eager gaze, Leigh looked towards their
tent, which was plainly in view, about a mile away as the crow flies.

From the height at which our friends stood, they had, of course, an
unrestricted view of the plain stretched out before them, and everything
upon it, and there, some two hundred yards from the camp, and clearly
outlined against the veldt upon which he lay stretched, was the
unwelcome figure of an unmistakable spy, who, so far as he could be made
out at that distance, wore the garments of a white man.

When he had spent quite half-an-hour in this position, and no doubt
thoroughly taken stock of his surroundings, the fellow was seen to turn
and worm his way back, until he obtained the cover of a low clump of
bush about a quarter of a mile from the camp, and was thenceforward
hidden from sight.

After some little time had elapsed, and as our friends were debating
what steps they had best take, a fresh surprise was provided for them,
as the pair distinctly saw a snow-white pigeon leave the bush in
question, describe one or two airy circles round it, and then wing its
way directly towards the cliffs across the kloof, beyond which it
quickly disappeared.

"A carrier pigeon, by Jove!" said Kenyon, "doubtless bearing a request
to Master Zero to come down and cut all our throats to-night. All
right, my friend, forewarned is forearmed, and you'll find it so this
evening, unless I am very much mistaken."

Carefully getting down to the exit of the pass, the twain commenced a
cautious stalk, and came in upon their quarry just at dusk, and great
was the astonishment and consternation of the wretched spy when the two
men quietly rose from the long grass, and, covering him with their
revolvers, peremptorily ordered him to lay down his arms; this he
promptly did in most abject fashion, and was in two minutes bound hard
and fast with his own lasso, of which most objectionable instrument his
armament consisted, backed up by a long American muzzle-loading rifle
and a light axe or tomahawk.

The captive was apparently a Spaniard, as he protested volubly in that
language--of which Kenyon had a smattering--against the gratuitous
outrage committed upon his unoffending person.

Suddenly, taking advantage of an instant when neither of his captors had
their eyes on him, the fellow darted to one side, and gave a kick at
some small object which our friends had passed unnoticed in the long
grass; this object, however, proved to be