kept at bay if anything like a determined defence were made, and
there was no fear of that.

Then came a sort of muster or examination of their little force, which,
to Bart's agony, resulted in the discovery that while all the Indians
were present, and Harry was by their side, Joses, Sam, and Juan were
away.

In his excitement, Bart did not realise why this was. Now he recalled
that when he lay down to sleep the two offenders had been snoring
stertorously, and it was evident that they were helplessly stupefied
when the Indians came, and were taken.

But Joses?

Of course he was at his post, and the question now was, would he remain
undiscovered, or would the Indians find the hiding-place of the horses,
and after killing Joses sweep them all away?

It was a terrible thought, for to be left alone in that vast plain
without horses seemed too hard to be borne. At the first blush it made
Bart shudder, and it was quite in despair that with cocked rifle he
waited for morning light, which seemed as if it would never come.

Bart's thoughts were many, and frequent were the whispered conversations
with the Doctor, as to whether the Indians would not find the _cache_ of
the horses as soon as it was daylight by their trail, though to this he
had answered that the ground all around was so marked by horses' hoofs
that it was not likely that any definite track would be made out.

Then moment by moment they expected their own hiding-place to be known,
and that they would be engaged fighting for their lives with their
relentless foes; but the hours wore on, and though they could hear the
buzz of many voices, and sometimes dark shadowy forms could be made out
away on the plain, the fugitives were in dense shadow, and remained
unmolested till the break of day.

By this time Bart had given Maude such comforting intelligence as he
could, bidding her be hopeful, for that these Indians must be strangers
to the place, or they would have known of the way up the mountain, and
searched it at once.

"But if they found it in the morning, Bart," she said, "what then?"

"What then?" said Bart, with a coolness he did not feel. "Why, then we
shall have to kill all the poor wretches--that's all."

Maude shuddered, and Bart returned to where the Beaver was at the
opening, watching the place where the enemy had been plundering the
waggon, and had afterwards stirred up the camp fire and were seated
round.

"Joses was glad that he had put