persisted. Twice he had to stop precious minutes for Lang stirred in his sleep and the lad feared he would wake and discover what he was doing. Nearly an hour passed and at last the rope was slipped above his shoulders; a moment more and he was out of it.

All this while his mind was working like a trip hammer planning what to do when he got loose. The first thing would be to take possession of Lang’s gun. With that in his pocket he might force the men to release Bob in case he wasn’t able to do it himself. His step-brother was the other side of Mills and whether that journey could be made safely was another matter. With the weapon in his pocket at last, Jim devoted the next few minutes to rubbing his sore arms, for he knew that in their present condition he could never hold the gun, much less fire it effectively. In due time his arms were relieved, then he wished that he had on soft-soled shoes, but he managed to get to his feet, take possession of the flash-light, and at last, assured that his activities were unobserved, he made his way to Bob’s side, bending over him carefully. Instantly the young fellow looked up in startled surprise, then Jim grinned, for Bob was industriously chewing his own rope and had managed to get half way through it. A moment more and it was cut and he too was free, while Jim took Mills’ gun, which he gave to the younger boy.

“This place is lighter,” Bob whispered, and Jim glanced around. He was greatly puzzled, for as far as he could see there was no explanation to the fact. No one seemed to be coming with a light and certainly no new opening had been made into the passage, but the glow was unmistakable and it filled the place. Gently Jim rubbed his step-brother’s body, and presently, Bob stood up, but just then Mills stirred uneasily, so the Sky Buddies sat down again quickly and quietly. They watched through half closed eyes, and although Mills tossed restlessly, he finally lay still and again his melodious snore broke the silence.

“Grand uproar,” Bob grinned. Then he got busy knotting his rope, and looped it on his arm. “We’ll do a bit of tying,” he announced.

“Wait,” Jim whispered, then he motioned his pal to move further from the sleepers. They stopped several feet away. “I have an idea. Suppose we lay the ropes so when they sit up we’ll have them hog-tied with a loop, and as soon as we’re ready we’ll wake them and make them get moving.”

“Good idea,” Bob agreed. “They had something to eat and some sleep, and we didn’t. Got any of those pellets Ynilea gave you—”

“You bet, I 

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