Snow Shoes and Canoes | Page 4

finding me safe.
Pierre and Pat wanted to set off in pursuit of the enemy, but Sandy
would not allow them.
"Na! na! laddies; we'll gain nothing even if we were to shoot a score of
redskins. We shall want our ammunition to defend ourselves when we
are attacked. Let's count the horses, and see if all have come in," he
said.
On doing so, we discovered that one was missing. The animal had
evidently been carried off by some Blackfeet.
The loss was a serious one, as we should have either to add to the
weight of the loads of the others, or place the packages on one of the
saddle-horses, taking it by turns to walk.
One thing was certain, that even if not attacked, our journey, which we
were anxious to finish as soon as possible, would be prolonged.
As may be supposed, we got no more sleep that night. We had to
hobble the horses, and keep a bright lookout on every side, lest the
treacherous Indians might steal upon us and catch us unprepared. They
must have guessed from the number of horses that our party consisted

of several men, well armed, and from the experience they had had of
my rifle they knew that they could not come openly upon us without
the certainty of some of their number being laid low.
As the sky remained clear, and the moon was bright, we could see
objects at a considerable distance; our enemies could not therefore get
near without being discovered. Our chief fear was that they might, if
they were resolved on our destruction, make a wide circuit, and getting
into the wood attack us in the rear. To prevent the risk of this, Pierre
made his way among the trees and watched on that side; on hands and
knees he crept cautiously from place to place, as the panther does
watching for its prey. Wary as the Indians were, it was not likely that
they would surprise him. There is an excitement in an adventure of the
sort we were engaged in which affords actual pleasure, and for my part
I enjoyed it greatly, caring neither for being deprived of sleep, nor for
the danger to be apprehended.
We let our fire remain in, though we kept it low, with plenty of sticks at
hand which we could throw on and make it blaze up, should we find it
necessary. At last dawn appeared in the eastern sky, and we believed
that, as the Indians had not attacked us at night, they would not molest
us during our journey.
Having collected our horses and distributed the load of the animal
which had been stolen among them, after a hasty breakfast we set off.
We were much disappointed at finding that Sandy's animal was as lame
as on the previous day, and as it could not move out of a walk, he
dismounted and proceeded on foot. Our progress was therefore slower
even than usual.
The country as we advanced became much rougher than that which we
had hitherto passed over. When the greater part of the day had been
spent, we reached the foot of an excessively steep hill, on the top of
which was a wide extending plain. We all here dismounted, and
allowed our horses to scramble on as best they could. To climb up with
more ease I disencumbered myself of my cloak, which together with
my gun I fastened on to one of the pack-horses. We had provided
ourselves with thick sticks, which helped us along.

Sandy's poor horse had great difficulty in making its way, and dropped
behind the rest. There was no fear of its straying; the animals being
accustomed to keep together, it was sure to follow.
"I wish that we had been able to make our way as fast as we had
intended," said Sandy. "We shall have more difficulties on this journey
than we looked for; however, there's no use sighing about what cannot
be helped. Just do you go on, David, to the top of the hill, and take a
look round to see if you can catch sight of any Indians. You are more
active than I am, and will be at the top before I can reach it; I'll wait
and bring up the rest of the horses. If the Indians were to come upon us
at this moment they might take us at a disadvantage."
From the way Sandy spoke I saw that he was not like himself. It struck
me that he was ill; or, had he expected that we should have been
attacked by the Indians during our ascent of the hill, he would have
made preparations beforehand. I, however, did not hesitate to do as he
wished, and springing