y the
Indians, fell silent. Then the fatigue consequent upon the day's toil
began to make itself felt, and after a somewhat longer spell of silence
than usual, Earle allowed his body to settle back luxuriously upon the
soft sward and soon gave audible evidence that he was fast asleep,
whereupon Dick promptly followed his companion's example.

Their sleep was, however, destined to be of brief duration. They were
both by this time so thoroughly accustomed to the ordinary nocturnal
sounds of the wild that, although so fully aware of them as to be able
instantly to detect anything unusual in their character, and to start up
awake in a moment if the unusual note seemed to portend danger, they
could still sleep soundly and refreshingly through them all. But the
nocturnal sounds of this particular night were of so startling a
character that sleep soon became an impossibility.

They began with a low, melancholy, distant howl which, while it
penetrated the consciousness of the sleepers, failed to disturb them,
because its remoteness was a guarantee against imminent danger, and
nothing less than imminent danger now had the power to chase sleep from
those seasoned wanderers. Nor were the howls any more effective as
disturbers of the party's rest after several repetitions in varying
keys. But when a weird, unearthly, blood-curdling scream rang out upon
the startled air it awoke the entire party upon the instant, though the
sound seemed to emanate from a considerable distance.

"What the dickens was that?" demanded Dick, sitting up and instinctively
groping for his rifle.

"Give it up," returned Earle. "No, I don't though," he quickly added.
"I guess it's that thing I shot at and wounded during the mid-day halt,
or another of the same species."

"Y-e-s, very possibly," agreed Dick. "Look at King Cole. What is the
matter with him now, I wonder?"

By the declining light of the fire on the summit of the hillock the
panther could be seen, in a half-standing, half-crouching attitude, a
few paces away, staring intently out across the black water, his black
fur all a-bristle, and his body visibly quivering with either excitement
or fear.

"King--King Cole, come here, sir! What's the matter with you, anyway?"
called Earle. And the animal at once turned and crept cowering to the
feet of the pair, his eyes glowing like a pair of green lamps, and his
lips drawn into a silent snarl.

That the weird cry was not repeated in no