The patriot youths ran rapidly and glancing back over his shoulder, Dick saw that at least one of the redskins was coming after them as fast as he could travel. The brave patriot youth realized that they were going to have a much harder time shaking these Indians off their trail than they usually had with the redcoats. The British soldiers were rather clumsy and slow, but these redskins were lithe as panthers, and as speedy, almost, and could continue running for hours.
“Do your best, boys,” he told his companions. “For I believe that they are gaining on us.”
“Run as fast as you can, Dick,” panted Tom; “we’ll keep up with you.”
“We’ll try, at any rate,” said Ben.
On they dashed, and after them, whooping in a manner that would have filled the hearts of less brave youths with terror, came the Indians. Doubtless the red fiends thought they would easily surround the fugitives, and make escape impossible. Presently Dick and his party came to a deep gulch or ravine. The wall on their side was nearly perpendicular, and they could not descend it. Here was a predicament indeed. They paused, irresolute, and looked to the right and to the left, only to see that the wall of the gulch was as steep everywhere within sight. They could see for quite a distance too in either direction, as the point where they were standing rather projected out toward the other side.
The yelling of redskins determined the fact that they were within a few hundred yards and swiftly cutting down the distance. And, too, they were spreading out, fan-shape, with the evident intention of hemming the youths in and preventing them from going up or down the edge of the gulch. Of course they knew full well the contour of the land and thought they had their intended prey, as it were, in a trap.
“There doesn’t seem to be any escape for us, Dick,” said Ben.
“Gracious,” cried Tom. “Look at that black cloud to the north.” It had not attracted their attention before, but now they saw that a terrible storm was impending.
Dick looked eagerly around, and suddenly he pointed to a very tall, slender tree, of some growth he did not recognize, that stood close to the edge of the precipice. The rains had washed out the earth from about the roots and the tree was inclined at an angle well out over the ravine.
“Quick!” he cried. “Let’s climb that tree and swing over the precipice. It will bend and will let us down I think to within twelve or fifteen feet of the bottom of the gulch.”