hat they do not wish to tell you of it yet. So, being what you are, you
will not ask them, but wait until such time as they see fit. I think
these scratches on the lock were made by the sharp point of a hunting
knife. Garay did not succeed in opening it, though it is likely that he
would have done so if you had not interrupted him."

"When he saw me he was gone like a flash. I did not know a man could
skip through a window with so much celerity."

"One has to be skillful at such things to carry on the trade of a spy.
That is why he could have opened this lock, large and strong as it is,
with the point of his hunting knife had he been allowed time, and that
is why he flew through the window like a bird when you came upon him."

He examined the window, and then laughed a little.

"But he did not go without leaving further proof of himself," he said.
"Here on the sill is the faintest trace of blood where he bruised his
hand or wrist in his rapid flight."

"Suppose you try to trail him, Tayoga. I believe you could find out
which way he went, even here in Albany. The men will talk in there a
long time, and won't miss us. There's a fair moon."

"I will try," said Tayoga in his precise fashion. "First we will look at
the ground under the window."

They went outside and the Onondaga examined the grass beneath it, the
drop being five or six feet.

"As he had to come down hard, he ought to have left traces," said
Robert.

"So he did, Dagaeoga. I find several imprints, and there also are two or
three drops of blood, showing that he scratched his hand considerably
when he went through the window. Here go the traces, leading north.
Garay, of course, knows this immediate locality well, as he observed it
closely when he made his attempt upon you before. It is lucky that it
rained yesterday, leaving the ground soft. We may be able to follow him
quite a distance."

"If anybody can follow him, you can."

"It is friendship that makes Dagaeoga speak so. The trail continues in
its original course, though I think that sooner or later it will turn
toward the river."

"Meaning that Garay will meet the slaver somewhere, and that the natural
place of the latter is on the water."

"Dagaeoga reasons well. That, I think, is just what Garay will do. It is
likely, too, that he will curve about the town. If he went upon a hard
street we would lose him, since he would leave no trail there, but he
will keep away because he does not wish