“A knife so close to your hands once you get them free—that would be simply glorious, Dick. And I’m going to keep hoping that warrior has no need for his blade during the whole night.”
“I believe I can reach it,” continued Dick, twisting his head around to take another look at the coveted weapon; “and if I do, one slash will cut this buckskin rope. After that, you can depend on me to jump over to your side. But keep on working your hands all you can, Roger, for the looser your bonds are the better in the end.”
The night was by now closing in around them.
Some time before the fire had been carefully extinguished, water being thrown on the burning embers to hasten its end. Dick, still watching the actions of the Indians, soon saw they were taking extra precautions against a surprise. From all of the signs the boys concluded that these Dacotahs had good reason to fear the coming of the hostile war party.
“I’ve got an idea,” he told Roger in following out this train of thought, “that not so very long back the Dacotahs must have made a raid on the lodges of the Shoshone tribe, and done more or less damage. Somehow they act to me as if guilty.”
“And, Dick, if ever the two parties do clash, there will be a lively time of it, we can be sure,” Roger in turn remarked. “These braves seem to be a picked lot, as far as I can tell, and ought to put up a good fight, even if outnumbered.”
“While I’ve never watched a real battle between two war parties of Indians,” observed Dick, “I must say I’m not dying with curiosity to see one. I only hope we have a chance to get away from here before it happens. And, Roger, another thing—I’m keeping an eye on that fellow who is carrying my gun. He has placed it, together with the powder-horn and bullet-pouch, on that log yonder, you notice.”
“Now it is queer that I hadn’t noticed such a thing, Dick!”
“Simply because you waste so much time bothering about our hard luck, when you might just as well be using eyes and ears to learn something worth while,” the other boy told him. “Now, if only I can manage to snatch up my gun and other fixings when we leave here, it will make me happy, I can tell you.”
The minutes dragged along slowly to the two boys. When an hour, and then two, had passed, Roger was beginning to complain again, for it was weary work being forced to stand in this way upon their feet.