as in the minds of all, and
a careful search was made to disclose if the ground had been recently
dug up. Nothing of the sort was found, however, and then the boy
ranchers and their friends breathed more easily.

But though the main body of Yaquis had been captured the prisoners were
not found. And one of the objects of the rescue party--the main object
in fact--was to locate Rosemary and Floyd.

"We've got to get it out of Paz what has happened to them, if we--if we
have to torture him!" declared Snake. "Can't you make him talk,
Captain?"

"Well, of course we dare not, for the sake of the good name of Uncle
Sam's men, resort to torture. But we can try some modern police
methods--putting him through the third degree, so to speak."

"That's it!" cried Bud. "Give Paz the third degree!"

Once the prisoners were secured, the wounded attended to and the dead
buried, the whole attention of the rescue party was given to locating
Rosemary and Floyd. That Paz knew the secret of their disappearance
could not be doubted--at least our friends did not doubt.

"Though of course," said Captain Marshall, when preparations were going
on for putting Paz through the third degree series of questions, "of
course there may have been several bands involved in this raid, and
some other body of Yaquis may have taken away the young man and his
sister."

"It was Paz, I'm sure of it!" declared Bud.

"He looks guilty!"

Certainly the Yaquis leader looked ugly and mean enough to have
perpetrated this deed. But he maintained a scowling silence as he sat
on the ground before his captors.

"Now, Paz," began Lieutenant Snow, who acted as interpreter, "you may
as well tell the truth first as last, for we're going to get it out of
you, if we have to resort to--well, you know what I mean. _Sabe_?"

"No _sabe_!" grunted the Indian.

Then the work began. It was not a pleasant task, and it was only
excusable on the plea of dire necessity. The Yaquis were entitled to
no mercy.

But through ft all Paz maintained a grim silence. When he did speak it
was to deny that he or his followers had even seen Rosemary and Floyd,
much less had they kidnapped them for a ransom.

It remained for Buck Tooth to expose the trick. The wily Indian,
perhaps knowing the habits of the race he had forsaken, had been
prowling about among the sullen prisoners. He openly laughed at them
for the plight in which he found them, taunting them as cowards of the