s THE RED is
B yGVSTAVE A I M A R - P
y TRAIL V
CHAPTER V.
The sun rose; its beams played on the
trembling yellow leaves of the trees, and
tinged them with a thousand shades of
Cold and purple. The birds, cozily nestled
in the bushes, struck up their matin
carol ; the awakening of nature was as
plendid and imposing as it is in all
mountainous countries.
The leader of the caravan left his tent
nd gave orders to strike the camp. The
tent was at once folded up, the mules
were loaded, and, so soon as the horses
vere saddled, the party started without
waiting for the morning meal, for they
generally breakfasted at the 11 o'clock
, talt.
' The caravan advanced along the roa3
from Santa Fe to the United States, at
t speed unusual under such circumstances.
When he left the camp, the chief of
the caravan spurred his horse and joined
the Indian, who was marching alone in
front, examining the bushes and apparent
ly performing all the duties of an expe
rienced guide. Curumilla. though he
"heard the hurried paces of the Mexican's
-torse, did not turn round, but continued
-trotting along on his sorry mule.
"Indian," said the caravan chief In
Spanish, "I wish to speak with you on an
Important subject ; be good- enough f o put
off your usual silence for a while and
-answer like an honest man. You engag
ed with me at Santa Fe to lead me, for
the sura of four ounces, safely to the
frontiersot Upper Mexico. Since you
cave been in my service I must allow
"that I have only had reason to praise
jour prudence; but we are at this mo
ment In the heart of the Rocky Moun
tains, that is to say, we have reached
the most dangerous part of our journey.
Two days ago you - lifted the trail of
4rA ItlillanB up irm I ila Kin ,namtM
of caravans, and I want to consult with
you as to the means to employ to foil
the snares In which these Indiana will
try to catch us." - .
The Indian felt in ' a bag of striped
calico thrown over his shoulder,, and pro
duced a greasy paper, which he opened
and offered the Mexican.
"What Is this?" the latter asked. "Oh,
.yes, certainly j your engagement. Well,
what has this to do with the question I
asked you?"
Curumilla, still Impassive, laid his fin'
;ers on the paper, at the last paragraph
-of the engagement.
"Well, what then?" the Mexican ex.
claimed ill-humoredly. "It is said there,
It Is true, that I must trust entirely to
' you, and leave you at liberty to act as
you please for the common welfare. What
proves to me that you are acting for our
common welfare, and that you are not a
traitor?"
At this word traitor, so distinctly ut
tered by the Mexican, Curumilla gave a
tiger glance at the speaker, while his
-whole body was agitated by a convulsive
-tremor; he uttered two or three incom
-prehensible guttural . exclamations, and
re the Mexican could suspect his Inten
tions he was seized round the waist, lifted
from the saddle, and hurled on the
ground, where he lay stunned. Curu
milla leaped from his mule, drew, from
liia belt four gold ounces, hurled them at
the Mexican, and then bounding over the
precipice that bordered the road, disap
peared. .
The situation was becoming most crit
teal for the chief of the caravan ; he
found himself abandoned without a guide,
in unknown regions, doubtless watched by
hidden, foes, and exposed at any moment
to an attack.
The march was continued; no sftspi
clous sign was discovered ; and the Mex-
t.w n . WAM 4mKHiu1 In ha Aini that-
with the exception of the time they would
le compelled to lose, the flight of the
Indian would entail no disagreeable con
sequences.
Singularly enough, Carnero seemed
rather pleased than annoyed at the dis
appearance of the guide. Far from com
plaining or deploring the delay In the con'
tinuance of the journey he laughed at
what bad happened and made an infini
tude of more or less witty jests about
It, which considerably annoyed his mas
ter, whose joy was merely on the surface,
sxnd who, in his heart, cursed the mishap
which, kept them In the mountains and
xposed them to the insults of the plun
derers.
"Pray, what do yon find so agreeable
In what has happened that yon are or
Sect to be so merry, No Carnero?" he
t length asked.
"Forgive me, mf amo," the capatai an
swered; "but you know the proverb,
What can't bo cured must be. endured.' "
"Hum ! said the master.
"And besides," the capatas added, as
tte stooped down, '"however bad our po
sition may be, is It not better to pretend
to consider U good?"
. A little before 11 a. m. the caravan
reached the terrace, and It was with a
feeling " of joy, which they did not at
tempt to conceal, that the peons recog
nised the strength of the position.
"We shall stop here for the present,"
tbs Mexican said. "Unload the mules.
sind light the Ores. Immediately after
' breakfast ws will begin entrenching our
selves."
The peons obeyed with the speed of
Den who have mads a long journey and
sue betinning to feel hungry; the fires
were lighted in an instant, and a few mo
ment later the peons vigorously at-
tasked their maias tortillas, their todna
and their csdna these Indispensable tie-.
menta of every Mexican meal. When
the hunger of his men was appeased the
chief rose.
"Now," he said, "to work."
- CHAPTER VI
The position which the leader of the
caravan fancied he had been the first to
discover, and where he had made up his
mind to halt, was admirably selected to
establish an intrenched camp. The im
mense voladero hovering at a prodigious
height above the precipices, and guarded
on the right and left by enormous masses
of rock, offered such conditions of secur
ity that the peons regained all their merry
carelessness, and regarded the mysterious
night of the guide as an accident of no
real importance.
It was, hence, with well promising ar
dor that they rose on receiving their
chiefs command and prepared under his
directions to dig the trench which was
intended to protect them from a sur
prise. This trench was to be bordered
by a line of tall stakes, running across
the open space between the rocks, which
gave the sole access to the terrace.
At the moment when the leader pro-
ceded with several peons armed with picks
and spades toward the entrance, with the
probable Intention of marking the exact
spot where the trench was to be dug, the
capataz approached, and said with a re
spectful bow:
Mi amo, I have an Important commu
nication to make to you."
His master turned and looked at him
with ill-concealed distrust.
An Important communication to maks
to me?" he repeated. -
"Yes."
"What is It? SpeakjJmt be brief."
"I have discovered a grotto."
"What?" his master exclaimed, In sur
prise.
"Yes, excellency."
"Where?"
"There," he said, stretching out his
arm ; behind that mass of rocks.
A suspicions look' flashed from behind
his master's eyelashes.
Well, we will enter It together. Fetch
some torches of ocote wood, and show
us the way. By the by, do not forget to
bring weapons, for we know not what
men or beasts we "may find in caverns
thus opening on a high road."
The Mexican selected six of his peons.
on whose courage he thought he could
rely, ordered them to take their muskets,
and, bidding the others keep a good watch,
but not begin anything until he returned,
he made a signal to the capatas that he
was ready to follow him. Carnero had
followed the .arrangements made by his
master with an evil eye, but probably did
not deem It prudent to risk any remark,
for he silently bowed his head, and walk
ed toward the pile of rocks that masked
the entrance of the grotto.
These granite blocks, piled one on top
of the other, did not appear, however to
have been brought there by accident, but,
on the contrary, they appeared to have
belonged In some early and remote age to
a clumsy but substantial edifice.
It would not be prudent, said the
chief, "to venture without precautions
into 'this cavern. Prepare your arms, mu-
chachos, and keep your eyes open ; at the
slightest suspicious sound, or the small
est -object that appears, fire. Capataz,
light the torches."
The latter obeyed without a word; the
leader of the caravan assured himself at
a glance that his orders had been prop
erly carried out; then taking his pistols
from ills belt,' he cocked them, took one
In each hand, and said to Carnero :
"Take the lead. It Is only just that
you should do the honors of this place
which you so unexpectedly dijeovered.
Forwardyou others, and be on your
guard."
The eight men went into the cavern at
the heels of the capataz, who raised the
torches above his head, doubtless in order
to cast a greater light.
They thus reached a rather large hall,
Into which several passages opened. All
at once the leader stopped and listened.
"Listen," he said to the capatas, "do
yon not hear something?"
The latter bent his body slightly for
ward and remained motionless for some
seconds.
"I do," he said, drawing himself op,
"it sounds like distant thunder."
"Is it not? or, perhaps, the rolling of
subterranean waters."
"I can swear that yon are right. It
would be a piece of luck for us to find
water In the cave, for it would add great
ly to our security, as we should not be
obliged to lead our horses, perhaps, a long
distance to drink."
"I will assure myself at once of the
truth. The noise proceeds from that pas
sage, so let us follow it. As for our
men, they can wait here ; ws have nothing
to fear now, for if the pirates or the
Indians are ambushed to surprise us, they
would not have waited so long before
doing so, and hence the assistance of our
peons Is unnecessary."
The capatas shook his head doubtfully.
"Hum," he said, "the Indians ars very
clever. I believe it would be more pru
dent to let the peons accompany us."
"Nonsense," said his master, "it is on
necessary ; ws are two resolute and well
armed men; we have nothing to fear, I
tell you."
They then entered the passage. It was
very narrow, and ran downward a steep
Incline. The farther they proceeded the
more distinct the sound of water became ;
It was evident that at a very short dis
tance from the-spot where they were, per
haps but a few steps, there ran one of j
those subterranean streams so frequently
found in natural caverns.
All at once, without being warned by
the slightest sound, the. leader of the cara
van felt himself seized round the waist,
his torch snatched roughly from his hand,
and extinguished against a rock, and him
self thrown down and securely bound, be
fore he was able to attempt the slightest
resistance, so sudden and well calculated
had the attack been. Carnero had been
thrown down at the same time as his
master, and bound.
"Cowards, demons!" the Mexican yell
ed, "show yourselves, at least, we that I
may know with whom I have to deal."
"Silence I Gen. Don Sebastian Guer
rero, resign yourself to your fate, for you
have fallen into the power of men who
will not liberate you."
Gen. Guerrero made a movement of Im
potent rage, but he was silent; he per
ceived that the originators of the snare
of which he was a victim were Implaca
ble enemies.
When his conquerors had borne htm
to the hall, where his peons were dis
armed and guarded, he saw, by the light
of the torch that faintly Illumined the
hall, that among the men who surrounded
him few wore the Mexican costume, It
was true, and they had their faces hidden
by a
"Why is Jones growing a beard?"
"Oh, I believe his wife made kim a
present of some ties.'' Punch.
"Do you think we should let women
vote?" "Certainly. Why not? We let
them earn money all other ways.
Life.
"So she's about to be married again.
Do you kuow who Is the lucky man?"
"Yes, the dead one." Detroit Free
Press.
The Man None of their relatives
will speak to them since their elope
ment. The Girl They ought to ,be a
very happy couple. Puck.,
"I notice your duughter dauees with
such graceful, free movements." "They
piece of black crape, forming a ain't free ; she takes reg'lar pald.les-
HERE'S A FEATHER SHARP.
Utah MeteoroloKlcnl Standing; of the
(i ref b Tree Frojr.
Few animals hnve survived the at
tacks made by science upon their repu
tation as weather prophets. The green
frog Is a conspicuous exception. lie is,
to be sure, a cronklng prophet, but plen
ty of people still pin their faith to him.
Even so scientific a Journal as Symons'
Meteorological Magazine has a kind
word to say of the little fellow.
Hero Is a picture of the frog's ladder
which Is provided for this weather
prophet In Germnny aud Switzerland.
In many houses the frog Is kept In a
bottle half filled with water and pro
vided with a lndder, and the little fel
low Is carefully watched ng to his be
havior In uncertain conditions of the
atmosphere. A number of weather max
ims are based upon his posture and ac
tivity. If he remains on one of the low
est Bteps of the ladder It Is considered
a sure sign that bad weather Is com
ing. If he emerges from the water and
rests upon the steps above It fine weath
er may be expected, and the higher ho
sits on the steps the finer the weather
Is sure to be. He Is also supposed to
species of mask, and so well fastened , 8ona
round their necks, that It was entirely
impossible to recognize them.
"What do these men want with me?"
he muttered, as he let his head fall on
his chest sadly. . .
"Patience!" said the man who had al
ready spoken, "you will soon know."
"Baltimore America.
CHAPTER VII.
There was a short delay, during which
the conquerors appeared to be consulting
together in a low voice; while doing so,
an Indian chief, who was no other than
the Jester, entered the hall. The general
and the capataz were then again picked
up by the redskins, and at a sign from
one of the masked men, transported on
to the voladero.
One hundred and fifty to 'two hundred
Indians, mostly armed with guns, and
ranged In good order round the terrace,
the center of which remained free, faced
the cavern, having among them the dis
armed Mexicans, the baggagehorses and
mules.
The tent still stood In the middle of
what was to havs been the encampment:
but the curtain was raised, and a horse
man was standing In front of It, as If to
defend the entrance. .
At the moment when ths party emerged
from the cave and appeared on the ten
race, the horsemen drawn up at the en
trance of the defile opened out to the
right aud. left, leaving a passage for a
small troop of men dressed In hunter's
garb, and whom it was easy to recognise
as white men ; two ladies, mounted on
ambling mules, were In the midst of them.
This troops of strangers Was composed
of eight persons altogether, leading with
them two baggage mules. As the men
were disarmed, and walked on foot amid
some fifty Indian horsemen, they had, in
all probability, been surprised by a party
of redskins.
The two ladles, one of whom was of
a certain age, while the other appeared
scarce 18, and who might be supposed
closely related, through the resemblance
of their features, were treated with an
exquisite politeness they were far from
expecting by the Indians, and conducted
to the tent. The -Curtain was then low
ered, to conceal them from the glances
of the Indians.
The newcomers, at a signal from their
conductors, ranged themselves with the
other prisoners; tbey were powerful men
whom the Indians had probably not given
a chance to defend ; otherwise they look
ed as if they would sooner be killed than
yield.
Two masked men took their seats on
the granite blocks, and the Indians who
carried the general laid him on the ground
in front of this species of tribunal. The
person who seemed to be the president of
this sinister assembly gave a sign, the
prisoner's bonds at once fell off, and he
round nimsen once more a Die to move
hi limbs.
The general drew himself up, crossed
bis hands on his chest, threw his body
back haughtily, raised his bead and look
ed at his judges with a glance of with
ering contempt.
"What do yon want with me, bandits?"
he said; "enough of this; these Insolent
maneuvers will not alarm me."
"Silence !" the president said, coldly ;
"It Is not your place to speak thus."
Then he remarked to the -Jester, who
was standing a few paces from him :
"Bring up the other prisoners, old and
new; everybody must hear what is going
to be said." -
The Jester gave a signal to ths war
riors; some of them dismounted, ap
proached the prisoners and, after loosen
ing the cord that bound the capatas, they
led him, as well as the peons snd pris
oners of the .second caravan, In front
of the tribunal. Then, at a signal from
the Jester, the horsemen closed np round
the white men.
(To be continued.)
Little Girl (after a domestic scene
with her mother) The best thing for
us to do, maiiuua, Is to agree to a sep
aration. Transatlantic Tales.
Duff Rowell believes in the eternal
fitnes of things. Cuff That's so; he
wouldn't run for a car if he had a
walking suit on. Town Topics.
"Willie Green," said the teacher,
"you uiuy deliue the word . memory."
"Memory." suld Willie, "Is what we
forget with." Philadelphia Record.
Do you favor any particular school
of music?" asked the lady. "Yes, in
deed," replied the young man who Uvea
in a flat "1 favor the pianissimo
school." Puck,
Rector (showing a stranger the
church monuments) My grandfather
hns slept lu this church for eighty
years. Stranger is he living: ionis
ers Statesman.
Mrs. Neighbors Are you aware that give warning of bad weather by croak-
your new hired girl is a somnambulist? ing loudly before a storm.
Mrs. Meadowgrass My goodness, no! The magazine says that there Is renl-
She told me she was a Baptist Cul- ly some reason to believe that the green
cago Dally News. tree frog Is somewhat experienced ns
Little Girl (telling of the Gurden of regards climatic conditions and acts nc-
Eden) Yes, Mummy, Adam aud Eve coraingiy. in nne wcauier no
lived very happily there till the Evil about among the branches of trees.
One came in the form of a servant wnen nt llDeriy, caicning nies. ai ui
Canadian Courier. approach of winter he seeks the water
and finds niinseu a uea in toe mua un-
BWISS WEATHEB PROPHET.
..'I: r. L.;; tn tZr a til the following spring calls him out
husband? Second Little Girl-No; I'm to re sume his war on the file
. . . I XT. ha rrvr nn tho. Innndf
going to be a widow. They don't have
Now the frog on the ladder without
doubt watches the weather conditions
keenly and rises to look out for files
when the circumstances seem favorable.
On the other hand, when the weather Is
cold and damp ho Is reminded of win
ter and instinctively retires to bury his
sorrows In tho Imaginary mud which
to. Harper's Weekly,
Mother-In-Law Has the young man
who suved my life yesterduy culled
upon you yet? Sou-ln-Law les, lu
deed, he has already made his apolo
gies. Fllegende Blaetter,
Clara You may not believe It, but Bt the bottom of his prison.
I said "No" to seven different men
during the past winter. Maude On, I
don't doubt it. Whut were they sell
lug. Chicago Dally News.
Mistress Why don't you boll the
eggs! Cook Sure, I've no clock In the
kitchen to go by.
; NOT A. SAFE MAN TO WED.
Hardest of All Metals.
Tantalum hag been hammered Into
sheets, which are extremely hard. Sir
William Crookee, F. R. S., states that
"a bole bad to be bored through a plate
of this metal and a diamond drill was
used, revolving at the date of 6,000 rev
olutions per minute. This whirling
force was continued ceaselessly . for
three days and nights, when it was
fonnd that only a small depression 23
mm. deep bad been drilled, and it was
a moot point which had suffered the
mora damage tho diamond or tho tan
talum." j
It la only a wast of time to look
at the ashes after you have) Uuinef
tho money.
The notions in rt-eard to courtnhlD
Mistress Oh, yes, d marrlnle held by Tibbie, the younu
you have. Cook What good Is It? It's Seotchwoman wno presided over tho
Jameson kitchen, were a never-ending
source of amusement to her mistress.
"I've taken mo mind off Archie Mac-
Lachlan, ma'am," Tibbie announced one
day, referring to a young carpenter who
had haunted her domain for some
weeks. "He's no the man for me. I
can see that weej."
"What ha poor Archie done?" asked
Mrs. Jameson, her heart filled with joy
at the knowledgo that she was not to
lose her domestic treasure, as eue had
feared.
"It's what he has na done, ma'am,"
responded Tibbie, briskly. "I put a
few tests to him. I said, 'Archie, If ye
had a wife, an' come home some day
to find she'd gone gadding with her kin
and left the hoose In disorder what'd
you do? And be looked at me with
that foolish smile o' his, an' said be,
I'd put It to rights mysel'.'
Again I tried him with cborcbgolng.
Bald I, 'Archie, If ye bad a wife that
some Bawbeth morning would up an'
tell ye she was too tired to bldo the
thoughts o' sitting under the minister.
what'd you do?' An' again he smiled
foolish at me, an' said, 'I'd go an' lis
ten for two.'
"And at last I tried htm with the
vanities o' this world. I said, 'Archie,
If ye had a wife that would take some
o' your hard-earned money an' spend It
for gay ribbons an kickshaws to put on
herself, what'd you do? An' be smiled
broader than ever, an' soys be, 'I'd take
my pleasure lookln' at her wl' 'em on
her.'
"So then I np an' told him he's
best be looking elsewtiere for a wife.
"You'd be a fearfu' pleasant man to
wed,' I said to htm, 'but such assy
going ways would na train a lass like
me.'
"The answer to every one o' the three
questions should 'a' been, 'I'd tike a
stick to her,' an' yon know It I
"So now we've parted, ma'am."
ten minutes fast rnuaaeipnia in
quirer.
"May I ask your father for your
hand to-n1ght, Miss Ketchem?" "Can't
you wait until to-morrow night,
George? I thluk Charlie Chumpley Is
going to ask hliu to-night" Cleveland
Plain Dealer.
Anxious Housewife (startled by a
crash In the room below) There! An
other of my best porcelain tureens
gone. HuBband Never mind, dear; It
has stopped the cook's singing. Port
land Oregonlan.
Voice from the parlor Mary Ann,
did you get the milk for the children
and Fldo In separate bottles? Mary
Ann Yes, ma'am. Tho voice Have
Flrtn's milk sterilized. Mary Ann
Yes, ma'am. Clevelund Plain Dealer.
Geek (who has already wearied the
guests with many songs) Now I will
sins you one more song ana wen go
home. Lady Pardon me, but do you
attach much Importance to the order
of your progrum?-Fl.legende Blaetter,
Do you think you will lenrn to like
your titiea son-in-mw : "
know," auswered Mr. uumrox. "i can i
quite tell where to place blw lu my
account. He Is neither a recre
ation nor au Investment" Washing
ton Star.
Mrs. Scrapplngton (In the midst of
her reading) Here Is an Item which
says that full-grown rhinoceroses cost
$12,000 apiece. Mr. scrapplngton
(meanly) Eh-y ah! Ana isn i u a piry
that women can't wear them on their
hats? Smart Set
Boatoa Newboy.
New Yorker (in Boston) I say
there, boy 1 Mave you an extra?"
Boston Newsboy I have an especial
edition Issued at 12 o'clock meridian,
sir! Yonkers Statesman.
Watch any man long enough, and
yon will set blm make a mighty bad
break.
England has 80,000 persons with a
single leg or arm.