I took Vic in my lap as I sat on the ground, and by the light of a
blazing pine-knot proceeded to examine her condition. I found the
mouth and feet of the poor animal full of the spines of the _cholla_
cactus, a growth which is simply a mass of fine thorns. This cactus
grows in patches, and when the dead clusters fall to the ground the
spines stick to everything touching them. The dog had stepped into a
bed of these bunched needles, and filled her feet, and in trying to
remove them with her teeth had thrust them through cheeks, lips, and
tongue, literally closing her jaws. Her paws bristled with them like
pin-cushions.
As to Frank's adventures: After leaving the Arnolds, as already
described by Brenda, he retraced the route to Carizo Creek and to the
Rio Puerco without seeing any sign of his brother. Returning to the
west he dismounted at the crossing of the Carizo. He felt sure that if
Henry had been captured by the Navajos he must have been taken in the
dry bed of that creek.
A long and patient search resulted in the discovery of tracks made by
several ponies running along the eastern side of the Carizo to the
north and the hills.
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