d in avoiding capture up to that time. But
the life of a frontiersman, besides being perilous at all times, is
hardly ever anything but disagreeable, despite the curious fascination
which it holds for those who follow it. Tom did not hesitate a moment
longer than was necessary, now that a disagreeable expedient was forced
upon him.

His first precaution was to make sure that none of the Apaches were in
sight. The point at which he had seen the answering signal was so far
below that he was certain it would be beyond his vision, and, this much
determined, gave him just the "leverage" needed to work upon. It needed
but a few seconds to assure himself upon this point, and then he struck
off to the southwest. This course, while it took him away from the Gila,
would eventually bring him back to it, the winding of the stream being
such as to make this junction certain, if continued. The great thing now
required was haste; for a great deal depended upon the ground that could
be passed over during these favoring hours of darkness. He had taken
scarcely a dozen steps when he struck into a long, loping trot, not
particularly rapid in itself, but of such a character that it could be
kept for hours at a stretch. It was the genuine Indian dog trot, which
is so effective in long distances. As the runner went along in this
fashion, his thoughts were busy, and all his senses on the alert. He
concluded that it was nearly midnight, and that he had, consequently, a
number of hours at his command; so he aimed to get as far below the
intercepting Apaches as possible, with the intention of returning to the
river, before daylight, where he was hopeful of discovering some canoe,
or at least of hitting upon some feasible method of hiding his trail
from his lynx-eyed pursuers.

This loping trot was kept up for fully two hours, at the end of which
time Tom was certain that he was approaching the river again. He still
pressed forward for another hour, when he came to a halt. Although he
had continued this great exertion for so long a time, yet so good was
his wind that when he paused there was no perceptible quickening of the
respiration. Years of training had made him capable of standing far more
trying tests of his strength than this. The scout carefully turned his
head from side to side, looking and listening. All was still, and his
ear caught no ominous sound. Then he moistened his finger and held it
over his head. Yes, there was the least pos