he meal, for they had
neither eaten anything since the preceding noon. When they had
finished, Ned arose from the table, saying: "Pardner, I shall leave
you here for a few days, during which time I shall probably be mostly
away on business. Make yourself at home and see that Anita is properly
protected; I will return in a week at the furthest;--perhaps in a day
or two."

He took down his rifle and belt from the wall, buckled on the latter,
and half an hour later left the "pocket." That was a day of days to
Harry Redburn. He rambled about the picturesque little valley, romped
on the luxuriant grass and gathered wild flowers, alternately. At
night he sat in the cabin door and listened to the cries of the night
birds and the incessant hooting of the mountain owls (which by the
way, are very abundant throughout the Black Hills.)

All efforts to engage Anita in conversation proved fruitless.

On the following day both were considerably astonished to perceive
that there was a stranger in their Paradise;--a bow-legged,
hump-backed, grisly little old fellow, who walked with a staff. He
approached the cabin, and Redburn went out to find who he was.

"Gude-mornin'!" nodded General Nix, (for it was he) with a grin. "I
jes' kim over inter this deestrict ter prospect fer gold. Don' seem
ter recognize yer unkle, eh? boy; I'm Nix Walsingham Nix, Esquire,
geological surveyor an' mine-locater. I've located more nor forty
thousan' mines in my day, more or less--ginerally a consider'ble more
of less than less of more. I perdict frum ther geological formation o'
this nest an' a dream I hed last night, thet thar's sum uv ther
biggest veins right in this yere valley as ye'll find in ther Hills!"

"Humph! no gold here," replied Redburn, who had already learned from
study and experience how to guess a fat strike. "It is out of the
channel."

"No; et's right in the channel."

"Well, I'll not dispute you. How did you get into the valley?"

"Through ther pass," and the General chuckled approvingly. "See'd a
feller kim down ther canyon, yesterday, so I nosed about ter find
whar he kim from, that's how I got here; 'sides, I hed a dream about
this place."

"Indeed!" Redburn was puzzled how to act under the circumstances. Just
then there came a piercing scream from the direction of the cabin.

What could it mean? Was Nix an enemy, and was some one else of his
gang attacking Anita?

Certainly she _was_ in trouble!

CHAPTER V.