Chapter XIX

Another Change Of Masters

The next morning Pat had a change from
the tedium of the desert. With the others
he struck into a narrow canyon that led out to a
beaten trail upon a rolling mesa. The trail wound
diagonally across the mesa from the south and
lost itself in snake-like twistings among hills to
the north. Guided to the right into this trail,
Pat found himself, a little before noon, in a tiny
Mexican settlement. It was a squat hamlet,
nestling comfortably among the hills, made up of
a few adobes, a lone well, and a general store.
The store was at the far end, and toward this his
young master directed him.

As they rode on Pat noticed a queer commotion.
Here and there a door closed violently, only to
open again cautiously as they drew opposite, revealing
sometimes two, sometimes three, sometimes
five pairs of black eyes, all ranged timidly
one pair over another in the opening. Dogs
skulked before their approach, snarling in strange
savagery, while whole flocks of chickens, ruffling
in dusty hollows, took frantically to wing at
their coming, fleeing before them in unwonted

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