The Coolidge examiner., 1931-06-05

|
His words remained unfinished
From behind them came II cry. Ii
! was not fierce nor one that seemed
| to carry menace, and bore with ii a
! strange and almost musical soft
| ness. Jeems knew its meaning. The
! MOhawks were on the ridge. one
of them was calling his scattered
companions to evidence of their
passing which he had discovered.
Jeems FASTENED Toinette over the
rocks.
They have found some sign Of
u.s." he explained. at may be one
of Odds claw marks on IL stone, or
the scratch from a nail in your
! shoe. Whichever il is, they only
! know we have come this way and
will still believe we have taken to
the plain"
Toinette saw how desperately ne
was trying TO keep from her the
real nearness of their peril.
| Il have seen Indians climb over
rocks and windfalls. They are like
! catS-and am so slow and
| clumsy" she said You can move
| faster than any Indian, Jeems. Hide
me somewhere among these rocks
| and go on alone. ! am sure they
will not harm me if they should
happen to discover where am"
| JeenS did not answer. They had
come to the rocks which he had
| spoken of a few moments before
| Here. if anywhere, was a place for
cOnCealment. 1t was filled with dark
and cavernOus refugees. and where
gelher were hidden pockets where
their bodies might lie unseen. Toi
nette perceived these things with
| heart that lighiened with relief
and hope. She looked into .IeemS'
face as he paused for a moment to
study the ground about them.
a dozen steps from where they
stood were three boulders apart
from the others. One of the three
| had split itself so that one-half of
II was a slab that formed a roof
for the crevice between the other
| two.
Jeems eyes revealed deeper ex-
citement as he pointed il out to
| TOinette.
I'VE will hide-and in there - he
cried. Make haste. TOinette! 1t
is smooth rock and will leave no
sign behind us. Go in and keep
Odd with yOu!"
He began to throw loose stones
about the huge boulder heap. Some
he flung over the top of ii so that
they fell on the opposite side, and
at last he sent a few into the edge
of the valley. each farther than the
other. He finished by shooting an
arrow which descended in an open
space at the foot of the ridge.
T0inette watched him in amaze
ment and alarm until he command
ed her in Sterner voice to crawl
under the stones. She waited no
longer but pulled herself a few
inches at a time beneath the boul
/ ders. Jeems, thrusting Odd ahead
of him, had greater difficulty in
performing the same feat, and for
little while they squirmed and
twisted until they found a dark re-
cess in which they could crowd
themselves and even sit upright.
JeemS explained to Toinette the
meaning of his strange behavior
outside.
First they will find the loose
stones and the marks | made and
search for us in every hole and
Granny of the pile" he said.
"When they discover the arrow
hope they will believe we have
fled into the forest"
They waited in silence where
in the heating of their hearts was
| like the sound of tiny drums in
the gloom of their hiding place. A
shudder ran through TOinette. but
she whispered: Il am not afraid"
She felt Jeens fumbling for his
hatchet and heard him place it
quietly on the naked rock at his
side.
Then the rock itself seemed to
! give forth a faint sound as if some
one had tapped it gently with a
| stick.
This sound grew into others
that were soft and swift, and
Jeems knew that mOccasined feet
were all about them. Low voices
added themselves to the pattering
tread. Toinette fixed her eyes on
the crack through which came the
shaft of light, and occasionally il
was dar6ened as body passed it.
| The tread of feet came and went,
and they heard the clatter of
rocks. But for a time all voices
died away, and it was this silence
which became almost unbearable
for TOinette. This clutch of a
danger which they could not see
or cope with seized upon her until
each moment she expected TO hear
ghOstIy creature stealing into
their hiding place or to see pair
of flaming eyes on level with
| her own. 1t was a feeling of
| horror instead of fear. and with it
| came a strong desire to cry out
and ease her suspense in a scream.
Jeems, too, had almost found
himself in the grip of something
which he could not control. Not
| more than a quarter of an hour
passed in this suspense. but it
| seemed to be a lifetime. Then
there were voices again which in
creased in number and excitement
until, above them all, a yell rose
| from the valley as one of the