“Look here,” George said presently, as the search-light rested for a moment on a break in the rock.  “I wouldn’t wonder at all if we could get further under the hill.  There’s an opening here which looks wide enough for us to crawl through.”

“It’s a wonder the bears didn’t find it then,” commented Thede.

“I’m going to see whether I can get through it or not,” George insisted.  “It may be a warmer corner.  Anyway, it’ll give us exercise, and that’s what we need about this time.”

Throwing the spear of light into the crevice, the boy glanced keenly about.  The walls of the opening seemed to be smooth, and to extend only a short distance.  Just below where the walls broke he could see the brown floor of another cavern.”

“I guess it’s all right,” he said to Thede.  “You take the light and hold it down and I’ll scramble in.  May as well break my neck as to freeze to death.”

“Let me take your hand, then,” advised Thede, “so yon can be pulled back if you don’t like the looks of the new furnished room.”

“I’d like to be in a furnished room on Washington boulevard just this minute,” George broke in.

“I wouldn’t mind a good box in Gamblers’ alley,” said Thede.

When all was ready Thede gave one hand to George and lowered him down to the full length of both arms.

“All right!” George cried in a moment, “I can feel my toes touching the rock.  Let go!  You drop down now, and I’ll steady you when you light.”

Both boys were soon in the lower cavern and a moment following their arrival there, they heard the claws of the bears rattling on the rocks above.

“I’ve heard Pierre tell about caves in this range of hills,” Thede said, “but I never knew that they had caves two stories high.”

As the boy ceased speaking, George suddenly shut off his flash light and laid a hand on the other’s arm.

“What’s that for -----”

“Keep still!” whispered George.  “Do you see anything?”

“Looks to me like a light,” the other replied.

“Looks like a fire, doesn’t it?” asked George.

“It certainly is a fire and there’s a man sitting in front of it.”

The fire showed at the end of a narrow passage, perhaps ten or twelve yards away.  It was blazing vigorously, and the cavern in which it stood was well clouded with smoke.  It was evident that the watcher by the fire was as yet unconscious of the approach of the two boys.

“I wish we could get to that fire!” George said with a shiver.

“And why not?”

“I don’t think he’d be hiding here if he was keeping open house,” replied George.  “He may be an outlaw hiding from the police.  And in that case he wouldn’t relish the idea of his underground retreat being discovered, even by two boys who want to get warm.”

“Anyway,” Thede insisted, “I’m going to crawl up close and see what I can find out.  That fire looks good to me.”