airie, and showed us
a wood on one side, with a number of large birds flitting to and fro, or
hovering about the fire.

"Some one lies there, depend upon it," said Lejoillie. "Those birds,
like the wolves, gather only to feed on the dead."

We galloped forward. On the ground before the fire lay the body of a
man, with an arrow sticking in his breast. If dead, he was only just
so, for the savage brutes had not yet commenced their banquet. As we
approached they retreated, still howling, to a distance. I threw myself
from my horse, oppressed by a terrible dread that the body was that of
my cousin. A glance at the features, on which the light of the fire
fell, convinced me of the sad fact. It seemed as if only just then the
breath had left his body, for it was still warm. I was joined by
Lejoillie, while Tim held the horses.

"We can do nothing for him, I fear," said my friend, feeling his pulse.
"Even had there been life in him, the moment we withdrew the arrow he
would have died. Let me warn you it is no safe place; the fellow who
killed him may be watching to shoot us. We must be away from this, and
it will be time enough to consider as we go along how he came here and
met with his death. We will carry him with us to the camp, poor boy,
and prevent him being torn to pieces by the wolves."

Tim was inclined to give way to a howl of sorrow in honour of the young
master, but I stopped him. He insisted, however, on carrying the body,
as the last mark of respect he could show to my uncle's son. "It would
have broken my heart entirely, Mr. Maurice, if it had been you. It's
bad enough, sure, as it is," he exclaimed, as he placed the inanimate
form across his saddle.

We galloped on, feeling that it was more than likely that we should have
a flight of arrows whistling after us.

"Sure, as I'm a living man, it's that villain Black Hawk did the deed!"
exclaimed Tim. "I saw the look he gave when he heard that Mr. Carlos
had killed Spotted Wolf. He had planned the black deed for many a day."

Lejoillie and I agreed with Tim, though how Carlos came to have been led
so far away it was at first difficult to say. Perhaps Black Hawk had
induced him to dismount, and then, taking his gun, had galloped off with
his horse. Carlos, not being able to find his way back to the camp, had
probably lighted a fire to keep off the wolves; and while seated before
it, either Black Hawk or some other Indian had shot him. Such