Of a sudden her manner changed. "What do the palefaces want, more curses? Haven't they had enough?" she shrieked, angered that, though the soldiers trembled beneath her imprecations, they made no move to leave the cave. "May--" But before another word could leave her lips, the lieutenant commanding the troopers, having recovered from the first shock of surprise, bellowed: "Seize her! Bind her! Gag the old vixen!" Eagerly the cavalrymen sprang forward, their faces bespeaking with what relish they would obey the commands. Yet before they could lay hands on her, Kaw-Kaw began to back away, swinging her crooked staff in front of her to hold off the troopers, while she screamed in the language of her tribe. "Kaw-Kaw call um Great Bear an' um braves," gasped Dew Drop, excitedly, close to Jesse's ear. "Paleface dogs must fight for coming Kaw-Kaw cave." So unexpected and so startling had been the intervention of the old witch that Jesse forgot his own peril in his interest to learn the effect of the awful curses on the soldiers. But the words of the Indian maiden recalled him to himself. Whoops and yells resounded in the outer cave in answer to Kaw-Kaw's appeal to her tribesmen. Suddenly a flare of light shone through the hole leading into the cavern in which the outlaws were. "The bucks have thrown in lighted faggots," grunted Comanche Tony. "There'll be suthin' doin', now." Ere he had more than spoken, the barks of pistols rang out, like the explosion of gigantic fire-crackers. The deeper toned army revolvers answered. In a trice the din was deafening. "Here's our chance!" declared the world-famous desperado. "We'll crawl into the other cave and attack the troopers from the rear. "Judging by their guns, there are only a dozen or so. "Our charge'll rattle 'em so we can rush through 'em and get outside. "The Indians won't stop us. "When we get clear, we'll strike for the place the bucks are grazing their ponies, Dew Drop'll tell us where it is." "Jus' other side trees, straight from cave," responded the red-skinned maiden. "Good. All ready, boys! I'll go first. Don't begin shooting till we're all in the other cave. "Dew Drop, you stay here." Desperate was the scheme. If the braves or troopers recognized Jesse, they might forget their fight in the desire to capture their common enemy. And then the outlaws' shrift would be short. But no word of protest did the others offer. In deciding upon the sortie, the bandit-chieftain had counted on the cavalrymen mistaking him and his pals for Indians while he hoped the savages would think them troopers. Furiously was the battle raging as Jesse finished the announcement of his plans. From the yells and shouts, he decided that the soldiers were driving back the redskins. And, with hope high, he began to crawl through the hole onto the field of strife. Rapidly his five pals followed. As they gained the larger cave, they saw that the troopers had, indeed, forced the braves back.