for he had made up his mind to follow their trail if
possible, and render all the succour his single arm
might afford. To desert them, and make for the settlement,
he held, would be a faithless and cowardly
act.
While they were together Joe Blunt had often talked
to him about the route he meant to pursue to the Rocky
Mountains, so that, if they had escaped the Indians, he
thought there might be some chance of finding them at
last. But, to set against this, there was the probability