three and the
other two--horses.

"That will make ten altogether, with Blount's two. We shall travel
all the faster, because we can ride the spare horses by turns."

The three settlers rode off at once, and returned late at night
with the spare horses. They had not been idle at Mr. Blount's. A
bullock had been killed and cut up, and a considerable portion
cooked, so that each of the twenty men going on the expedition
would start with ten pounds of cooked meat, in order to save the
time that would be spent in halting to cook the carcass of any
sheep they might come upon. The question of weight was immaterial,
as the meat could be packed on the spare horses.

As soon as day broke, the party were in their saddles. Mr. Blount
led them first to the hut near which he had found his shepherd
killed. The native trackers now took up the search. The body of the
other shepherd was found half a mile away. It was in a sitting
position by a tree; the skull was completely smashed in by the blow
of a waddy, and it was evident that a native had crept up behind
him, and killed him before he was conscious that any danger was at
hand. The trackers were not long in finding the place where the
sheep had been collected together and driven off, and a broad track
of trampled grass showed, clearly enough, the direction which had
been taken.

"How many of the black fellows do you think there were?" Reuben
asked one of the trackers.

"Great many black fellow, captain," he replied.

"What do you call a great many?" Reuben asked.

"Twenty, thirty, captain; can't say how many. No use, captain, look
for dem, gone right away into de bush, never find them."

"I am going to try, anyhow," Reuben said. "Now, do you lead the
way."

"I tink dere are more dan thirty black fellow," Jim said to Reuben,
as they started; "quite a crowd of dem. Me no much like those two
black fellow," and he nodded towards the trackers, who were running
on ahead. "No good, those fellows."

"What makes you think that, Jim?"

"Two days ago, Jim saw dem talking wid black fellow, half a mile
from the station. Not know Jim saw dem. Secret sort of talk. Why
dey never find de tracks before black fellows and bush rangers
always get away? Jim tink those fellows no good."

Reuben himself had often thought it singular that such continued
bad luck should have attended the efforts of his predecessor to
hunt down the bush rangers, but the thought that they had been put
off thei