uietly down at the foot of the tree, and fixed his eyes
on the savage with a glare that spoke unutterable things. At the same
time he displayed his full complement of teeth, and uttered a sound
like distant thunder.

Joe almost laughed, and Henri did laugh outright.

"Come along; he's safe now," cried Dick, hurrying away in the
direction of the willow bluff, which they soon reached, and found that
the faithful squaw had tied their steeds to the bushes, and, moreover,
had bundled up their goods into a pack, and strapped it on the back of
the pack-horse; but she had not remained with them.

"Bless yer dark face!" ejaculated Joe, as he sprang into the saddle
and rode out of the clump of bushes.

He was followed immediately by the others, and in three minutes they
were flying over the plain at full speed.

On gaining the last far-off ridge, that afforded a distant view of the
woods skirting the Pawnee camp, they drew up; and Dick, putting his
fingers to his mouth, drew a long, shrill whistle.

It reached the willow bluff like a faint echo. At the same moment the
moon arose and more clearly revealed Crusoe's cataleptic glare at the
Indian chief, who, being utterly unarmed, was at the dog's mercy. The
instant the whistle fell on his ear, however, he dropped his eyes,
covered his teeth, and, leaping through the bushes, flew over the
plains like an arrow. At the same instant Mahtawa, descending from
his tree, ran as fast as he could towards the village, uttering the
terrible war-whoop when near enough to be heard. No sound sends such a
thrill through an Indian camp. Every warrior flew to arms, and vaulted
on his steed. So quickly was the alarm given that in less than ten
minutes a thousand hoofs were thundering on the plain, and faintly
reached the ears of the fugitives.

Joe smiled. "It'll puzzle them to come up wi' nags like ours. They're
in prime condition, too--lots o' wind in' em. If we only keep out o'
badger holes we may laugh at the red varmints."

Joe's opinion of Indian horses was correct. In a very few minutes the
sound of hoofs died away; but the fugitives did not draw bridle during
the remainder of that night, for they knew not how long the pursuit
might be continued. By pond, and brook, and bluff they passed, down
in the grassy bottoms and over the prairie waves--nor checked their
headlong course till the sun blazed over the level sweep of the
eastern plain as if it arose out of the mighty ocean.

The