ust be getting
near when a dazzling flash swept the prairie and there was a long
reverberatory rumbling overhead. He was almost blinded and bewildered,
doubly uncertain where he was going; and then a great stream of white
fire fell from the zenith. The thunder that followed was deafening,
and for the next few minutes blaze succeeded blaze, and there was a
constant crashing and rumbling overhead. After that came a rush of
chilly wind and the air was filled with falling water.

A hot, steamy smell rose about him; but George, who had been walking
again, began to run. He must use every exertion, for if he were right
in concluding that he had been detained on American soil, his pursuers
would follow him north, and when daylight came a mounted man's view
would command a wide sweep of level prairie. The storm passed away,
muttering, into the distance; the rain ceased, and the air was fresh
and cool until the sun sprang up. It was on his right hand, he thought
he had kept his line; but he stopped to consider on the edge of a
ravine. The sides of the hollow were clothed with tall, wet grass and
brush; it would offer good cover, but he could hardly avoid leaving a
track if he followed it, and his pursuers would search such spots. It
seemed wiser to push on across the plain.

Descending through the thinnest brush he could find, he stopped for a
drink from the creek at the bottom, and then went on as fast as
possible. He was becoming conscious of a pain in his left side; one
foot felt sore; and as the sun got hotter a longing to lie down a while
grew steadily stronger. Still, he could see nothing but short, gray
grass ahead; he must hold on; there might be bluffs or broken country
beyond the skyline.

At length a small square block cut against the dazzling brightness and
slowly grew into a lonely homestead. After some consideration, George
headed for it, and toward noon reached a little, birch-log dwelling,
with a sod stable beside it. Both had an uncared-for appearance, which
suggested their owner's poverty. As George approached the door, a
gaunt, hard-faced man in dilapidated overalls came out and gazed at him
in surprise. George's clothing, which had been torn when he was seized
in the bluff, had further suffered during the deluge. He looked a
weary, ragged outcast.

"Can you give me something to eat and hire me a horse?" he asked.

The farmer seemed suspicious.

"Guess I want my horses for the binder; I'm