nse forests, which, from the surface of the stream no
human eye could penetrate in the darkness of the night. They rowed in
silence for a full hour, seeing no good place for an anchorage, and
then, at a sign from Henry, came to rest on the stream. Shif'less Sol,
strong of eye and mind, saw an unusual expression on the face of the
leader.

"What is it, Henry?" he whispered.

"I thought I heard the sound of an incautious paddle, one that splashed
water, but I'm not sure."

"Ah," said the shiftless one, "then we'll listen a little longer."

The others heard the words also, but, saying nothing, they, too,
listened. Very soon all heard the splashing of the single paddle and
then the swishing sound of many moved steadily in the waters by strong
and practiced hands.

"It's a fleet behind us," said Henry, "and a fleet on this river can
mean only Indians. Shall we pull ahead with all our might?"

"No," said Shif'less Sol. "Look how thick the bushes grow at the water's
edge. We can run our boat in among them and in all this darkness, the
Indians, whether Wyandot, Miami or Shawnee, will not know that we are
thar. Besides, curiosity is gnawin' at me hard. I want to see what's in
this Indian fleet."

"So do I," said Silent Tom Ross, speaking for the first time, and the
others also gave their assent. The boat shot diagonally across the
stream towards the dark mass of bushes, into which it was pushed slowly
and without noise by the guiding arms of the rowers. Here it came to
rest, completely hidden in the dense covert of leaves and twigs, while
its occupants could see anything that passed on the surface of the
river.

"They'll come soon," said Henry, as the sound of the paddles grew
louder, "and I should judge that they are many."

"Maybe a hundred boats and canoes," said Shif'less Sol. "It's my guess
that it's a big war party of some kind or other."

"The allied Indian nations, no doubt," said Henry thoughtfully. "Despite
their defeats in the East, they are yet almost supreme here in the
valley, and they hang together."

"Which means," said Shif'less Sol, a warlike tone coming into his voice,
"that ef some big movement is afoot, it's our task to find out what it
is an' beat it if we kin."

"Certainly," Henry whispered back. "It's what we've been doing, Sol, for
the last two or three years, and we won't stop until the work is done."

The tone of the great youth was low, but it was marked by the resolution
that he alwa