nown much about that or anything better than
the hard lot of a Mexican woman of the lower class among the rough
miners. It was better, she said, to be the wife of a chief and have
plenty to eat, and little hard work to do.

"But about Rita?"

"If you had your mine now, and your great droves of horses!"

"What could I do?"

"Do, Senor Murray? Why, you could buy half the young squaws in the
village, if you had husbands for them. But you are poor now. I
suppose it cannot be done."

It was no wonder he had not thought of it before. It was so strange a
thing to propose. That a father should buy his own daughter! He
turned from her and strode back to his own lodge, to hear what Steve
would say. "He's a mere boy, but sometimes he seems to have a great
deal of sense."

Steve's remark, after he had heard about Dolores and her idea, was
simply,

"That's nothing new, is it? If we can't run away with her, we can
ransom her."

"Ransom? Well, now, that's a great deal better word than buy. But our
gold coin won't do. They won't take the whole pile for her. They
don't really understand the value of it."

"They want ponies, and blankets, and all that?"

"That's it. Why, Steve, it's the queerest thing. I'm so excited I
can't think. If we can make a bargain with them they'll be glad enough
to go with us to the nearest trading-post. We can buy all we want when
we get there. You've helped me out of my scrape."

"Seems to me it was easy enough to think of that."

It may have been, but Murray felt very grateful to Steve. The latter
now put down his magazine and went to the door in his turn, for he,
too, had a large amount of thinking to do.

"Murray, they are taking down the lodges again."

"Going forward to-night, eh? I'm glad of that. I must spur old Many
Bears up to it. Don't want him to lose a day on the road."

"Nor I either. They'll move slowly enough anyhow."

"Oh, they'll find a good place to leave the village, while the chiefs
and warriors go on to be present at the treaty talk."

"Suppose there isn't any?"

"There's pretty sure to be something of the kind at this season of the
year. Anyhow, we will get them to the right place for us to buy our
ponies and blankets, and we will have Rita with us."

It was pretty hard, and he felt it in every corner of his heart, that
he could not send for her at once and tell her all about his plans for
her release. Yes, and about the beautiful home to