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A Wonderful Shot. 
 
"LMcA -£■ «* 
 
 Boone and Kenton Series, No. 8 
 
 IN" THE 
 
 DATS OF THE PIONEERS 
 
 SEQUEL TO "THE PHANTOM OF THE KIVER" 
 
 BY 
 
 EDWARD S. ELLIS 
 
 AUTHOR OF "THE PHANTOM OF THE RIVER," " SHOD WITH 
 SILENCE," "LOO CABIN SERIES," ETC. 
 
 PHILADELPHIA 
 HENRY T. COATES & CO. 
 
Copyright, 1897, 
 
 BY 
 
 HENEY T. COATES & CO. 
 
9 6^ 
 E47 
 
 CONTENTS. 
 
 CHAPTER PAGE 
 
 I. On the Trail, 5 
 
 II. The Cavern among the Eocks, . . .21 
 
 III. Shut In, 37 
 
 IV. A Kay of Light, 52 
 
 V. A Voice from the Darkness, ... 68 
 
 VI. Jethro Juggens, 83 
 
 VII. "Here Goes," 99 
 
 VIII. Smoke and Fire, 115 
 
 IX. Through the Forest, . . . . .131 
 
 X. A Suppressed Cry, 147 
 
 XI. A Singular Meeting, 162 
 
 XII. All at Sea, 177 
 
 XIII. The Antelope, 192 
 
 XIV. Pushing Northward, 207 
 
 XV. A Woodland Wooing, 223 
 
 XVI. The Panther's Decision, .... 238 
 
 XVII. "IKnowedIt!" 254 
 
 XVIII. A Distinguished Prisoner, .... 269 
 
 (iii) 
 
 M6^30M 
 
IV 
 
 CONTENTS. 
 
 CHAPTER 
 
 XIX. A Marvellous Exploit, 
 
 XX. A Surrender, . 
 XXI. Good-Bye to the Panther, 
 XXII. The Account Squared, . 
 
 XXIII. Journeying Southward, 
 
 XXIV. Conclusion, . • • 
 
 PAGE 
 
 285 
 299 
 , 314 
 , 328 
 . 342 
 , 356 
 
m THE 
 
 DAYS OF THE PIONEERS. 
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 
 ON THE TEAIL. 
 
 AGNES ALTMAN, who was walking a few 
 steps in advance of George Ashbridge 
 along the forest trail, abruptly paused, and 
 looking back, exclaimed in a frightened un- 
 dertone : 
 
 "Something is wrong; there are Indians 
 between us and the block-house/' 
 
 The youth stepped quickly forward beside 
 his betrothed, and laying his hand upon her 
 arm, asked in the same startled manner : 
 " What has alarmed you, Agnes ?" 
 " I can never forget those Shawanoe signals 
 
 (5) 
 
6 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEERS. 
 
 which we heard that summer, when going 
 down the river in the flatboat, and on our re- 
 turn with Kenton and Boone." 
 
 " I am sure all of us who caught the faint 
 sounds will remember them to his dying day ; 
 but what of it?" 
 
 "Twice during the last ten minutes the 
 same signal has reached my ears." 
 
 Young Ashbridge was uneasy and strove to 
 disbelieve that which he did not wish to be- 
 lieve. 
 
 " You know Jethro is a short distance in 
 advance; he has become quite a woodsman 
 during the year spent at the block-house. It 
 may be that he has been practicing upon the 
 signals." 
 
 The fair but frightened maiden shook her 
 head. 
 
 " I wished I could think so, but it is not he; 
 I am sure of that." 
 
 "And why!" 
 
 "The first time I heard it, it was off there," 
 she said, pointing in the direction of the 
 Ohio ; " and the next, which was only a few 
 seconds later, it was in the opposite course, 
 
ON THE TEAIL. 7 
 
 and several yards away. The same person 
 could not have made the two calls." 
 
 George Ashbridge was in sore perplexity. 
 Accompanied by his beloved Agnes, and the 
 faithful negro servant, Jethro Juggens, they 
 had left the block-house on the Ohio side of 
 the river, and following the ten miles of 
 woodland path, reached the two log-houses 
 standing in the clearing, long before the sun 
 was at meridian. More properly they ar- 
 rived at a point opposite the clearing, for, as 
 the reader will remember, the primitive struc- 
 ture stood on the Kentucky side of the Ohio. 
 
 There was no canoe available with which to 
 cross the stream, and the three contented 
 themselves with viewing the buildings, as 
 may be said, at a distance. So far as they 
 could discover, the cabin had suffered no ma- 
 terial injury, and they set out on their return 
 in high spirits, hoping that in a short time 
 the two families that had undergone so much 
 privation, annoyance, suffering and peril would 
 be at liberty to make their way again to the 
 clearing, there to settle and remain for the 
 rest of their lives. 
 
8 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEERS. 
 
 The reports of the runners and scouts had 
 been favorable for weeks, and though all ad- 
 vised against a permanent removal until the 
 summer was more advanced, the parents of 
 the lovers viewed with some misgiving their 
 visit down the river with no companion ex- 
 cept Jethro Juggens. 
 
 But the excursion, or picnic, as it would 
 have been called in these later days, was 
 made, the servant carrying substantial lunch 
 to avoid the delay of shooting and preparing 
 game, and the little party were now some 
 three or four miles on their way homeward, 
 with the early summer sun almost directly 
 overhead, when Agnes paused with the con- 
 viction that their presence had been discov- 
 ered by hostile Indians, who were planning 
 to cut them off. 
 
 Both she and her escort were fully armed. 
 The clumsy flintlocks of pioneer days were so 
 ponderous that it was work for a strong man 
 to handle them with deftness and effect, but 
 the missionary, J. B. Finley — a name still 
 held in the highest respect and reverence — pre- 
 sented the young lady with a weapon of such 
 
ON THE TEAIL. 
 
 dainty make that she quickly became an ex- 
 pert in its use. Clad in strong homespun 
 and strong shoes, which could not conceal her 
 comeliness of form, she carried also her pow- 
 der horn and bullet-pouch, and may be said to 
 have been as thoroughly equipped as the 
 sturdy youth that had wooed and won her 
 heart. 
 
 " I believe you are right," he whispered, 
 after a minute's listening , " I thought Kenton 
 had taught me how to detect • signs ' when in 
 the woods, but neither of the signals that 
 reached your ears was heard by me." 
 
 " I was in advance and nearer to them," she 
 said, with a faint smile. 
 
 " Yes, fully ten feet," he added. " That ac- 
 counts for it ; but, Agnes, we must leave the 
 trail we are following. What has become of 
 Jethro?" 
 
 " Providence seems to have protected him 
 most strangely heretofore, but it is not likely 
 to last." 
 
 "It may and may not; there is not a 
 man at the block-house that is a better rifle- 
 shot than he. He did more service when we 
 
10 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEERS. 
 
 came down the river than your father, mine, 
 or I, and I had almost said Kenton himself, 
 but that would be unjust, for it was the brain 
 work of Kenton that told." 
 
 "Jethro deserved as much credit for the 
 work he had done on the return with his sail 
 on the flatboat, and yet he seemed to stumble 
 and blunder into it all ; but," added Agnes, 
 rousing herself, " are we to stand here until 
 they come upon us ?" 
 
 Young Ashbridge had been debating the 
 question, while the fragmentary conversation 
 was going on. It was necessary to leave the 
 forest trail without delay, and the question he 
 asked himself was whether to turn to the right 
 or left. 
 
 The path between the clearing and block- 
 house ran close to the northern bank of the 
 Ohio, so that when traveling eastward a 
 deviation of a few yards — more or less — to the 
 right brought one to the margin of the river. 
 Had the young pioneer possessed a canoe, or 
 known where to place his hand upon one, he 
 would have been instant to take advantage of 
 it. Water leaves no trail, and he had learned 
 
ON THE TEAIL. 11 
 
 long before of the perfect screen often afforded 
 by the overhanging vegetation and under- 
 growth ; but that means was out of the ques- 
 tion now, and he quickly reached a decision. 
 
 " One of the signals was on the right of the 
 trail and the other on the left ; that looks as 
 if they were certain we would pass between 
 them. Therefore, we must turn to the left 
 and flank them." 
 
 " That will take us deeper into the woods. 
 But I think you are right; let us wait no 
 longer." 
 
 Leaving the faintly-marked path, Agnes 
 stepped among the trees to the left with the 
 assurance of one who knew she was doing the 
 right thing, but running a few paces, her 
 companion placed himself slightly in advance 
 of her. 
 
 " I think I should lead," he remarked, in 
 a low voice, with an affectionate glance at her. 
 
 "Are you acquainted with this section ?" 
 
 " I have never visited it. 'Sh !" 
 
 The signals to which reference has been 
 made, and which caused this deviation in 
 their course, were now heard by both, or, 
 
12 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEEKS. 
 
 more properly, one was heard. It came from 
 a point directly in front and at no great dis- 
 tance. Young Ashbridge instantly moved 
 more abruptly to the left, so as to make sure 
 of passing around the danger point. 
 
 Less than a minute passed, when the re- 
 sponse to the bird-like call came from the di- 
 rection of the river — almost as alarmingly 
 close as the first. 
 
 "They are expecting us — they are suspi- 
 cious over our delay," remarked George, con- 
 scious that the red men were " drawing it ex- 
 ceedingly fine." " It would not have done to 
 wait any longer." 
 
 " Perhaps we have waited too long already." 
 
 The youth did not reply. Glancing over 
 his shoulder to see that his companion was 
 near him, he quickened his pace. The ground 
 rapidly increased in roughness. They de- 
 scended a narrow valley, fully twenty feet deep, 
 passed around several boulders, and, as they 
 began to climb the opposite side, found them- 
 selves among numerous large and jagged rocks, 
 where it was impossible to make rapid progress. 
 
 Ashbridge was disposed to regard this as 
 
ON THE TEAIL. 13 
 
 favorable. The keen vision of the American 
 Indian, which enables him to follow a fugi- 
 tive's footsteps over the leaves with the un- 
 erring certainty of a bloodhound, is often at 
 fault when confronted by solid rock, where a 
 man can travel without leaving the slightest 
 impression. 
 
 "Here is a steep climb," remarked the 
 youth, pausing before a mass of stones, slop- 
 ing ahead of them at a sharp angle. " I am 
 afraid you can't make it, Agnes." 
 
 " Can you?" 
 
 " Of course !" 
 
 "Then lead on; I can follow where you 
 dare lead." 
 
 Holding his rifle firmly grasped in his left 
 hand, Ashbridge seized a projecting ledge with 
 his right, and went up as nimbly as an acro- 
 bat. Ascending twenty feet, he turned about 
 to see how his companion was succeeding. She 
 was near enough to touch him with her out- 
 stretched hand. 
 
 " Good !" he muttered, admiringly. " You 
 are doing better than I expected. Let me as- 
 sist you." 
 
14 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEEKS. 
 
 " Thank you, I do not need it. You have 
 only to make sure that you are following the 
 right direction. Do you hear that ?" 
 
 How could he help hearing it ? The trem- 
 ulous whistle sounded so close in advance that 
 he glanced affrightedly in front, expecting to 
 see one or more warriors within a dozen feet. 
 
 He failed to catch sight of the painted vis- 
 age, but the rocks, still towering a rod above 
 and interlaced with and half hidden by vine, 
 undergrowth, bush, and stunted trees, might 
 have concealed a dozen painted Shawanoes. 
 That some of them were there, and had de- 
 tected the approach of the fugitives, George 
 Ashbridge considered so certain that he paused 
 with a feeling akin to dismay. 
 
 " I'm afraid we're being trapped," he whis- 
 pered. 
 
 "We shall be if we stand here another 
 minute." 
 
 " Let's return and seek another course." 
 
 He wheeled to carry out his own suggestion, 
 when the dreaded call was repeated from the 
 rear and equally close to the one in front. 
 The delay on the trail, slight as it was, told 
 
ON THE TEAIL. 15 
 
 the Shawanoes the truth. The fugitives had 
 interpreted the signals and attempted to cir- 
 cumvent their danger by passing to the left 
 of it. With startling celerity the warriors set 
 out to head them off, and it looked as if they 
 had succeeded. 
 
 "Great heaven! we are too late!" gasped 
 young Ashbridge. 
 
 " No ; run to the left ; the way is open !" 
 whispered Agnes, pointing to the irregular 
 masses of rocks, half hidden by vines and 
 vegetation. 
 
 " But you ?" repeated the distressed youth. 
 
 "Don't think of me! Off with you! 
 Quick I" 
 
 Forgetting his usual prudence in the sud- 
 den peril, he dashed ahead at the top of his 
 speed. It was u going it blind " in every 
 sense of the word, for he could have no 
 knowledge of what was in advance. He could 
 only strain every nerve and trust to Provi- 
 dence. 
 
 This desperate headlong flight lasted but a 
 few minutes. The end came almost as soon 
 as he anticipated. He was bounding forward 
 
16 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEERS. 
 
 like a chamois, able to see only one leap in 
 advance, when he was confronted by a yawn- 
 ing chasm so wide that he was sure he could 
 not leap it. 
 
 But he was so near, and his impetus was so 
 great at the moment of making the terrifying 
 discovery, that it was impossible to check 
 himself. Go forward he must, even though 
 it was to be dashed to destruction. Concen- 
 trating all his strength and muscles in the 
 single prodigious effort, and forgetting for the 
 moment his fair companion, he bounded with 
 might and main out over the yawning abyss. 
 
 To his own amazement he cleared it as 
 may be said by a hair, striking on the very 
 edge opposite, where his momentum carried 
 him away from death before he could topple 
 backward among the rocks fifty feet below. 
 
 " My God, what have I done !" exclaimed 
 the horrified youth ; " I have abandoned Ag- 
 nes. Nothing can save her ! Don't ! Stop, 
 stop!" 
 
 But his appeal was unheeded. She had set 
 out to follow him, and death alone could check 
 her advance. The delicate foot was poised for 
 
ON THE TRAIL. 17 
 
 a moment on the margin of the precipice, and 
 then, as graceful as a bird, she leaped the fear- 
 ful chasm, landing upon the other side several 
 inches beyond where the feet of her lover had 
 struck. 
 
 " Heavens !" muttered the astounded youth, 
 " is there anything you can't do, Agnes ? 1 
 was sure you were lost." 
 
 " We both shall be if we linger here." 
 
 And to prevent his doing so she now sped 
 on in advance. Ashbridge would have an- 
 ticipated her, but that at that instant he 
 caught sight of the very thing he expected 
 and dreaded to see ; a painted Shawanoe came 
 bounding along the crest of the rocks, over 
 which the fugitives had just passed. 
 
 The sight of the hideous miscreant seemed 
 to cool the blood of the youth, who, to use a 
 common expression, had been " rattled " for a 
 few minutes by the hurricane sweep of events. 
 He dropped on one knee and brought his rifle 
 to his shoulder, with the muzzle levelled at 
 the approaching warrior. 
 
 In that stirring moment the strange fancy 
 came to George Ashbridge that, if he showed 
 
18 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEEES. 
 
 mercy to the fierce wretch, he and his com- 
 panions might spare him and his companion, 
 whose peril caused him an anguish tenfold 
 greater than could any danger to himself. 
 
 " Stop, or I'll shoot " he shouted. 
 
 Foolish threat ! The Indian had seen him 
 from the first, and was not to be checked or 
 hindered of his purpose by any warning from 
 the paleface, whom he looked upon as already 
 secured beyond peradventure to him. 
 
 The Shawanoe was coming with the speed 
 of the wind. The long, black, dangling hair, 
 surmounted by several eagle feathers, fluttered 
 away from his shoulders, and the moccasins 
 doubled and turned under his body, as if he 
 were running a race in the open plain. The 
 tomahawk and knife were in the girdle and 
 the rifle gripped in the left hand. Through 
 the black and crimson and white splashes of 
 paint, his eyes glowed like a demon's. He 
 was looking straight at the kneeling youth 
 and showed no fear, even though the eye of 
 that youth was ranging along the barrel, and 
 his forefinger curved around the trigger of the 
 weapon. 
 
ON THE TEAIL. 19 
 
 Straight to the chasm's edge dashed the red 
 man, as if every inch of the wild section was 
 familiar to him, and, resting the right foot 
 upon the lip of rock for a single second, shot 
 upward and outward like a rubber ball. 
 
 " Fool," thought young Ashbridge, " it is 
 suicide." 
 
 The sharp, whip-like crack of the gun was 
 accompanied rather than followed by the ear- 
 splittling screech of the Shawanoe, who, while 
 his body was in mid-air, flung his arms aloft, 
 with a frenzied flirt of the rifle above his head, 
 and drew up his feet so spasmodically under 
 him that, when he landed on the other side 
 his position was at fault, and, instead of re- 
 maining secure or sustaining himself, he top- 
 pled backwards and went tumbling downward 
 among the rocks, dead before he struck the 
 bottom. 
 
 Fortunate, indeed, would it have been had 
 he been the only foe in the neighborhood ; 
 but when at the crest of that brief parabola 
 above the ravine where he was fatally 
 " winged," the keen eye of George Ashbridge, 
 ranging along his rifle barrel, showed one — 
 
20 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEERS. 
 
 two — at least three other warriors speeding 
 after the slain Shawanoe, and seemingly as 
 free from fear as he. 
 
 At the same moment two unwelcome and 
 startling truths flashed upon the young pio- 
 neer ; the hostiles must arrive at the chasm's 
 edge before he could reload his rifle, and his 
 own situation was so exposed that even now, 
 if they chose to aim and fire, nothing could 
 save him. 
 
 Clearly something must be done, and that, 
 too, without an instant's delay. 
 
THE CAVEBN AMONG THE ROCKS. 21 
 
 CHAPTER II. 
 
 THE CAVEEN AMONG THE EOCKS. 
 
 GEORGE ASHBRIDGE was on his feet 
 in an instant, and, crouching low, ran 
 swiftly from the chasm into which he had 
 just tumbled the Shawanoe. Had the other 
 warriors even then chosen to aim and fire he 
 must have fallen, but he gained time in the 
 few seconds at command to fling himself into 
 a natural depression, where he was secure 
 against any bullet, so long as he exercised or- 
 dinary prudence. 
 
 His sole prayer was that he might gain time 
 to reload his gun before his pursuers could 
 leap across the ravine. He hoped the fate of 
 the leader would deter the others long enough 
 to permit him to do this. Nine times out of 
 ten this would have been the case, but it 
 looked as if it must fail in this instance. 
 
 Had it been in these modern days of repeat- 
 
22 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEERS. 
 
 ing rifles, he could have held twice as many 
 hostiles at bay, but it took many torturing 
 seconds to pound down the wadding upon the 
 powder, which he dashed down the barrel, to 
 push the bullet more carefully after it, and 
 then to pour the black sand from the narrow 
 snout of his powder-horn into the pan. 
 
 Meanwhile the foremost of the three Shawa- 
 noes halted close to the ravine and w^s instantly 
 joined by the others. They spoke quickly to 
 each other and glanced across towards the 
 point where the white man had vanished, and 
 where, peeping every instant over the rock 
 in front of him, he was striving in fren- 
 zied haste to make ready to fire his weapon 
 again. 
 
 Ashbridge knew that if he could drop a 
 second Indian, the other two would dart to 
 cover, or would fly from the spot, forgetting, in 
 their panic, that his gun was again empty. 
 
 But the hesitation on the part of the Shawa- 
 noes was but momentary. To the dismay of 
 the youth, the Indian who had led the three, 
 after another quick glance at the chasm, re- 
 coiled a single step, and left the margin by the 
 
THE CAVERN AMONG THE KOCKS. 23 
 
 ravine with the grace and ease shown by 
 Agnes Altman a few minutes before. 
 
 The gun of the youth was not ready, and 
 he could do nothing to stop the hostile ; and 
 yet some one else did. At the same point that 
 his predecessor was smitten he was mortally 
 pierced, and then plunged with a shriek to the 
 bottom, the incident in all respects being a 
 repetition of the first, except that the fatal shot 
 was fired by another. 
 
 The effect was precisely what Ashbridge an- 
 ticipated. The remaining two could not have 
 whisked out of sight more quickly had the 
 earth opened and swallowed them. One in- 
 stant three Shawanoes were before him ; the 
 next they were gone. 
 
 " Where can Agnes be ?" was the question 
 that thrilled the youth the moment that the 
 peril had passed. " It must have been she 
 who fired that shot, but I have no idea of the 
 point it came from." 
 
 Now that he had liberty he glanced search- 
 ingly around. The dense vines, shrubbery 
 and undergrowth prevented his seeing far in 
 any direction, but he believed the rocks sloped 
 
24 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEEES. 
 
 away, and that Agnes must have reached a 
 considerable lower point than where he lay, 
 before she fired the shot that so effectually 
 checked their pursuers. 
 
 There was no time to throw away, however, 
 in speculation. It is conceded to be bad policy 
 for a force to divide in the presence of an 
 enemy, and he and Agnes were separated, 
 with the enemy at hand and the danger be- 
 coming more imminent at every moment. 
 
 Ashbridge began moving cautiously, suffi- 
 ciently so to escape a bullet which whizzed 
 past his face, and came from some point he 
 knew not where. A swift backward leap, and 
 he was out of that peril for the moment, with 
 his loaded gun firm in his grasp. 
 
 " Agnes," he called, guardedly, " where are 
 
 you?" 
 
 " She was not the one to leave him in dan- 
 ger, and she answered his call in the manner 
 his heart craved by coming forward from the 
 rocky undergrowth and wood in front of 
 him. 
 
 "We are safe for the present," he said, 
 " but I wish night was closer at hand, for we 
 
THE CAVERN AMONG THE ROCKS. 25 
 
 are in a bad situation. There are a good 
 many Indians in the woods around us." 
 
 " I know that, for I have heard them mov- 
 ing and signaling to each other from several 
 different points." 
 
 " That shot of yours was fired in the nick 
 of time," said young Ashbridge, admiringly. 
 " I never saw it beaten." 
 
 Agnes looked at him in amazement. 
 
 " I do not understand you, George." 
 
 " That Indian you shot just as he was leap- 
 ing the gorge ; you picked him off precisely 
 as I did." 
 
 '• You have made a mistake, George ; I have 
 not fired my gun since we left home this morn- 
 ing. I heard the report of two rifles, but nei- 
 ther of them was mine." 
 
 " I never dreamed of its being any one else. 
 Whoever it was, he did us a good turn." 
 
 a It must have been Jethro." 
 
 " Unlikely, for he could hardly have got to 
 the spot from the trail so soon. It may be 
 Boone or Kenton, or some of our friends 
 from the block -house. We have cause to be 
 very thankful, but it will not do to count 
 
26 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEEKS. 
 
 upon that friend's help without work of our 
 own." 
 
 " I have thought it might be an enemy who 
 did it — that is, some Indian who is as bitter a 
 foe of the Shawanoes as he is of the white 
 people. He would as lief shoot one* as the 
 other." 
 
 They now began picking their way out of 
 the dangerous section. The belief of both was 
 that the gigantic rocks, the gorges, ravines, 
 boulders, vines, and matted undergrowth cov- 
 ered a comparatively small space, and that 
 vigorous work would soon take them to a por- 
 tion where they could travel more rapidly. 
 
 There is little doubt that they would have 
 extricated themselves with slight difficulty, 
 could they have known the number and 
 whereabouts of their enemies ; but Agnes Alt- 
 man was right when she said she had heard 
 signaling to the rear of the ravine, where the 
 peril first broke upon them. The problem 
 was to get away from the perilous region 
 without coming in collision with their ene- 
 mies. The prospect of success was slight in- 
 deed. 
 
THE CAVEEN AMONG THE EOCKS. 27 
 
 Ashbridge placed himself a step in advance 
 of his companion. 
 
 " Your ears are sharper than mine, as are 
 your eyes ; we must use them all — to the ut- 
 most advantage. 'Sh ! do you hear anything I" 
 
 "Yes; but it is from the rear, from one of 
 those on the other side of the ravine." 
 
 " And there goes the answer from the front; 
 we're in a bad place, Agnes." 
 
 " Here, George, to the right ; follow me." 
 
 He was bewildered. Strange as was the 
 place to the girl, she seemed guided by some 
 subtle intuition that kept her feet from going 
 astray. She leaped forward, now to the right, 
 then to the left, bounding from a boulder to 
 the solid ground, then clambering over and 
 around rocks, all the time steadily ascending, 
 until both knew they were a number of feet 
 higher than when they leaped the gorge. 
 
 Ashbridge was struck with wonder at the 
 nimbleness and dexterity of the fair girl, 
 who, through force of circumstances, had been 
 changed from a follower to a guide. Though 
 an athlete himself, it was all he could do to 
 keep pace with her. 
 
28 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEEKS. 
 
 The sole purpose that guided the two was 
 to get as far from the ravine as they could 
 in the shortest possible space of time. Two 
 Shawanoes had fallen in the fierce pursuit of 
 the young people, and the promptings of re- 
 venge would urge them to the utmost. True, 
 in running from them, it looked as if they 
 were sweeping directly into the arms of a lar- 
 ger party; but the latter had not yet laid eyes 
 on them, while the former had ; it was to be 
 presumed, therefore, that their line of pursuit 
 was more intelligent. 
 
 Suddenly a whoop sounded in front, and 
 the figures of several warriors were seen flit- 
 ting among the trees and undergrowth, with- 
 in a stone's cast of Agnes, who still held her 
 place at the front. Believing that the crisis 
 had arrived, and the final stand must be 
 made, Ashbridge stopped short and brought 
 his rifle to his shoulder. 
 
 " Don't !" she called ; " here is a refuge." 
 
 He turned just as she leaped lightly over a 
 decayed log lying across her path, and the 
 next instant, by a sharp turn to the left, 
 whisked out of sight. He was after her in 
 
THE CAVERN AMONG THE ROCKS. 29 
 
 a twinkling, the whole thing being done so 
 quickly, that it may be said it was all over 
 before he comprehended what had really 
 taken place. 
 
 The fair fugitive had darted into a cavern 
 whose existence she detected at the moment 
 her escort turned at bay. The entrance was 
 broad and high enough to admit a man in a 
 slightly stooping posture, and faced a ledge 
 of rocks, which extended in front of the 
 opening. 
 
 This path reached barely a yard beyond 
 the entrance, when it ended abruptly against 
 a solid wall of stone, so that the only ap- 
 proach was that over which the fugitives had 
 just passed. The ravine showed a depth of 
 fully forty feet from the mouth of the cavern, 
 with more than half the space above, the 
 whole sixty odd feet being absolutely perpen- 
 dicular. This much the reader must know 
 to understand the incidents that follow. 
 
 The Shawanoes saw that the young man 
 and woman had eluded them for the time; 
 but they saw, too, that they had been en- 
 trapped, with not one chance in ten thousand 
 
30 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEEBS. 
 
 of escaping. A half-dozen triumphant whoops 
 rang through the solitude ; and there could be 
 no doubt that the whole party scattered in the 
 woods would speedily gather in the immediate 
 neighborhood, with a full knowledge of the 
 hopeless situation of the fugitives. 
 
 The instant Ashbridge dashed inside, he 
 wheeled, and raised the hammer of his rifle, 
 ready to fire upon the first appearance of an 
 enemy. His belief was that the Shawanoes, 
 who were almost upon his heels, would make 
 a rush in the attempt to overwhelm them. 
 The daring they had already shown gave 
 cause for this belief, and there can be little 
 doubt that had the hostiles followed up their 
 advantage, it would have been all over with 
 Ashbridge and Agnes. 
 
 It is rarely, however, that the American 
 Indian can be brought to " face the music " 
 for any length of time. In the pursuit of the 
 flying fugitives, they had already displayed a 
 dash and courage beyond their nature, and as 
 the slow minutes passed, with the youth stand- 
 ing at bay, the stillness remained profound, 
 as if no warrior was within a hundred miles. 
 
THE CAVERN AMONG fHE EOCKS. 31 
 
 Agnes Altman, upon entering the cave, 
 stopped as abruptly as her companion, but at 
 a distance of several paces further in the ref- 
 uge. She faced outward like him, with her 
 small rifle firmly grasped and ready for in- 
 stant use. Then, as if in obedience to the 
 prompting that her place was not behind, but 
 at the side of her defender, she stepped lightly 
 forward. 
 
 Neither spoke nor moved for several min- 
 utes. Their faculties were concentrated in 
 those of listening and looking. 
 
 " They will not come," she finally remarked 
 in an undertone. 
 
 " Not for the present, but we are by no 
 means done with them. They have only to 
 starve us out." 
 
 "Unless they become impatient and use fire." 
 
 Ashbridge had not thought of that, but he 
 saw the imminence of the peril. 
 
 " We are sure of safety for a few hours, and 
 probably until night. I think, Agnes, that 
 we ought to learn something about this ref- 
 uge, which turned up so providentially. It 
 won't do to leave the front unguarded, so I 
 
32 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEERS. 
 
 will let you do the exploration. You don't 
 need your gun, and perhaps I shall ; leave it 
 with me." 
 
 She leaned it against the side of the cavern, 
 and began timidly making her way into the 
 blank darkness behind her. The flood of 
 sunshine which lit up the opening and the 
 front with subdued light penetrated but a short 
 distance within the cavern, so that she had 
 advanced but a few steps when she was envel- 
 oped in impenetrable gloom. 
 
 The utmost care was necessary, and she 
 moved forward inch by inch, with outstretched 
 hands, sliding her feet slowly over the flinty 
 floor with the shortest of steps and the most 
 frequent pauses. The task was not only deli- 
 cate but hard. Projecting crags were touched 
 on the right and left, and depressions and ob- 
 structions continually presented themselves. 
 Once she uttered a gasp of affright, believing 
 she had stepped off the edge of her support 
 into a chasm of fatal depths ; but the descent 
 was only slight, and though she fell upon her 
 hands and knees, she received no hurts or 
 bruises. 
 
THE CAVERN AMONG THE ROCKS. 33 
 
 Turning her face, she saw the sunlit open- 
 ing perhaps fifty feet distant, with the figure 
 of George in silhouette against the soft radi- 
 ance beyond. 
 
 " Why does he stand thus ?" she asked, with 
 a pang of fear. " He seems to forget that 
 there is an abundance of room for the Shawa- 
 noes to hide themselves on the other side of 
 the ravine and pick him off without danger to 
 themselves." 
 
 It really looked as if the youth was un- 
 aware of this form of peril, which impressed 
 Agnes Altman so strongly. She stood debat- 
 ing whether to return and warn him of his 
 danger, when George himself settled the mat- 
 ter by stepping aside and assuming a sitting 
 posture, where the protection was needed. 
 
 Agnes was halting between two opinions. 
 With the natural curiosity of her sex, she 
 wished to continue her groping until she 
 learned more about the cavern, whose extent 
 had already proven to be greater than she had 
 suspected. But of what avail ? The explora- 
 tion would require hours, and was accompa- 
 nied by no little personal risk, so long as it 
 
34 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEERS. 
 
 was prosecuted without the aid of a torch. 
 That she had escaped danger thus far was no 
 guarantee that her immunity would con- 
 tinue. 
 
 The question which held her undecided 
 whether to advance or retreat was whether it 
 was not possible that there was some avenue at 
 the rear by which they might reach the outer 
 world, and thus elude their enemies, or by 
 which those enemies would steal upon them 
 unawares. The red men were likely to be ac- 
 quainted with all the windings and turnings 
 of the refuge, for these were the grounds over 
 which they had roamed and hunted from time 
 immemorial. 
 
 A soft, subdued murmur came faintly from 
 some point within the recesses of the cavern, 
 now and then dying away so that the strain- 
 ing ear could hardly detect it, then sounding 
 with gentle distinctness that she was sure it 
 must reach the brave young man who was 
 standing guard at the main entrance. 
 
 " It is the sound of falling water/' she re- 
 flected. " Who ever suspected that a place 
 like this existed so near the block-house ? If I 
 
THE CAVEEN AMONG THE EOCKS. 35 
 
 had a light I would go farther, but it is not 
 wise to do so now." 
 
 Pausing to listen no longer, she retraced 
 her steps much more hurriedly than she had 
 entered the place, receiving several stumbles 
 in her haste. 
 
 Light as were her footsteps, the listening 
 Ashbridge detected her approach some min- 
 utes before she appeared at his side. 
 
 "The cavern is a good deal larger than 
 either of us suspected/' he remarked in the 
 guarded undertone both used. " How far is 
 it to the rear ?" 
 
 " I have no idea. I went a long way, and 
 it still seemed as far off as when I left you." 
 
 " We must know the truth," said George, 
 gravely. " If there is any way by which 
 those redskins can get to us from the rear we 
 must find it out." 
 
 "There is little chance of learning any- 
 thing without a light, and I see no means of 
 getting that." 
 
 " It can be done, but not at present. It is 
 lucky you returned just when you did, for 
 you are. needed." 
 
36 IN THE DAYS OF THE PI-ONEEBS. 
 
 " Why ?" asked the startled young woman. 
 
 " There is some mischief going on across 
 the gorge directly opposite. I have been cer- 
 tain of it for several minutes. I can't make 
 it out, and must have your bright eyes to help 
 me in solving the puzzle." 
 
SHUT IN. 37 
 
 CHAPTER III. 
 
 SHUT IN. 
 
 " rPHE ravine had a width of twenty feet. 
 
 I The wall opposite the mouth of the 
 cavern was also perpendicular, the correspon- 
 dence of the slight projections and indenta- 
 tions on the two sides suggesting that at some 
 remote age the mass of rock had been split 
 apart by a convulsion of nature, as perhaps 
 in the distant future another earthquake 
 wrench may bring them together again. 
 
 This correspondence brought the banks of 
 the gorge to the same level, so that the oppo- 
 site top was six or seven yards above the 
 opening of the cavern. It was covered with 
 undergrowth and shrubbery growing close to 
 the edge, with sturdy trees in the immediate 
 background. 
 
 It will be understood, therefore, that only 
 one direct means of approach to the refuge of 
 
38 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEEKS, 
 
 the two fugitives existed, which was the path 
 so providentially presented to them. The 
 Shawanoes could readily advance to the mar- 
 gin on the opposite side, and probably, by 
 means of a fallen tree, could bridge the chasm, 
 but of what avail since there was more con- 
 venient means of doing the same thing at 
 other points, and a number of them were on 
 the ground directly over the opening. If the 
 red man succeeded in entering the refuge, it 
 must be by following in the footsteps of the 
 two, unless, perchance, some opening, as yet 
 unknown to the fugitives, existed at the rear of 
 the cavern. 
 
 Cautiously taking her place at the side of 
 the entrance, near George Ashbridge, Agnes, 
 after the few words that have been recorded, 
 asked : 
 
 " What is it that causes you misgiving ?" 
 
 " You notice the stunted bushes on the very 
 edge of the banks up yonder ?" 
 
 "Yes." 
 
 " They have been stirred several times in a 
 way that the wind could not have done. 
 There ! you can see it now !" 
 
SHUT IN. 39 
 
 "It is because there is some one stirring 
 them, and it can be no one except a Shawa- 
 noe." 
 
 " But what is his purpose ?" 
 
 " To gain a shot at us to test our watchful- 
 ness." 
 
 " He can't think we will fire until we have 
 something more than a rustling bush to tempt 
 us." 
 
 "We shall have it soon enough." 
 
 While the words were in the mouth of 
 Agnes something appeared at the base of the 
 bushes, which, seemingly a part of them, was 
 yet something else. It rose slightly but more 
 distinctly into view. 
 
 "It is an eagle's feather," whispered Agnes. 
 
 " And is in the crown of an Indian. 'Sh ! 
 You had better move further back into the 
 cavern." 
 
 * I am already as far back as you." 
 
 " Sh ! Look again ! There he is." 
 
 Two eagle feathers were perceptible, and 
 the next moment the black horsehair-like 
 covering of the Shawanoe's head came to view, 
 and continued rising until beneath the low, 
 
40 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEERS. 
 
 painted forehead two glittering eyes showed 
 above the edge of the gorge. They were ele- 
 vated just enough to permit the warrior to 
 peer over the rim of the rocks, and, gleaming 
 through the interstices of shrubbery, seemed 
 to project their baleful glow into the mouth of 
 the cavern itself. Fortunately the fugitives 
 were crouching so far back from the entrance 
 that they were invisible. 
 
 " Shall I teach him that we are on guard ?" 
 cautiously asked Ashbridge. 
 
 " No. He is doing no harm ; it would be 
 cruel." 
 
 " But he is hunting for the chance. Have 
 you not learned long since, Agnes, that all 
 mercy to them is thrown away V 
 
 "Well, it is so dreadful ; but do as you 
 think best," replied the maiden, turning her 
 glance away that she might not witness the 
 shocking deed. 
 
 The youth was lying flat on his face. He 
 now brought his rifle round to the front, and 
 supporting his elbows in proper position, 
 sighted carefully at the forehead above the 
 basilisk eyes. The Indian was peering fixedly 
 
shut ra. 41 
 
 into the mouth of the cavern, as though he 
 would penetrate with his vision the gloom, 
 and the youth could not help suspecting that 
 he saw both him and his companion. If so, 
 he must have suspected the suspicious move- 
 ment of the hands and weapons, for, while the 
 eye of Ashbridge was ranging along the barrel, 
 and hi£ finger increasing the pressure upon 
 the trigger, he became aware there was no target 
 in front of him. The Shawanoe had vanished 
 as though he had not been. 
 
 "Well, my respected friend, you came as 
 near taking a trip to your last hunting 
 grounds as you will ever come again without 
 taking it." 
 
 "Why didn't you shoot?" asked Agnes, 
 turning her gaze again upon the opposite bank. 
 
 " Because there is nothing to shoot at." 
 
 " He must have seen you." 
 
 " It looks so, but why, then, didn't he shoot 
 at me?" 
 
 " He will ; let's change our position." 
 
 She set the example by springing up and 
 stepping quickly back to the other side of the 
 cavern, where it was impossible for the most 
 
42 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEERS. 
 
 lynx-eyed warrior to detect them. George 
 did the same, and it was well the precaution 
 was taken. 
 
 He was standing in a crouching position, 
 peering forward, when he noted that the bush 
 was again agitated. Before he could read 
 the meaning of it, a puff of smoke, with a 
 crimson needle in its centre, bounded towards 
 him, and, at the moment of the resounding 
 explosion, a bullet flattened itself against the 
 rock on the very spot where he was lying a 
 few minutes before. 
 
 " He saw me, after all l" exclaimed Ash- 
 bridge, with a thrill of gratitude at his own 
 narrow escape. 
 
 " There he is again I" 
 
 True enough. To the astonishment of the 
 fugitives the Shawanoe peered over as if to 
 learn the result of his shot. 
 
 He never learned it. While his head was 
 elevated like that of a turtle peeping from his 
 shell, George Ashbridge fired ; and when it is 
 added that his aim was true, enough has been 
 said. 
 
 " It is an old maxim I learned long ago," 
 
SHUT IN. 43 
 
 remarked the youth, " that the first thing to 
 be done after firing a gun is to load it again." 
 
 And he acted upon the law with the cool- 
 ness of Daniel Boone or Simon Kenton him- 
 self. 
 
 Agnes was awed by the startling occur- 
 rence, and for a few minutes held her peace. 
 Her companion jauntily reloaded his rifle, and 
 when he had poured the powder into the pan, 
 he remarked : 
 
 " Now I am ready for the next customer." 
 
 This was well enough in its way, but neither 
 could think of the future without a sinking of 
 the heart akin to despair. As long as these 
 two brave young pioneers were able to present 
 an undaunted front — and they would do that 
 to the death — the Shawanoes, no matter how 
 great their number, would hesitate to make an 
 open attack upon them ; but the fugitives 
 were without a mouthful of food to fall back 
 upon. Agnes believed she had detected the 
 sound of running water, which possibly might 
 serve them, but there was no certainty, and 
 thirst overcome ones more quickly than hunger. 
 
 There was no means of conveying news to 
 
44 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEERS. 
 
 the block-house of their extremity. The two 
 had left the station that morning in high 
 hopes to gain a view of the clearing, expect- 
 ing to be home again before nightfall. No 
 alarm would be felt until night closed in, and 
 search would probably be made on the mor- 
 row ; but what clue could be picked up by so 
 peerless a woodsman as Simon Kenton or 
 Daniel Boone that could help in the hunt ? 
 
 " If I knew who fired that shot," remarked 
 Ashbridge, as he sat beside his beloved, " it 
 would help us to form some plan." 
 
 " In what way ?" 
 
 " That I can hardly tell, so long as I do not 
 know. It seems natural to conclude it was 
 Jethro, and yet I cannot believe it was possi- 
 ble for him to appear so far to the left of the 
 trail, at the very moment his help was needed." 
 
 " He is so aimless in his movements that 
 he may have taken a notion to wander into 
 this section before the danger came." 
 
 "That is the only explanation possible. 
 Perhaps it is the true one. He has the lunch 
 which your mother put up for us, and which 
 would be acceptable at this moment, and more 
 
SHUT IN. 45 
 
 acceptable before we are through with this 
 business." 
 
 " But if not Jethro, who else is it likely 
 to be?" 
 
 " We can only guess ; I have been hopeful 
 that Kenton, who you know left the block- 
 house several days ago on a scout, may have 
 been on his return and reached this place in 
 time to be of service." 
 
 " I wish I could think so, George, but I 
 cannot." 
 
 " Stranger things have happened to you as 
 well as to me since we left our home in West- 
 ern Virginia. Your affair with Wa-on-mon, 
 the Panther, Jethro's performance with the 
 flatboat, the rescue of my little sister Mabel 
 from the Shawanoes ; these and other occur- 
 rences were more remarkable in their way 
 than the appearance of Simon Kenton at a 
 a certain point within a few miles of the 
 block-house." 
 
 " It isn't that, but if it was he or Boone, he 
 would have found some way of letting us know 
 of his presence. You and Kenton have a way 
 of signaling each other, when striving to meet 
 
46 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEERS. 
 
 in the woods. Had he fired that shot, which 
 you thought was fired by me, he would not 
 have kept us long in the dark as to whence it 
 came." 
 
 " I wish there was less logic in your words," 
 remarked Ashbridge, regretfully, " but I can- 
 not help suspecting you are right. Admit- 
 ting that our friend is Jethro Juggens, and 
 not Boone or Kenton, he might have found 
 some means of apprising us of his presence." 
 
 " Perhaps he thinks the rifle report is suffi- 
 cient, and is awaiting a favorable opportunity. 
 Besides, if it was Jethro, I am sure he will 
 have all he can do to save himself, without at- 
 tempting to open communication with us." 
 
 " At any rate I don't see any chance of our 
 getting away from here before nightfall." 
 
 "And what prospect is there of doing so 
 then ?" 
 
 " Why, Agnes," said her lover, with a touch 
 of reproach in his manner, " you seem deter- 
 mined to drive away all hope." 
 
 " Far from it, George. I am sure that God, 
 who has so befriended us in the past, will not 
 desert us in our extremity ; but what can we 
 
SHUT IN. 47 
 
 gain by trying to see that which does not ex- 
 ist, or forming plans and schemes without 
 something to form them upon?" 
 
 "Since you are hopeful, after all, Agnes, 
 tell me upon what you have that feeling?" 
 
 " Well," was the thoughtful answer, " I am 
 more likely to be wrong than you are, but it 
 seems to me there are plenty of grounds. In 
 the first place, I am sure that the friend whom 
 we have, or did have a short time ago, in the 
 neighborhood is Jethro." 
 
 "And what of that?" 
 
 " No one, not even himself, can decide what 
 he will do within any given ten minutes, and 
 yet what is more natural than that he, find- 
 ing how sorely beset we are, will make all 
 haste to the block-house ?" 
 
 " So it would seem, and Captain Bushwick 
 has but to know of our peril to hurry to our 
 help. But, leaving Jethro out of the matter, 
 wherein do you see a favorable outlook ?" 
 
 "There is little moonlight to-night, and 
 what there is will be so veiled by the trees 
 and vegetation that we shall be enveloped in 
 the blackest of darkness." 
 
48 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEEKS. 
 
 " And to whom will that be most favorable 
 — the Shawanoes or ourselves ?" 
 
 " I think to as." 
 
 " You forget there is only one path of es- 
 cape open, which is that trodden by us in 
 coming here. One, or at least two, warriors can 
 guard that against our flight, or leave it free, 
 so as to induce us to walk out among them." 
 
 " I have been thinking," said the maiden, 
 with a voice and manner which proved her 
 bright brain was busy, " that maybe we can 
 reach the bottom of the gorge from the open- 
 ing in front of us." 
 
 " Ah, if we could ; but it is fully forty feet 
 below, and there is no rope, or vine, or any- 
 thing that could be used to hold our weight — 
 unless we might find the material from your 
 dress and my clothing." 
 
 " It is that which has occurred to me." 
 
 The thrill of hope caused by this new and 
 somewhat startling idea quickly passed. 
 
 " If such a project is possible, depend upon 
 it, Agnes, the Shawanoes have not overlooked 
 it, and will make sure it does us precious lit- 
 tle good." 
 
shut m. 49 
 
 " Then we have not yet learned whether 
 there is not some other way out of the cavern 
 than that which is in front." 
 
 " That has caused me more speculation and 
 guess-work than anything else. If there was 
 any way of getting a light, I would settle the 
 question now, leaving you to mount guard 
 until I come back. But though I have a flint 
 and steel, there is nothing to serve as a torch." 
 
 Had such a useful invention as lucifer 
 matches been known, the difficulty would have 
 been solved, provided our friends were plen- 
 tifully supplied with them, but nothing less 
 than a pine or resinous torch would answer, 
 and that, it need not be said, w r as beyond their 
 reach. 
 
 " We leaped over a log near the mouth of 
 the cavern," said George. "I didn't take 
 much notice of it, but it seemed to be dry and 
 decayed, and a piece of it might serve to light 
 me while groping back yonder." 
 
 She caught his arm with some excitement. 
 
 " You would not dare attempt it, with them 
 watching for a chance to fire at us ; you shall 
 not." 
 
 4 
 
50 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEERS. 
 
 He was able to smile at her exhibition of 
 feeling. 
 
 " I was thinking of making the attempt to- 
 night, when everything will be as dark as 
 pitch." 
 
 u Let me take a peep at it." 
 
 " Have a care, young lady," he said, half in- 
 clined to restrain her. 
 
 "I will be more guarded than you," she 
 answered, stealing along the side of the cavern 
 with so much caution that she readily gained 
 a point of observation without drawing any 
 demonstration from the watchful enemies. 
 
 " It lies a dozen or fifteen feet up the path, 
 and, as you remember, slants across it. It 
 has lain there a long time, for it is dried and 
 decayed. More than that, too, it is pine." 
 
 "The very material to serve us" — 
 
 At that instant something whisked into 
 view directly before their eyes, vanishing with 
 such quickness that it was like the passing of 
 a shadow. It was as if a bird of large size 
 had started to fly upward from the bottom 
 of the ravine and fluttering in front of the 
 opening, was so alarmed at the sight of the 
 
SHUT IN. 51 
 
 fugitives that it darted downward like a 
 flash. 
 
 Before they could form an idea of what it 
 meant, it appeared again, and brought its own 
 explanation, for instead of vanishing it caught 
 fast on the ledge, and remained in full sight. 
 
 Agnes uttered a low exclamation of pleasure. 
 
 " Do you see what it is, George? It was 
 thrown there by Jethro." 
 
52 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEERS. 
 
 CHAPTER IV. 
 
 A KAY OF LIGHT. 
 
 AGNES ALTMAN was quick to recognize 
 the package that was twice flung upward 
 from the gorge before it caught and rested on 
 the ledge in front of the opening of the cavern. 
 It was of moderate size, neatly wrapped 
 around with a linen napkin, and, in addition 
 to the food it contained, was weighted with a 
 goodly-sized stone, in order that the thrower 
 might handle it effectively. 
 
 It was a strong proof of the self-sacrificing 
 affection of Jethro Juggens, whose vigorous 
 appetite was rarely quiescent, that, without 
 abstracting his portion of the lunch at mid- 
 day, he should incur the great risk he must 
 have run in order to place it at the disposal of 
 his friends. 
 
 "Good Jethro!" exclaimed the delighted 
 Agnes ; " he believes there can be no suffering 
 
A EAY OF LIGHT. 53 
 
 equal to that of hunger, and does all he can 
 to prevent its coming to us." 
 
 " And gives himself a pang of starvation. It 
 must have been he who fired the shot at the 
 moment it was so necessary." 
 
 Stealing forward as far as was prudent, 
 Ashbridge extended the stock of his rifle out- 
 ward and gradually worked the parcel within 
 reach of his hand. Being opened, the cooked 
 meat and coarse brown bread were found in- 
 tact within. 
 
 " Let us eat while the chance is ours," re- 
 marked the youth, handing a goodly portion 
 to Agnes ; " we are in sore peril, but, none 
 the less, I cannot forget that I have an appe- 
 tite." 
 
 " And it is the same with me," replied the 
 young woman, accepting with thanks the food 
 offered her ; " but we must not lose sight of 
 the one who has done this." Having taken 
 out all they needed, the maiden carefully re- 
 fastened the napkin around the rest, which 
 was considerably more than they withdrew,, 
 and, with a deft toss, flung it out again into 
 the ravine. What the result was they could 
 
54 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEEES. 
 
 only guess, since no sign nor sound came back 
 to them. 
 
 But if the Shawanoes were maintaining 
 close watch over the cavern they must have 
 noticed this by-play, which to Jethro Jug- 
 gens meant great danger. There was good 
 reason, however, to believe it had escaped their 
 observation, and that no immediate ill was 
 likely to follow the exploit. They knew the 
 fugitives were safe within the cavern and 
 would not attempt to leave it before dark. It 
 was not probable, therefore, that the opening 
 was directly under the eye of any one of 
 them at that moment, and had Ashbridge 
 stepped quickly out and picked up the pack- 
 age, it is more than possible that no bullet 
 would have whizzed after him. 
 
 It was a radiant day in early summer, when 
 the blue sky was flecked by only a few patches 
 of fleecy clouds, and the air was fragrant with 
 the perfume of bark, of bursting bud and the 
 blossom of wild flowers. The twitter and song 
 of birds echoed from the tree tops, and the 
 earth was redolent with the promise of the 
 glorious fruitage that was to crown the year. 
 
n A EAY OF LIGHT. 55 
 
 Amid this scene of bounding life and the 
 grandeur of growth and development, " only- 
 man was vile." The three who had left the 
 block-house, for a jaunt through the forest, 
 confident of returning to their friends at the 
 end of a few hours, were now fugitives from 
 the fierce red men and environed on every 
 hand by the most fearsome peril. 
 
 The knowledge that the faithful Jethro 
 Juggens was so near was not wholly an un- 
 alloyed pleasure. It could not be doubted 
 that he would willingly risk his life for them, 
 for he had done so more than once in the past, 
 but the most that could recommend him was 
 his amazing skill with the rifle. Shrewdness 
 and stupidity were so mixed in his composi- 
 tion that it could never be told with certainty 
 what he would, and what he would not do. 
 An inexplainable good fortune had marked 
 his work heretofore, but it was not reasonable 
 to believe that it would continue indefinitely. 
 
 Woe betide him if he should fall into the 
 power of the Shawanoes ! He had put a mor- 
 tal insult upon the great chief Wa-on-mon, 
 and by means of his marksmanship had laid 
 
56 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEEES. 
 
 more than one of the leading warriors low. 
 Within the present hour he had slain a dar- 
 ing buck while in the act of leaping the 
 chasm. The American race shares with the 
 Caucasian the bitter prejudice against the Af- 
 rican, which, in the case of Jethro Juggens, 
 was intensified by the umpardonable injuries 
 received at his hands. 
 
 The proximity of the man, therefore, 
 brought with it the fear that it would com- 
 plicate matters and add the destruction of 
 himself to the death of the fugitives within 
 the cavern. There was but the single service 
 he could do them ; that was to steal away from 
 the neighborhood, while the chance was his, 
 and carry the news to the block-house of the 
 perilous situation of George Ashbridge and 
 Agnes Altman. 
 
 Had the " friend at court" proven to be 
 one of the experienced rangers, and especially 
 Simon- Kenton, the peerless woodsman, the 
 hopes of the two would have been increased 
 tenfold, for every step that he took and every- 
 thing he did would have been actuated by a 
 wise and far-reaching foresight. He would 
 
A EAY OF LIGHT. 57 
 
 calculate the result of each movement to the 
 minutest detail, and it is safe to say that if it 
 was within the compass of human possibility 
 to rescue the lovers it would be done. 
 
 The feelings of our friends, therefore, may 
 be imagined, as they speculated over the out- 
 come of their dangerous situation. 
 
 u If there was any way of communicating 
 with him," remarked Ashbridge, "I would 
 send him post haste to Captain Bushwick, 
 with an appeal for instant help which would 
 not be in vain." 
 
 "I have wondered whether a note could 
 not be written and flung over into the ravine, 
 telling him what we wish him to do, but there 
 are two objections to a scheme of that kind." 
 
 "What are they?" 
 
 " We have no means of writing such a note, 
 and if we had Jethro could not read it." 
 
 "He can spell out simple words, but we 
 have neither pencil nor paper, so it is idle to 
 think of that. There is still another method 
 open to us." 
 
 "What is it?" 
 
 " He was at the bottom of the ravine a lit- 
 
58 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEERS. 
 
 tie while ago, when he threw the lunch up to 
 us. He may be there yet, though it is as 
 likely that he has gone away. If not, he can 
 hear my voice when I call to him." 
 
 " Do so at once." 
 
 "I will; no harm, if no good, can come 
 from it." 
 
 Stealing forward as near as was prudent, 
 Ashbridge placed one hand in front of his 
 face, so as to form a funnel, and called : 
 
 " Jethro, if you hear me do not answer, but 
 listen ! Leave this place as soon as you can 
 and make all haste to the block-house. Tell 
 Captain Bushwick our danger, and that we 
 can be saved only by sending us help without 
 an hour's delay." 
 
 For additional safety, the youth repeated 
 these instructions in a still louder voice. He 
 suspected that if Jethro heard him he would 
 be reckless enough to make reply ; but, though 
 Ashbridge and Agnes listened closely for sev- 
 eral minutes, not the slightest response was 
 returned to them. 
 
 " If it was any one else," she said, " 1 would 
 have been certain that he had left the spot 
 
A KAY OF LIGHT. 59 
 
 the moment after furnishing us with din- 
 ner." 
 
 " If it had been any one else the attempt 
 would not have been made, but, having done 
 it, Jethro would wait for his portion of the 
 lunch to be returned to him. Then he .has 
 probably taken himself off, to eat it in peace." 
 
 "And we waited long enough for him to 
 get beyond hearing, so, like everything else, 
 this phase of the business must for a time re- 
 main in doubt." 
 
 " George," remarked his companion, after 
 an interval of thoughtful silence, " it is now 
 past noon, and it looks to me as if the In- 
 dians had decided to leave us alone until 
 night. Then will come the crisis." 
 
 "Such is my belief, but they are like 
 Jethro; there can be no calculating what 
 they will or will not do. We must not relax 
 our vigilance." 
 
 " If the Shawanoes had the bravery to rush 
 down the path over which we came — what 
 then?" 
 
 " You would shoot one and I another. Then 
 I would grapple with the foremost and give 
 
60 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEERS. 
 
 him a hard tussle; after that — well, there 
 would be no afterwards for you and me." 
 
 " I wonder they do not do it." 
 
 Ashbridge shook his head. 
 
 "It is contrary to their policy; the cer- 
 tainty that the two foremost will fall is enough 
 to prevent the attempt." 
 
 "But it did not do so a short time ago 
 when they were pursuing us." 
 
 " They showed unusual courage, it cannot be 
 denied, but in the rush and tumult they did 
 not have the opportunity to calculate the 
 chance. Besides, after I dropped the first one, 
 the second must have believed there was no 
 cause for fear, since the man who winged him 
 was nowhere in sight." 
 
 " It seems to me," added Agnes, after an- 
 other minute or two of thoughtful silence, 
 " that we have forgotten one possibility." 
 
 "What is that?" 
 
 " That there may be an avenue of escape in 
 the rear." 
 
 " I declare ! I did forget that. You be- 
 lieved you heard the sound of running water. 
 Perhaps you are right." 
 
A EAY OF LIGHT. 61 
 
 He bounded to his feet under the inspiration 
 of the new thought, but instantly checked 
 himself. 
 
 " I hesitate to leave you alone on guard, 
 Agnes/' 
 
 " I do not know why you should do so. If 
 I see any need for your help, you will be no- 
 tified in time." 
 
 " Well, heaven protect us both ! I will try 
 it." 
 
 Inasmuch as it was out of the power of 
 Ashbridge to make use of a torch, he could 
 only do as did Agnes when attempting her ex- 
 ploration, guide himself solely by the sense of 
 feeling, with perhaps some help later on from 
 the power of hearing. 
 
 Acting upon the description received from 
 her, the youth advanced with some assurance 
 for a distance of perhaps fifty feet, when, like 
 her, he put forth the most extreme care and 
 caution. From that point he " inched " for- 
 ward. 
 
 Remembering what she had told him about 
 the sound of falling or running water, he had 
 listened for that from the first. He now heard 
 
62 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEEKS, 
 
 it a short distance ahead and to the right. 
 Standing motionless, he did his utmost to lo- 
 cate the precise point whence it came, and the 
 distance it was from him. 
 
 " It does not seem more than a rod or two 
 off," he said to himself, beginning a cautious 
 movement toward the spot; "and since it 
 enters the cavern and leaves it without going 
 out of the mouth, there must be another out- 
 let, which, perhaps — " 
 
 Just then, despite the care he used, his foot 
 slipped on the wet surface of the flinty floor, 
 and he tumbled into water that rose half-way 
 to his knees. The shock caused him to emit 
 a suppressed cry, and he narrowly missed let- 
 ting fall the rifle which was in his left hand. 
 As quickly as he could he scrambled back to 
 the dry rock behind him. 
 
 " I got a bath that time for which I was not 
 looking," he exclaimed ; u the water is as cold 
 as ice." 
 
 He had not drank since leaving the block- 
 house, and bending down, he quaffed his fill of 
 the delicious fluid, uttering a sigh of content, 
 as he once more assumed the upright posture. 
 
A RAY OF LIGHT. 63 
 
 " There's one thing certain — whatever be- 
 falls us we shall not die of thirst. I must 
 send Agnes here to drink, for I am sure she 
 needs it." 
 
 He was on the point of returning to give 
 her the opportunity, when he decided that, as 
 it was not likely to require much time, he 
 would complete the exploration, so far as the 
 stream was concerned, while the chance of- 
 fered. 
 
 Was it fancy or did he really detect the 
 faintest possible appearance of light at the 
 bottom of the cavern on his right ? As he 
 peered intently through the gloom, he sus- 
 pected it was an optical delusion. His eyes 
 were rooking him in the continued effort to 
 pierce the impenetrable darkness. 
 
 But when he looked for a minute or two in 
 another direction, and then brought his gaze 
 back, there was the dull and almost invisible 
 glow, just as when it first attracted his won- 
 derment. 
 
 "It is a light," he exclaimed; "it must 
 come from the outside, but why is it so 
 faint?" 
 
64 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEERS. 
 
 Determined to fathom the mystery, he 
 moved with the utmost caution toward the 
 spot, whose pale glow diminished rather than 
 increased as he advanced. When within a 
 yard or two, despite his care, his feet slipped 
 again, and a second time he stumbled into 
 the icy stream from which he had just 
 drank. 
 
 The water was narrower, deeper and with a 
 more rapid flow, but the slight mishap which 
 now befell him resulted in the instant solu- 
 tion of the question that had puzzled him. 
 
 The stream, the cause of all this wonder- 
 ment, found its outlet near at hand. The 
 dim glow which perplexed Ashbridge was the 
 reflection of the sunlight from the outside, 
 which, refracted and obscured by the flow of 
 water, found its way into the interior of the 
 cavern in an almost infinitesimal degree, so 
 that only the keenest vision could perceive it. 
 
 The question that flashed upon the youth 
 was, "Can this stream be turned to account?" 
 
 It was a momentous question. Cut off* al- 
 most from every possibility of hope in other 
 directions, he fixed his thoughts upon the 
 
A EAY OF LIGHT. 65 
 
 single one that was left to him, and which 
 was faint enough as it was. 
 
 The first proceeding of Ashbridge was to 
 learn the depth and breadth of the current. 
 This was not difficult. As nearly as he could 
 ascertain it was about two feet wide and 
 slightly less in depth, sufficient to permit the 
 passage of himself and Agnes, provided the 
 way was open to do so. 
 
 The latter was the all-important point to 
 decide, for upon that hung the issue of life 
 and death. 
 
 No end of possibilities presented them- 
 selves. If the opening into the daylight out- 
 side was unobstructed, it was self-evident that, 
 even though it was a dozen feet away, it was 
 a perfect path to safety, for it was as easy to 
 enter the current and glide that distance with 
 it without breathing as it was to walk across 
 the floor of the cavern. 
 
 But therein lay the whole momentous prob- 
 lem. 
 
 Any error made in the calculation must of 
 necessity be irretrievably fatal. Once started 
 along the flow to the outside world, the most 
 
66 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEEKS. 
 
 skilful swimmer could not return. He must 
 go forward to inevitable death or life, as the 
 case might prove. A short turn, a narrowing 
 of the channel, so as to obstruct the onward 
 sweep of the body even for a few seconds, 
 would end everything. 
 
 What man possessed of ordinary prudence 
 would run such fearful risk? Well might 
 George Ashbridge stand hesitating, doubting 
 and perplexed as to what he ought to do. 
 
 " How shall I determine ?" was the mental 
 question, asked over and over again. 
 
 Removing his cap, he pushed his head be- 
 low the surface, as close as possible to the 
 point where the water dipped under the solid 
 rock ; but the open eyes could detect no more 
 than when he attempted to use them in the 
 gloom of the cavern. The dim, yellowish re- 
 flection remained, but nothing else. 
 
 From the fact that only the faintest sound 
 came back to him from the outside, Ashbridge 
 was disposed to form the hopeful conclusion 
 that the sweep of the current was free and 
 unobstructed until it had passed some distance 
 from the cavern. 
 
A EAY OF LIGHT. 67 
 
 " And yet it won't do to err," he reflected, 
 as he drew his head from the water and re- 
 placed his cap. " I am in sore perplexity." 
 
 At that moment a deafening report echoed 
 and resounded through the cavern. A rifle 
 had been discharged at the entrance, and, 
 fearing the worst, the youth made desperate 
 haste to reach Agnes Altman, praying and 
 yet fearful that it was too late to save or help 
 her. 
 
68 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEEES. 
 
 CHAPTER V. 
 
 A VOICE FEOM THE DAEKNESS. 
 
 IT was only natural that when Agnes Alt- 
 man was left alone at the mouth of the 
 cavern she should feel the responsibility of 
 the trust thus placed upon her. The safety 
 not only of herself but the only means of en- 
 tering or of leaving the refuge was that which 
 they had employed, and it would not do for 
 her to relax her vigilance for one moment. 
 
 She had assumed her former easy position 
 at the side of the entrance, where, sitting upon 
 the hard, rough floor, she held her small rifle 
 across her lap, ready to aim and fire it the 
 moment the necessity arose. She was so far 
 back that the only possible means of reaching 
 her with a bullet- was from the crest of the op- 
 posite bank, always expecting the rush down 
 the path, which she and George had dismissed 
 as improbable so long as daylight lasted. 
 
A VOICE FEOM THE DARKNESS. 69 
 
 It followed, therefore, that she kept close 
 ward and watch of that crest just across the 
 chasm, and which was covered with stunted 
 undergrowth and vegetation. The Shawanoe 
 who outwitted her from that point would have 
 to be subtle indeed. 
 
 There was a quicker throbbing of the heart, 
 when within the five minutes following the 
 departure of the youth from her side she be- 
 came convinced that the hostiles were at work 
 again. The same fluttering agitation at the 
 base of the vegetation was hardly noticed 
 when an eagle feather once more rose to view, 
 
 "Had George fired when he showed him- 
 self before, they would not have dared to re- 
 peat the attempt. I am sure this is the same 
 Indian, but he cannot see me." 
 
 Slowly and steadily, like the movement of 
 the shadow around the dial, did the feather 
 rise until the mass of course, black hair was 
 perceptible, but before the low, painted fore- 
 head showed the upward motion ceased. The 
 watcher supposed it would be resumed in a 
 few seconds, but it was not. 
 
 Puzzled to understand the meaning of this, 
 
70 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEERS. 
 
 Agnes kepther eyes fixed upon the odd picture. 
 There were the feather and the dark basis on 
 which it rested, but the eyes themselves 
 showed not, and inasmuch as she could not 
 see them, it followed that the Indian could 
 not have observed her, even had she been sit- 
 ting nearer the mouth of the cavern. 
 
 But while she was intently studying the 
 sight and waiting for the appearance of the 
 glittering eyes, the shadow of a movement, as 
 it may be called, caught her attention fully a 
 half-dozen feet to the right of where the token 
 showed, as if it were an ornament to the bank 
 itself. Something almost imperceptible stirred 
 the base of a bush, and if no feather ap- 
 peared, she was certain that among the leaves 
 was a mass of coal black-hair, from the centre 
 of which a pair of eyes, like those of the rat- 
 tlesnake, glowed upon the mouth of the 
 cavern. 
 
 The truth flashed upon the young woman. 
 That which she had first noted was a counter- 
 feit, a dummy to hold the attention and per- 
 haps draw the fire of the sentinel, while the 
 real danger appeared at another point. Had 
 
A VOICE FEOM THE DAKKNESS. 71 
 
 the pretended head risen a few inches higher 
 the deceit would have been discovered, but the 
 Indian was too cunning thus to reveal the 
 trick. A little more care upon his part and 
 the real head and front would have remained 
 unnoted. 
 
 Confident that she herself was invisible, 
 Agnes did not change her position. So long, 
 too, as the Indian contented himself with 
 looking over at the cavern, she was in no 
 danger. If he attempted to bring his rifle 
 around to fire she could readily shift her po- 
 sition and anticipate the action. 
 
 The young woman now had it in her power 
 to do a signal service to George Ashbridge 
 and herself. Protected by the gloom of the 
 interior, which came almost to the opening it- 
 self, she could drive a bullet through the brain 
 of the peeping Tom, and teach his comrades 
 the fatal peril of trying to steal a march upon 
 them. 
 
 But the reader need not be told that noth- 
 ing of the kind took place. Having pro- 
 tested against such an act on the part of her 
 companion, she could not nerve herself to it 
 
72 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEEKS. 
 
 so long as the present necessity did not exist. 
 It may be believed that had the Shawanoe 
 brought his gun around to the front she 
 would have contented herself with insuring 
 her safety by withdrawing a little further 
 within her refuge. 
 
 The miscreant, however, did not bring about 
 the test. A few minutes' intense scrutiny 
 showed him no one was on guard, and conse- 
 quently none that could serve as a target for 
 his marksmanship. It cannot be believed 
 that he suspected the fugitives were not on 
 the alert. Emitting a faint hissing sound, 
 the crown and eyes vanished like the shadow 
 of a cloud. 
 
 " George would have been less merciful but 
 perhaps more sensible than I," was the con- 
 clusion of Agnes as the strain was lifted. 
 
 She shifted her position a few inches nearer 
 the front, for what she had just witnessed 
 caused a fear that some ruse was in contem- 
 plation by their enemies. The next moment 
 she uttered an exclamation of surprise. 
 
 The end of the pine log, to which reference 
 has been made more than once, came into 
 
A VOICE FKOM THE DABKNESS. 73 
 
 view because of the change in her position. 
 Fully a foot of it was in sight. It may be said 
 that there was nothing to cause astonishment 
 in this, but an odd suspicion came over the 
 young woman that the log did not occupy 
 precisely the same position as before. 
 
 Why this should be the case was more than 
 she could explain. The air was too calm to 
 suppose that the change of position was due 
 to that cause, and it was altogether improb- 
 able that any process of decay going on in the 
 wood could have brought about a shifting of 
 the centre of gravity. 
 
 Strong as seemed the argument that the 
 whole thing was an error on her part, Agnes 
 Altman fortunately was too wise to dismiss it 
 from her thought as such. She determined 
 to make herself certain on the point. 
 
 Assuming a position that left about a foot 
 of the log in sight, she raised the hammer of 
 her weapon and fixed her gaze upon the wood. 
 
 For some minutes it remained as motionless 
 as the rock beside her. Then, with an emo- 
 tion which possibly maybe imagined, ehe saw 
 it shift silently forward fully six inches ! 
 
74 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEEES. 
 
 It was a startling discovery, and left no 
 doubt that one or more Shawanoes were shov- 
 ing the tree nearer the mouth of the cavern, 
 and doing it with a deft noiselessness that 
 could not have been surpassed. 
 
 There might be a dozen different explana- 
 tions of the alarming manoeuvre ; it was suffi- 
 cient to know that it boded evil, and -the 
 frightened girl held herself ready for the 
 emergency which she was convinced would 
 come within a few minutes. Had she be- 
 lieved otherwise she would have called Ash- 
 bridge to her assistance ; but he was at the 
 rear of the cavern and time was too precious. 
 
 Suddenly a shadow darkened the opening 
 in front of her. The figure of a gigantic war- 
 rior seemed to be projected upward from the 
 bottom of the ravine as the folded napkin 
 was flung aloft, and the crouching miscreant 
 started into the cavern, like the figure cast 
 by the sunlight from the opposite side of the 
 gorge. 
 
 But at the first step Agnes fired her weapon 
 without lifting it from her lap. The Shaw- 
 anoe gave a gasp, but, strange to say, uttered 
 
A VOICE FEOM THE DARKNESS. 75 
 
 no outcry, and staggered backward like a 
 drunken man. He continued wabbling to the 
 right and left, and stepping vaguely, until he 
 went out over the ledge like a bundle of rags, 
 emitting a rasping screech as he thumped to 
 the bottom and collapsed, with the last breath 
 of life driven from his body. 
 
 The next moment Ashbridge was at her 
 side. 
 
 " Heavens ! what has taken place, Agnes ?" 
 
 "It was my gun this time/' she replied, 
 with superb mastery of her emotions ; " I shot 
 an Indian just as he was entering the cav- 
 ern." 
 
 "I would not have left you had I dreamed 
 anything of the kind could have taken place ; 
 what has become of him ?" 
 
 " He staggered backward and fell into the 
 ravine." 
 
 " Then you must have hit him." 
 
 " It looks that way." 
 
 " Agnes, how proud I am of you !" 
 
 And stooping and passing an arm over her 
 shoulder he affectionately touched his lips to 
 her forehead, while she, womanlike, shivered, 
 
76 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEERS. 
 
 burst into tears, and seemed on the point of 
 sinking in a faint. 
 
 u Come now/' he added, tenderly caressing 
 her ; " it is not the first time you have proven 
 yourself as brave a girl as ever lived. Do not 
 spoil it by giving way after the thing is done." 
 
 " It was so dreadful, George." 
 
 "Not so dreadful as being shot yourself 
 and having me killed by the warrior, for that 
 was his object." 
 
 " I'll be myself in a minute," she added, 
 striving bravely to rally. 
 
 " You must, for there is no telling how soon 
 your help will be needed. Besides, you have 
 forgotten to reload your gun." 
 
 This appeal enabled the young woman to 
 master her temporary weakness. Declining 
 the assistance of her companion, she quickly 
 reloaded her weapon, by which time she was 
 fully herself again. 
 
 " I cannot understand the meaning of it," 
 said she inquiringly, as they once more seated 
 themselves beside each other. 
 
 " Nor do I ; but tell me all that took place 
 while I was away." 
 
A VOICE FEOM THE DAEKNESS. 77 
 
 She did so, not omitting the slightest par- 
 ticular that has already been made known to 
 the reader. 
 
 "I still fail to understand it, either/' he 
 said, when she had finished ; " that hissing 
 sound which you heard made by the Shaw- 
 anoe peering over the edge of the ravine must 
 have been a signal to him on this side that no 
 one was on the watch in the mouth of the 
 cavern. It was another proof of how easily a 
 person may be mistaken." 
 
 " But what could the warrior hope to do by 
 entering as he did ? We have taken pains to 
 keep invisible from the time we ran in here, 
 and the failure of the other to see us, there- 
 fore, could signify nothing." 
 
 " I repeat I do not understand their action. 
 Probably there were several Indians who 
 meant to rush in after their leader, and would 
 have done so had he succeeded in gaining a 
 foothold. One thing is certain. This party 
 of warriors have a good deal more bravery 
 and daring than is usually seen." 
 
 " How idle for that one to make use of the 
 screen when he could have stolen along the 
 
78 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEEKS. 
 
 path to the entrance without my seeing him a 
 moment sooner than I did ! In fact I would 
 not have seen him so soon had not the shift- 
 ing of that log given me warning." 
 
 " He could not have suspected that. Sup- 
 pose there were three or four of them who 
 were pushing behind the log. If you or I 
 ventured out to take a shot they would have 
 flattened themselves behind the screen so as 
 to be safe, while, if they were stealing along 
 the path, they would have been at our mercy. 
 A quick shot at the party in Indian file might 
 have killed several." 
 
 " But if there were several who intended to 
 rush in behind the leader, why did they not 
 do so ?" 
 
 " Because you fired in the nick of time." 
 
 * I accept your explanation because there is 
 none better that we can think of, but it does 
 not satisfy me." 
 
 "Nor me either; perhaps you can give a 
 better." 
 
 " I cannot ; let it go as it is, but we need no 
 more proof of the watchfulness of the Shawa- 
 noes. They may intend to wait until night 
 
A VOICE FROM THE DARKNESS. 79 
 
 before making a real move against us, but they 
 will throw away no chances in the meantime." 
 
 " After all, my hope is that Jethro, even if 
 he did not hear my call to him, may compre- 
 hend that the best service he can do us is to 
 hasten to the block -house for help !" 
 
 " I would believe that, if I could also be- 
 lieve that the chance would be his." 
 
 "And why not?" 
 
 "The Shawanoes must have learned long 
 ago that while you and I have taken refuge in 
 this cavern a third party is on the outside. 
 The third party has done enough against 
 them to rouse every feeling of revenge in 
 their nature ; he is very near us ; indeed, when 
 they threw themselves between us and the 
 block-house, they must have discovered there 
 were three instead of two." 
 
 " I can find no flaw in your logic." 
 
 "Still further — and that is another thing 
 which I do not understand — Jethro has ven- 
 tured up the gorge until he stood directly be- 
 low us, and then flung to us that bundle con- 
 taining our lunch. Why was he permitted 
 to do that?" 
 
80 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEERS. 
 
 " Sometimes an exploit of that kind suc- 
 ceeds because of its very boldness. The 
 Shawanoes were looking no more for a thing 
 of that nature than were we, and therefore 
 the way was open for Jethro to execute his 
 clever performance. If he had sufficient wit 
 to withdraw immediately afterward and make 
 haste to the block-house, I would take back 
 all that I ever said about his stupidity and be 
 ready to vote him almost the equal of Boone or 
 Kenton ; but/' added Ashbridge, with a sigh, 
 " the time has not yet come to do so." 
 
 " How did you make out with your explora- 
 tion of the cave ?" 
 
 " There ! how forgetful I am ! You have 
 not noticed that my feet are wet. I slipped 
 into the stream of water, which is of goodly 
 size, icy cold, and I have no doubt as clear as 
 crystal. I found where it leaves the cavern, 
 but not where it enters it. I had a good re- 
 freshing draught. Aren't you thirsty ?" 
 
 " I am." 
 
 a Feel your way back as you did in the first 
 place, but take particular care that you do not 
 lose your footing as I did. There is one 
 
A VOICE FEOM THE DARKNESS. 81 
 
 thought that brings some comfort ; after our 
 good lunch this noon we can go several days 
 without food, and shall never want for water. 
 Long before that Captain Bushwick and the 
 rest of them at the block-house will know 
 there is something wrong and make search for 
 us." 
 
 "But how will they trace us here?" 
 
 "Kenton and Boone have done more re- 
 markable things than that. If there is no 
 rainfall before they begin the hunt, some of 
 them will discover the trail." 
 
 " We must not leave Jethro out of the cal- 
 culation," remarked Agnes, more hopefully 
 than before ; " he has already done us good 
 service, and something tells me he will do 
 more before many hours pass." 
 
 " But you said you were thirsty," remarked 
 Asbridge, with a gentle reproof in his tones. 
 
 She rose to her feet, and since her rifle was 
 only an encumbrance, and might prove of 
 service to Ashbridge, she left it with him. He 
 cautioned her again to have a care to her foot- 
 steps, and she vanished within the deeper 
 gloom. 
 
82 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEERS. 
 
 All noises were magnified in the cavern, so 
 that Agnes Altman had penetrated only a 
 short distance when she again caught the soft 
 sound made by flowing water. Bearing in 
 mind the warning of George, she felt her way 
 with so much care that she paused on the 
 margin of the underground stream without 
 wetting her feet. 
 
 Here she readily quenched her thirst, but, 
 at the moment of rising again, received a 
 shock that took away her breath. Faintly, 
 but too distinctly to be mistaken, she heard 
 the footsteps of some one moving near her. 
 
 " Can it be George or some wild animal ?" 
 was the question framed itself in her mind, 
 but which she was powerless to utter. 
 
 But the footfalls were so near that she must 
 flee, and something like her natural courage 
 came back to her. 
 
 " George !" she called in a gasping whisper, 
 "is that you?" 
 
 " No," came a gruff* voice ; I'se Jethro Jug- 
 gens, and dat's de fust time I was ever took 
 for Marse George. I 'spose dat am yo', Miss 
 Agnes." 
 
JETHEO JUGGENS. 83 
 
 CHAPTER VI. 
 
 JETHEO JUGGENS. 
 
 ENOUGH has been intimated in the course 
 of this narrative concerning Jethro 
 Juggens for the reader to form a general idea 
 of his movements and doings, as they affected 
 George Ashbridge and Agnes Altman. When 
 the two left the block-house to learn whether 
 the cabins in the clearing had been destroyed 
 by the Shawanoes, the African accompanied 
 them in the threefold capacity of servant, 
 guard and chaperone, if the last term be per- 
 missible under the circumstances. 
 
 Of Jethro's loyalty and affection for the 
 two there could be no more question than 
 of his extraordinary skill with his rifle. He 
 had given abundant proof of the last during 
 the memorable descent of the Ohio during 
 the preceding summer, and the return to the 
 block-house, when the pioneers were sorely 
 
84 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEERS. 
 
 beset by the Panther and his fierce warriors. 
 That skill had been perfected throughout the 
 months spent at the temporary quarters 
 erected near the block-house, during which he 
 engaged in a number of hunting excursions, 
 and once accompanied Kenton on a scouting 
 expedition into the Wyandotte country. The 
 famous hunter showed a partiality for Jethro, 
 whose markmanship could not be surpassed 
 by himself nor any other of the other rangers 
 connected with the station. 
 
 " Dem folks need looking after," concluded 
 Jethro, at the opening of the westward jaunt; 
 " when a couple like dem am in love, dar's no 
 sayin' what foolish ting dey won't do, and 
 what danger dey won't run into — so I'll shove 
 ahead and keep my eye open for squalls.'' 
 
 It need not be said that George and Agnes 
 made no objection to being left to themselves 
 on this delightful excursion. Warning the 
 youth to have a care for himself, rather than 
 for them, they allowed him to advance so far 
 along the trail that only at rare intervals did 
 they catch a sight of the honest fellow lum- 
 bering heavily forward. 
 
JETHEO JUGGENS. 85 
 
 When the point opposite the clearing was 
 attained, the three united and remained to- 
 gether for half an hour. Jethro offered to 
 swim the river and make an examination of 
 the two structures, which in the distance 
 showed no evidence of injury, but Ashbridge 
 would not permit. 
 
 "It would do no good and might bring 
 much harm." 
 
 " But how 'bout de satumfaction of knowin' 
 what I will know ?" 
 
 The youth shook his head. 
 
 "If the return journey is as quiet as our 
 walk here I shall urge father and Mr. Alt- 
 man to move to the clearing. It is still early 
 enough for us to plant corn and vegetables, 
 and it looks as if we might have made our 
 homes there months ago without danger to 
 any of us. We will now return." 
 
 What befell George and Agnes on that 
 memorable journey back to the fort has al- 
 ready been told. In the hour when neither 
 held a thought of danger they were turned 
 abruptly aside by its appearance, and were 
 now at bay in the cavern, which at the crisis 
 
86 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEEES. 
 
 in their fate opened so providentially before 
 them. 
 
 As before, Jethro took the lead, and, walk- 
 ing somewhat faster than usual, placed him- 
 self further in advance than was his purpose 
 and further than he suspected. 
 
 Now, it was a curious fact that the rugged 
 section in which our friends took refuge was 
 well known to Jethro. In the depth of the 
 previous winter, when hunting deer and bison, 
 he had visited the place and actually entered 
 the cavern, but its gloom repelled him and he 
 remained but a few minutes. 
 
 On the return, as he came to the point in 
 the trail nearest the section, he paused and 
 looked back. 
 
 " Dem foolish folks am so far off dat I'll 
 have time to take a look and see if the place 
 am dar still or whether the heathens hab run 
 off wid it. I can come back to the trail be- 
 hind 'em and give 'em a scare." 
 
 Hardly had he entered the rocky section, 
 when he was startled by hearing the signals 
 which first apprised Ashbridge and Agnes of 
 their peril. Jethro came to an abrupt halt, 
 
JETHRO JUGGENS. 87 
 
 frightened for the moment almost out of his 
 wits. 
 
 " Dat means trouble !" he muttered ; de var- 
 mints hab arriv, and the Lawd only knows 
 what'll become of dem tew ; dey'll be so busy 
 talkin' dar nonsense to each oder dat dey 
 won't notice the In gins till dey slips up and 
 chops off der heads ; den it'll be too late to do 
 'em no good." 
 
 Jethro was in sore perplexity. He did not 
 know whether to make haste back to the trail 
 to warn his friends, or to seek to learn the ex- 
 tent and nature of the danger which threat- 
 ened them. One of the alarming signals came 
 from a point so near at hand that he decided 
 to investigate. The result was as remarkable 
 as it was unexpected. 
 
 While engaged in this task, the drama 
 opened, Providentially, his position was 
 such that he saw Ashbridge leap the chasm, 
 instantly followed by Agnes and then by 
 the Shawanoe, who was shot while in mid- 
 air. 
 
 " It's 'bout time I mixed in dis bis'ness," 
 thought Jethro, who within the following 
 
88 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEEKS 
 
 minute winged the second warrior in the man- 
 ner described. 
 
 Up to this time he had not given a thought 
 to his own safety. Circumstances favored him 
 again, as they had so many times in the past. 
 His whole aim was to aid his friends, whose 
 peril was frightful. Wise enough to exercise 
 caution, he hurried by a circuitous route to 
 join them, and was just in time to see both 
 dart into the mouth of the cavern which he 
 remembered so well. 
 
 The incident brought vast relief to Jethro. 
 
 " Dat's de most discumlucky ting dat could 
 hab happened V 9 he said, meaning that it was 
 a stroke of marvelous good fortune; "de 
 heathens can't get into dat place 'cept by 
 gwine frough de door dey used, and eberyone 
 dat tries dat will get plugged. De wust ting 
 dat can happen to de folks am dat ob gettin' 
 hungry." 
 
 His own keen appetite magnified this afflic- 
 tion and led him to a thing that was more of 
 a sacrifice than many would suspect. He 
 would have enjoyed eating every mouthful 
 in his charge, but he could not do so when 
 
JETHRO JUGGENS. 89 
 
 the probability remained of suffering on the 
 part of his friends. They were without the 
 means of obtaining food, while he could not 
 want so long as he retained his rifle. 
 
 Jethro would have been unpardonably stu- 
 pid had he failed to comprehend the personal 
 danger in which he stood. Now that the 
 others had secured temporary safety he could 
 give the fullest attention to himself. He, 
 therefore, made the most cautious withdrawal 
 possible from his position, and still resolved 
 to give all the aid he could to George and 
 Agnes, stole along the bottom of the gorge 
 until directly beneath the entrance to the 
 cavern. 
 
 So far as he could tell, this was effected 
 without discovery on the part of the Shaw- 
 anoes. Scrutinizing the faces of the rocks on 
 both sides of the ravine, he detected no sign 
 of his enemies. This might be the case, 
 however, if a hundred of them were in the 
 vicinity. 
 
 Jethro knew the place so well that when 
 he halted he was certain that he stood di- 
 rectly beneath the ledge in front of the cavern 
 
90 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEEKS. 
 
 entrance. He could see nothing to guide 
 him, but, weighting the parcel with a stone, 
 deftly flung it upward. As will be remem- 
 bered, the first effort failed, and he caught 
 the package as it descended. The second 
 effort succeeded. 
 
 " Ef dey don't happen to be on de watch 
 dey'll smell dem victuals. I know I would, 
 and dey must be as hungry as me. Wonder 
 if any ob de heathen seed me !" 
 
 He glanced furtively to the right and left, 
 in front and back, and aloft. If it so hap- 
 pened that any of the red men had observed 
 him his situation would be well nigh hope- 
 less, for, walled in as he was, they could pick 
 him off at their leisure, or, what was more 
 likely, secure his capture without the possi- 
 bility of escape. 
 
 " Dar's one thing sartin — de bestest place 
 for me to be am somewhar else, so I'll slip out 
 while I hab de chance — hebens gracious ! who 
 hit me?" 
 
 Thump ! something came down so heavily 
 on the crown of Jethro that he was knocked 
 well nigh senseless. In flinging back the 
 
JETHEO JUGGENS. 91 
 
 napkin folded about the lunch, it will be re- 
 membered that Ashbridge replaced the stone 
 ballast. He would not have done this could 
 he have foreseen what actually took place: 
 the package dropped squarely on the crown of 
 Jethro, and the stone was at the bottom, so 
 that he received well nigh the full force of it. 
 
 But it will be borne in mind, too, that it 
 was the head of the African which received 
 the blow ; consequently no real injury resulted. 
 
 As he raised his head to learn the extent 
 of the damages, the napkin and its contents 
 rolled off to the ground. 
 
 u Tank de Lawd I" he exclaimed ; " dar's 
 my dinner, or rather a small part of it." 
 
 It was a proof of his discretion that, al- 
 though ravenously hungry, he did not tarry to 
 eat a mouthful. He was too anxious to get 
 away from the perilous spot. 
 
 It must have been that the Shawanoes 
 maintained only a fitful watch of the cavern 
 entrance. Convinced that the fugitives could 
 not escape them while daylight lasted, it was 
 only at intervals that they gave attention to 
 the refuge or formulated some scheme for their 
 
92 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEERS. 
 
 undoing. Upon no other supposition can the 
 fact be explained that not only did Jethro suc- 
 ceed in entering the ravine to the point 
 named, but withdrew therefrom without, so 
 far as was ever known, his action being sus- 
 pected. 
 
 Once at a point of safety, however, he made 
 short work of the food in his charge. 
 
 " Qu'ar dat folks neber seem to understand 
 dat I'm a well young man and ain't done 
 growin' yet ; darfore de victuals dat am nec- 
 essary for my circuitous dewelopment am a 
 good deal more dan I eber gots, and de ting 
 must be 'tended to when I gots back to the 
 block-house. Howsumeber, I feels a good 
 deal better dan I did afore I felt better." 
 
 Strange that now, when the whole object of 
 Jethro's heart was to do everything in his 
 power, that the one simple, single method did 
 not present itself to him. All that he need 
 do, as agreed by Ashbridge and his compan- 
 ion, was to hurry to the block-house with the 
 news of their extremity. He could readily 
 reach the station before nightfall, and a half- 
 dozen and probably more rangers would be on 
 
JETHEO JUGGENS. 93 
 
 the spot ere the Shawanoes could make any 
 headway against the fugitives. 
 
 But to the servant only one method was 
 thought of— that was to stay in the imme- 
 diate neighborhood and strike whenever the 
 opportunity was offered. He decided to do so. 
 
 Climbing carefully out of the gorge at a 
 point nearly a hundred yards distant from the 
 opening of the cavern, he ensconced himself 
 among the bowlders and undergrowth so ef- 
 fectively that, while he could look up the 
 ravine and see both sides of it to a point be- 
 yond the fallen log, he had no fear of being 
 observed by any eyes that might be ranging 
 along it. 
 
 " De heathen must know dat I'm 'bout," he 
 muttered after settling into position ; " or 
 leastways dey knows dat some one am on de 
 outside of the cavern, which can't be Marse 
 George or Miss Agnes, 'cause dey am inside, 
 which am darfore me or somebody else, con- 
 sequently it am me. Dat ere fact bein' de 
 truf," continued Jethro, pleased with his own 
 reasoning, " it am also de fact dat dem heathen 
 am lookin' round to make my 'quaintance, or, 
 
94 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEERS. 
 
 if dey ain't, dey soon will be, or, if dey soon 
 won't be, dey oughter will be, which am jes 
 what I said aforesaid, so I'll keep bofe my 
 eyes wide open for squalls." 
 
 It was not long before Jethro received his 
 shaking up. From his coign of observation 
 he detected an object in the ravine below 
 which quickly resolved itself into an Indian 
 warrior moving cautiously toward him. The 
 dusky youth was so well hidden that he was 
 able to watch the buck and to observe his 
 every action without himself being seen. 
 
 Of course, he was a stranger to Jethro, 
 though he would not have identified him had 
 they met within the preceding hour. 
 
 " He am looking for me," was the decision 
 of the youth, after watching him for a few 
 minutes, " and like 'nough he'll find me onless 
 I runs, which I doesn't intend to do. If he 
 gets into my way dar'll be trouble." 
 
 So long as there was but one Indian to deal 
 with Jethro felt little misgiving as to the is- 
 sue, for the reader will perceive the immense 
 advantage he held over the one he believed 
 to be his pursuer, but though there might be 
 
JETHKO JUGGENS. 95 
 
 no others on his trail, there were altogether 
 too many in the vicinity for the youth to feel 
 comfortable over the situation. 
 
 " Howsumeber, I'll wait for him ; mebbe he 
 won't find me and will turn back while he has 
 a chance to do so. Ef I should run now and 
 he should keep trampin' after me, he'd be 
 likely to cotch me foul, but he can't do it 
 now." 
 
 It must be admitted that Jethro was shrewd 
 in this matter, which simply was a decision 
 not to surrender the upper hand he held, until 
 it was clearly safe to do so. 
 
 Meanwhile, the Shawanoe was advancing 
 steadily toward the base of the cliff where the 
 youth had perched himself. As he stole for- 
 ward, the warrior, like all his people, seemed 
 " shod with silence." He was dressed as al- 
 ready described, his black hair dangling about 
 his hideously-painted face, his head was 
 thrown forward, he carried a rifle in a trail- 
 ing position in his left hand, and his black 
 eyes flitted from side to side and in every 
 direction, as though he did not intend that 
 the slightest object should escape him. More 
 
96 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEERS. 
 
 than once, Jethro believed the savage had de- 
 tected him, even though he could not have 
 been more perfectly hidden. 
 
 "Ef he does cotch sight ob me, he can't 
 shoot fust," was the comforting conclusion of 
 the youth perched among the rocks above the 
 Indian. The rifle, which Jethro knew how to 
 use so well, was extended along the top of the 
 bowlder, with the muzzle so pointed that only 
 a slight change of direction was required to 
 make the aim fatal. 
 
 The strained situation lasted much less than 
 the time we have taken in the telling. The 
 progress of the Shawanoe soon brought him 
 to the foot of the rocks and bowlders, up 
 which Jethro Juggens had made his way. At 
 this part of the ravine, the ascent was not 
 perpendicular, but at so moderate a slope that 
 he never lost sight of the buck. 
 
 "I'll wait till he starts up after me ; de fust 
 step he takes I'll plug him ; no use ob firin' 
 till I'm sartin." 
 
 It cannot be supposed that that particular 
 Shawanoe ever comprehended how close he 
 stood to death on that balmy afternoon of a 
 
JETHEO JUGGENS. 97 
 
 summer day a long time ago. Everything 
 indicated that his intention was to make his 
 way up among the rocks directly after Jethro, 
 though whether he had actually discovered his 
 footprints is uncertain. 
 
 The fugitive raised the hammer of his rifle 
 and pointed the barrel, so that he had only 
 to press the trigger to check the career of the 
 Indian forever. Whether at that critical mo- 
 ment some faint signal caught his ear or the 
 change of intention was natural cannot be 
 known, but, with only a momentary pause, he 
 noiselessly turned about and began retracing 
 his way over his own trail in the same man- 
 ner that he had advanced over it. 
 
 "I guess yo' don't amount to nufiin," mut- 
 tered Jethro, who lost no time in leaving the 
 place of so much danger. 
 
 Still actuated by the one wish of doing 
 something to aid his friends, and still obliv- 
 ious of the single simple act that would give 
 aid, he now began working over an extended 
 circle, which brought him to a point that may 
 be described as on the upper side of the cav- 
 ern — that is, that portion furthest removed 
 
98 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEEES. 
 
 from the main trail the three had used in 
 coming from the block-house. 
 
 He stopped beside a narrow, clear, swiftly- 
 running stream, struck by the fact that only 
 a few paces away it narrowed and deepened 
 still more and disappeared under the rocks. 
 A brilliant thought flashed upon him." 
 
 " I bleve dat runs into de cave whar Marse 
 George and Miss Agnes am ! I'll soon find 
 out." 
 
 And what did the fellow do but, clasping 
 his gun close to his side so as to prevent its 
 interference with his progress, trust himself 
 wholly to the current. It is hard to conceive 
 of a more reckless act, and yet within the 
 same moment that it was attempted it did the 
 same thing he expected it to do — that is, car- 
 ried him into the presence of George Ash- 
 bridge and Agnes Altman. 
 
"HEBE GOES!" 99 
 
 CHAPTER VII. 
 
 "here goes!" 
 
 A MORE foolhardy act than that of Jethro 
 Juggens cannot be conceived. Not one 
 man in a thousand would have attempted it, 
 and it may be doubted whether the youth 
 himself would have made the venture had he 
 held it under consideration for ten minutes. 
 
 He had little warrant for believing that the 
 stream opened into the cavern. Every proba- 
 bility pointed to its losing itself under ground 
 among the rocks, in which event certain death 
 awaited him. If the passage was long, or if 
 any obstruction checked his progress, he must 
 be instantly drowned. It would be impos- 
 sible for him to return even for a short dis- 
 tance, and every one knows how quickly a 
 person is suffocated under water. 
 
 And yet, as the reader has learned, the dar- 
 ing effort was followed by perfect success. It 
 
100 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEEKS. 
 
 seemed but a twinkling, after being swept into 
 the very blackness of darkness, that he threw 
 up his head, and, instead of striking the rocky 
 wall which touched the surface of the stream 
 for several feet from the outer side, found his 
 face was in the clear air. A quick, vigorous 
 movement, which called forth all his immense 
 strength, and he stood upon his feet and 
 stepped clear of the icy current upon a firm 
 foundation of rock. 
 
 "Dat war a piece ob big luck," was his 
 truthful conclusion; "I wouldn't like to try 
 it agin. Wonder whar de folks am." 
 
 He waited a few minutes until he could 
 gather his wits and pull himself together. 
 He had emerged from the stream with 
 such deftness that the slight sound had not 
 reached Agnes Altman, standing a short way 
 off. Seemingly at a long distance he could 
 make out an irregular circle of dim light, 
 which he rightly judged to be the opening 
 through which his friends had entered the 
 cavern. He began groping his way thither, 
 and had not gone far when the affrighted 
 maiden called out and he answered. 
 
"HERE GOES!" 101 
 
 " Why, Jethro," she added, " I never was 
 so startled in all my life." 
 
 " Kind ob scared me at fust, too." 
 
 " Where in the name of all that is wonder- 
 ful did you come from ?' 
 
 " I come frough de rocks," was his reply, 
 always disposed to magnify his exploits after 
 they were done. 
 
 "But how? What do you mean? How 
 could you come through the rocks ?" 
 
 " I swum under 'em ; I tought dat dat 
 stream run into dis place, so I slapped my- 
 self down into it, and here I am !" 
 
 " I never knew anything like it." 
 
 " Can't say dat I done eber heerd anyting 
 quite so smart myself; wonder what Marse 
 George will say ?" 
 
 " He will be as much astonished as I ; let 
 us go to him." 
 
 " What war yo' doin', Miss Agnes, so fer 
 from him?" 
 
 " I was thirsty and came back here for a 
 drink." 
 
 "Did you got it?" 
 
 " Yes, before I heard your footsteps." 
 
102 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEERS. 
 
 " Golly ! I won't want anoder drink for a 
 week. I guess I must hab swollered 'bout a 
 hundred barrels ob water/' 
 
 As may be supposed, Ashbridge was over- 
 whelmed with amazement when he was joined 
 a few minutes later by Agnes and the drip- 
 ping Jethro, and learned the means by which 
 he had entered the cavern. 
 
 " You have done something, Jethro," said 
 he, surveying in wonderment the faithful Af- 
 rican as revealed in tho obscurity. 
 
 "Wal, dat's my style," complacently re- 
 marked the servant, who naturally felt proud 
 over his achievement. Ashbriuge saw the 
 weakness of the fL low and dexterously par- 
 ried his own words with the addenda : 
 
 " You succeeded, it is true, but you had no 
 right to expect success. You have done a 
 good many foolish things in your life, but 
 this is a good deal ahead of them. I would 
 like to say you were brave and wise, and all 
 that, but I cannot." 
 
 " I done it for yo' and Miss Agnes," re- 
 marked Jethro, so grieved that he was forced 
 to swallow the lump that rose in his throat. 
 
"HERE GOES!" 103 
 
 Both Ashbridge and the young woman were 
 touched, and the former hastened to add : 
 
 " I feel that, Jethro, and thank you more 
 than I can tell. We have never doubted 
 your devotion to us ; you have given too 
 ixiany proofs of your affection and bravery." 
 
 "You got de lunch all right?" broke in 
 the servant, evidently determined that they 
 should appreciate all their obligations to 
 him. 
 
 " Yes — that was another act of thoughtful- 
 ness on your part ; and did you get that which 
 we tossed down the ravine to you ?" 
 
 "Sartinly; got it slap bang on top of my 
 head." 
 
 " Did you hear me call to you ?" 
 
 " What did yo' say?" 
 
 "I told you to hurry to the block-house 
 and bring help to us." 
 
 "I didn't cotch a word dat yo' said; yo' 
 didn't holler loud 'nough." 
 
 "I called loud enough for you to have 
 heard me if you had been there." 
 
 " Dat was it ; I warn't dar." 
 
 "Jethro," continued Ashbridge with a 
 
104 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEERS. 
 
 touch of impatience, "you have made a great 
 mistake." 
 
 "Whatdat?" 
 
 " Instead of running this risk of entering 
 the cave, you ought to have made all haste to 
 the block-house ; why didn't you do so?" 
 
 " 'Clar, Marse George, I didn't tink ob it ; 
 seemed to me dat when a man am in trouble 
 de only ting to do am to stick to him." 
 
 " That may be best as a rule, but it was the 
 worst course for you to follow for us. If you 
 had done as I wished, you would have been 
 at the block-house by this time, and the cap- 
 tain and some of the men would have been 
 on their way to our help." 
 
 Jethro was impressed by the words of Ash- 
 bridge. He saw the lamentable error he had 
 committed and regretted it as keenly as his 
 friends. The kind-hearted Agnes spoke 
 gently. 
 
 " We cannot blame Jethro because he made 
 a mistake, for we made a much greater one 
 when we left home. We did the best we 
 could and he did the same, and I see little dif- 
 ference in the result," 
 
"HERE GOES!" 105 
 
 "I did not mean to hurt your feelings, 
 Jethro," said Ashbridge in a kinder tone, 
 but the disappointment is bitter." 
 
 The servant was sitting slightly further in 
 the cave than the others, and in the obscurity 
 his dusky face was hardly visible. He was 
 reclining on his elbow, his eyes resting on 
 nothing in particular, and his thoughts, so 
 airy and self-complacent before, became of the 
 most melancholy nature. The sigh which he 
 heaved was heard by George and Agnes, and 
 deepened their pity. 
 
 "Dar's one ting sartin," suddenly added 
 Jethro, rousing up and assuming a sitting po- 
 sition, " Bein' as I come into de cavern by de 
 rear doah, I's gwine to lebe it by de same 
 doah." 
 
 " What do you mean f J asked the astonished 
 Ashbridge. 
 
 "Just what I said! I'se gwine to de 
 block-house if I can got dar." 
 
 " Impossible ! you can not make your way 
 against the current for even so short a dis- 
 tance ; it will be certain death." 
 
 " Who said I was gwine to do dat ? Ef de 
 
106 m THE DAYS OF THE PIONEERS. 
 
 stream comes into de cavern it must go out 
 agin, for if it didn't it would fill up de place 
 or else run out by de front way, which it 
 don't do; darfore it has some oder way ob 
 gwine out, and dat's de way I'm gwine to took." 
 
 The fellow spoke with so much earnestness 
 that both Ashbridge and Agnes saw they 
 must interfere. 
 
 "But you know nothing of the outlet, 
 Jethro," said the young woman. 
 
 " What ob dat ? I didn't know nuffin ob 
 the inlet either ; I've got to find out how it 
 am ; it am likely dat it am all right, but I 
 must take de chances, and I'm ready to do 
 dat/' 
 
 - " The chances are that everything is wrong, 
 and that if you attempt to reach the open air 
 you will be drowned." 
 
 " Can't help dat," was the dogged response ; 
 " I'se gwine to try it." 
 
 And he rose to his feet, Ashbridge doing 
 the same, while Agnes looked up at the two in 
 distress. 
 
 "Jethro," she said, as she, too, arose and 
 gently placed her hand on his powerful arm; 
 
"HEBE GOES!" 107 
 
 " we can't let you give your life for us, for 
 that is what it will be." 
 
 " I'm ready to do it any time, Miss Agnes ; 
 I'll go frough fire and water for yo', and I'm 
 ready to be drowned if nessumsary." 
 
 " But it isn't necessary," she persisted with 
 all possible earnestness ; " how can it help us 
 for you to drown yourself? That will do us 
 no good and you all possible harm ; we can 
 never consent to it." 
 
 " Marse George," persisted the negro, who 
 could be stubborn when he chose, " yo'll own 
 dat dar's one chance in a tousand dat I'll go 
 frough all right, and dat's de chance I'm 
 gwine to take." 
 
 " I won't own that even that chance exists." 
 
 " It don't make no difference ; if dar warnt 
 no chance at all," was the original remark of 
 Jethro Juggens, " I would take it. After 
 makin' de big mistake that I done make, and 
 hurtin' yo' feelings in dat dishameful style, 
 Ise gwine to show dat I lubs yo'." 
 
 "Jethro, we have never doubted it," Agnes 
 hastened to say, with her hand still resting 
 upon the brawny arm ; prove once more that 
 
108 IN THE DAYS OF THE. PIONEEKS. 
 
 you love us by doing what we ask you to do, 
 which is to give up the wild idea that has en- 
 tered your head. We cannot allow you to try 
 such a wild, mad scheme, which offers no hope 
 at all. You must give it up." 
 
 It was useless. To Jethro it was the ques- 
 tion of life and death, and in the crisis he 
 could know but one guide, his own conviction 
 of duty, and that was immovable. 
 
 "Marse George, yo' and me neber had a 
 quarrel, and don't let us hab it now. Ise 
 allers tried to do what's right, and dat's what 
 I'm gwine to do now — let's go back and hab 
 a look at de place," he added, as if a doubt 
 about the wisdom of his course had just risen 
 in his mind. 
 
 Ashbridge turned toward Agnes. 
 
 " I can't refuse to humor him ; it won't do 
 for us both to go ; will you remain here on 
 guard ?" 
 
 "Yes; but you have not told me whether 
 you saw anything to alarm you while I was 
 gone?" 
 
 "I saw nothing. The only place that I 
 could observe clearly is the top of the ravine 
 
"HEBE GOES!" 109 
 
 on the other side. Not the slightest evidence 
 of the Shawanoes appeared." 
 
 " Do you need your gun ?" 
 
 " No ; I will leave it with you. I hope no 
 occasion will arise for your using either. I do 
 not think there will. The afternoon is pass- 
 ing, and I am confident the Indians intend to 
 wait for darkness." 
 
 " Yo' had better take my gun, too, Miss 
 Agnes," said Jethro, extending his weapon 
 toward her; "it'll be only a bodder to 
 me." 
 
 " I shall do nothing of the kind," she re- 
 plied, spiritedly; "you would be in a sad 
 plight if you succeeded in leaving the cavern 
 and had no weapon with you." 
 
 The servant did not insist upon his point. 
 He felt, perhaps, that his defiance had been 
 carried to the breaking point. 
 
 " Come on, then," added Ashbridge in a 
 low voice, hoping that the means would pre- 
 sent itself for preventing the suicidal attempt 
 of the servant. 
 
 Agnes would not say good-bye to the hon- 
 est fellow, for that would have seemed like an 
 
110 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEERS. 
 
 approval of his scheme, but her heart was 
 heavy and oppressed when she looked after 
 the two figures that were quickly swallowed 
 up in the gloom of the* cavern. 
 
 It was necessary for Ashbridge and Jethro 
 to feel their way as they advanced, and the 
 former took the lead. Neither spoke as they 
 pushed forward foot by foot, though in the 
 deep gloom and with the roughness of the 
 floor both stumbled more than once. 
 
 But George Ashbridge was thinking in- 
 tently. He had begun to ask himself the 
 question, "Is it possible for Jethro to suc- 
 ceed? Inasmuch as he entered the cavern 
 without danger or difficulty, can it not be that 
 the same amazing good fortune will attend the 
 effort to leave?" 
 
 So far as he could judge there was abso- 
 lutely no hope for Agnes, Jethro and him- 
 self except for the means which, when first 
 proposed, caused a shock to him and the 
 young woman. It was not to be supposed 
 that the Shawanoes would give them the 
 slightest opportunity to leave the refuge by 
 the path used in entering it. To do so would 
 
"HEKE GOES!" Ill 
 
 compel them to step over the log and pick 
 their course along the narrow ledge to the 
 elevated ground above. The moment they 
 came out of the cavern, while daylight con- 
 tinued, they would be at the mercy of the red 
 men, who could shoot them down at their leis- 
 ure. If they waited until night they were 
 certain to walk into the arms of the waiting 
 warriors above. 
 
 Ashbridge had not forgotten one significant 
 fact. When he first discovered the stream 
 which entered and left the cavern at the rear 
 he caught the dull, almost imperceptible glow 
 of light, which proved that it was but a short 
 distance to the outside. This being the case, 
 was it a violent supposition that for that short 
 space the course was sufficiently clear for the 
 current to sweep a person safely into the outer 
 air? 
 
 " I would not make the venture except in 
 the last extremity," he reflected, u for the risk 
 is fearful, but I would do so if the Indians 
 were entering the mouth of the cave, and is 
 not this the last extremity ?" 
 
 He was arguing with his conscience, as may 
 
112 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEEKS. 
 
 be said, and striving to convince himself that 
 it was no wrong to permit Jethro to carry out 
 his resolution. If he did not quite succeed in 
 doing so he found some consolation in the 
 knowledge that, no matter how strenuous 
 might be his opposition, he could not swerve 
 the dusky youth from his purpose. 
 
 At last they paused at the margin of the 
 little stream. 
 
 " De fust ting to do," said Jethro, " am to 
 find whar dis young ribber bobs under de 
 rocks agin." 
 
 " It is not far off, for the cavern is narrow 
 in this place." 
 
 The servant was to the right of Ashbridge 
 and groped his way with no little skill, the 
 other following him as best he could. 
 
 "Helloa! what's dat?" demanded Jethro, 
 stopping abruptly. 
 
 Ashbridge knew to what he referred; he 
 had caught the faint, dull glow where the 
 stream swept under the outer walls — a glow 
 which could have only one source, the sun- 
 light in the forest outside. 
 
 Jethro read its meaning aright. 
 
"HERE GOES!" 113 
 
 " Dat's lucky ! it can't be far to the out- 
 side." 
 
 Ashbridge was silent for a- moment. Then 
 he asked : 
 
 " Will you not give up the scheme ? Will 
 you not do so for the sake of Agnes and my- 
 self?" 
 
 " It's for de sake ob Agnes and yo'self dat 
 I'm gwine to do it, or leastways to try to do 
 it. So don't say nuffin mo'. Now, if I goes 
 frough all right, Marse George, what den ?" 
 
 " She and I will try it ; but how shall we 
 know you have succeeded ?" 
 
 Evidently Jethro had been thinking of this, 
 for he made instant answer : 
 
 " I'll stole 'round in front ob de ledge whar 
 yo' and Agnes come into de place. When yo' 
 hears a stone drap onto de rocks jes' whar de 
 lunch fell, dat'll mean dat Jethro frowed it, 
 and darfore he am all right." 
 
 " That will be a dangerous thing for you 
 to do." 
 
 " Am dar anyting we can do dat ain't dan- 
 gerous ?" was the pertinent inquiry of the Af- 
 rican. 
 
 8 
 
114 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEERS. 
 
 " Nothing." 
 
 " All right ; here goes/' 
 A minute later George Ashbridge compre- 
 hended that he was alone. 
 
SMOKE AND FIEE. 115 
 
 CHAPTEE VIII. 
 
 SMOKE AND FIEE. 
 
 JETHKO JUGGENS had cast the die, and 
 George Ashbridge stood in the darkness 
 alone. He had heard the disturbance of the 
 waters caused by the action of the devoted 
 servant, and his name, pronounced in a last 
 desperate protest, received no response, for it 
 was unheard. 
 
 The youth bent his head and listened and 
 looked in the hope of hearing or seeing some- 
 thing which would make known the fate of 
 Jethro, for, whatever it was, that fate decided 
 in a very few seconds. There seemed to be a 
 darkening of the pale glow, he fancied he 
 heard some disturbance in the current, and 
 then he thrust his head beneath the surface 
 that he might hear better. 
 
 Had he done this a moment sooner, some 
 
116 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEEKS. 
 
 knowledge, amounting to a clue, might have 
 come to him, but he was a trifle too late to 
 learn anything, and he straightened up with a 
 feeling of depression as profound as that 
 which came over Agnes Altman when she 
 watched the two disappear in the gloom of the 
 cavern, 
 
 " I did what I could to restrain him," said 
 the youth, " except to use force. Even that 
 would have proved useless, for there is no 
 man at the block-house as strong as Jethro. 
 He would have flung me aside as though I 
 was a child. No ; I cannot blame myself in 
 the matter." 
 
 The self-justification seemed warranted, 
 though it did not relieve the gloom which 
 Agnes noticed when he rejoined her. 
 
 " Has anything occurred to alarm you while 
 I was away ?" he asked with a sigh. 
 
 " Nothing worth the mention." 
 
 "That answer admits that something has 
 taken place which I ought to know." 
 
 " One of the Shawanoes peered over the 
 edge of the bank just as he did when you left 
 me here before." 
 
SMOKE AND FIEE. 117 
 
 " You made sure it was no trick they were 
 trying to play upon us ?" 
 
 " It could not have been, for I plainly saw 
 the warrior's eyes, and saw him, too, glance 
 up and down the ravine as if searching for 
 something." 
 
 u No doubt that was what he was doing. If 
 I had been in your place, Agnes, I would 
 have shot him." 
 
 She shuddered. 
 
 " I can do that only when it must be done. 
 I have had such a woeful experience since 
 leaving our home in Virginia last summer that 
 it will haunt me all my life. Do not ask me 
 to do what I can possibly avoid doing." 
 
 " Every Indian picked off makes one less 
 for us to contend against when the final strug- 
 gle comes," was the suggestive comment of 
 the youth. 
 
 " A half-dozen more or less can make no 
 difference. There must be a score of them in 
 this neighborhood, and every one who falls 
 through us adds to their store of revenge 
 piled up against you and me." 
 
 " That was so great before a shot was fired 
 
118 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEEKS. 
 
 that it cannot be added to. A Shawanoe al- 
 ways keeps a supply on hand wherever a pale- 
 face is concerned." 
 
 "George," said Agnes, after a moment's 
 thought, " it seems to me we made one omis- 
 sion which might have helped in this business 
 had we thought of it in time." 
 
 "And what can that be?" 
 
 " We should have managed by some means 
 to let the Shawanoes know that Jethro was in 
 the cavern. He might have shown himself 
 for an instant. Then they would have be- 
 lieved us to be stronger than we are now, and 
 believing, too, that he was with us, would not 
 look for him on the outside." 
 
 " How would they account for his presence 
 here?" 
 
 " They would think he had entered before 
 us." 
 
 " It is a good idea, and it is a pity we did not 
 think of it, but it is too late now. The attempt 
 is over, and heaven only knows the result." 
 
 " Was there no way by which you could tell 
 whether he made the underground passage in 
 safety?" 
 
SMOKE AND FIEE. 119 
 
 " What way could there be ?" 
 
 " You tell me that you could see the glow 
 of the sunlight in the water that came from 
 the outside. That proves the distance to be 
 short." 
 
 " It can only be a few feet." 
 
 u Then, had he succeeded, what was to pre- 
 vent his making some signal that you could 
 have heard ? He might have whistled or 
 struck a stone against the outer rock. The 
 space is so brief it must have reached you." 
 
 Ashbridge uttered an exclamation of im- 
 patience. 
 
 " Why did you not walk back with Jethro ? 
 You have more wit than we together. The 
 device is so simple that it is a wonder to me 
 that both of us, with all our stupidity, failed 
 to think of it." 
 
 " It did not occur to me until after you were 
 gone, and then," naively added Agnes, "I 
 was certain you would think of it." 
 
 " So would any one except us." 
 
 " What method did you agree upon ?" 
 
 " If Jethro succeeds (and I have little hope 
 that he will,) he is to steal down the ravine 
 
120 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEERS. 
 
 until in front, when he will fling a stone upon 
 the ledge, as he did with our lunch, some 
 hours ago." 
 
 " You know the great danger of that. We 
 can not understand how he escaped discovery 
 before. He surely will not be able to do so 
 again." 
 
 "He may be wise enough to wait until 
 dark." 
 
 " That is not his way of doing things. Be- 
 sides, if the Shawanoes are making ready to 
 capture or destroy us, they will be more on 
 the alert than ever, with the coming of night, 
 and must discover him." 
 
 " But if he succeeds in apprising us, and he 
 will find some means of doing so, if he is 
 alive, the way will be open for us all the same." 
 
 " Suppose we receive no signal from him, 
 what then?" 
 
 " I cannot answer. If it was folly for him 
 to make the venture when the issue was un- 
 certain, how much greater folly for us to un- 
 dertake it, when failure is inevitable !" 
 
 " We will not undertake it, George." 
 
 "What shall we do?" 
 
SMOKE AND FIRE. 121 
 
 " Make the best efforts we can to keep the 
 Shawanoes from entering the cavern until — 
 until—" 
 
 "Until what ?" 
 
 " The folks at home will soon begin won- 
 dering at our absence. The afternoon is far 
 along ; they will not wait many hours ere they 
 begin a search for us, and before another day 
 passes, they will learn where we are." 
 
 The conversation thus went on, while the 
 long summer afternoon slowly wore away. 
 Having plighted their troth months before, 
 George Ashbridge and Agnes Altman were 
 drawn nearer each other in these solemn 
 moments when the shadow of death hovered 
 over both. He was now in his twenty-first 
 year and she in her nineteenth. The parents 
 had consented that the wedding should take 
 place when peace came to that part of the 
 frontier — a peace that would permit all to 
 move to the clearing, from which they had 
 been turned back the previous summer, on 
 the day that they considered their perils and 
 privations at an end. 
 
 What wonder, therefore, that the hearts of 
 
122 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEEKS. 
 
 the two were buoyant with hope when they 
 discovered the two cabins standing just as 
 they had been left nearly a year before ? It 
 had already been planned that their home 
 should be erected on a portion of the fertile 
 spot yet remaining to be cleared. 
 
 Naught had yet come between the happy 
 lovers in that sweet long ago when the skies 
 were radiant and the bow of promise spanned 
 the future— naught but this peril, which they 
 felt was graver than any that had environed 
 them before, though, as the reader will recall, 
 it had been more than once of the gravest 
 nature. 
 
 " Look !" 
 
 The gloom of night was stealing through 
 the woods and into the ravine when Agnes 
 Altaian, seated beside her lover, impulsively 
 caught his arm and pointed to the entrance 
 of the cavern a few paces in front of them. 
 
 He had seen it at the same moment. A 
 limb, large in size, and decayed to the dry- 
 ness of tinder, dropped from the rocks above 
 and lodged at the mouth of the cavern. It 
 was ablaze and the short, swift descent fanned 
 
Besieged. 
 
SMOKE AND FIEE. 123 
 
 the blaze, so that it crackled and burned 
 fiercely as it lay but a few feet distant. 
 
 When the branch was one mass of fire, 
 whose heat was plainly felt by the two, an- 
 other dropped from aloft, quickly followed by 
 another and another until the entrance was 
 half filled with the burning stuff. Several of 
 the sticks were so ill-aimed that they tumbled 
 over the ledge into the ravine before they be- 
 came ignited, but most of them remained and 
 speedily caught fire. 
 
 " What is the meaning of that/' asked the 
 alarmed Agnes. 
 
 " They are trying to burn us out." 
 
 "The cavern is too large for them to do 
 that." 
 
 " They have succeeded already in making 
 it uncomfortable/ ' remarked Ashbridge, -punc- 
 tuating his words with a cough, in which he 
 was speedily imitated by his companion. 
 
 The heavy smoke, instead of sweeping out- 
 ward, seemed to be carried within the cavern, 
 tainting the air so that the two were quickly 
 compelled to shift their position further in- 
 ward. 
 
124 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEERS. 
 
 u We should do it anyway/' explained Ash- 
 bridge, "for the increased light would show 
 us to the Shawanoes, who are on the watch 
 from the other side." 
 
 As if to emphasize his words, a rifle cracked 
 from the point referred to and the quick whizz 
 of the bullet was plainly heard as it sped be- 
 tween the two and lost itself in the darkness 
 beyond. 
 
 The report hastened their footsteps, and 
 they quickly took position where they could 
 command the opening, and escape all danger 
 of being seen. 
 
 Thump, crash, the fuel continued to fall, 
 until it looked as if the entrance would be 
 completely choked. 
 
 "One thing is certain/' observed Agnes, 
 prompt to recover her superb poise and cour- 
 age, " so long as that goes on the Shawanoes 
 themselves cannot enter." 
 
 " I am not so sure of that ; the wall of fire 
 is so narrow that there would be little danger 
 in their leaping through it." 
 
 " If they did so they would enter an atmos- 
 phere which they are striving to make un- 
 
SMOKE AND FIEE. 125 
 
 bearable for us. Can it be they expect to 
 suffocate us T* 
 
 " I don't know what other object they can 
 have. Their actions show they have little 
 knowledge of the extent of this place. Gra- 
 cious! I had no thought that the smoke 
 would penetrate so far," exclaimed the youth, 
 who varied his coughing with a violent fit of 
 sneezing. 
 
 The discomfort increasing, the friends had 
 but one recourse, to push further within, thus 
 securing at least temporary relief. The bon- 
 fire burned vigorously and continued to be fed 
 from the invisible source. The reflection 
 against the wall of rock on the opposite side 
 of the ravine brought it into as vivid sight as at 
 noonday. Every depression and projection, 
 the twists of vine extended irregularly across 
 it, the lumps of dirt on the upper edge, the 
 little gnarled roots of the bushes, which leaned 
 over as if about to fall into the gorge, and even 
 a tiny serpent, which, loosing its hold, tumbled 
 dangling and looping and writhing — all these 
 were seen with a distinctness which could not 
 have been clearer or plainer to the sight. 
 
126 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEEKS. 
 
 The Shawanoes displayed characteristic 
 cunning in their work. When the fire had 
 continued long enough to furnish a consider- 
 able bed of coals they flung down greener 
 limbs. These burned more slowly and sent 
 up a thicker volume of smoke, which, with 
 the same perversity as at first, swept into the 
 cavern, although it was not known that there 
 was an outlet by which a current of air could 
 be created. 
 
 The situation of the two steadily increased 
 in discomfort. It was as if the heavy vapor 
 persistently sought out their every refuge. It 
 caused their eyes and throats to smart and 
 kept them sneezing and coughing continually. 
 
 " It is easier to breathe near the floor," said 
 Ashbridge, who, having retreated some dis- 
 tance, sat down again ; " the smoke naturally 
 rises." 
 
 Agnes had noted the fact and availed her- 
 self of it. They were now fully a dozen 
 yards from the opening, and hoped they 
 would be able to remain without retreating 
 further. The Shawanoes had ceased, at least 
 for the time, to fling down wood upon the 
 
SMOKE AND FIRE. 127 
 
 flame, and the distance and obscuration caused 
 by the vapor rendered the view of the oppo- 
 site wall indistinct. 
 
 " If any of them could steal up in front of 
 the flames he would certainly be able to see 
 us, even at this distance," remarked Ash- 
 bridge. 
 
 " But would himself be more distinctly seen 
 by us/' suggested Agnes. 
 
 11 Can it be they are through with trying to 
 smother us? There has been no new fuel 
 thrown down for some time, and night is fully 
 come." 
 
 " If they really meant to smoke us to death, 
 how will they know whether they have suc- 
 ceeded ?" 
 
 " Enter the cavern and investigate," sug- 
 gested the youth. 
 
 " They would not have to hunt long before 
 finding us — George, I thought I saw some- 
 thing pass in front of the flames just then, but 
 it moved so quickly that I couldn't make out 
 what it was." 
 
 " I didn't observe it ; we will watch for it 
 again." 
 
128 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEEKS. 
 
 By this time the wood had burned to that 
 extent that most of the smoke was dissipated, 
 and it was easy to see the gray rocks on the 
 further side of the gorge. The remark of the 
 young woman concentrated the attention of 
 both on the point where she had caught the 
 flitting glimpse of an object she could not 
 identify. 
 
 " Well, by gracious !" exclaimed Ashbridge ; 
 " I forgot about that! You saw it, Agnes, that 
 time?" 
 
 " Yes ; it was a stone." 
 
 " That, and nothing else ! Can it be pos- 
 sible? Yes; it must be true; Jethro did 
 reach the outside by the underground pas- 
 sage ; he flung that stone up as a signal that 
 he is all right. It seems like a miracle, yet it 
 may be true. I can hardly credit my senses." 
 
 " Heaven has not deserted us !" was the 
 reverent response of Agnes; "this means 
 everything to us, George." 
 
 She had risen to her feet, and paid no heed 
 to the murky vapor which stole into every 
 crevice in the cavern and rendered their dis- 
 comfort almost intolerable. 
 
SMOKE AND FIRE. 129 
 
 Her companion was hardly a moment be- 
 hind her, and no less excited than she. For 
 more than an hour each had forborne all ref- 
 erence to Jethro Juggens, because they be- 
 lieved him dead. On the contrary, he was 
 very much alive. 
 
 " I hope he will rest satisfied with the last 
 notice," said George, " for he must have run 
 much personal risk, with such a bright light 
 in the ravine." 
 
 "Had he been content with his first at- 
 tempt this afternoon we would have received 
 no lunch, nor would we have identified the 
 signal meant to tell us he was safe on the out- 
 side." 
 
 The two waited some minutes, intently 
 watching the illuminated space around the 
 opening of the cavern, but the keenest scru- 
 tiny detected nothing. It must have been 
 that Jethro failed to lodge the stone on the 
 ledge at first, and made a second throw. 
 
 "Now let us lose no time in following 
 him," whispered Agnes; "I have a dread 
 that the Shawanoes will attempt something 
 else against which we shall be helpless." 
 
130 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEERS. 
 
 " I have no idea what it can be." 
 
 " Nor have I, nor do I care to know ; come 
 
 on." 
 
 She took the lead, walking more rapidly 
 Ihan seemed prudent to her companion ; but 
 the space to the stream was short and was 
 quickly passed. 
 
 " This must be the spot where you saw the 
 light from the outside," added Agnes, whose 
 sense of touch apprised her that they were at 
 the point where the water dipped under the 
 rocks. 
 
 "You are right; here is where we must 
 make the final venture, and — who shall go 
 first, Agnes? You or I?" 
 
THROUGH THE FOBEST. 131 
 
 CHAPTEE IX. 
 
 THROUGH THE FOREST. 
 
 GEORGE ASHBRIDGE and Agnes Alt- 
 man stood on the bank of the little un- 
 derground stream, in utter darkness, debating 
 as to who should first make the critical plunge. 
 
 He had already decided, before asking the 
 question, that he should take precedence. De- 
 spite the success that had marked both efforts 
 of Jethro Juggens, he was convinced that the 
 venture was attended by all the peril conceiv- 
 able. Fate seemed to have selected the Af- 
 rican youth as the special favorite of fortune, 
 for good luck had gone with him time and 
 again where an experienced ranger like Si- 
 mon Kenton or Daniel Boone would have re- 
 coiled in dismay. 
 
 Several times Ashbridge had asked himself 
 whether it was not possible to change the 
 course of the stream for a brief time, as as to 
 
132 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEERS. 
 
 leave the channel partially empty. If that 
 could be done, it would give them the chance 
 to grope their way to the outside more at leis- 
 ure and without risk, with the opportunity of 
 returning to the cavern in the event of failure. 
 
 But no means were at command for the ex- 
 periment. The stream, in the course of many 
 ages, had worn a deep channel for itself, ren- 
 dering a complete damming necessary to throw 
 its volume out of alignment. He had been un- 
 able to find any soil or loose rocks with which 
 to build such an obstruction, and the project, 
 therefore, was dismissed from his mind. 
 
 " God help her if I venture and fail !" was 
 his prayer as he put the question to her. She 
 answered, with a calmness that surprised him : 
 
 " I do not see that it makes any difference ; 
 each has to try it, and we cannot go together ; 
 suppose I lead ?" 
 
 " With your permission I will act as guide," 
 he remarked, assuming all the indifference 
 possible. " If the opening is so near, I may 
 be able to call back some directions that will 
 assist you." 
 
 "As you prefer; but I think you had bet- 
 
THROUGH THE FOREST. 133 
 
 ter' not try to do so. Some of the Indians 
 may be so near that they will hear you. I 
 have had so little experience in swimming 
 underground or below the water that I couldn't 
 follow your instructions, no matter how simple, 
 even if I heard them." 
 
 " Let me relieve you of your rifle." 
 
 "I cannot permit that ; you will have enough 
 work to manage your own ; I can handle mine 
 as well as you ; why wait any longer, George ?" 
 
 His heart was beating tumultuously. The 
 fear was strong upon him that this might be 
 their eternal separation, and he longed to press 
 her to his heart and tell her again how he 
 loved her more than all the world beside ; but 
 to do that would unnerve her, and might 
 bring about the very catastrophe he dreaded 
 with an unspeakable dread. 
 
 So with an effort almost superhuman he re- 
 strained the words that trembled on his lips 
 and forced himself to say, with seeming cheer- 
 iness : 
 
 " Since we expect to be together so soon, I 
 will not say 'Good-bye.' Jethro made the 
 voyage head foremost, and I will try the same 
 
134 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEERS. 
 
 method. Here goes !" he added, repeating 
 the words that were used by Jethro Juggens 
 upon parting with him. 
 
 " Heaven be with you !" was all that Agnes 
 had time to say when her companion vanished, 
 and she knew she was alone. 
 
 A strange hesitancy took possession of her. 
 She recalled with dismay that she had not 
 asked Ashbridge to signal to her as soon as he 
 effected the passage. She had reproved him 
 for not arranging something of the nature 
 with Jethro Juggens, and then had forgotten 
 to do so when placed in the same situation. 
 
 " But it was not necessary," she made her- 
 self believe ; " he may not call to me, for I 
 warned him against that, but he will think to 
 knock on the rock outside, and I will be sure 
 to hear him. It is time he did so." 
 
 The seconds seemed minutes in her intense 
 anxiety, but the passage of necessity must be 
 finished almost as soon as begun. Why 
 should he keep her waiting for an instant even ? 
 
 With a coolness beyond her power to ex- 
 plain, she stooped down and held her hand in 
 the water. 
 
THROUGH THE FOREST. 135 
 
 " It flows fast/' she reflected ; " If anything 
 happens to George, and his way is obstructed, 
 the stream will instantly rise ; I can not see 
 that it does ; he must have gone through 
 without trouble." 
 
 She straightened up again to prepare for 
 the ordeal. There was really little if any 
 preparation to make ; all she had to do was to 
 lie down in the icy current and trust herself 
 to Providence. 
 
 But she lingered, not from any shrinking 
 because of the trial, but that she might hear 
 the longed-for signal from Ashbridge. She 
 yearned to know that all had gone well with 
 him. 
 
 She had fully resolved on the venture, no 
 matter what the issue to him. 
 
 " If he has been drowned then I wish to be 
 drowned, too," was the yearning prayer of her 
 heart. 
 
 Still the signal did not come. 
 
 She looked toward the mouth of the cavern. 
 The fire was still burning, and with a brighter 
 glow than when she last noted it. The Shawa- 
 noes had flung down more fuel from the tops 
 
136 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEERS. 
 
 of the rocks, and the heavy smoke was again 
 rolling toward her and stealing into every 
 nook and crevice. Once she fancied she de- 
 tected the figure of a warrior that bad 
 bounded through the wall of fire and was 
 hastening toward her. But if she really saw 
 the fearsome sight it did not cause an addi- 
 tional heart throb or awaken interest. Long 
 before the intruder could reach her her own 
 fate would be decided. 
 
 She roused herself to wait no longer. 
 
 She modified the plan adopted by Jethro 
 and George. She naturally recoiled from 
 shooting down the stream head foremost. It 
 was not only repulsive to her sense of pro- 
 priety, but seemed more dangerous. A slight 
 obstruction, not sufficient to check her pro- 
 gress, but possibly to change her course to a 
 slight extent, might be more safely struck 
 with the feet than with the head. In the lat- 
 ter case a partial stunning was almost inevi- 
 table, with serious consequences certain. 
 
 Agnes stood erect in the current, which 
 flowed swiftly about the lower part of her 
 limbs. Then, clasping her rifle close to her 
 
THEOUGH THE FOEEST. 137 
 
 body in front, with the muzzle before her face 
 and the stock at her knees, sank slowly down- 
 ward on her back. 
 
 While doing so she murmured the prayer : 
 
 "O, God, take care of me; whatever the 
 fate of George let that be mine." 
 
 Before she raised her feet the current as- 
 sumed control of her. She closed her eyes, 
 set her lips and resigned herself to the will of 
 heaven. Then she seemed to be rushing, not 
 horizon i tally, but downward toward the centre 
 of the earth. It was as if she were in a foun- 
 dering vessel that was sinking miles and miles 
 to the bottom of the ocean. It appeared as 
 if the awful journey would never end. 
 
 Through it all she retained the mastery of 
 her senses. She resolutely held her breath, 
 well aware of the consequences of any attempt 
 to breathe, while the water was on all sides 
 and above her. She made no effort to help 
 herself, for that was beyond her power. She 
 felt her right elbow rub against the rock at 
 her side, but the contact was slight and only 
 for an instant. One of her feet struck some- 
 thing with more force, but she was not sensi- 
 
138 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEERS. 
 
 ble of any injury, and it instantly freed itself. 
 The water was like the clasp of death, but in 
 her exaltation she paid no heed. It seemed 
 all a gruesome dream ; and, as the events of a 
 lifetime may be concentrated in a few seconds 
 of sleep, so this strange experience of Agnes 
 Altman, seeming of intolerable length, was 
 begun and ended, as may be said, in a twink- 
 ling. 
 
 The next startling sensation was that some 
 monster had seized her in his arms and was 
 about to devour her. 
 
 " Speak, darling, Agnes, it is I ! Are you 
 hurt ? What has happened to you ?" 
 
 " Thank heaven ! thank heaven ! Nothing 
 has happened to me, George ! 1 am unhurt ; 
 do you thank God, too ?" 
 
 "I do," was the fervent offering of the 
 youth, who had kept his place in the middle 
 of the current that by no possibility she might 
 pass him in the darkness, which was now al- 
 most as profound as within the cavern itself. 
 He could see nothing, but the instant her feet 
 touched him he stooped and caught her, and 
 stepped upon the dry rock at his side. 
 
THEOUGH THE FOREST. 139 
 
 " Are you injured, or hurt in any way ?" he 
 eagerly asked, after the first explanations had 
 passed between them. 
 
 "Not in the least," she replied, quick to 
 recover herself. 
 
 The garments of both were saturated. Ag- 
 nes passed her gun to Ashbridge, and drawing 
 out her handkerchief from her pocket, wrung 
 it as nearly dry as she could, and used it to 
 clear the water from her face and eyes. Hat, 
 clothing, shoes, stockings, everything were as 
 wet as could be — what of that ? Had not both 
 made the perilous passage in safety, and that, 
 too, when neither felt scarcely a hope of doing 
 so? 
 
 A curious feature of the underground pas- 
 sage of the three friends was that the most 
 difficulty and danger was encountered by 
 Jethro Juggens and the least by Agnes Alt- 
 man. The young men, as will be remembered, 
 took the plunge "head on." The African's crown 
 struck a projection at the side of the cavern 
 with such force that he was stunned, and es- 
 caped drowning by a hair's breadth. He was 
 confused and helpless for the moment, but the 
 
140 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEEKS. 
 
 force of the current swept him forward, and 
 by a desperate rally he recovered himself and 
 clambered to his feet. 
 
 It was not so bad with Ashbridge, though 
 there came an awful moment 'when, with the 
 breathless buzzing, spinning, whirring in his 
 ears, all became a blankness of darkness, and 
 he felt himself in the grasp of the dark angel 
 and borne toward the terrible beyond. 
 
 It has been explained that nothing of the 
 kind was experienced by Agnes Altman. 
 Had her predecessors adopted her method 
 they undoubtedly would have received less 
 rough treatment. She clung fast to her rifle, 
 kept her skirts gathered as closely as possible 
 about her feet, and, since the distance was 
 really less than she supposed, was in actual 
 peril but a few seconds. 
 
 Naturally it was several minutes before the 
 two fully rallied. They were standing in the 
 woods, with rocks, bowlders and bushes around 
 them, and such dense vegetation overhead that 
 not a ray of the faint moonlight reached them. 
 They could find no more use for their eyes 
 than when in the cavern ; indeed, not so much, 
 
THROUGH THE FOREST. 141 
 
 for there the illumination of the burning wood 
 was of some help to the vision. 
 
 "George," said his companion, with the 
 natural buoyancy of youth and awakened 
 hope, " my clothing feels as if it is damp." 
 
 " I have noticed something of the same 
 kind about mine ; we must have exposed our- 
 selves to the wet." 
 
 " I didn't hear your signal to me." 
 
 " I didn't signal." 
 
 " Why not?" 
 
 " Well, I expected you to follow without a 
 minute's delay, and was afraid that if I stepped 
 from the stream I might lose you. You could 
 shoot past without my seeing you. I am quite 
 sure this stream makes another dive among 
 the rocks, and if either of us were caught in 
 it there would be no escape." 
 
 "I dreaded that something had befallen 
 you, and you had been killed. I never was 
 in greater torture in so brief a time. The de- 
 liverance has been so sudden, so complete, that 
 it is hard to realize it. Have you any idea of 
 where we are ?" 
 
 " Very little except that we're outside the 
 
142 m THE DAYS OF THE PIONEERS. 
 
 cavern. The trees are so plentiful and the 
 bushes so thick that the moon gives us no 
 help. I hope we shall soon reach a place 
 where we can use our eyes." 
 
 " We have been so fortunate that we must 
 make no more blunders, if we can help it. 
 You know how apt one is to lose his way in 
 the woods at such a time. Listen !" 
 
 Through the solemn stillness crept a low, 
 soft murmur, which the two recognized as the 
 voice of the Ohio on its way to the distant sea. 
 With this as their guide they could not go far 
 astray. It seemed to both that the river lay 
 in another direction, but they were too wise 
 not to know that the misconception was with 
 themselves. 
 
 " What of Jethro ?" inquired Agnes. 
 
 " He has done his part, and neither of us 
 can do any more for the other. He gave us 
 notice that all was well with him, and we have 
 nothing to do but to push on to the block- 
 house without waiting for the sun to rise. He 
 expects us to do so, for the understanding with 
 him was that we would make the attempt to 
 follow him as soon as we got his notice." 
 
THROUGH THE FOEEST. 143 
 
 "I should think he would be near this 
 spot." 
 
 " He may not think it necessary. As you 
 have said, there is no foretelling or account- 
 ing for his movements. We must leave him 
 now to make his way back to the block-house 
 as best he can. He has been so fortunate thus 
 far that we have reason to hope he will reach 
 there without trouble." 
 
 " We may need to use our guns ; ought we 
 not to examine them ?" 
 
 " It is a wise suggestion, as is everything 
 that comes from you." 
 
 The old-fashioned rifle, such as was used by 
 the pioneers of the West, was the inferior of 
 the present arm in many respects. As is well 
 known, it was so heavy as to be quite a bur- 
 den to a strong man, who was glad to avail 
 himself of a rest in sighting it. Sometimes 
 the ramrod served that purpose, and often a 
 log or branch of a tree, though the hunter 
 and ranger in the woods was expert without 
 these aids. Repeating weapons of the crudest 
 pattern may have been known in Europe, 
 but they were unheard of on this side of the 
 
144 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEERS. 
 
 Atlantic, as was the use of the percussion 
 cap. 
 
 When the wadding had been rammed home 
 on top of the charge of powder (the ramming 
 being continued until the rod bounded up- 
 ward in the barrel), the bullet, generally 
 wrapped about with a bit of muslin fashioned 
 for that purpose, was carefully shoved down 
 the chamber, and gently but firmly pressed in 
 place, there being no bounding of the rod 
 in this instance. If the muslin was not at 
 hand, a piece of paper, or a fragment torn 
 from one's clothing, in an emergency, did 
 duty. Then the cumbersome hammer, clasp- 
 ing the piece of flint, was drawn back so as to 
 expose the pan, into which the powder was 
 poured. The hammer was discreetly let down, 
 and the black grains were thus retained in 
 place. The weapon was then ready for service. 
 
 When one of those guns was submerged for 
 any time under water the powder became un- 
 fit for use. The remedy was to withdraw the 
 charge and reload the gun. This was done by 
 means of a screw at t>he end of the ramrod, 
 from which the cap was twisted. 
 
THROUGH THE FOREST. • 145 
 
 George Aslibridge went through this opera- 
 tion with both weapons. He had learned to 
 do it in the dark almost as well as in the day- 
 light. When he passed the smaller gun back 
 to Agnes, it was with the certainty that it 
 would not fail her. 
 
 He now began picking his way through the 
 forest in the direction of the river. His wish 
 was to reach the trail leading to the block- 
 house, along which they could hasten with a 
 speed that ought to take them thither in the 
 course of two or three hours. 
 
 The task for a time was a hard one. Rocks, 
 bowlders, gulleys, sharp elevations and de- 
 pressions were on every hand, and only by the 
 utmost care did he prevent many a tumble. 
 He kept slightly in advance, so as to select 
 the path for his companion, who displayed 
 characteristic coolness, courage, and readiness 
 in following him. 
 
 "Matters are improving," he said, in a 
 
 guarded undertone, as he came to a brief halt 
 
 and reached out for her hand ; " the way is 
 
 not so rough as it was, and we shall soon reach 
 
 a more level portion." 
 
 10 
 
146 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEERS. 
 
 " I hope so/' she whispered ; " but, George, 
 I am sure some one is following us ; I have 
 heard footsteps in the last few minutes close 
 to me." 
 
 " It may be Jethro, who is afraid to speak." 
 
 " I think not." 
 
 Unfortunately, Agnes Altman was right in 
 her conclusion. 
 
A SUPPRESSED CRY. 147 
 
 CHAPTER X. 
 
 A SUPPRESSED CRY. 
 
 AS in the former instance, sufficient intima- 
 tions have been given regarding the 
 movements of Jethro Juggens for the reader 
 to know that the part laid out for him had been 
 performed well. His experience, however, dif- 
 fered in many respects from anything that had 
 yet befallen him. 
 
 It has been told that when he shot from 
 under the cavern into daylight he came within 
 a hair of losing his life. The hardness of his 
 head saved him, as it had done more than once 
 in his career. 
 
 "Gracious heben !" he growled, as he scram- 
 bled out of the water, " ef Marse George and 
 Miss Agnes come frough in dat style dey'll be 
 smashed all to flinders, and when dey start fur 
 de block-house will find dey hain't got any 
 heads to take 'long wid 'em." 
 
148 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEERS. 
 
 " But Miss Agnes knows a heap more dan 
 George, fact almost as much as me, and she'll 
 tink ob some way to sabe 'em ; like 'nough 
 she'll find a feather-bed . inside de cavern, 
 which she can hold in front ob dar heads, so 
 dey won't strike as hard as me." 
 
 Jethro's massive strength and perfect health 
 enabled him to rally quite readily from the 
 shock he had received, and he bestirred him- 
 self. Several hours of daylight still remained, 
 and he could not forget his pledge to Ash- 
 bridge to notify him in case the venture ended 
 well. The next step was for him to steal down 
 the ravine to the point he had reached before, 
 and fling the stone upward to the ledge as a 
 signal that his friends might undertake a 
 journey over the " underground railway " with 
 some hope of reaching their destination in 
 safety. 
 
 Fully mindful of the danger which encom- 
 passed him on every hand, Jethro stole among 
 the trees, around rocks and bowlders, and 
 through the tangled vines and undergrowth, 
 until he gained the head of the ravine with- 
 out seeing or having been seen by a single 
 
A SUPPEESSED CEY. 149 
 
 Shawanoe. With the same care that he had 
 shown from the first, he secreted himself in 
 the spot where he was on the point of firing 
 at the two Shawanoes earlier in the day. 
 
 He saw at once that it would not do for him 
 to repeat his venture. At the top of the ra- 
 vine, on the same side with the opening to the 
 cavern, an agitation drew his attention, and he 
 quickly perceived that the Indians were at 
 some mischief. Glimpses were seen of others 
 stealthily moving about on the opposite crest, 
 so that, had Jethro ventured from his hiding- 
 place into the ravine, discovery was inevitable. 
 
 " I'll hab to wait till dey go away or night 
 comes. De folks in dar won't move till dey 
 knows it am all right wid me; darfore de no- 
 tice must be sent to 'em." 
 
 When the shadows of night began closing 
 around him, Jethro discovered the meaning 
 of the puzzling movements. A burning log 
 was let down from the rocks above and 
 dropped in front of the cavern entrance, 
 speedily followed by others, as has been told 
 in another place. 
 
 "De scamperageous heathen!" exclaimed 
 
150 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEEKS. 
 
 the youth, boiling with indignation ; " dey 
 mean to burn up de folks I" 
 
 Reflection, however, speedily convinced 
 Jethro that if the Shawanoes had undertaken 
 the contract they would find themselves " un- 
 able to deliver the goods." There was too 
 much space in the cavern behind the fugitives 
 to endanger their lives from suffocation, unless 
 the fire should be made much fiercer and be 
 long continued. 
 
 This fear greatly stirred the fellow, who 
 became so anxious to aid his friends that he 
 ventured into the ravine without waiting as 
 long as was prudent. He kept close under 
 the bank on the right, and thus gained the 
 benefit of shadow, since the reflection of the 
 burning wood was shut off by the projecting 
 ledge. His movement could not have been 
 more guarded and stealthy, and, when he 
 stood directly beneath the blazing wood, it was 
 with the conviction that he was undetected, 
 though certain that some of the warriors were 
 upon the opposite crest. 
 
 He had selected the stone that was to do 
 duty before leaving his perch in the rocks, 
 
A SUPPRESSED CEY. 151 
 
 and he now flung it aloft with great power 
 and skill. He was compelled, however, to 
 hurl it so nearly perpendicular, that, as has been 
 told, it failed to lodge, and narrowly missed 
 descending upon his crown, as the lunch had 
 done when tossed over by Ashbridge. The 
 second effort succeeded. 
 
 " Dar !" he muttered, with a sigh of satis- 
 faction, " Dat tells de whole story, and all dey 
 hab to do am to do what dey hab to do." 
 
 He had maintained his position so contin- 
 uously in the shadow, that he was confident 
 that he had escaped the keen eyes of the hos- 
 tiles, and restraining his impatience, began 
 stealing back again, with a caution and delib- 
 eration which Simon Kenton himself could 
 not have surpassed. 
 
 Proceeding in this guarded fashion, Jethro 
 finally arrived at the base of the rocks from 
 which he had ascended into the ravine. He 
 paused a moment and looked back and listened. 
 He was so far removed from where the wood 
 ' was blazing and crackling on the ledge that 
 none of its glow fell near him, but the gray 
 walls on the other side were clearly outlined, 
 
152 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEEKS. 
 
 and high up the face of the cliff on the right 
 the crimson light shone with weird effect. 
 
 Seeing nothing to cause misgiving, the ser- 
 vant began climbing the sloping rocks in front 
 of him. The moon, which was now above 
 the tree-tops, added its faint illumination to 
 the impressive scene. The Shawanoes had 
 ceased throwing down fuel upon the flames, 
 and an oppressive silence had settled over 
 ravine and forest. 
 
 Jethro paused upon reaching the elevated 
 perch from which he had descended and care- 
 fully studied the faintly illuminated gloom 
 behind him. 
 
 "I don't tink any ob de heathen cotched 
 sight on me, dough I went mighty clus to 
 whar dey war. Dat must hab been," he added, 
 with a touch of his natural waggery, " dat I 
 was not only in de darkness myself, but I am 
 also as dark as I kin be." 
 
 The chuckle with which he welcomed his 
 own witticism was checked by the sudden dis- 
 covery that a dim, shadowy object was not 
 only at the base of the slope, but was silently 
 making its way upward toward him. The 
 
A SUPPEESSED CRY. 153 
 
 light was too faint for him too see clearly, but 
 he could not doubt its identity. 
 
 " It's one ob 'em, suah ! He seed me after 
 all and has followed me, but he hain't cotched 
 me yit." 
 
 Veiling the sound with the utmost care, 
 Jethro cautiously raised the hammer of his 
 rifle. Faint as was the dull click, it seemed 
 to strike the ear of the shadowy form ascend- 
 ing the rocks. He paused and remained in a 
 couching posture for a full minute, evidently 
 listening. All this time the African did not 
 stir a muscle and seemed to hold his breath. 
 He did not wish to frighten away the warrior, 
 but feared he had done so. 
 
 But, hearing nothing further, the Indian 
 must have decided he was mistaken, for he 
 resumed his ascent of the rugged incline. 
 
 Jethro felt certain from the moment of dis- 
 covery that the game was his. He was so 
 screened himself that his enemy could not see 
 him (and possibly there may have been a 
 slight favoring circumstance in his ebony com- 
 plexion), while he never lost trace of the other 
 in the dim obscurity. His intention was to 
 
154 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEERS. 
 
 wait until the Indian was almost within arm's 
 length, and then, raising his rifle, let fly. His 
 mood resembled to some extent that shown by 
 the American race at such times, and which 
 is the same as that which causes the cat to 
 play with the mouse before crunching it in its 
 jaws. 
 
 The Shawanoe, like all his people, was 
 " shod with silence" as he came up the rocks. 
 The listening Jethro could not detect the 
 faintest rustling, and but for the dim, shadowy 
 outlines, as revealed in the faint moonlight, 
 would never have suspected that one of the 
 red men had discovered him when he was 
 under the fire on the ledge, and set out to se- 
 cure his scalp. 
 
 The warrior was within ten feet or less, his 
 shoulders thrown forward, his posture a 
 crouching one, as he now advanced with more 
 deliberation, when Jethro silently rose to his 
 feet and confronted him. 
 
 " Dar ! I reckon as how yo' hab come 'bout 
 far 'nough, yo' ole heathen ! Dat's de way I 
 sarve de likes ob yo'." 
 
 Up went the gun, and at the same instant 
 
A SUPPEESSED CEY. 155 
 
 the trigger was pulled. A hissing, sputtering 
 flash followed, but there was no report. It had 
 missed fire. 
 
 Unlike Ashbridge and Agnes, Jethro had 
 forgotten to withdraw the charge and reload 
 it after the wetting it received. 
 
 But he knew the danger of a personal en- 
 counter with a warrior who held a deadly- 
 knife. If he permitted it there would be lit- 
 tle hope for him. He dropped his weapon to 
 the ground and recoiled a step. 
 
 The Shawanoe, who, but for the mishap, 
 would have ended his career then and there, 
 comprehended on the instant the nature of 
 his escape. He, too, dropped his gun, and, 
 snatching the knife from his girdle, bounded 
 forward like a tiger and struck a vicious blow 
 at his dusky antagonist. 
 
 The latter's slight recoil was all that saved 
 him. The blade cut the air in front of the 
 African's face, and he, without once attempt- 
 ing to use his own knife, stepped forward 
 again and flung his arms about the body of 
 his enemy. Providentially, as the vise-like 
 limbs closed, they clasped both arms of the 
 
156 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEERS. 
 
 Indian above the elbow and pinned them to 
 his sides. Before he could writhe himself 
 free, as he assuredly would have done had a 
 half-minute's opportunity been given, Jethro 
 lifted the squirming body fully a foot above 
 the ground with as much ease as if his enemy 
 were an infant, swung it around to the right 
 so as to gain momentum, and then hurled it 
 from him. 
 
 The long, sinewy figure went spinning into 
 the darkness, arms and legs beating the air, 
 but utterly powerless to help himself, or check 
 his flight in the slightest degree. So prodi- 
 gious was the propulsion given by Jethro, that 
 the sprawling Indian cleared the entire slope, 
 striking nothing until he came down with 
 stunning violence at the bottom of the ravine. 
 
 " Dar ! I reckons you'll sot there awhile I" 
 exclaimed the dusky youth, who plainly 
 heard the " dull thud," as the downward pro- 
 gress of his assailant ceased. " I don't know 
 how I come to forget 'bout de charge in my 
 gun bein' wet ; I hope de oder folks will hab 
 more sense." 
 
 He showed his prudence by stealing from 
 
A SUPPRESSED CRY. 157 
 
 the dangerous place, without waiting to repair 
 the mistake he had made with his weapon. 
 He did not go far, however, before he halted 
 and put his rifle in instant readiness. 
 
 " I spose I might hab picked up his gun 
 and fotched it along, but dar would hab been 
 too much risk, and my own has neber failed 
 me when I treated it right.' 1 
 
 Relieved of all fear for the time concerning 
 himself, Jethro's thoughts naturally reverted 
 to his friends. He reasoned : 
 
 " Dey hab done tried to foller me by dis 
 time, and am on de outside or drowned, I 
 can't fotch 'em back to life again or do 'em any 
 good. Marse George was so disgumptioned 
 'cause I didn't go to the block-house when I 
 had the chance, dat ef he and Miss Agnes gets 
 frough all right, dey'll strike for de same 
 place dat I had better likewise also strike for." 
 
 Inasmuch as the fellow proceeded to act 
 upon this decision, we may part with him for 
 a time, though the course of incidents must 
 soon bring him forward again. 
 
 It will be recalled that George Ashbridge 
 and Agnes Altman, after emerging from the 
 
158 m THE DAYS OF THE PIONEEES. 
 
 little stream on the outside of the cavern, set out 
 to retrace their way to the trail leading to the 
 block-house. It was laborious work, and con- 
 siderable time passed before any improve- 
 ment was noted. Then, when he paused for 
 a brief rest, and, turning about, took the hand 
 of his beloved, she whispered the terrifying 
 intelligence that some one was following them, 
 and she not did believe it was Jethro Juggens. 
 
 " How can you know that ?" he asked in 
 the most guarded of undertones, as he drew 
 her still nearer and held his mouth close to 
 her ear. 
 
 "He would have spoken or made more 
 noise." 
 
 " He may be afraid to speak, and has 
 learned to walk carefully ; where does he seem 
 to be?" 
 
 " That's the strangest part of it, George," 
 she replied, clinging more closely to him and 
 glancing around in the gloom, as though she 
 expected to catch sight of the dreaded being ; 
 " once it was on the right, next on the left, 
 but most of the time close behind me." 
 
 u It could not have been for long." 
 
A SUPPEESSED CRY. 159 
 
 " No ; for it is but a short time since we left 
 the cavern." 
 
 "Why did you not tell me ?" 
 
 "I was sure you heard him; I dreaded to 
 speak, and I did hope that it might prove to 
 be Jethro, but I am sure it is not — sh !" 
 
 The warning was not uttered because the 
 young woman had heard anything just then, 
 but in the expectation that something might 
 fall on her ears. The two stood as motionless 
 as the tree trunks around them, and looked 
 and listened with all the intensity at their 
 command. The soft rustling of the gentle 
 wind among the leaves above them, and the 
 almost inaudible murmur of the Ohio were 
 the only sounds that came to their ears. 
 
 The Shawanoe — as Ashbridge now be- 
 lieved their pursuer to be — was a veteran on 
 the trail, and kept such close study of the 
 movements of the pioneers that he halted at 
 the same moment. The youth resorted to an 
 artifice, holding fast the hand of Agnes, as he 
 did so, that she might not be deceived. He 
 raised his feet as if walking, but put them 
 down in the same place, so that he did not 
 
160 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEEKS. 
 
 change his position. Then he abruptly stopped 
 with a whispered query : 
 
 " Did you hear anything more ?" 
 
 "No." 
 
 " That proves he is an Indian ; I hope there 
 is only one." 
 
 Evidently nothing was to be gained, and 
 much might be lost by standing where they 
 were. By some unaccountable means one 
 Shawanoe at least had learned of the flight of 
 the fugitives and was dogging them. There 
 could be no safety until he was thrown off the 
 trail. 
 
 Ashbridge gently drew his loved companion 
 forward. She understood his meaning and 
 stepped as lightly as possible. Could they 
 slip away unnoticed in the darkness ? Possi- 
 bly they might have succeeded but for a 
 slight mishap which spoiled all. 
 
 Ashbridge caught his foot in a running 
 vine, which twisted like wire round his ankle. 
 He loosened his grasp of Agnes' hand to save 
 himself, but went forward on his knees, and 
 dropped his gun. It was quickly recovered, 
 however, and he clambered unhurt to his feet. 
 
A SUPPEESSED CEY. 161 
 
 " That was an awkward fall," lie said ; " I 
 don't know that it would not be a good thing 
 to have a little sunlight, or at least, more of 
 the moon's rays." 
 
 He naturally expected some comment or 
 response upon this, but there was none. 
 
 "Here I am, Agnes; let me take your 
 hand ; this way." 
 
 To his dismay there was no reply to his re- 
 quest. He had thought he heard her light 
 footsteps on the leaves, but his heart almost 
 ceased beating when he noted that the sounds, 
 although still audible, were rapidly growing 
 fainter. They were receding ! 
 
 "Agnes! Agnes!" he called in anguish, 
 " where are you ? Speak, that I may rush to 
 you ! Speak, Agnes !" 
 
 A suppressed cry, as if the words were 
 smothered in their utterance, came through 
 the impenetrable forest arches to him, and 
 then all was still. 
 
 11 
 
162 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEEBS. 
 
 CHAPTEE XL 
 
 A SINGULAR MEETING. 
 
 FOR one moment George Ashbridge be- 
 lieved it was a dream. The whole thing 
 came and passed with such incredible swift- 
 ness that he was dazed. In one breath, as it 
 were, he was talking with Agnes Altman, and 
 the next she had vanished. 
 
 It was that partial, smothered cry, borne to 
 him through the darkness, that made known 
 the woeful truth. She had been seized and 
 carried off by an Indian. It was done with 
 that consummate cunning and deftness some- 
 times shown by the American race under cer- 
 tain circumstances. 
 
 It may have been one, two or even more 
 Indians that had come upon the fugitives after 
 their remarkable escape from the cavern. In- 
 stead of making a quick, fierce attack, which 
 in the gloom would have been fatal, they 
 
A SINGULAB MEETING. 163 
 
 chose to follow them with a stealth that led 
 Ashbridge to suspect for a time that his com- 
 panion was mistaken. 
 
 Their primal object, as events afterwards 
 proved, was the capture of the young woman. 
 It may be that, knowing the relation between 
 her and her escort, they also knew that if she 
 were taken and her lover left he would walk 
 into their power, without effort of their own, 
 in his desperate resolve to rescue her. It may 
 have been, too, that in catching his foot in the 
 vine at that instant, and stumbling, George 
 Ashbridge builded better than he knew, and 
 escaped a blow or movement that would have 
 been equally fatal but for the apparent mis- 
 hap. 
 
 But without attempting to theorize, when 
 for the present it must be unsatisfactory, let 
 us relate events as they occurred. 
 
 The instant the faint cry, suppressed on the 
 moment, struck the ear of Ashbridge, it roused 
 him from his bewilderment, and he dashed in 
 its direction with a blind energy which would 
 not have been his at any other time. Where 
 all was blank darkness, in the midst of the 
 
164 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEEKS. 
 
 deep wood, only one result was possible. It 
 was fortunate that, after being scratched, 
 bruised, and thrown again to the ground, he 
 was not seriously hurt. 
 
 The violent fall served partially to recall him 
 to his senses. Climbing to his feet, he rested 
 his hand against the trunk of a tree at his side 
 and strove to retain mastery of his senses. 
 
 Strange that the captors of Agnes could 
 move so rapidly through the wood with her 
 as to make no noise, and yet he could not 
 advance a rod without crashing like a bison 
 and finally falling to the ground. He listened 
 closely, but the same murmur of the Ohio 
 and the sighing of the night wind among 
 the branches were the only sounds that came 
 to him. 
 
 A sudden suspicion flashed upon Ashbridge. 
 It was that the captors of his beloved had not 
 moved more than a few paces from the spot 
 where she was seized. A less distance than 
 that would have been sufficient for perfect 
 concealment, and would account for the still- 
 ness when he sought to learn the line of flight 
 through his own sense of hearing. 
 
A SINGULAR MEETING. 165 
 
 " Agnes !" he called, in a voice that , pene- 
 trated a hundred feet or more in the forest ; 
 " answer me ! Give me some sign, if you 
 can !" 
 
 She would have done so had it been in 
 her power ; but no response reached the de- 
 spairing lover, and he did not repeat the 
 cry. 
 
 Ashbridge started, for while peering through 
 the gloom he caught a starlight twinkle, which 
 flashed for a second or two and then vanished. 
 It was as if the gentle wind had opened a view 
 through the leaves and then instantly closed 
 it. The light lay almost directly toward the 
 river. 
 
 But to him it meant a great deal. He be- 
 lieved the main party of Shawanoes had a fire 
 burning at that point, and a goodly number 
 of their warriors would be gathered around it. 
 Still further, he thought it equally probable 
 that Agnes was with them. 
 
 The youth closed his lips with grim deter- 
 mination as he began stealing toward the 
 point. He gripped his gun and muttered, for 
 there was no risk which he would not eagerly 
 
166 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEEES. 
 
 incur for the sake of the beloved one that had 
 been snatched from his very side. 
 
 While groping along another momentary 
 twinkle caught his gaze, vanishing, as before, 
 in the same breath. It was proof, however, 
 that he was following the right path, and he 
 pushed on. By this time he had fairly rallied 
 from the fearful blow, and was his old, cau- 
 tious, guarded self again, on the alert against 
 running into danger, and watchful of the de- 
 vices and subtleties of the Shawanoes, whom 
 he was confident were near him. 
 
 A surprise awaited the youth, for, cautiously 
 approaching the light until he could see it 
 and the surroundings, he discovered no one 
 visible. A small blaze, whose appearance 
 showed that it had been burning for a con- 
 siderable time, was kindled at the base of a 
 gnarled oak ; but whoever started it seemed 
 to have decided to make a change of base be- 
 fore the arrival of Ashbridge. 
 
 It may have been fancy on his part, but at 
 the moment of entering the outer verge of light 
 something vanished among the shadows on the 
 opposite side and was lost in the darkness. 
 
A SINGULAR MEETING. 167 
 
 " I wonder whether that was an Indian, or 
 was it only imagination ?" he asked himself, 
 afraid to venture further. 
 
 Whether or not he was mistaken did not 
 greatly concern him, for it was a sad disap- 
 pointment that he did not come upon a party 
 of Shawanoes, with Agnes a captive among 
 them. What he saw, or rather what he failed 
 to see, convinced him that she was not in the 
 immediate vicinity, and probably had not 
 been there at all. His eyes studied the sur- 
 roundings of the little blaze which had be- 
 come simply a mass of coals, but nothing was 
 discerned to show the recent presence of any- 
 one near it. The open space was only a few 
 feet in extent, and a bush no more than a 
 couple of yards from the blaze had not been 
 trampled under foot. 
 
 "It looks as if some one had flung the 
 sticks together, touched them off, and then 
 stealthily left—" 
 
 The faintest possible rustling caused Ash- 
 bridge to turn his head. As he did so one of 
 the embers fell apart, increasing the faint area 
 of illumination. Dimly outlined in the gloom 
 
168 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEERS. 
 
 behind him appeared a tall figure, standing 
 near enough to touch him with outstretched 
 hand. The youth whirled like a flash and 
 leaped backward with his rifle ready, but ere 
 he could bring the weapon to a level a 
 strange, chuckling sound pierced the still- 
 ness. 
 
 " Younker, take my advice and don't be in 
 such a powerful hurry." 
 
 " Simon Kenton, as I live !" exclaimed the 
 astounded Ashbridge. 
 
 " I reckon," coolly replied the veteran ran- 
 ger, stepping nearer, extending his horny 
 hand, and giving that of the youth a fervent 
 pressure. 
 
 " You are the last man I expected to see. 
 Oh ! why didn't I meet you sooner !" mourned 
 the young pioneer, whose delight at finding 
 his old friend gave way to the depression of 
 despair at the memory of the overwhelming 
 catastrophe that had just occurred. 
 
 " The best reason I can think of, younker, 
 is 'cause you met me later," replied Kenton, 
 whose sense of waggery was not always under 
 control. 
 
A SINGULAR MEETING. 169 
 
 "Kenton, Agnes Altman has just been 
 made captive by the Shawanoes !" 
 
 This intelligence was so startling to the 
 ranger that all thought of humor was driven 
 from his brain. He recoiled a step and ex- 
 claimed, in a gasping whisper : 
 
 "What!" 
 
 " It is true." 
 
 " Stand back a little further where the light 
 can't fall on us, talk low, and tell me about it." 
 
 George Ashbridge did so to the minutest 
 particular, Kenton neither stirring nor speak- 
 ing until the remarkable story was finished. 
 
 " Wal, 111 be skulped I" he muttered, with 
 a sigh; "I warn't countin' on nothin' like 
 that ; I'm powerful sorry for the gal, for her 
 folks, and for you." 
 
 "But, Kenton/' said the distressed Ash- 
 bridge, " I can't stand here idle ; tell me what 
 can be done." 
 
 " Nothin'," was the disheartening reply. 
 
 " But we must do something ! Do you 
 mean to say that because the Shawanoes have 
 stolen Agnes we shall give up and leave her 
 with them?" 
 
170 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEERS. 
 
 " No, younker, I didn't say nothin' of the 
 sort. What I was drivin' at was that while 
 this darkness continues we can't do nothin' ; 
 when sunup comes it'll be different." 
 
 "And between now and then what will 
 happen to poor Agnes ?" 
 
 " Nothin'," repeated Kenton, and this time 
 his reply had a pleasanter sound than before. 
 
 " You mean that no ill will befall her ?" 
 
 "That's it." 
 
 " Thank God, but what reason have you for 
 feeling so certain ?" 
 
 " Nothin' can be plainer ; if they wished to 
 sculp her or do her harm the varmints 
 wouldn't have took her from you. They'd 've 
 tomahawked or shot you both while you was 
 tramping through the woods." 
 
 "And why didn't they shoot me, as they 
 surely might have done ?" 
 
 " There must have been some good reason, 
 and I can't speak with sartinty, but my idea is 
 that there warn't more'n two Injins, and like 
 'nough only one. He didn't want to kill or 
 hurt the gal, but for some reason was bent on 
 runnin' off with her. If he tackled you, she 
 
A SINGULAR MEETING. 171 
 
 would be likely to give him the slip in the 
 rumpus. So he or them was follerin , and 
 waitin' for the chance to dodge off with her." 
 
 " And it came when I stumbled ?" 
 
 " Purcisely and exactly." 
 
 " What would have happened if I had not 
 fallen?" 
 
 " Nobody can tell for sartin ; but I guess 
 you'd Ve got a whack or a knife or a bullet 
 before long, so it was powerful lucky as it was." 
 
 Ashbridge, however, could not see it in the 
 light of his cooler and more experienced 
 friend. How anything could be more un- 
 lucky than the capture of his beloved com- 
 panion was beyond his ability to comprehend. 
 
 " And you see no way of our doing any- 
 thing to help her to-night ?" 
 
 " I don't onless some powerful piece of good 
 luck falls to us." 
 
 " Now, Kenton, to go back as far as neces- 
 sary, how was it those Shawanoes (for I must 
 believe there was more than one) learned of 
 our leaving the cavern?" 
 
 " That's what I would call a piece of power- 
 ful bad luck. It was nothin' but chance that 
 
172 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEEES. 
 
 brought 'em where they run agin you. It 
 wouldn't happen agin in a thousand times." 
 
 "Then they had no suspicion of our es- 
 cape?" 
 
 " They couldn't, for I'd never dreamed of 
 it. It was another of the doings of that 
 darkey, which knocks all my ideas endways." 
 
 "He has done some extraordinary things 
 during the past year." 
 
 " That he has, and I've an idea that he'll do 
 more of 'em afore this bis'ness is done." 
 
 Little did Simon Kenton suspect the speedy 
 and striking manner in which this off-hand 
 prophecy was to be fulfilled. 
 
 " Now," said Ashbridge, " since you say we 
 can do nothing at present, tell me how it is 
 that you happen to be in this place at this 
 time?" 
 
 " I've been on a scout in the Injin country 
 and was takin' things easy on my way back to 
 the block-house. I was hungry and shot a 
 wild turkey a couple of miles off; I carried it 
 here, started a fire and cooked it." 
 
 " Did you know the Shawanoes were in this 
 neighborhood ?" 
 
A SINGULAR MEETING. 173 
 
 "I reckon." 
 
 " Then you ran great risk." 
 
 " Not as much as you would have run ; I 
 cooked and eat what I wanted, but 1 kept my 
 ears open and didn't let any of the varmints 
 steal up to me. You tried it, and moved as 
 soft like as the Panther himself, but I heerd 
 you, and got behind you without you know- 
 ing it." 
 
 " True ; I didn't hear you." 
 
 " And then I made the rustling to let you 
 know I was there. If you had been one of 
 the varmints you wouldn't have heard me." 
 
 " Have you any of that turkey left, Ken- 
 ton?" 
 
 " I think I can find some," remarked the 
 ranger, moving toward the fire, near which he 
 picked up from the leaves what had escaped 
 the notice of the youth, being a portion of 
 the partially cooked bird. 
 
 " What I didn't need I flung away," he re- 
 marked, handing a goodly portion of the fowl 
 to his young friend. " You're wise in eatin' 
 when you git the chance." 
 
 Despite the trying scenes through which 
 
174 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEEBS. 
 
 Ashbridge had so recently passed, his vigorous 
 frame and appetite demanded the food, and he 
 ate it with relish, although its rareness 
 would have rendered it distasteful to one of us 
 placed in his situation. 
 
 "If I could be certain that Agnes is not 
 suffering," he said, as the final remains were 
 cast from him, " I would feel more relieved 
 than I can tell." 
 
 "You needn't worry on that count," was 
 the unexpected reply. " The varmints won't 
 let her suffer." 
 
 The hunter was on the point of adding a 
 remark which would hav^ astonished his com- 
 panion, and caused him strange emotions, but 
 he checked himself under the feeling that the 
 moment had not yet come for him to do so. 
 
 " These one or two Indians of whom we 
 have spoken will soon join the main party of 
 Shawanoes." 
 
 "That ain't sartin." 
 
 " And what chance shall we have of rescu- 
 ing her ?" 
 
 Instead of replying, Kenton remained si- 
 lent for a full minute. Again he was debat- 
 
A SINGULAR MEETING. 175 
 
 ing whether he should explain what was pass- 
 ing in his mind. He well understood the 
 tumult of feeling it would cause on the part 
 of the youth, and the fear that it might inter- 
 fere with schemes the ranger was revolving 
 held his lips mute for the time on the all-im- 
 portant question. 
 
 They were standing so far back from the 
 smoldering fire that they could not see each 
 other's faces, or even the outlines of their 
 forms. Ashbridge was about to say some- 
 thing when Kenton laid his hand on his arm 
 with a sibilant "Sh !" The youth had heard 
 nothing, but he knew his companion had, and 
 he neither whispered nor moved. 
 
 " Sh! look !" repeated the hunter. 
 
 Since there was but one direction in which 
 the eyes could be of service, the youth gazed 
 toward the few glowing coals. Just beyond 
 them the faint, almost invisible form of an 
 Indian warrior appeared for one moment and 
 then dissolved in the gloom behind him. 
 
 "The varmint is gone," whispered Kenton, 
 after a suitable waiting ; " he come nigh 
 enough to see the light and a little further to 
 
176 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEERS. 
 
 larn what he could, but I reckon he didn't 
 larn much." 
 
 "He may be the Indian or one of them 
 that has Agnes," replied Ashbridge, trembling 
 with eager excitement. 
 
 "I'll soon know; wait here till I come 
 back." 
 
 Again just before moving away, the hunter 
 checked the revelation that struggled for ut- 
 terance. He felt, however, that the moment 
 must soon come when he would have to tell 
 the secret, which as yet was undreamed of by 
 George Ashbridge. 
 
 " He shall larn it soon enough," decided 
 Kenton, as he glided silently from the side 
 of his young friend. 
 
ALL AT SEA. 177 
 
 CHAPTER XII. 
 
 ALL AT SEA. 
 
 THROUGHOUT Jethro Juggens' stirring 
 experiences he kept his bearings. He 
 never forgot the right course to take to reach 
 the Ohio river, and consequently was aware 
 of the way to turn to find the trail leading to 
 the block-house. 
 
 " I've done all I kin to help de folks/' he 
 muttered, while threading his way southward 
 through the woods, " and dey can't spect me 
 to look after dem all de time. People hab got 
 to larn to walk alone some time." 
 
 The distance seemed long to the path, and 
 more than once he stopped, under the sus- 
 picion that he had gone astray ; but the mur- 
 mur of the river was an unerring guide, and 
 finally he knew, from the smooth surface un- 
 der his feet and the freedom from under- 
 growth, that he had struck the trail. 
 
 12 
 
178 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEEES. 
 
 " Luck's wid me to-night/' was his rightful 
 decision ; " now I've got a straight road to de 
 block-house ef none ob de heathens don't get 
 in my way or run agin me." 
 
 A not unnatural feeling, however, caused 
 his footsteps to lag and finally brought him 
 to a halt after advancing less than an eighth 
 of a mile. 
 
 " I dunno wheder I'm doin' right or not ; 
 my conscience am slambangin' 'round inside 
 ob me and sayin' : ■ Jethro Juggens, ain't yo' 
 'shamed ob yo'self ? What bisness hab yo' to 
 desart dem chillun, when yo' sot out and was 
 sent 'long fur de obspress purpose ob takin' 
 keer ob 'em ? What'll Marse Ashbridge and 
 Altman say when I arroves at de block -house 
 widout 'em ? What'll Captain Bushwick tink ? 
 Will Kenton and Boone and de rest ob de 
 people be discumsattersfied ? Will dey tink 
 I've done my dooty ? No, Jethro Juggens, 
 it'll neber do to desart 'em.' " 
 
 This decision of the servant arose from sev- 
 eral causes. It will be recalled that at the 
 time of starting he was under the belief that 
 Ashbridge and Agnes had set out for the 
 
ALL AT SEA. 179 
 
 block-house and were well under way, so that 
 he had nothing to do but to follow them. 
 After signaling to them, however, of his own 
 safety, he remembered that he had made haste 
 to withdraw from the dangerous ravine, and his 
 encounter with the buck that followed him 
 caused little delay on the road. He had pur- 
 sued a direct course to the trail and already 
 advanced some distance along it. 
 
 Now, it was not to be supposed that his 
 friends would be equally expeditious. The 
 supposition of Jethro, therefore, that they were 
 in advance of him was a mistake. They must 
 be behind him. 
 
 It was natural for the dusky youth to look 
 upon his own exploits with considerable com- 
 placency. In entering and leaving the cav- 
 ern, he did that which it is safe to believe no 
 ranger or hunter of the West had ever sur- 
 passed. He had pioneered the way for his 
 friends, and thereby done them a service be- 
 yond estimate. 
 
 As a consequence, it was no wonder that he 
 looked upon himself as indispensable to the 
 two so long as they remained in peril. It 
 
180 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEERS. 
 
 would not do for him to appear at the block- 
 house with no tidings of them, after knowing 
 the great danger in which they were placed. 
 Greatly as he had favored them, more re- 
 mained to be done. 
 
 But the question of how he was to serve 
 them further was one which Jethro, with all 
 his intense cogitation, could not answer. He 
 felt he had made a mistake in not groping his 
 way back to where the stream issued from the 
 side of the cavern and rejoining his friends. 
 He did not doubt his ability to find the place, 
 but, the error having been committed, it was 
 now too late to repair it. They must have 
 emerged long since, and were now looking for 
 the trail, if they had not already found it. 
 
 " Dar's only one big diffunkilty in de way," 
 he reflected, standing in the path, peering into 
 the gloom, and listening ; " I'm so orful hun- 
 gry dat I feel like faintin' dead away. 'Pears 
 to me I ain't like oder folks, 'cause I'm hun- 
 gry all de time. Howsumeber," he added, des- 
 perately, " I'm so used to it dat I s'pose I kin 
 stand it fur a week or two longer." 
 
 In the attitude of attention, it was not long 
 
ALL AT SEA. 181 
 
 before he became sensible of another feeling ; 
 he was becoming sleepy. 
 
 " When a gemman am hungry and sleepy 
 he ain't ob much 'count. Ef I war suah dat 
 I had time to take a nap I'd doo't ; but s'pose 
 Marse George and Miss Agnes walked by me 
 while I war asleep; dey wouldn't know it, 
 and when I woke I wouldn't know it. I's 
 got to fix up some obtrivance dat will purvent 
 dat— I hab it !" 
 
 Groping along the trail for some minutes, 
 it was easy to find a tree growing directly be- 
 side it. Jethro sat down with his back against 
 the trunk and his feet extended across the 
 path. One leg was crooked at the knee, as it 
 rested beside the other. 
 
 " Dat's what I call a big idee," grinned the 
 delighted African ; " I kin go to sleep now 
 widout fear ; if Marse George and Miss Agnes 
 come along dey'll bofe tumble ober me ; dat'll 
 wake me up, and den we kin shake hands and 
 all be happy 'cause we hab met." 
 
 Secure in this faith, Jethro assumed an easy 
 posture, and in a few minutes was sunk in as 
 sound slumber as if in his bed at home. He 
 
182 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEEKS. 
 
 was running much risk, for any one would 
 have said that a party of Shawanoes were as 
 likely to pass that way as his friends. It so 
 came about, however, that neither took it into 
 their heads to travel over that portion of the 
 trail, and the sleep of the youth remained un- 
 broken. When he opened his eyes the sun 
 was shining in the heavens. 
 
 Jethro sat upright, feeling somewhat 
 cramped because of his long-constrained po- 
 sition, yawned and rubbed his eyes, and 
 looked about him. 
 
 " Whar am I ?" he asked, staring around. 
 " Oh ! I discommembers — wal, dat's qu'ar ! 
 De folks habn't been 'long here, 'cause ef dey 
 had dey would hab tumbled ober me and I'd 
 been suah to hab waked up." 
 
 He was so certain that they had not passed 
 over the trail before he assumed his peculiar 
 position that no misgiving came to him ; he 
 was convinced that from some cause he did 
 not understand they had not gone along the 
 path at all in the direction of the block-house. 
 
 " I'm afeared dat means trouble," was his 
 melancholy conclusion ; " I made a great mis- 
 
ALL AT SEA. 183 
 
 take in lebin' de folks to demselves last night; 
 I oughter stayed wid 'em right frough." 
 
 Still keeping his seat, he thought hard. 
 
 " Somethin' hab happened to 'em ; I must 
 hunt 'em up and find out what I'll hab to do 
 to set things straight — hilloa !" 
 
 Coming from the direction of the block- 
 house was a fine-looking buck. He was fol- 
 lowing the trail, and had just swung around 
 a slight bend a hundred yards away when the 
 animal seemed to scent something wrong. He 
 stopped short in his deliberate gait, threw up 
 his head, with its noble antlers, and stared 
 along the path to learn what it meant. He 
 saw the dusky figure seated on the ground, 
 and, instinctively recognizing him as a mortal 
 enemy, whirled like a flash to plunge among 
 the trees and out of sight. 
 
 But while in the act of turning, the deadly 
 bullet entered just back of the extended fore 
 leg, bored its way through his heart, and was 
 lost among the leaves and branches beyond. 
 Rarely does one of the cervus species fall, no 
 matter how smitten, and the handsome creature 
 made several frenzied leaps before crashing full 
 
184 1ST THE DAYS OF THE PIONEERS. 
 
 against the trunk of an ash in front of him 
 and going to the ground in a lifeless heap. 
 
 Jethro Juggens had fired from a sitting 
 position, taking aim on the instant and with 
 his usual unerring accuracy. He now rose to 
 his feet, and, in accord with the law which has 
 already been referred to more than once, care- 
 fully reloaded his rifle and poured the powder 
 in the pan. 
 
 "De name of de hungriest man in Ohio 
 and Kaintuck am Jethro Juggens," he ex- 
 claimed, fairly smacking his chops in antici- 
 pation of the feast before him ; u dat buck am 
 a purty good-size animal, and I hope he'll do 
 for me." 
 
 He ran to where the body lay, and with his 
 keen hunting-knife cut out the choicest por- 
 tion, its dimensions being such that we dare 
 not state them through fear they would not 
 be credited. It looked as if for once at least 
 the requirements of the appetite of Jethro 
 Juggens were to be fully met. 
 
 But in his hunger and high spirits he did 
 not forget several sensible precautions. There 
 was fear that the report of his gun might 
 
ALL AT SEA. 185 
 
 bring some inquiring parties of the wrong 
 complexion to the trail. It would not do, 
 therefore, for him to cook the food in the im- 
 mediate neighborhood. The river was within 
 covenient distance and he decided to go 
 thither, wash the venison, and then seek out 
 a secluded spot to start the fire. 
 
 On the other hand, he was ever mindful of 
 the possibility that George Ashbridge and Ag- 
 nes Altman might pass on their way to the 
 block-house. They were many hours over- 
 due, and were liable, as he viewed it, to ap- 
 pear at any moment. His intention was to 
 return to the trail as soon as he finished his 
 meal, and he fixed upon a simple artifice to 
 learn whether they had passed during his ab- 
 sence. 
 
 A small branch, too insignificant to attract 
 notice, was laid designedly across the trail in 
 such position that no one going in either di- 
 rection could fail to disturb it, that is, except 
 the red or white hunter saw something suspi- 
 cious in the trifling object and stepped around 
 it. Jethro carefully impressed on his mind 
 the location of the tiny limb, and then moved 
 
186 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEERS. 
 
 off among the trees to the edge of the river, 
 certain that when he returned he would know 
 of a verity whether his friends or any one else 
 had gone by. 
 
 Seeking the most secluded position possible 
 under the protecting undergrowth along the 
 river, he gathered a mass of dry twigs and 
 leaves, and, with the aid of flint, tinder and 
 steel, soon had a brisk little fire under way. 
 The haunch of venison was carefully cut in thin 
 strips, and though it was not the most favorable 
 season for that kind of game, it may be said that 
 Jethro enjoyed one of the greatest feasts of his 
 life. He literally ate until he could eat no more. 
 
 "Ah!" he sighed, in the luxury of reple- 
 tion, " It ain't offen dat I hab a breakfast, 
 dinner and supper all togeder like dat. It 
 makes a gemman feel good from de top of his 
 feet to de sole ob his head. Now I'm able to 
 do my dooty and look after de folks." 
 
 He prudently quenched the fire as soon as 
 it had served its purpose, and was quite cer- 
 tain that, protected by the density of the sur- 
 rounding vegetation, it had not attracted the 
 attention of any unfriendly eyes. 
 
ALL AT SEA. 187 
 
 Judging by the height of the sun in the 
 heavens, the forenoon was half gone. He was 
 sure that events of great importance had oc- 
 curred since parting with the two fugitives in 
 the cave the night before. Convinced that 
 they had not passed along the trail in the di- 
 rection of the block-house (unless during the 
 comparatively brief period spent by him in 
 preparing and eating his wholesale meal), it 
 was self-evident that some all-potent cause had 
 intervened to keep them from doing so. 
 
 To Jethro's mind only one cause could ex- 
 ist. They had been captured or slain by some 
 of the Shawanoes that were so numerous in 
 the neighborhood. 
 
 " And I don't show myself at the block- 
 house or to any ob de folks till I knows all 
 'bout it. I hain't heered any guns go off," he 
 remarked, forgetting the many hours during 
 which he had been oblivious to all sights and 
 sounds, " so it looks as if dar hadn't been any 
 shootin' goin' on." 
 
 He came stealing back between the trees 
 and through the undergrowth with as much 
 care as if he knew a war party was prowling 
 
188 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEERS. 
 
 within a hundred yards of him. Nothing was 
 seen or heard to cause alarm, and he reached 
 the path that held so strong an interest to him. 
 
 His heart gave a quick throb when he ap- 
 proached the tell-tale twig and saw at the first 
 glance that it had been disturbed. It had 
 been knocked out of the position in which he 
 left it. In fact, it had been brushed aside by 
 the trail of a passing foot. 
 
 " Gorrynation, dey hab went by while I 
 was down by de ribber I" he exclaimed in de- 
 light, forgetting that any person in walking 
 over the path would have been likely to move 
 it in the same manner. 
 
 u It am dem and no mistake," he added, 
 starting in the direction of the block-house at 
 a loping trot, which he was able to maintain 
 for an hour or two without fatigue. 
 
 As he ran, the possibility of a mistake oc- 
 curred to him, and he not only restrained his 
 longing to call to his friends in a guarded un- 
 dertone, but slackened his pace upon approach- 
 ing each turn in the trail, carefully peering 
 ahead to make sure the course was clear be- 
 fore breaking into a trot again. 
 
ALL AT SEA. 189 
 
 The path for some distance was more wind- 
 ing than at any other place, passing in and 
 out among the trees with a persistency that 
 made it hard to understand how it was the 
 rangers who set the trail in the first place did 
 it in such an eccentric fashion, when no ap- 
 parent cause existed. 
 
 But was there ever such a thing known as 
 a straight path across a field or through a 
 stretch of woods ? 
 
 Jethro was pushing forward in this man- 
 ner, when, reaching a more open portion of 
 the forest, he detected something moving 
 among the trees in advance. He instantly 
 dropped to a walk and peered intently at it. 
 
 The first glance showed him it was a man 
 advancing along the trail beyond the point 
 where it made more of a bend than usual. 
 He was going in the same direction with the 
 African, so that the latter saw him plainly, 
 while, for the moment, the other knew noth- 
 ing of the person behind him. 
 
 The second glance revealed his identity. 
 
 "Helloa, Marse George!" called the de- 
 lighted Jethro, " what yo'r hurry ?" 
 
190 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEEES. 
 
 The astonished Ashbridge turned like a 
 flash, nervously grasping his gun as he 
 looked around. He did not move, but stared 
 curiously at the servant, as, with a beaming 
 face, he hurried forward to greet him. 
 
 " Where in the name of creation did you 
 come from, Jethro ?" asked the youth, extend- 
 ing his hand and warmly greeting him. 
 " Been lookin' for yo' and Miss Agnes." 
 The servant saw from the expression on 
 the countenance of his friend that some disas- 
 ter had happened, and the question that fol- 
 lowed was uttered in a tremulous voice : 
 " Whar am she, Marse George ?" 
 " Heaven only knows ! I don't." 
 "But whar — whar — did yo' lebe her? 
 When did yo' see her last?" 
 
 Ashbridge controlled his emotions with a 
 strong effort, and answered, with seeming 
 calmness : 
 
 " We left the cavern soon after receiving 
 your signal. All seemed to be going well, 
 and we were doing our best to reach this trail, 
 so as to go to the block-house, when she dis- 
 appeared. One or two Indians had been 
 
ALL AT SEA. 191 
 
 stealthily following us, and at the moment I 
 stumbled she was snatched up by them and 
 carried off." 
 
 11 De Lord sabe us ! Did yo' eber hear de 
 like?" 
 
 " That isn't all, Jethro. While I was try- 
 ing to find some trace of her I came upon Si- 
 mon Kenton, who had started a little fire to 
 prepare himself some food." 
 
 " De bery ting I've been doin' ; did yo' ob- 
 sarve de carcus ob de deer a little way back ?" 
 
 " No ; I am in too much trouble to observe 
 anything, or to think where I am or what I 
 am doing." 
 
 " But what's become of Marse Kenton ?" 
 
 " That's a greater mystery than the disap- 
 pearance of Agnes, for I know that she is in 
 the hands of the red men, but I have no idea 
 where he is or what has become of him." 
 
 The astounded Jethro stared a moment at 
 his friend, and then, in a dazed way, asked : 
 
 " Am dis yo' and me, Marse George, and 
 am we hyah, or am we somebody else and 
 ain't we hyah, but in some oder place?" 
 
192 IN THE DAYS OF THE PI0NEEBS. 
 
 CHAPTEE XIII. 
 
 THE ANTELOPE. 
 
 IT will be recalled that Simon Kenton and 
 George Ashbridge were standing near 
 the smouldering fire which the former had 
 kindled, when an Indian warrior silently ap- 
 proached in the gloom and disappeared the 
 next moment, with no more disturbance of the 
 vegetation than if he had been a veritable 
 shadow. 
 
 The youth suggested that the Shawanoe 
 might be the one that had abducted Agnes 
 Altman, or who belonged to the party. It 
 was evident that, passing so near the hunter's 
 camp fire, he caught its glow, and, turning 
 aside for a brief investigation, had departed 
 again. 
 
 It was not impossible that Ashbridge was 
 right, and Kenton, instructing him to remain 
 where he was until his return, set out to learn 
 
THE ANTELOPE. 193 
 
 the truth. The task was one of such extreme 
 delicacy that the youth knew he could only 
 be an incumbrance and might defeat the pur- 
 pose of the ranger. Trying as was his situa- 
 tion, he could not object, and therefore awaited, 
 with all the patience he could summon, the re- 
 turn of his friend. 
 
 Kenton was absent fully two hours. Ash- 
 bridge was in despair, when the almost inau- 
 dible signal of the ranger announced his pres- 
 ence at his elbow. 
 
 " Well, what did you learn ?" was the eager 
 question of the youth. 
 
 " Nothin' of account," was the unsatisfac- 
 tory response. 
 
 " Wasn't that Indian one of those who took 
 Agnes away ?" 
 
 "No." 
 
 " You took a long time to learn it," was the 
 bitter comment of Ashbridge, who strove in 
 vain to repress his disappointment. 
 
 Kenton understood his companion and had 
 no wish to trifle with him. The hardy pio- 
 neer was as sympathetic to those he loved as 
 a woman. 
 
 13 
 
194 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEERS. 
 
 " See here, younker," he said in that guarded 
 tone which a person a dozen feet away could 
 not have overheard, "the first thing a man 
 that tramps in the woods has to learn is pa- 
 tience. I know how powerful anxious you 
 was to have me come back, but you didn't 
 want me to show up without having some- 
 thing to tell you." 
 
 " I was under the impression that such was 
 the result." 
 
 Without noting the reproof in these words, 
 Kenton, who, it was evident, was in some ex- 
 traordinary quandary, remarked : 
 
 "This business is qu'ar, powerful qu'ar; 
 younker, what would you think if I should 
 tell you that not only didn't that varmint 
 that sneaked up to the fire a while ago have 
 nothin' to do with takin' off the gal, but none 
 of the other Shawanoes did ; what would you 
 think of that?" 
 
 " If you said so, Kenton, I would believe 
 you." ' 
 
 " Wal, I do say it." 
 
 " Do you mean that those parties that ran 
 us into the cavern weren't Shawanoes ?" 
 
THE ANTELOPE. 195 
 
 " Not by no means ; all of them were that 
 brand of varmints, and most of 'em are 
 camped in a gully not more than two hundred 
 yards from where we are standing. It was 
 them that tried to burn you out of the cavern, 
 that first chased you and the gal, and come 
 powerful near winding up the whole bis- 
 ness." 
 
 " And do you mean to tell me that none of 
 these people had anything to do with stealing 
 Agnes?" 
 
 " That's it exactly/' 
 
 "I don't understand it," exclaimed Ash- 
 bridge, with a sigh of bewilderment, "if 
 there's any explanation to be made, Kenton, 
 I beg you will make it, and not keep me in 
 this state of suspense, where you tell just 
 enough for me to feel that I know nothing at 
 all." 
 
 " What I've been driving at, younker, is 
 this : There was only one of the heathen that 
 came up to look at the fire here. I followed 
 him straight back to the big camp, where the 
 main party has halted for a time. The gal 
 isn't in that camp or anywhere near it, and 
 
196 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEEES. 
 
 none of them varmints have had anything to 
 do with her takin' off." 
 
 " You have told me this before, but have 
 not told me how you gained the knowledge." 
 
 "Of course I couldn't have larned what 
 I've just said by standin' off and lookin' at 
 the camp ; there warn't nothin' in that, and I 
 might have kept it up a week without being 
 any wiser than afore, but I sneaked so close 
 that, by listenin' powerful hard, I overheard 
 a good deal of what was said ; that's what 
 kept me so long, but it done the business." 
 
 " What did you hear, Kenton ?" 
 
 "I picked up 'nough to know that the 
 Shawanoes had larned how you and the girl 
 got out of the cavern. It must have been 
 that you hadn't more than fairly left when 
 they made a rush ; there warn't 'nough fire 
 at the front to keep 'em out. I 'spose they 
 used torches and pushed things so hard that 
 they found out almost right away that you'd 
 swum out." 
 
 " Then we left in the nick of time, though 
 Agnes and I could have stood them, off a day 
 or two." 
 
THE ANTELOPE. 197 
 
 " Wal, as soon as the Shawanoes larned how 
 it was you had given 'em the slip, they 
 dropped the whole bisness. They b'lieve 
 you've got a good start, and are well toward 
 the block-house, and with this dark night to 
 help, they don't think there's any use in fol- 
 lerin' you further, and, what's more, there 
 ain't none of them trying to do it." 
 
 " You are so positive on this point, Kenton, 
 that I accept what you say without question. 
 You have told me what has not been done ; 
 now give me the particulars of something that 
 has been done. If none of the Shawanoes 
 whom you saw and listened to had anything 
 to do with carrying away Agnes, may it not 
 have been done by several of them, who have 
 not rejoined the main party?" 
 
 " No," was the positive reply of the ranger, 
 " that isn't their way of doing things ; all the 
 varmints they had when they first seed you 
 are with 'em yet, 'cept of course them as you 
 give the last sickness — I could tell that by 
 what they said. They have their chief, too — " 
 
 " Is he the Panther?" 
 
 " No ; he isn't with 'em ; this chief is a 
 
198 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEERS. 
 
 chap almost as ugly, that has a name in 
 Shawanoe which means Red Bird. He is a 
 savage varmint, and none of his warriors 
 would dare to try any trick like that on him. 
 No Shawanoe heathen, as I told you afore, 
 had anything to do with takin' off the gal." 
 
 " I have heard this more than once, Ken- 
 ton, but some one did take her, and it is he or 
 they whom I wish to know." 
 
 " Younker, you have not forgot the Ante- 
 lope, I reckon ?" 
 
 " You mean that young Wyandot warrior 
 who visited the block-house several times last 
 winter and spring ?" 
 
 " That's the chap ; you remember, too, that 
 the young heathen is one of the handsomest 
 Indians any of us ever seed." 
 
 " Yes, that can not be denied." 
 
 "I never knowed but one that beat him, 
 and he is Deerfoot, the Shawanoe. You 
 haven't forgot, too, how the Antelope fell in 
 love with the gal, Agnes Altman ?" 
 
 It was anything but a pleasant reminiscence 
 to George Ashbridge, but he resolutely faced 
 the question. 
 
THE ANTELOPE. 199 
 
 " Yes; every one at the block-house noticed 
 it, for the simpleton could not help showing it 
 in his words, his manner, and even his looks." 
 
 '< Wal, it's my belief that the Antelope is 
 the one who stole the gal." 
 
 The youth recoiled as if he had been struck 
 a staggering blow. The information was as 
 unexpected as it was astounding. 
 
 The sagacious Kenton suspected the truth 
 from the moment he heard from Ashbridge 
 the particulars of the disappearance of Agnes. 
 It was the secret which he was on the point of 
 uttering more than once, but was restrained 
 by a feeling of delicacy and consideration for 
 his young friend. 
 
 But the lover, great as was his respect for 
 the acumen of Simon Kenton, would not ad- 
 mit he was right until he gave more reason for 
 his theory than he had just done. 
 
 " I do not question your correctness as to 
 the Shawanoes, but it all seems to be guess- 
 work regarding the Antelope." 
 
 "There's where you're wrong. Late this 
 afternoon I seed the Antelope and another 
 warrior of his tribe only a mile or two off in 
 
200 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEERS. 
 
 the wood ; I didn't let him see me, as I made 
 up my mind they were goin' to the block- 
 house, so the lovesick Antelope could have 
 another look at the gal, even if she cared 
 nothing for him. I was so near that I heerd 
 the sound of the shootin', but I didn't think 
 there was nothin' 'bout it for me. If I'd 
 knowed you and the gal were out and that you 
 were mixed up in the business, of course I'd 
 hurried down this way 'stead of takin' things 
 easy. The minute you told me how she was 
 stole from your side I felt as good as sartin that 
 the varmint that done it was the Antelope." 
 
 "And why?" 
 
 " From his style ; if it was a Shawanoe, or 
 any other Wyandot, he wouldn't have let you 
 alone. He would have used the knife or tom- 
 ahawk or gun on you before he touched the 
 girl." 
 
 " Why didn't he do so as it was?" 
 
 "The Antelope is a friend to the whites 
 and has not been on the warpath against 
 them for several reasons." 
 
 " But, under the circumstances, he must feel 
 a special hatred for me." 
 
THE ANTELOPE. 201 
 
 " No doubt he would be glad to have you 
 out of his way ; but though he is a simpleton 
 in one thing, he knows 'nough to know that 
 the worst way he could take to win the Flower 
 of the Woods would be by sending you 
 under." 
 
 " You haven't explained yet, Kenton, how 
 it was that the Antelope and his companion 
 came upon us immediately after we left the 
 cavern." 
 
 "There's nothing to explain 'bout that; 
 they was tramping toward the Ohio so as to 
 strike the trail to the fort, when they come 
 right on to you. It was powerful odd that 
 they happened to do so, but there's been pow- 
 erfuller odder things in your 'sperienee as 
 well as mine. There's one thing 'bout it that 
 I don't like." 
 
 "What's that?" 
 
 " The way the Antelope and the varmint 
 come onto you is so odd that he is sartin the 
 Great Spirit fetched the thing 'round on pur- 
 pose — consequently he isn't going to give up 
 the gal without a big fight." 
 
 " And he need not wait for that," exclaimed 
 
202 m THE DAYS OF THE PIONEERS. 
 
 the excited youth ; " all I want is to give him 
 a chance; it won't take long to settle the 
 question." 
 
 The fierce indignation of Ashbridge was 
 not lost upon Kenton. It affected the mat- 
 ters he had under consideration. 
 
 "Where do you think they are?" asked 
 Ashbridge, controlling his emotions. Ken- 
 ton chuckled in his peculiar way as he an- 
 swered : 
 
 " Nobody but the party themselves can tell 
 you that, but my belief is that the Antelope 
 is pushing toward the Wyandot towns with 
 the gal he calls the Flower of the Woods and 
 hopes to make his bride." 
 
 " Those towns are a long way off, Kenton." 
 
 * Yes ; his town is more than two hundred 
 miles to the north, above the Muskinjum, and 
 way up toward Lake Erie." 
 
 " We can easily overtake them before they 
 travel half or a quarter of the distance." 
 
 Rather singularly, the ranger made no re- 
 sponse to the declaration. If the truth must 
 be confessed, he was meditating upon a scheme 
 for getting rid of the ardent youth. The 
 
THE ANTELOPE. 203 
 
 reader, however, need not be reminded that 
 Kenton felt a strong attachment for Ash- 
 bridge, and there was none whom he would 
 have preferred for a companion under other 
 circumstances. 
 
 But in the pursuit of the Antelope, the ab- 
 ductor of his beloved, the heart of the youth 
 would be too much involved. His judgment 
 would be weakened; more than likely he 
 would defeat the most carefully-laid and exe- 
 cuted plan for the rescue of Agnes Altman. 
 
 " I overheard a few words," said Kenton, 
 speaking the truth, "when I was hanging 
 'round Red Bird's party, that had to do with 
 the Antelope. I couldn't catch the run of 
 'em, and I'm hopeful I kin pick up some- 
 thing more. You can see, younker, that we 
 can't do a thing afore daylight, for we don't 
 know and can't larn till sunup ; but atween 
 now and then it's possible that I may catch 
 somethin' worth larnin', so s'pose you make 
 yourself comfortable here while I try the 
 same thing over agin." 
 
 " Why not let me go with you, Kenton ?" 
 
 f? Do you understand Shawanoe ?" 
 
204 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEEES. 
 
 " No, but—" 
 
 " Then I would have to explain everything 
 we happened to hear, and while I was doing 
 that they might say something I oughter hear 
 — so you see that would be a loss of time and 
 won't work. No — wait here until an hour 
 after sunup, and if I don't come by that 
 time, go on to the block-house and get Boone, 
 if he is there, or some of the boys, to help 
 you." 
 
 " You speak as though there is doubt about 
 your returning," remarked Ashbridge in sur- 
 prise. 
 
 " This bisness of ours is onsartin," was the 
 significant comment of the ranger ; " there's 
 no saying what may happen ; there'll come a 
 time when you and me meet and part for the 
 last time ; this may be it ; if I'm not back 
 here an hour after sunup, as I said, go to the 
 block-house, as I told you, after Boone' or 
 some of the boys. I'm off; good-bye." 
 
 It is not worth while to dwell upon the sus- 
 pense suffered by George Ashbridge during 
 the rest of the night and well into the next 
 forenoon. He did not sleep a moment, though, 
 
THE ANTELOPE. 205 
 
 aware of the long time he had to wait, he tried 
 to lose himself in slumber. 
 
 For one, two, three and more hours after 
 the breaking of day he lingered in the neigh- 
 borhood, awaiting the return of Simon Ken- 
 ton, but he came not. At last, in desperation, 
 Ashbridge exclaimed : 
 
 * Something has happened to him ! his hour 
 at last has come ; precious time has already- 
 been lost ; I will make all haste to the block- 
 house and learn whether it is still possible to 
 do anything." 
 
 He was striding along the trail on the way 
 to carry out this resolve, when, as related else- 
 where, he was overtaken by Jethro Juggens, 
 to whom he told what he knew about the dis- 
 appearance of Agnes and Kenton. 
 
 " What yo' gwine to do when yo' got to de 
 block-house ?" asked his dusky friend. 
 
 " Blessed if I know ! I'll appeal to Boone, 
 if he is there, or Captain Bushwick, to form 
 a party to see whether anything can be done 
 to help Agnes or Kenton." 
 
 " No need ob dat ; I'm hyah ; I'll look after 
 bofe." 
 
206 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEEBS. 
 
 "You mean well, Jethro, and you have 
 done good service, but you are powerless 
 now." 
 
 " How do yo' make out dat, Marse George, 
 when yo' don't know my plan ?" 
 
 "What is it?" 
 
 "Somethin' am wrong wid Kenton, dat's 
 plain ; darfore de fust ting I'll do will be to 
 snatch him away from de Shawanoes ; den 
 him and me will jine forces and grab Miss 
 Agnes de same way. Wat's yo'r 'pinion ob 
 de scheme, Marse Geerge ?" 
 
 The young man shook his head and re- 
 sumed, at a slower pace, his walk toward the 
 fort ; there, he felt, was the only hope left for 
 him. 
 
 But Jethro Juggens was in earnest. He 
 believed that Simon Kenton was in sore 
 trouble arid that he alone could help him, 
 and, furthermore, that he would do it ; and, 
 incredible as it may seem, he was right in 
 each particular. 
 
PUSHING NOKTHWABD. 207 
 
 CHAPTER XIV. 
 
 PUSHING NORTHWAKD. 
 
 WHEN it is stated that Simon Kenton's 
 theory regarding the vanishment of 
 Agnes Altman, while in charge of George 
 Ashbridge, was correct, the reader will un- 
 derstand from the utterances of the ranger a 
 good deal that otherwise would have little 
 meaning. 
 
 There came one autumn day to the block- 
 house on the Ohio side of the river a young 
 Wyandot warrior, known to the whites and 
 among his own people as the Antelope. He 
 was exceedingly comely in appearance, grace- 
 ful, modest, and with a pleasing regularity of 
 feature and a winning personality not often 
 seen in the American race. He was given 
 welcome by the garrison, for he was known 
 not only as a friendly Indian, but one who on 
 several occasions had done good service to the 
 
208 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEERS. 
 
 exposed settlements and frontier cabins of the 
 pioneers. He was held in much the same re- 
 gard as the famous Shawanoe, Deerfoot, whose 
 exploits have been told elsewhere. 
 
 The visit, which lasted a couple of days, 
 would have ended and passed without any- 
 thing worthy of mention, but for a complica- 
 tion no more expected by others than by the 
 young warrior himself. He fell hopelessly in 
 love with Agnes Altman, who in the poetical 
 language of his people, he named the Flower 
 of the Woods. 
 
 The necessity which compelled the families 
 of the pioneers to turn back from the clear- 
 ing, where the two cabins had been erected on 
 the Kentucky shore, so crowded them when 
 they took quarters at the block-house that a 
 temporary structure was erected in which the 
 Altmans and Ashbridges made their home. 
 Mr. Altman was so attracted by the appear- 
 ance and manner of the Antelope, no less 
 than by the commendation of the rangers, 
 that he invited him to spend whattime hepassed 
 under a roof within his home. The young 
 Wyandot gratefully accepted the invitation. 
 
PUSHING NORTHWARD. 209 
 
 It was the nature of the gentle Agnes to aid 
 her mother in doing what she could to please 
 her dusky visitor. She accepted his ardent 
 gratitude as natural to him, and did not suspect 
 the truth until after every one else had ob- 
 served it. The Antelope spoke English with 
 surprising correctness, and in that respect 
 held a marked advantage over any one else of 
 his race, who might be similarly enmeshed in 
 the silken cords. 
 
 To George Ashbridge, and the rest of his 
 friends, the glowing admiration of the young 
 "Wyandot was a source of interested amuse- 
 ment. They rallied Agnes upon the conquest 
 she had made, and never dreaming of the in- 
 cidents that followed some months later, 
 warned her to be on her guard lest the loving 
 swain did not snatch her up bodily and carry 
 her off to his distant home. 
 
 Agnes received all this with a smile, but she 
 could not feel as the others did. She knew 
 what a serious matter it was to the youthful 
 warrior, and she pitied him profoundly. She 
 understood the meaning of the sacred passion 
 of love (for had she not given her heart to 
 
 14 
 
210 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEERS. 
 
 her own George?), and she trembled at the 
 thought of what she would suffer if called to 
 surrender him or if forced to look into those 
 dark hazel eyes and not see the responsive 
 light that as yet had never failed to be kindled 
 by her glance. She treated the Wyandot 
 with the utmost consideration, gently, but 
 kindly, repelled his advances, and when, on 
 the second day, the impetuous avowal came 
 from his lips, and he insisted that he should 
 be allowed to pluck the Flower of the Woods 
 to grace his own wigwam, she told him, with 
 earnest, sympathetic words, that it could never 
 be. 
 
 He persevered, despite her refusal, and then 
 she made known to him what she would have 
 preferred should remain a secret so far as he 
 was concerned ; her heart already belonged to 
 another, and she would die before proving 
 false to him. She forbade the Antelope ever 
 to speak of love to her. 
 
 Her words could not have been more de- 
 cided. The Wyandot saw the truth, and was 
 crushed and broken. Without a word, he 
 strode out of the cabin and disappeared in the 
 
PUSHING NORTHWARD. 211 
 
 woods, as though he never again would look 
 upon her. 
 
 Daniel Boone and Simon Kenton were at 
 the block-house at the time, and their knowl- 
 edge of Indian character caused them to agree 
 upon one thing ; that was not the last of the 
 Antelope; he would be heard from again. 
 When he left the fort so abruptly there were 
 feelings in his heart beside disappointment 
 and despair. He was not altogether hopeless, 
 .Civilized people are not the only ones who be- 
 lieve in violence, force and barbarity; the 
 same traits are sometimes found among sav- 
 ages. The Wyandot would not be content to 
 see a pale face take the Flower of the Woods 
 to* his bosom. He would attempt to steal her 
 from him, and, failing in that, would seek to 
 strike down the possessor of the priceless 
 treasure. So henceforth, not Agnes alone, 
 but George Ashbridge, must be on his guard. 
 
 The youth treated lightly these warnings 
 of Boone and Kenton. He had no fear of the 
 Wyandot, who, if he meditated evil toward 
 either, would not be allowed a second oppor- 
 tunity to attempt it against them. 
 
212 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEERS. 
 
 The weeks and months passed, and nothing 
 was seen or heard of the Antelope. His visit 
 had ceased to be a subject of gossip, and was 
 forgotten by many, but one afternoon he reap- 
 peared with a companion older than himself 
 and of forbidding looks. He was a powerful, 
 active "Wyandot, addressed as Mocha-wen-qua, 
 signifying Between- the-Rocks. The two re- 
 mained one night, making their quarters in 
 the block-house. 
 
 On this brief visit the Antelope was an- 
 other person. He was as courteous as a 
 knight of the Crusades to Agnes, was pleasant 
 to her friends, and especially so to George Ash- 
 bridge. While his admiration of the young 
 woman was undisguised, it was not unpleas- 
 antly so. He uttered no word of love and 
 hinted at no wish to pluck the Flower of the 
 Woods ; he seemed content that that bliss 
 should fall to him who had won her heart be- 
 fore he met her. 
 
 Both Agnes and George would have been 
 convinced of the sincerity of the Antelope 
 but for the warning of Kenton. 
 
 " You'll hear from that varmint agin," he 
 
PUSHING NORTHWARD. 213 
 
 said after his departure. "He brought that 
 other Wyandot with him to help look 'round 
 and larn things." 
 
 " What did he wish to learn more than he 
 knew before ?" asked Ashbridge while stand- 
 ing apart with the hunter, Boone at that time 
 being in Boonesborough, the settlement named 
 for him. 
 
 " Lots of things that'll help the snake when 
 he is ready to strike, which may not be for 
 weeks or months." 
 
 What plans the Antelope was meditating as 
 concerned Agnes and Ashbridge of course can 
 never be known, but that the Wyandot 
 brooded over his bitter disappointment until 
 he had formed some desperate scheme is cer- 
 tain, and doubtless it would have soon reached 
 its culmination, when a singular perversity of 
 events changed the whole order of the plot. 
 
 The Antelope and Between-the-Rocks were 
 stealing through the dense forest of Southern 
 Ohio, with the probable intention of carrying 
 out their plan, when they reached the water 
 outlet of the cavern, as it may be called, a few 
 minutes after Ashbridge and Agnes had 
 
214 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEERS. 
 
 emerged therefrom. More cautious than the 
 fugitives, they hid their presence for a time 
 before the young woman detected the stealthy 
 footsteps. 
 
 It must have been as Kenton reasoned : the 
 Antelope would have been only too eager to 
 slay his successful rival in the dark, but he 
 knew the Flower of the Woods would be so 
 horrified by the deed, that she could never 
 look upon him except with abhorrence, so it 
 was that the youth was permitted to stumble 
 and pass on unharmed, while his companion 
 was seized with lightning-like quickness by an 
 arm that passed around her waist, while a 
 hand was held so forcibly over her mouth 
 that the outcry she strove to make was 
 smothered in the utterance. 
 
 It was Mocha- wen-qua who took upon him- 
 self the active part of abductor, the Ante- 
 lope having relieved him of his rifle in order 
 that his powerful arms should be free. With 
 their knowledge of the woods and their ex- 
 perience, they made astonishing progress, and 
 while the distracted Ashbridge stood wildly 
 listening for some clue for the right direc- 
 
PUSHING NORTHWARD. 215 
 
 tion to follow, they passed far beyond his 
 reach. 
 
 The dainty figure of the half-conscious 
 woman was carried as though she were an in- 
 fant for a distance of fully two hundred yards. 
 Then she was placed upon her feet, while her 
 captor gripped her arm too firmly for her to 
 think of trying to escape. 
 
 Up to this time, and for several hours later, 
 the captive had not a suspicion that she was 
 in the hands of a couple of Wyandots. She 
 knew there were two, for they occasionally ex- 
 changed words, and, when they crossed a little 
 patch of clearing, where the faint moonlight 
 fell upon them, she plainly saw their shadowy 
 figures. 
 
 Knowing nothing of either the Wyandot 
 or Shawanoe tongue, she had no means of 
 identifying either when the sparing words 
 were uttered, and the dim light gave her no 
 glimpse of their dress or features. 
 
 The Antelope walked a few paces to the 
 rear, as though in fear of pursuit, a fact that 
 was shown by occasional brief halts on the 
 part of Mocha-wen-qua, who for a time held 
 
216 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEERS. 
 
 his grip so strongly that she suffered from the 
 pain. This gradually improved as the dis- 
 tance from the supposed danger increased. 
 Finally the Wyandot took away his hand, 
 and allowed her to walk in peace, though he 
 kept nigh enough to seize her on the instant 
 it might become necessary. 
 
 It was creditable to Agnes Altman that 
 throughout this terrifying ordeal she neither 
 fainted nor lost command of her senses. It 
 was a shock at first like death itself, but the 
 fact that no harm was offered her, and that 
 she suffered nothing beyond the vise-like 
 grasp on her arm, convinced her that her life 
 was in no immediate danger. She was even 
 allowed to retain her hold upon her small 
 rifle. 
 
 It will be understood that when she was 
 placed upon her feet and permitted to walk, it 
 was in her power to utter a loud outcry, since 
 even a trained athlete would find it hard to 
 hold a lady's mouth closed, and retain a grip 
 upon her arm, while picking their way 
 through the roughest kind of wood at night. 
 
 But when free, the young woman held her 
 
PUSHING NORTHWARD. 217 
 
 peace, impelled thereto by two good and suffi- 
 cient reasons. At the first appeal for help, 
 her captors would check it with a rigor that 
 would prevent any repetition on her part ; and 
 again, if George Ashbridge heard the cry, he 
 would dash to the spot without a thought of 
 the peril to himself. He was one, and here 
 were two active, powerful Indian warriors, 
 adepts in all manner of woodcraft, who would 
 make him pay dearly for his temerity. If 
 Ashbridge had had a companion, like Kenton 
 or Boone, the voice of the prisoner would 
 have rung through the woods in tones that 
 must have penetrated a long distance in the 
 stillness of the darkness. 
 
 So it was that Agnes held her lips mute, 
 more from consideration for her betrothed 
 than for herself. 
 
 The progress through the forest at times 
 was difficult and laborious. The Wyandots 
 drew away from the rocky section where the 
 fugitives met with their most serious adven- 
 tures, and although the ground greatly im- 
 proved, it more than once compelled detours, 
 and required great care to prevent stumbling. 
 
218 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEERS. 
 
 The natural expectation of Agnes was that 
 her captors were making their way back to 
 the main company that was somewhere in the 
 neighborhood, but when fully two hours 
 passed without bringing to sight the first 
 glimmer of a camp fire, and without the ex- 
 change of a signal between them and other 
 parties, she knew she was mistaken. The 
 conviction came in the nature of a partial re- 
 lief, for she dreaded unspeakably being taken 
 into a camp of a dozen or more Shawanoes, 
 where, under the glare of the flames she 
 would be subjected to a trying scrutiny, and 
 perhaps to indignity ; for among so many it 
 was more than likely that some would show 
 her less consideration than that received here- 
 tofore from her captors. 
 
 All through her trial she was buoyed by a 
 hope that would have sustained few in her 
 situation. Her thoughts naturally traveled 
 back to George, and it was even a part of her 
 delicate and highly-wrought nature to feel a 
 tender sympathy for the brave fellow who was 
 so eager at all times to risk his life for her. 
 She could comprehend the shock that over- 
 
PUSHING NOETHWAKD. 219 
 
 came him when he learned that she had been 
 snatched almost from his side. 
 
 " What will he do ?" was the question she 
 pondered and answered in many ways. Surely 
 he would soon rally from the blow and rouse 
 himself to action. He would understand that 
 he could do nothing except with help, and 
 would seek that. Without waiting for day- 
 light, he would hasten to the block-house and 
 secure the aid of some of the rangers there, 
 always ready for a venture of this kind. 
 Knowing the precise spot, as may be said, 
 where she had been abducted, he could guide 
 them thither, and those experienced woodmen 
 would take the trail and follow it like so many 
 bloodhounds. Two warriors and herself must 
 of necessity leave footprints which could be 
 readily followed. 
 
 All this was in a measure a pleasant occu- 
 pation for her mind, but the reader need not 
 be reminded that in this respect the young 
 woman was wide of the mark. Nothing of 
 the kind took place, though, at a much later 
 hour than she had in mind, the belated Ash- 
 bridge set out for the frontier post. 
 
220 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEERS. 
 
 In crossing a natural clearing several rods 
 in area Agnes glanced around at the Indian 
 who was following her. He shrank back as 
 if seeking to avoid scrutiny, but she saw 
 enough to show that he had a blanket wrapped 
 about his shoulders. This was unusual. The 
 season was warm, and among all the Shawa- 
 noes observed since leaving the block-house 
 none carried the extra garment with him. 
 The discovery, however, caused her no uneasi- 
 ness. 
 
 When another hour had passed without 
 bringing them to the camp of the main party, 
 the captive was convinced that her custodians 
 held no intention of taking her thither. They 
 were tramping northward on their return to 
 their native towns or villages. In this re- 
 spect, as will be recalled, she was not far from 
 the truth. 
 
 Agnes had done a good deal of walking 
 since leaving her home, and though, like most 
 of her sex on the frontier, she possessed a 
 splendid physique, the strain began to tell. 
 She was fatigued, and her captors must be 
 aware of it. 
 
PUSHING NORTHWARD. 221 
 
 When she was on the point of appealing to 
 them, the rest unexpectedly came. They de- 
 scended a sloping bank, and, emerging from 
 the wood, paused on the bank of a stream, 
 perhaps a hundred yards in width, and which 
 was one of the numerous winding tributaries 
 of the Ohio. 
 
 That this was the point at which the war- 
 riors were aiming was proven by their actions. 
 The immediate custodian of Agnes moved a 
 few paces to the right and drew a canoe from 
 under a clump of bushes, where they had evi- 
 dently left it when coming from the opposite 
 direction. 
 
 " They intend to cross in the boat, or per- 
 haps make a voyage of several miles in it," 
 thought the prisoner, in dismay, " and then 
 how will George and the rest follow our 
 trail?" 
 
 The other Indian, holding his blanket close 
 about his shoulders, so as to fully conceal his 
 face, stepped apart and talked a few minutes 
 with his companion. The latter soon returned 
 to Agnes and motioned for her to enter the 
 canoe. She obeyed, and seated herself near 
 
222 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEEES. 
 
 the further end. Instead of following her or 
 pushing the craft from shore, the warrior took 
 out the paddle, walked back to the edge of the 
 wood, and sat down. The other disappeared 
 among the trees. 
 
 Agnes interpreted this as meaning that she 
 should rest herself. Her mind was in a tu- 
 mult of emotion, but so great was her fatigue 
 of body that she soon closed her eyes, and did 
 not open them until the sun was shining. 
 
 Looking around and recognizing her sur- 
 roundings, she saw that one of the warriors 
 was broiling a haunch of venison over a fire 
 that apparently had been burning a good 
 while. His companion, standing near, with- 
 out his blanket and with folded arms, was 
 gazing fixedly at her, who, with a start, recog- 
 nized him as her old admirer, the Wyandot, 
 known as the Antelope. 
 
A WOODLAND WOOING. 223 
 
 CHAPTER XV. 
 
 A WOODLAND WOOING. 
 
 THE Wyandots known as the Antelope 
 and Between-the-Rocks having pene- 
 trated the forests to a point so far north that 
 all fear of pursuit was gone, halted on the 
 edge of the stream where they had left their 
 canoe. When they found it undisturbed, all 
 misgiving was removed. It was safe to re- 
 main where they were until long after the 
 morrow's sun had risen, for they could take 
 to their boat a good while before the fleetest 
 of wood rangers could track them to the spot, 
 and " water leaves no trail." 
 
 The Wyandots saw that their captive needed 
 rest. They would have halted long before 
 but for their wish to reach the place where 
 they had left their canoe. That done, the 
 halt was no longer delayed. 
 
 The Antelope had noted the inquiring looks 
 
224 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEERS. 
 
 of Agnes directed toward him, and, desirous 
 of hiding his identity as long as he could, re- 
 frained from offering her the use of his blan- 
 ket, which he had brought from his home 
 with the vague hope that it might serve the 
 Flower of the Woods, which he had set out to 
 pluck for his wigwam. 
 
 He went into the forest after game, direct- 
 ing his companion to prepare the fire with 
 which to broil it. The wearied Agnes sank 
 into slumber, which, as has been told, lasted 
 unbroken until the sun was well above the 
 horizon. 
 
 While she was sleeping, the Antelope had 
 respectfully approached the canoe and gently 
 laid his blanket at the feet of her whom he 
 adored. Then, as her eyes still remained 
 closed, he stepped back, folded his arms, and 
 looked down in the beauteous countenance 
 with a fervor of admiration that was akin to 
 worship itself. Thus rapt in emotion, he stood 
 when Agnes opened her eyes, rose from her 
 half-reclining position, and looked across and 
 up in the face of the Wyandot. 
 
 On the instant the truth flashed upon her. 
 
A WOODLAND WOOING. 225 
 
 Instead of falling into the hands of the Shaw- 
 anoes, she had been taken prisoner by these 
 two members of another tribe. They must 
 have acted independently of the party that 
 had driven them into the cavern and then 
 tried to burn them out. 
 
 In that single glance, too, Agnes recalled 
 the former visits, and especially the last one, 
 made by the Antelope to her home at the 
 block-house. She recognized his present com- 
 panion as the one who accompanied the hand- 
 some warrior at that time, and the words of 
 Simon Kenton seemed to be ringing in her 
 ears. 
 
 But her woman's instinct warned her to be 
 on her guard. Her dusky lover now had the 
 upper hand, and it would be dangerous to an- 
 ger him. 
 
 " Good morning," she said, with an attempt 
 at cheeriness which could hardly deceive him. 
 "I did not expect to meet the Antelope so far 
 from his home as well as my own." 
 
 " The Flower of the Woods has slept well ; 
 the Antelope has kept away danger while she 
 slept; his heart is glad that she awakes again." 
 
 15 
 
226 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEERS. 
 
 Agnes stepped ashore. The Antelope 
 sprang forward to assist her, but she was too 
 quick. Her health and strength were so su- 
 perb that she felt no discomfort from the con- 
 strained position she had held so long, nor 
 from the wetting of her garments hours be- 
 fore, though she missed her morning toilet, 
 and the greetings and companionship of her 
 friends — the latter, alas ! more than she could 
 tell. 
 
 " Let the Flower of the Woods follow the 
 bank of the stream to where the tall hickory- 
 bends over the river ; on the other side she 
 will find a cool spring that will run forever 
 sweet after she touches her lips to it." 
 
 Agnes could afford to forget this high- 
 flown compliment in her thankfulness at the 
 consideration of the admiring Wyandot. She 
 inclined her head and murmured her acknowl- 
 edgment, as she passed him, soon disappear- 
 ing from his sight. 
 
 Had she dared she would have taken her 
 rifle with her instead of leaving it in the ca- 
 noe, and had she kept the weapon in hand 
 she would have made a dash for liberty the 
 
A WOODLAND WOOING. 227 
 
 moment she was beyond the gaze of her cap- 
 tors. She could run rapidly, and since they 
 would be compelled to study her trail in or- 
 der to keep up the pursuit, she felt little fear 
 of not being able to elude them. 
 
 But she was wise. She was a long distance 
 from home and was astray. Probably it would 
 take her several days and nights to reach the 
 old trail, or the Ohio river, which would serve 
 her equally well as a guide. To attempt this 
 without a weapon at her command was not to 
 be thought of, for in addition to the need of 
 procuring food was the ever-present danger 
 of meeting some of Red Bird's band, whom 
 she dreaded far more than the two Wyandots 
 who were now her custodians. 
 
 Agnes drank from the cool crystal spring, 
 bathed her face and temples, and, as was her 
 custom, spent a few minutes in prayer. Look- 
 ing around her in the woods, she was confi- 
 dent that no human eye saw her. The tempta- 
 tion to flee was strong, but she resolutely put 
 it behind her, and sauntered back to camp, as 
 it may be termed, as though such a thought 
 had not entered her head. 
 
228 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEEES. 
 
 Between-the-Rocks had done his duty well. 
 The thin slices of the best venison that could 
 be selected from the victim of the Antelope's 
 marksmanship had been "done to a turn/' 
 and were supported on a number of broad 
 green leaves which rested on the edge of a 
 bowlder a couple of feet high that served ad- 
 mirably as a table. The tempting odor of 
 broiling meat was in the air, and was grateful 
 to the young woman, who was keenly ahun- 
 gered. 
 
 She again bowed and uttered her thanks, 
 as she took her seat on the rock, and ate of 
 the nourishing food. Between-the-Rocks and 
 the Antelope also ate, but at several paces dis- 
 tant, and with their faces turned away that 
 she might not feel any embarrassment. 
 
 Agnes dreaded the stepping into the canoe 
 and pushing away from shore, for she was 
 confident that the Antelope did not intend 
 merely to cross, but would go a long distance, 
 perhaps, in the boat. That would render it 
 impossible for her friends to trail her beyond 
 the present point. It was to her interest, there- 
 fore, to delay movements as long as she could. 
 
A WOODLAND WOOING. 229 
 
 When the meal was completed — and it need 
 not be said that she did not hasten matters — 
 and she saw that the Antelope wished to re- 
 sume the conversation that had been checked, 
 she encouraged the purpose by sitting on the 
 edge of the rock that had served her for a 
 table and looking expectantly toward him. 
 He was quick to accept the invitation. 
 
 In the canoe, drawn slightly up the bank, 
 rested paddle, blanket, and the light weapon 
 of the captive. Between-the-Rocks, having 
 finished his meal, was smoking his red clay 
 pipe, seated on the ground, with his face 
 turned toward the stream. Thus placed, he 
 was not looking at the two on his right, and 
 yet he would have perceived any unusual 
 movement by either. The two rifles reclined 
 against another bowlder only a few feet away. 
 
 The Antelope sauntered from the little fire 
 to the rock, where Agnes looked invitingly 
 up in his face. She saw the handsome coun- 
 tenance, undefiled by paint, flush deeper at 
 this concentration of gaze ; but he veiled his 
 agitation by an effort, and, halting at a re- 
 spectful distance, folded his arms and looked 
 
230 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEEKS. 
 
 down at her with an expression of fervent ad- 
 miration and passion. 
 
 " Can the Antelope do anything to please 
 the Flower of the Woods?" he asked in a 
 voice so soft and low and musical that it must 
 have thrilled the heart of any dusky maiden 
 whose ears caught the tones. 
 
 Agnes, with the instinct of her sex, saw that 
 she could trifle more with that voice than any 
 one else. She did not hesitate to indulge in 
 a saucy smile and reply : 
 
 "Yes, Wyandot, there's one thing I am 
 waiting for you to do ; I wish you to take me 
 home." 
 
 The warrior was not unprepared for this, 
 and made apt reply : 
 
 " The Antelope did not take the Flower 
 from her home." 
 
 " No ; he never could do that; but she was 
 trying to make her way there when he took 
 her away." 
 
 u It was Mocha-wen-qua, not the Antelope, 
 who plucked the Flower." 
 
 This was too palpable a subterfuge for the 
 young woman to accept. 
 
A WOODLAND WOOING. 231 
 
 " But Mocha- wen-qua did it to please the 
 Antelope, and therefore it was the same as if 
 the Antelope did it." 
 
 " She was not harmed, nor was the paleface 
 injured." 
 
 " And why should he have been ?" Agnes 
 made haste to ask. " He is the friend of the 
 Flower, as you choose to call me." 
 
 " He is the enemy of the red man." 
 
 " Not of the Antelope, for he is the friend 
 of the white man, and therefore they must be 
 friends to each other." 
 
 The black eyes of the Wyandot emitted an 
 ominous flash, but with remarkable control 
 he kept his voice at the same low, bewitching 
 key. 
 
 " It is the will of the Great Spirit that the 
 Flower of the Woods should bloom in the 
 wigwam of the Antelope; it was the Great 
 Spirit that guided the Antelope to the spot, 
 when she came from the house under the 
 ground, so that he was able to save her from 
 the Shawanoes." 
 
 It was evident the young warrior looked 
 upon his arrival at the critical moment as 
 
232 IN THE DAYS OP THE PIONEEKS. 
 
 specially directed by the One whom we wor- 
 ship. 
 
 " That may be," said Agnes, " and I will 
 always feel grateful that you and Mocha- wen- 
 qua saved me from the fierce Shawanoes ; but 
 if the Great Spirit meant that you should do 
 this, why does not the Antelope do all He 
 wishes him to do ?" 
 
 " What is that ?" he demanded. 
 
 " That the Antelope should take her to her 
 friends." 
 
 " How does the Flower of the Woods know 
 that?" 
 
 u How does the Antelope know He meant 
 him to save me from the red men that had 
 driven us into the cavern ?" 
 
 " Because the Antelope was led there at the 
 right moment." 
 
 " But he was not led there." 
 
 " He was left to do as his heart urged him ; 
 that was to pluck the Flower of the Woods and 
 take her to his lodge toward the great waters." 
 
 " But it is the will of the Flower to go back 
 to her home and her friends ; it grieves her 
 heart that the Antelope delays her going." 
 
A WOODLAND WOOING. 233 
 
 . " Her heart should not be grieved, for the 
 Antelope loves her." 
 
 " You told me all this many moons ago, 
 Antelope/' said Agnes, with grave earnest- 
 ness, " and I told you it could never be." 
 
 "The Antelope loves the Flower of the 
 Woods," repeated the dusky admirer, with 
 glowing face and eager eyes. 
 
 " But, Wyandot, how can I love you when 
 my heart is given to another, as I explained 
 to you long ago ?" 
 
 Since the Antelope ventured to argue the 
 question with his captive, the latter wielded 
 a ready tongue, and made no effort to conceal 
 her impatience. 
 
 "The Antelope will win the heart of the 
 Flower ; he will hunt the woods for game for 
 her ; he will bring her much wampum ; the 
 softest skins of the fox, the bear, and the buf- 
 falo shall be her couch : she shall do no toil ; 
 all shall bow down at her feet, and she shall 
 be queen of the Wyandots." 
 
 " But, Antelope, that cannot be, for we are 
 of different blood." 
 
 " Does not the good man, the missionary, 
 
234 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEEES. 
 
 say that we are all children of the same 
 Father?" 
 
 " And Mr. Finley speaks the truth ; we are 
 all children of the Great Father ; so is the 
 black man and woman, and yet the red people 
 do not consort with them ; no more can I ever 
 consort with you, Wyandot." 
 
 It was a plain, direct, abrupt refusal, but 
 no more than the warrior had received when 
 a suppliant at the block-house months before. 
 It would be strange that now, when every ad- 
 vantage was his, he should accept such a re- 
 pulse as final. 
 
 A little fearful that she had been too pointed 
 under the changed conditions, Agnes added, 
 before he could respond : 
 
 "You have told me again that you love 
 me, and I cannot doubt it, for the Antelope 
 speaks with a single tongue; then, if you love 
 me more than any one else in the world, you 
 should strive first of all to do that which will 
 please me." 
 
 Vain essay of the female mind ! Woeful 
 mistake, made myriads of times in the past, 
 and it shall be made numberless times in the 
 
A WOODLAND WOOING. 235 
 
 years to come, so long as the world shall last; 
 for when one appeals to the unselfishness of 
 love, it is to the essence of selfishness itself. 
 
 " When a few more moons come and go the 
 Flower of the Woods will read aright the will 
 of the Great Spirit, which she now reads in a 
 wrong light. She will see that they are in- 
 tended for each other." 
 
 " Who gave you this wondrous knowledge, 
 O Wyandot, that you dare speak for the 
 Great Spirit ?" demanded Agnes, sitting erect 
 and looking full into the face of the young 
 warrior. Her feelings were wrought to a high 
 pitch, and her manner and appearance showed 
 her anger. Not only was it impatience with 
 the sophistry of the dusky wooer, but it was 
 a feeling of loyalty to the absent one — him 
 who held her heart's affections, as he would 
 forever — which thrilled her with a courage 
 that quailed not at death itself. 
 
 The Antelope recoiled a step, but did not 
 shrink from meeting her fiery gaze and mak- 
 ing instant reply : 
 
 " It is the Great Spirit himself who gives 
 the Antelope the knowledge of his will." 
 
236 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEERS. 
 
 " Not so ! You have committed a sin ; you 
 have done me a grievous wrong; the Great 
 Spirit is displeased ; he frowns upon the An- 
 telope; he turns away his face, because he 
 seeks harm to the one who never harmed him. 
 You have the power, Wyandot, to take me to 
 your lodge, for you are stronger than I, but 
 my heart will be broken; when the Flower 
 of the Woods is planted in the wigwam of the 
 Antelope she will droop and die." 
 
 Mocha-wen-qua, seated some distance away 
 on a rock, stolidly smoking his pipe, uttered a 
 slight sound, which caused the Antelope to 
 turn like a flash and look inquiringly at him. 
 The elder warrior did not speak or move 
 limb or head. He simply shot his glittering 
 eyes for an instant down stream. The furtive 
 glance said as plainly as words could have 
 done : " Look there and you will see danger." 
 
 Agnes Altman was facing in that direction 
 and saw that which startled Between-the- 
 Rocks at the same moment that he observed it. 
 A canoe was coming around the bend, im- 
 pelled by a single paddle, though the frail 
 craft contained two persons. At the instant 
 
A WOODLAND WOOING. 237 
 
 it darted into sight, the grim sentinel with his 
 pipe uttered the warning to the Antelope. 
 
 None of the three surveyed the approach- 
 ing boat with more interest than Agnes. With 
 a quickening throb she saw that while the one 
 swaying the paddle was an Indian, his com- 
 panion was a white man. Something in his 
 appearance seemed familiar, and she rose to 
 her feet, in the instinctive effort to discern 
 more clearly. With the action, as may be 
 said, she recognized him as J. B. Finley, the 
 famous missionary, while his companion was 
 no less a personage than Wa-on-mon, known 
 along the frontier as the Panther, the terrible 
 war chief of the Shawanoes. 
 
238 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEEBS. 
 
 CHAPTER XVI. 
 
 THE PANTHER'S DECISION. 
 
 MINGLED emotions were caused on the 
 part of Agnes Altman when she recog- 
 nized the occupants in the approaching canoe 
 as the missionary Finley and the dreaded 
 Shawanoe war chieftain, Wa-on-mon or the 
 Panther. 
 
 The man of God well earned the fragrant 
 reputation he won in the early history of the 
 West, as a devoted, self-sacrificing laborer in 
 his Master's vineyard. As we have said, he 
 literally carried for months and years his life 
 in his hands. He tramped hundreds of miles 
 through the unbroken wilderness, paddling 
 his canoe up the lonely streams, sleeping in 
 the open woods, caring naught for summer's 
 fiery glow nor the piercing snow and blasts of 
 winter. He visited the hostile tribes, and 
 many a time, when he lay down in the wig- 
 
THE PANTHER'S DECISION. 239 
 
 warn of the Shawanoe, or Wyandot, or Potta- 
 watomie, it was with the conviction that he 
 would never again see the sun rise — that the 
 knife of the vengeful hostile would be driven 
 into his heart, and he would be another of the 
 many innocent victims to the sins of others 
 of his own race. 
 
 But the missionary never faltered in his 
 blessed work, which carried with it the sweet- 
 est reward that can come to mortal man — the 
 consciousness that he was pleasing his Master, 
 and that whatever befell him in this world, all 
 would be well in the world to come. What to 
 him, therefore, were storm and heat, hunger 
 and pain, woe and sorrow, life and death ? So 
 he went about his sacred task, content to 
 await God's own time to call him hence, and 
 lived to see the West teeming with settle- 
 ments, villages, towns and cities, and to die a 
 peaceful, happy death at a green old age, 
 leaving a memory behind him which has 
 proved a benison to after generations. 
 
 It need not be said that Agnes Altman 
 loved the missionary with a respect and rev- 
 erence which no other being could inspire, 
 
240 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEEES. 
 
 and her heart gave a throb of deep joy when 
 her eyes rested upon the massive frame, with 
 its mild, beaming countenance and expression 
 of charity, sweetness and good-will. 
 
 But what of the Panther ? She had had 
 more than one stirring experience with him 
 during the past year, and knew what a terrific 
 scourge he had been to the border. Once she 
 cut the bonds that bound him when a pris- 
 oner on the flatboat, and, in turn, he had 
 sought the life of George Ashbridge, and 
 (though she knew it not) had meditated bury- 
 ing his knife in her breast. 
 
 He and Simon Kenton had been the fiercest 
 of mortal enemies for years, seeking each 
 other's lives, like a couple of rival tigers in 
 the jungle. They had met in deadly conflict, 
 each thrilled by an intensity of hate beyond 
 the reach of imagination, and yet, at the 
 moment when the great ranger held the 
 Shawanoe at his mercy, the conqueror, yield- 
 ing to that divine prompting which is never 
 wholly silent in any breast, had given the 
 conquered back his life and let him go un- 
 harmed. 
 
THE PANTHER'S DECISION. 241 
 
 The Panther had never appeared at the 
 block-house, for he was still the implacable 
 foe of the white man, and the pioneers that 
 had been brought in contact with him knew 
 nothing of his later movements or doings. 
 Missionary Finley, when at the post, was 
 sometimes questioned, but was unable, or he 
 may have chosen to give no satisfactory infor- 
 mation. 
 
 Nothing was clearer than that, although the 
 missionary and chieftain were comrades for 
 the time, the Shawanoe was the master ; it 
 was his wish that would prevail in the critical 
 event at hand. The uncertainty as to the 
 mood of the Panther was the source of the 
 misgiving on the part of Agnes Altman. 
 
 Wa-on-mon sat a little in front of the cen- 
 tre of the boat, using the ashen paddle first 
 on one side and then on the other, with that 
 deliberate power which proved his unsurpass- 
 able skill in the use of the implement. He 
 faced the bow of the craft, and his painted 
 countenance, with its strong features and vivid 
 personality, was clearly shown in the strong 
 sunlight. 
 
 16 
 
242 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEEES. 
 
 The missionary was near the stern, his face 
 plainly speaking his surprise at the sight of 
 the group on shore. With the quick intui- 
 tion gained by years of training, he suspected 
 a part of the truth, and suggested in a low 
 tone to his companion that they should land 
 and look into the matter. The suggestion was 
 unnecessary, for the Panther had already 
 turned the bow of the craft toward the 
 land. 
 
 The appearance of the new-comers was a 
 surprise to the Antelope and Between-the- 
 Bocks. Had the former suspected that any- 
 thing of the kind was likely, he would have 
 made sure that his party were invisible and 
 that no signs were left to draw the attention 
 of the Panther. It was too late for that, how- 
 ever, and the Wyandot was wise in putting on 
 the best face possible and greeting the visitors 
 as though they were welcome friends. 
 
 Agnes Altman went further. Springing 
 lightly from the rock, she ran down to the 
 water's margin and met the canoe. 
 
 " Wa-on-mon, how do you do ?" she asked, 
 with a smile and the offer of her hand. Drop- 
 
THE PANTHER'S DECISION. 243 
 
 ping his paddle, he stepped ashore, and then 
 accepted the tiny hand that was offered him, 
 but there was just enough hesitation to rob 
 the act of its graciousness, and he did not 
 speak. He bestowed one quick glance upon the 
 young woman, and then strode on to meet the 
 two Wy an dots. 
 
 This cleared the path between her and the 
 missionary, who, stepping from the canoe, 
 passed one of his brawny arms around the 
 comely shoulders, and implanted an affection- 
 ate kiss upon the willing cheek of Agnes. 
 
 " I ought always to be glad to see you, my 
 child," he said, in his cheery fashion, "but 
 this meeting causes me anxiety." 
 
 " And I fear there is reason for it, Mr. Fin- 
 ley, for you need not be told that I am here 
 unwillingly." 
 
 " How did it come about ?" he asked, tak- 
 ing her hand, and leading her to another 
 rock removed at least fifty feet from the 
 Panther and the Wyandot. 
 
 She told him the story of the past twenty- 
 four hours, doing it with a quick completeness 
 which left nothing to be added. He listened 
 
244 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEEES. 
 
 attentively without interruption until she was 
 through. 
 
 " It is a remarkable complication, a strange 
 series of events, the like of which I have 
 never known before. It will cause your friends 
 great anxiety, for your failure to return must 
 mean your inability to do so. I hope their 
 suspense will not continue long." 
 
 " I am bewildered when I recall what has 
 taken place in so short a time. What do you 
 suppose George has done ?" 
 
 " I can only guess, my child ; it seems to 
 me he must have seen that he was powerless 
 to do anything for you without help, and has 
 made haste to the block-house for that help." 
 
 " How can it be turned to account ?" 
 
 " There are always men there who can fol- 
 low a trail with the skill of an Indian. They 
 will meet with little difficulty in following you 
 to this spot." 
 
 " But that will take much time." 
 
 "Yes; if he hastens to the post so as to 
 leave there with his friends at daylight, they 
 have hardly reached the point where you 
 were captured by this time. But he will be 
 
THE PANTHER'S DECISION". 245 
 
 so disturbed by your loss that I doubt whether 
 he will leave the vicinity before morning. In 
 that case they can not be here much before 
 nightfall." 
 
 " You speak, Mr. Finley, as though there is 
 need of their coming/' said Agnes, in alarm. 
 
 " I do not know, my child, whether such 
 need exists." 
 
 "But what of the Panther? Is he an 
 enemy of mine ?" 
 
 The benevolent face took on a troubled ex- 
 pression. 
 
 "Wa-on-mon causes me much distress of 
 mind. Many times I have been hopeful that 
 he was meditating seriously of the change of 
 heart that must come to him before his future 
 is secure. He has thought a great deal of it, 
 as his words showed, but his hatred of our 
 race is so fierce that nothing except divine 
 grace can change it." 
 
 " And yet he is a friend to you." 
 
 " I am not always certain of that, my child," 
 was the astonishing reply of the missionary ; 
 "you will be shocked when I tell you that 
 when I have lain down to sleep in his wig- 
 
246 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEEKS. 
 
 warn, as well as when lie stood watch for a few 
 hours while I slept in the woods, he has spent 
 the time in debating with himself whether to 
 slay or allow me to slumber on — and yet all 
 this is true."^ 
 
 Agnes showed in her looks the amazed grief 
 this news caused her. 
 
 " And yet/' added the good man, with a 
 smile, " I never allowed such a trifle to in- 
 terfere with my rest. God has protected me 
 thus far, and whatever may be His will in the 
 future I am content, for He doeth all things 
 well." 
 
 " You have driven away the hope that came 
 with the sight of you and the Panther," said 
 the captive, deeply depressed. 
 
 " I have no wish to do that, for I won't 
 deny that I feel hope myself." 
 
 " The Panther was cool, and almost repulsed 
 me when I greeted him." 
 
 " You know his people are not demonstra- 
 tive in their nature. It was a good deal for 
 him to take your hand at all. If I am not 
 mistaken, Agnes, the Antelope has shown 
 great admiration for you." 
 
THE PANTHER'S DECISION. 247 
 
 The cheek of the maiden flushed, but she 
 replied promptly : 
 
 fi It is true ; he came to our home last au- 
 tumn and avowed it so strongly that I told 
 him it could do him no good, as I am the 
 promised wife of another." 
 
 " That was right, my child ; you did your 
 duty, and what since then ?" 
 
 " He came again with his present compan- 
 ion, Between-the-Rocks." 
 
 " I know him well," remarked the mis- 
 sionary in a low voice, with a glance at the 
 middle-aged warrior ; " he is a bad man, cun- 
 ning, revengeful and treacherous. We must 
 beware of him. But I interrupted you." 
 
 "We did not see the Antelope again for 
 months. Then he presented himself at our 
 house, as I just told you, with Between-the- 
 Rocks. He acted so sensibly that George and 
 I believed he had gotten over his infatuation, 
 but Mr. Kenton told us it was not so, and 
 warned us to be on our guard against him." 
 
 " Events have proven that Simon was right. 
 Very rarely does he make a mistake in such 
 matters. I can see from the manner of the 
 
248 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEERS. 
 
 Antelope," added the missionary, with a fur- 
 tive look at the Panther and the Wyandot, 
 " that he is much in earnest. They are talk- 
 ing in Wyandot, but from a word or two that 
 I have caught, the Antelope is pleading for 
 permission to take you to his home with him." 
 
 " And what says the Panther ?" eagerly 
 asked Agnes. 
 
 " He says very little and speaks so low that 
 I haven't been able to hear a word, but he is 
 listening closely.'' 
 
 " Shall I not go to him and add my prayer ?" 
 said the maiden, in a tremor of agitation and 
 distress. 
 
 The missionary shook his head. 
 
 " By no means ; it would be the worst thing 
 you could do, and probably would cause him 
 to decide against you." 
 
 " But you — surely you can say something 
 for me." 
 
 " You know how gladly I would do any- 
 thing in my power, but I may safely claim to 
 understand the chieftain better than most 
 people, and that I refrain from doing as you 
 wish is because I know it is for your good. 
 
THE PANTHER'S DECISION. 249 
 
 Raise your heart in prayer, my child, as I 
 have done repeatedly since joining you." 
 
 " Oh, how often I have done that, Mr. Fin- 
 ley ! We can only hope and wait for the is- 
 sue, whatever it may be." 
 
 Now that it was apparent to both that the 
 all-important question was under discussion 
 and soon to be decided, the missionary and 
 the young woman could feel no interest in 
 conversation, but turned their gaze upon the 
 two who were too much absorbed in each other 
 to notice the attention of the whites. 
 
 Between-the-Rocks had not changed his 
 position since lighting his pipe. He sat puff- 
 ing with the deliberation of one who fully en- 
 joyed the nicotine and cared for nothing else. 
 But the black, beady eyes, flitting hither and 
 thither and never at rest, did not lose the 
 slightest feature of the singular scene. 
 
 The Panther, without giving a thought to 
 the matter, had assumed a pose that was 
 striking in its picturesqueness. When he 
 laid down the paddle of his canoe he picked 
 up his rifle and carried it with him. Besting 
 the stock on the ground between him and the 
 
250 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEERS. 
 
 young Wyandot, he folded his arms across 
 the muzzle, rested his chin upon them, and 
 glowered unflinchingly into the face of the 
 handsome young warrior while he grimly 
 listened to his pleadings. He supported most 
 of his weight on the right moccasin, the left 
 leg being slightly bent at the knee. The 
 black hair dangling about the shoulders and 
 cheeks, the Roman nose, the high cheek- 
 bones, the broad mouth, drawn down at the 
 corners, the habitual scowl, the naked chest, 
 the low forehead, the eyes as bright and 
 gleaming as those of a rattlesnake, and the 
 weird splashes of white, red, and black paint 
 on the countenance, with the moral back- 
 ground made by his reputation as one of the 
 most terrific fighters of his race — these were 
 of .that overwhelming force that not for a mo- 
 ment did the wild thought of gainsaying his 
 decision enter the brain of the Antelope. 
 
 The latter was the picture of grace, as he 
 argued his own cause. Many a judge would 
 have yielded because of the winsomeness of 
 the pleader, but this was a detriment in the 
 eyes of the iron chieftain, who regarded it as 
 
THE PANTHER'S DECISION. 251 
 
 evidence of effeminacy. Then, too, the Ante- 
 lope was under suspicion of being a friend of 
 the pale faces, and that told heavily against 
 him. 
 
 In short, no sooner had the handsome 
 young Wyandot stated his case than the 
 Panther made instant decision against him. 
 He disliked the youth to that degree, how- 
 ever, that he would not end his suspense by 
 letting him know the question was settled. 
 He encouraged him to " present his side/' and 
 the Antelope, believing that he had a chance 
 of winning, did so with all the fervor, earnest- 
 ness, and grace at his command. 
 
 But the end had to come. The Wyandot 
 finally paused and looked into that frightful 
 countenance for the verdict that to him was 
 more than life itself. 
 
 " Does my brother love the Flower of the 
 Woods?" asked the chieftain, raising his head 
 from the support on which it had been rest- 
 ing and assuming the upright posture. 
 
 The question must have struck the Ante- 
 lope as somewhat superfluous, but like a true 
 lover, he was ready with his reply : 
 
252 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEERS. 
 
 " So much, that if I lose the Flower I shall 
 never look up again and — " 
 
 " Then you shall look down the rest of your 
 life!" broke in the Panther in a wrathful 
 voice, and with a fierceness of manner that 
 made the Wyandot start backward and trem- 
 ble. " That red man who would consort with 
 a pale face is a pale face himself. He is a 
 dog, a snake — he is not fit to live." 
 
 The Shawanoe seemed on the point of leap- 
 ing forward and striking the youth to the 
 earth. The Antelope recoiled further and 
 stared affrightedly at his master, as if on the 
 point of seeking safety in flight. He was 
 fleeter of foot than the chieftain, and might 
 save himself by a sudden dash. 
 
 But, if he meditated such a step, it was 
 changed by the action of the Panther him- 
 self. Once more he interlocked his forearms 
 over the muzzle of his rifle and rested his 
 chin upon them. With the piercing eyes fixed 
 upon the cowering Antelope, he said slowly, 
 and in a cavernous voice : 
 
 " Let the Wyandot go back to his people 
 and tell them that Wa-on-mon did not kill 
 
Q 
 
THE PANTHER'S DECISION. 253 
 
 him because he is a squaw. Let him go 
 quickly, or Wa-on-mon may forget that he is 
 a squaw and think of him only as a dog, and, 
 thinking of him as a dog, sink his tomahawk 
 in his brain. Let him take with him the 
 other squaw and dog, Mocha- wen-qua ; let 
 him go quickly — go !" 
 
254 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEEES. 
 
 CHAPTER XVII. 
 
 : I KNOWED IT!" 
 
 THE reader will recall that on the same 
 forenoon the events just described were 
 taking place, Jethro Juggens and George 
 Ashbridge held an earnest consultation on 
 the trail leading to the block-house, and de- 
 cided that the younger should push on to the 
 frontier post in quest of help, with which to 
 pursue and recover Agnes Altman from the 
 Wyandots who had carried her away. He 
 reached this purpose because he saw no other 
 way of accomplishing what he had in mind. 
 
 But Jethro could not agree with him. It 
 seemed to him that invaluable time would 
 thus be lost. As he viewed matters, the un- 
 explained absence of Simon Kenton could 
 only mean one thing, which was that he had 
 fallen into grave danger. 
 
 " And if dat's de case, Marse George, Jethro 
 
"I KNOWED IT!" 255 
 
 Juggens am de indiwidooal that is to help 
 him out." 
 
 " I cannot see what you can do for him/' 
 was the response of Ashbridge. 
 
 " Ob course yo' can't, and I can't neither 
 till I larns jes' how he am fixed ; den will be 
 de time for me to set things hummin'." 
 
 " But we know what a misfortune has be- 
 fallen Agnes ; there is no doubt that she is in 
 the hands of enemies, and she, therefore, 
 should receive every attention. Kenton is 
 able to take care of himself — at least, a good 
 deal better than you can take care of 
 him." 
 
 " Dar's whar yo're powerful mistook/' was 
 the confident comment of Jethro ; " yo' know 
 dat folks will make mistakes at times, and I 
 s'pose yo'll obmit, Marse George, dat yo' ob- 
 clines dat way now and den." 
 
 " Well, do as you please ; I have no heart 
 to talk with or listen to you. You seem to 
 be the child of good fortune, and there's no 
 use of my wishing it for you ; but when you 
 get through with saving Kenton perhaps you 
 will give some attention to Agnes." 
 
256 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEEKS. 
 
 " Who tole yo' 'bout dat ?" demanded the 
 astonished African ; " dat's de bery idee dat I 
 hab figured out. Marse Kenton am a good 
 man, a bery good man, and I want him to 
 help. me when we goes for Miss Agnes; dat's 
 de whole plan I had in mind." 
 
 To George Ashbridge all this was dismal 
 comedy, and with a word of good-bye he 
 turned on his heel and strode rapidly toward 
 the block-house. Jethro Juggens kept his 
 place until the other had passed out of sight 
 around a turn in the trail. 
 
 " He seems to be cut all up by de umbera- 
 geous way tings am gwine. Wal, I s'pose it 
 am nat'ral, and I'm sorry for him. Let me 
 see : de fust ting I've got to do am to hunt up 
 Marse Kenton, and ef he's in trouble help 
 him out." 
 
 He had turned about and was walking 
 thoughtfully back over the path he had fol- 
 lowed several times during the past twenty- 
 four hours. He could not forget that he was 
 in the neighborhood of a large party of Shaw- 
 anoes, and, whether or not he expected to be 
 of assistance to Simon Kenton, his own safety 
 
"I KNOWED IT!" 257 
 
 demanded that he should proceed with the ut- 
 most caution. 
 
 He was near the spot where he had brought 
 down the deer, when he was startled by a 
 threatening growl. Instantly halting with 
 his rifle ready for emergency, he saw the ex- 
 planation of the sound. A big black bear, 
 lumbering through the woods, had scented the 
 venison and was making a feast upon it. He 
 had detected the approach of the negro and 
 raised his head as a warning for him to keep 
 off. 
 
 " Humph ! I s'pose yo' tinks I'm feared ob 
 yo'," muttered Jethro ; " if I hadn't had din- 
 ner a little while ago I'd plug yo' and eat yo'." 
 
 The temptation was strong to slay the huge 
 creature, and under almost any other circum- 
 stances the African would have done so with- 
 out hesitation. There was no call, however, 
 to shoot the animal, beside which the report 
 of the gun was liable to attract dangerous 
 attention. 
 
 " Ef yo' knowed anything yo'd tank me for 
 sparin' yo'," added Jethro making such a long 
 circuit around bruin and his meal that the 
 
 17 
 
258 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEEBS, 
 
 brute saw there was no danger of molestation. 
 So he lowered his head and resumed champing 
 the nourishing food. Keeping an eye on him 
 to guard against treachery, the African grad- 
 ually came back to the trail and moved for- 
 ward as before. 
 
 But this kind of work could accomplish 
 nothing, and his thoughts were busy. It was 
 time he fixed upon a line of action. 
 
 His conversation with Ashbridge had made 
 known to Jethro the fact that the Shawanoes 
 who had pressed them so hard were in camp 
 somewhere in the neighborhood. The task 
 of the dusky youth was to find that camp, for 
 the suspicion was strong upon him that 
 Simon Kenton was a prisoner there, or was 
 killed. 
 
 His belief was that the ranger was held a 
 captive, for, as has been intimated, Jethro 
 could explain in no other way the long-con- 
 tinued absence of the ranger. Had he been 
 slain, there would have been one or more re- 
 ports of guns to tell the story. 
 
 Obtuse as the servant was in many respects, 
 he was not without a vivid idea of the deli- 
 
"I KNOWED IT!" 259 
 
 cacy and danger of the task before him — that 
 of locating Kenton. That done, it would be 
 time enough to decide upon the next step. 
 
 The ranger had warned him of the peculiar 
 peril in which he stood from the Indians, 
 They execrated him more than any white 
 man, and would wreak their fearful hate upon 
 him if he ever fell into their power. The 
 Panther especially abhorred the negro, and 
 would run much personal risk for the sake of 
 repaying the indignities he had suffered at his 
 hands. He advised Jethro to use vigilance at 
 all times and to go upon no excursions which 
 took him into special danger. 
 
 While all this was recalled to the youth 
 when threading his course along the trail, it 
 did not lessen his resolution to help the one 
 that had proven himself a brave man and a 
 true friend to him. Jethro was grateful to 
 Kenton, as he was to all who treated him 
 kindly, and 'never hesitated to go to the ut- 
 most length to show that gratitude. 
 
 " 'Sides," he added, with a burst of self- 
 confidence, which omened ill for success, 
 "Marse Kenton oughter know by dis time 
 
260 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEEKS. 
 
 dat I'm able to take keer ob myself; I've 
 proved that." 
 
 Jethro did not know, however, in what direc- 
 tion to turn to look for the Shawanoes. He 
 might wander aimlessly about the woods for 
 days without coming upon them. He must 
 secure some point of observation. 
 
 Nothing was more certain than that the red 
 men when grouped together had started a 
 camp fire, whose smoke would give the youth 
 the sign for which he was looking. This 
 could be readily observed from some high 
 elevation or the top of a towering tree, and, 
 inasmuch as he was continually surrounded 
 by trees, it may be said that the means was at 
 his command from the first. 
 
 Fully impressed with the importance of the 
 business on which he was engaged, Jethro 
 spent some time in hunting, at the same time 
 looking for a section where the ground was 
 more elevated. There was little to be noted 
 in this respect, and after scrutinizing a tall 
 hickory, an ash, and several other varieties, 
 he finally fixed upon a giant oak, as the one 
 most likely to furnish him the perch he sought. 
 
"I KNOWED IT!" 261 
 
 A puzzling question confronted him from 
 the first as to what he should do with his rifle. 
 He had no ready means of fastening it over 
 and behind his shoulders as hunters frequently 
 did in swimming streams or upon occasions 
 when they required the full use of their arms. 
 He might have secured it by putting forth 
 considerable effort, but it would have handi- 
 capped him not a little, and was liable to 
 catch among the limbs as he climbed upward. 
 
 Now none knew better than Jethro Jug- 
 gens that one of the first laws of the rangers 
 was never to carry an unloaded gun, and an- 
 other, equally important, was always to keep 
 that gun in hand or within instant reach. And 
 yet, recalling all this, he was of the opinion 
 that the best thing he could do was to leave 
 his weapon on the ground until he completed 
 his observation. 
 
 Peering carefully in all directions in turn, 
 he was able to catch no sign of Indian or 
 wild animal, nor could he believe that any 
 were in the immediate neighborhood. The 
 main argument with . Jethro, however, was 
 that, if discovered by any prowling Shawa- 
 
262 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEERS. 
 
 noe, his rifle would be of no use to him, for 
 what more helpless situation can be conceived 
 than that of being caught " up a tree." 
 
 " Ef dar ain't no use ob takin' de gun wid 
 me, den what's de use ob takin' it 'long ?" was 
 the question which, it may be said, carried its 
 own answer. 
 
 Still, it was with a thrill of misgiving that 
 he stepped to a dense bush near at hand and 
 carefully hid it where it would attract the notice 
 of no one in passing; but, having decided that 
 it was the best thing to do, he lost no more 
 time in considering the question. 
 
 The oak was three or four feet in diameter 
 and of the species whose limbs grew so near 
 the ground that, by a smart leap, Jethro was 
 able to reach them and draw himself upward. 
 He was pleased, too, to note that the branches 
 above were plentifully furnished with leaves, 
 which were likely to have their use in case of 
 emergency. 
 
 Once among the limbs, and Jethro found his 
 task an easy one. His great power and ex- 
 perience from early boyhood in climbing 
 stood him in good stead, and he went nimbly 
 
"I KNOWED IT!" 263 
 
 aloft until so near the top that he could as- 
 cend no further. 
 
 He could not have made a better selection 
 of a tree for his purpose. He had climbed so 
 high that by parting the branches in front of 
 his face his view was extensive in every direc- 
 tion, and, within the same minute that he be- 
 gan his scrutiny of the sky, he discovered 
 that which he sought. 
 
 Off to the northwest and hardly an eighth 
 of a mile distant, a column of smoke was fil- 
 tering through the tree tops, and could be 
 traced for a long distance against the clear sky 
 before it was dissipated. 
 
 " Dat's whar de Shawanoes am !" was the 
 truthful decision of Jethro the moment his 
 eyes caught the signal ; " dat's whar de 
 heathen am, dat is," he added as a saving 
 clause, " ef dey ain't somewhar else." 
 
 The heavens were scrutinized in all other 
 directions, but nothing of a similar nature 
 could be seen. He was sure his first theory 
 was the correct one. 
 
 He felt a certain uneasiness over the fact 
 that he was without his rifle. He had done 
 
264 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEERS. 
 
 that which he had been warned against doing, 
 and which he never had done before. It was 
 this sensation of being in personal danger, 
 though there was no real evidence of it, that 
 caused him to use extra precaution in de- 
 scending the tree. 
 
 He was coming down the oak with the 
 same caution that he had climbed it, when he 
 received a shock that almost caused him to 
 lose his balance and fall to the ground. He 
 heard voices beneath the tree, and a moment's 
 listening left no doubt that they were Shawa- 
 noes. 
 
 " Dey hab found my gun and am gwine to 
 shoot me !" was the thought that held him ter- 
 rified and motionless for a few seconds. He 
 expected a hail in broken English, but as the 
 minutes passed without anything of the kind 
 taking place, he gathered sufficient courage to 
 move stealthily a few feet lower, until he was 
 able, through the intervening leaves, to catch 
 the outlines of three warriors, standing di- 
 rectly below him, and talking in their gruff, 
 sententious fashion. He could even catch 
 some of the expressions uttered, but, as they 
 
"I KNOWED IT!" 265 
 
 were in an unknown tongue, they brought no 
 enlightenment. 
 
 At first Jethro gave himself up as lost ; but 
 as the minutes passed without their looking 
 upward, he began to take hope, especially as 
 he saw that none of them had his gun. It 
 might be, after all, that they had stepped un- 
 der the oak by accident and were unaware of 
 the prize within their reach. 
 
 Such proved to be the fact, for after a brief 
 while the three moved off to the northwest, in 
 the direction of the Shawanoe camp. 
 
 " Dat's 'bout de most narrowest 'scape dat 
 dis chile eber had," muttered the youth, with 
 a shudder of relief. "Dat teaches me dat 
 whereber I goes after dis, I takes my gun wid 
 me for a fact." 
 
 It is hard to conceive how the possession of 
 his rifle would have materially helped matters, 
 since in the end he would have been at the 
 mercy of his enemies, but Jethro never quite 
 fully forgave himself for what he was con- 
 vinced was an unpardonable oversight. 
 
 Crouching on the uppermost limb, he peered 
 around among the trees in search of the hos- 
 
266 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEERS. 
 
 tiles who were there but a short time before. 
 They had vanished, and, loosing his hold, he 
 dropped to the ground, ran to the bush, and 
 recovered his invaluable weapon. 
 
 " Dar ! Let 'em come now and de heathen 
 will find me ready !" 
 
 Fortunately for the fellow they did not 
 come. 
 
 In spite of his great scare he had succeeded 
 in what he attempted ; he had located the 
 Shawanoe encampment, and he now began 
 picking his way through the woods toward 
 it, more alive than ever to the perilous nature 
 of the undertaking. 
 
 If he made the slightest slip, and his pres- 
 ence became known or was suspected by a 
 single one of the Indians, nothing could save 
 him. He was so impressed by this truth that 
 he called into play a caution and skill that he 
 seldom displayed while in the woods. 
 
 Somehow or other he formed the impres- 
 sion that it was less dangerous to approach 
 the camp from the opposite side. When, 
 therefore, he was quite near it he began a 
 guarded flank movement, which occupied con- 
 
"I KNOWED IT!" 267 
 
 siderable time and involved no little danger. 
 He had fixed its location so clearly in his 
 mind that he had no fear of going astray, 
 added to which were sounds that came to him 
 from the point and served as a guide. 
 
 " De heathen hab been in de cavern and 
 larned dat de folks ain't dar," thought Jethro, 
 adding, with some shrewdness, "dey hab 
 larned, too, dat dey left in de night time and 
 hab had plenty ob chances to got to de block- 
 house afore sunup, so dey ain't lookin' for 
 dem." 
 
 The increasing light and open spaces in his 
 front revealed to the youth that the Shawa- 
 noes, instead of camping in the open woods, 
 had halted and kindled their fire in a natural 
 clearing of considerable size. Some of them 
 were likely to be moving about in the imme- 
 diate vicinity, and the incident of a brief 
 while before proved they were liable to wan- 
 der some distance from headquarters. 
 
 Thus it was that he approached the open- 
 ing foot by foot, and, as he drew nearer, almost 
 inch by inch, continually pausing, glancing 
 furtively in every direction, listening, and at- 
 
268 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEERS. 
 
 tentively examining his weapon, to make sure 
 it was ready at an instant's call. 
 
 At last he gained a position from which he 
 secured a view of the Shawanoe camp. Cast- 
 ing one sweeping look over the strange scene 
 before him, he exclaimed, under his breath : 
 
 "Iknowedit!" 
 
 The sight which held him transfixed was 
 the figure of Simon Kenton bound to a tree, a 
 helpless prisoner among the fierce red men 
 who were making ready to take ample ven- 
 geance upon him for the many blows he had 
 struck them in the past. 
 
A DISTINGUISHED PEISONEE. 269 
 
 CHAPTER XVIII. 
 
 A DISTINGUISHED PRISONER. 
 
 THE remark has been made that it is the 
 unexpected that always happens. In 
 the course of Simon Kenton's long and ad- 
 venturous career he was compelled to run the 
 gauntlet eight times, and was bound three 
 times to the stake, with no prospect of rescue 
 from one of the most fearful of deaths. In 
 recalling the events of his life, when he was 
 close upon fourscore, he declared that one of 
 the most singular of them all was his capture 
 by Red Bird's band of Shawanoes at the time 
 the ranger set out to help young George Ash- 
 bridge recover Agnes Altman, his betrothed. 
 
 The reader will not forget that one object 
 Kenton had in view was to free himself of the 
 company of the youth without awaking his 
 suspicion as to the real cause. The circum- 
 stances were so peculiar that he feared to have 
 
270 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEERS. 
 
 Ashbridge with him while pursuing the Wyan- 
 dot lover, who was seeking to transplant the 
 Flower of the Woods to his own tepee or wig- 
 wam. 
 
 Kenton impressed upon his young friend 
 the possibility that he might not be able to 
 rejoin him after reconnoitering the Shawanoe 
 camp ; and, leaving him with that impression, 
 secretly decided that he would not return to 
 him. He did not do so, one important reason 
 being that he was deprived of the power. 
 
 Had Kenton followed the simple plan of 
 hunting for the trail of the Antelope and Be- 
 tween -the-Rocks, and pressing their pursuit 
 with the unflinching vigor of which he was 
 capable, all probably would have gone well, 
 and he would have been saved the frightful 
 doom that for a time impended over him. 
 
 When, in the darkness of night, he gained 
 a position from which he had a full view of 
 the Shawanoe camp, he spent a long time in 
 watching it. He could do nothing in the way 
 of following the trail of the Wyandots until 
 he had the daylight to assist him, and there 
 was a fascination in looking upon the picture 
 
A DISTINGUISHED PRISONER. 271 
 
 before him which he had felt many times in 
 his experience. 
 
 By actual count there were eighteen war- 
 riors, including Red Bird, the chieftain. The 
 clearing was less than a half-acre in extent, 
 almost level, covered with a luxuriant growth 
 of rich, succulent grass, and with three or four 
 stunted trees scattered about. Around the 
 base of the one nearest the middle of the open- 
 ing a large fire had been started, and was kept 
 burning so brightly that every figure was in 
 as plain view as if the sun were shining. In- 
 deed, the eye could detect a moving object in 
 any portion of the opening. 
 
 Three of the warriors were occupied in 
 cooking some game that had been brought in by 
 others before Kenton approached the spot. 
 This was done by holding the pieces of meat 
 on the ends of long sticks over the flames. 
 Now and then the fire burned off the supports, 
 letting the food drop. On such occasions the 
 cook showed a dexterity in pitchforking the 
 meat out of the coals by means of the 
 fragment of wood left in his hand. The fact 
 that the food was pretty well covered with 
 
272 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEEKS. 
 
 ashes, mixed with dirt was a matter of no ac- 
 count to those who dined, and who ate their 
 meats so rare that it is only flattery to say it was 
 cooked at all. 
 
 Red Bird, the chieftain, was lolling on the 
 ground some distance from the fire and smok- 
 ing his pipe. Near him were five others, 
 similarly engaged. Now and then they ex- 
 changed a word, but whatever the theme, it 
 seemed to possess no special interest to them. 
 
 The rest of the Shawanoes varied their 
 actions. Sometimes they sat down and 
 smoked, then a number would stretch at full 
 length, or wander off into the surrounding 
 woods. The last habit should have served as 
 a warning to Kenton, for if any of the war- 
 riors happened to head toward him, he would 
 have been placed in a critical situation. 
 
 But the ranger was thinking over the rather 
 curious question whether these Shawanoes 
 formed a part or all of the band that had 
 pressed his friends so sorely. It was not so 
 very long since they attempted to burn out 
 the fugitives, and the presence of so many by 
 the fire in the clearing indicated that in some 
 
A DISTINGUISHED PRISONER. 273 
 
 way they had learned of the escape of Ash- 
 bridge and Agnes. 
 
 None of the bodies of those that had fallen 
 by the rifles of the three were in sight. It 
 was the custom of the members of all the 
 tribes to carry home those that had fallen in 
 battle, so as to give them suitable burial. It 
 would seem, therefore, that this dismal duty 
 had been assigned to another party, and that 
 Red Bird and his able warriors were linger- 
 ing in the neigborhood for some distinct pur- 
 pose. 
 
 Kenton knew, from what he had learned 
 very recently, that a formidable and crushing 
 campaign against the combined Indian tribes 
 of the West was in contemplation by Presi- 
 dent Washington. In all probability " Mad 
 Anthony " Wayne would soon appear on the 
 frontier with a force that would scatter any 
 confederation of red men, and bring the 
 longed-for peace to the settlements. 
 
 Such being the probabilities, the Indians 
 themselves must be aware of what was in con- 
 templation. Red Bird, the chieftain, prob- 
 ably knew as much as any one ; and, some- 
 
 18 
 
274 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEEES. 
 
 how or other, Kenton suspected he was in the 
 neighborhood for the purpose of meeting his 
 superior, the Panther. 
 
 "Him and me hain't run afoul of each 
 other since that qu'ar rumpus we had last 
 summer, long the Ohio. It looked like a 
 powerful foolish thing when 1 let him go; 
 but it's powerfuller qu'ar that I never have 
 felt sorry for it since, though the Panther is 
 just as ugly agin the settlements *as ever, and 
 when him and me meets it will be a fight to 
 the end. I won't spare him agin, and it won't 
 be Injin natur' for him to let up on me if he 
 ever gits me down." 
 
 Small parties of Shawanoes, generally in 
 two, and threes, kept coming and going, and 
 Kenton decided, after studying over the mat- 
 ter, that there was a second party, not far 
 away, with whom Red Bird was holding com- 
 munication. 
 
 Thus the night gradually wore away until 
 morning was not far off. The ranger, noting 
 the lapse of time, was meditating leaving the 
 spot, when he saw a warrior emerging from the 
 wood, on the other side of the clearing, and 
 
A DISTINGUISHED PKISONEK. 275 
 
 approach Red Bird. Despite the effort the 
 messenger made to restrain his excitement, 
 Kenton noticed that he was much agitated. 
 He leaned over and uttered a few words to the 
 chief, who, stoical as he generally was, started, 
 rose to the sitting position and said something 
 in a quick undertone. 
 
 Then the warrior who had brought the dis- 
 turbing message walked away in the woods, 
 entering at the same point where he had ap- 
 peared a few minutes before. In a short 
 while, too, others did the same. 
 
 Strange that Kenton, who noted these things, 
 never suspected the possibility of their having 
 reference to him. 
 
 After the three had departed, a strange 
 hush seemed to fall upon the Shawanoes 
 grouped around the camp fire. Those who 
 engaged in boiling their food had finished their 
 work long before. Such as chose had eaten, 
 and the cooks lolled on the ground with the 
 rest. 
 
 All at once, it seemed to Kenton that a tree 
 had fallen upon him. A crushing blow de- 
 scended upon his head with such vicious force 
 
276 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEEKS. 
 
 that he sank to the ground stunned, bewil- 
 dered, and for a brief while senseless. He ral- 
 lied, however, with astonishing quickness, 
 only to find he had reaped the reward of his s 
 own foolhardiness. 
 
 One of the warriors had detected his pres- 
 ence, and appearing at the opposite side of 
 the clearing, gave the startling news to Red 
 Bird. He directed three of his best men to 
 effect the capture of the interloper. They 
 stole upon the ranger from behind with a still- 
 ness that prevented his discovering their ap- 
 proach. Since the capture, not the death, of 
 the pioneer was ordered, one of the Shawanoes 
 felled him with a blow from the handle of his 
 towahawk. The next instant the rifle was 
 snatched from the ranger's nerveless grasp, 
 and the hunting-knife jerked from its resting 
 place over the left breast. Then, with some 
 of the fringes of Kenton's own hunting-shirt, 
 his wrists were bound as securely as if with 
 bands of steel. 
 
 By this time his senses began returning, 
 and when his captors attempted to lift him to 
 his feet he was able to give some help. He 
 
A DISTINGUISHED PKISONEK. 277 
 
 was still bewildered and dizzy, and staggered 
 like a drunken man while walking between 
 the warriors toward the chieftain. 
 
 Red Bird and all the rest of the Shawanoes 
 bounded to their feet on the appearance of 
 the captive. When they recognized him as 
 the foremost scout of his time, muttered ex- 
 clamations of delight went up from nearly 
 every one that gathered about the prisoner. 
 
 With a tremendous effort of his will Ken- 
 ton conquered the feeling of faintness and diz- 
 ziness, and looking straight into the face of 
 the chieftain, whose daubs of paint could 
 not hide his exultation, he said in the Shawa- 
 noe tongue : 
 
 " Well, Red Bird, Simon Kenton is your 
 prisoner." 
 
 " The dog of a pale face whines at the feet 
 of the Shawanoe." 
 
 "Not a bit of it !" was the sturdy reply ; 
 " if you call me a fool for letting those knaves 
 of yours get me by the heels, why, I'll agree 
 with you ; but Simon Kenton don't beg of any 
 man, white or red, any more than the Panther 
 did when I had him down and let him go." 
 
278 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEEBS. 
 
 The ranger thought it good policy to re- 
 mind Red Bird of that memorable incident in 
 the life of his superior, though it was hardly 
 to be supposed that the Panther was forward 
 in proclaiming it. The response of Red Bird 
 sounded as though he now heard it for the 
 first time and gave it no credence. 
 
 "The dog of a white man speaks with a 
 forked tongue I" he said, angrily. " No pale 
 face ever held the mighty Wa-on-mon at his 
 mercy." 
 
 " You can have it your own way, Red Bird, 
 but the next time you see the Panther, ask 
 him of what I've said ; then you'll find that 
 it's Red Bird, and not Simon Kenton, that 
 speaks with the double tongue." 
 
 " The white man is a dog ; he fights squaws 
 and pappooses." 
 
 " And warriors, too, when he can find 'em." 
 
 "The pale faces shall be driven into the 
 deep water ; the warriors are gathering like 
 the leaves on the trees ; it is the will of the 
 Great Spirit." 
 
 It was the same old story that Kenton had 
 heard times without number. When the Pan- 
 
A DISTINGUISHED PRISONER. 279 
 
 ther himself uttered the boast the preceding 
 summer the ranger reminded him that the 
 repetition was wearisome. And yet, when the 
 preceding events in the history of the frontier 
 are recalled, the hope of the red men was only 
 natural. 
 
 "When are you going to begin driving ?" 
 asked the pioneer, who felt sufficient hope of 
 escape to seek to sound the chieftain. 
 
 "When the warriors can come together. 
 They have dug up the hatchet and have taken 
 the warpath. The Great Father of the pale 
 face dogs will send his army into the woods. 
 He is a fool and thinks he can conquer the 
 red men, but the army shall never go back 
 again ; they shall turn pale with fright and 
 and flee as did St. Clair, or shall die the death 
 of Crawford." 
 
 There it was ! By some subtle telegraphy 
 that cannot be explained, the warriors in the 
 western wilderness had learned of the expe- 
 dition of General Wayne weeks before it en- 
 tered their country. 
 
 " Wal," coolly remarked Kenton, " fighting 
 seems to be the nature of your people ever 
 
280 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEERS. 
 
 since I can remember, and I know your var- 
 mints were at it long afore that; but you 
 haven't been able to keep the white people 
 off your hunting-grounds, and you never will. 
 You may drive them back for a time, but 
 they'll come agin till there ain't any of you 
 left." 
 
 " The dogs of the pale faces shall come no 
 further !" exclaimed Red Bird with an inde- 
 scribable fierceness. "The children of the 
 Great Spirit fought against each other and 
 were therefore weak, but now they will fight 
 with each other against the white men and 
 drive them all into the sea." 
 
 " I have heerd that boast afore, Shawanoe, 
 and I know its value. I don't begrudge it to 
 you if it does you any good. I've never seed 
 the gineral that they call 'Mad Anthony 
 Wayne,' but he fit in the Revolution with 
 Gineral Washington, and helped a big lot in 
 driving the red coats back across the sea. St. 
 Clair done the same, but not like ' Mad An- 
 thony' ; and, Red Bird, if you want my 'pin- 
 ion, it is that when he gits through with you 
 and the rest of the varmints you won't know 
 
A DISTINGUISHED PEISONER. 281 
 
 whether you're a Shawanoe or the ridge-pole 
 of a wigwam." 
 
 The chieftain hardly caught the meaning 
 of the ranger's vigorous language, though he 
 saw that his prisoner was following the same 
 line with himself — that is, boasting to as full 
 an extent as he knew how. No captive ever 
 secures the good-will and indulgence of an 
 American Indian by cringing or begging for 
 it. Kenton not only understood the nature 
 of these people in this respect, but he was too 
 brave a man to ask for mercy, even where 
 there was a prospect of gaining it. 
 
 " Is the dog of a white man afraid to die ?" 
 asked the chieftain, lowering his voice, and 
 looking in the face of his prisoner with sig- 
 nificant fixedness. 
 
 " When Red Bird sees the white clasp his 
 hands and bend his knees and cry, then he 
 will know he is afraid. Shawanoe, it has been 
 my fortune to start a number of your young 
 men on the road to their happy hunting- 
 grounds — " 
 
 " But the dog of a pale face shall harm no 
 more of the warriors of Red Bird," broke in 
 
2 82 m THE DAYS OF THE PIONEEKS. 
 
 the chieftain, with his old savagery of man- 
 ner. 
 
 " I s'pose not, and that's my grief now. I 
 had hope that I might do a little more of it 
 before my last sickness overtook me. Shawa- 
 noe, if you will tell your warrior to hand me 
 back my knife, I will stand here and fight 
 you to the death." 
 
 This proposal caused a sensation among 
 the red men, including their chieftain. They 
 knew Kenton as the bravest and most skilful 
 of all the white men that roamed the woods, 
 and it is not impossible that some of them 
 had heard of his encounter with the Panther, 
 when he held him at his mercy and yet spared 
 him. At any rate, there was none there who 
 dared meet him in mortal fray. 
 
 It may be said that the proposition of the 
 captive was without precedent. The chieftain 
 certainly would have been foolish, after secur- 
 ing the formidable foe of the red men, to give 
 him the opportunity to inflict more injury 
 upon them, when in no event could any pos- 
 sible good accrue to Red Bird. 
 
 " The snake that crawls in the grass shall 
 
A DISTINGUISHED PRISONER. 283 
 
 be crushed by the heel of the hunter, and the 
 dog of the white man that slays the pappoose 
 and the squaw is not worthy to die the death 
 of a warrior." 
 
 This untruthful slur upon the courage of 
 the prisoner was meant to rouse him to fury. 
 It was a favorite method among the American 
 Indians and often accomplished its purpose, 
 but it failed in the case of Kenton. He was 
 equally pointed in his reply, which was made 
 without any excitement of manner. 
 
 " Red Bird speaks lies when he opens his 
 mouth. The Great Spirit made him so, and 
 he cannot help it ; and if he met the white 
 alone in the woods he would beg for mercy ; 
 but when he has his warriors around him, 
 then he is brave, and can utter lies." 
 
 " The chieftain felt that this duel of words, 
 in ' which he was getting the worst of it, 
 should end. He signaled to a number of 
 his warriors standing around. As if ex- 
 pecting and impatient for the word, they 
 seized the defiant prisoner and hurried to one 
 of the stunted trees standing near the border 
 of the opening. There the unresisting ran- 
 
284 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEEES. 
 
 ger was bound so securely that lie could hardly 
 move. 
 
 "I've been in several scrapes like this 
 afore," he coolly reflected, " and I reckon I've 
 larned that it means the varmints intend to 
 burn Simon Kenton at the stake." 
 
 Beyond a question he was right in his sur- 
 mise. 
 
A MARVELLOUS EXPLOIT. 285 
 
 CHAPTER XIX. 
 
 A MARVELLOUS EXPLOIT. 
 
 THE American race is proverbial for its 
 delight in the torture of its prisoners. 
 Like other savage peoples (not omitting civil- 
 ized ones), it has carried this art to a refine- 
 ment that seems to leave nothing possible of 
 attainment in that direction. 
 
 The Shawanoe who stole up behind the un- 
 suspecting Simon Kenton could have killed 
 him with the same ease that one of their num- 
 ber struck him senseless to the earth. Red 
 Bird, with equal facility and in perfect safety, 
 could have slain him as he stood ; but either 
 one of these finalities would have robbed the 
 red men of the pleasure of seeing a brave man 
 suffer. 
 
 Had the scene been one of the Indian 
 towns, doubtless Kenton would have been 
 compelled to run the gantlet. He had gone 
 
286 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEERS. 
 
 through that particular torment so often that 
 it may be said he had become used to it. 
 The Shawanoes in this instance, therefore, 
 would have been sure that he was knocked to 
 the earth and beaten to death before reaching 
 the end of the run. This was always very 
 entertaining to the squaws and children. 
 
 But none of these was present, and death 
 by burning at the stake natually suggested it- 
 self. Accordingly, Kenton was preparing for 
 the terrifying ordeal, such preparation being 
 of the simplest nature conceivable. 
 
 His wrists had been secured together from 
 the first in front of his body. He was now 
 placed before one of the trees already referred 
 to and fastened thereto. This was done by 
 means of a powerful cord passed around his 
 thighs and then around the trunk of the tree, 
 where it was tied with the strongest of knots. 
 The cord itself was so tenacious that three 
 men, each with the strength of Kenton him- 
 self, unitedly could not have snapped it apart. 
 It was constructed mainly from the fringes 
 or thongs furnished by the prisoner's own gar- 
 ments. 
 
A MARVELLOUS EXPLOIT. 287 
 
 The thought must not obtain that the ran- 
 ger showed meekness inconsistent with his 
 character in his submission to his captors. 
 Had he received the slightest warning of 
 their stealthy approach they would have 
 found a difficult job on their hands. Simon 
 Kenton, when fighting for his life, was a 
 raging cat o' mountain. When a young man, 
 in an affray with a rival in love, he struck 
 him a single blow, which, it was believed, had 
 killed him. It was to escape punishment for 
 the man's death that Kenton fled, under an 
 assumed name, to the Western wilderness, to 
 learn, many years later, that his antagonist 
 had recovered from the hurt. 
 
 It has been shown that Kenton did not 
 fully regain consciousness until his hands 
 were bound and he was so surrounded by his 
 vigilant enemies that escape was impossible. 
 He affected to be resigned to his fate, but none 
 the less he was on the alert to take advantage 
 of the first hope, no matter how faint, that 
 presented itself. 
 
 But it seemed as if none was to appear. 
 The fame that he had earned by his many 
 
288 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEEKS. 
 
 exploits led the Shawanoes to keep the closest 
 watch over his actions and to anticipate his 
 slightest movement. Every glance of his eye 
 was noted, and no temptation presented for a 
 sudden, spirited dash for freedom. 
 
 Kenton's policy from the first was to affect 
 a resignation, in the hope of throwing his ene- 
 mies for a minute or so off their guard, but he 
 did not succeed. There were a few seconds, 
 when they were conducting him to the fatal 
 tree, that he was on the point of making the 
 attempt to break away, but he restrained him- 
 self, vainly hoping the opportunity would 
 come by and by. 
 
 Day was fully arrived when he was tied to 
 the stake, but it was not a part of the cruel 
 Red Bird's plan that the torture should begin 
 at once. Like all his people, he wished to ex- 
 tend the pleasure of witnessing his victim's 
 mental anguish before his physical sufferings 
 began. 
 
 A number of the warriors now scattered in 
 different directions in the wood to gather fuel. 
 They soon reappeared, one at a time, and flung 
 the green and dry branches and leaves at the 
 
A MAKVELLOUS EXPLOIT. 289 
 
 feet of the captive. This was continued until 
 enough was collected to furnish more than 
 could possibly be required. 
 
 While this trying ordeal was under way 
 Kenton managed repeatedly to test the 
 strength of the cord without the act being 
 observed by his captors. Leaning slightly 
 forward in a natural posture, he brought to 
 bear all his tremendous power, exerting him- 
 self to the utmost to break the slight rope. 
 If he could succeed in doing so he meant to 
 dash off among the trees, more than willing 
 to run the risk of being shot down by his 
 pursuers rather than suffer the torment that 
 awaited him if he failed in escaping. 
 
 All in vain. It seemed as if the thongs 
 could not have been stronger had they been 
 composed of woven bands of steel. 
 
 Men of the rugged nature of Simon Kenton 
 do not despair until the last moment. It is 
 hard to understand what justification he had 
 for hope from the time he was tied to the 
 stake, and yet it cannot be said that it wholly 
 deserted him for hours. It may be that his 
 extraordinary experiences were one cause for 
 
 19 
 
290 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEEKS. 
 
 his confidence that in some way or other the 
 final deliverance would come. 
 
 Ked Bird signified to his warriors that suffi- 
 cient fuel had been gathered and placed around 
 the prisoner, and they fell back and impa- 
 tiently awaited the word for the opening of 
 the entertainment. But not yet. This noted 
 captive must be given time in which to antici- 
 pate what was coming. 
 
 The old wrangle and abuse were renewed 
 between him and the chieftain. Each sought 
 to exasperate the other, and the prisoner made 
 more of a success of it than did his master. 
 It is not worth giving the words that passed 
 between them, more than to say that it was of 
 the general character already known to the 
 reader. 
 
 This recrimination continued until the hos- 
 tiles gathered around must have grown weary, 
 though it did not show in their stolid faces. 
 Even Bed Bird seemed to reach the decision 
 that there had been enough. 
 
 Simon Kenton thought that possibly the 
 torture might be deferred until there was time 
 for the arrival of help from the block-house. 
 
A MARVELLOUS EXPLOIT. 291 
 
 He had directed Ashbridge to hurry thither 
 with the coming of daylight ; but though he 
 should make all haste in going, and his friends 
 equal haste in returning, a good many hours 
 must pass before they could possibly show up, 
 that is, if they did not start until word was re- 
 ceived from him. His expectation, rather, was 
 that the delay in the return of Ashbridge and 
 Agnes to the fort would bring out a rescue 
 party with the earliest dawn, and that some 
 of the scouts might come upon the Shawanoe 
 party in time to create a diversion in his fa- 
 vor. The forenoon, however, was well along, 
 and not the first sign had appeared in the sur- 
 rounding solitude. 
 
 The repeated efforts to break the thongs 
 that bound him met with not the slightest en- 
 couragement. Finally, when Red Bird gave 
 the signal to apply the flames to the fagots 
 piled around Kenton, the latter resigned him- 
 self to his fate with the courage of a truly 
 brave man. 
 
 It was a brief while before that Jethro Jug- 
 gens, stealing through the woods, was horri- 
 fied at discovering the ranger in this plight 
 
292 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEERS. 
 
 Carefully keeping himself from view, he 
 looked upon the scene with emotions for 
 which he could find no utterance. He noted 
 the calm, grim face of Kenton, who was stand- 
 ing with his hands tied in front, and a cord 
 passed around his hips and secured to the tree 
 behind him. His shoulders were bent for- 
 ward, as though he was still bringing what 
 pressure he could to bear upon the cord, and 
 he looked without flinching into the faces of 
 the chieftain and his warriors grouped about 
 him. 
 
 " Heben sabe me !" gasped Jethro, " de 
 heathen am gwine to burn Marse Kenton to 
 def ! Can't I do nuffin to help de poor fel- 
 ler?" 
 
 The grieving youth reflected for a moment 
 and then added : 
 
 " 111 stand hyah, and de fust one ob dem 
 dat stoops down to light dem sticks dey hab 
 piled around him, why, I'll plug him frough 
 so quick he won't know what killed him." 
 
 This could not fail to be effective so far as 
 the first hostile was concerned, but it did not 
 take Jethro long to see that the only possible 
 
A MARVELLOUS EXPLOIT. 293 
 
 result would be to postpone the torture for a 
 few minutes, and incidentally to bring about 
 his own destruction. 
 
 It has come to pass more that once that a 
 brave man, looking upon a friend in such fear- 
 ful extremity, has mercifully ended his suf- 
 fering by sending a bullet through his brain. 
 Colonel Crawford, when undergoing torture 
 at the stake, besought Simon Girty to termi- 
 nate his agony by that means, but the prayer 
 was unheeded. 
 
 The thought never came to Jethro Jug- 
 gens, as he stood awed, terrified and sympa- 
 thizing, peering from the wood at his hapless 
 friend. Had it occurred to him, he never 
 could have brought himself to the deed ; and, 
 furthermore, had he done so, he would have 
 been compelled unquestionably to take the 
 place of the condemned captive. 
 
 But through that dull brain flashed an idea 
 like an inspiration. 
 
 With the same guarded stealth that he had 
 shown from the first, the dusky youth with- 
 drew from his point of observation, and circled 
 part way round the natural clearing. One 
 
294 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEERS. 
 
 oak had served him so well that he had se- 
 lected another. Under the spur of excite- 
 ment, the like of which he had never known, 
 he swung himself among the lower limbs 
 with one hand, holding his indispensible rifle 
 in the other. Then he continued to climb 
 until he had ascended more than half-way to 
 the top. He next worked his way out on a 
 strong limb, which bore his weight without 
 perceptibly yielding. 
 
 He was on the side next to the clearing, 
 and when, with one hand, he parted the leaves 
 in front and peered out, he found, as he an- 
 ticipated, that he had a full view of the scene, 
 whose first sight almost checked the throbbing 
 of his heart. 
 
 Red Bird was standing directly in front of 
 Kenton and exchanging what the chieftain 
 doubtless believed were their last words. The 
 sun was shining brightly and not a breath of 
 air rustled the leaves. Jethro carefully stud- 
 ied every point of what was before him, and 
 reverently murmured : 
 
 " O good Lord, if yo' want to help Jeth 
 Juggens and Marse Kenton, yo'll neber hab a 
 
A MARVELLOUS EXPLOIT. 295 
 
 better chance dan dis ! Mor'n likely it'll be 
 de last ob Jeth, but Marse Kenton am a good 
 friend of mine and I'll take de chance." 
 
 He seated himself astride of the limb, along 
 which he had inched his way, and rested his 
 heavy rifle on the one above it, pointing the 
 muzzle toward the clearing. A small branch 
 interfered with his sight, and he broke it off, 
 the snapping of the twig giving him a start, 
 but the distance was too great for so slight a 
 sound to reach the ears of the Shawanoes. 
 
 The cumbersome hammer of the old flint- 
 lock was drawn far back and Jethro deliber- 
 ately sighted along the barrel. His weapon 
 contained the little v-shaped notch near the 
 muzzle, and a sight, corresponding somewhat, 
 in front of the hammer. The skill of the 
 youth with his gun, as the reader knows, was 
 his most astonishing peculiarity. With full 
 confidence in that skill, he resolved, neverthe- 
 less, that this should be the shot of his life, 
 for never were the stakes so momentous as 
 now. 
 
 He had determined, with the help of heaven, 
 that the bond which held Simon Kenton a 
 
296 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEEES. 
 
 prisoner at the stake should be cut in twain 
 by a bullet from his rifle. 
 
 From his perch in the tree he could see the 
 knot tied securely against the trunk opposite 
 to Kenton. His first intention was to strike this 
 knot, but he decided that the shot was less 
 likely to be effective than if he hit the single 
 strand. Where the cord was gathered the re- 
 sistance would be greater, and he was likely 
 to strike a portion which, if severed, would 
 leave the strength as it was at first. 
 
 This thong, as has been stated, was of small 
 diameter, though its tenacity was great. A 
 bullet driven directly against it must either 
 cut it in two or leave it so weakened that a 
 slight strain would snap it. This was the task 
 which Jethro Juggens laid out for himself. 
 
 Kenton's side was toward him. Thus the 
 African saw the cord for a part of its length 
 as it wound around the trunk like a climbing 
 vine or serpent. To accomplish his work he 
 must strike the thong fairly and squarely. A 
 hair's variation either too high or too low 
 would result in failure. Jethro believed he 
 could perform the feat. 
 
A MARVELLOUS EXPLOIT. 297 
 
 He saw there was not another minute to 
 wait. Red Bird had finished all he wished 
 to say to his prisoner, who had not been back- 
 ward in expressing his views. The chief now 
 stepped back and made a gesture to his war- 
 riors, who were watching him. One of them 
 came quickly to the camp fire, which had been 
 allowed to smoulder, picked up a half-con- 
 sumed brand, and fanned it into a blaze by 
 quickly circling it about his head several 
 times. Then he walked to the tree, stooped 
 again, and applied the torch to the fagots at 
 the feet of the prisoner. 
 
 A tiny tongue of flame began climbing up- 
 ward like a crimson serpent among the fagots. 
 The Indian, still stooping, bent his head and 
 blew upon the little blaze, to fan it into 
 quicker life. He was thus engaged when 
 from somewhere in the surrounding woods 
 sounded the sharp, whip-like crack of a rifle. 
 Then came the transformation scene. 
 
 Jethro Juggens held the barrel of his gun 
 motionless on the limb in front of him, and 
 continued peering along its shining length 
 until he saw the result of his shot. 
 
298 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEEKS. 
 
 " Tank de Lord I" was his fervent exclama- 
 tion ; " I hab done it I" 
 
 And then, after a few minutes' more silent 
 scrutiny, he gave his whole attention to his 
 own safety. 
 
 " I dunno wheder dem heathens obsarved 
 dat de sound ob my gun come from among de 
 tree tops instead ob de ground, but ef dey did, 
 Jeth Juggens mought better be somewhere 
 else dan where he am." 
 
 With all the care possible he reloaded his 
 weapon, and waited and listened. Fortunately 
 for him, he was so far above the ground that 
 a person passing beneath could not see him 
 by glancing upward. Still, if the Shawanoes 
 had noticed the point whence sounded the re- 
 port, they would be certain to locate it closely 
 enough to bring the African to light. But as 
 minute after minute passed without any such 
 discovery the hopes of Jethro increased, until 
 the time came when he thought it safe to de- 
 scend the tree and take the next important 
 step in the decisive events of this day. 
 
A SUEEENDEB. 299 
 
 CHAPTER XX. 
 
 A SURRENDER. 
 
 WHEN the Dark Angel shakes his spear 
 at us, how worse than trifling seem 
 the affairs of this life! What regrets, what 
 sorrow, what remorse take possession of the 
 soul when we stand on the shore of the shad- 
 owy river and meet the boatman waiting to 
 ferry us to the other side ! 
 
 At the moment when all hope had fled 
 from the heart of Simon Kenton, and he 
 nerved himself to meet the last great trial 
 that could come to him, Jethro Juggens' rifle 
 split the solemn silence. He felt the faintest 
 possible tremor in the thong which passed 
 around the tree and his body. A quick, pow- 
 erful inclination forward and it snapped in 
 two. He was free ! 
 
 One tremendous bound carried him over 
 the head of the kneeling Shawanoe, who was 
 
300 IN" THE DAYS OF THE PIONEEKS. 
 
 still fanning the tiny flame with his breath. 
 Red Bird was directly in his path. Raising 
 high the hands that were fastened at the 
 wrists, the ranger brought them down with a 
 vicious force in the face of the chieftain that 
 tumbled him senseless on his back, at the 
 same instant that the escaping prisoner made 
 a second leap, this time over him, and, wheel- 
 ing to the left, dashed at the highest bent of 
 his speed for the woods. 
 
 Kenton made this abrupt turn in his course 
 because it presented the shortest distance to 
 the only refuge within reach. Providentially, 
 it was almost opposite to the direction that 
 would have taken him beneath the tree from 
 which had been sent the shot that awoke hope 
 and inspired him to the final effort to save 
 himself. 
 
 The chance of this startling series of inci- 
 dents lay in their hurricane-like suddenness. 
 The bound and flight of Kenton seemed simul- 
 taneous with the report of Jethro's weapon. 
 It was so quick, so unexpected, that, accus- 
 tomed as the Shawanoes were to surprises, 
 several seconds passed before they compre- 
 
A SURRENDER. 301 
 
 hended what had taken place. Therein lay the 
 whole prospect of the ranger's escape. Had he 
 delayed for that brief time to take advantage 
 of the opportunity, it would have been too late. 
 
 The first hostile to regain his senses was 
 the one engaged in kindling the fagots around 
 the tree. He had laid aside his gun before 
 doing this, but, straightening up on the in- 
 stant, he darted to where it lay, brought it to 
 a level, and fired at the fleeing white man. It 
 was done so quickly that the warrior had no 
 time to secure aim, and the bullet cut the 
 leaves at the shoulder of the tall fugitive at 
 the moment he vanished from sight among 
 the trees. Then two other Shawanoes fired, 
 but their aim was only a general one, being 
 directed at the point where the daring white 
 man had disappeared. The balls sped so wide 
 of their mark that Kenton was not in any 
 danger from them. 
 
 A warrior knelt beside the fallen chieftain 
 and gave him what attention he could. He 
 perceived that he had been " hit hard " by 
 the fists of the ranger, but would speedily 
 rally without any help from others. 
 
302 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEERS. 
 
 Among the war party were five who did the 
 most sensible, and, indeed, the only thing that 
 under the circumstances could be done — they 
 started in pursuit of the flying fugitive. 
 
 With the burst of hope, all of Simon Ken- 
 ton's matchless woodcraft and fertility of re- 
 sources flashed into his brain. He did not 
 know the point whence the friendly shot had 
 come and took the course he did for the rea- 
 son already named; but, well aware that a 
 swift and persistent pursuit would follow, he 
 made another sharp turn in his line of flight 
 the instant he was among the trees, and, as he 
 believed, beyond sight of his enemies. 
 
 This strategy must have been successful but 
 for a condition which he could not foresee. He 
 was no more than fairly under way when the 
 wood became so open and free from under- 
 growth that his tall form was visible to the fore- 
 most and fleetest of his pursuers. He emitted a 
 shout which apprised the others of his discov- 
 ery, and they streamed after him with the 
 resolution to keep up the pursuit until the fu- 
 gitive was run down. 
 
 It will be noted that Kenton was laboring 
 
A SURRENDER. 303 
 
 under a woeful handicap, for lie was with- 
 out rifle or knife. He might well shrink 
 from meeting the most insignificant warrior, 
 so long as he himself possessed no other 
 means of defending himself than that which 
 nature had furnished him. His sole hope lay- 
 in his speed, though he wondered once or 
 twice whether the brother ranger (as he im- 
 agined his friend to be) would not manage in 
 some way to cross his line of flight and give 
 him further aid. 
 
 It was idle, however, to count upon any- 
 thing of the kind. Fleetness of foot was the 
 one and only thing that could carry him to 
 safety, and he had never yet been outrun by 
 any member of the American race. In a fair 
 contest he would not shrink from nor fear the 
 issue. All that he now asked was to draw 
 away so far as to be beyond reach of the rifles 
 carried by his pursuers. 
 
 An unpleasant truth speedily became ap- 
 parent to the fugitive : the foremost of his 
 pursuers was fully his equal in fleetness. 
 While he gradually left his comrades behind, 
 Kenton could not serve him the same way. 
 
304 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEERS, 
 
 The Shawanoe must have cherished a belief 
 of overtaking his man, for he refrained from 
 shooting when several inviting opportunities 
 presented. 
 
 It was Kenton's wish to draw this shot, for, 
 counting upon a miss, he meant to wheel and 
 assail the warrior with sudden fury, 1 ^fo re he 
 could reload. He would take chances against 
 the knife for the sake of securing the weapon, 
 powder-horn, and bullet-pouch. Armed with 
 these, the fugitive would consider his safety 
 as good as secured. 
 
 The wood continued open for a considerable 
 distance, when the undergrowth began to re- 
 appear. The white man was running north- 
 ward, though he had no special purpose in this 
 except to throw the persistent buck off his 
 track. Looking back, he could see the mis- 
 creant holding his own with a persistency that 
 would not be denied or baffled, but the four 
 that had started with him were nowhere in 
 sight. 
 
 Kenton bent his head in the hope that he 
 could elude the sight of the Shawanoe for the 
 space of a few moments, and, thinking he had 
 
A SURRENDER. 305 
 
 done so, he made another abrupt turn in his 
 line of flight. 
 
 " It ain't often that Simon Kenton has run 
 for his life from one of the varmints/' he 
 grimly muttered, " but there don't seem to be 
 any help for it this time. I wonder what's 
 become 'J the rest of 'em, and what's become 
 of this one, too ?" 
 
 For a while he believed he had outwitted 
 him, but the sight of the figure flitting among 
 the trees brought an impatient exclamation 
 from the fugitive and a fierce burst of speed 
 that caused a perceptible gain, though it could 
 not be continued long enough to be effective. 
 
 Kenton chafed under the restraint of his 
 bound wrists. It would be easy enough to 
 free them if he dare take a minute or two to 
 do so, but the seconds were too immeasurably 
 precious to permit the briefest halt. 
 
 Suddenly the report of a rifle rang among 
 the trees. The Shawanoe, fearful that his 
 man was about to escape him, halted, leveled 
 his gun, and fired. The weapon was so well- 
 aimed that the bullet grazed the cheek of the 
 
 flying white man. 
 
 20 
 
306 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEEKS. 
 
 " That's what I've been waiting for!" he 
 exclaimed, wheeling about and making for 
 his enemy with the fury of a tiger. 
 
 He had taken but a few steps when he ab- 
 ruptly halted, with another angry exclama- 
 tion. The Shawanoe had vanished. It was 
 as if he had dropped into the crater of a vol- 
 cano. 
 
 The mystified fugitive raised his hands and 
 savagely sawed the thongs against the jagged 
 bark of a tree. The abrasion so weakened 
 them that with a slight effort he snapped 
 them apart. 
 
 He was too wise not to be suspicious of the 
 vanishment of his pursuer. More than likely 
 he had darted into cover somewhere, and he 
 would remain quiescent only until he could 
 reload his gun. Then he would resume the 
 pursuit, or, if he fired again, his aim would be 
 more effective. 
 
 They had entered a rocky section, similar 
 in some respects to that in which George Ash- 
 bridge and Agnes Altman were involved the 
 preceding day, though it was further north 
 of the Ohio. Crouching low, in the hope of 
 
A SUEEENDEE. 307 
 
 hiding himself, Kenton continued his flight 
 with the same speed as before, and with more 
 comfort since the freeing of his wrists. 
 
 To his chagrin the Shawanoe popped up on 
 his right, and so near that the fugitive turned 
 in the opposite direction to save himself from 
 running into his embrace. 
 
 " I don't know whether I want him to fire 
 again or not, for his aim is a powerful sight 
 too good." 
 
 What Kenton feared was that his enemv 
 would seek to wound him whenever he felt 
 doubt about running him down. With a bul- 
 let in his foot, or knee, or thigh, the white 
 man would be as much at the mercy of his foe 
 as when bound to the tree in the clearing, 
 with the wood piled about his feet. 
 
 " He's one of the few varmints I can't out- 
 run — helloa !" 
 
 He had come upon a chasm similar to that 
 which confronted Ashbridge and Agnes in 
 their flight. It was wide, but he showed no 
 more hesitation than did the youth. Concen- 
 trating his mighty muscles, the ranger rose in 
 air and landed on the opposite ledge. 
 
308 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEERS, 
 
 "It'll be just like him to do the same 
 thing," he muttered, running a short distance 
 and then glancing back. He meditated paus- 
 ing on the brink, and, confronting his enemy 
 as he alighted, hurl him back into the chasm, 
 but he knew the redskin would not run any- 
 such risk. He was more likely to shoot and 
 wound the fugitive. 
 
 Sure enough, the Shawanoe made no more 
 pause than did Kenton himself, but, rising 
 gracefully in air, cleared the chasm with the 
 same ease as he. By this time the latter was 
 speeding away again, as when he started upon 
 his desperate race for life. 
 
 " He beats any varmint I ever run agin," 
 reflected Kenton, "and it would be a pity to 
 drop him in his tracks, but I only wish I had 
 the chance." 
 
 The nature of the ground favored the fugi- 
 tive for a time, being rough, uneven, inter- 
 spersed with gullies, slight ravines, under- 
 growth, and rocks. He was repeatedly tempted 
 to turn aside in the effort to find some conceal- 
 ment, but he had good cause to fear the con- 
 sequences. Of necessity, his pursuer would 
 
A SURRENDER. 309 
 
 halt upon missing him and begin a search. 
 Knowing the spot where he had last seen the 
 white man, he would readily detect his trail 
 and bring him to light. So long as the In- 
 dian carried a loaded gun he had him at his 
 mercy. 
 
 There was still more to be feared. It was 
 not certain that the other four had with- 
 drawn from the race. If not, they were run- 
 ning so well that it would not take long 
 for them to arrive on the scene. By join- 
 ing with the leader in the hunt, all earthly 
 chance of Kenton getting away would be at 
 an end. 
 
 As it seemed to the latter, there were only 
 two remote chances of eluding his relentless 
 enemies : the first was by meeting some brother 
 ranger or running into a friendly camp (a 
 prospect of which there was scarcely one in a 
 thousand), and the other was by reaching a 
 stream of water, into which he could plunge 
 and effectually hide his trail. 
 
 Kenton was sufficiently acquainted with the 
 country to know that a stream such as he had 
 in mind coursed across the wood to the north- 
 
310 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEEBS. 
 
 ward, but he feared it was a long way off. As 
 it offered his only hope, he bent his energies 
 toward reaching it. His plan was to keep 
 running at a pace somewhat less than the one 
 of which he was capable, until the signs 
 showed he was in its vicinity, when he would 
 put forth another burst of speed, which he 
 trusted would so increase the space between 
 him and his pursuer that he would gain a 
 chance by a long dive, a desperate swim, and 
 a determined effort to throw off the redskin 
 that had clung to him with most extraordi- 
 nary tenacity. 
 
 He was in reality nearer the stream he had 
 in mind than he suspected. He recognized 
 an increasing opening in the spaces between 
 the trees as the sign for which he yearned, 
 and he instantly struck a gait which must 
 have astonished his pursuer. Glancing over 
 his shoulder, Kenton saw he was gaining 
 faster than at any time previous in the re- 
 markable and long-continued struggle. 
 
 " It's do or die, this time I" he said, grimly 
 compressing his lips and summoning his ut- 
 most strength for the terrific effort. "If I 
 
A SURRENDER. 311 
 
 don't get away from him I'll hide and have 
 it out with him." 
 
 The bank of the stream where he reached 
 it was rocky and several feet above the surface 
 of the water. Kenton did not know its depth, 
 and there was no means of learning. He must 
 take the chances. With no abatement, but 
 rather an increase, if possible, of his amazing 
 speed, he made a prodigious plunge far out 
 into the water, which was of comparatively 
 narrow width, and disappeared. 
 
 He touched bottom lightly, and, as nearly 
 as he could judge, the depth was less than a 
 dozen feet. Knowing his enemy would arrive 
 on the bank behind him in a few moments, he 
 swam under the surface in the direction of the 
 current, with all the strength and skill he 
 possessed, and for the longest possible period 
 that he could hold his breath. Then, instead 
 of alio wing his head to rise, or seeking to look 
 behind him to learn what his enemy was doing, 
 he caught one deep respiration and sank again 
 and continued his furious swimming. He was 
 still at it when the decreasing depth warned 
 him that he was close to the other shore. 
 
312 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEEKS. 
 
 la the sweeping survey he took at the 
 moment of leaping into the stream the ranger 
 noted that the opposite bank was fringed in 
 several places with overhanging bushes. He 
 aimed to secure the shelter of these, for, if he 
 could succeed in doing so, he was likely to de- 
 ceive his pursuer. 
 
 Fortune favored him. He rose precisely 
 where he desired and, under the impenetrable 
 protection, parted the bushes behind him and 
 peered at the other side. 
 
 To his astonishment, he saw nothing of the 
 Shawanoe, though his vision ranged up and 
 down the bank for a considerable distance. 
 
 "I don't know what's become of the var- 
 mint," he muttered, " but I ain't going to 
 hunt him up." 
 
 Drawing himself carefully from the water, 
 Kenton stole forward until certain he was 
 beyond sight of any one behind him. 
 Then he straightened up and advanced with 
 more confidence than at any moment since 
 beginning the race. He had walked less than 
 twenty steps, when, to his amazement, he came 
 face to face with a fully-armed and painted 
 
A SUEEENDEE. 313 
 
 Shawanoe, whose attitude showed he was ex- 
 pecting and waiting for the fugitive. 
 
 Kenton gave him one searching look and 
 then said in the Indian tongue : " I surrender I" 
 
314 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEEES. 
 
 CHAPTER XXI. 
 
 < 
 
 GOOD-BYE TO THE PANTHER. 
 
 NO living Shawanoe dare question the will 
 of the terrible Wa-on-Mon. A brother 
 chieftain onee dared to beard him at a council 
 fire, and his fate was that of the Wanpanoag 
 warrior who advised King Philip, of Mount 
 Hope, to cease fighting the early New Eng- 
 enders ; he was brained on the spot. 
 
 When, therefore, the Panther called the 
 Wyandot Adonis, known as the Antelope, a 
 squaw for seeking to take Agnes Altaian 
 (otherwise known as the Flower of the Woods) 
 to his home as his wife, the frightened youth 
 had not the temerity to attempt a reply. He 
 was thankful that his life was spared, and, 
 when ordered to go, stood not on the order of 
 his going, but went. 
 
 The missionary, Finley sitting apart with 
 the young woman, instantly " caught on " to 
 
GOOD-BYE TO THE PANTHER. 315 
 
 the situation when he saw the frightened 
 youth turn abruptly about and walk toward 
 his canoe. So did Mocha-wen-qua, or Be- 
 tween-the-Rocks, who was on the alert. The 
 Antelope did not look to the right or left. He 
 seemed unaware of the presence of his brother 
 warrior and of the two whites sitting within 
 his range of vision. All that he desired was 
 to reach his craft and to get out of the pres- 
 ence of Wa-on-mon with the least delay pos- 
 sible. The two entered the boat, and, shoving 
 out into the stream, paddled off with all speed. 
 
 Finley could not avoid a broad smile. 
 
 "I think you can read the meaning of 
 that," he remarked to Agnes. 
 
 " If I am not mistaken, the Panther has re- 
 fused the prayer of the Antelope," said, the 
 happy Agnes. 
 
 u You are right ; he is glad enough to get 
 off with his life ; you will have no more trouble 
 in that direction." 
 
 " He may visit the block-house again to see 
 me," 
 
 "Not while the Panther lives; he holds 
 him in too much dread." 
 
316 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEERS. 
 
 " I must thank Wa-on-mon for his good- 
 ness to me." 
 
 " Better not ; he is in one of his most dan- 
 gerous moods." 
 
 But the young woman was so overjoyed be- 
 cause of the load that had been lifted from 
 her heart that she paid no heed to the warn- 
 ing of the missionary. The Panther had 
 faced about, and stood, his rifle in one hand, 
 with the stock resting on the ground, looking 
 at the Wyandots, who, under the propulsion 
 of the paddle swayed by Between-the-Bocks, 
 were skimming like a swallow in their course 
 down stream. The great wax chieftain's ugly 
 face was rendered more repellant by the 
 wrathful scowl that darkened it. His gleam- 
 ing black eyes were fixed upon the two war- 
 riors as though they were the only objects in 
 his field of vision. 
 
 Missionary Finley knew the dark thoughts 
 that were seething in the brain of Wa-on- 
 mon. He was meditating whether he should 
 raise his rifle and shoot dead the handsome 
 Wyandot that had shown himself a squaw 
 because he had plead for permission to take 
 
GOOD-BYE TO THE PANTHER. 317 
 
 the Flower of the Woods to his wigwam. The 
 good man expected the chieftain to bring his 
 gun to a level and end the career, with light- 
 ning-like suddenness, of the effeminate Ante- 
 lope. Not until the canoe with its occupants 
 vanished around the bend in the stream, did 
 Finley breathe freely. 
 
 The Panther held his threatening pose, 
 when the joyous Agnes ran to him and laid 
 her hand on his arm. 
 
 "O Wa-on-mon, I thank you for your 
 kindness ; I shall never forget you." 
 
 She looked up in the forbidding counte- 
 nance, as she would have gazed into that of the 
 missionary, loving, hope and trusting as a 
 child in the arms of its parent. Only for 
 an instant did the Panther seem to know of 
 her presence. He flashed one glance at her, 
 and then resumed his glowering stare in the 
 direction of the vanished canoe. Not a mus- 
 cle stirred. 
 
 Missionary Finley stealthily raised the 
 hammer of his rifle, holding the weapon so 
 that it could be raised and fired in the twink- 
 ling of an eye. His gaze was on the red 
 
318 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEERS. 
 
 man's face and was not once removed so long 
 as Agnes Altman stood within reach of the 
 terrible chieftain. He had said that the 
 Panther was in one of his most dangerous 
 moods. At such times he was the creature of 
 startling whims. It would have been like 
 him to expend the wrath he restrained a few 
 minutes before, in one terrific outburst upon 
 the innocent, unsuspecting Agnes. This was 
 what the missionary feared, and he held him- 
 self ready to meet it with an instant bullet 
 through the brain of the Shawanoe. 
 
 But Agnes was quick to note the temper of 
 the chieftain, and, without another word, and, 
 without waiting for any response from him, 
 she turned and hurried back to Mr. Finley, 
 her manner betraying nothing of the awful 
 fear that had come into her heart. 
 
 With the disappearance of the Wyandots 
 the Panther soon roused himself from the 
 murderous temper in which he had been sunk. 
 Striding to his canoe, which rested against the 
 bank, he placed one hand on the prow, and 
 then looked toward the missionary and young 
 woman. 
 
GOOD-BYE TO THE PANTHER. 319 
 
 "He wishes us to join him/' remarked the 
 former, rising to his feet; "follow the advice 
 I gave you, my child, and do not spe#k to him 
 unless he asks you a question." 
 
 Agnes had become thoroughly impressed 
 with the savage mood of the Shawanoe, and 
 would have been immeasurably relieved could 
 they have parted company then and there. 
 She kept a couple of paces behind her pro- 
 tector, as they approached the boat, pausing 
 at its side for direction as to where she should 
 seat herself. 
 
 The Panther motioned for her to take her 
 place near the middle, while Finley was 
 to sit at the stern, the intention of the 
 Shawanoe being to seat himself nearer the 
 prow, which he would face while swaying the 
 paddle. 
 
 The missionary grasped the arm of Agnes 
 above the elbow, to help her in the canoe. 
 As he did so, he pinched it significantly. She 
 looked up in his face, and saw an expression 
 she had never seen there before. The ruddy 
 countenance was slightly paled, the lips were 
 compressed, and a fierce light shone in the 
 
320 Iff THE DAYS OF THE PIONEEES. 
 
 eyes that to her had always been mild, and 
 gentle, and loving. 
 
 She was about to do as the Panther indi- 
 cated, but Finley, retaining his grasp on her 
 arm, pushed her slightly away from him. At 
 the same time he said, in the lowest, guarded 
 undertone : 
 
 " Sit in the stern I" 
 
 The face of the missionary was as threaten- 
 ing in its way as that of the chieftain, and, 
 frightened as never before, she obeyed with- 
 out a word. Then a strange thing took place. 
 
 Agnes was seated, as described, at the stern, 
 and taking up her small weapon, which she 
 had carried thither, looked inquiringly at her 
 companion. The right hand of the Panther 
 rested on the curving bow of the canoe, while 
 his left grasped his rifle. The pose compelled 
 him to lean slightly forward, so that his ap- 
 pearance suggested that of a wild beast gath- 
 ering itself to leap upon its prey. He was 
 staring intently at the white man who had 
 dared to dispute his commands, for low as was 
 the voice which directed Agnes to sit in the 
 stern, it was heard by the chieftain. 
 
GOOD-BYE TO THE PANTHEE. 321 
 
 The missionary never stood more erect. 
 His massive shoulders were thrown back, one 
 foot slightly advanced ; and his rifle, firmly 
 held by both hands diagonally across his 
 chest, was a weapon as ready for instant ser- 
 vice as the hunting-knife in the girdle of the 
 Shawanoe. His gray eyes met the black ones 
 of the chieftain with a glance equally as defi- 
 ant. They understood each other. 
 
 The pose, the looks, the manner, said as 
 plainly as words : 
 
 " Shawanoe, 1 read your heart ! You medi- 
 date slaying Agnes Altman. On the first 
 motion to do so I shall kill you ! Others 
 may be afraid of you, but I am not, and you 
 know it, Wa-on-nion !" 
 
 The good man had trusted his life many 
 
 times to the keeping of the fearful leader of 
 
 the Shawanoes. It was not often that the 
 
 hand of the Panther was stayed when a pale 
 
 face was at his mercy, but he had never yet 
 
 harmed a hair of the missionary's head, even 
 
 though they had met more than once when 
 
 the chieftain was on the war-path. 
 
 It may have been that it was because the 
 21 
 
322 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEEES. 
 
 man of God fully trusted him ; that he was 
 unquestionably a brave person ; that he always 
 spoke with a single tongue ; that his life was 
 in accord with his preaching ; that his heart 
 overflowed with kindness, and love, and char- 
 ity ; or, more truly, that it was a combination 
 of all these attributes which made it safe for 
 the missionary to walk where no other white 
 man dared to tread. 
 
 But under the lamb-like exterior slumbered 
 a lion that on suitable occasion was roused into 
 life. Reading the half-formed purpose of the 
 Panther stirred the wrath of Finley to white 
 heat. The Shawanoe knew it, and cowered 
 before the storm that impended over his head. 
 
 Not a word was uttered by either, and the 
 striking tableau lasted but a moment. The 
 missionary calmly seated himself in the canoe 
 and the Panther shoved it clear of the land, 
 stepping lightly into the craft as it was mov- 
 ing off, and taking up the paddle which none 
 could handle more deftly than he. In accord- 
 ance with custom, he placed himself so as to 
 face the prow, dipping the oar first on one 
 side and then on the other. 
 
GOOD-BYE TO THE PANTHER. 323 
 
 Agnes did not notice that her friend as- 
 sumed a position which left him free to use 
 his rifle with instant suddenness. He laid the 
 weapon across his lap, the muzzle projecting 
 beyond and resting upon the gunwale on his 
 left. With apparent carelessness his right 
 hand reposed on the lock, so that, without 
 shifting its position, he could raise the ham- 
 mer with his thumb. He was not yet pre- 
 pared fully to trust the Panther. 
 
 Instinctively, rather than as the result of 
 thought, Agnes held her own weapon as if she 
 expected to need its use in some emergency 
 she neither foresaw nor understood. 
 
 The Panther guided the canoe into the 
 middle of the stream and propelled it with 
 deliberation. He showed no haste or impa- 
 tience, though he was engaged upon the most 
 important business of his life. The shores were 
 densely wooded, and gradually approached 
 each other as the deeply-laden craft moved 
 against the current. 
 
 Now that the dread which oppressed her so 
 long had passed, a natural curiosity impelled 
 the young woman to ask : 
 
324 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEERS. 
 
 "Where are we going, Mr. Finley ?" 
 He replied, in his usual manner : 
 " When the Panther and I came upon you 
 I was on my way to the block-house." 
 
 "Did he mean to accompany you?" she 
 asked in surprise. 
 
 " No ; he has never been there, and I do not 
 think he will ever go." 
 
 " How, then, did you intend to manage it?" 
 " Wa-on-mon and I have journeyed many 
 miles in the wilderness together," replied the 
 missionary, meaning his words as much for 
 the silent figure in front as for the vivacious 
 one behind him ; " we have never quarreled, 
 and never will. When I reached the mouth 
 of this stream and told him whither I was go- 
 ing, he kindly offered to take me a portion of 
 the way. He was engaged in doing so when, 
 providentially, we encountered you and the 
 two Wyandots, the Antelope and Between- 
 the-Kocks." 
 
 " But you just said you would not go the 
 whole distance together." 
 
 "This stream makes a sweeping bend to 
 the north at no great distance from here. 
 
GOOD-BYE TO THE PANTHER. 325 
 
 That point is the nearest to the block-house 
 that we can reach in this boat except by de- 
 scending to the Ohio, and when we arrive at 
 the spot I have in mind we shall part com- 
 pany with the Panther. He will go whither 
 he chooses with his canoe and we will make 
 the rest of our journey on foot." 
 
 " How far shall we have to walk ?" 
 
 " Not more than five or six miles. I hope 
 that nothing will occur to prevent our safe ar- 
 rival, though there is much unrest among the 
 Indians, and many of them are roaming 
 through the woods." 
 
 "I feel no fear so long as Wa-on-mon is 
 with us," said Agnes, taking her turn in utter- 
 ing a sentiment for the benefit of their com- 
 panion, whose coppery body did not sway a 
 hair's breadth to the right or left as he ma- 
 nipulated the paddle with the smooth regular- 
 ity of a piece of perfect machinery. He was 
 naked above the waist, his shoulders being 
 half-hidden by the mass of coarse black hair 
 which fell about them. 
 
 There is little muscular development in the 
 American Indian, only a slight ridging show- 
 
326 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEERS. 
 
 ing at the shoulder-blades of the Shawanoe, 
 while the long arms had a lankness that gave 
 no indication of the marvellous force and 
 quickness of action of which they were ca- 
 pable. He continued to gaze straight ahead, 
 with an occasional glance at the shore to the 
 right or left, but not once was the head suffi- 
 ciently turned to reveal his profile to the two, 
 whose eyes were hardly ever removed from 
 the strange being that attracted them with a 
 fascination for which neither could account. 
 
 The missionary was sure that no one read 
 the workings of the Shawanoe's mind as well 
 as himself. He had known him so intimately 
 for years that he could make little mistake on 
 that point. The vengeful, vindictive mood 
 that had grown upon him after the departure 
 of the Wyandots had gradually passed, while 
 he swung the paddle, until nothing further 
 was to be feared for the time from him. 
 
 " Yes," replied Mr. Finley to the remark 
 of Agnes, " we have nothing to dread from 
 Shawanoe or Wyandot so long as he is with 
 us, but we part in a few minutes now." 
 
 Agnes had noticed the sweeping bend of 
 
GOOD-BYE TO THE PANTHER. 327 
 
 the river to the left, only a short distance 
 ahead. While her friend was speaking, the 
 Panther turned the bow of the canoe to the 
 right, and a few powerful sweeps of the paddle 
 sent the craft against the bank. At the mo- 
 ment of touching the white man stepped out, 
 and, turning, gave his hand to the young 
 woman, who sprang lightly beside him. 
 
 The Panther, without a word, headed out in 
 the stream again and resumed paddling. Mr. 
 Finley looked after him with a curious ex- 
 pression, but did not speak. 
 
 " Good-bye, Wa-on-mon !" called Agnes, 
 waving her hand to the chieftain's back. As 
 her clear, joyous voice rang across the water, 
 the Shawanoe ceased paddling for a moment, 
 turned his head, and, looking fixedly at the 
 young man, called, in her tongue : 
 
 " Good-bye, Flower of the Woods !" Then 
 he turned again and continued paddling until 
 he disappeared around the bend in the stream. 
 Neither Missionary Finley nor Agnes Alt- 
 man ever saw him again. 
 
328 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEEBS. 
 
 CHAPTER XXII. 
 
 THE ACCOUNT SQUAKED. 
 
 SIMON KENTON had made a gallant and 
 determined struggle for life, having led 
 the pursuing Shawanoes on a long and des- 
 perate chase, and finally thrown the foremost 
 and only really dangerous one off his track 
 by leaping into the stream and swimming 
 most of the distance under the surface to the 
 other shore. 
 
 His relentless enemy arrived on the south- 
 ern bank while the ranger was swimming with 
 such consummate ease and swiftness out of 
 sight. The first supposition of the pursuer, 
 after a glance at the unrufiled surface, must 
 have been that the white man had not plunged 
 into the water, but had darted to the right or 
 left, along the edge of the stream. It required 
 two or three minutes for the Shawanoe to dis- 
 cover his mistake, and to learn that Kenton 
 
THE ACCOUNT SQUARED. 329 
 
 was undoubtedly making for the other shore, 
 if he had not already reached it. Inasmuch, 
 however, as the fugitive had taken his last in- 
 halation before reaching the shelter of the 
 overhanging vegetation, the pursuer descried 
 nothing of him. 
 
 The shrewd Shawanoe suspected the truth, 
 and drawing back from the shore, so as to be 
 out of sight, watched for the other to appear. 
 Almost any one beside Kenton, on the failure 
 to see even one of his enemies, would have re- 
 vealed himself by his carelessness of flight, 
 after his assurance of escape. He was too 
 wise to do anything of that nature, and was 
 breathing freely after his exhausing run and 
 swim, certain that all real peril was past, 
 when, to his consternation, he came face to face 
 with another Shawanoe warrior, and almost 
 instantly surrendered to him. 
 
 There were the best of reasons for this act, 
 which probably has struck the reader as out 
 of keeping with the character of Simon Ken- 
 ton. In the first place, the Indian discovered 
 the approach of the fugitive, who did not ob- 
 serve his danger until he was inextricably in 
 
330 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEERS. 
 
 it. Without a gun or knife the ranger could 
 make no fight against the sinewy red man. 
 The principal reason, however, for Kenton 
 surrendering so promptly was that at the first 
 glance he recognized the other as Wa-on-mon, 
 known as the Panther, the terrible war chief 
 of the Shawanoes. 
 
 Had the Indian been an ordinary warrior 
 the scout would have tried to leap upon or en- 
 gage him single-handed, but nothing of the 
 kind could be done with the Panther, and, 
 recognizing his helplessness, Kenton did the 
 wisest thing conceivable by surrendering off- 
 hand to him. 
 
 It is more than likely that the chieftain 
 identified the famous hunter and pioneer be- 
 fore the latter saw him, for the advantage was 
 with the red man ; but with the opportunity 
 of shooting down his implacable enemy before 
 the latter could know whence the blow came, 
 the Panther assumed an easy and not un- 
 graceful attitude, and coolly awaited the ap- 
 proach of the other, as though he were one of 
 his scouts returning with some information he 
 had been sent to obtain for him. 
 
THE ACCOUNT SQUAEED. 331 
 
 It is hardly necessary to state that the words 
 that passed between these two remarkable men 
 during the last interview they ever had, were 
 uttered in Shawanoe, in which tongue one 
 was as much adept as the other. 
 
 "I am your prisoner, Shawanoe," added 
 the ranger, after announcing his surrender, 
 and looking his master straight in the face 
 with an expression in which there was not a 
 trace of fear or shrinking. 
 
 The Panther, after crossing the stream just 
 beyond the bend where he had parted from 
 Missionary Finley and Agnes Altman, ran 
 his canoe under the bank and disembarked. 
 He was but a few paces away when Kenton 
 appeared on the scene. He now stood erect, 
 his rifle in hand, and towahawk in his girdle. 
 Steadily surveying his approaching enemy, he 
 must have perceived on the instant that he 
 was wholly unarmed. Had it been otherwise 
 the meeting between the two would have been 
 of a different nature. 
 
 " Wa-on-mon takes no prisoners," was the 
 alarming response of the chieftain. 
 
 " True enough ; you didn't take me ; I threw 
 
332 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEERS. 
 
 myself into your arms ; you can't help your- 
 self, but I needn't tell the Panther that if I 
 had a gun or a knife there would be no sur- 
 render/' 
 
 " If Wa-on-mon gives to the pale face a 
 knife will he fight?" 
 
 " The Panther should know better than to 
 ask that question. Have I ever shrunk from 
 meeting any red man ?" 
 
 The ranger made no reference to that en- 
 counter the previous summer, when he gave 
 back his life to the Panther. Such a re- 
 minder would be in the nature of an ap- 
 peal and Simon Kenton asked mercy of no 
 man, much less would he seem to do so of an 
 Indian. 
 
 "If I take your knife what will you do for 
 a weapon ?" added the hunter. 
 
 u Wa-on-mon has his tomahawk." 
 
 " There's no likeness atween them/' Ken- 
 ton was quick to remark, for he believed he 
 could dodge the formidable missile, and then 
 would be at advantage, and he would scorn to 
 accept such a favor. " Get a knife from some 
 of your warriors that can't be far off and then 
 
THE ACCOUNT SQUAKED. 333 
 
 we can fight on equal terms as two brave men 
 should fight/' 
 
 Instead of replying to this pat observation, 
 the chieftain gave a wholly different turn to 
 his words. 
 
 " Why is the white man without his rifle ? 
 What has he done with his knife ?" 
 
 Kenton always maintained to the end of 
 his life that when the Panther asked these 
 two questions he smiled. Never before had 
 any one seen that dark countenance illum- 
 ined by anything of that nature, for rarely 
 indeed did the light of merry quip enter the 
 soul of the wrathful Shawanoe. 
 
 " But I seen the corners of his mouth 
 twitch," remarked Kenton fully a half-century 
 later, in relating the incident, " and there was 
 a pecul'ar twinkle in the Shawanoe's eyes, and 
 when a varmint shows them signs you can 
 make up your mind that there ain't anything 
 of the natur' of murder in his heart. I 
 knowed from that minute I had nothing to 
 fear from the Panther, onless one of his ugly 
 moods should happen to come onto him." 
 
 "I lost them," replied the ranger with the 
 
334 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEEKS. 
 
 most serious countenance lie could assume in 
 answer to the questions of the chieftain. 
 
 "The white man was frightened; he ran 
 like a deer ; he threw away his gun and his 
 knife that he might run faster." 
 
 " The Panther speaks with a single tongue, 
 but he is wrong ; the Shawanoes took the 
 white man's weapons from him." 
 
 Although the chieftain must have suspected 
 this truth, it was evident that he knew there 
 was a good deal behind the statement in which 
 he felt considerable curiosity. Nothing, how- 
 ever, in his looks and manner showed it, but 
 Kenton gave him the information that he 
 knew would be welcome. 
 
 " Red Bird and his warriors encamped last 
 night near the Ohio. I was watching them, 
 when one of his men stole up and struck me 
 down and knocked all my wits out of me at the 
 same time. When I came to they had me 
 fast and took away my knife and gun. They 
 tied me to a tree, and, when morning came, 
 piled wood around me and set fire to it. It 
 was then that a white man fired a shot which 
 cut the thong, and I ran into the woods. I 
 
THE ACCOUNT SQUARED. 335 
 
 had no weapons, and the Shawanoes chased 
 me a long way." 
 
 a What white man fired the shot that set 
 the prisoner free ?" 
 
 " That I can not tell you, Wa-on-mon, for I 
 did not see him. I suspect it was the great 
 hunter, Boone, or some one of the scouts from 
 the block-house." 
 
 " It was a brave and skilful deed. Have 
 the Shawanoes seized the white man who fired 
 the gun ?" 
 
 " Neither can I answer that, Wa-on-mon, 
 but," added Kenton, with a twinkle and half- 
 smile, " I don't think it likely, for you see he 
 had a better start than I did, and had his 
 gun, too. They didn't catch me, and I see 
 no reason why they should catch him, who- 
 ever he was." 
 
 "The Shawanoe runner that chased him 
 may be fleeter of foot than those who fright- 
 ened my brother." 
 
 " I'll be shot if that could be !" exclaimed 
 Kenton, quick to note the last words used by 
 the Panther ; " I never had such a chase in 
 my life ; I drew away from all of 'em except 
 
336 Iff THE DAYS OF THE PIONEERS. 
 
 one; I could not shake him off till I jumped 
 into the water and swam most of the way un- 
 der it." 
 
 The chieftain turned his head and glanced 
 across the stream. Imitating him, Kenton, to 
 his surprise, saw the warrior to whom he had 
 just referred, standing in full view on the 
 other side evidently watching the two with 
 the closest interest. He would have been glad 
 to come over and join them, but dared not do 
 so without permission from the Panther. 
 
 While the ranger was looking at the Shawa- 
 noe that had given him so hard a chase, an- 
 other and another warrior came out of the 
 wood and appeared at his side, until the four 
 that had been distanced were with him. They 
 recognized their war chief, and feared to run 
 the risk of offending him by venturing another 
 step nearer. Knowing the white man was un- 
 armed and standing in the presence of their 
 resistless leader, they felt no fear of his ulti- 
 mate escape. 
 
 " How many warriors had Red Bird with 
 him ?" asked the Panther in that indifferent 
 manner peculiar to his people, but which did 
 
THE ACCOUNT SQUAKED. 337 
 
 not deceive Kenton, who was convinced that 
 the war chief desired to meet his subordinate, 
 and was, therefore, interested in him and his 
 whereabouts. 
 
 " I should say about twenty," replied the 
 ranger, indicating by twice opening and shut- 
 ting his thumbs and fingers the number he 
 had in mind, " but they were coming and go- 
 ing and I may have missed some of 'em." 
 
 The informant took care to avoid reference 
 to the stirring events of the preceding night, 
 because that had resulted in the death of sev- 
 eral warriors, the knowledge of which might 
 enrage the Panther. 
 
 The good angel was now at the elbow of the 
 chieftain and he was listening to its whisper- 
 ings. Ill would the prisoner fare if it should 
 be driven away. 
 
 " My brother will be a child in the woods 
 
 without his gun and knife," said the Panther 
 
 in a gentler voice than he had used since the 
 
 meeting of the two, and with an expression of 
 
 friendly interest that made Kenton forget for 
 
 the time that they had ever been enemies. 
 
 " The distance to the block-house is but a 
 22 
 
338 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEEES. 
 
 few miles; I need no gun to reach it, and 
 when I am there the Panther knows I shall 
 not want for weapons." 
 
 The chieftain nodded toward his canoe as he 
 walked thither. Kenton followed and waited 
 on the water's margin until the Shawanoe 
 shoved the boat clear of the land. The lat- 
 ter laid his rifle in the bow and motioned to 
 his companion to enter. The latter did so 
 and seated himself near the middle. The 
 Panther gave the craft a shove, and stepping 
 in at the stern, picked up the paddle, and 
 thus, as may be said, became master of the 
 proceedings. 
 
 It will be noted that the white man was be- 
 tween the Indian and the single gun in the 
 canoe. With his unsurpassable dexterity, 
 Kenton was sure he could seize the rifle, and 
 . turn the tables on his captor, or, in the com- 
 mon parlance of the present day, "get the 
 drop " on him. 
 
 But why think of such a thing ? No in- 
 ducement could lead Simon Kenton to make 
 the attempt. 
 
 The ranger saw only one possible cause for 
 
THE ACCOUNT SQUARED. 339 
 
 uneasiness. The five Shawanoes were still on 
 the other shore closely watching the move- 
 ments of the two in the boat. They would 
 not willingly see the white man depart un- 
 questioned, and though the five combined dare 
 not gainsay the mighty Wa-on-mon, it was not 
 impossible that they would suggest some 
 change in his plan which might prove accept- 
 able to him. This change would probably 
 mean a fight, and, while it need not be re- 
 peated that Simon Kenton shrank from a 
 physical contest with no man when the field 
 was a fair one, he was apprehensive of 
 treachery, not from the Panther, but from 
 the warriors, who, like all their race, were 
 adepts in that species of warfare. 
 
 The misgiving of the fugitive was increased 
 when he noted that the chief headed the boat 
 toward the group, who, standing near each 
 other, never removed their gaze from the 
 canoe and its occupants. 
 
 " There's going to be a rumpus," was his 
 conclusion ; " the Panther has got some plan 
 in his head — I'll be shot if I'm so sartin', 
 either," added the ranger, as the Shawanoe 
 
340 m THE DAYS OF THE PIONEEKS. 
 
 shied the boat away from shore, to the evident 
 surprise, if not disappointment, of the war- 
 riors awaiting him. One of them made as if 
 to keep pace with the chieftain, but a glance 
 from the latter was enough to check any such 
 design. 
 
 The Panther continued driving the craft 
 forward at a moderate speed until some two or 
 three hundred yards above the point where 
 his pursuers were gathered, when he swerved 
 it into shore, and knowing the meaning of the 
 act, Kenton stepped out. He turned about 
 expecting the Panther to do the same, or at 
 least make some explanation, but the chief- 
 tain did neither. He did not so much as 
 glance at the white man whose life he had 
 given back to him, even as he had received 
 his own from the white man, but sent the frail 
 craft skimming down stream toward the war- 
 riors. 
 
 Kenton was less surprised than any other 
 person would have been. 
 
 " What's the use of him and me saying 
 anything more?" he mused, as he stood for a 
 few minutes watching the vanishing Indian ; 
 
CO 
 
THE ACCOUNT SQUARED. 341 
 
 " we've said enough to understand each other. 
 I let up on him when I had him down last 
 summer, and he's just now done the same for 
 me. We didn't say nothin' 'bout it, but that's 
 what it means. 
 
 " Now the account is squared, and we stand 
 as though nothin' of the kind had ever took 
 place. It will be nip and tuck when we meet 
 next time, and Heaven only knows who it will 
 be that wins. There he goes, and I wonder 
 when we'll meet again." 
 
 But Simon Kenton and Wa-on-mon, the 
 fierce leader of the Shawanoes, never met 
 again. 
 
342 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEERS. 
 
 CHAPTER XXIII. 
 
 JOURNEYING SOUTHWARD. 
 
 IT was a strange situation for Simon Ken- 
 ton, wandering thus through an Indian 
 country without even a pocket knife to serve 
 him as a weapon. He was liable to come 
 across some of the Shawanoes, or they were 
 likely to strike his trail, in which event his 
 only recourse, like the hare, would be his 
 heels. 
 
 He did not feel altogether at ease concern- 
 ing the five warriors whom he had left behind 
 him, and who were but a comparatively slight 
 distance away. It was possible that the Pan- 
 ther would change his mind, and, looking 
 upon the accounts between himself and the 
 white man as squared, give the pursuers lib- 
 erty to do as they chose. 
 
 It was this reflection which made Kenton 
 unusually alert. He took every possible 
 
JOURNEYING SOUTHWARD. 343 
 
 means of obliterating his trail, stepping with 
 extreme care and calling into play all his 
 skill, until his fear of that particular group 
 soon passed. He had made his course so 
 eccentric and winding and his footprints so 
 light that the keenest-eyed Shawanoe would 
 be obliged continually to search and study for 
 " sign." That precluded all speed, and hence, 
 by keeping a smart pace himself, nothing was 
 to be dreaded from them. At the same time 
 his woodcraft must prevent his running into 
 new danger. He glided in and out among 
 the trees as if " shod with silence," and rap- 
 idly lessened the distance he had to travel to 
 reach the block-house, on which all his hopes 
 now depended. 
 
 Kenton was treading his way through the 
 forest in this manner, when he was surprised 
 to discover that he had struck the fresh trail 
 of some one else going in the same direction. 
 A professional examination of the footprints 
 revealed that one set was made by a white 
 man and the other by a girl or young woman 
 wearing a very small shoe. 
 
 " That hits me powerful qu'ar," mused the 
 
344 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEEKS. 
 
 ranger, who summoned all his wonderful wood- 
 craft to his help. " In the fust place, the only 
 gal in Ohio that can leave such a purty, well- 
 shaped trail as that is Agnes Altman, and it 
 follows consequently, therefore, that it's her 
 that left them footprints, and she's making for 
 the block-house over the same road I'm fol- 
 lerin'. 
 
 " The last I heered of the gal was from the 
 younker Ashbridge, who told me 'bout her 
 being grabbed up from his side last night, 
 when it was too dark for him to see anything 
 round him. It can't be the younker that's 
 with her, for that doesn't stand to reason. 
 
 " That p'int being settled, the question is, 
 who is it that is walkin' just ahead of the gal, 
 for she steps nearly all the time in his tracks. 
 It might be some of the boys that's run 'cross 
 her and is taking her home." 
 
 But this theory, as Kenton quickly saw, 
 was untenable. 
 
 " What's become of them two Wyandots 
 (for I know the Antelope had a companion) 
 that run off with the gal ? Why, it was just 
 their luck, like mine, to run across the Pan- 
 
JOURNEYING SOUTHWARD. 345 
 
 ther, and he's made 'em let her go. Mission- 
 ary Finley has a way of giving his right foot 
 a little more turn, as he walks, than he does 
 with his other foot. That's what has been 
 done on this trail; it follers consequently, 
 therefore, that the man with the gal is the 
 parson. It couldn't be so very long ago that 
 the start was made for the block-house, and 
 as they are traveling the same way as me, it 
 follers consequently, therefore, that I stand a 
 powerful chance of overhauling them before 
 they reach the post." 
 
 It will be seen that the ranger, starting with 
 a correct premise, had reached the logical con- 
 clusion of his argument. 
 
 Within the succeeding fifteen minutes he 
 overtook his friends, who, it need not be said, 
 gave him most cordial greeting and welcome. 
 The missionary remarking the absence of 
 weapons on the person of the ranger, the lat- 
 ter told his experience of the preceding twenty- 
 four hours, which fully explained his plight. 
 Mr. Finley and Agnes, in turn, made known 
 what had befallen them, so that a full under- 
 standing was quickly reached. 
 
346 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEERS. 
 
 u How dreadfully anxious father and mother 
 must be," remarked the young woman; "and 
 George, too," she added, with a blush — u how 
 he must feel !" 
 
 " There can't be no doubt of that, gal, but 
 it won't last long." 
 
 " You think he went to the block-house ?" 
 
 " I've no doubt of it. I told the younker 
 that if I didn't get back to him by sunup he 
 must wait no longer, but hurry to the fort and 
 get what help he could to foller after you and 
 the Wyandots. I'm sure that's what he set 
 out to do." 
 
 " We mustn't forget Jethro, either," added 
 Agnes, whose heart went out in sympathy to 
 all that were imperiled ; " what of him ?" 
 
 " There don't seem to be any use thinking 
 of him." 
 
 " What do you mean ?" she asked in alarm ; 
 "do you think that any ill has befallen 
 him?" 
 
 "Can't tell, but that darky is the most 
 powerful qu'ar creatur I ever run agin in this 
 part of the world. He's always doing some- 
 thing that nobody else, not even me or Boone, 
 
JOUENEYING SOUTHWAED. 347 
 
 dare try, and yet he seems to come out on top 
 every time." 
 
 " But, Simon/' said the missionary, " it is 
 not reasonable to suppose that that can always 
 last. God has been merciful beyond our de- 
 serts to all of us, and yet he works through 
 well-established laws, and those who break 
 them must expect, sooner or later, to incur the 
 penalty." 
 
 " True, parson, true ; but with the darky 
 it 'pears always to be later. I don't know 
 where he is or what has become of him, but 
 it'll be the greatest s'prise of my life if, when 
 we reach the fort, we don't find him eating 
 his dinner there. Ef it's all the same to you ?" 
 added Kenton, with a grin, extending his hand 
 for the rifle which Agnes was carrying. 
 
 " But what will I do ?" she asked in turn, 
 smiling and hesitating, but finally passing the 
 weapon to him. 
 
 " It don't amount to much, that's true," re- 
 marked Kenton, turning the plaything over 
 in his hand and hefting it, " but if we get into 
 a snarl it'll make a powerful handy club." 
 
 " You dare to use it that way !" said Agnes, 
 
348 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEERS. 
 
 with a warning shake of her head, " and I will 
 never let you take it in your hand again." 
 
 " I offered to carry it for her," said the mis- 
 sionary, " but she would not trust it with me. 
 Evidently I am not as much in her good 
 graces as you." 
 
 They had made quite a pause in the woods, 
 during which Kenton's practiced eye detected 
 no sign of danger. When he felt the familiar 
 grasp of a rifle in his hand, even though the 
 weapon was an insignificant one as compared 
 with his own, his self-reliance and confidence 
 were vastly increased. He formed the belief 
 that there was little, if anything, to fear from 
 the Shawanoes behind him. Even if the Pan- 
 ther did not forbid them to attempt to pursue 
 him, they would find too many difficulties in 
 the way, as previously explained, to do it with 
 success. Besides, the little party was steadily 
 nearing the block-house, and were more likely 
 to meet friends than enemies. 
 
 Agnes, by request, walked a few paces in 
 advance. If she were seen by any Indians be- 
 fore they saw the men, they would not fire 
 upon her, but would try to take her prisoner. 
 
JOURNEYING SOUTHWARD. 349 
 
 The missionary and the ranger walked side 
 by side, speaking earnestly together and con- 
 tinually glancing here and there and every- 
 where, for it must not be supposed that they 
 relied in any degree upon the protection their 
 companion might accidentally give them. 
 Caution, alertness and vigilance became the 
 second nature of the woodsmen and rangers 
 in the days of the pioneers. 
 
 "Simon," said Mr. Finley in his grave 
 voice, "have you learned of any expedition 
 by President Washington against the Indians 
 of the West?" 
 
 " Yes ; Red Bird and me had a little con- 
 versation — natural, you know, like — when he 
 was making ready to use me to warm his 
 hands by, and he told me that such a thing 
 was going to be done, or rather tried ?" 
 
 " Strange how the Indians should hear of it 
 so soon, and yet it isn't the first time that 
 they have received the news before we knew 
 anything about it." 
 
 " I think, parson, that the birds of the air 
 carry the news to 'em." 
 
 " There have been signal fires burning on 
 
850 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEEES. 
 
 the high grounds for weeks past, and you 
 know as well as I of the restlessness among 
 the red men." 
 
 " And I've larned, too, that the varmints 
 are making ready to go on the warpath. 
 There's a fight coming that's to be the big- 
 gest we ever had in this part of the world." 
 
 " It will result in the overthrow of the red 
 men this time. The mistakes of Colonel 
 Crawford, General St. Clair and others can 
 not be repeated. President Washington was 
 thrown into a rage by St. Clair's disaster, for 
 he had warned him against the very blunders 
 he made. They will not be repeated. I have 
 heard that General Wayne is to lead this ex- 
 pedition." 
 
 "That's the news that come to me, so it 
 must be true." 
 
 " Then woe betide the Panther and his peo- 
 ple ! It will be the most crushing blow they 
 have ever received." 
 
 u Did you larn anything from him, parson ?" 
 
 " Not directly. He told me nothing, and I 
 was too prudent to question him, but under- 
 standing his nature as I did, I could read him 
 
JOUENEYING SOUTHWARD. 351 
 
 well. He is traveling through the country, 
 meeting the chiefs of the Pottawatomies, Wy- 
 andots, Miamis, Shawanoes and other tribes, 
 and nerving and arranging with them for the 
 final conflict, which he is confident will prove 
 a more overwhelming disaster to the whites 
 than all others together. He is a strange be- 
 ing, subject to strange moods." 
 
 " I run right into him, never dreaming that 
 he was anywhere in the neighborhood, and as 
 I hadn't no weapons, he had me ; so I s'ren- 
 dered." 
 
 "It was the only thing you could do, 
 Simon ; you could make no fight, and if you 
 had turned to run — " . 
 
 " He would have dropped me at the first 
 step ; why didn't he do it, parson, anyway ?" 
 
 " Providentially he was in one of his mag- 
 nanimous moods. A few minutes earlier or 
 later, and he might have forgotten that little 
 affair of last summer, between you and him." 
 
 " Do you think he did forget it ?" 
 
 " Of course not. There's little difference, 
 Simon, after all, between a white and red man. 
 The Panther has the vices and virtues of his 
 
352 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEERS. 
 
 people, perhaps a few more vices than are his 
 share, but though he drank a great deal of 
 fire-water years ago, it is a long time since he 
 has touched it. He is kind to his squaw and 
 children, but his hatred of the white men is 
 like that of King Philip of Mount Hope and 
 Pontiac, chief of the Ottawas. If it was not 
 a prompting of gratitude, why did he spare 
 you at all ? You will find gratitude and in- 
 gratitude among those people just as you do 
 among our own." 
 
 " But if him and me meet again, parson, 
 what then ?" 
 
 " I have no doubt it will be as if your 
 meeting last summer and to-day had never 
 taken place. In other words, the account be- 
 tween you has been squared." 
 
 " That's my idea exactly." 
 
 " Therefore, I hope you may never meet, 
 Simon." 
 
 " I don't know as I've much feeling one 
 way or t'other 'bout it, but I don't under- 
 stand, parson, how he was marciful to the gal, 
 to little Mabel Ashbridge, to me, and always 
 to you ; he never offered to harm you." 
 
JOURNEYING SOUTHWARD. 353 
 
 " Ah, my good friend, you haye no concep- 
 tion of the many narrow escapes I have had 
 from Wa-on-mon. He has been on the point 
 more than once of sinking his tomahawk in 
 my brain, but was restrained by a power 
 higher than his own. When I came out of 
 the woods this morning, and hailed him and 
 asked him to take me in his canoe, I saw he 
 was in one of his ugly tempers, for he was 
 then on a tour among the tribes to rouse them 
 against the whites, but my confidence in him 
 disarmed his enmity for the moment, just as 
 your surrender did." 
 
 u And was that the end of his ugliness to- 
 ward you ?" 
 
 "By no means. He spared the Antelope 
 and his companion, Between-the-Rocks, after 
 which Satan overcame him again, and he de- 
 termined to kill me and Agnes." 
 
 Kenton looked at the missionary in amaze- 
 ment. 
 
 11 1 read it in his face, and showed him I knew 
 it. He was cowed, and by and by his evil 
 angel left him, and was still absent when you 
 fell into his hands." 
 
 23 
 
354 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEERS. 
 
 " What I don't understand is how it is that 
 a varmint that has done all the deeds he has 
 ever feels like letting up on any pale face." 
 
 "There is no heart so bad, Simon, that 
 there is not some good in it. You had the 
 Panther in your power last summer, and yet, 
 when he expected no mercy, you extended it 
 to him. It was the same influence that 
 stayed his hand, when all his evil promptings 
 said, ' Strike and spare not/ It was that still, 
 small voice which whispers to you in the 
 watches of the night, at high noon, when you 
 are alone in the depths of the woods or among 
 the abodes of men, urging you to give your 
 heart to God, and to try to shape your life so 
 that it will always be pleasing in His sight." 
 
 Kenton was silent, for this was not the first 
 time the words of the good man had im- 
 pressed him more deeply than the utterances 
 of any other person. Laying his hand af- 
 fectionately on the shoulder of the ranger, 
 the missionary asked, in a low voice : 
 
 " Will you think of these things, Simon ?" 
 
 " I will," was the fervent response. 
 
 "Then, with that tact which is too rare 
 
JOUKNEYING SOUTH WAED. 355 
 
 among well-meaning men, Mr. Finley dropped 
 the momentous subject. He had sowed the 
 good seed, and was content to let it take root 
 and grow of itself. 
 
 "Something seems to interest Agnes," he 
 remarked. 
 
 The young woman, who was a couple of 
 rods in advance, had stopped and was looking 
 at her friends with a troubled expression. 
 Suddenly she walked rapidly toward them. 
 
 " What is it, my child ?" asked the mission- 
 ary, as she joined them. 
 
 " I think there is some one a short distance 
 ahead of us in the wood." 
 
 " I know it," said Kenton, compressing his 
 lips and grasping the small rifle more firmly. 
 
356 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEERS. 
 
 CHAPTER XXIV. 
 
 CONCLUSION. 
 
 THAT which Agnes Altman suspected was 
 a certainty to Simon Kenton, though no 
 person was in sight, and the missionary at his 
 side had caught no suspicious sign. In ac- 
 cordance with his training, the ranger held 
 himself prepared for danger, though he was 
 so strongly convinced that it was not of that 
 nature that he did not warn his companions 
 to protect themselves by taking shelter behind 
 the trees. 
 
 Suddenly Kenton emitted a low, bird-like 
 whistle, which was instantly responded to 
 from some point a slight way in advance. 
 The missionary smiled, for he knew what it 
 meant. 
 
 " Give yourself no alarm, my child," he 
 said to Agnes ; " friends are near us." 
 
 The words were yet in his mouth when just 
 
CONCLUSION. 357 
 
 in advance appeared three figures, who were 
 recognized at the first glance. The first was 
 the fine athletic form of the famous pioneer 
 Daniel Boone, the second was George Ash- 
 bridge, and the third the no less welcome 
 Jethro Juggens, who from some cause was 
 doing a vast amount of grinning and chuck- 
 ling. 
 
 Boone shook hands with his old friend 
 Kenton, the two exchanging characteristic 
 observations, then warmly pressed the palm 
 of the missionary, whom he held in the high- 
 est respect and affection, and finally greeted 
 the blushing Agnes, whose heart was overflow- 
 ing with very fulness of joy and gratitude. 
 Bashfulness restrained her and George in the 
 presence of the others, but when their hands 
 met in fervent pressure, and they looked in 
 each other's eyes, heart spoke to heart, and 
 they could well afford to defer the more lov- 
 ing embrace until no other eyes should be- 
 hold them. 
 
 " Why don't you come forward, younker ?" 
 called Kenton to Jethro, who held back and 
 chuckled more than ever. " There ain't none 
 
358 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEERS. 
 
 in this crowd that I'm gladder to see than 
 
 you." 
 
 The African advanced, and was quickly 
 made to feel that no person ever had a more 
 sincere friend than each one in that little 
 party was to him. 
 
 Boone explained that he was at the block- 
 house when Ashbridge came in with his story 
 of tragedy and despair. Indeed, he seemed 
 hopeless. A party of half-a-dozen could have 
 been formed at once to set out in quest of Ag- 
 nes, whose father insisted upon being one of 
 the rescuers ; but Boone was inexorable. He 
 would allow no one to go with him except 
 young Ashbridge, and the reason for taking 
 him was that he might locate the trail of the 
 Wyandots. They being only two in number, 
 Boone saw that it was not strength that was 
 needed so much as celerity and skill in wood- 
 craft. Besides, he expected help from Ken- 
 ton, who was engaged on the same business, 
 he never dreaming that his old friend would 
 make such a blunder as to allow himself to 
 fall into the hands of the Shawanoes. 
 
 Boone and Ashbridge were on their way 
 
CONCLUSION. 359 
 
 when they came upon Jethro Juggens, making 
 for the block-house. He it was who made 
 known the startling truth about Kenton, 
 though it was supplemented by the welcome 
 news that by means of a rifle-shot he had cut 
 the cord that bound the ranger to the tree 
 and saw him leap off in the woods. 
 
 " What !" exclaimed Kenton, fairly leaping 
 from his feet at this point ; " do you mean to 
 tell me that it was that black scamp who fired 
 that shot?" 
 
 " I's de gemman," replied the proud Jethro. 
 " Is dis de fust time, Marse Kenton, dat yo' 
 knowed I kin shoot a rifle like a house afire ?" 
 
 " Wal, ef that don't beat all natur' ! I never 
 dreamed of its being you. And how did you 
 manage to save your own hide? The var- 
 mints knowed what it was that set me free, 
 and they must have looked for you." 
 
 " So dey did — dey did, Marse Kenton, and 
 dey found me ! But what did Jethro Juggens 
 keer? He wanted 'em to find him. I jes' 
 waited till dey come up, wid dat heathen Red 
 Bird at dar head. Dar war 'leben ob 'em 
 altogedder, for I stood 'em up in a row and 
 
360 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEERS. 
 
 counted 'em free times. Den I begun wid 
 Red Bird, and took him by de heels and 
 banged him agin de tree so hard dat his head 
 flew off; den I took de next one and sarved 
 him de same way, and so on till de whole 
 'leben— " 
 
 Just then Jethro observed the shocked look 
 on the face of Agnes, the reproachful expres- 
 sion on that of the missionary, and the smiles 
 on the countenances of the others. He stopped 
 short in his narration, and, after clearing his 
 throat, amended his narrative so as to make 
 it truthful in every particular, being to the 
 effect that the Shawanoes did not search the 
 tree-tops for the daring marksman, and he had 
 only to wait until the danger was past, when 
 he came down and made for the block-house. 
 
 And within the following hour Boone, 
 Kenton, Finley, Ashbridge, Jethro and Ag- 
 ges arrived at the same frontier post, where, 
 for the time, all peril was at an end. 
 
 The battle of Fallen Timbers, as it is known 
 in history, was fought between the expedition 
 led by General Anthony Wayne and the war- 
 
CONCLUSION. 361 
 
 riors of the combined tribes of the West in 
 August, 1794, and resulted in the utter re- 
 pulse and overthrow of the Indians. The 
 treaty of Greenville, made the following year, 
 brought a reign of peace to the frontier which 
 was comparatively unbroken until the war of 
 1812, when Tecumseh, unquestionably the 
 greatest American Indian who ever lived, 
 roused his people to resistance. 
 
 Tecumseh was a young warrior in the bat- 
 tle of Fallen Timbers, and fought by the side 
 of Wa-on-mon, known as the Panther. He 
 saw this war chief, when leading one of the 
 most daring attacks of that sanguinary en- 
 gagement, instantly killed by a Kentucky rifle- 
 man, who afterwards stated that he recognized 
 the Panther, and, knowing what a scourge he 
 had been to the settlements in Ohio and Ken- 
 tucky, deliberately selected him as a target. 
 
 Peace having finally come to the frontier, 
 there came with it the time when all agreed 
 that it was prudent and safe for the Ashbridge 
 and Altman families to remove their homes 
 from under the wing, as it may be called, of 
 the block-house to the clearing on the Ken- 
 
362 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEERS. 
 
 tucky side of the river from which they had 
 been turned back after reaching it. The loca- 
 tion was so favorable and the soil so productive 
 that with thetn went several other families, so 
 that in the course of a few months quite a 
 little settlement had been founded, and the 
 foundation laid for one of the leading towns 
 of the State. 
 
 So far as George Ashbridge and Agnes Alt- 
 man were personally concerned, the course of 
 true love ran smooth between them until the 
 close of life. The wedding took place shortly 
 after their removal to the clearing, and was 
 one of the most memorable for years. It 
 was attended by guests who came a dis- 
 tance of more than twenty miles. Boone 
 and Kenton journeyed much further, indeed, 
 in order to reach the scene from Boonesbor- 
 ough. Of that merry crowd, none was mer- 
 rier and happier than Jethro Juggens, whose 
 jigs, breakdowns and antics were a source of 
 delight to the joyous crowd that fairly over- 
 ran the place. 
 
 He, like George and Agnes, was permitted 
 by Providence to live to a good old age. 
 
CONCLUSION. 363 
 
 When the couple at last followed the friends 
 that had gone on before, they left a fragrant 
 and blessed memory behind them, and their 
 descendants to-day are among the most hon- 
 ored names in Ohio and Kentucky. 
 
 Daniel Boone, the most famous pioneer of 
 the West, was a native of Bucks county, 
 Pennsylvania, and was just three years to a 
 day the junior of General Washington. When 
 Boone was a young man his father removed 
 to North Carolina. The son married Rebecca 
 Ryan in 1755, when he was about twenty 
 years of age. The children born of this mar- 
 riage were James, Israel, Jesse, Daniel, Na- 
 than, Susan, Jemima, Lavinia and Rebecca. 
 
 In May, 1769, Boone accompanied an ex- 
 ploring party which visited the wilds of Ken- 
 tucky. They were enchanted with what they 
 saw. Boone and a companion remained, and 
 a series of thrilling adventures with the In- 
 dians opened, which it may be said lasted for 
 nearly a half-century. In the autumn of 
 1774 he started with his family to make his 
 home in Kentucky. On the way thither 
 
364 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEERS. 
 
 Boone's eldest son was killed in an attack by 
 red men at Cumberland Gap, and the party 
 returned to North Caralina, against the pro- 
 test of Boone, who soon returned. He acted 
 as captain in the Dunmore war and com- 
 manded three contiguous garrisons on the 
 frontier. The present town of Harrodsburg 
 was settled in the spring of 1774, and is 
 therefore the oldest settlement in Kentucky. 
 Boonesborough, named for the pioneer, was 
 founded about a year later. In the autumn of 
 1775, Boone, with a large company, including 
 his own family, left North Carolina, and safely 
 reaching Boonesborough, made their home in 
 that frontier town. Boone's wife and daugh- 
 ter were the first white women who ever 
 " stood upon the banks of the wild and beau- 
 tiful Kentucky." His services there, and his 
 numerous stirring experiences, would require 
 a volume for their narration, and are a part of 
 the history of the West. He attained the 
 rank of major and then colonel, was repeatedly 
 captured by Indians, was engaged in num- 
 berless affrays with them, until peace finally 
 came to the border. 
 
CONCLUSION. 365 
 
 Although Boone made his possessions around 
 Boonesborough very valuable, he lost them 
 all through the rapacity of land speculators. 
 He removed to Point Pleasant, on the Kana- 
 wha River, in Virginia, where he stayed sev- 
 eral years, tilling the ground with great 
 industry and occasionally indulging in his fav- 
 orite pastime of hunting. The favorable re- 
 ports from Missouri led to his emigration 
 thither, near the close of the last century. 
 There he died, September 26, 1820, in the 
 eigthty-sixth year of his age. The remains 
 of his wife and himself were removed to 
 Frankfort, Kentucky, in 1845, with impres- 
 sive ceremonies, a striking and eloquent ad- 
 dress being delivered by Senator J. J. Crit- 
 tenden. 
 
 Even Lord Byron rendered his tribute in 
 
 the following words : 
 
 " Of all men 
 Who passes for in life and death most lucky, 
 
 Of all the great names which in our faces stare, 
 Is Daniel Boone, backwoodsman of Kentucky. 
 
 " Crime came not near him — she is not the child 
 
 Of solitude. Health shrank not from him, for 
 Her home is in the rarely-trodden wild." 
 
36(5 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEERS. 
 
 Simon Kenton's fame as hunter, ranger and 
 pioneer is scarcely second to that of Daniel 
 Boone, of whom he was twenty years the 
 junior. He was a native of Fauquier County, 
 Virginia, whence he fled to Kentucky when 
 only sixteen years old, under the mistaken be- 
 lief that he had killed a young man in a per- 
 sonal encounter. He served as a scout in the 
 Dunmore war, during which the kindness he 
 showed to Simon Girty, who served with him, 
 led to the interposition of the renegade years 
 afterward when Kenton was condemned to 
 death by the Indians. 
 
 Kenton commanded a company of volun- 
 teers in General Clark's expedition against 
 the Indians. He had charge of another com- 
 pany in the autumn of 1782, and acted as 
 guide to several other expeditions. Like 
 Boone he was reduced to beggary by the greed 
 of land sharks, and in 1802 removed to Ohio 
 and settled in Urbana. Three years later he 
 was elected a brigadier-general of militia. 
 Five years afterward he was converted under 
 the preaching of Reverend Mr. Finley, and 
 joined the Methodist Episcopal Church. In 
 
CONCLUSION. 367 
 
 1813, when nearly three-score years of age, 
 he fought bravely at the battle of the Thames. 
 It was Kenton who, after the battle, identified 
 the body of Tecumseh, the greatest genius 
 ever produced by the American race. 
 
 At the conclusion of the war of 1812 Ken- 
 ton returned to his home, where he lived until 
 1820, when he removed with his family to the 
 headwaters of Mad River, Logan county, 
 Ohio, near the spot where many years before 
 he had been tied to the stake by the Indians 
 and condemned to death. He was persecuted 
 so relentlessly by land sharpers because of the 
 taxes he was unable to pay upon his worthless 
 mountain tracts in Kentucky that the Legis- 
 lature passed an act in 1824, releasing the 
 lands from all tax claims. Shortly after, 
 through the exertions of Judge Burnett and 
 General Vance, Congress granted him a pen- 
 sion of $240 a year for life. He died in April, 
 1836, having, like Boone, passed the age of 
 four score : 
 
 tl And tall and strong and swift of foot are they, 
 
 Beyond the dwarfing city's pale abortions, 
 Because their thoughts had never been the prey 
 
368 IN THE DAYS OF THE PIONEERS. 
 
 Of care and gain ; the green woods were their for- 
 tunes ; 
 No sinking spirits told them they grew grey, 
 
 No fashions made them apes of her distortions. 
 Simple they were, not savage ; and their rifles, 
 Though very true, were not yet used for trifles." 
 
 " Motion was in their days, rest in their slumbers, 
 And cheerfulness the handmaid of their toil. 
 
 Nor yet too many nor too few their numbers ; 
 Corruption could not make their hearts her soil ; 
 
 The lust which stings, the splendor which encum- 
 bers, 
 With the free foresters divide no spoil ; 
 
 Serene, not sullen, were the solitudes 
 
 Of this unsighing people of the woods."