“Why, Black Bill, I thought that you were dead, and, thank Heaven, it is not so!” said Buffalo Bill earnestly. “No, massa; it was a close call, for dat bullet done cut my head, and I guess will kill me yet. “I is awful dizzy in my head like, but I kin tie dese gemmens, all right.” With this, the negro passed his hand across his head, took his lariat from over his shoulder, and began to tie the two men, Buffalo Bill keeping them covered with his revolver, and aiding in binding them securely. “The one lariat will do for them both, and keep them tied together--there, now we have them; but you cannot stand up?” “It don’t seem as though I could, sir,” said the black, who kept sitting on the ground. “I’ll see to your wound right off.” With this, the scout placed the weapons on the ground, wheeled the prisoners face to face, and bound them thus with his own lariat. “Now, Black Bill,” and he began to examine the wound. It was in the center of the forehead; but, having been fired upward, the bullet had glanced on the frontal bone, cut along under the scalp for several inches, and then made its way out, leaving a long gash, not serious, though the shock of the blow had felled the black and rendered him unconscious for some minutes. Bathing the wound with water from his canteen, and binding it up with a bandage moistened with arnica, the scout said: “You are all right now, and the dizzy feeling will soon wear off.” “It don’ hurt, sah; but it do feel like a mule hed kicked me.” “Rest is what you want, and we’ll go to the camp of these two men, for it cannot be far away.” The men had stood watching the every movement of the scout, and talking in whispers to each other. “We ain’t got no camp,” said one. “See here, men, you sought to kill this negro pard of mine, and that he escaped death is a marvel. I heard all that you said, and I know that you have a camp here, for you came from the camp of those who settled in this basin.” “That’s so, Massa Bill, fer I knows ’em both, one being named Tom Vail and t’other they calls Rocks. Dey had two pards, and we all thought dey got kilt de day of de ’arthquake. I knows ’em, sah; but why dey want ter kill me I doesn’t know, fer I never did ’em no harm, and den I thought dey was dead, and felt sorry for ’em, but dere must be two more of ’em, sah, so look out, Massa Bill.” “Yes, there are two more of them, though they are not here just now, but are due. I know a little about these fellows myself, for they gave themselves away when they thought they had killed you. Come, lead the way to your camp, or I’ll find a way to make you, and which you will not like.” The scout had unwound his lariat, so that they could walk side by side, and the two men saw that there was no nonsense to be put up with on their part, so one said: “We has a leetle camp down the valley, if yer wants ter go there.”