One would suppose, that the remembrance of what had happened, three days before, would have caused Arthur some embarrassment; but such was not the case.  On the contrary, he was as dignified as ever, and seemed to be perfectly at his ease.  Frank and his friends were considerate enough to refrain from making any allusions to the fright he had sustained, but Arthur brought the subject up himself.

“I received your note,” said he, “and also the articles you were kind enough to send me; and I am here now to say, that I feel heartily ashamed of myself.  From some cause or another, that I could not explain if I should try, I was extremely nervous that day; but I may, some time, have an opportunity to show you that I am not as much of a coward as I know you now believe me to be.”

Arthur remained at the rancho all that day, sitting down at the same, table, and eating his dinner with the boys he was about to betray into the hands of the robbers; and, when he went home that night, he had asked, and received, permission to accompany them to the mountains.  Their consent had been given reluctantly, and with very bad grace; but they could see no way to get around it.  Arthur was a boy with whom they did not care to associate; but he had done them no injury, and they could not bring themselves to refuse his request.

“They will start early Monday morning,” soliloquized Arthur, as he rode homeward, “and will take the road that leads to Captain Porter’s.  This is Friday.  I shall send word by Joaquin to Pierre to-night, and he will have plenty of time to make all his arrangements.”

Arthur spent the next day with the boys at Mr. Winters’s rancho, and, when he rode over on Monday morning, he brought with him a supply of provisions, which were stowed away in the pack-saddle with the rest.  Frank and his friends had been waiting for him, and now that they were all ready, they mounted their horses and rode off—­Archie leading an extra horse, which carried the pack-saddle.  As they galloped through the Rancheros’ quarters, Dick appeared at the door of his cabin, and shouted after them words, which, taken in connection with the events that were about to transpire, seemed like prophecy.

“You’ll be wishin’ fur me an’ Bob, to get you out of the hands of that ar’ greaser, afore you’re two days older,” yelled Dick.

“You don’t suppose that we four fellows will let one man capture us, do you?” shouted Archie, in reply.  “If we do get into trouble, and you find it out, you’ll come to our rescue, won’t you?”

“Sartin.  Now, don’t be keerless, like you allers are.”