CHAPTER THREE.
THE FIRST APACHES.
Evening was closing in, and the ruddy, horizontal rays of the sun werecasting long grotesque shadows of the tall-branched plants of the cactusfamily that stood up, some like great fleshy leaves, rudely stuck oneupon the other, and some like strangely rugged and prickly flutedcolumns, a body of Indians, about a hundred strong, rode over the plaintowards the rocks where Dr Lascelles and his little party wereencamped.
The appearance of the Indians denoted that they were on the war-path.Each wore a rude tiara of feathers around his head, beneath which hungwild his long black hair; and saving their fringed and ornamentedleggings, the men rode for the most part naked, and with their breastsand arms painted in a coarse and extravagant style. Some had a ruderepresentation of a Death's head and bones in the centre of the chest;others were streaked and spotted; while again others wore a livery of acuriously mottled fashion, that seemed to resemble the markings of atortoise, but was intended to imitate the changing aspect of a snake.
All were fully armed, some carrying rifles, others bows and arrows,while a few bore spears, from the top of whose shafts below the bladeshung tufts of feathers. Saddles they had none, but each sturdy,well-built Indian pony was girt with its rider's blanket or buffalorobe, folded into a pad, and secured tightly with a broad band of rawhide. Bits and bridles too, of the regular fashion, were wanting, theswift pony having a halter of horse-hair hitched round its lower jaw,this being sufficient to enable the rider to guide the docile littleanimal where he pleased; while for tethering purposes, during a halt,there was a stout long peg, and the rider's plaited hide lariat orlasso, ready for a variety of uses in the time of need.
The rugged nature of the ground separated the party of Indians from theDoctor's little camp, so that the approach of the war party was quiteunobserved, and apparently, from their movements, they were equallyunaware of the presence of a camp of the hated whites so near at hand.
They were very quiet, riding slowly and in regular order, as if moved byone impulse; and when the foremost men halted, all drew rein by sometolerably verdant patches of the plain, blankets and robes wereunstrapped, the horses allowed to graze, and in an incredibly short timethe band had half a dozen fires burning of wood that had been hastilycollected, and they were ravenously devouring the strips of driedbuffalo meat that had been hanging all day in the hot sun, to bepeppered with dust from the plain, and flavoured by emanations from thehorse against whose flank it had been beaten.
This, however, did not trouble the savages, whom one learned in the loreof the plains would have immediately set down as belonging to a powerfultribe of horse Indians--the Apaches, well-known for their prowess in warand their skill as wild-horsemen of the plains. They feasted on, likemen whose appetites had become furious from long fasting, until at lastthey had satisfied their hunger, and the evening shadows were making thegreat plants of cactus stand up, weird and strange, against thefast-darkening evening sky; then, while the embers of the fire grew moreruddy and bright, each Indian, save those deputed to look after thehorses and keep on the watch for danger, drew his blanket or buffalorobe over his naked shoulders, filled and lit his long pipe, and begansilently and thoughtfully to smoke.
Meanwhile, in utter unconsciousness of the nearness of danger, DrLascelles continued his watch thus far into the night. From time totime he examined the tethering of the horses, and glanced inside thetent to stand and listen to the regular low breathing of his child, andthen walk to where, rolled in his blanket, Bart Woodlaw lay sleeping infull confidence that a good watch was being kept over the camp as heslept.
Then the Doctor tried to pierce the gloom around.
Away towards the open plains it was clear and transparent, but towardsthe rocks that stretched there on one side all seemed black. Not asound fell upon his ear, and so great was the stillness that the dullcrackle of a piece of smouldering wood sounded painfully loud andstrange.
At last the time had come for arousing some one to take his place, andwalking, after a few moments' thought, to where Bart lay, he bent downand touched him lightly on the arm.
In an instant, rifle in hand, the lad was upon his feet.
"Is there danger?" he said in a low, quiet whisper.
"I hope not, Bart," said the Doctor quietly, "everything is perfectlystill. I shall lie down in front of the tent; wake me if you hear asound."
The lad nodded, and then stood trying to shake off the drowsiness thatstill remained after his deep sleep while he watched the Doctor's figuregrow indistinct as he walked towards the dimly seen tent. He could justmake out that the Doctor bent down, and then he seemed to disappear.
Bart Woodlaw remained motionless for a few moments, and then, as he morefully realised his duties, he walked slowly to where the horses weretethered, patted each in turn, the gentle animals responding with a lowsigh as they pressed their heads closely to the caressing hand.Satisfied that the tethering ropes were safe, and dreading no hostilevisit that might result in a stampede, the guardian of the little campwalked slowly to where the fire emitted a faint glow; and, feelingchilly, he was about to throw on more wood, when it occurred to him thatif he did so, the fire would show out plainly for a distance of manymiles, and that it would serve as a sign to invite enemies if any werewithin eyeshot, so he preferred to suffer from the cold, and, drawinghis blanket round him, he left the fire to go out.
Bart had been watching the stars for about an hour, staring at thedistant plain, and trying to make out what was the real shape of a pileof rock that sheltered them on the north, and which seemed to stand outpeculiarly clear against the dark sky, when, turning sharply, he broughthis rifle to the ready, and stood, with beating heart, staring at a talldark figure that remained motionless about a dozen yards away.
It was so dark that he could make out nothing more, only that it was aman, and that he did not move.
The position was so new, and it was so startling to be out there in thewilds alone as it were--for the others were asleep--and then to turnround suddenly and become aware of the fact that a tall dark figure wasstanding where there was nothing only a few minutes before, that inspite of a strong effort to master himself, Bart Woodlaw felt alarmed inno slight degree.
His first idea was that this must be an enemy, and that he ought tofire. If an enemy, it must be an Indian; but then it did not look likean Indian; and Bart knew that it was his duty to walk boldly up to thefigure, and see what the danger was; and in this spirit he took one stepforward, and then stopped,--for it was not an easy thing to do.
The night seemed to have grown blacker, but there was the dark figureall the same, and it seemed to stand out more plainly than before, butit did not move, and this gave it an uncanny aspect that sent somethingof a chill through the watcher's frame.
At last he mastered himself, and, with rifle held ready, walked boldlytowards the figure, believing that it was some specimen of the fleshygrowth of the region to which the darkness had added a weirdness all itsown.
No. It was a man undoubtedly, and as, nerving himself more and more,Bart walked close up, the figure turned, and said slowly:--
"I can't quite make that out, Master Bart."
"You, Joses!" exclaimed Bart, whose heart seemed to give a bound ofdelight.
"Yes, sir; I thought I'd get up and watch for a bit; and just as Ilooked round before coming to you, that rock took my fancy."
"Yes, it does look quaint and strange," said Bart; "I had been watchingit."
"Yes, but why do it look quaint and strange?" said Joses in a low, quietwhisper, speaking as if a dozen savages were at his elbow.
"Because we can see it against the sky," replied Bart, who felt halfamused at the importance placed by his companion upon such a trifle.
"And why can you see it against the sky?" said Joses again. "Strikes methere's a fire over yonder."
Bart was about to exclaim, "What nonsense!" but he recalled the timeswhen out hunting up stray cattle Joses had displayed a p
erception thathad seemed almost marvellous, and so he held his tongue.
"I'll take a turn out yonder, my lad," he said quietly; "I won't be verylong."
"Shall I wake up the Doctor?"
"No, not yet. Let him get a good rest," replied Joses. "Perhaps it'snothing to mind; but coming out here we must be always ready to finddanger, and danger must be ready to find us on the look-out."
"I'll go with you," said Bart eagerly.
"No, that won't do," said the rough fellow sturdily. "You've got tokeep watch like they tell me the sailors do out at sea. Who's to takecare of the camp if you go away?"
"I'll stay then," said Bart, with a sigh of dissatisfaction, and thenext minute he was alone. For Joses had thrown down his blanket, andlaid his rifle upon it carefully, while over the lock he had placed hisbroad Spanish hat to keep off the moisture of the night air. Then hehad gone silently off at a trot over the short and scrubby growth nearat hand.
One moment he was near; the next he had grown as it were misty in thedarkness, and disappeared, leaving Bart, fretting at the inaction, andthinking that the task of doing duty in watching as sentry was thehardest he had been called upon to perform.
Meanwhile the rough cattle driver and plainsman had continued his trottill the broken nature of the ground compelled him to proceedcautiously, threading his way in and out amongst the masses of rock, andforcing him to make a considerable _detour_ before he passed the ridgeof stones.
His first act was to drop down on hands and knees; his next to lie flat,and drag himself slowly forward a couple of hundred yards, and thenstop.
It was quite time that he had, for on either hand, as well as in front,lay groups of Indians, while just beyond he could distinguish the horsescalmly cropping the grass and other herbage near. So still was it, andso closely had he approached, that every mouthful seized by the horsessounded quite plainly upon his ear, while more than once came themutterings of some heavy sleeper, with an occasional hasty movement onthe part of some one who was restless.
Joses had found out all he wanted, and the next thing was to get backand give the alarm. But as is often the case in such matters, it waseasier to come than to return. It had to be done though, for theposition of those in the little camp was one full of peril, and turningsoftly, he had begun his retrograde movement, when a figure he had notseen suddenly uttered an impatient "ugh!" and started to his feet.
Joses' hand went to his belt and grasped his knife, but that was all.It was not the time for taking to headlong flight, an act which wouldhave brought the whole band whooping and yelling at his heels.
Fortunately for the spy in the Indian camp, the night was darker now, athin veil of cloud having swept over the stars, otherwise the fate ofDr Lascelles' expedition would have been sealed. As it was, the Indiankicked the form beside him heavily with his moccasined foot, and thenwalked slowly away in the direction of the horses.
Some men would have continued their retreat at once, perhaps hurriedly,but Joses was too old a campaigner for such an act. As he lay there,with his face buried deeply in the short herbage, he thought to himselfthat most probably the waking up of the Indian who had just gone, thekick, and the striding away, would have aroused some of the others, andin this belief he lay perfectly still for quite ten minutes.
Then feeling satisfied that he might continue his retreat, he wasdrawing himself together for a fresh start, when a man on his rightleaped to his feet; another did the same, and after talking together fora few moments they too went off in the direction of the horses.
This decided Joses upon a fresh wait, which he kept up, till feelingthat, safe or unsafe, he must make the venture, he once more started,crawling slowly along without making a sound, till he felt it safe torise to his hands and knees, when he got over the ground far moreswiftly, ending by springing to his feet, and listening intently for afew moments, when there was the faint neigh of a horse from the Indiancamp.
"If one of ours hears that," muttered Joses, "he'll answer, and theIndians will be down upon us before we know where we are."