After some delay Fred gave in, and so the three adventurers turned the heads of their horses south, and after a few hours found the trail which they had left in the morning.
Quickly they pushed east, spurring on their horses who by this time were quite exhausted.
They traveled until dusk, and they were about to leave the trail and hide in the woods when suddenly Fred's steed neighed.
"What's the matter with you?" the boy reproved his horse. "You will never get any oats if you make such a noise like that."
To his great horror, however, the neighing was answered by another horse at some distance.
"It's time for us to hide!" Fred cried. "Away into the woods! The
Indians are coming."
Fortunately they found a deep ravine in the woods were they could conceal the horses.
"You stay here, till I come back," Fred said. "I will see who they are."
"I am coming along," Agnes ventured; "you cannot go alone on so perilous a mission."
"Stay back," the lad urged her; "this is a job for one man." But the girl would not listen, and so the two stole along the edge of the ravine hiding themselves as best they could.