k, but an Indian soon recovers himself."

"All he needed was the root which he chewed and which cured him almost
immediately. These savages are what you call Thomsonians I suppose."

"They are the original ones no doubt. I have heard that some of their
medicine men are the most skillful of physicians."

"Yes; we hear all kinds of things about them. What stories we have read,
and yet they don't look and act as I imagined they would. I thought they
would suffer and die without showing the least pain, and yet Shasta
wasn't anyways backward about it."

"No doubt the poor fellow felt bad enough, and he hasn't got over it
yet. You can tell that from his appearance."

"It will take all his skill to help Tim. Just as like as not he will
take Shasta for an enemy and shoot him."

"If they only see each other before dark, so that Tim can understand
that he has a friend at work."

"But you see it is nearly dark now, and it is likely he is in the woods
by this time."

"What danger can he be in then?"

"The Indians may cross over to follow him."

They were silent a while when Elwood suddenly exclaimed.

"Suppose Shasta is an enemy and has gone to help his people?"

Howard shook his head.

"No fear of that. That is the last thing that can occur."

The night gradually deepened and proved to be quite dark, a faint moon
shedding a luster that made the dim light more impressive. The boys
walked back and forth, watching and listening for some evidence of the
approach of their friends, and gradually becoming apprehensive despite
the attempt each made to cheer the spirits of the other.

It was not until quite late that Terror gave utterance to a low, warning
growl, and as they looked across the river they descried a dark object
cautiously approaching.

"What is it?" whispered Elwood.

"It is too dark to tell; but it can't be Tim or Shasta for it's coming
from the wrong direction."

"Aisy now, Mr. Shasta, aisy I say, for the boys may be asleep and we
won't come upon them too sudden't like, as me uncle said when he sat on
a barrel of gun-powder and it blowed up with him. Aisy, Mr. Shasta,
aisy!"

CHAPTER XXVII.

THE NIGHT VOYAGE.

The indistinct object gradually took shape, and the boys then saw Shasta
sitting in his small canoe, while directly behind him was Tim O'Rooney,
his left hand extended backward and grasping the prow of his own boat,
which was being towed by the Indian.

The next moment the foremos