plain speech of her. Don Ruy and the boyish
secretary had too many moments of laughter when her name was spoken of
to Juan Gonzalvo--as it often was! Their gifts she took with both
hands, and did the talking for them as agreed, but she sulked at times
even under their compliments, and Don Diego instructed Saeh-pah to
strive that the unruly beauty be brought within the Christian fold.

The success was not great, for Saeh-pah was brave in a new gift of
silver spurs--worn on rawhide about her neck, for it was the time of
the Summer dance when the women choose companions, and love is very
free. If the man prefers not to share the love of the dame who makes
choice of him--he makes her a gift--or she chooses one.

The pious Don Diego had the secretary give many lines in the
"Relaciones" of this strange custom where the fair fond ones offered
marriage--or accepted a gift as memento. He even strutted a bit that
the poor heatheness offered to him what best she could afford in
exchange for the divine grace of a good sprinkling of holy water. But
Yahn said things of the baptism not good for ears polite, or for the
"Relaciones," and Saeh-pah scuttled back in fear to her new master, and
told him,--and told Juan Gonzalvo, that the veins of Yahn Tsyn-deh
must be cut open to let out the Apache blood, before they could hope
she might be one of the heaven birds in their angel flock!

But Saeh-pah did not tell them that the thing of torment awaking Yahn
to wrath had been the knowledge that Ka-yemo was somewhere across the
mesa, and the old people laughed that he could not stay longer from
the new wife, but had gone to seek her in the place of the old ruins.

After that, divine grace had not shielded Saeh-pah from vituperation,
and when Juan Gonzalvo came wooing, Yahn told him that across the
hills was a woman waiting for a man, and dressed in fine skins and
many beads:--when he or his men had won Koh-pe the daughter of
Tsa-fah, to come back and tell her. She did not mean to be won easier
than the other, and without a price!

Which was also a novel statement for the truthful record of the
adventurers, and the secretary, on a terrace above, heard it, and
rolled on the flat roof in laughter, and wrote it down most
conscientiously. By such light matters was the dreariness of waiting
days lessened.

For plainly the days were to be of waiting. All the good will of
gift-bought friends helped the strangers not at all to the finding of
the