er."

"Mr. Ronayne," called a voice near the river, "where are you?"

It was Captain Headley.

"Good by, Wau-nan-gee," said the officer, "I must go. Give my love
to Maria, and tell her I am sick to see her," and he put his hand
over his heart, "and that I will join her when all danger is over;
to-morrow night I shall have a letter for her. You can contrive to
steal into the fort at night, and into my room unnoticed,
Wau-nan-gee?"

"Spose him come," again urged the Indian, "Wau-nan-gee find him
little tent for Ronayne and his wife for two three days? Wau-nan-gee
wait upon him, bring him food. Maria say come--must come."

"No, Wau-nan-gee, my dear friend, you know I cannot as a warrior
think of myself alone; I must do my duty; but I am called. Good
by, my noble boy. To-morrow night at twelve. God bless you! I leave
my wife wholly to your care."

"Wau-nan-gee die for him," said the youth energetically, as, after
again pressing the extended hand of the Virginian, he traced his
way cautiously to the encampment.

"Mr. Ronayne," repeated Captain Headley, "where are you?"

"Here, sir; I have for a few moments been absent from my post, but
I thought I remarked an Indian skulking near to watch our movements,
and I followed him. I was not wrong; it was Pee-to-tum. When
discovered, he rose to his feet and would have stabbed me, but
Wau-nan-gee was near and warded off the blow."

"Wau-nan-gee! said you, Mr. Ronayne? Did he ward off the blow aimed
at your life?"

"He did, sir; why should he not? We have always been friends."

Had it not been dark, Captain Headley would have looked as he felt,
exceedingly puzzled for a reply.

"To tell the truth, Mr. Ronayne, I had not suspected this. I should
rather have imagined that he was the chief instigator of the young
men to discontent; but I am glad to find it otherwise."

For a moment it flashed across the mind of the Virginian that Mrs.
Headley had, from policy or in confidence, communicated all she
knew in regard to Maria's evasion to her husband. The idea of any
man possessing the slightest knowledge of wrong in his wife would
have maddened him; but now that he in some measure knew the facts,
and looked upon her in all the purity of her spotless nature, he
was not sorry to have an opportunity to remove the impression; he,
therefore, answered calmly, yet without adverting to the actual
position of his wife.

"So far from that being the case, Captain Headley, Wau-nan-gee