"Nor I," answered Edith; "but yet it ought to be done, in justice to ourselves and to him. He is bold, skillful, and resolute, and we must not judge of any matter in this country as we should judge in Europe. He may undertake and execute something for my brother's rescue which you and I would never dream of. He is just the man to do so and to succeed. He knows every path of the forest, every lodge of the Indians. He is friendly with many of them, has saved the lives of some of them, I have heard him say, and conferred great obligations upon others; and I believe that he will never rest till he has delivered Walter."
"Then I will find him out and let him know the facts directly," said Lord H----; "perhaps he and Otaitsa may act together, if we can open any communication with her."
"She will act by herself and for herself, I am sure," replied Edith, "and some communication must be opened at any and all risk. But let us see this man, George; perhaps he may know someone going into the Indian territory who may carry a letter to her. It is a great blessing she can read and write, for we must have our secrets, too, if we would frustrate theirs."
Lord H---- rose, and proceeded to the hall, where the men whom he had brought with him were busily engaged in dispatching such provisions as Mr. Prevost's house could afford on the spur of the moment. The man he sought for was soon found, and when he had eaten the morsel almost between his teeth, he followed the young nobleman into the lesser room, and was soon in full conference with Edith and her lover. He again expressed the opinion that no harm would happen to young Walter Prevost for some months, at the least. "They have caught someone," he said, "to make sure of their revenge, and that is all they wanted for the present. Now they will look for the man that did it, and catch him if they can."
"Can you tell where he is to be found?" asked Lord H----, in a quiet tone.
"Why, you would not give him up to them?" said the man, sharply.
"Certainly not," replied Lord H----. "He is in safety, and of that safety I have no right to deprive him; it would make me an accessory to their act. But I wish to see him, to tell him what has occurred, and to consult him as to what is to be done."
"That is a very different case," replied the man, gravely, "and if that's all you want, I don't mind telling you that he is in Albany, at the public house of the Three Boatmen. Our people, who rowed him down, said he did not intend to leave Albany for a week or more."
"And now, Robert," said Edith, "can you tell me where I can get a messenger to the Oneidas? I know you loved my brother Walter, and I think, if you can get somebody to go for me, we may save him."
"I did indeed love him well, Miss Prevost," replied the stout man, with his hard, firm eye moistening, "and I'd do anything in reason to save him. It's a sad thing we did not know of this yesterday, for there was a half-breed Onondaga runner passed by and got some milk from us, and I gave him the panther's skin which you told some of our people to send, my lord, in the poor lad's name, to the daughter of the old chief Black Eagle."