The cause of the explosion remained a secret between Bart and Joses, and
in the busy times that followed there was but little opportunity for
dwelling upon the trouble. The Doctor was full of the discovery and the
necessity for taking steps to utilise its value, for now they were
almost helpless--the greater part of their ammunition was gone; their
force was weakened by the loss of two men; and, worst of all, it was
terribly insecure, for at any moment the Indians might get over their
fright, and come back to bury their dead. If this were so, they would
find that the task had already been done, and then they would search for
and find the occupants of the camp.
This being so, the Doctor suddenly grew calm.
"I've made my plans," he said, quietly.
"Yes?" exclaimed Maude and Bart, in a breath.
"We must go straight back to our starting-place, and then on to Lerisco,
and there I must get the proper authorisations from the government, and
afterwards organise a large expedition of people, and bring them here at
once."
He had hardly made this announcement when the Beaver came slowly up to
stand with his follower the interpreter behind, and looking as if he
wished to say something in particular.
The Doctor rose, and pointed to a place where his visitor could sit
down, but the chief declined.
"Enemy," he said sharply. "Indian dogs."
Then he turned round quickly to the interpreter.
"The Beaver-with-Sharp-Teeth says the Apaches will be back to-night to
see why the earth opened and killed their friends."
"Indeed! So soon?" said the Doctor.
"The chief says we must go from here till the Indian dogs have been.
Then we can come back."
"That settles it, Bart," exclaimed the Doctor. "We'll start at once."
The preparations needed were few, and an hour later they were retreating
quickly across the plain, the coming darkness being close at hand to
veil their movements, so that when they halted to rest in the morning
they were a long distance on their way, and sheltered by a patch of
forest trees that looked like the remains of some tract of woodland that
had once spread over the plain.
It was deemed wise to wait till evening, and taking it in turns, they
watched and slept till nearly sundown.
The Beaver had had the last watch, and he announced that he had seen a
large body of Apaches going in the direction of the canyon, but at so
great a distance off across the plain that there was no need for alarm.
They started soon afterwards, and after a very uneventful but tedious
journey, they reached the spot where they had first encountered the
Beaver and his followers. Here the Indians came to a halt: they did not
care to go farther towards the home of the white man, but readily
entered into a compact to keep watch near the Silver Canyon, and return
two moons hence to meet the Doctor and his expeditionary party, when
they were once more on their way across the plains.
The journey seemed strange without the company of the chief and his men,
and during many of their halts but little rest was had on account of the
necessity for watchfulness. The rest of the distance was, however, got
over in safety, and they rode at last into the town of Lerisco, where
their expedition having got wind soon after they had started, their
return was looked upon as of people from the dead.
For here the Doctor encountered several old friends and neighbours from
their ranches, fifteen or even twenty miles from the town, and they were
all ready with stories of their misfortunes, the raids they had had to
endure from the unfriendly Indians; and the Doctor returned to his
temporary lodgings that night satisfied that he had only to name his
discovery to gain a following of as many enterprising spirits as he
wished to command.
There was a good deal to do, for the Doctor felt that it would not be
very satisfactory to get his discovery in full working order, and then
have it claimed by the United States Government, or that of the Republic
then in power in those parts.
He soon satisfied himself, however, of the right course to pursue, had
two or three interviews with the governor, obtained a concession of the
right to work the mine in consideration of a certain percentage of
silver being paid to the government; and this being all duly signed and
sealed, he came away light-hearted and eager to begin.
His first care was to make arrangements for the staying of Maude in some
place of safety, and he smiled to himself as he realised how easy this
would be now that he was the owner of a great silver mine. It was
simplicity itself.
No sooner did Don Ramon the governor comprehend what was required than
an invitation came from his lady, a pleasant-looking Spanish-Mexican
dame, who took at once to the motherless girl, and thus the difficulty
was got over, both the governor and his wife declaring that Maude should
make that her home.
Then the Doctor rode out to three or four ranches in the neighbourhood,
and laid his plan before their owners, offering them such terms of
participation that they jumped at the proposals; and the result was that
in a very short time no less than six ranches had been closed, the
female occupants settled in the town, and their owners, with their
waggons, cattle, mules, horses, and an ample supply of stores, were
preparing for their journey across the forest to the Silver Canyon.
There was a wonderfully attractive sound in that title--The Silver
Canyon, and it acted like magic on the men of English blood, who, though
they had taken to the dress, and were burned by the sun almost to the
complexion of the Spanish-Americans amongst whom they dwelt, had still
all the enterprise and love of adventure of their people, and were ready
enough to go.
Not so the Mexicans. There was a rich silver mine out in the plains?
Well, let it be there; they could enjoy life without it, and they were
not going to rob themselves of the comfort of basking in the sun and
idling and sauntering in the evenings. Besides, there were the Indians,
and they might have to fight, a duty they left to the little army kept
up by the republic. The lancers had been raised on purpose to combat
with the Indians. Let them do it. They, the Mexican gentlemen,
preferred their _cigaritos_, and to see a bolero danced to a couple of
twanging guitars.
The Englishmen laughed at the want of enterprise by the "greasers," as
they contemptuously called the people, and hugged themselves as they
thought of what wealth there was in store for them.
One evening, however, Bart, who was rather depressed at the idea of
going without his old companion Maude, although at the same time he
could not help feeling pleased at the prospect of her remaining in
safety, was returning to his lodgings, which he shared with Joses, when
he overtook a couple of the English cattle-breeders, old neighbours of
the Doctor, who were loudly talking about the venture.
"I shouldn't be a bit surprised," said one, "if this all turns out to be
a fraud."
"Oh no, I think it's all right."
"But there have been so many cheats of this kind."
"True, so there have," said the other.
"And if the Doctor has got us together to take us right out there for
the sake of his own ends?"
"Well, I shouldn't care to be him," said the other, "if it proves to be
like that."
They turned down a side lane, and Bart heard no more, but this was
enough to prove to him that the Doctor's would be no bed of roses if
everything did not turn out to be as good as was expected.
He reported this to the Doctor, who only smiled, and hurried on his
preparations.
Money was easily forthcoming as soon as it was known that the government
favoured the undertaking; and at last, with plenty of rough mining
implements, blasting powder, and stores of all kinds, the Doctor's
expedition started at daybreak one morning, in ample time to keep the
appointment with the Beaver.
"I say, Master Bart," said Joses, as he sat upon his strong horse side
by side with Bart, watching their train go slowly by, "I think we can
laugh at the Apaches now, my lad; while, when the Sharp-Toothed Beaver
joins us with his dark-skinned fighting men, we can give the rascals
such a hunting as shall send 'em north amongst the Yankees with fleas in
their ears."
"It's grand!" cried Bart, rousing himself up, for he had been feeling
rather low-spirited at parting from Maude, and it had made him worse to
see the poor girl's misery when she had clung to her father and said the
last good-byes. Still there was the fact that the governor and his lady
were excellent people, and the poor girl would soon brighten up.
And there sat Bart, on his eager little horse, Black Boy, which kept on
champing its bit and snorting and pawing the ground, shaking its head,
and longing, after weeks of abstinence, to be once more off and away on
a long-stretching gallop across the plains.
There were men mounted on horses, men on mules, greasers driving cattle
or the baggage mules, some in charge of the waggons, and all well-armed,
eager and excited, as they filed by, a crowd of swarthy, poncho-wearing
idlers watching them with an aspect of good-humoured contempt and pity
on their faces, as if saying to themselves, "Poor fools! what a lot of
labour and trouble they are going through to get silver and become rich,
while we can be so much more happy and comfortable in our idleness and
dirt and rags!"
A couple of miles outside the town the mob of idlers to the last man had
dropped off, and, bright and excited, the Doctor rode up in the cheery
morning sunshine.
"I'm going to ride forward, Bart," he cried, "so as to lead the van and
show the line of march. You keep about the middle, and mind there's no
straggling off to right or left. You, Joses, take the rear, and stand
no tricks from stragglers. Every man is to keep to his place and do his
duty. Strict discipline is to be the order of the day, and unless we
keep up our rigid training we shall be in no condition to encounter the
Indians when they come."
"What are these coming after us?" cried Bart, looking back at a cloud of
dust.
"Lancers," said Joses.
"Surely there is no trouble with the governor now," exclaimed the
Doctor, excitedly, as a squadron of admirably mounted cavalry, with
black-yellow pennons to their lances, came up at a canter, their leader
riding straight up to the Doctor.
"Don Ramon sends me to see you well on the road, Don Lascelles," he
cried. "We are to set you well upon your journey."
As he spoke, he turned and raised his hand, with the result that the
next in command rode forward with a troop of the body of cavalry, to
take the lead till they had reached the first halting-place, where the
lancers said farewell, and parted from the adventurers, both parties
cheering loudly when the soldiery rode slowly back towards Lerisco,
while the waggon-train continued its long, slow journey towards the
mountains.