It was just one of those scenes and one of those hours in which all vestiges of the Fall seemed to have been obliterated, and Eden itself again appeared blooming in its pristine beauty.
Still those sounds, growing more and more distinct, were not sounds of peace, were not eolian warblings; they were mutterings as of a rising tempest, and inspired awe and a sense of peril.

Straining their eyes toward the far-distant west, whence the sounds came, they soon saw an immense black cloud just emerging from the horizon and apparently very low down, sweeping the very surface of the prairie.

This strange, menacing cloud was approaching with manifestly great rapidity.

It was coming directly toward the grove where the travellers were sheltered.

A cloud of dust accompanied the phenomenon, ever growing thicker and rising higher in the air.
"What can that all mean ?" exclaimed Crockett, in evident alarm.
The juggler sprang to his feet, saying, "Burn my old shoes if I know." Even the mustangs, which were grazing near by, were frightened They stopped eating, pricked up their ears, and gazed in terror upon the approaching danger.