CHAPTER XI.

THE DWARFS.

As Van Vincent spoke he seized the bridle rein of his horse and started for the rear end of the raft.

His companions quickly followed his example, and in an exceedingly short space of time all had sprung upon the backs of their horses.

By the time they had done so the foremost part of the raft was within a few feet of striking a rocky point of land.

There was not a moment to be lost.

Splash, splash, splash, splash, splash, splash!

One after another the horses leaped into the foaming water.

As Van rose to the surface on the back of his steed, he at once urged the animal toward the nearest shore, which was not over twenty yards distant.

He had scarcely done so when he heard a grinding crash, followed immediately by a roar that was deafening.

The timber raft was bent and twisted in a hundred different shapes, and then for a moment became wedged in the narrow gut through which the turbulent water flowed.

This one thing saved the lives of our friends.

The tangled mass of logs stayed the current for an instant, and the water became almost still.

With mighty efforts the horses swam for the shore, reaching it just as the improvised dam gave way with a loud crash.

With a feeling of mute thankfulness, Van and his companions fell upon the necks of their faithful animals.

Their escape from a certain death seemed nothing short of a miracle.

For several minutes they stood upon the river bank, gazing at the roaring flood before them.

As it was near nightfall, Van suggested that they find a suitable spot to pitch their camp for the night, and start a fire to dry their wet clothing.

Following the course of the turbulent stream, they started forward at a quick trot.

In a few minutes they reached the crest of a monster waterfall, which went dashing fully three hundred feet to a bleak-looking valley below.

In the center of the valley was a smooth sheet of water, which was now filled with the logs that had formed their raft a short time before.

"I guess there is no use of following Doc Clancy any further," observed Jack Howard. "If he went over that falls it was the last of him."

"Maybe he didn't go over," returned Van. "We didn't, you know."

"I don't think he did, unless he bears a charmed life," exclaimed Joe. "Look down there!"

The boy pointed to the valley below.

All hands instantly turned their gaze in the direction indicated.

They beheld Doc Clancy and his companion coolly riding through the valley, with their horses on a slow walk, as though nothing had happened.

"Well, that beats me!" said Lank Edwards. "What'll we do now?"

"Why, go down there, of course," returned our hero, promptly. "Here is a footpath, and--by Jove! here are the hoof prints of the two villains' horses. Come on."

As Van seemed to be the recognized leader of the party, his friends promptly followed him.

The path they started to descend was a rather steep one, but by good management they succeeded in getting to the level country below in safety.

By the time they arrived at the foot of the falls, the two men they were following had disappeared around a projection of land.

But the trail was as plain as the nose on a person's face, and, urging their horses into a brisk canter, our friends started in pursuit.

The noise of the falling water was so great that the thud of the horse's hoofs could not be heard; and they expected to overtake Clancy in very short order.

The sun had now disappeared below the horizon, and it was growing dark rapidly, but they could still see the trail very plainly.

However, in less than five minutes, it was lost altogether, owing to the fact that the pathway was now of solid rock.

But, weapons in hand, the six bold adventurers kept on, expecting every minute to find soft earth once more.

Suddenly a wild, unearthly noise rang out, which sounded like the barking of a thousand dogs.

Joe's horse shied and collided with the animal ridden by Jack Howard. The consequence was that both riders were thrown to the ground in a confused heap.

Before the rest of the party could comprehend what had happened, a veritable swarm of dwarfish figures burst from the cover of the adjacent rocks and rushed upon them.

Jack Howard and Joe were instantly seized by the curious beings, and then, as if by magic, the whole crowd disappeared.

Meanwhile, Van and the rest of his companions had been carried several yards from the spot by their frightened horses.

So suddenly had the whole thing occurred that they were not aware of the fact that Jack and Joe were missing until they beheld their two riderless steeds galloping madly from the spot.

"What in thunderation has happened, anyhow?" gasped Lank Edwards, gazing about him in dumfounded amazement.

"The Lord only knows!" returned Prof. Drearland, who was thoroughly frightened.

It was now so dark they were unable to distinguish objects at a distance greater than a dozen yards, and the four remaining ones in the party were at a complete loss as to what course to pursue.

"Well," remarked Van, at length, when they came to a halt about a hundred yards from the spot where the dwarfs had sprung upon them, "we must make an effort to find Jack and Joe. There must certainly be some opening around here somewhere, where those little savages went in."

"That is certainly so," spoke up Dr. Pestle.

Our hero now dismounted and began searching about the place where the dwarfs had disappeared.

Almost immediately he discovered a long, narrow rift which extended into the side of a hill that formed one of the boundaries of the valley.

"Here is where they went!" he exclaimed, in an excited manner. "Come on, now; we must rescue Jack and Joe!"

"What are we going to do with the horses?" asked the professor.

"Hobble them so they can't stray far away," was the reply. "Hurry up, now."

In less than two minutes this was done, and all four were ready to enter the opening.

With Van at their head they pushed inside.

It was as dark as the grave itself, and they felt the need of a torch to light them on their way through the unknown place.

Dr. Pestle had enough oil left in a bottle to saturate a piece of his coat, and when this was twisted into a compact mass it was lighted.

The doctor walked by the side of Van, with his improvised torch, which served its purpose well enough.

When they had traversed a distance of probably two hundred yards, they found they did not need any light.

Before them they beheld a vast cavern of a circular shape.

In many places upon the ground small fires were burning, and these furnished enough light for them to see where they were going. Around the fires could be seen groups of the dwarfs, who were, by the way, the strangest people any of our friends had ever seen.

They wore short skirts, which seemed to be made of some sort of leather, the rest of their bodies being bare.

The tallest of them could not have been over three feet six inches in height, but they seemed to be very powerful, for all that.

Bows and arrows and clubs were the only weapons they possessed, and as Van and his three companions gazed upon them from their point of observation, they reckoned that they could clean out the place if they tried very hard.

But they were doomed to be badly mistaken in their idea.

The dwarfs, who were a race of cave dwellers, supposed by the world at large to be extinct, were about as bloodthirsty and determined as any savage who ever drew the breath of life.

Van had just suggested that they move forward to try and find their two missing friends, when they were startled to hear the sound of footsteps approaching from the way they entered the place.

They had scarcely turned around when they beheld Doc Clancy and his partner running toward them with all their might, a perfect horde of the dwarfs at their heels.