o had heard a part of the conversation; "we
shall have to be very cautious till we get right away from the district
the Indians haunt."

The night was coming on fast, for the twilight which had followed the
disappearance of the sun was brief; but as the evening passed away, the
moon which had looked pale and wan began to grow more and more silvery,
till it was dazzling in the pure bright air, casting the riders' shadows
on the rustling grass and making their way easy.

The stars were beginning to glitter too, and pool after pool was passed
which looked as if it were dotted with points of light.

It was a glorious ride, and not without incident. Wherever there was
water the fowl which frequented the marshy pools could be heard feeding,
and the wild cries of the animals which haunted the far-spreading plain
came frequently to the ear, while the sharp yelping barks, or the long,
low-drawn wails like those of jackals and the dismally weird snapping
shout of the prairie wolf came plainly from far away where the salt bush
was known to be plentiful.

Every now and then too some owl came hawking by on silent wing, fixing
its great eyes upon one or other of the party as it swooped past. Twice
over Griggs paused in doubt as to their course, for the crushed-down
grass trampled by the ponies was at times hard to trace in the
moonlight; but he was not long in picking up the trail again, and at
last the camp was reached, with everything looking just as it had been
left that morning, while the mules were still grazing, apparently as
hungry as ever, though a little closer observation proved they were
picking and choosing amongst the youngest and juiciest twigs.

"Hah!" sighed Ned, dropping wearily from his pony. "Now for a good fire
and some of that turkey, Griggs."

"Eh? Didn't you hear what the doctor said just now when he came up
alongside?"

"No," said Ned anxiously; "what? That I was not to light the fire?"

"No, nor any one else, lad. He said that no fire was to be lit
to-night, and that we must all make shift with a bite of what we left in
camp this morning."

"Oh!" groaned Ned, so dismally that Chris was not too weary to forget
his own disappointment and laugh and chuckle with delight at his
companion's discomfiture.

But that was not the only disappointment, for as soon as the ponies had
been unsaddled and freed from their bits, to be turned loose for a roll
and graze, Griggs, who had been to examine the prov