There could be no doubt that Barrows, by virtue of his position, was capable of being a very dangerous foe, especially in this part of the country where the boys were virtually alone, and where they had no friends, and were compelled to rely absolutely upon themselves. That their doings were probably known to Barrows by means of a system of espionage conducted by Woofer, who, Ted now recalled, was in the habit of leaving the camp for long, solitary rides at intervals. What could be easier than when Woofer heard them talking about their plans to ride out and meet a courier sent by Barrows to get the information? Ted resolved not only to fight Barrows with his own weapons, and to a finish, but to interfere with his plans to get the gold in the mine to which Singing Bird only could guide them. It was necessary, therefore, to guard the Indian girl closely, and this he proposed to do, and when he had rid the camp of Woofer, and scoured the country for Barrows' spies and sent them off, he would proceed to the mine. As it was, they were headed in the direction of the Missouri River, and it would not be at all out of their way, or interfere with their business. Woofer was sitting with the boys around the camp fire, regaling them with stories of cow-punching in various parts of the country, and making of himself a most agreeable companion, and Ted, watching him carefully, could see nothing guilty or suspicious about him. But that didn't prevent him from keeping his eyes open. Gradually the camp settled down for the night. Stella went to bed after she had peeped into the tent occupied by Singing Bird, and satisfied herself that she was sleeping quietly and safely. One by one the boys rolled themselves in their blankets beside the fire, and dropped into deep slumber. Woofer had said good night among the first, saying that he was very tired, and would "crawl into the wool," as he expressed it. Only the night guard was awake, as they rode around and around the sleeping herd, their voices breaking out softly into song as a restless steer arose and sniffed the air and began to walk around. Ted was lying in his blankets, breathing softly and deeply, evidently sound asleep. Overhead the stars sparkled brightly, casting a radiance upon the earth that made things several feet distant perfectly observable. Woofer's blankets had been spread at the edge of the circle farthest from the fire. Ted also slept on the outer rim, and not more than ten feet from Woofer. It was past midnight, as Ted could tell by the stars, for he was not asleep, although feigning to be. He lay facing the place where Woofer was circled up in his blankets, when he saw the cow-puncher raise his head cautiously, not more than an inch or two, and look around. Ted closed his eyelids to a mere crack, for the light from the fire shone on his face, and in that position watched Woofer's movements.