“Watched them! Then tell us, quick, what you’ve discovered.”
“Gather up your instruments, and go into camp while I go over to the Kiowas to tell them what their part is to be. I’ll be back pretty soon.”
He sprang across the stream, and disappeared into the woods, while we packed up our instruments, and went back to camp to await his coming. We neither saw nor heard him till he stood among us, saying: “Here I am, my lords; haven’t you eyes and ears? Now that shows you how you can get close to men without their knowing it; and that’s the way I did yesterday with the Apaches.”
“Tell us; tell us.”
“You shall hear; but I must sit down, for I’m pretty tired. My bones are used to riding, and don’t enjoy walking any more; besides, it’s grander to belong to the cavalry than to the infantry.”
He sat down near me, and then said, nodding his head positively: “We’ll have the ball to-night.”
“To-night!” I echoed, half shocked, half glad. “That’s good.”
“H’m! you seem to be in a hurry to fall into the hands of the Apaches. However, you’re right; it is good, and I’m glad, too, that we won’t have to wait any longer. It’s no fun waiting when you don’t know how a thing will turn out.”
“Don’t know! Is there any reason for anxiety?”
“Not a bit; on the contrary, I’m certain everything will go well. But any man of experience knows that the best child may grow up bad, the finest plans take a wrong turn from some unforeseen cause.”