cried, angrily. "Get up and
mind your oar. You caught a crab. Pull!"

Pomp scrambled back in his place, and began to pull again as hard as he
could, for my voice had rather startled him.

"What Mass' George say?" he whispered.

"Pull!"

"Yes, I pull; but what Mass' George say 'fore dat?"

"I said you caught a crab."

"Didn't! It was great big terrapum."

"I mean you put your oar in too deep."

"Den what for say catch um crab? Mass' George say Injum in de bush
shootin' at Pomp, and den he look round an' no Injum dah; Mass' George
play trick to fright um, and den call poor Pomp 'tupid lil nigger."

"Will you hold your tongue and row?" I whispered fiercely.

"Pomp can't hold um tongue and pull de oar bofe togedder."

"Hush!"

_Pow_--_ow_--_ow_--_ow_--_ow_--_ow_! Came faintly from among the trees,
and Pomp turned sharply round, with circles of white showing round the
dark part of his eyes; but this time he kept his oar out of the water,
and the boat instead of turning toward the side continued to glide
swiftly down the stream.

"Dat de Injum?" he whispered.

"Yes. Pull--hard!"

He swung round in his place, and began to row again so sturdily that I
had to work hard to keep the boat's head straight; and the stream
favouring us, we went on down at a rapid rate, though every now and then
I was obliged to whisper to him to easy as we neared some sharp curve or
sandbank, to avoid which obstacles I had to keep turning round to look
ahead.

We had been rowing steadily like this for some time now without hearing
the cries of the Indians, but I did not feel any the more confident, for
I knew enough of their habits to think that when they were most silent
the greatest danger might be near. The banks glided slowly by us, and
we had this great advantage, that even if we slackened speed the boat
still travelled fast. But Pomp worked hard, and evidently believing
that the danger was entirely past, his spirits rose again and he began
to laugh.

"Poor ole Injum," he said; "I berry sorry for um. Poor ole Injum lose
um knife. Pomp wonner what um say. How soon we get home now, Mass'
George?"

"Oh, it will take hours yet," I replied; and just then I turned my head
to see that we were rapidly approaching a ridge of sand right in the
middle of the river. I was about to give my oar a vigorous tug, when I
noted that the stream divided, and ran in two swift currents on either
side of the ridge. As we then wer