his hand:

"Oonomoo, receive the thanks of a delighted father for your kindness to
his daughter. Your repeated services have won you the gratitude of
hundreds----"

"Cap'n," said the Huron, speaking quickly and earnestly, "the Shawnees
have found de lodge ob Oonomoo--his wife runnin' trough de woods--de
Shawnees chasin' her--Oonomoo must go."

"God bless me! God bless me!" exclaimed Captain Prescott; "and here
the noble-hearted fellow has been waiting a half-hour without saying a
word, while my infernal tongue has been going all the time; that tongue
will be the death of me yet. Your wife is in danger, eh? The ----
Shawnees at their deviltry again here. See here, men," said he,
turning around, "Oonomoo's wife is in danger, and are we going to help
her out or not, eh? I want to know that. Are we going to stand by and
let him do it alone, when for twenty years he has worked night and day
for us?"

"NO!" responded every voice, in thunder tones.

"I say, Captain, if I ain't counted in this muss, I'll never smile
agin. Freeze me to death on a stump, if I won't walk into their
meat-houses in style, then my name ain't Tom Lannoch."

"Jes' place me whar tha'll be some heads to crack, with gougin' and
punchin' thrown in, and then count me in."

"And hyer's Dick Smaddock, what----"

"Order!" roared the Captain; "I'll arrange matters without any gabbing
from you. We are losing time. As we are pretty near the settlement,
and as there can be no danger between us and that, we will let the
Lieutenant take my daughter home, while we go with Oonomoo to shoot
Shawnees."

"I must protest against that," said Lieutenant Canfield. "If I thought
there could possibly be any danger to Miss Mary, I would not think of
deserting her; but surely there cannot be. I, therefore, propose that
Cato act as her guide, while all of us go to assist Oonomoo. I could
never forgive myself if I failed to requite the faithful Huron, in such
a small degree, when the opportunity is given."

The suggestion of the young soldier received the enthusiastic support
of all; but, Captain Prescott, who could not bear the thought that his
daughter should be placed in the least peril, selected one of his men,
a bronzed border-ranger, who, accompanied by Cato, started at once for
the settlement with her, which (we may as well remark here) was safely
reached by them a few hours later.

"The matter is all arranged then," said Captain Prescott, when h