“Calificura, creep forward like a snake; be wary as the doe,” whispered the young Queen, as she signed to a big stalwart Araucanian to approach; and the man, with a low grunt, and still lying flat along his horse, trotted forward, and in a few minutes was out of sight.
“Lenketrou, let thy step be swift but silent, thy eye keen as the hovering hawk,” was the next remark with which Aniwee detached another of her followers from the group; and he too trotted forward and quickly disappeared. In this way the Queen sent forward some fifteen hunters, keeping around her five men, five women, and our young friends.
“I see them!” suddenly exclaimed Freddy in an excited whisper. “Look, Harry and Topsie, a splendid herd on the port hillside. There! can’t you see them? They seem to be moving towards the plain, and I can see some white specks amongst them.”
“I see them!” gasped Mary. It was her first sight of a herd of wild horses, and the thrill of excitement which rushed through her made her feel inclined to shout for joy. She wisely, however, restrained herself, for the slightest sound would have spoiled the anticipated sport.
The herd referred to could be plainly distinguished making its way down the rocky face of a somewhat steep incline, difficult enough to descend, but almost impossible of ascent on account of the roughness of the ground. Away to the right, a deep river shut out all outlet from the plain on that side, while straight ahead, high cliffs closed in, leaving only a narrow gorge some fifty yards wide through which anything could pass.
Suddenly two mounted figures could be discerned coming through the gorge from the far side. At the sight of them Aniwee nodded her head, and ejaculated the words “Calificura, Lenketrou.” In effect the two figures were no other than these Indians, whom the Queen had started forward from the hunting party, when the troop of wild horses was first distinguished.
No sooner did they show themselves, than a number of mounted horsemen appeared one after the other, along the left-hand ridge which looked down on the plain below. Almost simultaneously they began to whirl around their heads the coiled lassoes which they held in their right hands. The next moment, a distant shout rang forth, and in less time than it takes to tell, the herd had caught sight of the Indians, and were careering madly across the plain in the direction of the river.
With a loud yell the horsemen on the ridge charged down the steep slope at an amazing pace, and then Aniwee for the first time raised herself erect in her stirrups.
Whirling her lasso round her head, the young Queen shouted the order to charge. Full well the horses understood the signal; and almost before they knew where they were, our young friends found themselves racing across the plain at the top of their horses’ speed.
In their first fright, we have seen that the wild horses made straight for the river; but apparently recollecting that there was no outlet thence, they wheeled to the left, and bore away for the narrow gorge where, motionless as statues, Calificura and Lenketrou awaited them.