At this moment a headquarters orderly galloped into sight and halted beside the Captain. "The General is afraid you will ruin your horses," he cried. "He thinks you had better come back." Again Captain Miner tugged at his beard, a habit of his when annoyed or perplexed. "Is that an order?" he inquired. "No, sir, I think not," the orderly replied, hesitatingly. "It's a suggestion." "Well," directed the Captain, gently, "will you, then, please report to the General that we are in sight of the Indians and without I have a positive order to return, I propose to take them." He turned to the front again and put his little roan into her accustomed trot, calling out to the men nearest him, as he waved his hand at them, "Take it a bit slower, boys; don't run your horses. We'll catch the Indians all right." Al's ambitious little sorrel, seeing other horses ahead of him, was tugging at the bit and Al gradually let him have his head, leaving the Captain a short distance behind while the rest of the company was strung out for a mile or more in the rear. Al soon found himself among the leaders, riding neck and neck with Sergeant English and Corporal Wright, while Troopers Tom Frick, George Pike, George McClellan, and others whose names he did not know were near to them. The country was almost level where they were riding and they could now see the three Indians plainly, though still a long way ahead. The fugitives were pushing with all the speed they could make for a group of rough hills in advance, evidently hoping to escape pursuit in the ravines. To reach the hills, their course must be at a slight angle across that of the soldiers. "Let's try to head them off," suggested Sergeant English. "Bear a little to the right." The change of direction was made and as they continued to creep up on the Indians, whose ponies were evidently wearing out, they could see the latter look around anxiously every minute or two. The savages were urging their animals with quirt and heel, and though they responded but feebly, their strength lasted long enough to take them to the base of the hills before the pursuers had come within carbine range. As they reached the first steep slope, the Indians suddenly threw themselves from their ponies' backs and, clinging to their guns, ran up to the top of the hill on foot and disappeared. As they came nearer to the hill, the soldiers were startled to see on its crest, just where the fugitives had disappeared, a very large body of warriors with war-bonnets and robes waving in the breeze. "Well, say, what do you think of that?" exclaimed Corporal Wright. "There must be two or three hundred of them." The advance party reluctantly slowed down until Captain Miner and some of the other men had come up to them. The Captain examined for a moment the ominous looking group ahead. Then he turned a wistful glance on the thirty or forty men behind him and said, plaintively,