h his senses on the alert. He had become so accustomed to
the delicate duty, when aware that the slightest slip on his part
meant death, that he was better fitted for the task than any member of
the party, though the experience of Ruggles and the captain in the
army had given them the ability to awake at any moment fixed upon
before sinking into slumber, and they were sensitive to the least
disturbance while enjoying refreshing rest.

Adams believed what he had remarked more than once that the little
company of mountain Indians would do their utmost to revenge
themselves upon the men who had taken off their chief. He suspected
that the five were prowling in the neighborhood, looking for some such
opportunity, and that they would strike a blow before the rising of
the morrow's sun.

Nothing was to be hoped for in the way of a diversion, created by the
intrusion of Colonel Briggs and his vagrant miners. Not that the
Indians were not eager to strike at any members of the hated race, but
the all-controlling motive was lacking in the case of the larger
party.

Although the moon was in the sky, only a small part of its light
penetrated the canyon. Peering into the darkness, Vose dimly made out
the forms of the four animals, who, having ceased their cropping of
the grass, had lain down for the remainder of the night. They were so
near that they could not be stampeded or stolen without the effort
being known to the sentinel.

It would have been the height of rashness to start a camp fire, for
all the figures within its circle of illumination must have formed the
best of targets for their stealthy foes. As it was, an enemy would
have to steal from the gloom and approach near enough to touch them,
before striking a blow or firing a shot.

Vose Adams, with his Winchester in his right hand and held close to
his side, took his seat on the ground, resting his back against the
nearest boulder. As a rule, a sentinel can keep awake for an extended
time only by motion and exercise, such as walking to and fro, but the
trained hunter often takes the risk and there is little danger of his
succumbing, especially after he has just finished a nap, as was the
case with the guide.

Thus seated, with the boulder rising several feet above his head,
Adams's only reliance was upon his keenness of hearing and sight.

He had not waited long when he saw proof of what the captain had told
him: the animals were restless, or rather one of them wa