his complimentary allusion, as it must be
understood that all the scouts taken from the island had learned to
speak the English language, and some of them, like Uraso, were
exceptionally skilled.

When the different ones had gone over the ground thoroughly, John asked
the opinion of the searchers.

"From my count there must have been twenty-four," remarked Uraso.

Muro smiled, as he said: "Uraso is mistaken, there are twenty-five."
Uraso was not at all perturbed, but walked over to the surveyed plot and
said: "The most prominent one is the fellow with the spreading toes.
See! here is his left foot. See that broad foot is all around the place.
This broad foot with a toe missing, is another fellow; and here are two
with rather long feet, you can see them all about, and they are, no
doubt, active fellows."

"Well, that is picking them out plainly enough," remarked Harry.

"But," continued Uraso, "I want you to look at this foot. It is the
largest I ever saw."

"I am satisfied that fellow is the Chief," remarked Muro.

"There is evidence of that here too," said Uraso, as Muro nodded his
head.

Harry looked on in bewilderment. "Assuredly that is something new. How
do you know _that_?" he asked.

"The best indication is," said Uraso, "that the fellow with the big feet
does very little walking, and all the other fellows have danced about
him."

Harry laughed, and was satisfied. "That was certainly clever," he
remarked. "But why shouldn't they be clever. These boys are the finest
and bravest in the world," and Uraso and Muro smiled and were happy at
this encomium of the boy they all loved so much.

"The last foot I have counted is that little sawed-off sample that has
danced all around the edge; see it here, and here!"

Muro walked forward, and, stooping down, pointed to the imprint of a
shoe, said: "That is our boy's shoe."

Uraso laughed, as he admitted neglecting George's presence in the crowd
of prints. "But I have found something else. George has had an interview
with the Chief. He has been making some explanations to the Chief about
his revolver."

John smiled, and kept his eye on a tree to the right.

"And how do you know that?" asked Harry.

Uraso walked over to the tree, after picking up something, and pointed
to a cut-out in the side of the tree. It was the mark of the bullet, and
the circular cut which George had made that John had observed, and which
had been noticed by Uraso and Muro.

"The s