nto the heart of the earth; the ball of light
no longer a phosphorescent gleam, but a flame of living fire. But it was
not long before they had descended again to the level ground, which they
traversed for some distance, then, for the first time since quitting the
farther side of the swamp, came they to a pause.

Sprigg looked around him. Nothing could he see, saving the bear, the red
moccasins behind him, the red moccasins before him; and just over the
latter the ball of light, which was now burning with such brilliancy
that the luminous hemisphere around it formed a wide and lofty dome in
the solid darkness of the cavern. For some moments past he had heard a
murmuring sound, as of abundant waters rippling over a rocky bed; and
filling all the air was a delectable perfume, as if flowery fields and
fruitful groves must be blooming and waving not far off. By this time
nothing amazed him. Nothing frightened him. He moved and felt and
thought as one in a dream; and so, indeed, had it all appeared to him
from the moment he had lost sight of his father, there at the old
hunting camp.

CHAPTER XIII.

Meg of the Hills.

"Meg of the Hills! Meg of the Hills!" So called the bear in a loud
voice; very loud, indeed, yet in the tone of the voice was something
which Sprigg had not before observed there, so deep and mellow and
musical was it. In answer to the summons, forth into the luminous
circle, from some mysterious depth of the cavern, soon came gliding a
bearess, who seemed in every way a match for the bear, excepting that
she was of a smoother, gentler type.

"Meg of the Hills, have all come home,
From mountain climb and forest roam,
From river mist and ocean foam,
From moon-rise white and sun-set red,
From elk-stag lair and bison bed,
From panther ambush still and dread,
All, all returned?"

To which the bearess answered:

"Yes all returned to Manitou den,
Save those who walk by night with men.
To bring the deeds in darkness done,
To the dread light of the tell-tale sun."

Then suddenly assuming a tone of voice as different from the former as
fiddle from violin, and with a particular eye to our hero, where he
still kept his seat on his charger's back, or rather was kept there by
the unlocked arms of Manitou-Echo, the bearess added:

"And you did find the little runaway, sure enough, Nick?"

"Aye, that did I, and a stiff-necked, stro