He whipped a knife out of his belt, and would have rushed at Buffalo Bill and stabbed him to the heart, but Running Water and several of the other braves, fearing just this thing, had watched him closely. In a trice they seized and disarmed him. He struggled furiously, but in the hands of half a dozen strong braves he was as helpless as a baby. There was no one to say a word in his defense. Even the most drunken of the braves condemned his action, for hospitality is a sacred obligation to the red man. And Black Panther had actually tried to murder a guest! By command of Running Water he was taken to a lodge and closely guarded until the white men left the village on the following morning. Three braves, the most sober whom Running Water could select, watched him all night, tomahawk in hand. They had orders to slay him on the spot if he made any attempt to break out of the lodge. Black Panther knew this, and he was wise enough to keep still. But the flame of hatred in his heart burned more and more fiercely as the hours went by, and he vowed to himself that he would never rest until he had vengeance on his white opponent. No man knew this better than Buffalo Bill, who was as familiar with the nature of the redskins as any white man can be. Before he left the village with his friends, Running Water apologized profusely for the behavior of Black Panther, who, he said, had brought disgrace on all the band. “He shall not remain with us,” the chief added. “He left us before. He shall go back to the band he joined. He shall not remain another day in the village.” “Don’t drive him out on my account, chief,” said Buffalo Bill. “I bear him no ill will. It was the whisky that did it.” “But he feel ill will to you,” replied Running Water gravely. “He kill you when he meet you, unless you kill him first.” Buffalo Bill laughed. “Well, I’ll do my best to look out for myself if I ever do meet him again,” he said. “You better shoot quick,” was the parting warning of the chief to the border king, as he and his friends bade farewell and mounted their horses for the return journey. “I reckon Running Water is about right,” said Buffalo Bill to Wild Bill, as they rode onward. “How was he on the wrestle?” asked Wild Bill curiously. “A mighty good man. If it hadn’t been for all that drink that was in him, he’d have been the toughest proposition to handle that I ever ran up against. As it was, he was not particularly difficult to throw.” The fort was reached safely, and soon afterward Hare, the rescued captive, returned to his relatives, quite cured of any desire for further experiences of Western life. CHAPTER XLI. BLACK PANTHER’S END. Buffalo Bill had not seen the last of Black Panther. Two months after the encounter in Running Water’s village the commandant of Fort McPherson ordered him to go, with a small band of his scouts, to the village of the Bear band of the Sioux nation.