The Indian shrugged his shoulders and said no more; but presently he stood up on the footboard and, attracting Dumont's attention, pointed triumphantly to a bluff about a furlong ahead, which had been hitherto concealed by a ridge of rising ground dotted with pine-trees. Coke, who had been riding some way in advance with his friend, now hurried back to Dumont's side. "What do you make of this?" he said, pointing to the bluff. "Fred's ridden off to the right to try and find a slope, and I'm just off the opposite way." Dumont rode with him as far as the obstruction and examined it more carefully; it was a sheer precipice, twelve feet high. "Right you are," he said. "Try and find a slope, and I'll wait here for the other fellows." Two hours later the men met again; the two scouts had ridden ten miles along the cliff-foot either way, only to find that there was no spot where the waggons could possibly be raised. Meanwhile, two of the Dumonts had scooped footholds for themselves and climbed to the higher level, which they pronounced to be a beautiful grass plain, studded with little conical hills; and by the aid of a telescope they had seen large herds of bison going on ahead towards the Platte River. "Then we must go on," said Coke, "even if we have to haul the waggons after us, or cut a roadway." The others were of the same mind, but the sun had just set, and whatever their plans might be, they would have to stand over till to-morrow. The fire was lit and all were sitting down to supper when someone asked: "Where's the redskin?" The redskin had gone, bag and baggage (someone else's baggage). "Why, he's collared your new gun, Coke," shouted Fred, who had jumped up into the waggon in which the Indian had ridden and was making a hurried search, "And--whew! my little valise as well." The gun was a large-bore rifle of a new pattern, which Coke had only obtained with difficulty at the last moment; but even this theft, annoying as it was, was of minor importance compared with the disappearance of the valise, which contained all such maps and charts as its owner had been able to procure, some money, and his letters of introduction to people in Washington and across the boundary. "Mounted or on foot?" asked Paul Dumont, the youngest of the brothers. "Horses and mules all here, sir," reported the manservant after a brisk look round. "Then come on, Coke; up with you," said young Paul. "We'll have him," and taking the two best of the horses, they were soon galloping along the path by which they had come. In a few minutes they were past the ridge with its little belt of trees, beyond which all was plain sailing--or would have been if only the light could have lasted a little longer; for here was only a treeless, imperceptibly sloping plain where even an Indian could scarcely hope to conceal himself. "Fellow must be a perfect ass to think he could get away from us here," said Coke. "There you are; there goes the gentleman."