To this absurdity Seguin replied that we could not agree; but, as he did not wish to keep any of their prisoners, he would exchange the twenty-one for the nineteen. "Twenty-one!" exclaimed a brave; "why, you have twenty-seven. We counted them on the bank." "Six of those you counted are our own people. They are whites and Mexicans." "Six whites!" retorted the savage; "there are but five. Who is the sixth?" "Perhaps it is our queen; she is light in colour. Perhaps the pale chief has mistaken her for a white!" "Ha! ha! ha!" roared the savages, in a taunting laugh. "Our queen a white! Ha! ha! ha!" "Your queen," said Seguin, in a solemn voice; "your queen, as you call her, is my daughter." "Ha! ha! ha!" again howled they, in scornful chorus; "your daughter! Ha! ha! ha!" and the room rang with their demoniac laughter. "Yes!" repeated he, in a loud but faltering voice, for he now saw the turn that things were taking. "Yes, she is my daughter." "How can that be?" demanded one of the braves, an orator of the tribe. "You have a daughter among our captives; we know that. She is white as the snow upon the mountain-top. Her hair is yellow as the gold upon these armlets. The queen is dark in complexion; among our tribes there are many as light as she, and her hair is like the wing of the black vulture. How is that? Our children are like one another. Are not yours the same? If the queen be your daughter, then the golden-haired maiden is not. You cannot be the father of both. But no!" continued the subtle savage, elevating his voice, "the queen is not your daughter. She is of our race--a child of Montezuma--a queen of the Navajoes!" "The queen must be returned to us!" exclaimed several braves; "she is ours; we must have her!" In vain Seguin reiterated his paternal claim. In vain he detailed the time and circumstances of her capture by the Navajoes themselves. The braves again cried out-- "She is our queen; we must have her!" Seguin, in an eloquent speech, appealed to the feelings of the old chief, whose daughter was in similar circumstances; but it was evident that the latter lacked the power, if he had the will, to stay the storm that was rising. The younger warriors answered with shouts of derision, one of them crying out that "the white chief was raving." They continued for some time to gesticulate, at intervals declaring loudly that on no terms would they agree to an exchange unless the queen were given up. It was evident that some mysterious tie bound them to such extreme loyalty. Even the exchange of Dacoma was less desired by them. Their demands were urged in so insulting a manner that we felt satisfied it was their intention, in the end, to bring us to a fight. The rifles, so much dreaded by them, were absent; and they felt certain of obtaining a victory over us. The hunters were equally willing to be at it, and equally sure of a conquest. They only waited the signal from their leader.