y leaving Jack behind! It was a cruel thing to think of
doing, but Lem was an unprincipled fellow who cared little who suffered
as long as he got his revenge.

He quickly finished his preparations for starting, the last being to
hoist Jeff into the waggon, where he immediately dozed off again, quite
unconscious of what was going on. All day he remained half-stupefied,
and as Lem drove the horses a long way before making a halt, it was not
far off evening when Jeff discovered what had happened.

The indignation it roused in him cleared his torpid brain as if by
magic.

'D'ye mean to say as you've been and left the young un behind?' he
demanded.

'That's so,' returned Lem coolly; 'I found as he'd been at some tricks,
so I guessed we'd get rid of him. I sent him to look for Nigger, and
skipped out afore he got back.'

'I don't believe it,' declared Jeff. 'Jack wasn't a kid to play
tricks, and I call it a crying shame to desert him. You daren't have
done it if I'd known what was goin' on. I blame mysel' for it most,
and I'm agoing right back to look for him.'

'Eat your supper first, man, and don't be a fool,' said Lem, somewhat
staggered at Jeff's concern over his desertion of Jack; but the miner
heeded him not. He mounted one of the tired horses and rode all the
weary way back to the place they had camped at, but not a sign did he
see of the boy. On the way he endured the whole of the awful storm,
which he hardly noticed. In his anxiety he pressed on, arriving late
in the Mexican village, where he made inquiries, but received such
purposely conflicting answers to his questions about the way the boy
had gone, that he got quite confused, and in the end had to turn back
and retrace his steps. He stopped at short intervals to shout, but no
reply came out of the darkness, and at last he got back to the waggon
utterly wearied out, and as unhappy as a man could be.

Lena's surly voice sounded out from the blankets asking, 'Well, I
suppose you've got the precious kid all right, haven't you?'

'No, I haven't,' returned Jeff savagely; 'and I'm feared as he's come
to grief somewhere, for there ain't a house 'twixt here and the village
for him to shelter in. I'll never forgive mysel' nor you either for
this day's work, and the sooner we part company the better I'm pleased.
I knew you were a cranky chap, but I didn't reckon ye were as mean as
this.'

Lem angrily growled out something about making such a fuss over