Tad landed squarely on the pack that he had gone in search of, but the
shock was so severe that for a time he lay stunned and motionless.

When finally he became conscious he heard his companions far above
calling.

The lad tried and tried to answer them, to assure them that he was
safe, but the roar of the stream beside him seemed to drown his
weakened voice.

"I've got to make them hear. I simply must make them hear," he said
to himself. "They will be beside themselves with worry, believing
that I am killed."

Finding that he could not raise his voice sufficiently to carry to the
top of the cliff, the lad struggled to his feet and began waving his
handkerchief.

At first those above were so busy using their voices that they did not
observe the tiny piece of cloth.

They had about given up hope of finding the boy alive, when Ned
Rector, who had been anxiously peering into the gorge, suddenly raised
himself to his knees.

"I see something moving," he shouted.

The others crowded around him as close to the edge as they dared.
They were able to make nothing of what he saw.