the fashion of a
serpent gliding over the ground than of a man stealing forward on his
hands and knees. More than a quarter of an hour was consumed in passing
this slight distance. Patience is a cardinal virtue with men of his
profession, a moment's undue haste often undoing the work of hours. When
at last he was able to reach out his hand and dip it in the cool waters,
he was quite certain that none of the Shawanoes suspected what he had
accomplished.

At this crisis several conditions united to help the intrepid scout. The
wind still blowing strongly up the river rustled the vegetation, and
whipped the surface of the river into wavelets that veiled other sounds,
and helped to conceal any disturbance of the water. A glance at the sky
showed the moon hidden by clouds, but the keen survey of Kenton told him
that they would soon float past the face of the orb, leaving it to shine
with greater strength than before. There was not a moment, therefore, to
spare.

He was still flat on the ground, not daring to raise his head more than
a few inches. With the same indescribable movement he glided from the
land into the water, sinking quietly and heavily below the surface as
though he were an iron statue.

Close to the shore the depth was shallow, but he secured enough freedom
of movement to work his way quickly into deep water, where he was at
home. Swimming with prodigious power and skill, wholly beneath the
surface, he turned on his back and allowed his nose to rise just high
enough to give him one deep inhalation, when he sank again.

With the water crinkled and disturbed by the strong wind, the
keenest-eyed Indian, peering out from the undergrowth along shore, would
have discovered nothing upon which to hinge the faintest suspicion.

After another long swim, without the power to breathe, Kenton allowed
his head to come up and opened his eyes.

As he anticipated, the moon was just emerging from the mass of drifting
clouds, and the increasing light, spreading over forest and river,
considerably extended his area of vision. Confident that his departure
was unknown to any of the lurking Shawanoe scouts, he scrutinized his
surroundings with more confidence than he would have felt had it been
otherwise.

He could trace the dark outline of the shore he had just left, or rather
the mass of trees and branches were clearly stamped against the
background of sky. Above and below rippled the river in the dim
moonlight, while a