As they rode nearer to the blazing white sepulcher the moving dots showed color and took form. They were the Navaho, a lot of them. Soon some stopped to look at them and there was a commotion among the tiny black figures. Then a lone rider galloped furiously out toward them, mounted on a large black horse.
“That’s no Injun, an’ no pony—it’s Major Hinchman himself!” exclaimed Big John as the rider streaked out toward them.
The man waved his sombrero. “Hi! Hi!—Back!—Halt!” he called excitedly as he thundered toward them.
“Yaas—we’re haltin’, a lot!” muttered Big John as they all reined up and he called back Ruler. “Wonder what’s up?”
“Hi!—Is that you, boys?—Howdy, strangers—get right down!” yelled the white giant on the horse, for it was Hinchman himself. “Jee-mentley-dingit, but it’s a mercy of Providence that you-all happened to come this way!” he exploded as he rode up close. “I couldn’t have met you at Monument Canyon with this coming off. But I see you’ve got the dawgs—Jeementley but they look good to me! Whar’s the Colonel, Sid?”
“Father’s laid up, sir, over in the Grand Canyon,” explained Sid. “Had a mix-up with a whale of a grizzly and got mauled some, but he’ll be all right, soon. It’s an old-time California silver-tip, Major, the biggest bear I ever saw. Got him in back of Buckskin. Niltci’s looking after father, while we came over——”
“Niltci! Eh? Splen—did!” beamed Major Hinchman, his keen face lighting up with joy and relief. “You don’t tell me! Nothing on earth can convince these Injuns but that the Black Panther came and took him that night——”
The boys laughed, and Big John grinned sheepishly. At the Major’s questioning glance he told him just how that affair really was managed. Hinchman howled with delight. “Better and better and better!” he cried, his eyes snapping with pleasure. “You see, boys, since you have been gone the Black Panther has been visiting all the Navaho sheep corrals—— I suppose the dogs running him scared him off Neyani’s—but anyhow he’s become a regular plague. The Navaho now think the Dsilyi is angry with the whole tribe, and they got madder and madder at Neyani over it. One day I found Neyani’s hogan broken down and he and the wife and girl were gone. Couldn’t get a word out of the tribe about it, but I suspected White Mesa would be where they would take them. To-day the whole tribe set off for here, and I followed. Ever hear of the Ganhi, boys?”
They all shook their heads.
“Well, they are giant spirits who live in the mesas and mountains, and they sometimes interfere in mortal affairs when things get too complex. This White Mesa’s a regular abode of them. Not a Navaho will come here except by daylight, and a crowd of them at that. They’ve got Neyani here, somewhere, up in the cliffs, waiting for the Ganhi to give some judgment as to what Dsilyi wants. Now, you-all have got Niltci, which they don’t know. Easy! We’ll stage a miracle with him on White Mesa! Niltci will come back from the dead—from the house of Dsilyi, b’gosh! and he’ll tell them”—he paused a minute while his quick brain plotted something plausible—“I’ve got it!” he shouted joyously. “Why, it’s the chance I’ve been waiting for these five years! For five years I’ve been arguin’ with these fool redskins about their using these cheap traders’ dyes for their blankets. But they’re lazy and indifferent, and can’t see that the mills back east can make Navaho blankets by the thousand and eventually cut them out of their industry with vile imitations. The mills can imitate the patterns, but they can’t get those soft colors of the earth dyes made out here! My stunt is to drive that in by a miracle, and right now! I’ll appear on White Mesa, you’ll see! I’ll be an oracle from Dsilyi, telling them that Niltci will come back to earth on White Mesa, and that the Black Panther will come no more, if they will get back to their native dyes again.”