r felt his safeguards
slipping fast. There they were, the two of them, to all intents alone in
the world! How natural for them to draw close, and, while her head
dropped on his shoulder, for his arm to slip around her slender form and
hold her tight! He trembled a little, and his mouth went dry. If he had
been visiting her he could have got out, but he couldn't put her out.
There was nothing to do but sit tight and fight the thing. Moistening
his lips, he said:

"It's been a good day on the whole."

"Ah, splendid!" she said. "If one could only hit the trail for ever
without being obliged to arrive at a destination, and take up the
burdens of a stationary life!"

Stonor pondered on this answer. It sounded almost as if she dreaded
coming to the end of her journey.

Out of the breathless dusk came a long-drawn and inexpressibly mournful
ululation. Clare involuntarily drew a little closer to Stonor. Ah, but
it was hard to keep from seizing her then!

"Wolves?" she asked in an awe-struck tone.

He shook his head. "Only the wolf's little mongrel brother, coyote," he
said.

"All my travelling has been done in the mountains," she explained. She
shivered delicately. "The first night out is always a little terrible,
isn't it?"

"You're not afraid?" he asked anxiously.

"Not exactly afraid. Just a little quivery."

She got up, and he held up the mosquito-netting for her to pass. Outside
they instinctively lifted up their faces to the pale stars.

"It's safer and cleaner than a city," said Stonor simply.

"I know." She still lingered for a moment. "What's your name?" she asked
abruptly.

"Martin."

"Good-night, Martin."

"Good-night!"

Later, rolling on his hard bed, he thought: "She might have given me her
hand when she said it.--No, you fool! She did right not to! You've got
to get a grip on yourself. This is only the first day! If you begin like
this----!"

CHAPTER VI

THE KAKISAS

On the afternoon of the fourth day they suddenly issued out of big
timber to find themselves at the edge of a plateau overlooking a shallow
green valley, bare of trees in this place, and bisected by a
smoothly-flowing brown river bordered with willows. The flat contained
an Indian village.

"Here we are!" said Stonor, reining up.

"The unexplored river!" cried Clare. "How exciting! But how pretty and
peaceful it looks, just like an ordinary river. I suppose it doesn't
realize it's unexplored."

On the other sid