and surer."

"Ay, in a sure hand, with a good eye to direct it," returned Arkal, "but
I make no pretence to either. A ship, indeed, I can manage to hit--when
I am cool, which is not often the case in a fight--and if there are men
in it, my shafts are not quite thrown away, but as to deer, boars, and
birds, I can make nothing of them. If I mistake not, Maikar is not much
better than myself with the bow."

"I am worse," observed the little man quietly.

"Well then," said Bladud, with a laugh, "you must make me hunter to the
party."

While conversing thus they had entered the forest, and soon found trees
suitable to their purpose, from which they cut boughs,--using their
swords as hatchets.

We have already shown that the prince had brought his sword, shield, and
knife on shore with him. Captain Arkal and Maikar had also saved their
swords and knives, these having been attached to their girdles at the
time they leaped from the wreck. They were somewhat inferior weapons to
those worn by Bladud, being made of bronze. The swords of the seamen,
unlike that of the prince, were short and double-edged, shaped somewhat
like those used long afterwards by the Romans, and they made up in
weight for what they lacked in sharpness.

It did not take many hours for the party, under the direction of the
prince, to form three strong and serviceable bows, with several arrows,
the latter being feathered with dropped plumes, and shod with flint,
according to the fashion of the times. Bowstrings had to be made at
first out of the tough fibrous roots of a tree, split into threads and
plaited together.

"Of course they are not so good as deer-sinews for the purpose,"
remarked Bladud, stringing one of the bows and fitting an arrow to it,
"but we must be content until we kill a deer or some other animal.
Perhaps we shall have an opportunity soon."

The remark seemed to have been prophetic, for, as the last word passed
his lips, a fawn trotted out of a glade right in front of the party and
stood as if paralysed with surprise. The captain and Maikar were
reduced to much the same condition, for they made no attempt to use
their bows.

"Ho!--" exclaimed the former, but he got no further, for at the moment
Bladud's bow twanged, and an arrow quivered in the breast of the fawn,
which fell dead without a struggle.

"Well done!" exclaimed the captain heartily. "If such luck always
attends you, prince, we shall fare well on our journey."