CHAPTER II--STRANGE ADVENTURES IN THE FOREST--LOST!
Fierce eyes had been watching the little camp for an hour and more,glaring out on the sunny glade from the dark depths of a forest tree notfar off; out from under a cloudland of waving foliage that rustled inthe balmy wind. Watching, and watching unwaveringly, Peggy, while sheread; watching the sleeping Roland; the great wolf-hound, Brawn; andwatching the ponies too.
Ever and anon these last would come closer to the tree, as they nibbledgrass or moss, then those fierce eyes burned more fiercely, and thecat-like tail of a monster jaguar moved uneasily as if the wild beastmeditated a spring.
But the ponies, sniffing danger in the air, perhaps--who cantell?--would toss their manes and retreat to the shadow of the rocks.
Had the dog not been there the beast would have dared all, and sprung atonce on one of those nimble steeds.
But he waited and watched, watched and waited, and at long last his timecame. With a coughing roar he now launched himself into the air, theelasticity of the branch giving greater force to his spring.
Straight on the shoulders or back of poor Boz he alighted. His talonswere well driven home, his white teeth were preparing to tear the fleshfrom the pony's neck.
Both little steeds yelled wildly, and in nightmarish terror.
Up sprang Brawn, the wolf-hound, and dashed on to the rescue.
Peggy seized her loaded rifle and hurried after him.
Thoroughly awake now, and fully cognizant of the terrible danger, Rolandtoo was quickly on the scene of action.
To fire at a distance were madness. He might have missed the strugglinglion and shot poor Boz, or even faithful Brawn.
This enormous dog had seized the beast by one hock, and with his pawsagainst the pony was endeavouring to tear the monster off.
The noise, the movement, the terror, caused poor Roland's head to whirl.
He felt dazed, and almost stupid.
Ah! but Peggy was clear-headed, and a brave and fearless child was she.
Her feet seemed hardly to touch the moss, so lightly did she springalong.
Her little rifle was cocked and ready, and, taking advantage of a fewseconds' lull in the fearful scrimmage, she fired at five yards'distance.
The bullet found billet behind the monster's ear, his grip relaxed, andnow Brawn tore him easily from his perch and finished him off on theground, with awful din and habbering.
Then, with blood-dripping jaws he came with his ears lower, halfapologetically, to receive the praise and caresses of his master andmistress.
But though the adventure ended thus happily, frightened beyond measure,the ponies, Coz and Boz, had taken to the bush and disappeared.
Knowing well the danger of the situation, Roland and Peggy, with Brawn,tried to follow them. But Irish wolf-hounds have but little scent, andso they searched and searched in vain, and returned at last to thesun-kissed glade.
It was now well on towards three o'clock, and as they had a long foreststretch of at least ten miles before them ere they could touch the banksof the great queen of waters, Roland determined, with the aid of hiscompass, to strike at once into the beast-trodden pathway by which theyhad come, and make all haste homewards before the sun should set anddarkness envelop the gloomy forest.
"Keep up your heart, Peggy; if your courage and your feet hold out weshall reach the river before dusk."
"I'm not so frightened now," said Peggy; but her lips were verytremulous, and tears stood in her eyes.
"Come, come," she cried, "let us hurry on! Come, Brawn, good dog!"
Brawn leapt up to lick her ear, and taking no thought for the skin ofthe jaguar, which in more favourable circumstances would have been borneaway as a trophy, and proof of Peggy's valour, they now took to the bushin earnest.
Roland looked at his watch.
"Three hours of light and more. Ah! we can do it, if we do not lose ourway."
So off they set.
Roland took the lead, rifle in hand, Peggy came next, and brave Brawnbrought up the rear.
They were compelled to walk in single file, for the pathways were sonarrow in places that two could not have gone abreast.
Roland made constant reference to his little compass, always assuringhis companion that they were still heading directly for the river.
They had hurried on for nearly an hour, when Roland suddenly paused.
A huge dark monster had leapt clear and clean across the pathway somedistance ahead, and taken refuge in a tree.
It was, no doubt, another jaguar, and to advance unannounced might meancertain death to one of the three.
"Are you all loaded, Peggy?" said Roland.
"Every chamber!" replied the girl.
There was no tremor about her now; and no backwoods Indian could haveacted more coolly and courageously.
"Blaze away at that tree then, Peg."
Peggy opened fire, throwing in three or four shots in rapid succession.
The beast, with a terrible cry, darted out of the tree and came rushingalong to meet and fight the little party.
"Down, Brawn, down! To heel, sir!"
Next moment Roland fired, and with a terrible shriek the jaguar took tothe bush, wounded and bleeding, and was seen no more.
But his yells had awakened the echoes of the forest, and for more thanfive minutes the din of roaring, growling, and shrieking was fearful.
Wild birds, no doubt, helped to swell the pandemonium.
After a time, however, all was still once more, and the journey wascontinued in silence.
Even Peggy, usually the first to commence a conversation, felt in nomood for talking now.
She was very tired. Her feet ached, her brow was hot, and her eyes feltas if boiling in their sockets.
Roland had filled his large flask at the little waterfall before leavingthe glade, and he now made her drink.
The draught seemed to renew her strength, and she struggled on asbravely as ever.
----
Just two and a half hours after they had left the forest clearing, andwhen Roland was holding out hopes that they should soon reach the roadby the banks of the river, much to their astonishment they foundthemselves in a strange clearing which they had never seen before.
The very pathway ended here, and though the boy went round and round thecircle, he could find no exit.
To retrace his steps and try to find out the right path was the firstthought that occurred to Roland.
This plan was tried, but tried in vain, and so--weary and hopeless nowbeyond measure--they returned to the centre of the glade and threwthemselves down on the soft green moss.
Lost! Lost!
The words kept repeating themselves in poor Roland's brain, but Peggy'sfatigue was so complete that she preferred rest even in the midst ofdanger to going farther.
Brawn, heaving a great sigh, laid himself down beside them.
The warm day wore rapidly to a close, and at last the sun shimmered redthrough the forest trees.
Then it sank.
The briefest of twilight, and the stars shone out.
Two hours of starlight, then solemnly uprose the round moon and floodedall the glade, draping the whispering trees in a blue glare, beautifullyetherealizing them.
Sorrow bringeth sleep.
"Good-night, Rolly! Say your prayers," murmured Peggy.
There were stars in the sky. There were stars too that flitted frombush to bush, while the winds made murmuring music among the loftybranches.
Peggy was repeating to herself lines that she had read that very day:
..."the firefly Wah-wah-tay-see, Flitting through the dusk of evening, With the twinkle of its candle, Lighting up the brakes and bushes. * * * * * Wah-wah-tay-see, little firefly, Little, flitting, white-fire insect, Little dancing, white-fire creature, Light me with your little candle. Ere upon my bed I lay me, Ere in sleep I close my eyelids."
; ----
The forest was unusually silent to-night, but ever and anon might beheard some distant growl showing that the woods sheltered the wildestbeasts. Or an owl with mournful cry would flap its silent wings as itflew across the clearing.
But nothing waked those tired and weary sleepers.
So the night wore on and on. The moon had reached the zenith, and wasshining now with a lustre that almost rivalled daylight itself.
It must have been well on towards two o'clock in the morning when Brawnemitted a low and threatening growl.
This aroused both Roland and Peggy, and the former at once seized hisrifle.
Standing there in the pale moonlight, not twenty yards away, was a tall,dark-skinned, and powerful-looking Indian. In his right hand he held aspear or something resembling one; in his left a huge catapult or sling.He was dressed for comfort--certainly not for ornament. Leggings orgalligaskins covered his lower extremities, while his body was wrappedin a blanket. He had no head-covering, save a matted mass of hair, inwhich were stuck a few feathers.
Roland took all this in at a glance as he seized his rifle and preparedfor eventualities. According to the traditional painter of Indian lifeand customs the proper thing for this savage to have said is "Ugh!" Hesaid nothing of the sort. Nor did he give vent to a whoop and yell thatwould have awakened the wild birds and beasts of the forest and everyecho far and near.
"Who goes there?" cried Roland, raising his gun.
"No shootee. No shootee poor Indian man. I friendee you. Plentyfriendee."
Probably there was a little romance about Roland, for, instead ofsaying: "Come this way then, old chap, squat down and give us the news,"he said sternly:
"Advance, friend!"
But the Indian stood like a statue.
"No undahstandee foh true."
And Roland had to climb down and say simply:
"Come here, friend, and speak."
Brawn rushed forward now, but he looked a terror, for his hair was allon end like a hyena's, and he growled low but fiercely.
"Down, Brawn! It's a good man, Brawn."
Brawn smelt the Indian's hand, and, seeming satisfied, went back to thespot where Peggy sat wondering and frightened.
She gathered the great dog to her breast and hugged and kissed him.
"What foh you poh chillun sleepee all in de wood so? S'pose wild beas'come eatee you, w'at den you do?"
"But, friend," replied Roland, "we are far from Burnley Hall, our home,and we have lost everything. We have lost our ponies, lost our way, andlost ourselves."
"Poh chillun!" said this strange being. "But now go sleepee foh true.De Indian he lie on blanket. He watchee till de big sun rise."
"Can we trust him, Peggy?"
"Oh yes, yes!" returned Peggy. "He is a dear, good man; I know by hisvoice."
In ten minutes more the boy and girl were fast asleep.
The Indian watched.
And Brawn watched the Indian.
----
When the sun went down on the previous evening, and there were no signsof the young folks returning, both Mr. St. Clair and his wife becamevery uneasy indeed.
Then two long hours of darkness ensued before the moon sailed up, firstreddening, then silvering, the wavelets and ripples on the great river.
"Surely some evil must have befallen them," moaned Mrs. St. Clair. "Oh,my Roland! my son! I may never see you more. Is there nothing can bedone? Tell me! Tell me!"
"We must trust in Providence, Mary; and it is wrong to mourn. I doubtnot the children are safe, although perhaps they have lost their way inthe woods."
Hours of anxious waiting went by, and it was nearly midnight. The housewas very quiet and still, for the servants were asleep.
Burly Bill and Jake had mounted strong horses at moonrise, and gone offto try to find a clue. But they knew it was in vain, nay, 'twould havebeen sheer madness to enter the forest now. They coo-eed over and overagain, but their only answer was the echoing shriek of the wild birds.
They were just about to return after giving their last shrill coo-ee-ee,when out from the moonlit forest, with a fond whinny, sprang Coz andBoz.
Jake sprang out of his saddle, throwing his bridle to Bill.
In the bright moonlight, Jake could see at once that there was somethingwrong. He placed his hand on Boz's shoulder. He staggered back as hewithdrew it.
"Oh, Bill," he cried, "here is blood, and the pony is torn and bleeding!Only a jaguar could have done this. This is terrible."
"Let us return at once," said Bill, who had a right soft heart of hisown behind his burly chest.
"But oh!" he added, "how can we break the news to Roland's parents?"
"We'll give them hope. Mrs. St. Clair must know nothing yet, but atearly dawn all the ranch must be aroused, and we shall search the forestfor miles and miles."
----
Jake, after seeing the ponies safe in their stable, left Bill to look toBoz's wounds, while with St. Clair's leave he himself set off at a roundgallop to get assistance from a neighbouring ranch.
Day had not yet broken ere forty good men and true were on thebridle-path and tearing along the river's banks. St. Clair himself wasat their head.
I must leave the reader to imagine the joy of all the party when soonafter sunrise there emerged from the forest, guided by the strangeIndian, Roland, Peggy, and noble Brawn, all looking as fresh as the dewon the tender-eyed hibiscus bloom or the wild flowers that nodded by theriver's brim.
"Wirr--rr--r--wouff, wouff, wouff!" barked Brawn, as he bounded forwardwith joy in every feature of his noble face, and I declare to you thereseemed to be a lump in his throat, and the sound of his barking washalf-hysterical.
St. Clair could not utter a word as he fondly embraced the children. Hepretended to scold a little, but this was all bluff, and simply a ruseto keep back the tears.
But soft-hearted Burly Bill was less successful. He just managed to dropa little to the rear, and it was not once only that he was fain to drawthe sleeve of his rough jacket across his eyes.
----
But now they are mounted, and the horses' heads are turned homewards.Peggy is seated in front of Burly Bill, of whom she is very fond, andRoland is saddled with Jake. The Indian and Brawn ran.
Poor Mrs. St. Clair, at the big lawn gate, gazing westward, sees thecavalcade far away on the horizon.
Presently, borne along on the morning breeze come voices raised in abrave and joyous song:
"Down with them, down with the lords of the forest".
And she knows her boy and Peggy are safe.
"Thank God for all his mercies!" she says fervently, then, woman-like,bursts into tears.