empty place in
my life. It can't be this is still Arizona, we came so far."

"When did you start?" the missionary questioned gravely.

"Why, this morning,--that is--why, it must have been yesterday. I'm sure
I don't know when. It was Wednesday morning about eleven o'clock that we
left the car on horseback to visit a mine papa had heard about. It seems
about a year since we started."

"How many were in your party?" asked the young man.

"Just papa and my brother, and Mr. Hamar, a friend of my father's,"
answered the girl, her cheeks reddening at the memory of the name.

"But was there no guide, no native with you at all?" There was anxiety
in the young man's tone. He had visions of other lost people who would
have to be looked after.

"Oh, yes, there was the man my father had written to, who brought the
horses, and two or three men with him, some of them Indians, I think.
His name was Bunce, Mr. Bunce. He was a queer man with a lot of wild
looking hair."

"Shag Bunce," said the missionary thoughtfully. "But if Shag was along I
cannot understand how you came to get so widely separated from your
party. He rides the fastest horse in this region. No pony of his outfit,
be he ever so fleet, could get far ahead of Shag Bunce. He would have
caught you within a few minutes. What happened? Was there an accident?"

He looked at her keenly, feeling sure there was some mystery behind her
wanderings that he ought to unravel for the sake of the girl and her
friends. Hazel's cheeks grew rosy.

"Why, nothing really happened," she said evasively. "Mr. Bunce was ahead
with my father. In fact he was out of sight when my pony started to run.
I was riding with Mr. Hamar, and as we didn't care anything about the
mine we didn't hurry. Before we realized it the others were far ahead
over a hill or something, I forget what was ahead, only they couldn't be
seen. Then we--I--that is--well, I must have touched my pony pretty hard
with my whip and he wheeled and started to run. I'm not sure but I
touched Mr. Hamar's horse, too, and he was behaving badly. I really
hadn't time to see. I don't know what became of Mr. Hamar. He isn't much
of a horseman. I don't believe he had ever ridden before. He may have
had some trouble with his horse. Anyway before I knew it I was out of
sight of everything but wide empty stretches with mountains and clouds
at the end everywhere, and going on and on and not getting any nearer to
any thing."

"This Mr.