d lurked in
the thick brush until the engine had taken water and the signal for the
start was given Then O'Halloran and Bucky slipped across in the darkness
to the train and swung themselves to the platform of the last car. To
Valdez, very much against his will, had fallen the task of taking the
horses back to Agua Negra Since the track wound round the side of the
mountain in such a way as to cover five miles in making the summit from
Concho, the young Mexican had ample time to get back to the scene of
action before the train arrived.

The big Irishman and Bucky rested quietly in the shadows of the back
platform for some time. Then they entered the last car, passed through
it, and on to the next. In the sleeper they met the conductor, but
O'Halloran quietly paid their fares and passed forward. As they had
hoped, the whole detail of forty men were in a special car next to the
one containing the arms consigned to Michael O'Halloran, importer of
pianos.

Lieutenant Chaves, in charge of the detail sent out to see that the
rifles reached Governor Megales instead of the men who had paid for
them, was finding his assignment exceedingly uninteresting. There was at
Chihuahua a certain black-eyed dona with whom he had expected to enjoy a
pleasant evening's flirtation. It was confounded luck that it had fallen
to him to take charge of the escort for the guns. He had endured in
consequence an unpleasant day of dusty travel and many hours of boredom
through the evening. Now he was cross and sleepy, which latter might
also be said of the soldiers in general.

He was connected with a certain Arizona outfit which of late had been
making money very rapidly. If one more coup like the last could be
pulled off safely by his friend Wolf Leroy he would resign from the army
and settle down. It would then no longer be necessary to bore himself
with such details as this.

There was, of course, no necessity for alertness in his present
assignment. The opposition was scarcely mad enough to attempt taking the
guns from forty armed men. Chaves devoutly hoped they would, in order
that he might get a little glory, at least, out of the affair. But of
course such an expectation would be ridiculous. No, the journey would
continue to be humdrum to the end, he was wearily assured of that,
and consequently attempted to steal a half hour's sleep while propped
against a window with his feet in the seat opposite.

The gallant lieutenant was awakened by