es of the pony's
legs, the apparition moved to the right, its gaze still fixed on that
mysterious part of the horizon. There was no mistaking it now! The
painted Hebraic face, the large curved nose, the bony cheek, the broad
mouth, the shadowed eyes, the straight long matted locks! It was an
Indian! Not the picturesque creature of Clarence's imagination, but
still an Indian! The boy was uneasy, suspicious, antagonistic, but
not afraid. He looked at the heavy animal face with the superiority of
intelligence, at the half-naked figure with the conscious supremacy of
dress, at the lower individuality with the contempt of a higher race.
Yet a moment after, when the figure wheeled and disappeared towards the
undulating west, a strange chill crept over him. Yet he did not know
that in this puerile phantom and painted pigmy the awful majesty of
Death had passed him by.

"Mamma!"

It was Susy's voice, struggling into consciousness. Perhaps she had been
instinctively conscious of the boy's sudden fears.

"Hush!"

He had just turned to the objective point of the Indian's gaze. There
WAS something! A dark line was moving along with the gathering darkness.
For a moment he hardly dared to voice his thoughts even to himself.
It was a following train overtaking them from the rear! And from the
rapidity of its movements a train with horses, hurrying forward to
evening camp. He had never dreamt of help from that quarter. This
was what the Indian's keen eyes had been watching, and why he had so
precipitately fled.

The strange train was now coming up at a round trot. It was evidently
well appointed with five or six large wagons and several outriders. In
half an hour it would be here. Yet he refrained from waking Susy, who
had fallen asleep again; his old superstition of securing her safety
first being still uppermost. He took off his jacket to cover her
shoulders, and rearranged her nest. Then he glanced again at the coming
train. But for some unaccountable reason it had changed its direction,
and instead of following the track that should have brought it to his
side it had turned off to the left! In ten minutes it would pass abreast
of him a mile and a half away! If he woke Susy now, he knew she would be
helpless in her terror, and he could not carry her half that distance.
He might rush to the train himself and return with help, but he would
never leave her alone--in the darkness. Never! If she woke she would die
of fright, perha