"Immensely!" came the prompt reply. "Of course I am more or less ignorant of it at present, and perhaps I ought to have kept my opinion till I have seen and experienced more. But who could not like this open-air existence. It is so warm out on these plains, so, so——"
"Exhilarating," suggested Mr. Blunt. "Yes, a man feels fit and keen here. The air is a tonic to those who are weaklings when they come to the pampas, and many a delicate man have I seen get strong and healthy after a few months. Look at the sky! That is the sort of ceiling we have at night for the greater part of the year. The stars are brilliant, and that crescent of the moon makes the place almost as light as during the day."
Dudley stretched a little farther out in the bent-wood chair in which he was seated, and stared up at the glittering sky above, admiring the myriad stars, and the gleaming crescent floating in the heavens. The air was beautifully warm and balmy, so much so that a man might sleep out in the open without a covering and still not risk catching a chill. A soft breeze fanned his cheek and brought with it the sweet scent of the trees which grew thickly near the rancho. He could see their tops swaying gently in the moon rays, and as he glanced about him he could distinguish the low roof of the rancho, the building which had been Mr. Blunt's home for many years. It was a long, straggling affair, with timber sides, and a shingle roof, and so many doors that Dudley felt bewildered. Some two hundred yards from it was another building, of smaller proportions, while to the left of that was a fenced enclosure, surrounded by huge posts and beams.
"The corral," explained Mr. Blunt. "That is where we rope in our wild cattle and horses, and where the most fractious of the latter are trained to take a saddle. You will see all that work in good time. I notice that the doors of the house amuse you."
They were seated in their chairs some thirty yards from the building, and beneath a clump of trees at the foot of which was a shallow well, where the house supply was obtained. Dudley had, indeed, noticed the fact to which his employer referred, and waited for an explanation.
"They are put in with a purpose," said Mr. Blunt. "When I offered to bring you here I told you that there were certain drawbacks. Well, Indians and an ever-threatening raid are amongst those drawbacks. Now, supposing the Indians appeared at this moment, you and I should run for the nearest door, which happens to be the one in general use. We should bolt and bar it once we were in, and then our guns would speak from the openings left for that special purpose. But our men are still out on the rancho, and unless they were warned of the coming of the Indians they would be slaughtered one by one, for they are often widely separated. I should warn them. I have an old cannon mounted on the roof, and Francia would fire it. The noise would certainly reach the ears of the gauchos, and would tell them that there was danger. They would collect together, gallop for the rancho, and make a rush."
"While you would throw open the door or doors nearest to them, and fire on the Indians," interrupted Dudley.
"Precisely! There might be a hundred and more of these enemies, for they hunt in large parties, and our sole aim would be to get the whole of our force together. The horses and the cattle we should have to leave, and I have found by a former experience that they act as an excellent counter attraction. The Indians raid us for our horses and cattle, and also to kill us if possible. If they fail to kill us, and see that to capture us they must fight, they will take the easier course and make off with the cattle. To drive them they have to separate a little, and that is the time for us to retaliate. We follow, and on one occasion we succeeded in saving our beasts and in driving the enemy away.
"Now we'll turn in. To-morrow you take your horse as I have directed, and don't forget; make the most of the week before you."
He rose from his chair, stretched and yawned, and led the way to the house. A solitary candle was spluttering in the one big room of which the place consisted, and it showed two pallets, constructed of wide strips of canvas nailed to long wooden trestles. Mr. Blunt clambered on to one, drew a blanket over him, placed a revolver beneath his pillow, and nodded good night. Dudley followed his actions, blew out the candle, and settled himself to sleep. But for a long while he remained awake, listening to the deep breathing of his friend, and to the long, low whimpering of a biscacha, a species of rodent which infests the pampas in certain parts. Then he, too, fell asleep and continued in blissful unconsciousness till the first faint streak of light stole into the room.