“Let us stop a minute, and look around,” Will said, as they strode warily along on the brow of the hill.
“By all means, Will. Here,” stretching out his arms, and speaking with theatrical vehemence, “here is scenery! This is where the travelling photographers come to astonish themselves!”
A splendid view was obtained from this elevation; the country could be seen for a long distance, and glimpses were caught of three or four towns besides Henry’s.
But the writer seems to forget that he is not a school-girl writing a prize composition in description of some far distant and romantic land of which she, in her younger days, had learned a piece of poetry, difficult and tiresome, but studded with beautiful metaphors that fired her budding genius.
A great many dumb beasts, but no human beings, were in sight.
Henry soon broke the silence by saying, “Come, Will, we must go on.”
They hurried along on the brow of the long hill, conversing in low tones. Still no appearance of the demon. There was a well-beaten path, evidently worn by the demon himself, which they followed. After following this path for a few minutes, Henry suddenly stopped, and said in a hoarse whisper:
“Will, I think we are directly over the cave. Hush! Keep very still, and look out for danger; but be as collected as a desperado. We are two to one; so there is nothing to be afraid of. Now, Will, crouch down, and we’ll lay our plans right over the demon’s head. He can’t hear us, and I want to make everything clear to you. Don’t you see, Will, its a striking idea to plot and scheme over the very cave itself?”
“Yes, it’s just like outlaws,” said Will.
“Well, by going on a little farther, we shall find another path leading down this hill into the valley. We must take that path, so that we can come up to the cave from behind. The demon will never suspect any one of coming from that direction, and he will be trapped nicely. We can get behind the big old tree you see down there, and then fire! You see, Will, we had to come this roundabout way over his cave; it would never do to pass in front of it, and run the risk of being seen.”