il it was too dark to go farther.

"Will it be safe to light a fire, Dias?"

"Yes, that will make no difference. They are not likely to attack us at
night. Savages seldom travel after dark, partly because they are afraid
of demons, partly because they would be liable to be pounced upon by
wild beasts. But I do not think there is any chance of their overtaking
us until tomorrow. The man Jose saw may have had companions close at
hand, but they will know that we are well armed, and will do nothing
until they have gathered a large number and feel sure that they can
overpower us. They will probably take up the track to-morrow at
daylight; but we have made a long march, and can calculate that we
shall find some defensible position before they overtake us. Jose and I
will keep watch to-night."

"We will take turns with you, Dias."

"No, senor; my ears are accustomed to the sounds of the forests, yours
are not. If you were watching I should still have no sleep."

The night passed without an alarm.

An hour before daylight Dias gave all the animals a good feed of corn,
and as soon as it was light they again started. They were already some
distance up the mountain, and after eight hours' travelling they
arrived at a gorge that suited their purpose. For two hundred yards the
rocks rose perpendicularly on each side of the stream, which was but
some thirty feet wide. No rain had fallen for some days, and the water
was shallow enough at the foot of the cliff for the mules to make their
way among the fallen rocks, through which it rushed impetuously. At the
upper end the cliffs widened out into a basin some fifty yards across.

"We cannot do better than halt here," Dias said. "In two or three hours
we can form a strong breast-work on the rocks nearly out to the middle
of the stream, where the current is too swift for anyone to make his
way up against it."

"Are they likely to besiege us long, Dias?"

"That I cannot say; but I do not think they will give it up easily.
Savages learn to be patient when roaming the forest in search