sh. It needed small enough
imagination to realize the security which lay in its depths for so
small a creature as a wounded deer.

For some thoughtful moments Effie gazed upon the barrier. Then she
turned and surveyed her dejected pony. Again her decision was taken
without hesitation. She stooped and set a pair of hobbles about the
tired creature's pasterns, and, leaving him to his own devices, set off
to ascertain her whereabouts.

* * * * * *

But her movements were not without feminine curiosity, added to which
was the businesslike desire to familiarize herself with every foot of
the country within reach of her home. This was a break into new
territory. Time was small enough object to her, and, besides, her pony
needed time to recuperate from its leg weariness.

It required less than ten minutes, however, to banish every other
thought from her mind and absorb it in amazement at her discovery. A
brief battle with a dense and obstinate scrub found her standing in the
centre of a wide sort of bridle path, scored with a dozen or so cattle
tracks crowded with the spurs of driven cattle.

She stood gazing down at the signs everywhere about her in the loose
sand, dumbfounded at the sight. She knew there was no homestead or
ranch within miles of this region. Was she not bitterly aware that her
own home marked the fringe of the cattle world in this direction?

Slowly there grew in the depths of her heart a feeling of apprehension.
The stillness, the remoteness, the tremendous solitude, and yet--those
tracks.

She stood intent and listening. Her ears were straining for a sound.
But only there came to her the whispering breezes rustling the mournful
foliage of the pine woods behind her. Her eyes were raised to the
walls of scrub lining the roadway. They searched vainly for a sign.
There was none. Simply the riot of nature about her, and, at her feet,
those tracks.

She moved. Then swiftly she passed across to the western side of the
roadway where the westering sun threw ample shadow. All unconsciously
it seemed her movements became almost furtive, furtive and rapid. She
passed down the bush-lined way, hugging the grassy edges to avoid
leaving trace of her footsteps in the sand. Understanding was with
her, and that understanding warned her of the jeopardy in which she
stood should her presence be advertised.

Thought, speculation and imagination were a-riot in her now.