"I didn't think I should ever thirst for a fellow creature's blood," said John Miles; "but if I could meet the savages that did this bloody work, I would shoot them down like dogs, and sleep all the more soundly for it. How is it with you, friend Ferguson?"
"I am inclined to agree with you," said the Scotchman. "When an Indian makes himself a beast of prey he should be treated accordingly."
"Are there any Indians in California?" asked Peabody nervously.
"I don't think we shall have any trouble with them there, Mr. Peabody," said Ferguson.
"Then I wish I was there now. It must be terrible to be scalped;" and the young man from Boston shuddered.
"I don't think it would be an agreeable surgical operation," said Fletcher, who had just come up. "Let us hope that we shall not be called upon to undergo it."
The next morning, when breakfast was over, and the party was preparing to start, an unpleasant discovery was made. One of the most valuable horses was missing. He must have slipped his tether during the night, and strayed away; as they were situated, the loss of such an animal would be felt.
"He can't be far away," said Fletcher. "Some of us must go after him."
"Let Peabody mount the mustang, and undertake to find him," suggested John Miles, winking at the captain.
"Mr. Peabody," said Captain Fletcher gravely, "will you undertake to recover the horse? We shall all feel under great obligations to you."