hey turned to one another for an
explanation and saw that Mick had not returned. His swag still lay
where it had been tossed off the horse. They got up from their
blankets and began fastening their boots. They saw Yarloo sitting up
on the other side of the fire and called him to them. Yarloo always
camped away from the other black boys, for he was a member of a
different tribe.

"What was that shot, Yarloo?" asked Sax.

"Me can't know um," replied the boy. "Boss, him no come back. P'raps
him bin shoot, eh?"

"Which way did he go?" asked Sax again. "It sounded quite close."

"Me find um all right."

"I vote we go too," said Vaughan.

Yarloo looked at him for a moment in hesitation; then he pointed to the
other blacks and said: "No two fella white man go. No leave um camp
quite 'lone. See?"

"He's right, Boof," said Sax. "You go with Yarloo. I'll stay," and as
his friend and the black boy disappeared in the darkness, he heaped
wood on the fire and blew it into a blaze.

Yarloo tracked Mick Darby with absolute certainty and found him within
half a mile of the camp. The drover was surprised to see the white
boy, and at once made use of Yarloo to put the horses together in a
bunch and hold them for a time. He told Vaughan what had happened, for
it was no good trying to keep the secret any longer. "We lost two
horses last night," he said. "I told you they'd cleared out. But it
wasn't that. The niggers had speared them."

"Then that's what the smoke signals meant?" asked Vaughan.

"Yes. I wasn't sure at first whether it was hunger or devilment, so I
watched. They tried to get in amongst the horses again to-night."

"Did you hit anyone?" asked Vaughan.

"No. I didn't try. I fired into the air to scare them."

By this time Yarloo had walked round the horses, turning them towards
the middle of the plain, and was squatting down on his haunches,
watching.

"That's a real good sort of a nigger," said Mick. "He's got more sense
than most of them. Seems to have taken to you boys. I wonder why."

"He used to work for Sax's father," explained Vaughan. "I thought you
knew."

"I see. That explains it. Hi! Yarloo!" he called, and when the boy
came up: "You go back longa camp. Watch till piccaninny daylight. No
shut um eye, mind."

Yarloo grinned his understanding of the order and disappeared. Then
the seasoned bushman and the new-chum white boy kept watch, turn and
turn about till dawn.