restrain them when a stretch of hard snow or ice tempted
them to have a scamper.

The road thus beaten over the prairie by Okematan, though a
comparatively soft one, was by no means smooth, and the rough motion
would, in ordinary circumstances, have rendered sleep impossible to our
hero; but it need hardly be said that it failed to disturb him on the
present occasion. He slept like an infant throughout the whole night;
cared nothing for the many plunges down the prairie waves, and recked
not of the frequent jerks out of the hollows.

Hour after hour did Peter Davidson with his silent companion trudge over
the monotonous plains--hope in the ascendant, and vigour, apparently,
inexhaustible. The dogs, too, were good and strong. A brief halt now
and then of a few minutes sufficed to freshen them for every new start.
Night passed away, and daylight came in with its ghostly revelations of
bushes that looked like bears or buffaloes, and snow-wreaths that
suggested the buried forms of frozen men.

Then the sun arose and scattered these sombre visions of early morning
with its gladdening, soul-reviving rays.

At this point the rescue-party chanced to have reached one of those
bluffs of woodland which at that time speckled the plains--though they
were few indeed and far between.

"Breakfast," said Peter, heaving a profound sigh as he turned about and
checked the teams, for at that point he happened to be in advance
beating the track.

Okematan expressed his entire concurrence with an emphatic "Ho!" The
wearied dogs lay down in their tracks, shot out their tongues, panted,
and looked amiable, for well they knew the meaning of the word
"breakfast" and the relative halt.

The sudden stoppage awoke the sleeper, and he struggled to rise.

"Hallo! What's wrong? Where am I? Have the Redskins got hold o' me at
last?"

"Ay, that they have. At least one Red-skin has got you," said Peter.
"Have a care, man, don't struggle so violently. Okematan won't scalp
you."

The sound of his brother's voice quieted Davidson, and at once restored
his memory.

"Cast me loose, Peter," he said; "you're a good fellow. I see you have
brought me along wi' you, and I feel like a giant refreshed now, tho'
somewhat stiff. Have we come far?"

"I don't know how far we've come, but I know that we've been pegging
along the whole night, and that we must have breakfast before we take
another step. It's all very well for you, Dan, to lie th