He hurried back to where he had left his horse, and took from the horn of
the saddle the rope which no cowboy is ever without. With this Dave took a
turn about the man's waist, passing the rope under him. He then carried an
end back to a stout tree and tied it there, working, the while, deftly and
swiftly.

"That will hold you in case you slip when I loosen the rocks and free your
foot," Dave explained. "You are pretty well overbalanced. But I'll get you
up, all right."

The man was in a peculiar and perilous position, but Dave thought that he
could cope with the situation. His life on the plains, and amid the perils
of the range had made him resourceful, and quick to take advantage of all
the chances for safety.

Dave looked at the man's foot. It was firmly wedged in between two rocks
that came together in the form of a large V. Considerable pressure must
have forced the man's foot there, for Dave could see that the stout
leather of his riding boot was cut and scraped. The foot was twisted, and
Dave remarked, in a low voice:

"If you haven't a badly sprained ankle I'll miss my guess!"

"Watch yourself now," David cautioned the man. "You can't fall, even if
you slip over, for the rope's strong enough to hold you; but you may get a
bad jerk when you bring up suddenly if you fall after I release your
foot."

"I'm ready," said the man.