Dick and Henri immediately lay down and placed their ears to the ground.

"Now, me hear noting," said Henri, jumping up, "but me ear is like me
eyes; ver' short-sighted."

"I do hear something," said Dick as he got up, "but the beating o' my
own heart makes row enough to spoil my hearin'."

Joe Blunt smiled. "Ah! lad, yer young an' yer blood's too hot yet, but
bide a bit; you'll cool down soon. I wos like you once. Now, lads,
what think ye we should do?"

"You know best, Joe."

"Oui, nodoubtedly."

"Then wot I advise is that we gallop to the broken sand hillocks ye see
yonder, get behind them an' take a peep at the Red-skins. If they are
Pawnees we'll go up to them at once; if not, we'll hold a council o' war
on the spot."

Having arranged this they mounted and hastened towards the hillocks in
question, which they reached after ten minutes' gallop, at full stretch.
The sandy mounds afforded them concealment, and enabled them to watch
the proceedings of the savages in the plain below. The scene was the
most curious and exciting that can be conceived. The centre of the
plain before them was crowded with hundreds of buffaloes, which were
dashing about in the most frantic state of alarm. To whatever point
they galloped they were met by yelling savages on horseback, who could
not have been fewer in numbers than a thousand--all being armed with
lance, bow, and quiver, and mounted on active little horses. The
Indians had completely surrounded the herd of buffaloes, and were now
advancing steadily towards them, gradually narrowing the circle, and,
whenever the terrified animals endeavoured to break through the line,
they rushed to that particular spot in a body, and scared them back
again into the centre.

Thus they advanced until they closed in on their prey, and formed an
unbroken circle round them, whilst the poor brutes kept eddying and
surging to and fro in a confused mass, hooking and climbing upon each
other, and bellowing furiously. Suddenly the horsemen made a rush, and
the work of destruction began. The tremendous turmoil raised a cloud of
dust that obscured the field in some places, and hid it from our
hunters' view. Some of the Indians galloped round and round the circle,
sending their arrows whizzing up to the feathers in the sides of the
fattest cows. Others dashed fearlessly into the midst of the black
heaving mass, and, with their long lances, pierced dozens of them to the
heart. In many i