"To my surprise I saw that your horses were confined in the cattle pen, and after frightening the old fellow's daughter almost to death, I learned from her that you had been gone for two days on some kind of treasure seeking, in which her father was to take the lead and point out the money. I feared that, you had got caught in some kind of a trap, set by the frequenters of these woods; so I determined, as I was no longer on the trail of the murderer, to take a look at your operations, and, if possible, lend a hand in getting the gold."
Murden laughed when he spoke of the treasure, and we almost feared that he suspected us of keeping the secret from him.
"But where did you meet the stockman?" we asked.
"I am coming to the point of my narrative. We halted barely long enough to water the animals, and get something to eat—in the latter, let me assure you, the woman was pleased to lend her aid, and supplied us with meat enough to feed a regiment; and when I told her that we did not need so much, she begged that we would take what we did not want to her father and Mr. Smith."
"To whom?" we asked, astonished.
"To Mr. Smith," replied Murden, gravely.
"Ho, ho, Smith!" we cried, "you have, it seems, been making a conquest, and now, for the first time, we are to hear of it."
"I assure you," stammered Smith, "I had no idea that—"
"How long has it been going on, Smith?" we cried.