tared through the brier leaves, then I took a venture,
pushed on, and found myself in the midst of the place. It must have held
near a thousand warriors. All about me were gray heaps of ashes, and
bones of deer and elk and buffalo scattered, some picked clean,
some with the meat and hide sticking to them. Impelled by a strong
fascination, I went hither and thither until a sound brought me to a
stand--the echoing crack of a distant rifle. On the heels of it came
another, then several together, and a faint shouting borne on the light
wind. Terrorized, I sought for shelter. A pile of brush underlain by
ashes was by, and I crept into that. The sounds continued, but seemed to
come no nearer, and my courage returning, I got out again and ran wildly
through the camp toward the briers on the creek, expecting every moment
to be tumbled headlong by a bullet. And when I reached the briers, what
between panting and the thumping of my heart I could for a few moments
hear nothing. Then I ran on again up the creek, heedless of cover,
stumbling over logs and trailing vines, when all at once a dozen bronze
forms glided with the speed of deer across my path ahead. They splashed
over the creek and were gone. Bewildered with fear, I dropped under a
fallen tree. Shouts were in my ears, and the noise of men running. I
stood up, and there, not twenty paces away, was Colonel Clark himself
rushing toward me. He halted with a cry, raised his rifle, and dropped
it at the sight of my queer little figure covered with ashes.

"My God!" he cried, "it's Davy."

"They crossed the creek," I shouted, pointing the way, "they crossed the
creek, some twelve of them."

"Ay," he said, staring at me, and by this time the rest of the guard
were come up. They too stared, with different exclamations on their
lips,--Cowan and Bowman and Tom McChesney and Terence McCann in front.

"And there's a great camp below," I went on, "deserted, where a thousand
men have been."

"A camp--deserted?" said Clark, quickly.

"Yes," I said, "yes." But he had already started forward and seized me
by the arm.

"Lead on," he cried, "show it to us." He went ahead with me, travelling
so fast that I must needs run to keep up, and fairly lifting me over the
logs. But when we came in sight of the place he darted forward alone
and went through it like a hound on the trail. The others followed
him, crying out at the size of the place and poking among the ashes. At
length they all to