"Load quick!" admonished Howard, "and shelter yourself, or you are a
dead man."

The Irishman obeyed this, and had his gun reloaded in a few moments.

"Now let me try my hand," said Elwood; "you can never hit him."

"Be all manes, if yez wish it."

"The piece is too heavy for me to shoot off-hand and I'll rest it on my
knee."

The boy took the gun, and placing the barrel on his knee, drew back the
hammer, when presto! the savage whisked out of sight like magic. The
noble aborigine had come to the conclusion that discretion was the
better part of valor.

"Where is he?" asked the bewildered boy, rising to his feet and looking
around him.

"He is gone," replied Howard.

"I admire his sense; he doesn't care about being shot just yet."

Howard laughed.

"You have a good opinion of your marksmanship, Elwood, and he seems to
fear you more than Tim."

"But he didn't give me time to practice on 'im," said the latter. "If he
had stood there an hour or two I'd hit him sure."

"Yes, and he would have picked you off at the next fire. He's a good
marksman at any rate."

They kept their position for some time, but saw nothing more of the
Indian.

"He has left," said Elwood, "and will give us a wide berth after this."

"It was rather curious that he should expose himself in that manner."

"Perfectly natural," replied Elwood. "He knew there was no danger until
_I_ took the gun; then he thought it best for him to clear out."

"He may turn up again when we least expect it."

"Do yees understand the maning of that?"

"Not precisely; do you?"

"He's a lover of the fair female that ye gave the watch to for the
blanket, and he had been watchin' us till he sane me, and then he got so
jailous of me that he has tried to put me out of the way."

The boys laughed at this explanation, which Tim gave with every
appearance of earnestness, and were rather doubtful about believing it.

There was some fear expressed that this Indian might send them a bullet
from some covert, when he could make his aim sure and shelter himself
from all danger of a return fire; although as regards that the specimen
he had been given of the skill of the whites should have convinced him
that there was no need of his being particularly alarmed on this point.

Our friends were sufficiently rested, and the associations of the place
were such that they resumed their journey at once toward the Salinas
river. They had gone but a short distance when