“Oh! I hardly expected to find that,” Adrian assured him; “but this is a queer country, and all sorts of strange things happen. Remember, now, about that poisoned spring. With so many crawling critters around here, it struck me that a fellow would be only showing ordinary wisdom to look under his blanket before he lay down.” “That’s right,” added Donald; “and I’m going to put that horse-hair lariat of mine in a double loop around the tent; because cowboys say that a snake will never crawl across one of that sort. The hair tickles ’em, and scares ’em off, I understand.” “Besides, we’re going to keep watch, you know, Donald,” Adrian remarked. Billie was on the point of stoutly announcing that he must have his assignment in this part of the camp duty, when he suddenly remembered the mess he had made of it the last time they let him try. So he was forced to gulp down his bitter disappointment, and let it pass him by. If Billie’s ability to accomplish things were only as good as his ambition to try, there would never have been any trouble; but the fact was, he could not keep awake after a certain hour any more than he could refrain from eating when hungry, and the opportunity came along. But after all, there was no sudden alarm during the night, although the sentry sat there with a gun across his knees every minute of the time he was on duty, and ready to give any creeper the surprise of his life. Perhaps those whom they fancied might want to disturb them guessed that the boys would be on the watch; and knowing that they possessed rifles, they did not care to take the risk of being shot. At any rate, morning found them just as the sinking sun had left them, making preparations for a meal; and in the eyes of Billie this was the essence of delight, as we have learned long since. The morning was to be given up to a number of minor events that would be of considerable importance, though it was in the afternoon that the culmination of the whole ceremony would come about in the thrilling rattlesnake dance, the reputation of which had gone all over the land. The Broncho Rider Boys were deeply interested in everything, and Billie used his little kodak freely, in snapping off pictures that appealed to him as worth preserving. Like all other tribes of Indians, the Zunis have a test through which their boys have to go before they can be called real braves, and be looked upon as full fledged warriors, capable of taking arms, and doing the fighting for the tribe; though it has been a long time, doubtless, since the Zunis have gone upon the warpath, because their old-time enemies, the Apaches, have been on a reservation for many years. Still, that must not interfere in any degree from the making of warriors; and as might be expected, the ability to stoically endure terrible bodily pain is the main feature of these tests.