t Many Bears could muster quite a strong
"reserve," as the soldiers call it, after all his tried and chosen
warriors had ridden away with him at their head.

The fighting fever seemed to be spreading after breakfast, and the
squaws too got out their bows and arrows, and so did the smaller boys.
It looked as if any enemy who should ride into the camp of that band of
Apaches that day would find it a sort of hornets' nest, with all the
hornets, big and little, practising their stings.

Ni-ha-be and Rita were like the rest, and more than one "young brave,"
who had never yet been in any kind of a battle, looked enviously at the
pretty young chief's daughter who could already boast of having sent an
arrow through the arm of a full-grown paleface warrior, and helped
defeat him and his dangerous companions.

That was a bright feather for the cap of any Indian girl, and she had
been compelled to tell the story of it over and over again to the other
squaws.

They came to hear it over now, for it was closely connected in their
minds with the warlike preparations and the evident anxiety of their
chief.

"Ugh!" scornfully remarked old Too Many Toes. "Pale-face have soft
arm. Hold it up for little girl to shoot at. Then laugh at her.
S'pose pale-face come here. I show 'em."

"Yes," rejoined Ni-ha-be, with a flash in her black eyes. "Pale-face
look at you, see your face, run right away. Afraid you'll talk. Hear
you once, then they never come again."

The laughter among the other squaws sounded as if they were not
disposed to admire Too Many Toes, but she had something else to say.

"Little girl take prisoners and then let them go. Just like pale-face
blue-coat. No sense. I kill every one. You see!"

"You?" said Ni-ha-be. "The only prisoner you ever took was a little
rabbit of a mule. He's alive now. You couldn't even talk him to
death."

"She talks too much now," added a dignified middle-aged squaw. "Get
beaten again. We want to know what's coming. Warriors keep it all to
themselves. Did Ni-ha-be hear of many pale-faces?"

"No. Heard Send Warning tell Red Wolf there is danger coming. Believe
what he said. Great chief and all the old men believe too. Good
friend. Young warrior good friend too. Come see us some day. Squaws
cook big dinner."

The questioning was by no means over, but the mention of her last
beating silenced Too Many Toes. Public opinion was against her, and
there were a good many