oth sides, and pick off each woman and gal and them as was pushing the
raft."

"I do not doubt what you say," observed Altman, with a shudder at the
graphic picture drawn by the scout, "but it seems strange to me," he
added, with a glance around, as if he expected to catch sight of some of
their terrible enemies, "that they have not already opened upon us,
while we are here in camp, as may be said. What better chance could they
ask?"

"They could pick off a number of you, but Weber here and the rest of the
boys would make them dance to lively music if they tried it. That's what
holds 'em back, for these chaps," remarked Kenton, looking proudly
around upon his companions, "have fout the varmints afore to-day."

"Then we are doing the only thing possible, by remaining here until it
becomes so late in the day that we shall not reach Rattlesnake Gulch
until after dark, and then, instead of attempting to go through it, we
will cross the river, I presume, though I am not aware of the decision
that has been reached by Mr. Hastings."

"What will they suspect, then, if we stop here?" asked George Ashbridge.

"Now you've hit the trouble. When they find you don't arrive at some
p'int where they've been looking for you, they'll know you're stopped.
Some of their spies will sneak back through the woods to l'arn what it
means--more'n likely they've already done so," added Kenton, with
another glance around him, "and then when they see you setting or
standing or lolling around, without any partic'lar reason for your doing
so, they'll understand the real cause powerful quick. As soon as they
diskiver you don't mean to try the Rattlesnake Gulch route, they'll fix
things to open onto you, and send as many as they can under."

"Then the problem, as I understand it," said the older Ashbridge, "is to
act so as to convince the Indians that we intend to follow the path
through the gulch where they mean to ambuscade us, and to keep up this
impression until nightfall."

"You've hit it precisely, Mr. Ashbridge."

"But how is that to be done? I know of no one beside you to answer the
question."

"Boone and me have been thinking powerful hard over the matter, and the
best thing to be done, as I see it, is this: You know we left a canoe
down by the clearing alongside the boat. I'll go back there and get it,
that is, if it is still there. I'll try to keep so close in under the
bank that the varmints won't know what I'm driving at. I'll man