With Axe and Rifle Part 25

I also ascertained that Dio had fallen into their hands, and that consequently my sister and Lily were of less value in their sight than would otherwise have been the case.

Although we heard but three persons speaking, there might be many more, but this we could only determine by getting nearer to the camp. I made a sign to Mr Tidey to remain quiet while I crept forward. I stopped whenever there was a pause in the conversation, and stole on when the sound of the voices would prevent them from hearing any noise I might make. My fear was that they might have with them some Indians who would be much more likely to discover me than they were. At length a clump of bushes alone intervened between me and their camp-fire. Carefully raising my head, I looked through an opening, when I saw four men seated on the ground, with their rifles by their sides. A short distance off lay Dio, with his arms bound behind him and secured by a rope to a tree.

Still farther was a rude hut formed of branches, beneath the shelter of which, I had no doubt, Kathleen and Lily were resting. So far the men had shown some humanity. To recover the "captives" it was evident that we must use stratagem rather than force. We could scarcely expect to overcome four well-armed men, even should we first succeed in setting Dio at liberty. We might, however, easily shoot two of them, and then spring upon the other two, but as I felt that we should not be justified in so doing, I was about to retire and tell Mr Tidey what I had seen when one of the men started up, exclaiming--

"I saw some one watching us through the bushes."

I was conscious that the glare of the fire had for a moment fallen on my face. All hope of our surprising them was lost. I heard some one approaching behind me.

"Whoop!" whispered Mr Tidey; "we will try what effect terror will produce."

Raising our voices, we imitated, with some effect, the terrific Indian war-whoop, dropping on the ground as we did so, to avoid a shower of bullets aimed at us.

"Get hold of the black, and let us be off!" cried one of the men; "we must not have had our expedition for nothing."

Before we could regain our feet, one of the fellows cut the rope which held Dio, and, seizing him by the neck, dragged him along across the glade on the opposite side of which the whole party disappeared, pa.s.sing close to the hut in which we guessed that Kathleen and Lily were confined. Had we before been inclined to fire, we were less willing to do so now, for fear of wounding either the girls or poor Dio, who was placed as a s.h.i.+eld by the man who was dragging him along. Our first impulse was to run and rescue the dear ones who had caused us so much anxiety. They shrieked out, overcome with terror, as they heard us approaching, until my voice rea.s.sured them. By the light of the fire which streamed into their hut they saw who we were. A few words served to calm them, and make them understand what had happened, and in another minute Rose came running up, unable to restrain her anxiety, she having heard the firing, and fearing that we might be killed or wounded.

"We must not let Dio be carried off if we can help it!" I exclaimed.

"Come on, Mr Tidey; let us pursue the fellows, and perhaps they'll grow tired of dragging him along, and set him at liberty."

"Yes, yes, Ma.s.sa Tidey, you go 'long, me take care ob de little girls.

See dar' is rifle, me fight for dem if anybody comes!" exclaimed Rose.

Sure enough one of the men in his terror had left his rifle behind him.

We should thus find only three armed antagonists, unless he had also pistols. At all events, without stopping to consider the risk we ran, we rushed on, again and again uttering a war-whoop. It had only the effect, as far as we could judge, of expediting the movements of the fugitives. Unfortunately the moon became obscured by clouds, and increased the difficulties of our progress.

I began indeed to fear that, after all, we should be baffled, and I knew the sad fate which awaited Dio, should he be carried back to his former master. We had two prisoners, to be sure, but I felt very certain that Mr Bracher would not give up his slave for the sake of recovering them, indeed he would be well aware that we could not keep them in captivity.

Several times I thought we were on the point of overtaking the men, but on each occasion they managed to elude us. Whether they still fancied that Indians were following them, we could not tell. Possibly they might have guessed that we were white men, though they could not tell the number of our party, and at all events did not think it worth while to hazard a conflict, now that they had obtained the object of their expedition. How far off Silas Bracher's train was encamped we were uncertain, but we knew that the men could not possibly reach it, if it was on the usual route, until some hours after noon, indeed they could not get out of the wood bordering the lake, until daylight.

"Can you go on, Mike?" asked Mr Tidey.

"I will until I drop, and I don't feel at all inclined to do that just yet," I answered.

"Then let us continue the pursuit, but we'll not whoop again, so that we may possibly come upon them when they least expect it."

The forest was tolerably open, and had it been daylight, we should have been able to see to a considerable distance. I several times took a glance towards the east, and at length I saw the dawn breaking through an opening in the trees. Our only fear was that the fugitives might have turned aside, and that we had pa.s.sed them. This, however, was not likely to be the case. The light increased, and just we got near the edge of the forest, we caught sight of the four men still dragging on poor Dio.

I don't know what we might have been tempted to do. I saw Mr Tidey more than once raise his rifle, and I confess I was merely waiting for a fair shot at one of the fellows, in spite of the risk of wounding Dio, when my eyes fell on a party of hors.e.m.e.n galloping along from the northward, having apparently skirted the edge of the forest.

The Kentuckians saw them also, and knowing that if the hors.e.m.e.n were in pursuit of them, further flight would be useless, halted and appeared to be consulting what to do. In another minute I recognised my father and Uncle Denis leading the party. Our friends dashed forward at the fellows. My father was just in time to knock down one of them who had presented his pistol at the black's head, and I fully expected that the four men would be killed on the spot. I saw Dio, however, holding up his hands to protect them, while he explained apparently what had happened. We now showed ourselves, and, hurrying forward, a.s.sured my father of the safety of Kathleen and Lily.

"You may go, then!" he exclaimed, turning to the Kentuckians, who now appeared thoroughly cowed, "and tell Silas Bracher, should he again venture to send any of his men to capture this honest negro, they will be more severely dealt with than you have been."

The fellows, without a word of thanks, moved sulkily away towards the south, at a much slower pace than they had hitherto been going. Three of our men now got off their horses, to allow Mr Tidey, Dio, and me to mount, and we rode on through the forest as fast as we could go, until we reached Rose and her two charges; the little girls, having recovered from their fright, had fallen asleep in their bower, while the black nurse sat watching over them.

I had almost forgotten our prisoners, when Mr Tidey exclaimed, "We mustn't let the Indian and that fellow in the canoe starve to death, which they certainly will unless we release them."

"They can do no further harm if set at liberty, though they deserve a pretty severe punishment," said my father. "Where are they?"

"Not far off, and if some of you will come with me, we will send them about their business, with a warning that, should they again attempt to play such a trick, they will not escape so easily," observed the Dominie.

Martin Prentis, I, and two of the men, at once set off with Mr Tidey.

We first made our way to the canoe, where we found our prisoner groaning with pain, for, by endeavouring to release himself, he had only tightened the cords with which his arms and legs were lashed. We took him out of the canoe, and from the expression of abject terror exhibited in his countenance, I suspected that the fellow believed he was then and there to undergo the penalty of 'Lynch law,' for he looked up at the bough of a tree above his head, as if he expected immediately to be triced up to it. I never saw a man so crestfallen.

"Now, my fine fellow, you know what you deserve," said the Dominie, as Martin and the other men placed him on his feet. "You were employed by a greater rogue than yourself; but as you have failed in your undertaking, we do not want to be hard on you, and if you will tell us the intentions of your master, we will set you at liberty. But, if not--," and Mr Tidey pointed to the bough overhead.

"I'll give you all the information you require," exclaimed the man, trembling. "Bracher had sworn to be revenged on you for sheltering his runaway slave, and was determined to get hold of him if he could. He had heard that you were located in this neighbourhood, and he sent a party with orders to capture the black at all costs."

"That doesn't excuse them for carrying off the young ladies, and frightening us well-nigh out of our wits, on their account."

"I had no hand in that matter," said our prisoner. "I suppose that by getting hold of them our people thought that they could force you to come to terms about the n.i.g.g.e.r."

"Probably," observed Mr Tidey; "but what were your orders, should you fail to recover the black? Remember, we have your Indian guide in our hands, and if you do not speak the truth, we shall be able to learn what we want from him."

"I will tell you everything," answered the man, as the Dominie again glanced up at the overhanging bough. "Silas Bracher has come to grief, and being compelled to sell up, is moving westward with a pretty good-sized party whom he has persuaded to accompany him. We heard on our way that Captain Loraine was located in the neighbourhood. Mr Bracher managed, somehow or other, when we got near this, to make friends with one of the chiefs of the red-skins, who, bribed by the promise of a case of whisky and some fire-arms, undertook to attack Captain Loraine's farm as soon as a good chance of success should offer.

The chief, you'll understand, was to bide his time and to bring Silas word directly he had done the work."

"And when is the attack to be made?" asked Mr Tidey.

The man protested that he could not tell, but concluded that it would not long be deferred, probably not more than a week or two, before the train could have got to any great distance, indeed he had an idea that some of their people were to be employed in a.s.sisting the Indians.

Mr Tidey, though he cross-questioned the man, could elicit no further information of importance. We therefore conducted him to my father, who, after charging him to keep his own counsel, and not let Silas Bracher know the information he had given, told him that he was at liberty to return to his friends.

Great indeed was his look of astonishment. He not only promised that he would say nothing to Silas Bracher on the subject, but that he would separate himself from him and his party, and join some other emigrant train on the first opportunity. We watched him until he disappeared in the forest, though, judging by the pace he went, we suspected that he was in no great hurry to join his companions.

"We have now to look after the Indian," said Mr Tidey, "and as we shall pa.s.s not far from the spot where we left him, we will learn what he has to say for himself, and send him about his business."

As we were anxious to get home as soon as possible, to relieve my mother's mind of anxiety, we lost no time in setting off. My father took up Kathleen and Uncle Denis Lily before them, and, after some persuasion, Rose consented to allow herself to be lifted and placed in front of Dio's saddle. Mr Tidey and I, with Martin, pushed on ahead, that we might without delay set at liberty the unfortunate Indian, who was less to blame than his white employers. On reaching the spot, however, we could nowhere see him. We searched about in every direction. It was evident that by some means or other, he had been set at liberty. Whether he had himself cast loose the las.h.i.+ngs, or whether anybody else had liberated him, we could not discover, for although there were the marks of several feet on the ground, they might have been ours. As there was little probability that the Indian would have remained in the neighbourhood, we soon abandoned the search and rejoined the party.

It was late in the evening when we approached the farm, and recollecting the threatened attack by the Indians, I felt more anxiety than I can express, lest during our absence, they should have carried out their project. Great therefore, was the relief to my mind when I saw Biddy running down the hill to welcome us, followed by my mother to whose charge we soon committed Kathleen and Lily.

CHAPTER THIRTEEN.

AN UNCOMFORTABLE STATE OF THINGS--KLUKO PAYS US A VISIT--STARTLING INTELLIGENCE--THE FATE OF SILAS BRACHER--RETURN TO THE FARM--THE INDIAN'S FRIENDs.h.i.+P FOR DIO--THE RED MAN'S OPINION OF SLAVERY--UNCLE DENIS'S MENAGERIE--WINTER AT THE FARM--WE HAVE AN ADVENTURE--FIGHT BETWEEN A SABLE AND PORCUPINE--WE CAPTURE THE COMBATANTS--THEIR APPEARANCE--TREATMENT IN THE CAGE--TAMING OF THE SABLE AND URSON--LOSS OF POULTRY--IMPRISONMENT FOR LIFE--SOMETHING ABOUT OURSELVES.

The warning we had received of a projected attack on the farm by the Indians compelled us to be on our guard. We kept a strict watch at night, and two or three of us were constantly employed in scouting in the neighbourhood, so as in good time to discover any red-skins who might be approaching with hostile intent. Cunning as they may fancy themselves, they are in reality easily outwitted by the superior intelligence of white men.

We had got so accustomed to this state of things that we took them as a matter of course. Even my mother, Kathleen, and Lily, were not in the slightest degree alarmed, though they became somewhat anxious when my father and uncle, or Dan and I did not return at the hour they expected.

We were annoyed chiefly by the interruption to our usual avocations, as, when we had been out all day, neither our worthy Dominie, Dan, nor I were much inclined for lessons. We, however, managed to hunt as usual, as we could at the same time act as scouts, though we ran, it must be confessed, some risk of being caught by any hostile Indians who might be in the neighbourhood. Impunity, however, made us bold, and we were inclined to think that the threatened attack would never take place.

The men continued cutting down trees, putting up fences, ploughing, and sowing, as regularly as before, though, by my father's orders, they always carried their arms with them, and piled them close at hand, so as to be ready for instant use.

Mr Tidey, Dan, and I had started on horseback one morning just before daybreak, agreeing to meet at noon at a certain spot about ten miles from the farm, by the side of a stream near a wood, where we could light our fire and cook any game we might have shot. I had had a successful morning's sport, having shot a fawn, a couple of turkeys, and several small birds; and at the hour agreed on I arrived with my horse well loaded at our proposed camp. Finding that the Dominie and my brother had not yet reached it, I collected sticks and lighted a fire, so that I might have dinner ready for them.

While I was so employed, occasionally taking a look round in the expectation of seeing either the Dominie or Dan approaching, I was startled by discovering an Indian who had suddenly emerged from the wood about twenty paces off. My first impulse was to seize my rifle which lay on the ground near me, but a second glance showed me that although he had a bow in his hand, there was no arrow in the string.

"You are not as cautious as you should be, young pale-face," he observed, as he came up to me. "This is the second time I have caught you off your guard; an enemy approaching as I did might have shot you before you had discovered him."

As he spoke I recognised our friend Kluko. We shook hands, and he seated himself by the fire, when I offered him some of the food I was cooking, which would, I knew, suit his taste, though not sufficiently roasted to please our palates.