about one to
ten
Again , why had Thomas Q. Collins been left there in the wilderness ? Surely there were no accommodations in sight in those valleys -- nothing to subsist on , no shelter from the weather . He might , it is true , have remained out of a spirit of revenge , hoping to punish Ned for his treatment of him , but this explanation did not appeal to the boy . With the Nelson hopelessly out of repair , he could well afford to leave the lads to their fate , as the chances that they would be able to get out alive -- being strangers to that country and , supposedly , to mountain work -- were about one to ten . And so , Ned reasoned , there must be some other incentive for the action taken by Collins . He had a subconscious impression that he knew what that incentive was , but hardly dared to whisper it to himself . The boy 's reverie was interrupted by Jimmie , who had been running back and forth in the valley in quest of wild berries , or something which would serve as food .