Purchase of this book includes free trial access to www.million-books.com where you can read more than a million books for free. This is an OCR edition with typos. Excerpt from book: CHAPTER III OVER THE CONTINENTAL DIVIDE THE wind was howling through the chinks of the bunk house when Scotty awoke, to find Sid already puttering over some bits of wire and lead sinkers that he had dug up out of his ditty bag. "What in the Nation! —what's up, Sid?" he yawned, kicking off the Indian blankets that had covered them. " Wow! — it's some cold here! " " Fixin' for decoys," explained Sid. " We have none, so we'll have to make dead ducks do. Get your clothes on and come along." Scotty thawed out his high-laced hunting boots and drew them on, put together the little twenty-gauge shot-gun, grabbed some shells, and set off after Sid, who was impatiently waiting outside. It was early dawn on the prairie, and the ducks were circling in black clouds over the pond, while hundreds of them fed in the shallow waters off-shore. The boys made a low blind of sage brush on a point, and crouched there, waiting for a flock to come along. Presently, "Mark east! Down! — Down!" hissed Sid, pressing Scotty's eager shoulder down flat to the bunch grass. A flock of fifteen redheads came whistling down-wind, veered in a swift circle, and threw up their wings preparatory to lighting. " Now! " barked Sid, and both boys rose to their knees and let drive both barrels, as the astonished ducks jumped wildly for the clouds. Three fell, and then both second barrels spoke as one, as they doubled on a big, conspicuous drake, climbing for all he was worth. " Four down!" yelled Scotty, and was about to jump from the blind when Sid halted him. " Never do that, fellah — you know better. Reload for all your worth, before you stir!" They jammed in fresh shells and crawled out of the blind while the wind blew the dead ducks ashore. "Mark! — Overhead!" gasped Sid, suddenly jumping to his kn...