The girl was half damp in death, while like a burning mine the pent-up fire-damp exploded and reverberated through the veins of the young man. Oh, if he could but impart his vitality to her. Possibly he did, for presently her weakness permitted her to note that the sky was blue, that the tree-tops waved in familiar forms, that the air flooded her lungs, and that a cooling rain was falling. Again she drifted somewhere away from the earth in pleasant passage through kaleidoscopic dreams of all a girl's subconsciousness ever offers. Her eyes spread, but soon closed in complete rest against the easy cradle. She sensed kindly caresses and warm kisses which delighted her. The long yellow hair hung about her face and kept it shadowed from the hot sun. "Oh my! Oh my! Where am I? Is that you--How do I--" but the effort exhausted her. "God--God--Sak-a-war-te come quick! It will be too late." He put more water on her face. * * * * * The hunt missed the wolf in the cover of the river-bottom. It doubled on the dogs, and out of sight was out of mind with the fast-running hounds. "She gave us a run, anyhow," sang out Major Searles to Wolf-Voice. "Yaes, d---- him; she give me a bite and two run. What good was come of eet, hey--why ain't you keel him first plass, by Gar?" "Oh! you are a poor sport, Wolf-Voice." "Am poor sport, hey? All right; nex' wolf she not tink dat, mabeso." Laughing and talking, they trotted home, picking up belated ones who had strung behind the fastest horses. "Where is Miss Searles, Major?" spoke one. "That's so! don't know; had a slow horse; by Gad, we must look this up." And the now anxious father galloped his mount. The others followed sympathetically. Rounding the bluffs, they saw Ermine's pony quietly feeding. "Where is Ermine?" came a hail of questions, and presently they almost ran over the girl's horse, now lying on its side, breathing heavily, and no longer trying to disengage his leg from the gopher-hole. "The horse is in a gopher-hole," said some one; "and see here--look at the dirt; he has thrown Miss Searles; here is where she struck." "Yes, but where is she? where is she?" ejaculated the Major, in a nervous tremor of excitement. "Where is my girl?" Wolf-Voice had dismounted and found Ermine's trail, which he followed toward the river. "Come!" he called. "Am show you dose girl!" While an orderly stayed behind to shoot the horse and get the empty saddle, the group followed hard on the half-breed. "Done you ride on de trail, you was keep behine. Dey girl was broke his neck, an' Ermine am pack him."