where and get the drop on us
our goose would be cooked."

"Look a here," I said, when a lucky shot just grazed the top of my head,
"we can improve on this situation by making some loopholes."

"Sure," replied Jim, "that's the idea. Why didn't we think of it
before?"

After this was done we could carry on our observations safely.

"Hello, look a here, Jim," I called some time later. "There's some more
Indians coming to the rendezvous."

Jim came over and took a squint through the loophole.

"That is a jolly looking crowd coming up the valley. Must be fifty of
them and they have got on their spring paint too. Ain't they beauts?"
said Jim.

To me they looked like demons with horrid creases of red and yellow
paint on their faces that gave them a haggard ferociousness.

"We haven't had anything to say for a long time," remarked Jim, "it's
just about time that we showed them that we are taking a little interest
in these proceedings."

He brought his rifle up and laid his clinched cheek against it as he
aimed at the foremost of the pack. One Indian whirled suddenly around
and dropped, badly wounded. The rest of them disappeared in a flash.

There came a fierce volley from a hundred rifles and a white flight of
arrows from the concealed Indians. They kept it up for awhile, too, in a
burst of savage rage that sent a chill to my heart.

The rocks around and back of us were spattered with lead, but that was
the extent of the damage.

"You got a salute that time for fair, Jim," I said.

"Yes," he replied, "and I got the Indian."

"Don't take another chance like that," I begged.

"Not till the next time," he replied.

So the day wore on, with occasional flurries like the above to keep
things moving. If the day before had been stormy and rainy, this made up
for it. The sun shone with the strong directness of the higher
altitudes. All the moisture had been dried up on top of our rock.

The horses began to get restless for water. Jim moistened their tongues
as best he could, but we had to be saving of our little supply of water.

The night passed with even less of incident than the previous one. It
was evident that the Indians were perfectly satisfied with their
waiting game, as well they might. It looked a sure thing.

The next day things looked bad for us. There seemed a peculiar
sultriness in the air that was unusual in the mountains. There was a
smoky haze over everything.

"It looks like Indian summer," sa