As the two white men, stiff and hungry, got down from their saddles, the Pawnees advanced cautiously to meet them, their bows still bent. Paul, however, made some masonic motions with his hands which were understood as meaning peace, and each returned his arrow to his quiver. A conversation began which, to the Englishman, was very much worse than any Greek, and so gave him leisure to look about him. Now that his eyes had become accustomed to the glare of the fire, the first thing he saw clearly was the runaway guide, bound so tightly with thongs that the poor creature could not move an inch. Near him lay the stolen rifle and his friend's valise, the latter disgorging papers through an opening which had been slashed along one side of it. Regardless of a murmur of protest from the savages, young Dumont picked up the gun and handed it to its owner, and having satisfied himself that none of the papers were missing, strapped the bag across his own shoulder. "You must pay us for them," said the Pawnees discontentedly. "Yes, yes; all right. Come to our camp in the morning, and we'll give you what is reasonable. What do you propose doing with this man?" "We shall take him to our camp." "I'll swear you shan't," said Dumont in English; for he knew what sort of mercy a trespassing Crow might expect from the Pawnees. "Tell them we'll fight them or we'll buy the chap of them, which they like," said Coke, when the position was explained to him. A debate followed in which Paul showed himself a shrewd bargainer. He and Coke totted up their available assets, and eventually about a quarter of a pint of whisky, a penknife, a steel watch-chain, and four or five shillings' worth of small silver were offered as the Crow's ransom, and accepted, much to the astonishment of Coke, who, in his innocence, had been about to add a valuable ring and a pair of pocket-pistols to the purchase-money. He stooped and cut the prisoner's bonds, and that worthy, in obedience to a threatening hint from Dumont, fled into the darkness. The Indians were amicably inclined, and not only shared their supper of broiled deer's meat with the travellers, but agreed to call for them at the camp in the morning and lead them to a point where the waggons could easily be drawn up to the higher platform; and on this good understanding the young men rode away. The new guides were as good as their word, and appeared on their little mustangs before Coke's party had finished breakfast. They appeared to be one of several small scouting parties sent out from a main camp farther on to gather intelligence as to a reported advance of the Crow Indians against them; and were now returning to their head-quarters beyond the Platte River. Instructed by them, the sportsmen moved along the bluff to a place about three miles farther than Coke had ridden on the previous afternoon; and there found a tolerably easy incline, up which the waggons were soon dragged.