But Charley was not in a responsive mood.  The thought of the man Collins and his evil-favored companion weighed upon him heavily.  Nor was the knowledge that a wildcat was prowling about his camp reassuring; though Charley was far from being afraid of the beast.  And always the dread of fire was in the background of his consciousness.  What troubled him more than anything else just now was the approaching loss of his chum.  Could Charley have diagnosed correctly the feelings that oppressed him now, he would have known that it was the fear of loneliness more than any fear of Bill Collins or wildcats or forest fires, that made him sad.  To read about Robinson Crusoe was all right, but to be Robinson Crusoe was quite a different matter—­at least a Crusoe without a good man Friday.  And Charley was too downcast at present to realize that the pup at his heels could be to him all that Friday was to his master, and perhaps more.

Again and again Charley turned over in his mind the problem of how he could get the battery he needed.  More than ever he felt that he absolutely must have it.  Such a battery would cost many, many dollars.  To be sure, Charley’s salary would soon bring him in enough money to pay for such a battery; but all of his income, or practically all of it, Charley knew, he must give to his father.  How he should get around the difficulty, Charley could not see.

As they trudged on, he talked the matter over with Lew again.  Lew seemed unduly light-hearted over the matter, and even smiled about it.  Instead of sympathizing with his chum, he counseled him not to worry about it, as the way would likely open.  That seemed so heartless that Charley was hurt.  He thought that his chum, about to leave the forest himself, no longer was concerned.  So he fell silent, and walked along in greater dejection than ever.

Long before the sun had touched the zenith, the three forest guards had reached the last ridge that lay between them and the highway.

“You’ve come far enough, Charley,” said the ranger, “and perhaps it would have been better if you had stopped short of this.  If anything should happen in that big timber, you are a long distance from it.  There’s a good spring part way up this ridge, and it’s high enough so that we can get a good view.  We’ll stop there and eat our dinner.  We can watch as we eat.  After you’ve had a good rest, you had better hike for camp.  You’re a good ten miles away from your tent.”

They climbed to the spring, took each a good drink, and sat down to eat their food.  The panorama that spread before them was wondrously beautiful, but Charley had no heart for scenery.  He ate in silence, his eyes for the most part bent on the ground.

After the meal was finished, the three friends sat silent, looking out over the vast range of territory before them, each busy with his own thoughts.  If one could have judged by the expressions on their faces, Lew was little short of jubilant.  Again and again he smiled and looked meaningly at his chum.  But Charley still sat with downcast eyes, heedless of his chum’s glances.  But why Lew smiled it would have been hard to guess.  If he had any scheme in mind, he dropped no hint concerning it.