BANCROFT LIBRARY THE PIRATES OF THE PRAIRIES; OB, ADVENTURES IN THE AMERICAN DESERT. BY GUSTAVE AIMAKD. AUTHOR OP "THE TRAIL HUNTER," "THE PRAIRIE FLOWER," "THE INDIAN SCOUT," "THE TRAPPER'S DAUGHTER," "THE TIGER SLAYER," "THE GOLD SEEKERS," "THE INDIAN CHIEF," "THE BORDER RIFLES," "THE FREEBOOTERS," "THE WHITE SCALPER," "THE TRAPPERS OF THE ARKANSAS," " THE CHIEF OF THE AUCAS," THE RED TRACK," " THE LAST OF THE INCAS," " THE QUEEN OF THE SAVANNAH," ETC., ETC. COMPLETE AND UNABRIDGED EDITION. T. B. PETERSON & BROTHEKS; 306 CHESTNUT STREET PZs A X PKEFACE. THE present is the second of the series of Indian tales, com mencing with the " Trail Hunter," and which will be completed in one more volume, entitled the " Trapper's Daughter." It must be understood, however, that each of these volumes is complete in itself, although the characters already introduced to the reader are brought on the stage again, and continue their surprising adven tures through succeeding works. For this, Gustave Aimard can quote the example of his predecessor, Fenimore Cooper, whose " Deer Slayer," appears in a long succession of volumes, not neces sarily connected, but which all repay perusal. I believe that few who have commenced with one volume of Cooper's Indian tales, but have been anxious to follow the hero through the remainder of his adventures; and I sincerely trust that a perusal of the " Pirates of the Prairies" may lead to a demand for the other volumes by the same author, which have already appeared, and for those which have still to follow. LASCELLES WEAXALL. (15) CONTENTS. CBAPTBR. PAOK I. The Cache 19 IL The Ambuscade 24 III. An Old Acquaintance of the Reader 27 IY. Red Cedar at Bay ? 30 Y. The Grotto 33 YL The Proposition 37 YIL Ellen and Dona Clara 40 r IIL The Flight -13 IX. The Teocali 46 X. The White Gazelle 50 XL The Apaches 54 XII Black Cat 58 XIIL The Great Medicine 62 XIV. The Succor 66 XY. On the Island 69 XVL Sunbeam....../ 73 XYIL Indian Hospitality 77 XYIIL Love! 80 XIX. The Dance of the Old Dogs 84 XX. A Hand-to-hand Fight 87 XXL The Avenger 92 XXIL Explanatory 96 XXIIL Apaches and Comanches 99 XXIY. The Scalp-Dance 103 XXY. The Torture. 107 (IT) 18 CONTENTS. CHAPTEE PAQB XXVI Two Women's Hearts 110 XXVIL Shaw 115 XXYIIL The Departure 119 XXIX. The Ambuscade . 123 XXX. The Pirate's Confession 126 XXXI. The Rivals 131 XXXIL Fray Ambrosio 135 XXXIII. The Trail 138 XXXIV. The Hunt 142 XXXV. The Combat 146 XXXYL The Earthquake 148 THE PIRATES OF THE PRAIRIES. BY GUSTAVE AIIARD. CHAPTER I. THE CACHE. Two months have elapsed since we left the Trail-Hunter commencing his adventurous journey, and we are in the heart of the desert. Before us immensity is unfolded. What pen, however eloquent, would venture to describe those illimitable oceans of verdure to which the North Americans have in their imagery, given the poetic and mysterious name of the Far West? that is to say, the truly unknown region, with its scenes at once grand and striking, soft and terrible ; unbounded prairies in which may be found that rich and luxuriant Flora, against whose magic growth only the Indian can successfully struggle. These plains, at the first glance, offer the dazzled eye of the rash traveller who ventures on them a vast carpet of verdure embossed with flowers, furrow ed by large streams ; and they appear of a desperate regularity, mingling in the horizon with the azure of the sky. It is only by degrees, when the sight grows accustomed to the picture, that, gradually mastering the details, the visitor notices here and there rather lofty hills, the escarped sides of the water -courses, and a thousand unexpect ed accidents which agreeably break that monotony by which the eye is at first saddened, and which the lofty grass and the giant productions of the Flora completely conceal. How can we enumerate the products of this primitive nature, which form an inextricable confusion and interlace ment, describing majestic curves, pro ducing grand arcades, and offering, in a word, the most splendid and sublime spectacle it was ever given to man to admire through its eternal contrasts and striking harmony ? Above the gigantic ferns, themezquite, the cactuses, nopals, larches, and fruit- laden arbutuses, rise the mahogany tree with its oblong leaves, the moriche, or pine-tree, the Sbanijo, whose wide leaves are shaped like a fan, the pirijao, from which hang enormous clusters of golden fruit, the royal palm whose stem is denuded of foliage, and balances its majestic and tufted head at the slightest breath ; the Indian cane, the lemon tree, the guava, the plantain, the chindroya, or intoxicating fruit, the oak, the pine tree, and the wax palm, distilling its resinous gum. 19] THE PIRATES OF THE PRAIRIES, Then, there are immense fields of dahlias, flowers whiter than the snows of the Caffre de Perote or the Chimbo- razo, or redder than blood, immense lianas twining and circling round the stems of trees and vines overflowing with sap ; and in the midst of this in extricable chaos fly, run, and crawl, in every direction, animals of all sorts and sizes, birds, quadrupeds, reptiles, am phibious, singing, crying, howling and roaring with every note of the human gamut, some mocking and menacing, others soft and melancholy. The stags and deer bounding timidly along, with ear erect and eye on the watch, the bighorn leaping from rock to rock, and then resting motionless on the verge of a precipice, the heavy and stupid buffaloes with their sad eyes ; the wild horses, whose numerous manadas make the earth re-echo in their purpose less chase ; the alligator, with its body in the mud, and sleeping in the sun ; the hideous iguana carelessly climbing up a tree ; the puma, that maneless lion ; the panther and jaguar cunningly watch their prey as it passes ; the brown bear, that gluttonous honey-hunter ; the grizzly, the most formidable denizen of these countries ; the cotejo, with its venomous bite ; the chameleon, whose skin reflects every hue ; the green lizard, and the basilisk crawling silent and sinister beneath the leaves; the mon strous boa, the coral snake, so small and yet so terrible ; the cascabel, the macaurel, and the great striped serpent. The feathered flock sing and twitter on the branches, hidden beneath the dense foliage ; the tanagers, the curassos, the chattering ZZoros, the haras, the fly catcher, the toucans, with their enor mous beaks, the pigeons, the trogons, the elegant rose flamingos, the swans balancing and sporting in the streams, and the light and graceful gray squir rels leaping with unimaginable speed from creeper to creeper, from shrub to shrub. In the highest regions of air, hpvering in long circles over the prairie, the eagle of the Sierra Madre, with wide-spread wings, and the bald-headed vulture, select the prey on which they dart with the rapidity of lightning. Then, suddenly, crushing under his horse's hoofs the sand and gold-studded pebbles sparkling in the sun, appears, as if by enchantment, an Indian, with his red skin glistening like new copper, robust limbs, gestures stamped with majesty and grace, and a commanding eye; a Navajoe, Pawnee, Comanche, Apache or Sioux, who, whirling his lasso or loJcld round his head, drives be fore him a herd of startled buffaloes or wild horses, or else a panther, ounce, or jaguar, that fly his presence with hoarse roars of rage and terror. x This child of the desert, so grand, so noble, and so disdainful of peril, who crosses the prairies with incredible speed, and knows its thousand turnings, is truly the king of this strange country, which he alone can traverse night and day, and whose countless dangers he does not fear. He struggles inch by inch with that European civilization which is slowly- advancing, driving him into his last in- trenchments and invading his lands on all sides. Hence, woe to the trapper or hunter who ventures to traverse these prairies alone ! his bones will bleach on the plain, and his scalp adorn the shield of an Indian chief, or thejnane of his horse. Such is the sublime, striking, and terrible spectacle the Far West offers even at the present day. The day on which we resume our story, at the moment when the sun at tained its zenith, the mournful silence brooding over the desert was suddenly troubled by a slight sound, which was leard in the tufted clumps that border the Rio Gila, in one of the most un- snown districts of this solitude. The branches were cautiously parted, and amid the leaves and creepers a Tian displayed his face dripping with perspiration, and marked with an ex pression of terror and despair. This man, after looking around him anxiously, and assuring himself that no one was on the watch, slowly disengaged his body from the grass and shrubs tha4; conceal it, walked a few steps in the direction of the river, and fell to the ground, uttering a profound sigh. Almost simultaneously an enormous THE PIRATES OF THE PRAIRIES. 21 mastiff, with a cross of the wolf and Newfoundland, bounded from the shrubs and lay down at his feet. The man who appeared so unexpected ly on the banks of the Rio Gila was Red Cedar. (See the Trail-hunter.) His position appeared most critical, for he was alone in the desert, without weapons or provisions. We say with out weapons, for the long knife passed through his deer-skin girdle was almost useless to him. In the Far West, that infinite ocean of verdure, an unarmed man is a dead man ! The struggle becomes impossible for him with the numberless enemies who watch his passing, and only await a favorable moment to catch him. Red Cedar was deprived of those in estimable riches of the hunter, a rifle and a horse. Moreover he was alone ! Man, so long as he can see his fellow, even though that fellow be an enemy, does not believe himself abandoned. In his heart there remains a vague hope for which he cannot account, but which sustains and endows him with courage. v But, so soon as every human form has disappeared, and man, an imperceptible grain of dust in the desert, finds himself face to face with God, he trembles, for the feeling of his weakness is then re vealed to him ; he comprehends how insignificant he is before these colossal works of nature, and how insensate is the struggle he must carry on, in order to raise only a corner of the winding sheet of sand gradually settling down on him, and which assails hiin from all sides at once. Red Cedar was an old wood-ranger. Many times, during his excursions in the prairies, he had found himself in al most, desperate situations, and he had always got out of them by his boldness, patience, and above all, his firm will. Still, he had never before been so de nuded of everything as he was at this moment. Still, he must make up his mind to something. He arose, stifling an oath, and whist ling to his dog, the only being thfj.t re mained faithful in his misfortw , he set out, not even taking the trouble to find out his direction. In fact, what need had he to choose one ? were not all good for him, and would they not all lead within a given period to the same end death ? He walked on thus for several hours with drooping head, seeing the bighorns and asshatas bounding round, as if mocking him. The buffaloes scarce deigned to raise their heads as he passed, and looked afc him with their large melancholy eyes, as if comprehending that their implaca ble foe was disarmed, and they had nothing to fear from him. The elks, balanced on the points of the rocks, leaped and sported round him, while his dog, who did not at all comprehend this very novel affair, look ed at its master, and seemed to ask him what it all meant. The day passed thus, without pro ducing the least change for the better in the squatter's position ; but, on the contrary, aggravating it. At nightfall he fell on the sand, exhausted by fatigue and hunger. The sun had disappeared, and the darkness waa already invading the prairie. The howling of the wild beasts could be heard as they emerged from their lair to quench their thirst and go in search of food. The disarmed squatter could not light a fire to keep them at bay. He looked around him; a last in stinct of preservation, perhaps, or the final gleam of hope, that divine spark which is never extinguished in the heart of the most unfortunate man, urged him to seek a shelter. He climbed up a tree, and after ty ing himself securely, through fear of a fall, if, as was very improbable, he fell asleep, he closed his eyes and sought slumber, in order to cheat for a few mo ments, at any rate, that hunger which devoured him, and forget his deplora ble position. But sleep does not thus visit the un fortunate, and obstinately refused to come, when most earnestly invoked. No one, who has not experienced it, THE PIRATES OF THE PRAIRIES. can imagine the horror of a sleepless night in the desert ? The darkness is peopled with mourn ful spectres, the wild beasts roar, the serpents twine round the trees, and at times clasp in their cold and viscous coils the wretched man half-dead with terror. No one can say of how many centu ries a minute is composed in this terri ble situation, or the length of this night mare, during which the sickly mind creates the most monstrous lucubra tions. Especially when the stomach is empty, and, through that very circum stance, the brain is more easily invaded by delirium. At sunrise the squatter breathed a sigh of relief. And yet, of what consequence to him was the appearance of light, for it was only the beginning of a day of in tolerable suffering and frightful torture ? But, at any rate, he could see, he could notice, what went on around him ; the sun warmed and restored him some slight strength. He came down from the tree in which he had passed the night, and con tinued his journey. Why did he go on ? he did not know himself ; still, he walked as if he had a .point to reach, although he was perfect ly well aware he had no help to expect from any one, and that, on the contrary, the first face he perceived would be that of an enemy. But the man whose mind is powerful ly constituted is so. He never gives up ; he struggles to the last moment, and if he cannot trust to Providence, he hopes in accident, without daring to confess it to himself. It would be impossible for us to ex- fplain the thoughts that crossed the squatter's brain while, with uncertain step he crossed silently and sadly the vast solitudes of the prairie. Toward midday, the heat became so intense, that, overcome by so much moral and physical suffering, he sank exhausted at the foot of a tree. He remained for a long time extend ed on the ground ; but, at length, im pelled ,by want, he rose with an effort, and sought for roots and herbs which might lull the ^hunger that gnawed his vitals. His search was long in vain, but at last he found a species of yucca, a pasty root somewhat like manioc, which ho devoured with delight. He laid in a stock of this root, which he shared with his dog, and, after a deep draught from the stream, he pre pared to continue his journey, slightly re-invigorated by this more than frugal meal ; when all at once his eye emitted a flash, his face grew animated, and he murmured in a voice trembling with emotion : " Suppose it was one !" This is what had caused Red Cedar's exclamation. At the moment he was setting out again after looking mechanically around him, he fancied he noticed at a certain spot that the grass was closer and taller than anywhere else. This difference, visibly only to a man long accustomed to the prairie, did not escape him. The Indians and hunters, often com pelled to make a hurried journey, either to avoid a hostile ambuscade or follow up the game, are necessitated to abandon a large portion of their plunder or merchandize they carry with them for trading purposes. As they are not at all inclined to lose it, however, they make what is called in trapper language a cache. It is effected in the following way. They begin by spreading blankets and buffalo-skins round the spot where they intend making the cache: then, they remove large sods of grass, square, round, or oval, and dig out the soil, be ing careful to lay it on the blankets or skins. When the hole is deep enough, the sides are lined with buffalo hides, for fear of damp, and the articles are laid in it : the soil is then put in again, and the grass laid over it, which is watered to make it grow, and the rest of the earth is carried to the river, into which every particle is thrown, in order to hide any trace of the cache, which is so closely concealed, that a man must have an ex traordinary skilful eye to discover one, THE PIRATES OF THE PRAIRIES. 23 and he often only finds old caches which have been ransacked and have nothing left in them. The objects placed in the caches will keep for five or six years without de teriorating. How many things concealed in this way have been lost through the death of their owners who bear with them in the tomb the secret of the spot where they have deposited their wealth ! We have said, that the squatter ima gined he had found such a cache. In his position, such a discovery was of inestimable value to him : it might offer him articles of primary necessity he wanted, and restore him, as it were, to life, by supplying him with means to recommence his existence of hunting, plunder, and vagabondage. He stood for some minutes with his eye fixed on the spot where he suspect ed the cache, his mind agitated by un- definable feelings. At length he moderated his emotion, and his heart palpitating with fear and hope, carefully laid his blanket and buf falo robe by the cache to hold the earth, with that honesty innate in men accus tomed to a prairie life, who, though they may be bandits and plunder the property of others unscrupulously, still consider it a point of honor not to squander it, or deprive the legal owner of anything but what is absolutely ne cessary to themselves ; then he knelt down and with his knife removed a sod of grass. It is impossible to describe the quiv er and anxiety of this man when he first plunged his knife into the ground. He then carefully removed all the turf that seemed to him to form the outline of the cache. This first task ended, he rested for a moment to take breath, and at the same time to indulge in that emotion so full of pleasure and pain felt on accomplish ing an act from which life or death de pends. After a quarter of an hour, he passed his hand over his dank forehead, and set to work resolutely, digging up the ground with his knife, and removing it with his hands to the blanket. It was really a rude task, especially for a man exhausted by fatigue and weakened by privations. Several times he was compelled to stop through the exhaustion of his strength: the work advanced slowly, and no sign as yet corroborated the squatter's belief. Several times he'was on the point of abandoning this vain search, but it was his only chance of safety ; there alone, if he succeeded, would he find the means^to become once more a wood- ranger: hence he clung to this last plank of safety which chance offered him, with all the energy of despair, that Archimedean lever, which finds nothing impossible. Still, the unhappy wretch had been digging for a long time ; a large hole was gaping before him, but nothing of fered him a prospect of success ; hence, in spite of the invincible energy of his character, he felt despair invading his mind once again. A tear of impotent rage brooded in his fever-inflarned eyelids, and he hurled his knife into the hole, uttering an oath, and giving heaven a bitter look of defiance. The knife sprung back with a metal lic sound ; the squatter seized it and ex amined it closely the point was broken clean off. He began digging again frenziedly with his nails, like a wild beast, dis daining the use of his knife any longer, and he soon laid bare a buffalo hide. Instead of lifting this skin at once, which doubtless covered all the treas ures whose possession he coveted, he began gazing at it with terrible anxiety. Red Cedar had not deceived himself: he had really discovered a cache. But what did it contain? perhaps it had already been ransacked, and was empty. When he had only one movement to make, in order to assure himself, he hesitated he was afraid ! During the three hours he had been toiling to reach this point, he had form ed so many chimeras, that he instinctive ly feared to see them vanish suddenly, and fall back rudely into the frightful reality which held him in its iron claws. For a long time he hesitated in this THE PIRATES OF THE PRAIRIES. way ; at length suddenly forming a re solve, with hands trembling with emo tion, palpitating heart and bloodshot eye, he tore away the buffalo skin, with a movement rapid as thought. He felt dazzled, and uttered a roar like a wild beast he had hit upon a thorough hunter's cache ! It contained iron traps of every de scription, rifles, double and single pisjols, powder horns, bags filled with bullets, knives, and the thousand objects suitable for wood-rangers. Red Cedar felt himself born again : a sudden change took place in him, he became again the implacable and in domitable being he had been prior to the catastrophe, without fear or re morse, ready to recommence the strug gle with all nature, and laughing at the perils and snares he might meet with on the road. He selected the best rifle, two pairs of double-barrelled pistols, and a knife with a blade fifteen inches in length. He also took the necessary harness for a horse; two powder-horns, a bag of bullets, and an elkskin game pouch richly embroidered in the Indian fash ion, containing a tinder-box and all the necessaries for bivouacking. He also found pipes and tobacco, which he eagerly clutched, for his greatest priva tion had been the inability to smoke. When he had loaded himself with all he thought he needed, he restored ail to its primitive condition, and skilfully re moved the traces which might have re vealed to others the cache which had been so useful to himself. This duty of an honest man perform ed, Red Cedar threw his rifle over his shoulder, whistled to the dog, and went off hurriedly muttering : " Ah, ah ! you fancied you had forced the boar in its lair; we shall see whether it can take its revenge." By what concourse of extraordinary events was the squatter, whom we saw enter the desert at the head of a numer ous and resolute troop, reduced to such a state of urgent peril ? CHAPTER II. THE AMBUSCADE. WE said at the close of the " Trail- Hunter," that another band entered the desert at the heels of the troop com manded by Red Cedar. This band, guided by Valentine Guil- lois, was composed of Curumilla, Gen eral Ibanez, Don Miguel Zarate, and his son. These men were not seeking a placer, but vengeance. On reaching the Indian territory, the Frenchman looked inquiringly round him, and stopping his horse, turned to Don Miguel. " Before going further," he said, " I think we had better hold a council, and settle a plan of campaign from which we will not deviate." " My friend," the haciendero answer ed "you know that all our hopes rest on you : act, therefore, as you think ad visable." " Good," Valentine said ; " this is the hour when the heat compels all living creatures in the desert to seek shelter under the shade of the trees, so we will halt ; the spot where we now are is ad mirably suited for a day's bivouac." " Be it so," the haciendero answered laconically. The horsemen dismounted, and re moved their horses' bits, so that the poor creatures might obtain a little nourishment by nibbling the scanty and parched grass which grew on this un grateful soil. The spot was really admirably chosen : it was a large clearing travers ed by one of those many nameless streams which intersect the prairie in every direction, and which, after a course of a few miles, go to swell the rivers in which they are lost. A dense dome of foliage offered the travelers an indispensable shelter against the burning beams of a vertical sun. Although it was about midday, the air in the clearing, refreshed by the ex halations of the stream, invited them to enjoy that day-sleep so well called the siesta. But the travelers had something more serious to attend to than sleep. THE PIRATES OF THE PRAIRIES. 25 As soon as all the precautions were taken against any possible attack, Val entine sat down at the foot of a tree, making his friends a sign to join him. The three whites immediately ac quiesced, while Curumilla, according to his wont, went rifle in hand to the skirt of the clearing, to watch over the safety of all. After a few moments' reflection, Val entine took the word : " Caballeros," he said, " the moment has arrived for a frank explanation : we are at present on the enemy's territory ; the desert extends for more than two thousand miles around us. We shall have to fight not only with the white men or red-skins we meet on our road, but also contend with hunger, thirst, and wild beasts of every description. Do not try to give my words any other meaning than that I myself attach to them. You have known me a long time, Don Miguel, and the friendship I have vowed to you." " I know it, and thank you," Don Miguel said, gratefully. "In short," Valentine continued, " no obstacle, of whatever nature it may be, will be powerful enough to check me in the mission 1 have under taken." " I am convinced of it, my friend." " Good, but I am an old wood-ranger ; desert life, with its privations and pe rils, is perfectly familiar to me ; the trail I am about to follow will only be child's play to me and the brave Indian, my companion." " What are you coming to ?" Don Miguel interrupted him anxiously. " To this," the hunter frankly answer ed. " You caballeros, accustomed to a life of luxury and ease, will perchance riot be able to endure the rude existence to which you are about to be condemn ed : in the first moment of grief you bravely rushed, without reflecting, in pursuit of the ravishers of your daugh ter, and without calculating the conse quences of your deed." "That is true," Don Miguel mur mured. " It is, therefore, my duty," Valen tine went on, " to warn you : do not be afraid to withdraw; but be frank with me as I am with you : Curumilla and myself will suffice to carry out the task we have undertaken. The Mexi can frontier stretches out about ten miles behind you ; return to it, and leave to us the care of restoring your child to you, if you do not feel capable of braving, without giving way, the in numerable dangers that menace us. A sick man, by delaying our pursuit, would not only render it impossible for us to succeed, but might expose us all to the risk of being killed and scalped. Hence, reflect seriously, my friend, and putting away any question of self-es teem, give me an answer that allows me full liberty of action." During this species of sermon, whose justice he recognized in his heart, Don Miguel had remained with his head bowed on his chest, and with frowning eyebrows. When Valentine ceased, the hacien- dero drew himself up and took the hun ter's hand, which he pressed warmly, as he said : " My friend, what you have said to me it was your duty to say : your re marks do not at all offend me, because they were dictated by the friendship you bear me. The observations you have made to me, I had already made to myself; but, whatever may happen, my resolution is immovable. I shall not turn back till I have found my daughter again." " I knew that such would be your reply, Don Miguel," the hunter said. " A father cannot consent to abandon his daughter in the hands of bandits, without attempting all means to deliver her ; still, it was my duty to make the remark I did. Hence we will not speak about it again, but prepare on the spot to draw up our plans of action." " Oh, oh," the general said, with a laugh, " I am anxious to hear that." " You will excuse me, general," Val entine answered ; " but the war we carry on is completely different from that of civilized people ; in the desert craft alone can triumph." " Well, let us be crafty : I ask noth ing better, especially as, with the slight forces we have at our disposal, I do not see how we could act otherwise." 26 THE PIRATES OF THE PRAIRIES. "That is true," the hunter continued, " There are only five of us ; but, be lieve me, five determined men are more dangerous than might be suppos ed, and I soon hope to prove it to our enemies." " Well spoken, friend," Don Miguel said, gladly. "Cuerpo de Dios, those accursed Gringos shall soon realise that fact." " We have," Valentine continued, "allies who will second us valiantly \vhen the moment arrives : the Com- anche nation proudly calls itself the * Queen of the Prairies,' and its war riors are terrible enemies. Unicorn will not fail us, with his tribe ; and we have also a friend in the enemy's camp in the Chief of the Coras." " What are you saying ?" the Gene ral gaily remarked. " Why, our suc cess is insured." Valentine shook his head. " No," he said ; Red Cedar has allies too : the Pirates of the Prairies and the Apaches will join him, I feel convinced." " Perhaps so," Don Miguel observed. ? " Doubt is not admissible under the circumstances ; the scalp-hunter is too well used to a desert life not to try and get all the chances of success on his side." " But, if that happen, it will be a general war," the haciendero said. "Doubtless," Valentine continued; " that is what I wish to arrive at. Two days' march from where we now are there is a Navajoe village ; I have done some slight services to Yellow Wolf, the principal chief; we must proceed to him before Red Cedar at tempts to see him, and insure his alli ance at all risks. The Navajoes are prudent and courageous warriors." " Do you not fear the consequences of this delay ?" " Once for all, caballeros," Valen tine answered, " remember that in the country where we now are the straight line is ever the longest." The three men bowed resignedly. "Yellow Wolf's alliance is indis pensable to us : with his support it will be easy for us The sudden appearance of Curumil- la interrupted the hunter. "What is the matter now?" he asked him. " Listen !" the chief answered lacon ically. The four men anxiously stopped talk ing. " By Heavens !" Valentine said, as he hurriedly arose, " what is the matter here 1" And, followed by his comrades, he stepped into the thicket. The Mexicans', whose senses were dulled, had heard nothing at the first moment; but the noise which had struck the hunter's practised ear now reached them. It was the furious galloping of seve ral horses, whose hoofs re-echoed on the ground with a noise resembling that of thunder. Suddenly, ferocious yells were heard, mingled with shots. The five travellers, hidden behind trees, peered out, and soon noticed a man mounted on a horse lathered with foam, who was pursued by some thirty mounted Indians. " To horse !" Valentine commanded in a low voice. " We cannot let this man be assassinated." " Hem !" the general muttered, " we are playing a dangerous game, for they are numerous." " Do you not see that the man is of our own color T' Valentine went on. "That is true," said Don Miguel. " Whatever happens, we must not allow him to be massacred in cold blood by those ferocious Indians." In the meanwhile, the pursuers and pursued had come nearer the spot where the hunters were ambushed be hind the trees. The man the Indians were so obsti nately following drew himself up haugh tily in his saddle, and, while galloping at full speed, turned from time to time to fire his rifle into the thick of his ene mies. At each discharge a warrior fell ; his comrades then uttered fearful yells, and answered by a shower of arrows and bullets. THE PIKATES OF THE PRAIRIES. But the stranger shook his head dis dainfully, and continued his career. " Caspita /" the general said with ad miration ; " that is a brave fellow." " On my soul," Don Pablo exclaim ed, "it would be a pity to see him killed." " We must save him," Don Miguel could not refrain from saying. Valentine smiled gently. "I will try it," he said. "To horse !" Each leaped into the saddle. " Now," Valentine continued, " re main invisible behind the shrubs. These Indians are Apaches ; when they come within range, you will all fire without showing yourselves." Each set his rifle, and held in readi ness. There was a moment of supreme ex pectation, and the hunters' hearts beat violently. The Indians still approached, bowed over the necks of their panting steeds, brandishing their weapons furiously, and uttering at intervals their formida ble warcry. 1 They came up at headlong speed, preceded about one hundred yards by the man they were pursuing, whom they must soon catch up, for his wea ried horse stumbled continually, and was sensibly diminishing its speed. At length the stranger passed with lightning speed the thicket which con cealed those who were about to^ry a diversion in his favor, that might ruin them. " Attention," Valentine commanded in a low voice. The rifles were lowered on the Apa ches. " Aim carefully," the Trail-hunter ad ded. "Every bullet must kill its man." A minute elapsed a minute an age in length. " Fire !" the hunter suddenly shout ed ; " fire now." Five shots were discharged, and the same number of Apaches fell. CHAPTER III. AN OLD ACQUAINTANCE OP THE READER. ON this unforeseen attack the Apa ches uttered a yell of terror ; but, be fore they could pull up their horses, a second discharge made four fresh vic tims in their ranks. A mad terror then seized on the In dians, and they turned and fled in every direction; ten minutes later they had disappeared. The hunters did not dream for a mo ment of pursuing them ; but Curumilla had dismounted, and crawling out to the scene of action, conscientiously fin ished and scalped the Apaches who had fallen under his comrades' bullets. At ^ie same time he lassoed a rider less horse which passed a few paces from him, and then rejoined his friends. "To what tribe do those dogs be long ?" Valentine asked him. " The Buffalo," Curumilla made an swer. " Oh, oh," the hunter went on ; " we were in luck's way then. Stanapat, I believe, is the chief of the Buffalo tribe." Curumilla nodded an assent ; and af ter hobbling the horse he had lassoed by the side of the others, quietly seat ed himself on the river bank. The stranger had been quite as much surprised as the Apaches by the unfore seen help that had so providentially ar rived at the moment when he believed himself hopelessly lost. At the sound of the firing he checked his horse, and, after a moment's hesitation, slowly turned back. Valentine watched all his movements. The stranger, on reaching the thicket, dismounted, pulled back with a firm hand the brambles that barred his way, and boldly proceeded to the clearing where the hunters were ambushed. This man, whom the reader already knows, was no other than the person Red Cedar called Don Melchior, and of whom he seemed so terribly afraid. When he found himself in the pres ence of the Mexicans, Don Melchior took off his hat and bowed courteously ; the others politely returned his salute. THE PIRATES OF THE PRAIRIES. " Viva Dios ! " he exclaimed. " I do not know who you are, caballeros ; but I thank you sincerely for your in terference just now. I owe my life to you." "In the Far West," Valentine an swered nobly, " an invisible bond con nects all the individuals of one color, who only form a single family." " Yes," the stranger said, with a thoughtful accent, " it should be so ; but unfortunately," he added, shaking his head in denial, " the worthy princi ples you enunciate, caballero, are but very slightly put in practice : but I ought not at this moment to complain of them being neglected, as it is to your generous intervention that I owe rny being among the living." The listeners bowed, and the stranger went on : " Be kind enough to tell me who you are, gentlemen, that I may retain in my heart names which will ever be dear to me." Valentine fixed on the man who thus spoke a piercing glance, that seemed to be trying to read his most secret thoughts. The stranger smiled sadly. "Pardon," he then said, "any appa rent bitterness in my words : I have suffered much, and, in spite of myself, gloomy thoughts often rise from my heart to my lips." " Man is sent on the earth to suffer," Valentine gravely replied. " Each of us has his cross to bear here : Don Mi guel de Zarate, his son and General Iba- nez are a proof of my assertion." At the name of Don Miguel, a vivid blush purpled the stranger's cheeks, and his eye flashed, despite all his efforts to remain unmoved. " I have often heard of Don Miguel de Zarate," he said, with a bow. " I have been informed of the dangers he has incurred dangers from which he only escaped by the aid of a man an honest hunter." "That hunter is before you," Don Miguel said. " Alas ! we have other and greater dangers still to incur." The stranger looked at him attentive ly for an instant then stepped for ward, and crossed his arms on his chest. " Listen !" he said, in a deep voice. "It was truly Heaven that inspired you to come to my help for from this moment I devote myself, body and soul, to your service ; and I belong to you as the haft does to the blade. I know the reason that compelled you to break up all old habits to visit the frightful solitudes of the Far West." " You know it V the hunter exclaim ed, in surprise. "Everything," the stranger firmly answered. "I know the treachery which cast you into the power of your enemies. I know, too, that your daugh ter has been carried off by Red Cedar." " Who are you, then, to be so well informed ?" Valentine asked. A sad smile played for a second round the stranger's lips. " Who am I V he said iu a melan choly voice. "What matters, since I wish to serve you ?" "Still, as we answered your ques tions, we have a right to expect the same from you." "That is just," the stranger said, " and you shall be satisfied. I am the man with the hundred names : in Mexico I am called Don Luis Arroyal, partner ^ in the firm of Simpson, Carvalho, and Company in the northern provinces of Mexico, where I have long rendered myself popular by foolish squandering, El Gambusino on the coasts of the United States, and in the Gulf of Mexi co, wjj^re I sometimes command a cut ter, and chase the slavers, I am called the Unknown among the North Americans, the Son of Blood but my real name, and the one men give me who know the little about me I think proper to tell them it is la Venganza (Vengeance). Are you satisfied now, gentlemen V No one replied. The hunters had all heard of this ex traordinary man, about whom the strangest rumors were rife in Mexico, the United States, and^even on the prairie. By the side of heroic deeds, and acts of kindness deserving all praise, he was branded with crimes of unheard-of cruelty and unexampled ferocity. He inspired a mysterious terror in THE PIRATES OF THE PRAIRIES. 29 the whites and reclskins, who equally feared to come in contact with him, though no proof had ever yet been brought forward of the contradictory stories told about him. Valentine and his comrades had fre quently heard talk of Bloodson ; but this was the first time they had found themselves face to face with him ; and, in spite of themselves, they were sur prised to see so noble and handsome a man. Valentine was the first to regain his .coolness. " For a long time," he said, " your name has been familiar to me. I was anxious to know you. The opportunity offers, and 1 am pleased with it, as I shall be at length able to judge you, which was hitherto impossible, through the exaggerated stories told about you. You say that you can be useful to us in the enterprise we arc meditating, and we accept your offer as frankly as you make it. On an expedition like this, the help of a brave man must not be despised the more so, as the man we wish to force in his lair is danger ous." " More than you imagine," the stranger interrupted him in a gloomy voice. " I have been struggling with Red Cedar for twenty years, and have not yet managed to crush him. Ah ! he is a rough adversary ! I know it, for I am his most implacable enemy, and have in vain tried all the means at my command to take an exemplary vengeance on him." While uttering these words, the stranger's face had assumed a livid tint ; his features were contracted, and he seemed to be suffering Irom an extraor dinary emotion. Valentine looked at him for an in- stant with a mingled feeling of pity and ^ sympathy. The hunter, who had suffered so much, knew, like all wounded souls, how to feel for the grief of men who, like himself, bore their adversity worth- " We will help you," he said, as he cordially offered him his hand, " In stead of fivej we shall be six, to fi^ht him." 2 The stranger's eye flashed forth a strange gleam. He squeezed the offer ed hand, and answered in a dull voice, but with an expression impossible to render : " We shall be fifty ; for I have com rades in the desert." Valentine bent a joyous glance on his companions at this news, which an nounced to him a valuable support, that he was far from anticipating. " But fifty men are not sufficient to contend against this demon, who is as sociated with the Pirates of the Prai ries, and allied with the most dangerous Indians." "Do not trouble yourself about that," Valentine observed. " We will also ally ourselves with Indian tribes. But I swear to you that I shall not quit the prairie till 1 have seen the last drop of that villain's blood run out." "May heaven hear you !" the stran ger muttered. " If my horse were not so tired, I would ask you to follow me ; for we have not a moment to lose if we wish to force the wild beast. Un fortunately, we are compelled to wait some hours." Cururnilla stepped forward. " Here is a horse for my pale broth er," he said, as he pointed to the ani mal he had lassoed a few minutes pre viously. The stranger uttered a cry of joy. " To horse !" he loudly exclaimed, "to horse !" " Where are you taking us ' Valen tine asked. " To join my comrades in the hiding place I have selected for them. Then we will arrange the means we must em ploy to destroy our common enemy." " Good," Valentine remarked, " that is excellent reasoning. Are we far from the place 1" " No, twenty to twenty-five miles at the most ; we shall be there by sun set." " We will start then," Valentine ad ded. The gentlemen leaped into their sad dles, and started at a gallop in the di rection of the mountains. A few minutes later, the spot had re turned to its usual calmness and silence. 30 THE PIRATES OF THE PRAIRIES. Nothing was left to prove that man had passed that way, save a few mutilated corpses over which the vultures were al ready beginning to circle with hoarse croaking before they settled upon them. CHAPTER IV. RED CEDAR AT BAY. THE six men rode one after the other, following one of those inextricable tracks made by the wild beasts, which cross the desert in every direction. Bloodson served as guide to the little party, followed immediately by Curu milla, The Indian chief, with the genius pe culiar to his race, advanced silently as usual, but casting right and left peering glances, which nothing escaped, and which render the redskins peculiar beings. All at once Curumilla dismounted, and bent over the ground, uttering an exclamation of surprise. This was so extraordinary a fact, and so contrary to the habits of the Ulmen of the Arauca- nos, that Valentine hurried up to en quire what had happened. " What's the matter with you, chief?" he asked, as soon as he came up with him. " My brother can look," Curumilla said simply. Valentine dismounted and stooped to the ground. The Indian showed him a half-effaced footstep, which still bore, however, the shape of a horse-shoe. The hunter looked at it for some time with the utmost attention, then began walking cautiously in the direc tion the hoof- marks seemed to go. Oth ers soon presented themselves to him. His comrades had stopped, and silently awaited his explanation. " Well !" Don Miguel at length said. "There is no doubt possible," Valen tine answered, as if speaking to himself, " Red Cedar has passed along here." " What," the general observed, " do you believe it ?" " I am sure of it. The chief has just shown me the perfectly-formed mark of his horse's hoof." " Oh ! oh !" Don Miguel objected, " a horse-shoe is a very slight sign ; all are alike." " Yes. as one tree resembles the oth er," Valentine answered quickly. " Lis ten : the chief has observed that the squatter, I know not by what accident, is mounted on a horse shod on all four feet, while the men composing his band have theirs only shod on the front feet ; in addition,this horse in stepping throws back its feet, which causes the mark to be indistinct." " In truth," Bloodson remarked, "the observation is correct, and only an In dian could make it ; but Red Cedar is at the head of a numerous party, which cannot have passed along this way, or we should notice the trail." " That is true," the general said ; " what do you conclude from that ?" " A very simple thing ; it is probable that Red Cedar has, for reasons un known to us, left his men encamped some miles from here, and has ridden this way alone." " I have it," Bloodson said ; " not far from the spot where we now are, there is a nest of pirates, and Red Ced ar has probably gone to ask their assis tance in case of need." " That's it," Valentine added ; " the track is quite fresh, so our man cannot be far from us." " We must pursue him," Don Pablo quickly said, who had, till this moment, maintained a gloomy silence. " What do you say, gentlemen]" Valentine asked, turning to the rest. " Pursue him," they answered unan imously. Then, without further deliberation, they began following the trail, under the guidance of Valentine and Curumil la. What the hunter stated had really happened. Red Cedar, when he entered the des ert, after installing his band in a strong position, remounted his horse and set out, warning all his comrades that he should return within four days at the most, and leaving them temporarily un der the orders of the monk. THE PIRATES OP THE PRAIRIES. 31 Red Cedar did not fancy himself so closely pursued by Valentine, and hence had taken but slight precautions to con ceal his track. As he proceeded alone, in spite of the trail found by Curumilla, he would doubtless have escaped pursuit, had not a dog followed him from camp without his knowledge. The track left by that animal served as a guide to the pursu ers at the moment when they had com pletely lost his trail. Valentine and Curumilla had dis mounted, and were advancing slowly and examining the sand and soil over which they passed. " Take care," the Trail-hunter said to his comrades, who followed him step by step ; " do not come djt so quickly ; when picking up a trail you must mind where you put your foot down, and not look on both sides. Stay," he added, suddenly stooping and stopping Don Pablo ; " here are traces you were just about to efface. Let us have a look at this : they are the marks of the horse shoe we have lost for some time. Red Cedar's horse has a peculiar way of putting down its feet, which I guarantee to recognise at the first glance. Hum, hum," he continued, "now I know where to find him." " You are sure of it V 1 Don Miguel interrupted. " It is not difficult, as you shall see." " Forward, forward !" Don Pablo and the general shouted. " Caballeros," the hunter observed; " be good enough to remember that on the prairies you must never raise your voice. The branches have eyes and the leaves ears here. Now, to remount and cross the river." The six men, combined in a compact body, in order to afford a greater re sistance to the current, which was very powerful at this spot, forced their horses into the Gila. The passage was executed without any obstacle, and the horses soon landed on the other bank. " Now," Valentine said, " open your eyes, for the hunt begins here." Don Pablo and the general remained on the bank to guard the horses, and the remainder of the party set out, forming a line of tirailleurs sixty feet long. Valentine had recommended his com panions to concentrate their researches on a space of one hundred and fifty yards at most, in a semicircle, so as to reach an almost impenetrable thicket, situated at the foot of the hill by the river-side. Each man advanced cautiously, with his gun thrust forward, looking on all sides at once, and not leaving a bush, a pebble, or a blade of grass unexamined. Suddenly Curumilla imitated the cry of the jay, the signal for assembling in the event of any important discovery. All rushed toward the spot whence the signal came; in the midst of the lofty grass, the ground was trampled and the lower branches broken. "Red Cedar's horse was tied up here," Valentine said. " Attention ! we are about to catch the bear in his den. You know with what sort of men we have to deal ; be prudent : if not, there will soon be broken bones and punctured skins among us." Without adding a word further, the hunter again took the head of the file. He carefully parted the bushes, and un hesitatingly entered the thicket. At this moment the furious barking of a dog could be heard. " Hilloh !" a rough voice shouted : "what's the matter, Black? Did not the redskins have a sufficient lesson last night, that they want to try it again ?" These words were followed by the grating sound of a rifle being cocked. Valentine made his comrades a sign to stop, and boldly advanced. " They are not Indians," he said, in a loud and firm voice : " it is I, Koutonepi, an old acquaintance, who wishes to have a chat with you." " I have nothing to say to you," Red Cedar, still invisible, answered. "I know not why you have followed me to this place : we never were such good friends, I fancy, that you should desire the pleasure of my company." " That's true," the hunter remarked : " you may be fully assured that we were always very bad friends : but no mat ter ; call off your dog." THE PIRATES OF THE PRAIRIES. " If your intentions are good, and you are alone, you can advance, and will be received as a friend." And he whistled to his dog, which re joined him. " As regards my intentions, I can as sure you that they are good," the Trail- hunter replied, as he drew back the . branches. He suddenly found himself in front of Bed Cedar, who was standing, rifle in hand, in the narrow entrance of a grotto. The two men were scarce fifteen yards apart, examining each other sus piciously. This is, however, the custom of the prairies, where all meetings are the same: distrust always holds the first place. " Stop," the squatter shouted. " For what we have to say to each other, we need not be ear to ear. What do we care if the birds and serpents hear our conversation ? Come, speak ! what have you come here for? Empty your wallet, and make haste about it ; for I have no time to listen to your stories." " Hum !" the other answered ; " my stories are as good as yours, and per haps you would have done better by spending your time in listening to them, rather than acting as you have done." " What do you mean ?" Red Cedar said, as he struck the ground with the butt of his rifle : " You know I am not fond of sermons. I am a free hunter, and act as I think proper." " Come, come," the huntsman went on in a conciliatory tone, while quietly drawing nearer ; " do not take up that tone : all may be arranged. Hang it, what is the question, if we come to that 1 ? only about a woman you have , carried off !" The bandit listened to Valentine without attaching much importance to his remarks. For some instants his attentive ear appeared to be catching vague sounds; his eye sounded the depth of the woods ; his nostrils dilat ed ; and all the instincts of the wild beast were revealed. A presentiment told him that he was incurring some un known danger. On his side, the hunter watched the slightest movements of his adver sary : not one of the changes on his face had escaped him, and though ap parently unmoved, he kept on his guard. "Traitor!" the squatter suddenly shouted, as he raised his rifle to his shoulder ; " you shall die !" " What a fellow you are !" Valentine retorted, as he dodged behind a tree. " Not yet, if you please." "Surrender, Red Cedar!" Don Mi guel shouted, as he appeared, followed by the stranger and Curumilla : " sur render !" " What do you say ? I surrender ! First try and force me to do so. I swear thatf| will kill you first," the bandit answered with a terrible accent : " I hold your life in my hands. Are you aware of that ?" " Come," Valentine retorted, " don't be so rough ? there are four of us, and I suppose you do not intend to kill us all." " For the last time, will you retire V the bandit said, with a furious gesture. " Come, come," Bloodson shuuted in a loud voice, " do not attempt any use less resistance. Red Cedar, your hour has arrived." At the sound of this voice, the ban dit's face was suddenly covered by a livid pallor, and a convulsive tremor passed over his limbs. " Look out, he is going to fire !" Val entine shouted. Two shots were fired so closely to gether, that they sounded as one. The squatter's gun, shattered in his hands, fell to the ground. Valentine, who wished to capture the bandit alive, could only hit on this way of turning his bullet, which, in fact, whistled harmlessly past his ear. " Con mil d&nionios /" the scalp-hunter yelled, as he rushed madly into the grotto, closely followed by his enemies, with the exception of Curumilla. There they found him armed with his pistols, like a boar tracked to its lair. The bandit struggled with all the frenzy of despair, not yet giving up the hope of escape. THE PIRATES OF THE PRAIRIES. His dog, standing by his side, with bloodshot eye's and open jaws, only awaited a signal from its master to rush on the assailants. The squatter suddenly fired four shots, but too hurriedly to wound any body. He then hurled the useless wea pons at his foemeVs heads, and, bound ing like a panther, disappeared at the end of the grotto, shouting with a sin ister grin : " I am not caught yet !" During all the incidents of this scene, the bandit had preserved his coolness ; calculating the chances of safety left him, so that he might profit by them immediately. While occupying his enemies, he remembered that the grotto had a second outlet. Suddenly he stopped, uttering a ghastly oath : he had forgotten that the swollen Gila at the moment inundated this issue. The villain walked several times round the grotto with the impo tent rage of a wild beast that has fallen into a trap. He heard, in the windings of the cavern, the footsteps of his pur suers drawing closer. The sands were counted for him. One minute later, and he was lost. "Malediction!" he said, "all fails me at once." He must escape at all risks, and try to reach his horse, which was fastened up a short distance off on a small islet of sand, which the water, continually rising, threatened soon to cover. The bandit took a parting look round, bounded forward, and plunged into the abyss of waters, which hoarsely closed over hirn. Valentine and his comrades almost immediately appeared, bearing torches ; but the bandit had wholly disappeared. All was silent in the grotto. " The villain has committed suicide," the haciendero said. The hunter shook his head. " I doubt it," he said. " Listen !" the stranger hurriedly in terrupted. A shot echoed through the cave, and the three men rushed forward. This is what had happened : Instead of following his comrades, the Indian chief, certain that the bandit had not been such a fool as to enter a cave without an outlet, preferred watch ing the banks of the river, in case Red Cedar tried to escape in that way. The chiefs previsions were correct. Bed Cedar, as we have seen, attempt- ed to fly by the second outlet of the grotto. After swimming for some dis tance, the squatter landed on a small islet, and almost immediately disap peared in a dense clump of trees. Not one of his movements had es caped Curumilla, who was hidden be hind a projecting rock. Red Cedar reappeared on horseback. The Indian chief took a careful aim at him, and at the moment the animal put its hoof in the water it fell back, dragging down its rider with it. Curumilla had put a bullet through the horse's skull. Red Cedar rose with the rapidity of lightning, and dashed into the water. The hunters looked at each other for a moment in disappointment. " Bah !" Valentine said, philosophi cally. " That bandit is not to be fear ed now ; we have clipped his nails." " That is true," said Bloodson ; " but they will grow again !" CHAPTER V. THE GROTTO. WE will now resume our narrative at the point where we left it at the end of our first chapter, and rejoin Red Cedar, who thanks to the weapons found in the cache, had regained all his fero city and was already dreaming of re venge. The bandit's position, however, was still very perplexing, and would have terrified any man whose mind was not so strong as his own. However large the desert may be however perfect a man's knowledge may be of the prairie refuges it is im possible for him, if alone, to escape for any length of time the search of per sons who have an interest in catching him. THE PIRATES OF THE PRAIRIES. This had just been proved to Red Cedar in a peremptory way : he did not conceal from himself the number less difficulties that surrounded him, and could not dream of regaining his encampment. The enemies on his track would not fail to catch him, and this time they would not allow him to escape so ' easily. This position was intolerable, and it must be put an end to at all risks. But Red Cedar was not the man to re main crushed by the blow that had struck him : he drew himself together again, in order to prepare his vengeance promptly. Like all evil natures, Red Cedar regarded as an insult all attempts persons made to escape from his per- fidity. At this moment he had a rude account to settle with whites and red skins. Alone as he was, he could not think of rejoining his comrades and at tacking the enemies, who would have crushed him under their heel like a venomous serpent : he needed allies. His hesitation was but short, and his plan was formed in a few minutes. He resolved to carry out the project for which he had left his comrades, and proceeded toward an Apache village, situate a short distance off. Still, he did not intend to go there, for the present at least, for, after a rapid walk of more than three hours, he suddenly turned to his right, and re tiring from the banks of the Gil a, which he had hitherto followed, he left the road to the village, and entered a mountainous region, differing entirety in its character from the plains he had hitherto traversed. The ground rose perceptibly, and was intersected by streams that ran down to the Gila. Clumps of the ferns, drawing closer together, served as the advanced guard of a gloomy virgin forest on the horizon. The landscape gradually assumed a more savage and abrupt aspect, and spurs of the impos ing Sierra Madre displayed here and there their desolate peaks. Red Cedar walked along with that light and springy step peculiar to men accustomed to cover long distances on foot, looking neither to the right nor left, and apparently following a direc tion he was perfectly acquainted with. Smiling at his thoughts, he did not seem to notice that the sun had almost entirely disappeared behind the impos ing mass of the virgin forest, and that night was falling with extreme rapidity. The howling of the wild beasts could be heard echoing in the depths of the ravines, mingled with the miawling of the carcajous and the barking of the prairie wolves bands of which were already prowling at a short distance from the bandit. But he, apparently insensible to all these hints about getting a resting-place for the night, continued his advance in the mountains, among which he had en tered some time previously. On reaching a species of cross-road, if such a term can be employed in speaking of a country where no roads exist, he stopped and looked all around him. After a few moments' hesitation, he buried himself in a narrow path run ning between two hills, and boldly climbed up a very steep ascent. At length, after a fatiguing climb, that lasted nearly three-quarters of an hour, he reached a spot where the path, suddenly interrupted, only presented a gulf, in the bottom of which the mur murs of invisible waters could be just heard. The precipice was about twenty yards in width, and over it lay an enormous log, serving as a bridge. At the end of this was the entrance of a natural grotto, in which the flames of a fire flashed up at intervals. Red Cedar stopped a smile of satis faction curled his thin lips at the sight of the flames reflected on the walls of the grotto. " They are there," he said, in a low voice, and as if speaking to himself. He then put his fingers in his mouth, and imitated with rare skill the soft and cadenced note of the maukawis. An instant after, a similar cry was heard from the grotto. Red Cedar clapped his hands thrice. The gigantic shadow of a man, reflect ed by the light of the fire, appeared in the entrance of the grotto, and a rude THE PIRATES OF THE PRAIRIES. 35 and powerful voice shouted in the pur est Castilian " Who goes there 1" " A friend," the bandit answered. "Your name," the stranger continu ed ; " there are no friends in the des ert at this hour of the night." " Oh, oh !" Red Cedar continued ; bursting into a hoarse laugh, " I see thai J Don Pedro Sandoval is as prudent as ever." " Man or demon, as you know me so w ell," the stranger said, in a somewhat softer tone, '* tell me what your name is, I say once again, or, by heaven, I'll lodge a couple of slugs in your skull. So do not let me run the risk of killing a friend." " Come, come, calm yourself, hidal go ; did you not recognise my voice, and have you so short a memory that you have already forgotten Red Cedar." *' Red Cedar !" the Spaniard repeated in surprise, " then you are not hung yet, my worthy friend ?" " Not yet, to my knowledge, gossip. I hope to prove it to you ere long." " Come across, in the devil's name ; do not let us go on talking at this dis tance." The stranger left the bridge-head, where he had stationed himself, proba bly to dispute the passage in case of necessity, and drew oft', uncocking his rifle. Not waiting for a second invitation, Red Cedar bounded on to the tree and crossed it in a few seconds ; he affec tionately shook the Spaniard's hand, and then they entered the grotto to gether. This grotto or cavern, whichever you please to call it, was wide and lofty, di vided into several compartments by large frames of reeds, rising to a height of at least eight feet, and form ing ten rooms or cells, five on either side the grotto, beginning at about twenty paces from the entrance a space left free to act as kitchen and dining-room. The entrance to each cell was formed by a zarape, which de scended to the ground after the fashion of a curtain door. At the extremity of the passage that ran between the two rows of cells was another compartment, serving as store houses ; and beyond this a natural pas sage ran through the mountain, and ter minated almost a league off, in an al most inaccessible ravine. All proved that this grotto was not a bivouac chosen for a night or two, but an abode adopted for many years past, in which all the comfort had been col lected which it is possible to procure in these regions remote from any centre of population. Round the fire, over which an enor mous quarter of elk meat was roasting, nine men, armed to the teeth, were sit ting and smoking in silence. On Red Cedar's entrance, they rose and came up to shake his hand eagerly, and with a species of respect. These men wore the garb of hunters or woodrangers : their marked features, their ferocious and crafty faces, on which the traces of the most disgraceful and ignoble passions were marked in indeli ble characters, strongly lighted up by the fjintastic flashes of the fire, had something strange and gloomy about them, which inspired terror and revul sion. It could be guessed at the first glance that these men, the unclean scum of ad venturers of all nations, lost in sin* and compelled to fly to the desert to escape the iron hand of justice, had declared an obstinate war against those who had placed them beyond the pale of the common law of nations, and were, in a word, what are called, by common con sent, Pirates of the Prairies. Pitiless men, a hundred-fold more ruffianly than the most ferocious red- kins, who conceal a soul of mud and a tiger's heart under a human appearance, and who, having adopted the savage life f the Far West, have assumed all the vices of the white and red races, without retaining one of their qualities. Villains, n a word, who only know murder and robbery, and for a little gold are capable f the greatest crimes. Such was the company Red Cedar had jome so far to seek. We are bound to add, and the reader will easily believe it, that he was not out of his place, and that his antece dents, on the contrary, gained him a THE PIRATES OF THE PRAIRIES. certain degree of consideration from these bandits, with whom he had been long acquainted. " Caballeros," Sandoval said, bowing with exquisite politeness to the brigands, his comrades, " our friend, Red Cedar, has returned among us ; let us greet him like a jolly companion whom we have missed too long, and whom we are delighted to see again." '* Senores," Red Cedar answered, as he took a seat by the fire, " I thank you for your cordial reception, and hope soon to prove to you that I am not un grateful." "Well!" one of the bandits said, " has our friend any good news to im part to us ? It would be welcome, deuce take me! for a whole month we have had to scheme a living." " Are you really in that state ?" the squatter asked, with interest. " Quite so," Sandoval confirmed him ; " and Pericco has only spoken the ex act tru:h.". " Hang it all !" Red Cedar went ton, " I have come at the right moment, then." " Eh 1" the bandits said, pricking up their ears. " And yet I fancy that, for some time past, caravans have been becoming more numerous in the desert : there is no lack of white or red trappers, who every now and then can be saved the trouble of carrying their beaver-skins. I have even heard speak of several parties of gambusinos." *' The gambusinos are as badly off as ourselves," Sandoval replied ; " and as for trappers, they are the very men who injure us. Ah! rny friend, the desert is not worth a hang now ; the white men are drawing too close together, they are gradually invading the territory of the redskins, and who knows whether, in ten years from this time, we shall not have towns all round the spot where we now are 1" " There is some truth in your re mark," Red Cedar observed, as he shook his head thoughtfully. " Yes," Pericco said; "and, unfortu nately, the remedy is difficult, if not im possible to find." "Perhaps so," Red Cedar went on, tossing his head in a way which caused the Pirates to wonder what he was driving at. " In the meanwhile," he added, " as I have made a long journey, feel very tired, and have a tremendous appetite, I will feed, with your permis sion, especially as it is late, and the meal is admirably cooked." Without further ceremony, Red Cedar cut a large slice of elk, which he placed before him, and began incontinently de vouring. The Pirates followed his example, and for some time the conversation was naturally suspended. A hunter's meal is never long ; the present one was soon over, owing to the impatience of the band, whose curio sity was aroused to the highest degree by the few words dropped by the squat ter. " Well," Sandoval began again, as he lit a cigarette, " now that supper is over, suppose we have a chat. Are you agreeable, comrade ?" " Willingly," Red Cedar replied, as he settled himself comfortably, and filled his pipe. " You were saying then " Sando val remarked. " Pardon me," the squatter inter rupted him ; " I was saying nothing. You were complaining, I believe, about the whites destroying your trade by coming closer and closer to your abode." " Yes, that was what I was saying." " You added, if my memory serves me right, that the remedy was impos sible to find?" " To which you answered, perhaps." " I said so, and repeat it." " Explain yourself, then." " The affair 1 have come to propose to you is extremely simple : .For some years past the whites have been gradu ally invading the desert, which, in a given time which is not remote, will end by disappearing before the incessant efforts of civilization." " It is true*" " Well, if you like, within a month you shall be rich men." " We will, carai," the bandits ex claimed in a formidable voice. " 1 will tell you the affair in two words : 1 have discovered a placer of THE PIRATES OF THE PRAIRIES. 37 incalculable wealth ; twenty leagues from here, I have left one hundred men devoted to my fortunes. Will you imi tate them and follow me? I promise each of you more gold than he ever saw in his liie or ever dreamed of possess ing." " Hum !" said Sandoval ; " it is tempting." " 1 thought of you, my old comrades," Red Cedar continued with hypocritical simplicity, " and have come. Now, you know my plan ; reflect on what I have said to you ; to-morrow, at sunrise, you will give me your answer." And, without mingling further in the conversation, Red Cedar rolled himself up in a zarape, and fell asleep, leaving the bandits to discuss among themselves Hie chance of success his magnificent proposal offered. CHAPTER VI. THE PROPOSITION. RED CEDAR, immediately that he en tered the Ear West, had, with the expe rience of old wood-rangers which he pos sessed in the highest degree, chosen a suitable site for his band to encamp. He did not wish to enter the desert without ensuring allies on whom he could count, in the event of his being attacked. The Pawnee ambuscade, prepared vith the skill characteristic of the sa vages, which had been on the point of succeeding, and from which he had only escaped by accident, was a warning to him of the snares that would be laid for him, and the dangers that would menace him at every step during the long jour ney he was about to undertake across the prairies. Red Cedar was one of those men who make it a principle to neglect nothing that can insure the success of their plans ; he, therefore, resolved to protect him self from any attack as speedily as pos sible. His first care was to choose a spot where he could encamp his band, so as to be protected from all Indian marauders, and offer an advantageous / O resistance, in the case of a serious at tack. The Rio Gila forms a multitude of wooded islets, some of which, rising in a conical form, are very difficult of ac cess owing to the escarpment of their banks, and especially through the ra pidity of the current. It was on one of these islands that Red Cedar bivouacked his men. Peru trees, mezquites, and cotton- wood trees, which grew abundantly on this island, mingled with creepers that twined round their stems in inextricable confusion, formed an impenetrable thicket, behind which they could boldly sustain a siege, while offering the im mense advantage of forming a wall of verdure, through whose openings it was easy to watch both banks of the river, and any suspicious movements on the prairie. So soon as the gambusinos had landed on the island, they glided like serpents into the interior, dragging their horses after them, and being careful to do no thing that might reveal their encamp ment to the sharp-sighted Indians. So soon as the camp was established, and Red Cedar believed that, tempo rarily at least, his band was in safety, he assembled the principal leaders, in order to communicate his intentions to them. They were, first, Fray Ambrosio, then Andres Garote, Harry and Dick, the two Canadian hunters, and, lastly, the squatter's two sons, Nathan and Sutter, and the Chief of the Coras. Several trees had been felled to form a suitable site for the fires and the tents of the women, and Red Cedar, mounted on his steed, was soon in the centre of the chiefs collected around him. "Senores," he said to them, "we have at length entered the Far West: our expedition now really commences, and I count on your courage, and, above all, your experience, to carry it out suc cessfully ; but prudence demands that on the prairies, where we run the risk of being attacked by enemies of every description at any moment, we should secure allies who, in case of need, could protect us efficiently. The ambuscade we escaped, scarce eight-and-forty hours 88 THE PIRATES OF THE PRAIRIES. ago, renders it a duty to redouble our vigilance, and, above all, hasten to enter into communication with the friends we possess in the desert." " Yes," said the monk ; " but I do not know these friends." "But I know them, and that is enough," Red Cedar replied. " Very good," Fray Ambrosio went on ; " but where are they to be found ?" " I know where to find them. You are here in an excellent position, where you can hold your own for a long time, without any fear of it being carried. This is what I have resolved on." "Come, gossip, explain yourself; I am anxious to know your plans," said the monk. " You shall be satisfied : I am going to start at once in search of my friends, whom I am certain of finding within a few hours : you will not stir from here till my return." " Hum, ! and will you be long absent 1 ?" "Two days, then, at the most." "That is a long time," Garote re marked. " During that period you will conceal your presence as far as possible. Let no one suspect you are encamped here. I will bring you the ten best rifles in the Far West, and with their protection, and that of Stanapat, the great Apache Chief of the Buffalo tribe, whom i ex pect to see also, we can traverse the de sert in perfect safety." "But who will command the band in your absence ?" Fray Ambrosio asked. " You, and these caballeros. But re member this : you will under no pre text leave the island." "'Tis enough, Red Cedar, you can start ; we shall not stir till you return." After a few more words of slight im portance, Red Cedar left the clearing, swam his horse over the river, ai^d on Breaching firm ground, buried himself in the tall grass, where he soon disap peared. It was about six in the evening, when the squatter left his comrades, to go in search of the men whom he hoped to make his allies. The gambusinos had paid but slight attention to the departure of their chief, the cause of which they were ignorant of, and which they supposed would not last long. The night had completely fallen. The gambusinos, wearied by a long journey, were sleeping, wrapped in their zarapes, round the fire, while two sen tries alone watched over the common safety. They were Dick and Harry, the two Canadian hunters, whom chance had so untowardly brought among these ban dits. Three men leaning against the trunk of an enormous ungquito were convers ing in a low voice. They were Andres Garote, Fray Am brosio, and Eagle-wing. A few paces from them was the leafy- cabin, beneath whose precarious shelter reposed the squatter's wife, her daughter Ellen, and Dona Clara. The three men, absorbed in the con versation, did not notice a white shadow- emerge from the cabin, glide silently along, and lean against the very tree, at the loot of which they were. Eagle-wing, with that penetration which distinguishes the Indians, had read the hatred which existed between Fray Ambrosio and Red Cedar ; but the Coras had kept this discovery in his h'eart, intending to take advantage of it when the opportunity presented itself. " Chief," the monk said, " do you suspect who the allies are Red Cedar has gone to seek ?" " No," the other replied, " how should I know ?" " Still it must interest you, for you are not so great a friend of the Gringo as you would like to appear." " The Indians have a very dense mind ; let rny father explain himself so that I may understand him, and be able to answer him." " Listen," the monk continued, in a dry voice and with a sharp accent, " I know who you are : your disguise, clever and exact though it be, was not sufficient to deceive me : at the first glance I recognized you. Do you be lieve that if 1 had said to Red Cedar, this man is a spy or a traitor ; he has crept among us to make us tall into a trap prepared long beforehand : in a word, this man is no other than Mouka- THE PIRATES OF THE PRAIRIES. pec, the principal Cacique of the Coras ? Do you believe, I say, that Red Cedar would have hesitated to blow out your brains, eh, chief? Answer." During these words whose significance was terrible to him, the Coras had re mained unmoved ; not a muscle of his lace had quivered. When the monk ceased speaking, he smiled disdainfully, and contented him self with replying in a haughty voice, while looking at him fixedly : " Why did not my father tell this to the scalp-hunter 1 He was wrong." The monk was discountenanced by this reply, which he was far from ex pecting ; he understood that he had before him one of those energetic na tures over which threats have no pow er. Still he had advanced too far to draw back : he resolved to go on to the end, whatever might happen. " Perhaps," he said, with an evil smile, " at any rate, I have it in my power to warn our chief in his return. 11 ' " My father will act as he thinks proper," the chief replied drily, " Mou- kapec is a renowned warrior, the bark ing of the coyotes never terrified him." " Come, come, Indian, you are wrong," Garote interposed, " you are mistaken as to the Padre's intentions with respect to you ; I am perfectly convinced that he does not wish to in jure you in any way." " Moukapec is not an old woman who can be cheated with words," the Coras said ; "he cares little for the present intentions of the man, who, during the burning of his village, and the massacre of his brothers, excited his enemies to murder and arson. The chief follows his vengeance alone, he will know how to attain it without ally ing himself to one of his foes to get it. I have spoken." After uttering these words, the Indian chief rose, dressed himself in his buffalo robe, and withdrew, leaving the two Mexicans disconcerted by this resistance which they were far from anticipating. Both looked after him for a while with admiration mingled with anger. " Hum !" the monk at length mut tered ; " dog of a savage, Indian, brute, beast, he shall pay me for it." " Take care, Senor Padre," the Gam- busino said, "we are not in luck at this moment. Let us leave this man with whom we can effect nothing, and seek something else. Every man reaches his point who knows how to wait, and the moment will arrive to avenge ourselves on him ; till then, let us dissimulate that is the best thing, I believe, for us to do." " Did you notice that, on leaving us, Red Cedar did not say a syllable about his prisoner ?" " For what good ? he knows she is in perfect safety here, any flight from this island is impossible." " That is true ; but why did he carry off this woman ?" " Who knows ? Red Cedar is one of those men whose thoughts it is always dangerous to sound. Up to the pres ent, we cannot read his conduct clearly enough ; let him return, perhaps then the object he has in view will be unfold ed to us." " That woman annoys me here," the monk said in a hollow voice. " What's to be done ? down there at Santa Fe I did not hesitate to serve you in trying to get rid of her ; but now it is too late it would be madness to drearri of it. What matter to us, after all, whether she be with us, or not ? Believe me, make up your mind to it, and speak no more about it. Bah ! she will not prevent us reaching the placer." The monk shook his head with a dis satisfied air, but made no reply. The Gambusino wrapped himself in his zarape, lay down on the ground, and fell asleep. Fray Ambrosio, for his part, remain ed plunged in gloomy thoughts. What was he thinking of? some treachery, doubtless. When the woman who had been leaning against the tree, perceived that the conversation was at an end, she glided softly away, and re-entered the cabin. 40 1I1E P1KATES OF THE PRAIRIES. CHAPTER VII. ELLEN AND DONA CLARA. SINCE she had fallen again into the power of Red Cedar, Dona Clara, a prey to a gloomy sorrow, had yielded unresistingly to her abductors, despair ing ever to escape from them ; especial ly since she had seen the men in whose power she was, definitely take the road to the desert. For a maiden, accustomed to all the refinements of luxury, and all those little attentions which a father's love continually lavished on her, the new existence commencing was an uninter rupted succession of tortures, among half savage ruffians, whose brutal ways and coarse language constantly made her fear insults she would have been too weak to repulse. Still, up to this moment, Red Cedar's conduct had been we will not say re spectful, for the squatter was ignorant of such refinements but, at any rate, proper, that is to say, he had affected to pay no attention to her while order ing his men not to trouble her in any way. Dona Clara had been entrusted by the scalp-hunter to his wife Betsy and his daughter Ellen. The Megera, after giving the maiden an ugly look, had turned her back on her, and did not once address her con duct which was most agreeable to the young Mexican!, As for Ellen, she had constituted her self, on her private authority, the friend of the prisoner, to whom she rendered all those small services her position al lowed her, with a delicacy and tact lit tle to be expected from a girl educated in the desert by a father like her's. At the outset, Dona Clara, absorbed in her grief, had paid no attention to Ellen's kindness, but gradually, in spite of herself, the young American's unchanging gentleness, and her pa tience, which nothing rebuffed, affected herj she had felt the services which the other occasionally rendered her, and had gradually learned to feel for the squatter's daughter a degree of gratitude which presently ripened into friendship. Youth is naturally confiding; when a great grief oppresses it, the need of entrusting that grief to a person who seems to sympathize with it, renders it expansive. Alone among the bandits, to whom chance had handed her over, Dona Cla ra must inevitably so soon as the first paroxysm of suffering had passed *" seek for some one to console her, and help her in enduring the immense mis fortune that crushed her. And this had occurred much more rapidly than under ordinary circum stances, thanks to the sympathising kindness of the young American, who had in a few hours found the way to her heart. Red Cedar, whom nothing escaped, smiled cunningly at the friendship of the two maidens, which, however, he feigned not to perceive. It was a strange thing, but this scalp- hunter, this man that seemed to have nothing human about him, who perspir ed crime at every pore, whose ferocity was unbounded, had in his heart one feeling which attached him victoriously to the human family, a profound, illim itable love for Ellen the love of the tiger for its cubs. This frail girl was the sole creature for whom his heart beat more violently. How great, how powerful was the love Red Cedar experienced for this simple child ! it was a worship, an adoration. A word from her little mouth caused the ferocious bandit to feel indescriba ble delight ; a smile from her rosy lips overwhelmed him with happiness. By her charming caresses, her gentle and insinuating words, Ellen had power to govern despotically that gathering of birds of prey which was her family. The chaste kiss his daughter gave him every morning, was the sunbeam that for the whole day warmed the heart of the terrible bandit, before whom everybody trembled, and who himself trembled at a slight frown from her, who combined all the joy and happi ness of his life. It was with extreme satisfaction that THE PIRATES OF THE PRAIRIES. 41 he saw his daughter become his inno cent accomplice by acquiring the con fidence of his prisoner, and gaining her friendship. This gentle girl was in his sight the securest gaoler he could give Dona Clara. Hence, in order, to facilitate, as far as possible, all that could enhance the friendship, he had completely closed his ^eyes, and feigned to be ignorant of the approximation between the two girls. It was Ellen who had listened to the conversation between the monk and the Gambusino. At the moment she was re-entering the hut, the stifled sound of voices in duced her to listen. Dona Clara was speaking in a low voice to a man, and that man was the Sachem of the Coras. Ellen, surprised in the highest de gree, listened anxiously to their con versation, which soon greatly interest ed her. After leaving the two Mexicans, Eagle-wing had, for some minutes, walk ed about the camp with an affected carelessness, intended to remove the suspicions of any who might have been tempted to watch his movements. When he fancied he had dispelled any suspicions, the Indian chief insensi bly drew nearer to the cabin, which served as a refuge to the maidens, and entered it, after assuring himself by a glance, that no one was watching. Dona Clara was alone, at this mo ment. We have told the reader where El len was ; as for the squatter's wife, faithful to her husband's instructions not to annoy the prisoner in any way, she was quietly asleep by the fire, in the clearing. The maiden, with her head bowed on her bosom, was plunged in deep and sad thought. At the sound of the Indian's steps, she raised her head, and could not restrain a start of terror on seeing him. Eagle-wing immediately perceived the impression he produced on her, he stop ped on the threshold of the cabin, folded his arms on his chest, and bowed re spectfully. " My sister need not be alarmed," he said in a gentle and insinuating voice, " it is a friend who is speaking to her." " A friend !" Dona Clara murmured, as she took a side-glance at him j " the unfortunate have no friends." The Indian drew a few steps nearer to her, and went on, as he bent over her : " The jaguar has been forced to put on the skin of the crafty serpent, in order to introduce himself among his enemies, and gain their confidence. Does not my sister recognize me V 1 The Mexican girl reflected for a mo ment, and then answered with hesita tion, and looking at him attentively : " Although the sound of your voice is not unfamiliar to me, I seek in vain to remember where, and under what cir cumstances I have already seen you." " I will help my sister to remember," Eagle-wing, continued. " Two days ago, at the passage of the ford, I tried to save her, and was on the point of suc ceeding, but before that my sister had seen me several times." " If you will mention a date and a circumstance, I may possibly succeed in remembering." " My sister need not seek, it will be useless ; I prefer telling her my name at once, for moments are precious. I am Moukapec, the great Chief of the Coras, of the Del Norte. My sister's father and my sister herself often helped the poor Indians of my tribe." " That is true," the maiden said, sadly. "Oh! I. remember now. Poor people! they were pitilessly massacred, and their village fired by the Apaches. Oh ! I know that horrible story." A sardonic smile played round the chief's lips at these words. "Coyote does not eat coyote," he said, in a hollow voice ; " the jaguars do not wage war on jaguars. They were not Indians who assassinated the Coras, but scalp-hunters." " Oh !" she said, in horror. " Let my sister listen," the Coras con tinued quickly ; " now that 1 have told her my name, she must place confidence in me." " Yes," she answered, eagerly, " for I know the nobility of your character." " Thanks ! I am here for my sister's sake alone. I have sworn to save her, and restore her to her father.'' 42 THE PIRATES OF THE PRAIRIES. " Alas !" she murmured sadly, " that is impossible. You are alone, and we are surrounded by enemies. The ban dits who guard us are a hundred-fold more cruel than the ferocious beasts of the desert." " I do not know yet in what way I shall set about saving my sister," the chief said, firmly ; " but I shall succeed if she is willing." "Oh!" she exclaimed with febrile energy, "if I am willing! Whatever requires to be done, I will do without hesitation. My courage will not fail me, be assured of that, chief." " Good !" the Indian said with joy ; " my sister is truly a daughter of the Mexican kings. I count on her when the moment arrives. Red Cedar is ab sent for a few days ; I will go and pre pare everything for my sister's flight." " Go, chief; at the first sign from you I shall be ready to follow you." " Good ! I retire ; my sister can take courage, she will soon be free." The Indian bowed to the maiden, and prepared to leave the hut. Suddenly, a hand was laid on his shoulder. At this unexpected touch, in spite of his self-command, the chief could not re press a start of terror. He turned, and Bed Cedar's daughter stood before him, with a smile on her lips. " I have heard all," she said in her pure and melodious voice. The chief bent a long and sad look on Dona Clara. " Why this emotion," Ellen continued, " which I read on your features ? I do not mean to betray you, for I am a friend of Dona Clara. Reassure your self; if accident has made me mistress of your secret, I will not abuse it on the contrary, I will help your flight." " Can it be so ? You would do that ?" Dona Clara exclaimed, as she threw her arms round her neck, and buried her face in her bosom. " W hy not ?" she simply answered ; " you are my friend." " Oh ! oh ! I love you, for you are good. You had pity on my grief, and wept with me." Eagle-wing fixed on the maiden a glance of undefinable meaning. " Listen," Ellen said ; "I will supply you with the means you lack. We'll leave the camp this very night." "We?" Dona Clara asked; "what do you mean 1 ?" " I mean," Ellen continued, quickly, " that I shall go with you." " Can it be possible ?" "Yes," she said, in a melancholy voice ; " I cannot remain here longer." On hearing these words, the Coras Chief quivered with joy ; a sinister ray flashed from his dark eyes ; but he im mediately resumed his stoical appear ance, and the maidens did not notice his emotion. " But what shall we do to procure means of flight?" " That is my affair, so do not trouble yourself about it. This very night, I repeat, we shall start." " May Heaven grant it !" Dona Clara sighed. Ellen turned to the chief and said : " Does my brother know, at a short distance from the spot where we now are, any Indian pueblo where we can seek shelter ?" "Two suns from here, in a north western direction, there is a pueblo, in habited by a tribe of my nation. It was thither I intended to lead my white father's daughter after her escape." " And we shall be in safetv with that tribe ?" " The daughter of Acamarichtzin will be as safe as in her father's hacienda," the Indian answered, evasively. " Good ! Can my father leave the camp r " Who is strong enough to arrest the flight of the condor ? Moukapec is a warrior, nothing stops him." " My brother will set out." " Good !" " He will proceed by the shortest road to the pueblo of his nation, then he will return to meet us with the war riors he has collected, in order that we may defend ourselves, in the event of being followed by the Gambusinos." " Very good," the Indian answered joyfully. " My sister is young, but wisdom dwells in her heart ; I will do what she desires when may I start ?" " At once." THE PIRATES OF THE PRAIRIES. 43 " I go. What hour will my siste quit the camp ?" " At the hour when the owl sings it: first hymn to the rising sun." " My sister will meet me at the mos four hours after her departure. She must remember in her flight always to go in a north-western direction.' 7 " I will do so." Eagle- wing bowed to the maidens and lefl the cabin. The gambusinos were in a deep sleep round the fire ; only Dick anc Harry were awake. The Coras glided like a phantom through the trees, and reached the edg of the water unnoticed, which was the more easy to effect, because the Cana dians were not watching the island from which they had no danger to ap prehend, but had their eyes fixed or the prairie. The chief took off his clothes and made them into a parcel, which he fas tened on his breast ; he slipped into the water, ilhd swam silently hi the direc tion of the main land. So soon as the Indian left the cabin Ellen bent over Dona Clara, gave her a loving kiss on the forehead, and said softly : " Try to sleep for a few hours, while I prepare every thing for our flight." " Sleep !" the Mexican answered, " how can I with the restlessness that devours me." " You must !" Ellen insisted, " for we shall have great fatigue to endure to-morrow." " Well," Dona Clara said, softly, " I will try, as you wish it." The maidens exchanged a kiss and a shake of the hand, and Ellen left the hut in her turn, smiling to her friend, who followed her with an anxious glance. W hen left alone, Dona Clara fell on her knees, clasped her hands, and ad dressed a fervent prayer to God. Then, slightly tranquilized by her appeal to Him, who is omnipotent, she fell back on the pile of dry leaves that served as her bed, and, as she had promised El len, attempted to sleep. CHAPTER VIII. THE FLIGHT. THE night covered the tranquil des ert with its dark blue sky, studded with dazzling stars. A majestic silence brooded over the prairie ; all were asleep in the island save the two Canadian sentries, who, leaning on their rifles, followed with ab sent eye the tall shadows of the wild beasts that slowly came down to drink in the river. At times a mysterious quiver ran over the trees, and shook their tufted crests, whose leaves rustled with a strange sound. Dick and Harry, the two worthy hunters, interchanged a few words in a low voice to while away the tedium of their long sentry go, to which they were condemned, when suddenly a white shadow glided through the trees, and Ellen stood by their side. The young men started on seeing her; but the maiden greeted them with a smile, sat down on the grass, and with a graceful gesture made them a sign to seat themselves by her side. They hastened to obey her. The hunters looked at the maiden, who. smiled on them with that infan tile grace which no expression can render. " You were talking when I came up." " Yes," Harry answered, " we were alking of you." " Of me ?" she said. " Was it not for your sake alone ,hat we joined this troop of bandits V 9 Dick said, in an ill-humored tone * Do you regret being here ?" she sked, with a soft smile. "/I did not say that," the young nan continued ; " but we are not in ur place among these villains. We ire free and loyal hunters, honorable ^cod-rangers j the life we lead op- >resses us." " Were you not talking of that yhen my presence interrupted you ?" They remained silent. " Answer boldly !" she went on. ; Good heavens I you know that such 44 THE PIRATES OF THE PRAIRIES. a life is as oppressive to me as it is to you." " What do I know ?" Harry said. " Many times I have proposed to you to fly, and leave these men whose hands are constantly polluted with blood, but you have ever refused." " That is true," she said sadly ; " alas ! although these men are crimi nal, one of them is rny father." " For two years that we have been following you everywhere, you have given us the same answer." " It was because I hoped that my father and brother would abandon this career of crime." And now T " I have no hope left." " In that case '*" Harry exclaimed sharply. " I am ready to follow you," she answered, sharply. " Is that ttie truth ? is it your heart that is speaking, Ellen ? do you really consent to abandon your family and trust to our honor ]" " Listen," she answered, sorrowfully ; " for two years I have thought deeply, and the more I reflect the mure does it appear to me that Red Cedar is not my father." " Can it be possible ?" the hunter ex claimed, in amazement. " I can say nothing certain ; but when I go back I fancy (though this is vague and surrounded by shadows in my mind) I can remember another ex istence, very different from the one I am leading at present." " You can remember nothing posi tive ?" " Nothing : I see pass, as in a vision, a lovely pale lady, a man with a proud glance, and of tall stature, who takes me in his arms, and covers me with kisses, and then " " Well, and then 1 ?" the hunters ex claimed, in a panting voice. " And then I see flames, blood, and nothing more, but a man carrying me off through the night on an impetuous steed." The maiden, after uttering these words in a broken voice, hid her head in her hands. There was a lengthened silence, dur ing which the Canadians attentively ob served her : at length they drew them selves up, and Harry laid his hand on. her shoulder : she raised her head. " What would you of me ?" she said. " Ask you a question." " Speak !" " Since you have grown up have you never tried to clear up your doubts by questioning Red Cedar T' " Yes," she answered, " once." " Well 1" " He listened to me attentively, let me say all I had to say, and then gave me a glance of undefinable meaning, shrugged his shoulders, and answered, * You are silly, Ellen ; you must have had a bad dream. That story is ab surd.' Then he added, in an ironical voice, ' I feel sorry for you, poor crea ture, but you are really my daughter.' " " Well," Dick said, in a tone of con viction, as he struck the butt of his rifle fiercely on the ground, " I tell you that he lied, and that man is not your lather." " Doves do not lay their eggs in the nests of vultures," Harry added. " No, Ellen, no, you are not that man's dau "-li ter." The maiden rose, seized each of tho hunters by the arm, and, after looking at them for a moment, said : " Well, and I believe so too. [ know not why, but for some days past a se cret voice has cried in my heart and told me that this man cannot be my father ; that is why I, who, up to this day, have always refused your offers, have come to trust myself to your hon or, and ask you if you will protect my flight." " Ellen," Harry answered in a grave voice, and with an accent full of re spect, " I swear to you before that God who hears us. that my companion and myself will risk death to protect or de fend. You shall always be a sister to us, and in that desert we are about to traverse in order to reach civilized countries, you shall be as safe and treated with as much respect as if you were in Quebec Cathedral, at the loot of the high altar." " I swear that I will do all Harry has just said ; and that you can, in all con fidence, place yourself under the safe- THE PIRATES OF THE PRAIRIES. 45 guard of our honor," Dick added raising his right hand to Heaven. " Thanks, in} 7 friends," the maiden answered. " I know your honor, accept without reservation, persuadec as I am that you will fulfil your prom ise." The two men bowed. " When shall we start ?" Harry asked. " It will be be better to take advan tage of Red Cedar's absence to fly,' said Dick. " That thought is mine, too/' Ellen remarked, but added, with some hesita tion, " 1 should not like to fly alone." " Explain yourself," Dick said. " It is needless," Harry quickly in terrupted him. " I know what you de sire. Your thought is an excellent one, Ellen, and we gladly assent to it. The young Mexican lady can accompany you. If it be possible for us to restore her to her family, who must feel in de spair about her, we will do it." Ellen gave the young man a look, and slightly blushed. " You are a noble-hearted fellow, Harry," she replied. " I thank you for having guessed what 1 did not know how to ask of you." " Is there anything else you want of us ?" ' " No." " Good ! then bring your companion here as speedily as possible, and, when you return, we shall be ready. The garnbusinos are asleep. Red Cedar is absent. We have nought to fear, but you had better make haste, so that be fore sunrise we may be far enough from here not to fear those who will doubtless pursue us when they observe your flight." " I only ask you for a^few minutes," the maiden said, and soon disappeared in the shrubs. In vain had Dona Clara sought sleep, in obedience to her friend's recommenda tions. Her mind, agitated by hopes and fears, had not allowed her to enjoy a moment's rest. With eye and ear on the watch, she listened to the voices of the night, and strove to distinguish, in the gloom, the shadows that at times glided through the trees. i 3 Ellen found her awake, and ready to start. The maidens' preparations for flight were not lengthy, for they only took with them a few indisppnsable articles. In rummaging an old box, which Red Cedar and his family employed to keep their clothes in, Ellen discovered a small coffer, about the size of her hand, of carved rosewood, inlaid with silver, which the squatter hardly ever left out of his possession, but which he had not thought it necessary to take with him on the present expedition. The maiden examined this coffer for a moment, but it was closed. By an intuitive movement, for which she could not account, but which completely mas tered her, she seized it, and put it in her bosom. " Let us go," she said to Dona Clara. " I am ready," the young Mexican re plied, laconically, though her heart bounded. The maidens left the hut, holding each other's hand. They crossed the clear ing, and proceeded in the direction of the Canadians. The gambusinos lying around the fire did not stir. They were all fast asleep. For their part, the two hunters had made their preparations for flight. While Dick fetched out to the river side the four sturdiest horses he could find, Harry collected the saddles and bridles of the other horses, and threw them into the river, where they imme diately disappeared in the current. The Canadian had reflected that the time the gambusinos would occupy in making up their loss would be so much gained to them. The maidens reached the river-bank at the moment when Dick and Harry- were finishing saddling the horses. They mounted at once, the Canadians placed themselves at their side, and the :'ugitives forced their horses into the river. Fortunately, the water was low ; and lence, although the current was rather powerful in the centre, the horses man- ,ged to cross the Gila without obstacle. It was about eleven in the evening when the fugi ives lauded. So soon a.i 46 THE PIRATES OP THE PRAIRIES. they were concealed in the tall grass, so as not to be seen from the island, they drew bridle to let their horses breathe after the rude passage they had just made. " Let us profit by the hours we have before us to travel the whole night," Harry said, in a low voice. " Our absence will not be observed till sunrise," Dick observed. " The time spent in seeking us on the island, and in providing some substitute for the bridles, will give us twelve or fourteen hours which we must profit by to get away as far as possible." " i ask nothing better," Harry said ; " but, before starting, we must choose our road." " Oh !" Ellen said, " the direction we must follow is easily settled : we must only go straight to the northwest." " B ; it so," the hunter went on ; " one direction is as good as another. Our principal object is to get off as soon as possible : but why northwest rather than any other quarter of the wind ?" Ellen smiled. " Because," she said, " a friend you know the Indian chief who formed part of the band left the camp before us, in order to warn his warriors, and bring us help in the event of an attack." " Well thought of," the hunter said. " Let us be off, and not spare our horses, fur on their speed our safety depends." Each bowed over the neck of the horses. The little party started with the speed of an arrow in a northwestern direction, as had been agreed on.. The four riders soon disappeared in the darkness ; the footsteps of their horses ceased to re- fccho on the hardened ground, and all fell back into silence. The gambusinos were peacefully sleep ing on the island. CHAPTER IX. THE TEOCALI. WE will now return to Valentine and his companions. The six horsemen were still galloping in the direction of the mountains; and, about midnight, they stopped at the base of an enormous granite mass, which rose solitary and glowing in the prairie. " This is the spot," said Bioodson, as he dismounted. His companions followed his example, and Valentine took a scrutinizing glance around. "If what I suppose be true," he said, " your dwelling might be an eagle nest." " Or a vulture's," the stranger hoarse ly answered. " Wait a few seconds." He then imitated the cry of the tiger- serpent. Suddenly, as if by enchantment, the mass of granite was illumined from top to bottom, and torches, shaken by vague and indistinct forms, ran rapidly along the slopes, bounding with extreme velo city until they arrived close to the as tonished travellers, who found them selves all at once surrounded by some fifty men in strange garbs and with sinister faces, rendered even more sinis ter by the reflection of the torches which the wind drove in every direction. " These are my men," the stranger said, laconically. " Hum !" Valentine remarked, " you have a formidable army." " Yes," Bloodson went on ; " for ajl these men are devoted to me. On many occasions, I have put their attach- ' ment to rude trials. They will let them selves be killed at a signal from me." " Oh, ho !" the hunter went on, " the man who can speak thus is very strong, especially if he wish to gain an honor able end." The stranger made no answer, but turned his head away. " Where is Shaw?" he asked. " Here I am, master," the man he had asked after said as he showed himself. " What ! Valentine exclaimed, " Red Cedar's son !" " Yes : did I not save his life which his brother sought to take] By that THE PIRATES OF THE PRAIRIES. title he belongs to me. Now," he added " come, my guests, do not remain any longer outside. 1 will show you rny do main. Shaw, do you take the horses." The travellers followed the stranger, who, preceded by several torch-bearers, was already escalading the abrupt sides of the granite block. The ascent was ruder still. It was easy to recognize the steps of a stair case, beneath the roots, creepers, and brambles that overgrew them. The travellers were plunged in the utmost astonishment. Valentine and Curumilla alone affect ed an indifference which caused their host to ponder. When about one- third up the moun tain, Bloodson stopped before an exca vation made by human hands, through whose gaping entrance a thread of light emerged. " You did not, perhaps, expect," said Bloodson, as he turned to his friends, " to find in the Far West a keep as strong as this." " 1 confess, Don Miguel, that I did not expect it." " Oh, my friends, your memory fails you, I fancy," Valentine said with a smile ; " this mountain, if I am not mistaken, is nothing but a Teocali." " It is true," Bloodson said, with an air of annoyance he tried in vain to hide, " I have placed my abode in the interior of an ancient Teocali." " There are a good many about here, history relates that it was in this coun- ty the Aztecs assembled before finally invading the plateau of Anahuac." " For a stranger, Don Valentine," Bloodson remarked, " you were well acquainted with the history of this country." " And with that of its inhabitants ; yes, Senor Caballero," the hunter re plied. They went in, and found themselves in an immense hall, with white walls, loaded with sculpture, which, as Valen tine had stated, must date back to the epoch of the Aztecs. A great number of torches, fixed in iron sockets, spread a tairy-like 1 ght over this hall. Bloodson did the honors of this strange abode, as a man perfectly ed in the habits of civilized life. A few minutes after their arrival, the hunters enjoyed a meal which, though served in the desert, left nothing to be desired as regarded the delicacy of the dishes or the order in which it was served. The sight of Shaw had involuntarily inspired Valentine with a secret distrust of their host ; the latter, with the pen etration and knowledge of mankind he possessed, at once noticed it, and resolv ed to get rid of it by a frank explana tion between the hunter and himself. As for Curumilla, the worthy Indian ate with good appetite, as was his wont, not uttering a word, though he did not lose a syllable of what was said around him, and his piercing eye had already scrutinized the most secret nooks of the spot where he was. When the supper was ended, Blood- son gave a signal, and his comrades sud denly disappeared at the end of the hall, where they stretched themselves on piles of dry leaves which served them as beds. The hunters remained alone with their host, and at a sign from the latter, Shaw took a place by his side. For some time they smoked in sil ence, until Bloodson threw far from him the end of the cigarette he had been smoking, and took the word. " Senores Caballeros," he said, with a tone of frankness that pleased his hearers, " all that you see here may reasonably surprise you, I allow. Still, nothing is more simple ; the men you have seen belong to all the Indian tribes that traverse the desert ; only one of them is a white man, and that is Shaw. If Don Pablo will be kind enough to reflect, he will tell you that the man found in the streets of Santa Fe with a knife in his chest was saved by me." " In truth," the young man said, " Father Seraphin and myself picked up the poor wretch, who gave no sign of life. You only could recall him to existence." " All the others are in the same case; proscribed by tribes, menaced with in stant death by their enemies, they have 48 THE PIRATES OF THE PRAIRIES. sought a refuge with me. There is now another point, I desire to clear up, in order that no cloud may exist between us, and that you may place tiie most perfect confidence in me." His hearers bowed respectfully. " For what good ?" Valentine said ; "every man in this world has his secret, Caballero, and we do not ask for yours. We are connected by the strongest bond that can attach men, a common hatred for the same individual, and the desire to take a striking revenge on him what more do we want?" " Pardon me, in the desert, as in the civilized life of towns," Bloodson said with dignity, " men like to know those with whom accident has brought them into relationship. I am anxious you should know that the force I have at my service, and which is really formid able, Don Valentine, as you were good enough to observe, is employed by me to act as the police of the desert ; re pulsed by the world, I resolved to re venge myself on it by pursuing and de stroying those pirates of the prairies who attack and plunder the caravans that cross the desert. It is a rude task I have undertaken, I assure you, for the villainies are numerous in the Far West, but I wage an obstinate war on them, and so long as Heaven permits, I will carry it on without truce or mer- cy." " I have already heard what you say spoken of," Valentine replied, .as he held out his hand sympathizingly ; "the man who thus comprehends his mis sion on earth must be one in a thous and, and 1 shall ever be happy to be counted in the number of his friends." "Thanks," Bloodson answered with emotion, "thanks for your remark, which compensates me for many insults and much miscomprehension. And now, Caballeros, I place at your dispos al the men who are devoted to me ; do with them whatever you please, and J will be the first to offer the example of obedience." " Listen," Valentine replied, after a moment's reflection ; " we have to deal with a thorough-paced villain, whose principal weapon is cunning, and we shall only succeed in conquering him by employing the same. A considera ble party is soon tracked on the prai rie ; Red Cedar has the eye of a vulture and the scent of a dog ; the more we are, the less chance we have of catching him." " What is to be done then, mjr friend ?" Don Miguel asked. "This," Valentine went on: " sur round him, that is to say, enclose him in a circle whence he cannot emerge, by securing allies among all the desert Indians; but it is understood that these allies will act seperately, until we have so well succeeded in tracking the vil lain that he must surrender." " Yes, your idea is good, though dif ficult and dangerous in its execution." " Not so much as you suppose," Val entine responded warmly. " Listen to me : to-morrow, at day- break, Curumil- la and myself will go in search of Red Cedar's trail, and 1 swear to you that we shall find it again." "Good," said Don Miguel; "and afterwards ?" " Wait ; while one of us remains to watch the bandit, the other will return, to warn you of the spot where he is. During that time you will have formed alliances with the Pueblos Indians, and be in a condition to force the boar in its lair." "Yes," Bloodson remarked, "that plan is simple, and for that very reason must succeed. It is a struggle of cun ning, that is all." " Yes," General Ibanez objected^; " but why should we not go on his trail also?" " Because," Valentine answered, "though you are as brave as your sword, general, you are a soldier that is to say, you understand nothing of the In dian warfare we are about to carry on, a war composed entirely of ambushes and treachery. You and our friends, in spite of your well-known courage, and I might almost say, on account of it, would prove more injurious than useful, owing to your ignorance of the country in which we are, and the manners of the men we have to fight." * "That is true," Don Miguel said; THE PIRATES OP THE PRAIRIES. " our friend is in the right, leave him t< act ; I am convinced that he will sue ceed." " And so am I," Valentine exclaimed with an accent of conviction ; " that i why I wish to be free, so that I may ac as I please." " In short," the general went on, " in a game so serious as that we are playing with men so clever and determined as those we have to fight with, nothing must be left to accident. I resign my self to inaction ; carry oufl your schemes as you think proper, Don Valentine." 11 Pardon me," Don Pablo exclaimed hotly. " My father and you may con sent to remain here, for I can under stand that your age and habits render you but little fitting for the life you would be obliged to lead ; but I am go ing. I am strong, able to stand fatigue, and long accustomed by Valentine him self to the terrible demands of the de sert life you are ignorant of. My sis ter's safety is at stake: we wish to rescue her from the hands of her ravish- ers ; and hence I must join the men who are going in search of her." Valentine gave him a glance full of tenderness. "Be it so," he said to him. "You will come with us, Pablo : this will complete your initiation into desert life." "Thanks, my friend, thanks," the young man said gladly. " You have removed an immense weight from my heart. Poor sister ! I shall co-operate, then, in her deliverance !" " There is another man you must take with you, Don Valentine," Bloodson said. " Why so?" Valentine asked. " Because," the other answered, "as soon as you have departed, I shall go and visit the Indian villages : when the moment arrives, we must know where to meet." " Yes, but how is it to be managed ?" "Shaw will accompany you." A flash of joy passed into the young man's eye, although his face remained unmoved. " So soon as you have found the trail, Shaw, who knows my hiding-places, will be sent off by you to advise me, and he will find me, wherever I may be." " Yes," the squatter's son said, lacon ically. Valentine examined him for a mo ment attentively, and then turned to Bloodson : " Be it so," he said ; " he shall come. I am greatly mistaken, or this young man has a greater interest than we sup pose in the success of our plans; and we can trust entirely to him." Shaw lowered his eyes with a blush. " And now," Bloodson said, " it is late : we have hardly four hours of night left. I believe that we have come to a perfect understanding, and that we shall do well to sleep. We do not know what the morrow reserves for us." " Yes, let us sleep," Valentine said, "for I intend starting at sunrise." " Will your horses be rested ?" " Let them rest, for we do not want them ; a trail can only be properly fol lowed on foot." " You are right ; a man on foot can pass anywhere." After exchanging a few more words, ach rose to go and throw himself on a pile of dry leaves. Don Miguel seized Valentine's arm and clutched it firmly, as he said, with tears in his eyes : " Friend, restore me my daughter." " I will do so," the hunter said, with emotion, " or die." The haciendero went away a few paces, but then hurriedly returned to the Frenchman's side. " Watch over my son," he said in a choking voice. " Do not be alarmed, my friend," the hunter answered. Don Miguel warmly pressed the hun- ,er's hand, uttered a sigh, and retired. A few moments later, and all were sound asleep in the Teocali, with the xccption of the sentries that watched Lver the common safety. 50 THE PIRATES OF THE PRAIRIES. CHAPTER X. THE WHITE GAZELLE. RED CEDAR'S proposition was too ad vantageous for the Pirates to hesitate about accepting it. This was the reason : For some years past a man had ap peared on the prairies, at the head of fifty or sixty determined companions, and had waged such a rude war on the adventurers or pirates, that it had be come almost impossible to carry on their old trade with impunity. On his private authority, this man had constituted himself the defender of the caravans that crossed the desert, and protector of the trappers and hun ters, whom they no longer dared plun der, through fear of being attacked by this unknown redressor of grievances. This existence was growing insup portable, and an end must be put to it. Unfortunately the means had hitherto failed the Pirates to deal a heavy blow, and free themselves from the crushing yoke Bloodson bowed them under. Hence they did not hesitate, as we have seen, to accept Red Cedar's proposition. These men had been acquainted with the bandit for several years : he had, indeed, been their chief for some time ; but at that period they were still civiliz ed brigands, if we may employ that ex pression when speaking of such fellows, prowling along the frontiers of the American Union, assaulting isolated farms, and plundering and killing the defenceless inhabitants. This band, which was at that time composed of about fifty, was gradually driven back on the desert, where Blood- son, who hunted them like wild beasts, had decimated them so thoroughly in many a fight, that the band, now reduc ed to only ten persons, was literally at bay, and compelled to live on the pro duce of the chace, or the rare occasions for plunder offered by isolated travel lers, whom their unlucky star brought into the vicinity of the Pirates' lair. As they were perfectly concealed by the Indian garb they wore, the few travellers who escaped them fancied they had been plundered by redskins. This disguise caused their security, and allowed them to go at times and sell the produce of their plunder in the sea port towns. We have said that the bandit band was composed of ten men, but we were incorrect ; for one of them was a wo man. There was a strange anomaly in this creature, scarce twenty years of age, with delicate features, a tall and lithe form, living among these ruffians whom she ruled over with all the force of a vast mind, indomitable courage, and an iron will. The brigands had a superstitious ado ration for her which they could not ex actly account for; obeying her slightest caprices without a murmur, and ready to let themselves be killed at the least sign from her rosy fingers. She was, as it were, their palladium. The girl was perfectly well aware of the uncontrolled power she exercised over her terrible guardians, and abused it constantly, while they never attempt ed resistance. The Indians themselves, seduced by the grace, vivacity, and sympathetic charms of the young creature, had christened her the White Gazelle ; a name harmonizing so well with her character, that she was known by no other. She wore a fanciful costume of extra ordinary wildness and eccentricity, which was admirably suited to the geti- le, though decided, and slightly dreamy expression of her face. It was composed of loose Turkish trowsers, made of Indian cashmere, fastened at the knees with diamond gar ters ; while boots of stamped deer-hide protected her leg, and imprisoned her ittle foot. To her heels were fastened leavy gold Mexican spurs ; double- 3arrelled pistols and a dagger were massed through her China crape girdle, which confined her delicate waist. A acket of violet velvet, buttoned . o^yer he bosom with a profusion of dia- nonds, displayed her exquisite bust. A brilliant-hued Navajoe zarape, fasten- d at the neck with a clasp of rubies, served as her cloak, and a Panama hat of extreme fineness (doble paja), deco- THE PIRATES OF THE PRAIRIES. 51 rated with an eagle-plume, covered her head, while allowing tresses of jet black hair to fall in disorder on her neck, and which, had they not been bound by a ribbon, would have trail ed on the ground. This girl was asleep when Red Cedar entered the cavern, and the pirates were accustomed to do noth ing without her assent. " Red Cedar is a man in whom we can place entire confidence," Pedro Sandoval said, as he summed up the affair, " but we cannot give him an swer till we have consulted the nina" "That is true," a second confirmed him " hence, as any discussion will useless, I think the best thing we can do, is to follow Red Cedar's example, and go to rest." " Powerfully reasoned," said one of the bandits, called Orson ; a little man with ignoble features, grev eyes, and a mouth extending from ear to ear, while laughing so as to display two rows of white teeth, wide and sharp as those of a wild beast ; " so shall I aay good-night." The other Pirates did the same, and in a few minutes the deepest silence prevailed in the grotto, whose inhabit ants, secure in the strength of their po sition, slept peacefully. At daybreak Red Cedar opened his eyes, and rose from the hard bed on which he had rested, in order to stretch his limbs, and restore the circulation of the blood. " Up already !" Sandoval said, as he emerged, cigarette in mouth, from one of the sleeping cells. " My bed was not so attractive as to keep me longer," Red Cedar answered with a smile. " Bah !" the other said, "'tis the for tune of war ; therefore 1 do not com plain about it :" the squatter continued, drawing his comrade to the' entrance of the grotto. " And now, gossip, answer me, if you please ; what do you think of my proposal 1 You have had time for reflection, I suppose ?' " Cascaras ! it did not require much reflection to see that it was a good bargain." I is we submit the question to the did not think of " You accept," Red Cedar said, with a movement of joy. " If I wore to be master, T should nob make the slightest difficulty, but " Hang it, there is a but." " You know very well there always is one." " That is true ; and what is the but r " Oh, less than nothing ; we must merely Nina." " That is true : I that." " You see now." " Gristo ! She will accept." " I am certain of it. Still, we musk lay it before her." "Of course. Stay, comrade, I pre fer you should undertake it : while you are doing it, I will go and kill some game for breakfast. Does that suit you ?" " Very well." " Good-bye for the present, then." Red Cedar threw his rifle over his shoulder and left the grotto, whistling to his dog. Sandoval, when left alone, prepared to discharge his commission, while say ing to himself in an aside : " That devil of a Red Cedar is al ways the same, as timid as he used tu be : that results from not having been used to the society of ladies. " Good morning, Sandoval," a gentle and melodious voice breathed in his ear. And the White Gazelle tapped the shoulder of the old bandit, while smil ing kindly on him. The girl was really a ravishing crea ture. She wore the costume we just now described ; but she held in her hand a rifle, damascened with silver. Sandoval gazed on her for a moment with profound admiration, and then an swered in a trembling voice : "Good morning, child; did you lave a good night '' " I could not have had a better ; I eel in glorious spirits this morning." "Ail the better, dear girl, all the better ; for I have to present to you an old comrade, who ardently desires to see you again." THE PIRATES OF THE PRAIRIES. " I know whom you are alluding to, father," the girl replied. " 1 was not asleep last night when he arrived, and even supposing I had been so the noise you made would have awakened me." "You heard our conversation, theu T' " From one end to the other." " And what is your advice ?" " Before answering, tell me who are the people we are to attack." " Do you not know ?" " No ; since I ask you." " Hang it ; they are Americans, I be lieve." " But what sort of Americans ? Are they Gringos or Gachupinos T' " I did not inquire into such details ; to me all Americans are alike ; and provided they are attacked, I ask for nothiyg more." "That is possible, old father," the girl answered, with a little pout ; " but I make a grand difference bet ween them." " I do not exactly see the use of it." " I am free to think as I please, I sup pose," she interrupted him, as she stamped her foot impatiently, " Yes, my child, yes do not be an gry, 1 entreat you." V " Very good ; but pay attention to what 1 am going to tell you. Red Ce dar is a man on whom I do not put the slightest trust. He is ever accustomed to pursue a gloomy object, which es capes his partners ; they only serve him as a cat's paw in all his underta kings; and he abandons them unblush- ingly so soon as they are of no further use to him. The affair Red Cedar pro poses to you is magnificent at the first glance ; but, on reflecting, far from of fering us profits, it may bring a multi tude of annoyances on us, and bring us into a wasp's nest, whence we can not emerge." "Then, your opinion is to decline 1 ?" " I do not say that ; but I wish to know what you intend doing, and what our chances of success are ?" During this conversation, the other bandits had left their cells and ranged themselves round the speakers, whose discussion they followed with the deep est interest. " On my word, my dear child, I do not know what answer to make you. Last evening Red Cedar spoke to me of the affair, and it appeared to us grand ; but if it does not please you we will give it up. We will not mention it again ; and that's all about it." " That is how you always are, San- doval ; it is impossible to discuss any point with you. At the slightest objec tion offered you flare up, and will not listen to the reasons which may be giv en to you." " I am not so, my child ; I only state facts. However, here is Red Ce dar ; have it ouUwith him." "That will not take long," the girl answered ; and turning to the squatter, who entered the grotto, bearing on his shoulders a magnificent elk he had shot, and which he threw on the ground, she said : " Answer me a single question, Red Cedar." " Twenty, if it be agreeable to you, charming Gazelle," the bandit said, with a constrained smile, which rendered him hideous. "No, one will be sufficient. Who are the people you are engaged with?" " A Mexican family." " I want to know their name." " I will tell it you. It is the Zarate family, one of the most influential in New Mexico." At this answer a vivid flush ran over the girl's face, and she displayed marks of profound emotion. "1 also propose," the bandit contin ued, whose notice this flush had not es caped, " to finish with that demon, Bl^odson, on whom we have so many- insults to avenge." " Good !" she said with increasing emotion. The astounded brigands gazed anx iously on the girl. At length, by a violent effort, the Ga zelle succeeded in re-assuming an air of coolness ; and, addressing the Pirates, said to them, in a voice whose accent revealed a great internal agitation : " That entirely changes the question* Bloodson is our most cruel enemy. If 1 had known that at first, I should not have opposed the enterprise as I did." " So," Sandoval ventured % to inter rupt. THE PIRATES OP THE PRAIRIES. " I consider the idea excellent ; and the sooner we put it in execution, the better." "Very good," Red Cedar exclaimed. " I felt sure that the Nina would sup port me." The Gazelle smiled on him. " Who ever could understand wom en T' Sandoval muttered in his mous tache. " Now," the young girl added, with extraordinary animation, "let us hasten to make our preparations for departure, as we have not an instant to lose." " Caspita ! I am glad we are going to do something at last," said Orson, as he prepared to cut up the elk brought in by Red Cedar : " we were beginning to moulder in this damp hole." " Leonard," Sandoval said, " look af ter the horses ; fetch them from the corral, and bring them to the subterra neous passage." " Hang it all," said Red Cedar ; " talking about horses, I haven't one." " That is true," Sandoval replied ; " you arrived oh foot yesterday ; but I fancied you had left your horse in the chapparal." " No, it was killed in an ambuscade, where I all but left my hide. Since then, my dog has carried the saddle." "We have more horses than we want, so Leonard shall bring one to you." " Thanks, I will make it up to you." Leonard and another bandit collected the harness and went off. When the meal was finished, which did not take long, as the Pirates were anxious to start, the separations forming the rooms were taken down, and two or three Pirates, arming themselves with powerful levers, moved an enormous rock, under which was the hole, serving as cache to the band, when obliged to leave its den temporarily. In this hole they placed any objects of value which the grotto contained, and the rock was then returned to its place. This duty accomplished, Sandoval shouted as he proceeded to the mouth of the grotto : " Some men to help." At a sign from Sandoval, half-a-dozen men seized the eud of a tree serving as a bridge, lifted it, balanced it for a mo ment in the air, and hurled it into the precipice, down which it rolled, with a sound resembling the discharge of a park of artillery. The exterior of the grotto was then covered with shrubs, in order to conceal it as far as possible. "Ouf," Sandoval said, " at present all is in order ; we will start when you please." " At once !" the girl said, who seem ed a prey to a great impatience, and who during all these lengthened prepa rations had not ceased to, scold the Pi rates for their delay. The band entered the passage without further delay ; and, after a march of about half-an-hour, entered a ravine, where the horses, under the guard of a Pirate, were nibbling the pea vines and young tree shoots. All mounted. The White Gazelle allowed her com rades to pass, and managed to remain a little in the rear. Then, approaching Red Cedar, she looked at him in a pe culiar way, and laid her dainty hand on his shoulder. " Tell me, scalp-hunter," she mutter ed, in a low and concentrated voice, " it is really Don Miguel de Zarate, the father of Don Pablo, whom you wish to crush T " Yes, senorita," the squatter answer ed, feigning astonishment at this ques tion. " Why do you ask rne that 1 ?" " Nothing," she said, with a shrug of her shoulders ; " merely an idea." And, spurring her horse, which bound ed forward with a snort of pain, she re joined the band, which started at a lon# trot. " Why does she take such interest in Don Pablo 1 ?" Red Cedar asked him self, so soon as he was alone. " I must know that ! Perhaps it may help me to " A sinister smile curled the corners of his thin lips, and he added, as he watch ed the girl gallop on : " You fancy your secret well kept. Poor fool ! I shall soon know it." 54 THE PIRATES OF THE PRAIRIES. CHAPTER XI. THE APACHES. THE little band galloped silently through one of those primitive land scapes which owe nothing to art, and whose imposing and grand aspect makes us understand the infinite power of the Creator, and plunges the soul into a gentle reverie. It was one of those fresh, but lovely autumn mornings, on which travelling is o pleasant. The sun, gently rising in the horizon, spread its vivifying heat over nature, which seemed smiling on it. When you look around you in the valleys, all seemed spotted with white and blackish gray. The hills bore on their crests enormous mushrooms of granite, which affected the quaintest x shapes. The soil of these hills was grayish white, and was only covered with a few faded plants already in seed. In the plain the vegetation was yel low ; here and there in the distance a few male buffaloes were scattered over the prairie like black dots. The flying locusts, some with brown wings, but the majority of a light yellow color, were so numerous, that they literally Covered the earth at certain spots. At a slight distance off rose the lofty Bears-paw mountain, whose crest was already covered by a slight layer of snow. The crows formed vast circles in the air, and the buffaloes, elks, as- shatas, and bighorns ran and bounded in every direction, bellowing and lowing. The Pirates, insensible to the charms of the scenery, and having no other moving principle than greed, galloped in the direction of the village of the Buffalo tribe, of which Stanapat (the handful of blood) was the Sachem, gradually approaching the banks of the Gila, which was still invisible, but whose course could now soon be traced, owing to the mass of vapor that rose from its bosom, and floated majestically over it, incessantly drawn up by the sunbeams. Toward mid-day the band stopped to let the horses breathe, but, owing to the impatience of Red Cedar, and spe cially of the White Gazelle, soon start ed again. After descending a very steep hill, and marching for some dis tance in a deep ravine, that formed a species of canon, the band at length debouched on the banks of the Gila. A strange spectacle was the resu t : on both sides the stream a number of Indians apparently encamped at the spot, although their village stood a little distance off at the top of a hill, in ac cordance with the fashion of the Pue blos, to convert their habitations into little fortresses, were running and seek ing in every direction, shrieking, gesti culating, and making the most fearful disturbances. So soon as they perceived strangers advancing in a straight line toward them, and not attempting to conceal themselves, but marching in perfect or der, they uttered frenzied yells, and rushed to meet them, brandishing their weapons, and making ready for a light. "Confound it !'' said Sandoval, "the Indians do not seem in a good temper. Perhaps we do wrong in accosting them at this moment : from their present ap pearance they may play us a trick, so we will keep oil our guard." " Bah ! let me act. I take every thing on myself," Red Cedar answered, with assurance. " 1 ask for nothing better, my friend," Sandoval remarked ; " do exactly what you please ; deuce take me if 1 try to interfere. Carai, I know those demons too well to get into trouble with them rashly." " Very good ! that is agreed ; do not trouble yourself any further " At a sign from Red Cedar the Pirates stopped, waiting impatiently what was going to happen, and resolved, at any rate, with that brutal egotism charac teristic of scamps of that sort, to re main unmoved spectators. The squatter, not displaying the slightest trepidation, threw back his rifle on its sling, and taking off his but- falo robe which he waved before him, advanced towards the Apaches. The latter, seeing the strangers halt with their hands on their guns, and this man advancing alone as ambassador, hesitated for a moment. They formed a group, and consulted j THE PIRATES OF THE PRAIRIES. 55 after a hurried deliberation, two men moved forward, and also waving their buffalo robes, stood about ten paces in front of the hunter. " What does my brother want of the warriors of my nation ?" one of the In dians said, in a haughty voice ; " does he not know that the hatchet has been dug up between the pale-faces and red skins, or has he brought us his scalp, to save us the trouble of going to fetch it?" " Is my brother a chief?" the Pirate answered, displaying no emotion. "I am a chief," the Indian replied " my brothers call me Black Cat." " Very good," Red Cedar continued. u I will therefore answer my brother that I have known for a long time that the hatchet has been dug up for a long time between the ' Great hearts of the East' and the Apaches. As for my scalp, I am weak enough to set an enor mous value on it, gray as it is, and I have no intention of letting it be raised." " In that case my brother acted very imprudently in coming to deliver him self up." " The future will prove the truth of that. Will my brother hear the pro positions I am commissioned to make him V' " My brother can speak, but he must be brief, for my sons are impatient." " What 1 have to say only concerns Black Cat." " My ears are open." " I have come to offer my brother the help of my comrades and my own that is to say, the eleven best rifles in the prairie. By the council fire, I will ex plain to the chiefs what we can do to deliver them from their implacable enemy, Bloodson." " Bloodson is a cowardly dog," the chief answered ; " the Indian women despise him. My brother has spoken well, but the whites have a forked tongue: what proof will my brother give rne of his sincerity T' "This," the Pirate intrepidly answer ed, as he approached near enough to touch the Indian, " I am Red Cedar, the scalp-hunter." " \\ ah !" the chief said, his eyes flash ing. The squatter continued, without dis playing any emotion : " I have to avenge myself on Blood- son to succeed in it I have come to you, who, till this day, have been my enemies, and on whom I have inflicted so many injuries, and I place myself in your hands, with my comrades, frankly and unreservedly, bringing you as proof of my sincerity a skin full of fire-water, three plugs of tobacco, and two female buffalo-robes, white as the snows of the Bears-paw. My brother will decide I await his answer." The Indians, who display extraordi nary temerity, are good judges of cour age. A bold action always pleases them, even from an enemy ; on the other hand, a present of fire-water makes them forget the deepest insults. In the meanwhile Black Cat consulted for some minutes with the chief who ac companied him. After a very long discussion, cupidity doubtless gained the victory in the Apache's mind over the desire for ven geance, as his countenance brightened up, and he held out his hand to the squatter, saying : " The chiefs of my tribe will smoka the calumet with my brother and his companions." Then, taking off his cap of antelope hide, adorned with feathers, he placed it himself on Red Cedar's head, adding : " My brother is now sacred ; he and his companions can follow me without f ear no insult will be offered .them." The Pirates had anxiously watched the phases of this conversation. Though too far off to overhear it, they followed all the gestures of the speakers. When Black Cat placed his cap on their comrade's head, they immediately advanced, without waiting for him to give them the signal. They knew that from this moment they had nothing to fear ; but, on the contrary, they would be treated with the greatest respect and utmost consideration by all the mem bers of the tribe. A strange fact, worthy of remark, is the way in which the American races understand and practice hospitality. The most ferocious tribes, and those most addicted to pillage, respect in the 56 THE PIRATES OF THE PRAIRIES. highest degree the stranger who takes a seat at their fire. This man may have killed one of the members of the family which shelters hirn ; he may have the most precious articles about him, and be alone, but no one will dare to insult him ; every one will strive to do him all sorts of services, and supply him with everything that may be useful to him, reserving the right of mercilessly killing him a week later, if they meet him on the prairie. The Pirates were, consequently, re ceived with open arms by the Apaches; a tent was put up expressly for them, and they were supplied with everything they could want. The first care of Red Cedar was to carry out his bargain with Black Cat, and pay him what he had promised. The chief was delighted ; his little eyes sparkled like carbuncles, he leaped, gesticulated, and was half out of his mind. The squatter had paid him a royal ransom, which he was far from expect ing ever to receive. Hence he did not leave his new friend again, whom he overwhelmed with attentions. When the Pirates had rested and had their food, Red Cedar turned to Black Cat. " When the council assembles," he said, " I will point out to the chief the spot where Bloodson now is." " My brother knows it?" " I suspect it." " In that case I will warn the hachesto, that he may assemble the chiefs round the council fire." u Why not light the fire here, instead of returning to the village, which will occasion a great loss of time ?" " My brother is right," the chief an swered. He rose, and 1 immediately quitted the tent. A few moments after, the hachesto of the hill mounted a species of hillock, and shaking his chickikoui with all his strength, invited the chiefs of the nation to assemble in council. The same announcement was made in the camp on the other side of the Gila. An hour later, the principal Apache chiefs were crouchingr round the council fire, lit in the prairie at a short distance from the tent of the white men. At the moment when Black Cat rose and was preparing to utter a few words, probably with the intention of explain ing the reason of the meeting, a great noise was heard, and a mounted Indian galloped up, shouting : "The Buffaloes! Stanapat, Stana- pat 1" Another Indian arriving at equal speed from the opposite direction, shouted at the same time : " The Siksekai ! the Siksekai !" " Here are our allies," Black Cat then said ; " my sons will prepare to receive them." The council was broken up. The warriors hurriedly assembled, formed in two large bands, flanked on the wings by horsemen, and ranged themselves for battle in the two direc tions indicated by the scouts. The war detachment of the Buffaloes appeared descending a hill, and advanc ing in good order. It was composed of about five hundred warriors, perfectly armed and painted for war, and looking most martial. A detachment of the Siksekai of about equal strength appeared immediately after, marching in good order. So soon as the four Indian bands saw each other, they uttered their war-cry, discharged their muskets and brandished their lances, while the horsemen, start ing at full speed, executed the most sin gular evolutions, rushing on eacii other as if charging, turning and curvetting round the detachments which marched on at quick step, singing, shouting, firing their guns, rattling their chikikouis, blowing their shells, and incessantly sounding their war whistles. There was something really imposing in the aspect of these savage warriors, with their stern faces, clothed in fantas tic costumes, and covered with feathers and hair, which the wind blew in every direction. When the four parties arrived at a short distance from each other, they stopped and the noise ceased. Then the principal chiefs, holding in their hand the totem of their tribe, left THE PIRATES OF THE PRAIRIES. 57 the ranks, followed by the pipe-bearer, carrying a great sacred calumet ; they walked a few paces toward each other, and planted the totem on their right. The pipe bearers filled the calumets, lighted them, bowed to the four cardin al points, and handed them in turn to the chief, while holding the bowls in their hands, and being careful that no one was passed over. This preliminary ceremony accom plished, the principal sorcerer of the Buffaloes placed himself between the totems, and turned to the sun. " Home of light !" he said, " thou who vivifiest everything in nature, ser vant and visible representative of the Great Invisible Spirit who governs the world which he has created, thy child ren long separated are assembling to day to defend their villages and hunt ing grounds, unjustly and incessantly attacked by men without faith or coun try, whom Niang, the Spirit of Evil, has let loose upon them. Smile on their efforts, O Sun, and grant them the scalps of their enemies ! Grant that they be victorious, and accept this offering made thee by thy most fervent adorer, to render thee favorable to thy sons, and make thy Apache children in vincible !" While uttering these words, he seiz ed a light stone axe hanging at his gir dle, and placing his left arm on a rock, laid open his wrist with one blow. The blood poured profusely from this horrible wound ; but the sorcerer, im passive and apparently insensible to pain, drew himself up with an eye flash ing with enthusiasm and religions fan aticism, and shaking his arm in every direction, sprinkled the chiefs with his blood, while shouting in a loud voice : " Sun, Sun, grant us our enemies, as I have given thee my hand !" All the Indians repeated the same prayer. The yells recommenced, and in an instant the redskins, seized with a spir it of frenzy, rushed upon each other, brandishing their weapons to the sound of the chichikouis and war whistles, and imitating all the evolutions of a real battle. The sorcerer, still stoical, Wrapped up his mutilated arm in grass, and re tired with a slow and measured step, saluted on his passage by the Indians whom his action had electrified. When the tumult was slightly calm ed, the chiefs assembled for the second time round the council fire, whose cir cle had been enlarged to make room for the allies. The newly arrived warriors were mingled with those of Black Cat, and the greatest cordiality prevailed among those ferocious men, whose number amounted at this moment to nearly two thousand, and who only dreamed of blood, murder, and pillage. " Confederate sachems of the power ful nation of the Apaches," Stanapat said, " you know the cause which once again draws us up arms in hand against the perfidious white men. It is, there fore, useless to enter into details you know ; still, I believe, that since the hatchet has been dug up, we ought to use it till it is completely blunted. The pale-faces daily invade our territory more and more ; they respect none of our laws ; they kill us like wild beasts. Let us forget our personal habits for an instant, to combine against the common, foe, that Bloodson, whom the genius of evil has created for our ruin. If we can manage to remain united, we shall exterminate him, for we shall be the stronger ! When we have conquered, we will share the spoils of our enemy. I have spoken." Stanapat sat down again, and Black Cat rose in his turn. " We are unanimous enough to com mence the war with advantage ; v/ithin a few days other auxiliaries will have found us. Why wait longer 1 ? Ten white hunters of the prairies, our allies, offer to surrender to us the den of the long knives of the East, in which they tell me they have friends. What do we wait for ? Let us utter our war-cry and start at once ; any delay may be deadly for us, by giving our enemies time to prepare a desperate resistance, against which all our efforts will be broken. Let my brothers reflect. I have spoken." " My brother has spoken well," Stana pat answered ; " we must fall like light- 58 THE PIRATES OF THE PRAIRIES. ning on our enemy, who will be terri fied by an unexpected attack ; but we should not be imprudent. Where are the white hunters?" " Here," Black Cat replied. " I ask," the sachem continued, " that they be heard by the council." The other chiefs bowed their heads in assent, and Black Cat rose and went to the Pirates, who were impatiently awaiting the result of the deliberation of the sachems. CHAPTER XII. BLACK CAT. IN order to understand the ensuing incidents, we are compelled to return to the maidens whom we left at the mo ment when they escaped from Red Cedar's camp, escorted by the Canadian hunters. The fugitives stopped a few moments before sunrise on a little tongue of sand forming a species of promontory a few yards in length on the waters of Gila, which were rather deep at this point, whence the river or prairie could be surveyed. All was calm and tranquil in the desert. The impetuous Gila rolled along its yellowish stream between two banks clothed with wood and thick chap- paral. Amid the dark green branches thousands of birds were striking up a concert, with which was mingled at in tervals the lowing of the buffaloes. The first care of the hunters was to kindle a fire and prepare the morning meal, while their hobbled horses nibbled the young tree-shoots. "Why breakfast already, Harry?" Ellen asked, " when we have been tra velling hardly four hours." " We do not know what await us in an hour, Miss Ellen," the hunter an swered ; " hence we must profit by the moment of respite Providence grants us to restore our strength." The maiden let her head droop. The meal was soon ready, and when it was over they remounted and the flight commenced. All at once, a shrill and peculiar whistle was heard in the tall grass, and some forty Indians, as if emerging from the ground, surrounded the party. At the first moment, Ellen fancied that these men were the Coras warriors Eagle-wing was to bring up ; but the illusion lasted a very short while, and a glance sufficed for them to recognize Apaches. Dona Clara, at first alarmed by this unexpected attack, almost immediately regained her coolness, and saw that any resistance was impossible. " You would sacrifice yourselves in vain for me," she said to the Canadians; " leave me temporarily in the hands of these Indians, whom I fear less than Red Cedar's gambusinos. Fly, Ellen fly /* i % " * * * my friends. " No !" the American girl exclaimed, passionately ; " I will die with you, my friend." " The two women will follow us, as well as the paleface hunters," one of the Indians commanded. " For what purpose 1" Dona Clara asked, softly. At a sign from the chief, two men seized the young Mexican lady, and tied her to her horse, though not employing any violence. With a movement swifter than thought, Harry lifted Ellen from her saddle, threw her across his horse's neck, and trying a desperate effort, ' threw himself, followed by Dick, into the thick of the redskins. Employing their rifles like clubs, they began felling he Apaches. There was, for a moment, a terrible contest, but at length Harry succeeded, after desperate efforts, in forcing his way, and set off at full speed, bearing with him Red Cedar's daughter, who had fainted from terror. Less lucky than he, Dick, after felling two or three Indians, was hurled from tiis horse, and nailed to the ground by a lance. The young man, in falling, cast a despairing glance at her whom tie had been unable to save, and for whom he died. An Indian leaped on his body, raised his scalp, and brandished it, all blood- dripping, with cries of ferocious laugh- THE PIRATES OF THE PRAIRIES. 59 ter, before the eyes of Dona Clara, wh was half dead with terror and pain. The redskins then started at a gallop carrying off their prey with them. The Indians are not in the habit now a-days of ill-treating their prisoners a they used to do, especially if they ar women. Hence Dona Clara's abductor had not made her endure any unkin treatment. These Indians formed part of an Apa die war-party, about one hundred stron_ and commanded by a renowned chiel called Black Cat. All these warrior were well-armed, and mounted on hand some and good horses. Immediately after capturing the maiden, they started at a gallop across the prairie for nearly six hours, in th< hope of outstripping any party tha might start in pursuit, and toward night fall they halted on the banks of th< Gila. At this spot the river flowed majes tically between two escarped banks bordered by lofty rocks carved in the strangest fashion. The ground was stil covered by a grass at least three feet high, and a few clumps of trees scattered over the plain agreeably diversified the landscape, which was enlivened by flocks of buffaloes, elks, and bighorns, which could be seen feeding in the distance. The Indians raised their tents on a hill, from the top of which a very ex tensive view could be enjoyed. They lit several fires, and prepared to pass the night in waiting for the other war riors to join them. Dona Clara was placed by herself in a tent of buffalo skins, in which a fire was lighted, as at this advanced season the nights are cold in the Far West. Accustomed to desert life, and famil iarised with Indian customs, Dona Cla ra would have patiently supported her position, had it not been for the thought of the misfortunes which had so long crushed her, and of her father's fate of which she was ignorant. Sealed on buffalo skins by the fire, she had just finished eating a few mouthfuls of roast elk, washed down with smilax water, and was reflecting deeply on the strange and terrible events which had marked this day, when , the curtain of the tent was raised, and * Black Cat appeared. The chief was a man of lofty stature. He was upwards of sixty years of age, but his hair was still black. He enjoyed in his tribe a reputation for courage and wisdom, which he justi fied in every respect. A cloud of sorrow veiled his natural ly soft and placid features. He walked slowly in, and took a seat by the side of Dona Clara, whom he re garded for some moments with interest. " My daughter is afflicted," he said, " she is thinking of her father, her heart is with her family; but my daughter will take courage, and not be cast down. Natosh (God) will come to her, and dry her tears." The young Mexican shook her head sadly, but made no reply ; the chief continued: " I also suffer : a cloud is very heavy on my mind. The pale- face warriors of ler nation wage an obstinate war with us, but I know the way to make them issume the feet of antelopes, to fly far rom our hunting grounds. To-morrow, )n reaching the village of my tribe, I vill have recourse to a great medicine, daughter will console herself; no larm will happen to her among us ; I will be her father." " Chief," Dona Clara answered, "lead ne back to Santa-Fe, and I promise you ny father will give you as many rifles, owder, bullets, and looking-glasses as ou like to ask of him." " That is not possible ; my daughter s too precious an hostage for me to hink of surrendering her. My daugh- er must forget the whites, whom she will never see again, and prepare to be- ome the wife of a chief." " I !" the maiden exclaimed in terror, become the wife of an Indian? Never make me undergo all the tortures ou please to inflict on me, instead of ondemning me to such a punishment." "My daughter will reflect," Black at answered, "of what does the White ily of the Valley complain ? we are nly doing to her what has been done o us frequently that is the law of the rairies." Black Cat rose, giving Dona Clara a 60 THE PIRATES OF THE PRAIRIES. mingled glance of tenderness and pity, and slowly left the tent. After his departure the poor girl fell into a state of utter prostration ; the horror of her position appeared before her in all its truth. The night passed then for her, weep ing and sobbing, alone, amid the laugh ter and songs of the Apaches, who were celebrating the arrival of the warriors of their detachment. The next morning, at day-break, the warriors started again, several men watching the movements of the prison er; but Black Cat kept aloof from her. The Indians marched along the Gila, through a yellowish prairie. Gloomy lines of chapparal, intersect ed by trees, whose red or grayish-brown color contrasted with the yellow frond- age of the poplars, bordered the road ; on the horizon rose grand hills of a whitish gray, covered with patches of colored grass and dark green cedar. The band undulated like an immense serpent in this grand desert, proceeding towards the village, whose approaches could already be detected by the me- phitic miasmas, exhaling from scaffold ings, seen in the distance, on which the Indians keep their dead, and let them decompose, and dry in the sun, instead of burying them. At about two o'clock the warriors entered the village, amid the shouts of inhabitants, and the sound of the chi- chikouis, mingled with the furious bark ing of the dogs. This village, built on the top of a hill, formed a tolerably regular circle. It was a considerable number of earth huts, built without order or symmetry. Wooden pallisades, twelve feet high, served it as ramparts, and at equal dis tances four bastions of earth supplied with loopholes, and covered inside and outside with intertwined willow branch es, completed the system of defence. In the centre of the village was a va cant space, of about forty feet in diame ter, in the centre of which was the " ark of the first man," a species of small round cylinder, formed of wide planks, four feet high, round which creepers twined. To the west of the spot we have just described was the medicine lodge, where the festivals and religious rites of the Apaches were celebrated. A mannikin made of animal skins, with a wooden head, painted black, and wear ing a fur cap, decorated with plumes, was fixed on a tall pole, to represent the spirit or genius of evil. Other quaint figures of the same nature were dis persed in various squares of the village, and were offerings made to the lord of life. Between the huts was a great num ber of several storied scaffoldings, on which the maize, wheat, and vegetables of the tribe were drying. Black Cat ordered Dona Clara to be conducted to a calli he had inhabited for a long time, and whose position, in. the oentre of the village, offered suffi cient guarantee for the security of the prisoner. He then went to prepare himself for the great magical conjuration, by which he hoped to destroy the pale- faces, hi a enemies. When Dona Clara found herself alone, she fell despondingly on a pile of leaves, and burst into tears. The cabin serving her as a prison was like all the rest in the village ; it was round, and slightly arched at the top ; the entrance was protected by a species of porch, closed with a dried skin, stretched on the cross sticks. In the centre of the roof was an orifice, in tended to let the smoke out, and cover ed with a sort of rounded cap made of sticks and branches. The interior of the hut was large, clean, and even rather light. The mode of building these abodes is extremely simple. They consist of eleven to fifteen stakes, four or five feet in length, be tween which shorter ones are placed very closely together. Upon the hign- er poles rest long beams, inclining to the centre, and which, placed very close to each other, support the roof. Exter nally, they are covered with a sort of trellis work, made of branches, fastened together with bark ; straw is laid over them, and earth on the top of that again. The maiden, although she was so THE PIRATES OF THE PRAIRIES. 61 wearied, did not feel the slightest in clination to repose on the bed prepared for her. It was formed of a long parchment box, with a square entrance ; the inte rior was lined with several bears' skins, on whi^h she could have stretched her self comfortably, but she preferred crouching in the centre of the hut, near the hole in which the fire, lit to protect her from the cold, was on the point of expiring. Toward midnight, at the moment when, despite her firm resolution to keep awake, she was beginning to $oze, Dona Clara heard a slight sound at the entrance of her hut. She ran hastily, and by the dying flashes of the fire, perceived an Indian warrior. It was Eagle-wing. The maiden suppressed with difficulty a cry of joy at the sudden appearance of the Coras Chief. The latter laid a finger on his lip ; then, after looking scrutinizingly around, he walked up to the maiden, and said in a voice soft as a sigh : "Why did not the Lily follow the road laid down Eagle-wing? instead of being at this hour the prisoner of the Apache dogs, the pale-virgin would be by her father's side." At this remark a heart-rending sob burst from Dona Clara's bosom, and she hid her face in her hands. " The Apaches are cruel, they sell women. Does rny sister know the fate that threatens her ]" "Too well, alas!" " What will my sister the Lily do !" the Indian asked. " What I will do r the Mexican girl answered, her eye suddenly gleaming with a dark flash ; " a daughter of my race will never be the slave of an Apache ; if my father will give me his knife, he will see whether I fear death."