“Heard anything from our neighbors this morning?” the guard was asked.
“Not a word. I was a leetle suspeecious in consequence, and kept my een peeled as ye say out here, but I kenned naething wrong.”
“They’re up to some trick or other, you can bet your boots,” was the opinion of Morris, who followed his words by going out and peering through crevices in the barricade at the enemy’s fortifications.
He had no more than got there, when they heard him yell out in angry astonishment, and when they hurried out of the cabin were amazed to see him standing on top of the wall, rifle in hand, like a picture of Sergeant Jasper at New Orleans.
“Look there, will you?” he shouted, pointing down the cañon.
The place where the trail was visible from the cabin was a stretch of about forty yards, so situated between the cliff and the creek, that any one going up or down could not escape coming under rifle range from the fort. At its further end was the ford of the creek, which with the rise of the opposite bank could also be seen, a protruding bastion of rock cutting off all further view of the trail for a mile or more.
At the instant Morris had glanced through the crevice in the wall, he had seen his old enemy Scotty riding his horse at the top of its speed toward the creek, into which he was about to plunge, when he suddenly reined up, and seizing his rifle from the leathern sling, which held it balanced on the horn of his saddle, lifted it toward his shoulder. His horse, however, alarmed at the rapid motion, gave a shying jump, which nearly dislodged the man from the saddle, and the gun went off before any aim had been taken.
It was at this juncture that Morris had leaped upon the wall, and Sandy and Max had followed. Before they had time to speculate upon the matter, there rushed into view down the opposite bank of the creek the stalwart, buckskin-clothed form of Buckeye Jim, leveling a revolver at the disconcerted horseman, who with quick presence of mind threw his hands above his head in sign of surrender and so saved his life,—“a great peety!” in Sandy’s opinion.
Close behind Jim was to be seen Lennox with a stranger whom nobody at first recognized; and a moment later Mr. Anderson rode into view, driving slowly ahead of him the horses of the other three.
Jim still kept Scotty under his eye, while the others mounted and waded the stream. The stranger approached Scotty and took his rifle away from him, while Len seized the bridle of his horse. Then the hands came down and were placed behind his back, where they remained as though fastened, after which the cavalcade started up the trail toward the mines.