The word "Prieto," in opposition to the phrase "abandon the expedition," put the hunters to their wits' end for invention, and plan after plan was proposed; all, however, ending in the probability--in fact, certainty--that if adopted, our trail would be discovered by the enemy, and followed up before we could escape back to the Del Norte. They were, therefore, one after another rejected. During all this discussion, old Rube had not said a word. The earless trapper was sitting upon the prairie, squat on his hams, tracing out some lines with his bow, and apparently laying out the plan of a fortification. "What are ye doin', old hoss?" inquired one of his comrades. "My hearin' ain't as good as 'twur afore I kim into this cussed country; but I thought I heerd some o' 'ees say, jest now, we cudn't cross the 'Pash trail 'ithout bein' followed in two days. That's a dod-rotted lie. It are." "How are ye goin' to prove it, hoss?" "Chut, man! yur tongue wags like a beaver's tail in flood-time." "Can you suggest any way in which it can be done, Rube? I confess I see none." As Seguin made this appeal, all eyes were turned upon the trapper. "Why, cap, I kin surgest my own notion o' the thing. It may be right, an' it mayn't be right; but if it wur follered out, there'll be neither 'Pash nor Navagh that'll smell where we go for a week. If they diz, 'ee may cut my ears off." This was a favourite joke with Rube, and the hunters only laughed. Seguin himself could not restrain a smile, as he requested the speaker to proceed. "Fust an' fo'most, then," said Rube, "thur not a-gwine to come arter that nigger in less than two days." "How can you tell that?" "This way: 'Ee see he's only second chief, an' they kin go on well enough 'ithout him. But that ain't it. The Injun forgot his bow; white at that. Now 'ee all knows as well as this child, that that's a big disgrace in the eyes o' Injuns." "You're right about that, hoss," remarked one. "Wal, so the ole 'coon thinks. Now, 'ee see, it's as plain as Pike's Peak that he kim away back 'ithout tellin' any o' the rest a syllabub about it. He'd not let 'em know if he kud help it." "That is not improbable," said Seguin. "Proceed, Rube!" "More'n that," continued the trapper, "I'll stake high thet he ordered them not to foller him, afeerd thet some on 'em mout see what he kim for. If he'd a-thought they knew or suspected, he'd 'a sent some other, an' not kum himself; that's what he'd 'a done." This was all probable enough; and with the knowledge which the scalp-hunters possessed of the Navajo character, they one and all believed it to be so. "I'm sartin they'll kum back," continued Rube; "that ur, his half o' the tribe, anyways; but it'll be three days clur, an' well up till another, afore they drinks Peenyun water." "But they would strike our trail the day after." "If we were green fools enough to let 'em, they wud." "How can we prevent that?" asked Seguin. "Easy as fallin' off a log."