ccounted for the
howling of the wolves deprived of their food supply and perhaps not yet
finding where it had gone.

He maintained a rapid pace, and his wet leggings and moccasins dried
gradually. The morning was frosty and cold, but wonderfully brilliant
with sunlight, and here, where the forest had been free from snow, it
glowed in autumnal colors.

He came to a deep river, but fortunately it flowed toward the northeast,
the direction in which he was willing to go, and he was glad to find it,
as he kept in the woods near its bank, thus protecting his left flank
from any encircling movement. But a strong wind was blowing toward him
and he not only heard the howling of the wolves, but the faint cry of
the savages far behind them. It made him very thoughtful. Something
unusual was going forward, since the wolves themselves were taking part
in the pursuit or were pursued also. He could not understand it, but he
resolved to dismiss it from his mind until it disclosed its own meaning.

He kept near the river, seeing it occasionally through the forest on his
left, a fine sheet of clear water, over which wild ducks and wild geese
flew, although the woods through which he ran seemed to be absolutely
bare of game.

Then the river took a sudden curve farther east and he was compelled to
turn with it. On his first impulse the thought of swimming the stream
came to him, but he dismissed it, lest some swift warrior might come up
and open fire while he was in the water, in which case, being
practically helpless, he might become an easy victim. So he turned with
the stream and, keeping its bank close on his left, he fled eastward.
But he was fully aware that the change in the course of the river
brought to him a new and great danger. The right wing of the pursuing
host, traveling not much more than half the distance, would gain upon
him very fast. Anxious not to be entrapped in such a manner he ran now
at great speed for several miles, but was compelled then to slow down,
owing to the nature of the country, which was growing very marshy.

Evidently heavy rains had fallen in this region recently, as he came to
extensive flooded areas. It annoyed him, too, that the soft ground
compelled him to leave so plain a trail, as often for considerable
stretches he sank over his moccasins at every step. He walked on fallen
timber whenever he could find it, making a break now and then in his
trail, but he knew it would not delay the Indians