112 THE LOG OF A TIMBER CRUISER 



workers. The night he got lost and " slept out" 

 brought matters to a head. 



No one knew just how he came to be separated 

 from Wallace and Conway that evening. As it was 

 no new thing for him to drop behind and catch up 

 with them later they thought nothing of his absence 

 until some time after reaching camp, when Horace 

 still failed to put in an appearance. 



It was scarcely probable that he was hurt, we 

 thought, as the route of the baseline had not been 

 particularly rough. But a night in the woods with- 

 out a bed is no joke, at the best, and we were in- 

 clined to feel for Horace as we slipped into our 

 warm blankets, a little later, with a sympathetic 

 shiver. 



A storm came up during the night and our uneasi- 

 ness increased. With all our guying and criticism 

 of the missing man, no one now really disliked him 

 to any great extent, or wished him any injury. We 

 thought of him rather as a helpless eccentric than 

 as a capable irritant. 



Next day Frazer met the general mood when he 

 said: 



"I'm a little worried about Wetherby, fellows! 

 Let's knock off work this morning and look for him." 



But we were spared the necessity. Shortly after 

 breakfast the "lost goat," as Conway rather un- 

 kindly called him, returned to camp, a most woe- 

 begone spectacle. His wet and wrinkled clothes, 



