"Oh yes, yes!" returned Peggy. "He is a dear, good man; I know by his voice."
In ten minutes more the boy and girl were fast asleep.
The Indian watched.
And Brawn watched the Indian.
————
When the sun went down on the previous evening, and there were no signs of the young folks returning, both Mr. St. Clair and his wife became very uneasy indeed.
Then two long hours of darkness ensued before the moon sailed up, first reddening, then silvering, the wavelets and ripples on the great river.
"Surely some evil must have befallen them," moaned Mrs. St. Clair. "Oh, my Roland! my son! I may never see you more. Is there nothing can be done? Tell me! Tell me!"
"We must trust in Providence, Mary; and it is wrong to mourn. I doubt not the children are safe, although perhaps they have lost their way in the woods."
Hours of anxious waiting went by, and it was nearly midnight. The house was very quiet and still, for the servants were asleep.