follow his companion from the former topic.

"No," said Alton, "not that time, but I will by and by. Well, there
was a good deal of snow up in the ranges, and my feet got away from me
one evening when we were crawling along the edge of a gully. There was
a river and big boulders some five hundred feet below, and I slipped
down, clawing at the snow, until I grabbed a little bunch of juniper
just on the edge. Part of it tore up, but I got a grip of a better
handful, and hung on to it, with most of me swinging over the gully.
Charley was stripping off the pack-rope on the slope above, and he was
mighty quick, but I knew that bush was coming away with me, and didn't
think he could be fast enough. I didn't feel exactly happy, but while
I've read that folks think of some astonishing things when they're
starting out on the long trail, it wasn't that way with me. I could
only remember there was a man I'd never got even with who'd badly
cheated me."

[Illustration: "There was a river and big boulders some five hundred
feet below."]

Deringham felt a little shiver run through him, for there was a grim
vindictiveness in the speaker's tone, and he felt that Alton of Somasco
would not lightly forgive an injury.

"You managed to crawl up?" he said.

"No," said Alton simply, "I didn't. I lay there watching Charley, and
felt the bush drawing out, until the rope came down and Charley hauled
me up. It would have made a big difference to Miss Deringham if he'd
been a second or two longer. Well, we'll have lots of time for