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I tJLU^ , X^cUaH^^^UL^ -■ 
 
 WAR WHOOP SERIES, NO. II. 
 
 Through Apache Land 
 
 BY 
 
 LIEUT R. H. JAYNE 
 
 AUTHOR OF 
 
 "the white mustang," "up the big horn," "the young 
 aeronauts," "lost in the wilderness," etc. 
 
 ILLUSTRATED 
 
 ST. PAUL 
 
 The Price-McGill Company 
 
 455-473 CEDAR STREET 
 
^5L 
 
 hi. 
 
 Copyrighted 1 893 
 
 BY 
 
 THE PRICE-McGTLL CO. 
 
 PRINTED AND PLATED B if 
 
 THE PKICE-McGlLL COMPANY 
 
 ST. PAtrr., MTNK. 
 
CONTENTS. 
 
 CHAP. ^^^'^• 
 
 I— Moonlight on the Rio Gila, - - - - 7 
 II— Tom Hardynge's Ruse, - - - " - 1^ 
 
 III— Pursued by the Apaches, 23 
 
 IV— Outwitted, ----- - - 31 
 
 Y— An Alarming Message, ----- 39 
 
 VI— The Two Scouts, ^'^ 
 
 VII— The Cavalry Escort, - - - - - - 55 
 
 VIII— In Devil's Pass, - - 63 
 
 IX— Among the Apaches, - '^^ 
 
 X— Lone Wolf, ^^ 
 
 XI— Surrounded by Danger, 89 
 
 XII— "The Hour has Come," ^'^ 
 
 XIII— The Flight, ^^5 
 
 XIV— Pursued, ^^^ 
 
 XV— In the Solitude, 128 
 
 XVI— Among the Mountains, ----- 136 
 
 XVII— A Mysterious Camp Fire, 1-^6 
 
 XVIII— The Indian Fight, '^^'^ 
 
 XIX— A Terrible Meeting, 1^2 
 
 XX— White vs. Red, ^'^^ 
 
 XXI— Friends Together, ^'^^ 
 
 XXII— Anxious Waiting, 1^^ 
 
 XXIII— The Death Shot, ^^4 
 
 XXIV— The Buffaloes, 202 
 
 XXV— Alone Again, ^^^ 
 
Vl CONTENTS. 
 
 CHAP. PAGE. 
 
 XXVI— Capturing a Mustang, 222 
 
 XXVII— A. Run for Life, 230 
 
 XXVIII— A Great Misfortune, 239 
 
 XXIX— The Lone Camp Fire, 247 
 
 XXX— Fighting a Grizzly, ------ 255 
 
 XXXI— Sleep, 263 
 
 XXXII— Reunited, -------- 271 
 
 XXXIII— Closing in, 277 
 
 XXXIV— Hurricane Hill, ------- 285 
 
 XXXV— The Sentinel, - - 293 
 
 XXXVI— A Desperate Scheme, 301 
 
 XXXVII— The Two Defenders, 309 
 
 XXXVIII— Hand to Hand, 318 
 
 XXXIX— Conclusion, -------- 327 
 
THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 
 MOONLIGHT ON THE RIO GTL.A. 
 
 Along the eastern bank a small Indian canoe, 
 containing a single individual, was stealing its 
 way— "hugging" the shore so as to take ad- 
 vantage of the narrow band of shadow that 
 followed the winding of the stream. There w^ere 
 no trees on either side of the river, but this 
 portion was walled in by bluffs, rising from 
 three or four to fully twenty feet in height. 
 The current w^as sluggish and not a breath of 
 air wrinkled the surface on this mild summer 
 night. 
 
 It was in the wildest part of the Indian coun- 
 try, and Tom Hardynge, the hunter, runner and 
 bearer of all dispatches betw^een the frontier 
 posts in the extreme southw^est, knew very well 
 that for three days past it had been his prover- 
 
/«g TliSOUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 bial good fortune, or rather a special Provi- 
 dence, that had kept his scalp from ornament- 
 ing the lodge of some marauding Comanche or 
 Apache. Tom was one of the bravest and most 
 skillful of borderers in those days, and had been 
 up in the Indian country to learn the truth of 
 numerous rumors which had come to the sta- 
 tions, reports of a general uprising among the 
 redskins, with whom the peace commissioners 
 had succeeded in negotiating treaties after 
 months of diplomacy. After spending more 
 than a week in dodging back and forth, in the 
 disguise of an Indian he had learned enough to 
 feel that there was good foundation for these 
 rumors, and that the exposed stations and set- 
 tlements were in imminent peril. As soon as he 
 was assured of this fact he started on his 
 return to Fort Havens, which still lay a good 
 three days' travel to the southwest. It was 
 Tom's purpose to continue his descent until the 
 following night, when, if nothing unexpected 
 should intervene, he hoped to reach the point 
 where he had left his mustang, and thence it 
 would be plain sailing for the rest of the way. 
 He knew the country thoroughly, and was con- 
 fident that it was safer to perform a part of 
 
THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 the journey by water than by land, which 
 explains how it was that he was still in the 
 paint and garb of an Indian, and still stealing 
 his way down toward the Gulf of California. 
 
 **Theni Apaches are a cute set," he muttered, 
 as he glided along through the bank of shadow; 
 *'I believe they've larned I've been up among 
 them lookin' around. I can't tell 'zactly how 
 they larned it. I've played Injun so often that 
 I know I can do it purty well; but they know 
 there's somethin' in the air, and them signs I 
 spied yesterday showed plain 'nough that they 
 was lookin' for me. They'd give a dozen of 
 their best warriors, with a chief throwed in to 
 make good weight, to keep me from reachin' 
 Fort Havens with the news that the Apaches 
 are makin' ready to raise Old Xed along the 
 border. Fact is, I do carry big news, that's 
 sartin. Hello'" 
 
 This exclamation w^as caused by the appear- 
 ance of a bright point of light on the edge of 
 the bluff, several hundred yards down the river, 
 and upon the opposite side. At first glance it 
 resembled some star of the first magnitude, 
 vsrhich a sudden depression of the bluff had 
 made visible. The scout ceased paddling, and, 
 
10 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 suffering the canoe to drift slowly with the tide, 
 fixed his keen gray eyes upon the fiery point. 
 
 ''That ain't any more of a star than I am," 
 he added, a second later. ** There she goes 
 again! " 
 
 The torch, for such it was, remained station- 
 ary for scarcely a minute, when it began revolv- 
 ing swaftly from right to left, the gyration 
 being of such a nature as to prove that it w^as 
 swung by the hand of some person. Three rev- 
 olutions, and then it suddenly reversed and 
 made three in the opposite direction, then tw^o 
 back, then two forward, then one back and 
 forth, and then it vanished in the gloom of the 
 night. Tom scarcely breathed while viewing 
 this pantomime, and w^hen it ended he still held 
 the paddle motionless while he chuckled to him- 
 self, for he knew what it all meant. He had 
 seen Indian telegraphy before, and had learned 
 to comprehend a great deal of those mysterious 
 signs and signals by which news is carried 
 across mountain and prairie w^ith incredible 
 speed. He had ridden his fleet mustang to 
 death to head off some of these telegrams, and 
 yet in every case the Indians, by some trickery 
 unexplained to him, had outsped him. 
 
THROUGH APACHE T.AND. 11 
 
 "Yes, I can read that," Tom growled, still 
 drilting with the current. "That ere redskin is 
 signahn' to some other scamp, ar^d it's all about 
 me. It says that I'm on the river somewhere, 
 and a lookout must be kept for me." 
 
 Sucli was the fact. The Indian who swayed 
 the torch meant thereby to appraise some con- 
 federate that the scout who had dared to pene- 
 trate such a distance into their country, and to 
 unearth their most important secrets, w^as seek- 
 insf to make his w^av down the Rio Gila and 
 out of their country again. This much said the 
 torch in language that could not be mistaken. 
 Although it added no more, yet the sequence 
 was inevitable, and Tom needed no one to 
 apprise him that the river both above and 
 below him was closely watched, and that he 
 was in the greatest peril of his life. Being 
 entirely shrouded in shadow, he could not see 
 the moon, which rode high in tbe sky, scarcely 
 touched by a floating cloud. 
 
 "I wish the moon would go out of sight alto- 
 gether," he said to himself, as he viewed the 
 clear sky. ''I'd like to see it as black as a 
 wolf's mouth, and then I'd teach these scamps 
 somethin'; but there's too much confounded 
 
12 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 moonlight layiii' loose for a chap to show any 
 scientific tricks." 
 
 The fact that a redskin had indulged in sig- 
 nalinof su2forested that there must be some one 
 to whom he had signaled, and the hunter devoted 
 himself to learning where the second Apache 
 was located. 
 
 "As near as I kin calc'late, the chap must be 
 on this side of the stream, and purty close to 
 where I'm rockin' in the cradle of the deep this 
 very minute." 
 
 He now moved his paddle slightl\^— just enough 
 to hold the boat motionless while he looked 
 and listened. The stillness was profound; not 
 even the soft sighing of the wind reaching his 
 ears. He harl peered around in the gloom 
 only a few minutes when he discerned the reply 
 to the signal already described, and so close 
 that he was startled. Scarcely fifty feet below 
 him, and on the edge of the bluff, several yards 
 in height, a light flashed into view. A second 
 glance showed him that it was a flaming torch 
 held in the hand of an Indian, who began 
 whirling it around his head with a swiftness 
 that made it seem like a revolving wheel of fire. 
 The rapid motion of the torch, as the reader 
 
THROUGH APACHE T.AXD. 13 
 
 may infer, caused an equallv rapid increase of 
 the flame upon it, so that it revealed the 
 Indian himself; and the hunter, as he looked 
 toward it, saw the figure of the warrior stand- 
 ino- like some pyrotechnist in the center of his 
 own display. 
 
 A better target could not have been asked, 
 and Tom, quick as thought, raised his rifle and 
 sighted it; but with his finger upon the trigger, 
 he refrained, lowered the piece and shook his 
 head, muttering as he did so : 
 
 "He deserves it, and I'd like to give it to him, 
 but it won't do. They'd know what the rifle- 
 crack meant, and I'd have a hornet's nest about 
 my head quick as lightnin'." 
 
 Tom was not certain of the meaning of the 
 exhibition he had just seen, but believed that it 
 was intended as a mere reply to the other — 
 the same as if the x^pache ha.d shouted "All right!" 
 in response to the notification. The Indian 
 must have circled the torch in this manner for 
 more than a score of times, when he threw it 
 from his hand into the river, where it fell with 
 a hiss, and was instantly extinguished. 
 
 The scout was in a quandary. If he continued 
 do\vn stream he must pass directly beneath the 
 
14 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 Spot where his foe was standing, and the shadow 
 was by no means dense enough to make it pos- 
 sible for him to escape observation. He was 
 confident, however, that if he could change 
 places with the warrior, he could discern the 
 canoe without any closer approach. He ^cvas at 
 a disadvantage, for the bluff was perfectly per- 
 pendicular and so high that he could not reach 
 the ground above without retreating up the 
 river for at least a quarter of a mile, where the 
 bluff was depressed enough to permit him to 
 draw himself upward upon it. Had the bank 
 been low and wooded, it would have been the 
 easiest matter in the world to have shoved the 
 canoe into the shelter, or to have circumvented 
 the Indian by lifting it bodily from the water 
 and going around him, and striking the river 
 again below\ But Tom hesitated only a few 
 minutes. He was anxious to get forward, for 
 delay was dangerous and he felt annoyed at the 
 manner in which he was dogged. 
 
 "Here goes," he exclaimed, starting the canoe 
 forward again- "If that Apache is anxious for 
 a scrimmage, he can have one." 
 
CHAPTER IT. 
 
 TOM HARDYNGE's RUSE. 
 
 Hardynge was too skillful a hunter to place 
 himself directly in the way of the Apache whom 
 he knew to be the most treacherous kind of an 
 enem\'. His purpose was to indulge in a little 
 strategy and to seek to outwat the redskin, as 
 he had done on many an occasion before. It 
 required but a second for him to slide his rifle 
 over upon his back, the stock being hastily 
 wrapped with a leathern sheath, which he always 
 carried for such an emergency, when he gently 
 let himself over the stern of the canoe, takinsf 
 care to make no splash or noise in doing so. 
 He then permitted his body with the exception 
 of his head to sink entirely beneath the surface, 
 while he floated with the boat, lying in such a 
 position that he made it effectually screen him 
 from the view of any one who might be upon 
 the bank above. It was hardly to be expected, 
 however, that if the Indian saw the boat, he 
 would permit it to pass unquestioned. Tom 
 
 15 
 
16 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 did ifot anticipate it, and he was prepared for 
 that which followed. For several minutes the 
 most perfect silence prevailed. At the end of 
 that time, the scout knew that he was exactly 
 beneath the spot whereon he had seen the 
 answering signal, and scarcely stirred a muscle, 
 keeping his head as close as possible to the 
 boat, and so nearly submerged, that he could 
 scarcely breathe. 
 
 *'Hooh! hooh!'' 
 The Apache had noted the empty canoe drift- 
 ing below him in the shadow, and surveyed it 
 with something of the feeling of the detective 
 who suddenly stumbles upon a clue, the precise 
 meaning of which is at first a mystery to him. 
 
 It is hardly to be supposed that he intended 
 this outcry as a hail to the boat, which he must 
 have seen contained no one. Its appearance 
 would naturall}^ suggest to one in his situation 
 that the occupant had been alarmed by the signs 
 of danger and had taken to the land. This sup- 
 position was so natural that Hardynge would 
 probably have got safely by the dangerous point 
 but for a totally unlooked-for mishap. The 
 water, which up to this time had been fully six 
 feet in depth, s-uddenly shallowed to less than a 
 
THROUGH APACHE LAND. 17 
 
 quarter of that, so thnt he struck his knees 
 against the bottom. The shock was very sHght, 
 and scarcely caused a ripple; but it takes only 
 the slightest noise to alarm an Indian, especially 
 when he is on the watch. That faint plash 
 caused by the jar of the body caught the ear of 
 the listening, peering redskin, who instantly slid 
 his body over the bluff, and balancing himself 
 for an instant, dropped with such precision that 
 he struck the canoe in the very center, and pre- 
 served its gravity so well that it tipped neither 
 to the right nor left. 
 
 At the very moment the Apache dropped, the 
 hunter rose to his feet, knife in hand. The water 
 rose scarcely to his knees, and the bottom was 
 hard, so that it was almost the same as if he 
 stood upon dry land. The warrior had not time 
 to recover from the slight shock of his leap, 
 when Tom grasped him by the throat and used 
 his weapon with such effect that it was all over 
 in a few seconds. 
 
 '* There! I reckon 3^ou won't go into the tele- 
 graph business again very soon!" he growled, 
 as the inanimate body disappeared down the 
 stream, and he coolly re-entered the canoe, which 
 had floated but a short distance away. 
 
 2 
 
18 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 He had scarcely done this when a new idea 
 struck him, and, hastening after the receding 
 body, he carefully drew it into the boat again. 
 Here it was the work of but a fe^w minutes to 
 place it in a sitting position in the stern in the 
 most natural posture imaginable, so that any 
 one looking upon the figure would not have 
 suspected for an instant that it was anything 
 but an animate being. Making sure that its 
 pose could not be improved, the scout then 
 turned the boat directly away from the bank, 
 never changing its course until the very middle 
 of the Gila was reached, when he began paddling 
 in as leisurely a manner as if no danger threat- 
 ened. It was a daring stratagem, but it is only 
 by such means that men are enabled to escape 
 from peril, and although fully aware of the 
 danger he was incurring, he kept on his yvaj 
 with that coolness that years of experience had 
 given him. 
 
 As he approached a point opposite that w^here 
 he had seen the first signal he did not turn his 
 head, but he looked sidewa^^s and scanned the 
 bank with the most searching scrutiny. Sure 
 enough, at this moment he plainly discerned the 
 figures of fully a hah-dozen Indians standing 
 
THROUGH APACHE LAND. 19 
 
 Upon the bluff and apparently watching the 
 canoe with a curiosity that was natural. 
 
 "All right," thought the hunter; "so long as 
 3'ou let me alone I \von't hurt you." 
 
 Had there been but the single occupant of the 
 canoe the Apaches would not have stood debat- 
 ing in this fashion as to what they should do, if, 
 indeed, they should do anytbing at all. Unity in 
 the question would have shown that it was the 
 identical individual for whom they were search- 
 ing, for they knev^ that he was alone; but the 
 fact that there were two, and both in the guise 
 of Indians, could be explained upon no other 
 hypothesis than that they were really what they 
 seemed to be. 
 
 "Hooh! Hooh!" 
 It was precisely the same exclamation which 
 had been uttered by the warrior who sat so cold 
 and inanimate in the stern of the canoe, and 
 Tom, without the least hesitancy, ceased pad- 
 dling for the instant, straightened up, and 
 responded in the same gutteral fashion, resuming 
 the use of the oar at the same time, as if he 
 meant that that should be the end of it. But 
 the Apaches immediately followed up their ejacu- 
 lations with some other sounds, which were 
 
20 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 doubtless intended as a summons for the craft 
 to heave to and "show her papers." Tom did 
 not understand the Apache tongue well enough to 
 comprehend the precise meaning of these words, 
 although he was pretty well convinced of what the 
 others were driving at. He did not dare to attempt 
 to reply, nor did he dare to move faster; so he did 
 the only dignified thing possible under the cir- 
 cumstances. He continued that automatic pad- 
 dling, and, assisted by the current, was rapidly 
 leaving his enemies in the rear when they called 
 to him again, moving at the same time down 
 the bank in a fashion which showed that they 
 meant business. The hunter, not yet ready to 
 make the desperate dash which he had reserved 
 for the last final effort, if he should be driven to 
 the wall, ceased work again and called out: 
 ''Hooh!" 
 He said it as impatiently as he could in the 
 hope of "cutting off further debate," and resumed 
 paddling, knowing that a comparatively short dis- 
 tance down the river the banks were so depressed 
 that he could readily make his w^ay from the 
 boat to the land, so that after getting fairly 
 below the Apaches his chances of ultimate escape 
 were greatly increased. 
 
THROUGH APACHE LAND. 21 
 
 The Indians must have been exasperated at 
 the refusal, for Tom had taken scarcely a dozen 
 strokes when he saw the flash of several guns 
 upon the bank, and the whizzing of the bullets 
 around his head left no doubt of the target at 
 which the}' aimed. 
 
 ''I can do somethin' of that mvself," orrowled 
 the hunter, as he laid dowm his paddle and took 
 up his gun. 
 
 Without the least hesitation, he fired directlv 
 into the group, and the wild cry that instantly 
 followed told with what a fatal result also. All 
 diplomacy' w^as ended by this act, and without 
 pausing to reload his piece, he dropped his gun 
 and bent to the task. The long ashen paddle 
 was dipped deep into the water, and the light 
 vessel shot like an arrow down stream. It 
 seemed, indeed, to be imbued wnth life, and fairly 
 skimmed over the surface. The unexpected and 
 defiant response to the summons of the Apaches 
 threw them into temporary bewilderment, and 
 the minutes thus lost to them were golden ones 
 gained to the fugitive, w4io shot the canoe as 
 close to the opposite shore as was prudent, 
 and wielded the paddle wnth the skill of a vet- 
 eran. 
 
22 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 Having now no need of the clummj'- that had 
 stood him so well lor the time, Tom did not 
 hesitate to throw him overboard as a useless 
 incumbrance, and, thus relieved of the dead 
 weight, he sped forward with wonderful speed. 
 In a short time after that the redskins had van- 
 ished from view, and almost any one would 
 have supposed that the danger was passed; but 
 Tom w^as well aware that it was only a tempo- 
 rary lull in the storm. The Apaches were like 
 bloodhounds, who, having once taken the trail 
 of their prey, \\rould relax no effort so long as 
 there was a chance of capturing him, and so he 
 abated not a jot of his tremendous exertions. 
 
CHAPTER III. 
 
 PURSUED BY THE APACHES. 
 
 As stealthily as a phantom did the canoe 
 bearing the scout skim along the shore of the 
 Gila, hugging the banks as closely as possible, 
 so as to take advantage of the ribbon of 
 shadow which followed the winding of the 
 stream. The moon was creeping higher up the 
 sky, and this advantage Avould soon be denied 
 the fugitive altogether, so every minute was 
 improved to the utmost. Now and then Tom 
 ceased paddling, and as the boat shot forward 
 with undiminished speed, bent his head and lis- 
 tened. This ^was continued until he had passed 
 fulh' a quarter of a mile, when he rested for a 
 longer time than usual. 
 
 "I guess they'll have to give it up," he said 
 to himself, with a peculiar chuckle. ''They 
 ketched me in a bad box, that's sartin, where I 
 couldn't climb out on either side. But things 
 are a little better here," he added, as he looked 
 from side to side at the bluffs, which were so 
 
 23 
 
24 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 low that the tops could be easily reached from 
 his boat. "I don't much want to tramp over- 
 land, but if it is necessary I've got somethin* 
 of a chance, which isn't what I had before." 
 
 He might w^ell prefer the water to the land ; 
 for on the former, whether he went fast or 
 slow, there was no trail left for the keenest 
 bloodhound to follow; on the latter it v^as im- 
 possible to conceal his most cautious footsteps 
 from tHe eyes of the redskins. The surface of 
 this portion of Arizona was of such a nature 
 that everything was against the hunter. There 
 was no w^ood nor tributary streams for miles. 
 If he left the Gila, and struck across the coun- 
 trv, it would be over an open plain, where he 
 could be seen for miles. He would be on foot, 
 while his enemies would all be mounted on their 
 fleet mustangs. How, then, could he elude them 
 by leaving his boat? His only hope was in 
 traveling at night, but night must always be 
 followed by day. 
 
 **I w^onder what ideas will creep into their 
 skulls," he muttered, reflecting upon the view 
 the Apaches had gained of him a short time 
 before from the bank. ''A dead Injun is a good 
 deal better than a live one, as that 'ere critter 
 
THROUGH APACHE LAND. 25 
 
 proved to me. If I hadn't fired back agin, they 
 misfht have thong-ht I was one of their own 
 warriors — mebbe they'll think so now. Great 
 Scott!" 
 
 The scout was paddling along in his leisurely 
 manner, w-hen his eyes, by the merest accident, 
 happened to rest upon the other shore, at a 
 point a short distance below him. While thus 
 looking, he saw distinctly a point of light 
 appear and vanish three times! It performed 
 no such gyration as those which he had first 
 seen, but simply came forw^ard and receded until 
 it was gone altogether, leaving the same misty 
 darkness as before. More by instinct than from 
 any other cause, Tom turned his eyes to the 
 point opposite where he had seen this exhibition. 
 He had scarcely done so when precisely the same 
 thing was seen! 
 
 *' Jest what I expected," he said as he checked the 
 downward progress of his boat. "The varmints 
 have 'spicioned that one of the chaps in that 
 'ere canoe w^hich passed before 'em is mj-self, 
 and they're goin' for me like lightnin'. They've 
 mounted their horses, and kept it up till they 
 knowed they'd struck a p'int below me, and 
 there they've signaled to each other that I'm 
 
26 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 still above 'em on the river, and still to be 
 ketched." 
 
 The scout was certain that his theory was 
 correct, and that, distasteful and dangerous as 
 it might be, the time had come for him to leave 
 the river. To continue further would be to pre- 
 cipitate a collision in which there was no possi- 
 bility of the good fortune that had followed him 
 in the first place. Besides this the night was 
 so far advanced and the moon so high up in the 
 sky, that the shadow had narrowed to a band 
 which was practically useless. 
 
 "No use makin' faces when you've got a dose of 
 medicine to take," he added, as he ran the canoe 
 close to the shore. 
 
 There he found that by standing upon his feet 
 he could easily reach the edge of the bluff above 
 and thus draw himself up when he chose. This 
 he proceeded to do, but he was too skillful a 
 hunter to leave behind him such tell-tale evidence 
 as the canoe itself would have proven. Were 
 he to leave that as it was, it would be sure to 
 catch the eye of the Apaches within a quarter 
 of an hour and tell them precisely what had 
 been done. And so, as the hunter hung thus by 
 his hands, with his long rifle secured at his back, 
 
THROUGH APACHE LAND. 27 
 
 he caught the toe of his moccasin in the craft 
 in such a way that it dipped and took water. 
 He held it thus until it could contain no more; 
 but its composition was such that even then it 
 would not sink. There were loose boulders in 
 the bank, and the hunter proceeded to drop 
 these carefully into the boat below. It required 
 several for ballast, when it quietly went to the 
 bottom, where it was certain to stay. This 
 done he addressed himself to the task before 
 him. 
 
 As he straightened up and looked off in 
 the moonlight, a Yer3^ discouraging, although 
 familiar sight, met his eye. The moonlight was 
 quite stroi^g, and he was enabled to see objects 
 indistinctly for a considerable distance. It was 
 everywhere the same. A level, treeless prairie, 
 where for miles there was not a drop of water 
 to be obtained, and over which, as has been 
 already shown, in case he attempted to make 
 his way, he would be placed at the greatest dis- 
 advantage possible, especially as his own mus- 
 tang was still a good hundred miles to the 
 southwest, if he had succeeded in avoiding cap- 
 ture up to that time. But the life of a frontiers- 
 man, besides being perilous at all times, is 
 
28 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 hardly ever anything but disagreeable, despite 
 the curious fascination which it holds for those 
 who follow it. Tom did not hesitate a moment 
 longer than was necessary, now that a dis- 
 agreeable expedient was forced upon him. 
 
 His first precaution was to make sure that 
 none of the Apaches were in sight. The point at 
 which he had seen the answering signal was so 
 far below that he was certain it would be 
 beyond his vision, and, this much determined, 
 gave him just the "leverage" needed to work 
 upon. It needed but a few seconds to assure 
 himself upon this point, and then he sti'uck off 
 to the south w^est. This course, w^hile it took 
 him away from the Gila, would eventually bring 
 him back to it, the winding of the stream being 
 such as to make this junction certain, if con- 
 tinued. The great thing now^ required was 
 haste; for a great deal depended upon the ground 
 that could be passed over during these favoring 
 hours of darkness. He had taken scarcely a 
 dozen steps wiien he struck into a long, loping 
 trot, not particularly rapid in itself, but of such 
 a character that it could be kept for hours at a 
 stretch. It was the genuine Indian dog trot, 
 which is so effective in long distances. As the 
 
THROUGH APACHE LAND. 29 
 
 runner went along in this fashion, his thoughts 
 were busy, and all his senses on the alert. He 
 concluded that it was nearW midnight, and that 
 he had, consequently, a number of hours at his 
 command; so he aimed to get as far below the 
 intercepting Apaches as possible, with the inten- 
 tion of returning to the river, before daylight, 
 where he was hopeful of discovering some canoe, 
 or at least of hitting upon some feasible method 
 of hiding his trail from his lynx-eyed pursuers. 
 
 This loping trot was kept up for fully two 
 hours, at the end of which time Tom w^as cer- 
 tain that he w-as approaching the river again. 
 He still pressed forward for another hour, when 
 he came to a halt. Although he had continued 
 this great exertion for so long a time, yet so 
 good was his wnnd that when he paused there 
 was no perceptible quickening of the respiration. 
 Years of training had made him capable of stand- 
 ing far more trying tests of his strength than 
 this. The scout carefully turned his head from 
 side to side, looking and listening. All was still, 
 and his ear caught no ominous sound. Then he 
 moistened his finger and held it over his head. 
 Yes, there was the least possible breath of air 
 stirring, as was told him by the fact that one 
 
30 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 side of the moistened finger was slightly chilled. 
 Everywhere, right, left, in front or rear, so far 
 as the bright moonlight permitted his vision to 
 extend, was the same dead level of treeless plain. 
 Kneeling down he applied his ear to the ground. 
 Could it be? There was sl sound thus carried to 
 his ears — the very sound which above all others 
 he dreaded to hear. It was a faint, almost 
 inaudible, tapping upon the earth. Far away 
 it Avas, but drawing nearer every minute. 
 
 The scout knew what it meant. It was the 
 sound of horse's hoofs ! 
 
CHAPTER IV. 
 
 OUTWITTED. 
 
 "I'll matcli them Apaches agin the world for 
 shrewd deviltry,'' exclaimed Hard^'nge, unable 
 to suppress his admiration even in the moment 
 which told him of his own increased personal 
 danger. "B}^ some hook or crook, the Old Bov 
 only knows what, they've found out my game, 
 and are after me. Ah ! if I onh^ had my mus- 
 tang, Thundergust, with me!" 
 
 Tom now changed his direction more to the 
 north, his intention being to strike the river 
 much sooner than was his original purpose. It 
 was the onl\^ thing he could do to escape the 
 redskins, who showed such a wonderful skill in 
 following him up. 
 
 As near as he could judge, something like ten 
 miles still intervened between him and the friendly 
 stream — a distance which he was confident of 
 passing before daylight, if he did not find his pur- 
 suers in his-path. The greatest care was necessary 
 to keep out of the way of these creatures, and 
 
 31 
 
32 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 the fugitive had run but a short distance when 
 he paused and applied his ear to the ground 
 again. Only for an instant, however, when 
 he bounded up and was off like a shot. The 
 alarming sounds came to his ear with such 
 distinctness as to prove that the Apaches were 
 close at hand. Guided by some strange fatality, 
 tliej^ were bearing directly down upon him at 
 full speed. More than all, those pattering footfalls 
 were such as to indicate that the swarthy 
 horsemen w^ere not approaching in a compact 
 group. They had separated so as to cover a 
 wide area of ground, and were advancing in 
 such an array that the difficulty of escape was 
 increased tenfold. Everything conspired against 
 poor Tom. The bright moonlight, the broad 
 level stretch of plain, the fact that he was on 
 foot, and his pursuers, besides being well mounted, 
 were among the most skillful riders of the 
 Southwest, made his situation about as desper- 
 ate as it is possible to imagine. 
 
 A few minutes later the fugitive paused again, 
 but this time it was not necessary that he 
 should apply his ear to the ground. The sounds 
 of the mustangs' hoofs came to him very plainl}^ 
 through the midnight air, and as he looked 
 
THROUGH APACHE LAND. 33 
 
 around he half expected to see the shadowy 
 figures of the horsemen plunging forward in the 
 gloom toward him! Nothing was to be seen, 
 however, of them, and, feeling that the situation 
 was becoming desperate, he changed his course 
 again, his purpose being simply to get by the 
 approaching marauders without caring in what 
 direction he went. Had he been five minutes 
 earlier he might have succeeded, but he was 
 just that much too late. 
 
 He was stealing forward in his cautious man- 
 ner, with the sound of the horses' hoofs growing 
 more distinct every second, when, sure enough, 
 the figure of an Indian horseman suddenly came 
 in sight, bearing down upon him as straight 
 as an arrow. The very instant Tom saw it he 
 sank down upon his face, scarcely daring to 
 hope that his pursuer would pass him, and pre- 
 pared lor whatever he chose to do. 
 
 The scout turned his head so that he could 
 watch every movement and guard against it, 
 his hand being extended beneath his body in 
 the most natural position possible, but grasp- 
 ing his loaded revolver. 
 
 It may have been that the Apache would have 
 gone by but for the action of his mustang. 
 
34 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 These intelligent animals seem to know, in 
 many cases, far more than their masters, and 
 the one in question was yet some j^ards dis- 
 tant from the prostrate form, when he halted 
 with a snort. This opened the ball, and the 
 scout anxiousl}^ awaited the fight which seemed 
 inevitable. 
 
 Fortunately, the Indian party had separated 
 to such an extent that no others were in sight 
 of the fugitive, who thus had but a single man 
 to contend against, although there was no 
 question but what any number of others could 
 be summoned to the spot in a twinkling. The 
 foeman understood the situation at a glance; 
 that is, he knew that the man for whom he was 
 seeking was prostrate upon the ground before 
 him, but he had no means of judging whether he 
 was dead, asleep, or feigning. Under these cir- 
 cumstances he advanced very cautiously, his 
 mustang betraying considerable reluctance at 
 walking u^ to a man stretched out at full 
 length. 
 
 This was precisely what Hardynge desired, as 
 every minute that matters remained in statu quo 
 placed the friends of his adversary further away 
 
THROUGH APACHE LAND. 35 
 
 and simplified the encounter, which he considered 
 as certain to take place. 
 
 Something like ten minutes were occupied in 
 this stealthy advance of the horse, at the end 
 of which time he stood so that his head was 
 directly over the "shoulders of the prostrate man, 
 w^ho still lay as motionless as a statue. 
 
 ''Hooh!" exclaimed the rider, holding himself 
 read}^ for any demonstration upon the part of 
 the suspected white man. But the latter never 
 stirred, although he shivered a little at the fear 
 that the mustang might place his hoof upon 
 him. 
 
 Tom's peculiar peril will be understood when 
 it is stated that the Apache was master of the 
 situation from the instant the^^ came in sight of 
 each other. Had the fugitive fired at him the 
 moment he caught sight of his horse, he might 
 have tumbled him to the ground, but it would 
 have brought the rest of the party around him 
 in an instant. As matters now stood, the 
 Apache w^ould have fired at the first movement 
 he made, no matter how dexterous, to draw his 
 hand from beneath his bod^^ and so Tom bided 
 his time. 
 
 "Hooh!" 
 
36 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 This was repeated several times, when the 
 warrior tried to force his mustang to step upon 
 him; but the animal was too timid to be forced 
 into doing such a repugnant thing, and, when 
 angrily urged thereto, leaped clear of the bod_y 
 with a sniff of terror, and galloped several rods 
 before he could be brought round and compelled 
 to face the unknown again. This seemed to 
 convince the Apache that the man was dead, and 
 without any further hesitation he slid down 
 from the back of his horse, and advanced to 
 the figure for the purpose of scalping him. 
 
 He had just stooped down, knife in hand, 
 when the form turned like a flash. There came 
 a blinding flash, then a report and a cry, almost 
 together, and Tom Hardynge seemed to leap up 
 from the ground as if a bomb had exploded 
 beneath him, and, dashing toward the mustang, 
 seized his rein and vaulted upon his back before 
 the animal really knew what had taken place. 
 
 It was a daring deed, but it succeeded to per- 
 fection. The scout had not only extinguished his 
 foe, but had captured his horse as well. The 
 sound of the pistol might reach the ears of 
 other Apaches, but he cared nothing for that. 
 He was as well mounted as they, and, with the 
 
THROUGH APACHE LAND. 37 
 
 start which he had gained, the\^ were welcome 
 to do all they could. In view of this, it was 
 impossible for him to restrain his exultation, 
 and the moment he realized that he was fairly 
 astride of the mustang he let out a shout that 
 miofht have been heard a mile awav. The 
 steed which bore him was an excellent one, and 
 he had no fear of being overtaken by an\' of 
 them. He knew in what direction to take his 
 flight, and away he sped with his horse upon a 
 dead run. He scarcely drew^ rein until daylight 
 broke over the prairie, when he found himself 
 pursuing a direction parallel with the river, and 
 making good headway toward the point where 
 he hoped his own matchless Thundergust w^as 
 aw^aiting him. 
 
 Hardynge scarcely halted during the greater 
 portion of the next day, except when his 
 mustang required it, and shortly after the sun 
 crossed the meridian he was gratified at catch- 
 ing sight of the rolling prairie and w^ooded hills 
 where he had turned his horse loose nearly a 
 week before. While at a distance he gave utter- 
 ance to several sharp whistles, which produced 
 the response he desired, the beautiful glossy 
 mustang galloping forth to meet him wnth every 
 
38 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 appearance of delight. The creature had taken 
 good care of himself during his absence, having 
 leasted upon the rich, succulent grass, and was 
 in the best possible condition. 
 
 Turning the Indian horse loose Tom bestowed 
 no further attention upon him, but leaped upon 
 his favorite animal and galloped away to the 
 rocks where he had carefully concealed his saddle 
 and riding gear and where they had lain 
 untouched while he was gone. 
 
 Just as he dismounted, his eye rested upon a 
 piece of dried buffalo-skin which w^as pinned 
 against a tree, the inner side turned outward. 
 The first glance told him there was something 
 unusual, and his curiosity led him to approach 
 and scan it closely. There was some writing 
 scrawled upon it, which he read with little dif- 
 ficulty. The words were startling enough, and 
 as the hunter finished them he exclaimed, in a 
 frightened undertone: 
 
 "Thunderation! can it be possible?" 
 
CHAPTER V. 
 
 AN ALARMING MESSAGE. 
 
 As the scout rode his mustang up to the tree 
 whereon the buffalo skin was fastened, he read 
 the following words: 
 
 "To Tom Hardynge:— The stage which left Santa 
 
 Fe on the lOtli inst., is due at Fort Havens between 
 
 the 20th and 25th, but it will never reach there. It 
 
 has an escort of a dozen mounted soldiers, but they 
 
 can't save it. The Apaches have arranged to attack 
 
 it near Devil's Pass, which you know is al)Out a 
 
 hundred miles northeast from this point, among the 
 
 mountains. You can't do anything to help it; but 
 
 Ned Chadmund is with it, and his father, the colonel, 
 
 offers YOU and me a thousand dollars apiece to save 
 
 him. I leave to day — Thursday — for the pass, and 
 
 you must follow the minute 3^our eyes see this. I will 
 
 be on the look-out for you. Remember there isn't an 
 
 hour to spare. 
 
 *'DiCK Morris." 
 
 Colonel Chadmnnd was the commandant at 
 Fort Havens, w^hither he was hastening with 
 his news from the Indian country. His family 
 
 39 
 
40 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 dwelt in Santa Fe, and his only child, a bright 
 boy, about a dozen years of age, had been per- 
 mitted to start to join his father in accordance 
 with a promise made him a long time before. 
 The escort with which he had been provided 
 would have been ample under ordinary circum- 
 stances, and in fact, was larger than was gen- 
 erally customary ; but it was not sufficient. 
 
 Dick Morris held a position then known as 
 "hunter to the fort" at the post under the com- 
 mand of Colonel Chadmiind. It was similar to 
 that which the renowned Kit Carson filled for a 
 number of years in the old days at Bent's Fort. 
 The man was selected on account of his skill in 
 the use of the rifle, and his knowledge of the 
 habits of the game, his duty being simpl^^ to 
 supply the command ^ath all the fresh food 
 possible — a position which, it will at once be 
 understood, was no sinecure, involving constant 
 activity and many long, rapid journeys. 
 
 Dick was as skilLul and shrewd a man as 
 could be found in the whole Southwest. Tom 
 Hardynge, his friend and companion in many a 
 perilous adventure, understood what it all meant 
 the instant he had finished reading the writing 
 upon the buffalo skin. By some means — probably 
 
THROUGH APACHE LAND. 41 
 
 through the Indian runners encountered while 
 hunting his game — he had learned the particulars 
 of the expedition that had been arranged to 
 attiick and massacre the escort. Very probably 
 these swarthy wretches were mainly incited to 
 the deed by the knowledge that the son of Col- 
 onel Chadmund was to be with the party. It 
 w^as under the direction of this vigilant officer 
 that the marauding Indians of the border had 
 received such a number of severe blows. They 
 were excited to the highest point of exaspera- 
 tion, and would seize upon any means of revenge 
 at their command. 
 
 Alarmed by the danger which threatened his 
 beloved child, the colonel had sent Dick Morris 
 to the rescue at once. He would have sent a 
 hundred men from his fort, had he believed it 
 possible that they could do any good, but it 
 was clearly out of the question for them to 
 reach Devil's Pass until nearly twent^^-four hours 
 after the stage was due there. It w^as one of 
 those cases wherein all depended upon shrewd- 
 ness and strategy, and w^here nothing was to 
 be gained by mere force of arms. The expecta- 
 tion was that the Apaches would hold the boy 
 at an enormous ransom, or probably as a host- 
 
42 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 ajre for the safety of such of their blood-stained 
 chiefs as were in the hands of the Americans. 
 This will explain the haste of the hunter, and 
 his anxiety to have the companionship of Tom, 
 who had tramped so many hundred miles 
 through the Indian country. 
 
 Ten minutes after reading the dispatch Tom 
 had fastened on the accoutrements of his mus- 
 tang and was galloping away to the northeast 
 on the trail of his friend. He did not pause 
 even to hunt a little game, after having been so 
 long without food. He was accustomed to pri- 
 vation and hardship, and, if it were required, 
 was good for twenty-four hours longer without 
 permitting a particle of food to pass his lips. 
 
 He was leaving the treacherous Gila far to 
 the south. It may be said that his course along 
 this stream, on his return from the Apache 
 country, was like the base of a triangle, while 
 he was now following the hypothenuse. This 
 latter route was preferable in every sense to that 
 which he had been using for the last few days. 
 The country itself was more varied, better 
 watered and abounded with vegetation, its only 
 drawback being the ever-present danger from 
 
THROUGH APACHE LAND. 43 
 
 the Tnarandinsf redskins. Another advantas^e 
 that belonged to the traveler over this path was 
 that it was really a path — so clearly defined 
 that a stranger could follow it without 
 trouble. It was, in fact, the trail between Fort 
 Havens and Santa Fe, over which, at certain 
 intervals, messengers were regularly dispatched 
 back and forth. 
 
 The money with w^hlch the soldiers at Fort 
 Havens and several other posts were paid came 
 down b}^ express from Sante Fe over this road, 
 in charge of a proper escort, and the coach which 
 started from that city with httle Xed Chadmund 
 carried also one hundred thousand dollars in crisp, 
 crackling greenbacks stowed away in the bot- 
 tom of the vehicle. Consequently it will be seen 
 that the Apaches, who understood very well the 
 value of these printed slips, had every inciting 
 cause to organize an overwhelming expedition 
 against the coach and its escort. 
 
 The day is waning, but his steed was fresh 
 and fleet, and had enjoyed such a long rest, that 
 it would be a mercy to him to put him through 
 his best paces. Tom did not hesitate to do it. The 
 gloss V black animal gave a neigh of delight as 
 
44 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 he felt the familiar hnnd of his master upon the 
 bridle, and he stretched away like one of the 
 Arabian coursers of the desert, fleet as the wind 
 and capable of keeping up the tremendous rate 
 of speed for hours at a time. 
 
 The greater portion of this journey led through 
 the wildest mountain scenery, and the afternoon 
 was scarcely half gone when a striking change 
 in the surface was observable. Instead of that 
 long, dreary expanse of endless prairie, the hun- 
 ter was forced to make long detours to escape 
 the obstructions constantly interposing in the 
 way. Now it was around some pile of rocks, 
 then winding among a mass of hills, then over 
 a level plain for some distance, but with the 
 scenery steadily increasing in ruggedness at every 
 mile traversed. Far ahead could be discerned 
 the chain of mountains, their peaks looking blue 
 and misty in the distance. It was among these 
 that the trail wound its way — one portion, in 
 the very heart of the mountains, being known 
 as Devil's Pass, from its wild and dangerous 
 character; and, as the scout strained his eye in 
 the direction and contemplated the blue waving 
 line against the sky, he almost fancied he could 
 
THROUGH APACHP: LAND. 45 
 
 see the smoke from the rifles of the vengeful 
 Apaches. 
 
 "Shouldn't wonder if they are at it this very 
 minute," lie muttered, as he glanced down at 
 the ground in front of him. 
 
 All the afternoon, as he sped along, he saw 
 constantly in front of him the footprints of 
 another mustang, such as are made by an 
 animal when under full speed. So they were, as 
 he knew very w^ell. Dick Morris had been over 
 the same trail a few hours before, at scarcely 
 less speed than his own. 
 
 Every time Tom came in sight of an elevation 
 he looked hastily at it in the hope of catching 
 sight of some signal from his friend. In such a 
 desperate enterprise as this he felt the need of 
 companionship, especially of such a tried and 
 daring man as Dick Morris. But the sun grad- 
 ually went down in the western sky without 
 bringing him the coveted sight, and be began to 
 believe that he would not be overtaken before 
 reaching Devil's Pass, which he hoped to reach 
 on the morrow. Then, as the sun disappeared and 
 darkness crept over mountain and prairie, Tom 
 turned the head of his animal in the direction 
 
46 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 of a clump of trees where he knew there was 
 an abundance of grass and water, and where, 
 in all probability, something in the way of food 
 could be had for himself. The mustang needed 
 rest and refreshment, and the rider required them 
 scarcely less. 
 
CHAPTER VI. 
 
 THE TWO SCOUTS. 
 
 The hunter was within a hundred yards or so 
 of the clump of trees, when he suddenly checked 
 his mustang, or rather the mustang checked 
 himself, at the light of a camp fire, which all at 
 once flashed out from among them. 
 
 ** That's either Dick or a lot of varmints," he 
 muttered. **I think it's varmints, for I don't 
 b'lieve he meant to wait there." 
 
 However, it was a question easily settled. He 
 slid from his horse, and, rifle in hand, stole for- 
 ward in the direction of the grove, moving as 
 silently and stealthily as a shadow, while his 
 beast stood as if he were an equestrian statue 
 awaiting the placing of some metallic hero upon 
 his back. A phantom itself could not have 
 glided forward with less noise than did he, and 
 yet he was fully twenty yards away from his 
 destination, with his eyes fixed upon the point 
 of light, when he was discovered by some horse 
 that belonged to the stranger, or strangers, 
 
 47 
 
48 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 which gave out a loud neigh, as a signal to his 
 friends of the approach of danger. At that 
 moment, Tom dropped flat upon his face, as he 
 had done before at the approach of the Apaches, 
 and the luxuriant grass gathered about his form 
 in such a way that he could not be seen by any- 
 one at a moderate distance. But close upon the- 
 heels of the neigh came a low, tremulous whis- 
 tle, scarcely uttered when Tom replied in a pre- 
 cisely similar way, leaped to his feet and trotted 
 toward the grove. 
 
 "That's Dick! " he exclaimed to himself, the 
 signals which they had ueed being the same that 
 they had adopted years before, when approach- 
 ing each other in a dangerous neighborhood. 
 
 The next minute the two met and shook 
 hands. There were many points of resemblance 
 and difterence between the two comrades. Each 
 was in middle life, embrowned, hardened, and 
 toughened by years of exposure and the wild 
 life of the border; but Tom Hardy nge was taller, 
 more sinewy and active than Dick Morris, who 
 was below the medium stature, with a stunted 
 appearance; but he was a powerful man, won- 
 derfully skillful ill the use of the rifle, and the 
 
THROUGH APACHE LAND. 49 
 
 two friends together made the strongest possi- 
 ble kind of a team. 
 
 "Ah I that's the talk," exclaimed Tom, as he 
 snuft'ed the odor of the cooking meat by the 
 camp fire. "I'm hungry enough to chaw up my 
 moccasins. What have you there— buffalo, mule 
 or grizzly bar?" 
 
 "Neither one," replied the other. *'I fetched 
 down an antelope a couple of hours ago, and as I 
 was expectin' you, I cooked enough of it for 
 both." 
 
 "You had to cook his hoofs and all to do 
 that; but why don't you spread the dining 
 table?" 
 
 Little ceremony was indulged in at such a 
 time. The toasting meat, browm, crisp and 
 juicv, was served in two equal portions, each 
 of immense size, and then, with no culinary 
 articles but their keen hunting kniv^es, and their 
 incisors, almost as keen, they w^ent at the busi- 
 ness with the gusto of famishing wolves. Mean- 
 while the two mustangs were feasting upon the 
 rich srass which orew abundantlv about them, 
 and so all members of the party were enjoying 
 themselves to the fullest extent. 
 
 4 
 
50 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 The two hunters scarcely spoke while this 
 piece of mastication was going on. They under- 
 stood each other so well that there was no 
 necessity of any hurry in the way of inquiry or 
 conversation. When at last they had filled them- 
 selves to repletion, they drew their fingers through 
 their bushy hair, using the latter by way of 
 napkins, and then, after a good long draught 
 from the brook running near at hand, lit 
 their pipes and leaned back in the very acme of 
 bliss. 
 
 *'How soon shall we start?" asked Tom. 
 
 '*In a couple of hours," was the reply. 
 
 "Think the Apaches are through by this 
 time?" 
 
 ''No doubt of it." 
 If the hunters seemed to exhibit indifference 
 in referring to the terrible occurrence, it was not 
 because they felt thus ; but the lives which they 
 led had accustomed them to such frightful expe- 
 riences. 
 
 "S'pose they've spared the younker?" 
 
 *' Guess they have." 
 The conclusion to which both came was 
 that the Apaches were incited to this attack 
 more by the desire to get possession of the lad 
 
THROUGH APACHE LAND. 61 
 
 than by anything else, in view of the intense 
 hatred with which Colonel Chadmund was 
 viewed by the hostile Indians of the Southwest. 
 He had been stationed over two years at Fort 
 Havens, during which his administration had 
 been marked by extreme vigor, and he had retal- 
 iated upon the Apaches especialh^ in the sever- 
 est wa}^ for many outrages committed by 
 them. 
 
 **Yas, they've gone for that little younker," 
 added Dick Morris, after the discussion had 
 been continued for some time. "Of course 
 they haven't killed him; for that would have 
 sp'iled their game. The colonel, finding what 
 thev'd done, would come down on 'em harder 
 than ever, and you kin make up 3'our mind 
 they'd get the worst of the bargain before he 
 was through with 'em; but as long as they 
 hold the boy, you see, they've got the hands of 
 the old fellow tied, for he thinks a heap of his 
 boy, and he'll do anything to save him." 
 
 ''And that's why he sends us arter him," said 
 Tom. ' 
 
 "He knows that if he let a lot of the men go, 
 they might get all chawed up, and it wouldn't 
 help the boy any, so he thinks we kin get him 
 
52 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 out of their hands by some hocus pocus or 
 other." 
 
 "And what do you think, Tom?" asked his 
 companion, in a confidential voice. "Is there 
 much show for ever saving the skulp of little 
 Ned?" 
 
 His brother hunter looked into the fire for 
 several minutes, with a ver^^ serious expression 
 upon his countenance. He was thinking intently 
 upon the situation, and trying to extract some 
 comfort from the prospect. 
 
 "Wal, Dick, you know as well as me that it's 
 mighty hard to tell in such a case. We've both got 
 the best of bosses, that kin hold thar own agin 
 anythin' the reds can scare up; but if they go 
 to such pains to get the chap into thar hands, 
 they'll take the same pains to keep him thar." 
 
 "Exactly; but they won't be expectin' any 
 such move as we're at so early in the day, don't 
 you see? and there's where we gain the advan- 
 tage by hurry in' on, afore the\^ kin get off in 
 the mountains with him." 
 
 There seemed to be reason in this conclusion, 
 and both agreed upon it. 
 
 At the end of a couple of hours their horses 
 had rested sufficiently, and they were mounted 
 
THROUGH APACHE LAND. 53 
 
 again. They had trusted to the mustangs to 
 act as sentinels while they spent their time in 
 eating and talking, and, no alarm having been 
 given, they were satisfied that there w^as no one 
 in the vicinity', and the}^ rode off toward the 
 northeast, without an\^ concern of present dan- 
 ger threatening them. By this time the moon 
 was in the sky; but a few clouds were occa- 
 sionally scudding before his face, so that the 
 prairie was not illuminated with as much clear- 
 ness as upon the preceding night. The two 
 hunters galloped along at a swinging gallop, a 
 rate of speed which their mustangs w^ere capa- 
 ble of continuing for hours and which it w^as 
 the purpose of the riders to keep up until their 
 destination was reached. Now and then, through 
 the stillness of the night, the cries of wild ani- 
 mals came to their ears, and once or twice these 
 sounded very much like signals from parties of 
 Indians. 
 
 Tom and Dick never once relaxed their vigi- 
 lance, but, as far as the gloom w^ould permit, 
 scanned the country about them in every direc- 
 tion. Besides, they occasionally caught the glim- 
 mer of camp fires, but they were all at such a 
 
54 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 distance that they paid no attention to them, 
 but continued on the even tenor of their way. 
 
 Just as day was breaking, they found them- 
 selves fairly among the mountains. The wildest 
 crags and peaks were all about them, and they 
 were compelled to keep close to the pass they 
 were following. This wound in and out among 
 the fastnesses, not more than a hundred feet in 
 width in some places, while in others it was 
 fully a quarter of a mile broad. Here they were 
 in constant apprehension of meeting with their 
 old enemies; but there was an air of solitude and 
 desertion about them that was impressive in the 
 extreme. They halted but a short time to let 
 their animals ''blow," while they themselves 
 made an observation. Still nothing new or 
 alarming was discovered, and they hurried for- 
 ward as before. 
 
 Just as the sun reached meridian, the two 
 hunters came upon that place known as Devil's 
 Pass, which they were certain had witnessed a 
 fearful tragedy during the previous twenty-four 
 hours. 
 
CHAPTER VII. 
 
 THE CAVALRY ESCORT. 
 
 The stage which left Santa Fe on that beauti- 
 ful spring morning, bound for Fort Havens on 
 the journey heretofore referred to, carried two 
 passengers. One was Corporal Hugg, a soldier 
 who had been engaged a dozen years upon the 
 plains— a rough, good-natured, chivalrous fellow, 
 who, having lost a leg in the service of his 
 country, enjoyed a pension, and had become a 
 sort of family servant in the employ of Colonel 
 Chadmund. He was devotedly attached to little 
 Ned and his greatest delight was in watching 
 or joining him at play, exercising a surveillance 
 over him something like that wHiich a great, 
 shaggy Newfoundland holds over a pet child. 
 The corporal was able to stump about upon his 
 cork leg, and when the time came for the lad to 
 make the journey through the mountains to 
 Fort Havens— a journey w^hich he had been look- 
 ing impatiently forward to for fully a year— it 
 
 65 
 
66 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 followed as a natural sequence that the corporal 
 should bear him company. 
 
 Ned bade his mother an affectionate good-bye, 
 and she pressed him to her breast again and 
 again, the tears filling her ejQs, and a sad mis- 
 giving chilling her heart. The reports at the 
 time were that the Indians to the southwest 
 were unusuall}^ quiet, no word having yet reached 
 the capital of New Mexico of the formidable 
 raids that were being organized in the Apache 
 country. Besides this, the stage, which was 
 properly an ambulance, drawn by a single 
 powerful horse, was escorted by twelve Indian 
 fighters armed to the teeth, every one of whom 
 had performed similar duty before, and so, 
 according to all human probabilities, there 
 seemed to be less cause than usual for fear. Yet 
 the mother felt a woeful sinking of the heart, 
 natural, perhaps, under the circumstances; but 
 she could not break the promise of herself and 
 husband to the boy, who was overflowing wnth 
 joy at the prospect of that long journey through 
 the mountains, and a several months' sojourn 
 at the fort in the far Southwest. 
 
 Finally, the cavalcade lost sight of Santa Fe, 
 and the first night they encamped a good distance 
 
THROUGH APACHE LAND. 57 
 
 away from that historic, then primitive, town. 
 The lieutenant who had charge of tlie escort 
 was more concerned about the treasure in their 
 possession than he was about the Indians. So 
 far as possible, the fact that he was carrying a 
 large sum of monej- to one of the frontier posts 
 had been kept a secret from the general public; 
 but he was apprehensive that they might be 
 followed by some of the desperate characters 
 which infested Santa Fe at that time. But 
 nothing of danger or lawlessness w^as seen dur- 
 ing their first day and night, and when they 
 resumed their journey on the morrow, they 
 began to dismiss all thoughts of danger from 
 that direction. 
 
 As the^^ progressed toward Arizona, the 
 country gradually grew wilder and more rugged, 
 but the trail was followed without trouble, and 
 when they encamped the second night, they had 
 the satisfaction of reflecting that they had pro- 
 gressed much further than thev had counted 
 upon at first. 
 
 Those w^ere days of delight and happiness 
 to young Ned Chadmund. The weather was 
 not oppressively warm, and the ever-changing 
 scenery was like the most entrancing panorama 
 
58 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 passing before his eyes. Sometimes he rode 
 upon one of the horses with the lieutenant or 
 one of the soldiers. Then again he ran along- 
 side the ambulance until he was tired, when he 
 cHmbed within, and seated himself beside Cor- 
 poral Hugg, and listened to his tales of battle 
 and adventures. 
 
 On the second day the Indians began to show 
 themselves. A party of horsemen would be seen 
 upon the top of some hill or bluff, apparently 
 contemplating the little cavalcade, or they 
 would circle around at a distance upon the 
 prairie, whooping and indulging in all sorts of 
 tantalizing gestures, in the hope of drawing out 
 a portion of the party in pursuit. Their hearts' 
 delight would have been to get them into some 
 exposed position, where they could be cut off 
 to a man— and had the cavalry been unaccus- 
 tomed to border life, the artifice would have 
 succeeded; but they were not to be seduced to 
 their ruin by any such transparent strata- 
 gem. 
 
 Now and then these redskins, a number of 
 Comanches, sent in a rifle ball or two by way 
 of reminding the cavalry that they were accus- 
 tomed to that business. The lieutenant com- 
 
THROUGH APACHE LAND. 59 
 
 manding permitted his men to reply oecnsion- 
 ally, but no thought of pursuit was entertained. 
 None o{ the soldiers were injured by these shots, 
 although a number passed uncomfortably close, 
 and the ambulance was pierced several times. 
 
 Atone time Corporal Hugg checked his horse, 
 and pointing his gun out of the stage, took 
 deliberate aim at the nearest redskin, who was 
 displaying his horsemanship by shooting from 
 beneath the neck and belly of his mustang, and 
 then, as the latter wheeled, flopping upon the 
 other side of the animal, and firing as before. 
 The corporal held his fire until he attemped one 
 of these turn-overs, when he pulled the trigger 
 and "took him on the wing." The result was a 
 whoop, a beating of the air with a pair of mocca- 
 sined feet, and the mustang galloped away with- 
 out a rider. 
 
 This skillful shot was a good thing for the 
 party, as it taught the Comanches the very 
 lesson they needed. They instantly retreated to 
 a further point upon the prairie, and finally 
 vanished from view altogether. 
 
 The company had been on the road for nearly 
 a week. Six of them, including the lieutenant, 
 were riding at the head, and the remainder were 
 
60 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 in the rear of the ambulance. Corporal Hngg 
 was holding the reins of his horse, who was 
 stepping along with his heavy, ponderous tread, 
 while the driver was drows^^ and indolent from 
 the long, monotonous ride in which he had been 
 engaged for so many days, and for so many 
 hours during this last day. It was near the 
 middle of the afternoon, and Ned Chadmund 
 was the only one of the company that seemed 
 to be full of life and spirits. He had run along 
 by the side of the vehicle, until he was pretty 
 well jaded; he had crawled in again, and was 
 chatting away to the corporal in a fashion that 
 left no room for his giving way to drowsiness. 
 The men sat like statues upon their horses, 
 indifferent and silent, and wishing, in a general 
 way, that the day were over and the time had 
 come for going into camp, where they might 
 stretch out their legs and smoke their pipes to 
 their hearts' content. 
 
 "Yes, that 'ere is the place they call Dev- 
 il's Pass," said the corporal in reply to a ques- 
 tion from the boy. "You see that it was so 
 wide back there at the beginning that you 
 couldn't see how wide it was, and it keeps get- 
 
THROUGH APACHE LAND. 61 
 
 ing narrower and narrower till it reminds me 
 of the canyon of the upper Yellowstone." 
 
 "How is that?" was the question that 
 came when he paused to take breath. 
 
 ''So narrow that you could toss a ball from 
 one side to the other, and a thousand feet from 
 the top to bottom, clean and square, and there 
 are some places where it is all of a half mile." 
 "But this don't seem as narrow as that." 
 "I don't s'pose it is; but don't you notice 
 ahead, yonder, that it ain't more than a hun- 
 dred 3^ards broad? Well, it keeps it up for all of 
 two miles just like that." 
 
 "Why do they call it Devil's Pass, corporal?" 
 "I suppose because, if the Old Boy wanted to 
 gobble up a lot of folks, that is just the place. 
 The walls on each side are straight up and down, 
 and several hundred feet high, so that a man 
 can't dodge to the right or left, unless he has a 
 pair of wings to help him. The only thing he 
 can do is to go forward and backward, and if 
 he happens to have Injuns in front and rear, 
 you can understand what a purty muss he 
 would be in. That, I s'pose, is the reason why 
 it's called the Devil's Pass." 
 
62 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 "Do you think they will attack ms?" asked 
 Ned, in a scared voice. 
 
 "I can't say," replied the corporal, striving to 
 banish the expression of alarm from his face. 
 "If they've got any idea of disturbing us, just 
 here is where they '11 do it. It's the worst place 
 on the route, and if we can get through to the 
 other side all right, I'll feel as safe as if we was 
 inside the stockades of your father's fort." 
 
 "Have you ever been through here before?" 
 
 "Yes; all of half a dozen times." 
 
 "Did you ever get into trouble?" 
 
 "I never traveled through in all my life with- 
 out having a scrimmage with some of the red- 
 skins. If you '11 take a look round as we drive 
 along, you '11 see the bones of men scattered all 
 along. Some belong to white, and some to 
 redskins; but they all fell fighting." 
 
 "How far ahead is the worst part of the 
 route ?" 
 
 "We're close upon it now, and I may as well 
 tell you, Ned, that I think we're going to have 
 a fight." 
 
CHAPTER YIII. 
 IN devil's pass. 
 
 By this time Ned Chadmund was pretty well 
 frightened. Corporal Hugg had said enough to 
 convir.ce him that they were in the greatest 
 dansrer of the whole journev. The lieutenant 
 drew his men close together, and two of the 
 most experienced scouts rode a short distance 
 in advance of the others, glancing from side to 
 side, and on the watch for the first signs of the 
 approach of Indians. 
 
 Thesidesof thepass asalread}^ shown, were high 
 and precipitous, so that there was no possibility 
 of escape except by going backward or forward. 
 Furthermore, the canyon, as it must have been 
 at some distant day, wound in and out in such 
 a fashion that there were many places where it 
 was impossible to see more than a hundred 
 Yards in front or rear. There was no conversa- 
 
 ml 
 
 tion between the soldiers, and even the corporal 
 spoke in a lovvcr tone to his young friend. 
 
 63 
 
64 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 **If an^^thing does happen/' he said, looking 
 down in the handsome upturned lace, "I want 
 you to behave yourself, Ned." 
 
 *• Do n't I always do it?" 
 
 **I should say not!" was the emphatic 
 response. ''Haven't I ordered you to stay in 
 the wagon, and then looked round to see you 
 slipping out while I was talking to you? But 
 things are different now. If you see anything 
 unusual, or hear rifle balls whizzing about you, 
 don't go to poking your head out to see what 
 the matter is." 
 
 ''What shall I do, then?" asked the boy, who 
 was really desirous of following the directions of 
 his friend. 
 
 "Just lie down in the bottom of the ambulance 
 and w^ait till I tell you to get up again. The 
 sides are bullet-proof, and there ain't any 
 danger of your getting hurt there." 
 
 The afternoon was drawing to a close, and 
 the high walls, rising up on each side, so shut 
 out the rays of the sun, that a somber twilight 
 gloom filled Devil's Pass; a deep, oppressive 
 heaviness was in the atmosphere, that seemed in 
 keeping with the place which had been the scene 
 of so many tragedies, which was now entered 
 
THROUGH APACHE LAND. 65 
 
 with more or less misgiving upon the part of 
 the entire company. 
 
 "I'd make a journey of two hundred miles 
 extra if there was any way of gitting around 
 this infernal place," said the lieutenant; "but 
 as there isn't, all we can do is to push ahead." 
 
 It was about half an hour after the warning 
 words of the corporal to the lad, and the eyts of 
 the entire company were fixed upon the lieuten- 
 ant and his comrade, who w^ere riding a short 
 distance in advance. All at once they were seen 
 to rein up their horses simultaneously, as if 
 something in front had caught their attention. 
 As by a common impulse, the others did the 
 same, and breathlessly awaited the next signal. 
 It came in a dozen seconds. While the hunter 
 and his mustang remained motionless, the lieu- 
 tenant w^heeled his horse about, and rode back 
 and the others noticed that his face was pale 
 and expressive of great alarm. 
 
 "I knew we shouldn't get through here with- 
 out a fight. There's a whole pack of Indians 
 ahead of us. Jake, take a turn back a short 
 distance and see whether they have fixed it so 
 as to shut us in." 
 
 5 
 
66 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 The man addressed turned to do as ordered, 
 while the others anxiously awaited his report. 
 He was another Indian fighter, who knew pre- 
 cisely what to do, and he was gone but a short 
 time when he came thundering back, calling out 
 the instant he came in view around a curve in 
 the pass: 
 
 ** We're in for the biggest scrimmage of our 
 lives! There's five hundred Apaches coming up 
 the pass, and they'll be here inside of ten min- 
 utes." 
 
 The man who made this terrifying announce- 
 ment was not one given to exaggeration, and, 
 although he might have overestimated the 
 number in this case, every one of his hearers 
 knew that an overwhelming force was in their 
 rear, and, whatever they did to save themselves, 
 the last thing to be thought of was to turn 
 back. 
 
 Scarcely had the news been announced when 
 the scout from the other direction galloped 
 back. 
 
 **Well, what is it?" asked the lieutenant. 
 
 ''Some of the redskins are ahead of us, that's 
 certain." 
 
 ''What tribe?" 
 
THROUGH APACHE LAND. 69 
 
 *'The Jiccnrilla Apaches, I think; the worst 
 set of scamps this side of the Llano Estacado." 
 
 **Ho\v many? " 
 
 "I can't make out more than a dozen, and 
 there may be less." 
 
 A hasty consultation was held, and all agreed 
 that the appearance of these few Indians in 
 front was for the purpose of turning the party 
 back upon the main force in the rear. Conse- 
 quentl}', the proper course was to charge ahead, 
 fighting their way, if necessary, through those 
 before them, and keeping all the distance possi- 
 ble between themselves and the war party com- 
 ing down from the opposite direction. Only a 
 few seconds were necessary to form this decision, 
 and the cavalry started at a gallop down the 
 pass. Corporal Hugg lashing his powerful steed 
 into a much more rapid pace than he was 
 accustomed to, or was agreeable to him. 
 
 *'Now, Ned, keep your head down," said the 
 wooden-legged soldier to the bo3^ ''The bullets 
 will soon be buzzing all around us." 
 
 As he spoke he stretched out on the flat bot- 
 tom of the ambulance, allowing his head to 
 be elevated just enough to permit him to peer 
 over the foreboard and guide the horse, which 
 
70 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 was now forced into a furious gallop. Earnest 
 in his desire to obe\^, Ned Chadmund did the 
 same, awaiting the result of this desperate 
 attempt to escape from a most perilous posi- 
 tion. 
 
 The bottom of the pass was quite level and 
 hard, but the ambulance bounded and leaped 
 from side to side in a way that threatened to 
 overturn it, and made anything like connected 
 conversation impossible. The speed of the party 
 was about the same, the horsemen retaining 
 their position a short distance in advance of 
 the vehicle and all nerved to the fiery charge 
 they believed to be inevitable. The lad, still 
 lying flat on his face in the bottom of the 
 ambulance, raised his head just enough to peer 
 over the shoulder of the corporal at the gal- 
 loping horse and the figures of the cavalry 
 beyond. 
 
 Suddenly the reports of a score of rifles 
 sounded in the pass, and the horrified lad saw 
 fully one half of the soldiers topple out of their 
 saddles, riddled by the balls that had been fired 
 from a skillfully arranged ambush. At the same 
 time several horses reared, plunged and fell, 
 fatally wounded by others of the missiles. 
 
THROUGH APACHE LAND. 71 
 
 "Down!" shouted the corporal to Ned, who, 
 ill the excitement of the moment, had placed 
 his hands upon the shoulders of his friend and 
 risen to his knees. "Down, I say! Don't you 
 see that they are firing at us?" 
 
 The rattling sound of the returning fire of the 
 cavalry was heard, each man being armed with 
 a rifle, and the corporal rose to his knees and 
 lashed the galloping horse to a still greater 
 speed. 
 
 Instead of a dozen Apaches, fully a hundred 
 came swarming toward the little band of soldiers, 
 the painted warriors seeming to spring, Hke the 
 dragon's teeth of old, from the very ground. 
 Hemmed in on every hand, the cavalry, throw- 
 ing away their rifles, which w^ere useless in such 
 an emergency, and drawing their revolvers, 
 charged straight through the yelHng horde clos- 
 ing in around them. Fascinated by the terrible 
 scene and scarcely conscious of what he was 
 doing, Ned crawled forward again and stared 
 out from the front of the ambulance, while the 
 corporal added his voice to the terrible din by 
 shouting to his horse, which was plunging for- 
 ward at a rate that threatened to overturn com- 
 pletely the bounding vehicle. 
 
72 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 The horsemen that were left were compara- 
 tively few and they fought like Spartans; but 
 Ned saw them drop one by one from their 
 animals, until there was only the lieutenant left, 
 and he, poor fellow, was lying upon his steed, 
 both badly wounded, as they strove with the 
 madness of desperation to escape. But it was 
 useless. The Apaches were all around them, 
 pouring in their shots with such precision that 
 a moment later the dying horse sank heavily to 
 the ground and the wretches that dashed for- 
 ward to slay his rider found that he was already 
 dead. 
 
 Corporal Hugg saw all this as a huge war- 
 rior dashed forward and seized the rein of his 
 own horse; but the next instant he dropped to 
 the earth, was trampled upon by the iron hoofs 
 and run over in a twinkling. Still the Indians 
 swarmed in around and ahead of the team, 
 against which all the avenues of escape seemed 
 hopelessly closed. 
 
CHAPTER IX. 
 
 AMONG THE APACHES. 
 
 Having run down one Apache warrior, Cor- 
 poral Hugg, unmindful of his own personal dan- 
 ger, leaned forward out of the ambulance and 
 shouted and lashed the furious horse, which was 
 already on a dead run. 
 
 *'Go it, good fellow," he yelled, his voice ris- 
 ing above the horrid din of cracking fire arms 
 and whooping assailants. ''Keep it up a little 
 longer, and we shall be clear of the whole 
 crew." 
 
 They were the last vrords the brave soldier 
 uttered. Ned Chadmund, who had again 
 crouched back in the swaying vehicle, was hor- 
 rified to see his friend pitch forward upon the 
 foreboard, and then, as the carriage gave one 
 unusualK^ violent plunge, he went out head fore- 
 most, and vanished from sight. He had been 
 pierced by a dozen balls, and was dead before 
 he reached the ground. 
 
 73 
 
74 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 The horse, like his human assailants, was 
 frantic, and abated not a jot of his tremendous 
 speed, though the reins fell slack and dangled 
 around his feet, and the familiar voice was 
 heard no more. He, too, was wounded by more 
 than one cruel rifle ball, but he seemed capable 
 of undergoing far more than his comrades that 
 had fallen at the first fire. 
 
 The situation of the lad was fearful, and he 
 was in imminent danger from more than one 
 form of death. He was cowering in the bottom 
 of the ambulance, too much terrified to speak or 
 to attempt to help himself in any way. Bruised 
 and stunned by the terrific bounds of the vehicle, 
 he was dazed, bewildered and only dimly con- 
 scious of the awful pandemonium reigning 
 around him. Suddenly he felt himself lifted in 
 the air; then there was a crushing and grinding, 
 as if he was being ground to atoms between two 
 millstones, then another terrible crash and his 
 senses forsook him. 
 
 The ambulance had overturned and smashed. 
 It was dragged a short distance, when the infu- 
 riated steed broke loose, tore a short distance 
 further down the pass and fell dead. 
 
THROUGH APACHE LAND. 75 
 
 When the boy recovered his senses, his eyes 
 opened upon a very diftcrent scene. The sounds 
 of strife had ceased, and the struggle was ended, 
 for the reason that there were no men left to 
 resist the victorious Apaches. It was night, and 
 a company of something like fifty were encamped 
 in a gorge in the mountains. The attacking 
 party, which, includingthose who had followed the 
 escort into the pass, but were not in time to 
 participate in the engagement, numbered several 
 hundred, and had, after the contest was over, 
 separated and vanished, leaving the chief, 
 Mountain Wolf, with half a hundred of his best 
 warriors gathered about him. After securing 
 the treasure in the ambulance, and taking three 
 horses of the compan^^, which had escaped harm 
 during the massacre, the Apaches moved on in 
 a westerly direction through the pass for half a 
 mile, and turned to the left in a sort of ravine 
 or gorge. Several hundred j-ards up this the 
 gorge widened into a valley, wherein were 
 a number of trees and a small stream of water. 
 There the\' went into camp. An immense fire 
 was kindled, and as it roared and crackled in the 
 night, it threw out a glare that made it like 
 midday' for many feet away. 
 
76 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 Ned Cliadmund had been picked up, limp and 
 apparently lifeless, by the chief, Mountain Wolf, 
 and carried to this spot with as much care and 
 tenderness as if he were a pet child of his own. 
 The boy still showed a certain stupor upon 
 reaching the camp, but after he had lain a 
 short time upon a buffalo robe he revived, and, 
 with wondering eyes, looked around upon the 
 strange and weird scene. The Indians were 
 passing to and fro, as if making preparations 
 for some sort of festivity. There was little 
 noise, but a great amount of activity. Close by 
 the fire were a half dozen warriors, engaged in 
 cooking several carcasses, and had the persons 
 concerned been civilized instead of savage, the 
 scene would have suggested an old-fashioned bar- 
 becue. 
 
 When the lad arose to a sitting position upon 
 the buffalo hide, he became sensible of a sharp, 
 stinging sensation in the head, and a sore, 
 bruised feeling along his side, both caused by 
 the shock received at the overturning of the 
 ambulance. His action was observed by a 
 number of the Apaches, but none approached, 
 nor did they pay the least attention to him; 
 
THROUGH APACHE LAND. 77 
 
 SO he had every opportunity for a careful obser- 
 vation of what was going on around him. 
 
 After recovering from the first sensation of 
 terror and amazement, his thoughts naturally 
 reverted to the tragedy that had been enacted 
 a short time before in Devil's Pass. It was a 
 fearful scene for a lad like him to look upon, 
 and he was sure it must remain vividly impressed 
 upon his memory so long as he lived. 
 
 ''I'm the only one alive," he repeated to him- 
 self, with a shudder. "Poor Corporal Hugg 
 was the last man left, and I saw him killed. I 
 wonder why they spared me?" 
 
 He had no suspicion of the intention of the 
 Apaches in preserving his life, and which has 
 already been hinted at in another place; so 
 it was very natural that he should feel puzzled 
 to understand why it was that he had been 
 selected from such a party to escape the hatred 
 which these wild Jiccarillo Apaches had shown 
 toward the whites ever since the latter encroached 
 upon their domains. 
 
 ''I guess they're going to make an Indian of 
 me," was his conclusion. "1 wonder what 
 father will think when he hears of it? Poor 
 mother! I know how she was worried when 
 
78 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 she bid me good-bye, I hope she won't hear 
 anything till I carry her the news m^^self." 
 
 Fortunately for his peace of mind it never 
 occurred to Ned that he might have been spared 
 for the purpose of torture and indignity. There 
 was no fear of present danger, as he sat upon 
 the buffalo skin, viewing the strange scene about 
 him. Something like fifteen minutes had passed 
 while thus engaged, when the figure of a tall, 
 athletic Indian strode slowly toward him, 
 apparently attracted by the interest which the 
 boy showed in the proceedings. This warrior Vv as 
 fully six feet in height, magnificently formed, 
 with long horse-hair like shreds hanging from 
 his crown, which, like his face, was daubed with 
 startling colors, giving him the appearance of 
 a variegated zebra of the hues of the rainbow. 
 
 It was Lone Wolf, one of the most famous 
 leaders of the Jiccarilla Apaches. 
 
 But the most noticeable feature about this 
 warrior was his dress. He was enveloped from 
 head to foot in a sort of cloak, of a greenish 
 tinge, which rattled and crackled as he walked, 
 as if made of paper. And so it was; for, as he 
 approached, Ned saw that his outer garment 
 was composed entirely of greenbacks, carefully 
 
THROUGH APACHE LAND. 79 
 
 stitched together in such a way that they made 
 a blanket of half a dozen feet square. No red- 
 skin probably ever paraded so costly a blanket 
 as this, which included several hundred new and 
 crisp bank notes, varying in value from twenty 
 to a hundred do lars each. 
 
 They had been united in such a careful manner 
 that he was able to handle it with as much 
 ease and facility as if composed of a single sheet 
 of paper of . the tough texture of which our 
 national issues are made. He seemed quite 
 proud of his novel garment, so unique of its 
 kind, and strode forward with the pompous 
 tread of an Indian chief until he was v^ithin a 
 few feet of where Ned sat, when he paused a 
 few moments to give the latter full opportunity 
 to admire his envelope. 
 
 ''That must have taken a good deal of the 
 money that belonged to the soldiers," was his 
 reflection, "but the country can lose it better 
 than it can the soldiers themselves. 
 
 Lone Wolf was one of the most dreaded, 
 because he was one of the most skillful and 
 treacherous, of the Apache chiefs. He went to 
 Washington twice during his life with a delegation 
 from his tribe, visited the principal cities in the 
 
80 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 North, was treated in the most hospitable man- 
 ner, and professed the most unbounded love for 
 his white brothers. He announced his deliberate 
 intention of making all haste back to his tribe, 
 and henceforth devoting his life to peace. He 
 would summon his brother chiefs about him, he 
 said then, and make known to them the good- 
 ness and love of the whites for the red men. He 
 would explain to them their invincible power, 
 and make very clear the folly of attempting to 
 resist their wishes in any way. Furthermore he 
 aoreed to show the numerous gifts that had 
 been showered upon him, and he would explain 
 that if they conducted themselves aright a simi_ 
 lar future was before them as well. All this 
 Lone Wolf promised; but he had no sooner got 
 among his own people again than he chose to 
 forget his promises and went upon the war- 
 path. 
 
CHAPTER X. 
 
 LONE WOLF. 
 
 Lone Wolf spoke English like a native; and, 
 having waited until the admiration of Ned 
 Chadmund had been given time to expend itself, 
 he spoke in a deep, guttural voice: 
 
 **Does the child of my white brother mourn 
 for those who have fallen?" 
 
 The lad was so surprised at hearing himself 
 addressed in this manner, that he stared won- 
 deringly at him for a moment without making 
 reply. Then he rose to his feet, and, looking 
 up in the painted face, replied : 
 
 "I am all alone, and long to go to my father." 
 
 "What is the name of your father? " asked the 
 chief, in the same excellent English. 
 
 "Colonel Edward Chadmund." 
 
 *'Is he at the fort, yonder?" continued Lone 
 Wolf, stretching out his hand so as to point 
 toward the southwest. 
 
 6 81 
 
82 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 ''Yes; he is the commandant there, and has a 
 laree number of brave soldiers, and will send 
 them out to take me to him." 
 
 Had Ned been a few years older, he would not 
 have made this reply. It was not politic to 
 threaten the chief; and he had no suspicion that 
 the confession of the identity of his father only 
 intensified the hatred of these redskins before him. 
 But perhaps, after all, it was as well; for Lone 
 Wolf was sagacious enough to recollect that he 
 was talking to a child, from whom he was 
 more likely to hear truth than from an older 
 person. 
 
 "He has sent some brave soldiers to take you 
 to him," said the chief, with a wolf-like grin, 
 displaying his long, yellow teeth. "But they 
 have left you on the way; they have given you 
 to Lone Wolf, and they will not go back to the 
 fort, nor to Snnta Fe. If he sends more, they 
 will do the same." 
 
 "There were only a dozen of them, while you 
 had hundreds. If they had had anything like 
 an equal chance, not one of the Apaches would 
 have been left alive! We would have killed them 
 all!" 
 
THROUGH APACHE LAND. 83 
 
 This was a brave answer, in a certain sense, 
 but it was not a very prudent one; for Lone Wolf 
 was known to be the possessor of a fearful 
 temper, easily excited into a tempest of passion; 
 and the words of the boy were not calculated to 
 be very soothing to him. There was too much 
 paint upon the face of the chieftain for the boy 
 to observe the flush which overspread it at 
 hearing himself addressed in this manner, but 
 he could understand the lowering of that gruff 
 voice and the quickening of the utterance. 
 
 ''Lone Wolf and his brave Apaches care 
 nothing for the soldiers of the Father at 
 Washington. His agents deceive us; they make 
 treaties and do not keep them; the^^ lie to us, 
 and then we turn upon and rend them. Do you 
 see that?" 
 
 As he uttered this inquir\^ in the fiercest kind 
 of language, he whipped out from beneath his 
 blanket the reeking scalp of one of the soldiers 
 that had fallen in the gorge a short time before, 
 and shook it in the face of the terrified lad. 
 The latter could not fail to see \vhat it was, 
 and drew^ back in horror and disgust, realizing 
 what a bloodthirsty^ monster stood before him. 
 He saw that it would never do to excite the 
 
84 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 other's anger, and he endeavored to turn the 
 conversation into another channel. 
 
 "Do 3^ou and your brave warriors mean to 
 stay here till morning?" 
 
 "It is as Lone Wolf wills," was the instant 
 answer, in a voice not quite so severe, indicat- 
 ing: a subsidence of the troubled waters. 
 
 "And what are you going to do with me?" 
 was the next question, which no one besides a 
 lad of Ned's age would have dared to put, when 
 placed in a similar position. 
 
 "That, too, is as Lone Wolf wills," was the 
 rather non-committal answer. 
 
 "And that is the reason wdiy I asked you. How 
 soon can I return to my father? When I reach 
 him I will tell him that it was Lone Wolf that 
 sent me back and he will be friendly toward him." 
 
 "Lone Wolf asks not his friendship," said the 
 chieftain, with something of the old fire gleaming 
 in his eye. "He has killed our bravest and best 
 warriors. He has followed them to the moun- 
 tains and slain them by their camp fires, when 
 they dreamed not that the white man was 
 near. He has murdered their squaws; and Lone 
 Wolf shall not die until he tears his scalp from 
 his head." 
 
THROUGH APACTIE LAND. 85 
 
 The poor bo\- was horrified. He was too 
 young to understand fully the causes of such 
 deep enmity upon the part of the chieftain, but 
 he was not too young to understand that his 
 own life had been spared through no sentiment 
 of mercy. The leader had some other cause, but 
 Ned did not see much hope of making a favor- 
 able impression upon this intractable chief, and 
 he would have been very much relieved had he 
 taken himself off and left him alone. 
 
 Some fifteen minutes had passed since the lad 
 had opened his eyes upon the strange scene by 
 which he w^as surrounded, and the preparations 
 which seemed to be going on were completed. 
 The entire Apache troop suddenly broke out in 
 a series of whoops and yells that would have 
 appalled a hundred famishing wolves. At the 
 same instant they began dancing— not a motion 
 of the feet, such as we are accustomed to see in 
 civilized regions, but a series of demoniac g\mi- 
 nastics, risking the dislocation of all the bones 
 in their bodies. They leaped up and down, 
 swung their arms, threw out their legs, and 
 circled around each other — the whole forming a 
 wild and appalling revelry more like that of wild 
 beasts than of human beings. 
 
86 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 Boy-like, Ned Chadmund forgot everything 
 else for the time but the scene which was pass- 
 ing directly before his eyes. There was a weird 
 attraction in watching the flitting, fantastic 
 figures, whose hands were yet reeking with the 
 blood of innocent men and whose greatest 
 delight would have been to scalp every man, 
 woman and child in the territory. 
 
 This hullaballoo lasted all of half an hour, 
 when it died out as suddenly as it began. It 
 was not from exhaustion, for Indians have been 
 known to keep up such a performance through 
 the entire night; but it was in obedience to a 
 signal from Lone Wolf, whose imperious will no 
 one dared def\^ He had simply raised his arm, 
 and, giving utterance to a single whoop that 
 rose above the horrid din, silence ''fell like a 
 blessing." This lasted but a few minutes, when 
 the bustle began in a lesser degree, and the 
 Apaches fell to eating the meat which had been 
 abundantly prepared for them by several of their 
 number. They continued to act like wolves as 
 they did so, using hands and knives, but more 
 frequently tearing the meat to shreds without 
 the aid of any implements except such as nature 
 had furnished them in the shape of teeth. 
 
THROUGH APACHE LAND. 87 
 
 The terrific strain, mental and physical, which 
 Ned had undergone during the last few hours, 
 was succeeded by a reaction which made him 
 feel weak and faint. He was conscious of the 
 need of food, and was feverish and thirsty. 
 
 ''I don't see as I'm likely- to f^ct anything to 
 eat," he muttered, as he sat down on the blanket, 
 and looked upon the glittering scene. ''I ain't 
 so very hungry, but 1 would like a good drink 
 of water." 
 
 The firelight shone upon the small stream 
 which ran through the middle of the valley; 
 and, as it was so near at hand, he thought 
 there would be no harm in walking to it, and 
 helping himself to a refreshing draught. He had 
 walked but a few steps, however, when he 
 became aware that some one was following him. 
 A careless glance over his shoulder showed that 
 it was Lone Wolf. The lad concluded at once 
 that he suspected an attempt at escape, and he 
 thought he might do himself some good by a 
 faithful return to his former position after he 
 had helped himself to a drink, without appear- 
 ing to notice that he was watched. This was 
 the more easy of accomplishment, as the Apache 
 moved off to one side, as if his desire was to 
 
88 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 conceal his real purpose. Accordingly, Ned 
 walked quietly forward until he reached the 
 stream, where he knelt dow^n and took one long, 
 refreshing drink, which seemed to give him new 
 life and strength. Then, rising to his feet, he 
 started back to the camp fire. As he did so, he 
 found himself face to face with Lone Wolf 
 
 "What do you mean?" demanded the latter, 
 gruffly. 
 
 **I was thirsty and went to get a drink. I 
 thought I would not bother you." 
 
 ''When you try to run away, then you will 
 die!" 
 
 "What's the use of trying to run off, when 
 there isn't any show? " asked the young prisoner, 
 with a laugh, an assumption of jollity which 
 was far from genuine. 
 
CHAPTER XI. 
 
 SURROUNDED BY DANGER. 
 
 Lone Wolf no doubt meant to warn Ned 
 against any attempt at escape; for, where the 
 surveillance was relaxed, as it would probably 
 be now and then in his case, he was cer- 
 tain to see many occasions when he would be 
 tempted to give them the slip. 
 
 On the way to this place, Corporal Hugg had 
 given the lad an insight into the ways of the 
 redmen, and the boy began to use his knowledge. 
 The perilous position in which he was placed 
 helped to sharpen his wits, for he began to see 
 things in their true light. The chief had expressed 
 his hatred of Colonel Chadmund in too vigorous 
 language to be mistaken ; and Ned now believed 
 that in sparing his life the Indian had been 
 actuated by some other motive than mercy 
 because of his age. 
 
 **He means to strike father through me,'* he 
 concluded, as he sat upon the blanket in deep 
 thought. **He will kill me in some wav more 
 
 89 
 
90 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 horrible than the rest, and he is waiting until he 
 has a good chance to do it, so that father will 
 be sure and know it. He thinks he has scared me 
 out of trying to get away, but the next chance 
 I get I'll do it. I believe I can dodge him. But 
 I'll have to shut his eye up, so as to have the 
 better show." 
 
 At this juncture Lone Wolf came toward him, 
 bearing in his hand a large bone, rather bounti- 
 fully covered with meat, which he was gnawing 
 as he walked, grasping either end of it with his 
 hand, and fixing his black eyes upon the lad 
 as he advanced. 
 
 **Do you want something to eat?" 
 
 "I should think I did, "replied Ned, with alaugh 
 which he forced so well that no one would have 
 suspected its sincerity. "I'm about half starved 
 to death, and was afraid I was not going to 
 get any supper at all!" 
 
 **Take that, and go to sleep." 
 The large bone was given a flirt by the huge 
 warrior, and fell directly into his lap. It was not 
 very pleasant to take it second-hand, but a boy 
 in his situation could not be very fastidious, and, 
 thanking the chief for his princely liberality, Ned 
 fell to and gnawed away like a famished dog. 
 
THROUGH APACHE LAND. 91 
 
 It struck him as curious that none of the war- 
 riors appeared to note his presence, but he knew 
 better than to believe that such apparent bHnd- 
 ness was real. He was as securely within their 
 power as if bound hand and foot. 
 
 "He told me to go to sleep," he said, as he 
 stretched out upon his blanket; "I guess I'll tr\^ 
 and doit. I don't see any use of sitting up and 
 watching such a set of wretches as they are. 
 I'd rather have a pack of w^olves about me than 
 such as they.'* 
 
 The night was too mild to require the blanket 
 wrapped over him; besides which the warmth 
 from the camp fire was very perceptible; so he 
 lay upon his back looking up at the stars and 
 endeavoring to shut out from his thoughts the 
 hateful beings gathered around, and whose 
 grunting voices and loud exclamations w^ere 
 never quiet, but continued so long that they 
 acquired a certain monotony, like the rattle and 
 hum of the mill, which lulls the miller to sleep. 
 
 "It's strange," he murmured, as his imagin- 
 ings became as wayw^ard as a boy's will. 
 "Father is off yonder, I don't know how many 
 hundred miles, and mother is just the opposite 
 way in Santa Fe, and here I am about half way 
 
92 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 between them. We were never so scattered in 
 all the world before. I wonder what father will 
 do when he finds out about Lone Wolf? The 
 chief has put his blanket of greenbacks away 
 somewhere, and I guess he knows how to take 
 care of them. I declare, but that was a big haul- 
 one hundred thousand dollars at a lick ! I should 
 think Lone Wolf might afford to retire now on 
 what he has made. But the poor men," added 
 Ned, with that sudden throb of the heart which 
 always came when he recalled the fearful attack 
 and massacre in Devil's Pass. *'Not one of them 
 left alive! Oh, I wnsh I could forget it all! but 
 I never, never can. The Indians have done such 
 things many a time before, but I never saw 
 them. It'll kill me if I don't keep it out of my 
 thoughts." 
 
 There seemed to be less moon that night than 
 on the previous evening, and as the boy lay 
 looking upward, he could see a number of stars 
 twinkling in the sky. He reflected that beyond 
 them was One who could not forget his pitiful 
 condition, who could bring him out of all his 
 troubles, and who was the only Being unto 
 whom he could go in this dark hour. Ned 
 prayed to Him, as he had been taught to pray 
 
THROUGH APACHE LAND. 93 
 
 at his mother's knee, and, recalling the words 
 which he had so often heard from her dear lips, 
 he believed that God could not forsake him, 
 but that all would come out right. He had 
 lain thus perhaps an hour, w^hen he turned 
 upon his side for the greater comfort of position. 
 As he did so, he was reminded of Devil's Pass 
 by a sharp twinge in his side. It was sharp 
 enough to make him gasp with pain; also to 
 put an idea into his head. 
 
 Having fully made up his mind to attempt to 
 get away from the Apaches at the very first 
 opportunity w^hich he could seize, it struck him 
 that he might help himself by engaging in a 
 piece of deception, justifiable under the circum- 
 stances. The bruise which he had received was 
 not severe enough to interfere with his w^alking, 
 but Lone Wolf might as well believe that it did. 
 If he thought his prisoner was too lame to do 
 much in the way of locomotion, his watchful- 
 ness would be certain to become quite lax, all 
 of which would be a great point in favor of the 
 one mainly concerned. 
 
 "At any rate, I'll try it on," he said, as he 
 shut his eves. 
 
94 TPIROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 The excessive fatigue of the lad caused him to 
 drop off into a sound slumber — a slumber filled 
 with sweet dreams of home, father and mother 
 and all that was pleasant. But it was inter- 
 rupted in the rudest possible way. 
 
 The night was nearly gone, when a terrific 
 uproar aroused him as suddenly as if a cup of 
 cold water had been dashed in his face. Look- 
 ing around, he saw two warriors, within six 
 feet of him, engaged in a savage dispute. From 
 some source, a number of the Apaches had 
 obtained a supply of fire-water, and several 
 desperate fights had already taken place. A 
 swarthy redskin, daubed with paint and intoxi- 
 cated to that degree which brought to the sur- 
 face all the deviltry in his nature, was striving, 
 with knife in hand, to get at the sleeping boy, 
 while another, in about the same condition, was 
 disputing his right to do this, and claiming 
 that it was peculiarly his own province to 
 slay the young prisoner. Both agreed that 
 death should be awarded, and each claimed 
 that justice demanded that he alone should do 
 the righteous deed. This difference of opinion 
 had already produced high words, the warriors 
 pulling and shoving each other, and threaten- 
 
THROUGH APACHE LAND. 95 
 
 ing each instant to go at each other with their 
 knives. 
 
 Ned could not understand the words spoken, 
 but the actions of the redskins needed no inter- 
 pretation. The affrighted boy sprang to his 
 feet, and, forgetful of the lameness which he had 
 arranged, ran b^tek several yards to a group of 
 redskins who were squatted upon the ground, 
 smoking. 
 
 At this instant, the two disputants, wearied 
 with hurling words at each other, went in with 
 their knives, and the conflict became of the most 
 desperate and sanguinary nature. 
 
 '•Where is Lone Wolf?" was the question he 
 asked, as he paused by the group of smokers 
 and looked inquiringly at them. 
 
 But if any of them understood the words uttered, 
 they did not choose to give the information 
 sought, and smoked away as placidly as if 
 seated around their own firesides at home. 
 
 Just beyond were two other warriors engaged 
 in conversation, and Ned was sure he had heard 
 one of them speak in broken Eng^lish during the 
 earlier part of the evening. Hoping to gain the 
 knowledge he desired, lie went to him. 
 
 "Wh^re is Lone Wolf, the chief?" 
 
96 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 *'He go way — much time ago — off in the moun- 
 tains." 
 
 ''When will he come back?'* 
 The redskin shook his head to signify that 
 he did not know; but added, the next minute: 
 
 "Be back to-morrer — mebbe — don't know^ 
 can't say." ^ 
 
 This rather indefinite information was all that 
 could be obtained by the lad, who was in a 
 shiver of terror; for he believed novsr that his 
 life was not safe for a single moment. 
 
CHAPTER XII. 
 "the hour has come." 
 
 Ned Chadmund was too . terrified to think of 
 further sleep, nor did lie dare to return to where 
 he had been lying upon the blanket when aroused 
 in such a startling manner. As he turned his 
 horrified gaze in that direction, he saw the two 
 combatants clutching and striking each other 
 upon the 'ground, their blows growing feebler 
 as their strength rapidly departed. The most 
 alarming thing about this revolting contest was 
 the fact that it did not attract the interest of 
 a single spectator beyond the little fellow. There 
 were plenty of Indians around, some of whom 
 were within a dozen feet, and yet they paid 
 no more attention to it than if the two were 
 quietly smoking their pipes. 
 
 This showed, as a matter of course, the indif- 
 ference of the others as to what befell the 
 defenseless prisoner. The next Indian who 
 advanced upon him with drawm knife would 
 not be so likely to find himself disputed by 
 
 7 97 
 
98 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 another, anxious to perform the same job. It 
 seemed certain that no one would interfere in 
 the interests of the prisoner himself. 
 
 The latter stood debating what he should do, 
 if, indeed, he could do anything at all. He 
 turned his bead and looked back in the gloom, 
 which appeared so inviting that he was tempted 
 to turn and make a dash for freedom. If he 
 could only secure a start of a hundred yards, it 
 seemed to him that he might escape. That 
 would give him a chance to steal away and hide 
 until he could renew his flight, with a prospect 
 of eluding them altogether. He glanced at the 
 darkness and then again at the Apaches. Not 
 a single one of them, so far as he could see, 
 showed any consciousness of his presence, and 
 none were between him and the gloom in which 
 he meant to take shelter. 
 
 His heart throbbed with excitement as he 
 stood debating the question, and he hurriedly 
 concluded to make the attempt. But on the 
 eve of starting, his straining vision detected the 
 faintest shadowy outline of a figure, which 
 silently receded in the gloom as he looked toward 
 it. Ned understood on the instant what this 
 meant. It was Lone Wolf who was waiting to' 
 
THROUGH APACHE LAND. 99 
 
 receive him, wdienever lie should choose to make 
 his attempt to get away. 
 
 The whole trick flashed upon him at once. 
 Lone Wolf, with a view of thoroughly testing 
 the lad, had purposely thrown this opportunity 
 in his way, and was waiting beyond in the gloom 
 to receive him with open arms. Poor Ned's 
 heart sank as he realized more vividly than 
 ever that he was as much a prisoner as if 
 immured wnthin the walls of Sing Sing. Still, 
 he affected not to notice the presence of the sen- 
 tinel, but walked back toward the camp with 
 that affectation of indifference which he had 
 used on more than one occasion before. He 
 recollected this time to put on the limp— his 
 lameness being of such a decided character that 
 there could be no mistaking it by any one who 
 happened to look in that direction. 
 
 ''Never mind, I'll get the chance yet," he mut- 
 tered, putting himself upon his mettle. "I'll play 
 lame till they think there is no need of watching 
 me at all, and then, before they know it, I'll 
 be off." 
 
 The knowledge that Lone Wolf was so near at 
 hand gave him enough courage to go back to 
 where the blanket lay, and seat himself upon it. 
 
100 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 He had sat thus but a few minutes, when he 
 noticed that it was growing light in the East. 
 The night was gone and day was breaking. 
 
 "I'm glad of it, for I'm tired of this place," 
 he exclaimed. '^I'U never get any chance to do 
 anything for myself here." 
 
 Before it was fairly light, the Apaches began 
 their preparations for leaving the scene of their 
 encampment. Their mustangs were picketed at 
 some distance up the stream, under charge of a 
 couple of sentinels, where they had not been dis- 
 turbed during the entire night. 
 
 ''I wonder if they'll give me ahorse?" was 
 the next thought of Ned, as he watched these 
 preparations. 
 
 In a few minutes all were mounted upon their 
 animals, which seemed in a splendid condition. 
 Among them were three that had belonged to 
 the cavalry, and which v^ere easily identified by 
 means of the saddles, bridles and accoutrements. 
 Ned hoped that one of these would be placed at 
 his disposal, and he looked around for the chief 
 only to find him at his elbow. 
 
 *'You walk or ride?*' he asked, his painted 
 countenance as cold and hard as steel. 
 

 » J 
 
 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 101 
 
 "That depends upon you," replied Ned, ''but 
 I do hope you will let me ride upon somebody's horse 
 for this is mighty rough, I can tell you," and 
 he emphasized his complaint by limping, appar- 
 ently with great pain, for a few steps. The 
 chief looked at him very sharply for a few sec- 
 onds, and then showed that he believed him, if 
 indeed, he held any doubt at all. He motioned to 
 one of the warriors who was leading a captive 
 horse, which was brought immediately to the 
 spot. The stirrups were shortened, so as to be 
 in place for the boy's feet when he was helped 
 into the saddle. 
 
 **0h! my leg! my leg!" he screamed, w^ith 
 an expression of intense agony, when, actually, 
 he felt not a particle of pain; "it seems to me, 
 you would rather hurt a chap than not." 
 
 No attention was paid to his complaint, and a 
 minute later the whole cavalcade was in 
 motion. 
 
 The boy w^as a skillful horseman, having been 
 taught to ride from the time he could walk, and 
 he found himself astride of one of the best steeds 
 that had belonged to the cavalry, although he could 
 not identify it. As he looked about him and 
 examined the saddle, he caught sight of the 
 
102 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 handle of a revolver in the holster, jammed down 
 in such a way that it had escaped the notice of 
 their captors. 
 
 ''That's to be mine," he whispered to himself, 
 not a little pleased at the discovery he had 
 made. 
 
 He knew if this caught the eye of Lone Wolf or 
 any of his warriors they would not permit him 
 to retain it, and he was so fearful that they 
 would see it that he began maneuvering with 
 a view of getting it into his possession. No one 
 is more skillful at this sort of business than a • 
 boy about his age. Ned groaned, and twisted 
 forward and backward, as if to seek relief, and 
 v^hen he finally secured a little more comfort 
 and resumed his upright position the revolver 
 was safely hid beneath his waistcoat, he having 
 placed it there without attracting the eye of any 
 one. The little fellow felt braver on the instant. 
 He suspected that if he encountered Lone Wolf 
 alone, and the chieftain dared to bar his pas- 
 sage, he could use the revolver upon him v^ith 
 the same coolness that Corporal Hugg would 
 have done had he been alive. 
 
 ''None of them suspect that I've got such a 
 thing about me, and that gives me the better 
 
THROUGH APACHE LAND. 103 
 
 chance," was his very sensible conclusion, as he 
 endeavored to put on an expression of blissful 
 serenity. 
 
 When the sun was fairly up, the fifty Apache 
 warriors were galloping in a direct line toward 
 the south, Lone Wolf at their head, and Ned 
 Chadmund riding at his side. The lad had made 
 several inquiries of his leader, but the latter 
 repelled him so savagely that he wisely held his 
 peace. He supposed the Indians were going 
 southward toward their village. He remembered 
 hearing his father speak of Lone Wolf as dwelling 
 pretty well to the southward, and that he had 
 pronounced him to be one of the most danger- 
 ous leaders among the fierce tribes of the South- 
 west. 
 
 The Apaches were now in a mountainous 
 region, following a sort of trail that was gener- 
 ally wide enough to permit a dozen to ride 
 abreast if they wished to do so. Occasionally 
 it was rough and precipitous, winding in and 
 out, and now and then difficult to travel; but 
 the wiry little mustangs went along as unhesi- 
 tatingly as mountain goats. Although they 
 were among the mountains, at times the air 
 
104 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 was Oppressively hot, not a particle of breeze 
 reaching them. 
 
 It was little past noon when the party drew 
 rein in a place very similar to that wherein 
 they encamped the night before. As the mus- 
 tangs came to a halt, their riders leaped to the 
 ground, and, turning them over to the care of 
 a half dozen of their number, they refreshed 
 themselves at a stream running near at hand, 
 the water of which was clear and cold, and 
 equally inviting to man and beast. Ned climbed 
 down from his horse, apparently with great 
 difficulty and pain. 
 
 ''May I go and get a drink?" he asked of 
 Lone Wolf. 
 
 "Go," was the savage reply; "am I a dog to 
 help you? " 
 
 "No; you're a dog without helping me," mut- 
 tered the lad as he limped away toward the 
 wood, seeking a point a short distance below 
 where the others were helping themselves. 
 
 It took but a minute to reach a spot where 
 for the time he was beyond observation. 
 
 "The hour has come to make a stroke for 
 freedom!" he exclaimed, suiting the action to 
 the word. 
 
CHAPTER XIII. 
 
 THE FLIGHT. 
 
 Ned "had enough sense not to undertake to 
 run away from the Apaches until there was a 
 reasonably good chance of succeeding. He had 
 played the game of lameness so well that he 
 had secured considerable liberty thereby; and 
 \vhen, therefore, he went limping beyond the 
 further limit of the Indians, no one supposed 
 he had any other purpose in view than to 
 obtain a better place in w^hich to help himself 
 to water. The trees among which he entered 
 were almost without undergrowth, and, fortu- 
 nately, were in exactly the opposite direction 
 from where the mustangs were grazing. This 
 left the way entirely open for him to do his 
 utmost in the way of his dash for freedom. 
 It may seem to have been unfortunate in the 
 one thing, that it caused the lad to go away 
 without his horse; but he would have left the 
 latter had he been given his chance, for he believed 
 
 that while the trail of the animal could be fol- 
 ios 
 
106 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 lowed without trouble, and might secure his 
 being run to the ground in the end, yet he could 
 readily find the means of hiding his own foot- 
 steps from the most skillful of the Apaches. 
 
 It is hardly necessary to say that the instant 
 he found himself beyond the immediate sight of 
 his captors, his lameness disappeared as if by 
 magic, and he dashed down the stream with 
 all the speed at his command. After running 
 nearly two hundred yards he suddenly paused 
 and listened. Nothing could be heard but his 
 own hurried breathing and throbbing heart. 
 
 "They haven't found out anything about me 
 vet," was his hurried exclamation, as he started 
 off again, continually ejaculating a prayer that 
 he might succeed, for he needed no one to tell 
 him that it was really a matter of life and 
 death; for, if Lone Wolf should place hands 
 upon him again, he would never forgive the 
 attempt. 
 
 A hundred yards further in this headlong fash- 
 ion, and all at once he found himself at the 
 termination of the wood, which had been such 
 an advantage to him thus far. On the right and 
 left, over the high, precipitous mountains back 
 of him, was the small wood, on the other border 
 
Through apache lakd. 107 
 
 of ^Yhich was the Apache camp. The gorge or 
 valley, in the center of which he found himself 
 standing, wound in and out among the mountains 
 before him, — a Devil's Pass on a smaller scale, — so 
 sinuous in its course that he could trace it 
 only a short distance ahead with the eye. Directly' 
 at his side flowed a mountain stream, varj'ing 
 from a dozen to twenty feet in width, so clear 
 that in every place he could see distinctly the 
 bottom. The current was quite swift, and in 
 some places it dashed and foamed over the rocks 
 almost like a cascade. 
 
 Ned dared not hesitate, but, pausing only an 
 instant to catch breath, he dashed aw^aj^ again 
 until he reached the curve in the ravine, beyond 
 w^hich he would be hid from view of the encamp- 
 ment. The moment this was reached he paused 
 long enough to cast back a searching glance. 
 But all looked as calm and peaceful as if no 
 human being had ever entered the ravine. 
 
 ''They haven't found it out yet! They haven't 
 found it out yet!" he exclaimed, his heart rising 
 with hope. ''That w^as a pretty smart thing in 
 me to pretend to be lame, and if it hadn't been 
 for that I AYOuldn't have got half the start." 
 
108 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 Passing the turn in the ravine, he felt that it 
 would not do to wait any longer without 
 some effort to hide his trail. There was but 
 one feasible way of accomplishing this, and 
 that was by entering the stream and keeping 
 along it far enough to throw the wolves off 
 the scent. It was not a very pleasant task to 
 enter the water and move along, where, at any 
 moment, he was liable to drop down over his 
 head; but he did not 'dare to stand upon trifles, 
 and in he went. By keeping close to the shore, 
 he managed to avoid any such unpleasant duck- 
 ing, while at the same time he effectually hid 
 his footsteps from the eyes of the keenest-sighted 
 Indian. A short distance ahead he found the 
 trees were growing fully as thickly as in the 
 grove which he had left but a short time before, 
 and he made all haste thither, continually 
 glancing back, dreading least he should catch 
 sight of some of the Apaches on the hunt for 
 him. 
 
 Imagine his consternation, when, on the 
 very margin of the wood, he looked back and 
 saw the forms of two Indians only a short dis- 
 tance away! They were mounted upon their 
 mustangs and riding at a walk almost in a 
 
THROUGH APACHE LAND. 109 
 
 direct line toward him, and, as he stared at them 
 he was sure that their slow pace was due to their 
 careful scrutiny of the trail which he was satisfied 
 he must have left. 
 
 "They have found me out," he gasped, as he 
 turned and hurried down stream again. 
 
 Ned was too frightened to reflect that their 
 actions were such as to indicate that they were 
 hunters, who were out merely for game, and 
 there is no telling how far he would have 
 kept up his flight in the stream, had he not been 
 checked b^' what he believed to be a providen- 
 tial interference in his behalf. 
 
 The water was broad, moderately deep, and 
 quite clear; but the overhanging trees threw out 
 so much shade that the bottom was invisible, 
 so that, scrutinize as much as thev chose, the 
 redskins could not detect the slightest trace 
 of his footprints upon the bed of the stream. 
 The only difficult \^ that remained was to leave 
 the w^ater in such a way that his pursuers 
 should be baffled in any attempt to' discover 
 the point. This was an exceedingly difficult 
 question to solve, and w^hile he was searching 
 for some suitable place, and growing terribly 
 frightened lest his two foes should pounce down 
 
110 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 Upon him, he noticed a large tree that projected 
 over the water. The foHage was dense and the 
 tree seemed to be hollow. Besides this,one of the 
 limbs hung so low that, by making an upward 
 spring, he was able to catch it with both hands. 
 He then drew himself upward, and carefully 
 crawled along until he reached the trunk. To his 
 surprise and delight, he found it the very conceal- 
 ment he needed above all others. The trunk 
 was large and hollow, and on the upper side 
 was an aperture, probably caused by the rotting 
 away of a limb, large enough to permit the 
 passage of his body. 
 
 After peering for a few seconds into the impen- 
 etrable darkness, Ned shoved his feet through, 
 and carefully followed with his body. He 
 cautiously shoved himself along, until his head 
 was below the level of the opening, when he 
 paused, believing that he was concealed in the 
 best manner possible. The lad had absolutely 
 left no trace behind him; the searching Apaches 
 were without any means of discovering what 
 he had done, and all he had to do was to 
 remain where he was until the hunt was over. 
 The tree, slanting out over the water, made his 
 posture a half reclining one, and as comfortable 
 
THROUGH APACHE LAND. Ill 
 
 as it is possible to imagine. His limbs were 
 somewhat chilled by the wetting they had 
 received, but that troubled him very little, his 
 whole thoughts, naturally, being centered upon 
 the one of getting away from the Apaches. It 
 seemed to him that his senses were preternatu- 
 rally sharpened, and the rustling of a fallen leaf 
 startled him into the belief that one of the redskins 
 was crawling out upon the trunk ; but a full 
 half hour passed without presenting anything of 
 a tangible nature, and hope became very strong 
 in his breast again. 
 
 **I wonder whether those horsemen were hunt- 
 ing for me?'^ he muttered, as he became more 
 deliberate in his speculations. *'I was sure a 
 little while ago that they were, but it may be 
 that I was mistaken. I don't think they would 
 come on their mustangs if they wanted to find 
 me, for they couldn't make much use of them in 
 following me to a place like this." 
 
 Whether or iiot these two men were his pur- 
 suers mattered very little ; for there could be no 
 doubt that his absence had been noticed or that 
 the most skillful trailers were in pursuit. They 
 could not fail to learn that he had taken to 
 the stream and' would naturally hunt along 
 
112 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 the shore to discover where he had left it. This 
 would be likely to bring them very close to 
 where he was hidden, and he trembled as he 
 reflected upon the possible, if not probable, 
 result. 
 
 The sun was going down in the west; the 
 shadov^s in the wood gradually deepened ; in 
 his reclining position, Ned Chadmund found a 
 heavy drowsiness stealing over him. The after- 
 noon was no more than half gone wdien his 
 eyes closed in a refreshing sleep, which continued 
 several hours, and might have lasted still longer 
 had it not been broken. It was far into the 
 night when the sleeping lad suddenly opened his 
 eyes without understanding the cause of his 
 doing so. Something had aroused him, but he 
 could not divine what it was. His posture had 
 become somewhat cramped from his long con- 
 tinuance in it and he shifted about so as to rest 
 upon the other side. As he did so, he became 
 aware that some one or something else was 
 near him. The slightest possible rustling at the 
 base of the trunk directed his attention there, 
 but there was too much intervening shrubbery 
 for him to detect anything at all. Everything in 
 that direction w^as shrouded in the densest gloom. 
 
THROUGH APACHE LAND. 113 
 
 The moon was directly overhead, and shining 
 so that he was able to see for some little distance 
 when he turned his glance from the trunk. 
 Remembering his revolver, the boy reached down 
 and drew it from within his waistcoat, where he 
 had concealed it. 
 
 "If anybody wants to run against that, let 
 him do so," he said to himself "It has five 
 good charges which I will use up before the}' 
 shall lay hands upon me or Lone Wolf shall call 
 me his prisoner again." 
 
 It seemed to him that, in case of discover\% 
 his position might place him at a great disad- 
 vantage, so he carefully drew his head and 
 shoulders out of the trunk, so as to leave his 
 arms free to use. This was scarcely done when 
 he caught the same sound below him, repeated 
 so distincth' that he knew on the instant what 
 it meant. It was a scratching, rattling of bark, 
 such as would be made by the claws of an 
 animal in picking its way along, and as he 
 strained his eyes through the gloom, he saw 
 very fainth' the outlines of some wild animal 
 approaching him, a low", threatening growl at 
 the same time establishing the identity of the 
 bear beyond question. 
 
114? THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 Ned was about to give him the contents of 
 one barrel, when he was restrained by the 
 recollection that his ammunition was exceedingly 
 precious and that the report of the pistol was 
 likely to bring some one whom he dreaded more 
 than the fiercest wild beasts of the forest. So 
 he decided to try milder means at first. Accord- 
 ingly, the endangered lad tried to see whether 
 the animal could not be frightened away with- 
 out really hurting him. Breaking off a piece of 
 bark, he flung it in his face, giving utterance, at 
 the same time, to a growl as savage as that of 
 the beast himself. The latter instantly paused, 
 as if puzzled to understand what it meant, but 
 he did not retreat. He merely stood his ground 
 and growled back again. Encouraged even by 
 this dubious success, Ned threw more bark, 
 made more noise, and flung his arms so wildly 
 that he came very near throwing his revolver 
 out of his grasp into the creek. 
 
 But it would not work. The bear was not 
 born in the woods to be frightened by any such 
 trifles, and, halting for scarcely twenty seconds, 
 he advanced with the calm deliberation of a 
 brute bent upon clearing up the mystery with- 
 out any unnecessary delay. Instead of giving him 
 
THROUGH APACHE LAND. 115 
 
 the contents of one of the chambers of the revol- 
 ver, the young hunter drew back within the 
 hollow of the tree, as a turtle is seen to retreat 
 within his shell when affrighted at the approach 
 of some enemy. It was a tight squeeze, but he 
 insinuated himself along the open space until 
 quite sure that he was beyond the reach of the mon- 
 ster. There he found he had barely room to use 
 his arms, but, pointing his weapon toward the 
 opening, he awaited the action of bruin. 
 
 There was sufficient moonlight to perceive the 
 opening, but he had scarcely time to glance at 
 it when it w^as darkened by the bear, which 
 thrust its head in with a thunderous growl that 
 made the lad shiver from head to foot. Certain 
 that it wovild not do to wait any longer, and 
 believing that he meant to force his entire body 
 through, the sorely frightened Ned discharged 
 one barrel squarely in the face of the bear. 
 
 This settled matters. The latter had his snout 
 and enough of his head shoved into the opening 
 to receive a bad wound from the w^eapon, dis- 
 charged within a foot or two of his face. He 
 gave a sort of snarling howl, and jerked out his 
 feet so suddenly that he must have injured him- 
 self still more bv doing so, and, with a relief 
 
116 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 that can Hardly be understood, Ned heard him 
 clawing hastily along the trunk until he reached 
 the land, when he scampered away into the 
 woods, and nothing more was seen of him. 
 
 "If I had plenty of ammunition, I -would not 
 begrudge that shot," muttered Ned, as he care- 
 fully worked his way along the hollow again. 
 *' But that leaves me only four shots, and there's 
 no telling how soon I'll have to use the rest." 
 
 He found, upon reaching the opening again, 
 that the night was past and the day was break- 
 ing. He had obtained a good night's rest, but 
 he was anxious to get ahead. 
 
 "I wonder where Lone Wolf is?" he thought, 
 hesitating whether he had better descend from 
 his hiding place or not. "It is all of twelve 
 hours since I ran away and they must have done 
 a good deal of hunting. Some of them have 
 passed close to where I am, and they must be 
 lurking about this very minute." 
 
 It was this uncertainty which caused the lad 
 to wait some little time longer before venturing 
 forth. He had been so fortunate up to this 
 time that he could not afford to throw the 
 chances away. When he found that the sun was 
 fair above the treetops, however, he began to 
 
THROUGH APACI11-: LAND. 117 
 
 grow impatient, and finally came to the con- 
 clusion that he was losing valuable time. So he 
 began crawling carefully out, with the idea of 
 resuming his flight homeward. 
 
 Ned was not yet fairly out from the tree, 
 when he paused, for his ear detected something 
 alarming. It was the soft splash of water, 
 such as is made by a person who is carefully 
 wading along, and it sounded fearfully near to 
 where he was. 
 
 He assumed at once, because of the peculiar 
 sound, that it must be caused by some one who 
 was hunting for him, and no one could be hunt- 
 ing for him except some of the Apaches from 
 whom he fled. If any doubt remained in his 
 mind, it was removed a moment later, when he 
 heard a whistle from the same quarter whence 
 came the sound of the wading. The signal was 
 instantly responded to in the same manner by 
 some one upon shore. 
 
 "Thev're Indians," he said. ''Thev know that 
 I must be somewhere in this neighborhood and 
 they've made up their minds to search until they 
 find me." 
 
 For two or three minutes all was as still as 
 the tomb. It seemed as if the redskins were 
 
118 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 listening, in the hope of learning something of 
 the fugitive through their sense of hearing when 
 their eyes had failed them so long. If such were 
 the case, they were disappointed, for the boy 
 crouching in the gnarled tree would have sus- 
 pended his very breathing, had it been in his 
 power to do so, lest he should betray himself 
 
 When the splashing noise was heard again, it 
 sounded almost beneath him, and, yielding to a 
 most dangerous curiosity, which, however, he 
 could not restrain, he reached one hand into the 
 foliage, drew it aside and looked down. 
 
 Not more than twenty feet distant he saw the 
 figure of Lone Wolf, the Apache chief! 
 
 He stood in the water up to his knees, and, at 
 the moment the fugitive looked, had passed a 
 short distance beyond the tree, so that his back 
 only was visible. Had it been a few minutes 
 sooner, the warrior would have assuredly seen 
 the white, scared face that peered upon him 
 from among the leaves. But, as it was, he was 
 all unconscious of the fact that he was so near 
 the prize for which he and several of his best 
 warriors had been searching for hours. 
 
 Two of them had paused beneath the tree and 
 carefully examined the branches without discern- 
 
THROUGH APACHE LAND. 119 
 
 ing the hiding place, and they were now moving 
 forward again, carefully examining everything 
 on each side of the stream where it seemed pos- 
 sible for a cat, even, to conceal itself Lone 
 Wolf would have given his right arm, almost, 
 rather than have his prisoner elude him. He had 
 been completed deceived by that little artifice 
 of lameness, and it was not until a full half 
 hour after Ned's disappearance that he began to 
 suspect that something was amiss. The trail 
 was taken up at once and followed without 
 trouble to where it entered the water. Here the 
 real task began, for the hardness of the bed of 
 the creek prevented them from tracing the foot- 
 steps where the clearness of the current would 
 have enabled them to do so, had the circum- 
 stances been otherwise. 
 
 Consequently, the onl}^ thing possible for them 
 to do was to find the place where he had taken 
 to the land again. For this they hunted until 
 dark and renewed the work again in the morn- 
 ing. But as Ned had not yet placed his foot 
 upon drj' land, the enterprise up to that moment 
 was not a success. 
 
CHAPTER XIV. 
 
 PURSUED. 
 
 Ned Chadmund's only fear was that the chief 
 would hear the throbbing of his heart. He dared 
 not draw his head into the tree, fearing that the 
 action would attract the notice of the Apache; 
 so he remained as motionless as the trunk of the 
 tree itself, waiting for the danger to pass. 
 Finally, the Indian was heard moving forward 
 again, and the cramped and aching fugitive 
 began to breathe more freely. He could detect 
 that soft rippling through the water, such as is 
 made by an angler who is hunting some choice 
 place in the brook, and who examines every 
 foot of the water which he passes. At last it 
 was beyond hearing, and all was still again; 
 but our young hero, impatient and anxious as 
 he was to get forward, dared not leave his con- 
 cealment while so many of his enemies were in 
 the immediate neighborhood. He was confident 
 that if he attempted flight and escaped running 
 against some of these dusky wretches, they 
 
 120 
 
THROUGH APACHE LAND. 121 
 
 would speedily detect his trail and run him to 
 the ground. He concluded to remain where he 
 was until dark, when he would make another 
 start, confident that by traveling all night, and 
 taking advantage of all the means that came in 
 his way, he could place a goodly distance 
 between himself and the perilous neighborhood. 
 
 Nothing more was seen or heard of the Apaches 
 during these long waiting hours, unless the dis- 
 tant report of a gun could be construed as their 
 work, and the summer day gradually wore away. 
 By this time the condition of the boy was truly 
 pitiable. He was thirsty and nearly famished, 
 feverish from his long abstinence. Yet with 
 water within a few feet of him he refrained, 
 for the reason that he was fearful of imperiling 
 his safety. 
 
 ''I'll wait till it is nearly dark," he said, as 
 he looked down at the cool water flowinor 
 beneath; "for this is the only chance I shall 
 ever have of giving them the slip." 
 
 The time he had fixed upon to venture forth 
 had not yet arrived when he observed a large 
 tree floating along below him. It had probably 
 become displaced at some point up the stream, 
 and would drift along until it should again 
 
122 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 catch some obstruction, and remain moored for 
 an indefinite time. Yielding to a sudden inspi- 
 ration, Ned crept hastily out of his concealment, 
 and dropped lightly upon the trunk, which was 
 heavy and buoyant enough to bear his weight 
 without sinking below the surface. 
 
 The course of the stream was such that this 
 proceeding carried him back directly over the 
 ground that he had passed, and, in case the 
 Apaches were in camp, would take him near it. 
 But there was real woodcraft in this act, 
 imprudent as it seemed; for nothing could be 
 conceived, which, if successful, would more efifect- 
 uallv throw the Indians off his trail. Knowing 
 that he had gone northward, what inducement 
 could there be for looking toward the south for 
 him? The next thing after getting upon his 
 raft was to stoop over and get a drink from the 
 stream, which, having its source up among the 
 mountains, was cold, clear, and pure. 
 
 Oh! the refreshing draught! None but those 
 whose frames have been consumed with flaming 
 fever can appreciate the delicious nectar, the 
 invigorating, permeating life that lay in that 
 wonderful fluid, which is without smell, taste or 
 
THROUGH APACHE LAND. 123 
 
 color, and to which no other liquid can be com- 
 pared. 
 
 "Oh dear!'* groaned the lad, as he raised his 
 head. ''Another drink like that and there'll be 
 nothing left in the creek." 
 
 But thirst satisfied left him with such a tor- 
 menting sense of hunger that the question of 
 something to eat speedily became paramount to 
 all others. He almost ceased to think of Apaches 
 in his wild desire for something with which to 
 satisfy the cravings within. 
 
 The heavy trunk, covered with a few knotty 
 protuberances, kept very nearly in the center of 
 the stream and shifted on below the wood, 
 across the open space and around the curve 
 which has been already referred to, by which 
 time it was fairly dark. Beyond this he could 
 discern the outlines of the grove in the encamp- 
 ment of the day before, and where his own 
 rush for liberty had been made. Were the 
 Apaches still there, awaiting the conclusion of 
 the hunt for him ? This was the question, and, 
 in his desire to answer it, he carefully steadied 
 himself until he stood upright upon the log, so 
 as to look across the intervening space to the 
 wood bevond. 
 
124 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 "If they're there, they'd be sure to have a 
 camp fire," was the truthful conclusion; ''but 
 I can't catch sight of anything." 
 
 Had a point of light twinkled through the 
 foliage, it is doubtful whether he could have 
 had the courage to continue on down the stream 
 to the point where it passed so close to the 
 camp. No doubt he would have dodged it. But 
 all continued dark and silent, and he was quite 
 confident that they had gone. He crouched 
 upon the raft again, and drifted with the cur- 
 rent. 
 
 As he neared the rapids and narrow places 
 where the water dashed over its rocky bed, it 
 looked as if he would be unable to keep his seat 
 upon the raft; but as this was the very sec- 
 tion, where, above all others, he wished to keep 
 his feet off the ground, he grasped the limbs and 
 held on. He went safely on, although consider- 
 able water was splashed over him, and in a few 
 minutes was in the broad, smooth current below, 
 and so close to the grove that he trembled with 
 fear. 
 
 In the dim moonlight he easily recognized the 
 place, and for a few seconds he believed he had 
 committed a fatal error in retracing his route 
 
THROUGH APACHE LAND. 125 
 
 in this fashion ; but the silence remained 
 unbroken, and he began breathing more freely, 
 when all at once one end of the trunk struck 
 the shore; the other end swung round, but it 
 remained fast, and his journey for a time was at 
 an end. 
 
 Ned was dismayed and at a loss what to do, 
 for the only way of breaking loose that he 
 could see was to step ashore and shove off. He 
 remained quiescent a moment or two, in the 
 hope that the raft would loosen itself; but, as it 
 did not, he sprang ashore for that purpose. As 
 he did so, he looked around for some sign of his 
 enemies, but there was none, and the fact gave 
 him assurance that they had really gone. 
 
 ''They must have had dinner there," was his 
 conclusion, ''and maybe they have left some- 
 thing that I can make use of." 
 
 Encouraged by this hope, he moved over the 
 intervening space, and speedily reached the spot 
 where Lone Wolf and his band had encamped 
 tw^enty hours before. As he had taken his 
 departure from the savages before dinner, he 
 was not really certain that that important 
 meal had taken place; but he made diligent 
 search, resolved that he would find out beyond 
 
126 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 all perad venture. The very best good fortune 
 attended him. He had hunted but a few minutes, 
 when he trod among the ashes where the camp- 
 fire had been burning. This proved that a meal 
 had been partaken of, and in this country, so 
 prodigal in the different species of game, the 
 Indians were not economical in the use of food. 
 Groping around in the dark, his hands soon 
 came upon a goodly-sized bone, plentifully cov- 
 ered with meat, which had not been cooked so 
 that it could be called overdone. A starving 
 wolf could not have devoured this with greater 
 gusto than did he, nor could a dozen starving 
 wolves have enjoyed it more than did the poor 
 fellow who had been so long without any nour- 
 ishment. 
 
 When it was gnawed clean he hunted around 
 for more. There was no lack of the material, 
 and Ned was thankful beyond expression for 
 this wonderful piece of good fortune, by which 
 he had escaped from Lone Wolf and his warriors, 
 and then, v^hen starving, had obtained the food 
 he needed from them. He ate and ate, and then 
 rested and ate again, until he had gormandized 
 himself to his utmost capacity, when with a 
 Bigh of happiness, he rose to his feet, and stole 
 
THROUGH APACHE LAND. 127 
 
 back toward the stream where he had left his 
 craft. It was found there as if waiting expressly 
 for his return, and, shoving it loose, he made his 
 way to near the middle, where he crouched down 
 and looked around with a feeling of misgiving 
 and fear. 
 
 "I wonder if it can hold me after such a sup- 
 per? It is a little lower in the water, but I 
 guess it can stand it." 
 
 Whither the stream was tending was a ques- 
 tion for the wanderer to consider; but as he 
 w^as without any possible means of determining, 
 he did not devote much time to the considera- 
 tion thereof. His purpose was to get ahead 
 without leaving a trail behind, and that was 
 what he was doing. 
 
CHAPTER XV. 
 
 IN THE SOLITUDE. 
 
 Ned designed to drift down stream for a mile 
 or so, by which time he expected to be at such a 
 distance that there was no further possible 
 danger of pursuit. It would then be necessary 
 for him to get forward as fast as he could, 
 taking care to avoid the redskins who were in 
 front, rather than those in the rear. 
 
 He was a little alarmed to find, after going 
 scarcely half that distance, that the stream was 
 broadening very rapidly. The current as a con- 
 sequence, became slower, and when he descried 
 seemingly a large forest looming up before him, 
 he concluded that the time had about come for 
 him to disembark, and use his heels. But, 
 prompted somewhat by curiosity, he remained a 
 while longer, until, before he was aware, he 
 discovered that the stream had debouched into 
 a lake, nearly circular in shape, and fully a 
 couple of hundred yards in diameter. The 
 impetus of the current kept the tree moving 
 
THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 129 
 
 slowly and still more slowly, until it had 
 reached a point near the middle, when it grad- 
 ually settled down to a complete standstill. 
 
 "That's odd!" exclaimed the lad, looking 
 about him, and seeing the broad sweep of 
 water on every hand. "If I knew this I think 
 I shovdd have got off." 
 
 It only remained for him to work his w^ay to 
 land, and this he began doing by using his hands 
 as paddles. It was slow progress; and he was 
 of the opinion that he had made a rather fool- 
 ish blunder in permitting himself to be "carried 
 out to sea" in this fashion. He was disturbed 
 still further by the appearance of the sky. Dark, 
 threatening clouds were gathering and sweeping 
 across it, frequently shutting out the light of 
 the moon and causing the most grotesque shad- 
 ows to whisk over the surface of the lake. 
 
 The indications were that a violent storm was 
 close at hand, and he used both hands with all 
 the vigor at his command, and saw himself grad- 
 ually nearing land— the rate being so moderate 
 that it could not keep pace with his impatience. 
 He was tempted more than once to leap into 
 the water and swnm or wade ashore, but he 
 restrained himself On one of these occasions, 
 
 9 
 
130 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 just as a heavy cloud approached the moon, and 
 while his raft was a dozen yards or so from 
 shore, he was alarmed at sight of something 
 approaching him through the water. What it 
 was he could not conjecture, as it was low 
 down, and very indistinct on account of the 
 gathering gloom. 
 
 As the cloud touched the moon and obscured 
 the light, this suspicious object disappeared, and 
 he awaited with no little alarm the outcome of 
 the mystery. He was sitting motionless, look- 
 ing and listening, when the end of the tree was 
 suddenly elevated a full foot, while the other 
 correspondingly descended. 
 
 With a gasp of terror, Ned clutched the limb 
 near him and held on, not knowing whither he 
 was about to be flung. A muttering growl at 
 the same instant explained what it all meant, 
 and he hastily retreated still further upon the 
 tree, expecting every moment to feel the claws 
 of the wild animal fastened upon him. 
 
 '*It seems to me that these beasts are after 
 me more than the Indians," was his thought, as 
 he drew out his revolver, and awaited the neces- 
 sity of using it. 
 
THROUGH APACHE LAND. 131 
 
 Further than placing his paws upon one end 
 of the trunk, and giving out a threatening 
 growl, the animal did nothing for a few min- 
 utes, while the boy, fully sensible of the value 
 of his ammunition, was equally lacking in 
 offensive proceedings. Thus matters stood, while 
 the great heavy cloud floated slowly by the 
 moon, and the head of the unwelcome stranger 
 gradually came to view. 
 
 It was some wild beast, beyond question, but 
 it wasn't a bear. Its eyes, shining with a phos- 
 phorescent glow, and the cavernous growling 
 that issued from the red jaws, made it seem the 
 most frightful kind of a monster. Hoping that 
 it was not particularly hungry, Ned tried the 
 scare game again, flinging up his arms and 
 shouting, and making noises horrible enough to 
 frio-htcn any one to whom the\^ remained unex- 
 plained. In this case it succeeded admirably. 
 The creature, whatever it w^as, must have con- 
 cluded th^it it was something besides a boy 
 with which it had taken passage, and, after 
 indulging in one prolonged stare, dropped back 
 into the water and paddled straight for shore. 
 •*I don't think Lone Wolf can follow me all 
 along this route," concluded the boy, as he 
 
132 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 resumed his paddling toward shore, and reached 
 it in the course of the next ten minutes. He had 
 been cramped up in one position so long that 
 he felt the need of exercise, and started off at 
 a rapid pace, with no more idea of the precise 
 direction he was following than if he w^ere 
 blind. 
 
 The clouds sweeping across the sky grew 
 heavier and darker, and the wind, strong and 
 chilling, soughed through the trees of the forest 
 with a dismal, wailing sound that would have 
 frightened one of more years than young Chad- 
 mund. Even he would have shrunk from the 
 task of going through the wood had the cir- 
 cumstances been different, but he was so actu- 
 ated by the one all-controlling desire of escape 
 that he forgot the real danger w^hich encom- 
 passed him. Besides the risk of encountering the 
 Apaches, there was the ever-present peril from 
 wild beasts and venomous serpents. None of 
 the latter as yet had disturbed him, but he was 
 likely to step upon some coiling reptile, unseen 
 in the dark, whose sting was certain death. 
 
 It soon became apparent that a storm of a 
 most violent character was about to burst forth. 
 The wind grew stronger and colder, lightning 
 
THROUGH APACHE LAND. 133 
 
 flashed athwart the darkening sky, and the thun- 
 der boomed with an increasing power peculiar 
 to w^arm countries. The w^anderer had been 
 fortunate thus far in preserving himself from a 
 ducking, and he was still desirous of doing so. 
 There was nothing to be gained by pressing 
 for^^ard, and he began groping around for 
 some kind of a shelter. This was difficult to 
 find, as the gloom w^as so dense that e\'esight 
 was useless, and he could only use his hands. 
 
 ''I guess I'll have to climb a tree," he 
 thought, running his hand along the bark of 
 one. 
 
 But at this juncture he ran against a rock, 
 striking with such violence that he saw stars. 
 As soon as he recovered he began an examina- 
 tion, and was not a little pleased to find that 
 under one portion of it tliere was a hollow big 
 enough for him to crawl in and protect himself 
 from the tempest. He had scarcely done so 
 when the storm burst forth. 
 
 First a few large drops pattered upon the 
 leaves, and then It seemed as if the window^s of 
 Heaven had been opened. The rain descended 
 in torrents, the firmament flamed with a blind- 
 ing intensity — and the earth trembled w4th the 
 
134 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 reverberating thunder. The vivid sheets of 
 electric fire made the darkness and gloom deeper 
 by contrast. The trees, with their swa^ang 
 branches, and the spear-like columns of rain, 
 stood out and vanished again so rapidly that 
 the vision of the appalled lad was dazzled and 
 bewildered. The terrific shocks coming simul- 
 taneousb" with the lightning, proved that the 
 thunderbolts -were falling all around him, and 
 again and again he thanked that Providence 
 which had dissuaded him from taking refuge in 
 some of the trees. 
 
 Crash I 
 
 Directly in front of him, an immense giant 
 of the forest was smitten from top to base, 
 the limbs, leaves, and splinters hurled in every 
 direction, as if a thousand pounds of powder 
 had been exploded within. The air was so sur- 
 charged with electricity that Ned felt the effect. 
 A prickling sensation down one entire side of 
 his body was followed by a partial numbness 
 and paralysis that alarmed him. With his other 
 hand he hastily rubbed his limbs, and turned 
 and twisted, fearing that he was becoming help- 
 less. 
 
THROUGH APACHE LAND. 135 
 
 In a few minutes he regained the strength 
 which had temporarily departed, and then noticed 
 that the storm was subsiding as rapidly as it 
 had arisen. The thunder died out in sullen mut- 
 terings; the lightning flashed fitfully, often with- 
 out any perceptible report following, and the 
 deluge diminished to a few drops. 
 
 "The storm is over, thank heaven!" he 
 exclaimed. ''As I have such a good bed, I may 
 as well stay here till morning." 
 
 But at this instant his blood almost froze at 
 the sudden discovery of a new and deadly peril. 
 
CHAPTER XVI. 
 
 AMONG THE MOUNTAINS. 
 
 Young Chadmund heard the unmistakable 
 warning of a rattlesnake that was somewhere 
 near him, and on the very point of striking. 
 Precisely where it was, it was impossible to 
 determine with any certainty; but there was no 
 time to consider the matter. It seemed to him 
 in that brief second he devoted to thought that 
 the venomous reptile lay a little to the left, and 
 he scrambled out of his place with all the 
 celerity at his command. 
 
 The wonderful quickness of this usually slug- 
 gish snake, when about to deal its deadly blow 
 is well known, and, had the boy moved with 
 twice the rapidity that he did, Ned could not 
 have escaped that lightning-like dart of the snake, 
 which w^as aimed straight at his foot, that being 
 the part of the body which was nearest his coil. 
 The fangs struck the side of his shoe, which 
 happened to move at the very instant the blow 
 w^as made, and, piercing the leather, held the 
 
 136 
 
THROUGH APACHE LAND. 137 
 
 reptile fast,— ''Hoist by his own petard," as it 
 ^vere, — so that, when Ned scrambled out from 
 his shelter, he felt the horrid thing dangling at 
 his heels. 
 
 With presence of mind hardly to be expected 
 at such a time, he arose to his feet, and hold- 
 ing the attached foot motionless, with the other 
 he hastily stamped all the life from the writhing 
 rattlesnake. This done he freed the shoe by a 
 jerk, although it tore the fangs of the reptile 
 from its jaws. 
 
 "I think I'd better dust out of here," said the 
 lad, breathlessly. "I remember that Corporal 
 Hugg told me that where you found one of 
 those things you are pretty sure of running 
 against another close by, and I don't care about 
 seeing any, especially when it's so dark you 
 can't see at all." 
 
 He stepped carefully forth in the darkness, 
 and, moving a few feet, paused to listen. The 
 rain had ceased falling entireh', and only the 
 faintest mutter of the distant thunder reached 
 his ears. The darkness was absolutely impene- 
 trable, and the wind, as it soughed through the 
 wet branches, made the most dreary and dismal 
 
138 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 wailing — enough to strike despair to the bravest 
 heart. 
 
 The boy had listened but a moment when a 
 slight rustling among the leaves at his feet filled 
 him with a sudden conviction that a second 
 rattlesnake was after him. He left the spot 
 expeditiously, not halting until he was sure that 
 he w^as beyond reach of the unwelcome visitant, 
 which, it is well known, is not much given to 
 pursuing its prey. 
 
 **Hang it!" he exclaimed, "there ain't much 
 fun in this. I wish daylight would come, so 
 that I could see what to do." 
 
 His situation was exceedingly uncomfortable. 
 Everything was soaked with water, and he 
 could not walk without shaking down the 
 moisture from the laden branches and under- 
 growth. He knew of but one place wherein he 
 could secure protection and that was beneath 
 the rock where he had so narrowly escaped the 
 rattlesnake, but he was not very anxious to 
 make his way back there. 
 
 While he stood debating what to do, he 
 noticed that the sky was rapidly clearing, the 
 black, tumultuous clouds rolling away from the 
 
THROUGH APACHE LAND. 141 
 
 face of the moon, which soon shone out with 
 all its wonted power. This was a vast help, 
 for, despite the dense shadows made by the 
 heavy branches overhead, he was able to see 
 enough to pick his way and noticed that the 
 forest directly in front was quite open, indicat- 
 ing that he was close to the termination. Thus 
 encouraged, he pressed ahead and soon had the 
 satisfaction of finding that he was through the 
 woods and on the border of an open, rocky 
 ravine, through which he could hear a stream 
 rushing with great violence, and which he took 
 to be the outlet of the little lake that had been 
 overcharged by the recent severe storm. So far 
 as he could see by the moonlight, great masses 
 of rock, boulders and broken prairie stretched 
 out before him, and he asked himself how he 
 was to make his way. 
 
 He concluded not to make the attempt just 
 then, but, hunting out a place among the rocks, 
 he crawled into it, first making sure, by a care- 
 ful reconnoissance, that no rattlesnakes had 
 crept in ahead of him. He w^as permitted to 
 remain undisturbed through the night, and 
 when he opened his e^^es the sun was shining 
 
142 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 directly in upon him. The boy then hastily sprang 
 up, his heart fnll of gratitude to God for the 
 wondrous manner in which his life had been 
 preserved, and the remarkable success which had 
 followed his attempt at escape from the Apaches. 
 
 With the coming of the glorious sunlight, Ned 
 naturally felt buoyant and hopeful. He was 
 not without considerable appetite, but he had 
 eaten so heartih', on the previous evening, that he 
 felt that he could afford to wait until night again; 
 and he still had that impatient, almost unrea- 
 soning desire to get forward, which made him 
 feel like breaking into a run, and keeping it up 
 until he was out of breath. 
 
 But, 3'oung as was the little fellow, he was 
 old enough to feel that the time had come when 
 he must use all the brains in his command. Up 
 to that hour, as will be understood, he had been 
 journeying entirely at random, his sole purpose 
 being to get beyond reach of Lone Wolf and his 
 band. He had accomplished this, and a radical 
 change of tactics must be made. 
 
 If Ned Chadmund had been a half dozen 
 years older, he would have recoiled at the pros- 
 pect before him; but he was so young and full 
 
THROUGH ArACHE LAND. 14-3 
 
 of animal spirits that he did not really compre- 
 hend the difficulty and danger. He had trav- 
 eled very little more than half the distance 
 between Santa Fe and Fort Havens, and his 
 purpose was to press ahead until the latter 
 was reached. To do this, it was necessary that 
 he should make his way through the mountains 
 in w^hich he now found himself, and then to 
 journey a couple of hundred miles through or 
 over prairie, and across streams, before he could 
 reach the frontier post, where his father was so 
 anxiously awaiting his coming. The project 
 seemed nothing short of madness; but its justifi- 
 cation lay in the fact that the wanderer had 
 the choice of attempting that or lying down and 
 dying where he was. He could do nothing but 
 choose the former. 
 
 Ned climbed up to an elevated position and 
 took an observation — his purpose, after learning 
 wbether an^^ present danger threatened, being to 
 learn the direction it was necessary to follow in 
 order to reach Fort Havens. 
 
 '* Corporal Hugg told me that after w^e reached 
 Devil's Pass, it was in a straight line West. 
 The trail winds in and out, as it has to do, but 
 
144 THROUGH APACflE LAND. 
 
 all one had to do was to dig ahead, and he 
 would be sure to come out right in the end- 
 that is, if the Indians and wild animals would 
 only let him. Well, right yonder rose the sun," 
 he continued, very carefully continuing his obser- 
 vation. ''That must be the east, and all I have 
 to do is to keep that at my back until it gets 
 over my head and wears round to the front. 
 So off we go." 
 
 There was one favorable accompaniment of 
 this first thoughtful effort to reach home. The 
 valley-like depression that had caught his eye 
 upon rising ran precisely in the direction to be 
 desired — due east and west — so that he had the 
 best facility in the world for gettinoj through the 
 mountains. Still another favorable augury was 
 that the general direction pursued by the Apaches 
 w^as the same, and the fact was, there was very 
 little still intervening between him and the open 
 prairie beyond. Should his progress remain 
 uninterrupted through the day, by nightfall he 
 would be close to the prairie, which stretched 
 away so many miles in the direction of the fron- 
 tier post. 
 
 "I don't think it's as much as two hundred 
 miles," he said, as he started off at a rapid walk. 
 
THROUGH APACHE LAND. 14;5 
 
 "I can make thirty miles a day, so that I will 
 be there at the end of a week, if nothing unex- 
 pected gets in the way. Won't father be sur- 
 prised when he sees me walk up, and won't I 
 be surprised if I manage to do it, also!'* 
 
 10 
 
CHAPTER XYII. 
 
 A MYSTERIOUS CAMP FIRE. 
 
 For a couple of hours young Chadmund had 
 difficulty in traveling. Despite the fact that he 
 was in a sort of valley, with towering peaks 
 and bluffs upon either hand, a great many 
 boulders and obstructions obtruded themselves 
 in his path, and he did some climbing, clamber- 
 ing, and jumping that would have reflected no 
 discredit upon a mountain goat. The forenoon 
 was about half gone, and he w^as felicitating 
 himself upon the excellent progress he was mak- 
 ing, when he was brought up all standing by 
 finding himself upon the bank of a mountain 
 stream, which crossed his route exactly at right 
 angles, issuing from the mountains on the left 
 with a rush and roar and pouring tumultuously 
 forward with irresistible power and velocity. 
 
 "I can't w^ade that," said the lad, scratching 
 his head in perplexity, "and it won't^do to try 
 and sw^im it. If I once got in there it would be 
 the last of me." 
 
 146 
 
THROUGH APACHE LAND. 147 
 
 There could be no doubt of that, for the stream 
 was fully twent}^ feet in width, very deep, and 
 sped forward like the volume of a river when 
 suddenly compressed into a mountain can3'on. 
 It was walled in on either side by solid rock, 
 the surface of the water being a couple of yards 
 below the level where he stood. 
 
 "I wonder whether I can't go round it?" he 
 said, after spending some time in mental debate. 
 '* It can't run all tiie way through the mountain, 
 but must start somewhere not verv far awav.'* 
 
 This was not a verv plausible theory; but as 
 nothing was to be gained by standing still, he 
 started out upon his tour of exploration. Bet- 
 ter success followed than he expected. He had 
 started toward the head of the stream and had 
 clambered along less than a hundred 3'ards, 
 when he reached a place where it was so narrow 
 that he was confident of his ability to leap 
 across. 
 
 "Yes, I can do that," he said, approaching 
 close to the edge and looking over the boiling 
 abyss to the solid rock upon the other side. 
 "But suppose I should miss my footing, 
 wouldn't I catch it!" 
 
14-8 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 It was a pretty good leap, but Ned was 
 active, strong and swift, and he had made many 
 a longer leap than the one before him. For a 
 minute longer he stood, measuring the distance 
 with his eye. Then going backward a few steps, 
 he suddenly ran forward with all the speed at 
 his command, and, concentrating all his strength, 
 made such a leap that he cleared the chasm by 
 a couple of feet. 
 
 "There! "he exclaimed, with some satisfaction, 
 "if none of the streams are broader than that, 
 I'll jump them all." 
 
 Still full of hope and in the best of spirits he 
 pressed forward until the sun was at the merid- 
 ian and the heat became so oppressive that he 
 concluded to rest awhile. He w^as in a section 
 of country where, at certain seasons, the heat 
 is like that of the Desert of Sahara. There are 
 portions of Arizona and Lower California where 
 the fervor of the sun's rays at noonday smite 
 the earth with the withering power of the 
 sirocco. 
 
 At times, when Ned was down in the lowest 
 portions of the valley, the heat was almost 
 intolerable; and then, again, when he clambered 
 to the top of some elevation, and the cool 
 
THROrOII APACHE LAND. 149 
 
 breezes from the upper regions fanned his cheeks, 
 it was like a draught of water to the fever- 
 parched patient. 
 
 He had lain on the ground under the pro- 
 tecting shadow of a rock but a short time when 
 his eye rested upon something which convinced 
 him that he w^as not the only one in the valley. 
 Looking dreamily off toward the west, up the 
 valley, with the mountains sloping down on 
 the right and left, he noticed what at first 
 seemed a thin bluish cloud, resting against the 
 sky. Then he observed that its form was a 
 little out of the usual order, it being column- 
 shaped, tall, and like a shaft of almost invisi- 
 ble vapor, thrown against the white background 
 beyond. 
 
 ♦'That ain't a cloud," he suddenly exclaimed, 
 starting to his feet and scrutinizing it more 
 closely. "It's the smoke from a camp fire and 
 I've got to go right by it." 
 
 There could be no doubt of the truth of 
 what he said, and he became deeply interested. 
 ''I wonder whether they're Indians or white 
 men? I suppose it's most likely they are 
 Apaches, and they may be Lone Wolf and his 
 companions. I've got to keep a sharp lookout 
 
150 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 and keep from running into them. If they are 
 white hunters, that I've heard are sometimes in 
 these mountains, it will be a lucky thing for 
 me." 
 
 Somehow or other he became impressed with 
 the idea that the camp fire ahead of him was 
 that of friends instead of enemies— that the 
 assistance which he so sorely needed was thus 
 placed within his reach. He had learned, long 
 before, that one is apt to miscalculate the dis- 
 tance when placed as he was; but, making 
 allowance for all that, he was confident that 
 the camp fire was not more than a mile away. 
 Yielding to a natural curiosity to learn its mean- 
 ing, he shortened the hour which he had intended 
 to devote to rest, and started ahead again. 
 
 Once or twice it seemed to him that he had 
 dropped into some sort of trail, which he was 
 following. Here and there were traces showing 
 that the route had been traveled before. It 
 seemed to be one of those natural roads or 
 passes which are found at intervals in all great 
 mountain chains, and without which, many of 
 of them for vast distances would be literally 
 impassable for man or animal. 
 
THROUGH APACHE LANB. 151 
 
 The conviction that he was not the pioneer over 
 that section caused the young wanderer some 
 misgivings and suggested several discomforting 
 questions. If Apaches had used the trail 
 already, might not some of them be upon it? 
 If some of them were coming from the opposite 
 direction, how was he to avoid running into 
 their arms? These queries were not of the most 
 cheerful character and they served to tone down 
 the enthusiasm which had marked his start in 
 the morning. They also caused him to examine, 
 more times than was really necessary, the revol- 
 ver which had already done him such good serv- 
 ice, and he went through a preliminary drill, 
 consisting of placing it inside his waistcoat, a 
 couple of buttons being left carelessly unfast- 
 ened ; next thrusting his hand wnthin, in an 
 indifferent manner, then instantly jerking out 
 and pointing the weapon at an imaginary foe 
 in front of him. This maneuver he repeated 
 scores of times, narrowly escaping the firing of 
 the weapon, until he satisfied himself that he 
 could do it to perfection. 
 
 "Now, if Lone Wolf comes at me alone, I think 
 I can manage him. He won't suspect that I've 
 any w^eapon, and so won't be prepared for it; 
 
152 ITHROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 but I hope he won't show himself," he added 
 the next minute. "If there's any way of avoid- 
 ing him, I'll do it." 
 
 However, he was bent upon solving the 
 mystery of the distant camp fire, which he still 
 hoped might belong to some party of white 
 hunters, who would take him under their pro- 
 tection and conduct him safely over the wide 
 and dangerous stretch of territory which still 
 intervened between him and his destination. 
 
 In spite of the careful calculation he had made, 
 he soon learned that he had committed an error. 
 Although the tell-tale smoke at first seemed 
 scarcely a mile away, it was more than three 
 times that distance. The way being more 
 obstructed by rocks and the sinuous winding of 
 the trail, he saw the sun sinking low in the 
 west and found that he had still no little travel- 
 ing to do. 
 
 ''It can't be that they are shifting that camp 
 fire all the time," he growled, as he clambered 
 upon an elevation, and was again disappointed 
 to find it so far away. ''Blamed if it don't 
 look as if somebody was playing a trick on me. 
 I've heard of a jack-o'-lantern bobbing around 
 in that style, but nothing else." 
 
THROUGH APACHE LAND. 153 
 
 He finally concluded that the laws of nature 
 were not violated in this case, and with renewed 
 courage pressed ahead again. The sky was clear 
 and cloudless, the weather re.nained opprcslvely 
 warm, and poor Ned was so jaded that he felt 
 scarcely able to drag one foot after the other, 
 but he was stout-hearted, and, just as the sun 
 dipped out of sight behind the mountains, he 
 found himself within a hundred yards of the 
 mysterious camp. 
 
CHAPTER XVIII. 
 
 THE INDIAN FIGHT. 
 
 In spite of his great anxiety to learn all there 
 was to be known about the camp fire, Necl 
 remained where he was for half an hour, until 
 he had rested somewhat from his severe labor. 
 
 The place in which the fire was kindled was 
 elevated, rocky, uneven, and inclosed by a few 
 stunted trees and undergrowth, so that while 
 the young scout could catch a glimmer, now and 
 then, of the fire, he could see nothing more. 
 The only way in which he could perfect his 
 information was to crawl up still nearer. This 
 he proceeded to do, using all the care and cau- 
 tion possible, until, after the lapse of nearly an 
 hour, he reached a point where his view was 
 unobstructed and perfect. 
 
 A severe disappointment av^aited him. He saw 
 four Indian warriors grouped around the fire, 
 their dress, and the peculiar manner in v^hich 
 they were painted, proving that they belonged 
 to some tribe other than the Apaches. Three of 
 
 154 
 
THROUGH APACHE LAND. 155 
 
 them were occupied in cutting up and preparing 
 the carcass of some animal, which they had 
 shot, while the fourth was on his knees in front 
 of the fire, carefully doctoring it for culinary 
 purposes. 
 
 Succeeding Ned's first feeling of disappoint- 
 ment w^as an undercurrent of hope that he was in 
 a fair way to obtain another good meal. 
 
 *'It isn't likely they'll eat up all they've 
 got," he reflected, ''and I don't suppose they're 
 croins: to settle down there for life. All I've got 
 to do, then, is to hang round until they go 
 aw^ay, and then, if I can get the chance, I'll 
 stuff enough to last a week." 
 
 Having made his reconnoissance, he withdrew 
 to a more secret place, where he would not be seen 
 in case some of the warriors should take a look 
 around before retiring for the night. It w^as 
 fortunate that he did so, for he had scarcely 
 crawled away beneath a dense mass of under- 
 growth when he made the discovery that he had 
 placed himself in a curious and singularly 
 dangerous position. 
 
 Twnce he fancied he heard a faint rustling in 
 the rear of w^here he was crouching, and he was 
 puzzled to know what it meant. He was sharp 
 
156 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 enough to protect himself from ol3servation from 
 this direction as well as from the front, and was 
 no more than fairly secure when he caught the 
 slight sound again, and the next moment 
 detected the figure of an Indian stealing along, 
 with his gaze fixed upon the camp fire and the 
 forms around it. 
 
 The lad was naturally puzzled to understand 
 the meaning of this. There was just enough 
 fire light penetrating to where he was to show 
 him that this redskin belonged to a different 
 tribe from those in camp. Only a few minutes 
 passed when he caught the glimpse of another 
 w^arrior on the left, crouching along in the same 
 manner as the other. Then followed the softest 
 possible hiss, such as is made by the disturbed 
 serpent, and, at that moment, the truth of the 
 whole matter suddenly broke upon Ned Chad- 
 mund. 
 
 The strange Indians were quietly preparing 
 their supper, unaware of the fact that, while 
 they were thus employed, a party of Apaches, 
 their deadly enemies, were closing in upon 
 them. Thus, it was, too, that, without the 
 knowledge of either side, the lad was directly 
 between them, where it would seem impossible 
 
THROUGH APACHE LAND. 157 
 
 that he should escape being involved in the con- 
 flict that was rapidh^ drawing to a head. 
 
 There was no hope of withdrawing, for the 
 slightest niovcnunt would be sure to make 
 known his position, and he could only w^ait, 
 therefore, the issue of the encounter with an 
 intensit}' of interest which it is impossible to 
 imagine. What could be more painfully inter- 
 esting, for instance, than to watch the move- 
 ments of the strange Indians as the\^ engaged 
 themselves in preparing their supper, conversing 
 wath each other in their grunting fashion, and 
 to note their unconscionsness that a circle of 
 death was slowdy but surelv closing in around 
 them; to know^, which they did not suspect, that 
 the most deadly kind of encounter w^as close at 
 hand ? The endangered party certainly showed a 
 lack of precaution which belongs to their people in 
 the most ordinary cases when they went into camp 
 in this fashion, and left the way open for such a 
 deadly and fatal assault to be made upon them. 
 It must have been that while engaged in the 
 chase during the da\' thc}^ had made their obser- 
 vations, and satisfied themselves that none of 
 their enemies ^vere in dangerous proximity. 
 
 The odor of the cooking meat crept through 
 
158 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 the bushes to the nostrils of the hungry lad, 
 who was almost maddened into charging upon 
 the party himself in quest of some of the brown, 
 crisp, roasting meat; but he restrained himself, 
 in the hope that the issue of the unpleasantness 
 would furnish him an opportunity to procure 
 something for the inner man. 
 
 An Indian upon the warpath is as patient as 
 the Esquimau who watches for a dozen hours 
 beside the airhole, waiting for the seal to come 
 to the surface. According to all Human reasoning, 
 there was no earthly necessity for any delay 
 upon the part of the attacking Apaches, and yet, 
 for full an hour longer, they maneuvered and 
 reconnoitered, without striking a blow. Despite 
 the tense condition of the lad's nerves, he began 
 to grow drowsy and weary at the prolonged 
 delay, and had the attack been deferred a short 
 time longer, he would have dropped into a sound 
 slumber. 
 
 The four strange Indians were permitted to 
 finish their supper, and to engage in a comforta- 
 ble smoke. This, however, was never completed. 
 They were stretched out upon the ground in the 
 most indolent manner imaginable, when sev- 
 eral rifles suddenly broke the stillness, the 
 
THROUGH APACHE LAND. 159 
 
 Apache war whoop rang out with startling 
 power, and a number of figures charged through 
 the bushes like a horde of demons, all converg- 
 ing upon the group around the camp fire. Two 
 of the latter had been instantly killed by the 
 first volley poured in upon them. The others were 
 wounded, but they were on their feet in an 
 instant, fighting with the fury of tigers. 
 
 The battle w^as of the hurricane order, the 
 third defender going down within a minute 
 after the assaulting party closed in about them. 
 The fourth, who was only slightly hurt seemed 
 to have been caught at less disadvantage. He 
 was a warrior of wonderful activity and strength, 
 and used his hunting knife wath good effect upon 
 his first and second assailants wnth lightening- 
 like quickness. Then as the}' began to crowd in 
 upon him faster than he could provide against 
 he circled his weapon around his head several 
 times, so as to clear a brief open space, when, 
 with a 3'ell of defiance, he bounded high in the 
 air, and vanished in the forest, his speed so 
 amazing that it was vain for any one to think 
 of pursuing him. 
 
 The battle ended as abruptly as it began. 
 It was over in an instant, and the petrified 
 
160 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 Spectator could scarcely realize what had taken 
 place directly tinder his own eyes. He lav 
 motionless, peering through the leaves that shut 
 him in, scarcely daring to breathe as he watched 
 the movements of the victors. He could scarcely 
 suppress an exclamation of terror when he recog- 
 nized among them his old captor and enemy, 
 Lone Wolf. 
 
 ''Jiist think of it," whispered Chadmund. "I 
 have spent hours and hours, and have traveled 
 night and day to get away from him, and here 
 he is, within fifty feet of me again. How can I 
 keep him from seeing my trail again in the 
 morning? It does beat everything how this 
 thing is getting mixed." 
 
 He took heart again, however, when lie came 
 to reflect that the greater part of the night was 
 still before him, that Lone Wolf had undoubt- 
 edly given up all expectation of finding him, 
 and, by using ordinary caution, he could still 
 kept clear of him. 
 
 The Apaches did not remain long upon the 
 scene of the encampment. The two of their own 
 number that had been killed were lifted up, and 
 then Lone Wolf and his few intrepid warriors 
 took their departure. Thus it happened that 
 
THROUGH APACHE LAND. 161 
 
 within fifteen minutes after the first gun had 
 been fired, and the first yell uttered, the boy 
 found himself alone upon the scene of the terri- 
 ble fight. Dreadful as were the place and the 
 associations, he could not forget that he was 
 nearly famished, and stealing his way to the 
 fire, he hunted around until he found enough to 
 satisfy the cravings within. This done, he made 
 up his mind that it was best for him to do some 
 traveling during the darkness, without waiting 
 for the rising of the morrow's sun. 
 
 n 
 
CHAPTER XIX. 
 
 A TERRIBLE MEETING. 
 
 As he moved along, weary and worn, the 
 memory of the horrid fight he had seen by 
 the camp fire, and especially the picture of those 
 three stark, bloody forms that lay stretched 
 upon the earth, seemingly watching every 
 movement he made, followed and weighed him 
 down like some smothering incubus. Then he 
 saw, more vividly than ever before, the moun- 
 tainous task ahead. With no horse, and the 
 hundreds of miles of mountain and prairie, with 
 the dangers besetting him on every hand, what 
 possible hope had he for believing he was ever 
 to reach his destination? The gloom of the 
 night, the shadow of what he had so recently 
 witnessed, and his own exhausted condition, no 
 doubt had much to do with the distress ; for his 
 prospects were certainly as good as at morning, 
 when he was so full of enthusiasm. 
 
 *'I can't travel any further," he finally 
 
 162 
 
THROUGH APACHE LAND. 163 
 
 exclaimed, **and what's the use? It won't do 
 any good." 
 
 When he paused in his wearisome tramp, he 
 happened to be close to a tree, quite lofty, with 
 numerous limbs, some of which were quite near 
 the ground. It struck him at once that it would 
 be a good plan to climb into this, and ensconce 
 himself among the branches. At any rate, he 
 was certain to be out of the way of the crawl- 
 ing snakes, and no wild animal could steal upon 
 him while he was unconscious. 
 
 Without pausing more than a moment to con- 
 sider, he ascended the tree, and, a short distance 
 from the ground secured the very position he 
 wanted. Here the limbs crossed and recrossed, 
 and gnarled themselves in such a way, that the 
 most pleasant kind of bed imaginable was 
 found, and he stretcbed out his weary limbs 
 upon it, thanking Heaven that had guided him 
 to such a favorable place. 
 
 "I hope Lone Wolf won't be able to follow me 
 here," was the wisb he expressed, as he resigned 
 himself to slumber. 
 
 But gentle sleep had not yet closed his eyelids 
 when he was alarmed by hearing something 
 beneath him. His first supposition was that it 
 
164 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 was Lone Wolf, for the sound resembled the 
 stealthy tread of some person upon the soft 
 earth; but after listening a few minutes he 
 became satisfied that it was some animal 
 instead. 
 
 "It's a wolf or panther that has scented my 
 trail/' was his conclusion, as he leaned over and 
 peered cautiously down among the branches. 
 
 The moon shone more brightly than upon any 
 night since he had started, but the shadow of 
 the trees themselves obscured his view so much 
 that his vision was of little use to him. It 
 seemed to him, however, when he looked down- 
 ward in this fashion, that once or twice he 
 caught sight of a shadowy creature, whisking 
 back and forth, leaping about like a dog, and 
 apparently ready to make a bound upward 
 among the branches. 
 
 But he could not make certain of what he saw, 
 although there could be no doubt but that he 
 heard something, and that some kind of a 
 dangerous creature was close at hand. 
 
 "I guess he isn't going to hurt me," was his 
 conclusion, after watching and listening a half 
 hour, and after finding a heavy drowsiness was 
 stealing over him. In this comfortable state of 
 
THROUGH APACHE LAND. 165 
 
 mind, he soon closed his eves, and relapsed into 
 a deep, refreshing sleep, whicli lasted an hour or 
 more, when it ended in a peculiar manner. Very 
 few bo3^s are apt to lie quiet in their beds, and 
 Ned Chadmund, in turning over upon his side, 
 turned completely out of bed, and dropped 
 through the branches to the ground. 
 
 The fall w^as so slight that it did not hurt 
 him, except in the disagreeable shock that was 
 inevitable. It flashed on him on the instant, 
 and, recalling those stealth}^ footsteps that had 
 so frightened him, he instantly sprang for the 
 trunk, and began climbing with all the haste 
 at his command. He was almost within reach 
 of the limbs, when he heard a growd, and some 
 denizen of the forest came plunging toward 
 him. 
 
 With a thrill of terror, the lad made a tremen- 
 dous effort, caught the limb with one hand, 
 swung his leg over and drew himself up. As he 
 did so, he felt distinctly the w4nd made by the 
 body of the beast, as it leaped upward, and 
 snapped wnth his huge jaws at his legs, which 
 were withdrawn from its fangs just as they 
 closed together. The creature, whatever it w^as, 
 made a running leap, that carried him some 
 
166 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 distance beyond, when lie struck the ground 
 and ran a few leaps before turning about and 
 retracing his steps. 
 
 Without waiting to gain a more distinct view, 
 the lad crept back to his perch, where he 
 tremblingly awaited the moment when it was 
 to bound up among the limbs and attack him. 
 After gaining his former position, he sat for a 
 few minutes shivering like one with the ague, 
 forgetting even to think of the revolver with 
 which to defend himself in case the brute 
 assaulted him. But it may have been that the 
 dumb creature believed that he was already 
 frightened to death, and there was no occasion 
 for attempting anything further. At any rate 
 nothing more was seen or heard of him. 
 
 Ned had been too thoroughly shaken up to 
 gain an\' more sleep. He sat through the 
 remaining hours of the night without closing 
 his eyes a moment in slumber. They w^ere the 
 longest and the dreariest that he ever spent, 
 but when the welcome light of morning came 
 his foe had departed. 
 
 The wanderer waited a half hour or more, and 
 carefully reconnoitered the grounds before 
 descending; but, assured that the coast was 
 
THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 167 
 
 clear, he came down to terra £rma again and 
 took up his line of march. His fear now was 
 that his presence in the neighborhood might be 
 discovered by Lone Wolf or some of his band, 
 and, scarcely pausing long enough to swallow a 
 few mouthfuls of water from a stream near at 
 hand, he hastened forward, with his face 
 toward the west. 
 
 It became evident, after journeying a short 
 distance, that he was again following a distinct- 
 ly-marked trail, one that was originally made 
 by animals, most probably buffaloes, in their 
 mio-rations from one section to another, and had 
 been taken advantage of by men whose business 
 or inclinations called them in the same direction. 
 Here and there he saw marks that had been 
 made by the hoofs of horses, and more than 
 once he was certain he observed the trail of 
 moccasins. The path w^as more direct and less 
 laborious to travel, and he began to believe 
 that, if he were left alone, he might succeed in 
 reaching safety at some time or other. 
 
 For some tw^o hours he tramped along through 
 a section that gradually lost its mountainous 
 character as he neared the rolling prairie beyond. 
 He kept continually looking back and around 
 
168 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 him, on the alert for Indians; but not a sisfn 
 was discovered, until he approached an excep- 
 tionally rocky place, where the trail wound 
 round the masses of stone at such a sharp 
 angle that the view was less than a dozen feet. 
 
 With no thought of danger, Ned walked 
 around this corner, and on the instant found 
 himself face to face with a swarthy Indian war- 
 rior who must have seen him approaching, and, 
 dismounting from his horse, stood back and 
 awaited his approach. That astounded look 
 revealed not only this, but that the Indian was 
 Lone Wolf. 
 
 -Fate had brought the two together again, at 
 the very time the heart of the weary fugitive 
 was beating high with hope. There was no 
 chance for retreat or hope of avoiding him. The 
 eyes of the painted Apache glowed with a 
 demoniac light, and his fingers twitched as he 
 placed his right hand upon the buckhorn handle 
 of a knife at his girdle. 
 
 "You run away — you see well — you lie — now I 
 will cut out your eyes, and you will not see to 
 run away again!" 
 
 There was no doubt that such was the pur- 
 pose of the warrior, as he advanced upon the 
 
THROUGH APACHE LAND. 169 
 
 lad, who suddenly thrust his hand into his 
 waistcoat for his revolver. 
 
 It was gone! 
 
 During the night it had dropped out without 
 being noticed, and he was absolutely defenseless. 
 He was breathless, paralyzed with terror. 
 
 *' Yes, I will cut out your e\^es, and then you 
 will not see to run away," added the chief, 
 striding toward him. 
 
 "Hold on thar, my copper-colored friend! This 
 'ere is a little row you kin settle with me, 
 instead of that boy thar. Try that knife on 
 my eyes, and while you're doing it, I'll try mine 
 on yourn." 
 
 It was Tom Hardynge, the scout, who spoke 
 thus opportunely. 
 
CHAPTER XX. 
 
 WHITE YS. RED. 
 
 The hunter seemed to step forth from some crev- 
 ice in the rocks, wherein he had been concealed, and 
 strode forward in such a manner that Lone 
 Wolf saw him at the ver}^ instant the first word 
 was uttered. 
 
 The latter withdrew his gaze from the boy 
 and turned with lightning like swiftness upon 
 his adversary, while, the latter, as cool and self- 
 possessed as if he were about to slice up an ante- 
 lope or buffalo, continued approaching with his 
 hunting knife firmly clasped in his right hand. 
 The Indian, perceiving the character of the fight, 
 flung his rifle several yards from him, where it 
 was beyond the reach of both, and recoiling a 
 single step, put himself in form to receive the 
 charge of his assailant. 
 
 '*Ned, my boy," said the latter, without look- 
 ing at him, "get back. There's no telling what 
 may happen." 
 
 170 
 
a*HROUCH APACHE LAND. 171 
 
 This was no more than a prudent caution. 
 The fight was over the boy, and if Lone Wolf 
 should find the battle going againvSt him, he 
 Tsrould resort to any treacherous trick by 
 w^hich to destroy the prize, — such, for instance, 
 as a sudden dart upon the unsuspecting specta- 
 tor and the plunging of his knife to his heart 
 before the active hunter could thwart him. Ned 
 obe3^ed his rescuer, whom he had never seen 
 before, and stepped back full a dozen yards 
 from the combatants, but with his eyes intently 
 fixed upon them. 
 
 Tom was not the man to advance blindly to 
 the assault, for none knew better than he did 
 the character of the foe he was about to assail. 
 When, therefore, he was just within striking 
 distance, he paused, and, with his grey eyes 
 centered upon the black, snake-like orbs of the 
 chief, began circling around him in a stealthy 
 cat-like movement, on the lookout for some 
 opening of which he might take advantage. 
 
 "Lone Wolf is a coward and a dog," he 
 growled between his set teeth. *'He fights with 
 pappooses, but he is afraid of men." 
 
 This was said with the sole purpose of exas- 
 perating the warrior, who would thus have 
 
1 72 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 been placed at a slight disadvantage; but he was 
 already like a concentrated volcano — calm out- 
 wardly, but surcharged with fire and death 
 within. The taunt did not move his nerves an 
 iota, and he replied in words which were scarcely 
 less irritating. 
 
 **It is the boasting dog which never hurts. If 
 Lone Wolf is a dog, wh^^ are you so afraid to 
 come within his reach?" 
 
 The words were yet in his mouth when the 
 scout dashed forward like a catapult and 
 struck a tremendous blow, driven with such 
 directness and swiftness that it could not have 
 been parried. At the very instant Hardynge 
 made the charge, Lone Wolf did the same, and 
 the two similar blows, aimed at the same 
 moment, encountered half way with such terri- 
 ble violence that both knives were hurled twenty 
 feet beyond over the cliff at their side, and irrev- 
 ocably beyond their reach. This left them with no 
 weapons except such as nature had provided 
 them with, and, now that their blood was up 
 and each was smarting under the pain of the 
 first collision, they immediately closed in and 
 grappled each other like a couple of infuriated 
 gladiators. 
 
THROUGH APACHE LAND. 173 
 
 Hardynge was a marvel of strength and 
 activit}', and so was the Apache. The two were 
 nearly evenW matched, a slight superiority in 
 wrestling attaching to the wdiite man, who, 
 after a furious struggle of a minute or so, flung 
 his antagonist as flat as could be, upon his 
 back. He struck like an India-rubber ball, and, 
 before Tom could fasten him down, so as to 
 hold him, bounded up again and renewed his 
 fight without a second's hesitation. 
 
 "The devil take you!" growled the maddened 
 hunter, as he let drive a sledgehammer-like 
 blow straight from the shoulder. 
 
 It encountered the chief fairly upon the fore- 
 head, with a force apparentl}^ sufficient to crush 
 his skull, but it only sent him reeling back several 
 paces, when his sinew^y activity saved him from 
 falling. AYith the same unhesitating promptness 
 he charged as before. 
 
 "If that skull ain't more than six inches thick, 
 it'll go this time," muttered Tom, as he gathered 
 all his strength and sent out his fist like the 
 thrust of a piston rod. 
 
 But Lone Wolf was expecting it and a quick 
 flirt of the head to one side let the mallet go 
 harmlessly b}^, while the impetus of his own blow 
 
174 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 threw Hardynge forward several steps, and nar- 
 rowly escaped carrying him off his feet alto- 
 gether. With an exasperating taunt the chief 
 landed a blow upon the face of his antagonist 
 as he shot by, and, catching him about the 
 shoulder before he could recover, flung him to 
 the ground with great violence, falling heavily 
 upon him. 
 
 Had the knife of the Apache been in his hand 
 at this juncture he would have ended the strug- 
 gle in short order; but he was without the 
 means of improving his advantage, and before 
 he knew it he was turned from the chest of the 
 prostrate man. And this critical moment, when 
 the issue of the contest was very doubtful, a 
 second figure came out from the rocks, and 
 approached the combatants. It was that of 
 Dick Morris, who coolly asked : 
 
 "Sha'n't I knock him on the head, Tom, and 
 end this little row ? " 
 
 "No," fairly shouted the enraged hunter, as 
 they hammered away at each other. '*If you 
 do it, I'll knock you on the head. This is a fair 
 and square fight in which the best man wins. 
 If I can't knock thunder and lightning out of 
 
THROUGH APACHE LAND. 175 
 
 this redskin, let him knock it out of me. Stand 
 back!" 
 
 **A11 right," replied Dick, very contentedly, 
 walking to where the enthralled Ned Chadmund 
 stood and asking him whether he wished to 
 stake a little wager on the result. 
 
 The appearance of this third party ended the 
 contest in a manner neither of the whites antici- 
 pated. The words of Tom Hardynge, declining 
 the assistance of his friend, were understood by 
 Lone Wolf;, but, treacherous and faithless him- 
 self, he regarded them as only a part of a trap 
 in which he was to be caught, and his whole 
 purpose was to get out of the dilemma as quickly 
 as possible. However hopeful he might be in a 
 single hand-to-hand encounter with one of the 
 men, he was not vain enough to think that he 
 could master both. In their struggling they had 
 approached quite close to the cliff, and Lone 
 Wolf made a determined attempt to throw Tom 
 over. By a little feinting and dodging, he man- 
 aged to get him between himself and the edge 
 and then began pressing him furiously. 
 
 "That's your game, is it?" exclaimed the 
 scout. "If it is, sail in, and may the best man 
 win.*' 
 
176 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 Both were striking very wildly, when, hastily 
 parrying several blows, Hardx^nge made a sud- 
 den rush, closed in, grasping the chief around 
 the waist, and, lifting him clear of the ground, 
 ran to the edge of the cliff and flung him over! 
 
 But Hardynge was outwitted. This was the very 
 thing for which Lone Wolf had maneuvered so slyly. 
 The cliff was not more than tw^entyfeet in height, 
 and when the hunter peered over the margin, 
 expecting to see his enemy dashed to pieces at 
 a great depth below, he saw him land as lightly 
 as a panther upon his feet and then whisk out 
 of sight among the rocks. 
 
 "Thunder and blazes!" he exclaimed, when he 
 comprehended the little trick that had been 
 played upon him. Jerking off his hat, he slammed 
 it impatiently to the ground, and turning to his 
 comrade, said: 
 
 *'Did you ever see a bigger fool than me?'* 
 
 ''Don't think I ever did," was the serious 
 reply. 
 
 *' Never thought what the Injun was after till 
 it was too late to hinder him." 
 
 "I knowed it all the time. This ere little chap 
 could have seed as much himself," was the tanta- 
 lizing reply. 
 
THROUGH ArACIIE LAND. 177 
 
 "Wh}' didn't you sing out, then, when you 
 seed me pick him up and start to throw him 
 over?" 
 
 "'Cause I thought you was only fooling. Do 
 you kno\y there's a rew^ard of fiye hundred dol- 
 lars offered for Lone Wolf, dead or aliye? See 
 what you have lost?" 
 
 "Who offered it?" demanded Tom. 
 
 "Colonel Chadmund told me that old Captain 
 Alyarez, that owrns a big ranch near Santa 
 Fe, lost a thousand cattle by a stampede that 
 he had got up, and he's the man that has 
 promised a hundred times to give that reward 
 to \yhoeyer \yipes out the chief." 
 
 "Anything else to tell?" said Hardynge, dis- 
 gustedly. 
 
 "Yes. When Colonel Chadmund told me that, 
 he punched me sl3'ly in the side, and sa^'s, 'And 
 3'es, Dick, I'll put another fiye hundred on top 
 of it.'" 
 
 "Hain't you got a little more such news?" 
 asked poor Tom, who was w^ondering whether 
 it was possible to feel any more angered or dis- 
 gusted with himself than he now felt. 
 
 "No — that'll do just now. I think you'ye had 
 enough." 
 
 X9 
 
CHAPTER XXI. 
 
 FRIENDS TOGETHER. 
 
 Up to this stage the two hunters had found 
 no opportunity to pay much heed to Ned, who 
 had been rescued so narrowly from horrible 
 cruelty. Tom Hardynge now advanced to where 
 he stood, and thrust out his hand, his face one 
 broad grin. 
 
 "How are ye, my lad? We've had a long 
 tramp for ye, and come mighty nigh bein' too 
 late." 
 
 ^'HavQ you been looking for me?" asked the 
 boy, in amazement. 
 
 "Yes, sir, we've been on the hunt for some 
 days." 
 
 "How is that?" 
 Dick Morris briefly explained how Colonel 
 Chadmund had received v^arnlng through a friendly 
 Indian runner of the projected massacre of the 
 cavalry escort. Knowing that it was impos- 
 sible to forward reinforcements to them in 
 time, and that Lone Wolf w^as aiming specially 
 
 178 
 
THROUGH APACHE LAND. 179 
 
 to get his hands upon his little boy, he had 
 sent Dick post-haste with orders to intercept 
 Tom, if possible, and both had been instructed 
 to secure possession of the lad by any possible 
 means in their power. 
 
 After a cautious investigation at the outset, 
 when they arrived at Devil's Pass, they found 
 that the massacre had taken place almost twenty- 
 four hours before. The sight was a terrible one, such 
 as made even them shudder. The horses and 
 soldiers lay scattered here and there, just as 
 they fell. The beasts of the forest had offered 
 them no disturbance, probabh^ because there 
 were more inviting feasts elsewhere. But in the 
 w^arm summer air the blood}-, hacked faces were 
 discolored and swollen beyond recognition. The 
 hunters rode carefully along, and counted the 
 whole thirteen, and when they found the over- 
 turned and w-recked ambulance and the dead 
 horse a short distance bej'ond they were able to 
 hit the right theory. It was in this carriage 
 that young Chadmund had been riding when he 
 was captured, and the scouts set out at once 
 upon the trail of the Apache war-party. 
 
 It was all eas}' enough to follow the war- 
 riors, but Tom and Dick were hopelessly puz- 
 
180 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 zled when they came up with the redskins, saw 
 Lone Wolf and his brother warriors, and made 
 the discovery that the boy was not wdth them. 
 It was a most trying problem to them — the only 
 solution being that they had grown impatient 
 with the boy and put him to death; andyet,asthe 
 trail had been followed and narrowly watched, it 
 seemed impossible that such a thing should have 
 taken place without the pursuers finding it out 
 before this. Dick Morris suggested that the 
 captive, by some providential interference, had 
 managed to give them the slip, but Tom could 
 not believe it among the possibilities. If such 
 were the case, there w^ere no means of learning 
 when or where it had been done, and the scouts 
 were as completely cut off from pursuit of the 
 boy as were the Apaches themselves. 
 
 In this dilemma there was little to do except 
 to make a general hunt for him, keeping all the 
 time v^ithin striking distance of the Apaches, as 
 they did not think that the fugitive could have 
 gotten very far from them. The hunters carefully 
 secreted their animals, and tramped over the 
 mountains and through ravines, gorges, and 
 woods, until, on this eventful forenoon they 
 discovered lyon^ Wolf ahead of them, acting as 
 
THROUGH APACHE LANO. l8l 
 
 though he had detected something particularly 
 gratif\Mng. The shrewd scouts suspected the 
 truth on the instant. The Apache was also 
 searching for the lad, and, guided by a greater 
 knowledge, had discovered him. And so he 
 crouched down in the rocks, not knowing that 
 two other figures shortly after crouched behind 
 him. Then, after the story had been told, 
 as the three moved off together, Dick Morris 
 having picked up the rifle which Lone Wolf cast 
 from him as the contest was about to open, 
 Ned Cliadmund gave him his version of that 
 terrible attack and slaughter in Devil's Pass, 
 and of what had followed since. When he came 
 to explain the clever manner in which he 
 dodged the Apaches, his listeners were delighted. 
 Dick slapped him upon the back, and Tom 
 insisted upon shaking hands again. It was a 
 favorite way the old fellow had of expressing 
 his overwhelming delight at an3"thing he saw or 
 heard. 
 
 "If you'll put yourself under our trainin'," he 
 added, "we'll make a hunter of ye in the course 
 of a dozen or fifteen years, more or less." 
 
 But Ned had no interest in hunting matters 
 just then. He wanted to get out of that dan- 
 
182 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 gerous neighborhood, and to reach Fort Havens 
 with as little delay as possible. 
 
 "How far is it?" he asked, as the trio moved 
 along the trail. 
 
 **We can make it in two or three days, I 
 think," said Tom. "Some parts of the way, 
 though, is rather rough, and it may take us 
 longer." 
 
 "You don't expect to walk it, do you?" 
 They assured him that they had no intention 
 of doing any such thing. Their horses were 
 secreted in a gorge about three miles distant, 
 and as soon as they could be reached they 
 would mount them and speed away for Fort 
 Havens. 
 
 "And we'll do it, too, at a gait that'll beat 
 any mustang that Lone Wolf has ever strad- 
 dled," added Dick, exultingly. "When a chap 
 goes into the Injun country, he must fetch the 
 best lioss flesh he can steal." 
 
 "But I haven't any horse," said Ned, v^ith a 
 laugh. "What's to become of me when you're 
 riding?" 
 
 Tom explained that there could be no difficulty 
 about that. Such a trifling additional weight 
 would not be suspected by either of the animals. 
 
THROUGH APACHE LAND. 183 
 
 ''Where do you svij^pose Lone Wolf is?" asked 
 the boy, looking furtively around, unable to 
 free himself of the belief that they were not 
 through with him yet. 
 
 ''He's gone back to his party; they've split 
 since you left 'em. About thirty started yester- 
 day forenoon for the Apache villages to the 
 south'ard, and the tother twenty are in camp 
 off here a mile or so." 
 
 As Tom spoke, he pointed to the west, in 
 among the mountains, and in a direction at 
 right angles to what he was pursuing himself. 
 
 "Our road twists round a little," he added, 
 "and when we get to where we left the animals, 
 we'll be 'bout as far away from the Apaches as 
 we are now. What's better, there's some mighty 
 rough travelin' between us and them, such as no 
 bosses can git over." 
 
 "But Indians can, can't they?'* 
 
 "I rather guess so. What's the matter, my 
 boy?" asked Tom, looking down upon him as 
 they picked along. "You're talkin' as if you 
 was thinkin' 'bout Injuns all the time." 
 
 "That's what I've had to do for the last three 
 or four days. Lone Wolf managed to get away 
 
184 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 from you, and where do you think he is? What 
 do you think he means to do?'* 
 
 As the boy asked this question, he glanced 
 around in such a timid, apprehensive way, that 
 his companions laughed. It was natural that 
 the lad should have these misgivings, especially 
 as it seemed to him that his friends were using 
 no precautions at all to prevent a treacherous 
 surprise upon the part of the Apaches. To 
 relieve his fears, they convinced him that they 
 were on the alert, and did not fail to note every- 
 thing. 
 
 Thc}^ expected, in the natural course of events, 
 that Lone Wolf would make all haste back to 
 camp, and take every means of revenging himself 
 and securing possession of the boy again. Indeed, 
 this was all he could do. He had no rifle with 
 which to fire a stealthy shot at them, and it was 
 necessary that he should first return to his 
 warriors before striking a blow. To do all this 
 required time sufiicient to permit the three to 
 reach the gorge, mount their animals, and get 
 fairly under v^ay before he and his warriors 
 could possibly put in an appearance. Tom and 
 Dick, therefore, could not be accused of undue 
 recklessness in taking matters in such a leisurely 
 
THROUGH APACHE LAND. 185 
 
 fashion. They assured their young friend still 
 further that they were on the eastern margin of 
 the prairie, and, after starting with their mus- 
 tangs, had a clear, open course before them. 
 
 It was somewhat past noon when they 
 entered the ravine, which had already been 
 described to Ned, and, while the latter remained 
 to talk with Morris, Tom moved on further and 
 down in a more secluded place, in quest of their 
 mustangs, which had been left grazing upon the 
 rich, succulent grass, beside a running stream of 
 mountain water. All were in high spirits, and 
 our hero was as buoyant and cheerful as the 
 others, when they saw their friend returning 
 empty-handed. 
 
 ^•What's up?'' asked Dick. 
 
 "The Injuns have stole our mustangs!'* 
 
 "Sure?" 
 
 "Yes — plenty of moccasin tracks — but not a 
 cussed sign of a single hoss," was the sour 
 reply. 
 
CHAPTER XXII. 
 
 ANXIOUS WAITING. 
 
 This was astounding news, indeed, and for a 
 few minutes the two veteran hunters were com- 
 pletely taken back. They had considered the 
 place where their animals were picketed as being 
 so secure that the contingency of losing them 
 ^was not thought of until it came upon them with 
 the suddenness mentioned. 
 
 ''They didn't find them themselves," growled 
 Tom, as if determined on finding consolation 
 in that fact; *' they've stumbled onto 'em acci- 
 dental-like, and then rid off, as though they 
 were smart enough to be reg'lar hoss-thieves." 
 
 *'Have you seen the trail?" asked Dick. 
 
 *'Yes." 
 
 "Whereaway does it lead?" 
 The hunter replied by pointing toward the 
 northwest, among the hills and mountains in 
 the wildest portion of the country. 
 
 A hurried consultation now took place between 
 them, and it ^was resolved to recover the two 
 
 186 
 
THROUGH APACHE LAND. 187 
 
 mustangs. They counted it easy to secure a 
 couple of the Indian ponies; but among them 
 all were none which, in their own estimation, 
 could compare with their own, and they were 
 determined not to leave the country until they 
 were regained. The most skillful Apache may 
 succeed in hiding his own trail at times, but he 
 cannot cover that of his horse so that the 
 trained scout will fail to find it. 
 
 It was found that the mustangs had been rid- 
 den away without being accompanied by other 
 animals. The number of moccasin tracks at a 
 certain point showed that a party of warriors 
 had accidentally detected the animals, each of 
 which was mounted by a single Indian and rid- 
 den away, the warriors taking altogether a dif- 
 ferent direction. This simplified matters, and 
 was not displeasing to Dick and Tom, for tw^o of 
 these active redskins could, as a matter of 
 course, be circumvented with much more ease 
 than could ten times that number. 
 
 Accompanied by Ned, the hunters led the way 
 up out of the hollow, crossed as it was by the 
 stream of icy cold and clear water and covered 
 with the richest grass, and entered a more 
 rocky section, where the horses must have expe- 
 
188 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 rienced considerable difficulty in traveling, as 
 
 numerous places showed where their hoofs had 
 
 slipped upon the stones. 
 "We can beat them on that," said Dick, when 
 
 they had trailed them for a short distance. 
 
 ''They can't be many hours ahead of us, and 
 
 when we do catch up with 'em, Tom, we '11 warm 
 
 'em; what do you say.'"' 
 Tom nodded his head to signify that he agreed 
 
 with these sentiments exactly, and the trio 
 pressed forward harder than ever. 
 
 There were many places in which the thieves 
 had progressed with no little trouble, and their 
 pursuers, unimpeded by the mustangs, were gain- 
 ing rapidly upon them ; but this by no means 
 insured success. A hundred difficulties remained 
 in the way, and the most that the two hunters 
 could hope was that the two Apaches had no 
 suspicion of being followed. If they believed 
 themselves secure, it followed as a matter of 
 course that they would take no precautions 
 against any surprise from the rear. The hunters 
 went forward at a rate which was exceedingly 
 trying to Ned, but he bravely held up until 
 something like a mile was passed, when Tom, 
 who acted as a leader, suddenly paused. 
 
THROUGH APACHE LAND. 189 
 
 "We must wait here till we make an observa- 
 tion," said he, in a low tone. *'T take it that 
 we aren't yqvj for from the scamps, and we 
 must look out and not spile the whole thing 
 when we've got it all in shape." 
 
 For the entire distance they had been steadily 
 advancing upon higher ground, and having now 
 reached the culminating point, it was necessary 
 to look ahead and learn whither they were 
 going before making any rash venture into an 
 entirely different section. While Dick and Ned, 
 therefore, remained where they were, Tom stole 
 cautiously forward for some distance further, 
 until he reached a high, flat rock, the edge of 
 which he approached on his hands and knees, 
 and stealthily peered over. 
 
 Only a few seconds did he spend thus when he 
 began retrograding, like a crab. 
 
 "I think I've hit the spot," he said in an under- 
 tone, as he rejoined his friends. "There's a sort of 
 path which leads down into the lower country, 
 and as that's the only way the hosses can travel, 
 it follers that they must have gone that way. 
 That 'ere place that I w^as speakin' of goes 
 down into a spot a good deal like the one where 
 we expected to find the animiles and didn't, and 
 
190 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 there's where I think we'll find 'em awaitin* 
 for us." 
 
 "Do you see any sign?" inquired Dick. 
 
 "Not yet; they wouldn't be likely to kindle a 
 camp fire at this time of day, and afore they 
 jined the others. Come ahead, we must be 
 mighty keerful now, when we're gettin' so 
 close." 
 
 As before, Tom took the lead, and they 
 advanced wnth the greatest caution. If the 
 Apaches had any fear of being followed, they 
 were very likely to detect the men stealing 
 down upon them ; but much reliance was placed 
 upon the likelihood of their holding no such 
 suspicion. 
 
 The afternoon was half gone when the 
 locality pointed out by Hardy nge w^as reached, 
 and the three halted again. As soon as they 
 had concealed themselves Tom continued his 
 reconnoissance, making it with such care that 
 he consumed fully a half hour before concluding 
 it. When he reappeared, with the silence of a 
 shadow, he whispered: 
 
 "They're there — both of 'em." 
 He explained that he had approached close 
 enoiigh to recognize his own animal as well as 
 
THROUGH APACHE LAND. 191 
 
 Dick's. He saw nothing more, not even an 
 Indian, but it followed, of course, that they 
 were near at hand. From this point forward, 
 therefore, the presence of the lad could be noth- 
 ing but an incumbrance, and it was agreed 
 that he should stay where he was until the 
 animals were recaptured, when he could ride 
 away with one of them. 
 
 "Remember, the varmints are close onto you," 
 said Tom, by way of caution; ''and you must 
 keep mighty shady. Don't go to crawling 
 about, and trying to peep into what's none of 
 your business." ' 
 
 The boy promised obedience, and the two left 
 him. As near as he could judge he was within a 
 hundred yards of the camp of the horse thieves, 
 and there "was no certainty that, if they discov- 
 ered the approach of the hunters, they might 
 take a course which would bring them back 
 over the same path. So, to avoid any unpleas- 
 ant discovery, he crept in beneath some dense 
 shrubbery, where he felt secure against obser- 
 vation, and anxiously awaited the result. 
 
 Ned had not been in this place of concealment 
 five minutes, when he was startled by a slight 
 noise behind him, such as would be made by 
 
192 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 the cautious approach of some person or crea- 
 ture. He turned his head, but his view was too 
 much obstructed by the vegetation around him. 
 The shght disturbance continued until Ned's curi- 
 osity got the better of his judgment, and he 
 stealthily parted the leaves with one hand suffi- 
 ciently to permit him to see out. 
 
 As he dreaded, he detected an Indian warrior, 
 whose actions indicated that he knew what 
 was going on. He was stepping along as if 
 fearful that the slight rustling would catch the 
 ears of parties w^ho were far beyond the range 
 of hearing. Fortunately for Ned, at the moment 
 he looked forth in this stealthy manner the 
 Apache afforded only what may be termed a 
 three-quarter view, having passed slightly' 
 beyond where he was hidden ; and, as he continued 
 to move in the same direction, nothing but his 
 back was visible a few minutes afterward. But 
 the lad saw enough to render him uneasy. At 
 first glimpse he took the Indian to be Lone Wolf, 
 but he caught sight of enough of his visage to 
 make certain that it was another warrior alto- 
 gether; but he was large, powerful, and very 
 formidable looking, and Ned dreaded an encoun- 
 ter between him and one of the hunters, 
 
THROUGH APACHE LAND. 193 
 
 Curionsly enough, he carried no gun with him, 
 and, as the boy still retained possession of Lone 
 Wolf's, it seemed to young Chadmund that he 
 could want no better opportunity of wiping out 
 one of those pestilent redskins. With this pur- 
 pose in view he cautiously shoved the end ol 
 the weapon through the bushes, and aimed at 
 the back of the warrior, who, at that moment, 
 could not have been more than a dozen yards 
 from him. There could be no mistaking a tar- 
 get so conspicuous and so close at hand; but 
 when the aim was sure and Ned's finger was 
 pressing the trigger, he restrained himself by the 
 self-imposed question whether it was right to 
 pick off a foe, savage though he was, in that 
 fashion. He was well aware that no mercy 
 would have been shown him had the position 
 been reversed; still, he could not justify- in his 
 own mind an act that looked so much like 
 murder. 
 
 "No," said he, when this inward conflict had 
 continued a minute or so. **I s'pose Tom and 
 Dick would laugh at me if they knew how I 
 acted; but T don't believe father would like to 
 have me fight that way. Anyhow, m^^ con- 
 science don't, so I won't." 
 
 13 
 
CHAPTER XXIII. 
 
 THE DEATH SHOT. 
 
 It took Ned about a minnte to reach his 
 merciful conclusion and to lower the hammer of 
 his gun. This done, he looked out to see how 
 the Indian was getting along. To his amaze- 
 ment nothing was seen of him. He had van- 
 ished as suddenly as if the ground had opened 
 and swallowed him up. Wondering what it all 
 could mean, the boy rose to his feet, and peered 
 out, parting the bushes still more and advanc- 
 ing a little from his concealment. The ground 
 was quite level, covered here and there with 
 boulders and a scrubby undergrowth, but there 
 was nothing to be seen of the w^arrior. During 
 the second or two occupied in lowering the ham- 
 mer of his rifle, the Apache had disappeared, 
 flashing out, so to speak, into nothingness. 
 
 ** That's mighty queer," reflected Ned, as he 
 resumed his seat under the bushes. "I know 
 those redskins are prettv lively, but I didn't 
 
 194 
 
THROUGH APACHE LAND. 195 
 
 think they could get up and leave as fast as 
 that." 
 
 There was something in the manner of this 
 thing which alarmed him. The Apache, when 
 last seen, was advancing carefully in the direc- 
 tion taken by the scouts. Why this sudden 
 diversion? What did it mean but that the red- 
 skin had made an important discovery, and 
 what could that discovery be but that he was 
 threatened by danger from the rear? Such being 
 the case, it followed that the peril had been 
 transferred from one to the other. Instead of 
 the lad threatening the Indian it was vice versa. 
 
 ''1 bet he'll be back here,'' was the conclusion 
 of our hero, as he once more raised the hammer 
 of his gun. "He must have heard me when I 
 moved the bushes, and he'll be trying some of 
 his tricks upon me." 
 
 He concluded that if the Indian made him a 
 visit it would be from another direction, and so 
 he shifted his position somew^hat, managing to 
 face the other way, while he kept all his senses 
 on the qui vive for the hostile visit which he 
 was confident would not be long delayed. At 
 the same time he had a strong hope that the 
 scouts w^ould return in time to prevent any such 
 
196 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 encounter as he pictured in his own mind, and 
 which he thoroughly dreaded. 
 
 In his excited mental condition it was impos- 
 sible to judge accurately of the passage of time, 
 but it seemed to him that he had been in wait- 
 ing fully fifteen minutes, yet not the slightest 
 sound reached him from that direction. The lad 
 remained in a state of suspense which was 
 intensified by his fears of a flank movement 
 upon the part of the Apache whom he had seen 
 but a short time before. 
 
 "It must take them a long time to make a 
 reconnoissance — " 
 
 He suddenly ceased, for his ear, more than 
 usually alert, caught a slight but suspicious 
 sound, and quick as a flash he turned his head. 
 He was not an instant too soon, for there was 
 the crouching figure of the Apache warrior, no 
 more than a dozen feet distant, his gleaming 
 knife clutched in his right hand, and his eyes 
 fairly aflame with passion. He was not moving 
 along inch b^^ inch, but with that soft gliding 
 motion, which was more like the approach of a 
 serpent than of a person. 
 
 Ned still held his rifle with the hammer raised, 
 and ready for just such an emergency. Partly 
 
THROUGH APACHE LAND. 197 
 
 expecting the visit, he was fully prepared. When 
 he turned his head and encountered the iraze of 
 the Indian, the latter gave utterance to a low 
 gutteral exclamation, and started more rapidlv 
 toward him. 
 
 *'I( you must have it, there it is.'* 
 The flash from the muzzle of the rifle was 
 almost in the face of the Apache, who, with a 
 death-shriek horrible to hear, threw both arms 
 above his head, and, with a spasmodic twitch- 
 ing of the limbs, breathed his last in a single 
 breath. 
 
 Ned w^as scarcely less terrified than the red- 
 skin must have been at the first flash of the 
 gun; and, forgetful of the warning of the scouts, 
 he leaped out from beneath the bushes, and 
 dashed away in the direction taken b^^ his 
 friends. 
 
 He had run but a rod or two when he suddenly 
 found himself face to face with Tom Hardynge, 
 who demanded, in a hurried undertone: 
 
 "What's up, now?" 
 
 "I've just shot an Indian." 
 
 "Did you w4pe him out?" 
 
 "Oh, yes; oh, j^es." 
 
198 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 ''Then what are you running away from him 
 for? If you've wiped him out, he can't hurt 
 you." 
 
 "But I don't want to stay near him," added 
 the lad, who was in a distressing state of 
 anxiety; "take me away." 
 
 "That's just what I'm going to do," replied 
 the hunter, turning about and hurrying off. 
 "Keep close to me and I will take care of you." 
 
 Instead of retracing their steps, they kept 
 ahead, and a short distance further on made an 
 abrupt turn and suddenly came upon Dick 
 Morris, seated upon the back of his mustang, 
 with Thundergust, as Tom cnlled him, standing 
 near, and a third one visible in the background. 
 
 "Whose is that?" asked the astonished boy. 
 
 "We fetched him for 3-ou. Come, bounce upon 
 his back and let's be off." 
 
 The animal alluded to was a handsome black 
 pony, spirited and fieet, with a valuable blanket 
 strapped to its back, and a leathern bridle-rein. 
 He showed some opposition to Ned's mounting 
 him, but with the assistance of Tom he quieted 
 down and showed as much docility as the 
 others. 
 
THROUGH APACHE LAND. 199 
 
 The hunters, in approaching the camp, used as 
 much care and deliberation as if they were cer- 
 tain that there were a hundred of the fiercest 
 warriors there. They speedily learned, however, 
 that there were but the two Indian horse thieves, 
 who, in bringing the plunder to that place, had 
 returned to the spot where their own animals 
 had been left previous to their starting out upon 
 the raid. 
 
 The Apaches were entirely unsuspicious of an^^ 
 pursuit, and they were lolling upon the ground 
 at such a distance from the mustangs, that the 
 three were secured without much trouble. Dick 
 Morris insisted upon sailing in and clearing out 
 the two marauders; but Tom was equally stren- 
 uous in demanding that they should not be dis- 
 turbed. He w^as certain there were other war- 
 riors near by, and any such attempt would com- 
 plicate matters. Accordingly they stole away 
 with their recaptured animals and the one which 
 was not exactly recaptured, and as soon as a 
 convenient spot was selected Hardynge turned 
 back for the boy, encountering him on the way. 
 
 Since all three were mounted upon good beasts 
 they made all haste possible to leave the section, 
 
200 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 which beyond all question was a most danger- 
 ous one in every sense. 
 
 The trio had several important advantages on 
 their side. Although the Apaches were on every 
 hand, and doubtless would make an attempt to 
 revenge themselves upon the hunters, yet it was 
 already growing dark, and between now and 
 morning the Caucasians could accomplish a 
 great deal. Furthermore, the^^ were close to the 
 prairie, reaching which, they had all the oppor- 
 tunity they could desire to leave their enemies 
 behind. In a fair trial of speed, neither of the 
 hunters had any misgivings as to the fleetness of 
 their animals, even if it should become necessary 
 to place the additional weight of the lad upon 
 one. Still, the route was difficult, and in many 
 places it seemed almost impos-;ible to make 
 their way along, the horses stumbling, and on 
 one or two occasions the party came to a dead 
 halt. 
 
 But Tom Hardynge had been there before, 
 and insisted each time there was some way out 
 of the difficulty without turning back. Dis- 
 mounting from his animal he groped around 
 for a tew minutes in the dark, and on every 
 occasion called out in an undertone that he had 
 
THROUGH APACHE LAND. 201 
 
 found the path. In this manner they kept it up 
 for a couple of hours, when the route became 
 much more easy to travel. Occasionally they 
 paused and listened and looked, but nothing 
 threatening was discovered. Quite a distance on 
 the left, the twinkle of a camp fire was discerned, 
 but it was so distant that it gave no concern. 
 All remained quiet in the rear, though pursuit 
 from that quarter was to be expected. 
 
 The three rode along in silence for something 
 like half an hour longer, when Hardynge, who 
 was slightl}' in advance, abruptly reined up his 
 steed and said : 
 
 "We're through the mountains. There's the 
 prairie afore us." 
 
CHAPTER XXIV. 
 
 THE BUFFALOES. 
 
 The moon was now well up in the skv% and 
 the members of the party were enabled to dis- 
 cern objects at a greater distance than at any 
 time since starting. When Tom Hardynge 
 announced that they had passed through this 
 spur of mountains, the three instinctively turned 
 their eyes to the westward, where the prairie 
 stretched away until it vanished in the gloom. 
 
 "There's a clean hundred miles or more of 
 level plain," added the hunter. "I've traveled 
 it many a time and I ought to know." 
 
 "You're right," said Dick. "That's a good 
 sweep of prairie, and we ought to make good 
 time over it, for our horses have had a long 
 rest." 
 
 "There's only one thing that troubles me," 
 ventured Ned Chadmund, when the heads of all 
 their animals were turned westward; "I'm so 
 hungry and faint that I can hardly sit on my 
 horse." 
 
 202 
 
THROUGH APACHE LAND. 203 
 
 ** That's bad," vSaid Tom, feelingly. '*I never 
 thought of tliat when we had a good chance 
 among the mountains to fetch down some game. 
 We ain't apt to run agin anythin' in the hash 
 line while riding along on the prairie; but we'll 
 try it, and if we don't we'll turn off to a little 
 spot where I know wx shall hit it." 
 
 Ned expressed his willingness to do this, and 
 the conipan\^ started. Instead of going in 
 Indian file, as they had done w^hile among the 
 mountains, the^^ rode side by side at an easy 
 swinging gallop, the prairie lightening up as 
 they advanced, and the surface continuing of 
 the same impact character, which rendered it 
 the most favorable possible for horseback rid- 
 ing. To one w^ho, like the boy, had tramped 
 and trudged along until scarceU^ able to stand, 
 this change w^as of the most pleasing character. 
 He felt comfortable and anxious to ride ahead 
 for hours, the only draw^back being that gnaw- 
 ing hunger, that weary faintncss, which could 
 only be dissipated by food. 
 
 Occasionally, w'hile riding along in this man- 
 ner, the three would halt and listen, and then, 
 when certain that they heard nothing, move on 
 
204 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 again. This was repeated several times, until 
 the two hunters remained motionless longer than 
 usual. When Ned asked the cause of this, Tom 
 replied by asking him whether he heard any- 
 thing. He answered that he did not. 
 
 **I hear it," added the scout, as he dismounted 
 and applied his ear to the ground. 
 
 "What do 3^ou make it?" inquired Dick. 
 
 "Can't tell." 
 Hardy nge remained standing beside his steed 
 for several minutes, looking off to the south- 
 ward, and then he knelt down and bent his ear 
 to the ground again. 
 
 "It is off yonder," he added, pointing to the 
 southward, and leaping at the same time upon 
 the back of his mustang. 
 
 Ned listened to catch some explanation; but 
 at this interesting juncture, for some reason 
 only known to themselves, the two men began 
 talking in the Indian tongue. It was interesting- 
 to hear their gutteral exclamations, but it would 
 have been much more interesting could he have 
 understood what they were saying, and to know 
 why it was, when talking, that they laughed 
 and looked meaningly toward him. The lad 
 
THROUGH APACHE LAND. 205 
 
 affected not to notice all this, although it piqued 
 his curiosity' not a little. 
 
 A half mile more was ridden at a leisurely gait, 
 when all three drew up their mustangs, and 
 Dick Alorris looked meaningly at their young 
 comrade. 
 
 "Do you hear an\'thing now?^^ 
 Yes, there could beno mistaking it, faint though 
 it was. All three sat motionless and listened. At 
 first, it might have been taken for the far-off 
 rumble of thunder— a fluttering, distant rattle, 
 such as is occasionally heard during the hot sum- 
 mer months. It was not exactly of that char- 
 acter, either, being more like a continuous rat- 
 tle, coming from some point man^^ miles away. 
 
 ''What do 3'ou suppose it is?" asked Tom, of 
 the lad. 
 
 "I never heard anything like it before. What 
 is it?" 
 
 "Does it sound like the tramp of animals?" 
 
 "Not much, it seems to me. It can't be 
 that." 
 
 "That's just what it is." 
 Ned started. 
 
 "So it is — so it is. I can notice it now. I hear 
 
206 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 the vsound of horses hoofs on the prairie. The 
 sound is growing more distinct, too, and they 
 must be coming this way, Tom. Is that so?" 
 
 **That'sjust what's the matter. We'll see 'em 
 all inside of half an hour, unless we turn tail 
 and run." 
 
 "Let's do it, then, for there can't be much 
 time to spare." 
 
 The hunters showed no disposition to flee from 
 the danger approaching, and Ned began to grow 
 alarmed. 
 
 *'Why do you stay here?" he asked. ''If 
 your horses are so fleet that no one can catch 
 them, what is the use of letting them do it?" 
 
 "Don't get scart, my boy," returned Tom 
 Hardynge. "We'll take care of you." 
 
 He much preferred that the\^ should all take 
 care of themselves by giving their animals the 
 rein and permitting the Apaches to make no 
 nearer approach. But the scouts were obstinate 
 and remained as motionless as statues. The 
 tramping of myriad feet came nearer and nearer, 
 until the sound partook of one general, thunder- 
 ous undertone of the most trying character to 
 the lad. It seemed to him so much like suicide 
 
THROUGH APACHE LAND. 207 
 
 —this waiting for a terrible danger as it steadily 
 approached— that he was strongly tempted to 
 start his horse away on his own account. 
 
 "Look!" called out Morris, pointing toward 
 the southwest. 
 
 Following the direction indicated, the lad saw 
 what appeared to be a heavy cloud lying low 
 down in the horizon, but creeping slowly upward, 
 like the sulphurous vapor that sometimes hovers 
 over a battle field. 
 
 ''What is it?" he asked, terrified, knowing 
 that it was not the presage of a storm such as 
 sometimes sweeps over the prairies. 
 
 There was something strange and unnatural 
 in its appearance, accompanied, as it was, by 
 the tremulous, thunderous rumbling. By and by, 
 as this uproar came nearer and nearer, a still 
 more curious sight presented itself. The prairie 
 seemed agitated, trembling and quivering with 
 a peculiar, wave-like motion, such as the ocean 
 shows when it is subsiding after a severe storm. 
 There was a sea, a living sea, spreading tumultu- 
 ously over the plain. Dark, heaving masses 
 were constantl^^ verging nearer, as they moved 
 rapidly toward the northeast. Suddenly light 
 broke in upon the mind of Ned Chadmund. 
 
208 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 •'I know what it is!" he exclaimed. "They 
 are buffaloes." 
 
 **Correct," assented Tom, with a laugh. ''They 
 are passing pretty close, but we're out of their 
 way." 
 
 The buffaloes surged so near to where the three 
 horsemen stood that more than once Ned started 
 with a I'ear that they would be overwhelmed; 
 but the hunters showed such calmness and self- 
 possession that he was reassured. All at once a 
 furious trampling was heard, and two of the 
 animals that had become separated from the 
 others in some way, dashed directly by the 
 horsemen and out upon the prairie. 
 
 "Now, Ned," called out Tom; "there's 3^our 
 chance! Take that head one! He will make you 
 a good supper if you can fetch him down!" 
 
 The lad and his animal were seized with a 
 sudden inspiration seemingly at the same time. 
 Just as the heart of the young hunter swelled 
 with a wild desire to bring down the noble game, 
 the mustang bounded away in pursuit of the 
 very buffalo which had been indicated by the 
 trapper. As the rider saw himself drawing 
 rapidly near the huge body, lumbering awk- 
 
THROUGH APACHE LAND. 209 
 
 wardly but rapidly along, he was seized with a 
 fluttering which, perhaps was natural, but which, 
 unless overcome, was fatal to any hopes of 
 procuring any supper. The mustang drew 
 steadily nearer, Ned's agitation increasing every 
 minute, until pursuer and pursued were running 
 side by side. 
 
 This was the critical moment w^hen the rider 
 should have fired, and when the horse had been 
 taught to expect him to do so; but when our 
 hero raised the heavy Indian gun to his shoulder, 
 his trembling, together with the jolting of his 
 mustang, now upon a dead run, told him that 
 it would be useless to fire, w^hen the only chance 
 of hitting his prey w^as by the merest accident. 
 Accordingly, he lowered his gun, in the hopes of 
 quieting his nerves, so as to bring himself up to 
 the self-appointed task. As he did so, his horse 
 began sh\'ing off from the buffalo. He was 
 afraid of the horns of the enraged creature, and 
 having given him all the opportunity he could 
 expect, he was not willing to keep him company 
 any longer. The paths continued to diverge until 
 they were twenty yards apart, when the mus- 
 tang appeared to think all danger was passed. 
 
 14, 
 
210 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 By this time Ned Chadmund felt that he was 
 master of himself, and he turned the head of his 
 horse toward the immense fugitive, still gliding 
 forward at the same terrific rate. 
 
 "I'll fetch him this time," he muttered, with a 
 determined air. 
 
CHAPTER XXV. 
 
 ALONE AGAIN. 
 
 The mustatig, trained as he was to this sort 
 of hunting, steadily drew up again to the buf- 
 falo, which was plunging forward with unabated 
 speed, while Ned held his rifle ready to fire 
 whenever the critical moment should come. He 
 concluded that the proper place at which to aim 
 was the head, and, drawing his gun to his 
 shoulder, he did not hesitate, although he knew 
 the aim was an3'thing but a good one. It struck 
 the bison beyond all question, but did no more 
 than irritate him; for, without any other warn- 
 ing than a sudden lowering of the head, he 
 wheeled, and turned directly upon the horse, 
 with the evident purpose of disemboweling him. 
 
 But the latter had seen this sort of business 
 before, and was prepared for it. 
 
 Without attempting to turn to the one side 
 or the other, or to check his speed in the least, 
 he made a terrific flying leap upward, going 
 clear over the head of the buffalo, landing upon 
 
 211 
 
212 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 the other side, and continuing his flight at his 
 leisure, as it may be said. 
 
 This was a clever trick of the mustang, but it 
 proved the undoing of his rider, who had no 
 other saddle than the Indian blanket strapped 
 to the horse's back. This was good enough, 
 except in such a sudden emergency as the pres- 
 ent, when Ned was entirely unprepared for it. 
 It was done in a twinkling, the end oF it being 
 that he found himself lying upon the green 
 sward of the prairie, considerabh^ bruised, and 
 with horse and buffalo rapidly speeding from 
 view. 
 
 "This is a go," said the lad, rising to his feet 
 and looking about him. "I don't see where the 
 fun of buffalo hunting comes in." 
 
 During the minutes of excitement when the 
 mustang was coursing with such speed over the 
 prairie, the rider had no idea of the direction 
 taken, nor could he conjecture how far he had 
 gone; but the result was that he was separated 
 b\^ a much greater distance than he supposed 
 from his friends. Ned stood and gazed carefully 
 about him. Off to the west were the dust, and 
 thousands upon thousands of buffaloes. The 
 latter were too far removed to be distinguished, 
 
THROUGH APACHE LAND. 213 
 
 but tliat tramping and the heavy cloud indicated 
 where the mass of life was plunging tumultuously 
 forward toward some destination unknown 
 even to themselves. Nothing was to be seen of 
 the hunters. They had sent the lad off on this 
 hunt on purpose to give him a taste of buffalo 
 hunting, not supposing, of course, that any acci- 
 dent would result. 
 
 "What shall I do?" was the question the boy 
 asked himself, as he stood, rifle in hand, and 
 looked around him. "It there was some wa}- in 
 wdiich I could get a good supper, I wouldn't mind 
 this camping out, for Tom and Dick will be sure 
 to hnd me in the morning." 
 
 Looking toward the north, he fancied that 
 he dimly discerned the dark outline of something 
 wdiich resembled a grove of trees, and he turned 
 his footsteps in that direction. 
 
 "If the\^ are trees," he reflected, as he trudged 
 along, "it s more than likely there's water there, 
 and now that I've got a gun, I've some chance 
 of shooting something; and that reminds me of 
 poor Corporal Hugg's w^arning, always to reload 
 mj' gun the first thing after firing it." 
 
 He had enough sense to carrv out this resolu- 
 tion on the spot, and then he resumed his jour- 
 
214 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 lie}' in the direction of the object that had 
 attracted his attention. A short distance Inr- 
 ther he was j)leased to find his first impression 
 correct. He was approaching a clump of trees 
 where he could rest with a much greater sense 
 of security than upon the open prairie. Thor- 
 oughly weary and w-orn out, faint with hunger, 
 he felt like throwing himself 'upon the ground 
 and sleeping for a week. But, continuing, he 
 entered a grove of trees something like a hun- 
 dred yards in extent, through which, in the 
 stillness of the night, he caught distinctly 
 the ripple of flowing w^ater. It required but a 
 moment to discover this and he lay down upon 
 the margin, quaffed his full and flung himself upon 
 the grass to sleep until morning. Five minutes 
 after his eyes were shut he was wrapped in a 
 sound slumber which remained undisturbed until 
 morning when, as he opened his eyes, he found 
 the sun shining through the branches upon 
 him. 
 
 " Gracious ! " he exclaimed, starting up. ** Where 
 am I?" 
 
 It took several minutes before he could collect 
 his senses and tell where he was; and then as 
 he recalled the separation from his friends, he 
 
THROUGH APACHE LAND. 215 
 
 hurried out to the edge of the wood in the hope 
 of discovering them somewhere near at hand ; 
 but, look in whatsoever direction he chose, 
 nothing was to be seen but the broad sweeping 
 prairie, stretching away until sky and earth 
 joined in the distance. Far off, low down in the 
 horizon, the blue, wavy outline of a mountain 
 spur was to be seen. Miles and miles away, it 
 would probably require days of traveling before 
 it could be reached. 
 
 ** That's strange!" murmured Ned, as a feel- 
 ing of alarm began stealing over him. ''Where 
 can Tom and Dick be ? They must be somewhere 
 in this neighborhood, and yet I cannot see any 
 signs of them." 
 
 He moved around the grove, carefully gazing 
 in every direction; but after making the com- 
 plete circuit he came back without having 
 detected anything that told him what had 
 become of his friends. 
 
 The grove in which he had taken shelter 
 abounded with undergrowth, so dense in many 
 places, that he made his w^ay with considerable 
 difficulty. He had no thought of any one else 
 being in the same place, but, while moving 
 along in his careless manner, he was aroused to 
 
216 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 a sense of imprudence by the sound of some- 
 thing on his right. Turning his head, his sur- 
 prise may be imagined when he saw a soHtary 
 buffalo standing scarcely a dozen feet distant, 
 and staring straight at him. Ned was so aston- 
 ished that for the moment he forgot that he 
 carried a loaded gun, and stared at the creature 
 in turn, the two forming as striking a tableau 
 as it is possible to imagine. 
 
 The buffalo may have known the capacity of 
 the weapon which the boy carried in his hand, 
 for, with a sniff of alarm, he wheeled and 
 started away on a run. As quick as thought 
 the lad seemed to awake to a sense of his situa- 
 tion, and, raising his gun, he blazed away. 
 
 The shot, fired at random, could not have 
 been better aimed by the most veteran of hunt- 
 ers. The ball entered directly behind the fore-leg 
 just as it was thrown forward in the act of 
 running, and, penetrating to the heart, the 
 result was that the animal never made another 
 botmd. His own momentum carried him a few 
 feet forward, when he tumbled and rolled over 
 in a heap. 
 
 *'No\v I'll have a meal!" exclaimed the 
 delighted lad, as he ran iorward to claim his 
 
CI 
 
 iJ 
 
 to 
 a 
 
THROUGH APACHE LAND. 219 
 
 prize. "I feel as if I conld eat the whole 
 buffalo." 
 
 There seemed to be no reason why he should 
 not provide himself with the most substantial 
 kind of dinner. He knew very little about a 
 buffalo, but it was no difficult task to cut off a 
 good sized piece, w^hich he placed upon some 
 green leaves, while he looked about for some 
 means of starting a fire. 
 
 "Well, there!" he exclaimed in delighted 
 amazement, "if that isn't the most w^onderful 
 thing vet! " 
 
 This exclamation was caused by the sight of 
 a smoking wad lying at his very feet, just as if 
 Providence had sent it that he might be pro- 
 vided wnth the indispensable fire. Picking it up 
 and blowing it, he saw that it was in a vigor- 
 ous state, and could be utilized without trouble. 
 A few^ leaves w^ere hurriedly gathered together, 
 dried twigs placed upon these, and then the 
 tiny blaze that required considerable blowing to 
 produce, w^as carefully nursed into a larger one 
 until a good roaring, crackling fire w^as the 
 result. 
 
 Leaving this to burn by itself, Ned took the meat 
 to the side of the stream, where he carefully 
 
220 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 washed and dressed it, ready for cooking. When 
 this was completed, he skewered it upon some 
 green twigs, and began toasting it. The process 
 was rather tardv, but as soon as a bite of the 
 meat had spluttered and crisped for a moment, 
 Ned bit it off, and went to masticating it. The 
 cooking continued rapidly enough to keep his 
 jaws going, and was a good arrangement, for 
 it prevented his eating too fast, and gave him 
 the lullest enjoyment imaginable of the meal. 
 All of an hour was occupied in this way, during 
 which Ned was in as happy a frame of mind as 
 can be conceived. For the first half of the time 
 he seemed to be growing more hungry with each 
 mouthful he swallowed. Then came a stand- 
 still, and soon he began to gain upon it, the 
 end being that he thoroughly satisfied that 
 appetite which at one time had seemed unap- 
 peasable. With no further necessity of thinking 
 of the wants of the inner man, the lad began to 
 debate as to w^hat he should do to get out of 
 the rather unpleasant position in which he was 
 placed. There he was, his horse gone, his two 
 friends missing, and himself still a long distance 
 from home. He knew not in wdiat direction to 
 turn to reach Fort Havens, and, even if he did, he 
 
THROUGH APACHE LAND. 221 
 
 had little assurance of ever reacliing it. Indeed, 
 with the exception of the rather important fact 
 that he had secured possession of a rifle and some 
 ammunition, it may be said that his position 
 was very similar to what it was before he came 
 across Dick Morris and Tom Hardy nge. 
 
CHAPTER XXVI. 
 
 CAPTURING A MUSTANG. 
 
 It struck Ned that there was somethinsf 
 very strange in the continued absence of the 
 two hunters. 
 
 Jn think over the particulars of that rather 
 curious buffalo hunt, he could not believe it 
 possible that he was more than two miles from 
 where he had made his start after the creature, 
 and where he separated from them. All three 
 were upon the easterly side of the herd, so that 
 the trail made by his own animal could not 
 have been obliterated by the hoofs of the buffa- 
 loes, and nothing could be easier than to 
 follow it. Where, then, were they? What was 
 the cause of their absence ? These were ques- 
 tions which he asked himself again and again, 
 and which he v\ras unable to answer in any 
 manner satisfactory to himself. 
 
 Suddenly it occurred to him that by climbing 
 one of the trees near at hand, he might extend his 
 view, and perhaps gain a portion of the knowl- 
 
 222 
 
THROUGH APACHE LAND. 223 
 
 edge he was so desirous of obtaining. He acted 
 upon the thought at once, and, selecting the 
 tallest, first concealed his rifle, and then climbed 
 to the very topmost branches. There he was 
 rewarded by a magnificent view, and one which 
 promised him some of the results he was seek- 
 ing. With this extension of his field of vision 
 he discovered more than one evidence that he 
 ^was not in a solitude. In the first place, by 
 looking to the southward, a mass of dust and 
 vapor w^as visible, indicating the presence and 
 progress of some sort of herd, perhaps a drove 
 of sheep from New Mexico, under the convoy of 
 Indians who had shot the rightful owners and 
 stampeded their property. Looking ^vestward, 
 another clump of trees was discerned, from 
 the center of which came just enough smoke to 
 show that there must be a camp fire beneath. 
 
 "I'll bet they are there!" exclaimed Ned, to 
 himself, "and it may be the\^ have started the 
 fire on purpose to guide me to them." 
 
 The point to which his attention was thus 
 directed was no more than a mile distant, and 
 he wondered that he had not noted it before. It 
 resembled in many respects the one in which he 
 passed the night, and he saw from the course of 
 
224- THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 the stream which ran through the latter, that it 
 most probabl}^ watered the former where he 
 believed the hunters w^ere in camp. 
 
 Turning his e3'es in another direction, the 
 young wanderer was greeted by a sight which 
 agitated him scarcely less. There, no more than 
 a quarter of a mile distant, quietly grazing 
 beside the winding stream which flowed at the 
 base of the tree, was the very mustang which 
 had been captured by the hunters and from 
 whose back he had been thrown when in pursuit 
 of the buffalo. He instantly lost all interest in 
 the smoke of the camp fire in the greater inter- 
 est he felt in the question of securing possession 
 of the steed. Could he but remount him he 
 would not care particularly whether he met the 
 hunters or not, for, once upon the back of such 
 a steed, he would consider himself competent to 
 make the rest of the journey alone. 
 
 "What's to hinder?" he asked himself, as he 
 fixed his eyes longingly upon the steed. "Dick 
 says none of the Apaches have any animal that 
 can overtake him, and all I have to do is to 
 keep his head turned toward the southwest. 
 There is a trail through the mountains yonder, 
 
THROUGH ArACHI-: LAND. 225 
 
 and Corporal Hugg told nie tliat there is a trail 
 all the way. But can I catehhim?" 
 
 He enjoyed in anticipation the pleasure he 
 would feel when, possessing rifle, ammunition 
 and horse he should resume his journey westward 
 and the delight and joy of his father when he 
 should clasp him in his arms again. He could 
 have spent several hours building his air-castles 
 in this manner, had he not checked himself and 
 resolutely faced the difficulty before him. Look- 
 ing again at the mustang, he was to be seen 
 with his beautiful Indian blanket somewhat 
 soiled from contact with the dirt, but cropping 
 the grass with the air of an equine which 
 expected to spend the day at it. 
 
 Ned decided to try and steal upon him from 
 the rear, thinking, possibly, that he might get so 
 close that when the frightened animal discov- 
 ered him, he could step forward and grasp the 
 bridle before the mustang could gallop away. 
 Accordingly, he circled out upon the prairie until 
 he got directly behind the animal, when he began 
 his approach. The horse continiied quietlv eating 
 until he was within a hundred feet, when he 
 shifted his position so that his side was exposed. 
 Startled lest he should be seen, Ned dropped down 
 
 15 
 
226 THROUGH APACHE I.AND. 
 
 Upon the grass and waited for him to resume his 
 first attitude. After crouching in this manner for 
 something like ten minutes, without any change 
 taking place, he decided that as ''the moun- 
 tain would not come to Mohammed then 
 Mohammed should go to the mountain," and 
 he began crawling through the grass, with 
 his eye upon his prize. To accomplish this 
 without attracting notice was a delicate 
 task, but he succeeded perfectly. Getting 
 the mustang in exact range, he resumed his 
 advance upon him, advancing until he w^as 
 within twenty feet. 
 
 This was more favorable than he dared hope, 
 and his heart beat high with expectation. He 
 almost felt the warm body of the noble steed 
 beneath him. And now, inch by inch, he stole 
 forward, like an Indian scout moving upon a 
 sleeping enemy until he could reach a point 
 where he could bury his tomahawk in his skull. 
 
 "I wonder whether he will use those heels 
 upon me?" reflected the lad, when he had 
 reduced the intervening distance to a dozen feet. 
 "If he were only blind in one eye, and I could 
 get upon that side; but then he isn't." 
 
THROUGH APACHE LAND. 227 
 
 It seemed to him that the greatest danger was 
 the mustang hearing the throbbing of his heart, 
 which was now beating like a trip-hammer; but 
 tlie horse was as unconscious as if he were made 
 of stone. Still nearer, until it appeared as if he 
 had to make but a single leap forward, and he 
 could grasp the long, flowing tail, and he felt 
 that the moment had come when he must make 
 the attempt. Crouching with one hand thrust 
 out, he lifted one foot and advanced a few 
 inches. Another step, and he could lay his hand 
 upon him. At this exciting juncture, the horse 
 abruptly ceased eating and raised his head. Ned 
 saw it, and paused in an agony of suspense. 
 
 Looking straight off upon the prairie, the 
 mustang gave a faint whinney, as if he scented 
 danger from a point directly opposite to where 
 the figure of the bo^^ was stealing upon him. 
 For a minute the two held these stationary 
 positions; and then, as the lad moved a few 
 inches again, the keen ears of the mustang told 
 him the truth. 
 
 Pricking his ears forward, he turned his head 
 half way round, so that he saw the crouchino- 
 figure directly at his heels. Then he turned his 
 head still further, and gathered himself for a 
 
228 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 leap. But Ned was expecting this; and, as 
 quick as a flash, he leaped forward and caught 
 the tuft of hair hanging over his forehead, drop- 
 ping his gun and seizing at the same moment, 
 with the other hand, the bridle-rein. The mus- 
 tang made his leap, but the lad held on, and, by 
 a quick, powerful effort threw one leg over his 
 shoulders and slid upon his back in a twink- 
 ling. The horse was outwitted, defeated, and 
 the boy was his conqueror. 
 
 "Hurrah!" shouted the latter, overflowing 
 with exultation. "Thank the Lord! I've had 
 better fortune than I expected." 
 
 The mustang was not an ugly-tempered crea- 
 ture, but would have given the lad the slip, 
 could he have done so. It may have been that 
 because he was nothing but a bo}^, he under- 
 estimated his capacity too much; but he had 
 been fairly outgeneraled, and he submitted with 
 a grace which cannot be too highly commended. 
 He instantl}^ became docile, and turned in ready 
 obedience to the rein, and trotted back to where 
 the gun lay upon the ground. Here Ned was 
 obliged to descend again, but he kept a tight 
 grasp upon the strap, and scrambled back 
 again as soon as he had recovered it. It seemed 
 
THROUGH APACHE LAND. 229 
 
 to him, as he did so, that there was something 
 like a mischievous twinkle in the eye of the 
 pony. He appeared to say: 
 
 "It don't do to trust nn- species too far, my 
 lad ; for we prefer to be free rather than slave. 
 However, you are a brave little fellow, and have 
 done so well that I think I must stand by you 
 hereafter." 
 
 Now that Ned was himself again, he turned 
 the head of his animal toward the grove, where 
 the thin smoke could still be seen creeping up 
 through the tree tops. 
 
 "I will have quite a story to tell Dick and 
 Tom," he reflected, as he rode along at an easy 
 gallop. "I killed my buffalo, lost m^^ horse, and 
 caught him again. I don't believe that they 
 themselves could have done much better." 
 
CHAPTER XXVII. 
 
 A RUN FOR LIFE. 
 
 A FEW minutes' ride at a swinging, easy, 
 gallop brought Ned to the edge of the grove 
 where the camp fire had first arrested his 
 attention. As he reached the margin he threw 
 himself from the back of the mustang, fastened 
 the bridle-rein securely to a limb, and, with his 
 rifle slung over his shoulder, strode forward 
 toward the center. He was not yet in sigh t of the 
 fire when it suddenly occurred to him that possibly 
 he was mistaken. He checked himself and beg-an 
 moving very much as he did when approaching 
 his mustang, and it was fortunate that he did 
 so, for the next moment he discovered that he 
 had committed a most serious mistake indeed. 
 Instead of seeing the well-known figures of the 
 hunters sitting by the camp fire and quietly 
 smoking their pipes, he caught a glimpse of half 
 a dozen warriors very similarly engaged. 
 
 Ned shuddered as he reflected how narrowly 
 he escaped running into destruction, and then he 
 
 230 
 
THROUGH APACHE LAND. 231 
 
 crept forward until he could get a little better 
 view. There they were, six Apache Indians loll- 
 ing and lounging upon the grass. They had 
 evidently returned from a long and wearisome 
 ride, and were devoting the early portion of 
 the day to rest, both for themselves and animals, 
 which were picketed near at hand. The lad 
 naturally wondered whether any of them 
 belonged to Lone Wolf's band, and he crept 
 nearer than was prudent in order to make cer- 
 tain. 
 
 -It may be that Lone Wolf himself is there," 
 he reflected, drawn on by that strange fascina- 
 tion which often seizes a person at the proximity 
 of some dreaded danger. ''It would be queer 
 if the chief had crossed my path again." 
 
 By and by, after moving along for some dis- 
 tance upon his hands and knees, he secured a 
 favorable point, where, by waiting a few 
 minutes, he was able to gain a view of all the 
 faces. They were all strangers. He had never 
 seen any of them before. 
 
 -That's good," he said to himself, as he began 
 retrograding, "they won't be expecting me-" 
 
 At this juncture, one of the Indian horses, a 
 short distance away, raised his head and whin- 
 
232 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 nied. It was instantly responded to by the 
 mustang which Ned had ridden to the place. 
 The Apaches very naturally noticed this signifi- 
 cant fact, and started to their feet to learn what 
 it meant. Terribly alarmed at the unexpected 
 mishap, Ned sprang up, not daring to trust the 
 tardy, crab-like gait he was following, and, 
 regardless of discovery, dashed away as hard as 
 he could run in the direction of his steed. He 
 could not mistake the true course, for the ani- 
 mal seemingly aware that something was wrong, 
 kept up a continual whinnying, that guided him 
 as unerringly as it did the Apaches who were 
 hurrying after him. A few seconds and the boy 
 stood beside the creature, which showed, by its 
 excited manner, that he was as desirous as his 
 master to leave the spot. He was tugging at 
 the rein so lustily that it threatened to break 
 every instant, and Ned trembled at the fear that 
 he would be left alone. 
 
 The impatient, eager haste with which the 
 rein w^as unfastened, the seemingly impossibility 
 of getting the loosely fastened knot untied, the 
 little obstructions that constantly obtruded 
 themselves — these cannot be described nor 
 imagined. It would have been unnatural in the 
 
THROUGH APACHE LAND. 233 
 
 highest decree had Ned not found himself "nerv- 
 ous." He was read_v to yield to despair more than 
 once, and what were really seconds were as 
 many minutes to him. The Indians could be 
 Heard moving- through the undergrowth, their 
 progress cautious as it always is when they 
 have reason to fear that enemies are close at 
 hand. 
 
 It was this deliberation which gave Ned his 
 only chance. The rein was unfastened at last, 
 and, with a desperate effort he mounted the 
 mustang, which came very near bounding from 
 beneath him while in the act of springing 
 upward, and, turning his head toward the south- 
 west, the very direction he wished to follow, 
 Chadmund struck his sides with his heels, gave 
 a regular Indian shout and was off. The steed 
 scarcely needed all this to incite him to his 
 highest efforts. Stretching out his neck, he sped 
 away like an arrow, while the young rider con- 
 stantly urged him to still greater effort. But 
 no urging was required. The fleet-footed courser 
 was already going with the speed of the wind. 
 Scarcely had he gotten under way, however, 
 when the crack! crack! of rifles was heard, and 
 the singing of bullets around his ears told the 
 
234 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 fugitive at whom thej were aimed. He instantly 
 threw himself forward upon the neck of the 
 mustang, and shouted again, in a voice that 
 must have been heard by the redskins them- 
 selves : 
 
 "Go it, my horse! Don't let them catch us! 
 We mustn't lose now!" 
 
 One or two more shots were heard, and then 
 all was quiet again. 
 
 "We've got beyond their range," concluded 
 the boy, "and there's no need of wasting their 
 powder on us." 
 
 Still he remained with his head bent on the 
 neck of his animal, the latter upon a dead run, 
 until they had gone a considerable distance 
 further. Then believing all peril past, he drew 
 him down somewhat, for the gait was more 
 trying to him than to the steed himself, and it 
 was simply prudent to husband his strength, 
 when there was no necessity of putting it forth. 
 
 For the first time since starting, Ned turned 
 and surveyed the ground over which he had 
 passed. The view was not a reassuring one by 
 any means. Instead of seeing the Apaches stand- 
 ing in mute despair upon the margin of the 
 grove, and staring in wonder at his flight, 
 
THROUGH APACHE LAND. 235 
 
 be saw instead the whole party mounted and in 
 full pursuit. They were adopting what seemed 
 to him a strange course. Instead of charging 
 along in a bodj^ they were separating and 
 spreading out like a fan. 
 
 '*I w^onder what it is for," said the fugitve to 
 himself, as he urged his horse to a renewal of 
 the arrowy speed he had shown at the begin- 
 ning. 
 
 When he came to reflect upon it more fully, 
 he divined the cause. The Apaches had recog- 
 nized in him a prize worth striving for, and had 
 set about it in their usual cunning fashion. By 
 separating in this manner, they could close in 
 again whenever they chose, and at a time, too, 
 when it might be out of the power of the fugi- 
 tive to escape by means of the superior speed of 
 his horse. If he should turn to the right or left, 
 or to the rear, he would come in collision with 
 some of them, w^hereas, if they remained in a 
 compact body, and he should find his way shut 
 in front, he might elude them by turning to 
 either side. 
 
 Such was young Chadmund's solution of their 
 actions, and such, undoubtedly, was the true 
 one. He looked ahead; but all remained open 
 
236 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 and clear. Only far awa^^ in the very horizon 
 could be seen that blue, misty outline of some 
 mountain chain, seemingly hundreds of miles in 
 advance. 
 
 "It can't be that that is the place," he mused, 
 as he looked ahead; "that is too far to be 
 reached before to-morrow, and between now and 
 then I shall have plenty of chances to give them 
 the slip. 
 
 But the mountains were to be crossed at some 
 time or other, and those Apaches were likely to 
 follow him with the persistency of bloodhounds. 
 The mere fact that he had distanced them at the 
 beginning, and obtained such a favorable start, 
 was no evidence that he was to be relieved from 
 further danger, even after the night should have 
 come and gone. But Ned enjoyed to the full 
 the thrilling pleasure of observing that he 
 was steadily and rapidly drawing away from 
 his pursuers. Every few minutes, when he 
 looked back, he could see they were dropping fur- 
 ther and further behind. His gain in this respect 
 was clearly perceptible to himself, and when, at the 
 end of an hour or more, he observed that the 
 Apaches had ceased the effort to overhaul him, 
 he could scarcely repress his exultation. 
 
THROUGH APACHE LAND. 237 
 
 "They made a good selection!" he exclaimed, 
 aUuding to the steed which the hunters had 
 taken from the Indians in the mountains. "They 
 could not have done better." 
 
 Drawing his mustang down to a dead halt, 
 he carefully scanned the prairie behind him. 
 Only three of his pursuers were visible, and, 
 if his eyes did not deceive him, they were turn- 
 ins^ back. A few minutes careful scrutiny assured 
 him of the fact. He had outwitted the redskins 
 again. 
 
 "Now, you may rest yourself, my pet," he 
 said to his horse, fondly patting the neck of his 
 steed. 
 
 "You have done nobly, and I feel like trusting 
 you alone to graze." 
 
 As near as he could judge it was close upon 
 noon, and his animal was in need of rest, 
 although capable of continuing his arrowy 
 flight until the sun should sink in the west. It 
 was wise to indulge him all he could, and for 
 the next two hours he was permitted to walk at 
 a moderate gait. At the end of that time he 
 headed toward a ravine, in which a few stunted 
 trees were growing, and where he hoped to find 
 grass and water. He did not forget the lesson 
 
238 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 he had learned, and before trusting himself in 
 the inviting shade and coolness, he carefully 
 circled about the place initil assui'ed that no 
 peril lurked there, when he road forward at the 
 same leisurely pace. 
 
 He was yet a hundred yards distant, when 
 his mustang abruptly paused of his own accord, 
 pricking up his ears as if he scented danger. 
 
 Ned urged him, and he advanced a few^ steps, 
 and then halted again, raising high his head and 
 snuffing the air, accompanied at the same time 
 by a peculiar stamp of the foot. 
 
 ** There must be something wrong," thought 
 the boy in alarm. ^ 
 
CHAPTER XXVIII. 
 
 A GREAT MISFORTUNE. 
 
 Ned Chadmund was too wise to go contrary 
 to the instincts of the mustang, which, at such 
 a time knew more than did he of the dangers 
 of the country. The boy, however, supposed 
 that it was some wild animal, probably a 
 grizzly bear, which alarmed the steed. He won- 
 dered however, that if such were the fact, why 
 the brute did not give some more tangible evi- 
 dence of his presence. He sat for a moment 
 debating whether he should make an attempt to 
 enter the wooded ravine from another direction. 
 He had fixed upon this place as the one in which 
 to spend a couple of hours or more, and as no 
 similar resting-place was in sight, he was reluc- 
 tant to start ahead again. But something whis- 
 pered to him that the best thing he could do 
 would be to leave without an instant's delay. 
 That strange stillness resting upon those stunted 
 trees and undergrowth had a meaning more sig- 
 
 239 
 
240 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 nificant than anything in the shape of a grizzly 
 bear. 
 
 ''Come, Pet, we're off again." 
 The mustang wheeled to one side, and 
 bounded away with the old speed, which was 
 more enjoyable to him than a moderate pace. 
 At the very instant of doing so, a mounted 
 Apache shot out from the far end of the ravine, 
 and his horse bounded directly across the path 
 of the young fugitive. The steed of the latter 
 saw the game so well that he needed no direc- 
 tion, and he turned with such suddenness that 
 Ned narrowW escaped being thrown off his back. 
 Quick as he w^as he had scarcely time to change 
 the direction he was pursuing, when the rider, to 
 his dismay, observed a second Apache issue from 
 the other end of the ravine, and thus, in a 
 twinkling, as it may be said, he was placed 
 between two fires. 
 
 It all took place wnth such marvelous sudden- 
 ness that the lad was completely baffled and 
 bewildered, and, not knowing what to do, 
 wisely left the course of action to the mustang. 
 At the same moment, he comprehended how it 
 was that, while he assured himself that he had 
 outwitted the Apaches, they had completely 
 
THROUGH APACHE LAND. 241 
 
 checkmated him. Their falling back and giving 
 up the chase was simpl^^ a ruse to throw him 
 off his guard. It had succeeded to perfection. 
 While he was plodding along over the prairie, 
 the Apaches had circled around, gone ahead of 
 him, and, ensconcing themselves in the woods, 
 had patiently waited for him to ride into their 
 arms. 
 
 The sagacious mustang made another quick 
 whirl, and shot to the right, aiming to pass 
 directly between the two horsemen. Seeing this, 
 they both did their best to head him off. At 
 the best it w^as to be a narrow chance, and Ned 
 again threw^ himself forward and clasped his 
 arms about the neck of the faithful ponv. He 
 could not shut out the sight of his ferocious 
 pursuers, and as the three neared each other 
 with the speed of the w^hirlwind, he observed 
 that each was loosely swinging several coils of 
 rope about his head. He knew what that 
 meant. Determined upon capturing him, thev 
 were about to call the lasso into requisition. 
 
 But they could not ''noose" him w^hen his 
 head was thrown forward in this fashion, and 
 resting closely against the soft mane of the 
 mustang. He was certain of that, for there 
 
 16 
 
242 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 was nothing for the spinning coil to seize. And 
 yet he saw distinctly the warrior who was 
 nearest him whirling the thong in swifter and 
 swifter circles above his head in a way that 
 showed that he meant to fling it at some- 
 thing. 
 
 What could the target be? 
 
 Whiz — whiz! Out shot the loop like the dart 
 of a rattlesnake, not at the head of the fright- 
 ened lad, but at that of the mustang! 
 
 Ah! but the animal was intelligent and equal 
 to the occasion. That round, clear eye saw 
 what was coming, and he w^as ready. 
 
 The loop, guided with unerring precision, and 
 thrown with great power, was scarcely over the 
 ears of the creature, when he dropped his head 
 like a flash. The coil, instead of passing over 
 his nose, dropped like a tossed wreath upon the 
 top of his head, slid along his neck, and over 
 the crown and back of Ned Chadmund, who 
 shivered as if he felt the squirming of a cobra 
 along his spine. The mustang burst into a 
 tremendous gait at this moment, and was draw- 
 ing away from his pursuers so rapidly that the 
 lasso dropped off his haunches and the flying 
 pony was almost instantly beyond its reach. 
 
THROUGH APACHE LAND. 243 
 
 But the second Apache was near at hand and 
 threw his thong from a closer point, and with a 
 venomous spitefulness that would not be evaded. 
 He evidently knew the horse, and was determined 
 upon securing him. The wonderful mustang, 
 however, was equal to the occasion, and, with 
 the same flash-like motion, his beautiful head 
 dropped still lower than before, and the same 
 useless sliding along his back was repeated. 
 
 His speed was now tremendous, and he drew^ 
 away so rapidly from both horsemen that 
 neither of them gained a second opportunity to 
 try the lasso upon him. Ned did not seek to 
 control the motions or direction of the noble 
 "Isteed. It knew better than did he what to do, 
 and the boy onl}' clung to him the tighter, and 
 prayed to Heaven to guard them both from 
 harm. 
 
 It was not to be expected that the Apaches 
 would submit quieth^ to be baffled in this man- 
 ner. Unable to capture either horse or rider, 
 they still had their rifles, and did not hesitate 
 to call them into requisition the moment it 
 became apparent that no other recourse was at 
 their command. 
 
 At the moment of firing perhaps fifty yards 
 
244 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 separated pursuer and pursued. The two guns 
 were discharged so nearly simultaneously, that 
 they might have well been mistaken for one. 
 The escape of Ned was a narrow one. He felt 
 one of the bullets pierce his clothing, and a 
 sting in the hand told him that he had been 
 slightly wounded. At the same moment he felt 
 a peculiar twitch or quiver of the steed, which 
 indicated that he also had been hit. It v^as 
 like the jar of the smoothly-moving machinery 
 when some slight obstruction gets into the works 
 Still there was no abatement of the tremendous 
 speed of the magnificent little animal, and Ned 
 concluded that the hurt was not a serious one. 
 A minute later two more reports were heard, 
 but they were faint and far away, and the bul- 
 lets sped wide of the mark. 
 
 All danger was passed from that quarter, and 
 once more Ned straightened up, and, looking 
 about him, felt that the Indian mustang he 
 bestrode had been the means of saving his life. 
 But for him he would have been in the hands of 
 the Apaches long since. 
 
 '*! wonder whether there are Indians in every 
 bush?'' he said, as his eyes roamed over the 
 prairie in search of some place of shelter. 
 
THROUGH APACHE LAND. 245 
 
 "They seem to be watching for me from every 
 tree in the country. Well, my good horse, we 
 shall have to keep on the go till dark comes, 
 when we'll get some chance to creep off and 
 hide." 
 
 Looking to the southward, a w^ooded section 
 was to be seen, but Ned concluded to give all 
 such places a wide berth for the present. He 
 had missed recapture b}^ too narrow a chance 
 to risk it blindly again. A long distance to the 
 northw^est he discerned a range of hills of 
 moderate elevation, and it occurred to him that 
 there w^as a suitable place in \vhich to spend 
 the coming night. By journeying forward at 
 this eas3% swinging pace, he calculated upon 
 reaching them about nightfall, and in the shel- 
 ter which they offered he was confident of being 
 able to hide away be^-ond the vision of the most 
 vigilant Apache or Comanche. 
 
 ''What has become of those fellow^s?" he 
 abruptly asked himself, as his eye glanced has- 
 tily around in search of the hunters from whom 
 he had now^ been separated the better por- 
 tion of twent^^-four hours. *'I can't understand 
 how we got so far apart. If they meant the 
 
246 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 whole thing as a joke, I thing it is pla^^ed out 
 by this time." 
 
 He was a little nettled when he came to reflect 
 that the parting was probably arranged by 
 Dick and Tom for the purpose of giving him a 
 lesson in prairie traveling and prairie life. Per- 
 haps they believed that some amusement might 
 be obtained in this way. 
 
 *' If they think I can't get along without 'em, 
 I'll show them their mistake," he said to him- 
 self. "There can't be many days' travel between 
 me and Fort Havens, and so long as I've got 
 such a horse — he knows better than they can 
 how to keep me out of such scrapes — " 
 
 At this juncture he was startled by the action 
 of the mustang. He v^as walking along, when 
 he began staggering from side to side. Then he 
 paused, as if to steady himself. A groan followed 
 and he sank heavily to the ground, rolling upon 
 his side so quickly that his rider narrowly 
 escaped being crushed beneath him. And then, 
 as the dismayed Ned sprang to his feet, he saw 
 that his loved mustang was dead! 
 
CHAPTER XXTX. 
 
 THE LONE CAMP FIRE. 
 
 When tl;c pursuing Apaches first fired their 
 two shots, one of them slightly wounded the 
 hand of young Chadmund, while the other, 
 unsuspected by the lad, buried itself in the body 
 of the mustang and inflicted a fatal wound. It 
 was characteristic of the noble creature that 
 his indomitable courage should remain to the 
 last. He kept up his astonishing speed until his 
 rider voluntarily checked him, and then his gait 
 remained his natural one until nature succumbed 
 and he dropped dead. 
 
 It would be hard to say which emotion was the 
 most poignant in the breast of the young wan- 
 derer. He had learned to love the noble mus- 
 tang during their brief companionship, and he 
 had discovered, too, how impossible it was for him 
 to make any substantial progress without a good 
 horse to ride. He had lost the best steed he 
 had ever bestrode, and was again thrown upon 
 his own resources. It was natural and credit- 
 
 24,7 
 
248 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 able to the lad that, as he looked at the fallen 
 steed, and reflected how faithfull^^ he had served 
 him, his hands should seek his eyes. So they 
 did, and he spent full ten minutes in a regular 
 old-fashioned cry, such as he had not enjoyed 
 since receiving a good trouncing at the hands of 
 his parent. 
 
 When his grief had subsided somewhat, he 
 bade the unconscious form good-bye, and with 
 his rifle over his shoulder started ahead again. 
 He could not bear even to remove the blanket 
 which was strapped around the body of the 
 mustang, and which was likely to be of great 
 service to him in his wanderings. 
 
 It was already growing dark, when he aimed 
 for the hills, and, as his eye swept over the 
 the prairie, he saw no Indian or sign of danger. 
 He was hopeful that for the time being, at least, 
 he was free from molestation. His great- 
 est trouble was, that he was ravenously 
 hungry again, and he counted upon considera- 
 ble diflficulty in securing the wherewithal with 
 which to satisfy his cravings. True, he had gun 
 and ammunition, but the game which he wished 
 to meet seemed to be, as a rule, reluctant to put 
 itself within his reach. 
 
THROUGH APACHE l.AND. 249 
 
 After reaching the hills, the lad's next proceed- 
 ing was to hunt up some suitable spot in which 
 to pass the night. The air was so warm and 
 sultry that he could have made no use of the 
 blanket, had he possessed it. The place was 
 full of stunted trees and undergrowth, with 
 jagged, irregular masses of stone lying here and 
 there, and constantly obtruding themselves in 
 such a way that he received a number of severe 
 bruises. 
 
 After tramping about for a short time he dis- 
 covered that the hills were mainly in the form of 
 a ridge, passing over the crest of which he w^ent 
 down the opposite slope and found himself 
 among a mass of larger rocks, and in a still 
 wilder section. There, while searching, it 
 occurred to him that he might find a suitable 
 retreat among the rocks. The sound of trickling 
 water directed his steps a little to the left, where 
 a tiny rivulet was found dripping down from 
 the dark stones. After quenching his thirst he 
 renewed his hunt. 
 
 Although he continued for some time, he was 
 not as successful as he desired. Nothing in the 
 shape of a regular cavern presented itself, and he 
 finally nestled down beside one of the largest 
 
250 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 rocks which could he discovered, with the inten- 
 tion ot sleeping until morning. 
 
 Ned thought it strange that he should feel so 
 frightened. With the gathering of darkness he 
 grew so nervous that all possibility of sleep was 
 driven away. He examined his rifle several 
 times — a curious mistrust taking possession of 
 him — and then arose to his feet and listened. 
 
 All seemed as quiet as at creation's morn. 
 There was a soothing influence in the faint sound 
 of the dripping water, and an almost inaudible 
 roar seemed to steal forth from the great prairie, 
 such as is sometimes noted when in the vicinity 
 of the becalmed ocean. Without any thought he 
 thrust his hand into an inner pocket, when he 
 felt a small package wrapped up in paper. 
 Wondering what it could be, he drew it forth. 
 
 It was a box of matches! 
 
 Suddenly he remembered how they came there. 
 On the day before leaving Santa Fe it occurred 
 to him that he would be likely to need such a 
 convenience, and he had carefully wrapped up a 
 box and placed it in this out-of-the-way corner, 
 where it had lain forgotten. 
 
 ** That's lucky!" exclaimed the delighted lad, 
 as he drew them out, recognizing them more by 
 
THROUGH APACHE LAND. 251 
 
 the touch than by sight. ''Now I'll build a big 
 fire, and fix things splendidly." 
 
 A fire was his great desideratum, and, had he 
 believed it possible wathout great trouble and 
 work, he would have kindled one before that. 
 The capture of a new horse could have pleased 
 him scarcely more than the discovery of the 
 matches, and he set about reaping the advan- 
 tage at once. 
 
 In such a place there was little difficulty in 
 procuring fuel, and it took Ned but a short time 
 to gather all he could possibly need; but, to 
 guard against all contingencies, he continued 
 collecting until he had a huge pile, made up of 
 dead limbs, branches, and a number of green 
 sticks thrown in. In a few minutes the flames 
 w^ere under way. He had kindled them against 
 the face of a rock, and they burned with a 
 cheery heartiness that did much to dispel the 
 gloom w^hich had bes^un settling over him. He 
 seated himself as near the fire as he could with- 
 out being made uncomfortable by the reflected 
 heat, and then he assumed as easy a position as 
 w^as possible in such a place. 
 
 "I wonder if anybody will see that? " he asked 
 
252 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 himself in a whisper, after it had continued 
 burning some time. 
 
 Rising and reconnoitering the ground, he was 
 gratified to learn that the light was better 
 screened than he had reason to expect, consider- 
 ing the carelessness with which he had kindled it. 
 The rock at the rear shut off all view from that 
 direction, while the undergrowth was so matted 
 and dense in front, that it seemed impossible for 
 any one to see it from the prairie. Having made 
 this survey, he returned to his position, feeling 
 much easier in mind than before. 
 
 "Strange what has become of Dick and Tom," 
 he muttered, following up this train of thought, 
 as usual whenever he was left undisturbed for a 
 few minutes. "Can it be that they have been 
 killed by the Apaches? It might be, and yet I 
 don't know how it could happen, either." 
 
 He was still meditating upon this ever-inter- 
 esting query, when he was roused to a sense of 
 his situation by the sound of something tramp- 
 ling through the bushes behind him. 
 
 "Indians!" he exclaimed, springing to his feet, 
 rifle in hand, and casting his terrified glance in 
 the direction from whence came the sound. 
 
THROUGH APACHE LAND. 253 
 
 The words were yd in his mouth, when he 
 felt that he had committed a blunder. No Indian 
 would approach in that manner. 
 
 "It must be some animal," was his conclusion, 
 as he stepped back, so as to bring hiinself as 
 close to the fire as possible. 
 
 The next moment, a huge, dark, unwieldy 
 body advanced from the gloom with a growl, 
 and he saw an immense grizzly bear lumbering 
 toward him. As quick as thought his rifle was 
 at his shoulder, and he fired full at him, the dis- 
 tance being so short that he could not fail to 
 hit the mark; but the wound, however severe it 
 might have been, was not fatal, and did not 
 deter bruin's advance in the least. Knowing that 
 it would be sure death if he were once seized by 
 the powerful monster, and aware of the dread 
 which all animals have of fire, he dropped his 
 gun and caught up a blazing brand, which he 
 flung in the very face of the brute. 
 
 This was more than a bear, as courageous as 
 was this giant grizzly, could stand, and he retreated 
 with an awkward haste w^hich was ridiculous. 
 For the instant he was panic stricken, and 
 continued falling back until he was invisible in 
 the gloom. But he was not disposed to give 
 
254 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 Up the contest by any means. Ned knew he 
 would be back again, and fortified himself as 
 well as possible by hugging his own camp fire, 
 stooping down and holding himself ready to 
 hurl another torch in the brute's face if he should 
 persevere in his attack. 
 
 For several minutes all was quiet, and he began 
 to hope that his fright was such that he would 
 keep at a respectful distance. Such was not the 
 case, however. A growl from another direction 
 warned him that the brute was about to advance 
 from that quarter. The lad peered out into the 
 gloom, wondering whether the creature would 
 eventually overcome his dread to such an extent 
 as to press him to the wall. At any rate, he 
 was not disposed to wait and hastily ran 
 around to the other side of the blaze, by which 
 maneuver it was interposed directly between 
 him and his enemy. 
 
 "I wonder what he will do now?" 
 
CHAPTER XXX. 
 
 FIGHTING A GRIZZLY. 
 
 The grizzly could not fail to detect, the ruse 
 of the boy, and he countered by moving around 
 to the other side of the tire, so that he regained 
 his former advantage. The nocturnal visitor 
 had evidently set his mind upon making his 
 supper upon the little chap, whose plump, robust 
 appearance must have been a very tempting bait 
 to him. The latter was reluctant to repeat his 
 maneuver, as, b}^ doing so, he would be forced 
 to pass so near his foe that a big paw might 
 reach out and grasp him while on the wa3^ 
 
 ''I'll have to fight you with fire, ' he said, as 
 he seized a large stick, one end of which was 
 blazing. 
 
 In the hope that he might give him a greater 
 scare than before, the lad swung it rapidly 
 around his head until it was fanned into a 
 roaring flame. While this was going on, he 
 was surrounded, as it appeared, by a fiery circle, 
 his appearance being such that the bravest quad- 
 
 355 
 
256 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 ruped living could not have been induced to 
 approach within his reach. Not content with 
 this, Ned assumed the aggressive. Stooping 
 low, he emitted a wild yell, and repeating this, 
 pointed the torch forward and toward him, 
 moving it more rapidly and in a smaller circle, 
 while at the same time he kept slowly advancing 
 upon him. 
 
 No bear could be expected to withstand such 
 a demonstration. The figure of the yelling 
 urchin, with his head surrounded by a blazing 
 serpent, must have struck terror to his very 
 inmost being. Without pausing to do more 
 than to utter a short growl, he wheeled around 
 and went crashing through the undergrowth as 
 if under the belief that a battery had been sud- 
 denly unmasked and was about to open upon 
 him. When he had retreated a few rods he 
 paused to see how matters appeared, when he 
 again beheld the horrid figure closer than ever 
 and drawing nearer every moment. It was 
 appalling, and he plunged away at a greater 
 speed than ever. Ned pursued him until he was 
 fearful of getting so far away from the camp 
 fire that he would lose it altogether. When he 
 paused he could hear the bear still tramping off, 
 
THROUGH APACHE LAND. 257 
 
 as if he already felt the torch blistering his nose. 
 Turning agnin, the lad ran with all speed to his 
 "headquarters," where he flung down his torch 
 and caught up his gun. 
 
 "Now I think I've got time to load it," he 
 said, as he began the operation at once, a little 
 alarmed, however, to discover that the supply 
 of ammunition furnished him by Tom Hardynge 
 was growing alarmingly small. 
 
 He succeeded in ramming the charge home, and 
 then as he placed the cap upon the tube, he felt 
 something of the old confidence that was his 
 when astride the mustang and coursing over 
 the prairie at a speed which no horse could 
 equal. When first charged upon by the monster 
 he had fired with such haste that he had no 
 time to make any aim; now fortified by his 
 camp fire, he meant to improve upon that. 
 Everj'thing being ready, he looked off into the 
 gloom, but nothing was to be seen of the crea- 
 ture, nor did the slightest sound betray his 
 whereabouts. 
 
 "He'll be sneaking back pretty soon," said 
 the lad to himself, who was resolved to remain 
 on the watch. 
 
 17 
 
258 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 He was not kept waiting. A minute later he 
 caught the slow crackling and trampling of 
 some heavy creature through the undergrowth, 
 and he was confident that his old enemy was 
 close at hand. The lad sank down upon one 
 knee, so close to the fire that it scorched him, 
 and awaited his approach. But the grizzly had 
 been so thoroughly scared that he hadn't 
 entirely recovered from it. When something like 
 twenty feet away he halted, and evidently began 
 debating whether it would be prudent to 
 approach. 
 
 Chadmund could not make out his figure dis- 
 tinctly, although he knew precisely where he 
 w^as; but, by and by, when the head moved a 
 little, he caught the phosphorescent glitter of 
 the eyes. As the fire light shone upon the gun- 
 barrel he wanted no better opportunity, and, 
 supporting the weapon upon one knee, he pointed 
 it straight at the center — that is, directly 
 between those glowing orbs, which remained 
 stationary, as if in waiting for the fatal mes- 
 senger. It came the next moment. True to its 
 aim, the tiny sphere of lead entered the head of 
 the bear at the most vulnerable point, and the 
 life went out from that huge mass. A rasping 
 
THROUGH APACHE LAND. 259 
 
 growl, a few spasmodic throes, and it was all 
 over. 
 
 Ned was naturally exultant over his exploit, 
 and he reflected that if matters went on in the 
 same fashion, he could soon lay claim to being 
 quite a hunter. He had shot an Indian, a 
 buffalo, and a grizzly bear, besides performing 
 some other exploits not always accomplished 
 by men. 
 
 "I guess the best plan is to load again," he 
 muttered, as he adopted this precautionary 
 measure. ''That isn't the only grizzly bear in 
 the country." 
 
 By this time the fire was running dow^n, and 
 the lad, throwing some more fuel upon it, 
 seated himself directly in front, prepared to 
 watch for further visitors. He had sea reel v 
 ensconced himself in this position when his hair 
 fairly rose on end at hearing a low but distinct, 
 growl, proving that some other unwelcome 
 caller was about to pay him his respects. 
 
 He hurriedly looked in every direction, but 
 could see nothing to explain the cause of this 
 alarming manifestation. It was so different 
 from the warning uttered by the grizzly that he 
 knew it must be some other sort of creature. Hold- 
 
260 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 ing his rifle ready for instant use, he glanced hur- 
 riedly about him, but, although the camp fire 
 was throwing out a long stream of light, no 
 sign of an animal could be detected. 
 
 "I'm sure I heard something," he repeated, 
 still wondering and looking around in search of 
 the cause. "Hello! there it goes again. It 
 sounds as if it were somewhere up in the air — it 
 is in the air!" 
 
 The fire had been kindled against the face of 
 a rock. This rock rose perpendicularly a dozen 
 feet above the ground below, where the fire was 
 burning, and where the lad was standing. As 
 he looked up he saw the gaunt figure of a large 
 mountain wolf standing on the very edge of 
 this, looking down upon him, its lank jaws dis- 
 tended, its eyes glaring, and its whole appear- 
 ance that of a ferocious beast about to leap 
 down upon his head. The suggestion was so 
 startling, that Ned tittered an exclamation of 
 terror, and leaped back several feet. 
 
 It must be that w-hen a wild beast comes 
 across a boy, he concludes that even though he 
 carries a gun there is nothing to be feared from 
 him. The grizzly bear had shown a sublime 
 indifference to Ned's capacity, and his life had 
 
THROUGH APACHfi LAND. 261 
 
 paid the forfeit. And now, although the moun- 
 tain wolf must have seen him raise that rifle 
 and point it as straight as the finger of fate 
 directly at him, he paid no attention to it -what- 
 ever; but there he stood, snarling and growling 
 and on the very point of leaping. 
 
 Suddenly there was a short, sharp crack, and 
 it -was all over with the wolf. He must have 
 gathered himself for a leap at that very moment; 
 for the bullet that bored his brittle skull through 
 and through did not prevent an outward bound. 
 A faint yelp and the creature bounded full a 
 dozen feet directly out from the rock, and, 
 owing to some curious quirp of the muscles, 
 turned a complete somerset, and w^ould have 
 landed directW upon the head of Ned if he 
 hadn't sprung to one side as the carcass fell to 
 the ground. 
 
 '^That settles your case," remarked the boy, 
 v^ith the indifference of an old hunter. **Now^ 
 it's time to load up again." 
 
 This done he settled himself to watch and 
 listen and play the part of his own sentinel for 
 the rest of the night. A faint moaning of the 
 night-wind w^as all that reached his ears. Once 
 he fancied he heard the report of a gun far 
 
262 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 away in the distance, but it was so faint that 
 he might have been mistaken. Then a cry, 
 somewhat resembling that made by a panther, 
 w^as borne on the wind, but that, too, seemed 
 to come from the mountains that were miles 
 away to the westward. No sound indicated 
 the presence of any further danger close at hand. 
 Everything was quiet, and seemingly at rest. 
 
CHAPTER XXXI. 
 
 SLEEP. 
 
 The sentinel on his rounds, the watchman 
 upon his beat, or the sailor pacing the deck of 
 his vessel in mid-ocean, keeps his senses awake 
 by the constant motion of his body. To sit 
 down to rest for a few minutes only is fatal. 
 Sleep has the power of stealing over the faculties, 
 and wrapping them up in its embrace so insidi- 
 ously, that no watchfulness can guard against 
 it unless artificial means, such as walking, are 
 resorted to. When Ned Chadmund resumed an 
 easy position in front of his own camp fire, the 
 inevitable result followed. He resolved to keep 
 his ears and eyes open, and almost immediately 
 closed them. A few minutes passed and then his 
 head began to nod. Several times he narrowly 
 escaped tumbling over, and, finally rousing, he 
 vigorously rubbed his eyes, yawned, and arose to 
 his feet. 
 
 *'My gracious! this won't do," he exclaimed, 
 with a shuddering sense of the danger he was 
 
 263 
 
264 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 running. "A bear might steal right up to me 
 and eat me up before I could help myself. If 
 I'm going to play sentinel, I must do it like a 
 man." 
 
 Straightway he began pacing back and forth 
 in front of the blaze, his beat extending some 
 twenty feet back and forth. He carried his rifle 
 on his shoulder and proved the thoroughness of 
 his vigilance by an occasional glance at the top 
 of the rock, from which the mountain -wolf had 
 made its death leap. The coast remained clear. 
 The far-off sounds which had attracted his 
 attention a short time before v^ere not repeated, 
 and, as the labor of walking back and forth 
 grew a little wearisome, he began to argue the 
 question with himself. 
 
 ''I wonder ^vhether there isn't some way of 
 resting v^ithout working? If I've got to w^alk 
 all night, what shall I be good for to-morrow? 
 I don't see any fun in this sort of business. Ah, 
 I know how I'll fix it; I'll kindle two fires." 
 
 He acted upon the idea at once. He had 
 gathered such an abundance of fuel that he had 
 no fear of the supply running out. In a few 
 minutes he had a second fire started, about a 
 dozen feet from the other, while he stowed him- 
 
THROUGH APACHE LAND. 266 
 
 self away directly between them. His position, 
 he soon discovered, was rather warmer than he 
 anticipated, but he speedily remedied this by 
 permitting each fire to subside in a slight degree. 
 
 •'This is nice," he muttered, shrinking up 
 against the rock. ''I don't think any wild 
 creature would harm me unless he tumbled over 
 the top of the rock there and dropped on my 
 head. Even then I think I should wake up soon 
 enough to use my gun on him. But then, I 
 guess 1 won't go to sleep." 
 
 Five minutes later his head was nodding again, 
 and utter unconsciousness speedily followed. 
 But one of the brands in the fire on his right 
 fell, and there was a slight crackling explosion 
 of the embers— as is often the case. A glowing 
 spark flew outward and dropped upon the limp 
 hand of the sleeping youngster. 
 
 Simultaneously, there was a yell, and the lad 
 leaped several feet from the ground, dancing 
 about like a rejoicing warrior and flinging his 
 hand as if he were trying to shake oft^ some 
 clinging reptile. 
 
 "I should like to know who did that?" he 
 exclaimed, a httle confused by the startling 
 manner in which he had been aroused. '*! guess 
 
266 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 I understand liow it all came about, though,*' 
 he added, as he examined the stinging blister 
 upon the back of his hand. 
 
 The pain from this little ^vround effectually 
 banished all sleep for the time. Ned busied him- 
 self in replenishing the fire, and then walked out 
 in the gloom and looked about. Everything was 
 the same. The night was dark, — no moon being 
 visible, — and an oppressive sultriness was in the 
 atmosphere. It seemed as if some elemental dis- 
 turbance were close at hand, but in looking to 
 the sky no presage of it could be discovered. 
 
 After wandering about for some time, the lad 
 spat upon some earth, and, plastering it over 
 the smarting blister, succeeded in shutting out 
 the air frorn it and secured considerable relief. 
 
 "It must be that I am all alone," he added, 
 standing still and listening. "No one is near and 
 no one sees me but God. He has taken care of 
 me in the past, and He will not forsake me in 
 future," he added, looking reverently upward. 
 
 The old feeling of drowsiness again stole over 
 him and he determined to secure a night's rest — 
 that is, during the portion of the night that 
 remained. Still the fact that the fires had run 
 down somewhat raised the inquiry in his mind 
 
THROUGH APACHE LAND. 267 
 
 as to what was likely to happen in case they 
 went out altogether. If any more grizzly bears 
 should put in an appearance, his situation would 
 not be of the most inviting nature, but he had 
 argued himself into the belief that no further 
 peril of this character threatened. By placing a 
 goodly amount of fuel upon the fires he hoped 
 to keep them going until daylight, or until his 
 slumber was over. Had he been able to find a 
 suitable tree, he would have made his bed in that, 
 even at the risk of another disagreeable fall, but 
 nothing of the kind could be seen, and he had 
 already grown weary of hunting for some hiding 
 place among the rocks. Accordingly, the camp 
 fires were replenished and he resumed his former 
 position between them, covering his hands very 
 carefull}^, lest another spark should drop in the 
 same place. 
 
 **I wish it was colder!" he exclaimed, when he 
 found the place growing uncomfortably warm. 
 ''If it was winter now, I shouldn't want any- 
 thing nicer." 
 
 He stood it like a hero, however, and by and 
 by his place became more pleasant, for the rea- 
 son that the fuel w^as rapidly burning down. 
 About this time sleep regained possession of his 
 
268 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 senses, and, cramped np though he was, with 
 his back against the rock, his slumber was 
 scarcel^^ less sound than if he were stretched out 
 upon his blanket beneath a tree in the forest. 
 
 At the time young Chadmund relapsed into 
 unconsciousness it was nearly midnight, and for 
 nearly two hours following there was scarcely 
 the slightest change in the surroundings. The 
 fires burned low, until the figure of the lad 
 braced up against the rock grew dim and 
 shadowy in the deepening gloom. Scarcely a 
 breath of air stirred the vegetation about him, 
 and eYer\'thing seemed to be calculated to lull 
 one into a deep, soothing, dreamless sleep. But 
 at the end of the time mentioned, something- 
 came out of the undergrowth and advanced 
 stealthily toward him. It was vague, shadowy, 
 and so dimly outlined that at first its form 
 could not be recognized ; but as it glided closer 
 to the fire, there was enough light remaining to 
 disclose the figure of another w^olf. 
 
 Like a phantom born of the gloom itself, it 
 moved toward the unconscious lad, until scarcely 
 a dozen feet intervened. Then, as if directed bv 
 Providence, one of the embers snapped apart, 
 throwing out a sudden flame, which momen- 
 
THROUGH APACHE LAND. 269 
 
 tarily lit up the surrounding darkness. Like a 
 flash the wolf slunk back, and then, pausing, 
 stood and stared at the lad, licking his jaws as 
 if in anticipation of the feast he expected to 
 enjoy upon him. 
 
 As the flames subsided again, and the same 
 gloom crept over the scene, the hideous creature 
 stole up again, resolved to have the meal dis- 
 played so temptingly before him. Once more he 
 was within reach, still advancing with jaw^s dis- 
 tended—ready to leap upon him. The boy 
 slumbered dreamlessly on. Still nearer crept the 
 wolf until Ned was at his mercy. 
 
 At this critical juncture, something whizzed 
 from the upper surface of the rock, with the 
 velocity almost of a bullet. It was a tomahawk, 
 which, speeding true to its aim, struck the 
 unsuspicious wolf fairly and with such terrific 
 force that his skull was cloven in twain as com- 
 pletely as if smitten by the headsman's ax. There 
 was scarcely time for the w41d 3'elp as he tumbled 
 over backward. But, such as it was, it aroused 
 Ned, who sprang to his feet and gazed about 
 him with an alarmed and bewildered air. Before 
 he could fairly comprehend w^hat had taken 
 place he saw figures descending and approaching. 
 
270 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 It was too late to retreat. He was surrounded. 
 *'I'm a goner now!" he muttered. 
 But as the firelight brightened, he saw the 
 kindly faces of Tom Hardynge and Dick Morris. 
 
CHAPTER XXXII. 
 
 REUNITED. 
 
 "How was it that you came to leave me for 
 so long a time?" inquired Ned, after he had 
 welcomed his two friends with boyish enthusiasm 
 and congratulated himself upon his timely 
 deliverance. 
 
 "Wal," replied Tom, as the three took up a 
 comfortable position before the fire, *'we started 
 you off on that hunt on purpose to give you a 
 little taste of buffaler huntin', calc'latin' to foller 
 on after ye in the course of an hour or two. 
 Afore we could do so, a war-party of a hundred 
 redskins got right atween us — didn't you see 
 'em?" 
 
 "No such party as that." 
 
 "In course they shut us out altogether. The 
 worst of it was, we exchanged a few shots 
 back and forth with 'em, and they give us a 
 brush; so by the time we had dodged out of 
 their way, we was a long ways off from you. 
 We couldn't do nothin' till mornin', and by that 
 
 271 
 
272 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 time the buffaloes and Injvins had trampled out 
 your trail, so that there was nothin' to be seen 
 of it, and we had to go it on general principles. 
 We had 'bout made up our mind that some of 
 the varmints had gobbled you, when we put 
 eyes on this fire, and there ain't any nse of 
 tellin' any more." 
 
 The lad now in compliance with their request, 
 related his entire experience since their separation. 
 Old and veteran hunters as they were, and chary 
 of praise as was their custom, they did not 
 hesitate to compliment him highly upon the 
 courage he had displayed in the most trying 
 emergencies in which he was placed. His expe- 
 rience had, indeed, been a most remarkable one, 
 and Providence had protected him in a wonder- 
 ful manner. 
 
 Everything being understood, and the past 
 cleared up, it now became them to look to the 
 future. There were only two horses to three 
 persons, and as there w^ere no means of obtain- 
 ing one, it became necessary to divide the lad 
 between the two hunters — an arrangement 
 which was easily made. 
 
 But, although it might seem that the greatest 
 ganger of the com]:)any had passed, the truth 
 
THROUGH APACHE LAND. 273 
 
 was, however, that the greatest was still before 
 them, and both Dick and Tom knew it. They 
 were pursuing a jonrne\' in an almost due south- 
 westerly direction— precisely the course neces- 
 sary to take in order to reach home, as 
 thev had come to look upon Fort Havens. But 
 directly in their path was a broad level patch 
 of country, interspersed, here and there, with 
 rocks and vegetation, over which both the 
 Comanches and Apaches were so constantly 
 roaming that it would be impossible for a white 
 man to cross it without being discovered by 
 some of the war-parties. 
 
 When Dick and Tom were coming from the 
 other direction, they were seen, and escaped only 
 by the superior fleetness of their horses. But 
 the trouble was that while they were not 
 expected and not watched for then, now they 
 were. The redskins were cunning enough to 
 know that if two hunters rode at full speed 
 through their country in the direction of Santa 
 Fe, they would be very Hkely to return again in 
 the course of a few days, and, as Dick said, 
 the reds ''would be ready for 'em." Conse- 
 quently, it became not a question of fleetness; 
 for, if it w^re, the hunters could afford to have ver^ 
 
 18 
 
274 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 little apprehension over the result; but Tom 
 Hardynge was well convinced that the Apaches, 
 to the number of a Hundred or more, were dis- 
 tributed at different points, and on the lookout 
 for them. Indeed, he had already seen such 
 evidence of the fact that it could not be doubted. 
 He did not consider it necessary' to tell their 
 young friend all this, for he would learn it in 
 due time. 
 
 Such being the case it would have been a 
 waste of time for the three to remain where 
 they were, while they had the sheltering dark- 
 ness to screen them in their flight; but the two 
 mustangs had done a good deal of traveling, 
 and it was wise to give them the rest while it 
 could be gained. Here were water and grass, 
 of which the animals were taking the advantage. 
 It was wise to husband their strength and 
 endurance until the following day. 
 
 The hunters extinguished one camp fire 
 entirely, and toned the other down so that 
 there was no possibility of its attracting the 
 notice of any one unless he passed very near at 
 hand. Fortunately for Ned, they had some 
 very good and substantial lunch with them, 
 with which his hunger was fully satisfied. 
 
THROUGH APACHE LAND. 275 
 
 There still remained a little stock on hand, 
 which was reserved more for him than them- 
 selves. They were accustomed to such priva- 
 tions and could stand it very well, but the lad 
 was of too tender years not to suffer keenly. 
 
 The night was so far gone that no one 
 attempted to obtain any sleep. The hunters 
 went out and examined the dead grizzly, learn- 
 ing his dimensions by the sense of feeling alone. 
 Tom picked up the tomahawk, and, wiping off 
 the blade upon the grass, shoved it down in his 
 belt, with the remark that it might come handy 
 a^ain before they reached Fort Havens. The two 
 then made an observation for the purpose of 
 learning whether any of the Indians were in the 
 neighborhood. Nothing important was dis- 
 covered, however, and in due time the night ended 
 and the morning came again. 
 
 The sun w^as scarcely up when they were 
 tinder way. Ned at first was placed upon the 
 back of the mustang ridden by Dick Morris, and 
 side by side, the two fleet-limbed creatures left 
 the ridge and took the shortest route to Fort 
 Havens. The gait was an easy, swinging one, 
 w^hich the horses were capable of keeping up 
 from rise of morn until set of sun. The day 
 
276 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 was warm and sunshiny, but the air was so 
 clear and pure that the oppressiveness was much 
 less than would have been the case in a more 
 northern latitude. 
 
 Be\'ond the ridge, the country remained 
 open, as the prairie was inclined to be rolling 
 than otherwise, but with a surface which per- 
 mitted the utmost swiftness of which an animal 
 was capable. Occasionally patches of wood and 
 rocky elevations were discernible, but these were 
 given a wide berth in all cases, as they were 
 the very places where the treacherous enemies 
 would have wished them to come. A herd of 
 buffaloes, probably the same seen a short time 
 before, was discerned far to the south, but they 
 were passed by v^hile still a long distance 
 away. 
 
CHAPTER XXXIII. 
 
 CLOSING IN. 
 
 The party pushed on until the greater por- 
 tion oF the forenoon was passed, when Ned was 
 transferred to the back of Tom's horse. The 
 lad had noticed that the hunters were acting in 
 a strange manner, as though they were ill at 
 ease, and were apprehensive that peril of some 
 kind was approaching. 
 
 Dick Morris rode fully a hundred yards in 
 advance of his comrade, and the motion of his 
 head show^ed that there was no part of the hori- 
 zon that was not under his surveillance. Tom 
 was equally busy while riding in the rear. 
 Neither of the hunters addressed a word to the 
 other, but the boy detected a sort of telegraphy 
 occasionally passing between them. They were 
 working by a preconcerted arrangement, like 
 corresponding parts of some machine, under- 
 standing each other so well that there was no 
 need for explanation. The boy also used his 
 eyes to the best advantage possible, often turn- 
 
 277 
 
278 THROUGH At>ACHE LAND. 
 
 itig his head and scanning the prairie and hori- 
 zon, but not a single time did he discern any- 
 thing that looked like Indians. Had he been 
 alone, he would have journeyed serenely forward, 
 certain that no danger of any kind threatened. 
 
 At noon, a brief halt was made as they 
 struck the margin of a small stream, the water 
 of which was rather warm and muddy, the buffa- 
 loes having probably disturbed it at some point 
 above. The horses quaffed their fill, and upon 
 the suggestion of Tom, Ned did the same. 
 There was a good deal of significance when he 
 uttered the words. 
 
 "It may be a good while before a^ou get a 
 chance at another." 
 
 It did not escape the notice of the lad, either, 
 that both his friends filled to the full their old 
 canteens, after which they repaired to one side, 
 where they conversed for some time in low tones, 
 and with such earnest, excited gestures, that it 
 was plain they wrere in deadly earnest. 
 
 **I don't see why they keep ever^^thing from 
 me," he muttered, as he observed this. "I think 
 I've seen as big sights as they have for the last 
 few days, and if there's any trouble coming, I 
 wonder whether I haven't got to take my chance 
 
THROUGH APACHE LAND. 279 
 
 the same as them? But I'll let them alone till 
 they get ready to tell me." 
 
 He was watching the two as they were talk- 
 ing to each other, when Tom beckoned to him 
 to approach. 
 
 -There's no use of talkin'." said the hunter, 
 in a low voice; "we're gettin' into the worst 
 scrimmage of our lives. We're right in the mid- 
 dle of a dangerous tract. We've been seen by 
 the Apaches and they're arter us." 
 
 *'Why don't you wait until night and go 
 through when they can't see you?" 
 
 The hunter shook his head at this seemingly 
 reasonable query. 
 
 »'The darkness is worse for us than it is for 
 them. They can lay flat on the perarie and 
 hear the sound of the bosses' feet a good deal 
 further off than they can see 'em, and the scamps 
 are so cunnin' they would have drawn us right 
 into some ambush afore we'd knowed anythin' 
 about it. No, we must try it with our eyes 
 open and the sun shinin'." 
 
 *' But what of it?" asked Ned, who did not 
 see why their position need be looked upon as so 
 critical. "Your mustangs are as fleet as theirs. 
 How are they going to catch you?" 
 
280 Through apache land. 
 
 The whole difficulty was then made clear to 
 the lad. If the Apaches were nowhere but in 
 the rear, it would be an easy matter to give 
 them the slip, but they were on the right and 
 left, and in front, and signs that had been seen 
 through the day indicated very clearly that the 
 Indians were carrying out to the letter the plan 
 of which the hunters had spoken, and which 
 they dreaded so much. They had already sur- 
 rounded them, the circle being quite a number of 
 miles in diameter, and were now simply' drawing 
 in their lines. 
 
 This, as a matter of course, made a collision 
 inevitable, unless the hunters could manage to 
 steal between these redskins, and, by striking 
 the open country beyond, place the entire com- 
 pany in their rear. Such a plan as this was 
 scarcely possible of accomplishment. 
 
 If attempted during the daytime, it would be 
 iUvStantly detected by some of the redskins, who 
 would notify the proper ones, when an immediate 
 concentration would take place in front of the 
 fugitives. If tried during the darkness of night, 
 it would fail. The Apaches would take every 
 imaginable precaution against it and there was 
 no means of concealing the noise made by hoofs. 
 
Through apache land. 281 
 
 By going on foot tlicy could get through the 
 lines without difficulty; but they could not com- 
 mit the imprudence of leaving their horses. The 
 situation, therefore, was critical. Tom made 
 known two most important facts. The first was 
 that beyond a doubt Lone Wolf was at the head 
 of the whole enterprise, and they were likeW to 
 meet with this treacherous chief again. The sec- 
 ond was that, in case they were driven to the 
 wall, the hunters had determined upon taking 
 refuge in a place known as Hurricane Hill. 
 
 ''It's nothing more than a pile of rocks," 
 added Hardynge. ''I've been there before, and 
 it's just the spot to make a desp'rit stand. Two 
 men like us, if w^e can reach the right p'int, can 
 keep a hundred of the redskins back." 
 
 "Won't they get there ahead of us?" asked 
 Ned. 
 
 **I think not," replied the hunter, in that hesi- 
 tating manner which showed that he had 
 thought of the contingency before; "for the rea- 
 son that I b'leve they 'd like to have us run there ; 
 but, come, let's be off." 
 
 That the mustangs might be relieved, the lad 
 was now taken on the back of Dick's, and the 
 journey toward the southwest was resumed at 
 
282 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 the same sweeping gallop. Tom took the lead, 
 carefully scanning the ground over which they 
 traveled. For an hour all went well, and then 
 he reined up his steed with startling suddenness. 
 
 *'Look yonder! " he said, pointing to the south. 
 Glancing in the direction indicated, the boy 
 saw a number of moving specks, apparently on 
 the very horizon. 
 
 ''Injuns," said Dick, in a low voice, although 
 the boy scarcely needed the explanation to know 
 they were their old enemies — mounted Apaches. 
 
 ''Do you see 'em?" 
 
 "Yes." 
 
 "Now take a peep off there." 
 This time the hunter pointed exactly opposite, 
 where almost precisely the same thing was 
 visible. 
 
 "Now, I s'pose you understand how it all is? 
 They've been keeping along with us all day, a 
 little ahead, and all the time closing in a little. 
 They've got things down to a dot, and mean 
 bus'ness, you can bet." 
 
 "But are we anywhere near Hurricane Hill?" 
 
 **Yonder it is." 
 Several miles in advance, a dark, mound-like 
 obstruction appeared against the sky. It was 
 
THROUGH APACHE LAND. 283 
 
 SO far away that it was seen only indistinctly, 
 but its character was evidently such as described 
 by the hunter. 
 **Are 3'ou going for it?" 
 ''We are/' 
 And, suiting action to his words, they imme- 
 diately broke into a gallop which was more rapid 
 than before. 
 
 The situation, especially to the boy, became 
 painful in its thrilling intensity. He required no 
 telling to know that the dreaded programme 
 described b^^ his friends was being carried out to 
 the letter. The Apaches were steadily closing in 
 upon them, and it was evident that, if they 
 chose to do so, they could effectually shut them 
 out from reaching their vantage ground. Youno- 
 Chadmtmd dreaded such a course upon their 
 part. Somehow^ or other he had grow^n to look 
 upon Hurricane Hill as their haven of safetv. 
 The few words of recommendation that Tom 
 Hardynge had given it caused this belief upon 
 his part. He did not pause to ask himself what 
 was to be done after reaching it. 
 
 Suppose it could be gained in perfect safetv, 
 what then? If they should prove themselves 
 fully able to keep a whole host of Apaches at 
 
284. THROUGH APACHE LAND* 
 
 bay, liow was the siege to end ? If the Indians 
 should content themselves with merely waiting 
 until hunger and thirst could do their work, 
 what more? These questions naturally occurred 
 to the men themselves, but it came back to 
 Hobson's choice after all. And so they dashed 
 ahead, gradualh^ increasing their speed, while 
 the Apaches, with the regularity of machine 
 work, as gradually drew^ in upon them. 
 
 ''Will the}' cut us off?" inquired Ned, when 
 the chase had continued for some time. 
 
 ''Guess not," replied Dick; "but it don't 
 make much difference." 
 
 "Why not?" 
 
 '"Cause it begins to look as if they had a 
 dead sure thing of it," said the scout, senten- 
 tiously. 
 
 "I hope not — I hope not," said the trembling 
 lad, who could only pray that Heaven would 
 not desert them in the peril which was encom- 
 passing them on every hand. 
 
CHAPTER XXXIY. 
 
 HURRICANE HILL. 
 
 While yet at a considerable distance, the full 
 force of the Indians became developed. They 
 were divided almost equally, fifty being on 
 either hand, and their speed still remained such 
 that the main portion kept ahead of the fugi- 
 tives, with about half a mile intervening 
 between them and their pursuers. It may have 
 been fancv, but Tom Hardynge maintained that 
 he w^as able to recognize Lone Wolf among the 
 redskins on the right, and w^hen a short time 
 afterw^ard Dick Morris emphatically asserted the 
 same thing, it began to look as if the behef 
 were w^ell founded. 
 
 The sun was quite low in the sky, and the 
 gait of the mustangs began to tell upon them. 
 The two were galloping side by side, and going 
 nearly at full speed. Both Tom and Dick were 
 angry at being forced into such a position, 
 which, to them, was a cowardly flight from a 
 lot of wretches whom they despised and hated, 
 
 285 
 
286 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 ''I must give 'em my compliments," suddenly 
 exclaimed the latter, when they were within 
 rifle shot of each other. As he spoke, he raised 
 his gun, and fired into Lone Wolf's band. 
 
 He seemed to take no aim at all, and, indeed, 
 there was little necessity for it, as the Indians 
 were so numerous and compact. A yell followed 
 and then a commotion, showing very plainly 
 that the shot had told. 
 
 *'I reckon I'll try it again, it works so well,*' 
 said Dick, repeating the demonstration, except 
 that he aimed to the company on the left. He 
 took a little more pains to guard against 
 throwing his shot away and the result was 
 similar to the first. 
 
 *'Now we'll catch it," said the terrified Ned, 
 crouching down beside the hunter, who like his 
 friend was engaged in reloading his gun. 
 
 But there was no return fire. The Apaches, 
 evidently, had concluded that they could wait. 
 The shots, however, resulted somewhat advan- 
 tageously for the fugitives, who, during the 
 momentary confusion thus created, managed to 
 crowd a little ahead. The horses were then put 
 to a dead run and the final rush made for 
 Hurricane Hill, the last refuge for which the 
 
THROUGH APACHE LAND. 287 
 
 fugitives could flee, seeing which, the Indians 
 converged toward them, and made every eftbrt 
 to shut them off. 
 
 Although the hunters had apparently used 
 their utmost endeavors up to this time, they 
 had husbanded the strength of their animals so 
 cleverly that their pursuers themselves were 
 deceived, and when they expected to interpose 
 themselves directly across the path, they 
 beheld them flying like a whirlwind toward the 
 
 rocks. 
 
 The few hundred yards remaining between 
 the latter and Hurricane Hill were passed in a 
 few seconds by the fleet footed mustangs. Ned 
 was fairly dazed by the bewildering rush of 
 events, and hardly able to keep track of their 
 order. He saw the hurrying warriors directly 
 behind them, and the rough, cragged mass of 
 rocks in front. The next moment he was off 
 the mustang. The scouts had checked their 
 beasts at the same instant at the base of 
 Hurricane Hill, and, leaping to the ground, skur- 
 ried up the steep incline by which its surface 
 was reached. The feet of the lad did not touch 
 the earth. Dick, who was slightly in advance, 
 carried him under his arm as if he were an 
 
288 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 infant snatched up in haste, and the men 
 bounded toward the top of the hill, the whole 
 howling horde at their heels. 
 
 Hurricane Hill, it should be stated, was a 
 pile of rocks about one hundred feet in diameter, 
 with half that height. On one side a narrow 
 path led upward at an angle of forty-five degrees, 
 and, as it permitted onl^^ one to pass at a time, 
 the place, with a few defenders, was impreg- 
 nable agaiUvSt almost any force. This path 
 upward was filled with loose, rattling stones, 
 which sometimes made one's foothold treacherous, 
 and it also made several curious turns, so that, 
 after ascending a rod or so, one was shut out 
 from the view^ of those upon the ground below. 
 
 The very instant this point was reached Dick 
 Morris dropped the lad and exclaimed : 
 
 ''Now run like thunder, and don't stop till 
 you reach the top." 
 
 Then, wheeling about, he leaped back several 
 paces to the assistance of Tom, who was defend- 
 ing the pass like a second I^eonidas against the 
 swarming warriors. 
 
 A huge, stalwart redskin, who probably believed 
 his strength to be superior to that of the scouts, 
 advanced boldly and seized him, with the eyi^ 
 
THROUGH APACHE LAND. 2S9 
 
 dent purpose of drawing him down among the 
 others and making him a prisoner in spite of 
 himself. But he found he had made a sliirht 
 miscalculation when he was lifted like a child 
 from the ground and hurled over the heads and 
 among the glowering redskins crowding below. 
 The momentum of his body was such that a 
 half dozen were forced backward and almost off 
 their feet. Had the Apaches chosen to do so, it 
 would have been an easy matter to have shot 
 all three of the fugitives, or even two of them, 
 and taken the lad; but they had some old score 
 against Tom and Dick, which could not be 
 wiped out by mere death alone. Now that such 
 a fine opportunity^ was presented for securing 
 them and indulging in all the luxury of torture, 
 they were not the ones to throw away the 
 chance. Hence, they persistently refused to fire 
 and as persistently forced their w^ay upward. 
 
 This check, which might have been simply 
 temporary, w^as emphasized and made more 
 permanent in its character by Dick, who at the 
 critical moment seized a goodly sized rock, which 
 he drove down among the wretches like the dis- 
 charge from a fift\^ pounder. It made terrible 
 work and the discomfited Apaches retreated 
 
 19 
 
290 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 tumultuously to the bottom, while the hunters 
 hastened away agani to the top of the hill. 
 Ned was there awaiting their coming with the 
 most painful misgiving about their coming at 
 all. He knew from the uproar that a desperate 
 fight was raging in the narrow pass, and he 
 feared that the resentful Apaches would over- 
 come the braver hunters, who were defending 
 themselves so desperately. But there they were 
 at last, with the announcement that their ene- 
 mies had fallen back and a temporary peace 
 was given them. 
 
 "Can't expect it to last long, howsomever," 
 added Tom, who breathed scarcely any faster 
 from his terrific exertions. "Them skunks are 
 bound to swallow us whole, and we've got 
 to kick hard to prevent it." 
 
 As soon as a little breathing time had been 
 gained, the besieged made an examination of 
 their immediate surroundings, to learn the prob- 
 able form in which this business was likely to 
 end. The hunters removed all superfluous arti- 
 cles from their persons, — in the shape of can- 
 teens and a few appurtenances, — like pugilists 
 who are stripping for a fight. 
 
THROUGH APACHE LAND. 291 
 
 The surfcice of Hurricane Hill was generally 
 level, and free from the boulders and obstruc- 
 tions which one would naturally expect to find 
 there, wdiich Tom Hardynge explained by say- 
 ing that thc3^ had all been rolled down upon the 
 Indians below by parties who had been driven 
 to this dernier resorte years before. The posi- 
 tion of the three, therefore, was very much as 
 if they were upon the extensive top of a tower 
 which was reached by a narrov^ stairway, 
 their province being to defend it against all 
 comers. 
 
 For some time after the repulse of the Apaches, 
 all remained quiet. Of course, they took charge 
 of the two mustangs that the fugitives had 
 been compelled to leave behind in their flight 
 and then disposed themselves around the refuge, 
 like those who had made up their minds to wait 
 until the fruit dropped into their hands. 
 
 The afternoon w^as drawing to a close, and 
 Ned naturally viewed the coming night with dis- 
 trust. Darkness seemed to be the appropriate 
 time for the fiends to work, and more than 
 once he shuddered as he pictured in his imagi- 
 nation the merciless wretches swarming up the 
 narrow path and spreading over the top, like 
 
292 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 the rush of waters when bursting up h'om 
 some hidden fountain. 
 
 "All we've got to do is to keep our eyes 
 open," said Dick, with a most reasuring man- 
 ner. "If I could have plenty to eat and drink, 
 with the privilege of sleeping a little now and 
 then, I wouldn't want any better fun than to 
 stay up here for a fevv^ months and crack their 
 heads as they come up." 
 
 "Shall I do the watching to-night?" 
 
 "Not much," grinned Dick. "Tom takes the 
 first half, me the last, and that's as good a way 
 as we can fix it." 
 
 "And what shall I do to help?" 
 
 "Go to sleep as soon as it is dark, and don't 
 wake up for three or four days — and even then 
 yOu must not be dry or hungry." 
 
CHAPTER XXXY. 
 
 THE SENTINEL. 
 
 Ned then understood why the two scouts had 
 taken pains to fill their canteens at the brook 
 during the day, and why, also, they so relig- 
 iously preserved the little lunch still remaining 
 in their possession. It was to guard against 
 just sucli a contingency. 
 
 As the sun approached the horizon, the lad 
 seated himself upon a rocky protuberance and 
 looked off over the surrounding country. To 
 the west, the blue, misty outlines of a moder- 
 ately high range of mountains shut off all fur- 
 ther view. 
 
 "Just beyond that," he said to himself, as he 
 fixed his eyes upon the elevation, *' Tom tells me 
 is Fort Havens, where father is waiting for me. 
 If he only knew we were here, he might come to 
 our relief. Wouldn't he scatter the redskins 
 down there? But I don't know how he will 
 find it out. Oh! if we w^ere only among those 
 mountains, it wouldn't take us long to go the 
 
 293 
 
294 THROUGH APACHE I.ANt) 
 
 rest of the way. I suppose the fort can be seen 
 from their top." 
 
 To the south, a stratum of yellow vapor 
 stretched for forty degrees along the horizon. 
 There were no buffaloes there, but there had 
 been, and it was the evidence of their passage. 
 To the north, the view was broken by ridges, 
 patches of wood, and curious irregularities of 
 surface, but there was no sign of life among all, 
 nor could it be detected except b\^ peering over 
 the edge of Hurricane Hill down upon the 
 assembled besiegers below. He noticed that Tom 
 Hardynge, shading his eyes with his hand, was 
 gazing off with a fixed intensity in the direction 
 of the mountains which intervened between them 
 and Fort Havens. He said nothing, but there 
 "was a significance in his persistency which 
 aroused the curiosity of the lad in no small 
 degree. Could it be that his keen vision detected 
 something tangible toward the setting sun, 
 which was hidden from view by the mountain 
 range? Or was it the mere searching for some- 
 thing upon which to hang his hopes? 
 
 Dick Morris was ver^^ differently occupied, act- 
 ing, indeed, as if unaware that anyone else w^as 
 upon the hill-top besides himself. Crawling to 
 
THROUGH APACHE LAND. 295 
 
 the edge, he was stretched out flat upon his face, 
 his hat removed, while he peered stealthily down- 
 ward upon the crowd below. Probably, he, too, 
 was searching for something or somebody. There 
 was so much meaning in his actions that the 
 interest of the lad centered upon him, and he 
 watched ever^^ motion. 
 
 The hunter fidgeted around for a few minutes, 
 as if his posture was not exactly comfortable, 
 and then hastily projecting his gun over the 
 margin, he took a quick aim and fired, and then 
 flinging the weapon aside, looked down again 
 to see the result. All at once, he sprang to his 
 feet, and vStamped back toward the center of the 
 plateau, in a terrific rage. 
 
 ''Ain't it awful!" he exclaimed, adding a 
 forcible expletive. "Did I ever make a bigger 
 mistake? " 
 
 **What do you mean, Dick?" 
 
 "Hit the wrong skunk." 
 
 "How is that?" asked Tom, turning toward 
 him. 
 
 "I've been figuring around for half an hour so 
 as to draw a bead on Lone Wolf, and just as I 
 pulled the trigger, I found I'd hit the wrong 
 
296 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 one. It's trying to one's feelings to be disap- 
 pointed that way." 
 
 ''I don't b'leve you'll get a chance at him," 
 said Tom, as he seated himself and resumed his 
 patient scrutiny of the western horizon. 
 
 However, the scout was not quite in despair, 
 and, reloading his piece, he returned to his posi- 
 tion and resumed his w^atch. But the mistake 
 he had made operated against him in every way. 
 It apprised the Apaches of their danger from 
 this sort of sharp-shooting, and the whole force 
 fell back, while Lone Wolf, who was shrewd 
 enough to know that his life was in special 
 demand, made sure that he was out of range of 
 those fatal rifles. Besides this, it was rapidly 
 growing dark, and before Dick could gain any 
 kind of a chance at all, the light was too dim to 
 afford him the indispensable aim. 
 
 The hunters showed a business-like manner of 
 doing things. As soon as it was fairly dark, 
 Dick Morris gave up his hunt for Lone Wolf, and, 
 remarking that there would be no fun until the 
 morrow, rolled over and away from the margin, 
 and was sound asleep within ten minutes. 
 
 ''You'd better do the same," said Tom to 
 the lad, as he left him alone, and moved down 
 
THROl'GH APACHE LAND. 297 
 
 the incline to the position he intended to occupy 
 while acting as sentinel during the first portion 
 
 of the night. 
 
 Ned remained up a considerable time, when, 
 as there seemed to be nothing going on of an 
 alarming nature, he concluded to step out and 
 do the same, if he could control his nerves 
 enough to do so. He was both hungry and 
 thirsty, but not to a very great degree, and as 
 his companions said nothing about eating or 
 drinking, he made up his mind to wait until 
 the morrow. It was about an hour before he 
 became entirely unconscious, but when he shut 
 his eyes they were not opened until morning. 
 
 Before that time, however, Tom Hardynge 
 became involved in a little difficulty. The point 
 where he located was about half way between 
 the base and top of Hurricane Hill. Here the 
 path made such an abrupt bend that it was 
 easy to conceal himself, and still keep a sharp 
 watch upon any one coming from below. It 
 was the hunter's tDclief that an attempt would 
 be made by the Apaches to steal upon them 
 before morning; for, while their enemies were 
 ready to wait three or four days, or as long as 
 was necessary, yet it was to be expected that they 
 
298 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 would prefer to force matters to a conclusion as 
 speediU^ as possible. If thej could crowd up to 
 the top of the hill and overw^helm the fugitives, 
 they were willing to incur the risk of losing 
 several lives that they might do so. Accord- 
 ingly, w^hen he assumed his position it w^as 
 with the expectation that there would be some- 
 thing on the carpet before long. 
 
 Nor v^as he disappointed. For tw^o hours not 
 the slightest sound reached his ears, and then a 
 pebble softly rattled down the incline below him. 
 There might have been no human agency in 
 this slight occurrence, as the loose debris w^as 
 likely to do the same thing at any moment, but 
 Tom believed that it w^as caused by the moccasin 
 of an Apache stealing upward. He stealthily 
 peeped around the edge of the rock, but noth- 
 ing was to be seen. There was a moon in the 
 sky, but its position was such that the path 
 was throw^n in shadow, and he could not have 
 detected a man a dozen feet distant. 
 
 Fifteen minutes more passed and then the 
 scout became certain that an Indian was steal- 
 ing up the path toward him. It was a wonder 
 how the thing could be done, without sending 
 streams of gravel and pebbles rattling to the 
 
THROUGH APACHHi LAND. 299 
 
 bottom. Hard^mge straightened up, still peering 
 around in the gloom. 
 
 The moments wore away and still he was 
 able to detect that soft, faint gliding, as if a 
 rattlesnake were getting into a position to 
 strike its prey. By and by — yes, he could now 
 make out the crouching figure approaching 
 throufjh the darkness and he drew back lest he 
 should be seen. Nearer and nearer it drew, 
 while he remained as motionless as the solid 
 rock beside him. Finally, after great delay it 
 stood opposite. 
 
 At the very instant it was passing the hand 
 of Tom Hardynge shot straight out with 
 lightning-like quickness and force, and the knife 
 clutched in his iron-like grasp did its duty well. 
 No outcry proclaimed the deed. There was only 
 a gasp and all was over. The moment it was 
 done the hunter straightened up and listened. 
 "Mebbe there's another behind him." 
 But the most patient, careful listening failed 
 to detect anything, and, leaving the body lying 
 where it had fallen, he went noiselessl}' to the 
 top where Dick was sleeping. A gentle touch 
 aroused the latter and he instantly rose to his 
 
300 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 feet. A few words told him all that had hap- 
 pened and then the two hurriedly discussed the 
 scheme which had occurred to Hardynge a short 
 time before. Two minutes only were needed for 
 them to reach a conclusion. 
 
 "I'll do it," muttered Tom, as they arose and 
 began picking their way down the path. 
 
CHAPTER XXXVI. 
 
 A DESPERATE SCHEME. 
 
 The two scouts carefully descended until they 
 reached the spot where the dead Apache lay. 
 They moved as noiselessly as shadows until they 
 stood directly by the inanimate form. Then, 
 while Tom Hardjmge began adjusting his outer 
 garments, Dick Morris stooped over and drew 
 forth the blanket which was crumpled beneath 
 the dead warrior. 
 
 The Apaches and Comanches and dififerent 
 tribes of the southwest nearly always carry their 
 blankets with them when traveling, and when 
 this particular Indian essayed his perilous recon- 
 noissance on a sultry summer night that gar- 
 ment was flung over his shoulders. These sav- 
 ages as a rule, do not wear their hair done up 
 in the defiant scalp-lock form seen among their 
 more northern kindred. It hangs loosely about 
 their heads and shoulders, being ornamented 
 with stained feathers, the hair itself frequently 
 daubed with brilliant paint. 
 
 SOI 
 
302 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 Tom gathered the blanket about him precisely 
 as did the warrior, and then, his own cap being 
 thrown aside, the feathers were stuck in among 
 the tresses with all the skill of the veteran war- 
 rior. As he wore leggings the same as the red- 
 skin, his tout ensemble was complete. Beneath 
 his blanket he carried his rifle, pistol and knife, 
 and even took the tomahawk from the girdle of 
 the fallen brave, and managed to stow that 
 about his clothing. Even now the two comrades 
 spoke not a word. They merely shook hands in 
 a silent, cordial grasp, and almost immediately 
 became invisible to each other. Dick remained 
 where he was for several minutes, listening and 
 looking, and then, hearing nothing, moved back 
 toward his former position, muttering as he 
 went : 
 
 ''If an3^body can get through 'em, Tom's the 
 boy — but it's a powerful dcsprit scheme — a 
 powerful desprit one! " 
 
 Reaching the top, he crawled again to the 
 margin, and stretched out with his head partly 
 over. Eye-sight was of no avail now, and he 
 depended upon hearing alone, believing that by 
 that means he would be able to learn the suc- 
 cess or failure of the maneuver. But not until 
 
THROUGH APACHE LAND. 303 
 
 nearly an hour had passed did he begin to feci 
 anything like a real hope that his comrade had 
 succeeded. 
 
 In the meantime, Tom was doing his best. It 
 was no easy task for him to pass safely through 
 the Apache lines in the guise of an Indian. The 
 redskins would be on the lookout for the return 
 of their scout, and the ordeal through which he 
 would have to pass would be a much more 
 severe one than usual. But he w^as accustomed 
 to desperate schemes, and ready for any sort of 
 encounter. If discovered immediately, he meant 
 to dash back again up the rocks; but if he 
 could get any distance away, he would make a 
 determined effort to elude his enemies altogether. 
 
 Following out his plan with the deliberation 
 of a veteran, he stole slowly downward, con- 
 suming fully half an hour before he reached the 
 base of Hurricane Hill. When, at length, he 
 stood upon hard ground below, he was taken 
 somewhat back by seeing no one near him. 
 
 ''That's queer," he said; "what's become of 
 the skunks?" 
 
 He had scarcely uttered the words when a tall 
 form suddenly appeared at his side, coming up 
 as if he had risen from the very ground. 
 
304 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 **Do the hunters sleep?" 
 This question was asked in pure Apache, and 
 Tom, somewhat distrustful of his own ability 
 in that line, managed to muffle his blanket up in 
 front of his mouth as he replied in the same 
 tongue: 
 
 ''They sleep not." 
 
 "Where is their scalps, Mau-tau-ke ? " 
 
 *'0n their heads." 
 The warrior was no more than ten feet dis- 
 tant, and from the moment the scout detected 
 him he began edging awa}^ the Indian naturallj^ 
 following along while these words were being 
 uttered, so as to keep within easy ear-shot. 
 Upon hearing the second reply to his question, 
 he paused, and Tom, dreading a betrayal, 
 grasped the handle of his knife under his cloak, 
 and was ready to use it on the instant. But 
 the Indian remained standing, while Tom, still 
 moving away in his indifferent manner, soon 
 passed beyond his view. 
 
 "I guess he's stopped to think," was the con- 
 clusion of the scout, as he looked back in the 
 gloom, "and it'll be some time before he's 
 through." 
 
THROUGH APACHE LAND. 305 
 
 But the trouble now remained as to how he 
 should pass through the Apache lines beyond. 
 If the redskins had any suspicion of any such 
 movement, or if the warrior whom he had just 
 left were suspicious, serious trouble was at 
 hand. 
 
 The hunter sauntered aimlessly along, using his 
 ej'csand ears, and a walk of something over a hun- 
 dred yards brought him up against a number of 
 figures that were stretched out and sitting 
 upon the ground, with several standing near at 
 hand. 
 
 They showed no surprise at their '* brother's" 
 approach, and he was confident that, if they 
 didn't undertake to cross-question him too 
 closely, he stood a good chance of getting 
 through. As they were gathered too closely at 
 this point he made a turn to the right, and, to 
 his amazement, not a word was said or the 
 least notice taken of him, as he walked directly 
 by. That was succeeding, indeed ; but Tom was 
 not yet ready to leave the neighborhood. He 
 wanted his horse, Thundergust, and, once astride 
 of him, his heart w^ould be light as a bird ; 
 but in looking around he could not discern a 
 single horse. 
 
 80 
 
306 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 It would be useless to attempt to reach Fort 
 Havens on foot. The Apaches would detect his 
 flight bj daylight, which was only a few hours 
 away, and they could overhaul him before he 
 could go any distance at all. No, he must have 
 his horse, and he began his search for him. 
 This was a delicate task; but he prosecuted it 
 with the same skill and nonchalance that he had 
 displayed heretofore. 
 
 He had stolen along for a short distance, 
 when he descried some twenty horses corraled 
 and cropping the grass, while a still larger 
 number were lying on the ground. Was his 
 own among them? he asked himself, as he 
 stood looking in that direction, while he dimly 
 discerned the figures of the warriors upon his 
 left. Very cautiously he gave utterance to a 
 slight whistle. There was no response, although 
 he suspected it was heard by the redskins them- 
 selves. Then he repeated it several times, walk- 
 ing a little nearer the group of equines. 
 
 All at once one of their number rose from the 
 ground with a faint whinney, and came trotting 
 toward him. At the same time several Indians 
 came forward from the main group, their sus- 
 picions fairly awakened by these maneuvers. 
 
THROUGH APACHE LAND. 307 
 
 One of these suddenl}- broke into a run, as he 
 descried the mustang trotting toward the war- 
 rior-like figure shrouded in his blanket. There 
 was no doubt in his mind that something was 
 wrong. The scout stood like a statue, as 
 though he saw not the approach of the man or 
 horse. The latter as if distrustful of the shape 
 of things moved so reluctantly that the redskin 
 beat him in reachino^ the s:oal. 
 
 ''What means Mau-tau-ke?" he demanded, in 
 a gruff voice, as he clutched his shoulder. "Is he 
 a dog that — " 
 
 The poor Apache scarceW knew what disposed 
 of him. It was with the suddenness of the 
 lightning stroke, and, flinging back the dirt}^ 
 blanket that had enshrouded his form, the scout 
 pointed his revolvers at the others, fired three 
 shots, accompanied by a screech loud enough to 
 w^ake the dead. Then, springing toward his 
 mustang, he vaulted upon his back, wheeled 
 about, and thundered away, like the whirlwind 
 across the prairie. 
 
 This demonstration was so unexpected and so 
 appalling that the Apaches were effectually 
 checked for a time. Before they could recover, 
 mount their horses, and start in pursuit, th^ 
 
308 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 fugitive was beyond their sight. It was useless 
 to pursue, at any rate, for there was no steed 
 among them all that could overtake the flying 
 mustang, whose hoofs were plainly heard upon 
 the prairie, rapidly growing fainter as the dis- 
 tance increased. In a few minutes it had died 
 out altogether, and, ferocious as was the hatred 
 of the redskins toward the hunter who had out- 
 witted and injured them so often, no one made 
 any effort to overhaul him. 
 
 Tom Hardynge, every few seconds, let out a 
 regular Apache war-yell, intended as exultation, 
 taunt and defiance. He could afford it, 
 for he had triumphed as completely as heart 
 could covet. The magnificent Thundergust 
 instinctively knew their destination, and the 
 reins lay loosely upon his neck as he sped away. 
 He was aiming for Fort Havens. It was a long 
 distance away, and many hours must pass 
 before its flagstaff could be detected against the 
 far-off horizon. 
 
CHAPTER xxxvn. 
 
 THE TWO DEFENDERS. 
 
 Dick Morris, stretched out full leni^th upon 
 the top of Hurricane Hill, peering clown in the 
 impenetrable gloom, understood all that had 
 passed. There was no mistaking that 3^ell of 
 Tom Hardynge; he had heard it many a time 
 before in the heat of conflict, and it generally' 
 meant something. 
 
 *'Go it, old chap!" he shouted, swinging his 
 hat over his head, as he saw the w^hole thing in 
 his imagination. '*Them 'ere pistol-barks show 
 there's been some bitin' done. Business is busi- 
 ness." 
 
 He noted, too, the sounds of the mustang's 
 hoofs growing fainter and fainter, until the 
 strained ears could detect them no longer. Tom 
 Hard3mge had safely passed through the Apache 
 lines. It was a daring and desperate feat indeed, 
 but it had succeeded to perfection. Nothing now 
 remained to hinder his flight direct to Fort 
 Havens. 
 
 309 
 
310 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 "I rather think somebody's mad," exulted 
 Dick, who was fully as proud over the exploit 
 of his comrade as was Tom himself. '' There 
 ain't much doubt but what there'll be lively 
 times here before long. They know there's only 
 two of us, counting in the little chap, and 
 they'll make a rush. Let 'em do it. If they can 
 get -up by that corner where the other fellow 
 dropped they're welcome, that's all." 
 
 And with this conclusion he left the top 
 of the hill and picked his way down the 
 path, until he reached the spot where he had 
 parted from his comrade. Here he stooped down 
 with the purpose of picking up the body of the 
 warrior and flinging it down upon the heads of 
 those below. To his astonishment, it was gone! 
 
 He searched around for several minutes, ven- 
 turing to descend some distance, but it was 
 missing. 
 
 "I don't think he could have got up and 
 w^alked away," said the hunter, as he scratched 
 his head over the occurrence. "No, it couldn't 
 have been that, for Tom don't strike any such 
 blows any more than I do." 
 
 It followed, then, as a matter of course, that 
 after the discovery of the trick, some brother 
 
THROUGH APACHE LAND. 311 
 
 Apache had stolen his way up the ])ath and 
 removed the body, a proceeding whicli Dick 
 Morris hardly suspected until he was really com- 
 pelled to believe it. 
 
 **If I'd only knowed he was coming," he 
 growled, *'how I would have lammed him; but 
 he's come and gone, and there ain't any use in 
 cryin' over it." 
 
 He waited and listened carefully, and once or 
 twice a slight rattling of the gravel caused him 
 to suspect that some of the redskins were 
 attempting to steal upon him; but if such were 
 the case, they must have contented themselves 
 by not approaching within striking distance. 
 
 Finally the night wore away, and the dull light 
 of morning began stealing over the prairie. As 
 soon as objects could be distinguished, he 
 returned to his position upon the top of the rock 
 and made his observations. 
 
 Little, if any, change was discernible in the dis- 
 position of the besieging Indians. Their horses 
 were gathered at some distance, where the grass 
 was quite rank. The warriors had assumed all 
 the indolent attitudes which are seen in a body 
 of men that have more time at their disposal 
 than they know what to do with. They had 
 
312 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 shifted their position so far back that they were 
 beyond good rifle range; for although a hunter 
 like Dick Morris could have picked off a redskin 
 nine times out of ten, yet he could not ''pick his 
 man." Lone Wolf had attired himself precisely 
 as were the rest of his warriors, and at the dis- 
 tance it was impossible to distinguish him from 
 them, so the scout wisely concluded to hold his 
 fire until he could be certain of his target. 
 
 As soon as it was fairly light, Dick naturally 
 turned his eyes off toward the southwest, in the 
 direction of the hills, whither his comrade had 
 fled during the night. 
 
 ''He is gone," he muttered, when he had made 
 certain that no object was to be seen. "I might 
 have knowed that before I looked, 'cause the 
 hoss knows how to travel, and Tom's made him 
 do his purtiest." 
 
 "Hello! what's the news?" 
 The query came from Ned Chadmund, who 
 had aroused himself from slumber, and was 
 standing at his side. _ 
 
 "Where is Tom? " 
 
 "About fifty miles off j^onder, goin' like a 
 streak of greased light nin' for Fort Havens." 
 
 "What?" 
 
THROUGH APACHE LAND. 313 
 
 Whereupon Dick Morris explained. Of course 
 the lad was astounded to think that all this had 
 taken place while he was dreaming of home 
 and friends, and he hardly knew whether to 
 rejoice or to be alarmed at the shape matters 
 had just then taken. True, Tom Hardynge was 
 speeding awa\^ on his fleet-footed mustang for 
 Fort Havens, but it would take a long time to 
 reach there and return. There was somethinsf 
 startling in the thought that a man and a 
 boy were all that were left to oppose the advance 
 of the force of the Apaches from belo-w. What was 
 to prevent their swarming upward and over- 
 whelming them? Nothing, it may be said, but 
 the strong arm of Dick Morris. He might have 
 been a Hercules, and still unable to stem the 
 tide, but for the vast advantage given him by 
 nature in constructing Hurricane Hill. He could 
 be approached hj the enemy only in single file. 
 Dick, however, w^as of the opinion that some- 
 thing of the kind would be attempted, for the 
 Apaches could not but know the errand of him 
 who had so nicely outwitted them. 
 
 "Ain't there some way of blocking up the 
 way?" asked Ned, as they discussed the plan. 
 
 "I've been thinkin' it over, and there is," 
 
314 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 returned Morris, crossing his legs, and scratch- 
 ing his head in his thoughtful way. "Three 
 years ago, me and Kit Carson had to scoot up 
 here to get out of the reach of something like two 
 hundred Comanches, under that prime devil 
 Yalo-Yelasquiz. They shot Kit's horse, and 
 mine dropped dead just as we reached the 
 bottom of the hill, so we couldn't do any thin' 
 more in the way of hoss-flesh. 
 
 " Them Comanches hated Kit and me like 
 pison; they knowed us both, and they went 
 for us in a way that made us dance 
 around lively; but it was no go, and we 
 tumbled 'em back like tenpins, but thev kept 
 things so hot that me and Kit tipped over 
 a big rock in the path. Of course thc}^ could 
 climb that easy enough, but it gave us so much 
 more chance that they didn't try it often, and 
 they fell back and tried the Apache dodge — 
 waiting until hunger and thirst made us come 
 down." 
 "How was it you got out of the trouble?" 
 "It was in a mighty queer way — a mighty 
 queer way. On the next day arter the brush 
 we had with 'em, a bigger party than ever 
 
THROUGH APACHE LAND. 315 
 
 came up, and we calc'lated things were goin' to 
 be redhot. But as soon as the two parties jined, 
 some kind of a rumpus took place. We could 
 see 'em talkin' in the most excited way, and a 
 high old quarrel was under way. Kit Carson 
 knowed all about Injins, but he couldn't make 
 out what all this meant. We was in hope they'd 
 git into a wrangle themselves, and swaller each 
 other, and I can tell you they came mighty 
 nigh it. 
 
 '^ust as it begun to look as if it was goin' 
 that way, one of their chiefs walked forward, 
 swingin' a dirty rag on the end of his ramrod as 
 a flag of truce. Kit looked at him very closely, 
 and then exclaimed that it was Quizto, a great 
 rival of Valo-Yelasquiz. They were always at 
 swords points, and whichever happened to have 
 the strongest party at his back when they met, 
 outranked the other. The beauty of it all was 
 that Quizto was a friend all his life to Kit 
 Carson— a regular redskin friend, who was ready 
 to scalp all his brothers and sisters if they tried 
 to harm him — and when he came to learn that 
 Kit was treed, he swore that he'd bum at the 
 stake any Injun that laid a straw in his way. 
 
316 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 ''This made a time, and, as I's tellin' you, the 
 biggest kind of a fight. At one time it only 
 lacked a word to set it a-goin' ; but Quizto's 
 braves stood by him, every one, and the others 
 had to knock under. 
 
 "When Quizto come forward with his flag of 
 truce, he called out to Kit and told him that he 
 was at liberty to go wherever he chose without 
 harm; but as Valo-Yelasquiz would be so disap- 
 pointed, he thought Carson would turn over 
 his friend, who wasn't of much account, that 
 they might have the pleasure of torturing him to 
 death. That was lovely for me, and you ought 
 to have heard Kit laugh. He told Quizto that 
 he couldn't do that — both would go or stay 
 together. That made another Avrangle, but the 
 friendship of the chief to Carson saved the lives 
 of us both. He wouldn't consent that the guide 
 should run the least risk, and they told us to 
 come down and clear out. We expected a big 
 fight, for Valo-Velasquiz had some ugly men with 
 him, and he was a regular devil himself; but 
 when we got to the bottom, there was two 
 mustangs awaitin', and we straddled 'em, and 
 war n't long in leavin' those parts. Old Valo- 
 
THROUGH APACHE LAND. 317 
 
 Yelasquiz and a dozen of liis warriors tried to 
 sneak along after us, but we was as well 
 mounted as they, and we rode into Santa Fe 
 without tradin' ritle shots with^ any of 'cm. 
 That w^as a strange thing, but," added the scout, 
 significantly, "I don't think you've got any 
 Quizto among them skunks down there." 
 
CHAPTER XXXVIII. 
 
 HAND TO HAND. 
 
 The Apaches surrounding Hurricane Hill were 
 more closely watched through the forenoon, 
 for Dick more than once gave it as his opinion 
 that they would make a rush before the day 
 was over. To protect themselves as much as 
 possible, the rock of which the hunter had 
 spoken was forced into the passage-way, and 
 an unremitting guard maintained, to prevent 
 any sudden surprise. 
 
 It was near noon, when three Apaches were 
 seen to leap upon their mustangs, one going 
 north, another south and the third due west. 
 
 "Spies," explained Dick. "Lone Wolf is a 
 little anxious about what Tom may do, and he 
 sends them out to watch. If they find out any- 
 thin' they'll manage to telegraph him in time 
 to get ready for anythin' comin'. 
 
 "Can you see Lone Wolf among them?" 
 
 "Can't make sartin of it," returned the 
 hunter. "He knows that if I can get a crack 
 
 318 
 
THROUGH APACHE LAND. 319 
 
 at him he'll go, and so he takes care not to let 
 me have the chance. Can you see anythin' off 
 toward the mountains in the west?" 
 
 ** Nothing but that Apache horseman going 
 away like an arrow." 
 
 " There's the p'int from which our friends will 
 come, if they ever come at all. Keep your eye 
 on it while I take a look below." 
 
 The scout moved down the declivity, until he 
 reached the place where it had been barricaded, 
 when he stationed himself behind the obstruc- 
 tion, quite certain that something stirring w^ould 
 soon take place. It was his belief that when 
 the time came, the Apaches, at a preconcerted 
 signal, would rush tumultuously up the steep in 
 a determined effort to overwhelm them all. Such 
 a movement, of course, from the very nature of 
 things, would give timely notice of its coming. 
 His astonishment, therefore, may be imagined 
 when, after he had stood in his position for a 
 few minutes, rather listlessly and looking for no 
 immediate demonstration, he perceived a dark 
 body suddenly pass over his head. Turning 
 about, he saw an Indian warrior speeding like 
 a deer up the path toward the top of Hurricane 
 
320 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 Hill, where Ned Chadmund stood, all uncon- 
 scious of his coming. 
 
 The hunter, astonished as he was at the dar- 
 ing feat, was not thrown off his guard. He 
 knew that the Apache was not seeking the life 
 of the lad, but only to open the way for the 
 rest of the warriors to follow over the barricade. 
 They believed that in the excitement Dick would 
 turn and dash after the redskin, leaving the 
 way open for the whole horde to swarm to the 
 top of the Hill. But the clear-headed Dick 
 maintained his position, only uttering a shout 
 of warning to Ned Chadmund, in the hope that 
 he might be prepared and "wing" the redskin 
 the instant he should appear in view. Then, 
 having done this, he stood back behind the jut- 
 ting rock and held his rifle ready. 
 
 Within ten seconds a second Apache scrambled 
 over the barricade, and started at full speed up 
 the pathway, but he had no more than fairly 
 started, than he fell headlong to the ground, 
 pierced through and through by the rifle fired 
 almost in his face. Almost the same instant 
 a second appeared, when he tumbled backward, 
 driven thence by the revolver of the hunter, who 
 was as cool as an iceberg. This stemmed the 
 
THROUGH APACHE LAND. 321 
 
 tide, the crowding warriors hurrying back before 
 the lion that lay in their path. All this was 
 the work of a very few seconds, but it was 
 scarcely effected, when a cry from the lad on 
 top of the rock showed that he had discovered 
 his danger. The next instant, white-faced and 
 scared, he came dashing down the path, shout- 
 ing to the hunter: 
 
 '*0h, Dick, save me! save me! there's an 
 Indian after me! " 
 
 The savage, however, did not follow, and Dick, 
 as the lad rushed into his arms, shook him rather 
 roughly, and said: 
 
 ''Keep still! Why do you make such a thun- 
 derin' noise?" The lad speedily controlled him- 
 self, and then the scout placed his revolver in 
 his hand, and said: "Stand right here, and the 
 minute a redskin shows himself, crack him over. 
 Can you do it?" 
 
 "Haven't I proved it?" 
 
 *'Yes; but you made such a racket here that 
 I've lost faith in you." 
 
 " Try me and see." 
 Adding a few^ hasty words, the scout left 
 him, and hurried to the top of the hill, without 
 
 21 
 
322 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 pausing to approach with his usual precau- 
 tion. 
 
 His expectation was to encounter the redskin 
 at once upon reaching it, but, to his surprise, 
 he was nowhere to be seen, and he paused 
 somewhat bewildered. 
 
 *'I wonder whether he's got scart 'cause none 
 of the rest followed him, and jumped over- 
 board-" 
 
 At that instant something descended like a 
 ponderous rock, and he realized that he was in 
 the grip of the very redskin about whom he had 
 been meditating. The miscreant had managed 
 to crouch behind a rocky protuberance, and 
 then made a sudden leap upon the shoulders of 
 the hunter. As the Apache's scheme had miscar- 
 ried thus far, and instead of being backed up 
 by the other warriors, he w^as left alone to 
 fight it out, he did not pause to attempt to 
 make him prisoner, but went into the scrim- 
 mage with the purpose of ending it as briefly 
 as possible. As he landed upon the shoulders of 
 Dick the latter caught the gleam of his knife, 
 and grasped his wrist just in time. Fearful that 
 it would be wrenched from him, the Apache 
 managed to give his confined hand a flirt, which 
 
THROUGH APACHE LAND. 323 
 
 threw it beyond the reach of both. By a tremen- 
 dous effort Dick then succeeded in flinging him 
 over his shoulder, although the agile redskin 
 dropped upon his feet, and instantly flew at his 
 antagonist like a tiger. 
 
 For several minutes the struggle raged with 
 the greatest fur^'; but the Apache, in a contest 
 of this kind, was overmatched. The hunter was 
 much the superior, and he began crowding his 
 foe toward the margin of the rock. Divining 
 his purpose, he resisted with the fury of desper- 
 ation; but it was useless, and the two moved 
 along toward the brink like the slow, resistless 
 tread of fate. Neither of them spoke a word, 
 nor was a muscle relaxed. The scout knew 
 that the instant the struggle was detected by 
 those below, there would be a rush up the 
 incline such as Ned Chadmund with his loaded 
 and cocked revolver could not withstand. The 
 fighting, therefore, was of the hurricane order 
 from the beginning to the close. 
 
 There was one terrific burst of strength, and 
 then, gathering the writhing savage in his arms, 
 Dick Morris ran to the very edge of the plateau 
 and hurled him over. 
 
324 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 Down, down from dizzy heights he spun, until 
 he struck the ground far below, a shapeless, insensi- 
 ble mass, falling almost at the feet of the horror- 
 bound Apaches, who thus saw the dreadful 
 death of one of their most intrepid and power- 
 ful warriors. 
 
 Without waiting to see the last of the redskin, 
 the scout turned and hurried down to the relief 
 of his young charge, and to be prepared for the 
 rush which he was confident would be made 
 the next minute. But it w^as not. The redskins 
 had learned, from dear experience, the mettle of 
 this formidable white man, and they had no 
 wMsh to encounter it again. 
 
 The time wore away until the sun was at the 
 meridian, and the heat became almost intoler- 
 able. Even the toughened old scout was com- 
 pelled to shelter himself as best he could from 
 its intolerable rays, by seeking the scant shadow 
 of jutting points of the rock. Ned Chadmund 
 suffered much, and the roiled and warm water 
 in the old canteen was quaffed again, even 
 though they were compelled to tip it more and 
 more, until, toward the clovSe of the day, Dick 
 held it mouth downward, and showed that not 
 a drop was left. 
 
THROUGH APACHE LAND. 325 
 
 "No use of keeping it when we are thirsty," 
 was the philosophic remark of the hunter. "It's 
 made to drink, and we needn't stop so long as 
 any is left; and bein' there ain't any left, I 
 guess we'll stop. I've a mouthful or two of 
 meat left, and we may as well surround that." 
 
 So they did ; and wdien the sun sank down in 
 the west, not a particle of food nor a drop of 
 water remained to them. 
 
 "Now, Ned, my boy," said Dick, who always 
 maintained a certain cheerfulness, no matter 
 what the circumstances might be, "go to the 
 lookout and tell me what you see." 
 
 The lad was absent some ten minutes, during 
 which he carefully scanned every part of the 
 horizon and took a peep down upon their 
 besiegers. 
 
 "I find no sign of a living soul," he said, when 
 he returned, "except the Apaches, and they're 
 waiting until they can get us without fighting." 
 
 "Stay here while I take a peep." 
 Long and carefully Dick Morris gazed off to 
 the west, in the direction of the mountains, and 
 then something like a sigh escaped him, as he 
 shook his head and muttered: 
 
326 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 "It looks bad, it looks bad. If Tom succeeded, 
 he ought to be in sight by this time. I see 
 nothing of 'em, and from the way the redskins 
 act down there, they seem to be sartin he's 
 gone under. I don't mind for myself, for I'm 
 ready to go any time; but I feel powerful 
 sorry for the little fellow down there." 
 
CHAPTER XXXIX. 
 
 CONCLUSION. 
 
 Long and hard rode Tom Hardynge after his 
 escape from the beleaguring Apaches, for he was 
 determined to save Ned and Dick if the thingf 
 were within the range of human possibility. 
 His mustang seemed to understand what was 
 expected of him, and he required no urging from 
 his master to maintain his arrowy flight. It 
 was a hteral race between hfe and death. If he 
 could reach Fort HaA-ens in time to procure suc- 
 cor, the man and the boy were saved. If not, 
 then the\^ were doomed. 
 
 At daylight he was among the mountains, and 
 
 the steed paused a few seconds to swallow a 
 
 little water from a tiny stream. An hour later 
 
 he ascended an elevation, and from his back the 
 
 rider took a survey of the plain stretched out 
 
 before him. 
 
 Far away in the distance a dark, stationary 
 object was discerned. A keen eye could detect 
 
 something fluttering above it in the wind. That 
 
 327 
 
328 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 was the star-spangled banner, waving above 
 Fort Havens. Yonder was the destination 
 toward which the little party had been laboring 
 for days and which there was no assurance of 
 still reaching. The scout had not yet passed half 
 the distance interveninof between the fort and 
 Hurricane Hill. Mercy to his beast compelled 
 him to give him a brief rest and an opportunity 
 to eat a little food. Then, away again. 
 
 It was the middle of the afternoon, and Tom 
 was nearing the fort, which was in distinct view 
 a few miles ahead, when his attention was 
 arrested by the sight of a number of men mov- 
 ing along to the north, and in a contrary direc- 
 tion to that which he himself was foUowinsf. 
 They suddenly emerged from some hills, and rode 
 at a sweeping gallop. What surprised the 
 hunter was the discovery that they were United 
 States cavalry, that had evidently come from 
 Fort Havens itself! How their appearance could 
 be explained was more than he could under- 
 stand; but he saw at once that if their co-oper- 
 ation could be secured, several hours' valuable 
 time might be saved. He turned the head of his 
 mustang in that direction and rode at the same 
 tearing speed as before. 
 
THROUGH APACHE LAND. 329 
 
 The cavalry detected his coming, reined up and 
 awaited his approach. The afternoon was well 
 advanced when the hunter drew rein in front of 
 the company, and saluted the chief officer, who 
 was Colonel Chadmund himself, the command- 
 ant of Fort Havens, at the head of seventy-five 
 veteran cavalry. He recognized the scout, and 
 rode forward to meet him. 
 
 "Any news of my little boy, Tom?" he asked, 
 before their palms crossed. 
 
 "Alive and well." 
 
 "Thank God! thank God!" exclaimed the 
 white-faced officer, trembling with joy. "Have 
 the Indians caught him?" 
 
 "No; but he is in danger. What are you doing 
 with these men here?" 
 
 "An Indian came into the fort several hours 
 ago, with the word that Lone Wolf and a party 
 of Apaches had driven tw^o or three persons to 
 the top of Hurricane Hill, where they would 
 soon be caught unless assistance was sent them. 
 The Indian is one of our regular scouts, in w^hom 
 we have much confidence, and thinking it might 
 be you, with possibly my little Ned, I put 
 myself at the head of the company and started 
 out to see. I had very little hope, how^ever, of 
 
330 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 seeing him alive, for news had reached us of the 
 massacre of the escort party in Devil's Pass." 
 
 Hardynge, in a few minutes, explained the 
 situation, and the colonel was all excitement to 
 be off again. Every hour — every minute, indeed 
 — was precious to him, and, as the two rode 
 back, the advance was resumed without a 
 moment's delay. Instead of proceeding back in 
 a direct line, however, over the path traveled by 
 the scout, they made a detour to the northward, 
 the configuration of the country being such that 
 a much nearer approach, undiscovered, could be 
 made from this direction than from any other. 
 
 There were several extra horses in the com- 
 pany, one of which was appropriated by Tom, 
 while he left his own to roam over the plain and 
 reach the fort whenever his disposition should 
 take him in that direction. Colonel Chadmund 
 had taken the precaution to mount all his men 
 upon the best steeds at command, and they were 
 driven into a rapid, telling pace. They made 
 good progress, but when the sun set they had 
 not yet reached a point from which the most 
 distant view of Hurricane Hill could be obtained. 
 A more moderate speed was kept up until mid- 
 night, when they went intQ camp, picketed their 
 
THROUGH APACHE LAND. 331 
 
 animals, and resumed the march at daybreak. 
 The horses were forced to the greatest possible 
 endurance, but never did miles seem so lonji. 
 It was high noon before a point among the 
 hills on the north was reached from which a 
 fair view of the pile of rocks could be obtained. 
 Colonel Chadmund produced his glass, and 
 scrutinized the towering-like mass, in quest of 
 some sign of the defenders. Not the least could 
 be obtained; but he saw at the base the band 
 of Apaches, spread out like a miniature besieging 
 army, and this, to the minds of all, was proof 
 that the garrison of Hurricane Hill were still at 
 the post of duty. 
 
 It was necessary to approach as close to the 
 spot as possible without discoverv, and then to 
 charge down upon the Indians with such fiery 
 impetuosity that they would have no time to 
 inflict any damage upon the brave defenders. 
 The appearance of the cavalry would apprise 
 them that the siege was at an end, and in the 
 gnawing rage thereat, they might charge up the 
 incline and open a fire, which would riddle Dick 
 and Ned and from which there would be no 
 escape. 
 
332 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 Colonel Chaclmund understood Indian T^arfare 
 so well as to know that Lone Wolf had his 
 scouts out, and it would be a difficidt matter 
 to avoid them. Still the attempt was made, and 
 by the middle of the afternoon, the cavalry had 
 reached a point barely two miles av^ay v^ithout 
 his presence being suspected. 
 
 "I've been watching the place for half an 
 hour," said the colonel, as he lowered his glass, 
 and handed it to Tom Hardynge, standing at 
 his elbow, *'and it seems to me that the top of 
 Hurricane Hill is deserted, although the Apaches 
 at the base seem to point the other way." 
 
 "Of course, of course," replied the hunter, 
 impatiently. "You don't 'spose they'd stand up 
 in sight all the time, like a couple of spoonies 
 gettin' their pictures took? The^^'re watchin' 
 the path that leads up to where they be." 
 
 It required but a few minutes to conclude their 
 preparations, v^hen the seventy odd cavalry- 
 men, armed to the teeth, burst forth from the 
 hills like a mountain torrent, and charged 
 straight for Lone Wolf and his band. The latter, 
 of course, were quick to detect it, and drew up 
 with the purpose of making a fight ; but when 
 they took in the strength of the company 
 
THROUGH APACHE LAND. 333 
 
 approaching, tlic}^ changed their minds, and 
 broke and scattered like chaff before the whirl- 
 wind. 
 
 This was a severe disappointment, for the 
 colonel and a dozen of his best Indian fighters 
 had arranged to make a determined eftbrt to rid 
 the country of this pest. These were the best 
 mounted in the company, and in their eagerness 
 they sped straight ahead after the redskins, still 
 hoping that some turn of fortune's wheel would 
 give them the coveted chance. But the mustangs 
 of the Apaches were fresh and fleet, and they had 
 no purpose of meeting the United States cavalry 
 where there was anything like an equal advan- 
 tage; so they continued their flight with such 
 persistent celerity that they soon vanished from 
 view. 
 
 The heart of Colonel Chadmund misgave him 
 as he galloped tow^ard Hurricane Hill and saw 
 no sign of life there. But while he was alternat- 
 ing between hope and despair, the figure of a 
 man appeared around the corner of the rock, 
 and then the form of a little boy was discerned, 
 as he came running across the prairie with out- 
 stretched arms. 
 
 *'0h, father! father!" 
 
334 THROUGH APACHE LAND. 
 
 Colonel Chadmund leaped from the back of 
 his horse and ran to meet him. 
 
 "My darling boy! God be thanked!" 
 The stern old soldier wept like a child as he 
 caught him in his arms and hugged him to his 
 breast, while more than one rough soldier, look- 
 ing on, dashed the tears from his eyes and tried 
 to look as if he were thinking of something else. 
 
 The danger was passed. Little Ned, carried in 
 triumph to the fort, remained the appointed time 
 with his father at this advanced frontier post, 
 and when he returned to Santa Fe to his beloved 
 mother it was with an escort which guaranteed 
 his safety. 
 
 Thus ended his adventures with what were 
 then the scourges of the great Southwest, but 
 the memory of them is indelible and not to be 
 subdued by the lapse of j^ears. In his manhood 
 days he looks back upon those troublous times 
 when the wild riders left the bones of venture- 
 some white men to whiten upon the banks of 
 the Gila; and, although remembrance brings its 
 thrill of excitement, it is coupled with a shudder 
 whenever Ned Chadmund thinks of his passage 
 "Through Apache Land." 
 
 Volume III of The War Whoop Series is entitled 
 "The Care in the Mountain." 
 
Through i Apache land 
 
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 7)lti82G2 
 
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 THE UNIVERSITY OF CAUFORNIA UBRARY