autiously drew
himself out of the river.

He listened. Except for the sound of the rushing water the night was
still. Very carefully he wormed his way forward into the prairie. His
progress was slow, for he had to make sure of each foot of his advance.
Under cover of a mesquite-bush he put on his water-soaked boots. He
crept fifty yards--one hundred. To his right a camp-fire was burning. It
seemed to him once or twice that he heard voices.

An old trail worn nearly a foot deep by buffaloes served his need. In
this trench he was partly hidden and could make better progress. He
traveled on all fours, still alert in every sense for danger.

Suddenly he sank full length into the trench. On the other side of a
cactus-bush two Indians were squatting. They sat and talked.

The heart of the Ranger sank. At any moment they might discover his
presence, or they might sit there the whole night and hold him prisoner
in his ditch.

For an hour he lay there, wondering each moment whether the ticking of
his watch might not betray him. Then, in a leisurely way, the sentries
got up and sauntered toward the river. The moon was up now, and he could
see their naked bodies shining in the light.

The two Kiowas stopped a moment on the bank and talked before they
separated. One moved up the river; the other turned and came back
directly toward Roberts. The Ranger lay in the buffalo-trail hoping that
in the darkness he might escape observation. He was helpless. Even if he
had brought a gun with him he dared not shoot, for if the alarm were
given he would be driven out of cover in a few minutes.

The brave came forward to the very edge of the wallow. His moccasin
touched the body of the prostrate man. Some slight shift of his
attitude precipitated the crisis. He turned to listen to some sound,
and his foot pressed upon the leg of the Ranger.

There was an instant volcanic upheaval. The Indian, startled, leaped
back. Jack was upon him like a wildcat. They struggled, their bodies so
close that the Kiowa could not use his rifle. The Texan had a double
advantage, that of surprise and of a more muscular body. Moreover, the
redskin made the mistake of trying to cling to his gun. He was flung
down to the ground hard, the white man on top of him.

Jack became aware that the Indian was going to shout, and knew that if
he did all was lost. His strong, brown fingers closed on the throat of
the brave. There was a wild thrashing of limbs in a strug