Down an Unknown River 315 



honestly been performing, and had still to perform, so 

 much perilous labor. If we brought the murderer in he 

 would have to be guarded night and day on an expedition 

 where there were always loaded firearms about, and 

 where there would continually be opportunity and temp- 

 tation for him to make an effort to seize food and a 

 weapon and escape, perhaps murdering some other good 

 man. He could not be shackled while climbing along the 

 cliff slopes ; he could not be shackled in the canoes, where 

 there was always chance of upset and drowning; and 

 standing guard would be an additional and severe penalty 

 on the weary, honest men already exhausted by over- 

 work. The expedition was in peril, and it was wise to 

 take every chance possible that would help secure success. 

 Whether the murderer lived or died in the wilderness 

 was of no moment compared with the duty of doing 

 everything to secure the safety of the rest of the party. 

 For the two days following we were always on the watch 

 against his return, for he could have readily killed some 

 one else by rolling rocks down on any of the men work- 

 ing on the cliff sides or in the bottom of the gorge. But 

 we did not see him until the morning of the third day. 

 We had passed the last of the rapids of the chasm, and 

 the four boats were going down-stream when he appeared 

 behind some trees on the bank and called out that he 

 wished to surrender and be taken aboard; for the mur- 

 derer was an arrant craven at heart, a strange mixture 

 of ferocity and cowardice. Colonel Rondon's boat was 

 far in advance ; he did not stop nor answer. I kept on 

 in similar fashion with the rear boats, for I had no in- 

 tention of taking the murderer aboard, to the jeopardy 



