But if the animal has had a rider, where is
he?"

"Ay, therein lies the mystery," returned the trapper, stooping to
examine the signs in the ground with a closer eye. "Yes, yes, it is
plain there has been a long struggle atween the two. The master has
tried hard to save his beast, and the flames must have been very greedy,
or he would have had better success."

"Harkee, old trapper," interrupted Paul, pointing to a little distance,
where the ground was drier, and the herbage had, in consequence, been
less luxuriant; "just call them two horses. Yonder lies another."

"The boy is right! can it be, that the Tetons have been caught in
their own snares? Such things do happen; and here is an example to all
evil-doers. Ay, look you here, this is iron; there have been some white
inventions about the trappings of the beast--it must be so--it must
be so--a party of the knaves have been skirting in the grass after
us, while their friends have fired the prairie, and look you at the
consequences; they have lost their beasts, and happy have they been if
their own souls are not now skirting along the path, which leads to the
Indian heaven."

"They had the same expedient at command as yourself," rejoined
Middleton, as the party slowly proceeded, approaching the other carcass,
which lay directly on their route.

"I know not that. It is not every savage that carries his steel and
flint, or as good a rifle-pan as this old friend of mine. It is slow
making a fire with two sticks, and little time was given to consider, or
invent, just at this spot, as you may see by yon streak of flame, which
is flashing along afore the wind, as if it were on a trail of powder. It
is not many minutes since the fire has passed here away, and it may
be well to look at our primings, not that I would willingly combat the
Tetons, God forbid! but if a fight needs be, it is always wise to get
the first shot."

"This has been a strange beast, old man," said Paul, who had pulled the
bridle, or rather halter of his steed, over the second carcass, while
the rest of the party were already passing, in their eagerness to
proceed; "a strange horse do I call it; it had neither head nor hoofs!"

"The fire has not been idle," returned the trapper, keeping his eye
vigilantly employed in profiting by those glimpses of the horizon, which
the whirling smoke offered to his examination. "It would soon bake you a
buffaloe whole, or for that matter powder his hoofs and horn