of the three was to carry a pick and of course they all were to be
armed, carrying several rounds of ammunition each in their
cartridge-belts.

That night after a supper of fried ham, canned corn and pancakes--all
cooked by the skilful Ben over a fire of wood collected from the
little grove--Frank sent out a wireless to the members of the camp
on the river bank and felt much reassured when Lathrop's "All
well--good luck," came back through the air. It was delightfully
cool on the mountain-side after the oppressive fetid air of the
river and its neighborhood, and as Ben had remarked before they
turned in:

"Fine weather for sleeping."

But sleep would not come to Frank. He tossed and turned on his
transom bed and several times gazed out into the night through the
canvas curtains. An unaccountable feeling of unrest possessed him.
Could they get the ivory out of the cache before Muley-Hassan and
his band arrived by land?

Fast as they had traveled through the air Frank realized that the
Arab, who doubtless by this time had been informed by the
treacherous Diego of the boys' bold dash, would push on at furious
speed in order to head them off. That he would come accompanied by
a well-armed band Frank could not doubt. He and Harry and Ben could
only put up a feeble resistance against such an attack. There was
only one chance to secure the ivory and that was to get at it before
the Arab arrived. It all depended then on how quickly they could
find the cache. Frank lit the lantern and shielding it so that it