"We surely did, Sam. I didn't sleep for two nights, and we traveled around until we couldn't go another step. You don't think I'd let them get away if I could possibly help it," added the former cripple, reproachfully.
"What Injuns were they, do you know thet?"
"Not exactly, but I think they were Senecas, or Tuscaroras, and the soldiers think so too. They have been very bold lately, and some think we'll be attacked here before long."
After that the Morrises told their story in detail and then listened to what Dave and Barringford had to say. It was easy to see that Mrs. Morris was completely broken in spirits, and that Mr. Morris and Rodney were also greatly depressed. Mr. Morris sat in an easy chair and said that walking around was very painful for him.
"But I shouldn't care about my ankle, if only I knew Nell and the twins were safe," said Dave's uncle. "I'd rather lose my hand than have any harm befall Nell."
"We've got to rescue all on 'em," said Barringford, decidedly. "We hev simply got to do it."
It was a gloomy home-coming, and Dave felt heavy-hearted enough when he went to sleep that night. There were no house accommodations, and all slept on the ground, with nothing but a rude shack, which Rodney and Joseph Morris had constructed, to cover them. Settlers who had lost their homes were all about them, and misery and want were on every hand.
"I never thought it could be so bad," said the youth, on the following morning. "Rodney, where is this going to end?"
"Don't ask me, Dave. Perhaps, after all, we'll have to give up our farm at the Creek and move further eastward."
"Yes, and what of my father's trading-post?"