rt of the range to the southward. His
face grew graver every minute.

"Stay here and watch," he said. "I must go and get those other men in
with the ambulance. Of course if it is Apaches, they've sighted that
party and the few men straggling back, and those signals mean, 'close
on them.' I'll send the team right in and then ride and hurry the
other fellows out."

The sun was retiring behind the Cababi Range as Wing went leaping down
the trail.

"Sorry for you, Dick, old boy," he said to his horse, who was drowsing
in the shade. "More work for us both now."

Never stopping to saddle, he leaped upon the bare, brown back and went
clattering down the canon.

"Keep your eye on Moreno, there!" he shouted up to the lookout. "If he
tries to slip away, shoot him."

Ten minutes' brisk gallop through the windings of the gorge brought
him to the edge of the sandy plain. There, under a little clump of
willows, was the ambulance, its mules unhitched and hoppled securely,
nibbling placidly at such scant herbage as they could find. The horses
of the two guards, unsaddled, were drooping in the shade, too tired to
hunt for anything to eat.

"Saddle up, men. Hitch in and get that team to the head of the canon,
lively now," was his brief order to the sleepy trooper who greeted
him, carbine in hand.

"What's up, sergeant?" queried another, springing out from the
willows. "Lee told us to wait here, or wherever we could find shade
and water."

"Wait? How long and what for?"

"Blessed if I know how long. None of 'em ain't in sight from here
coming back; but 'what for' is easy to answer. The paymaster's chest."

"The paymaster's chest?" cried Wing. "Why, isn't that here in the
ambulance?"

"Not a hinge of it. Those Greasers swapped it onto an _apparejo_ while
we were all running for Harvey's daughters. The money's half-way to
Sonora by this time."

IX.

Peaceful as was his rest, Drummond slept only an hour or so. For
months he had lived in the open air, "on the war-path" said his
captain, a veteran who had won his spurs twice over in the war of the
rebellion, and declared himself quite ready to take his ease now and
let the youngsters see for themselves the hollowness of military
glory. Weariness and physical exhaustion had lent their claims, and
despite bruises and many a pang, despite the realization of the
presence of the fair girls whom his dash and energy had rescued from
robber hands, the young fellow had doze