The senator's son faced Link Merwell and Job Haskers, and both stared at him as if they were looking at a ghost, and backed away.

"Roger Morr!" faltered Merwell.

"Yes, Link. You didn't expect I'd follow you so soon, did you?" cried Roger. "Now, I've got a nice account to settle with you. I want to know what you did with my suit-case, and I want to know what you mean by impersonating me."

"I--I----" began Merwell, and then stopped, not knowing how to proceed.

"This is--er--very unfortunate," murmured Job Haskers. He would have retired had there been any place to retire to, which there was not.

"Say, are you Roger Morr?" gasped Abe Blower, gazing fixedly at the senator's son.

"I am. And you are Abe Blower?"

"I sure am. But see here----"

"We'll explain everything in a few minutes, Mr. Blower. These fellows are swindlers! They robbed me of my suit-case and then got ahead of me, and that fellow impersonated me," and Roger pointed to Merwell. "We hired Mr. Dillon to bring us to you--or at least he offered to come. He knows that I am the real Roger Morr, and Maurice Harrison was my mother's brother."

"Well, I never! But wot did they think to gain----"

"They wanted to locate the lost mine before I got here, that was their game. What they intended to do later I don't know, but probably Job Haskers was going to cook up some deal whereby our family could be kept out of the property. He is a rascal----"

"See here, Morr, I won't--er--have you--ahem!--talk about me in this----" commenced the former teacher.

"But I will talk about you!" interrupted Roger. "You are a rascal, almost as bad as Merwell here, and you know it."

"Yes, and we know it, don't we, Phil?" cried another voice, and Dave and Phil stepped into view.

"Porter--and Lawrence!" faltered the former teacher of Oak Hall, and he looked almost ready to drop. "I--I----" He did not know how to finish.

"Say, I want to git the straight o' this!" burst out Abe Blower.

"This young man is givin' it to you straight, Abe," replied Tom Dillon, pointing to Roger. "And these are his friends--all true blue to the core. These other fellers are first-cla.s.s swindlers. They took you in good an' proper."

"If they did, they shall suffer fer it!" roared the other miner. "Do you know, I kinder suspected somethin' was wrong. They didn't act as open as honest folks should. An' they was in an all-fired hurry to git away from b.u.t.te and from Black Cat Camp."

"Because they knew we were following them," explained Dave. "Link, I guess you had better admit that the game is up," he went on, turning to his former schoolmate.

"Is it up?" sneered Link Merwell. "Well, I don't know, Dave Porter. We have as much right to hunt for that lost mine as you have."

"Oh, so that's the game, eh?" burst out Roger.

"You had no right to impersonate Roger," a.s.serted our hero. "He can have you arrested for that."

"Huh, that was--er--only done for--er--fun," faltered Link Merwell. "And as for your old suit-case, it's on check at the Glenrose Hotel in b.u.t.te, and there's the check for it," and he drew the bra.s.s disc from his pocket and pa.s.sed it over to the senator's son.

"Why did you take my suit-case?"

"Oh, for fun."

"He took it thinking he was going to get your map!" cried Dave. "Link, what makes you act as you do?" went on our hero, earnestly. "When I helped you on Cave Island you promised that you were going to reform."

"What's the use of reforming?" burst out the other. "Everybody in this world is down on me! I don't dare to show my face wherever I am known!

There is a warrant out for my arrest!" And Link Merwell's face showed his bitterness.

While the boys were talking Abe Blower and Tom Dillon had been conversing together. Job Haskers was left in the cold, and he looked much disturbed. Evidently he was thinking how foolish he had been to come to Montana with Merwell.

"So this is the trick yer played on me, consarn ye!" cried Abe Blower, coming from the other miner to Haskers. "I've a good mind to take it out of yer hide!" And he shook his fist in the former teacher's face.

"Don't you touch me--don't you dare!" howled Job Haskers, in new alarm, and he backed away so hastily that he tripped over some of the camp outfit and went flat on his back.

The accident was such a comical one that Dave and his chums laughed outright, and Tom Dillon and Abe Blower grinned broadly. Link Merwell reached down and a.s.sisted the former teacher to his feet. Job Haskers's face was sourness itself.

"Stop that! Don't you dare to laugh at me!" he roared. "Don't you dare!"

"We'll laugh as much as we please," answered Dave, boldly.

"I--I guess we had better get out of here," whispered Link Merwell, nervously. "They--they might take it into their heads to harm us."

"Do you think so?" asked Job Haskers. "All right, I--I am ready to go.

But how are we to find our way back to the town?" he asked, helplessly.

"We'll have to follow the back trail," answered Link Merwell. Being used to ranch life, this being in the open did not daunt him as it did the former teacher. "Come on, let us get our horses and be off!" the youth added. "It is getting too hot for us here!"

CHAPTER XXI

ON THE BACK TRAIL

"Just you two wait a minute!"

It was Tom Dillon who uttered the words, as he saw Link Merwell and Job Haskers turn to where their horses were tethered.

"You bet they'll wait!" exploded Abe Blower, wrathfully. He stepped forward and seized Merwell by the arm. "What do you mean by playing such a trick as this on me?"

"Le--let go of me!" cried the youth, in fear. "Let go. I--I--didn't I say it was only done in fun?"

"Fun? You won't think it's fun when I git through with you!"

"I--ahem! I think this whole matter can be settled amicably," put in Job Haskers, with an effort. "I am satisfied now that we made a--er--a mistake. But, as Merwell states, it was all done in a--er--a spirit of fun."

"And now you want to sneak off--without even paying me for my trouble!"

cried Abe Blower.

"You said you'd come with me for nothing," returned Link Merwell, and his voice had almost a whine in it.