have done it?"

"There you ask me too much. It may have been known to the farm hands
that we had money on our persons. Indeed, I think that the shepherd,
while in his cups, boasted of the rich booty which we had found, and so
excited the envious spirit of some reckless fellow who wishes to be rich
at our expense."

"Then we must have the satisfaction of riding along, anticipating a
bullet every few minutes," grumbled Mr. Brown.

"I suppose that is the case, unless we change our route."

"And go thirty miles out of our way?" exclaimed my companion,
sneeringly. "No, sir. I have no desire to cross a sandy plain where the
sun heats the earth so hot that a mosquito gets its wings singed if it
alights before twelve o'clock at night."

"The plain must be a paradise if insects don't exist there. Let us go by
that route," I replied.

"I didn't say that flies and mosquitoes were not there. I said that they
didn't touch the sand, but they hover in the air, and unfortunate is the
man or beast that they light upon."

I found out that Mr. Brown was not to be changed from his purpose; so we
once more rode on side by side, and while we were chatting upon the
incidents that had befallen us during our excursion, we almost forgot
the plugging of the pistols.

At the edge of Mr. Wright's land, on the route to Ballarat, was a small
forest of gum trees, through which ran a small stream, similar to the
one that we crossed on the night that we captured the bushrangers. The
water was shallow and sluggish, with a soft, sticky bottom, and boggy
sides. This stream Mr. Wright had told us we should have to cross, and
that after we were over we could soon find the numerous trails and roads
leading to the mines, and probably meet with parties of miners.

When the directions were given a number of the farm hands were present,
so that I arrived at the conclusion that while we were fording the
stream an attempt would be made upon our lives, if it was to be made at
all.

As soon, therefore, as we arrived in the vicinity of the brook I checked
the pace of my horse, and carefully scrutinized the trees and places
where an ambush might be expected.

I even examined the ground for the prints of horses' feet, for I knew
that it was customary for every runaway servant or farm hand to steal a
horse.

That was considered a matter of course, and it was no unusual thing for
the police of Australia, when they saw a poorly-clad man on horseback,
to as