If he had had only the wolves to consider, he would have seized the opportunity to do execution amongst them that they afforded by sitting upon their haunches and gazing hungrily at him; but the report of his gun might betray him to the enemy if any of them were within hearing of it, and so he was fain to content himself with speculating how many of them he might kill before the pack would have the sense to take to flight.
The fire burned so brightly that, in spite of the purpose for which it was lit, he found it cheering to his spirit, but it required a lot of wood to keep it going, and after a while he had gathered all that was near at hand, and must needs go farther from the protecting flames in order to keep up the supply.
This, of course, brought him nearer to the waiting wolves, and they were quick to snap at him menacingly, so that he had to make sudden dashes out and in again to the circle of safety.
Presently he bethought himself of a better plan.
"I'll be a magician and carry a wand that will be my protection," he said to himself, smiling at the childish notion, which, nevertheless, he put into execution, for, seizing a blazing brand from the heart of the fire, he swung it before him shouting.
"Avaunt, ye fiends! Begone into the darkness!" (quoting from a book of legends he had read in his school-days) and charged dauntlessly at his determined besiegers.
The seemingly desperate expedient succeeded beyond his expectations. The frightened wolves fled howling before him, and he had time to secure more than one big armful of wood ere they recovered from their panic sufficiently to resume the siege.
Seth laughed at the brutes being so easily fooled, and congratulated himself on having solved the problem which at first promised to be so difficult.
What between the heat of the fire and the warmth due to his exertions, he had lost all thought of the cold, and if only Reuben or any other of the Rangers had been there to keep him company he would not have minded the situation at all, save that he never forgot the possibility of Indians suddenly announcing their presence by a well-aimed bullet or the whiz of a tomahawk.
But the hours went by, and the wolves were still kept at bay, and no wolves in human guise appeared, and at last the darkness gave way to dawn.