proved to be only the work of an excited brain;
and, as he lay perfectly still once more, the heavy tramp, tramp, a good
deal wanting in the regularity of the British troops, died out, and he
relieved the oppression that bore down upon his breast with a deep sigh.

Nothing was visible as the sounds died out; and, waiting till he felt
that he was safe, he changed his position slightly so as to try and make
out whether the rear-guard of the enemy had quite disappeared.

In an instant he had shrunk down again amongst the bushes, for there,
about a hundred yards away, at the point of an angle where the mule-path
struck off suddenly to the left, and at a spot that had undoubtedly been
chosen for its command of the road backward, he became aware of the
presence of an outpost of seven or eight men.

This was startling, for it put a check upon any attempt at movement upon
his own part.

Pen lay thinking for a few moments, during which he made sure that his
comrade was still plunged in a deep, stupor-like sleep. Then, after a
little investigation, he settled how he could move slightly without
drawing the attention of the vedette; and, taking advantage thereof,
crawled cautiously about a couple of yards with the greatest care.
Then, looking back as he slowly raised his head, which he covered with a
few leafy twigs, he was by no means surprised to see at the edge of the
mule-path about a quarter of a mile away another vedette. This shut off
any attempt at retreat in that direction, and he was about to move again
when he was startled by a flash of light reflected from a musket-barrel
whose bearer was one acting as the leader of a third vedette moving up
the side of the valley across the river, and which soon came to a halt
at about the same height above the stream as that which he occupied
himself.

The lad could not control a movement of impatience as the little knot of
infantry settled themselves exactly opposite to his own hiding-place,
and in a position from which the French soldiers must be able to control
one slope of the valley for a mile in each direction.

"It's maddening!" thought Pen. "I sha'n't be able to stir, and I dare
say they'll have more vedettes stationed about. It means giving up, and
nothing else."

Very slowly and cautiously he wrenched himself round, and then rolled
over twice so as to bring himself alongside of his sleeping comrade; and
then, as he resumed his reconnoitring, where he was just abl