r; for I spied a pair o' buck's horns atween me
an' the sky. But thur wur a somethin' still bigger than a deer. It
mout be a hoss, or it mout be an Opelousa ox, but I thort it wur a hoss.

"I wur right about that, for a horse it wur, sure enough, or rayther I
shed say, a _mar_, an' that mar no other than my ole crittur!

"Arter partin' company, she hed turned with the current; an', as good
luck ud hev it, hed swum in a beeline for the island, an' thur she stood
lookin' as slick as if she hed been greased.

"The log hed by this got nigh enough, as I kalklated; an', with as
little rumpus as possible, I slipped over the eend an' lot go my hold o'
it. I wan't right spread in the water, afore I heerd a plump, an'
lookin' round a bit, I seed the painter hed left the log too, an' tuk to
the water.

"At fust, I thort he wur arter me; an' I drawed my knife with one hand,
while I swum with the other. But the painter didn't mean fight that
time. He made but poor swimmin' himself, an' appeared glad enough to
get upon dry groun' 'ithout molestin' me; so we swum on side by side,
an' not a word passed atween us.

"I didn't want to make a race o' it; so I let him pass me, rayther than
that he should fall behind, an' get among my legs.

"Of coorse, he landed fust; an' I could hear by the stompin' o' hoofs,
that his suddint appearance hed kicked up a jolly stampede among the
critters upon the island. I could see both deer and mar dancing all
over the groun', as if Old Nick himself hed got among 'em.

"None o' 'em, howsomdever, thort o' takin' to the water. They hed all
hed enough o' that, I guess.

"I kep a leetle round, so as not to land near the painter; an' then,
touchin' bottom, I climbed quietly up on the mound. I hed hardly drawed
my drippin' carcass out o' the water, when I heerd a loud squeal, which
I knew to be the whigher o' my ole mar; an' jest at that minnit the
critter kim runnin' up, an' rubbed her nose agin my shoulder. I tuk the
halter in my hand, an' sidling round a leetle, I jumped upon her back,
for I still wur in fear o' the painter; an' the mar's back appeared to
me the safest place about, an' that wan't very safe, eyther.

"I now looked all round to see what new company I hed got into. The day
wur jest breakin', an' I could distinguish a leetle better every minnit.
The top o' the mound which, wur above water wan't over half an acre in
size, an' it wur as clur o' timmer as any other part o' the par