Chapter Forty One.
Playing Frog.
It seemed to Chris as if any attempt at hiding would be folly, for if he could see the enemy where the light was not so clear he felt certain that the Indians must have seen him and the pony at once, standing up plainly against the brightening sky.
“I don’t know what to do,” he said to himself, as he sprang upon the pony’s back, and felt better directly. For as the sturdy little animal began to move springily along, fresh vigour seemed to run through the boy’s nerves, and he looked sharply round again.
“There must be some way for us to escape,” he cried aloud, “and they shall have a long gallop before they catch us.”
He paused for a few moments to look down into the valley and across at the towering up rows of broken openings on the other side of the depression, feeling the while that to stay anywhere near the edge of the precipice was only to hasten his surrender, for the distance from the edge to the level bottom of the valley seemed terrible, so giddy and full of horror for him who fell, that Chris literally wrenched his eyes away, to sweep the horizon till he had made up his mind which was the most open and level part of the tableland to select for the wild gallop to come.
“I did hope to have seen some one over yonder,” he muttered bitterly, “but I suppose they are asleep and don’t know what danger I am in. There, off with you, old lad,” he cried aloud, shaking the rein. “No, no—steady; it’s going to be a long ride, and you mustn’t be pumped out for hours to come. That’s better; a nice gentle canter. Well done! How light and easy you do go.”
It was as if the beautiful little animal understood its rider’s words. It certainly did his caresses, for it snorted loudly, tossed up its head, and then bending it down with neck finely arched, it progressed in bound after bound as if it were a joy to be cantering along that high level ground in the pure elastic air.
Chris gave his mount another pat or two upon the neck, and then settling himself in his saddle he turned his head to watch the Indians.
In an instant he had learned that not only could they see him but they had grasped his intention as to the way in which he sought to escape. For directly after, three of them had darted out of the line and gone off at full speed, opening out the while, with the evident intention of cutting off their victim.