ave induced the shadow to
take him for a half-brother.

"Nothing here," said Biarne, holding up the torch and peering round in
all directions.

"Nothing whatever," responded Krake.

He little knew at the time that the shadow was displaying his teeth, and
loosening in its sheath a long knife or dagger made of bone, which, from
the spot where he lay, he could have launched with unerring certainty
into the heart of any of those who stood before him. It is well for man
that he sometimes does not know what _might_ be!

After a brief inspection of the knoll, and another shout or two, they
descended again into the brake and pushed on. The shadow rose and
followed until he reached a height whence he could see that the
torch-bearers had wandered far away to the westward. As the friends and
relatives for whom he acted the part of scout were encamped away to the
eastward, he returned to his tree and continued his nap till daybreak,
when he arose and shook himself, yawned and scratched his head.
Evidently he pondered the occurrences of the night, and felt convinced
that if so many strange men went about looking for something with so
much care and anxiety, it must undoubtedly, be something that was worth
looking for. Acting on this idea he began to look.

Now, it must be well-known to most people that savages are rather smart
fellows at making observations on things in general and drawing
conclusions therefrom. The shouts led him to believe that lost human
beings were being sought for. Daylight enabled him to see little feet
which darkness had concealed from the Norsemen, whence he concluded that
children were being sought for. Following out his clue, with that
singular power of following a trail for which savages are noted, he came
to the cave, and peered through the bushes with his great eyes, pounced
upon the sleepers, and had his pug nose converted into a Roman--all as
related in the last chapter.

Sometime after sunrise the various searching parties assembled at the
place of rendezvous--fagged, dispirited, and hungry.

"Come," said Karlsefin, who would not permit his feelings to influence
his conduct, "we must not allow ourselves to despond at little more than
the beginning of our search. We will breakfast here, lads, and then
return to the ridge where we first saw their footsteps. Daylight will
enable us to track them more easily. Thank God the weather is warm, and
I daresay if they kept well under cover of t