f mine would have given warning by this time."

The words were hardly dropped from his lips when from the other side of
the house--from the stable at the corral--there came, harsh and loud and
sudden, the discordant bray of mules. The three men started as if
stung.

"Quick! Pete. Fetch me any one of the horses. I'll gallop after him.
Hear those mules? That means the Indians are close at hand!" And he
sprang into the house for his revolvers, while Pete flew round to the
stable.

It was not ten seconds before Farron reappeared at the front door. Pete
came running out from the stable, leading an astonished horse by the
snaffle. There was not even a blanket on the animal's back, or time to
put one there.

Farron was up and astride the horse in an instant, but before he could
give a word of instruction to his men, there fell upon their ears a
sound that appalled them,--the distant thunder of hundreds of bounding
hoofs; the shrill, vengeful yells of a swarm of savage Indians; the
crack! crack! of rifles; and, far down the trail along which Wells had
ridden but a few moments before, they could see the flash of fire-arms.

"O God! save my little one!" was Farron's agonized cry as he struck his
heels to his horse's ribs and went tearing down the valley in mad and
desperate ride to the rescue.

Poor little Jessie! What hope to save her now?

CHAPTER VI.

A NIGHT OF PERIL.

For one moment the telegraph operator was stunned and inert. Then his
native pluck and the never-say-die spirit of the young American came to
his aid. He rose to his feet, seized his rifle, and ran out to join
Phillips and the few men who were busily at work barricading the corral
and throwing open the loop-holes in the log walls.

Ralph had disappeared, and no one knew whither he had gone until, just
as the men were about to shut the heavy door of the stable, they heard
his young voice ring cheerily out through the darkness,--

"Hold on there! Wait till Buford and I get out!"

"Where on earth are you going?" gasped Phillips, in great astonishment,
as the boy appeared in the door-way, leading his pet, which was bridled
and saddled.

"Going? Back to Lodge Pole, quick as I can, to bring up the cavalry."

"Ralph," said the soldier, "it will never do. Now that Wells is gone I
feel responsible for you, and your father would never forgive me if
anything befell you. We can't let you go?"

Ralph's eyes were snapping with excitement and his ch