Then without another word he strode into the bush, and Seaforth, who first washed the breakfast-cans, proceeded to make a circuit of the camp.  He found the spot where the horses had been tethered with but little difficulty, and also the hole out of which one of them had drawn the picket-peg.  The redwoods which towered above him were vast of girth, and it would have needed a long halter to encompass them, while there was no branch for sixty feet or so.  Still, though he searched diligently, he did not find any print which might have been left by the paw of a panther, and regretted that there was a ridge of rock outcrop behind the camp.

“That beast was hungry, or he wouldn’t have come so near,” he said.

It was near dusk when Alton came back leading one weary horse, and darkness had closed down before Tom of Okanagan strode in with nothing but the pack-rope he had set out with.  Seaforth had supper ready, and no questions were asked until they had eaten.  Then Alton, stretching himself at full length beside the fire, lighted his pipe.

“You found nothing after I left you where the trail split tip?” he said.

“No,” said Okanagan.  “Anyway, not for more than a mile.  Ran into rock and gravel, and lost the trail.  Crawled round in rings most of the day, and couldn’t strike it again.  Guess the beast swam the river and lit out for home.”

“Well,” said Alton dryly, “I found more than that, for I ran into a man’s trail, and it wasn’t very old.  I think he had long boots on and one was down at the heel.  I spent an hour over it, and when it led me into rock came back again.”

“A man?” said Seaforth.  “I fancied there was nobody but ourselves between here and Somasco.  What could he be doing?”

“I don’t know,” said Alton.  “Did you find the panther’s trail?”

“No,” said Seaforth.  “Rock again!”

Alton said nothing for a minute, and when he spoke his voice had a curious tone.  “Well,” he said gravely, “the rock belongs to this place and we don’t, so there’s no use kicking, but it would have been convenient if there had been less of it.  Now it’s quite possible that a few pounds of grub and a load of blankets may make a big difference before we get home again, and if we can’t trail that horse to-morrow you’ll go back to Somasco for another one.  We’ll cache the load somewhere here and make a big smoke for you at every camping.”

“That means the loss of a fortnight, anyway,” said Seaforth.  “Time is valuable with the winter coming on.”

Alton nodded.  “Still, it can’t be helped,” he said.

“I’ll lose no time,” said Seaforth, who had been watching his comrade.  “Are you quite sure you have told us all, Harry?”

Alton slowly drew a strip of hide from beneath him, and passed it across.  Seaforth and Okanagan bent over it together, their faces showing intent in the light of the fire, while Alton laughed softly as he watched them.