him, and, seizing him by
shoulders and waist, lifted him high above his head. He held him poised
there for a moment while the multitude gazed, tense and awed. Then,
hurling him far out, he turned, faced the Wyandot chief, and said:

"To you, Timmendiquas, I surrender myself."

CHAPTER VIII

THE NORTHWARD MARCH

The great Wyandot chief inclined his head slightly, and received the
pistol, hatchet, and knife which Henry drew from his belt. Then he said
in the grave Wyandot tongue:

"It is the second time that Ware has become my prisoner, and I am proud.
He is truly a great warrior. Never have I seen such a fight as that
which he has just made, the strength of one against six, and the one was
triumphant."

A murmur of approval from the warriors followed his words. Like the old
Greeks, the Indians admired size, symmetry and strength, qualities so
necessary to them in their daily lives, and Henry, as he stood there,
wet with perspiration and breathing heavily, exemplified all that they
considered best in man. Few of these savage warriors had any intention
of sparing him. They would have burned him at the stake with delight,
and, with equal delight, they would have praised him had he never
uttered a groan--it would only be another proof of his greatness.

Braxton Wyatt pressed nearer. There was joy in his evil heart over the
capture of his enemy, but it was not unalloyed. He knew the friendship
that Timmendiquas bore for Henry, and he feared that through it the
prisoner might escape the usual fate of captives. It was his part to
prevent any such disaster and he had thought already of a method. He
dreaded the power of Timmendiquas, but he was bold and he proposed to
dare it nevertheless.

"Will you take the prisoner South with you," he said to Colonel Bird.

"I have surrendered to Timmendiquas," said Henry.

"This is the camp of Colonel Bird," said Wyatt in as mild a tone as he
could assume, "and of course anyone taken here is his prisoner."

"That is true," said Simon Girty, whose influence was great among the
Indians, particularly the Shawnees.

Timmendiquas said not a word, nor did Henry. Both saw the appeal to the
pride of Bird who pulled his mustache, while his ugly face grew uglier.

"Yes, it is so," he said at last. "The prisoner is mine, since he was
taken in my camp."

Then Timmendiquas spoke very quietly, but, underlying every word, was a
menace, which Wyatt, Girty and Bird alike felt and hee