her to the west. It was easy to divine
that, with such elements in the gang, there had been no long
separation between the horsemen and the treasure they were guarding,
and, eager as he was to overtake the renegades, Drummond promptly
decided to follow the hoof-tracks, rightly conjecturing, too, that
they would bring him to water in the rocky tanks below. Dismounting
and leading his big sorrel, he sprang lightly from ledge to ledge down
what seemed a mere goat-trail, each man in succession dismounting at
the same point, and, with more or less elasticity, coming on in the
footsteps of his leader. The faint wan light of early dawn was
rendering neighboring objects visible on the sandy plain behind them,
but had not yet penetrated into the depths of the gorge. Lying far to
the west of the Tucson road, this was a section of the country unknown
to any of the troop, and with every prospect of a broiling ride across
the desert ahead so soon as the sun was up, no chance for watering
their horses could be thrown away. Just as he expected, Drummond found
the descent becoming more gradual, and in a moment or two the bottom
of the dark rift was found, and presently, keeping keen lookout for
the reflection of the stars still lingering overhead, the leading men
were rewarded, and halted at the edge of a shining pool of clear,
though not very cool, water, and the horses thrust their hot muzzles
deep into the wave. Here, shaded by the broad-brimmed hats of white
felt, such as the Arizona trooper of the old days generally affected,
a match or two was struck and the neighborhood searched for "sign."
The rocks around the tank were dry, the little drifts of sand blown
down from the overhanging height were smooth. Whatsoever splashing had
been done by the horses of the outlaws there had been abundant time
for it to evaporate, therefore the command could not thus far have
gained very rapidly on the pursued. But Drummond felt no
discouragement. Up to this point the way had been smooth and
sufficiently hard to make wheeling an easy matter. The wagons had
been lugged along at brisk trot, the attending cavaliers riding at
lively lope. Now, however, there would be no likelihood of their
making such time. The ambulance could only go at slow walk the rest of
the way, and the guards must remain alongside to protect the stolen
funds, not so much from envious outsiders as from one another. Pasqual
Morales showed his accustomed shrewdness when he forbad