"I am very sure, Miss Seldon, that both he and his comrade were. We, the
scout and myself, were camped in the canyon, and heard the cave-in, and
it felt like a mighty earthquake, and was at night.

"We made a thorough search the next day, but could not find any trace of
a human being, and their horses shared the same fate, with a dog, also,
which we heard barking that same night. Yes, there is no doubt of your
father's fate."

"I thank you, Doctor Dick, for your telling me all; but I must see
Buffalo Bill, the famous scout, and ask him to guide me to the fatal
spot, the scene of my father's lone life in these wilds, and of his
death," said Celeste, in a low tone that revealed how deeply she felt
her father's fate.

CHAPTER XXXIV.

A METAMORPHOSIS.

When Harding met with old Huckleberry, the stage-driver, who had so
mysteriously disappeared, and whose fate was a mystery to the miners of
Last Chance, that old worthy saw the coach drive on its way while he
regarded its departure with the complacency of one not afraid to be left
alone, and fully capable of taking care of himself.

He stood for some time in silent meditation, after the coach had
disappeared, and then, shouldering his rifle, struck off over the
mountains, with an evident purpose in view.

A walk of some ten miles brought him to a secluded nook in the
mountains, a perfect basin a dozen acres in size, heavily wooded, with
plenty of grass and water.

A narrow pass, not twenty feet in width, was the only entrance to the
basin, and this was securely fastened up with long poles.

Over this old Huckleberry clambered, and as he walked into the basin, a
couple of horses feeding there greeted him with a welcoming neigh. In
the farther end, among the pines, was a brush cabin, and in it were
blankets and a camping-outfit, with saddle, pack-saddle, and bridles.

Old Huckleberry proceeded to build a fire and cook dinner, after which
he caught one of his horses, saddled him, and strapped on some blankets
and a bag of provisions.

Leading the horse out of the basin, he replaced the barrier securely, so
that the other animal could not get out, and, mounting, started off for
the fort. As he rode alone, he muttered to himself:

"I can do nothing alone, I feel certain, and by this time the one man
whose aid I can best depend upon is at the fort, and he will gladly
return with me."

Pressing on at a steady gait, he did not halt until some time after
n