120 RANCH LIFE AND THE HUNTING-TRAIL 



third day we had been gone, as we came around a bend, we saw in front 

 of us the lost boat, together with a scow, moored against the bank, while 

 from among the bushes some little way back the smoke of a camp-fire 

 curled up through the frosty air. We had come on the camp of the thieves. 

 As I glanced at the faces of my two followers I was struck by the grim, 

 eager look in their eyes. Our overcoats were off in a second, and after 

 exchanging a few muttered words, the boat was hastily and silently shoved 

 towards the bank. As soon as it touched the shore ice I leaped out and 

 ran up behind a clump of bushes, so as to cover the landing of the others, 

 who had to make the boat fast. For a moment we felt a thrill of keen 

 excitement, and our veins tingled as we crept cautiously towards the fire, 

 for it seemed likely that there would be a brush ; but, as it turned out, this 

 was almost the only moment of much interest, for the capture itself was as 

 tame as possible. 



The men we were, after knew they had taken with them the only craft 

 there was on the river, and so felt perfectly secure ; accordingly, we took 

 them absolutely by surprise. The only one in camp was the German, 

 whose weapons were on the ground, and who, of course, gave up at once, 

 his two companions being off hunting. We made him safe, delegating one 

 of our number to look after him particularly and see that he made no noise, 

 and then sat down and waited for the others. The camp was under the lee 

 of a cut bank, behind which we crouched, and, after waiting an hour or 

 over, the men we were after came in. We heard them a long way off and 

 made ready, watching them for some minutes as they walked towards us, 

 their rifles on their shoulders and the sunlight glinting on the steel 

 barrels. When they were within twenty yards or so we straightened up 

 from behind the bank, covering them with our cocked rifles, while I 

 shouted to them to hold up their hands an order that in such a case, in 

 the West, a man is not apt to disregard if he thinks the giver is in earnest. 

 The half-breed obeyed at once, his knees trembling as if they had been 

 made of whalebone. Finnigan hesitated for a second, his eyes fairly 

 wolfish ; then, as I walked up within a few paces, covering the center of 

 his chest so as to avoid overshooting, and repeating the command, he saw 

 that he had no show, and, with an oath, let his rifle drop and held his 

 hands up beside his head. 



It was nearly dusk, so we camped where we were. The first thing to 

 be done was to collect enough wood to enable us to keep a blazing fire all 

 night long. While Seawall and Dow, thoroughly at home in the use of 

 the ax, chopped down dead cottonwood trees and dragged the logs up 

 into a huge pile, I kept guard over the three prisoners, who were huddled 



