earing to disquiet himself about a danger
which he now braved for the first time, deprived Bois-Rose of that
confidence in himself which had brought him safe and sound out of perils
apparently greater than this.

"Ah!" muttered he, "these are scenes which the inhabitants of cities can
never see, it is only in the desert one can meet with them."

But his voice trembled in spite of himself; and he stopped, for he felt
that he would have given a year of his life that Fabian had not been
present. At this moment a new subject of apprehension added to his
anguish.

The scene became more solemn; for a new actor, whose _role_ was to be
short though terrible, now appeared upon it. It was a man, whom by his
dress the three recognised with terror as a white man like themselves.
The unlucky man suddenly discovered in one of the evolutions of the
chase, had become in his turn the exclusive object of pursuit. Wild
horses, wolves, the stag, had all disappeared in the distant fog. There
remained only the twenty Indians scattered over a circle, of which the
white man occupied the centre. For an instant the friends could see him
cast around him a glance of despair and anguish. But, excepting on the
river-side, the Indians were everywhere. It was, therefore, in this
direction that he must fly; and he turned his horse towards the opening
opposite to the island. But his single moment of indecision had
sufficed for the Indians to get near him.

"The unhappy man is lost, and no help for it," said Bois-Rose; "he is
too late now to cross the river."

"But," said Fabian, "if we can save a Christian, shall we let him be
murdered before our eyes?"

Pepe looked at Bois-Rose.

"I answer for your life before God," said the Canadian, solemnly, "if we
are discovered we are but three against twenty. The life of three men--
yours especially, Fabian--is more precious than that of one; we must let
this unhappy man meet his fate."

"But intrenched as we are?" persisted Fabian.

"Intrenched! Do you call this frail rampart of osiers and reeds an
intrenchment? Do you think these leaves are ball proof? And these
Indians are but twenty now; but let one of our shots be fired at them,
and you will soon see one hundred instead of twenty. May God pardon me
if I am unfeeling, but it is necessary."

Fabian said no more; this last reason seemed conclusive, for, like his
companions, he was ignorant that the rest of the Indians were at the
camp