orner described, and took the road at a rapid gait.

Just as the east was beginning to show signs of approaching day we
struck what we took to be another bayou.

Miller was anxious to show that he could brave the water in some cases,
so he pulled off his pants, handed them to me for safe keeping, and
started right in to wade the stream. He took two steps and disappeared
from view. We fished him out and concluded that we would wait for
daylight before proceeding farther.

When day broke we found that we must have made better time from
Dangerfield than we had expected, for this was certainly a river, and
could be no other than Sulphur Fork. It was high, and running swiftly in
the middle, the water being far above the banks and out into the woods
on both sides, so that it must have been fully two miles and one-half
across. No signs of a ferry were to be seen, and we hunted a good place
for a camp in which to lay over until the river should subside or
something turn up to decide us as to a way of crossing.

In building a fire I strained my instep by kicking a limb from a log,
and it became quite sore before the day was over.

The next day the river was as high as ever, and my foot was so sore that
I could scarcely step upon it. We lay over all day, as I could not
walk, and there seemed to be no prospect of crossing the turbulent
stream.

On the following morning my foot was much swollen, but I could limp
around, and the river seemed to be falling, so I insisted upon some
action, and started off to look around a little, leaving my companions
to await my return. They both wanted to go in my place, but we agreed
that it was best for me to go, so far as the chance of having to deal
with an emergency was concerned.

I hunted around for a while, but found nothing, and returned to my
companions. Just as I reached them we heard a pounding in the opposite
direction from which I had gone.

Rummel sneaked off, and soon returned with the report that he had seen a
horse a short distance down the road.

Again I started to investigate our surroundings. The horse was soon
found. He was hobbled, and close to him, in the woods, were two others.
It was a certainty that we had neighbors, but I could see nothing of
them, and, concluding that the owners had gone down to the river, I
walked boldly toward the animals to discover by their trappings what I
could about the riders. I had not proceeded more than a few yards before
I came to