ians
here, Curlytop, even if we catch 'em, which we may not do as they have a
good start of us. Anyhow we'll have to turn the Redmen back to their
reservation where they belong if we get any of them. We'll just take my
cattle and horses away, if we can, and tell the Indians to go home and
be good."

"Will they do it?" asked Daddy Martin.

"It's hard to say," answered Uncle Frank. "I'd like to make 'em stop
taking my animals, though. Well, I guess we'll start. We'll be back as
soon as we can."

So he rode off with his cowboys after the Indians. The cowboy who had
ridden in with the news went back with the others to show them where he
had last seen the cattle thieves.

He stopped at the ranch house long enough, though, to get something to
eat, and then rode away again. But he found time to talk a while to the
Curlytops.

"Where did you see the Indians?" Teddy asked while the cowboy was eating
and Uncle Frank and the others getting ready for the chase.

"Oh, I was giving my pony a drink at the spring in the rocks when I saw
the Indians across the prairie--field, I guess you'd call it back East."

"Well, the prairies are big fields," observed Janet.

"So they are, Curly girl," laughed the cowboy. "Well, it was while I was
watering my horse that I saw the Indians."

"You mean at the spring in the rocks where Jan and I found Clipclap in
the cave?" Teddy asked.

"That's the place, Curlytop. I chased after them to see which way they
were driving off your Uncle Frank's cattle, but I saw they were too
many for me, so I came on back as fast as my horse would bring me."

"Was there a lot of Indians?" Teddy inquired.

"Quite a few," answered the cowboy. "Well, now I've got to go and help
chase them," and he hurried through his meal and rode off with Uncle
Frank and the others.

"Say, I wish we _could_ go, don't you, Janet?" asked Teddy of his
sister, when they were left by themselves near the corral.

"No, I don't! I don't want to chase Indians!"

"Well, I'd chase 'em and you could watch me."

"You're not big enough," said the little girl. "Indians are awful big.
Don't you remember the one we saw at the station?"

"Yes. But maybe the ones that took Uncle Frank's ponies are little
Indians."

"I don't care," Janet said. "I don't want to chase after any of 'em. I
don't like 'em."

"All right--then I won't go," decided Teddy. "But let's go and take a
ride on our ponies."

[Illustration: OVER THE PRAIRIES R