tender caress of her hand; but her efforts were
unavailing. The ears were now turned backwards, and had assumed that
curiously vicious inclination which in a horse is indicative of bad
temper or equine terror. Kitty had no vice in her, and Prudence
quickly understood the nature of her mare's feelings.

The failure of her soothing efforts alarmed the girl. She sat up and
looked about her. In the dense forest there seemed to be no unusual
appearance. The trees were waving and bending in the wind, and their
groanings had a sadly mournful effect, upon the scene, but otherwise
there was nothing strange to be observed. The sky had assumed a leaden
hue, and in this direction the prospect was not alluring, but the
clouds were fairly high and there was no suggestion of immediate
storm.

Suddenly a couple of jack-rabbits darted across the road. The mare
"propped," reared, and swung round towards the trees. Prudence brought
her up to her work sharply. Then she saw that the rabbits were racing
on ahead, down the trail. For the moment her patience gave way, and
she dug her heel hard against Kitty's side and the mare plunged
forward. But her gait remained unsteady, and in her agitation she kept
changing her stride, and once even tripped and nearly fell.

A coyote followed by his mate and two young ones ran out on to the
trail and raced along ahead of her. They did not even turn their heads
to look at her. Further on a great timber-wolf appeared and trotted
along the edge of the woods, every now and then turning its head
furtively to glance back.

Then quite suddenly Prudence became conscious of something unusual.
She raised her face to the grey vault of the sky and sniffed at the
air. A pungent scent was borne upon the wind. The odour of resinous
wood, so strong as to be sickly, came to her, and its pungency was not
the ordinary scent of the forest about her.

Half-a-dozen kit-foxes dashed out on to the trail and joined in the
race, and the "yowl" of the prairie dog warned her that other animals
were about. The resinous odour grew stronger every moment, and at last
Prudence detected the smell of smoke. She turned her head and looked
back; and behind her, directly in her wake, she saw a thin grey haze
which the wind was sweeping along above the trees.

She drew her mare up to a stand, and as she sat looking back, a deadly
fear crept into her eyes. Kitty resented the delay and reared and
plunged in protest The restraint maddened