was too dad-blame' biggity in my own consate to ax what it mought mean."

"What spy?" says Dick, matching the hunter's low whisper.

"Why, the varmint that tracked me back from here 'twixt dawn and
daybreak, _to_ be sure. He waited till we broke camp and then took out
up here ahead of us to tell his chief 'twas e'ena'most time to set the
trap for three white simples and a red one. Friends, I'm a-telling ye
plain that the sperrit's a-moving me mighty powerful to get down on my
hunkers and--"

"For heaven's sake, don't do it here and now!" gasped Dick. "Let's get
out of this spider's-web while we may."

The old hunter postponed his prayerful motion, most reluctantly, as it
would seem, and led the way in a silent withdrawal from the dangerous
neighborhood of the ambushment. When we had pushed on somewhat higher up
the gorge and stood on the confines of the upland valley for which it
served as the approach, there was a halt for a council of war.

Since it was now evident that the powder convoy was encamped in some
hidden gorge or valley to which the cavern of the underground stream was
one of the approaches, 'twas plain that we must climb to some height
whence we could command a wider view.

We were all agreed that the cavern entrance could not have been used by
the entire company: this though the conclusion left the vanishing trail
an unsolved riddle. For if the women could have been dragged through
the low-springing arch of the waterway, we knew the horses could not--to
say nothing of the certain destruction of the powder cargo in such a
passage.

So we addressed ourselves to the ascent of the northern mountain; though
Richard and I would first beg a little space in which to drain the water
from our boots, and to wring some pounds' weight of it from our clothes.
That done, we fell in line once more; and being so fortunate as to hit
upon a ravine which led to the cliff-crowned summit, the climb was shorn
of half its toil and difficulty. Nevertheless, by the sun's height it
was well on in the forenoon before we came out, perspiring, like sappers
in a steam bath, upon the mountain top.

As Yeates had guessed, this northern mountain proved to be a lofty
table-land. So far as could be seen, the summit was an undulating plain,
less densely forested than the valley, but with a thick sprinkling of
pines to make the still, hot air heavy with their resinous fragrance. As
it chanced, our ravine of ascent headed well back fro