But it might have been noticed that his manner had lost much of that nervous susceptibility and anxiety which indicates a lover; and it was with a return of his professional coolness and precision that he rode out of the patio as if on parade.

Erect, observant, and self-possessed, he felt himself "on duty," and, putting spurs to his horse, cantered along the high-road, finding an inexpressible relief in motion.

He was doing something in the interest of helplessness and of HER.

He had no doubt of his right to interfere.

He did not bother himself with the rights of others.
Like all self-contained men, he had no plan of action, except what the occasion might suggest.
He was more than two miles from La Mision Perdida, when his quick eye was attracted by a saddle-blanket lying in the roadside ditch.