dialects to the old woman.
She nodded her head, and went off round to the back of the house, we
leading our horses, and following her. The stables, I observed, were
singularly large and well kept for a house of its size; but, to my
surprise, instead of going to the long range of buildings, the old woman
led the way to a small shed.

'"Ain't these stables?" said I.

'She shook her head, and said in Spanish, "They were once, but we have
only two horses. Now they are used as a store for grain; the master has
the key."

'I could not contradict her, though I believed she was telling me a lie.
However, we fastened our horses up in the shed, put the pistols from our
holsters into our belts, and, taking our rifles in our hands, entered
the house.

'Pepita received us very warmly, and busied herself assisting the old
woman to get us something to eat; after which she and Rube began
love-making, and it really seemed as if the girl meant to change her
mind, and go back with Rube, after all. There was nothing, in fact, to
justify my feeling uneasy, except that, while Pepita had promised me
when I entered the house not to tell the old woman who we were, I was
convinced that she had done so by the glances of scowling hatred which
the old hag threw at us whenever she came into the room. Still I was
uneasy, and shortly made some excuse to leave the room and saunter round
and about the house, to assure myself that Pepita had spoken truly when
she had said that there was no one there except the old woman and
herself. I found nothing to excite the smallest suspicion, and was
therefore content to return to the room and to throw myself lazily down
and go off for a siesta, in the wakeful intervals of which I could hear
that Pepita had given way, and that the delighted Rube was arranging
with her how she should escape and join him when the army retired; for
of course neither had any idea that her father would consent to her
marrying one of the hated enemies of his country.

'At three o'clock I roused myself, and soon after the old woman came
into the room with some lemonade. I observed that Pepita changed colour,
but she said nothing, and a moment after, making some excuse, she left
the room. I was about to speak to Rube on the subject, when the window
was darkened with men. Five or six shots were fired at us, and with a
yell a crowd of Mexicans rushed into the room.

'As they appeared, Rube sprang up with the exclamation, "Trapped, by