ssed; nor,
accustomed as they all were to seeing the tracks made by herds of cattle
and flocks of sheep, could they come to any approximate agreement on the
subject. Had the number been smaller, the task would have been easier;
but it is a question requiring extreme knowledge and judgment to decide
whether four hundred cattle and two thousand sheep, or six hundred
cattle and three thousand sheep, have passed over a piece of ground.

Mr. Hardy at last sent Charley back, accompanied by Mr. Cook, to request
Mr. Percy to come on at once with the Guachos to give their opinion.
Charley and his companions were to remain with the horses, and were to
request those not specially sent for to stay there also, as it would be
imprudent in the extreme to leave the horses without a strong guard.

Pending the arrival of Mr. Percy, Mr. Hardy and his friends followed up
the trail for some distance, so as to examine it both in the soft
bottoms and on the rises. They returned in half an hour to their
starting-place, and were shortly after joined by Mr. Percy and the
Guachos. Again a careful and prolonged examination took place, and a
tolerably unanimous opinion was at last arrived at, that a very large
number of animals had passed, apparently the larger half, but that no
positive opinion could be arrived at until a comparison was made with
the trail on the western side.

Although this conclusion was arrived at unanimously, it appeared to be
reluctantly conceded to by most of them, and the reason of this became
apparent as they were walking back towards the horses. 'I have little
doubt that the conclusion we have arrived at is correct,' Herries
remarked, 'although somehow I am sorry for it; for ever since our talk
last night I have made up my mind that she was most likely to be taken
to the west. I suppose because the Indians there are more warlike than
those of the Pampas, and therefore likely to have furnished a larger
contingent. Of course I had no reason for thinking so, but so it was.'

'That was just what I thought,' Hubert said; and the other Englishmen
admitted that they had all entertained a somewhat similar idea.

At four in the afternoon they were again in the saddle, having taken the
precaution of filling their water-skins, and of watering the horses the
last thing.

'How far do you think it is across, papa?' Hubert asked.

'It cannot be very far, Hubert. We are so much nearer the place where
the fire began, that I do not