Page:Edward Ellis--Alden the Pony Express Rider.djvu/319

 of the structure, not far beyond the confines of the camp. It was singular that he had not noticed it as he came up, but the bigger illumination obscured the lesser.

“I must go,” he said; “a good deal of time has been already lost.”

“Will you not come back and spend the night with us? We can give you comfortable quarters in one of the wagons.”

“Thank you; I may do so.”

He was about to move off when the other with a laugh asked:

“Did you see anything of a man on horseback carrying a lantern?”

Alden was all attention.

“I did, and I couldn’t make him speak a word; do you know what it meant?”

Chadwick laughed again.

“I called at the station a little while ago; they are much disturbed over the absence of Lightfoot the Pony Express Rider. One of the four was so certain that he would turn up before supper that after a hot argument, he made a freak bet. He agreed that if Lightfoot had not come by that time, he would carry a lighted lantern on horseback over both streams that have to be crossed between here and the station