"Gets thicker here," he whispered, and directly after he stopped and pointed down at two or three handfuls of the bright grain. "Seem to have set down a basket here, sir," he said softly. "Shall I go on?" "Go on? Yes, and trace the robbery home. The scoundrel who has tampered with the stores deserves the severest punishment." The sergeant proceeded, but more slowly now, for he had only a grain here and a grain there to act as his guide; but these still pointed out the direction taken by the marauders, till the trackers came suddenly upon a good-sized patch. "Tell you what, sir," whispered the sergeant; "there's only one chap in it, and he's got such a swag he's obliged to keep stopping to rest." "Yes, that seems to be the case, sergeant," said Lennox, looking carefully about. "Let's see; we must be near the colonel's quarters," he whispered. "That's right, sir. About twenty yards over yonder; and the fellows on sentry ought to have seen the light and challenged us by now." "No," said Lennox; "the houses completely shut us off. Go on." The light was held low down again and swung here and there in the direction that the marauder ought to have taken; but there was not a grain to be seen to indicate the track, and the sergeant had to hark back again and again without being able to find it. "Rum thing, sir," he whispered. "He must have stopped here and found that his basket was leaking, and patched it up, for I can't see another grain anywhere." "Neither can I, sergeant; but try again. Take a longer circle." "Right, sir; but it does seem queer that he should have stopped to make all fast just behind the colonel's quarters." "It seems to indicate that it was the work of some stranger; otherwise he would not have halted here." "P'r'aps so, sir; but if he was a stranger how did he know where the corn store was?" "Can't say, sergeant. Try away." "Right, sir," said the man, proceeding slowly step by step, with the open lantern very close to the ground, and making a regular circle, in the hope of cutting the way at last by which the supposed thief had gone off after his last rest. But minute succeeded minute without success, and Lennox was about to urge his companion onward in another direction, when the sergeant uttered a sharp ejaculation as if of alarm, jerking up the lantern as he started back, and in the same movement blew out the light and shut the lantern door with a loud snap. Lennox, who was a couple of yards behind, sprang forward, unfastening the cover of his pistol-holster and catching his companion by the arm, while all around now was intensely dark. "Enemy coming?" he whispered. "Dunno yet, sir," panted the sergeant, whose voice sounded broken and strange. "Something awfully wrong, sir." "Speak out, man! What do you mean?" whispered Lennox, whose heart now began to beat heavily. "I've come upon something down here, sir." "Ah! The thief--asleep?"