“Shut up, Tom,” gurgled Nelson, thrusting his blushing countenance over the edge. “Can’t you see he has enough already to make him blue?” But Dan made no answer. He was tracing a monstrous C on the face of the cliff with a dripping brush. [Illustration: He was tracing a monstrous C.] “Don’t be too generous with that paint,” cautioned Bob. “Remember, there isn’t very much left.” “Guess I know that, don’t I?” asked Dan. An A and an M followed the C, and then it was necessary to move the artist along. Nelson had solved the difficulty after a fashion the preceding afternoon. The second rope was made fast to a tree at the top and lowered down to Dan. He put his foot in the noose and swung free of the seat, keeping hold, however, of the rope above it. Then this was moved at the top and made fast anew. Dan stepped back on the seat, released the rope with the noose, and went swinging across the face of the rock like a pendulum. The watchers held their breaths, but Dan clung fast, and presently the swing came to a stop and the painting was resumed. Four times more was this process gone through with to the risking of Dan’s limbs before the last numeral of “’04” was completed. Then Dan heaved a sigh of relief, viewed his work approvingly, and trickled what remained of the paint down the face of the rock in a partly successful endeavor to obliterate the red lettering below. “How does it look?” asked Nelson eagerly. “Swell,” said Dan. “Pull me up.” They obeyed, and when he crawled over the edge and stood up they all sat down and howled anew. And Dan, just to be sociable, sat down and laughed at his plight until the tears came. “Oh, Dan, if we could only keep you just as you are!” gasped Nelson, “and use you for a mascot!” Head and face were as blue as though he had dipped them in the paint-can; his hands and arms were a lighter shade; the stuff had trickled down behind one ear and so down his back, and his jersey was patriotic to a fault. “What shall I do?” he asked finally. “I can’t go back like this.” “We’ll land you just across from the village,” said Nelson, “and you can sneak back to camp through the woods. No one will see you, because the crowd will be having soak. Get a lot of kerosene and take a bath in it.”