CHAPTER IX.
HUNTING THE HUNTERS.
THE first movement of surprise over, the chiefs glared at each other with looks of implacable meaning, and then Tecumseh turned carelessly away as if no such person as the Dead Chief lived upon the earth.
"Listen then, Tecumthè," shouted Dead Chief. "When a chief speaks, let a dog of a Shawnee listen to his words. Do you know that Nabockalish, the Skeleton Scout of the Americans, is on the trail of the Shawnee? He follows you from place to place; he saved the Dead Chief and Floyd from the anger of the Prophet, and he will live to tear the heart from Tecumthè, from Willimack and Elskwatawa, if the Dead Chief does not do it first."
"Who has seen Nabockalish?" said Tecumseh, turning to Floyd and paying no attention to Dead Chief.
"I have seen him," replied Floyd. "So has the Dead Chief and the Long Man."
"Yaas, yaas," said Seth, "I seen him, darn him. And I will say that, of all the outlandish critters I ever see, he beats my time."
"Nabockalish is like the wind of the prairies," said Tecumseh. "He comes and goes as he will. Tecumseh has never seen him, but the dead men his hand has laid low are many among the Shawnees. Some day Tecumseh will meet him, and then we shall see who is strongest, the Shawnee chief or the Skeleton Scout."
The Dead Chief again threw himself in the way of Tecumseh.
"Listen, Shawnee. Did you not bid Elskwatawa to slay me when we met?"
"I think the Weasel is coming, Floyd," said the chief. "I hear his whistle."
Dead Chief saw that it was the design of Tecumseh to utterly ignore his presence, and again throwing himself in the way, shook his open hand in the face of the Shawnee and uttered a single word in the Indian language. That word was the most bitter and opprobrious epithet which one Indian could give another, and an insult not to be forgiven or forgotten. The chief drew a long breath and his fingers which he had laid upon Floyd's arm, closed with a convulsive gripe, that it left black and blue spots upon the arm. But, Floyd knew that if the Dead Chief or Tecumseh ever met, one or the other must go down.
"That saws yure leg off, Dead Chief," whispered Seth, dragging the Pottawatomie away by main force. "Yew come along, neow. Here's the Weasel."
As he spoke the mannikin came gliding into camp, and drawing a letter from his pouch, handed it to the captain, who immediately called up his lieutenant and gave him his orders in a low voice.
"Tecumseh," he said, "you came among us freely and you must go away safely; you are at liberty to depart."
"Have you good news from the Governor?" said the chief.
"I can do as I wish," replied the soldier. "I think it better that you should depart now, and let us go our way. Yankee Seth, come here. The Dead Chief must stay with me too."
Tecumseh bid them good-by and turned away with a stately step, closely followed by the Weasel. He had hardly left camp, when the rangers were in the saddle, and after scouts had beat the bushes on every side to make sure that no Indians lurked there, they rode away toward Vincennes, taking the captain's horse with them.
"Take my hand, here, Seth Spink, and you, Dead Chief, and join me in this vow. I will not turn back from this search or see Vincennes again, until Madge Carlysle is freed from bondage or I know that she is dead. And if they have killed her, I swear to give my life to vengeance on her destroyers. Heaven hear my vow."
"And mine," said Seth, solemnly. "This is business."
"The Dead Chief is with you," added the Pottawatomie, quietly.
The three clasped hands over the compact and stood locked in that firm clasp, three strong men, confident in each other. Nothing can give a man respect for another like that of danger shared together.
"Now for the trail," said Floyd. "Can you find it, Seth?"
"I rayther judge I kan," replied the Yankee. "Leastways, I know a critter that kan do it fur me quicker than you can say scat, ef you kan find something the gal has worn lately."
"This will do, then," said Floyd, with a visible flush, taking a ribbon from his pocket. "I stole this from her neck last night when we parted, and have carried it since. What do you propose to make out of that?"
"I'll show yew."
He raised his hand to his mouth and emitted a long, sharp peculiar whistle. It had scarcely ceased to vibrate on the morning air when a rushing sound was heard and a huge wolf-dog, with a cross of the hound in him, came breaking through the bushes at a rolling gallop after the fashion of the beast from whom a part of his blood was derived. This creature fawned upon the scout, who laughed and patted him.
"Wolf is a good dorg," he muttered. "Yew wouldn't think it, but the pesky brute hez been on our trail ever sence I cum deown the river last night, and he wouldn't come to me unlest I called him, no matter how long I was a dewing of it. Here, Wolf; smell tew that ribbin."
The dog put his nose to the ribbon a moment and then ran up to Floyd and rubbed his cold muzzle against his leg.
"'Twon't dew," said the scout, with a puzzled look. "The ribbin ain't rite, 'cause yew hev carried it tew long. Must hev something else."
They searched carefully everywhere, until with a cry of delight, Floyd stooped and picked up a broken bracelet which lay upon the earth, half-trodden into the soil.
"Here is the very thing, Seth. This bracelet—I gave it to her myself in happier days—must be the thing to lead me to my darling."
"Let's have it," said the Yankee. "Here, Wolf."
The dog smelled the bracelet over and over, and then threw up his head, giving utterance to a low howl.
"Silence!" cried the scout. "Seek her, boy!"
The dog put his nose to the earth and began to run to and fro in an erratic manner over the ground, until he struck the scent he sought. This done, he gave a short yelp and struck into a slow trot, which the woodmen could easily keep up with, and started for the forest to the north. They slung their rifles and started upon the trail of the dog, which led into a forest-path. Keeping just far enough behind so that they could keep him in sight, they soon were in the dense forest. The Yankee took the lead with a stride which even the agile savage found it difficult to keep up with at a walk, and he took the long lope so characteristic to his race, and kept close to the heels of the Yankee. Will Floyd, dogged and determined, kept on after them, though it cost him more of an effort than either of the others. On, on, the forest growing deeper at every stride, the dog accommodating his pace to that of the men following, and looking back from time to time, to see that they had not lost him.
"That is a noble dog," said Floyd. "You must give him to me if we succeed."
"I couldn't do that, cap. Wolf and I are old friends. It's seven year now we hev tramped the woods together; but he's gitting old now, the old dorg is."
"How many Indians do you think the captors of Madge number?"
"Six," replied Long Seth, laconically.
"How do you know that?"
"Because I know it," was the somewhat dogmatic reply. "I ain't going to give any better reason."
"Is Willimack with them?"
"Ugh," said Dead Chief, laying his finger upon a spot in the path, "Willimack here; see!"
"I'm not posted enough in scouting to read a trace which might have been left by a falling leaf, it is so light. Do you see any thing of Madge?"
"White girl walk woods," replied Dead Chief. "Look close."
The young man stooped and examined the soft earth, and saw there the imprint of a delicate foot, and he realized how great was the knowledge of woodcraft possessed by the two men.
"I say no more," he said. "When the time for fighting comes, I shall not be behind you, but in scouting I am much inferior to either of you. Do you think we can catch them, Seth?"
"Got tew dew it, ain't we, if we keep our vow? I, fur one, want to see Vincennes ag'in. The Guvner treated me right well when I was thar this morning, and give me a rousing good drink, and it tasted mighty well arter so much river-water last night. Ha! the dorg is puzzled. He is trying back."
As he spoke the dog doubled suddenly and "tried back" on the trail, but without success, at first. His master encouraged him to continue, and at last he stopped at a half-uprooted tree, leaning at a very acute angle across a little stream, so that its bushy top was hardly ten feet from the ground on the other side.
"They've begun tew play Injin," said the Yankee. "Yes they hev, and it suits me. I like a hard job, ef I like any thing in natur'. And Willimack is a right good scout, once he sets his mind tew it. The dorg has lost his trail."
"Let us search for it," cried Floyd, eagerly. "My dear fellow, you see how impatient I am."
"I see it," said Seth, coolly. "The dorg hez lost the trail but I'm darned ef Seth Spink hez, nor the Dead Chief, either. Hev we, old boy?"
"Wah!" said the Dead Chief. "Willimack is a fool, if he thinks to throw dust in the eyes of so great a scout as the Yellow Hair."
"Sartin! sartin!" said Seth. "The trail is on the other side of the creek. Now, I s'pose it puzzles yew tew know how they managed tew break the trail afore they got tew the bank, capting?"
"It does indeed."
"Then look at this tree. Yew won't be the worse fur a lesson in woodcraft, and I'm the man tew give it. Yew see that the bark is scraped off a leetle here at the root. I s'pose Willimack got up, and one of his men handed up the gal tew him, and then he walked eout intew the branches, and dropped her on the other side, onlest one of his men went first tew help her. Anyway, they left footmarks when they dropped."
The Yankee ran up the tree like a cat, and the dog sprung up after him. The next moment they were clambering in the bushy top and dropped to the earth on the other bank.
"Thar's the trail," said Seth, "clear as mud. They made a good plant for green hands tew foller, but they don't half know me, the critters. Now look at this. By gracious, this is a new plant. The trail ends here."
"I am afraid we shall never overtake them," said Will.
"Yew shet up! It takes jest ez long tew hide a trail so that Wolf and me kain't find it as it duz tew find it, and no longer. I'll study that eout in a minnit."
He looked quickly about him. Under the tree-top, where the Indians had dropped to the earth, the soil was tramped hard in places, but these did not extend over a distance of more than ten feet, and none of them led toward the bank. How had Willimack broken the trail this time? The dog was at fault, for, though he ran to and fro, upon the trampled bank, he could not strike the scent again. At last the eye of the Yankee was attracted by the appearance of the ground toward the stream, and following the trace it led him to the bank. Looking down into the clear water he could see the tracks of moccasins in the sand at the bottom.
"Water don't leave no trail," he muttered. "Yaas, but sand does, bet yure life! Wolf, this way. Stay here, boys, and if I give a whistle, follow me as quick as yew could say 'scat'."
He ran swiftly up the bank of the stream, with the dog beside him. Five minutes after they heard his whistle and rushed after him. He stood upon the bank of the stream holding his dog by the neck.
"They took to the water. I knowed they would, Floyd."
"But how did they get to it?"
"Stripped a piece of bark from an elm and walked tew the water on it and then threw the bark intew the crick. 'Twas cute, by gravy. But, I'll cheat 'em yet, see ef I don't. Go it, Wolf!"
The dog again bounded forward on the trail, and the three men followed him with unabated vigor. Trick after trick in woodcraft was unraveled by the perseverance of the Yankee, whose skill was aided by that of the Dead Chief, no tyro in the art. Night came and found them still on the trail, which now began to freshen, so that they knew their enemies could not be many miles ahead. The scout halted when it became too dark to proceed easily and told them to sit down and eat something.
"Eat; what have we to eat? And besides, I have no appetite for any thing now."
"Hain't yew? That's jest whar we differ. I'm as hungry as a b'ar, and I'd like a bit of b'ar-meat tew. But, es that ain't accessible, so tew speak, we'll hev tew make eout with jerked venison. That won't come so bad, neither."
The scout produced a pouch and took from it a quantity of jerked deer-meat, and began to eat heartily, laying the meat out where his companions could easily reach it. He had hardly begun to eat when he had two helpers, for, upon second thought, the young soldier found himself quite as hungry as the others, and he devoured his share.
"That's something like it, boy. What kind of a fight dew yew s'pose yew'd make 'thout any fodder? Yew'd double up like a dish-clout in the hands of the fust Injin that yew struck, and that ain't the kind of man we want."
"Are they far ahead?"
"That's jist what I'm going tew be sartin of. No they ain't very fur ahead, leastways I think they ain't. Here, Wolf; ketch hold of that."
He threw a large piece of the venison to the dog, who devoured it eagerly. When they had finished, the scout signaled to them to follow, and, turning aside from the path they had been pursuing, he broke through the tangled bushes and came out in the center of a little clearing made by the hand of man.
In the midst of this sequestered spot some borderman had built a cabin of rough logs after the manner of the settlers of that day. The grass was green and bright about the cabin, but the logs were smoke-begrimed and the roof gone. Upon the grass not far from the door were three grave-like mounds, laid side by side. The one in the center was the largest, and the others looked like the graves of children.
"Yew stay here," said the scout. "It's a good place tew rest, and nobody ever comes here 'cept me and one other."
"Why do they not come here?"
"'Cause the place is ha'nted," replied Seth.
"Haunted!"
"Yes. Them mounds thar are what they look like, graves. And the hunters hev a story that the dead won't rest thar, because they were foully dealt with. Mebbe the story's trew, and those are the graves of little children. It mout be; sadder things hev happened in the history of these times."
"Do you know any thing of the settler who lived here?"
"He never ha'nted me; that I know, and I've stopped here many a time tew rest. Keep quiet here and wait for me."
"Suppose any thing should happen to you?" said Floyd.
"It won't. Waal, yew stay here until morning, and if I ain't here then, go on yure way."
He slung his rifle into the corner, looked to see that his knife and hatchet were in his belt, and disappeared in the darkness.