so far that it
would have been cruel to leave her behind. We shouted as we went on, to
Dio, but his voice did not reply. That we were on his trail was
certain, for we could see the twigs, which he or some one else had
broken off, but whether the girls had gone in the same direction, we
were doubtful. At length we came to a spot where we discovered the
marks of several feet. Mr Tidey stopped, and, stooping down, examined
them minutely.

"The marks are those of moccasins!" he exclaimed. "Indians must have
been here, and if so, it is too probable that the dear girls may have
fallen into their hands. Even the worst savages cannot intend to harm
them, but may hope to obtain a ransom, or perhaps when we set off to try
and recover them, they may expect to cut us off in detail, or to attack
the farm when most of the defenders are away, with a better chance of
success. We must be cautious, therefore, as we proceed, but still I
hope we can defeat their object."

"Though Indians may have been here, we have no proof that they have
taken Kathleen and Lily prisoners," I observed.

We had not gone far, perhaps ten paces, after I made this remark, when
Rose, darting towards a bush, picked up from beneath it a small piece of
ribbon, which she at once pronounced to be part of the tie of Lily's
large straw hat. This settled the question, though how she managed to
tear off the string so as to leave it as an indication of the direction
they had taken, it was difficult to say. Was it done on purpose, or had
it been torn off in a struggle she might have made to escape. One thing
was certain. We must continue the pursuit. We hoped every instant to
overtake the black, but we were now afraid of shouting, lest the Indians
should hear us, and be warned of our approach. On and on we went. The
sun had set, and darkness shrouded the lower part of the forest. In a
few minutes the moon, still almost at the full, rose and enabled us to
see our way as well as in daylight, accustomed as we were to be out at
night; at the same time it was difficult to distinguish the trail which
had hitherto guided us. We had been going for some time in the
direction of the lake, the western edge of which extended along the base
of the mountains. It was fed by streams descending from them. Although
not a broad lake, it reached a long way to the southward, and I began to
fear that should Indians have carried off the girls, they might have
embarked on t