ANOTHER BARGAIN.
Our friends were prudent enough to cook every available portion of the
mountain sheep, and to preserve what remained for future contingencies.
The climate was so warm that they could not hope to keep it more than a
day or two; and, as it was, they took the wise course of placing as much
of it within their stomachs as they could conveniently carry. The
good-tempered red Newfoundland seemed to be growing corpulent on this
species of living, protracted hunger alternating with an over supply of
food.
They saw no more wild animals during the day, but just as they were
entering the Salinas Valley Elwood discovered something lying in the
path before them which at first he believed to be an Indian, either
asleep or dead; but Terror instantly ran up, and seizing it in his teeth
laid it at his feet, and discovered a beautiful Indian blanket.
"Strange!" exclaimed the boy, holding it up before him. "This shows that
we are not the first persons who have traversed this section."
"I wonder that we do not see more savages."
"Isn't it beautiful?" said Elwood, turning the blanket over and
examining its texture and designs. It was indeed handsome and very
valuable, resembling much the famous blankets made by the Apache
Indians. It was fully a half-inch in thickness, so compactly knit
together as to be water-proof. Its border and the design of the figures
were a miracle of skill in color and combination. Every hue of the
rainbow seemed reproduced in the most pleasing combinations. The
center-piece was a figure of the sun which, with the rays radiating from
it, was of a most intense yellow, while around the border were pictured
all the fruits that any one has ever heard as being indigenous to
California.
"That must be very valuable," said Howard.
"It is so heavy it tires my arms to hold it."
"That same thing would bring yez five hundred dollars, any day, in San
Francisco," added Tim O'Rooney. "It'll pay yez to carry it there."
"It is just the thing to wrap around us when we lie down to sleep."
"Yis, if ye wraps up in that yez'll wake up and find yersilves roasted
to dith. Yez might as well crawl into an oven and bake yersilves and be
done with it."
"We can then spread it on the ground, and protect ourselves from the
moisture!" said Howard, who was beginning to appreciate the value of the
article.
"I've saan them things before," added Tim O'Rooney. "The Apaches and
Mohaws in New Mexico make 'em. It has tuk a couple of squaws the bist
part of a year to do the same."
"But where is the owner? An Indian could not lose such a thing without
knowing it. Why, it is a load to carry, and I should expect to lose my
coat as soon as to part with this."
Of course there could be no explanation of the cause of the blanket
being found where it was. It was plain that no Indian could have parted
with it unknowingly, and its high value made it still more puzzling that
it should have been left in such a place. It might be that the
owner--some fragile Indian girl--had wearied with carrying it, and had
thrown it down for a warrior friend of hers to pick up and take to its
destination for her.
This conjecture, made by Tim O'Rooney himself, raised a serious question
as to whether they had a right to carry the blanket away when there was
good reason to doubt its being lost or abandoned.
"If a year's work has been lavished upon it," said Elwood, "it cannot be
possible that it has no owner."
"I think Tim is right; he or she expects to return or send and get it."
"But it is singular that if such is the case it should be left here,
when it could have been easily hid in these bushes."
"That only proves that there are no people about--no white ones at
least. If the owner had any fear of this place being visited by
_Christians_, he would have taken pains to hide his property; but as he
was sure there were none but savages and heathen, he was certain his
blanket was safe."
Howard Lawrence, jesting though he was, spoke the truth, and deeply
ashamed are we to confess it.
The question received an unexpected and unmistakable solution. While
they were still conversing, they descried a gaudily dressed, rather
handsome-looking squaw tripping lightly behind them. Her head was bent,
and she did not discover them until the growl of the dog caused her to
raise her head. She was then within a dozen yards of Howard, he being in
the rear and holding the blanket in his hand. She looked at them with an
alarmed expression in her strange dark eyes, and seemed to be too much
frightened to think of fleeing.
Howard signified his friendship by walking quietly toward her and
holding out the blanket as if inviting her to take it. She readily
comprehended the meaning of his advance, and when the article was within
reach she took it.
"Now make a bargain if you can," called out Elwood.
Howard produced the gold watch--a small hunting-case--and offered it to
the young woman. She examined it with childish curiosity, but in a
manner that showed that it was not the first time she had looked upon
such an article. She held it a for moments, and then with a pleased
smile passed the blanket to him, bowed gracefully, wheeled quickly, and
slipped away charmingly.
"Hurra!" fairly shouted Elwood, "you are as good as Tim at making a
bargain."
"She must live somewhere about here, and no doubt will tell how she got
the watch, and that may set some of her friends on our track."
"Let 'em come," said Tim. "I've a gun that I larned how to shoot, and
that blanket we can wrap around us, and I don't believe you could shoot
a bullet through it by raison of its thickness."
The party resumed their journey, quite jubilant over the rifle and
blanket. They still needed but one thing, or rather two things, guns for
the boys. Terror was such a sharp and faithful sentinel they would have
felt almost safe with these additional fire-arms. Howard and Elwood were
quite confident that they could shoot with remarkable precision,
although, neither had ever aimed or discharged a gun; but in this
respect they were not so very different from other boys.
At noon they made a hearty meal upon a portion of what still remained of
the mountain sheep, and then stretched themselves out for an hour's
rest. Tim O'Rooney was plentifully supplied with tobacco, and perhaps
could not have felt more comfortable or satisfied with his situation. He
lolled on the grass, and wondered whether Mr. Lawrence was anxious for
him to get home or not, finally reaching the conclusion that he was
rather indifferent upon the subject himself. The greatest distress of
Howard and Elwood was the pain that their parents would feel regarding
them; but they hoped to reach home without great delay, when they would
quickly turn their weeping into joy.
The two could not grow weary of admiring their beautiful blanket. It was
a wonderful affair indeed, and doubtless contained within it enough
material to supply a "shoddy" contractor with the basis for a thousand
army blankets. The boys would have willingly given both their watches
for it and considered themselves greatly the gainers. They looked upon
it as their joint property.
"I do believe it is rifle-proof," said Howard. "The fine threads of
which it is composed are woven so compactly that you can hardly
distinguish them."
"I should be rather fearful of risking a rifle-shot from any one if that
were all that protected me."
"We can easily test it. Let's hung it up and shoot a bullet at it."
"No, that would be too bad. The ball might go through, and then it would
be spoiled in its looks. Now it seems really perfect----"
"I say, me boys----"
Tim's utterance was checked by the discharge of a rifle and the near
whistle of the bullet. He started up and glanced around him.
"Injuns, or me name isn't Tim O'Rooney, from Tipperary, Ireland, the gem
of the say!"