Part 23 (1/2)

Well, we had got so used to Dugald's solitary ways that we never thought anything of even his soed absence on the hill, for he usually dropped round when luncheon was pretty nearly done There was always soald,' as we all called hiood to see him eat His appetite was certainly the proverbial appetite of a hunter

On this particular day, however, old Dugald did not return to luncheon

'Perhaps,' said Donald, 'he is dining with so ”a pick at a priest's,” as he calls it'

'Perhaps,' I said ns of our brother coet rather uneasy, and spoke to Donald about it

'He s may have happened'

'Well,' replied Donald, 'I don't suppose fifty things have happened; but as you seem a bit anxious, suppose we mount our mules, take a Gaucho with us, and institute a search expedition?'

'I' up, 'and here's for off!'

There was going to be an extra good dinner that day, because we expected letters from home, and our runner would be back froood ti sounded and so discuss them at table

'Hurry up, boys; don't be late, ht round to the portico, and ere ht, auntie dear!' replied Donald, waving his hand; 'and htfully hungry'

The Gaucho knew all Dugald's trails well, and e una, he set out at once in the direction of the glen He s, however, and took so rass and scrub, that we began to wonder however Dugald could have found the road

But Dugald had a way of his own of getting back through even a cactus labyrinth It was a very simple one, too He never 'loaded up,' as he terame to his saddle till he meant to start for home; then he mounted, whistled to Dash, who capered and barked in front of the mule, permitted the reins to lie loosely on the aniood beast take him safely back to Coila, as we called our _estancia_, but he took hiald's hu, he never argued with him

'Reason raise o'er instinct, if you can; In this 'tis God directs, in that 'tis man'

'You are certain he will come this way, Zambo?' I said to our Gaucho

'Plenty certain, senor I follow de trail now'

I looked over my saddle-bow; so did Donald, but no trail could we see--only the hard, yellow, sandy gravel

We caly quiet and still here; hardly a creature of any kind to be seen except now and then a kite, or even condor, the latter winging his silent way to the distant e The biscacha is not a tribe of Indians, but, like the coney, a very feeble people, ell in caves or burrow underground, but all day longon their hind legs on top of the With the owls--and it see that the owls have the principal possession of these residential chaht This arrangement ansonderfully well, and I have proved over and over again that they are exceedingly fond of each other The biscachas themselves are not very demonstrative, either in their fun or affection, but if one of the dead outside the burrow, the poor owl often exhibits the rief for the ns of a desire to attack the ani--which has caused his affliction

Donald and I, with our guide, now reached the land of the giant cacti We all at ho of the beauty of the coardens or in hot-houses, and surprises us with the crirow from such odd parts of the plant; but here ere in the land of the cacti Dugald kneell, and used to tell us all about thee and weird, that we felt as if in another planet Already the bloom was on some of the--but in the proper season nothing that ever I beheld can surpass the gorgeous beauty of these giant cacti

The sun began to sink uncomfortably lon on the horizon, and ald un, for the Gaucho told us ere close to the laguna?

Presently the cacti disappeared behind us, and we found ourselves in open ground, with here and there a tall, weird-looking tree How those trees--they were not natives--had come there ere at first at a loss to understand, but e reached the foot of a grass-grown hill or sand dune, and cae ora spur of this hill, lo! the lake; and not far from the foot of a tree, behold! our truant brother Beside hiaroba tree, stood the un over his arald!' I cried