and vanished; the tables were in the same mysterious way cleared as rapidly as they were set, and any attempt to recall a dish was met by the declaration that it was already packed away in the wagon.  As they at last rose from the actually empty board, and saw even the tables disappear, Lady Elfrida plaintively protested that she felt as if she had been presiding over an Arabian Nights entertainment, served by genii, and she knew that they would all awaken hungry when they were well on their way back.  Nevertheless, in spite of this expedition, the officers lounged about smoking until every trace of the festivity had vanished.  Reggy found himself standing near Peter.  “You know,” he said, confidentially, “I don’t think the colonel has a very high opinion of your pets,—­the Indians.  And, by Jove, if the ‘friendlies’ are as nasty towards you as they were to us this morning, I wonder what you call the ‘hostile’ tribes.”

“Did you have any difficulty with them?” said Peter quickly.

“No, not exactly, don’t you know—­we were too many, I fancy; but, by Jove, the beggars whenever we met them,—­and we met one or two gypsy bands of them,—­you know, they seemed to look upon us as trespassers, don’t you know.”

“And you were, in point of fact,” said Peter, smiling grimly.

“Oh, I say, come now!” said Reggy, opening his eyes.  After a moment he laughed.  “Oh, yes, I see—­of course, looking at it from their point of view.  By Jove, I dare say the beggars were right, you know; all the same,—­don’t you see,—­your people were poaching too.”

“So we were,” said Peter gravely.

But here, at a word from the major, the whole party debouched from the woods.  Everything appeared to be awaiting them,—­the large covered carryall for the guests, and the two saddle horses for Mrs. Lascelles and Lady Elfrida, who had ridden there together.  Peter, also mounted, accompanied the carryall with two of the officers; the troopers and wagons brought up the rear.

It was very hot, with little or no wind.  On this part of the plain the dust seemed lighter and finer, and rose with the wheels of the carryall and the horses of the escort, trailing a white cloud over the cavalcade like the smoke of an engine over a train.  It was with difficulty the troopers could be kept from opening out on both sides of the highway to escape it.  The whole atmosphere seemed charged with it; it even appeared in a long bank to the right, rising and obscuring the declining sun.  But they were already within sight of the fort and the little copse beside it.  Then trooper Cassidy trotted up to the colonel, who was riding in a dusty cloud beside the carryall, “Captain Fleetwood’s compliments, sorr, and there are two sthragglers,—­Mrs. Lascelles and the English lady.”  He pointed to the rapidly flying figures of Jenny and Friddy making towards the wood.

The colonel made a movement of impatience.  “Tell Mr. Forsyth to bring them back at once,” he said.