"I don't know. Don't stop to ask questions now, but pull."
Their new burden was a dead weight and it was all the outlaws could do to get him up to the edge, where the body awkwardly caught under the shelf of the ledge.
"Make it fast around the rock!" commanded Frank, sharply. "Bill, you get your arm around the rock and all join hands. All lie down."
Quickly was the human chain forged, and with Harry holding him by the feet, Frank leaned far out over the dizzy height and exerting every ounce of strength that he possessed pulled the body of the great bandit over onto the rock.
It was but the work of a moment to sever the thongs that held him. The elder brother already had slipped his hand over Jesse's heart and learned that he still lived.
Wild Bill passed it over and a large draught was quickly forced down the throat of the great bandit.
The result was gratifying. He began to choke and at a signal from Frank they picked him up and carried him just within the mouth of the cave.
"Hey," hailed a voice from below. "Going to leave me down here all night? This tree's liable to give way and send me to kingdom come."
"Pull him up," directed Frank, redoubling his efforts to bring his brother back to consciousness.
In this he was aided by the wonderful recuperative power of his outlaw brother. And in a few moments Jesse sat up and rubbed his eyes, blinking in the light of the fire they had started in the cave.
"Hello, boys," he greeted. "What's happened?"
"That is what we want to know," responded Frank without the suspicion of a smile, though the others were grinning broadly. "You fell off the mountain, that's all we know about it. We heard the redskins hitting the trail of some one, and the next thing you did a high dive and landed in the tree."
At the mention of the word "redskin" Jesse's face suddenly was filled with an expression of terrible, malignant rage. He swore a fearful oath, and rising, rather unsteadily paced back and forth in the narrow cave while he related all that had befallen him. Black were the faces of the hardy band and many were the curses that the men uttered under their breaths as they listened in strained silence.
"And I'm going back there and wipe the curs off the face of the mountain," concluded Jesse.