"It is bad," Running Fox said, finally.
His companions kept silent. They had little doubt that ill fortune of some sort had befallen Spotted Deer, and their minds were filled with gloomy premonitions. The finding of the paddle made them almost certain that Spotted Deer had been either captured or killed by the Mohawks. Running Fox was crushed by the possibility. For some moments he appeared unable to rouse himself. Then he suddenly turned toward the river and imitated the cry of Woakus, the fox. Three times he sent the call across the water to tell his friends that he had found signs of Spotted Deer.
"Come, Yellow Wolf, we will go ahead and try to find out about this thing," he said. "Dancing Owl, you must stay here."
"I will wait," Dancing Owl told him.
Suspicious and fearful of running into a trap, the two Delawares moved along the river with great caution. They kept close to the water, hoping to find further clews to the fate of Spotted Deer. They had gone a considerable distance when they finally discovered something which caused them to stop and exclaim in alarm. An overturned canoe had lodged in a mass of driftwood a short distance from the shore. The canoe was of Delaware design, and they knew at once that it belonged to their missing tribesman. They gazed upon it in silent dismay. Each was unwilling to express the fear which had entered his mind. Running Fox again gave the signal which told his friends that he had found further signs of Spotted Deer. Soon afterward Dancing Owl came to join them.
"My brothers, something bad has happened to Spotted Deer," he said, solemnly, as he saw the canoe.
Running Fox stared wildly into his face. His misery showed in his eyes, and his companions looked upon him with pity. Two alarming possibilities confronted them. They believed that Spotted Deer had either been overtaken and killed by the Mohawks or had overturned his canoe and perished in the river in a desperate effort to escape.
"I am going out to get that canoe," Running Fox said, suddenly.
He again waded into the river and made his way to the overturned canoe. There was a long, jagged rent in the bow. The discovery increased his fears for Spotted Deer. He dragged the canoe to the shore and watched in gloomy silence while Yellow Wolf and Dancing Owl made a careful examination.
"Well, my friends, what do you make of it?" Running Fox asked them.