ust then the shepherd thought he heard something moving, or creeping
through the brush below and he went cautiously down to investigate. He
had got below the crest of the hill, about fifty feet, when he was
sure that he saw something crouching and moving swiftly off through
the darkness. He cried halt and was about to fire his revolver at it
when the object disappeared as though the earth had swallowed it
up. Then, too, Jeems was not a very ready hand with a pistol; few
philosophers are; it requires an impulsive temperament to shoot
offhand. Jeems made his way back to the camp debating in his mind
whether he should wake up the boys and tell them what he had seen.
This question was settled for him as soon as he arrived in front of
the tent. One glance was enough, he saw that the Mexican prisoner
had escaped. He was evidently clean gone.

"He's gone, boys," cried Jeems, sticking his head into the tent.

"Who's gone?" they cried, simultaneously sitting up.

"The Mexican," replied Jeems.

"How long?" cried Jim, getting outside of the tent in a jiffy.

"I haven't been gone over five minutes, maybe eight, though," he added
reflectively.

"Good riddance to bad rubbish," was Jim's verdict.

"I'm glad we do not have to have him around anyway," chimed in Jo.

"But how did the beggar get away?" inquired Juarez. "He was tied tight
enough, I reckon."

"Here's the answer," said Jim, stooping over and picking up a piece of
rope that lay on the edge of the circle of the firelight.

"Why, it has been burned through!" exclaimed Juarez.

"Exactly," replied Jim.

"How did he get close enough to the fire to do that?" asked Tom.

"I would have thought that he would have burnt himself up," said Jo.

"It was simple enough," explained Jim. "A coal rolled close to him
and he was able to get the rope that tied his hands against it and
burnt through, and the rest was easy."

"That was a pretty good trick," said Juarez. "We will have to remember
that."

"I would be afraid of burning myself," objected Tom.

"That Mexican wouldn't feel it if you did put a live coal on him,"
quoth Juarez. "They don't mind heat."

"I bet he gets his gang on our trail," said Jo. "We will have to look
out for trouble from now on."

"We will be ready for them," remarked Jim significantly.

"It looks a little bit like a thunderstorm, boys," said Juarez.

"We had better peg that tent down tighter," said Jo. "It is going to
blow, too, in a short whi