nly in daylight, and then they are found to be on their ordinary
business. But there is one of them who goes abroad at night; and all
attempts at following him have proved abortive. He loses himself in the
chapparal paths in spite of the spies. That is why I am certain he
visits the cibolero."

"It seems highly probable."

"Now if we can find one who could either follow this fellow or track
him--but there's the difficulty. We are badly off for a good tracker.
There is not one in the whole troop."

"There are other ciboleros and hunters in the valley. Why not procure
one of them?"

"True, we might--there are none of them over well disposed to the
outlaw--so it is said. But I fear there is none of them fit, that is,
none who combines both the skill and the courage necessary for this
purpose--for both are necessary. They hate the fellow enough, but they
fear him as well. There is _one_ whom I have heard of,--in fact know
something of him,--who would be the very man for us. He not only would
not fear an encounter with the cibolero, but would hardly shun one with
the devil; and, as for his skill in all sorts of Indian craft, his
reputation among his kind is even greater than that of Carlos himself."

"Who is he?"

"I should say there are two of them, for the two always go together; one
is a mulatto, who has formerly been a slave among the Americanos. He is
now a runaway, and therefore hates everything that reminds him of his
former masters. Among other souvenirs, as I am told, he hates our
cibolero with a good stout hatred. This springs partly from the feeling
already mentioned, and partly from the rivalry of hunter-fame. So much
in our favour. The _alter ego_ of the mulatto is a man of somewhat
kindred race, a _zambo_ from the coast near Matamoras or Tampico How he
strayed this way no one knows, but it is a good while ago, and the
mulatto and he have for long been shadows of each other; live together,
hunt together, and fight for one another. Both are powerful men, and
cunning as strong; but the mulatto is the zambo's master in everything,
villainy not excepted. Neither is troubled with scruples. They would
be the very men for our purpose."

"And why not get them at once?"

"Therein lies the difficulty--unfortunately they are not here at
present. They are off upon a hunt. They are hangers-on of the mission,
occasionally employed by the padres in procuring venison and other game.

"Now it seems