"He ought to be back by noon," said Britt. "In the mean time we'll eat breakfast and then cruise for blowdowns. And I'm thinkin' it isn't goin' to be a very humorous forenoon for timber-land owners." Nor was it. Dolefully and silently they traversed wastes of splintered devastation, blocked ram-downs, choked twitch-roads, and hideous snarls of cross-piled timber. CHAPTER XVII THE AFFAIR AT DURFY'S CAMP "The boss was a-thinkin' to swat him, but allowed he had better not, For 'twas trouble bad that Dumphy had, whatever it was he'd got." When the timber barons came in sight of the camp at noon, Tommy Eye, returned emissary, was seated on the edge of the wangan platform with attitude and countenance of alarmed expectancy. By his side was old Christopher Straight, the guide who had accompanied Dwight Wade from Castonia settlement. "I done it--I said as you said for me to say," Tommy began, eagerly, "and Mr. Straight here will tell you the same. I said it first to old Noah up there, and he was startin' off with his animiles like as they done with the ark stranded, and he swore me up hill and down, and--" "Shut up!" barked the Honorable Pulaski, in a perfectly fiendish temper after the sights of that forenoon. "Did you bring that girl? And if you didn't, why not?" "I can tell you better, perhaps, Mr. Britt," broke in old Christopher, calmly. "She has been left on Mr. Wade's hands, and Mr. Wade feels that he ought to be careful. Warden Lane, who had charge of her, seems to have lost his wits. All last night--it was an awful night, gentlemen, on Jerusalem--he was out on the ledges raving and howling. I think that a matter that Mr. Barrett will understand was troubling up his conscience, if that's the word for it. This mornin' he seemed to be clean out of his head. He knocked the saplin's off his cages and let out the animals, and they followed him off down into the woods--" "Moose, bobcat, fisher-cat--" But Tommy ceased his enumeration to dodge a vicious sweep of Britt's palm. "I guess he left the place for good, seeing he took his rifle and his pack," continued the guide. "I thought the timber owners might like to know that their fire station is abandoned. As for the girl," he hastened to add, "Mr. Wade told me to say that for reasons that Mr. Britt would understand he didn't think she ought to come here." "Because she's lost her head over my boss, MacLeod, eh?" demanded Britt. "You saw yourself that the girl wasn't to be controlled easily when the young man was present," said Christopher, mildly. "So he believes if there is business to be talked to her and about her it will be better to meet somewhere else."