars a week more than you were 
 worth? " demanded Scott. 
 
 " A man s father sometimes is prejudiced. 
 Still, as I look back to my humble beginning, 
 I realize there was a measure of truth in his 
 remark. But not long, sir; not long. Soon 
 that mighty corporation rose to its privilege, 
 and I was made the proud recipient of seven 
 per. To-day I have an office boy that I 
 can boss ! Sometimes I even dictate a letter. 
 I m no longer afraid of the porter, and there 
 are times when strangers even dare to address 
 me as mister. " 
 
 " They must be strangers strange, stran 
 ger, strangest," suggested Scott. 
 
18 FOUR BOYS IN THE YO SEMITE 
 
 " What are your wages now, Larc? " in 
 quired John. 
 
 " My salary is twelve per an increase of 
 one hundred per cent, in three years." 
 
 " Services doubled in value, too? " 
 
 " Modesty forbids me to enter into de 
 tails," retorted Larcum. " Scott," he added 
 abruptly, as for the first time he caught sight 
 of a card pinned to the vest of his friend, 
 11 what s that label you have put on yourself! " 
 
 " That isn t a label that s just a card of 
 explanation," replied Scott soberly. " I ve 
 placed it there on my vest so that, if we should 
 by any chance have an accident, the surgeons 
 would be saved a good deal of trouble and I 
 should be saved a big bill of expense." 
 
 What is the warning, anyway ! continued 
 Larcum, as he leaned toward his friend, and 
 then read aloud : " l I am not suffering from 
 appendicitis ! I have been in a railroad wreck ! 
 My appendix has already been cut out three 
 times. Twice since the last operation I have 
 been told that I was threatened with appendi 
 citis. I don t know who has my appendix now, 
 but, if you want to cut it up or cut it out, you 
 will have to find its present owner. I decline, 
 with thanks, all your offers to remove it from 
 
ON THE TRAIN 19 
 
 me. This is just a plain, ordinary case of ac 
 cident and must be treated as such. " 
 
 " What in the world made you do that! " 
 demanded Lee, as Scott s three friends laughed 
 loudly. 
 
 "Well," began Scott, in mock seriousness, 
 " one never can tell, and it pays to be on the 
 safe side. I don t mind a few operations, but 
 I don t want to get the habit." 
 
 " You stand about as good a chance of be 
 ing operated on for appendicitis as you do 
 of being scalped by the Indians," laughed 
 John. 
 
 " Well, the Indians are becoming civilized 
 and adding all the modern improvements," said 
 Scott. " I was reading in the paper only yes 
 terday that Dog Soldier s wife, Josephine, 
 wanted a divorce from her husband, because 
 she recovered from an illness which her spouse 
 thought would prove fatal and let him take the 
 widow of Mr. James Bull Tail as his future 
 helpmeet." 
 
 " I saw that item of news, too," laughed 
 John, " only the story I read was that James 
 Bull Tail was suffering from exposure that 
 came to him because Mistress Bull Tail beat 
 and kicked him out of her tepee." 
 
20 FOUR BOYS IN THE YO SEMITE 
 
 " Never mind! Here comes our breakfast, 
 boys! " exclaimed Larcum, as the dusky waiter 
 was seen approaching, skillfully balancing his 
 tray above his head, and apparently unmindful 
 of the swaying of the train. 
 
CHAPTER II 
 
 AN UNEXPECTED STOP 
 
 THE welcome that the waiter received caused 
 the shining face of the negro to glow, and vi 
 sions of his expected tip were already before 
 him. For a few minutes none of the boys spoke, 
 so intent were they all upon the food that had 
 been served. Such a condition, however, could 
 not long continue, and Lee, looking up from 
 his plate, said : < Larc, did you hear what Scott 
 said to that beggar that hailed him near the 
 station in Chicago? " 
 
 " No. What did Scott say! " responded Lar- 
 cum, without looking up from his plate. 
 
 " It was a one-legged man that stopped 
 Scott. He had the regulation whine, and, as 
 soon as he saw us, he thought we would be easy. 
 He looked at Scott as if he thought he was his 
 long-lost son, and began to cry. l If you 
 
 please/ he whined, I ve lost me leg Scott 
 
 didn t wait for him to say it all, for he stopped 
 short and inquired anxiously, l You say you ve 
 
 21 
 
22 FOUR BOYS IN THE YOSEMITE 
 
 lost your leg! Indeed, I have, me young 
 friend, moaned the beggar, who was a pro 
 fessional and knew his trade. That s too 
 bad/ Scott went on. * I m quite likely to lose 
 things myself. Do you want us to help you 
 find it? The beggar looked at Scott a min 
 ute as if he didn t know just what to say, but 
 Scott s face was so gentle in its expression that 
 he took courage. Yis, he began again, I ve 
 lost me leg. * So you told us, said Scott. 
 * We haven t very much time, for we must take 
 another train, but, if we can help you look for 
 it, we ll be glad to do it. Have you any idea 
 where you lost it! The old fellow s face be 
 gan to get red then at least, it got a bit red 
 der than it was before and I thought he was 
 going to lay hands on our gentle friend from 
 New York. He changed his mind all at once, 
 however; and, almost weeping, began again, 
 c Yis, young gentleman, I lost me leg. l You 
 look at me as if you thought I had it, said 
 Scott, in that mournful, reproachful tone of his 
 that brings us all to him. You know what I 
 mean, don t you! 
 
 " I should say we did know," broke in Lar- 
 cum warmly. 
 
 " Of course we know, but the old beggar 
 
AN UNEXPECTED STOP 23 
 
 man apparently didn t, for he glared at Scott 
 and then growled, I m tellin yez I lost me 
 leg. And I m telling you, said Scott softly, 
 that I haven t got it. Your tones seem to 
 imply that you have a suspicion of my personal 
 integrity. If you want me to, I ll go before 
 a notary public and make an affidavit that I 
 haven t got your leg, that I haven t seen it, and, 
 furthermore Scott didn t finish the sen 
 tence, for the beggar man up with his crutch 
 in one hand and grabbed his wooden leg with 
 the other, and started for him. I never saw 
 Scott sprint better. And there was the crowd 
 all looking at him, as if every one was tempted 
 to join in the chase. Indeed, I heard one 
 woman say, What a shame for an able-bodied 
 young man like that to make trouble for a poor 
 old one-legged man! I could hardly keep 
 back my tears. I turned to her and said : That 
 sentiment does you credit, madam. It is a 
 shame, but I m afraid that young wretch isn t 
 capable of sharing in that feeling. * He cer 
 tainly did have a hard face, she said 
 
 " What had become of Scott by this time! " 
 asked Larcum. 
 
 " Oh, with his usual slippery facility, he d 
 dodged the crowd and come back into the sta- 
 
24 FOUR BOYS IN THE YO SEMITE 
 
 tion. Even then, when I found him there, his 
 adamantine heart was not in the least softened. 
 What do you think of that, fellows, treating a 
 poor old man, with a wooden leg, like that? " 
 
 "Now, what did I do?" protested Scott. 
 " I was trying to treat the old whisky-soaked 
 ruffian " 
 
 " l Treat him? " interrupted Larcum. 
 " What was it you were trying to do? Say 
 that again, and say it slowly." 
 
 " Isn t this country magnificent? " suggested 
 John, as he called the attention of his com 
 panions to the region through which the train 
 was swiftly passing. " Did you ever see such 
 land? Then, with the great green hills just 
 beyond the valley, it makes a picture one can t 
 forget. Look at the fields ! Just see how pros 
 perous every place is. Did you ever see such 
 vineyards? And the horses and cattle and 
 sheep! Why, they are as fine as the houses. 
 You were speaking a minute ago about beg 
 gars. Doesn t seem as if the word had any 
 place out here." 
 
 " It certainly is a beautiful country," ac 
 knowledged Scott, as all four boys gazed with 
 interest at the scene. All that John had said 
 was true, and in the mellow light of the early 
 
AN UNEXPECTED STOP 25 
 
 morning the sight of the region was one to 
 impress the young travelers. 
 
 " Isn t much like the farming down East; is 
 it, Jack? " inquired Larcum. 
 
 " No," answered John promptly. 
 
 " I wonder what one of these ranchmen would 
 think if for one day he should find farming here 
 like what it is in your country. No shooting 
 beans into the rocks here, so they ll stay 
 planted. No filing the noses of the sheep so 
 they can get at a spear of grass between the 
 rocks. No stones for the plows to strike. No 
 dry spells you see, these farmers in the 
 "West are not dependent on the weather any 
 more " 
 
 " Why not? " asked Lee quickly. 
 
 11 They bring the water right to the field in 
 ditches. Irrigation is the new trick now. When 
 a farmer has that, he doesn t care whether or 
 not it ever rains. Then I wonder what a farmer 
 up in the hills of northern New Hampshire 
 would think of raising two or three, or even 
 five crops on the same land, and all within a 
 year " 
 
 i Five crops of what?" demanded John 
 scornfully. 
 
 " Alfalfa, for one thing at least, they raise 
 
26 FOUR BOYS IN THE YO SEMITE 
 
 five crops of it in the same year in the South 
 west. Get twenty-five dollars a ton for it, too. 
 I m telling you the boys don t leave the farms 
 out here the way they do back in the worn-out 
 places where you live." 
 
 " There s one crop out here they can t raise 
 as well as they can in the East," said John 
 quietly. 
 
 " What s that? " demanded Larcum quickly. 
 
 " Men." 
 
 " Don t you believe that! Don t you believe 
 it for a minute ! I m telling you that the great 
 est race the world has ever seen is going to be 
 found out here. Why, man, just think of what 
 there is here! There s a combination of ocean, 
 mountain, soil, and climate that beats anything 
 ever known! Then the class of people coming 
 in here is of the best. No riffraff of Europe 
 settling down here, no Black Hand, no failure 
 of crops, no droughts 
 
 " You ll never get the greatest race on earth 
 where there aren t any storms," retorted John 
 warmly. " No race ever grew strong where 
 there was just perpetual sunshine. Can t be 
 done. Why, there s nothing in the world to 
 put fire into a fellow, and make him feel that 
 he can go out and fight the world, like a 
 
AN UNEXPECTED STOP 27 
 
 real, old-fashioned, roaring, howling, northeast 
 storm. I wouldn t want to live where they 
 didn t raise that as a part of their crops." 
 
 " They get storms and a quake once in a 
 while, but there isn t anything out here to 
 interfere with success. Why : 
 
 " Hold on a minute, Larc," interrupted 
 Scott. " Do you own any land out here? 
 
 " Not an inch." 
 
 11 Does your father? 
 
 " Yes." As his friends laughed, Larcum 
 continued warmly, " He owns some because 
 what I ve been telling you is true." 
 
 " Oh, no; you ve been telling us it is true 
 because you or your father own the land. 
 You re a boomer, like all the others." 
 
 " Boom nothing! Can t you fellows see 
 what is right before you when you look out the 
 car windows? 
 
 " Boomer! A common boomer, and he is 
 nothing more ! said Scott slowly, shaking his 
 head and his eyes twinkling as he was aware 
 that his friend had been thoroughly aroused. 
 
 " Oh, you fellows are so full of your own 
 ideas you haven t room for anything more, no 
 matter how true it is ! You talk about Plymouth 
 Bock and all the hardships of the Pilgrims. 
 
28 FOUR BOYS IN THE YOSEMITE 
 
 were their hardships compared with 
 those which the men who first came into Cali 
 fornia suffered? Have you forgotten the voy 
 age around Cape Horn! Why, that of itself 
 was enough to drive away any but the 
 strongest. Then, there was the long, slow 
 journey overland, the fights with the Indians, 
 the drought, the slow-moving old prairie- 
 schooners, the climbing the mountains, the 
 crossing the plains and the rivers why, if 
 meeting hardships makes a race strong, then 
 California certainly ought to have the strongest 
 race on earth, for its early settlers had to meet 
 things that make the Mayflower look like a 
 sailboat on a Sunday-school excursion. 
 
 " You forget the main thing," said John, as 
 he quietly looked at his excited friend. 
 
 " What do I forget? " demanded Larcum. 
 
 1 1 The difference between the Pilgrim Fathers 
 and the Forty-niners. One party came so that 
 they might be free to worship God as their own 
 consciences dictated, and the other came out 
 here for gold." 
 
 "Bosh! Stuff! That isn t so!" retorted 
 Larcum warmly. " I guess they all had more 
 or less of the * gold fever, only in California 
 they found it, and on Plymouth Eock the metal 
 
AN UNEXPECTED STOP 29 
 
 was mighty scarce. But I m thinking your old 
 Puritans did the best they could. Didn t they 
 begin to drive sharp bargains with the Indians 
 within a few hours after they set foot on shore? 
 I ve never heard that you people in the East 
 didn t keep a pretty sharp lookout for the gold 
 and it didn t seem to make very much differ 
 ence whether it happened to be in the rocks or 
 in the pockets of the other fellow. If you 
 waited long enough the psalm-singer had it in 
 his own pocket at the end. 
 
 " No, sir! I m telling you the truth! If do 
 ing hard things makes a man or a nation strong, 
 then out here on the Pacific coast the people 
 can stand up and claim their share. What 
 about Marcus Whitman and his friends ? What 
 about Lewis and Clark? What of John C. Fre 
 mont! What about the old Spaniards that built 
 the wonderful old missions out here? I m not 
 trying to belittle what you people or your an 
 cestors did in the East. That s not it! What 
 I m trying to show you is that American his 
 tory is not bounded on the north by Concord 
 and Lexington, on the south by Plymouth 
 Eock, on the east by Bunker Hill, and on 
 the west by the Hudson Eiver or the Con 
 necticut." 
 
30 FOUR BOYS IN THE YOSEMITE 
 
 6 More ! More ! exclaimed Scott mock 
 ingly, breaking in upon his friend s speech. 
 
 " No more. That s enough, isn t it? " re 
 torted Larcum more quietly. i i Now, all I want 
 is for you fellows to tell me honestly just what 
 you think. Isn t what I have been saying the 
 truth! " 
 
 " You ll have to acknowledge, Larc," con 
 tinued John, who was not minded to give up 
 easily when his favorite topics were lightly 
 spoken of, " that the life out here is more 
 raw." 
 
 " Eaw! What do you mean! " 
 
 " Why, it s wilder and rougher than it is in 
 the East." 
 
 " Who says it is? " 
 
 " Everybody." 
 
 " Who s he? I don t know what you mean." 
 
 " Why, your trains are sometimes held up 
 by train-robbers " 
 
 i Wait a minute ! Did any of you fellows 
 read the account in the papers only last month 
 of two men who held up a fast express train 
 right in old Pennsylvania? 
 
 " We did! We did! " responded Lee glee 
 fully. " And, according to the latest reports, 
 they both got away, too; and neither of them 
 
AN UNEXPECTED STOP 31 
 
 has been caught. Oh, yes, we ve read of that, 
 Larc. You re right." 
 
 6 1 Well, train-robbers and smallpox are not 
 bounded by geographical lines, are they? 
 
 " Oh, that hold-up was something very un 
 usual, 7 said John calmly. 
 
 1 It was, was it? Well, how many times have 
 you been robbed on the train since you left 
 Boston? " 
 
 " Every time Jack goes into the diner he 
 groans as he thinks how he is being robbed, 
 said Lee. " I ve heard him groan. When the 
 porter removes from the Bostonian s hat or 
 coat any superfluous portions of the region 
 through which the train has been passing, Jack 
 groans again, and then some " 
 
 " What s this? " interrupted Scott. " What 
 are we stopping here for? We re right out in 
 the country." 
 
 " Train robbery, probably," suggested Lar- 
 cum sarcastically. 
 
 " I wouldn t feel bad if we did have a 
 hold-up," said Scott. " I d like to see what 
 one is like." 
 
 The train had come to a standstill, but not 
 one of the boys gave it any thought until the 
 waiter abruptly came and said, in a shaking 
 
32 FOUR BOYS IN THE YOSEMITE 
 
 voice, l We sure is held up ! De trainman done 
 say so." 
 
 For an instant the four boys stared blankly 
 at one another, and then, moved by a common 
 impulse, all leaped to their feet and started 
 swiftly for the door of the car. 
 
CHAPTEE III 
 
 THE EXCITEMENT AMONG THE PASSENGERS 
 
 INCREDIBLE as the report of the frightened 
 negro at first appeared to be, the four boys 
 had not leaped to the ground before they found 
 his words confirmed. A dozen or more men 
 from the train were ahead of the young trav 
 elers and all were running swiftly toward the 
 locomotive. 
 
 * Come on ! Come on, fellows ! shouted 
 Larcum, as he instantly turned to follow the 
 excited passengers. 
 
 Following his example, the three boys ran 
 swiftly after their huge companion, who speed 
 ily overtook the men in front of him. Appar 
 ently every one was strongly aroused, and the 
 daring of the train-robbers, who had held up a 
 train in broad daylight and so near the great 
 cities, had awakened a determination on the 
 part of the passengers to resist their attempts. 
 No one seemed to be aware how many were in 
 the band nor where the robbers were. The 
 
34 FOUR BOYS IN THE YOSEMITE 
 
 throbbing of the locomotive was distinctly 
 heard, and near the mail-cars several men were 
 seen, but their actions were so quiet that it 
 did not seem possible they could be the ones 
 who had stopped the long train and threatened 
 its passengers. 
 
 Suddenly the running passengers stopped 
 as a pistol was fired twice by some one near the 
 locomotive. No one was hurt, but the warning 
 was abruptly heeded. A man, at that moment, 
 stepped forward from the little group near the 
 mail-car and pointed his pistol directly at the 
 band of passengers and at the same time 
 shouted, ".Get back into the cars, every one of 
 you! " The unarmed travelers hastily clam 
 bered up .the steps and every one hastily re- 
 entered the cars our four boys being among 
 the number. 
 
 " This is a great note! " exclaimed Larcum 
 loudly. " Why don t we go out there and show 
 the villains what we can do to them? 
 
 " They re armed, Larc, and we aren t," ex 
 plained John quietly. 
 
 " Somebody must have a gun," roared the 
 excited Larcum, as he turned to the men in 
 the car. " Hasn t anybody here got a pistol! " 
 he shouted. 
 
, 
 
 GET BACK INTO THE CARS, EVFRY ONE OF YOU ! "-Page 34. 
 
EXCITEMENT AMONG PASSENGERS 35 
 
 Apparently no one was in possession of a 
 weapon of any kind, but the question served to 
 increase the confusion among the passengers. 
 Several children, hardly aware of the cause 
 of the excitement, began to cry, and one fright 
 ened woman, seizing Larcum by the arm, looked 
 up into his face and tremblingly said, " Do you 
 think those awful men will scalp us? 
 
 " No, I don t," replied the young giant, some 
 what gruffly. 
 
 " Do you think they will rob us? " 
 
 " I don t know, madam," said Larcum, not 
 unkindly. " I wish I knew how many of the 
 rascals there are. If we had a popgun we could 
 drive them off ! " 
 
 " Don t you make any mistake, young man," 
 said an old gentleman, standing in the aisle, to 
 Larcum. " You re safe now, and you d better 
 stay so. These robbers are armed; they re pre 
 pared for this very thing and they re desperate. 
 You d better not fight them. If you do, you ll 
 get the wrong end of the contest." 
 
 " But I can t stand this! " roared Larcum. 
 " Why, they ve shut us in here as if we were 
 a lot of sheep in a pen! " 
 
 " Better that than to be lying out on the 
 ground with a bullet in your head," suggested 
 
36 FOUR BOYS IN THE YO SEMITE 
 
 the old gentleman. "I m an older man than 
 you are, and I m convinced that a live dog 
 is better than a dead lion. 
 
 " Oh, do you think these terrible men will 
 come through the tram? " tearfully began the 
 woman who before had spoken. " I ve heard 
 that they go through the cars and tear the rings 
 from the fingers of the women and shoot any 
 one who refuses to give up his valuables. Is 
 that true? Do you think they ll treat us in 
 that way? " 
 
 " No, madam, I don t," said the old man 
 kindly. 
 
 " I guess they won t as long as some of us 
 are able to put up a fight," added Larcum. 
 " Though it doesn t look very much that way 
 now," he added, as he glanced over the terri 
 fied passengers. Some were weeping, some 
 were plainly badly frightened, while others were 
 hesitating as to what they should do under 
 the circumstances. To have been quietly or 
 dered back into the cars, without even an 
 attempt to drive the desperadoes away, assur 
 edly did not commend itself to some of the 
 men as the bravest or even as the wisest 
 course. 
 
 "I m going to see what those fellows are 
 
EXCITEMENT AMONG PASSENGERS 37 
 
 doing, anyway," growled Larcum, as lie started 
 once more toward the door. 
 
 "Hold on, Larc! Don t be foolish," pro 
 tested Lee. " If the gang comes in here we ll 
 put up a fight, but if they don t we d better 
 not provoke one. It s all right for us to defend 
 ourselves and try to protect the women and 
 children, but only a candidate for an idiot 
 asylum would go out and stir those men up. I 
 don t believe they ll come in here, anyway." 
 
 " Neither do I," joined in the old gentleman. 
 " Those men aren t the kind that used to hold 
 up the overland coaches and rob the passen 
 gers." 
 
 16 What kind are they? " growled Larcum. 
 
 " They won t disturb the passengers." 
 
 "Why not? " 
 
 " They haven t time. Besides, that game is 
 too small." 
 
 What are they holding us up for, then 1 
 
 " I fancy you ll find the trouble in the ex 
 press-cars. That is where the valuables are 
 kept, you know. These desperadoes can secure 
 the express matter and get away without losing 
 much time. Very likely, too, they knew just 
 what was being shipped by express." 
 
 " There isn t an express car on this train," 
 
38 FOUR BOYS IN THE YOSEMITE 
 
 said a man, who was standing near the four 
 boys. 
 
 11 Are you sure? " demanded Larcum. 
 
 " Yes, sir." 
 
 " Then the robbers are not after express 
 matter. Maybe that means that they ll come 
 through the train and compel the passengers to 
 disgorge," suggested the young giant. 
 
 " No, I think not." 
 
 "I m going to see what they re doing, any 
 way," roared Larcum. 
 
 Disregarding the protests of his friends, the 
 young giant made his way to the end of the car 
 and passed out upon the platform. 
 
 " We must look after him or he ll get into 
 trouble," said Scott sharply, as, leaving the 
 other boys, he hastened to join Larcum, who, 
 he found was not so reckless as his words had 
 implied. He was leaning out from the platform 
 and with both hands was holding to the rail, 
 so that only his head was exposed. 
 
 " What are they doing, Larcl " asked Scott 
 excitedly. 
 
 " I can t just see," replied Larcum, without 
 looking behind him. " There is a big pile of 
 mail-bags there on the ground, but they don t 
 seem to be paying any attention to it." 
 
EXCITEMENT AMONG PASSENGERS 39 
 
 " How many robbers are there? " 
 
 " I can t see but two." 
 
 " Two! " 
 
 " That s all. There s a fellow who is keep 
 ing the engineer right in front of him as a 
 shield; then there s another one who is busy 
 with the mail-pouches. I can t see any more." 
 
 Do you mean to say that two men have held 
 up this train? 
 
 " That s the way it looks." 
 
 " If there are only two, why can t we creep 
 up along the side of the train, come around by 
 the locomotive, and get them both before they 
 find out what we are up to ? 
 
 "I m not for it," said Larcum decidedly. 
 
 " Why not? " 
 
 < Because, in the first place, something would 
 happen to that engineer if we should try any 
 such trick. The man has him covered with his 
 pistol and, if he s daring enough to try that, 
 he s daring enough to do the rest. No, we ll 
 have to wait. If the villains don t come through 
 the train, we won t take any chances. There ! 
 Larcum added excitedly. " They re about 
 ready to start. They re leaving all the mail- 
 pouches in a heap, but they re having all 
 the rest put back into the mail-car. The man 
 
40 FOUR BOYS IN THE YOSEMITE 
 
 with the engineer is backing toward the 
 locomotive 
 
 " Let me see! " broke in Scott eagerly, as 
 he pushed his way down the steps, and, taking 
 a place beside his friend, peered at the scene 
 before them. 
 
 " That s right, Larc! " he added. " That s 
 just what the fellow is doing. He s getting into 
 the locomotive now! He s keeping the engineer 
 right there, though. No taking any chances for 
 him." 
 
 16 They re off! They are going, just as sure 
 as you re born! " roared Larcum, as, a moment 
 later, the locomotive, to which one of the mail- 
 cars was attached, freed from the rest of the 
 train, started swiftly down the track. 
 
 With a shout the two boys leaped to the 
 ground and ran swiftly toward the front of 
 the train. Quickly all the men on the train 
 joined them, and in a brief time the engineer, 
 fireman, mail clerks, and conductor were sur 
 rounded by an excited mob, demanding to be 
 informed how it all happened, and what was 
 now to be done. 
 
 Leaving the engineer to explain, the con 
 ductor quickly ordered one of the trainmen to 
 run to the little station in the rear, where the 
 
EXCITEMENT AMONG PASSENGERS 41 
 
 locomotive previously had stopped to take wa 
 ter. As the distance was not more than a mile, 
 or a mile and a half, it was confidently believed 
 that the operator there would be able to send 
 word ahead not only of the work of the train- 
 robbers, but also to avoid the possibility of a 
 collision with the express train which was due 
 within an hour from the coast. 
 
 Meanwhile the engineer, the perspiration 
 streaming down his face as he spoke, was tell 
 ing his story to the excited group before him. 
 " We d stopped for water, you know," he was 
 saying, and I hadn t a thought of a hold-up ! 
 Why, I never heard of one like this ! But what 
 I thought didn t make any difference it seems, 
 for pretty soon after we d started I happened 
 to look back and there were two young chaps 
 pointing their pistols at me and at the fireman. 
 Of course we knew without any explanation 
 what they wanted, though we couldn t hear 
 much of what they were saying. We were mak 
 ing up time, and that always means a little 
 more noise, you understand." 
 
 " How many men were there? " asked Lar- 
 cum. 
 
 " Two. They both wore masks, but I could 
 see they were young fellows. I d take one of 
 
42 FOUR BOYS IN THE YO SEMITE 
 
 them to be about twenty-one and the other was 
 twenty-five, maybe. Oh, they were doing it in 
 regulation dime-novel style! They had little 
 black masks that came to their chins, and their 
 pistols were pearl-handled. Well, when they 
 ordered me to stop the train, there wasn t any 
 thing else for me to do, so I did what they told 
 me." 
 
 " Were they big fellows? " 
 
 "No; that s the joke of it all if there is 
 any joke," the engineer replied. " Neither one 
 of em weighed more than a hundred and fifty 
 pounds. I thought it was a joke, anyway, until 
 I found out it wasn t. They ordered us both 
 to point out the express-car, and, when I told 
 them there wasn t any such car on this train, 
 they made us go with them to make sure. You 
 see, they d made a mistake in the train the 
 express matter comes on Number 6, which 
 follows us. However, neither one was 
 willing to give up, so they decided to try the 
 mail-cars. When we stopped in front of the 
 coach, they called out for the clerks to open 
 the doors, but the men wouldn t do it at first. 
 Then the older chap spoke quietlike to the other 
 fellow and told him to bring the bag of dyna 
 mite sticks. In a minute it was the smaller 
 
EXCITEMENT AMONG PASSENGERS 43 
 
 fellow who brought the stuff, which they must 
 have had with them when they boarded the train 
 back there by the water tower I saw that the 
 bag really was full of dynamite and that both 
 the boys meant business. It was my turn then, 
 so I called out to the clerks that they d better 
 open up, for the gang surely did mean busi 
 ness. The clerks then opened the doors and 
 began to toss out the mail-bags. One of the 
 robbers kept me right in front of him all the 
 time, so that no one dared to shoot at him, for 
 fear of hitting me. 
 
 " When the rascally train-robbers saw that 
 the clerks were only throwing out the bags of 
 second-class mail, they ordered them to stop 
 and just put out the registered mail, and to be 
 mighty sudden about it, too. The young chap 
 who was the leader didn t speak very loud, and 
 he seemed to smile good-naturedly, too, while 
 he was talking; but he sure did mean business. 
 When they got the nine sacks of registered 
 mail, they put them all in one car, cut loose 
 from the rest of the train, and set out the way 
 you saw them." 
 
 " They could run a locomotive, then, as well 
 as they could rob a train," suggested one of 
 the men in the assembly. 
 
44 FOUR BOYS IN THE YO SEMITE 
 
 " That remains to be seen. There s a big 
 chance for a lot of trouble. Hello, here comes 
 the conductor, and, from his looks, I guess he s 
 got something interesting to say to us," the 
 engineer hastily added. 
 
CHAPTER IV 
 
 ACBOSS THE CONTINENT 
 
 REPLYING to the questions of the excited pas 
 sengers, the conductor quietly explained that 
 word of the daring hold-up had been sent to 
 several stations, and that the offices in San 
 Francisco also had been informed of the work 
 of the train-robbers. The absence of excite 
 ment from the conductor s manner served, in 
 a measure, to restore the confidence of the peo 
 ple, although some of the passengers still were 
 plainly showing the effects of the startling 
 experience. 
 
 " The men will be taken soon," said the con 
 ductor. " There isn t a chance for them to get 
 away." 
 
 " What will be done with them? " inquired 
 one of the assembly. 
 
 " Holding up a train is a capital offense," 
 replied the conductor significantly. 
 
 " Do you suppose they knew that? " 
 
 " Whether they did or not, they will know 
 
 45 
 
46 FOUR BOYS IN THE YOSEMITE 
 
 it very soon. They were just a couple of fool 
 ish boys, who probably had been reading ac 
 counts of the deeds of some villains, and 
 thought it would be a great thing to imitate 
 them. Now, if you will all go back to your 
 places, you ll do more to help us than you can 
 in any other way. There isn t any danger, 
 and it won t be but a little while before 
 we shall have a locomotive here and we ll 
 get into Oakland not more than two hours 
 late." 
 
 In response to the request, most of the men 
 returned to their seats in the cars, where the 
 alarm among the women and children was still 
 manifest. 
 
 " Do you suppose they ll come back again? " 
 inquired a little woman, who occupied a seat 
 opposite that of Larcum and Lee. 
 
 " No, I don t think we ll hear of them again 
 until we read about their being hanged for 
 this morning s work," said Larcum lightly. 
 11 Here," he added, as he picked up the 
 woman s baby and took the little fellow on his 
 lap. " You ll help us fight off the train-rob 
 bers if they come back again, won t you 1 For 
 three days and nights the tired little mother 
 had been on the same train with the four boys, 
 
ACROSS THE CONTINENT 47 
 
 her time being divided between the care of her 
 year-old boy and her helpless blind old father, 
 who also was dependent upon her. The little 
 woman smiled as she saw the young giant walk 
 down the aisle, holding the baby in his arms as 
 if he had been all his life accustomed to the 
 care of children. 
 
 " Did you ever see such a fellow? " asked 
 Lee, as he turned to his friends. 
 
 " Larc can make that baby squeal with de 
 light just about as easily as he could wring the 
 neck of a train-robber, if he should once get his 
 hands on the rascal," said Scott. 
 
 " Larc is one of the best fellows that ever 
 lived," said John warmly, as he watched his 
 huge companion. 
 
 "That s what he is!" joined in Scott. 
 " Now I m just as willing as Larc is to help 
 that little woman, but, if I should hold out my 
 hands to her baby, the little fellow would 
 scream so that he could be heard from one end 
 of the train to the other. What do you sup 
 pose makes the difference? I don t understand 
 it myself." 
 
 "I ll tell you, Scott," said Lee promptly, 
 " It s this way: little children and dogs know 
 a good man instinctively. They can tell him 
 
48 FOUR BOYS IN THE YOSEMITE 
 
 just as soon as they see him. Now, if they can 
 recognize a good man just as soon as they see 
 him, the natural inference oh, well, I ll let you 
 draw the inference yourself," he added, with 
 a laugh. 
 
 " Thank you," said Scott derisively. " Now 
 you know " 
 
 " Hold on, Scott! " interrupted John. " If 
 I m not mistaken, that s the whistle of our new 
 locomotive. We 11 be moving out of this region 
 pretty soon now." 
 
 The scream of the approaching locomotive 
 had been heard by others also, and in a mo 
 ment Larcum rejoined his companions, placed 
 the baby in its mother s arms, and hastened 
 after the boys, who were all rushing to the 
 platform. There John s surmise proved to 
 be correct, and in a brief time the train 
 once more was moving toward its destina 
 tion. 
 
 " It s strange how soon an excitement like 
 that we had an hour ago dies down," said John, 
 when he and his friends once more were in their 
 accustomed seats. " Now, if any one had told 
 us before we started that we were to be on a 
 train which would be held up by train-robbers, 
 and that seventy-five minutes afterward we d 
 
ACROSS THE CONTINENT 49 
 
 be moving as quietly on our way as if nothing 
 unusual had occurred, not one of us would have 
 believed it." 
 
 " Correct," assented Scott. " But we re all 
 keeping up a deal of thinking." 
 
 " About what? " 
 
 " The train-robbers." 
 
 " I ll tell you, fellows, what we ought to do," 
 suggested Larcum. " There isn t any doubt 
 that there ll be a big reward offered for the 
 train-robbers 
 
 " And we ought to get it! " broke in Scott 
 with a laugh. 
 
 11 Precisely." 
 
 " Just tell us how," said Lee. 
 
 " That ll depend but it can be done. Now, 
 here s Jack," Larcum added, as he placed his 
 hand on his friend s shoulder. " There isn t 
 anything in the heavens above or earth beneath 
 that he can t set right. He comes from Boston, 
 you understand, and he seems to think that is 
 all that is required to let him straighten out all 
 the tangles of the universe." 
 
 " There s one thing your true-blue son of 
 Boston can t do," said Scott, in mock serious 
 ness. 
 
 " What s that? I have never yet heard of 
 
50 FOUR BOYS IN THE YOSEMITE 
 
 anything," declared Larcum, as his friends 
 laughed. 
 
 " He can t settle the affairs of Boston or of 
 the native Bostonian." 
 
 " What do you mean by that? " John asked, 
 so abruptly that the boys all laughed aloud. 
 
 " Jack," responded Scott, " you can trans 
 late almost any sentence from Latin, Greek, 
 French, German, Pigeon English, or Hog Latin, 
 can t you? " 
 
 " That s what you say." 
 
 "Well, if you can t translate that plain Eng 
 lish sentence, then I m afraid I can t help you 
 very much," said Scott, his eyes twinkling. 
 
 "I m afraid I can t do it." 
 
 " I ll help you, Jack," broke in Larcum. 
 " As I understand Scott, what he meant was 
 that you could tell the slave-owners what to 
 do with their slaves. You could, through timid, 
 modest, shrinking John Adams and a few oth 
 ers like him, tell all the people of America how 
 they ought to behave. You could give sug 
 gestions to librarians and lawyers, baseball 
 players and balloonists, colleges and country 
 men, but somehow you don t appear to be quite 
 able to " 
 
 " You know as well as I do, Larc Brown, 
 
ACROSS THE CONTINENT 51 
 
 that Boston is a better authority on culture 
 than it is on pork-packing. " 
 
 " Yes, I know it is so in Boston," broke in 
 Larcum. 
 
 " We can t do much more than give good ad 
 vice, " began John. 
 
 " Correct." 
 
 " We can t do very much more than give 
 good advice," repeated John. " If others don t 
 know enough to follow it that isn t our fault, 
 is it? " 
 
 " Certainly not," acknowledged Larcum 
 drolly. " Jack, did you find out just what 
 Scott meant when he referred to the one thing 
 the true Bostonian couldn t do? " 
 
 " No. What was it? " 
 
 " I fawncy the gentleman from New York, 
 in his reference to all the benefits which have 
 come to these United States of America via 
 Boston, implied that in the midst of the pro 
 found and profuse discrimination of the specific 
 duties of all other peoples and kindred and 
 tongues and tribes that there was a bare possi 
 bility that this far-reaching native Bostonian 
 failed to recognize the painful deficiency which, 
 to others, is all too manifest, is his capacity to 
 recognize the problems or find their proper solu- 
 
52 FOUR BOYS IN THE YO SEMITE 
 
 tion in so far and inasmuch as they apper 
 tained to the Bostonian s proper and native 
 lair. You comprehend the correlation of the 
 consecutive consecution of my concise and con 
 trite contribution to the colossal confidence 
 of " 
 
 "Perfectly! Perfectly! " broke in John, 
 with a laugh as his huge friend was not able 
 to complete his sentence. " What you infer is 
 that we good people of Boston spend too much 
 time on the troubles and problems of other 
 people and don t mind our own business as we 
 ought. " 
 
 " Magnificent! " ejaculated Larcum. " How 
 terse ! Notice how concisely the truth is stated. 
 That is precisely what I meant." 
 
 " Only you ve got it slightly mixed with 
 what we term unselfishness," said John. 
 
 " There s our mail-car! " broke in Lee, as 
 he pointed to a car on a side-track by which 
 the train now was passing. 
 
 66 Does look like it," said Scott excitedly, as 
 the four boys stood up and peered out of the 
 car window. 
 
 " Where s the locomotive, if that is our 
 car? " asked John. 
 
 " We may see that later," replied Lee. 
 
ACROSS THE CONTINENT 53 
 
 " Where are the train-robbers!" inquired 
 John. 
 
 " That, my friend, is the very problem to 
 which I want you to turn your massively confi 
 dent Bostonian intellect," retorted Larcum. 
 You, who can tell all the rest of us how to do 
 it; you, who mastered so easily the number of 
 parasangs which Clearchus marched in a day s 
 journey; you, who solved without the slightest 
 difficulty into how many parts all Gaul was 
 divided, must now give the benighted people of 
 the Far West, and eke also and besides, the 
 sadly perplexed officials of the road, the bene 
 fit of all your classical lore and your disciplined 
 mind. Just find these two train-robbers, Jack, 
 and I ll own up that your Latin and Greek 
 pay." 
 
 11 You won t object to taking a share of the 
 reward, will you, Larc? " laughed John. 
 
 " No, sir. That s where my training comes 
 in," said Larcum soberly, as his friends 
 laughed. 
 
 " There s our locomotive, fellows! " sud 
 denly exclaimed Scott, as he pointed to a loco 
 motive that had been overturned and was lying 
 near the track. Instantly there was a rush to 
 the side of the car from which the sight could 
 
54 FOUR BOYS IN THE YOSEMITE 
 
 be seen. Steam was still escaping from the 
 broken engine. The half-dozen men who were 
 standing near the helpless mass waved their 
 hands and shouted to the passengers as the 
 train slowly passed. 
 
 On the same siding where the locomotive had 
 been derailed a long passenger train also was 
 standing, and the noisy greetings of its inmates 
 were returned in kind as the " robber train " 
 slowly drew past it. 
 
 " Larc," inquired John, " why was that en 
 gine turned over like that! 
 
 " I have received no definite information," 
 replied Larcum, l but I suspect the station-men 
 here, after they received word of the robbery 
 and that the robbers had run away with the 
 engine and a mail-car, got ready to l throw the 
 locomotive, so that this other passenger train 
 would not run into it. You know, there are 
 people who seriously object to a collision 
 between a runaway locomotive and their 
 train." 
 
 " But the train-robbers were on this loco 
 motive," persisted John. 
 
 " Jack," said Larcum soberly, " do you 
 really believe that * thence Clearchus marched 
 fourteen parasangs ? " 
 
ACROSS THE CONTINENT 55 
 
 " Yes, but what has that to do with these 
 train-robbers or this locomotive! 
 
 li Well, if you believe that about the para- 
 sangs and Clearchus, how can you believe the 
 robbers would stay on the engine and be 
 caught? " 
 
 " Didn t they stay? " 
 
 " I haven t received any definite word from 
 them, Jack, but my impression is that, after 
 they d run the car two or three miles ahead, 
 they cut loose from the locomotive and sent 
 that on ahead as a wildcat, while they looted 
 the mail-bags." 
 
 " But they must have known there might 
 be a collision if they sent the locomotive ahead 
 at full speed." 
 
 " Splendid! After this I shall never ques 
 tion the value of studying the dead lan 
 guages, Jack," laughed Larcum. " You have 
 struck the nail on the head, and the first 
 time! " 
 
 " But they must have thought of that," per 
 sisted John. 
 
 " That s just what they did think. The vil 
 lains must have believed that, if there should 
 be a collision, their own chances of getting 
 away would be much better. I m telling you 
 
56 FOUR BOYS IN THE YO SEMITE 
 
 that California is right hanging is too good 
 for such men! I hope they ll be caught! 
 
 " The conductor said they would be." 
 
 " Yes, I know he did." 
 
 " Don t you think they will? " 
 
 I told you I hoped they would. Here comes 
 the porter we must be near Oakland. Let s 
 get our belongings together." 
 
 The suggestion was at once acted upon by 
 the four boys, and, not long afterward, the long 
 journey across the continent was completed 
 when the young travelers departed from the 
 train in the huge station at Oakland and made 
 their way to the ferryboat, on which they were 
 to cross the bay to San Francisco. 
 
 " Why, these ferryboats are quite large, 
 aren t they? " said Jack. 
 
 " temporal mores! and all the rest," 
 snapped Larcum. .Don t you know there isn t 
 a ferryboat in New York or Boston harbor as 
 large as the.se are? l Quite large! Oh, Jack, 
 what shall I do with you? Hello! " Larcum 
 quickly added. " Look at that ! " As he spoke, 
 the young giant pointed to a flaring headline in 
 a newspaper that was in the hands of a young 
 man near the boys. " That is something for 
 us! We must not lose that." 
 
CHAPTER V 
 
 THE INTERVIEW 
 
 WITH great flaring headlines the story of the 
 train robbery, which had occurred only a few 
 hours before, was now facing the boys from 
 a newspaper held in the hands of a man who 
 was standing near them. 
 
 " I must get a paper somewhere ! " exclaimed 
 Scott, as he turned hastily from his compan 
 ions. In a brief time he returned, and, as the 
 four boys withdrew to a more secluded spot on 
 the deck, he read aloud the thrilling account 
 of the daring robbery of the morning. 
 
 " Posses are already searching for the rob 
 bers, are they! " asked Larcum, when the sen 
 sational account had been read. 
 
 " Yes, that s what the report is," replied 
 Scott. " They seem to think the robbers can t 
 be very far from the place where they held us 
 up." 
 
 " They ll be caught soon," said John confi 
 dently. " The conductor said they would." 
 
 57 
 
58 FOUR BOYS IN THE YO SEMITE 
 
 11 I wish we might get them," suggested Lar- 
 cum. " What is the reward which the rail 
 way people offered? " 
 
 " Five thousand dollars. " 
 
 "I m afraid the size of the reward doesn t 
 look very much as if they were sure they would 
 run the rascals to cover. I wish we could get 
 that reward." 
 
 "I m satisfied without it," said John. "I d 
 rather have them leave me alone than get the 
 reward if we had to get into their clutches." 
 
 "I d like to chance that part of it," declared 
 Larcum lightly. " Well, we ve had an experi 
 ence anyway. It isn t often a man has the 
 chance to tell of his experience in a train 
 robbery. 
 
 "It s like having the smallpox once is just 
 one too many," said Scott. 
 
 " We didn t suffer, anyway," suggested Lee. 
 " We can t complain." 
 
 " Yes, but I want to help get the villains," 
 said Larcum. " I wish Jack would focus all 
 his mental powers on such a problem as that 
 is. There s more sense in trying to catch 
 thieves than there is in trying to work out the 
 distance of the earth from the nearest planet. 
 What difference does the distance make, any- 
 
THE INTERVIEW 59 
 
 way? Suppose we did know just how many 
 miles we are from our neighbors, it wouldn t af 
 fect us, would it? There d be just as many 
 hours as ever that I d have to devote to the 
 relations between Larcum Brown and the T. 
 G. & P. Railroad." 
 
 " We ll get Jack to solve the problem of how 
 the train-robbers are to be caught, but don t 
 forget to take in that sight of San Francisco 
 and this wonderful bay," said Lee. 
 
 Diverted by the suggestion, all four boys 
 turned to look at the city they were approach 
 ing. Spread along the hillside and overlooking 
 the waters of the wonderful harbor, with 
 stately buildings showing in the midst of the 
 verdure, with the sunlight streaming over hill 
 side and harbor and over the islands and high 
 lands behind them, the city of St. Francis could 
 not fail to make a deep impression on the minds 
 of the four young travelers. 
 
 " Doesn t seem possible, does it," said Scott, 
 " that so many of these great buildings could 
 have been put up since the earthquake? 
 
 " San Francisco doesn t talk of the earth 
 quake, suggested Larcum. i Some of the peo 
 ple may refer to the fire. They say the quake 
 didn t amount to so very much, and no one 
 
60 FOUR BOYS IN THE YOSEMITE 
 
 would have paid very much attention to it if 
 it hadn t happened to twist the water mains so 
 that, when the fire broke out, the firemen 
 couldn t get water with which to fight the fire." 
 
 " Fire does play havoc with a city, do.esn t 
 it? " suggested John. " If I remember aright, 
 Chicago had one or two fires. The big fire was 
 started by a woman or was it a cow over 
 turning a lantern in or near the mayor s of 
 fice? Isn t that right, Larc? " 
 
 11 Eight enough," growled the young giant. 
 " Boston had a fire, too, didn t it? The town 
 was as dry as punk, and, when it got going, 
 nothing would or could stop it for a while." 
 
 " Quit your quarreling over your towns," 
 remonstrated Scott. " You re too far from 
 home for that. Besides, you don t want to 
 lose sight of this city. I tell you, Larc, if I 
 were to come West to stay, I wouldn t stop off 
 at Chicago. I d keep straight on until I came 
 to the Pacific Ocean." 
 
 " You needn t stop there on my account," 
 retorted Larcum. 
 
 " Oh, I sha n t," laughed Scott. " Here we 
 are at the ferry slip. I didn t know it took 
 twenty minutes to cross the bay." 
 
 " Indeed ! Well, you know a little more than 
 
THE INTERVIEW 61 
 
 you did an hour ago, and there s some com 
 fort in that. Here we go, fellows! " Larcum 
 added, as he seized his suitcase and joined 
 the throng which now was moving toward the 
 street. 
 
 " Fine ferryhouse, Larc," said John, as he 
 walked beside his friend and glanced about him 
 at the immense structure through which great 
 throngs of men were now surging. 
 
 As Larcum quietly assumed the leadership, 
 his friends followed him when he boarded a 
 trolley car, and in a few minutes the young 
 travelers had alighted, registered at the hotel, 
 where rooms already had been reserved by tele 
 graphing ahead, and soon were washed and in 
 their right minds, as Scott laughingly described 
 their condition. 
 
 " Pretty good hotel; eh, Larc? " suggested 
 Scott, when the four boys were assembled in 
 the dining-room for their luncheon. 
 
 " Pretty good? There isn t a better in the 
 country, 7 retorted Larcum. 
 
 " It is quite remarkable," assented Scott so 
 berly. " One would hardly expect to find such 
 a well-kept hostelry so far away." 
 
 " So far away from what! " demanded Lar 
 cum sharply. 
 
62 FOUR BOYS IN THE YO SEMITE 
 
 "Why, so far from New York," retorted 
 Scott, winking at Lee as he spoke. 
 
 "Scott Gordon!" began Larcum, "I ll 
 have to get some of 
 
 * Pardon me, but may I inquire if you young 
 gentlemen were on the train that was held up 
 this morning? 
 
 As the four boys looked up at the interrup 
 tion they saw a young man not much older 
 than they, who was standing beside their table. 
 
 " Yes, we happened to be on the train," as 
 sented John. 
 
 " If you do not object, I should be glad if 
 you would give me your account of it. I am 
 a reporter from the - " he added, as he drew 
 a notebook and pencil from his pocket, and, 
 without waiting to be invited, beckoned to the 
 waiter for an additional chair to be brought, 
 in which he at once seated himself and drew 
 more closely to the table. 
 
 l Now, then" he began, what I want is your 
 own account as eye-witnesses of what oc 
 curred. 
 
 " We can t give you anything more than the 
 papers already have," said Larcum, who by 
 common consent at once became the spokesman 
 of the party. 
 
THE INTERVIEW 63 
 
 " Give me your own experiences. " 
 
 " We didn t have any. The villains drove 
 every passenger back into the cars." 
 
 There were only two of the robbers. Do 
 you mean to tell me that not a man on the train 
 dared to stand against them? " 
 
 " That s it," said Larcum dryly. 
 
 " You certainly were a brave lot," laughed 
 the reporter. 
 
 " Any man can be brave when he isn t look 
 ing into the pistol of a low-lived villain. They ll 
 both get what they deserve! " Larcum added 
 angrily. 
 
 11 When? " 
 
 " When they are caught." 
 
 " And just when will that be? " asked the 
 reporter quizzically. 
 
 " Some of the posses will run them down." 
 
 " Then the train-robbers are in the hills, are 
 they? " 
 
 " You ll have to ask the sheriff. We aren t 
 chasing the rascals." 
 
 1 Would you recognize them if you should 
 see them? " 
 
 "We might." 
 
 " Describe them to me." 
 
 " They were both young fellows and very 
 
64 FOUR BOYS IN THE YOSEMITE 
 
 likely had been reading up on dime novels. 
 That was about their intellectual measure." 
 
 " They were villainous-looking fellows, you 
 say? " 
 
 " I didn t say they looked like villains; I said 
 they were villains. They couldn t have been 
 very smart or they would have known what sen 
 tence a train-robber in California gets. Be 
 sides, the fools made a mistake in the train 
 they didn t know the difference between a mail- 
 car and an express-car. That of itself shows 
 how much they knew. They haven t brains 
 enough to keep out of the hands of the parties 
 that are searching for them." 
 
 " It seems to me," laughed the reporter, 
 " that two such young fellows as you describe, 
 who have the nerve to hold up a whole train 
 and drive off every man that tried to get near 
 them, aren t going to lose their heads when they 
 are being chased. Don t you think so? " 
 
 " No, I don t," said Larcum sharply. " They 
 don t stand the ghost of a chance of getting 
 away! " 
 
 " Not even if they make for the canons? " 
 
 11 No, sir." 
 
 " Well, from what I saw of the place, I d 
 rather take my chances with them of not being 
 
TEE INTERVIEW 65 
 
 caught than of any man in the searching parties 
 of ever spending any of that reward which has 
 been offered for their capture. Of course that 
 is merely a matter of opinion. Now, then, if 
 you will answer a few questions, I ll not trouble 
 you any more." 
 
 " Go ahead." 
 
 " Could you describe the robbers? " 
 
 " Not very fully." 
 
 " Would you be able to identify them? " 
 
 I am not sure, though I think I could. The 
 bigger one was about your size " 
 
 " Sure I am not the man myself? " inter 
 rupted the reporter, with a laugh. 
 
 " No, I am not sure." 
 
 " Any others of the passengers able to iden 
 tify the robbers? " 
 
 " Probably we saw as much of them as any 
 one did, except the engineer and fireman." 
 
 " And yet you are not certain enough about 
 it yourselves to say that I was not one of them." 
 
 In height, weight, size, and nerve you might 
 pass. If you ll slip a black mask on for a min 
 ute, we ll be more sure." 
 
 " Sorry I haven t one with me," laughed 
 the reporter. " I must be going on to inter 
 view some more of the passengers. A good 
 
66 FOUR BOYS IN THE YOSEMITE 
 
 many of them are stopping at this hotel. Thank 
 you for the information you have given me, he 
 added, as he arose and at once left the table. 
 
 " We didn t give him any information, 
 Larc," suggested John. 
 
 " He acted as if he thought he had a 
 scoop, ; said John. 
 
 " What is a scoop ? " 
 
 " It s an expression a newspaper reporter 
 uses when he finds a story before any of his 
 rivals get hold of it," explained John. " This 
 fellow certainly was on the ground early. He d 
 been out to the place where the hold-up took 
 place. How do you think he did that? " 
 
 " Oh, the newspapers have all sorts of ways 
 of getting the news," said Larcum. 
 
 " You don t suppose this chap could have 
 been right on the ground, do you? " 
 
 " What do you mean, Jack? " demanded Lar 
 cum quickly. 
 
 " I don t know that I mean anything." 
 
 " You aren t suggesting that this reporter 
 might have been " 
 
 " I m not suggesting anything, I tell you! " 
 interrupted John. "All I said was that he 
 was early on the ground, that s all. I didn t 
 think of that until you told him that one 
 
THE INTERVIEW 67 
 
 of the train-robbers was about Ms size. And 
 he was, too, when you come to think of 
 it." 
 
 1 i * Thence Clearchus marched fourteen para- 
 sangs, " laughed Larcum. " The discipline of 
 your mental powers by the study of Greek will 
 lead you next to charge me with holding up our 
 train. " 
 
 " No danger of that, Larc," laughed Scott. 
 " These fellows were both smaller than you are 
 and they had a superfluity of nerve. " 
 
 " Humph! " retorted Larcum, as his friends 
 laughed. They certainly did beat a masterly 
 retreat and that s something I haven t learned 
 to do yet." 
 
 " How about that retreat of yours into the 
 car along with all the rest of the passengers, 
 Larc? " inquired Scott. 
 
 " I wasn t retreating! " retorted Larcum. 
 
 " You withdrew, then; call it that," con 
 tinued Scott. " You withdrew from the scene 
 of battle in splendid array. You didn t lose a 
 flag, or a gun, or a man in your masterly with 
 drawal. 
 
 " Something else, too, that he didn t lose in 
 his retreat I mean his withdrawal," suggested 
 Lee. 
 
68 FOUR BOYS IN THE YOSEMITE 
 
 " What was that? demanded Larcum 
 sharply. 
 
 " A minute," retorted Lee. 
 
 Even Larcum was compelled to join in the 
 laugh that greeted Lee s words, but the young 
 giant, good-naturedly changing the subject, 
 said: " Now, fellows, we don t leave for the 
 Yosemite until half -past eleven to-night. We ve 
 got the whole afternoon. What shall we do 
 with it! " 
 
 11 Got our reservations, Larc? " inquired 
 Scott. 
 
 " No; I ll get them while you fellows are 
 deciding what we ll do this afternoon." 
 
 The problem of the four boys, however, was 
 solved for them, and in a manner of which they 
 had no thought. 
 
CHAPTER VI 
 
 AN AUTOMOBILE 
 
 " MR. BROWN! " called a bellboy, as the four 
 boys arose. 
 
 " That s you, Larc," suggested Scott, 
 " There can t be more than one Mr. Brown 
 here. Even if there were several, you would 
 still be the one." 
 
 Mr. Brown ! Mr. Brown, please ! called 
 the bellboy once more, as he came near our 
 party. 
 
 " My name is Brown," said Larcum, as he 
 turned to the boy. " Let me see your mes 
 sage." 
 
 As the bellboy stopped and held out his let 
 ter, Scott said quickly: " I was right, Larc, it s 
 for Mr. Larcum Brown. There s only one of 
 the kind." 
 
 Unmindful of his friend s bantering, Larcum 
 hastily tore open the envelope and, ignoring 
 the curiosity of the boys, slowly read the 
 letter. 
 
 69 
 
70 FOUR BOYS IN THE YO SEMITE 
 
 " What is it, Larc? Why don t yon speak 
 up? " demanded Lee. 
 
 " It was for me/ said Larcnm. 
 
 " Of course. We knew it couldn t be for any 
 one else. But what is the message! Is it some 
 thing for you, or does it concern us all? 
 
 Indirectly, it may concern you it certainly 
 does me," replied Larcum. 
 
 " Well, what is it? " said Scott impatiently. 
 
 " It s a message." 
 
 " What is the message? " 
 
 " I m a bit afraid to tell you just yet. I ll 
 tell you, fellows. You all go up to our rooms 
 and get ready while I go to the office and make 
 our reservations for to-night." 
 
 " Bother the reservations," said Scott im 
 patiently. " What I want to know is what this 
 message is you say it concerns us all. Let 
 the reservations take care of themselves! " 
 
 " Hear him! " exclaimed Larcum, glancing 
 in pretended surprise at Scott. Any one who 
 heard him might think he had never been away 
 from home before. * Bother the reservations. 7 
 Don t you know, Scott, that the first preponder 
 ating, overwhelming prerequisite in successful 
 traveling is to have your sections in the sleeper 
 reserved for you? " 
 
AN AUTOMOBILE 71 
 
 " I guess there won t be any jam to-night. 
 It s too early in the season. If it was August 
 now, instead of June, it would be a different 
 matter. " 
 
 " I take no chances," said Larcum soberly. 
 " You poor unprotected and unsophisticated 
 peregrinators depart to the places where you be 
 long, and stay there till I come back. I ll not 
 be gone long, but don t one of you dare -to ven 
 ture out of the rooms until I come back. Here s 
 John, he might get hit by a trolley car he isn t 
 used to cars that move. Scott, now, might be 
 frightened if he should find there was any real 
 life outside of New York; and Lee why, Lee 
 would be lost if he got out into the streets. 
 No, sir; all three of you do just what I say, 
 and when I come back, if you have been good 
 little boys, I ll have something nice for you. 
 Now do what I tell you," Larcum added, as he 
 took his hat and departed. 
 
 A half-hour later he returned to the hotel, 
 and at once went to his room, where he found 
 Lee and John awaiting his return. i Where is 
 Scott? " he demanded, as soon as he entered 
 the room. 
 
 " Gone," said John. 
 
 " Gone! Where has he gone! " 
 
72 FOUR BOYS IN THE YO SEMITE 
 
 " To look for you, I reckon, " laughed Lee. 
 " He thought you were lost." 
 
 " He did, did he? Well, he ll find out who 
 is lost. Now, fellows, come on," he added, as 
 Jie turned to the door. 
 
 " Where are we going, Larc! " asked John. 
 
 * You are going with me. IVe got our res 
 ervations all right, but, if I hadn t been a rail 
 road man, I d have had my troubles. There s 
 a crowd going out to the Yo Semite to-night. 
 The man told me at first I couldn t have any 
 thing but two upper berths, but, when he found 
 out who I really was why, the drawing-room 
 wasn t good enough." 
 
 " You took it though, didn t you, Larc? 
 laughed Lee. 
 
 " I did. That provides for three of us, but 
 the fourth fellow will have to take an upper 
 berth. I ll tell you what we ll do, fellows," 
 Larcum added quickly; " we ll draw lots for 
 the berths in the drawing-room and let Scott 
 have that upper berth. If he had been here 
 as he ought to have been, and as I told him to 
 be, he d have had his chance with the rest of 
 us. Now we ll tell him the upper berth is his 
 and we won t say anything about our having 
 the drawing-room to ourselves. You hear me? " 
 
AN AUTOMOBILE 73 
 
 " Verily," laughed Lee. " Poor Scott! " 
 
 " If he d pay attention to what is told him, 
 he d be all right," said Larcum. "I m sorry, 
 but he s one of the fellows that have to be taught 
 by hard knocks." 
 
 " Or by a hard knocker," suggested Lee. 
 
 " Come on," said Larcum, ignoring Lee s 
 words. 
 
 " All right, me lud, but where do we go? " 
 
 " I told you with me." 
 
 Leading the way, Larcum at once went to 
 the elevator, and, when the boys were in the 
 lobby, he left them for a moment as he went 
 to the desk to leave a message. Quickly rejoin 
 ing his friends, he said: " Come on. Here we 
 are," he added, as near the curb he stopped 
 in front of a huge touring-car. 
 
 " Where did you get this, Larc? " said Lee, 
 as he and John obediently entered and took 
 their seats. " It certainly is fine." 
 
 " This car belongs to a prominent railway 
 official a friend of mine," explained Larcum 
 soberly. "As soon as he heard that I had 
 come to town, he immediately sent me word 
 that his motor was at my disposal." 
 
 " Was that the message the bellboy brought 
 you this noon? " asked John. 
 
74 FOUR BOYS IN THE 70S E MITE 
 
 " I cannot tell a lie it was." 
 
 " One part of your statement is true the 
 other may be." 
 
 " Where is Scott? " said Lee ; as he glanced 
 up and down the street. 
 
 " Gone to learn his little lesson," growled 
 Larcum. 
 
 " Are you going without him? 
 
 " I dislike to put it that way the true ex 
 planation is that Scott, by his impulsive and 
 disingenuous I might say superabounding 
 conceit that there is little for him to learn out 
 side his own native bailiwick, has deprived us 
 of the pleasure of his company. Where do we 
 go? Larcum added, as he turned to the 
 driver. 
 
 " Anywhere you say, sir. My orders are to 
 show you the city." 
 
 " Do so, then; do so, by all means," said Lar 
 cum, as he took his seat beside the chauffeur. 
 
 Neither Lee nor John believed that their 
 friend really intended to start without Scott, 
 but in a moment the motor was off and the 
 party was proceeding along Market Street. 
 
 i Hold on, Larc ! exclaimed Lee, a few min 
 utes later. " There s Scott! See him in the 
 crowd there in front of that window? " As he 
 
AN AUTOMOBILE 75 
 
 spoke, Lee pointed to a place where a crowd 
 had assembled to watch a man who was display 
 ing the virtues of a new apparatus for exer 
 cising the muscles of the arms. Whistling 
 shrilly as the motor slowed up, by the familiar 
 signal he caused Scott to turn about abruptly 
 and stare in astonishment at his friends. 
 
 " Come on, Scott! " called Lee. " You al 
 most got left." 
 
 " Where are you going? " demanded Scott, 
 as he hastily responded and climbed into the 
 rear seat beside Lee and John. 
 
 " What were you doing? " retorted Larcum. 
 " Standing there in front of that window, gaz 
 ing at a new exercising machine as if you never 
 had been in a city before ! Why didn t you stay 
 where I put you? " 
 
 " I went out to look you up. I was afraid 
 you d be lost." 
 
 " That was thoughtful of you," remarked 
 Larcum grimly, " but next time you want to 
 look out for Scott Gordon. We haven t any 
 tune to waste looking you up. What did you 
 go out for, anyway? " 
 
 " Just to take a little tramp on the street." 
 
 " Did you take him? " 
 
 ".Take whom? " 
 
76 FOUR BOYS IN THE YO SEMITE 
 
 " The little tramp you mentioned/ 
 
 " Let me out! I can t stand this! " retorted 
 Scott, rising from his seat. 
 
 " You ll have to stand it, Scott," laughed 
 Lee, as he pulled his friend back upon the seat 
 beside him. " Now be good and you ll be 
 happy." 
 
 " More likely to be lonesome in this crowd," 
 said Scott. 
 
 " That isn t original, Scott Gordon," said 
 Larcum soberly. " I ve heard that before. 
 Now, keep your eyes open and be ready to see 
 things." 
 
 " But I don t understand where you got this 
 motor," began Scott. 
 
 " Keep quiet," ordered Larcum. " Let me 
 talk. It isn t often I get a chance. Now notice 
 all these magnificent office buildings along 
 Market Street all built since the fire. They 
 are as imposing as any in this broad land of 
 ours " 
 
 " Quite pretty," broke in Scott, in mock seri 
 ousness. " Where did the money to build them 
 with come from? New York? " 
 
 " The buildings are magnificent," continued 
 Larcum, " but not half as magnificent as the 
 courage of the people. Think of it, fellows! 
 
AN AUTOMOBILE 77 
 
 All this part of San Francisco was burned at 
 the time of the fire." 
 
 66 You mean the earthquake, don t you, 
 Larc? " asked Scott. 
 
 " I mean the fire. You know San Francisco 
 was under military rule, don t you, at that 
 time? Everybody had to stand in line in the 
 bread line and wait for his turn, it didn t make 
 any difference whether he was rich or poor or 
 high or low. My aunt was living here at the 
 time. The quake didn t do a great deal of dam 
 age to the house she was living in they were 
 outside the fire line. But she had a stove set 
 up in the street, and for three months she took 
 care of eighteen people. Money wasn t any 
 good. You couldn t buy a thing with it." 
 
 " Not even a ticket over the T. G. & P! " 
 asked Scott. 
 
 " No, sir; not a ticket, nor a loaf of bread, 
 nor a bottle of milk. Everybody had to take 
 his turn. But look at it now! There isn t a 
 city in the country that could have shown such 
 nerve! The people didn t give up they went 
 right at the wor, cleared up the ruins, put up 
 new buildings, and to-day, as you look around, 
 you wouldn t even suspect there ever had been 
 a fire and it s only five years." 
 
78 FOUR BOYS IN THE YO SEMITE 
 
 16 It is fine, Scott," murmured Lee. 
 
 " You re right it is! Now we re going to 
 climb this hill and you ll get a view that will 
 make every one of you open his eyes." The 
 automobile now was beyond the crowded, busy 
 streets and had gained the summit of a high 
 hill, as Larcum had said. " Yonder is the Pa 
 cific Ocean. Look across the bay ! See the hills 
 and the mountains! Then look down and see 
 the city. Isn t it all wonderful? " 
 
 Even Scott had no protest to offer when the 
 magnificent view spread out before them. 
 
 " That s the first time I ever saw the blue 
 Pacific," said John enthusiastically, as the car 
 sped on. 
 
 " What do you think of it! " 
 
 " It s wonderful," said John, in a low voice. 
 " I don t wonder that the people here love it 
 all." 
 
 " You haven t seen much yet. Just wait! " 
 responded Larcum. 
 
 Later, when their automobile carried them 
 through Golden Gate Park, with its miles of 
 drives and broad fields, its wonderful flowers 
 and trees, its Japanese gardens, art museums, 
 and winding walks, and over all was the clear 
 sky and beyond them were the shining waters 
 
AN AUTOMOBILE 79 
 
 of the broad Pacific, the quiet enthusiasm of the 
 boys was marked even Scott acknowledging 
 that the ride was " most interesting. " 
 
 Now the motor swept along the shore, where 
 crowds of people were to be seen, and then 
 stopped at the famous Cliff House, where the 
 boys alighted and entered, taking their places 
 near a window, from which the jagged rocks 
 near the shore could be seen. 
 
 " Look yonder! " exclaimed Lee, in excite 
 ment, as he pointed to the rocks. " They re 
 alive as sure as you re born! " 
 
 " They are covered with seals," explained 
 Larcum quietly. " Hear them? They are bark 
 ing." 
 
 " Sounds to me more like the sounds my 
 grandfather used to make when he was trying 
 to pull his boots on," said Scott. 
 
 " Quite likely," retorted Larcum dryly. " I 
 suspect you take after your grandfather, don t 
 you, Scott? " 
 
 In a brief time the ride was resumed, and, as 
 the car entered the Presidio, the high, level 
 ground where the United States troops were 
 stationed, Larcum said quietly, * Yonder is the 
 Golden Gate." 
 
 Instantly every boy turned to look at the 
 
80 FOUR BOYS IN THE YOSEMITE 
 
 narrow entrance to San Francisco Bay. The 
 headlands on either side were sharply defined 
 in the clear air, and the glow of the afternoon 
 sun seemed almost to tinge the very waters of 
 the sea. The Golden Gate! Far away were 
 Japan and the Orient and the other side of the 
 world. 
 
 For a moment the four boys were silent as 
 they all gazed at the impressive scene. 
 
 " That sight is worth a journey across the 
 continent, 7 murmured John. 
 
 There s our reporter," suddenly inter 
 rupted Lee, as he pointed to a man who was 
 standing near the place where the motor stopped 
 and was looking intently at the four boys. 
 
CHAPTER VII 
 
 THE START FOR THE YOSEMITE 
 
 " I DON T like that fellow," said Larcum, in 
 a low voice, as the boys all looked at the 
 young man to whom Lee had directed their 
 attention. 
 
 " What s the trouble with him! " laughed 
 Scott. " You acted this noon as if you sus 
 pected him of being one of the train-robbers." 
 
 " I don t know that he wasn t," retorted 
 Larcum. 
 
 " Well, you don t know that he was," re 
 joined Scott. " Probably he held up the train 
 and then came into San Francisco ahead of us. 
 That s a case in which even Clearchus 9 
 couldn t have much to say." 
 
 " But you don t know that he did get into 
 town before we did," rejoined Larcum. 
 
 " We know he was here when we went into 
 the dining-room of the hotel." 
 
 66 That doesn t prove anything." 
 
 " Why don t you ask him yourself, Larc! 
 
 81 
 
 " 
 
82 FOUR BOYS IN TEE YO SEMITE 
 
 laughed Scott. " Here he comes; you can l do 
 it now/ " he added, as the young reporter ap 
 proached the car in which the four boys were 
 seated. 
 
 " Here you are again," said the reporter 
 lightly. 
 
 " Yes; we re having a spin about the city," 
 said Larcum pleasantly. " Don t you want to 
 join us? " he added, disregarding the glances 
 of surprise with which his three companions 
 heard his invitation. 
 
 Thank you ; I don t mind if I do, said the 
 reporter quickly, as he hastily climbed into the 
 back seat beside Lee and John. " I came up 
 to the Presidio for a story, but I haven t been 
 much more successful than I was with you boys 
 this noon." 
 
 " Has anything more been heard of the 
 men? " asked John. 
 
 " There are a dozen reports, but none of 
 them seems to be worth much." 
 
 " What are they? " inquired Lee. 
 
 " Oh, one report has it that the robbers have 
 been seen in Oakland; another is that they ve 
 gone north to the Shasta country, and still an 
 other is that they are somewhere up in the 
 Sacramento Valley." 
 
THE START FOR TEE YOSEMITE 83 
 
 " Where do you think they are! " asked Lar- 
 cum quietly. 
 
 " I wish I knew," laughed the young re 
 porter. " If I did, I d have the best story I 
 ever found. It would be a scoop. " 
 
 Has anybody suggested that the men di 
 vided their forces, and that one of them might 
 have come to San Francisco? " inquired Lar- 
 cum, as he looked innocently into the face of 
 the man. 
 
 " I don t believe they d be foolish enough to 
 try that." 
 
 " Why not? A big city is about the safest 
 place in the world for a rascal to hide in, isn t 
 it? " 
 
 " I hadn t thought of it in that way," said 
 the reporter lightly. " The police here know 
 just where to look for their men, and they prob 
 ably already are watching every crook in San 
 Francisco." 
 
 That may be true, acknowledged Larcum ; 
 " but you don t think any more than I do that 
 these train-robbers were old hands at the game, 
 do you? " 
 
 "Why not?" The reporter, in apparent 
 surprise, looked at Larcum as he spoke, but 
 the young giant s face was expressionless. 
 
84 FOUR BOYS IN THE YO SEMITE 
 
 " They were not professionals," said Lar- 
 eum quietly. 
 
 " I don t know about that. Last week there 
 were two young fellows that escaped from the 
 state prison. They were burglars, and as des 
 perate characters as were ever known in Cali 
 fornia. 
 
 And you think they may have held up our 
 train? " asked Lee. 
 
 " That s what some people have suggested," 
 replied the reporter. 
 
 " They weren t the men," said Larcum posi 
 tively. 
 
 " How do you know they weren t? " 
 
 " There are several reasons. If I wanted to 
 get that reward of five thousand dollars, I d 
 begin my search right here in San Francisco," 
 said Larcum. 
 
 " I should like to join you," laughed the 
 reporter noisily, " though I don t believe 
 we d find a trace of them here at least 
 not within a year. No, sir; this city is 
 the last place, not the first, they will go 
 to." 
 
 11 Will you help me look! " asked Larcum 
 quickly. 
 
 " I d like to ; " replied the reporter lightly; 
 
TEE START FOR TEE YOSEMITE 85 
 
 " but I can t do it. I have to leave town this 
 evening. 
 
 " How long will you be gone? " inquired 
 Larcum. 
 
 " I don t know. It will depend upon circum 
 stances. I may be gone two days, and I may 
 be away a week or more." 
 
 " That s too bad." 
 
 " Yes, I m sorry, too. I d like to have a 
 share of that five thousand dollars. It would 
 be more than the train-robbers got, anyway," 
 said the reporter lightly. 
 
 " It won t be more than they will get." 
 
 " If they are caught." 
 
 " They ll be caught," declared Larcum con 
 fidently. " The villains stand just about as 
 much chance of getting away as I do of being 
 elected president of the T. G. & P. next 
 week." 
 
 " That remains to be seen." 
 
 " Yes, that remains to be seen," acknowl 
 edged the young giant quietly. " I think we d 
 better be going back," he continued. " Take 
 one more good look at the Golden Gate, fellows, 
 and then we ll start." 
 
 " Out yonder," suggested the reporter, as he 
 pointed toward a place in the distance, " is 
 
86 FOUR BOYS IN THE YO SEMITE 
 
 where the Rio de Janeiro was wrecked a few 
 years ago." 
 
 " What was she? " inquired John. 
 
 l One of the big steamers that carried on the 
 trade with the Orient. She was loaded with 
 passengers and freight, and had come all the 
 way across the Pacific safely only to be 
 wrecked out there, just outside the Golden Gate. 
 Passengers, crew, freight all went down." 
 
 " And almost at the dock? " asked Scott 
 
 " Yes." 
 
 " That s worse than being wrecked in the 
 middle of the ocean." 
 
 66 That s what everybody said." 
 
 " Do you know what that makes me think 
 of f " spoke up Larcum. Then, without wait 
 ing for his question to be answered, he con 
 tinued: " It reminds me of a good many men. 
 They seem to get along pretty well until they 
 have almost finished their jobs. To quit then 
 or not to do things to a finish why, my father 
 is always telling me that, for a man to succeed, 
 he must do things to a finish and tie a 
 good-sized knot in his thread. " 
 
 11 What does he mean? " asked John. 
 
 " I sha n t explain if you can t reason it 
 out, Jack. 
 
 5 > 
 
THE START FOR THE Y08EMITE 87 
 
 " But lie let you leave college at the end of 
 your freshman year," suggested John. 
 
 The face of the young giant flushed slightly 
 as he said: " That was the * end, 7 good and 
 plenty, for me. My father wanted me to do 
 something. Besides," he added lightly, " these 
 were circumstances over which I had no con 
 trol. It makes me think of what Lee said 
 about General Lee at the battle of Gettysburg. 
 You know, he is always claiming that General 
 Lee would have won that battle if it hadn t 
 been for circumstances over which he had no 
 control. " 
 
 "And he would, too, and you know it!" 
 spoke up Lee, rather warmly. 
 
 " I m not denying it; I am just wondering 
 if General Meade and his army didn t happen 
 to be one of the circumstances, that s all." 
 
 " Now, see here, Larc " began Lee, still 
 
 more warmly. 
 
 " Never mind, Lee," broke in Larcum sooth 
 ingly ; 1 1 we re all willing to admit that General 
 Lee was a great man almost half as great as 
 you think he was. There! there! " he added, 
 as his friend began to protest. " I guess all 
 our heroes were human, like the rest of us; 
 and I m glad of it. When I was young I was 
 
88 FOUR BOYS IN THE YO SEMITE 
 
 taught that George "Washington was a man 
 without a fault. Now I am old, I know bet 
 ter; and I like George all the more because I 
 understand now that he belongs to the human 
 family." 
 
 " What has all that to do with the wreck of 
 the Rio de Janeiro out here by the Golden 
 Gate? " demanded Scott. " You don t stick to 
 your text. It seems to me that somewhere, 
 sometime, somehow I heard some one remark 
 that it was a wise thing to do things to a 
 finish. " 
 
 " So it is," remarked Larcum, disregarding 
 the laugh that greeted Scott s words. " My 
 mother used to make me finish every book I 
 began to read. She wouldn t let me skip, and 
 she wouldn t let me stop after I began it. I 
 used to think in those bygone years of my cal 
 low youth that she was a trifle hard with me, 
 but in my later years I have realized the value 
 of her consistent training." 
 
 " And the good ship Rio de Janeiro was 
 wrecked just outside the Golden Gate," mur 
 mured John. 
 
 " That s right. Laugh if you want to, but 
 I m telling you that the wreck was just like 
 the way it will be with those train-robbers." 
 
THE START FOR THE YOSEMITE 89 
 
 "How? " asked Lee. 
 
 " They ll think they re all safe; and then, by 
 and by, after they ve grown confident, they ll 
 put for home, and just when they get there 
 they ll find somebody is on the watch for them, 
 and they ll be taken 
 
 " Just outside the Golden Gate? " inter 
 rupted Scott. 
 
 * * Drive on ! " ordered Larcum, turning to the 
 chauffeur. Without betraying their interest, 
 the four boys had been watching the reporter 
 while Larcum was speaking, but apparently he 
 was not heeding the young giant s words. 
 
 " This used to be called Nob Hill," the re 
 porter explained, when the motor entered an 
 other section of the city. " These houses were 
 almost palaces, but they haven t all been built 
 up since the fire." 
 
 "Why not? " asked John. 
 
 " Business first," laughed the reporter. 
 
 " First, last, and all the time with some peo 
 ple," murmured Lee. 
 
 " Whose? Their own or some other per 
 son s? " retorted Larcum. 
 
 " Here we are in Chinatown," explained the 
 reporter, as the automobile turned into a sec 
 tion in which most of the people were Chinese. 
 
90 FOUR BOYS IN THE YO SEMITE 
 
 16 It isn t wliat it used to be before the fire. 
 The best time to see it is about eleven o clock 
 at night." 
 
 " This is enough for me," said John. " Is 
 it true that a good many of the sights are 
 gotten up just for the benefit of the sight 
 seers! " 
 
 "I ve heard that, but I can t say." 
 
 " Here are some Japs, too," suggested Scott. 
 " Calif ornians don t seem to waste any more 
 affection on the Japanese than they do on the 
 Chinese, according to newspaper reports. Is 
 that true? " 
 
 " Partly," said the reporter. " You people 
 in the East don t understand. We haven t any 
 thing against either of them except when they 
 take work out of the hands of Americans." 
 
 " What Americans? Pietro Ivegottevitch? 
 Bridget O Flannigan? " 
 
 " You don t understand," continued the re 
 porter. " Now, the Japs are a mighty shrewd 
 people. They ll start a laundry and do the 
 work so cheaply that they ll drive everybody 
 else out of the business. Then up will go the 
 price and they have all the work." 
 
 " I don t see why. Can t an American do the 
 same thing? " asked Scott. 
 
THE START FOR TEE YOSEMITE 91 
 
 " No; not and live as an American." 
 
 " How does an American live? 
 
 " He ought to have something besides rice 
 to eat and a place to sleep in that is more than 
 a cattle-car. Of course, all the Japs don t do 
 that, but they can and will if it is necessary 
 in order to get a start. Then, too, some of the 
 Japs will go out of the city to work on a 
 ranch " 
 
 " Why don t they work on the ranches in 
 the city? " said Larcum soberly. 
 
 " Oh, this isn t Chicago, Larc? " said Scott 
 quickly. i i San Francisco has some city limits. 
 
 Ignoring the laugh that greeted Scott s 
 words, the reporter continued: " The Jap 
 padrone will take his men and go to work on 
 some farm or ranch, and mighty good workers 
 they are, too. But they are sly. Maybe they ll 
 find out that the nominal owner of the farm 
 has a mortgage on his place. They won t say 
 a word they ll just keep right on weeding and 
 working and sawing wood. They ll live on 
 a little, save almost every penny, and then some 
 fine morning the owner wakes up and finds the 
 Japs own the mortgage on his broad acres. It 
 doesn t take long for him to find that his work 
 men are dictating terms to him, and pretty 
 
92 FOUR BOYS IN THE YOSEMITE 
 
 quick they own the farm, and he is out. I ve 
 known of that being done a great many 
 times. " 
 
 " But why don t the Americans save their 
 money? " persisted John. 
 
 I i They do ; at least some do, though most of 
 them would rather make money than save it. 
 Besides, they can t live as the Japs do." 
 
 " I don t see why," said John. 
 
 " You wouldn t want them to." 
 
 " Wouldn t I? Well, if I remember aright, 
 my ancestors didn t live in any very great lux 
 ury in the early days in New England. I ve 
 never heard that the pioneers took life very 
 easily. I don t " 
 
 " You don t know what you are talking 
 about," broke in the reporter. 
 
 " And you want to go to war with Japan? " 
 asked Scott. 
 
 " No; we don t want any war, but we don t 
 want the Japs and Chinese coolies to take work 
 away from Americans." 
 
 " Poor Ivan Ivegottevitch ! Poor Bridget 
 O Flannigan! Poor Peter Howltotheskyski ! " 
 murmured Scott. " How many Japs are on 
 the coast? " 
 
 II I don t know." 
 
THE START FOR THE YOSEM1TE 93 
 
 " I do," said John; " about forty thousand. 
 There aren t any more Japs on the Pacific coast 
 than there are Italians in a city like Newark. 
 And yet we don t get up a war with Italy. We 
 don t " 
 
 " You don t understand," protested the re 
 porter. " I m telling you that none of these 
 things is the real cause." 
 
 1 What is, then? " 
 
 " It s the natural feeling of race prejudice. 
 You can t have two different races living peace 
 ably side by side. It s against nature. You 
 can see it in the South, where the whites and 
 negroes are. It s the same here, where the Cali- 
 fornians and the Chinese and Japanese are." 
 
 " So I have heard," said John. 
 
 " Here we are at our hotel," suggested Scott, 
 glad to have an end of the somewhat heated 
 discussion. 
 
 Late that evening the boys crossed by the 
 ferry to Oakland, where they were to board their 
 train for their journey to the Yosemite Valley. 
 Scott was the first to enter the sleeping-car, but 
 in a moment he hurriedly rejoined his friends, 
 who were still outside. 
 
 " Who do you think is in that car? " he ex 
 citedly exclaimed. 
 
94 FOUR BOYS IN THE YO SEMITE 
 
 11 It might be Julius Caesar, judging from 
 your interest/ 7 laughed Lee. " Who is it? " 
 
 " You come and see," retorted Scott; " that s 
 all I want. Come on and see for yourselves ! " 
 he added, his excitement increasing as his three 
 friends followed him into the sleeper. 
 
CHAPTER VIII 
 
 THE OCCUPANT OF UPPER SEVEN 
 
 STANDING in the aisle and facing the four 
 boys was the young reporter whom they had 
 previously met several times. His surprise at 
 the meeting was as genuine as their own, and, 
 as he greeted them, he said, " Going to the 
 Yosemite? " 
 
 " Yes," replied Larcum. " You going there, 
 too? " 
 
 " I am. I have to take a week of my vaca 
 tion now, as the city editor has taken the time 
 that I wanted." 
 
 "I m afraid you haven t got your boss very 
 well trained," laughed Scott. " He ought not 
 to interfere with your plans." 
 
 " He didn t consult me," replied the reporter 
 lightly. 
 
 " You don t think there s any likelihood of 
 our train being held up, do you? " inquired 
 John soberly. 
 
 "This train? No! You won t have any 
 
 95 
 
96 FOUR BOYS IN THE YO SEMITE 
 
 trouble. No train-robbers would bother with 
 such a dinky affair as this train." 
 
 The reporter spoke lightly, and, as he looked 
 at Larcum, he saw that the young giant was 
 keenly watching him. Whether or not he was 
 surprised was not apparent in his face or man 
 ner. You seem to be on the lookout for train 
 robberies now," he added. " Perhaps that s 
 only natural after your experience this morn 
 ing." 
 
 " We aren t on the lookout for train rob 
 beries," suggested Larcum meaningly. 
 
 " What are you looking for? " 
 
 " The train-robbers," replied Larcum 
 promptly. 
 
 " Where do you expect to find them? In 
 the Yosemite Valley? " 
 
 "If we knew just where they are hiding, 
 we d put straight for the place. But, as we 
 don t know that, all we can do is to keep our 
 eyes open. The railroad people are certain to 
 find them." 
 
 " Are they? " 
 
 "Yes, sir; the men will be caught," said 
 Larcum confidently. 
 
 " Perhaps they ve been run to cover before 
 this time." 
 
THE OCCUPANT OF UPPER SEVEN 97 
 
 " That may be; but I don t think so." 
 
 " They certainly have been seen times 
 enough to let the posses get them," laughed 
 the reporter. " It s said they have been seen 
 in Sacramento, Oakland, Port Costa, and Mill 
 Valley. The next report will be that they have 
 hidden on the top of Pike s Peak." 
 
 " Or in the Yosemite," suggested Larcum 
 dryly. 
 
 " Oh, they ll keep away from places where 
 there are many people," said John. " They ll 
 take to the hills or to the canons." 
 
 " How many miles did Clearchus march, 
 Jack? " asked Larcum abruptly, as he turned 
 to his friend. 
 
 " It varied," laughed John. " Some days 
 more and some less." 
 
 " We go through Sacramento on our way to 
 night, don t we? " inquired Larcum, turning 
 once more to the reporter. 
 
 " Yes; I think we do." 
 
 " Don t you know? " 
 
 " It s so on the schedule. I ve often been in 
 the Yosemite. This is my first trip at night." 
 
 " The hold-up this jnorning was somewhere 
 between Sacramento atd San Francisco, wasn t 
 it? " continued Larcunt. 
 
98 FOUR BOYS IN TEE TO SEMITE 
 
 " You ought to know," said the reporter; 
 " you were on the spot." 
 
 i i There were two of the young fellows, con 
 tinued Larcum, as if he had not heard the as 
 sertion of the reporter. i What would prevent 
 them from separating one going back to Sac 
 ramento, and the other keeping on to San Fran 
 cisco! Then, if they should want to do it, why 
 couldn t they meet on any train that came from 
 San Francisco through Sacramento? They 
 might meet on this very train." 
 
 " Keep your eyes open and perhaps you ll 
 find them," said the reporter lightly. " If you 
 should find them, let me know. I d like to come 
 in with you for a share of that reward. I ll 
 guarantee that the train-robbers are worth more 
 as prisoners than they are just now even with 
 all the stuff they found in the mail-bags. When 
 you get your plan all worked out, let me know. 
 I m tired and am going to bed. I have lower 
 seven. Wake, and call me early ; call me early, 
 mother dear, " he added; " but don t do it un 
 less you are certain sure you have found the 
 desperadoes." 
 
 " What s the matter with you, Larc? " asked 
 Scott, when the young reporter left them and 
 the two boys were seated together across the 
 
THE OCCUPANT OF UPPER SEVEN 99 
 
 aisle from the section in which Lee and John 
 were sitting. i You act as if you thought that 
 fellow had something to do with our hold-up. " 
 
 " Do I? " responded Larcum shortly. 
 
 " You don t mean to say that you really sus 
 pect him? " exclaimed Scott. 
 
 " I don t mean to say anything just yet." 
 
 " But you don t actually suspect him, do 
 you? " persisted Scott. 
 
 "I m not talking for publication, " replied 
 Larcum gruffly. " Come on; it s after eleven. 
 Let s have the porter make up our berths." 
 
 "I m agreed. Shall we flip a coin to see who 
 goes upstairs ? " 
 
 " No. I want the upper berth to-night." 
 
 " That s good," laughed Scott. " We won t 
 quarrel over a little thing like that. I thought 
 I was booked for that upper, and you three 
 fellows had the drawing-room. I m glad to 
 accommodate you, though I don t understand 
 what has come over you. All the way out you 
 growled every time you had to take an upper 
 berth." 
 
 "I m not growling to-night, am I? " retorted 
 Larcum, as he pushed the button and summoned 
 the porter. 
 
 The section speedily was made ready, and 
 
100 FOUR BOYS IN THE YOSEM1TE 
 
 Scott was the first to retire. Before Larcnm 
 sought his quarters for the night, however, he 
 had a brief interview with the dusky porter. 
 
 " I m in upper ten," said Larcum. 
 
 " Yaas, suh." 
 
 " What time are we due in Sacramento? " 
 
 " Two-thirty. " 
 
 " Come to my berth at two and wake me up. 
 If you ll do that, and don t disturb the man in 
 lower ten, I ve got a brand-new silver dollar 
 for you, George. If you wake up the fellow un 
 der me, you don t get a copper cent. You un 
 derstand, don t you, George? 
 
 " Yaas, suh," replied the porter dubiously. 
 " But yo ticket is to El Portal. Is yo going 
 to get off at Sacramento I 
 
 " I didn t say anything about getting off at 
 Sacramento, or anywhere else, did I? " 
 
 " No, suh. No, suh," responded the porter 
 glibly. 
 
 I did tell you that I had a silver dollar for 
 you if you d wake me up at two without dis 
 turbing the fellow under me, didn t I! " 
 
 " Yaas, suh. Yaas, suh." 
 
 " Well, that s all I said. Now, if you want 
 that dollar, George, you know just how to get 
 it. Good-night." Quickly preparing himself 
 
THE OCCUPANT OF UPPER SEVEN 101 
 
 for bed the young giant declined " George s : 
 offer to bring him the steps, and lightly swung 
 himself to his berth, where, without undressing, 
 he lay down. 
 
 Promptly at two o clock the porter came, and, 
 carefully thrusting aside the curtains, roused 
 the sleeping giant by pulling gently on Lar 
 cum s hand. " All right, " whispered Larcum, 
 as he roused himself, and quickly peered into 
 the berth below him, where a man was soundly 
 sleeping. 
 
 As Larcum did not leave his berth, the puz 
 zled porter remained standing in front of the 
 section, expecting to have further instructions 
 given him. 
 
 " Are we on time! " whispered Larcum. 
 
 " Yaas, sub." 
 
 " All right then, George. Here s your dol 
 lar," he added, as he handed the porter a silver 
 dollar. t Any one to get off at .Sacramento 1 
 
 " No, suh." 
 
 " Thank you; that s all," said Larcum, as he 
 sank back into the berth without waiting to see 
 whether or not the delighted porter returned to 
 the end of the car. 
 
 The young giant, however, did not fall asleep 
 again at least, not at once, for, though he was 
 
102 FOUR BOYS IN THE TO SEMITE 
 
 lying quietly, his eyes were not closed. Occa 
 sionally lie sat up, and, pulling his curtains 
 slightly apart, peered at section seven, which 
 the reporter had reserved. However, nothing 
 unusual was seen there as the train sped for 
 ward in the darkness. Only one dim light had 
 been left burning in the sleeping-car, but its 
 aid was sufficient to enable Larcum to see if 
 anything unusual should occur. 
 
 Promptly at half -past two the train entered 
 Sacramento. Before it stopped the young giant 
 was sitting erect in his berth, and, through a 
 small opening between the curtains, he was 
 eagerly watching the men that entered the car, 
 when at last the train halted at the station. 
 
 In a moment three men came on board. One 
 was an elderly gentleman, to whom Larcum 
 gave no heed. A single glance at the second 
 of the newcomers showed that this man was 
 stout, so he too was neglected by the watching 
 Larcum. The third passenger, however, in 
 stantly claimed his attention, for this man was 
 young and short in stature. 
 
 " I have upper seven, porter, " the young 
 man was saying as he halted in the aisle. 
 
 " Yaas, suh. Yaas, suh," responded the col 
 ored man glibly. " There s a gentleman al- 
 
THE OCCUPANT OF UPPER SEVEN 103 
 
 ready in lower seven. If yo sees th conductor, 
 I reckin he might give yo lower two. There s 
 nobody in it, suh." 
 
 Larcum could hear every word, and, in 
 tensely excited, he was listening and watching 
 with an eagerness that would have puzzled his 
 friends if they had seen him. 
 
 " Never mind, porter, " the new passenger 
 was saying, " I ll take upper seven. That s 
 the one I reserved." 
 
 " Yaas, suh. I m afraid it ll disturb the gen 
 tleman in the lower berth " 
 
 " Go ahead, porter," interrupted the occu 
 pant of the lower berth, as he thrust his head 
 from behind the curtains. " Fix up this 
 man s place for him. You won t disturb 
 me." 
 
 " All right, suh. I ll attend to yo direc ly, 
 suh." 
 
 The train already was moving swiftly. The 
 porter retired to his linen closet, while the new 
 passenger seated himself in one of the unoccu 
 pied sections. 
 
 At this time Larcum parted the curtains in 
 front of his berth, and, grasping the long rod 
 lightly, swung himself to the floor. Passing 
 down the aisle, he peered at the young man who 
 
104 FOUR BOYS IN THE 70S E MITE 
 
 had just entered the car, and was satisfied that 
 he would be able to recognize the man again if 
 he should see him in the light of day. The 
 passenger was quiet in his manner, and ap 
 parently was not aware of the scrutiny of Lar- 
 cum, although he glanced hastily at him as the 
 young giant came down the aisle ; but he quickly 
 turned away his head and was looking out into 
 the night. 
 
 In a moment Larcum returned to his berth, 
 but he still did not lie down. Sitting erect, he 
 watched the porter until upper seven had been 
 made up and the passenger was informed that 
 his berth was ready for him. The young man 
 quickly responded to the summons, and delayed 
 only to say to the porter, " When are we due 
 at El Portal! " 
 
 " Seven-thirty." 
 
 " Thank you," replied the passenger, who 
 speedily prepared for bed. 
 
 The car became silent, save for the monoton 
 ous rumble of the train, and Larcum remained 
 in his sitting position for an hour or more, en 
 deavoring to discover if the new passenger had 
 any conversation with the man in lower seven. 
 Not a voice could he hear, however, and at last, 
 though reluctant, Larcum abandoned his vigil 
 
THE OCCUPANT OF UPPER SEVEN 105 
 
 and, more fully preparing for bed, was soon 
 asleep. 
 
 It was daylight when he awoke, and, hastily 
 dressing, he descended to the floor of the 
 swaying train. Early as he was, he saw that 
 Scott was dressed and seated in number 
 two. 
 
 " Sick, Larc? " called Scott, as the young 
 giant joined him. 
 
 " Hardly, " sniffed Larcum. " Where are 
 Jack and Lee? " 
 
 " Still asleep. It ll take both of us to pull 
 them out of bed." 
 
 " Will it? " said Larcum absently, as he 
 glanced down the aisle at number seven, both 
 of whose occupants apparently were still 
 asleep, as there were no signs of life. " Good- 
 morning, George," Larcum added, as the porter 
 approached. 
 
 61 Good-mornin , suh," responded the porter. 
 
 " Lose any of your passengers last night? " 
 
 " No, suh. Didn t lose no passengers, suh," 
 grinned the porter. 
 
 " Anybody leave the car after we ran out of 
 Sacramento? 
 
 " Yaas, suh. Two gentlemen got off at 
 Merced." 
 
106 FOUR BOYS IN THE YO SEMITE 
 
 " Did they? " asked Larcum quickly. Kis- 
 ing, he stepped nearer the porter, and, in a 
 lower voice, said, " Was one of them the little 
 fellow that got on at Sacramento? " 
 
 " Yaas, suh. He got off when we fust pulled 
 into Merced." 
 
 Larcum looked blankly at the porter for a 
 moment, and then, turning to his friends, said : 
 "I ll be back pretty quick, fellows. Keep a 
 seat for me until I have removed certain super 
 fluous portions of the state of California from 
 the surface of my ordinarily spotless and deli 
 cate person." 
 
 " What s gone wrong, Larc? " laughed Scott. 
 " Early rising doesn t agree with you, I m 
 afraid." 
 
 " Afraid! < Afraid! I m not < afraid/ " 
 roared the young giant, as he turned away. 
 " I m on the trail." 
 
 " Of what? " 
 
 " Don t say of what ; say l whom, : said 
 Larcum, as he left his friends. In a moment, 
 however, before his morning ablutions had been 
 completed, he hastily rejoined his comrades, 
 and his face betrayed the excitement under 
 which he was laboring. 
 
CHAPTER IX 
 
 AN EVASIVE TKAVELER 
 
 "WHAT S wrong, Larc? " inquired Scott 
 quickly, as Larcum took the seat beside him. 
 * i You look as if you had caught the gold fever. 
 I understand that the Forty-niners did some 
 work along the Merced River " 
 
 " I am excited, " said Larcum, breaking in 
 upon his friend. 
 
 " What is it? " asked Scott, aware now that 
 his companion was serious. 
 
 " You know, I ve had my suspicions that that 
 innocent-looking reporter, who has been dodg 
 ing us ever since we left the train yesterday 
 morning : 
 
 " It doesn t seem to me that he s been dodg 
 ing us, Larc," interrupted Scott. " He s been 
 following us more than he has been trying to 
 get away from us." 
 
 " Keep still and let me talk," said Larcum, 
 in a low voice, glancing about the car as he 
 spoke. "I m telling you I ve been suspicious 
 
 107 
 
108 FOUR BOYS IN THE YO SEMITE 
 
 of the fellow. Well, I got to thinking it all 
 over last night before I went to bed, and the 
 more I thought the more excited I became. 
 When the porter told me that our train stopped 
 at Sacramento, I decided that I would be awake 
 when we got there. " 
 
 " You thought the other train-robber might 
 get on there and join this fellow! Well, you 
 had your trouble for your pains, didn t you? " 
 
 " I ll tell you just what I did. I tipped the 
 porter a dollar to wake me up twenty minutes 
 before we were due in Sacramento." 
 
 " Did he wake you up? If he did, I didn t 
 know it, and I had a berth in the drawing-room, 
 not very far away, Larc." 
 
 " I know you did, and one of the conditions 
 I made with the porter was that if he should 
 wake up any one besides me, then every cent 
 of that dollar stayed right in my pocket." 
 
 " That was thoughtful of you," laughed 
 Scott. " Go on with your story." 
 
 " Well, the porter waked me up all right. I 
 sat up in bed and watched when we stopped at 
 the station." 
 
 " Did the other villain get on board as he 
 ought! " 
 
 " A young fellow, a little younger than the 
 
AN EVASIVE TRAVELER 109 
 
 reporter, and about two inches shorter, got on 
 board at Sacramento and had reserved upper 
 seven. The porter told him he was sure the con 
 ductor could give him a lower berth, for only 
 a part of the sections were reserved; but, no, 
 the new arrival insisted upon being given upper 
 seven. 
 
 " Is that true, Larc? Sure you weren t 
 dreaming? " said Scott, sitting quickly erect 
 and excitedly looking into the face of his friend. 
 
 " It certainly is true," replied Larcum 
 quietly. 
 
 " What happened next! " 
 
 " The porter made up upper seven, for, 
 strange as it may seem, the occupant of lower 
 seven was awake, and happened to overhear 
 the conversation between the passenger and 
 the porter. Lower seven told the porter to go 
 ahead and make up the upper berth, for it 
 wouldn t disturb him in the least. He was quite 
 good-natured about it." 
 
 " Naturally," sniffed Scott. " Tell me some 
 more, Larc. What did you do next? " 
 
 " I sat up and watched. The new passenger 
 asked the porter when we were due at El Por 
 tal, and then he crawled behind the curtains." 
 
 " Is he there now? " asked Scott, in a low 
 
110 FOUR BOYS IN THE TOSEMITE 
 
 voice, as he leaned forward and looked at sec 
 tion seven, where the curtains were still hang 
 ing, showing that the occupants had not yet 
 arisen. 
 
 11 He is not." 
 
 1 What! Where did he get off?" 
 
 " At Merced." 
 
 " How do you know? " 
 
 16 The porter just now told me he did. That 
 was what stirred me up and brought me back 
 here to tell you all about it." 
 
 " And you say he had a ticket for -Mer 
 ced? " 
 
 " No; I didn t say that. What I said was 
 that I heard him ask the porter what time we 
 were due at El Portal." 
 
 " What do you make of it? " asked Scott 
 thoughtfully. t It looks as if he really intended 
 to go on to the Yosemite from what he said to 
 the porter. If he did, what made him get off 
 at Merced? " 
 
 11 Listen! " replied Larcum, in a low voice. 
 " Suppose those two men really are the young 
 fellows that held up our train. One of them 
 might have gone on to San Francisco, and the 
 other might have gone in the opposite direc 
 tion to Sacramento." 
 
AN EVASIVE TRAVELER 111 
 
 " But it s reported that they took to the 
 hills." 
 
 " That doesn t make it so, does it? The city 
 might be just as safe as the hills, especially 
 if the men separated." 
 
 " But how could they, or the one we met 
 the reporter get a train? " 
 
 " He could do that easily enough. There are 
 a dozen ways. But never mind that now. Sup 
 pose the two robbers agreed to meet in the Yo- 
 semite that would be as safe a place as any 
 for them, wouldn t it? " 
 
 " I don t know. It might, though I don t 
 suppose any place is very safe. 
 
 " If they had their plans fixed, what would 
 be easier than for one of them to leave San 
 Francisco for the Yosemite, and have the other 
 get on board his train at Sacramento ! Then, it 
 might just happen that they should agree as 
 to which section should be reserved. One might 
 reserve lower seven from San Francisco, and 
 the other upper seven from Sacramento. 
 That s all plain, isn t it! " 
 
 " Perhaps." 
 
 " Well, then, if that part of their plan should 
 work out, it would let them get together and 
 talk over the situation." 
 
112 FOUR BOYS IN THE YO SEMITE 
 
 " But one of them got off at Merced, didn t 
 he? " 
 
 " That s what the porter told me." 
 
 Was it the man that got on at Sacramento, 
 do you think? " 
 
 " Yes." 
 
 " What made him get off, then, at Merced? " 
 
 " Maybe they had had their confab and the 
 reporter advised his friend to do that very 
 thing." 
 
 " But why should he advise him to get off ? " 
 
 It would be so early in the morning about 
 four or four-thirty that hardly anybody would 
 see him leave the car." 
 
 " If they planned to go to the Yo Semite, why 
 should he get off at Merced? " 
 
 " I don t know; but it might be that the 
 reporter had become suspicious and thought 
 it would be safer for both." 
 
 1 Suspicious ? Of what ? Do you think there 
 are detectives on board? " inquired Scott, 
 glancing about the car as he spoke. 
 
 " He might suspect us." 
 
 " Of what? " 
 
 " Of suspecting him." 
 
 " And that made the other one change his 
 plan? " 
 
AN EVASIVE TRAVELER 113 
 
 " It might. Of course, I don t know 
 
 Here come Jack and Lee, Larcum said hastily. 
 " Don t say anything to them about it yet. It 
 will help keep this reporter man off his guard, 
 and so help us just that much more. Keep your 
 eyes open, Scott. " 
 
 " Did you ever see anything finer than 
 this! " said Lee enthusiastically, as he pointed 
 out of the window as soon as he and John had 
 seated themselves opposite their friends. 
 
 " The water runs like a millrace," said Lar 
 cum. 
 
 " We re creeping up the grade as if we were 
 climbing a hill," said Scott. 
 
 " We are," rejoined Larcum. " You have 
 only to look at the torrent out there to see what 
 a grade we have." 
 
 " That water is as clear as crystal," said 
 John. " I wonder if there isn t fine fishing in 
 it? " 
 
 " There must be," added Scott. " Mountain 
 trout, too. My! I wonder what I d do if I 
 hooked a five-pounder? " 
 
 " I know what you d do," replied Larcum. 
 "If you were wading the Merced, you d be 
 yanked into that current. You wouldn t be able 
 to keep your footing a minute." 
 
114 FOUR BOYS IN THE YO SEMITE 
 
 " I d like to try it, anyhow," laughed Scott. 
 " I believe I will, too." 
 
 " Not while you re with us on this trip," said 
 Larcum decidedly. " It s against the law, and 
 I don t intend to have any of my friends go 
 hang, along with the train-robbers " 
 
 Larcum stopped abruptly and looked up, to 
 see that the reporter was standing beside him 
 and looking quizzically down at the boys. 
 
 " Still harping on the train-robbers! " he 
 asked lightly. " Haven t you got over your 
 scare yet? " 
 
 " I think we ll manage somehow to survive," 
 replied Larcum quietly. " I don t think we re 
 half as much afraid of seeing them as they are 
 that we might see them." 
 
 * i They 11 keep out of sight all right, you may 
 rest easily on that," said the reporter lightly. 
 Then, abruptly changing the subject, he drew 
 the attention of the young travelers to the 
 scenes through which they were passing. The 
 swiftly-flowing river, with its clear waters 
 sparkling in the light of the early morning; 
 the bleak and towering hills that rose on either 
 side; the sunlight that touched the peaks with 
 glory and yet left the shadows still upon the 
 valley ; the bracing air ; the exhilaration of the 
 
AN EVASIVE TRAVELER 115 
 
 moving train ; the vision of the occasional hum 
 ble little homes of the region; the interest in 
 the journey itself to the wonderful valley to 
 which they were going all combined to impress 
 the four boys and make even Larcum forgetful 
 for the moment of the great schemes he 
 was forming for the detection of the men 
 that had held up their train the preceding 
 day. 
 
 " You know," suggested the reporter as, 
 without waiting for an invitation, he seated 
 himself on the arm of the seat beside John, 
 " this is a part of the country into which the 
 Forty-niners came for gold." 
 
 " Did they find any? " asked Scott quickly* 
 
 " They surely did." 
 
 " Is there any here now I " 
 
 " Yes, I fancy there is." 
 
 " I reckon the most of it is left by tourists, 
 sir, suggested Lee. 
 
 " There are people who say that there is 
 more gold put into the ground than is 
 ever taken out," said the reporter, with a 
 laugh. " Those old miners must have had 
 some great experiences especially when so 
 many of their attempts didn t pan out very 
 well." 
 
116 FOUR BOYS IN THE YOSEMITE 
 
 " What does that mean pan out ? " asked 
 John. " I ve heard the expression a good 
 many times, but, though I fancied it was de 
 rived from some mining term, I never under 
 stood just what the words meant." 
 
 " Probably it refers to the miner s pan. You 
 know about that, don t you? " 
 
 " I don t," replied John promptly. 
 
 " Thank you, Jack. I was about to make 
 the same remark," said Scott soberly. 
 
 " The prospector you know that is what 
 the man who is looking about for gold is called 
 when he found a spot that made him think 
 there might be gold in it, first cleared away the 
 rocks and rubbish that might cover up his pay 
 dirt. Then he would take his pan, full of this 
 pay dirt, down to the bank of the river, or to 
 some place where there was water. He d push 
 the pan just below the surface of the water 
 and then he d begin to move it with his hands, 
 with a rotary motion, at the same time tipping 
 his pan a little so that one edge would be a 
 little lower than that of the opposite side if 
 one can speak of the i side of a pan. In this 
 all finer particles of the stuff in his pan would 
 be carried off and the pebbles and little pieces 
 of rock near the top would be washed, so that 
 
AN EVASIVE TRAVELER 117 
 
 he could see if there were any flakes of gold in 
 them. Those that weren t any good were then 
 picked out and thrown away, while the good 
 ones were kept. The miner would keep the 
 process going until at last he would stop and 
 look for the gold that might have washed into 
 the lowest inside edge of his pan. You see, the 
 gold itself is heavier than the rest of the dirt 
 and naturally settles in the process to the 
 bottom. " 
 
 " How many pans could a man wash out 
 in a day? " asked Scott. 
 
 " From thirty-five to fifty sometimes even 
 more than that." 
 
 " Did it pay? " 
 
 That depended somewhat upon the amount 
 of gold the miner found, laughed the reporter. 
 " I knew a man who told me that he found a 
 hundred and fifty dollars worth of gold in a 
 single pan." 
 
 * If one pan is worth a hundred and fifty dol- 
 dars, and a miner can wash fifty pans in one 
 day, how much will it cost him to walk back 
 East? " asked Scott. 
 
 Ignoring the question, the reporter said: 
 " Of course this l washing is the most primi 
 tive of all the ways of getting gold, and isn t 
 
118 FOUR BOYS IN THE TOSEMITE 
 
 used to-day, when machinery is the proper 
 thing. Next above it, I think, was the cradle/ 
 This was a species of cradle, or sieve, such as 
 some people use in sifting ashes. It took two 
 men to work it properly nobody ever worked 
 it as well as the Chinese miners did one to get 
 and pour in the soil or gravel, and the other 
 to pour in the water with one hand, while with 
 the other he rocked the cradle. He had to 
 learn how to use his hands this way a good 
 deal as a boy does when he rubs the top of his 
 head with his left hand and pats his chest 
 with his right. In the process of rocking 
 the cradle the gold would go through the 
 sieve to the bottom of the hopper and be 
 caught on the i apron below. Of course, 
 a nugget might be too big to do that, but 
 the miner didn t mind a little thing like 
 that." 
 
 " Did they ever find nuggets too big to go 
 through the holes? " asked Lee. 
 
 " Yes; a good many times. All his neigh 
 bors within a mile would usually know of a 
 nugget that had been found, for the miners 
 lungs were good. All these nuggets were 
 dropped into a lucky buckskin purse and taken 
 care of there." 
 
AN EVASIVE TRAVELER 119 
 
 " Didn t they have any train-robbers in 
 those days? " inquired Larcum soberly. 
 
 " Here we are at El Portal! " exclaimed the 
 reporter, ignoring the question of the young 
 giant. 
 
CHAPTEE X 
 
 COACHING 
 
 QUICKLY all other matters were ignored or 
 forgotten as the boys grasped their suit 
 cases and, as soon as the train halted at 
 the little station, made their way to the plat 
 form. 
 
 " Where now, Larc? " asked Scott. " I don t 
 see any hotel." 
 
 " Follow that path up the side of the hill 
 yonder, and you ll find the Del Portal," said 
 the reporter, who was standing near the young 
 travelers. 
 
 " We don t want the Del Portal; we want El 
 Portal," suggested John. 
 
 11 One is the hotel and the other is the sta 
 tion," responded the reporter. 
 
 " Then the Del Portal is at El Portal, is 
 it? I don t see any Del Portal, and how can I 
 find the El Portal? " 
 
 11 Keep on up the path and you ll find it, all 
 right." 
 
 120 
 
COACHING 121 
 
 At once acting upon the suggestion the four 
 boys turned to the winding pathway on the 
 hillside, and, soon entering the roadway, in a 
 few minutes arrived at the hotel, where eager 
 porters seized their bags and led the way into 
 the hotel, followed by the boys. In response 
 to their inquiries, the boys were informed that 
 a coach would leave for the Sentinel Hotel in 
 the Yosemite Valley as soon as breakfast had 
 been served. The suggestion was sufficient to 
 cause the young travelers to register hastily, 
 and then to enter the dining-room, where they 
 secured a table and were at once served by one 
 of the waitresses. 
 
 Glancing over the menu, Larcum said sol 
 emnly, " There s only one thing on this bill 
 of fare that I don t want." 
 
 " What s that? " asked Scott, who was bus 
 ily inspecting his own card. 
 
 11 The date June twenty-fourth. I ll take 
 everything except the date," Larcum added, as 
 he turned to the waitress. 
 
 "I m afraid the hotel won t make much on 
 our party," laughed Lee, " for I m going to 
 give the same order you did, Larc." 
 
 " Same here," added Scott. 
 
 " Your order the same? " asked the waitress, 
 
122 FOUR BOYS IN TEE 70S EM IT E 
 
 who was laughing now, as she held a card be 
 fore John. 
 
 " Not quite," began John. 
 
 " Got any codfish and baked beans? " Scott 
 asked the waitress. 
 
 " I m afraid we haven t, unless it s on the 
 bill of fare," she replied. 
 
 " There isn t anything like that on mine," 
 said Larcum, as he turned his card over and 
 inspected it on both sides. 
 
 11 I ll have a steak and some French-fried po 
 tatoes," said John. " I don t want everybody 
 in the hotel to come in to see the sight of our 
 table heaped up with everything " 
 
 " It isn t everything, broke in Larcum. 
 " I distinctly told the waitress she might leave 
 out the date. Didn t II " he added, turning to 
 the waitress as he spoke. 
 
 " Yes, sir," she replied smilingly. 
 
 "I m ordering for a more simple life," said 
 John. * You may bring me the steak and the 
 potatoes oh, yes, I think I ll have some of 
 the mountain trout, some rolls and brown 
 bread, some wheat cakes, and some marmalade 
 and toast, some graham rolls, too. Yes, you 
 may also bring me " 
 
 " Don t wait, Jack," broke in Larcum. 
 
COACHING 123 
 
 " Just bring him the same things we ordered 
 and bring in the date, too/ he added, as he 
 spoke to the smiling waitress. 
 
 " Yes, sir, I understand/ she replied, as 
 she started at once toward the kitchen. 
 
 " What has become of our shadow! " asked 
 Scott, as he began to peel an orange and looked 
 about the large room. 
 
 " Our < shadow ? What s that? " inquired 
 Lee, following his friend s example. 
 
 " The reporter." 
 
 6 i Never mind him, * growled Larcum. * He 
 hasn t evaporated." 
 
 " How long a ride is it into the valley! " 
 asked Scott. 
 
 " The guidebook says it is twelve and a half 
 miles from El Portal to the Sentinel House," 
 replied John. 
 
 " That may be true," said Lee, "but the 
 manager just told me it was fifteen, and every 
 mile s a good long one, too." 
 
 " The longer the better," said Scott lightly. 
 16 Did you ever breathe such air? I d like noth 
 ing better than to take a tramp along the 
 valley. 
 
 " Where will you get him! " asked Larcum. 
 
 " Get whom! " 
 
124 FOUR BOYS IN THE YO SEMITE 
 
 " Your tramp." 
 
 " I don t want any tramp. What I said 
 
 was " 
 
 it 
 
 What you said was that you d like to take 
 a tramp along the valley. What I say is that 
 you won t find many tramps in this part of 
 the country, so I don t see how you re going 
 to take one into the valley." 
 
 " Fellows," said Scott, " I ve got a conun 
 drum: What is there brighter than the mind 
 of little Larkief " 
 
 " Nothing," responded Larcum promptly. 
 
 " Correct, the first time. Nothing is brighter 
 than Larc s intellectual processes. Now, if 
 nothing is brighter, how much less than 
 nothing must be the brilliancy of Larcum 
 Brown s " 
 
 " Quit! " said John. " You re faint from 
 hunger. You ll feel better " 
 
 " When our breakfast is served," broke in 
 Lee. " Here comes our waitress," he added 
 eagerly. " Look at her! She s got an as 
 sistant," he added, as another waitress, bear 
 ing a heaping tray, was also seen approaching. 
 
 " Everything but the date," murmured Lar 
 cum. " Perhaps later we ll have that, too." 
 
 " There comes the coach! " exclaimed Scott, 
 
COACHING 125 
 
 a half-hour later, as a coach, containing four 
 seats and drawn by four horses, swept up the 
 side of the hill and stopped in front of the 
 hotel. 
 
 " That s too bad," said Larcum soberly. 
 * I suspect it is a trick to cut us off from hav 
 ing a square meal." 
 
 " Hasn t impressed the other people that 
 way, Larc," laughed Lee, as he looked about 
 the room. " We seem to be the only ones left." 
 
 " Lee, you need less food than any of the 
 rest of us; you go and find out if there is to 
 be another coach a little later," suggested Lar 
 cum. " If there is, you would better reserve 
 seats for us on that." 
 
 " All right," laughed Lee, as he arose and 
 went out. In a brief time he returned and 
 reported that there was a second coach, which 
 would leave fifteen minutes later. 
 
 " That s good as far as it goes," said Lar 
 cum. " I never like to start on a hard ride 
 without first having had my breakfast." 
 
 When the second coach arrived, Larcum, 
 with apparent reluctance, arose and joined his 
 friends, who were already seated in the rear 
 seat. Clambering into the seat beside the 
 driver, he looked back at his friends and said: 
 
126 FOUR BOYS IN THE 70S EM IT E 
 
 " You fellows thought you were getting the 
 best places, didn t you? Well, let me tell you 
 that you ll eat more than the assigned peck of 
 dirt before we arrive at the Sentinel. You ll 
 get all the bumps, too. Now, up here where I 
 am, I have good company, no dust, and plenty 
 of room. I haven t given my humble services 
 to the T. G-. &. P. without learning a few things 
 and some besides." 
 
 " Trust you for that, Larc," called Scott. 
 
 " I wasn t the first one in the coach," re 
 torted Larcum. i i If I had been, I should have 
 saved a seat for my friends. As it is " 
 
 " Driver," called Scott, " how many people 
 are to be in each seat? " 
 
 " Three," replied the driver. 
 
 66 Then there ll be room up there in front 
 for another, won t there? " 
 
 " Not this trip. You ll have to stay where 
 you are; I can t have any one besides this big 
 fellow here this morning. I couldn t handle my 
 horses if I did." 
 
 " Be content, my inexperienced friend from 
 the provincial town on the shore of the North 
 Eiver," called Larcum derisively. " I under 
 stand your willingness to appropriate every 
 good thing which some one else finds, but on 
 
COACHING 127 
 
 this trip you re to stay where you are and 
 where you belong in the rear end of this pro 
 cession/ 
 
 The seats, however, by this time were all 
 filled, and, as soon as the porter had collected 
 the tickets or fares from the passengers, the 
 coach started. 
 
 Sweeping swiftly down the hillside, the 
 horses soon slackened their pace as they slowly 
 dragged the heavy load along the steep grade 
 of the road. Indeed, the ride of the morning 
 was a steady climb for the most part. The 
 course led along the shore of the swiftly-flowing 
 Merced Kiver, whose rushing waters were, in 
 places, almost as clear as crystal, and then 
 again would be white with foam as they dashed 
 around some huge bowlder in the stream. On 
 either side rose the towering and bleak hillsides, 
 where steep cliffs and jagged rocks at times 
 almost seemed to shut off the possibility of 
 further advance. Little flocks of purple but 
 terflies fluttered above the scant bushes. Oc 
 casionally the pungent odor of the bay bushes 
 permeated the air. Wild lilacs purple or 
 white were seen growing in the places where 
 sufficient soil had been left by the rushing 
 stream. And, through it all, the narrow road 
 
128 FOUR BOYS IN THE YO SEMITE 
 
 led steadily upward. The progress of the 
 coach was so slow that, when three miles had 
 been made, every one of the boys was ready to 
 believe that the miles were indeed " long," as 
 they had been informed. 
 
 Clouds of dust were stirred by the toiling 
 horses and the slowly-moving coach, and as 
 Larcum occasionally glanced back at his friends 
 in the rear seat, who were almost enveloped in 
 the dust, he grinned appreciatively, but did not 
 otherwise express his feelings. 
 
 The heat of the morning sun was reflected 
 from the towering cliffs, and increased the dis 
 comfort of the travelers. At occasional places 
 four- or six-horse teams were met and passed; 
 but greetings seldom were exchanged. The 
 ride was hard, but the grandeur of the scenery, 
 as well as the promise of the majesty of the 
 surroundings of the valley toward which the 
 party was journeying, served to help the boys 
 to make light of the present discomforts. 
 " Every good thing in the world has its price, " 
 Larcum had said, when the four boys departed 
 from San Francisco, and now, as he repeated 
 the remark, the driver beside him said, " You ll 
 get your money s worth as soon as you re in 
 the valley." 
 
COACHING 129 
 
 " Everybody had to come by coach a few 
 years ago, didn t they! " asked Larcum. 
 
 " Yes. They had to coach from seventy to 
 a hundred miles just to get into the valley. The 
 railroad has cut it down now to about fifteen. 
 
 " That s enough," laughed Larcum. " One 
 of my friends told me that the cars had taken 
 all the poetry out of the approach to the Yo- 
 semite, that one ought to come in by coach if 
 he really wanted to appreciate what he saw. 
 I think I ll do my best to be contented with the 
 railroad. Where did the coaches start from 
 in the days before the railroad was built! 
 
 " Mostly from Raymond, or from Stockton 
 over the Big Oak Flat Road." 
 
 " Horseback wouldn t be so bad," suggested 
 Larcum. " Why doesn t the government fix up 
 and water these roads the way it does in the 
 Yellowstone! This is a national park as much 
 as that is." 
 
 " These roads are all right for mountain 
 roads," retorted the driver sharply, for he did 
 not mean to be silent when any reflections upon 
 the region were made. " Besides, the govern 
 ment has begun to make appropriations. It 
 won t be long before things will be better 
 though I don t find any fault with the road as 
 
130 FOUR BOYS IN THE YOSEM1TE 
 
 it is. Look yonder, " lie added, pointing to some 
 overhanging rocks ahead. " See those rocks? " 
 
 " Yes." 
 
 " Well, they were all blasted out this spring. 
 Some young fool cut his initials in the rock, 
 and the government had to blast in order to 
 get them out." 
 
 " Why! " 
 
 " l Why? Because there wasn t any other 
 way to do it. It s against the law to cut your 
 name anywhere hereabouts. And it ought to 
 be. But last year some fool tourist thought 
 he d leave his initials here. And that s what 
 came of it. There s always somebody trying 
 to spoil a place by advertising his f oolness ! 
 the driver added, in disgust. 
 
 Meanwhile the driver had been pointing out 
 to his passengers the numerous waterfalls that 
 could be seen on the steep sides of the cliffs. 
 Strange formations that resembled the head of 
 an elephant, a cat, a human form, and various 
 other striking likenesses were also seen. 
 
 " Yonder," he added, as he called attention 
 to a thin fall of water which was at least one 
 hundred and fifty feet in height, " is the 
 Widow s Tears. Any of you give a guess how 
 the fall got its name? " 
 
COACHING 131 
 
 " I guess it s because the fall never dries 
 up," suggested some one. 
 
 " No. You re wrong. Those falls run just 
 six weeks in the spring or early in the sum 
 mer, and then they dry up. Gret along! " he 
 added sharply, to his horses. 
 
 For a time the coach was well-nigh hidden 
 in the cloud of dust that enveloped it, but the 
 discomforts of the travelers were speedily for 
 gotten when the driver turned to them and 
 said, " In about ten minutes we ll get our first 
 view of the Yosemite." 
 
CHAPTER XI 
 
 INTO THE VALLEY 
 
 " THEKE ought to be fine fishing in the 
 Merced/ suggested Larcom, as he once more 
 glanced at the river, its emerald waters tum 
 bling and flashing in the sunlight as the coach 
 passed more swiftly. 
 
 " I told you there is," replied the driver 
 shortly. 
 
 " What do you use for bait! " 
 
 t Most anything. Those mountain trout are 
 so savage that I ve known men to have to run 
 and hide behind a bowlder or a tree, or the fish 
 would follow them right up on the land." 
 
 " I believe you," said Larcum soberly, glanc 
 ing reprovingly behind him at his friends, who 
 laughed at the driver s words. " If there is 
 one thing more than another that has impressed 
 me since I came into this country, it is the 
 incomprehensible, not to say multitudinous, dis 
 pensations of certain subtle and philosophical 
 declarations as to the unified and indisputable 
 
 132 
 
INTO THE VALLEY 133 
 
 conglomerations of hyperbolean depreciations 
 of the inherent capabilities of the indigenous 
 anthropological and traditional estimates of the 
 superabundant testimonials of the qualifications 
 of earth and air and sky for the production of 
 pristine and gigantic, as well as consecutive, 
 memorabilia of transcendent and clarified dec 
 larations. Indeed, driver, I believe every word 
 you say." 
 
 " You d better in June," retorted the 
 driver, with a grin. " If any of the soldiers 
 catch you fishing you ll retire from the world 
 for a while." 
 
 " I appreciate your timely suggestion. The 
 season is closed, so to speak." 
 
 " You re right it is." 
 
 " Do any of the inhabitants ever get a repu 
 tation for veracity? " 
 
 " They don t have any of those diseases 
 now." 
 
 " They are to be congratulated. Who owns 
 the Yosemite Valley? " 
 
 " The government." 
 
 " California or national! " 
 
 " The United States. In 1905 the State 
 turned the park over to the national govern 
 ment. The Department of the Interior has 
 
134 FOUR BOYS IN THE T OS E MITE 
 
 charge of it, and keeps two troops of cavalry 
 here to look out for fishermen and anybody else 
 that tries to violate the law." 
 
 " Did you ever think that it is not the law 
 that is broken, but that the man who tries to 
 break it is the one who is broken? 
 
 " I never did." 
 
 " Thank you." 
 
 " You re welcome." 
 
 " How did the State of California happen to 
 be in possession of the park! " 
 
 " Congress deeded it to the State in 1864." 
 
 " How much? " 
 
 " The valley and all the land around it for 
 about two miles altogether there were about 
 five hundred thousand acres, I m told." 
 
 " And California deeded it back in 1905? " 
 
 " That right." 
 
 " How large is the valley itself? " 
 
 " The level stretch is about eight miles long." 
 
 " How high is it? " 
 
 What the valley? " 
 
 " Yes." 
 
 " Thirty-nine hundred and sixty feet above 
 the sea level." 
 
 " And how high are the walls of the val 
 ley? " 
 
INTO THE VALLEY 135 
 
 " Oh, from three to six thousand feet." 
 
 " If a man should fall off the top, do you 
 think he would be bruised when he struck the 
 bottom? " 
 
 "No, I don t !" 
 
 "Why not? " 
 
 "He d starve to death before he struck bot 
 tom. Go long! " the driver added, as he 
 cracked his whip and spoke to his horses. 
 
 i i When was the Yosemite National Park cre 
 ated? " continued Larcum. 
 
 " Eighteen hundred and ninety." 
 
 " Any bears here? " 
 
 " Only enough to eat the children. See that 
 mistletoe? " inquired the driver, as he pointed 
 to some huge masses of the plant clinging to 
 the branches of some of the near-by oaks. 
 
 " Yes," replied Larcum, as he and his fellow- 
 passengers glanced at the plants. 
 
 " What would you do if you should happen 
 to meet a Digger squaw under such a bunch 
 as that? " 
 
 " Eun! These mountains are part of the 
 Sierra Nevadas, aren t they? " 
 
 " Yes, the western slope." 
 
 " How wide is the valley? " 
 
 " From half a mile to two miles. You can 
 
136 FOUR BOYS IN THE YO SEMITE 
 
 see for yourself now, for we re coming into it," 
 added the driver. " Yonder is the Bridal Veil 
 Falls, and almost opposite, on the other side 
 of the valley, is El Capitan. This isn t the best 
 view you ll get, but you can begin to get some 
 idea of what you re coming to, if you look 
 around. 
 
 For a moment every one in the coach became 
 silent. The level floor of the valley seemed to 
 be so shut in by the steep mountains that no 
 exit could be seen. The bleak, barren sides of 
 El Capitan were so steep that the summit 
 seemed almost to hang over the narrow little 
 valley. The misty fall of waters on the oppo 
 site side was as pure and white as its name. 
 Indeed, the white and glistening mist made the 
 fall much in the form of a bride s veil. The 
 sight was impressive in its grandeur, and yet 
 so beautiful and soft that its beauty was even 
 more impressive than its height. 
 
 " How high is the Bridal Veil? " asked John. 
 
 " Six hundred and thirty feet." 
 
 " Sheer! " 
 
 " Yes." 
 
 " How high is Niagara, Jack! " called Lar- 
 cum. 
 
 " One hundred and sixty-seven feet on the 
 
INTO THE VALLEY* 137 
 
 American side," replied John. " On the Ca 
 nadian they are not so high by nine feet." 
 
 " How wide are they? 
 
 "A thousand feet." 
 
 " How wide is the Bridal Veil, driver? " 
 Larcum inquired. 
 
 " About fifty to seventy feet. The best time 
 to see it is late in the afternoon, for then the 
 mist is heavier, and you usually can find rain 
 bows there." 
 
 " A cubic mile of water goes over Niagara 
 every week," suggested John. 
 
 " There isn t as much water here," said the 
 driver. " It isn t the noise or the volume; 
 it s the beauty of the falls the people like 
 here. 
 
 "Well, they ve got it," acknowledged Lar 
 cum. 
 
 " Wait till you see the Yosemite Falls." 
 
 " Are they higher than the Bridal Veil! " 
 asked Lee. 
 
 " Are they higher? Well, you just wait till 
 you see them! r 
 
 " But some people say the Bridal Veil Falls 
 are the most beautiful in the world," suggested 
 John. 
 
 " I know they do," said the driver. " But 
 
138 FOUR BOY 8 IN THE YOSEMITE 
 
 you mark my words you wait till you see the 
 Yosemite Falls. " 
 
 " How high are they? " 
 
 "Almost half a mile." 
 
 "What! " 
 
 " I m telling you the truth." 
 
 " A sheer drop of that height? " 
 
 6 i Almost. There are three parts the upper 
 fall is fourteen hundred and thirty-six feet, 
 the middle, or the cascades, are six hundred 
 and twenty-six, and the lower fall is four hun 
 dred feet altogether the Yosemite Falls are 
 about twenty-five hundred feet almost a half- 
 mile." 
 
 " I should think it would be all mist by the 
 time it reached the bottom." 
 
 " There s plenty of mist," replied the 
 driver, " and plenty of water, too. You ll see 
 the water shooting down like rockets right in 
 the midst of the mist." 
 
 " It must be the highest fall in the world " 
 suggested Scott. 
 
 " It is of any stream of its size." 
 
 " What is the stream? " 
 
 " The Yosemite Creek." 
 
 " How wide is it? " 
 
 " At the top of the falls? That depends on 
 
INTO TEE VALLEY. 139 
 
 the time of the year when you see it. Just now 
 it s about thirty-five feet wide. Later in the 
 season, when the streams dry up and a good 
 deal of the snow on the mountains is gone, it 
 isn t so wide, of course. " 
 
 61 I d like to see it in winter," said John. 
 
 " You re right. It s a great sight then. 
 Sometimes, if the winter happens to be un 
 usually cold, the falls will stop every morning 
 till the sun thaws out the ice which forms up 
 there and stops the water. Usually, in the mid 
 dle of the day, it thaws out again, and the falls 
 resume operations. In the winter-time the sun 
 doesn t shine more than about two hours right 
 in the valley. I ve seen a cone of ice five hun 
 dred feet high form at the foot of the upper 
 fall. But wait till you see for yourselves." 
 
 * It must be great if it s more beautiful than 
 the Bridal Veil," said Lee. 
 
 " I didn t say it was more beautiful; I said 
 it was a good deal higher," responded the 
 driver. " The old Indians that used to live 
 in the valley never thought very much of the 
 Bridal Veil." 
 
 "Why not! " inquired Lee. 
 
 " They thought an evil spirit was hanging 
 round it all the time. You see, up there, back 
 
140 FOUR BOYS IN THE YOSEMITE 
 
 of the place where the water breaks over the 
 top of the mountain into the fall, the ground 
 is all covered with a queer kind of moss. In 
 dry weather it s perfectly safe for a man to 
 walk right across it, but when the rains begin 
 to fall the water creeps in under the moss and 
 makes it bout the most slippery place in the 
 world. When the Indians specially the squaws 
 used to try to walk across, they d slip and lose 
 their footing, and then the first thing they d 
 know they d find themselves carried toward the 
 fall. The more they tried to stand up or to get 
 away, the worse they would slip, and then over 
 they would go, and they d be carried straight to 
 the bottom more than six hundred feet." 
 
 " Did any of them ever complain that they 
 were hurt? " asked Larcum. 
 
 " There wouldn t be enough of em left to 
 try that. They thought there was an evil spirit 
 up there and he got hold of the squaws and 
 just carried em over the fall. Some of em 
 even claimed that they could see the evil spirit 
 with his arms all spread out, standing right 
 there behind the mist, about half-way up to the 
 top of the falls itself." 
 
 11 Do you believe they did? " asked Larcum, 
 in a loud whisper. 
 
INTO TEE VALLEY 141 
 
 " The Indians can see evil spirits where a 
 white man can t." 
 
 " So I have heard, " remarked Larcum 
 grimly; " but I guess they don t usually see 
 them before the white men come. After they 
 have poured the evil spirits into the Indian, 
 the red man can see almost anything. He might 
 be able to see that elephant s head in the rock 
 back yonder where you pointed it out to us. 
 You aren t troubled with evil spirits yourself, 
 are you, driver! 
 
 " The only trouble I ever have with them is 
 when some of my passengers provide them." 
 
 " The keenness of your ironical thrusts is 
 Damascene," said Larcum soberly. 
 
 "It s what? " demanded the driver. 
 
 But Larcum was silent. The road was nearly 
 level now, and the four horses drew the coach 
 more swiftly over the sandy road. Great tow 
 ering cliffs and numerous waterfalls on either 
 side of the valley absorbed the attention of 
 the deeply interested passengers. Far before 
 them they saw a mountain whose crest was hid 
 den by clouds. A strange formation of a moun 
 tain far ahead was noticed, which presented the 
 appearance of having been sharply cut in two 
 and only one portion left standing. 
 
142 FOUR BOYS IN TEE YOSEMITE 
 
 The floor of the valley was smooth, and its 
 level surface was covered with brilliant flow 
 ers or grass of a deep green color. Tall trees 
 were in abundance, although the mountain-sides 
 were bare, like all the Sierras. 
 
 The exhilaration and interest of the four 
 boys were already great, but, when a little time 
 later they obtained their first glimpse of the 
 Yosemite Falls, their feelings prevented further 
 conversation. Over the brink of the precipice 
 the white waters dashed with a continuous and 
 deeply musical boom that sounded throughout 
 the region. Impressive as was the sight, no 
 one had given expression to his thoughts, when 
 at last the sweating horses drew the coach 
 alongside the piazza of the Sentinel Hotel. As 
 the boys leaped from their seats, eager porters, 
 with brushes in their hands, greeted the trav 
 elers and attempted to remove a part at least 
 of the dust that had settled upon every one in 
 abundant impartiality. 
 
 As he threw off his duster, Larcum turned 
 sharply as some one spoke to him, and found 
 himself face to face with the young reporter 
 who had so deeply interested him on the sleep 
 ing-car the preceding evening. 
 
CHAPTER XH 
 
 THE SENTINEL 
 
 " I M here before you, you see," said the re 
 porter glibly. 
 
 " IVe noticed that peculiarity of yours, " 
 responded Larcum dryly. 
 
 "It s a part of my trade." 
 
 " Is it? I fancy that s so. I haven t been 
 able to figure it out how you happened to be out 
 there at that train robbery almost before any 
 of us were there ourselves." 
 
 " Can t give away trade secrets," laughed 
 the reporter lightly. To Larcum it seemed as 
 if the young man was a trifle uneasy over the 
 remark, but afterward, in recalling the inter 
 view, he was not positive that his own suspi 
 cions had led him to see what really was not 
 there. 
 
 " Great place this," continued the young re 
 porter. " Ever been here before? " 
 
 "No." 
 
 " Well, there s something in the first visit, 
 
 143 
 
144 FOUR BOYS IN THE YO SEMITE 
 
 but usually, to take in the whole effect, one has 
 to make a good many trips to the Yosemite. 
 You can spend a day here or a year, and every 
 minute will have something new in it." 
 
 " Will it? " 
 
 " Yes, sir; it will. This is my fourth visit. 
 If there is anything I can do for you, don t fail 
 to let me know." 
 
 " Thank you." Larcum s manner did not in 
 dicate that he was unduly impressed by the 
 reporter s volunteered proffer, but he said no 
 more, as he turned to enter the office, whither 
 his three friends had preceded him. 
 
 " Come on, Larc, we ve got our rooms," said 
 Scott, as Larcum joined the group. " We have 
 four rooms. That s what we gain by having a 
 railroad man in our party. Your telegram did 
 it." 
 
 "I m glad you appreciate it at last," 
 said Larcum absently, for the young giant s 
 thoughts were still centered upon the reporter, 
 who so unexpectedly had been the first to greet 
 him upon his arrival at the Sentinel Hotel. 
 
 Larcum was the first to leave his room and 
 go to the piazza in the rear of the hotel, there 
 to await the coming of his friends. 
 
 In a brief tune the three boys appeared, and, 
 
THE SENTINEL 145 
 
 for a moment, all were silent as they gazed at 
 the wonderful Yosemite Falls, which were in 
 plain view on the opposite side of the valley, 
 only a half-mile distant. The waters were 
 white in the light of the midday sun, and the 
 spray was almost like a shining cloud that pro 
 vided a frame for the marvelous picture. The 
 boom of the falling waters was continuous, in 
 creasing occasionally as what seemed to be an 
 unusually heavy mass of water struck the rocks 
 beneath. 
 
 As Scott glanced up at the lofty top of the 
 mountain over which the stream was steadily 
 pouring, he said solemnly, "There s one 
 thing, fellows, that impresses me most of 
 all here." 
 
 " What s that? " inquired John. 
 
 " That real estate must be very high." 
 
 " If that isn t New York for all the world! " 
 growled Larcum, refusing to join in the laugh 
 that greeted his companion s words. 
 
 " You aren t impressed by the grandeur of 
 that sight. All you can think of is money, 
 money, money! You d like to buy the Yo 
 semite and take it bodily to Coney Island ! 
 
 " Never mind, Larkie," said John soothingly. 
 " If Scott can t appreciate the place, there are 
 
146 FOUR BOYS IN THE YO SEMITE 
 
 others that can. I was reading yesterday that 
 Kalph Waldo Emerson said, This is the only 
 spot I have ever found that came up to the 
 brag. " 
 
 " That s slang," retorted Scott scornfully. 
 " Did Emerson use slang? " 
 
 " That s not slang that s the truth," re 
 torted John. " Can t you tell the differ 
 ence? 
 
 " Look at the Merced," suggested Lee, point 
 ing to the swift stream directly beneath them. 
 " See the trout? " 
 
 " I can see them, but the sight doesn t do me 
 any good," said Scott. " We re out of season, 
 and can t do any fishing." 
 
 " Suppose you can t? " said Larcum; " can t 
 you find any fun in watching the trout? Do 
 you think the only thing a trout is good for is 
 to be browned and served for your breakfast! 
 It s bad enough to come into the Yosemite and 
 not be able to see anything but real estate, but 
 to come here and watch the mountain trout in 
 their native lair 
 
 " Native lair is good, Larc," broke in 
 Scott laughingly. 
 
 Well, where they belong, then I don t care 
 what you call it. A gun or a fishing-rod 
 
THE SENTINEL 147 
 
 wouldn t help me any. I don t thirst for blood. 
 I can appreciate the beauty of wild life. Now, 
 just look at those two divers," Larcum added 
 hastily, pointing as he spoke at two brilliant- 
 hued divers that were swiftly approaching, be 
 ing borne by the rapid current. " There they 
 go ! " he added excitedly, as the two birds dove 
 and still could be seen through the clear water 
 as they sought their food on the bottom of the 
 stream. " Up they come! " he said, as the 
 birds together came to the surface, and then, 
 with vigorous paddling, began to make their 
 way upstream, moving steadily against the 
 swift current. 
 
 " That s right, Larc," joined in John. 
 " Why a man should want to break a leg or 
 a wing of such pretty little creatures, I never 
 was able to understand. I d a hundred times 
 rather see them on the river. They re just like 
 boys see them! They go up the stream and 
 then come down on the current. Look at them ! 
 They must be coasting at the rate of twenty 
 miles an hour! " 
 
 " That s what it is to be born without a drop 
 of sporting blood in one s veins," retorted 
 Scott. 
 
 " Sport? What sport can there be in 
 
148 FOUR BOYS IN THE YOSEMITE 
 
 hurting such beautiful creatures? " asked 
 John. 
 
 " Oh, it isn t just the hurting. Nobody wants 
 to hurt them." 
 
 " What is it, then? What do you want to 
 shoot a bird for? What fun can there be in 
 seeing a fish fight for his life ! That s what he 
 is doing, isn t it, when he has swallowed your 
 hook? " 
 
 " I suppose so; but a fish doesn t suffei 
 any," declared Scott. 
 
 61 How do you know? " 
 
 " They re cold-blooded animals. They don t 
 feel pain." 
 
 " So s a fisherman or a hunter. Do they feel 
 pain if a gun goes off by accident and blows 
 off a hand? Does a cold-blooded fisherman feel 
 any pain if his hook happens to catch in his 
 thumb? " 
 
 " You draw it too fine, Jack," laughed Scott 
 good-naturedly. " It seems to be the way of 
 the world. There! Look at that, will you! 
 he added, with a shout. " Those gentle little 
 divers! See them there on the shore! They re 
 after that poor little innocent frog. They ve 
 got him, too! See them! They re just pound 
 ing the life out of his frogship. Don t talk to 
 
THE SENTINEL 149 
 
 me if they sometimes get caught at their own 
 game. They re trying to do to others what 
 others are doing to them." 
 
 " They re only birds. Men know better what 
 is right." 
 
 " Quit your talking. Come on down to the 
 dining-room. I m hungry as a bear, suggested 
 Larcum. 
 
 " Just wait a minute," persisted Scott. " If 
 you two fellows will agree not to touch a 
 mouthful of meat or chicken or fish, I ll go with 
 you. You know that it hurt the fish " 
 
 " We ll wait and see how good they are first," 
 laughed Larcum. 
 
 " Hold on a minute," said John. " Let s get 
 one more view of the valley and these wonder 
 ful falls. A writer from New York once said, 
 
 * I might as well try to measure a rainbow with 
 a two-foot rule as to take this in. " 
 
 " If that s the way a New Yorker felt about 
 it, then I reckon there isn t much left for the rest 
 of us, said Lee. " I m ready for luncheon. 
 
 " Garfield said, No one can study this val 
 ley and its surroundings without being broader- 
 minded thereafter, " continued John. " I re 
 call, too, that Taylor wrote of the Yosemite: 
 
 * You hear the winds intoning in the choral 
 
150 FOUR BOYS IN THE YOSEMITE 
 
 galleries a mile above your head ; you hear the 
 crash of water as of cataracts in the sky; you 
 trample upon broad shadows that have fallen 
 thousands of feet down, like the cast-off gar 
 ments of descending night 
 
 "Enough! Enough!" broke in Scott. 
 "Magnificent! Sublime! Sounds like Lee s 
 oration for the sophomore prize. " 
 
 "It is certainly very pretty, 7 said Lee so 
 berly. 
 
 Scott, in silence, looked at his friend who had 
 just spoken, and then said abruptly: " Come 
 on, fellows! After this we ll need luncheon." 
 
 As the four boys quickly descended the stair 
 way and came to the piazza in front of the 
 hotel, they all stopped abruptly as a band of 
 a half-dozen Indian women passed in the road. 
 The squaws were all short and fat, and not 
 very prepossessing in their appearance, as they 
 stolidly kept on their way without even glanc 
 ing at the groups that were interested in their 
 passing. 
 
 " They re Diggers," suggested the reporter, 
 who now promptly joined the four boys. 
 
 " Digger Indians? " inquired John. 
 
 "What did you think, Jack?" laughed 
 Scott. " Did you take them for Digger Mo- 
 
THE SENTINEL 151 
 
 hammedans ? Or did you think they were Dig 
 ger Bussians? 
 
 " They aren t very attractive, any way, " re 
 plied John. " Why are they Diggers ? " 
 
 t They live mostly on roots, acorns, and such 
 things," explained the reporter. 
 
 " Well, there s one thing I m thankful for," 
 said Lee, as he watched the departing Indians. 
 
 " Only one? What s that? " laughed Scott. 
 
 " Do you recall those great bunches of mis 
 tletoe we passed this morning on our way into 
 the valley? " 
 
 " Yes. What of them? " 
 
 " Just fancy meeting one of those squaws 
 under one of the biggest of those bunches of 
 mistletoe," said Lee, so solemnly that his 
 friends all laughed. 
 
 "What I m thinking of/ said John, "is 
 what I ve read about the uplifting effects of 
 magnificent scenery on the human mind." 
 
 " I didn t know there was any i magnificent 
 scenery on the human mind, " said Scott 
 solemnly. 
 
 " You know what I mean," retorted John. 
 I mean the effect on the mind of magnificent 
 scenery." 
 
 "I m still puzzled, Jack," said Scott, shak- 
 
152 FOUR BOYS IN THE YO SEMITE 
 
 ing his head. " I didn t know that magnificent 
 scenery had any human mind." 
 
 1 1 You know what I mean ! 
 
 " How can I? I know only what you said." 
 
 " Well, I ll try to say what I mean, then. 
 The effect which the sight of magnificent scen 
 ery produces upon the human mind." 
 
 " You re doing better, though I don t know 
 that I ve ever come in contact with any other 
 kind of a mind than human. What other 
 kinds are there, Jack! 
 
 Ignoring the bantering of his friend, John 
 continued : Now, if it is true that great moun 
 tains have an uplifting effect upon the people 
 that behold them, please tell me why those In 
 dian women we saw just now are so degraded 
 and unattractive? I can t reason it out. By 
 rights they ought to be beautiful." 
 
 " Perhaps they are in somebody s eyes," 
 suggested the reporter. " The original Yosem- 
 ite Indians, however, bear out your theory. 
 They were wonderfully brave and high-minded, 
 and all that; I think one of the most pathetic 
 things I know is the old Yosemite custom of 
 burying their dead." 
 
 " What was that? " inquired John. 
 
 " I ll tell you sometime while you are here. 
 
THE SENTINEL 153 
 
 You re in too great haste for your luncheon 
 now. By the way, you wouldn t think there 
 were fifteen feet of snow in that little cottage 
 up the street yonder, would you? " 
 
 " Fifteen feet? Now? " demanded John. 
 
 " This very minute," replied the reporter 
 seriously. " I can prove it to you. Want me 
 to?" 
 
 " Yes, I do. If you can prove it, I ll give 
 you the best dinner to-night you ever had or, 
 rather, I ll treat you to the best the hotel can 
 afford." 
 
 " All right." 
 
 "Not for me," said Larcum; "I m for 
 lunching. 
 
 " Go ahead, Larc. Save a place at the table 
 for me," said John. "I m going to see this 
 fifteen feet of snow first. Why, the little house 
 itself isn t much higher than that." 
 
 " All the same, there are fifteen feet of snow 
 inside," said the reporter glibly. "HI don t 
 prove it to you, then I ll provide the dinner for 
 the whole party to-night." 
 
 " Come ahead," said John* quickly, as he 
 started across the street. 
 
 " It won t take but a minute, anyway." 
 
 " Talk about Jack s wonderful mind," said 
 
154 FOUR BOYS IN THE YOSEMITE 
 
 Larcuni, as he stopped a moment to watch his 
 friend and the reporter. He can tell to a 
 dot how many parasangs Clearchus marched in 
 a day, but he s the easiest -mark in the Yosem- 
 ite to-day. He ll feel pretty cheap when he 
 comes back. Let s go into the dining-room." 
 
 A few minutes afterward John and the re 
 porter entered and seated themselves at the 
 table where the three boys were already busily 
 engaged. 
 
 " How is it, Jack? " asked Lee. " Did you 
 see fifteen feet of snow in that house? " 
 
 " I did," replied John soberly. 
 
CHAPTEE 
 
 AN INTEKRUPTED QUOTATION 
 
 FOE a moment John s three friends gazed at 
 him as if they were puzzled by his sober reply 
 to Lee s question. 
 
 " What s the joke, Jack! " asked Scott 
 lightly. 
 
 " i Joke! I saw fifteen feet of snow inside 
 that house. If there s any joke about it, you ll 
 have to find it for yourselves." 
 
 " Will you take me over to see it? " asked 
 Lee. 
 
 66 Certainly," replied John. " You can see 
 it for yourself as well as I did." When lunch 
 eon had been eaten, Lee insisted upon going 
 with John to see the strange sight of fifteen 
 feet of snow inside a little house, which itself 
 was not much, if any, higher than the supposed 
 depth of the snow. 
 
 " Better not go, Lee," suggested Larcum. 
 11 You re too easy." 
 
 Lee, however, was not moved from his pur- 
 
 155 
 
156 FOUR BOYS IN TEE 70S E MITE 
 
 pose, and at once accompanied John across the 
 street to the little cottage. Before five min 
 utes had elapsed he returned, and, as he joined 
 his friends who were seated on the piazza, he 
 laughingly said: " You re right, Larc; I might 
 have saved myself, but I didn t once sus 
 pect that Jack would put up any game on 
 me." 
 
 " What did you see, Lee? " asked Scott 
 
 " I saw fifteen feet of snow." 
 
 " Then where does the joke come in? " 
 
 " You might go over and see for yourself," 
 
 " No, thank you." 
 
 " Then I ll tell you. I saw Mr. Snow, who 
 is five feet nine; Mrs. Snow, who is five feet 
 three; and little Tommy Snow, who is four 
 feet one. Altogether that makes fifteen feet of 
 the Snow family, doesn t it? " 
 
 " Hold on to me, fellows! " shouted Larcum, 
 as he leaped from his chair. " That is the 
 hugest piece of funny business I ve seen since 
 I was a boy. I know my buttons will go, and 
 I ll be threatened with that inextinguishable 
 laughter I remember reading about in Homer. 
 I tell you, Jack, that s better than the para- 
 sangs of Clearchus. You hold me tight or I ll 
 not answer for the consequences." 
 
AN INTERRUPTED QUOTATION 157 
 
 " I saw a little house once that covered five 
 acres," said Scott. 
 
 " Was it in New York? " asked Lee. 
 
 " It was. 7 
 
 " Go on with your story, Scott." 
 
 "I ve told you the truth." 
 
 " You mean you ve done your best." 
 
 " I mean what I say." 
 
 " That s easy, Scott," said John. 
 
 "Is it? Then you might explain it," sug 
 gested Larcum. 
 
 i i Scott means that the house belonged to Mr. 
 Acre. It covers Mr. Acre, Mrs. Acre, and prob 
 ably three little Acres," said John. 
 
 "Certainly! How cute! Splendid! More!" 
 cried Larcum. " Now, fellows, all I ve got to 
 say is that, if you keep on with this, then I m 
 going to do my traveling alone. I can stand 
 parasangs and things, but I won t be compelled 
 to listen to witty remarks. Neither my delicate 
 constitution nor my buttons will stand such a 
 strain as that." 
 
 " Look yonder! " said Scott quickly, point 
 ing to some Indians. " There are those squaws 
 coming back again." 
 
 " They look about as poetic, as the reporter 
 said, as your jokes look funny." 
 
158 FOUR BOYS IN THE YOSEMITE 
 
 No one spoke while the five short, squat In 
 dian women passed, without even glancing at 
 the boys. Sullen, discouraged, and hopeless the 
 bearing of every one appeared to be. 
 
 " To me that sight is tragic, " said John, as 
 he watched the departing band. " This place 
 was their home once " 
 
 " Yes," interrupted Larcum; " right here 
 they could swiftly pursue the fleeing snails; 
 here they might, with their fingers, dig up the 
 fat and juicy worm; in this very valley they 
 could pounce upon the fierce and savage grass 
 hopper, and in each and every way thus secure 
 choice bits of food. Bah! What s the use in 
 being sentimental? You wouldn t have the coy 
 otes here for pets, would you? You wouldn t 
 give the rattlers freedom to roam the valleys? 
 You don t believe buffaloes are better to have 
 on the plains than cattle, do you? " 
 
 11 All the same, the Yosemite Indians were 
 a fine lot," said the reporter. " I started to 
 tell you about them before luncheon, you know. 
 They made a brave fight against the whites, 
 who finally drove them out. Some of the most 
 exciting Indian stories I ever read were those 
 of the Yosemites. There was old Tenieya, the 
 last chief of the tribe why, he put up a fight 
 
AN INTERRUPTED QUOTATION 159 
 
 that was as patriotic and as brave as anything 
 I ever read in Greek history. There was " 
 
 " Did you ever hear of Clearchus? " inter 
 rupted Larcum soberly. 
 
 " Yes. What about him? " 
 
 " How many parasangs could he do in a 
 day! " 
 
 " I don t know. Why? " 
 
 " Oh, nothing. All I meant was that I didn t 
 intend to stand by and hear that this old chap, 
 Tenieya, belonged to the same class with my old 
 friend Clearchus. No, sir. By no means, and 
 then some more! What did this Ten Ten 
 what do you call him do? " 
 
 " He died for his tribe." 
 
 " These Indians we have seen here don t look 
 as if dying would be very hard. They look to 
 me as if they thought living was most too 
 much of a contract for them." 
 
 " What about the poetry of the Yosem- 
 ites? " asked John. 
 
 11 Now, see here, I can stand a good deal, 
 but you ll have to excuse me. I came into the 
 
 Yosemite Valley to see its grand sights " 
 
 began Larcum. 
 
 " That s right, Larc," interrupted John. 
 " Horace Greeley said: * Of the grandest sights 
 
160 FOUR BOYS IN TEE YO SEMITE 
 
 I have enjoyed Eome from the dome of St. 
 Peter s, the Alps from the valley of Lake 
 Como, Mont Blanc and her glaciers from 
 Chamouni, Niagara and the Yosemite I judge 
 the last named the most unique and stupen 
 dous. " 
 
 " Good for Horace! I always thought he 
 had good sense. Not that I ever met him " 
 
 " Probably not, seeing that he had been dead 
 about a dozen years when you were born. But, 
 as I was about to remark, Starr King once said : 
 Nowhere among the Alps, in no pass of the 
 Andes, and in no canon of the mighty Oregon 
 range, is there such stupendous rock scenery 
 as the traveler here lifts his eyes to. " 
 
 " Look here, now, Jack Field, I ve never 
 harmed you. I don t see why you insist upon 
 doing me this way 
 
 " That reminds me," broke in John, " that 
 Samuel Bowles, the great editor of the Spring 
 field Republican the best paper published out 
 side of Boston " 
 
 " Jack Field, your consummate, concen 
 trated, contumacious conceit is beyond all that 
 a man of ordinary intelligence cai stand! 
 1 Best paper outside of Boston! Don t you 
 know the best newspapers in the wide world 
 
AN INTERRUPTED QUOTATION 161 
 
 are the Chicago dailies? Everybody knows 
 that." 
 
 " Not if he lives where he can see the New 
 York papers," said Scott. 
 
 " I reckon you-all never saw Atlanta or 
 Charleston or New Orleans papers," broke in 
 Lee. " Why, sir, everybody knows that there 
 isn t anything like them in America." 
 
 " Keep still. Let me talk. Let me get a 
 word in once in a while, resumed John. 1 1 As 
 I was saying, the great editor, Samuel Bowles, 
 wrote about this place: The overpowering 
 sense of the sublime, of awful desolation, of 
 transcendent marvelousness and unexpected 
 ness that swept over us, as we reined our horses 
 sharply out of green forests, and stood upon 
 a high jutting rock that overlooked this rolling, 
 upheaving sea of granite mountains, holding 
 far down in its rough lap the vale of meadow 
 and grove and river such a tide of feeling, 
 such stoppage of ordinary emotions comes at 
 rare intervals in any life. It was the conf rontal 
 of God face to face, as in great danger or sud 
 den death. It was Niagara multiplied. All that 
 was mortal shrank back; all that was im 
 mortal swept to the front and bowed down 
 in awe/ " 
 
162 FOUR BOYS IN THE YO SEMITE 
 
 11 Who said that, Jack? " demanded Larcum 
 sharply. 
 
 " Samuel Bowles, the great traveler and 
 editor of the great " 
 
 " He said he felt as if he was in great dan 
 ger, did he? " 
 
 " He said that was his first feeling when he 
 saw the Yosemite." 
 
 " Well, let me tell you, my little Bostonian, 
 that he isn t the only one to have that feeling. 
 You ll have it, too, if you dare quote what an 
 other great man said about the Yosemite! I ll 
 throw you into the Merced River! Then you ll 
 know more about ( the awful desolation and the 
 transcendent marvelousness and unexpected 
 ness than you ever dreamed of before." 
 
 " All right. Have it your own way," 
 laughed John. "I m just giving you the bene 
 fit of all my careful reading before we started 
 on this trip. H. H., in Bits of Travel, 
 said, An indescribable delight took posses 
 sion of me; the silence semed more than 
 silence " 
 
 "Hold on there!" roared Larcum, as he 
 leaped from his seat and seized John in his 
 arms. " i An indescribable delight got hold of 
 him, did it? Well, I never have been called 
 
AN INTERRUPTED QUOTATION 163 
 
 by that name before, but what s in a name, any 
 way? What did I tell you would happen to you 
 if you quoted the words of another man about 
 the Yo Semite Valley? " 
 
 " H. H. wasn t a man," gasped John, 
 struggling helplessly in the arms of the young 
 giant. 
 
 " Oh, he wasn t a man? What was he, 
 then? " 
 
 " H. H. was a woman Helen Hunt Helen 
 Hunt Jackson. You told me not to quote an 
 other man, so I didn t. She was a woman. 
 * Bits of Travel is an old book, but I suppose 
 it isn t known yet in Chicago. Let me go ! Put 
 me down! 
 
 " Be good then." 
 
 As soon as John was released he began again : 
 " l The silence seemed more than silence; it 
 seemed to quiver with sound just as the warm 
 air shimmered without stir along all the out 
 lines of the rocky walls. On my left rose the 
 granite watch tower, Sentinel Kock; on my 
 right, the colossal buttress, El Capitan. The 
 Cathedral Spires, the Three Brothers all 
 were in full sight. Wherever I stood the moun 
 tain walls seemed to shut close around me in a 
 circle. All sense of estimated distance was 
 
164 FOUR BOYS IN THE YOSEMITE 
 
 swallowed up, obliterated, by the feeling of 
 
 what seemed to be immeasurable height 
 
 Oh!" 
 
 John got no farther in his quotation, for, 
 with a bound, Larcum was upon him. Seizing 
 the irrepressible quoter, he bore him quickly to 
 the bank of the Merced, directly behind the ho 
 tel. Laughing, the other boys followed and 
 loudly approved as the young giant, holding 
 John by his hand, lowered him toward the wa 
 ter below. The water here was not deep, 
 though the current farther out in the stream 
 was swift. 
 
 11 Now, then, you Bostonian chatterer of 
 other people s words, do you feel as if an in 
 describable delight had seized you ! " 
 
 Yes ! Yes ! replied John. l i Pull me up ; 
 you ll let me fall into the water! " 
 
 Ignoring the request, Larcum said: "Does 
 i the silence seem to be more than silence 9 1 
 Does it quiver with sound ? " 
 
 "Yes! Yes!" 
 
 " Is all sense of estimated distance swal 
 lowed up? " 
 
 "Yes! It is! Pull me up, Larc! " pleaded 
 John. 
 
 " Do you hear the winds intoning in the 
 
AN INTERRUPTED QUOTATION 165 
 
 choral galleries a mile above your head a la 
 Benj. F. Taylor! " 
 
 66 I do. Look out, Larc, you ll let me drop ! 
 
 " Do you share Horace Greeley s feeling of 
 the isolation of the Yosemite! Do you feel 
 the absolute wilderness of its sylvan soli 
 tudes ! " 
 
 " Yes! Yes! And a whole lot of things be 
 sides! " 
 
 " Do you still intend to tell us on every 
 possible and impossible occasion of the tran 
 scendent marvelousness and the awful deso 
 lation f " 
 
 " Never again. Now let me up, Larc." 
 
 " Where is the best newspaper in America 
 published! " 
 
 " Boston! " 
 
 " Where? ?> demanded Larcum, as he low 
 ered his friend until John s feet touched the 
 waters beneath him. " I don t know that I just 
 caught your answer. Where did you say the 
 best papers are! " 
 
 6 Bost- No ! No ! In Chicago ! John 
 hastily corrected himself, as Larcum suddenly 
 permitted him to feel the water on his feet. 
 
 " You re improving. Do you know any more 
 quotations! " 
 
166 FOUR BOYS IN THE YOSEMITE 
 
 " Yes." 
 
 " That s bad. Do you now freely, volun 
 tarily, of your own will and desire, solemnly 
 promise never again, by word or act, to refer 
 to them? Do you likewise cheerfully, enthusi 
 astically, without malice and free from all guile, 
 solemnly declare and affirm in the presence of 
 these witnesses that never again will you de 
 cry, belittle, defame, or otherwise attempt to 
 cast any slur on my home town? Speak up so 
 that all can hear." 
 
 John s reply was lost, however; for suddenly 
 Larcum lost his foothold, and instantly both 
 boys were struggling in the swift current of the 
 cold and treacherous Merced. 
 
CHAPTER XIV 
 
 IN THE TORRENT 
 
 BEFORE either of their companions fully re 
 alized the extent of the mishap, both Larcum 
 and John were borne around the bend in the 
 stream. The young giant was an expert swim 
 mer, but his companion in misery was not able 
 to swim a stroke. In places the water was deep, 
 and John was carried swiftly through them 
 down the stream. As he gained the shallower 
 water, he struggled desperately to obtain a 
 foothold, but the tumbling waters drove him 
 hard against the rocks, and again he was swept 
 forward, helpless, in the torrent. 
 
 Larcum merely tried to guide himself in the 
 swift waters, and, as the current bore him in 
 toward the shore, he seized some of the pro 
 jecting bushes, and, though several times he 
 lost his footing, he held on desperately, and at 
 last succeeded in gaining the bank which was 
 opposite the one from which he had started. 
 
 Breathlessly the young giant shook himself, 
 
 167 
 
168 FOUR BOYS IN THE YO SEMITE 
 
 much as a dog does after a plunge, and then 
 instantly turned to discover what had become 
 of John. In a moment he saw his friend whirl 
 ing and turning in the tumbling stream, and 
 instantly Larcum began to run along the bank. 
 
 Help ! " he shouted. t Come and help me ! 
 Get a pole ! Get a rope ! Come on and do some 
 thing! " 
 
 Without waiting to ascertain the result of 
 his appeal, he continued his pursuit of his com 
 rade, though the swiftness of John s movements 
 in the water was greater than his own on the 
 bank. Apparently John was helpless. He 
 rolled and tossed in the warring stream, but as 
 yet not one cry had been heard from him. The 
 very silence increased the alarm of Larcum, 
 and he sped forward with redoubled efforts. 
 The bend in the stream enabled him to gain 
 upon his helpless friend, and in a brief time 
 Larcum was standing on the bank where the 
 river was much narrower, and manifestly the 
 current made closer inshore. 
 
 Work your way toward this bank, John 
 nie ! " implored the young giant, as he saw his 
 friend approaching. When no response to his 
 cry came from John, and he saw that appar 
 ently his friend was either unconscious or com- 
 
r 
 
 INSTANTLY BOTH BOYS WERE STRUGGLING IN THE SWIFT CURRENT. 
 
 Page 166. 
 
IN THE TORRENT 169 
 
 pletely helpless, Larcum s terror increased. 
 There was no time for accusing himself. If 
 John was to be saved, Larcum realized that he 
 himself must act and at once. At his feet on 
 the bank he saw a long, slender pole. Instantly 
 seizing it he leaned far forward as he held it 
 out into the stream. It was long enough to en 
 able John to reach it, and Larcum shouted en 
 couragingly: " Here, Jack! Grab the pole! 
 Grab it! I ll pull you ashore! " 
 
 A low cry escaped Larcum s lips when he 
 saw John swept past the place without making 
 any effort to seize the pole. A fresh fear now 
 seized upon the frightened rescuer. Was John 
 drowned? If he was still conscious, why had 
 he not made use of the friendly means of res 
 cue? Stifling the groan that almost escaped 
 him, Larcum instantly turned and ran with 
 increased speed down the bank of the roaring 
 Merced. Another slight bend in the stream was 
 just before him, and, rushing across the point, 
 Larcum regained the bank just as John drew 
 near. Indeed, to the frenzied Larcum, it al 
 most seemed that the helpless boy would be 
 swept past him before he himself could gain 
 the bank. 
 
 Without hesitating a moment, Larcum leaped 
 
170 FOUR BOYS IN THE YO SEMITE 
 
 into the river, but found himself too far behind 
 John to be able to grasp him. Desperately the 
 young giant began to swim with the current. 
 The roar of the stream sounded in his ears like 
 the crash of many waterfalls. The bank was 
 rushing past him with the speed of the wind. 
 Unheeding, almost unmindful of, his surround 
 ings, Larcum was carried swiftly forward. 
 Just before his outstretched hand was the sight 
 of John, who apparently was unaware of the 
 desperate efforts his friend was making to res 
 cue him. With another mighty attempt Lar 
 cum managed to grasp the coat of his comrade, 
 but for the moment all he could do was to draw 
 John closer, and then the two boys were borne 
 onward together. A huge rock bruised the leg 
 of the young giant, but he was not mindful of 
 any pain. His one purpose now was to keep 
 John s head above the water. The tossing 
 waves almost blinded his eyes. The roar of the 
 river seemed to increase, and then Larcum felt 
 himself thrown heavily against some projecting 
 object. Still clinging with his left arm to John, 
 almost instinctively he threw up his right arm 
 and grasped the object before him. He realized 
 that it was the trunk of a small tree, not more 
 than five or six inches in diameter, projecting 
 
IN THE TORRENT 171 
 
 from the shore into the current. The roots had 
 been broken and upturned on the bank, and, as 
 Larcum half -blindly became aware of the con 
 dition, his momentary feeling of relief was 
 shaken by a great fear that the broken roots 
 would not be able to stand the added strain. 
 
 In a moment Larcum found that he could 
 easily place his feet on the bottom of the stream 
 and that the water scarcely was waist-high. 
 The bottom, however, was covered over with 
 worn, round stones, and at first to gain a foot 
 hold seemed almost impossible, for the rushing 
 current was so strong that even the young giant 
 found it difficult to stand. 
 
 4 Come over here ! Come and help ! " he 
 shouted, although he was not positive that any 
 one could hear his hoarse cry above the roar of 
 the angry Merced. 
 
 Lifting John so that the helpless boy s head 
 rested upon his shoulder, the young giant 
 pulled upon the projecting trunk. As he came 
 closer to it he suddenly relaxed his grasp and 
 succeeded in seizing the trunk once more, this 
 time a few inches nearer the shore. 
 
 " Lucky I m on the upper side of this trunk," 
 he muttered, as he shook the water from his 
 eyes and prepared to move forward again. 
 
172 FOUR BOYS IN THE YOSEMITE 
 
 " If I was on the other side, I couldn t hold to 
 the log with this current pulling against me. I 
 wonder 
 
 Larcum stopped abruptly as the sound of a 
 human voice came to him. Whether it was from 
 upstream or down, or was the call of one of 
 his friends, he could not perceive. Again the 
 cry was heard, and, believing that it was for 
 him, Larcum abandoned his effort to gain the 
 shore and simply clung to the position he was 
 holding. John s face was above the water, but 
 the boy was unable to aid his rescuer. Indeed, 
 Larcum was not certain that his friend now 
 was aware of what was occurring. Was John 
 drowned? The startling suggestion caused him 
 to look earnestly into the face of the helpless 
 boy. The dashing waters covered them both 
 with their spray, and it was impossible for him 
 to be sure. 
 
 Again the call or cry was heard, and this 
 time there was no question as to its direction, 
 for plainly it came from below him. Vaguely 
 wondering how aid could come from there, Lar 
 cum nevertheless took fresh hope as he hoarsely 
 shouted: " Here I am! Hurry! I m afraid 
 this old tree won t stand the strain much 
 longer! Come on! Come on! " 
 
IN THE TORRENT 173 
 
 Soon on the bank before him Larcum saw 
 three persons, whom he vaguely recognized as 
 Scott, Lee, and the young reporter. 
 
 " Hold on! We ll have you out of that in 
 a minute! " called the reporter. 
 
 " I am holding on," growled Larcum. " I 
 don t want to hold on forever, though! " 
 
 * l Just a minute ! Just a minute ! Keep your 
 head." 
 
 Hastily breaking down a small sapling, the 
 reporter seized it and ran swiftly into the 
 stream until he was in the water up to his 
 waist. Here you ! " he called sharply, as he 
 turned to the two boys behind him. " One of 
 you take hold of my jacket, and the other keep 
 hold of him and hang on to the bank, too. Don t 
 you dare let go! Now, then! " he added, as 
 he thrust the pole toward Larcum. 
 
 The end of the sapling was within reach of 
 the young giant. As he saw that the length 
 of the little pole was sufficient for his purpose, 
 the reporter shouted to Larcum, " Can you 
 hold on to it and not let go of Jack? " 
 
 "Yes, lean! Go ahead! " 
 
 " All right! Now, then! Grab it and don t 
 let go ! " ordered the reporter, who apparently 
 was calm in the midst of the excitement. 
 
174 FOUR BOYS IN THE YOSEMITE 
 
 As Larcum released his hold upon the trunk 
 of the tree, and with his right hand instantly 
 seized the pole, the reporter was almost swept 
 from his position. All three staggered for a 
 moment, and then, as Scott and Lee advanced 
 and together seized the pole, all three began to 
 move back to the bank, drawing Larcum and 
 his burden with them. 
 
 " Steady! " called the reporter warningly. 
 " Don t pull the pole out of his hand; he has 
 only one free, you know. That s right! Here 
 we are! " he added a moment later, as he 
 grasped Larcum by his arm. At the same time 
 Scott and Lee grasped John, and all five fell 
 stumbling backward upon the grass. 
 
 Quickly standing up, Larcum bent eagerly 
 over the form of John. 
 
 " Stretch him out on his face, fellows! " he 
 ordered, as, without waiting for any assistance, 
 he drew John, face downward, on the ground. 
 " His heart is going all right, " he added de 
 lightedly. t i We 11 have him all right in a min 
 ute ! Lift him up and let the water run out of 
 his mouth." 
 
 But John was not in such a desperate plight 
 as at first his friends feared. He was suffering 
 chiefly from exhaustion, and feebly protested 
 
IN THE TORRENT 175 
 
 against the rough handling his friends were 
 giving him. Chafing his chilled limbs, rolling 
 him over and over, lifting him so that his feet 
 frequently were higher than his head, the ex 
 cited boys vigorously tried to restore their 
 friend. 
 
 " I say," John breathlessly managed to whis 
 per, at last, " put me back in the Merced, will 
 you, fellows? 
 
 " Put you back? What for, sir? " demanded 
 Lee. 
 
 " Because I believe I d rather take my 
 chances there than here." 
 
 " You didn t have any chance in the river," 
 said Scott. 
 
 " I know it, but I d rather be drowned than 
 pounded to death," gasped John. 
 
 < < T] irow him j n? fellows ! shouted Larcum, 
 who was so delighted over the rescue of his 
 friend that -now, for the first time, he found 
 his voice. His companions, too, laughed loudly 
 in the feeling of relief that now had replaced 
 their anxiety. 
 
 " Brace me up, boys! Let me sit up a while 
 and get my breath! I m tired, that s about 
 all that s the matter with me," said John. 
 
 Quickly lifting him into a sitting position, 
 
176 FOUR BOYS IN THE TOSEMITE 
 
 for which. Scott provided the " back," the de 
 light of all increased when it became mani 
 fest that their friend had spoken truly 
 and that John was suffering mostly from 
 exhaustion. 
 
 " Come here, Larc," whispered John, beck 
 oning to the young giant. 
 
 " Here I am, Jack," responded Larcum, as 
 he at once approached. 
 
 " Lean over, Larc, I want to say something 
 to you." 
 
 " What is it, Jack? " 
 
 " His grace, the Duke of Sutherland, was in 
 the Yosemite once. He said, This spoils one 
 for any other scenery upon earth. " 
 
 For an instant the huge Larcum gazed 
 stolidly at his friend, and then, throwing back 
 his head, he laughed aloud. " Doesn t that 
 beat the world, fellows? " he demanded, as he 
 looked at his companions. Talk about grit ! 
 That beats anything I ever saw on the football 
 field. Here is this B/ostonian half-drowned, and 
 yet he s not letting up a bit. He s still telling 
 what brought on all his trouble in the first 
 place." 
 
 The relief of Larcum was so manifest that 
 his delight in his friend s renewed declarations 
 
IN THE TORRENT 177 
 
 caused all who were present to laugh in sheer 
 sympathy. 
 
 " More, Jack," said Larcum. " What did 
 Christopher Columbus think of the Yosemite 
 Valley? What was Henry Hudson s opinion? " 
 
 " I don t know." 
 
 Well, tell me what Clearchus thought of 
 it," persisted Larcum. 
 
 " Oh, quit your foolishness, Larc! " spoke 
 up Scott. " What we want is to get Jack back 
 to the hotel, put him in bed, and get some dry 
 clothes on him." 
 
 " Before I carry him back I want to make a 
 declaration right here and now." 
 
 " Go ahead." 
 
 " Never again do I try any practical jokes. 
 None whatever. No, sir; I ve done enough to 
 last one lifetime. You hear me? No one 
 laughed at the serious words, for Larcum was 
 deadly in earnest, as his manner and the ex 
 pression of his face both proclaimed. 
 
 " Hadn t we better wait till one of us can 
 go back to the hotel and get a cot or a litter 
 to carry Jack on? " suggested the reporter. 
 
 " No, sir; not this trip," said Larcum 
 promptly. " How did you get over here? Is 
 there a bridge not far below? " 
 
178 FOUR BOYS IN THE YO SEMITE 
 
 " There s a bridge near the hotel," replied 
 the reporter. " We can go back on this side 
 and cross the river there." 
 
 " That s the place," said Larcum promptly. 
 " Now, then, I ll be beast of burden and you 
 can apply the proper name to me if you want 
 to, and little Larkie will not kick, as his name 
 and nature might imply. I ll carry Jack on 
 my own little back." 
 
 " Hold on," said Lee quickly. " Here comes 
 some one on horseback. We ll press him into 
 the service. Hail the man, somebody! " 
 
 As the boys glanced in the direction of the 
 approaching horseman, they discovered that 
 the reporter had left them and was running 
 swiftly toward the rider. 
 
CHAPTER XV 
 
 INVESTIGATING 
 
 LAKCUM was devoting himself to the needs 
 of John, and, as the reporter left the bank, he 
 did not at first pay any attention to his de 
 parture. In a moment, however, as the re 
 porter shouted that he would bring the new 
 comer s horse for John to ride, Larcum looked 
 up. The recent rider of the horse was walking 
 rapidly down the road, apparently having sur 
 rendered his steed to the reporter, and not 
 even waiting to see what use was to be made 
 of it. 
 
 As Larcum glanced at the departing man he 
 saw that he was young, and something in his 
 appearance or attitude served to startle the 
 young giant. Leaping to his feet and ignoring 
 the presence of his friends, he gazed long and 
 earnestly at the departing man, though he did 
 not speak until the reporter, leading the horse 
 by the bridle, joined the party. 
 
 " I have the horse for you," he said lightly* 
 
 179 
 
180 FOUR BOYS IN THE YO SEMITE 
 
 " Now you won t have to carry your load back 
 to the hotel." 
 
 " Whose horse is it? " asked Larcum. 
 
 11 I didn t inquire the man s name. I was 
 satisfied when he told me we were welcome to 
 use his horse after I had explained to him why 
 we wanted it." 
 
 " That was mighty good of him," said Lee 
 warmly. " Why didn t the man stay? " 
 
 " I didn t ask him. I ve got his horse, and 
 that s enough, isn t it? " 
 
 " What shall we do with it after we ve taken 
 Jack to the hotel? " 
 
 " Send it over to the barns over yonder 
 among those trees," the reporter added, point 
 ing as he spoke to a grove in the dis 
 tance. 
 
 11 Is the man staying at the hotel? " inquired 
 Larcum. 
 
 " I don t know. I m sure I didn t ask him. 
 Why? " 
 
 " I just wanted to know," replied Larcum 
 indifferently. 
 
 " What difference does it make where the 
 man is staying? " 
 
 11 Not any, as far as I m concerned." 
 
 " Why don t we start? " demanded Scott. 
 
INVESTIGATING 181 
 
 " We act as if Jack wasn t shivering in his 
 wet clothes." 
 
 " That does seem like a good suggestion," 
 assented the reporter, with a laugh. Shall we 
 lift you into the saddle! " he added, turning 
 to John as he spoke. 
 
 " I think I can make it all right," replied 
 John, slowly rising. His effort was needless, 
 however, for Larcum quickly stooped and, lift 
 ing him in his arms, gently placed his friend 
 on the back of the horse. Without a further 
 word, he at once took the animal by the bridle 
 and- started up the road. Lee and Scott quickly 
 advanced, one to either side of the rider, while 
 the reporter quietly took his place in the rear 
 of the little procession. 
 
 Despite John s protests that he was not in 
 need of a bodyguard, each member of the party 
 retained his position, and a little while after 
 ward they crossed the bridge and soon halted 
 in front of the hotel, where their arrival in 
 stantly aroused the interest of the people who 
 were seated there. 
 
 Disregarding the manifest curiosity of the 
 spectators, Larcum lifted his friend from the 
 saddle, then turned to Scott, and said: " You 
 and Lee look after Jack. Take him up to his 
 
182 FOUR BOYS IN THE YOSEMITE 
 
 room and get those wet clothes off him. Give 
 Lim a good rub-down and put him in bed, and 
 I guess he ll be all right by the time I am 
 back/ 
 
 il Where are you going, Larc? " asked Scott, 
 in surprise. 
 
 "I m going to take this horse back to its 
 owner, or to the man who let us take him." 
 
 " No; I ll take him back," protested the re 
 porter, stepping forward hastily. " You re all 
 wet. Go upstairs and get some dry clothes on, 
 and I ll take back the horse." 
 
 Larcurn, however, instantly leaped into the 
 saddle and quickly turned the horse into the 
 road. " Thank you, I m all right," he said 
 lightly, to the reporter, who had attempted to 
 follow him. " You re a bit damp yourself. You 
 can get a change while I m gone." 
 
 You don t know where to go. 
 
 " Yes, I do. You told me, and your direc 
 tions are perfectly clear." 
 
 " But you don t know the man that loaned 
 the horse to us." 
 
 " Sure about that? " 
 
 " Why, yes. I think he said he had just 
 ridden into the valley. I m sure he said so, 
 for he explained that he had come from Wa- 
 
INVESTIGATING 183 
 
 wona. He d been spending a week or two over 
 there among the big trees. 
 
 6 How long did you say he had been there ! 
 asked Larcurn, in a low voice, and in apparent 
 indifference, although he was looking keenly at 
 the young man as he made his inquiry. 
 
 " Why, I don t know. How should I? " re 
 plied the reporter. * I think he said he d been 
 there a week or two. You don t know him, do 
 you! " 
 
 " Somehow I seem to feel that I have seen 
 him before." 
 
 "Where! " 
 
 " That I can t tell you now. Maybe I ll know 
 more after I have talked to him. Good-by; I ll 
 see you again pretty soon." 
 
 As Larcum rode away he glanced behind him, 
 and the expression of Scott s face seemed to 
 imply that he wished his friend to understand 
 that he was aware of the meaning of his de 
 termination to ride the horse to the barns. The 
 reporter, however, in an indifferent manner, at 
 once seated himself in one of the piazza chairs, 
 and, picking up a newspaper that had been left 
 there, busied himself in its contents. 
 
 Up the road, across the bridge, then through 
 the dusty road that led beyond the level 
 
184 FOUR BOYS IN THE YOSEMITE 
 
 meadows to the barns in the distance, Larcum 
 slowly rode. It was plain that the young giant 
 was perplexed, and was trying to find some 
 solution for the questions about which he was 
 thinking. Before he came to the barns his 
 countenance became lighter, and apparently 
 he had decided as to the course he would 
 follow. 
 
 As he approached the barn, and a hostler 
 came forth to meet him, Larcum said, as he dis 
 mounted: " I was told to bring this horse here. 
 Do you know anything about it? " 
 " Yes." 
 
 " Where is the man that owns it? " 
 " The horse belongs to the company." 
 " But the man just rode it over from Wa- 
 wona." 
 
 " Wawona? Not much he didn t! " 
 " Did I say Wawona? I should have said El 
 Portal." 
 
 " That s more like it." 
 
 " You are sure the horse came from El 
 Portal, are you? " 
 
 " Do I know my name is Jim McGregor? " 
 " I guess you do. Where is the man that 
 rode over on him? " 
 
 " I don t know. I guess he s in one of the 
 
INVESTIGATING 185 
 
 tents over there, " replied the hostler, as he 
 pointed to a group of tents not far away. 
 
 " Do people live in those tents every sum 
 mer? " 
 
 " Yes/ 
 
 " Parties that come into the valley! " 
 
 " Look here, young man, what do you take 
 me for? When do you suppose people would 
 live in those tents if they didn t come here? 
 The tents are right here, aren t they? " 
 
 * They certainly are, laughed Larcum. i I 
 was just wondering if the people in them were 
 campers, that s all." 
 
 " Sure they re campers. Some folks like the 
 tents better n they do the hotel say they have 
 a better table and the nights are not so 
 hot." 
 
 The man that came here on this horse, then, 
 is a camper, is he? " 
 
 66 I didn t say he was." 
 
 " I thought you did." 
 
 " Well, I didn t. All I said was that I 
 thought he might be." 
 
 " Can you find out? " 
 
 66 What do you want to know for? " 
 
 " I d just like to know that s all," said Lar 
 cum. " Here," he added, as he handed the 
 
186 FOUR BOYS IN THE YOSEMITE 
 
 man a silver dollar. " Do you think you can 
 find out which tent he is staying in? " 
 
 " Yes, sir; I believe I can, if I try real hard," 
 said the hostler promptly, as he thrust the coin 
 into his pocket. 
 
 " I don t want him to suspect that you are 
 trying to find out for any one besides your 
 self," suggested Larcum. 
 
 " He ll never know, no more n the Sphinx o 
 Egypt." 
 
 i * Good ! Now, if you quietly can find out for 
 me how long he intends to stay here, and 
 whether or not he has any meetings with a 
 young man from the hotel, I think I 11 manage 
 to find one or two more of these cartwheels 
 for you." 
 
 "I m your man every day in the week! It 
 might help, though, if you was to tell me what 
 sort o a looking man this fellow from the hotel 
 is I mean the man you suspect. 
 
 " I didn t say I suspected anybody," said 
 Larcum sharply. 
 
 " That s all so, but I can see through a barn 
 door if there s a hole in it." 
 
 " Don t let your suspicion run away with 
 you. The man I m talking about the one from 
 the hotel is a smooth-faced, dark-eyed fellow, 
 
INVESTIGATING 187 
 
 about twenty-five years old, I think. He weighs 
 about a hundred and fifty pounds. Not very 
 tall, and has very white teeth. " 
 
 " I guess that s enough. Shall I report to 
 you at the hotel! 
 
 " No; don t come near me at the hotel. I ll 
 come over here." 
 
 " When? To-morrow morning? " 
 
 " Perhaps. You may see me here almost 
 any time. I may come over this after 
 noon." 
 
 6 Come when you please. If I have anything 
 to report, I ll let you know when I see you. I ll 
 keep an eye on the fellow." 
 
 ." That s all I want," said Larcum, as he 
 turned away, and at once started back to the 
 Sentinel Hotel. 
 
 When he drew near he beheld Scott and the 
 reporter seated side by side on the piazza. Both 
 arose as the young giant approached, and, in 
 reply to Larcum s question concerning Jack, 
 Scott said their friend was in bed and sound 
 asleep. " He ll be as good as ever when he 
 wakes up, Larc. Going up to change your 
 clothes? " 
 
 " I guess I m pretty well dried out by this 
 time." 
 
188 FOUR BOYS IN THE TOSEMITE 
 
 " Did you have any trouble finding the 
 place? " asked the reporter. 
 
 " Not a bit. Do you know who the man is 
 that owned the horse! I d like to thank him 
 for his kindness in loaning it to us." 
 
 " I didn t stop to ask him his name," said 
 the reporter. To Larcum it seemed that an ex 
 pression of relief appeared in the young man s 
 face as he heard the question. 
 
 " I m afraid he ll get away before I have a 
 chance to thank him/ continued Larcum. 
 " You said he was going on soon to Wawona, 
 didn t you? " 
 
 " I said he had just come from Wawona. I 
 don t recall any more than that, but I have an 
 impression that he is not planning to stay in 
 the valley very long." 
 
 " Is he stopping at the hotel? 
 
 " Very likely. I didn t ask him. Where else 
 would he stay? " 
 
 " He might stop in some one of the tents." 
 
 " I don t know anything about that. I guess 
 he ll understand that you are grateful to him 
 even if you don t have an opportunity to tell 
 him. I explained that one of our party had 
 fallen into the river." 
 
 " Our party! " Larcum at first was inclined 
 
INVESTIGATING 189 
 
 to resent the expression. By what right did 
 the reporter, whose very name was unknown to 
 him, claim any place with the four boys? Ke- 
 pressing the words that rose to his lips, as he 
 suddenly conjectured what the purpose of the 
 reporter was, Larcum seated himself beside 
 Scott and did not speak. 
 
 " This man was telling me, Larc, when you 
 came up," said Scott, " about the Yosemite In 
 dians. He was telling me how they disposed 
 of their dead." 
 
 " A live topic," suggested Larcum dryly. 
 " They seem to have succeeded in disposing of 
 them pretty successfully. They re about all 
 gone, I m told." 
 
 " They believed in an evil spirit," said the 
 reporter. " The good spirit was their friend, 
 anyway, so they could trust him. In fact, they 
 accepted him on trust, but thought they had to 
 keep their eyes open for the evil spirit. The 
 immortal part of each man was his heart. When 
 a man died the evil spirit kept watch at the 
 grave all the time, so that he might get ahead 
 of the mourners, seize the dead man s heart, 
 and make off with it. 
 
 "I thought they burned their dead," sug 
 gested Larcum. 
 
190 FOUR BOYS IN THE YOSEMITE 
 
 " So they did, and that s the reason. 7 
 
 " What s the reason? " 
 
 " Why, so that the watching evil spirit 
 couldn t get it. If the body of the dead warrior 
 was burned, then the evil spirit couldn t get his 
 heart, could he? " 
 
 " No, I suppose he couldn t very well." 
 
 " When it was known that a warrior was 
 near his end, his wife or his mother would hold 
 his head on her lap. All the relatives and 
 friends were there, and they would set up a 
 low, mournful chant, telling all about his 
 bravery and what a good man he was. The 
 last the dying warrior heard before he passed 
 over into the land of spirits was the mournful 
 chanting of his good deeds. When the warrior 
 at last ceased to breathe, then the chant was 
 changed to loud wailings, and every one pres 
 ent began to beat his chest with clenched fists. 
 
 " Whose chest did they beat? " asked Lar- 
 cum soberly. 
 
 " Each one beat his own. Excuse me a mo 
 ment," said the reporter hurriedly, as he 
 glanced up at a man who was approaching on 
 horseback. 
 
CHAPTER XVI 
 
 THE BURIAL OF THE INDIAN 
 
 " WHERE are you going? " inquired Scott of 
 the reporter. 
 
 " I ll be back in a minute/* the reporter re 
 plied, without glancing behind him. He had 
 walked to the end of the piazza in line with 
 the approaching horseman; but, if he had rec 
 ognized the latter, he had not betrayed his 
 knowledge by so much as a second glance at the 
 man on horseback. 
 
 " Keep still, Scott, " said Larcum, in a low 
 voice. " Watch the fellow." 
 
 "What is it, Larc? " 
 
 Larcum did not reply, but he was keenly 
 watching the rider, who had now slackened the 
 speed of his horse, which was slowly walking 
 past the hotel. The rider was a young man, 
 clad in the regulation suit of the traveler. He 
 apparently ignored the two boys, and was glanc 
 ing about him with the manner of one who was 
 not familiar with the region. 
 
 191 
 
192 FOUR BOYS IN THE 70S E MITE 
 
 " Do you know who that fellow is, Scott? " 
 asked Larcum quietly. 
 
 " I haven t the slightest idea. I never saw 
 him before. 
 
 "I have." 
 
 "Who is he! " 
 
 " He s the chap that came aboard the sleeper 
 at Sacramento and took upper seven. " 
 
 " Are you sure, Larc? " asked Scott, at once 
 excited. 
 
 " I am." 
 
 " Then you think he may be the other man 
 that " 
 
 " Look at the reporter," interrupted Larcum 
 sharply. See where he s going ? 
 
 " Into the post-office." 
 
 " Now keep your eyes open and watch both 
 of them." 
 
 Scott s eyes assuredly were not closed in the 
 minutes that followed; but, though he was 
 keenly observant of all that was occurring, he 
 was unable to detect any suspicious acts on the 
 part of the young man he was watching. The 
 horseman rode slowly along the road, and, to 
 all appearances, did not even glance in the di 
 rection of the post-office as he passed the place. 
 Nor did he increase the speed of his horse as 
 
TEE BURIAL OF THE INDIAN 193 
 
 long as he remained within the sight of the 
 watching boys. 
 
 As for the reporter, several minutes elapsed 
 before he appeared once more upon the street, 
 and then he leisurely turned toward the hotel, 
 where he resumed his seat beside the boys on 
 the piazza. 
 
 " Ever carry a letter around in your pocket 
 for a week or so and forget to mail it? " he 
 inquired, with a quiet laugh as he spoke. 
 " Well, I ve had that letter ever since I left 
 San Francisco. When I felt it in my pocket 
 just now, I knew the only safe thing for 
 me to do was to mail it before I forgot it 
 again. 
 
 " Did you notice that young fellow who went 
 past here while you were in the post-office? " 
 asked Scott quietly. 
 
 " In which direction was he walking? " 
 
 " He wasn t walking at all. He was on 
 horseback. 
 
 " I don t think 1 did. The sight of a man 
 on horseback isn t a very startling one in 
 the Yosemite, is it? " The reporter spoke 
 lightly, and, as he glanced up, he saw that 
 Larcum was keenly observing him. " Why? " 
 he added indifferently. " Was there any- 
 
194 FOUR BOYS IN THE YOSEMITE 
 
 thing especially marked about this man to 
 whom you refer? Had you ever seen him 
 before? " 
 
 I have seen him before. 
 
 " That s likely, " laughed the reporter. 
 ri It s said, you know, that, if you stay in the 
 Yosemite Valley long enough, you ll see here 
 every man, woman, and child you ever knew, 
 no matter where they may live. Was this man 
 from the East? " 
 
 " What were you telling us about the cus 
 toms of the Yosemite Indians in burying their 
 dead? " asked Larcum quietly. " You were 
 describing them, I believe, when this fellow on 
 horseback came along." 
 
 " It wasn t the horseman; it was a guilty 
 conscience that made me stop talking," said 
 the reporter lightly. " I don t even know 
 whether or not I should recognize him if I were 
 to see him again. I just had to mail that let 
 ter then and there, or it never would get started 
 on its way." 
 
 Larcum s manner, although he was keenly 
 alert to all that was going on, did not betray 
 any special interest on his part. Apparently 
 now he was gazing dreamily at the towering 
 cliffs of the Half Dome. 
 
THE BURIAL OF THE INDIAN 195 
 
 " Where was If 1 inquired the reporter. 
 "Where did I stop? " 
 
 " You had the Indian dead, and the assem 
 bled mourners were beating their chests with 
 their fists/ 7 suggested Larcum. 
 
 " Well, the next thing the Yosemites did was 
 to spread a blanket on the ground and lay the 
 dead body on it. Then a brother or some near 
 relative of the late deceased would draw the 
 dead man s knees up toward his chin, place 
 the arms down over the knees, and then draw 
 a cord about them all, so that the body would 
 stay fixed in that position. All this time the 
 weeping and wailing were kept up by the as 
 sembled family and friends. As soon as the 
 body was ready, the wailing all stopped. Not a 
 sound, not even a whisper was allowed to dis 
 turb the scene. It must have been mighty sol 
 emn to see all those people sitting about the 
 body of the dead warrior, not one of whom 
 moved from his position or spoke. 
 
 " Then, after twenty minutes or a half-hour 
 had passed, some one gave a signal, and every 
 one instantly stood up. The women began to 
 wail again and the men all turned to the work 
 of building the funeral pyre." 
 
 " What did they use? " asked Scott. 
 
196 FOUR BOYS IN THE YO SEMITE 
 
 " Mostly pitch-pine and oak. When they had 
 the pile about two feet high, everybody became 
 still again while the men lifted the corpse to 
 the top of the pile. When this had been done, 
 they piled on more wood, until all the body ex 
 cept the face was covered by the wood. There 
 was not the slightest sound now, when the old 
 est relative of the late deceased, with a torch 
 in his hand, stepped forward and set fire to the 
 wood. When the first curling smoke appeared, 
 that was the signal for the women to begin 
 again. Their howlings were louder than before, 
 but the men were all supposed to be silent now. 
 
 " The nearest relatives had long sticks in 
 their hands, and began to dance frantically in 
 a circle around the blaze. As they danced they 
 stirred up the fire with their sticks or turned 
 the body over so that every part of it should 
 be in the blaze." 
 
 " What was the special purpose of their yell 
 ing? " inquired Larcum. 
 
 " That was supposed to scare away the evil 
 spirit who was watching his chance to carry 
 away the dead man s heart." 
 
 " But the heart was burning, wasn t it? 
 
 " Yes; but it was leaving that place, you un 
 derstand, for the happy hunting-grounds; and 
 
THE BURIAL OF THE INDIAN 197 
 
 there was danger that the evil spirit he was 
 watching all the time might grab it and make 
 off with it. When the bad spirit was distracted 
 by the noise, that gave the man s heart a chance, 
 you see. It could dodge the old boy and so get 
 away in safety to the happy hunting-grounds. 
 
 " When the body was almost burned up, 
 what remained of it was carefully taken from 
 the fire and rolled up in one of the best 
 blankets the family had. The wives of the 
 dead warrior, or some of his nearest relatives, 
 carefully separated the parts " 
 
 " Parts of what? " interrupted Scott. 
 
 " Parts of the body that were not burned up. 
 Each separate part was rolled up in a string 
 of beads or some other valuable possession. 
 Next, this blanket, with its contents, was put 
 in a basket which had been especially made for 
 the occasion. This blanket, and perhaps the 
 dead warrior s bows and arrows, his headdress, 
 cloths, or anything else that he had particu 
 larly valued, were all put on the fire and burned 
 up." 
 
 " Any more jubilant wailings? " asked Lar- 
 cum. 
 
 " Not at the time. When the fire had done 
 its work, some of the ashes were separated and 
 
198 FOUR BOYS IN THE YOSEMITE 
 
 kept for mourning purposes, while all the rest 
 were brushed or even scraped together, placed 
 in a basket, and buried." 
 
 * What became of the mourning ashes ? " in 
 quired Scott. 
 
 " They were mixed with pitch and spread on 
 the faces of the female relatives of the late 
 lamented. 
 
 " And the men were allowed to go free? " 
 
 " Yes; but the squaws, especially the old 
 ones, seemed to glory in their appearance. They 
 used to spread the pitch and ashes from their 
 cheeks to their ears. They never washed it off 
 they let it wear off." 
 
 " How long did that take? " 
 
 " Generally about six months." 
 
 " So soon? " asked Larcum solemnly. 
 
 " That s the story." 
 
 " I thought when those Digger ladies passed 
 us they might be in mourning, but I had no idea 
 it was for six months only. If one could judge 
 from appearances, they had been wearing their 
 mourning for some of the braves that fell in 
 battle with the Forty-niners." 
 
 11 Larc, you haven t a spark of sympathy or 
 sentiment in your make-up," said Scott 
 sharply, although he laughed as he spoke. 
 
THE BURIAL OF THE INDIAN 199 
 
 " Now, for my part, I think there is something 
 fine-grained and poetic in the way the Yo semi- 
 tes mourned for their dead." 
 
 " So do I," said Larcum, rising as he spoke. 
 " I think they were far ahead of us. Just look 
 at us. We have hired singers to sing for us; 
 men hired to speak for us; and hired black 
 plumes, black horses, black clothes, and I don t 
 know what all. To me it s all as heathenish 
 as the custom of the Yosemites, and a good deal 
 less beautiful. Why can t they let a man s fam 
 ily, who are the only ones really to care, put 
 away their dead in quiet? Then, too, what do 
 our women want to wrap themselves up in black 
 for? Just to advertise to the world that 
 doesn t care a rap about it how badly they 
 feel! We think we re more civilized than the 
 poor Yosemites. Bah! We re as heathenish as 
 they are. All the difference is that we are used 
 to ours, that s all! Scott," the young giant 
 abruptly added, " do you know what I m going 
 to do now? " 
 
 " I haven t the remotest idea, and, what s 
 more, I don t believe you have, either." 
 
 " I am about to engage in two stupendous en 
 terprises. The first is to ascertain the present 
 condition of John Adams Field, Jr.; and the 
 
200 FOUR BOYS IN THE YOSEM1TE 
 
 next, if his condition is satisfactory, is that I 
 intend to walk over to the Yosemite Falls. I 
 want to get under them." 
 
 " You ll get wet," suggested the reporter. 
 
 " Is it so? " 
 
 " It certainly is. The spray is like a heavy 
 rain." 
 
 " Well, I m not yet dry, so that won t bother 
 me any," said Larcum, as he at once departed 
 for John s room, where he found his friend 
 sleeping soundly. 
 
 " Jack s all right," said Lee, who had re 
 mained to look after John s wants. " He in 
 sisted that he was going to get up and dress, 
 but I finally persuaded him to stay in bed. 
 He ll be as lively as ever when he has had a 
 good nap." 
 
 " He seems to be doing fairly well," said 
 Larcum, as he looked at his sleeping companion. 
 " The sounds he makes are certainly normal 
 and are not indicative of unnatural weakness or 
 an early demise. Come on, Lee." 
 
 " Where are you going? " 
 
 " Going over to the falls. I want to get a 
 good look up under them." 
 
 " Will it be all right to leave Jack? " asked 
 Lee, hesitating a moment. 
 
TEE BURIAL OF THE INDIAN 201 
 
 "He s speaking for himself/ laughed Lar- 
 cum, as John s deep breathing became still 
 more audible. 
 
 " All right, I ll be with you in a minute," 
 responded Lee. 
 
 When the three boys departed from the hotel, 
 the reporter at once joined them without wait 
 ing for the formality of an invitation. Larcum 
 winked solemnly at his friends, but, as no pro 
 test was made, the three boys and their unin 
 vited companion were soon walking along 
 the path across the meadows, on their way 
 to the great falls, whose booming waters 
 sounded still more loudly as the boys drew 
 near. 
 
 " Stop a minute, boys," said the reporter. 
 " I want you to get a good view of what shuts 
 in the valley. Up yonder is El Capitan. That 
 bare cliff is more than seven thousand feet high. 
 It is not the highest part of the canon walls, but 
 it certainly is worth looking at. Off to the east 
 of El Capitan, those three peaks are the Three 
 Brothers I ll tell you about them sometime 
 I mean the story of how they got their name. 
 That solid wall of rock yonder beyond the falls 
 is the Royal Arches. Looks as if one could step 
 over the edge and go straight to the bottom 
 
202 FOUR BOYS IN THE YO SEMITE 
 
 of the valley. Half Dome, that peak off there 
 to the south that looks as if it had been cut in 
 two by a cheese-knife, is, next to El Capitan, the 
 most wonderful feature you ll see, as far as the 
 rocks are concerned. It s more than a mile 
 and a half high." 
 
 " Do people climb it now? " asked Lee, as he 
 gazed at the wondrous sight. 
 
 " No, not now; though it has been done. 
 About thirty-five years ago a man named An 
 derson scaled it to its summit. He went up the 
 other side of it. He drove in pegs and fas 
 tened a rope to them, but the rope and pegs are 
 all gone now." 
 
 " I don t see how he could go up the way 
 you said," suggested Larcum, " though I can 
 see how he could come down." 
 
 " Don t spoil a good story by asking too many 
 questions, Larc," said Scott. 
 
 " Yonder is Sentinel Dome, and off there is 
 Sentinel Bock," continued the reporter. " To 
 morrow, if you want to, we can get horses or 
 donkeys and go up to Glacier Point that rock 
 up there which hangs right out over the 
 valley." 
 
 " That s good," said Larcum hastily. " I ll 
 stop at the barns now and arrange for the don- 
 
THE BURIAL OF THE INDIAN 203 
 
 keys. You go on. I ll soon catch up with 
 you." 
 
 As Larcum started toward the barn he smiled 
 grimly when he glanced behind him and saw 
 that the reporter had left the boys and was 
 following him. 
 
CHAPTER XVII 
 
 UNDER THE FALLS 
 
 " THIS isn t the way to the falls ! " called the 
 reporter, before he overtook Larcmn. " This 
 road will take you back to the hotel. " 
 
 " That s all right. I just wanted to stop at 
 the barns a minute," answered Larcum. 
 
 " What for? " 
 
 " We ll want to arrange for horses and don 
 keys for to-morrow." 
 
 " Where are you going to-morrow? " 
 
 " Glacier Point." 
 
 " You can make all the arrangements right 
 at the Sentinel Hotel." 
 
 " I fancy that s so, but there s no harm in 
 looking at the animals. It will take something 
 of a horse to carry me." 
 
 An expression of apparent relief appeared 
 on the reporter s face, but he still continued on 
 his way beside the young giant. Larcum did 
 not speak, and in a brief time they arrived at 
 the barns. Horses and donkeys were moving 
 
 204 
 
UNDER THE FALLS 205 
 
 about in the paddock, but, as Larcum looked 
 about him, he was unable to find the hostler with 
 whom he had had his conversation. Nor was 
 he able to see the horse that had carried John 
 back to the hotel after the rescue from the river. 
 The failure to discover either was somewhat 
 puzzling ; but Larcum was soon conversing with 
 another hostler, and selected the two horses 
 and the two donkeys that were to be used the 
 following day. The reporter remained beside 
 him throughout the interview, although he did 
 not take any part in the conversation not even 
 when Larcum limited the number of horses re 
 quired to the party of four boys. 
 
 " Come on. We ll go back now and join 
 the other fellows," he said, as he turned away. 
 
 " I m afraid you ll be too late to get much 
 good out of the falls this afternoon, suggested 
 the reporter. " The sun has a way of getting 
 behind those hills on the west long before you 
 expect it to." 
 
 " If we can t do it to-day, then we can some 
 other day." 
 
 " That s good philosophy, but it doesn t al 
 ways work in the Yo Semite. Sometimes in the 
 winter here I don t know but I told you the 
 sun doesn t shine for more than two hours a day 
 
206 FOUR BOYS IN THE YO SEMITE 
 
 in the valley. It doesn t seem possible that 
 those falls could stop running in the winter. 
 They do, though. The water will freeze back of 
 the place where it jumps over the precipice, and 
 there won t be a drop of water coming over the 
 border until the sun is up and the ice has been 
 melted." 
 
 i l Strange, said Larcum, as he glanced once 
 more toward the tremendous fall of water, 
 whose roar steadily increased in volume as the 
 boys drew nearer. In reality, however, the 
 young giant s thoughts were more of matters 
 with which the sight before him had nothing 
 more to do than the volume of water and the 
 roar that was steadily becoming louder. 
 
 Lee and Scott were overtaken as the path en 
 tered a grove of pines, and, in reply to the ques 
 tions of his friends, Larcum explained that he 
 had stopped at the stables to select horses for 
 the following morning. 
 
 " Here we are," said the reporter, as the lit 
 tle party came to the border of a tumbling, 
 roaring little stream. " This is a part of the 
 water that comes over the falls." 
 
 " It s like rain," said Lee, as the air seemed 
 to be filled with the penetrating mist. 
 
 " It isn t so much as it will be. Look yonder 
 
UNDER THE FALLS 207 
 
 there comes a man who, from his appearance, 
 must have been up under the fall. He s as wet 
 as if he d come down with the stream. I 
 know who it is," the reporter quickly added. 
 " That s Mr. Tinklepaugh. He s the owner of 
 one of the richest mines in the West. And, 
 think of it, when he came out here ten years 
 ago he had only his two bare hands." 
 
 " How many has he now? " inquired Scott 
 soberly. 
 
 " Nobody knows. It s reported, though, that 
 he s got at least ten million." 
 
 6 Ten million hands ! Why, he s worse than 
 a centipede! " 
 
 " You know what I mean. He s worth ten 
 millions of dollars." 
 
 " But you said he came out here with two 
 hands, and now he has a million. I call that 
 pretty good work," said Scott. 
 
 1 All right. Have it your own way, laughed 
 the reporter. " Now, then, we ll have to be 
 careful. These rocks are slippery and the 
 spray is so dense it is almost impossible to 
 see through it. Do you want me to lead the 
 way? " 
 
 " I reckon we won t want much of any lead 
 ers," said Lee, as he wiped the trickling 
 
208 FOUR BOYS IN THE YOSEMITE 
 
 moisture from his face. "It s every man for 
 himself. How far up can we go? " 
 
 " Up to the foot of these lower falls. You ll 
 think that is far enough before we re there. 
 Any time any one of you wants to go back, 
 just speak up, and we ll take the back 
 trail." 
 
 " Speak for yourself," growled Larcum. 
 
 " You re wet through, Larc," said Scott. 
 
 "What of it? I haven t been really dry 
 since I came out of the Merced." 
 
 " You re as wet as Larc is, Scott," suggested 
 Lee. 
 
 " And you re no better off than either of 
 us." 
 
 " I reckon that s so, but I don t mind it. 
 Isn t this about the wildest and greatest you 
 ever saw? " Lee added enthusiastically. 
 
 " It certainly is when I can see it for the 
 water on my face. We re all wet to the skin, 
 and it won t hurt us any more now if we keep 
 straight on." 
 
 " This way! " called the reporter, who was in 
 advance of the little party. " Mind your 
 footing there! The rocks are wet and slip 
 pery. " 
 
 " That fellow won t let even the Yosemite 
 
UNDER THE FALLS 209 
 
 Falls drown him out, said Larcum to Lee, who 
 was close behind him. " Might drown his body, 
 but it never could drown out his voice. It s 
 like the roar of the falls." 
 
 Conversation now became impossible. The 
 roar of the falling waters was almost deafen 
 ing. The air was so full of heavy mist that 
 drops like rain were falling, and little streams 
 were trickling down the faces of the boys. The 
 trail became less clearly defined and required 
 the undivided attention of the young travelers 
 as they followed the reporter, who still was 
 leading the way. The coolness in the spaces 
 between the jutting rocks was like that of some 
 huge ice chest. 
 
 As Larcum at last looked up he saw that 
 the reporter had stopped, and, when the boys 
 joined him, he said: " This is about as far as 
 we can go. Look up." 
 
 Above them the boys saw the great masses 
 of water steadily pouring down into the abyss. 
 Clouds of spray, glistening in the light of the 
 afternoon sun were above them and about them. 
 The wild beauty of the falls, the glistening 
 rocks, the dripping stones, the massive walls, as 
 well as the ceaseless thunder of the stream as it 
 dashed upon the stones, all combined to make 
 
210 FOUR BOYS IN THE YOSEMITE 
 
 of the scene one of the most impressive upon 
 which the young travelers had ever looked. 
 For a few minutes they remained standing in 
 silence as they gazed at the marvelous sight; 
 then, at a shout from their leader, they all 
 turned and retraced their way. Caution was 
 required in the descent, for the rocks were wet 
 and slippery. When they were once more safe 
 in the grove below, they stopped and again 
 looked up at the impressive scene. 
 
 " How high did you say these falls are? " 
 asked Scott of the reporter. 
 
 " The lower falls are four hundred feet." 
 
 " The whole three make up twenty-five hun 
 dred, don t they? " 
 
 " Yes, the highest falls in the world that 
 is, of any falls that have anything like the same 
 volume of water." 
 
 " Lee," laughed Scott, " why don t you say 
 they are pretty ? That s the word you use in 
 the South, isn t it? " 
 
 " They are," replied Lee simply. 
 
 " Pretty, man! Why, they re grand, stu 
 pendous, magnificent, sublime, transcendent, 
 impressive, overwhelming, vast, overpowering, 
 awe-inspiring but don t call them i pretty. " 
 
 " I won t," laughed Lee. 
 
UNDER THE FALLS 211 
 
 " That s a good boy. 7 
 
 " I wouldn t even apply that word to you, 
 Scott, added Lee. i i If you could see yourself 
 as others see you, you d think those wonderful 
 adjectives would be as appropriate as they 
 would be for a drowned rat." 
 
 " I am a trifle damp, that s a fact," admitted 
 Scott, as he glanced ruefully at his drip 
 ping clothing. " Still, it s worth all it cost, 
 even if it did take the crease out of my 
 trousers." 
 
 " That s the highest price a New Yorker can 
 pay for anything," sniffed Larcum. 
 
 " Well, when you people in Chicago learn 
 to have your trousers made by a real tailor, 
 you 11 understand how we feel, retorted Scott. 
 " Of course, as long as you tuck the bottoms 
 of your trousers inside the tops of your cow 
 hide boots, you ll never know." 
 
 " There s an ice cone forms there at the base 
 of the lower falls every winter," suggested the 
 reporter. 
 
 " How high? " inquired Scott. 
 
 " Five hundred feet." 
 
 " Have you ever seen it? " 
 
 * Yes, twice. I have been up here in the Yo- 
 semite two winters." 
 
212 FOUR BOYS IN THE YO SEMITE 
 
 " Plenty of snow here then, too, isn t there! " 
 asked Lee. 
 
 " Lots of it. You have to dig your way 
 then." 
 
 " Keep still, fellows; let me get in a word 
 once in a while, will you? I ve got a conun 
 drum," broke in Larcum. 
 
 " We ll give it up before you ask it, Larc," 
 retorted Scott. 
 
 " What kind of a physician ought to visit 
 the Yosemite Valley in the winter? " asked 
 Larcum. 
 
 " No kind," answered Scott promptly. 
 " Haven t we been told already that nobody 
 out here dies a natural death? The climate 
 won t permit it. If that s so, then no physician 
 will be needed here, winter or summer. Your 
 conundrum is no good." 
 
 " What kind of a physician will most enjoy 
 a trip to the Yosemite when the snow is deep 
 in the valley? I ll put it that way, then," said 
 Larcum, ignoring what his friend had said. " I 
 want to bring it down to the level of every one 
 -and Scott Gordon." 
 
 11 I say the one who is an allopath," sug 
 gested Lee. 
 
 " No. You re wrong, Lee." 
 
UNDER THE FALLS 213 
 
 " I suppose you mean, then, the man who 
 can hoe-me-a-path, don t you, Larc! " asked 
 Scott. 
 
 " Good! Good for you, Scott!" shouted 
 Larcum. " I wouldn t have believed it." 
 
 " If I had biceps like yours, Larc, and a lit 
 tle of your weight, I d soon show you that you 
 couldn t treat your best friends that way," 
 said Scott, in mock solemnity. " Who d 
 think a great prize-ox like Larc could ever 
 think out such a cute little pun as that! I 
 think the altitude has affected your mind. 
 You d better find and consult your homeo 
 path " 
 
 11 Oh, there s nothing the matter with me," 
 retorted Larcum. "I m having a 
 
 The young giant did not continue, however, 
 for instantly his two friends started after him, 
 and the chase was not slackened until at last 
 the boys were once more in the sandy road that 
 led back to the hotel. 
 
 I wonder what either of you fellows would 
 do in a dark night if a man like me took after 
 you? " laughed Larcum. " You couldn t run 
 away from him, for he could outrun you both. 
 What would you do, fellows? " 
 
 " Make him run." 
 
214 FOUR BOYS IN THE YOSEMITE 
 
 " Yes, if you had a gun." 
 
 " I don t mean that. If I should get off one 
 of your little puns, that would fix him. 7 
 
 " Lee, you stay here and wait for the re 
 porter," said Larcum abruptly. " I want to 
 go over to the barn again, and I ll make Scott 
 go with me." 
 
 11 All right, sir. You can t hurt my feelings 
 that way," said Lee promptly, as he seated him 
 self by the roadside. 
 
 " Scott," said Larcum, when he and his 
 friend were on their way to the stables, " don t 
 you think we have found out enough about this 
 reporter and his friend to write the railroad 
 people? " 
 
 " You want them to send some men up here 
 and arrest them! " inquired Scott. " I don t 
 know about that." 
 
 " Well, I do. I have a lot of sympathy for 
 the company." 
 
 " I have more for the passengers," laughed 
 Scott. 
 
 " You needn t whine. You didn t lose any 
 thing." 
 
 "I m not whining. I never was happier." 
 
 " Well, come on with me to the stables. I d 
 like to see that hostler again. If he s there, I ll 
 
UNDER THE FALLS 215 
 
 know what to do about writing the company. 
 If these two fellows are train-robbers, we don t 
 want them to be left at large, to try their 
 scheme on any more innocent travelers. Come 
 on, Scott; come on! " 
 
CHAPTER XVIH 
 
 A NIGHT LETTER 
 
 THE visit to the stables, however, failed to 
 reveal the presence of the hostler whom Lar- 
 cum was desirous of seeing. In response to his 
 inquiries, he was informed that " Jim was 
 somewhere about," but no one appeared able 
 to locate him exactly. " He d be back pretty 
 soon," did not satisfy the boys. 
 
 " We won t wait," said Larcum to his com 
 panion. " Come on; we ll join the others at 
 the bridge." 
 
 " Going to write to the railway people, 
 Larc? " inquired Scott, as the two boys fol 
 lowed the dusty road. 
 
 " Yes. I d have been glad to see the hostler 
 again before I wrote, but I think I d better not 
 wait any longer." 
 
 * You feel sure that you have enough to war 
 rant you in writing, do you? " 
 
 " You can see the facts as well as I can." 
 
 " I don t know that I can. What are they?, 
 Say them over again to me." 
 
 216 
 
A NIGHT LETTER 217 
 
 " Well, first of all, the reporter was almost 
 on the spot when the train was held up. Then 
 he " 
 
 " That isn t anything of itself so very sus 
 picious, " broke in Scott. "He s an enterpris 
 ing chap, even you ll have to acknowledge that. 
 We weren t very far out from San Francisco, 
 and a live reporter wouldn t let very much 
 grass grow under his feet before he d be on 
 hand with notebook and pencils." 
 
 " That s all right. If that was the only 
 thing, there might be some sense in what you 
 eay, but it isn t. There s his dogging us in 
 San Francisco; there s his following us into 
 the Yosemite; there s the man who engaged the 
 upper berth in this fellow s section on the 
 sleeper, and the fact that he got off before the 
 train pulled into El Portal mustn t be forgotten, 
 either. Then the same fellow shows up here a 
 little later and doesn t put up at the hotel; he 
 rides past the Sentinel, and as he goes on our 
 reporter suddenly has important business at 
 the post-office, to say nothing of his disappear 
 ance since and his horse isn t any longer in 
 the stable. Why, Scott, even the hostler who 
 had that talk with me has evaporated. It isn t 
 that there s so much in any one of these points, 
 
218 FOUR BOYS IN THE YO SEMITE 
 
 but, taken altogether, the sum of them seems 
 to me to mean a good deal. At any rate, they 
 make enough to warrant me in writing the com 
 pany. I can give them the facts, can t I? They 
 can do what they please with them after they ve 
 got them." 
 
 " Do you remember what Caesar said? 
 
 " Not much, and I can t say I m sorry, either. 
 "What did J. Caesar say? " 
 
 " Men believe that which they wish to be 
 lieve. " 
 
 " Did Caesar say that? " 
 
 "Yea." 
 
 " He isn t so far off the track as I thought 
 he was when I read all his stuff about the 
 Helvetii, and i all Gaul, and all that sort of 
 thing, you know. No, I m not forgetting 
 Julius point. I ve thought of all that. But I 
 still believe there s enough to make it worth 
 while for me to send a lettergram to-night to 
 the company." 
 
 " Suppose these two fellows do turn out to 
 be the terrible train-robbers. What then? 
 Where do you come in, Larc? 
 
 " I hadn t thought very much about that." 
 
 " But the company has offered a reward of 
 five thousand dollars, hasn t it? " 
 
A NIGHT LETTER 219 
 
 " That s right. I d almost forgotten that 
 part of it." 
 
 " Well, when you come into your fortune, 
 don t forget the rest of us." 
 
 " I won t." 
 
 " Thank you." 
 
 " You re welcome, I m sure." 
 
 61 Here are Lee and the reporter," said Scott, 
 pointing as he spoke to their two recent com 
 panions, who were standing on the bridge 
 awaiting their coming. 
 
 "Have you said anything about it to Lee? " 
 asked Scott, in a low voice, as the two boys 
 drew near the bridge across the Merced. 
 
 " Not a word." 
 
 " Then don tjust yet." 
 
 " Where have you two fellows been? " in 
 quired the reporter, as Larcum and Scott ap 
 proached. " We thought you d run away." 
 
 " Wouldn t run very far," laughed Scott, as 
 he looked up at the towering heights that shut 
 in the valley. " The Yosemite is just an awful 
 hole cut right into the earth, isn t it? " said 
 Scott, as he turned to look once more at the 
 gray walls on every side. 
 
 i i Yes, replied the reporter, as all four stood 
 looking up at the walls. 
 
220 FOUR BOYS IN THE YOSEMITE 
 
 " I wonder what caused it in the first 
 place? " said Scott. 
 
 " For a long time it was believed that the 
 Yosemite Valley was the result of earthquakes 
 and volcanoes," suggested the reporter. 
 
 " Don t they believe that now? " 
 
 " The geologists now are pretty nearly 
 agreed that it was scooped out by immense 
 glaciers," explained the reporter. 
 
 " You do well to put in that now, " sniffed 
 Larcum. " To-morrow there ll be another 
 theory, and the next day still another. I tell 
 you it s all a matter of style, anyway! " 
 snapped the young giant. 
 
 " Style, Larc? What do you mean? " 
 asked Scott, with a laugh. 
 
 " I m meaning what I say, and then some 
 more. Oh, I know that I m not educated, 
 as you call it. I cut loose when I found 
 I was learning only such stuff as that 
 about Clearchus and his pet parasangs. 
 But I don t care. I find there s style and 
 fashion in books, just the same as there is in 
 clothes." 
 
 " Nonsense! You know better, Larc! 
 
 " Oh, I do, do I? Well, that s all right. But 
 you just answer me this question, why don t 
 
A NIGHT LETTER 221 
 
 you use the text-book in geology that was writ 
 ten twenty-five years ago! " 
 
 "It s out of date and " 
 
 " That s it! You ve hit the bull s-eye the 
 first time! " interrupted Larcum. " Now, let 
 me ask you one more question, why don t you 
 wear your grandfather s hat? Tell me that, 
 will you! " 
 
 " I don t know that my grandfather had any 
 hat," laughed Scott. "If he had, I ve never 
 seen it. May be one up in our trunk-room for 
 all I know, but I ve never disturbed it if it is 
 there." 
 
 " Would you wear it if you did find it? " 
 
 " That would depend." 
 
 " Upon what! " 
 
 " Whether I wanted to wear it for a parade 
 or for use." 
 
 " You wouldn t wear it for use, and you 
 know you wouldn t. Now, why not! " 
 
 "It is out of date." 
 
 " Precisely! Exactly! Just so, and then 
 some more! That s just what you said about 
 geology, and now you say the same thing about 
 your grandfather s hat they re both out of 
 date. That is precisely what I meant when I 
 said there is fashion in book-learning just 
 
222 FOUR BOYS IN THE YO SEMITE 
 
 as much as there is in clothes. And that s 
 about all there is to your theory as to whether 
 this great valley was made by a volcano or by 
 a glacier. Next week it ll be made by some 
 thing else or in some other way. Give me what 
 I learn in the T. Gr. & P. s offices! I can count 
 on that." 
 
 " Still, Larc, you yourself believe in being 
 up to date in your clothes, and even in your 
 office work, don t you? " laughed Scott. 
 
 " You re right I do. A man under me has 
 to keep up or quit. But, after all, there s a big 
 difference between dressing in the garb of the 
 present and being a dude, isn t there? Now, 
 that s just the trouble I find with you fellows 
 and your up-to-date learning it s the dif 
 ference between dressing so as not to attract 
 too much attention and dressing like a dude. 
 You re a i dude in your book-learning, same 
 as some other fellow may be in his suits of 
 clothes. See the point? 
 
 " I see that this is a wonderful place," re 
 plied Scott, as once more he turned and gazed 
 at the massive, frowning walls. " It isn t half 
 so wonderful to me how it came to be as it is 
 that it is here now. Just look up there at 
 Cloud s Eest! Why, that s over ten thousand 
 
A NIGHT LETTER 223 
 
 feet high. And the Half Dome I can t get 
 over that! I " 
 
 " Of course you can t get over it! " growled 
 Larcum. " Didn t this gentleman say it 
 couldn t be climbed any more? " he added, as 
 he turned to the reporter. " Come on! I m 
 going back to the hotel. I want to get some 
 dry clothes on me the first thing I do." 
 
 As soon as the party returned they first 
 sought John s room, where they found their 
 friend dressed and apparently no worse for his 
 mishap of the afternoon. Each boy then went 
 to his own room, and in a brief time all four 
 were seated together on the piazza, waiting for 
 the announcement that dinner was served. 
 
 " Jack," said Larcum soberly, as he turned 
 to his friend, " would you mind telling us what 
 Christopher Columbus or Sunny Jim said 
 about the impression the Yosemite made on 
 them! " 
 
 " Indeed, I would mind it," laughed John. 
 " I ve been in the Merced once to-day, and 
 that s quite sufficient for my enfeebled frame. 
 
 " What did Barnum and A. Ward, not to 
 mention Kit Carson, Sherlock Holmes, and 
 Sozodont, have to say of this wonderful 
 place? " 
 
224 FOUR BOYS IN THE YOSEMITE 
 
 " Never again! " 
 
 " Please, Jack." 
 
 11 No, sir! " 
 
 li I d be delighted to hear again the remarks 
 of Garfield, Greeley, and any other G s or J s 
 you have been so fond of quoting to us." 
 
 " Not a word; not a syllable! 
 
 11 Honest, Jack, what can I do to show you 
 that I m all broken up over my own foolish 
 ness in dropping you into the river? " 
 
 " Nothing. It s all right now, Larc. Don t 
 try it again, though." 
 
 < rpjy ft again? Well, I rather guess Lit 
 tle Larkie has had an abundant sufficiency of 
 experiments in the science of smartness! I d 
 do most anything for you, Jack. I believe I d 
 even be willing to listen for an hour or two 
 to your quaint repetitions of the phraseology 
 of the famous men who frequented this far- 
 famed fountain of fool phrases. I really think 
 I could stand all that. By the way, Jack, how 
 many parasangs was it that Clearchus really 
 marched? " 
 
 11 Enough to get where he wanted to go." 
 
 " Get to go is good for a Bostonian ! Jack, 
 I never was more in earnest in all my young 
 life. You can make me do anything you want 
 
A NIGHT LETTER 225 
 
 after this except try any more practical jokes. 
 No, sir; no time, never, nowhere, for nobody, 
 does this official of the great T. G. & P. ever do 
 that some more." 
 
 " Here s dinner, " broke in Scott. 
 
 The interruption instantly was heeded, and 
 the four boys hastily made their way to the 
 dining-room; but they had been seated at their 
 table only a few minutes when the reporter en 
 tered and took his seat beside John. " Feeling 
 all right again? " he inquired glibly. 
 
 " All right, thank you," replied John. 
 
 " You didn t explain how you fell into the 
 water." 
 
 " Didn t I? " 
 
 " No. How was it? " 
 
 " If I tell you, will you promise that the 
 story will not be used for publication? " 
 
 " Surely. I m on my vacation, anyway." 
 
 " Well, then, I was after the train-robbers." 
 
 " After the train-robbers? What do you 
 mean. Apparently unaware that he instantly 
 was the object of keen interest on the part of 
 two of the boys, the reporter laughed as he 
 asked his question, " What had the train-rob 
 bers to do with your swim in the Merced this 
 morning? " 
 
226 FOUR BOYS IN THE TO SEMITE 
 
 " I say," broke in Larcum hastily, " do you 
 know how long the trail to Glacier Point 
 is? " 
 
 " It s about five and a half miles from the 
 hotel," replied the reporter. 
 
 " On foot? " 
 
 " No, on horseback; though there isn t so 
 much difference as you might imagine." 
 
 " Ever been up there? 
 
 " A good many times. Are you going up in 
 the morning? " 
 
 " That s our plan now." 
 
 " I was think of going there myself." 
 
 " That s all right. Come along with us, sir," 
 said Lee cordially. 
 
 " Thank you. Perhaps I might, if you aren t 
 going to stay all night." 
 
 "We don t expect to." 
 
 " Count on me if I can get a horse. It s not 
 bad walking if one will follow his guide. You ll 
 have to take a guide, you know." 
 
 " No, I didn t know," said Larcum. " Lee," 
 he added, " I wish you d arrange for that 
 guide if we really need one. Will you? 
 
 " Of course I will." 
 
 " Good. I ve got some other things to at 
 tend to this evening." 
 
A NIGHT LETTER 227 
 
 " What business can you have up here?" in 
 quired the reporter lightly. 
 
 " My own." 
 
 " It s a wise man who can do that," laughed 
 the reporter, apparently not annoyed by the 
 brusque reply of the young giant. * Whatever 
 you do," he added lightly, " you must not fail 
 to see the display of fireworks to-night from 
 Glacier Point. Instead of shooting up, they 
 are shot down or thrown over the point into 
 the valley. The effect is immense! " 
 
 An hour later Larcum joined his three 
 friends, who, with the reporter, were watching 
 the display of fireworks. Pulling Scott by the 
 sleeve the young giant whispered to him, " I ve 
 done it." 
 
 " Done what? " asked Scott blankly. 
 
 " Sent word to the company." 
 
CHAPTER XIX 
 
 THE ASCENT 
 
 THERE was no opportunity afforded for 
 further explanations. Scott, although he was 
 eager to learn just what word his friend had 
 sent, was compelled to leave his questions un 
 asked, but the huge burning brands which were 
 cast into the valley from Glacier Point were 
 sufficient to hold the interest of all the 
 spectators. 
 
 " I should think they would be afraid they 
 might set the forests on fire," suggested Lee. 
 " A forest fire here would not be any laughing 
 matter. " 
 
 " There s no danger," said the reporter 
 lightly. " One reason is the the stuff falls on 
 the rocks below, and the other is that the fire 
 burns out before it reaches the bottom. It s 
 like what they say about a man falling over 
 one of the cliffs the fall wouldn t hurt him, 
 because he d starve to death before he struck 
 the bottom of the canon." 
 
 228 
 
THE ASCENT 229 
 
 " All the same, I don t care to try it," said 
 Scott dryly. 
 
 " Don t! You don t have to try it, Scott," 
 grumbled Larcum. 
 
 " I might fall off my horse." 
 
 " You won t have any horse." 
 
 " Do you think I m going to walk? If you 
 do, you re mistaken." 
 
 " I m not mistaken, for I know you too 
 well to believe you d ever walk anywhere 
 unless you had to. I ve looked out for all 
 that." 
 
 " How am I going, then? In a carriage? 
 
 11 If there was an ambulance, I d have en 
 gaged that, but, as there isn t anything of the 
 kind to be had, I ve done the best I could and 
 got you a donkey." 
 
 " Oh, you ll like the mountain canary, all 
 right. He isn t very beautiful, but he s a sure 
 footed little creature. You ll be all right," 
 laughed the reporter. 
 
 " What is a mountain canary? " inquired 
 Scott. 
 
 " Haven t you ever seen one? Well, you will 
 to-morrow morning," laughed the reporter. 
 11 By the way," he added, " have you seen the 
 papers? " 
 
230 FOUR BOYS IN THE TOSEMITE 
 
 " What papers? " 
 
 " The San Francisco morning papers." 
 
 11 No. Anything in them? " 
 
 " It s reported that the men who held up 
 your train have been run to cover." 
 
 " Is that so? " exclaimed Scott excitedly. 
 " Where are they? " 
 
 " The train-rohbers ? The papers say it s 
 reported that one party has traced them to the 
 hills back of Davis." 
 
 "Where s that? " 
 
 " Not far from Sacramento." 
 
 " I hope they ll be caught." 
 
 " They ll be hanged if they are." 
 
 " That s the law, I understand." 
 
 " Were there any other reports? " inquired 
 Larcum, who had been silent since the reporter 
 had referred to the news of the morning. 
 
 " Yes three or four. One report had it that 
 the train-robbers had made for San Francisco, 
 another was that they had gone East, while still 
 another was positive that the two men had 
 separated, one going north and the other going 
 south." 
 
 11 What do you think of this report? " asked 
 Larcum quietly. 
 
 " It may be as true as any." 
 
TEE ASCENT 231 
 
 " That s so and not one may be the correct 
 one." 
 
 " Do you think they ll ever be caught? " 
 
 1 I do ! Just as sure as it is that I am here 
 is it that those two villains will never get away 
 with their stealings." 
 
 " What makes you so confident? " said the 
 young reporter lightly. 
 
 Because the railroad people will never turn 
 back on the trail. If it leads to Japan or 
 Alaska it will be followed." 
 
 " But the papers say the robbers have been 
 run to cover near Davis," suggested Lee. 
 " That may be true." 
 
 " It s true enough that the papers say so," 
 assented Larcum. " But you can t tell any 
 thing about it by that." 
 
 "Why not? " 
 
 " It may be just a false scent something 
 to throw those robbers off the trail. For 
 all we know, those train-robbers may be 
 right here in the Yosemite Valley this very 
 minute. 
 
 " If they are, you just point them out to us," 
 responded the reporter glibly. " If we can find 
 them, we ll all come in for a share of that re 
 ward of five thousand dollars offered by the 
 
232 FOUR BOYS IN THE Y08EMITE 
 
 railroad people. That s more than the robbers 
 got, I fancy." 
 
 " Yes. That s one reason why I am so sure 
 both the fellows will be taken. They weren t 
 very smart." 
 
 " They had a lot of nerve, though, Larc; 
 you ll have to admit that," said John. 
 
 * Yes, they had more nerve than brains. Do 
 you know, I often am inclined to think there 
 isn t very much difference between a fool and 
 a knave unless it is that the knave really is 
 a bigger fool than the one who happens to be 
 born that way." 
 
 " That s what Socrates used to teach," said 
 John gravely. " He claimed that men went 
 wrong because they didn t know any better. If 
 they knew more, they wouldn t do such fool 
 things as a good many of them did." 
 
 " Did Socrates say that? " asked Larcum 
 sharply. 
 
 " He did," replied John. 
 
 " Then I ll take back all I ve said about 
 studying Greek. I didn t know any of those 
 xld boys had so much sense. I got my impres 
 sions from reading how many parasangs 
 Clearchus marched in a day s journey. How 
 many did he, Jack? " 
 
THE ASCENT 233 
 
 " Never mind now, Larc. It s time we all 
 went to bed, for we want to get a good start 
 early to-morrow morning." 
 
 " That s good advice," assented Larcnm. 
 " Now, if I only knew what Jupiter Pluvius 
 and Senator Sorghum thought about the Yo- 
 semite Valley, I think I could lay me down to 
 sleep." 
 
 " I think you ll have to, anyway, Larc," said 
 John laughingly, as the boys arose and turned 
 into the hotel. 
 
 An hour later, when silence rested over the 
 region and the lights of the hotel were no 
 longer burning, Scott made his way to Lar- 
 cum s room, and, opening the door, for there 
 were no locks or bars, silently entered. 
 
 " Who s that? " demanded Larcum, as he 
 sat quickly erect in bed. 
 
 " It isn t a train-robber, Larc. Don t be 
 frightened," replied Scott, in a low voice. 
 1 i I ll promise not to hurt you." 
 
 " Humph! What s wrong, Scott? " 
 
 " I don t know that much of anything is. 
 After I left you I went over to the telegraph 
 office." 
 
 " What of it? " 
 
 " I read your message." 
 
234 FOUR BOYS IN THE YO SEMITE 
 
 " You did? Well, it s all right, isn t it? " 
 
 " I guess so, as far as the message is con 
 cerned." 
 
 " Well, what else is wrong? " 
 
 " I don t know that anything is. Still, some 
 one else has been reading your message, 
 too." 
 
 "Who? " 
 
 " Guess." 
 
 " The reporter? " 
 
 11 You re right the first time." 
 
 " The operator didn t have any right to let 
 him or you or anybody else read that message. 
 I ll report him, next." 
 
 " The < him is a her. " 
 
 " Then I ll report her." 
 
 " Calm down. There hasn t any harm been 
 done. I thought I d just let you know what I d 
 found out. That report in the paper may have 
 been just a blind, as you said." 
 
 " All right. Good-night, Scott," said Lar- 
 cum, as he turned upon his side. 
 
 " I can take a hint," laughed Scott, " espe 
 cially when it is as clear as you have just made 
 this one. Good-night." 
 
 Early the following morning the guide was 
 awaiting the four boys. He himself was 
 
THE ASCENT 235 
 
 mounted upon a hardy pony, and near him were 
 standing two donkeys. 
 
 " Have you made arrangements for lunch 
 eon, Larc? " asked Scott, as the boys prepared 
 to mount. 
 
 " I have/ 
 
 " I don t see any signs of it anywhere." 
 
 " That does not affect the matter any. Ar 
 rangements have been made just the same. 
 Hold on a minute," he added, as he turned and 
 entered the office of the hotel; "I ll be with 
 you directly." 
 
 When Larcum reappeared, Scott, who was 
 keenly watching his friend s face, was con 
 vinced that news of some startling kind had 
 been received, but there was no opportunity 
 to speak to him without being heard by his com 
 panions, so he silently watched the young giant 
 as he prepared to mount his horse. 
 
 " Hold on a minute, Larc," suggested Lee. 
 " That reporter said he wanted to go with us. 
 We told him to come along if he liked." 
 
 " He isn t here." 
 
 " I know it, but I ll run up to his room and 
 call him." 
 
 " He isn t in the hotel." 
 
 " Where is he? " 
 
236 FOUR BOYS IN THE YO SEMITE 
 
 " I don t know. He left early this morning. 
 "Went on horseback. " 
 
 " That s all right, then," assented Lee. " All 
 I wanted was to let him know that we hadn t 
 tried to slip away for our trip without him." 
 
 Scott was still observing Larcum and was 
 convinced that all the young giant had learned 
 concerning the early departure of the reporter 
 had not been related. It was still impossible, 
 however, to have a word with him alone, for, 
 at the suggestion of the guide, the boys mounted 
 their steeds and together started down the 
 road, so that what conversation they held was, 
 perforce, general and incidental. 
 
 Not long afterward the road was left for 
 the trail and the ascent was begun. John and 
 Scott, mounted upon their patient donkeys, 
 brought up the rear of the little procession. 
 The fact that neither was a skilled rider was 
 too manifest to cause any remarks, and, as the 
 little procession moved steadily forward, for a 
 time no one spoke. 
 
 " If I d known the trail was as smooth and 
 safe as this," said John, when an hour had 
 elapsed, " I think I d have chosen to walk." 
 
 " You ll have plenty of time for walking," 
 rejoined Scott. " Before we leave the valley 
 
TEE ASCENT 237 
 
 we ll try some of the trails where even a don 
 key can t make his way." 
 
 " Just see how we re beginning to zigzag," 
 said John, a little later. " We re cutting back 
 and forth right across the face of the cliff. We 
 must be fifteen hundred feet above the valley 
 now. 
 
 " Don t look down, Jack, if you feel dizzy," 
 called Larcum, who was riding directly behind 
 the guide. Want me to come back there and 
 ride behind you! " 
 
 11 No. I wouldn t take that chance now. I 
 don t just like it, but I wouldn t have that 
 frisky steed of yours try to get behind my don 
 key now. Whew! " John added, drawing a 
 long breath, as the trail, which led along the 
 side of the mountain, became so narrow that 
 it did not seem possible that a horseman could 
 be passed if one should be met. 
 
 " Hang on and look up," said Larcum en 
 couragingly. 
 
 "I m hanging on, all right," replied John. 
 " If I can only keep on, I never 11 find a word 
 of fault with beast or man." 
 
 " It isn t so bad," said Lee, who was thor 
 oughly at home on the back of a horse. This 
 is fine! It s such a pretty day, too " 
 
238 FOUR BOYS IN THE TO SEMITE 
 
 " If yon say that again, I know I ll lose my 
 hold! " called John. 
 
 " Bnt yon re losing half the fnn if you don t 
 look down. The river looks as if yon conld 
 step across it. And yet there are people 
 who say they d rather see the Alps than 
 this! 
 
 I never had any idea that the Sierras were 
 so bleak. There isn t a spear of grass to be 
 seen anywhere," said Scott. " They are jnst 
 great, gray granite masses." 
 
 " Keep still, Scott. I can stand some things, 
 bnt I draw the line on descriptions jnst now. 
 The sight is enongh for me, I tell yon! " 
 
 " We ll stop here a minnte and give the 
 horses a chance to rest," said the gnide, as the 
 party arrived on a rocky shelf whose border 
 was so sharply defined that to step over its 
 edge wonld precipitate one to the deepest 
 depths of the valley below. 
 
 " This is magnificent! " exclaimed Lee, as 
 he looked down npon the floor of the valley far 
 below them. 
 
 " Save yonr adjectives, Lee," remarked Lar- 
 cnm. " We aren t more than halfway np the 
 side yet. When we get to the top, yon 11 want 
 some of yonr vocabulary in reserve." 
 
THE ASCENT 239 
 
 " Did any one ever fall over here? " inquired 
 John of the guide. 
 
 Nobody in my parties, the guide replied. 
 
 " Don t you spoil his record, Jack," laughed 
 Scott. 
 
 "I ll do my best." 
 
 " Jack, perhaps you don t want to go on any 
 farther," suggested Larcum. " If you don t, 
 I ll stay with you or go back to the hotel with 
 you if that is what you d rather do." 
 
 John hesitated a moment, and then said 
 quietly: " No, I m going on with you. I don t 
 know just what it is that makes me feel a lit 
 tle shaky." 
 
 " I do," said Larcum. 
 
 " What? " 
 
 " Your trip yesterday down the Merced. I 
 was to blame for that, and, if you want to go 
 back, I ll go with you," said Larcum. 
 
 "I m going on! " declared John firmly. 
 " There isn t any use in being squeamish. I ll 
 stick to the party likewise to the donkey. No, 
 sir, I m going on. Here! not that way! " he 
 shouted, as the little beast on which he was 
 mounted crept to the outermost border of the 
 trail. "Here! Stop! Stop that! I ll get off 
 if you don t quit it! " shouted John, as his 
 
240 FOUR BOY 8 IN THE YO SEMITE 
 
 donkey, leaning low on its forelegs, thrust its 
 head over the cliff in its attempt to secure the 
 leaves of a small bush which was growing in 
 the crannies of the rock. There was an instant 
 rush to the aid of the helpless John, who was 
 striving desperately to free his feet from the 
 stirrups. 
 
CHAPTER XX 
 
 THE TRAIL 
 
 " SIT still, you re all right!" shouted the 
 guide, as John s predicament became manifest 
 to all the boys. 
 
 Before any one could act, however, Larcum 
 leaped from the back of his horse and, rush 
 ing to the place where John was struggling, he 
 seized the diminutive donkey by the tail, and, 
 exerting all his strength, managed to draw the 
 little animal and its rider back from the brink. 
 The donkey, indignant at the unexpected as 
 sistance, laid back its ears and began to kick 
 viciously. At the same time it emitted several 
 long-drawn " hee-haws," expressive of its 
 feelings. 
 
 " There s the mountain canary you were 
 talking abo ut! said Lee, attempting to 
 speak lightly, although his face was ghastly 
 white, expressive of the terror he had suf 
 fered. 
 
 " Don t ever try that again! " said the guide 
 
 241 
 
242 FOUR BOYS IN THE YOSEMITE 
 
 sharply. " Whatever you do, stick to the back 
 of the animal you re riding." 
 
 If that donkey had gone over the edge, and 
 had started like a flying-machine for the Sen 
 tinel Hotel down below, you wouldn t want Jack 
 to hang on, would you! " asked Larcum, some 
 what indignantly. " I know I wouldn t want 
 Mm to." 
 
 " The donkey is all right," retorted the 
 guide. " If there ever is any trouble, it s al 
 ways with the rider. Now, don t never, no 
 time, try to get off the back of an animal you re 
 riding when you re on the trail." 
 
 " But he almost went over," said John 
 quietly. 
 
 " No, he didn t, neither! A donkey never 
 goes over that is, unless some fool rider makes 
 him. You stick to the donkey and you ll be as 
 safe as a bug in a rug." 
 
 " Didn t you ever see or hear of a donkey 
 falling? " asked Scott. 
 
 " Never. He s the surest-footed little beast 
 in creation." 
 
 "I ve heard of their falling and being 
 dashed to pieces," persisted Scott. 
 
 " Well, all I can say is that you didn t hear 
 straight, that s all," retorted the guide. " A 
 
TEE TRAIL 243 
 
 donkey is almost as sure on foot as a fly; 
 is." 
 
 " But the pack-mules sometimes fall," de 
 clared Scott. "I ve heard of their falling, and 
 seen pictures of them, too, in the very act." 
 
 " Pack-mules is different. Of course, if a 
 mule is overloaded or its load isn t balanced as 
 it ought to be, there may be trouble; but I m 
 not talking about pack-mules; I m talking about 
 donkeys on the trail to Glacier Point." 
 
 " This donkey had a load he had Jack on 
 his back." 
 
 That don t make no difference ! That don 
 key wouldn t miss his footing. I ve known him 
 for years and he s as sure as death." 
 
 " Want to go back, Jack? " inquired Lar- 
 cum. 
 
 " Why should I want to go back? " de^ 
 manded John. 
 
 " I didn t know but you had had enough for 
 one day." 
 
 " Well, I haven t. I m going on to the top," 
 said John quietly. " When I put my hand to 
 the plow I don t look back." 
 
 66 Your grit is all right," laughed Larcum, a 
 little uneasily; " but are you sure you feel 
 strong enough to go on! " 
 
244 FOUR BOYS IN TEE YO SEMITE 
 
 " You just watch me." 
 
 " All right, then, we might as well start," 
 said Larcum to the guide. 
 
 " Whatever happens, you stick to the back 
 of that little donkey," said the guide to John. 
 " Don t forget that he s just as fond of his 
 life as you be o yours. He won t slip you 
 can rest easy bout that." 
 
 " I ll be as easy as I can," replied John 
 lightly. " The only thing I don t really enjoy 
 is having my little l mountain canary put his 
 head over the edge of a precipice and try to 
 sing to the people down in the valley two or 
 three thousand feet below. I don t like that, 
 and I must say, too, that I have had experi 
 ences I have enjoyed more than I do that when 
 the donkey kneels and tries to bite off some of 
 the leaves on the brush growing right out of 
 the rock just below the border of the trail. 
 That makes me a trifle uneasy, for he might 
 slip or something, you understand." 
 
 " Not a bit o danger," said the guide con 
 fidently. " You stick to the donkey and he ll 
 stick to you. If you feel dizzy, just look 
 straight up; don t qver look down." 
 
 "I m all right now! " declared John. " Go 
 on with the procession." The ascent was re- 
 
THE TRAIL 245 
 
 sumed, and John smiled as Larcum positively 
 declared that he was going to " form the 
 rear guard a la Clearchus." There were no 
 further mishaps, however, when the party ar 
 rived at Union Point, which the guide ex 
 plained was two-thirds of the distance from the 
 valley to Glacier Point. 
 
 " How high are we now? " inquired Scott. 
 
 " Sixty- three hundred and fourteen feet. 
 Get a fine view here, though naturally it isn t 
 as good as what we ll see when we get clear 
 up." 
 
 " When will that be?" asked Lee. 
 
 " Pretty quick." 
 
 Wonderful as the view of the great valley 
 below them was, the boys did not long delay at 
 Union Point. Steadily making their way up 
 ward, stopping for an occasional rest for the 
 horses, still following the trail, which zigzagged 
 along the steep face of the cliff, they continued 
 on their way until at last they found them 
 selves on Glacier Point. Leaving their horses 
 and mules in charge of the guide, all four boys 
 ran toward the long iron rail that had been 
 fixed between two of the huge rocks, and, stand 
 ing near the flagstaff that had been erected 
 there, in silence they gazed down at the won- 
 
246 FOUR BOYS IN THE YOSEMITE 
 
 derful valley below them. Its tremendous 
 sides seemed to be even more precipitous than 
 before. Waterfalls, cliffs, overhanging moun 
 tains, forests, great bare rocks seemed almost 
 to combine to deepen the impression the mar 
 velous spectacle produced. The mountain- 
 tops were apparently almost on a level with 
 the place where the boys were standing. The 
 Yosemite Valley itself was straight down be 
 low them, its narrow green floor being appar 
 ently divided into two parts by the shining 
 waters of the Merced. 
 
 " We re on the rock that reaches straight 
 out over the valley," said Scott, at last, the 
 first to break in upon the eloquent silence. 
 
 " Isn t there anything under us? " asked 
 John hastily. 
 
 " Not a thing. We re standing on a shelf of 
 rock that hangs out over the valley. If 
 it should happen to break off, we d never have 
 to go back on the horses and donkeys." 
 
 " How high are we? 
 
 " Pretty nearly a mile and a half between 
 seven and eight thousand feet." 
 
 " I m glad I came," murmured John. " The 
 Yosemite Valley is just a great bowl scooped 
 out of the Sierras, isn t it? " 
 
THE TRAIL 247 
 
 " That, and a little more," said Scott. 
 
 " Which is more impressive, Lee, the val 
 ley or these great bleak, barren, steep sides of 
 the mountains that shut it in! " asked Jack. 
 
 11 Both. You couldn t have one without the 
 other, could you? It s like the question my 
 grandfather used to ask me when my grand 
 mother would give me a cookie one of those 
 round kind that has a hole in the middle, all 
 surrounded by the cookie, you know. He used 
 to ask me if I ate the hole, and, when I d tell 
 him I hadn t, he d want to know what had be 
 come of it? " 
 
 " Did you tell him? " asked Scott. 
 
 " No, I never found out. But I thought of 
 it when Jack here asked me his question. 
 
 " Jack is feeling better," laughed Lee. 
 " He begins to show again where he was 
 born." 
 
 " I m feeling better than I shall on my way 
 back, I m afraid," said John. " It s worse go 
 ing down than it is coming up, isn t it? " he 
 inquired of the guide, who now had joined the 
 party. 
 
 " You re right it is," replied the guide. 
 
 " You told me to look up. How am I going 
 to do that on my way down the mountain? " 
 
248 FOUR BOYS IN THE YO SEMITE 
 
 " You can t. You ll just have to shut your 
 eyes and hang on. The donkey will do the 
 rest." 
 
 " If you d rather walk, Jack, I ll walk with 
 you," suggested Larcum. 
 
 t i I m not going to walk ; I m going to ride ! 
 declared John. " I told you that before," he 
 added, a little testily. 
 
 " So you did," laughed Larcum. " I for 
 got that some of the grit of Plymouth Eock 
 is in your make-up. You are all right, 
 Jack." 
 
 "It s time for luncheon, isn t it? " asked 
 Scott. 
 
 " Any time is that with you, Scott," said 
 Larcum. " Still, I ll be generous and join you 
 in a frugal repast." 
 
 The boys turned back and at once went to 
 the little Glacier Point Hotel where, as they 
 were compelled to wait for a time before they 
 could be served, they seated themselves on the 
 piazza to await the announcement for which all 
 four were eager. 
 
 " Larc," said Scott, who was seated be 
 side his friend, a little apart from the others, 
 " what do you make of the disappearance of 
 the reporter? " 
 
THE TRAIL 249 
 
 " It seems to me," said Larcum soberly, 
 " that it means he has gone." 
 
 " Yes, but why did he go? " 
 
 " Because he didn t desire to linger longer." 
 
 " Do you think he suspects us of suspect 
 ing him? " 
 
 " I surely do. We ve made a mistake in let 
 ting him get any such impression. It s just 
 another lesson that no one ought to talk be 
 fore he has something to say. Now, if the rail 
 road people send a man up here, I ll be in a 
 fine predicament, won t I? I m half- inclined 
 to make trouble for the operator here. She 
 had no right to let him see my lettergram." 
 
 " Of course she hadn t, but she did. What 
 made you put your lettergram so strong! You 
 said right out that the two men might be the 
 train-robbers." 
 
 " Well, what would you say? That was what 
 I wanted to tell." 
 
 " Not at that time." 
 
 " Yes, I did at that time," grumbled Larcum. 
 " I don t know that it will do any harm, after 
 all. If the reporter is the man that s wanted, 
 he can t get away even if he does leave the 
 Yo semite." 
 
 " It does look suspicious, doesn t it? " said 
 
250 FOUR BOYS IN THE YOSEMITE 
 
 Scott thoughtfully. " The fellow leaves with 
 out a word just as soon as he finds out that 
 you have sent a lettergram to San Francisco." 
 
 " Oh, there are a whole lot of things that 
 squint that way. Have you said anything 
 about the matter to any one? 
 
 " Not a word. Have you? " 
 
 " Have I? What do you think I am, any 
 way? " 
 
 " You re all right, Larc, if you do take your 
 self a little too seriously. Come on, there s the 
 first call for luncheon." 
 
 Joining their friends, the boys at once made 
 their way to the dining-room, where, for a 
 time, conversation ceased while they were busy 
 with the luncheon that was served. At their 
 table two other boys, of nearly the same age 
 as the young travelers, were seated, and, in a 
 brief time, the strangers explained that they 
 were students in one of the larger colleges of 
 California. The interest of each party in the 
 other was speedily keen and the questions each 
 asked showed clearly that the knowledge the 
 Western boys possessed of the older institu 
 tions in the East was much greater than that 
 which the Eastern boys had of the colleges on 
 the Pacific coast. 
 
TEE TRAIL 251 
 
 " That s the way of it," laughed one of the 
 Western boys. " You people back East don t 
 know that there is anything worth while west 
 of the Mississippi." 
 
 " Is there anything? " asked Scott demurely. 
 
 " What are you fellows doing out here on 
 your vacation if there isn t? Do you suppose 
 the crowds that think they have to go abroad 
 to see the Alps, if they want mountains, find 
 anything better than there is right in their 
 own country? Is there anything anywhere to 
 be compared with the Yo Semite? What kind of 
 an American, anyway, is the man who thinks 
 he must go to Europe before he finds out what, 
 as a citizen of the United States, he has in his 
 own land? " 
 
 " What s the use?" said John. "You 
 might as well compare a valley with a moun 
 tain and say which is better. Have you ever 
 been East? " 
 
 " Yes as far as Denver." 
 
 " That s good," laughed John. " Didn t 
 you like it? " 
 
 " Denver is one of the finest cities I ever 
 saw. 
 
 " You ought to see Boston," broke in Lar- 
 cum. " Ever hear of the town? " 
 
252 FOUR BOYS IN THE YOSEMITE 
 
 " Yes, a few times." 
 
 " Well, if the native Bostonian wasn t so 
 modest, you d hear more of it. It s hard work 
 to make a Boston fellow really feel that what 
 he has is so much better than anything else in 
 the whole world. Isn t it, Jack?" Larcum 
 added, turning to John as he spoke. 
 
 " Not if he compares it with woolly, beefy, 
 porcine, raw, windy Chicago," retorted John, a 
 little warmly. 
 
 " Good! " exclaimed Larcum. " Fine! You 
 see what I mean, don t you? " he laughingly 
 demanded of the Western college boy. 
 
 " I think I do. Are you going to the Sen 
 tinel to-night? " 
 
 " Yes. We came up this morning." 
 
 " That s fine! We re going there ourselves. 
 To-morrow we re going to take a tramp up to 
 Vernal Falls." 
 
 " Where did you get him? " 
 
 " Get what? " 
 
 " Your tramp. You said you were going 
 to take one to Vernal Falls." 
 
 " Yes; I see," said the college boy slowly. 
 11 I thought, perhaps, you might want to come 
 with us." 
 
CHAPTER XXI 
 
 THE CLIMB 
 
 THE descent was even more difficult for John 
 than was the climb of the morning. To look 
 up was impossible, and the view below him 
 was so steep that at times it seemed to the 
 young rider almost impossible for his donkey 
 to make it. Not a word did John speak, how 
 ever, and only his colorless face betrayed the 
 fear that gripped him. He was not aware how 
 closely and carefully Larcum was following 
 him, nor how anxious the young giant was that 
 his friend should not meet with any mishap. 
 
 When at last the little party arrived at the 
 Sentinel no one was more relieved than was 
 Larcum, though he endeavored to conceal his 
 feeling from John, who, he was aware, would 
 resent anything resembling sympathy from his 
 companions. 
 
 " The donkey was the least concerned mem 
 ber of the band," said John lightly, as he and 
 Larcum sought their rooms. 
 
 253 
 
254 FOUR BOYS IN THE YO SEMITE 
 
 " The little beasts never stumble, " re 
 sponded Larcum. " That s what makes them 
 so valuable for mountain climbing. " 
 
 " What do we do to-morrow! " 
 
 " The guide suggested that we should go to 
 Vernal and Nevada Falls." 
 
 " How do we go? " 
 
 " You can drive almost all the way if you 
 want." 
 
 " Suppose I don t want ! " 
 
 " Then you may go as you please," laughed 
 Larcum, relieved at his discovery that his 
 friend apparently was not suffering from any 
 bad effects of his involuntary plunge into the 
 cold, rushing waters of the Merced. 
 
 11 How are you going? 
 
 "We d thought of walking." 
 
 " That suits me." 
 
 " We ll talk it over after dinner," said Lar 
 cum, " and see what Lee and Scott have to 
 say." 
 
 After dinner the group assembled on the 
 piazza of the hotel, where they were joined by 
 one of the college boys whom they had met on 
 Glacier Point. In the course of the conversa 
 tion their new friend explained that his name 
 was Dana Watkins, and that for several years 
 
THE CLIMB 255 
 
 past he had spent each summer vacation in the 
 Yosemite. 
 
 " How long a walk is it to Vernal and Ne 
 vada Falls? " inquired Lee. 
 
 " About five and a half miles," said Dana. 
 
 " That s eleven miles, then, for the round 
 trip," suggested Larcum. " That s a pretty 
 long tramp for Lee." 
 
 " Lee can do it, if the rest of you want to," 
 spoke up Lee promptly. 
 
 " But you ll have to work and you know 
 that never agreed with you." 
 
 "I m ready if you are. How about you, 
 Jack? " asked Lee. 
 
 "I m for walking," responded John 
 promptly. " No more donkeys for me, unless 
 I m compelled to ride. I felt almost as if I 
 was standing on my head when we were coming 
 down from Glacier Point. My little beast 
 wanted to stop and pick some more of the plants 
 over the edge of the trail. I wonder what would 
 happen if he should get too far over! " 
 
 " I don t know much about Clearchus, but 
 I know that," snapped Larcum. 
 
 "What? " 
 
 "He d fall." 
 
 "Why? " 
 
256 FOUR BOYS IN THE YOSEMITE 
 
 " Law of gravitation." 
 
 " You re all right, Larc," laughed John. 
 " Maybe you can explain why a needle won t 
 stand on its point." 
 
 " Geometry says there isn t any such thing 
 as a point. It exists only in your imagina 
 tion. Well, if there isn t any such thing as a 
 point, a needle can t have any, can it? Then, 
 if it hasn t any, it can t stand on something it 
 hasn t got. See? " 
 
 " Call it the tip, then, not the point," laughed 
 John. 
 
 " The center of gravitation falls outside the 
 base." 
 
 " Correct! Magnificent! " exclaimed John, 
 as all the boys laughed. 
 
 " Oh, you are too much for me," sighed Lar- 
 cum. " You asked me just now why a needle 
 wouldn t stand on its point, didn t you? " 
 
 "I did." 
 
 11 Well, let me tell you something it will, 
 if you stick it in." 
 
 " You re impossible, Larc! " 
 
 " Why am I impossible? Didn t you tell me 
 just now that I was correct, magnificent, 
 et cetera? " 
 
 11 Mostly et cetera, I m afraid." 
 
THE CLIMB 257 
 
 " What time would you like to start to-mor 
 row? " inquired Dana. 
 
 " Early," said Scott promptly. 
 
 " We can order breakfast at six." 
 
 " That s a good time. We ll be started by 
 nine if we can get Larc out of bed," said Scott. 
 
 " I ll be the first one in the dining-room to 
 morrow morning! " said Larcum promptly. 
 
 " That remains to be seen," said Scott, wink 
 ing at Lee. 
 
 " I ll be on hand, and, if it s necessary, I ll 
 see that all the rest of you are, too. Do we 
 need a guide? " Larcum added, as he turned 
 to Dana. 
 
 " I know the way," replied Dana. " If 
 you re willing to trust me, I ll do my best, and 
 you can save your money." 
 
 " We ll go without a guide," said John 
 quickly. 
 
 " That s Bostonian thrift for you," laughed 
 Lee. 
 
 " It s common sense," retorted John. 
 " What do we want a guide along with us for 
 when we re better off and happier without 
 one? " 
 
 " That remains to be seen," said Dana 
 quietly. " There are two fellows here who say 
 
258 FOUR BOYS IN THE YOSEMITE 
 
 they re going to follow the trail to the top of 
 Cloud s Kest to-morrow morning, and they re 
 going without a guide, too." 
 
 " Isn t it safe? " 
 
 " Safe! Why, man, those fellows are 
 crazy ! I like to see a man have nerve, but I ve 
 no use for a fool. They ll lose the trail; they re 
 likely to slip or fall, and, if they do, nobody on 
 earth can help them. The guides don t go there 
 much, and, even when they do, some of them 
 keep a good supply of rope and pegs on hand. 
 These fellows are simply foolhardy to talk of 
 any such thing." 
 
 11 Who are the fellows? " asked Larcum. 
 
 " Two young chaps from San Francisco. 
 One of them is a reporter on one of the daily 
 papers there " 
 
 " But he left early this morning," inter 
 rupted Larcum sharply. 
 
 " Did he? Well, he s back now, and he has 
 a friend with him. I saw them right after din 
 ner, and the reporter told me he was going to 
 start for Cloud s Best early to-morrow morn 
 ing. He said he and his friend would take 
 three days if necessary." 
 
 " Do you know this reporter? " asked Lar 
 cum quietly. 
 
THE CLIMB 259 
 
 " I ve seen him here." 
 
 " When? " 
 
 " Oh, several times. He was here last sum 
 mer, too." 
 
 11 What is his name? " 
 
 " I don t know." 
 
 " I do, and I ll tell yon," spoke up some 
 one who at that moment approached the little 
 party. As the boys looked up, they saw 
 that the reporter himself was speaking to 
 them. 
 
 11 When did you come back? Where have 
 you been? We missed you to-day," said Scott 
 quickly. " You were going with us up to 
 Glacier Point, you know." 
 
 66 Yes, I know," replied the reporter lightly, 
 "but I had to go over to El Portal early 
 this morning. That s the trouble with a news 
 paper man, he never can depend upon his time. 
 He s almost as bad as a physician; he s 
 liable to be called out at any time, day or 
 night." 
 
 " A good deal worse than some doctors that 
 I know," remarked Larcum dryly. 
 
 " That s right; a good deal worse, for some 
 times he has to deal with fool stories, : re 
 marked the reporter. 
 
260 FOUR BOYS IN THE YO SEMITE 
 
 " Are you really going to try to make 
 Cloud s Best! " asked Lee. 
 
 " You heard what young Watkins just told 
 you." 
 
 " He says it s dangerous." 
 
 " That s very likely." 
 
 " Why do you try it, then? " 
 
 " Oh, that s one of the things you never can 
 understand. I fancy those train-robbers that 
 held up your train knew there was some danger 
 in doing what they did; but that didn t stop 
 them, did it? " 
 
 " It didn t seem to," acknowledged John. 
 " Do you hear anything more of them? " 
 
 " No more than you have heard. You have 
 seen the papers." 
 
 " Probably they re hid away in some canon, 
 waiting for the trouble to blow over," said 
 Larcum quietly. 
 
 " That s what the paper says." 
 
 " Is that what you believe? " 
 
 " I don t know what to believe. No two ever 
 act alike. Sometimes they ll go straight to the 
 big cities, and then again they ll hide away 
 among the hills." 
 
 " Do they ever come into the Yosemite to 
 hide? " asked Lee. 
 
TEE CLIMB 261 
 
 " I don t know that I ever heard of any do 
 ing that. It wouldn t be a bad place for that 
 kind of work, would it? 
 
 " Come on, fellows. If we start as early to 
 morrow morning as we ve agreed to, we ll have 
 to turn in now, so that Jack will get his 
 sleep " 
 
 " You can speak for yourself, Larc," inter 
 rupted John. "I m not one that has to be 
 wrapped up in cotton batting and put away to 
 keep." 
 
 All five boys, however, had risen, and, as 
 soon as they started up the stairs, Larcum 
 touched Scott on the arm, indicating his desire 
 for his friend to delay a moment. 
 
 " What do you make of it, Lare? " asked 
 Scott, when the two boys were left to them 
 selves. "Is he really going to do what he 
 says? " 
 
 " I don t know. What do you think? " 
 
 1 1 I think he 11 start, all right. Strange about 
 his friend being here." 
 
 " Not so very strange. He s been here be 
 fore. I don t know where he is now. Come 
 on, Scott. We ll see if the operator hasn t had 
 some word for me." 
 
 A visit to the telegraph office, however, failed 
 
262 FOUR BOYS IN THE YO SEMITE 
 
 to reveal any word in reply to the message that 
 Larcum had sent. Still puzzled, the boys at 
 last sought their rooms, leaving their perplex 
 ing problem unsolved. 
 
 Early in the morning, when the boys started 
 on their journey, the reporter joined them, 
 and in response to their inquiries, explained 
 that his friend had already preceded him and 
 would be waiting for him where the trail di 
 verged from the one that the young travelers 
 were to follow. 
 
 " Why do you take such a dangerous trip 
 alone? " inquired Lee of the reporter, as the 
 party trudged forward. 
 
 " Oh, it isn t so dangerous; it s just hard. 
 We may find some deep snow before we get to 
 the top; but that s the worst." 
 
 " You ll find slippery rocks and a blind 
 trail," said young Watkins. " I like a hard 
 trail myself; but, without a guide, I m afraid 
 you ll have troubles of your own." 
 
 " Here s where we leave you," said Dana, 
 as the party came to a dividing of the ways. 
 61 Where is your friend? " 
 
 " Not very far away, I guess," said the re 
 porter, as he placed a finger in his mouth and 
 whistled twice in a peculiar way. An answer- 
 
THE CLIMB 263 
 
 ing whistle came from up the trail, and then 
 the reporter laughingly said, " He s not far 
 away, you see." 
 
 " Why doesn t he show himself! " asked 
 Scott. " He hasn t done anything to make him 
 want to hide, has he? " 
 
 11 Not yet," laughed the reporter. " Good- 
 by," he said; "I ll see you three days from 
 now at the Sentinel." Stopping a moment to 
 draw a little more tightly the strap which held 
 the bundle he was carrying on his shoulder, 
 he soon disappeared from the sight of the 
 boys. 
 
 Steadily the five boys followed the trail as 
 it led up the ascending walls of green. Occa 
 sional glimpses of Liberty Cap, the bleak and 
 towering mountain in the distance, the shrub 
 bery that almost seemed to choke the canon, the 
 vision of fleecy clouds overhead, the presence 
 of treetops that rose from below to the level 
 of the trail, all added to the interest of the 
 climb. Still no one asked to stop until the 
 party arrived at the bridge that crossed the 
 roaring, tumbling Merced below them. Then, 
 moved by a common desire, the boys halted, and 
 a part of the luncheon they had brought with 
 them speedily disappeared. 
 
264 FOUR BOYS IN THE YOSEMITE 
 
 When their journey was resumed, the heat 
 of the sun became more intense, the ground was 
 muddy, and the rocks and leaves were covered 
 with the spray that was falling all about them. 
 The view of the fall from the bridge, glorious 
 as it was, did not satisfy the boys, and with one 
 accord, they continued their climb until at last, 
 by the aid of the iron chain which had been 
 stretched alongside the narrow path, they ob 
 tained the sight for which they had gladly come 
 so far. 
 
 Between seventy and eighty feet in width, 
 the stream plunged over the brink to the rocks, 
 three hundred and fifty feet below. Standing 
 on the flat rock close to the water, the boys in 
 silence watched the tremendous volume of wa 
 ter as it dashed upon the stones. For a time no 
 one spoke, and then John said, " This is the 
 finest of all! " 
 
 6 1 As three hundred and fifty is to twenty- 
 five hundred, so is Vernal Falls to the Yosemite 
 Falls, " said Scott. 
 
 " That s all true," admitted John, " but here 
 there is no such awful setting of bleak and 
 dreary precipices. The fall is the great 
 thing 
 
 John stopped abruptly as the boys all turned 
 
THE CLIMB 265 
 
 to look at a man who was approaching from 
 below. When he had gained the place where 
 the boys were standing, he said quietly, " I am 
 looking for a young man named Larcum Brown. 
 Is he here? " 
 
CHAPTER XXII 
 
 A MESSENGER 
 
 " THAT is my name," said Larcum 
 promptly. 
 
 " Please come back here a little way with 
 me/ suggested the stranger. " I wish to have 
 a few words with you." 
 
 Larcum at once complied with the request, 
 and, as he followed the man, he was aware 
 that his friends were watching him with keen 
 interest. Disregarding their curiosity, the 
 young giant withdrew with the stranger, and 
 a half -hour had elapsed before he rejoined his 
 friends, who were waiting for him on the 
 bridge. 
 
 " What s wrong, Larc? demanded Lee 
 eagerly, when Larcum returned. 
 
 11 Nothing unusual," replied Larcum. 
 
 " What did that man want? " 
 
 11 He wanted to see me." 
 
 " Who is he? " 
 
 " A railroad man from San Francisco." 
 
 " Wanted to consult you about the best 
 
 266 
 
A MESSENGER 267 
 
 method of running a railroad, didn t he! " 
 laughed John, who was shrewdly observing his 
 friend. 
 
 "If he did, he didn t ask me about Cle- 
 archus and his parasangs, anyway," retorted 
 Larcum. " He wasn t interested in ancient 
 history; he s up to date, and that is some com 
 fort." 
 
 " What did he come up here for? You 
 haven t told us," said Lee. 
 
 " Yes, I did; he came to see me." 
 
 "What for? " 
 
 " To consult with me." 
 
 "What for? " 
 
 " About something important. I d tell you 
 all about it, fellows, only this man didn t want 
 me to just yet." 
 
 " Must have been something mighty big to 
 make him follow us clear up here to these 
 falls." 
 
 " How do you know he followed us? " de 
 manded Larcum sharply. " We aren t the only 
 people in the world that have followed the trail 
 to Nevada Falls." 
 
 " Well, all I can say is that, if he came up 
 here to see the falls, he was easily satisfied. 
 He didn t tarry long." 
 
268 FOUR BOYS IN THE YO SEMITE 
 
 " What are we to do next? " 
 
 " Go on with our plan." 
 
 " Doesn t this important personage want you 
 to go back with him ? 
 
 " No. I gave him all the information I 
 thought it was wise for him to have. If he 
 needs more later, why, that s another story, as 
 Kipling says. Come on, fellows! We ll go on 
 to Nevada Falls." 
 
 Following the trail, the boys once more 
 crossed the river, stopping, however, for a brief 
 rest upon the rude little bridge that spanned it. 
 Here they could see the Diamond Cascade above 
 them, while below was the misty veil which was 
 known as the Silver Apron. Soon afterward 
 the first view of the Nevada Falls was obtained. 
 The sloping descent was about six hundred 
 feet. 
 
 " How far is it to the top? " asked Scott. 
 " Does any one know! " 
 
 " It s about three-quarters of a mile from 
 here," answered Dana. 
 
 " Good trail? " 
 
 " Yes, though it s pretty steep and zigzags a 
 good deal." 
 
 " We ll try it," said John promptly. 
 
 In response the boys all started up the steep 
 
A MESSENGER 269 
 
 way, and, when at last they gained the top, 
 every one, except Larcum, was nearly breath 
 less from the climb. The view, however, repaid 
 every one, and, in the impressive scene, all were 
 silent as they watched the roaring flood. Lar 
 cum tossed broken branches into the swift cur 
 rent, and, timing the distance they covered in 
 three seconds, tried to obtain an estimate of 
 the rapidity with which the foaming waters 
 slipped down the steep fall. 
 
 Here, amidst the green trees, moist from the 
 spray of the fall, and dark with shade, the boys 
 prepared the luncheon they had brought with 
 them. Wearied by the climb, every one was 
 ready when Scott shouted, " First call for 
 luncheon, and for a time all were silent while 
 the viands rapidly disappeared. 
 
 " This pays for it all," murmured John, as 
 he gazed at the fall and then turned to look 
 at the steep, barren sides of the Sierras, 
 which shut in the wonderful valley. " This 
 is certainly the grandest sight I ever 
 saw." 
 
 We can t have any better time than we had 
 in the Yellowstone, 1 suggested Lee. l I 
 think that was the greatest of all." 
 
 J See "Four Boys in the Yellowstone." 
 
270 FOUR BOYS IN THE YO SEMITE 
 
 You ought to think England 1 gave you the 
 best time," said Scott; " that s where you got 
 your fortune, you know." 
 
 " England is all right," growled Larcum 
 < or, it would be, if they would only speak the 
 English language." 
 
 " How s that, Lard " inquired John. 
 
 " That s how it is, and that s all I know. I 
 was near a station one day in London, where 
 I wanted to take a train maybe it was the day 
 I started for Eugby, I m not sure and I asked 
 a man where I would find what I was looking 
 for. Now, what do you think the fellow told 
 me to dot " 
 
 11 They were all mighty courteous, I 
 thought," said Lee. 
 
 " I m not talking about courtesy. I m talk 
 ing about the use of the mother tongue. The 
 man told me to go down to the bottom and 
 then go up to the top and I d find my train/ 
 I hadn t any more idea what he meant 
 than I would have had if he d told me I d 
 find it somewhere in the underside of the 
 Andes." 
 
 " What did you do, Larc? " laughed John. 
 " I shouldn t have had the remotest concep- 
 
 Four Boys and a Fortune." 
 
A MESSENGER 271 
 
 tion of what lie meant for nie to do. "What did 
 he mean? " 
 
 " He meant for me to go down to the end of 
 the block and then up to the end of the street 
 on the other side of the station, and I d find my 
 train made up there. 7 
 
 " Why didn t he say so, then! " said Scott. 
 
 " He did in his way," said John. " It all 
 depends on the use and the meaning of words. 
 Now, I heard an Englishman say, not long ago, 
 that some American told him that stock joke of 
 ours about peaches that we i eat all we can, 
 and can what we can t. " 
 
 "He didn t see anything funny in it, did 
 he? " said Scott. 
 
 " No. How could he? In England they 
 don t speak of canning fruits they tin 
 them. Of course " 
 
 " What a way to call canning tinning," 
 said Scott scornfully. 
 
 " It s just custom, that s all. Their customs 
 are strange to us, and ours are strange to 
 them." 
 
 " Never mind our trip to England; that s 
 ancient history, you know, and I m not fond 
 of that. What I want you to see is this present 
 wonderful sight. The valley is just like a great 
 
272 FOUR BOYS IN TEE JO SEMITE 
 
 hole cut right in the solid rock of the Sierras. 
 Are you all taking in that fact? " 
 
 " We are," responded Scott. 
 
 " Are you aware that the valley looks as if 
 the only way to get in was to fall in, and, if 
 once a man got in, there was no way for him 
 to get out? " 
 
 " Yea, verily; we are." 
 
 " Then, if that is duly impressed on your 
 youthful and impressionable, not to say plastic, 
 mental apparatus, I move that we start for the 
 Sentinel Hotel. Are you ready? " 
 
 Bested from the climb of the morning and 
 refreshed by the luncheon which they had 
 brought, the boys declared themselves to be 
 ready for the return, and at once started on 
 the downward trail. 
 
 Purposely, as Larcum believed, Scott fell 
 back beside his huge friend, and when the two 
 were sufficiently far in the rear of their com 
 panions to prevent their words from being 
 overheard, he said, Larc, did that man come 
 up here because of your telegram? " 
 
 " I suspect that he did." 
 
 " Did he have anything to say? " 
 
 " He did. He cast sundry and divers as 
 persions on my lettergram to him. He even 
 
A MESSENGER 273 
 
 accused me of inciting him to wild-goose chases, 
 and implied that I was a dealer in white ele 
 phants, held stock in yellow journals, and 
 couldn t see a knothole in the side of a barn 
 door." 
 
 " Be serious a minute, Larc. I was to ! 
 
 " I never was more serious in all my born 
 days, interrupted Larcum. I was even con 
 templating dropping the ribald, railroad ranter 
 into the roaring, rushing, riotous Nevada Fall, 
 a la the mode by which I cured Boston Jack of 
 his quaint and curious citations from the 
 critical comments of the great " 
 
 " Hold on, Larc," broke in Scott, " have you 
 any plan? " 
 
 " I have," replied Larcum promptly. 
 
 "What is it? " 
 
 " A certain secret and shrewd hunt for the 
 villains. 
 
 tl That s all right, but what is to be done! " 
 
 " To-morrow I depart with the railroad mag 
 nate." 
 
 " Where? " 
 
 " For the trail up Cloud >s Best." 
 
 " Only you two going? " 
 
 " That s it I ll have to depend upon you, 
 Scott, to help keep the other fellows quiet. Just 
 
274 FOUR BOYS IN THE YOSEMITE 
 
 now we don t want them to know anything 
 about our plan. Honestly, Scott, the detective 
 for this man is a detective the railroad peo 
 ple have sent up here, for they re following 
 every possible clew they can get doesn t be 
 lieve there is anything in this matter at all. 
 Still, he wants to be sure ; so he s come up here, 
 and when I told him that our friend, the re 
 porter, had started for a three days trip up 
 Cloud s Eest, why, he wanted me to follow. We 
 leave the Sentinel at six o clock to-morrow 
 morning, taking a giiide and horses with us as 
 far as they ll be of any help." 
 
 " Then you ll be two against two if you 
 should find the men." 
 
 " Precisely." 
 
 " They re desperate fellows, Larc. Don t 
 you think I d better go along! " 
 
 " For what! " 
 
 " To help you in case you need help." 
 
 Eepressing the word that rose to his lips, 
 Larcum said soberly: " No, Scott; you ll help 
 most by keeping the boys quiet. Don t let them 
 even suspect there is anything going on." 
 
 " How ll I do it! " 
 
 " I don t know. Suppose you say to-night 
 you want to try a carriage to-morrow. You ve 
 
A MESSENGER 275 
 
 tramped and ridden horseback, and now you 
 want to try driving. I believe every fellow will 
 be so sore and tired to-night that he ll fall in 
 with your suggestion, and won t suspect me if 
 I say I m going to try something different." 
 
 " I ll do my best," agreed Scott, as he and 
 Larcum hastened to overtake their friends, who 
 now were far in advance of them. 
 
 In the evening, after a bath and a dinner, to 
 which every one of the young travelers did am 
 ple justice, Scott s suggestion for a drive on 
 the following day was eagerly hailed by John 
 and Lee, neither of whom was willing to admit 
 that the tramp to Nevada and Vernal Falls 
 had been too strenuous for them. As Larcum 
 did not express any preference, his own proj 
 ect was not touched upon. 
 
 A half-hour after the boys had taken their 
 accustomed seats on the piazza, they were 
 joined by a venerable old gentleman, who, as 
 he took the chair which Lee at once secured for 
 him, explained that his home was in the Yo- 
 semite Valley and that he had dwelt there many 
 years. 
 
 " You might not believe it, young gentle 
 men," their guest continued, " but I came out 
 here for my health." 
 
276 FOUR BOYS IN THE YOSEMITE 
 
 " You look as if it agreed with you here, 
 sir," suggested Lee. 
 
 " Yes, you might be led to believe that. I 
 am now eighty-four years of age. If nothing 
 unforeseen occurs, there is a good prospect that 
 I may live to be an old man." 
 
 " Where did you come from! " 
 
 " I was born and lived in New Hampshire 
 until I came out here. I was a * lunger 
 
 " A what? " inquired John. 
 
 " A * lunger, " said the old gentleman, 
 laughing as he spoke. " That s the term ap 
 plied to any one who comes West because of 
 some affection of his lungs. I was just skin 
 and bones when I came, and now I weigh two 
 hundred and thirty-seven pounds. If this lit 
 tle boy would stay here," he added quietly, as 
 he placed a hand on Larcum s knee, " he might 
 get to be considerable of a man in time." 
 
 " Better stay, Larc," laughed Scott, as he 
 turned to his friend. 
 
 " You must have had some great experiences 
 here," said John. 
 
 " I have." 
 
 " Ever seen any grizzlies? " 
 
 " Yes, sir." 
 
 " Mountain lions! " 
 
A MES8ENQER 277 
 
 Plenty of them. Tlfy iff <|nilr 
 still." 
 
 "Do you mean tlmt. we mi-hf ?-un 
 mount, lin lion in tlio vnllcy n>v, 1 
 
 hastily, 
 
 " Yes, sir. You in.My find Ofi "" .vur w. iy 
 to Wawon.M, if \(.H are going over to see 
 Big Tree 
 
CHAPTEB XXHI 
 
 THE YOSEMITE CHIEFTAIN 
 
 " How was tlie Yosemite found? Who dis 
 covered it! " asked John. 
 
 " It came naturally after the discovery of 
 gold in California. Such a place as this could 
 not long be hidden." 
 
 " When was the gold discovered? " 
 
 " January nineteenth, eighteen hundred and 
 forty-eight." 
 
 " Who discovered it! " 
 
 " James W. Marshall." 
 
 " My! He must have become a rich man! " 
 suggested Lee. 
 
 " No. On the contrary, he died poor." 
 
 " Where did he find the gold? " 
 
 " At Sutter s sawmill over at Caloma. It 
 was before the days of the telegraph, but it 
 seemed almost as if by magic the world heard 
 of the find. Trains of prairie-schooners began 
 to cross the plains, and, as for the bay at San 
 Francisco, why, I myself have seen the waters 
 
 278 
 
THE YOSEMITE CHIEFTAIN 279 
 
 almost covered by the ships that were bring 
 ing in men who were well-nigh crazy with the 
 gold fever. The bite of the gold bug is really 
 more serious than the bite of a rattlesnake. 
 
 Well, as the men spread out in their search 
 for the gold, the prospectors and others natu 
 rally came more and more in contact with the 
 Indians of the country. Sometimes the rela 
 tions would be pleasant, and then again there 
 would be trouble. " 
 
 " Honestly, who was to blame for the trou 
 bles the white man or the Indian! " asked 
 John. 
 
 " It was not entirely confined to one side, 
 but I have no question that most of it was due 
 to the whites. In the official reports away back 
 in 1850 I read : It is a well-known fact that, 
 among our white population, there are men 
 who boast of the number of the Indians they 
 have killed and that not one of them shall 
 escape. 7 " 
 
 " You can t blame the Indians," said John 
 warmly. They were here first ; they had their 
 homes here, and naturally they didn t want to 
 give them up to the white men especially when 
 they were of the kind that naturally follows the 
 miners. 
 
280 FOUR BOYS IN THE YO SEMITE 
 
 li True enough, but perhaps not all of the 
 truth. At any rate, the Indians began to com 
 bine and prepare to resist 
 
 " How did they do that? " 
 
 " They had a system of telegraphing by 
 means of fires and smoke, but they mostly re 
 lied upon their runners or messengers, who 
 went from one Indian village to another. The 
 Yosemites made the first open attack; or, 
 rather, they led in the attack which was made 
 upon a trading-post about twenty-five miles be 
 low the valley on the Merced Eiver. The 
 miners drove the redskins away, but that only 
 seemed to increase the bitterness, and the first 
 attack proved to be only one among a good 
 many. There was so much suspicion now on 
 each side that the troubles began to increase, 
 and they soon came thick and fast and there 
 were a good many savage and brutal things 
 done. If the Indians gained an advantage and 
 took the blankets, flour, and everything of value 
 from some trading-post, as sometimes they did, 
 that only served to make the whites more angry 
 and the redmen more eager. Of course there 
 could be only one end to troubles of that kind, 
 and that was that the whites should win. They 
 did, too. Soldiers were sent here, the local 
 
THE YOSEMITE CHIEFTAIN 281 
 
 bodies of men organized, and before long it 
 was just a question which party should drive 
 the other out of this country. As I said, there 
 could be only one answer. 
 
 " Matters finally reached such a state that 
 a special plan of extermination was planned 
 and carefully set in motion. Some of the 
 Christian Indians, descendants of those that 
 had been won by the early Spanish mission 
 aries away back before 1770 you know, the 
 leader of these missionaries was Junipero 
 Serra, the one who discovered and named the 
 bay of San Francisco, these Christian In 
 dians, as I was saying, were doing all in their 
 power to stop the fighting, but they could not 
 accomplish very much. The tribes were con 
 vinced now that they must exterminate the 
 white men or be themselves exterminated, and 
 the palefaces were just as certain that there 
 would never be safety, much less peace, until 
 the Indians had been driven away from this 
 country. In a time like that men don t stop 
 to think of right; they think a good deal more 
 of what they are pleased to call their rights. 
 So the war went on. Still the -Christian In 
 dians were sent as messengers of peace to all 
 the Indian villages, but the redmen did not be- 
 
282 FOUR BOYS IN THE YO SEMITE 
 
 lieve their enemies would stop short of destroy 
 ing every tribe, so the peaceful messengers did 
 not accomplish much. 
 
 " Next, the white men sent some different 
 messengers to the Indian villages. This time 
 the runners told of the power of the whites 
 what they had done and could and would do if 
 the tribes held out, and also what the palefaces 
 would promise in the way of gifts and protec 
 tion if the fighting was stopped. " 
 
 " Have you any idea how many Indians 
 were in California at that time! inquired 
 John. 
 
 " Major Savage estimated that there were 
 all of ninety thousand. Well, one of these run 
 ners reported to Major Savage he was in 
 command of the new troops that the Indians 
 in a deep, rocky valley on the Merced did not 
 want peace, and that they never would send 
 any of their warriors for a peace conference. 
 These were the Yosemite tribe, and the runners 
 told how confident they were that their ene 
 mies never would be able to get into the val 
 ley, and that the tribe never could be driven 
 out of the region. If any white men should try 
 to enter the valley, all that the Yosemites 
 would have to do to protect themselves would 
 
THE YOSEMITE CHIEFTAIN 283 
 
 be to stand on some of the cliffs and roll or 
 drop great rocks on the heads of their enemies. " 
 
 " Good plan," said Scott. " If some one 
 should drop a stone from the top of El Capitan, 
 it would create considerable commotion on the 
 party below. " 
 
 " That was what they believed. Well, the 
 major was so eager himself to avoid a fight, 
 and had received so many good words from 
 some of the various tribes, that he didn t want 
 to give up the Yosemites, who were still hold 
 ing out against any form of peace. So he sent 
 a special messenger to the old chief of the Yo 
 semites as fine a character as ever was found 
 in Greece or Eome, though he didn t happen to 
 find a classical author to write up his ability, 
 eloquence, or patriotism. His name was 
 Tenieya at least that s the way it has come 
 down to me. I understand that some of the 
 more up-to-date people call his name Tenaya. 
 At all events, the lake, the canon, and the 
 peak, you can get to them up the Eagle Peak 
 trail, only about eighteen miles from here, are 
 all named for the old hero, for that s what he 
 was, no matter what anybody says to the 
 contrary. 
 
 " Parkman says that the oratory of the Mo- 
 
284 FOUR BOYS IN THE YO SEMITE 
 
 hawk chiefs was as fine as that of Cicero or 
 Demosthenes/ suggested John. 
 
 " I have no doubt of it. Well, Tenieya, or 
 Tenaya, whichever you want to call him, I 
 have noticed that some people think they must 
 change the old ways or they cannot be up to 
 date; for example, people now say Yosemites, 
 whereas the original word was Yo Semites, 
 finally agreed to come to the peace conference, 
 for at heart he was as eager as any one to put 
 an end to the fighting. The officers, and men, 
 too, for the matter of that, received the old 
 chief in a manner befitting his dignity, but 
 Tenieya was still suspicious that they were set 
 ting a trap of some kind for him. 
 
 " After some parleying, the major told the 
 old sachern that, if he would go and make a 
 treaty of peace with the commissioners, just 
 as the other tribes were doing, there would not 
 be any more war. 
 
 " Tenieya then said: l Let us remain in the 
 mountains where we were born; where the 
 ashes of our fathers have been given to the 
 winds. We do not want anything from the 
 white men. 
 
 " If you and your people have all you de 
 sire/ said the major, < why do you steal our 
 
THE YOSEMITE CHIEFTAIN 285 
 
 horses and mules ? Why do you rob the miners 
 camps? 
 
 i i Old Tenieya was silent a moment, and then 
 replied : My young men have sometimes taken 
 horses and mules from the whites. It was 
 wrong for them to do so. It is not wrong to 
 take the property of enemies who have wronged 
 my people. My young men believed the gold- 
 diggers to be their enemies. If they are not, 
 we shall be glad to live at peace with them. 
 "We will stay here and be friends/ 
 
 " Your people must go to the commission 
 ers and make peace with them/ said the major 
 firmly. 
 
 " Old Tenieya then said: It is useless to 
 talk to you about the stealing of your horses 
 or the burning of your property. If the Chow- 
 chillas do not boast of it, they are cowards, for 
 they led us on. I am old, and you can kill me 
 if you will, but of what use will that be to you 
 who know more than all the Indians, and can 
 beat them in their big hunts of deer and bear! 
 Therefore, I will not lie to you, but promise 
 that, if I am permitted to return to my people, 
 I will bring them in. The major told him to 
 go. The next day Tenieya came back and re 
 ported that his people were willing to come 
 
286 FOUR BOYS IN THE YOSEMITE 
 
 and make a treaty if they could come with 
 safety. Another day passed and still the In 
 dians did not come from the deep valley. The 
 old chief explained that the snows were too 
 deep to permit travel by the women and chil 
 dren. The white men growled, and kept close 
 watch of the sachem, but still allowed him to 
 come and go freely. 
 
 " At last, when several days had passed and 
 there were no signs of the coming of the Yo- 
 semites, it was decided to send an expedition 
 into the deep, dark valley. The major made a 
 footrace the test of the selection of the men 
 to go the slowest to stay behind and guard 
 the camp. When at last the selected men 
 started for the valley they soon found that 
 Tenieya had told them the truth about the 
 snow. It was so deep that in places the only 
 way the men could get through was by having 
 some one on horseback go ahead and break or 
 make a way and then another follow him and 
 then another, until in this way a fairly passable 
 path had been made. 
 
 1 1 About halfway the soldiers met a party of 
 seventy-two Yosemites floundering through the 
 snow and loaded down with their children and 
 property " 
 
THE YOSEMITE CHIEFTAIN 287 
 
 " On their way to the commissioners? " 
 asked Scott. 
 
 " Yes." 
 
 " Well, that showed that old Tenieya was 
 honest, anyway." 
 
 " Yes, but pretty soon some one asked him 
 where were all the other members of the tribe. 
 Only about seventy-two were there, you see. 
 He explained that some were sick, others had 
 gone to the tribes from which they had secured 
 their wives, but that all would come later. This 
 explanation did not satisfy the soldiers, and, 
 after they had selected a young brave as guide 
 in place of the old chief, they resumed their 
 journey to the valley. Those of the Mariposa 
 Battalion, as it was called, were the first white 
 men to enter the Yosemite Valley." 
 
 " When was it? " inquired John. 
 
 " May fifth or sixth, 1851. The day after 
 the battalion came into the home of the 
 grizzlies for the word Yosemite means a 
 full-grown grizzly bear the soldiers began 
 their investigation. Up near El Capitan they 
 discovered a smoldering fire, and this they con 
 cluded at once was a signal of some kind. They 
 found a village or camp of rude huts there, and 
 the immense quantity of acorns they saw stored 
 
288 FOUR BOYS IN THE YO SEMITE 
 
 in the place made the soldiers believe that some 
 besides sick Indians were not far away. 
 
 " As not many Indians were seen, however, 
 the soldiers returned to camp, and not long 
 afterward a second and larger expedition was 
 sent into the valley. The plan now was to sur 
 prise the Yosemites, capture as many of the 
 women and children as possible, and so bring 
 the warriors to terms. The surprise was 
 pretty effectually carried out, but, though the 
 men found new huts and many signs that the 
 Indians were near, for a time they were not 
 able to discover any of the warriors. At last 
 the men saw living forms moving about among 
 the high cliffs and rocks, and a detail managed 
 to capture several. Among the prisoners were 
 two or three sons of the old sachem. You 
 passed the place where they were taken on your 
 way in. 
 
 " At the suggestion of one of Tenieya s sons 
 he and his brother-in-law were sent to bring 
 the old chief into the camp of the soldiers, the 
 other sons to be retained as hostages. By the 
 way, the place where these three sons of 
 Tenieya were captured was near those three 
 peaks that are so much alike down the valley." 
 
 " The Three Brothers? " asked Lee. 
 
THE YOSEMITE CHIEFTAIN 289 
 
 " That s the spot. They were named for 
 these three sons of the old Yosemite chieftain. 
 Well, after the messengers left the camp, the 
 youngest son of Tenieya tried to escape, but 
 was shot and killed. Meanwhile, the soldiers 
 were searching for more of the Indians, and, 
 before they knew it, they were lured into a 
 trap. They followed some running Indians un 
 til they came into a gully, or canon, and the 
 first thing they knew there was a shower of 
 rocks raining upon them. Some of the white 
 men were killed before the party made its es 
 cape. Of course this added fuel to the flame, 
 and, by the time the old chief came with the 
 messengers, they were all almost ready to ex 
 terminate the tribe. No, I haven t given you 
 all. One report has it that the chief was taken 
 prisoner and brought to camp and did not re 
 turn with the messengers that had been sent for 
 him. When he came, the first sight that greeted 
 his eyes was the dead body of his own boy. He 
 steadily refused to tell where his people were 
 hidden, and then suddenly he rushed from his 
 keeper and ran for the bank of the river. Be 
 fore he could plunge in he was taken again, 
 and when he was brought back he faced the 
 leader, and in his most dignified manner said: 
 
290 FOUR BOYS IN THE JO SEMITE 
 
 " Kill me, sir, captain! Yes, kill me as 
 you killed my son ; as you would kill my people 
 if they were to come to you. You have made 
 me sorrowful; my life you have made dark. 
 You have killed the child of my heart : why not 
 kill the father also ? You may kill me, sir, cap 
 tain ; but you shall not live in peace. I will still 
 follow your footsteps. I will not leave my 
 home, but will be with the spirits among the 
 waterfalls, among the rocks, in the river, in the 
 winds. Wherever you go I shall be with you. 
 You will not see me, but you will fear the spirit 
 of the old chief and will grow cold. The great 
 spirits have spoken. I have done. 
 
 " You see, the Indians believed that the 
 presence of a spirit was manifest in a cool 
 breeze. That was what old Tenieya meant 
 when he declared they would be startled by his 
 unseen presence and grow cold. " 
 
CHAPTER XXIV 
 
 " DID they kill the old chief? " inquired 
 John. 
 
 "No; they gave him a good supper, for they 
 were all deeply impressed by the fearlessness 
 of Tenieya. But they kept up their search for 
 his tribe for several days, though not another 
 Indian could they find. Then they decided to 
 make an expedition to the high Sierras, for 
 they believed a good many of the redmen had 
 gone to the hiding-places there. They made the 
 old chief go with them. 
 
 " When the soldiers had gone about twenty 
 miles, and were far up above the Yo Semite Val 
 ley, they saw some smoke rising not far ahead 
 of them, so they concluded that they must be 
 near some Indian village. The soldiers ad 
 vanced cautiously, quietly secured the outlying 
 pickets, and then made a rush upon the camp. 
 They come so swiftly that not a soul escaped. 
 
 " Although it was certain that not all of the 
 
292 FOUR BOYS IN THE YOSEMITE 
 
 Yosemites were there, it was decided to depart 
 with those that had been taken, leaving the oth 
 ers for a later pursuit. The Indian women 
 and children were allowed to march freely, but 
 the squaws soon insisted upon taking upon their 
 own shoulders the burdens that had been as 
 signed to the warriors. When the white men 
 protested against such an unnatural custom 
 at least it seemed so to them the squaws them 
 selves rebelled so strongly that at last the sol 
 diers left them to their own customs and ways, 
 and in that manner they all marched back to 
 Fresno. 
 
 " The war was supposed to be ended now, 
 and, after several months had passed, Tenieya 
 begged so hard to return with his tribe to his 
 home in the valley that permission at last was 
 granted. Soon after the Yosemites came back 
 here, complaints began to rise that the whites 
 were having their horses and cattle stolen by 
 the Indians. It did not make any difference 
 when it was learned that many of the losses 
 were due to the work of thieving Mexicans 
 they cried out against the Indians just the same. 
 Finally the clamor became so loud after five 
 prospectors had crept into the Yosemite Valley 
 looking for gold and lost their lives there " 
 
TO CLOUD S REST 293 
 
 " Did the Indians kill the prospectors? " 
 asked Scott. 
 
 " That was the report, though personally I 
 have my doubts. At all events, the feeling 
 against the Yosemites became so great that at 
 last a government expedition was sent against 
 the tribe. Some friends of the dead miners 
 acted as guides, along with some of the men 
 who had been in the valley before. They sur 
 prised and captured a few of the Indians, al 
 though Tenieya and the rest of the tribe man 
 aged to elude their first attempts to get them. 
 When the dead bodies of the five miners were 
 found, of course the white soldiers were more 
 angry than ever, and they instantly shot the 
 few Yosemites whom they had captured." 
 
 "What!" exclaimed John. "Shot their 
 prisoners? " 
 
 " That is just what was done. Of course it 
 was unjust and cruel, but the men were angry 
 at the death of the miners, and at such times 
 did not stop to think of mercy or even of jus 
 tice. They kept up a search for the Indians, 
 but the Yosemites had every advantage, for 
 they were familiar with every hiding-place in 
 the valley. Still the search was so keen that 
 the Yosemites finally fled for shelter to their 
 
294 FOUR BOYS IN THE YOSEMITE 
 
 friends, the Monos, another tribe of Indians 
 whose home was among the Sierras. They 
 were so successfully hidden by their allies that 
 for a long time they were safe. 
 
 " After the pursuit apparently had been 
 abandoned, the report is that the Yosemites, 
 when they saw how successful their friends, the 
 Monos, were in stealing horses from the whites, 
 began to try the same schemes for them 
 selves. So matters went on until the Yosemites 
 gradually made their way back to their old 
 homes in the valley. The report spread that, 
 having been so successful in stealing horses 
 from the whites, they next began to steal from 
 the Monos, and then the troubles began again. 
 
 " The Monos were as bitter as the white 
 men. The Yosemites were more confident now, 
 and, instead of hiding in the canons, they had 
 camps in the valley the largest being at the 
 entrance to Indian Canon. Then one day the 
 stealthy Monos pounced upon them, and there 
 was a fight to the finish. Tenieya was the one 
 warrior whom the Monos were most desirous 
 of securing, but the shrewd old sachem for a 
 time was more than a match for his foes. One 
 of the younger chiefs of the Monos at last drove 
 Tenieya to bay. He discharged arrow after 
 
TO CLOUD S REST 295 
 
 arrow at the fearless old sachem, but was un 
 able to hit him. At last after all his arrows 
 had been used, the young chief threw a stone, 
 which hit Tenieya in the head and felled him 
 to the ground. Instantly all the other braves 
 were braver now, and with one accord they 
 rushed upon their fallen foe, every one throw 
 ing a stone upon the helpless man, until at last 
 he literally was stoned to death. A few of the 
 Yo semite braves escaped, but all the rest were 
 killed that is, all but the old warriors and 
 the women and children." 
 
 " What became of the few braves that es 
 caped? " inquired Scott. 
 
 " Their spirits were broken, their tribe was 
 annihilated, they had no home, they dared not 
 seek a refuge among the Monos, so they all 
 there were only eight, it is said made their 
 way to Hunt s store at Fresno and became 
 guides. Soon after this time many people be 
 gan to go to the Yosemite, and trusty guides 
 were in demand." 
 
 " They are all dead now, aren t they? 
 
 " Yes. These few Diggers you occasionally 
 see here are supposed to be their descendants." 
 
 " The white men must have felt mighty 
 proud of themselves after they had driven the 
 
296 FOUR BOYS IN THE YOSEMITE 
 
 Yo Semites out of their home and had destroyed 
 almost the whole tribe! " said Lee warmly. 
 " It was a low-down trick! " 
 
 " They didn t all feel the same. There was 
 Major Savage, for example; he was in com 
 mand for a time, as I told you. He was so 
 enraged over the way the miners and the 
 whites had acted toward the Yosemites that lie 
 boldly and openly made a protest to the gov 
 ernment. Of course his protest made more 
 trouble, and finally a fellow named Harvey 
 a desperado became so fighting mad at the 
 major that he attacked him." 
 
 "What happened to the major? " asked 
 Scott. 
 
 " He was killed." 
 
 "That s the way of itl " declared Scott. 
 " You let a man stand up for such a people as 
 the Indians and see what happens to him! 
 And yet we are sending protests to Kussia to 
 day against her treatment of the Jews! " 
 
 " What was done to the man that killed the 
 major? " 
 
 " I never heard." 
 
 11 I can tell you! " spoke up Scott. 
 
 "What was it?" said John. 
 
 " Oh, he was treated as a hero. The papers 
 
TO CLOUD S REST 297 
 
 were full of stories of what a brave man he 
 was. Very likely they claimed that he was 
 compelled to shoot the major in self-defense. 
 That s the way it usually is." 
 
 " I think not quite so bad as that," said the 
 old gentleman quietly. " You must not forget 
 the times when these things were done. There 
 was a wild and somewhat reckless class of men 
 that had been drawn here by the gold fever. 
 Then, too, the Indians, though they were with 
 out doubt treated harshly, were not without 
 their faults " 
 
 " Their chief fault was that they happened 
 to have something land or something like that 
 which the white men wanted and took! " 
 exclaimed John. " What a shame our whole 
 treatment of the original Americans has been. 
 I feel as Scott does we ought to pull out our 
 own beams before we pluck out the motes from 
 the eyes of any other nation on earth ! 
 
 " This has all been interesting," remarked 
 Larcum, who had been silent throughout the 
 telling of the story of the death of Tenieya. 
 " I think it s about time we decided on our 
 plans for to-morrow." 
 
 " I guess Jack would like a rest," suggested 
 Scott, mindful of his previous conversation 
 
298 FOUR BOYS IN THE YOSEMITE 
 
 with Larcum. " In fact, I would not mind one 
 myself. 
 
 " I don t want a rest," asserted John 
 promptly. " You fellows seem to think I 
 ought to be rolled up in cotton batting and laid 
 away in the dark." 
 
 " What is a good trip to-morrow; one that 
 is not too hard and yet will help us to see more 
 of this wonderful valley? " inquired Scott of 
 the old gentleman who had been entertaining 
 them. 
 
 " That s hard to tell; there are so many. 
 Perhaps a ride to Mirror Lake would interest 
 you and not be too hard. There s one thing you 
 must not forget the Yosemite is a hard place 
 to see, though what you do see pays for all 
 it costs in labor or time." 
 
 " How far is this Mirror Lake from the Sen 
 tinel Hotel? " asked Lee. 
 
 " About three miles." 
 
 " Can we drive all the way? " 
 
 "Yes, sir." 
 
 " What do we see when we get there? " 
 
 " That depends upon the time you start." 
 
 "How is that? " 
 
 " At this time of the year, if you reach the 
 lake about eight o clock in the morning, you ll 
 
TO CLOUD S REST 299 
 
 see a marvelous reflection of the North and 
 South Domes. You ll see a reflection of Mount 
 Watkins, too. The surface of the lake in the 
 early morning is usually without a ripple, and 
 the picture of the great peaks in it is some 
 thing you ll never forget. If you are there 
 about eight, you ll see the sun rise over the 
 Half Dome, and you ll see it all right in the 
 waters of the lake. That s the way it got its 
 name. Sometimes, when there is a full moon, 
 you can get a wonderful sight at night, too." 
 
 " That suits me everything except getting 
 up so early," laughed Lee. 
 
 " You can stand that once in your life," 
 said Scott. " You won t be coming this way 
 again very soon, and you ought to make the 
 most of your chance now." 
 
 " We ll be back here by noon," suggested 
 John. " We ought to be thinking of what 
 we ll do then or will you leave that till the 
 time comes? " 
 
 " You might take a drive about the valley 
 itself in the afternoon," said the old gentle 
 man. " That will fully repay you." 
 
 " That s what we ll do, then," said John, 
 " What do you say, Larc! " he added, turning 
 to his huge friend as he spoke. 
 
300 FOUR BOYS IN THE YO SEMITE 
 
 " I say it s fine; though I don t believe I ll 
 join you," replied Larcum. 
 
 " Why not! What are you going to do? " 
 inquired John. 
 
 " Larc s too tired," laughed Lee. " If you 
 carry a mountain of flesh up a mountain of 
 granite, what will you have when you come 
 down? 
 
 " It s a great waste of energy for a man 
 to have too much to carry around with him," 
 said Scott soberly. " Now look at Lee. He 
 doesn t really cast a shadow, he s so thin. No 
 wonder he s ready for something more to-mor 
 row. You d better let Larc sleep late and 
 leave him alone." 
 
 " Yes," joined in Larcum drowsily. " Don t 
 call me in the morning. You all just start off 
 early to see the sun rise in Mirror Lake. I ll 
 take your word for it all when you come 
 back." 
 
 11 Poor little Larkie," laughed Scott, as he 
 arose and patted his huge friend on the shoul 
 ders. " No wonder his fond mother is fear 
 ful her little boy works too hard for the T. G. 
 & P." 
 
 Early the following morning, a full hour 
 before the other boys were out of bed, Larcum 
 
TO CLOUD S REST 301 
 
 had breakfasted and, mounted upon a hardy 
 pony, was riding along the trail that led to the 
 summit of Cloud s Best. Beside him, mounted 
 upon another horse, was the man who had come 
 from San Francisco the preceding day. Be 
 hind the saddle of the man a bundle was 
 strapped, and in the bundle was a coil of rope, 
 which had puzzled Lareurn, though he had 
 asked no questions concerning his companion s 
 purpose. 
 
 In silence the two riders proceeded on their 
 way, and soon were on the steeper trail which 
 led to the peak they were seeking. As they 
 drew nearer the lofty summit, Larcum saw that 
 the massive walls of the Yosemite were in plain 
 view. Beyond were the towering heights of 
 the high Sierras. Across Tenaya Canon (the 
 present form of spelling the name of the heroic 
 old chieftain of the Yosemite tribe) rose the 
 summit of Mount Watkins, eighty-three hun 
 dred feet in height. The tips of Mount Hoff 
 man, Tenaya s Peak (with the glistening wa 
 ters of the lake of the same name far below), 
 of Lyell, Clark, Starr King, Dana, and other 
 mountains came forth into view. Yet, impres 
 sive as the wild scenery was, Larcum was think 
 ing far more of the purpose of the early morn- 
 
302 FOUR BOYS IN THE YO SEMITE 
 
 ing ride than lie was of the grandeur of the 
 lofty mountains all about him. 
 
 Suddenly Larcum s companion halted, and, 
 in a low voice, said: " There s a horse just 
 ahead of us. It s loose, too. What does it 
 mean? " 
 
 Larcum did not reply, and in a moment the 
 horse, which his companion had seen, ap 
 proached. A saddle and bridle were still on 
 the animal, though the latter was broken. 
 
 " Look here! This is strange! " Larcum s 
 companion suddenly leaped to the ground as he 
 spoke, and, leaving his horse, at once drew near 
 the border of a canon beside the trail. Stoop 
 ing, he picked up a coat from the ground, and, 
 turning to Larcum, he inquired, i Do you know 
 whose this is? " 
 
 " Yes," said Larcum slowly, after he had 
 inspected the garment. " It s the coat that re 
 porter wore yesterday." 
 
CHAPTER XXV 
 
 THE DISCOVERY IN THE CANON" 
 
 " You hold both horses. I ll be back in a 
 minute," said Larcum s companion, as he 
 hastily tossed his bridle to the young giant 
 and again turned toward the border of the 
 trail. 
 
 Larcum grasped both bridles and watched 
 the man as he threw himself on the ground 
 and peered over the edge into the depths of 
 the canon below him. The horse, which had 
 been found riderless on the way, approached 
 Larcum and was greeted by a low whinny of 
 recognition from the animals he was holding. 
 Plainly the three were from the same stable 
 and recognized one another in the meeting on 
 the mountainside. Larcum, however, was too 
 deeply interested in what his companion was 
 doing to give much attention to the horses. He 
 saw the man lying prone on the ground, still 
 peering into the depths below him. 
 
 Several minutes elapsed before the man 
 
 303 
 
304 FOUR BOYS IN THE YO SEMITE 
 
 arose, and then lie turned back to Larcum and 
 said gently: " I wish you would go up there 
 where I was and look down into the canon. See 
 what you can make of the sight right near the 
 crag below the oak. I don t mean the main 
 canon; just the little spur that is right below 
 you. There s something interesting there 
 which I should like to have you see. Perhaps 
 your eyes are keener than mine." 
 
 Without a word Larcum quickly sought the 
 place indicated by his companion. Throwing 
 himself on the ground, he peered over the bor 
 der at the depths below him. At first the im 
 pression of the awfulness of the depths almost 
 appalled him. Bleak rocks, bare stretches of 
 granite in the precipices, the little stream far 
 down in the valley that looked no larger than 
 a tiny brook, were below him. The very silence 
 that rested over the region was like a pall. 
 The scene was grand, but for a time Larcum 
 was unable to discover anything which might 
 have aroused the manifest interest of the man 
 who had gazed so long into the depths. Ke- 
 calling the specific directions which had been 
 given him, he looked away from the main 
 canon to the part, or spur, which was more 
 directly beneath him. He saw the jutting crag, 
 
THE AWFULNESS OF THE DEPTHS ALMOST APPALLED HIM. Page 304. 
 
THE DISCOVERT IN THE CANON 305 
 
 the overhanging oak, but for a time was un 
 able to see anything more. Suddenly Larcum 
 uttered a low exclamation. What was that 
 right by the loose rocks at the foot of the 
 crag! Surely it could not be the body of a 
 man! And yet, as Larcum gazed intently at 
 the object, he became more and more convinced 
 that he was looking at the body of some one 
 who had fallen to the depths below. A feeling 
 of horror crept over him as he made out the 
 outlines. The legs were in plain sight, an out 
 stretched arm extended over the edge of the 
 rock, though the head could not be seen. Was 
 this the reporter? Larcum looked still more 
 earnestly at the motionless body. There was 
 no evidence of life to be seen, and a hasty re 
 flection convinced the excited young giant that 
 no one could have fallen to those depths and 
 still be living. The crag must be at least two 
 hundred feet below the place where he was 
 lying. 
 
 " What do you find! " 
 
 Larcum looked up as he heard the question 
 and found his companion standing beside him. 
 " Some one has fallen," he said, trembling as 
 he spoke. 
 
 " You can see the body, can you? " 
 
306 FOUR BOYS IN THE YOSEMITE 
 
 " Yes, it s straight down there, right by the 
 rock as you said." 
 
 " Can you make out the head? " 
 
 " No. I can see only the body, the legs, and 
 one arm." 
 
 " Can you see the hand of that arm! " 
 
 " No," replied Larcum, as he looked again 
 at the body far below. 
 
 11 And you say you can t make out the 
 head? " 
 
 " No." 
 
 "Why is that?" 
 
 "You don t mean you don t suppose 
 you " began Larcum. 
 
 " I don t imply anything," broke in the 
 man sharply. " All I want to know is 
 just what you can see. How wide do you 
 think that shelf is, the one where the body 
 is resting? " 
 
 " I can t estimate it very well. Comparing 
 it with the body there, I should say it must be 
 six or eight feet." 
 
 " You are sure the arm is over the edge of 
 the rock? " 
 
 " Yes. I can see that very plainly." 
 
 " Yet you can t see the hand? " 
 
 " No," replied Larcum, after he had taken 
 
THE DISCOVERY IN THE CANON 307 
 
 another long look. " I can t see the hand. 
 Why? " 
 
 Ignoring the question, the man continued, 
 " Is the body lying on its face or on its back? " 
 
 " I should say on its face. I can t just make 
 it out, though." 
 
 " Can you tell the color of the clothes? 
 
 " There isn t any coat," said Larcum slowly, 
 glancing at the coat which had been found on 
 the trail as he spoke. " The trousers seem 
 to be of the same color as this coat," he added, 
 in a voice still lower. 
 
 " And so you conclude? 
 
 " That they belonged to the same person. 
 The man left his coat here and then slipped 
 or fell into the canon." 
 
 "How? " 
 
 " That I can t say." 
 
 " Do you find any marks of a struggle? " 
 
 " No; but I should not expect to find any. 
 If a man slipped or toppled over here, he d go 
 straight to the rocks below." 
 
 " Is that rock directly beneath us or does 
 it jut out for a few feet? How do you measure 
 that with your eye? " 
 
 " It juts out a few feet." 
 
 " That is my opinion. Just one thing more. 
 
308 FOUR BOYS IN THE YO SEMITE 
 
 Do you suppose, if you were to fall over here, 
 you would strike in about the place where this 
 body lies? " 
 
 " Perhaps not exactly, but it s almost in line 
 with us." 
 
 11 Suppose you did fall over and struck the 
 rock there, what would happen to you? " 
 
 " Just what has happened to this poor chap." 
 
 " Do you think so? Suppose we try it? " 
 
 " What do you mean? " said Larcum quickly, 
 glancing sharply at his companion as he spoke. 
 
 There was a faint trace of a smile on the 
 stranger s face, but, without speaking, he 
 picked up a stone the size of his hand and 
 dropped it to the cliff. The stone struck the 
 rocky projection true to its aim, and bounded 
 far over the border and fell into the depths of 
 the greater canon. 
 
 66 We ll try it once more," said the man. 
 Again he dropped a stone, somewhat larger 
 than the one he had just used, and this one also 
 bounded from the cliff as its predecessor had 
 done. " Let me try it with this," once more 
 said the stranger, as he lifted in his arms the 
 fallen branch of a tree. The small log was 
 borne to the border of the trail, and a moment 
 later was pushed over. Falling, the branch 
 
THE DISCOVERY IN THE CANON 309 
 
 struck the cliff, and, like the rocks that had 
 preceded it, it plunged over the edge and fell 
 noiselessly into the far depths of the canon. 
 
 1 * What is all that for ? asked Larcum, puz 
 zled to understand what the actions of his 
 companion meant. " I don t see what you re 
 trying to do." 
 
 " Not one of those stones or that log lodged 
 there on the cliff, did it? 
 
 " No. What of it? " 
 
 " Do you really think that if a man should 
 fall here and should strike the crags below that 
 he would lodge there! Don t you believe 
 that his body would bound or roll over the 
 edge! " 
 
 " I hadn t thought of that." 
 
 "Well, I have." 
 
 " Don t you really think that is the body of 
 some man that fell into the canon! " asked 
 Larcum soberly. 
 
 "I m not saying it isn t." 
 
 " How could it be anything else! A man s 
 body might be caught there and held. It s 
 different from a falling rock or a piece of 
 wood." 
 
 "Yes; it s different." 
 
 " What are you going to do now? " 
 
310 FOUR BOYS IN THE YOSEMITE 
 
 " Did the reporter say anything about his 
 expecting any one to come? " 
 
 " Not a word, though his friend came up 
 here, too." 
 
 " So you said." 
 
 " What has become of him? " 
 
 " If the reporter fell over the cliff, what do 
 you think his friend would be likely to do? " 
 
 " Go back to the hotel for help." 
 
 " Precisely." 
 
 " And, because we haven t seen him, you 
 think he didn t go? " 
 
 " That fact is not to be ignored." 
 
 11 But there may be other trails," suggested 
 Larcum. " He might have gone down some 
 one that we haven t seen." 
 
 " That s possible." 
 
 " Then I don t see what you re driving at." 
 
 " How long was it that the reporter said 
 he might be gone? " 
 
 " Three days." 
 
 I want you to take your horse and the one 
 we found here loose on the trail and go back 
 to the hotel." 
 
 11 When? " 
 
 " After luncheon. We ll have that now." 
 
 " Aren t you going back? " 
 
THE DISCOVERY IN THE CANON 311 
 
 " Not now." 
 
 " When will you come? " 
 
 " It all depends. I am of the opinion that 
 no one at the Sentinel knows that we came up 
 here this morning. " 
 
 " Except the hostler," suggested Larcum. 
 
 61 I hardly think he does, but the fact that 
 you are bringing two horses back will satisfy 
 him." 
 
 " He may recognize this other horse as the 
 one he let the reporter have yesterday. What 
 can I tell him if he should ask me about that? " 
 
 " Don t tell him anything. Just let him 
 have the horse. I shall trust you not to say 
 that I am still up here on the trail to Cloud s 
 Kest. Besides, I may be back very soon, any 
 way." 
 
 " I ll do my best," said Larcum, still mysti 
 fied by the directions he had received and puz 
 zled still more by the plan of his companion 
 to remain alone on the mountain. 
 
 The luncheon they had brought, however, was 
 an added incentive to silence, and the young 
 giant was soon so busily engaged in his repast 
 that the absence of conversation was in part at 
 least ignored. 
 
 A half -hour afterward Larcum mounted his 
 
312 FOUR BOYS IN THE Y OS E MITE 
 
 horse and prepared for the descent of the 
 mountain. " Do you want me to stay near 
 the hotel until you come back? " he inquired, 
 as he lifted the bridle rein. 
 
 " No. Go ahead with your plans just as if 
 I wasn t anywhere in the country." 
 
 Still mystified and a trifle angry that he 
 should have been eliminated from the plan of 
 his recent companion, Larcum followed the 
 downward trail. The riderless horse followed 
 closely and apparently did not require any 
 attention. 
 
 As Larcum rode on, the strange suspicions 
 and stranger actions of the man with whom he 
 had set forth in the early morning from the 
 Sentinel Hotel became more puzzling to him as 
 he thought them over. Was it not truly the 
 body of the reporter which had been discov 
 ered on the cliff? And why did the man desire 
 to remain alone on the mountain? What did 
 it all mean? 
 
 The puzzled young traveler had not found 
 any solution when at last he turned from the 
 steep trail into the level road of the valley. He 
 was still busied with his conjectures when he 
 was aroused by a hail from an approaching 
 carriage. Glancing quickly behind him as he 
 
THE DISCOVERY. IN THE CAffON 313 
 
 recognized the voice of John, he saw his three 
 friends seated in the surrey, which was only a 
 few yards in his rear. 
 
 " "Where have you been, I/arc? " inquired 
 John, as the rider halted for his friends to 
 come nearer. l Why have you got two horses ? 
 You didn t ride them both, did you? " 
 
 " Not at the same time," replied Larcum 
 quietly. 
 
 " What did you leave us behind for, Larc? " 
 
 " You were all more tired than I was. I 
 didn t want to take a nice old-ladylike ride. I 
 wanted the real thing." 
 
 " You must have had it," laughed Scott, " if 
 the dejected appearance of your horses goes 
 for anything." 
 
 " I did. Where have you been? What have 
 you been doing? 
 
 This morning we rode up to Mirror Lake 
 and saw the sunrise in the lake. It was one 
 of the finest sights I ever saw! " said John, 
 with enthusiasm. 
 
 " It isn t so fine, as you call it, as to see 
 it rise in the sky. If you would get up early 
 enough some morning to see that " 
 
 " That s all right, Larc," broke in Lee. 
 " You are about like everybody else that al- 
 
314 FOUR BOYS IN THE YOSEMITE 
 
 ways insists that the thing you didn t see was 
 the one thing you ought never to have missed." 
 
 Larc, did you see any wild animals on your 
 trip to-day? " asked Scott. 
 
 "No. Did your 
 
 " What kind of an animal is it, Larc, that 
 has one horn, a greenlike outer covering, is 
 dangerous if you get too near it, can make as 
 good time as a racehorse " 
 
 " I guess you saw a cow," interrupted Lar- 
 cum. 
 
 " No. It wasn t a cow," said Scott soberly. 
 1 I know what a cow is like, for I saw one once 
 when I was in the country. Besides, a cow has 
 more than one horn." 
 
 " Then it must have been either an automo 
 bile or a rhinoceros," said Larcum dryly, as 
 starting his horse into a run, he speedily left 
 Ms companions. 
 
CHAPTER XXVI 
 
 COACHING AGAIN 
 
 40 
 
 MINDFUL of the words which the man, whom 
 the railroad people had sent into the valley in 
 response to his message, had spoken, Larcum 
 endeavored to banish from his mind his inter 
 est in the outcome of the search. As the days 
 passed and not a word of the reporter or his 
 companion was heard, nor did the stranger 
 himself return to the Sentinel Hotel, Larcum s 
 feeling of interest somehow, in a measure, de 
 parted. It seemed to the young giant that his 
 own suggestions and investigations had been 
 entirely ignored. His word had been deemed of 
 sufficient importance to warrant the sending of 
 a man to the scene. His aid had been invoked 
 to the extent of asking him to accompany the 
 man at least a part of the way on the trail to 
 the summit of Cloud s Eest, and then he had 
 been abruptly dismissed. The recollection of 
 the sight of the body of the unknown man who 
 had fallen into the canon was still vivid in Lar- 
 
 315 
 
316 FOUR BOYS IN THE YOSEMITE 
 
 cum s mind, though, after the questions his 
 companion had asked, he was by no means 
 positive that it really was the body of a man 
 he had seen. But, if not the corpse of some un 
 fortunate traveler, what was it! His perplex 
 ity was increased by the story which the Cali 
 fornia college boy related of an accident that 
 had occurred the preceding summer, when a 
 party of three young men had insisted upon 
 going to the projecting rock at Glacier Point, 
 unaccompanied by a guide, and one of the trio 
 had slipped and fallen, in the ascent, upon the 
 rocks far below. A search of two days had 
 been required before the body of the unfortu 
 nate boy had been found and secured, and then 
 only after long and severe exertions on the 
 part of the band which had volunteered to make 
 the search. 
 
 Larcum was beginning to question his own 
 long-continued silence. Was he doing right 
 in withholding the report of what had occurred 
 when he and his companion had make their 
 grewsome discovery? Suppose the stranger 
 was not what he had represented himself to 
 be? Larcum had no proofs, and the man had 
 not suggested, much less presented, any papers 
 of identification. Larcum was so sincere in his 
 
COACHING AGAIN 317 
 
 feelings that the fact that the railroad company 
 would not be likely to have sent any papers to 
 him, a boy, did not present itself. He was 
 troubled, and his manifest anxiety was noted 
 by his friends. Not even to Scott, however, to 
 whom he previously had explained some of his 
 fears or misgivings, did he now talk of the mat 
 ter which was uppermost in his own mind. 
 
 The time, however, was fully occupied, and, 
 if Larcum did not completely enter into the 
 spirit of travel in the wonderful valley, there 
 was no lack of interest on the part of his three 
 companions. Led by a guide, the four boys 
 climbed Mount Watkins, camping out for a 
 night on its summit and returned the follow 
 ing day to their hotel. Another expedition, 
 to the Tuolumne Canon, twelve miles distant, 
 with its numerous waterfalls in the stream 
 that ran through the canon, almost parallel to 
 the course of the boisterous Merced, was doubly 
 interesting, not only from its own beauty, but 
 also from the grandeur of the immense over 
 hanging cliffs. 
 
 A ride on horseback twenty miles below to 
 the Hetch Hetchy Valley, a marvelous counter 
 part of the Yosemite Valley itself, though on 
 a much smaller scale, had provided its own 
 
318 FOUR BOYS IN THE TO SEMITE 
 
 interest in its numerous waterfalls and frown 
 ing cliffs. The Tuolumne meadows, Mount 
 Starr King, the top of Sentinel Dome, all were 
 visited, and, had it not been for the opposition 
 of La r cum, the ascent of Mount Lyell would 
 have been attempted, as the guide whom 
 they had daily employed was most eager to 
 take his interesting party up the difficult 
 trail. 
 
 " It ll take four days," suggested Larcum 
 grimly, when the boys were discussing the 
 guide s suggestion the evening after their re 
 turn from the ascent of Mount Starr King. 
 " Isn t that so, guide? " 
 
 " "We might do it in three and a half days," 
 replied the guide. 
 
 Larcum laughed as he said, " That is better, 
 but we can t count on that, I m sure." 
 
 "What s a little matter of a half -day to 
 you, Larc? " asked John. 
 
 " I ll have to be getting back to my office, or 
 the T. G. & P. will be in trouble. You seem 
 to forget that I am a business man." 
 
 " That s why you didn t want to go on when 
 we were in the Hetch Hetchy Valley," said 
 Scott. " I believe in doing things right when 
 you are on the spot." 
 
COACHING AGAIN 319 
 
 " Why don t you, then! " retorted Larcum. 
 " What more did you want? " 
 
 " I wanted to go to Till Till Valley; it was 
 only five miles farther. Then, there was Lake 
 Eleanor, Lake Vernon, and Mount Kanchesia, 
 and I don t know what else." 
 
 " You might be thinking a little of what 
 you did see, as well as what you didn t," re 
 torted Larcum. " That s always the way with 
 some people! I was reading the other day a 
 funny thing from Punch " 
 
 i You ! broke in Scott derisively. i l You ! 
 Larcum Brown! Do you mean to tell me that 
 you, who didn t enjoy England, 1 and all the 
 while we were there were belittling the coun 
 try, the people, the ruins, the life, and almost 
 everything else you saw you you really found 
 something funny in Punch? It is more won 
 derful than the view from Glacier Point! I 
 can t make it seem true " 
 
 " Keep still, Scott, and let Larc tell his 
 story," interrupted John. 
 
 " An Englishman was riding along a street 
 in a little village " 
 
 " Where? When? What? Who? Why? " 
 broke in Scott. 
 
 1 See " Four boys and a Fortune." 
 
320 FOUR BOYS IN THE YOSEMITE 
 
 " An Englishman was riding along a vil 
 lage street in a motor 
 
 61 In a what? " again interrupted Scott. 
 
 " If you don t keep still, this story will be 
 continued in our next, " said Larcum. 
 
 " Go on. I ll be good if there s any fear of 
 that." 
 
 " As I was saying, an Englishman was driv 
 ing his own car once through the street of a 
 little village. He wasn t keeping as good a 
 lookout as he ought, and all at once, when he 
 turned a sharp corner, he ran right into a 
 butcher-boy who was carrying a basket on his 
 arm. The basket was full of chops, bacon, liver, 
 and kidneys " 
 
 " So was the boy," suggested Scott. 
 
 " Keep still, I tell you! " commanded Lar 
 cum. " The English motorist was going at a 
 pretty good pace, and, not keeping a good 
 lookout, when he turned the corner he ran 
 straight into the butcher-boy, striking him 
 squarely in the back." 
 
 " Did it hurt? " 
 
 " Of course the boy was thrown to the 
 ground, and everything in his basket was sent 
 in every direction. The English motorist was 
 really a very kind-hearted gentleman, and, 
 
COACHING AGAIN 321 
 
 when lie saw the damage he had done, he in 
 stantly stopped his car, jumped out, and ran to 
 the help of his victim. Lifting the lad in his 
 arms, the English gentleman tenderly said, 
 1 Are you hurt, my lad? 
 
 " Well, was he? What did the English lad 
 have to say for himself? " demanded Scott, as 
 his friend remained silent. 
 
 " Go on, Larc! Tell us all ahout it," added 
 Lee. 
 
 " What do you stop there for? Is that the 
 end of the story? " added John. 
 
 " The boy was dazed," said Larcum, after 
 a brief silence. " The story is so pathetic 
 that, whenever I tell it, I always make it a rule 
 to stop where I did for a minute or two to re 
 cover my self-possession." 
 
 " Same as some trains stop twenty minutes 
 for refreshments," laughed Scott. 
 
 " Well, the poor, dazed, little, defenseless 
 English butcher-boy who, with his basket of or 
 ders on his arm, had been so ruthlessly bumped 
 by the English gentleman that had hit him in 
 the back with his mo lor and scattered the con 
 tents of his basket all about the village street, 
 at last was able to comprehend the query of 
 his terrified and anxious questioner. Kubbing 
 
322 FOUR BOYS IN THE YO SEMITE 
 
 his little eyes with both his tiny, eke greasy, 
 also grimy, ditto dirty, likewise chubby little 
 fists, he feebly ejaculated: i Where s my liver? 
 "Where are my kidneys? " 
 
 " Is that a true story, Larc? " asked Lee. 
 
 " I saw it in Punch." 
 
 " Is it funny? " 
 
 " I saw it in Punch." 
 
 " Some of the funniest people in the 
 world " began Scott. 
 
 " Tell us the joke, Larc! " pleaded John. 
 
 " Had the poor little English lad really 
 lost his lights and his liver? " asked Lee 
 soberly. 
 
 " That s the joke," retorted Larcum. " You 
 are just beginning to see it." 
 
 11 What has all that to do with me, Larc? " 
 said Scott. " I must say that I am not at this 
 moment conscious of the loss of any of my 
 anatomical possessions." 
 
 " No; but you will be," said Larcum. " Just 
 as soon as you get home you ll begin to talk 
 of the things you didn t see. You ll forget all 
 about the Sentinel and the Three Brothers and 
 the Yosemite Falls and the Bridal Veil, and 
 you ll be saying every time that we wouldn t 
 let you see Tell Tale Valley, nor " 
 
COACHING AGAIN 323 
 
 " Till Till Valley, Larc," suggested Scott, 
 with a laugh. 
 
 "It s all the same! " declared Larcum. 
 
 " What is the plan for to-morrow? " asked 
 John. 
 
 " I m ready for anything," said Lee. 
 
 " IVe been thinking that it s about time we 
 started for the Mariposa Grove of Big Trees. 
 We don t want Scott to miss that, and I m quite 
 willing to see it myself before I return to the 
 labors of my official position in the T. G. 
 & P." 
 
 " Have you found out how we are to go? " 
 inquired Scott. 
 
 Yes ; we can take the stage from here to 
 morrow after luncheon and go straight through 
 to Wawona. There s a fine hotel there, and 
 we can stay as long as we want to," said 
 Larcum. 
 
 " I thought you were anxious to get back to 
 work, Larc, suggested Lee. 
 
 " I did not say I was anxious. I said my 
 services might be needed; that s all." 
 
 " How long a ride is it to Wawona? " asked 
 Scott. 
 
 " Let me see it s about four miles to Bridal 
 Veil Falls, and about four more to Inspiration 
 
324 FOUR BOYS IN THE YOSEMITE 
 
 Point, and then, after we ve climbed some 
 more, we go on and on and up and up, and then 
 we go down and down about as many miles 
 more. It must be a ride of sixteen or eighteen 
 miles from here half the way up, and then 
 half the way down before we get into Wa- 
 wona. 
 
 " You say we go up and up how far 
 up? " asked Lee. 
 
 " We have to climb to an elevation of sixty- 
 five hundred feet." 
 
 " Do we ride or walk? " asked John. 
 
 " I say, fellows, let s ride only part of the 
 way," suggested Lee. " We can take the coach 
 halfway and then walk all the rest of the 
 way. It ll be going down hill then, Larc 
 
 That s a good suggestion, Lee," said Lar- 
 We can send our baggage all on by 
 the coach to Wawona, and it ll be there when 
 we arrive." 
 
 11 Do you want to tramp through the woods 
 and over these mountains after dark! " asked 
 Scott. " You know there are bears and moun 
 tain lions and 
 
 " Squirrels and deer, and woodpeckers, too," 
 suggested Lee. 
 
COACHING AGAIN 325 
 
 " All right; I m not complaining. I ll be 
 ready if all the rest of you are," said Scott 
 quickly. 
 
 As soon as luncheon had been served the fol 
 lowing day, the four boys secured seats in the 
 coach for Wawona. The summer day was 
 warm, but the four horses, the prospect of a 
 ride into a region they had not as yet seen, 
 the interest of their fellow-passengers among 
 whom was their newly formed acquaintance, the 
 California college boy as well as the prospect 
 of beholding the wonderful giants among all 
 the trees of the world, all combined to increase 
 the interest of the young travelers. 
 
 A steady but not swift gait was maintained 
 by the horses as the road led through the level 
 sandy stretch of the Yosemite Valley itself. 
 Back over the way by which they had entered, 
 the coach at first moved until another and final 
 view of the Bridal Veil Falls, almost directly 
 above the party, was had. 
 
 Then, following the rough road that led up 
 the side of the mountain, the four horses slowly 
 drew the heavily-laden coach. Up and still 
 farther upward the toilsome ascent was made, 
 until at last the coach halted on Inspiration 
 Point. 
 
326 FOUR BOYS IN THE YOSEMITE 
 
 Here the most wonderful of all the views of 
 the wonderful valley were to be had. The bleak 
 precipices that formed its sides, the many wa 
 terfalls some only tiny ribbons of water and 
 others vying in grandeur with the tremendous 
 Yosemite Falls itself on the farther side of the 
 little plain were all within plain sight. Di 
 rectly beneath, and far below the very spot 
 where the coach had halted, were crags and 
 majestic trees, and away down in the depths 
 of the valley below the silver Merced sped 
 swiftly on its way. 
 
 For a tune all the travelers were silent as 
 they gazed at the awe-inspiring sight. Larcum 
 was the first of the four boys to speak, as he 
 said, " It s only eight or ten miles more. Let s 
 walk." 
 
 His suggestion was at once acted upon, and, 
 as the boys leaped to the ground, not one of 
 them was aware that one of the most exciting 
 experiences of their trip was before them. 
 
CHAPTER XXVII 
 
 A MOUNTAIN LION 
 
 WAITING for the coach to precede them, so 
 as to avoid the heavy clouds of dust which the 
 horses and the great wheels stirred up, the five 
 boys for Dana Watkins, the California col 
 lege boy, as has been said, had joined them 
 turned to follow the road which led along the 
 mountainside. The air was cool and invigorat 
 ing, and back among the trees frequent glimpses 
 were had of dull-colored banks of snow, which 
 even the heat of the summer sun had not en 
 tirely melted. Occasional glimpses of the deep 
 valleys beyond were also had. The flight of a 
 bird and the sound of the wind in the tall tree- 
 tops were matters of interest in the solitude of 
 the wonderful forests. 
 
 " This is great! " exclaimed Lee, with en 
 thusiasm. " I m glad I came." 
 
 " You have a good long tramp before you," 
 suggested Scott. " Maybe you would do bet- 
 
 327 
 
328 FOUR BOYS IN THE YOSEMITE 
 
 ter if you should wait until we re in the hotel 
 at Wawona before you let your delight run 
 away with you." 
 
 " Where is that t good long tramp ? " 
 laughed Lee. " I fancied we were the only 
 ones here, now that the coach has gone on 
 .ahead of us." 
 
 " Oh, quit that! " retorted Scott. 
 
 <c But you referred to a l tramp/ " persisted 
 Lee. "I ll leave it to the boys." 
 
 " Scott probably was thinking of the men 
 that held up our train; he didn t mean just 
 the regulation tramp, you see," suggested 
 John. 
 
 " By the way, has anything more been heard 
 of those men! " asked Dana. 
 
 "Better ask Larc," said John. "He has 
 had that particular task in hand. In fact, I 
 think he has already invested two or three 
 times over the amount he was to receive as 
 a reward. Heard anything new, Larc? " 
 asked John, as he turned to his big com 
 panion. 
 
 " You see the papers as much as I do," 
 growled Larcum. 
 
 * Yes, I know I do ; but the newspapers 
 haven t had a word about these fellows for sev- 
 
A MOUNTAIN LION 329 
 
 eral days, or, if they have, I haven t seen any 
 thing. " 
 
 " Well, you ve seen as much as I have," was 
 Larcum s rejoinder. 
 
 " Look yonder, fellows! " exclaimed John, 
 pointing eagerly, as he spoke, to a flower of 
 brilliant red that was growing on a bank not 
 far away. 
 
 " That s the snow flower," said Scott, as all 
 the boys turned aside to examine the beautiful 
 plant. "It is said to be the reddest flower 
 that grows." 
 
 " It looks like a big piece of crimson aspara 
 gus," said Dana, as the boys leaned low on the 
 bank. 
 
 " Why is it called the snow flower ! " asked 
 John. 
 
 " Because it grows on a bank where there 
 has been a snowdrift, and it comes up soon 
 after the snow is melted. The flower is larger 
 and brighter in the Yosemite than anywhere 
 else in the world." 
 
 " Outside the world I suppose you find it 
 just as red as it is here in the Yosemite, don t 
 you? " inquired John soberly. 
 
 "I ve never been farther east than Denver," 
 laughed Dana. 
 
330 FOUR BOYS IN THE YOSEMITE 
 
 " Oh, you ought to see it in Boston! " said 
 Larcum mockingly. " There I m sure it beats 
 the world. " 
 
 " It would if we should plant it, I m sure, 
 too," retorted John. 
 
 "I m sure that you re sure, all right," said 
 Larcum. " I think I ll pull up one and ship 
 it to Chicago for a trial there." 
 
 " Don t you do it! " exclaimed Dana quickly. 
 
 i Why not 1 demanded Larcum, turning 
 quickly to Dana. 
 
 " There s a law against picking any flowers 
 in the valley." 
 
 " This isn t the valley; this is the side of a 
 mountain! " declared Larcum, as he advanced 
 to pull the brilliant flower from the ground. 
 
 " Don t do it, Larc! " pleaded John. 
 
 " Why not? " again demanded the young 
 giant. 
 
 " It s against the law." 
 
 " l Law! Law! There can t be any law 
 here. Besides, no one would see me except you, 
 and you don t count." 
 
 " The law is the same whether any one sees 
 you or not." 
 
 " All right; I ll be good," assented Larcum, 
 with a laugh. 
 
A MOUNTAIN LION 331 
 
 " Look at that bush yonder," said John, 
 eager to change the subject of conversation. 
 " Its back is a deep red, and its branches are 
 all twisted and tangled. It s a mighty striking 
 thing. What is it? " 
 
 " Manzanita bush," answered Dana. 
 
 61 What s that? " 
 
 " The name of the bush you re looking at. 
 You ll find lots of them in the Yosemite 
 [Valley." 
 
 " I ve seen lots of them already," said Lar- 
 cum. " Jack has been so busy thinking how 
 many parasangs Clearchus could march in a 
 day over these mountains that he s just got 
 around to see this bush." 
 
 " It s a beauty, anyway," said John 
 quietly. 
 
 " You re certainly correct in your opinion," 
 joined in Scott, as the boys resumed their ad 
 vance. "I d like to suggest humbly that 
 you should not forget these great trees all 
 about us. I never saw such timber in my 
 life." 
 
 " Very likely. It doesn t grow in Wall 
 Street; neither on Fifth Avenue," said 
 Larcum. 
 
 " It grows here." 
 
332 FOUR BOYS IN THE YOSEMITE 
 
 " It certainly does. Now, my friend, " Lar- 
 cum added, turning to John, l i tell me what good 
 your study of Greek would do you if you were 
 to come in here to buy a hundred acres of this 
 timber. 
 
 " I wouldn t buy it to cut it down. I d feel 
 as if I d almost committed homicide to use an 
 ax on one of these trees. I ll tell you what 
 I ll do, though, Larc," John added quickly. 
 " I ll match my Greek against your knowledge 
 of pork, and we ll see which of us can tell the 
 most of the different kinds of trees we can see 
 from here." 
 
 11 Done," said Larcum promptly. " We ll 
 stop right where we are and try the trick. 
 What is that great tree yonder! " he asked, as 
 he pointed to a marvelously symmetrical tree 
 to his right. 
 
 "It s a pine," answered John. 
 
 " Correct. There s one for each of us," 
 he added, speaking to Scott. " You keep 
 tally." 
 
 " But how is it one for each of us ? " asked 
 John. " I was the one that told." 
 
 " But I knew, the same as you did," said 
 Larcum. 
 
 " Did you! " laughed John. " Well, I ll go 
 
A MOUNTAIN LION 333 
 
 one better then. What kind of a pine is it, 
 Larc? " 
 
 " Why it s a it s just a pine tree," replied 
 Larcum lamely. 
 
 "It s a sugar pine," continued John. 
 " In botany it s known as the Pinus lamber- 
 tiana." 
 
 "Is it?" 
 
 "Yes, sir; it is. Honestly, Larc, did you 
 know that? " 
 
 " I didn t know all the Greek names; mod 
 ern English is good enough for me." 
 
 " That s one for me alone isn t it, 
 fellows? " demanded John of his com 
 panions. 
 
 " It surely is! Yes. That s right, Jack! " 
 they declared. 
 
 " Very good. One for Larc and two for me. 
 Now it s my turn. Larc, what s that tree right 
 in line with the sugar pine that big fellow, 
 the third tree back? " 
 
 " That s a pine, too." 
 
 " Sure? " 
 
 " Yes." 
 
 " Well, what kind of a pine is it? It s not 
 like the sugar pine. You look at its cones and 
 you ll see. The sugar pines have cones that 
 
334 FOUR BOYS IN THE YO SEMITE 
 
 are twenty inches long. You can see them there 
 on the ground." 
 
 "It s a pine tree, and that s enough for 
 me." 
 
 It s a yellow pine, Larc. Its botanical name 
 is Pinus ponderosa." 
 
 " Go on ! Pine is good enough for me. 
 
 " Two for Larc, four for me," said John. 
 Disregarding his friend s protest, he inquired, 
 " Do you see that beautiful tree off to the 
 left? " 
 
 " You mean that fir tree, don t you? " 
 
 " Yes; but what kind of a fir is it? " 
 
 " Bostonensis swelled headibus," replied 
 Larcum promptly, as his companions shouted 
 in their delight. 
 
 " No; it s a silver fir," said John soberly. 
 " Abies magnified." 
 
 "Same thing I had in mind!" declared 
 Larcum promptly. " You can t get ahead of 
 me that way. Tell me, Jack, the kind of a tree 
 that is that big one straight across the road 
 from the fir." 
 
 "It s a cedar." 
 
 " Correct. Now, speak up like a little man 
 and tell this assemblage of learned college men 
 its name in Greek." 
 
A MOUNTAIN LION 335 
 
 " I don t know what its Greek name is. Its 
 botanical name is Libocedrus decurrens. What 
 is it in Greek, Larc? " 
 
 " Clear-cuss parasangorum. Didn t you 
 know that, Jack? 
 
 ^ No; I didn t. 7 
 
 " Four for Jack, three for me, then," said 
 Larcum soberly. " Yonder is a wonderful oak 
 just a plain, substantial English oak. Now 
 we re even, I take it." 
 
 " Hold on! exclaimed John. " There s 
 a bushy tree right near the oak. What s 
 that? " 
 
 " Dogwood." 
 
 " What kind of dogwood? " 
 
 " I don t know the breed, though in some 
 ways it looks like a poodle." 
 
 " Cornus florida." 
 
 " Indeed! That s fine. Is that dog-Latin 
 or hog-Latin or Greek? 
 
 " It s botanical. What kind of a wild lilac 
 is that yonder? " 
 
 " Yosemite." 
 
 " Pretty good for you, Larc. It s the Cali 
 fornia lilac." 
 
 " What s its name in pigeon-English? " 
 
 " In Latin it s JEsculus calif arnica. There s 
 
336 FOUR BOYS IN THE YOSEMITE 
 
 another kind of dogwood yonder. Tell us what 
 it is." 
 
 " That, sir," said Larcum, pretending to 
 study the bush critically, " is the old Mother 
 Hubbard variety. It hasn t a bone anywhere 
 in its possession." 
 
 "It s the Buckeye. That s the ffisculus 
 californica, not the California lilac." 
 
 " Two off for Jack. Who wins? " asked 
 Larcum, as the boys resumed their journey. 
 
 " I don t know, and I don t care," said Lee. 
 "I d rather have a good breath of this won 
 derful forest than the dog-eared, leather-bound 
 Latin lexicon that Jack carries around in his 
 cranium." 
 
 " No doubt about that," laughed John, 
 " though I don t think I am any the less im 
 pressed by these great trees because I just hap 
 pen to recall their names as they are known to 
 the learned people of every land. I am very 
 fond of trees " 
 
 " And chips if they are dry enough," broke 
 in Larcum. " Who d want to digest a piece 
 of boiled basswood? And yet, when I think of 
 the diet of the Bostonian elect codfish and 
 dry johnny-cake I don t know but that I d 
 prefer " 
 
A MOUNTAIN LION 337 
 
 Larcum stopped abruptly, as in a low voice 
 Lee called the attention of his companions to 
 a sight in the near-by forest. Not far off to the 
 left of the boys five deer were seen. The timid 
 animals were gazing at the approaching boys, 
 and it was manifest from their attitude that 
 they were governed more by curiosity than 
 fear. 
 
 " I wish I had a gun," whispered Lee excit 
 edly. 
 
 " I m glad you haven t. Who d want to 
 shoot one of those little creatures 1 " said John. 
 " They re so tame you can see their eyes." 
 
 For a moment the boys all stood still, watch 
 ing the graceful little creatures before them. 
 Occasionally the buck stamped his feet impa 
 tiently, as if he was tempted to advance and 
 peer more closely at the strangers. A little 
 fawn leaped about as if it was excited and yet 
 was enjoying the experience. 
 
 11 You re likely to see more of them before 
 we re down the mountain," suggested Dana. 
 " I think we d better go ahead, for we don t 
 want to be out here in the dark. We might 
 run across a bear or something else that 
 wouldn t be so gentle with us 
 
 Dana stopped abruptly as John clutched him 
 
338 FOUR BOYS IN THE YOSEMITE 
 
 by the arm, and in a loud whisper said, as he 
 pointed to a long branch of a tree near where 
 the deer were standing: " Look up there! 
 What s that on that branch? " 
 
 Instantly all the boys were looking at the 
 place indicated by John. Stretched at full 
 length upon a branch of the tree, its coat not 
 unlike the bark in its color, was an animal that 
 to the excited beholders seemed to be not less 
 than six feet in length. The beast was so 
 intently watching the deer beneath it that ap 
 parently it had not noticed the approach of the 
 young travelers. Its great head and long tail, 
 its fierce expression and manifest strength, 
 were of themselves sufficient to inspire terror. 
 Yet the deer, unmindful of the presence of their 
 enemy, were still standing gazing in their una 
 bated curiosity at the intruders in their 
 domain. 
 
 " What is it? " again whispered John. 
 
 " A mountain lion! " replied Dana, in a low 
 voice. 
 
 11 Let s get away from here," said John, 
 glancing fearfully about him. 
 
 No ! No ! Hold on ! Stay where you are 
 ah! Dana uttered an exclamation of anger, 
 for at that moment the deer had turned and 
 
A MOUNTAIN LION 339 
 
 darted swiftly away. As they came beneath 
 the long branch, the mountain lion flung itself 
 upon the fawn and bore it to the ground. 
 
 " Come back! Come back here! " shouted 
 Dana to Larcum, who instantly had grasped a 
 broken branch of a small tree in one hand, and 
 a large rock in the other, and now was run 
 ning swiftly toward the beast. 
 
CHAPTER XXVHI 
 
 THE EOAD IN THE FOREST 
 
 GET a rock ! Find a club ! Everybody get 
 something! " called Dana excitedly, in a low 
 voice. " Larc will be torn into pieces if we 
 don t help him! Come on! Come! " 
 
 Acting immediately upon the suggestion, 
 every boy armed himself with clubs and stones 
 and hastily followed Larcum, who now was ad 
 vancing alone upon the mountain lion, which 
 had not moved since first it had struck the 
 fawn. The other deer had fled into the depths 
 of the forest and were no longer to be seen. 
 
 " Hold on, Larc! Don t do anything! Wait 
 for us! " called Scott, who was running in ad 
 vance of his companions. The young giant, 
 however, was unmindful of the appeal and al 
 ready was near the beast and its prey. 
 
 "Spread out a little, fellows!" ordered 
 Dana, as the boys drew nearer. " Give the lion 
 a chance to slink off into the woods. We d 
 better keep pretty close together and advance 
 
 340 
 
THE EGAD IN THE FOREST 341 
 
 in a semicircle. I wish Larc would let the 
 beast go. It would be better for every one 
 of us if he would. " 
 
 " Larc won t do it," said Lee. " And I 
 don t blame him, either. I wish I had a gun 
 here; I d show that sneaking thief how day 
 light would look inside his ribs." 
 
 " Have we any right to attack it! " asked 
 John. " Don t the laws of the valley prohibit 
 any one from attacking 
 
 " Never mind the laws 9 now, Jack! " said 
 Scott. " We ve got to look out for Larc. If 
 we don t, we ll have to carry him on to Wa- 
 wona in ribbons." 
 
 The boys had now caught up with Larcum, 
 and, to their surprise, he made no objection to 
 the plan suggested by Dana. Spreading out 
 in the form of a semicircle, they all advanced 
 upon the snarling animal, which now had lifted 
 its head and, with its ears flattened and with 
 such an expression of incarnate fury on its 
 face as the boys had never before seen, was 
 watching the approach of its enemies. 
 
 " Better give it up, Larc, and leave the fel 
 low alone," suggested Dana, in a low voice. 
 " The fawn s neck is broken and we can t do 
 anything to help it now." 
 
342 FOUR BOYS IN THE YOSEMITE 
 
 " Think I ll leave that slinking mountain lion 
 to eat up that pretty little fawn? Not on your 
 life!" retorted Larcum. "I ll tackle him 
 alone if the rest of you want to pull off." Lar 
 cum had not turned away his face from the 
 savage beast while he was speaking, and, al 
 most as if in response to the implied challenge, 
 the mountain lion now was watching the young 
 giant almost as if it was aware which of its 
 approaching enemies was most to be feared. 
 
 " No use," said Dana, shaking his head as 
 he glanced at his comrades. " We ll have to do 
 our best if we are to save Larc from the claws 
 of the fiend. Its claws must be at least two 
 inches long." 
 
 " What shall we do? " asked Lee, as the 
 boys halted about twenty-five feet from the 
 growling, snarling beast. " It won t attack us, 
 will it! " 
 
 * That remains to be seen. Every fellow get 
 a rock! " he added, as he glanced about him. 
 As every boy was provided with at least one 
 missile, in addition to the stout club in his 
 hand, Dana said : When I say three every 
 fellow let him have it! Don t miss! I don t 
 know what the lion will do, but follow up your 
 throw with a yell that they can hear back at the 
 
THE ROAD IN THE FOREST 343 
 
 Sentinel Hotel. Shake your coats, wave your 
 handkerchiefs, and jump up and down while 
 you re yelling, and act as if you were going to 
 rush on the sneaking thief. All ready? " he 
 inquired, as he glanced about him. 
 
 " All ready/ said Larcum quietly, as he> 
 too, glanced at the line. John s face was of 
 the color of chalk; Lee was fiercely watching 
 the lion, which, although as yet it had not left 
 its victim, was slowly lashing its tail and emit 
 ting a frequent snarl as if it was prepared 
 either to attack its enemies or defend itself. 
 Scott was keenly excited, though his bearing 
 was quiet, while Dana was divided in his in 
 terest between Larcum and the lion. 
 
 " Now, then," began Dana. " One, two, 
 three! " he shouted. 
 
 Together the five boys flung their missiles 
 at the startled beast. 
 
 "Hi there!" "Get away from here!" 
 " Back to the woods! " called the boys, at the 
 same time brandishing their clubs, on the ends 
 of which both Scott and Lee were waving their 
 coats. 
 
 A fierce scream of anger or of pain came 
 from the crouching beast as the missiles struck 
 him. The stone which Larcum had hurled was 
 
344 FOUR BOYS IN THE Y OS E MITE 
 
 of the size of his fist, and, as the young giant 
 had exerted all his strength in the throw and 
 the rock had struck the beast in its lower jaw, 
 the result was instantly manifest. Two of the 
 other missiles had struck the beast one on 
 its side and the other in one of its fore-legs. 
 Snarling, growling, whining, whimpering, the 
 startled beast drew back a few paces, but in 
 stantly turned about and, lashing its sides with 
 its tail, was facing the boys. 
 
 " Look out! Look out for a spring! " 
 shouted Dana warningly, as Larcum dropped 
 his coat and, with his club in his hands, stepped 
 forward toward the crouching animal. " Look 
 out! Look out! " he cried again, as the young 
 giant apparently gave no heed to the warning 
 cry. 
 
 " Come on, fellows! " called Scott, as he, too, 
 advanced. 
 
 " Keep together! Keep together! " shouted 
 Dana. "Yell! Make a noise! Scare the wits 
 out of him! Shake your coats ! " 
 
 Keeping well together in a line, the five boys 
 slowly moved forward, the lion still growling 
 savagely and watching their every movement. 
 
 " It s going to jump for us! " said John, in 
 a low voice. 
 
THE EGAD IN THE FOREST 345 
 
 "If it does, let him have your club/ sug 
 gested Dana. 
 
 The mountain lion had withdrawn about ten 
 feet from the dead fawn, but it still manifestly 
 was not minded to lose its prey. Keenly watch 
 ing the boys, it suddenly darted forward. 
 
 " Look out! " roared Dana, as John and 
 Scott instantly dropped back. " If you run, 
 it ll get you, sure! " 
 
 Larcum, Dana, and Lee, however, after the 
 first instruction, drawing back as the lion 
 bounded forward, now shouting at the top of 
 their power, were brandishing their clubs 
 and once more were facing the infuriated 
 animal. 
 
 Suddenly the mountain lion leaped upon the 
 body of the fawn, seized it in its powerful grip, 
 flung the carcass upon its shoulders, and then, 
 before the excited boys were fully aware of 
 what was occurring, it turned and, with long 
 bounds, disappeared within the depths of the 
 forest. 
 
 "Whew! That was a close call!" ejacu 
 lated Dana. "I m glad it s gone. I don t 
 think I ever heard or saw a more simon-pure 
 fool- thing in my life," he added, as he turned 
 to Larcum. 
 
346 FOUR BOYS IN THE YO SEMITE 
 
 11 You re young yet," remarked Larcum 
 dryly. 
 
 " Those mountain lions are savage crea 
 tures," continued Dana. " It isn t often 
 they ll attack a man unless they re cornered or 
 are unusually hungry but if they do then 
 you want to look out." 
 
 " Well, this fellow didn t, so I didn t have 
 to look out." 
 
 " If you d been alone, it would have got 
 you." 
 
 " I guess it would have had all it wanted 
 then," laughed Larcum. 
 
 " Larc," said John soberly, " you might 
 have made a serious trouble for us all. It was 
 bad enough to drop me into the Merced when 
 I couldn t swim a stroke, but to have us clawed 
 up by a mountain lion is worse. You had no 
 right to do it." 
 
 " I didn t ask you to lend a hand," retorted 
 Larcum. " I wasn t going to stand by and let 
 that creature tear that poor little fawn into 
 pieces and not do a thing, was I? " 
 
 " And yet, if you had had a gun and there 
 hadn t been any law against using it, what 
 would you yourself have done when you saw 
 those fine deer? " asked John. 
 
THE ROAD IN TEE FOREST 347 
 
 " Probably I d have drawn a bead on one 
 of them." 
 
 " There isn t the slightest doubt of what 
 you d have done, Larc. Now, after all, what 
 did the mountain lion do more than you would 
 have done if you d been allowed to do just what 
 you wanted? 
 
 " All I can say is that the sly, treacherous 
 old villain got what he deserved. At least I 
 let him have one in the jaw." 
 
 " The beast was made to catch or hunt deer, 
 wasn t it? " 
 
 1 1 Oh, there you go with your fine-spun, hair 
 splitting Boston theories. You draw every 
 thing too fine, Jack. Even if what you say is 
 true, it s just as true, isn t it, that the rock in 
 my hand was made to smash the rascal s head 
 with? " 
 
 " Come on! We ll be meeting a whole regi 
 ment of mountain lions or bears if we stay 
 here talking over nothing any longer," said 
 Scott impatiently. " For my part I m sorry 
 the lion got the fawn, and I m not a bit sorry 
 the beast will have the toothache for a day or 
 two. Come on! " 
 
 Briskly the boys resumed their journey, al 
 though the effect of their recent encounter was 
 
348 FOUR BOYS IN THE YOSEMITE 
 
 not entirely gone. The roadway led through 
 the midst of the towering trees cedars, firs, 
 sugar pines lifting their lofty tops so high 
 that it hardly seemed possible that the big 
 trees, which they soon were expecting to see, 
 conld be any larger than the giants among which 
 the boys were now passing. When such com 
 ments were made, Dana smiled and simply 
 said, " Wait." 
 
 " I d like to take one of these great cones 
 home with me," said John, pointing, as he 
 spoke, to the huge cones, some of them twenty 
 inches in length, which strewed the ground on 
 either side of the road. 
 
 i l What would you do with it 1 " laughed 
 Scott. 
 
 " Take it home for a memento or curiosity. 
 I d hang it upside down in my room, plant 
 seeds in it, and watch them grow." 
 
 " No, you wouldn t! You d have your 
 mother after you for adding to the dust-collect 
 ing truck and junk you ve got in your room 
 now. You ought to see Jack s room! " Lar- 
 cum added, with a laugh. " He s got a lot of 
 old Colonial money framed " 
 
 " Nothing wrong about that, is there, 
 Larc? " interrupted John. 
 
THE EGAD IN THE FOREST 349 
 
 " No, nothing wrong, but it shows a queer 
 taste. Now, if you had some greenbacks or 
 yellowbacks framed, that would be different. " 
 
 " They re made to use, not to frame." 
 
 11 Then he s got some old letters of his 
 great-grandfather s, continued Larcum. i Im 
 portant letters, too about some bills for Ja 
 maica rum he wanted to collect. He s got an 
 old horse-pistol his great-uncle carried at 
 Bunker Hill or somewhere else " 
 
 " You don t understand what it means to 
 have ancestors, Larc. Out where you live 
 everybody keeps mighty quiet about his grand 
 father " 
 
 * No more quiet than his grandfather keeps, * 
 asserted Larcum dryly. " I tell you, in a 
 Eepublic like ours, what s the use in a man 
 trying to bolster himself up by telling what 
 a big man his great-grandfather was? I 
 believe in every tub standing on its own 
 bottom." 
 
 " That was why the T. G. & P. E. E. took 
 you into their offices, wasn t it, Larc? " asked 
 John demurely. "Well, I m glad I m not 
 ashamed and don t have to make any apology 
 for the men whose names I bear." 
 
 " That s all right, but what would they have 
 
350 FOUR BOYS IN THE YOSEMITE 
 
 to say about it if they knew? Ever think of 
 that, Jack? " laughed Larcum. 
 
 " Yes, I have. It s a great responsibility to 
 have to live up to a name." 
 
 " Depends on the name. Now, if you knew 
 what George Washington really thought about 
 John Adams, how do you think you d feel? 
 From what I hear I understand that the afore 
 said John Adams didn t think the above-men 
 tioned George Washington measured up to his 
 job. Any traditions of that kind in your fam 
 ily, Jack? " 
 
 " I ll tell you began John quickly. 
 
 " No, you won t! You ll stop right in your 
 tracks and have a look at this great valley. 
 Did you ever see anything like that? We must 
 be three thousand feet above it. You can t see 
 a sign of a human habitation anywhere. We 
 can look straight down just see how close to 
 the edge the road runs. The trees down there 
 look like a sea. And then look across yonder 
 to the opposite side! See all these bare, bleak, 
 old mountains! They stand for something, let 
 me tell you! The high Sierras are as barren 
 and wild as Dante s Inferno. With such a 
 sight in one s own country, what do you sup 
 pose makes so many Americans think they must 
 
THE ROAD IN THE FOREST 351 
 
 go to the Alps if they want to see real moun 
 tains? There isn t anything in Switzerland 
 finer than this." 
 
 The enthusiasm of the young giant was con 
 tagious, and for a brief time all five boys stood 
 silently looking upon the majestic scene spread 
 out before them. In a brief time the jour 
 ney was resumed at Dana s eager request, for 
 he was fearful the party would not arrive be 
 fore sunset at the Wawona Hotel, whither they 
 were bound. 
 
 Soon after the boys started, they saw a rough 
 roadway which joined the one along which they 
 were walking. " There s somebody coming," 
 said Dana. " From the sounds I think it s a 
 man on horseback." 
 
 The boy s suspicion was verified a moment 
 later when a rider was seen approaching. As 
 Larcum looked keenly at the man, he instantly 
 recognized him as the agent of the railroad 
 whom he had last seen on the trail on Cloud s 
 Best. 
 
CHAPTER XXIX 
 
 WAWONA 
 
 INSTANTLY alert, Larcum looked eagerly at 
 the approaching man, confident that he would 
 stop to explain the results of his researches 
 and that now he would learn definitely just 
 what the outcome of the search for the sup 
 posed train-robbers had been. To Larcum s 
 surprise the man, as he passed, simply re 
 sponded to the respectful salutations of the 
 boys and did not stop. So great was Larcum s 
 surprise that for a moment he was convinced 
 that the man had failed to recognize him. 
 
 Dropping back behind his companions, Lar 
 cum turned and hailed the man when the latter 
 had entered the road that led to the valley. 
 
 " Wait a minute! the young traveler 
 called. 
 
 The man halted and waited for the young 
 traveler to approach. " What is it? " he in 
 quired impatiently. 
 
 " Did you find the reporter? Was that 
 
 352 
 
W AW ON A 353 
 
 really his body in the canon? Have you 
 had any word? " inquired Larcum, in his 
 excitement. 
 
 " I haven t any time to waste here." 
 
 " Don t waste any on my account," said 
 Larcum tartly. " You didn t seem to feel just 
 that way about it the other day when you asked 
 me to take the trail with you up Cloud s Rest." 
 The young giant was angry at what he looked 
 upon as not a full recognition of the part he 
 had taken in the search. Who was it that had 
 first become suspicious of the young reporter? 
 Who had watched him and his companion? Who 
 had sent word to the railway people? If it 
 had not been for his message, this man would 
 not now be near the Yosemite. No, sir, Lar 
 cum assured himself. It was all very well to 
 take everything he offered to give, but it was 
 not right to treat him now as if he had no 
 knowledge of the purpose of the man in fol 
 lowing the trail. There was justice in every 
 thing. 
 
 Peering shrewdly at the chagrined boy, the 
 man smiled slightly as he said, " I thought I 
 could trust you." 
 
 " You can. Have you any reason to think 
 you can t? " 
 
354 FOUR BOYS IN THE Y OS E MITE 
 
 11 I don t look upon what you are doing now 
 as a very shrewd piece of work, do you? 
 
 "What am I doing? " 
 
 " Leaving your friends and trying to talk 
 to me. Of course they will want to know all 
 about what is said. You have called their at 
 tention definitely to me, otherwise I would have 
 passed without any special observation. You ve 
 made a mistake. Good-afternoon." The man 
 turned abruptly and rode away, leaving Lar- 
 cum staring blankly after him and not a little 
 put out by the sharp words he had just heard. 
 Slowly walking back to the place where his 
 friends were waiting for him, the young giant s 
 face was a study as he approached. 
 
 " Who was that man, Larc? " asked John. 
 
 " I don t know," replied Larcum gruffly. 
 
 " You were talking together as if each of 
 you thought the other man was his long-lost 
 brother," said Lee laughingly. 
 
 " Were we? " 
 
 " You certainly were, sir. We didn t know 
 but that you had found the man that held up 
 our train the one you ve been looking for ever 
 since we left San Francisco." 
 
 Well, he didn t do it. He wasn t the man. 
 
 " Look here, Jack! " broke in Scott, who had 
 
WAWONA 355 
 
 been quietly watchful of Larcum s face during 
 the interview and was convinced by what he 
 said that his friend had more ground for his 
 mood than his companions understood. " I 
 thought you were the chap that wanted to walk 
 and said the way from where we got out of 
 the coach ran down hill all the way to Wa- 
 wona? " 
 
 " That s what the driver said," replied John 
 meekly. 
 
 " Well, that driver was not a man of truth 
 and veracity. We re climbing again and I 
 don t see any change in the prospect ahead. 
 Wawona must be up near the moon somewhere, 
 I guess. At any rate we ve been going up, up, 
 up about all the time since we left the Bridal 
 Veil Fall." 
 
 " Nobody tells the truth in these parts. You 
 can t depend on any one," growled Larcum. 
 
 " Yes, even the dead lie," said John soberly. 
 
 " It isn t the dead it s the living. Here lie 
 the dead and here the living lie," said Scott, 
 in sepulchral tones. 
 
 " Correct," said Larcum, laughing for the 
 first time since he had rejoined his comrades. 
 " But it s no dream that we re climbing some 
 more." 
 
356 FOUR BOYS IN THE YOSEMITE 
 
 " Well, let s get all the good we can out of 
 it, anyway," said John lightly. " I m not an 
 athlete, but you haven t heard me whine yet. 
 I don t believe that you re aware of the fact 
 that you re more delicate than the man from 
 Boston " 
 
 Come on, fellows ! "broke in Lee. " We ve 
 heard enough to help us out. We ve got to 
 go ahead, anyway, so come on. We ll be 
 losing time and won t get into Wawona 
 before midnight if we stop here to argue 
 any longer." 
 
 Lee s advice was heeded, and the five boys 
 pushed steadily forward. The climb in places 
 was steep and the summer sun was warm, but 
 no further complaints were heard. At times 
 the boys stopped to gaze at the vista which, 
 through the trees, could be seen far below 
 them. The journey each time was soon re 
 sumed, and when a few miles had been covered 
 the climb ended and the descent really began. 
 
 On the cliff where the winding road had been 
 made on the very border of the mountain, the 
 sight of the immense valley, many hundreds 
 of feet below them, held the silent attention of 
 every one when the party stopped. Miles across 
 the beautiful and yet lonely and wild stretch of 
 
WAWONA 357 
 
 wooded valley the towering mountains reared 
 themselves on the opposite side. And, in the 
 midst of the marvelous scene, the only human 
 beings to be seen were the five boys, who were 
 peering almost directly down into the far 
 depths of the vast bowl. 
 
 " I can almost believe what that driver told 
 us the day we first came into the Yosemite," 
 said Scott. 
 
 " What was that? " asked Lee. 
 
 " That it wouldn t hurt a man to fall off 
 here he d starve to death before he ever 
 struck bottom. Don t you remember? " 
 
 The boys laughed as they turned away, and 
 for a time ran down the steep road. Multi 
 tudes of gray squirrels darted across the way 
 or ran chattering about in the midst of the 
 towering trees. The ground was strewn with 
 the immense cones of the sugar pines ; the sun 
 light, as it found an occasional entrance through 
 the foliage, danced and glistened on the thick 
 carpet of needles and cones; an occasional cry 
 of a bird from the depths of the forest provided 
 variety, but the ever-present thought of the 
 young travelers was of the tremendous heights 
 of the bleak Sierras and of the corresponding 
 depth of the intervening valleys. 
 
358 FOUR BOYS IN THE YOSEMITE 
 
 Not a person was met as the journey con 
 tinued. The loneliness of the region of itself 
 was so intense that not one of the boys was 
 giving voice to his feeling of satisfaction that 
 his friends were with him. The recollection of 
 the attack on the mountain lion made every one 
 watchful, though no one referred to the feeling 
 in his heart. 
 
 At last the sun sank below the great hills, 
 and the approach of night was at hand. " Look 
 here, Jack, you got us into this tramp. Do 
 you know, whether or not this road really goes 
 anywhere? " inquired Lee. 
 
 " It does not," replied John promptly. 
 
 " It doesn t? Then what are we doing 
 here? " 
 
 " We re the ones that go. The road 
 doesn t move." 
 
 " Thank you. I really never thought of that 
 before ! That is quite true, isn t it, you know ! 
 Quite remarkable ! Most extraordinary ! There 
 isn t anything like having a trained mind, is 
 there? " 
 
 " I didn t make the suggestion," retorted 
 John. 
 
 i True ! True ! Jack, when do we arrive at 
 Wawona? " 
 
WAWONA 359 
 
 " Very soon, now." 
 
 " Sure? " 
 
 " You know as much about it as I do. You 
 heard our driver say we would have to walk 
 about eight miles." 
 
 " And you don t think we ve covered that 
 yet? " 
 
 " Eight miles always seems long the first 
 time you go over it." 
 
 " Come on, let s run! " suggested Lar- 
 cum. 
 
 Wearied as the boys were from their tire 
 some tramp, they all responded to the call and, 
 with wild shouts that were thrown back from 
 the sides of the mountains, they plunged for 
 ward down the steep roadway. Once they 
 stopped when Larcum insisted upon rolling a 
 huge stone down into the depths of the valley. 
 " There isn t any danger of its hurting any 
 body," he explained. " There isn t anybody 
 there. Listen to that, will you? " he shouted, 
 as the sounds of falling branches from the 
 pathway of the bowlder greeted their ears. 
 " Jack," he said quickly, " that stone made a 
 sound, didn t it! " 
 
 " Of course it did." 
 
 " Well, suppose the early spring rains had 
 
360 FOUR BOYS IN THE Y OS E MITE 
 
 washed that same stone loose and it had gone 
 bounding down the side of the mountain in ex 
 actly the same course it went just now, would 
 that have made a sound then? " 
 
 " Not unless there was somebody here to 
 hear it." 
 
 " Get out! You mustn t talk that way, 
 Jackie. Don t you know what happens to little 
 boys when they tell stories? 
 
 11 That was not a story it was the truth." 
 
 " Quit, Larc! We re almost there," sug 
 gested Scott. " What do you want to stir up 
 Jack for? You did that on purpose." 
 
 " Did what? " 
 
 1 Asked him that question. 
 
 " Well, that s what the book says, anyway," 
 retorted John. 
 
 " I don t want the book I want you!" 
 roared Larcum, as he started in swift pursuit 
 of the fleeing John. 
 
 "Hi, there!" called Scott. "You ll lose 
 your way in the dark! Come back here 
 and we ll keep together! We re almost in 
 Wawona. 
 
 The arrival at the place they were seeking 
 was not yet, however, as the boys soon discov 
 ered. The stars appeared, the darkness deep- 
 
WAWONA 361 
 
 ened, and still the winding road led downward 
 through the gloom of the great forest. 
 
 There were occasional strange sounds in the 
 midst of the oppressive silence, and the watch 
 fulness increased. Conversation had long since 
 ceased, and even the strongest of the party were 
 feeling the effect of the long walk. The road 
 became steeper, and, as there was no moon, the 
 necessity of constant care not to step outside 
 the dim roadway became more marked. Lar- 
 cum preceded the party, keeping to one side of 
 the road, while Dana acted as special watch 
 man on the opposite side. 
 
 " We re a good two hours behind the coach," 
 suggested Scott at last, his voice betraying his 
 weariness as he spoke. 
 
 " Never mind! " called Larcum. " We re 
 in for it and there s only one way out. No use 
 in crying now." 
 
 " Hey! suddenly shouted Lee. " Look 
 yonder, off to the right. I can see a light over 
 there among the trees. Is it Wawona? " 
 
 "It s a light yes, and there s another," 
 said Dana, as the boys stopped to watch the 
 glow far in advance of them. " From the look 
 of it I don t believe it s more than five miles 
 away." 
 
362 FOUR BOYS IN THE YOSEMITE 
 
 " Five miles! "What are you talking 
 about? " demanded John. " That light can t 
 be more than half- or three-quarters of a mile 
 from this place." 
 
 " You forget the magnificent distances out 
 here in the West. Don t you remember the 
 man who came for his first visit and how often 
 he had been told how far away the mountains 
 really were that looked to be so near, and he 
 had had the tale repeated so many times that 
 it became an old, old story, and, when he came 
 at last to a little brook that he could step 
 across, that he sat down and began to take 
 
 off his shoes and stockings and " began 
 
 Dana. 
 
 " Oh, yes! " broke in Larcum. ll He was 
 going to take no chances. He was wise now 
 and going to swim the wide river, or be pre 
 pared to, anyway. Oh, yes; we ve heard that 
 story about every hour since we first came in 
 side the borders of California. Don t inflict it 
 upon us some more 
 
 1 I won t, laughed Dana. < Come on ! The 
 road veers to the right pretty soon and we ll 
 have to cross the bridge. We may not get any 
 dinner, but we 11 be in time for breakfast. What 
 time is it, anyway? " 
 
WAWONA 363 
 
 " Time we were in Wawona! " exclaimed 
 Scott. 
 
 "With spirits restored now that the end of 
 the journey could be seen, the boys all began 
 to run. Down the steep road, across the bridge 
 they turned, and, within a few minutes, they 
 saw the lights of the hotel before them. 
 
CHAPTER XXX 
 
 JOHN S BEAR 
 
 WEAKIED and dusty from their long and tire 
 some tramp, still all the boys were ready within 
 a brief time for the special dinner, which was 
 speedily prepared and served. When later 
 they stepped out upon the piazza their spirits 
 were greatly revived, and the sound of the 
 splashing water in the fountain in front of the 
 hotel, the dim outlines of the surrounding moun 
 tains, as well as the cool and bracing air of 
 the summer evening, were all matters of keen 
 interest and enjoyment. 
 
 " Well," said Larcum, when the boys were 
 seated, " we have had one experience anyway 
 to-day that doesn t come to every traveler in 
 the Yosemite." 
 
 " You mean the fight with that mountain 
 lion, don t you? " asked Lee. 
 
 l I do, replied Larcum fervently. I hope 
 we never shall see another." 
 
 " Not if you are along with us," said John. 
 
 364 
 
JOHN S BEAR 365 
 
 " Larc," he added, turning to his huge friend, 
 " what you need is training education. No 
 one who had had the slightest contact with the 
 things that make for culture would ever think 
 of going up alone against a mountain lion as 
 you did." 
 
 " He wouldn t? He wouldn t? " demanded 
 Larcum promptly. " Well, that s right; prob 
 ably he wouldn t, if he hadn t any thought for 
 anything besides codfish and Bunker Hill and 
 Plymouth Bock. You ve got clear beyond that 
 yourself, I ll admit; but I can t stand by and 
 see a pretty little fawn chewed up by a great 
 cat like that beast! No, sir! I feel the way 
 your ancestors did when they shouldered their 
 guns and started for Concord and Lexington. 
 I m glad I m ready to fight to-day for the 
 wrongs of the world." 
 
 " Yes, some people fight for the wrong and 
 some for the right," said John demurely. 
 
 " And some people think that whatever 
 they fight for must be right, because they 
 happen to be the ones that are doing the 
 fighting. 
 
 "I m not sorry we saw a real mountain 
 lion," said Lee, " but I m glad Larc happened 
 to be with me at the time. If I d been alone, 
 
366 FOUR BOYS IN THE YOSEMITE 
 
 I m afraid that sneaking cat would have mis 
 taken me for a bone and made off with me." 
 
 " It did look a bit savage, didn t it? " said 
 Scott. " From the stories I have read in the 
 papers, and from the delightful tales poured 
 into my boyish, credulous ears, I had somehow 
 obtained the impression that the mountain lion 
 was far more savage than the leopard or the 
 lion of the desert." 
 
 " I don t want to be in a corner alone with 
 one," said Lee. " I sha n t forget very soon 
 the way this fellow s ears were flattened 
 against his head, his wide-open smile, and the 
 appearance of the few teeth he possessed. That 
 was a fool thing for Larc to do, to start alone 
 against the beast. He might have been torn 
 into a thousand pieces." 
 
 Make it twelve hundred or eleven-fifty, and 
 I ll agree," said Larcum dryly. 
 
 " But they do attack men sometimes," as 
 serted Dana. 
 
 " That driver we had coming over says they 
 don t unless they re cornered or ravenously 
 hungry," said John. 
 
 " I guess that was one of his tales for trav 
 elers," laughed Dana. 
 
 Well, that s what he said, anyway," said 
 
 . . 
 
JOHN S BEAR 367 
 
 John persistently. " He told me that he knew 
 of a case where a pair of those lions kept a 
 man a miner I guess he was, or a trapper, I 
 forget which in his cabin for a week. They d 
 crawl up on the roof of his hut and gnaw and 
 claw away at the boards, trying to get in. They 
 even started to come down his chimney." 
 
 " I haven t any doubt about it," joined in 
 Dana. " I knew a man that was out prospect 
 ing one time and ran across a huge mountain 
 lion he said it was immense, the biggest he 
 ever saw. The miner shot and missed, and 
 then the lion sprang for him. The miner used 
 his gun as a club, and finally beat off the var 
 mint for a little while; but it came back in a 
 few minutes. The miner had bent his gun- 
 barrel when he had struck at the lion, and his 
 weapon was in the form of a crescent when 
 he had time to draw a long breath." 
 
 "Go on with that tale!" said Larcum 
 promptly. 
 
 " Well, the miner finally loaded up his gun 
 with buckshot just before the savage monster 
 came back at him. He dodged behind a tree, 
 and then there was a race the lion chasing the 
 man around and around the stump. They made 
 good time, both of them, but the miner soon 
 
368 FOUR BOYS IN TEE YOSEMITE 
 
 found out that lie wasn t making very good 
 time, compared with his pursuer. He knew he 
 couldn t keep up the pace much longer. 77 
 
 " What did he do! " inquired John inno 
 cently. 
 
 " He finally took his gun you know, I told 
 you he d bent the barrel until it was almost 
 double and, shoving it around the bark of the 
 tree in front of him, he found it just reached 
 the tail of the terrible lion. The miner then 
 pulled the trigger 
 
 " And what happened? " asked John. 
 
 " That miner told me that he never was so 
 glad over anything that had ever happened to 
 him in his life as he was that he d bent his 
 gun until it looked like a barrel-hoop. You 
 see, now it reached right around the tree, and 
 when he pulled the trigger 
 
 " The gun went off and the buckshot kept 
 going round the tree, didn t they! " broke in 
 Scott. 
 
 " When he pulled the trigger, as I was say 
 ing " remarked Dana. 
 
 " Three times you ve told us that remark 
 able fact," said Lee. 
 
 " Well, the miner did it, anyway, and the 
 gun-barrel reached around to the opposite side 
 
JOHN S BEAR 369 
 
 of the tree. The charge blew the lion s body 
 all to pieces that is, it blew all of it clear up 
 to his forelegs. It never hurt them, and 
 it didn t touch the head. The miner told me 
 the expression of surprise on the lion s face 
 you see, there wasn t much of the beast left, 
 except his face 
 
 " And kindly countenance," suggested Lar- 
 cum. 
 
 " You wouldn t expect that to be very far 
 from the face, would you? Well, the miner said 
 the look of reproach on the face of that lion 
 has haunted him ever since." 
 
 " And well it might," said Larcum soberly. 
 " Did you ever hear about the long-haired man 
 that met the little boy on the street? " 
 
 " Many, many a time," said Dana promptly. 
 " My grandfather said that story was hang 
 ing from the trees when he first came into 
 Oregon. 
 
 " Hanging beside your grandfather on the 
 same tree? " 
 
 i No. It was hanging there waiting for him. 
 It had been there ever since DeSoto first dis 
 covered the West." 
 
 " Where does your esteemed grandfather lie 
 now? " asked Larcum. 
 
370 FOUR BOYS IN THE YO SEMITE 
 
 " His grave is in Portland." 
 
 " There lie the dead and here the living lie," 
 murmured Larcum. 
 
 " What about the long-haired man and the 
 small boy, Larc? " asked John. 
 
 " Why, the boy stopped the man and in 
 quired the time. i Five minutes past nine/ the 
 man told him. Well, said the boy, * at nine- 
 twenty-five get your hair cut. 
 
 " That was good advice," said Scott. 
 " Nothing wrong about that, Larc. If there s 
 anything I can t endure, it s a long-haired man 
 or a short-haired woman." 
 
 4 i Go on with that exciting story, Larc! " or 
 dered Lee. " I ve been kept in suspense too 
 long already. What happened? " 
 
 " The man began to chase the impudent boy 
 and ran, bump! into a big, fat policeman. 
 1 What s wrong? said the policeman. < See 
 that boy running yonder? said the long-haired 
 one. Yep, replied the policeman, in terse 
 Oregonian. < Well, he told me to get my hair 
 cut at nine-twenty-five. The guardian of the 
 peace pulled his watch from his pocket, and 
 looking at it " 
 
 " The watch or the pocket, Larc? " broke 
 in John. 
 
JOHN S BEAR 371 
 
 " Looking at his watch, he said to the long 
 haired one: Well, what are you running for? 
 It s only nine-twelve now. YouVe got thirteen 
 minutes yet. You don t need to be in such a 
 terrible haste. " 
 
 " No policeman in the universe ever used 
 such language!" declared Scott. "Besides, 
 what has that to do with Dana s story of the 
 miner with the bent gun? I don t see the con 
 nection." 
 
 " There isn t any connection," said Larcum 
 soberly. " That s the joke." 
 
 " About like the bears we saw to-day," said 
 Scott solemnly. 
 
 " But we didn t see any bears," suggested 
 John. 
 
 " Didn t l see any bears ? " responded Dana, 
 " Why, there are lots of them." 
 
 " Where? " 
 
 " All around us. I ll show you one to-mor 
 row morning before breakfast," said Dana 
 promptly. 
 
 "I m not going out on a tramp to-morrow 
 morning before breakfast. I ve had enough 
 to-day to last me for some time," said John. 
 
 " You won t have to go far. What 11 you 
 give me if I can point out a bear to you to- 
 
372 FOUR BOYS IN THE YO SEMITE 
 
 morrow morning a big fellow, too, and not 
 more than a hundred yards from this very 
 place where we are sitting now? " demanded 
 Dana eagerly. 
 
 " I ll treat you to a good dinner when we 
 are back in San Francisco. " 
 
 1 i You might as well be preparing your menu, 
 Jack," laughed Larcum. 
 
 " I don t see why," retorted Jack. "I 
 haven t seen any bears or signs of bears." 
 
 " You will," said Larcum confidently. 
 " You re too easy, Jack. Clearchus doesn t 
 help you out when it comes to modern times. 
 You " 
 
 "I ll chance it," interrupted John, with a 
 laugh. 
 
 " Strange how little some people see, even 
 when their eyes are wide open," continued 
 Larcum thoughtfully. " Now, here s Jack; 
 you wouldn t think he d rise as he did to 
 Dana s cast. But, then, perhaps that is the 
 way with us all. I ll tell you what I ll do, fel 
 lows," he added quickly. " Jack has promised 
 to set us all up a good dinner " 
 
 " Nay. I promised Dana; but he ll have to 
 show me the bear first." 
 
 "All the same," assented Larcum, "the 
 
JOHN S BEAR 373 
 
 dinner is for us all. Now, I ll give another one 
 if Dana can tell whether all the figures on the 
 face of his watch are Arabic or Eoman. A 
 fellow looks at his watch almost every quarter 
 hour, but I don t know of ten men among my 
 acquaintances who could say whether the i six, 
 for example, is Arabic or Eoman." 
 
 " I can," assented Dana confidently, as he 
 pulled his watch from his pocket. " You don t 
 catch me that way. Two good dinners are 
 awaiting me upon my arrival at San Fran 
 cisco. 
 
 " Hold on! " exclaimed Larcum, as he arose. 
 " Let s get this fixed right before we go on 
 any farther. You ll accept my offer, will 
 you? " 
 
 " Yes; and with thanks," laughed Dana. 
 
 " You are sure, are you, that you can say 
 now, without looking at your watch, whether 
 the l six on its face is just a plain Arabic six, 
 or is a V and one I, are you? " 
 
 " I am." 
 
 11 Well, which is it? " 
 
 " It s Eoman a < V and an I. " 
 
 " Come on into the hall and prove it." 
 
 Laughingly the boys all arose and went into 
 the hotel. Standing under the light they 
 
374 FOUR BOYS IN THE 70S E MITE 
 
 crowded about Dana, who confidently drew out 
 his watch and opened it. An expression of 
 blank amazement swept over his countenance 
 as he gazed at the familiar timepiece. 
 
 " I never would have believed it! " he ex 
 claimed. " Is it just the same with every one 
 of your watches ? " he demanded of his friends. 
 
 In response every boy opened his watch and 
 then laughed, for they were all alike in the 
 designation of the sixth hour of the day. 
 
 " I ve looked at my watch, as Larc says, 
 probably once every fifteen minutes in the day 
 time since my father gave it to me, four years 
 ago," said Scott, " and I never once noticed 
 what Larc has just brought to my attention. 77 
 
 " All of which shows how much we look and 
 how little we see, said Larcum. i l Now, Dana, 
 you and Jack are quits, aren t you? 
 
 " I am," laughed Dana. 
 
 " But I m not," spoke up John positively. 
 " I want to see that bear." 
 
 i Your blood be upon your own head, then, 
 retorted Larcum. "I m for bed." 
 
 In the morning, when Larcum came down to 
 the piazza and joined Scott and Lee, who were 
 awaiting him, they all saw John and Dana com 
 ing up the pathway from the direction of a 
 
JOHN S BEAR 375 
 
 deep ravine not far from the hotel. " Hello, 
 Jack! " called Larcum. " What do you think 
 of the bear Dana showed you? " 
 
 "It s a beauty and a bouncer, " answered 
 John. 
 
 " Did you really see one? " asked Lee, in 
 terested at once. 
 
 " I certainly did." 
 
 "Where is it? " 
 
 " Just over there in a big pen. It s a huge 
 old Alaskan bear Dana knew all the time it 
 was here." 
 
 " Well, you re wiser than you were, Jack," 
 laughed Larcum; " but you ll bite just as well 
 the very next time. Come on in for breakfast. 
 I ve arranged for Scott, Lee, and Jack to have 
 seats in the coach, which will start for the Big 
 Trees in an hour. Dana and I are going on 
 horseback. The coach will carry luncheon for 
 us; but our breakfast well, we ll have to eat 
 that and carry it, too ; come on in, I m hungry." 
 
CHAPTEB XXXI 
 
 AMONG THE BIG TREES 
 
 THE sun was shining, and the thick dust of 
 the road was heavy when, later in the morn 
 ing, the boys started for the grove of Big Trees. 
 Larcum and Dana were mounted on sturdy 
 horses, and rode in advance of the coach, in 
 which the other members of the party were 
 seated. 
 
 " How far do we go this morning? " inquired 
 John of the driver. 
 
 " About eight miles. " 
 
 " Yosemite miles? " laughed Lee. 
 
 Yes ; but they are not longer than any other 
 kind, are they? " 
 
 " They seem to be," replied Lee. " Per 
 haps it s because we re going up so much of 
 the time. Is our ride to-day up-hill? " 
 
 " Most of the way." 
 
 " Going or coming? " 
 
 " Both, Lee," spoke up Scott. " That s the 
 strange part of travel in the Yosemite. You 
 
 376 
 
AMONG THE BIG TREES 377 
 
 naturally think, after you have been riding up, 
 up, up, that the road afterward will go down. 
 But when you come back you find you re still 
 climbing hills just the same." 
 
 " Not quite so bad as that," said the driver 
 soberly. " It s up and down, no matter which 
 way you go. Just depends on which road you 
 take. I ve seen all kinds of weather here, too, 
 in one day : rain, snow, hail, sleet, sunshine all 
 come along the same day." 
 
 " Hi, there! " suddenly shouted Scott to 
 the boys on horseback. " You re stirring 
 up such a cloud of dust we can t see the 
 driver! Go ahead or else drop back behind 
 us." 
 
 ( Every mortal is required to eat his regula 
 tion peck of dirt! " retorted Larcum. 
 
 " We don t mind a little thing like a peck! " 
 shouted Scott. " We don t mind eating it, 
 either; but we don t want to soak it in, breathe 
 it in, rub it in. Go ahead, Larc! Be a good 
 little boy." 
 
 "I m afraid I ll lose my way." 
 
 " Stop when you come to a crossroad and 
 wait for us," suggested the driver. 
 
 Laughingly the two horsemen rode ahead, 
 and soon were lost to sight. The coach, lighter 
 
378 FOUR BOYS IN THE TO SEMITE 
 
 than the one in which the ride had been made 
 from the Sentinel Hotel, swayed as the wheels 
 struck the rougher places in the road ; but, freed 
 from the cloud of dust, the boys did not com 
 plain. For the greater part of the journey the 
 ride was still through forests, though the trees 
 were not as large as the giant sugar pines that 
 had been passed the preceding day. The ab 
 sence of song birds, too, was noticeable; but 
 the driver, in response to John s questions, ex 
 plained that almost every species of eagle 
 known in America was to be found on the sides 
 of the mountains. 
 
 " I d like to see one of the big golden eagles," 
 said John. 
 
 " What about the bald head? That s our 
 national emblem, isn t it? " asked Scott. 
 
 " Yes; but I ve seen a good many of them 
 but I never saw a golden eagle." 
 
 " When you are in New York some time, I ll 
 show you one." 
 
 " New York! You will? Where, I d like to 
 know? " 
 
 " Bronx Park." 
 
 " Jack, you certainly are too innocent ever 
 to travel alone," laughed Lee. 
 
 " Did you hear about Jack s turning Larc s 
 
AMONG THE BIG TREES 379 
 
 music for him the other evening at the hotel? 
 asked Scott, laughing as he spoke. 
 
 "No. What about it? " 
 
 " Well, Larc seated himself at the piano, 
 placed some sheets of music before him, and 
 began to play. The wind rattled the sheets, and 
 Larc kept looking around at us, as if he was 
 begging some one of us to come to his aid and 
 hold and turn the music for him. We were too 
 wise to respond, for we knew perfectly well 
 that Larc was up to one of his tricks. Jack, 
 here, stood it as long as he could, and then he 
 stalked majestically across the room, giving us 
 a glance of withering scorn for our failure to 
 see what old Larc wanted in his time of dire 
 need, and took his stand right beside the player 
 and turned the leaves whenever Larc nodded." 
 
 66 I don t see anything very wrong in that," 
 said Lee. 
 
 " There wasn t." 
 
 " Then what was the joke? I don t see it 
 yet." 
 
 " Larc wasn t playing from notes at all, and 
 the music in front of him wasn t what he was 
 playing, either. We knew he was just trying 
 to get some one of us to bite, that was all." 
 
 " Pity that John, with all his knowledge of 
 
380 FOUR BOYS IN THE YOSEMITE 
 
 Clearchus, as Larc says, never learned music 
 as he ought. It would have saved him that 
 time, anyway/* laughed Lee. 
 
 " It is too bad," acknowledged John. " Hon 
 estly I don t believe I could tell the difference 
 between Yankee Doodle and Old Hun 
 dred, except for the fact that one is fast and 
 the other is slow." 
 
 " And from Boston, too! " sighed Scott. 
 
 " Yes, from Boston, too," said John. 
 " Everything has been done for me, but it 
 didn t seem to help me. Music was left out of 
 my constitution. But then there s one salva 
 tion, after all." 
 
 " What s that! " 
 
 " Why, music is the lowest of the arts. It 
 appeals to the emotions, you know. What are 
 you fellows laughing ail " he demanded 
 blankly, as a shout arose from his companions. 
 
 "That s the best yet!" shouted Scott. 
 "What you said, Jack, was bad enough; but 
 your question beats the world." 
 
 " I don t see," persisted John. 
 
 " And you never will." 
 
 " What is the joke? " demanded John, as 
 Scott and Lee broke into a renewed shout. 
 " If it s so funny, explain it to me." 
 
AMONG TEE BIG TREES 381 
 
 " No use. We can t explain," said Scott. 
 
 A ride of three hours through the woods, 
 without a human being having been seen on 
 the way, or the sight of a human habitation ap 
 pearing, at last brought the party to the border 
 of the grove they were seeking. An occasional 
 tree of mammoth proportions had been passed, 
 but, in response to the queries of the boys as 
 to whether or not " this was one of the 
 Big Trees, " the driver had smiled, merely 
 bidding his impatient young passengers to 
 " wait." 
 
 " Who discovered the Big Trees, anyway? " 
 asked John of their driver. 
 
 " A young fellow named Hogg passed 
 through the grove away back in July or Au 
 gust, 1855. He didn t make any real examina 
 tion, though he told Galen Clark about what 
 he d seen. The next year that was in 1856 
 Galen Clark and a man named Milton set out to 
 find if there was really anything in what the 
 young fellow had reported." 
 
 " They found the report true, did they? " 
 inquired John. 
 
 " They surely did. Ever since that time 
 there s been a steady stream of people here to 
 see the trees. We pass the marker that shows 
 
382 FOUR BOYS IN THE TO SEMITE 
 
 just where Galen Clark stood when he first saw 
 them." 
 
 " Why is the grove called the l Mariposa 
 Grove? " asked Lee. 
 
 " Because it s in Mariposa County. Yonder 
 is the Fallen Monarch. We ll stop here a few 
 minutes and let you see it." 
 
 Leaping out of the coach the boys joined 
 Larcum and Dana, who were already there and 
 standing on the trunk of the gigantic tree, 
 which had fallen no one knows how many years 
 before. 
 
 " Count your steps as you come up the lad 
 der ! called Larcum to his friends, as they 
 turned to join the two boys, who were standing 
 on the trunk. 
 
 " Fourteen steps! " shouted Lee, as he 
 gained the place. "It s a bit of a sapling, 
 isn t it! " 
 
 " Only thirty-six feet in diameter," re 
 sponded Larcum; " that is, if you take in those 
 roots." 
 
 " This is the tree of which you often see 
 pictures," explained Dana. " You know 
 there s a picture of a coach and four horses 
 standing right on the trunk where we are 
 
 now." 
 
AMONG THE BIG TREES 
 
 " They couldn t drive up here," said John. 
 
 " No; I don t suppose they could," assented 
 Dana; " but they could lead the horses up an 
 inclined platform and put the coach together 
 again up here. Just think of a tree so big that 
 four horses and a coach can stand right on the 
 trunk." 
 
 " How high are most of the trees? " inquired 
 Scott. 
 
 11 Oh, they vary from two hundred and thirty 
 to three hundred and sixteen feet in height," 
 replied the driver. 
 
 " What! " 
 
 "It s a fact! " 
 
 " How many of these Big Trees are there? " 
 
 * About six hundred up here. 
 
 " Why doesn t some one cut them down? 
 
 " It wouldn t be a very healthy occupation 
 for any one," laughed Dana. " The state has 
 reserved about four square miles here, and no 
 lumberman dares to touch a tree with his ax 
 or saw. There are really two groves, you know 
 the lower, where we are, and the upper. Some 
 of these trees would be a good deal larger than 
 they are if they hadn t been damaged." 
 
 " How were they damaged? " 
 
 " Fire." 
 
384 FOUR BOYS IN THE TOSEMITE 
 
 " Who would set fire to such trees? " 
 
 11 Probably no one, though some say the In 
 dians did. Very likely lightning has done the 
 greatest damage. You ll see some trees on 
 which the bark has been burned in a foot. Come 
 on, boys, get into the coach; we ve a lot more 
 to see before we re done." 
 
 A brief ride brought the party to the 
 " Grizzly Giant," an immense tree whose ap 
 pearance at once suggested the source of its 
 name. Once more the boys leaped to the 
 ground, and stood about the base of the oldest 
 tree, as well as the largest tree in all the world. 
 For a moment no one spoke, the silence being 
 scarcely less impressive than the gnarled and 
 " grizzly " appearance of the huge tree, which 
 students of botany declare to be at least eight 
 thousand years old. 
 
 " Look up there at that limb the first one 
 you can see," suggested Dana. " How far do 
 you think that is from the ground? " 
 
 " How far is it? " asked Lee. 
 
 61 It s a hundred feet. Just think of a tree 
 whose lowest branch, above the ground, is ten 
 feet more than the distance from the home plate 
 to first base! " 
 
 "Whew!" exclaimed Scott. "It takes a 
 
AMONG THE BIG TREES 385 
 
 fellow s breath away ! How many steps around 
 the base is it? " 
 
 K Try it and see," suggested Dana laugh 
 ingly. 
 
 " Forty-seven paces around the trunk! " 
 shouted Scott, as he carefully paced the dis 
 tance. 
 
 "It is just thirty-four feet in diameter, " 
 said John, reading aloud from a placard on the 
 trunk of the Grizzly Giant. " That lowest 
 branch is about the height of Larc in its di 
 ameter. It s six and a half feet through it! 
 The tree itself isn t so tall as some in the grove, 
 for it s only two hundred and fifty feet in 
 height." 
 
 " That is quite sufficient! Just think of 
 what the old fellow has seen or might have seen. 
 It was here when Clearchus marched his four 
 teen parasangs," murmured Larcum. 
 
 " That s right," laughed John. " It was 
 here when Noah built his ark. It was here 
 when Moses led the Children of Israel out of 
 Egypt. This old tree was old enough to die of 
 old age when the Greeks fought at Salonica and 
 Thermopylae. It was old when Job was a 
 baby. It was right here when Cain slew Abel, 
 and when Abraham " 
 
386 FOUR BOYS IN THE YOSEMITE 
 
 " Oh, tell us something new! " broke in 
 Larcum. " Be up to date once in your life! 
 
 " I will, 7 laughed John, taking a pencil and 
 paper from his pocket as he spoke. 
 
 " This placard says there are a million feet 
 of timber in this one tree. Do you realize that 
 that is enough to inclose the Flatiron Building 
 in New York City! Why, fellows, that s 
 enough lumber to cover the Mauritania from 
 stem to stern enough to box it all in! " 
 
 " And yet there are people who call them 
 selves Americans who think they ve got to go 
 to Europe to see old things ! snorted Larcum. 
 
 " Never mind, Larc! You don t have to! 
 suggested Scott. 
 
 "You re right, I don t! America is good 
 enough for me. See your own country before 
 you go traveling in other lands and leaving 
 your good money for J. Bull or Ach Hein to 
 spend instead of letting their own country have 
 it ! I spell my country with a capital A. 
 
 A summons from the driver caused the boys 
 to resume their seats, and the drive was con 
 tinued. The giant trees, upon many of which 
 the name of some state or city could be seen, 
 were on every side. Towering high in the air, 
 the inipressiveness of the grove through which 
 
AMONG TEE BIG TREES 387 
 
 the boys were passing increased, until at last 
 they arrived at their destination. 
 
 Here they found a log hut, with two men 
 in attendance. Outside, there were several ta 
 bles, on which the luncheon, which had been 
 brought, was to be served. In front of the 
 cabin were many of the Big Trees, each of 
 which had been named for some famous Ameri 
 can general. Not far away was a huge tree, in 
 the interior of which was a stable for the 
 horses. 
 
 " What are you doing, Jack? " asked Lar- 
 cum, as he and Scott found their friend 
 stretched on his back, gazing up through the 
 tree-tops. 
 
 " I m getting the best impression," said 
 John quietly. " This is the way Roosevelt took 
 to get the true perspective. Better try it, fel 
 lows." 
 
 Instantly the two boys stretched themselves 
 beside John, and, as they too looked up, for a 
 time they were all silent. The background of 
 fleecy, floating clouds, the mammoth trunks of 
 the trees, the lofty branches, many of which 
 were themselves larger than " big trees " the 
 boys had known in the East, were all parts of 
 a vision which none of them ever forgot. 
 
388 FOUR BOYS IN THE YOSEMITE 
 
 The spell, however, was broken when Lee ap 
 proached and gazed in astonishment at his 
 prostrate companions. " What are you looking 
 at? " he demanded. 
 
 " We re trying to find out how much space 
 there is between the tops of these trees and the 
 sky," said Larcum. 
 
 " If you ll turn your eyes earthward a min 
 ute, you ll see an old friend of yours." 
 
 "Who?" exclaimed Larcum, sitting in 
 stantly erect. 
 
 " That reporter we first saw in San Fran 
 cisco. He s standing there in the cabin door." 
 
CHAPTER XXXII 
 
 CONCLUSION 
 
 LEAVING his friends, Larcum ran swiftly to 
 the cabin, where he was greeted by the reporter. 
 The boys were all intently watching the actions 
 of the two young men, although Scott was the 
 most interested of all. He arose as if he was 
 about to go to Larcum, but, after he saw his 
 friend start with the reporter for another part 
 of the grove, he concluded that his company was 
 not desired, and accordingly resumed his seat 
 upon the ground. 
 
 " What s the matter with Larc, anyway? " 
 said Lee, as his friend disappeared from sight. 
 He acts as if he had lost his wits every time 
 that reporter man appears on the horizon. " 
 
 i You can leave Larc to look after himself, 
 said Scott simply. 
 
 " Yea, verily," joined in John. " Little 
 Larkie is all right. He was telling me this 
 morning how he was taught by his mother to 
 depend upon himself." 
 
390 FOUR BOYS IN THE 70S E MITE 
 
 " How was that? " inquired Lee. 
 
 " She used to turn the hose on him," said 
 John. 
 
 " What do you mean? " 
 
 " Why, when he was a little chap one 
 doesn t often think that Larc ever could have 
 been small he was quite likely to draw one of 
 his stockings on wrong side out." 
 
 " And that s how she came to turn the hose 
 on him? " laughed Scott. 
 
 " It was." 
 
 " Jack, you certainly are improving! " said 
 Lee. " It won t be long, if you keep on at 
 this rate, before you ll be able to see a joke not 
 so very long after all the rest of us have seen 
 it." 
 
 " Thank you. It isn t that it s so hard to 
 see a joke; it s the difficulty of finding any joke 
 in the remarks of certain nameless people. I 
 have ascertained in the course of my numerous 
 journeyings that there are some strangely or 
 ganized beings that can see a joke where there 
 isn t any. Do you recall Hamlet s queries con 
 cerning the shape of the cloud 
 
 " Oh, let the Dane rest! There s the first 
 call for luncheon and I do not intend to be left 
 out. Come on! " exclaimed Scott, as he hastily 
 
CONCLUSION 391 
 
 arose and, followed by the three boys, started 
 swiftly for the table, which had been spread in 
 the open, underneath the towering trees. 
 
 The driver, with the assistance of one of the 
 men regularly stationed at the cabin, had 
 spread on the boards the food which had been 
 brought from the hotel at Wawona, and the 
 sight of the feast was most tempting to the 
 hungry young travelers. 
 
 " Call Larc," said John, as he slid into a 
 place on the bench in front of the table. 
 
 " Call him yourself, please! " retorted Scott, 
 " I m too busy to whistle. " 
 
 Lee, however, was the one who whistled 
 shrilly for the missing member of the party, 
 but, after a half-dozen shrill calls had been 
 made and the missing Larcum failed to reply, 
 he too took a seat on the rude bench and 
 eagerly joined his friends in the repast. " Larc 
 doesn t know what he s missing," he mur 
 mured, as he helped himself bountifully to the 
 various viands. 
 
 " Then he won t suffer any," said John 
 thickly. " If we were to miss our dinner after 
 such a fine start, that would be another matter. 
 A man never misses what he never had." 
 
 " I ll save something for Larc," said Lee. 
 
392 FOUR BOYS IN THE YOSEMITE 
 
 " Could anything be finer than this! he 
 added, with enthusiasm. " Here we are almost 
 seven thousand feet up in the air! Just taste 
 this air " 
 
 " The chicken is quite satisfying, " broke in 
 Scott. 
 
 " Just taste this air! " resumed Lee, ignor 
 ing Scott s remark. Just look out among the 
 trees. It s a real forest we re in, fellows. This 
 dinner is fit for a king. This water we re 
 drinking is as pure and cold as nature can pro 
 vide. We haven t a care in the world. No 
 mathematics, no classics, no professors, not 
 even a tutor up here, and I don t believe there s 
 a book in this grove. All we lack is our whilom 
 and erstwhile, not to say recreant companion, 
 Larcum Brown, of the T. G. & P. Why doesn t 
 he come? Lee added, as he peered into the 
 surrounding forest. 
 
 " He ll come, all right. Don t you worry 
 about Larc when there is any eating to be 
 done," said John. 
 
 " We d better see that there is something 
 left for him to eat when he does appear," sug 
 gested Scott. " That mountain lion would be 
 gentle compared with what L. Brown will be 
 if we eat up all his luncheon." 
 
CONCLUSION 393 
 
 " He ought to be able to look out for his 
 own wants, 7 said John. " He knew when he 
 went away with that reporter what he was leav 
 ing behind him. 
 
 " We ll do the best we can for him, any 
 way," laughed Scott. " We ll tell him what a 
 good luncheon we had, and that may be some 
 comfort. 
 
 " You d better not try it," remarked Lee, 
 with conviction. 
 
 " Meanwhile see how the viands are evapo 
 rating," said John. " They are like the snow- 
 flakes Bryant tells about in his poem, Lost in 
 the Dark and Silent Lake. " 
 
 Silence followed, and, when at last the boys 
 arose from their repast, Scott said soberly: " I 
 don t see any reason why Larc should complain. 
 I never felt more at peace with all the world 
 than I do this minute." 
 
 " You look the part," laughed John. " Come 
 on, we ll go to the cabin. I understand that one 
 of the government forest rangers is there. I d 
 like to talk to him." 
 
 " I d rather hear him talk," said Lee, as he 
 and his companions followed John back to the 
 cabin. 
 
 The ranger was found seated on the piazza, 
 
394 FOUR BOYS IN THE YO SEMITE 
 
 and, as soon as he heard that the boys were 
 desirous of meeting him, he at once welcomed 
 them, inviting them to be seated in the rustic 
 chairs near him. 
 
 " Yes," he said, in reply to John s question, 
 " I have charge of about twenty square miles 
 of this forest." 
 
 " Do you have to cover it every day? 
 
 " I do cover it at this time of the year. I 
 usually start with nay pony early in the morn 
 ing. Sometimes I stay out two or three days." 
 " And sleep on the mountains? 
 
 " Yes. I carry a kit with me." 
 
 66 You must be very lonely." 
 
 11 Oh, I don t think very much about that. 
 The trees are almost like company. One comes 
 to know them so well they re like old friends. 
 I suppose one must have a love for them in 
 the first place or he wouldn t take up this kind 
 of work." 
 
 " Don t you ever have any trouble with 
 bears? " 
 
 "No trouble, " said the forester, with a 
 smile. " I m a bit like the Miller o the Dee, 
 i I trouble nobody, no not I, and nobody troubles 
 me. " 
 
 " But you must see a good many bears." 
 
CONCLUSION 395 
 
 " Oh, I do; lots o them." 
 
 " Grizzlies! " 
 
 " No, not of late years. The grizzlies mostly 
 are gone. I run across plenty of black or 
 brown bears, and there isn t a day that I don t 
 find plenty of deer." 
 
 61 Mountain lions, too? " 
 
 " Yes, I find them occasionally." 
 
 " Are you afraid of them? " 
 
 " I haven t had any trouble yet. They usu 
 ally slink away when they see a man." 
 
 " What do you do in your rounds! " 
 
 " Look out for fire mostly." 
 
 " Do the forests ever get on fire? 
 
 The ranger smiled as he said: " Indeed they 
 do. If these forests weren t watched, it 
 wouldn t be very long before there wouldn t 
 be any need of forest rangers." 
 
 " How do the fires start? " 
 
 " Lightning mostly. Sometimes hunters or 
 trappers or tourists are careless, and a fire gets 
 started before you know it." 
 
 " Have you ever seen a big fire I mean a 
 big forest on fire! 
 
 " Indeed I have to my sorrow. If you ll 
 look out across the valley when you go back, 
 you can see a great tract all burned over. 
 
396 FOUR BOYS IN THE YO SEMITE 
 
 " How do you fight it? You can t do much 
 alone, can you! " 
 
 " Not very much," said the ranger modestly. 
 " I usually get help, and the first thing we do 
 is to make a fire line." 
 
 "What s that? " 
 
 " Cut down the trees and clear up the brush 
 for a good space directly in the path of the fire. 
 We start another fire in the stuff we ve cut 
 one that we can watch and then, by the time 
 the main fires gets up to the line, it dies out, 
 because there s only ashes there. There are 
 times though when nothing but a heavy rain 
 will stop a forest fire. We ve lost as much 
 timber from the fires as we have from the 
 lumbermen. 
 
 i What would you do if you should find a 
 man cutting down a tree! " 
 
 " Arrest him," said the ranger quietly. 
 " Thinking of trying it? " 
 
 " Indeed, we re not," said John promptly. 
 " I am as fond of a tree as some people are of 
 a man. I can t bear to harm one." 
 
 " That s the way everybody ought to 
 feel," said the ranger warmly. " Maybe 
 you d like to come out here and join me for 
 a season." 
 
CONCLUSION 397 
 
 "I d like to, but I can t do it." 
 
 " What is it these big trees are called? " in 
 quired Lee. 
 
 " Sequoia." 
 
 " Yes, I remember now. What little cones 
 they have. Why, they aren t one-fifth as large 
 as the sugar-pine cones, and the trees them 
 selves are a good deal larger." 
 
 " That s right. If you would like to, you 
 may take some of the sequoia cones home with 
 you. The seeds are about ready to drop out. 
 Keep the cones in a dry box until you re home, 
 so the seeds won t be lost." 
 
 " Will they grow? " asked Scott quickly. 
 
 "To be sure they will. I ve sent some to 
 England. Down in Devonshire there are trees 
 less than fifteen years old and seventy feet in 
 height that grew from these seeds." 
 
 "We ll do it!" exclaimed Scott eagerly. 
 " I ll plant some on our lawn. In about eight 
 thousand years people will be coming to New 
 York to see the big trees there." 
 
 " Don t expect me to come then." 
 
 " You tell the age of a tree by the rings in 
 the trunk, don t you! " asked Lee. 
 
 " Yes. Some of these trees are eight thou 
 sand years old." 
 
398 FOUR BOYS IN THE YOSEMITE 
 
 " We saw that statement on the Grizzly 
 Giant." 
 
 " Well, it s true. The rings show it." 
 
 " Here comes Larc! " said Scott, who had 
 been watching for the return of his friend. 
 " Let s go and find out what he has been 
 doing." 
 
 " And tell him what a good luncheon we ve 
 had," added John. 
 
 After thanking the ranger for his kindness, 
 the boys all called to Larcum as they walked 
 toward the table on which luncheon had been 
 served. 
 
 " What made you so late, Larc? " asked 
 Scott, as he and the other boys seated them 
 selves and began to eat as if they had not al 
 ready been served. " What has become of 
 your reporter? " 
 
 " Gone back to San Francisco to claim his 
 five thousand dollars," replied Larcum glumly, 
 as he instantly began to satisfy his hunger. 
 
 " Gone where? " exclaimed Scott, in aston 
 ishment. 
 
 " I told you." 
 
 1 1 What do you mean by his claiming his five 
 thousand dollars? " 
 
 " Just what I said." 
 
CONCLUSION 399 
 
 What is it for? " 
 
 " That was the reward offered for the cap 
 ture of the men that held up our train, wasn t 
 it! " said Larcum tartly. 
 
 " Have the train-robbers been found? 
 asked John instantly, as greatly excited as were 
 all his companions. 
 
 " They have," said Larcum dryly. 
 
 " Where? When? Who found them? How 
 did they get them? " demanded the boys, still 
 more excitedly. 
 
 " Poor little Larlde! " murmured Scott. 
 
 " You needn t poor little Larkie me," said 
 Larcum sharply. " I didn t have anything to 
 do with it; I only wish I had. I d like a slice 
 of that reward myself." 
 
 You did your best, Larc. No one will blame 
 you," said Scott soothingly. 
 
 Larcum glared angrily at his friend for a 
 moment, and then laughed as he said: " Scott 
 thought he had a good one on me, because I 
 half -believed the reporter was one of the rob 
 bers. Well, he wasn t, and I was fooled. But, 
 you see, I knew he knew something about it, and 
 then he had a chum that I suspected was his con 
 federate. He got on our train at Sacramento, 
 Jiad a talk with the reporter, and then got off the 
 
400 FOUR BOYS IN THE YOSEMITE 
 
 train at Merced. I thought it was because the 
 reporter told him to and that he was afraid of 
 us. Then, when they acted as they did in the 
 Yosemite, I thought I d surely run them down. 
 And the worst of it all was that I was dead 
 certain when I traced the fellow on the trail up 
 Cloud s Best and found he d left his horse to 
 find its way back alone, and had made up a 
 dummy to look like a man that had fallen 
 into the canon. Oh! I ll tell you about 
 that," he added, as his friends interrupted 
 him. 
 
 66 Well, I d sent word to the officials in San 
 Francisco that I d found traces of the robbers," 
 continued Larcum; " but, if you would believe 
 it, this reporter chap was in close touch with 
 them all the time. The sheriff of the county, 
 with a posse, was scouring the valley, for the 
 men had come here " 
 
 11 The papers said they were in a half-dozen 
 different places," broke in Lee. 
 
 " Just a blind, that s all. They were 
 here, and the men knew it and were after 
 them " 
 
 "What was the dummy for?" asked 
 Scott. 
 
 Just another blind, that s all. They 
 
 i 
 
CONCLUSION 401 
 
 wanted the train-robbers to hear that a dead 
 man had been found who was suspected of be 
 ing one of the robbers. You see, it wasn t pos 
 sible to get at the body I mean the * dummy 
 and the report got out as I said. But yes 
 terday afternoon the two men were run to 
 cover. 
 
 " Where? " inquired Scott. 
 
 " In a cave called Robbers Roost we passed 
 it on our way over to Wawona. It seems some 
 time ago some men held up a coach here and 
 then hid for days in that cave that s the way 
 it got its name." 
 
 " So these fellows hid in the same place, did 
 they? " said Lee. 
 
 " Yes, and it was suspected that they d try 
 to hold up a coach, too. But they didn t get a 
 chance. They re in San Francisco or Fresno 
 by this time." 
 
 " Did they show fight when they were 
 taken! " asked Scott. 
 
 " They didn t have a chance the posse made 
 a rush and it was all over before they could do 
 a thing." 
 
 " And the reporter gets the reward, does 
 he! " said John. 
 
 " Yes, he and his companion. They over- 
 
402 FOUR BOYS IN THE YO SEMITE 
 
 heard something when they went to write up 
 the account of the hold-up that made them sus 
 pect the robbers would come here. And they 
 did." 
 
 " Larc, if you had kept on with Clearchus 
 and his parasangs, you wouldn t have been 
 fooled so easily," laughed John. " It takes a 
 trained mind " 
 
 " Trained nothing! " broke in Larcum. " I 
 know the difference between a bill of lading and 
 a stump speech. Do you, Jack? 
 
 I know something better than that." 
 
 i. . 
 
 " What! " 
 
 " I know we ve had a fine time out here. We 
 have only three days more. "What are we go 
 ing to do with them! 
 
 " Go up to Signal Peak for one thing," said 
 Dana. " That s almost eight thousand feet 
 high and you can get a view of the San Joachin 
 Valley you ll never forget. Why, man, that 
 San Joachin Valley is two hundred miles long 
 and thirty miles wide! And such crops you 
 never heard of! Grain, figs, oranges, raisins, 
 grapes 
 
 " Fine," said Scott softly. " Anything more 
 to be seen! 
 
 " Yes, you mustn t go back East without 
 
CONCLUSION 403 
 
 having seen the Chilhualna Fall it s a cascade 
 two thousand feet long and only about two 
 miles from the Wawona Hotel." 
 
 " Isn t there something else? " laughed 
 Lee. 
 
 " Yes, there is," replied Dana promptly. 
 " There s something for every day if you stay 
 a year. But, as you have only three days, I 
 guess the California State Fish Hatchery will 
 be the most interesting." 
 
 " I want to tell you, fellows, that this trip 
 of ours to the Yosemite Valley is the finest 
 thing we ever had! " said Scott. " There isn t 
 anything like it in all the world. I m proud 
 that it is in my country. I m proud I m an 
 American " 
 
 1 We 11 take it for granted, Scott, that 
 you re sufficiently proud," broke in John. 
 " Words can t express it. What is the best 
 thing you ve seen on this trip? " 
 
 " Yosemite Falls," answered Scott promptly. 
 
 " I think I d say El Capitan or the Senti 
 nel," said Lee. 
 
 " You ll remember the big trees," suggested 
 Dana. " Just think of that one tree, the Cali 
 fornia, in which a road has been cut right 
 through the trunk. Why, our coach and all 
 
404 FOUR BOYS IN THE TO SEMITE 
 
 four of the horses were inside the tree in a 
 straight line and at the same time." 
 
 " Larc thinks catching train-robbers is the 
 one thing he ll remember longest/ said Scott, 
 with a laugh. 
 
 " Let Larc speak for himself," suggested 
 John. 
 
 " I d say the Yosernite Valley as a whole 
 including this Mariposa Grove of Big Trees," 
 said Larcum quietly. " I can t tear things 
 apart the way you can. It s like thinking of 
 my mother it isn t the color of her eyes or 
 the shape of her hand. It s everything about 
 her when I think of her." 
 
 " That s right! Larc has said it for us. The 
 whole is equal to the sum of all its parts," said 
 John. 
 
 " "Who said that? " demanded Larcurn. 
 " That isn t original with you, Jack Field! 
 I ve heard that somewhere before." 
 
 "Here s the call for the coach and the 
 horses! " said Scott. " That s something you 
 never heard before, anyway. Hold on," added 
 Scott. " Let s give the college yell before we 
 go. One two three 
 
 For the first time in its long life the Grizzly 
 Giant heard the sharp and prolonged cheer of 
 
CONCLUSION 405 
 
 the college in the East; and then, a moment 
 later, the echoes were awakened when the cheer 
 for Dana s college was heartily given. 
 
 " Here the East and the West meet, don t 
 they? " said John softly. 
 
 " They re both one," retorted Larcum, as, 
 still looking eagerly about them, the boys be 
 gan their return journey. 
 
 THE 
 
THE FAMOUS ROVER BOYS SERIES 
 
 By ARTHUR W. WINFIELD 
 
 American Stories of American Boys and Girls 
 
 A MILLION AND A HALF COPIES SOLD OF THIS SERIES 
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 THE ROVER BOYS AT SCHOOL 
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 THii ROVER BOYS ON THE OCEAN 
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 THE ROVER BOYS IN THE JUNGLE 
 
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 THE ROVER BOYS OUT WEST 
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 THE ROVER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 
 
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 THE ROVER BOYS IN THE MOUNTAINS 
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 THE ROVER BOYS ON LAND AND SEA 
 
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 THE ROVER BOYS ON THE RIVER 
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 THE ROVER BOYS ON THE PLAINS 
 
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 THE ROVER BOYS IN SOUTHERN WATERS 
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 THE ROVER BOYS ON THE FARM 
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 Or The Handicap of a Millionaire s Son. 
 
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 gives chase and there is a surprising rescue at sea. 
 
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 General Library 
 
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GENERAL LIBRARY - U.C. BERKELEY