“I am afraid,” he said, “that our enemies may still be hovering about, and that they, either last night or early this morning, having fallen in with our steeds, have carried them off.”
As he was not very confident of this, we continued searching about in every direction, following the tracks which we supposed they might have made. We had also to be cautious, lest our enemies should really be near at hand; in which case they might suddenly attack us. Worn out with fatigue, we were at last obliged to sit down near a wood, in a very disconsolate condition.
Had there been any wild fruits ripe, we might have satisfied our hunger, but there was nothing eatable we could obtain.
“Are we to continue our search for the horses, or must we give it up?” I asked.
“It’s useless, I fear, to hunt for them further,” said Alick. “I feel very sure that the Sioux have carried them off; and we too shall probably fall into their hands, unless we beat a rapid retreat from this part of the country.”
Having duly discussed the matter, it was at last agreed that we should at once make our way to the “cache”—that is to say, the high platform I have described—and supply ourselves with food. We might there, if the Indians had not left the neighbourhood, obtain horses and get some of them to escort us.
“But if the Indians have left the neighbourhood, what are we to do?” asked Martin.
“We must tramp it on foot,” said Alick. “A couple of hundred miles is nothing; we can accomplish it in ten days, even though we may be pretty heavily-laden. I wish that we could get there sooner, and make more sure of having the fort rebuilt before the winter. I am thinking not only of ourselves, but of the poor Indians who are accustomed to obtain assistance from us when hard pressed for food, as also of the many white trappers who may come to the fort expecting to find shelter.”
“But how shall we ever reach the ‘cache’ without provisions?” I asked.
“We are sure to shoot something or other on the way, and we must not be particular what it is or how we obtain it,” answered Alick.