“Know, then, the legend of the Navaho, my White Father. How that Dsilyi crossed the rainbow arch and so to the Sacred Mountain came. And in the mountain was a cave. In the cave was a fire. The fire without wood burned. Around the fire were four panthers. A white one to the north. A blue one to the south. A yellow one to the west. A black one to the east.” Neyani paused to let the significance of this--to him--sink in. “The four panthers asked for tobacco,” he went on. “Then Dsilyi of the medicine tobacco took that he had stolen from the Ute. He to the four panthers gave. The four panthers smoked the medicine pipe. Still they lay, dead. Then took Dsilyi the ashes from the pipe, and on the four panthers rubbed. The four panthers came alive again. Then drew the four panthers a sheet of cloud from the four corners of the cave. And on the cloud were painted the yays of the cultivated plants by which the Dene (Navaho) now live. Thus Dsilyi for his Younger Brothers the secrets of the plants learned. And now Dsilyi afflicts the hogan of Neyani with the Black Panther,” grunted Neyani, despondently. “From the Valley of the Departed to the west he comes! Great and black as the night he is!” shuddered Neyani. He relapsed into silence and looked to the Colonel for some help in this his trouble. “But why has Dsilyi sent him, Neyani? Has anyone in your hogan done any wrong?” asked the Colonel, sympathetically. Neyani’s face took on a look of stony immobility. Whatever his private family griefs were, he chose not to air them before strangers. “Well, _I_ know why!” suddenly roared Big John. “Injun, you projooces that white boy, mighty sudden pronto!” he shouted, angrily. “Or by jings, you’ll find more’n forty black panthers atter ye!--Look yonder, Colonel!” They all followed his pointing finger, to where the long poles of a horse corral up on the ridge back of the hogan showed. Nickering at them over the gate was Sid’s pinto! Ruler was right! CHAPTER VI RULER TAKES A HAND