Year: 1872

No plan of revenge had yet formed
itself in Don Romans mind; no settled
plan could be effective but he had faith
that some way would be revealed to him
at the right moment whereby he might
hurl destruction upon the murderers.
He waited in his place of concealment
until his enemies had disappeared up
the dark gorge; and then he stole fur
ther, and clambered up to the comb of
one of the precipitous walls of the ra-
vine. He continued along it, keeping G
pace with the savages below in their
progress.


At last the Apaches halted and made
preparations for encamplng for the
night at a point in the gloomy ravine
where nature seemed to have INDUCED
in her widest freaks when shaping it.
The watchful man above them could
perceive that they must have taken
possession of a cavern or chamber,
formed by projection of the masses of
rock in the precipitous wall on the comb
of which he stood; for within it they
deposited their plunder, while at its en-
trance they made fire.


For hours Don Roman lay with his
body half suspended over the precipice,
looking down into the frightful chasm
that was made yet more frightful by the
lurid glare of the savages' fire. He
watched them as they huddled around
the glowing embers, cooking their meat :;
and he saw their fearful dances and lis
tened to their demoniac glee, their fren-
zied rejoicing over the destruction of
the homestead and the murder of his
poor Inez, until his brain whirled and
his eyes blurred with madness. And
widest, most demoniac in his glee, was
Joseph Provencio.


Near midnight they seemed to get
tired of their orgies, and the greater
number of them withdrew into the cav
ern, while the others stretched them
selves around the fire at its entrance,
and soon gave every evidence of being
asleep.


Don Roman felt that his time to act
had come. He determined to make his
way down into the ravine, and, while his
enemies were yet asleep, pour in upon
them the contents of his rife and re-
volver, governing his actions thereafter
by the success of his shots and the ex-
tent of the panic among the survivors.
But before doing this he crawled out on
great fiat mass of rock resting on the
comb of the precipice and hung half
suspended over the chasm and directly
over the cavern, hoping that from its
edge he could look partially into the
cavern and make. sure that his foes
within it were asleep.


He had not reached the outer edge of
this overhanging rock when it began to
sway frightfully and threaten to topple
over into the chasm. Greatly alarmed
he sprang back to the comb of the preci-
pice again, but suddenly a wild, start
ling thought came to him, and with
cry of Joy he started to put it into exc
cution at once.


Laying aside his weapons, he gathered
together such of the loose masses of the
rock as were strewed thickly around as
he could lift and began to pile them
upon the outer half of the overhanging
rock. Thus he labored slowly, using the
utmost caution and watchfulness in his
movements. For more than once some
of the sleeping savages below sprang to
their feet, alarmed by some slight noise,
and peered up the face of the rocks sus-
piciously.


But when he had finished this labor
the overhanging rock still elung to its
place, though inclining a little more
heartened, but went away and returned
in an hour, bearing with him stout
pole that he had hacked off with his
knife. He hastily prepared a Leverage
under the raised edge of the rock, and
just as the first gray tints of morning
began to show themselves, he applied
the pole as lever and threw his weight
upon it.


The rock swayed, but did not other
wise move its position. Again and again
he tried the lever, with the same result.
With desperation he also threw himself
upon the lever. Ahl the great mass
moves-it slips Another effort with
the lever and the overhanging rock was
surely sliding over the cliff and down
into the chasm.


A dull, heavy murmur just above
them, like distant thunder, awoke the
savages and their companion from their
slumber; but ere they could do more
than huddle together in terror, masses
of rock came rafting down round the
mouth of the cavern, and then followed
mighty groan and crash as if the
mountain had tumbled down upon
them.


Don Roman watched the great mass
of rock disappear over the edge of the
precipice with strange fascination !;
and then he sprang for his weapons, and
prepared to use them while he hung
over the chasm. He saw the immense
IOCh sOtt1S OF0r Gu0 CdN0rn GudI u0lO Gu6
murderer of his daughter, and remain
there. He saw it crush the life out of
those that had made their bed by the
fire, and he had no doubt that some
within the cavern had met the same
fate ;; but there were survivors, for their
groans and yells of terror echoed
throughout the ravine. And in this
din he recognized Joseph Provencio's
voice.


He waited for some of the survivors
to make their appearance from the cav
ern, while he held himself in readiness
to shoot them down as they came forth ;
but none appeared. An hour he waited,
but still none came forth, though their
cries of terror continued as loud and
| fearful. What could this mean?
He searched for and found a way to
descend into the ravine, and he then
carefully approached the cavern. At a
single glance all was revealed to him.
| The great mass of rock had settled down
so close over the mouth of the cavern
| that there was scarcely space enough, or
opening left for the passage of a hand
Joseph Provencio and the surviving
Apaches, who had shared the deed OF
murder with him, were forever en-.
tombed within the narrow rock bound