Perhaps Mr.
Peyton noticed it, for he came quietly to his aid.
"Maybe they knew better than we in what careful hands they had left her," he said, with a cheerful nod towards Clarence.

"And, again, they may have been fooled as we were by Injin signs and left the straight road." This suggestion instantly recalled to Clarence his vision in the mesquite.

Should he dare tell them?
Would they believe him, or would they laugh at him before her?
He hesitated, and at last resolved to tell it privately to the husband.

When the meal was ended, and he was made happy by Mrs.Peyton's laughing acceptance of his offer to help her clear the table and wash the dishes, they all gathered comfortably in front of the tent before the large camp fire.

At the other fire the rest of the party were playing cards and laughing, but Clarence no longer cared to join them.