h her mother had the goodness to show me. He has a fine spirit and
a rare gift for expressing it. She and the girl were convinced by its
argument, but the Colonel himself is an obdurate Tory--he being a
favorite of the King. The girl, now very charming and much admired,
is, I happen to know, deeply in love with your son. I have promised
her that, if she will wait for him, I will bring him over in good time
and act as your vicar at the wedding. This, she and her mother are the
more ready to do because of their superstition that God has clearly
indicated him as the man who would bring her happiness and good
fortune. I find that many European women are apt to entertain and
enjoy superstition and to believe in omens--not the only drop of old
pagan blood that lingers in their veins. I am sending, by this boat,
some more books for Jack to read."

The other letter was from Margaret Hare to the boy, in which she had
said that they were glad to learn that he and Mr. Binkus were friends
of Captain Preston and inclined to help him in his trouble. "Since I
read your letter I am more in love with you than ever," she had
written. "My father was pleased with it. He thinks that all cause of
complaint will be removed. Until it is, I do not ask you to be a Tory,
but only to be patient."

Jack and Solomon were the whole day getting their horses across Van
Deusen's ferry and headed eastward in the rough road. Mr. Binkus wore
his hanger--an old Damascus blade inherited from his father--and
carried his long musket and an abundant store of ammunition; Jack wore
his two pistols, in the use of which he had become most expert.

When the horses had "got the kinks worked out," as Solomon put it, and
were a trifle tired, they browsed along quietly with the man and boy
riding before and behind them. By and by they struck into the
twenty-mile bush beyond the valley farms. In the second day of their
travel they passed an Albany trader going east with small kegs of rum
on a pack of horses and toward evening came to an Indian village. They
were both at the head of the herd.

"Stop," said Solomon as they saw the smoke of the fires ahead. "We got
to behave proper."

He put his hands to his mouth and shouted a loud halloo, which was
quickly answered. Then two old men came out to him and the talk which
followed in the Mohawk dialect was thus reported by the scout to his
companion:

"We wish to see the chief," said Solomon. "We have