creek. I escaped, and it chased me here, and we fought again. I thought
my end had come, when it must have heard you, and it made off through the
bush towards the mountain, going like the wind."

"By cripes!" ejaculated the youth in an awed voice.

"Did he hurt yeh much?" asked the man.

"My ankle's sprained, and I've got a broken rib and a cut head," answered
Nickie; "but losing my clothes is the worst. What is a man to do without
his clothes?"

"You get up to the house, Billy, and bring down my Sunday things," said
the settler. "We'll fix you up all right, mister," he added, addressing
Nickie the Kid, and Nickie smiled warily, and uttered feeble thanks.

They dressed Nickie and took him up to the house and fed him, and then
drove him back to Bullfrog in their spring cart, delivering him into the
hands of Madame Marve, who manifested great joy on receiving back the
unparalleled Missing Link in fairly good condition.

Nickie had explained to the settler that he believed the orang-outang
that attacked him had escaped from Professor Thunder's Museum of Marvels
and that he intended claiming damages.

Later in the day Nickie and the Professor drove out and recovered Mahdi's
outfit from the hollow log, and that evening the Missing Link was again
on view, and exciting much interest, although he sullenly refused to any
further demonstration for the edification of the people of Bullfrog.