rticle of diet of which Ridge was becoming heartily
tired--they set forth on the road to Jiguani.

As they were already on the southern slope of the mountains and
descending into a broad valley, they made such rapid progress, by
alternately riding and walking, that the sun had not passed its
meridian when they reached the Cauto--the longest river in Cuba. There
was formerly a small settlement at the crossing, but it had long since
been destroyed, and now only presented the sight, so common in Cuba, of
charred ruins devoid of human presence. There was neither bridge nor
boat, but Lieutenant Navarro declared the river fordable at this point.
Ridge regarded dubiously the chocolate-colored flood already swollen by
the first of the summer rains, and wished that they had at least two
horses with which to cross it. As they had not, and as nothing was to
be gained by delay, he took his companion up behind him, and Senorita,
thus doubly burdened, plunged bravely into the stream. Until they were
half-way across all went well, the mare cautiously feeling her way, and
the water not reaching more than to her belly, Then, without warning,
she dropped into a hole so deep that the turbid current closed above
the heads of her riders as well as her own.

Reappearing on the surface, the mare struck out for shore, with Ridge
swimming beside her, and the young Spaniard, who was a poor swimmer,
clinging desperately to her tail. Fortunately the channel into which
they had plunged was so narrow that within two minutes they had reached
its farther side in safety, and could once more touch bottom. Wading
up-stream to a point where the road left the river, they emerged from
the water, soaked and dripping, but thankful to have met with no worse
harm than a ducking.

As Ridge turned to laugh at the forlorn appearance presented by his
companion, the latter uttered an exclamation of dismay, and at the same
moment they were surrounded by half a dozen as villainous-looking
ruffians as our troopers had yet seen in Cuba. His heart sank within
him. Again was he a prisoner with the prospect at least of having his
journey seriously delayed. In the confusion of the moment he did not
note that those into whose hands he had fallen wore blouses and
trousers of blue drilling traversed by narrow, vertical stripes of
white, the campaign uniform of the Spanish army in Cuba; but his
companion instantly recognized it, and demanded, with a tone of
authori