"Thisain'tcomfortable,"growledZane,inalowwhisper。"Themreddevilsareuptosomethin'bad。They'dbetternotmoveroundoverhere。"
　　Thehunters,satisfiedthatthetwoisolatedsavagesmeantmischief,turnedtheirgazeoncemoretowardthemaplegrove。
　　"Ah！Simonyouwhitetraitor！Seehim,Lew,comin'withhispreciousgang,"
　　saidJonathan。"He'sgotthewholethingfixed,youcanplainlyseethat。BillElliott,McKee;andwho'sthatrenegadewithJimGirty？I'llallowhemustbethefellarweheardwaswiththeChippewas。Toughlookin'customer;agoodmateferJimGirty！Afinelotofborder—hawks！"
　　"Somethin'comin'off,"whisperedWetzel,asZane'slowgrowlgrewunintelligible。
　　Jonathanfelt,ratherthansaw,Wetzeltremble。
　　"Themissionariesareconsultin'。Ah！therecomesone！Which？Iguessit'sEdwards。Bygum！who'sthatInjunstalkin'overfromthehostilebunch。Bigchief,whoeverheis。Blestifitain'tHalfKing！"
　　ThewatcherssawthechiefwavehisarmandspeakwithevidentarroganceofEdwards,who,however,advancedtotheplatformandraisehishandtoaddresstheChristians。
　　"Crack！"
　　Ashotrangoutfromthethicket。Clutchingwildlyathisbreast,themissionaryreeledback,staggered,andfell。
　　"Oneofthoseskulkin'redskinshaskilledEdwards,"saidZane。"But,no;he'snotdead！He'sgettin'up。Mebbeheain'thurtbad。Bygum！there'sYoungcomin'forward。Ofallthefools！"
　　ItwasindeedtruethatYounghadfacedtheIndians。HalfKingaddressedhimashehadtheother;butYoungraisedhishandandbeganspeaking。
　　"Crack！"
　　Anothershotrangout。Youngthrewuphishandsandfellheavily。Themissionariesrushedtowardhim。Mr。Wellsranroundthegroup,wringinghishandsasifdistracted。
　　"He'shardhit,"hissedZane,betweenhisteeth。"Youcantellthatbythewayhefell。"
　　Wetzeldidnotanswer。Helaysilentandmotionless,hislongbodyrigid,andhisfacelikemarble。
　　"Therecomestheotheryoungfellar——Joe'sbrother。He'llgetplugged,too,"
　　continuedZane,whisperingrathertohimselfthantohiscompanion。"Oh,I
　　hopedthey'dshowsomesense！It'snobleforthemtodieforChristianity,butitwon'tdonogood。Bygum！Heckewelderhaspulledhimback。Now,that'sgoodjudgment！"
　　HalfKingsteppedbeforetheChristiansandaddressedthem。Heheldinhishandablackwar—club,whichhewieldedashespoke。
　　Jonathan'sattentionwasnowdirectedfromthemaplegrovetothehunterbesidehim。Hehadheardaslightmetallicclick,asWetzelcockedhisrifle。
　　Thenhesawtheblackbarrelslowlyrise。
　　"Listen,Lew。Mebbeitain'tgoodsense。We'reafterGirty,youremember;andit'salongshotfromhere——fullthreehundredyards。"
　　"You'reright,Jack,you'reright,"answeredWetzel,breathinghard。
　　"Let'swait,andseewhatcomesoff。"
　　"Jack,Ican'tdoit。It'llmakeourjobharder;butIcan'thelpit。IcanputabulletjustovertheHuron'slefteye,an'I'mgoin'todoit。"
　　"Youcan'tdoit,Lew;youcan't！It'stoofarforanygun。Wait！Wait！"
　　whisperedJonathan,layinghishandonWetzel'sshoulder。
　　"Wait？Man,can'tyouseewhattheunnamablevillainisdoin'？"
　　"What？"askedZane,turninghiseyesagaintotheglade。
　　TheconvertedIndianssatwithbowedheads。HalfKingraisedhiswar—club,andthrewitonthegroundinfrontofthem。
　　"He'sannouncin'thedeathdecree！"hissedWetzel。
　　"Well！ifheain't！"
　　JonathanlookedatWetzel'sface。Thenherosetohisknees,ashadWetzel,andtightenedhisbelt。Heknewthatinanotherinstanttheywouldbespeedingawaythroughtheforest。
　　"Lew,myrifle'snogoodferthatdistance。Butmebbeyoursis。Yououghttoknow。It'snotsense,becausethere'sSimonGirty,andthere'sJim,themenwe'reafter。Ifyoucanhitone,youcananother。Butgoahead,Lew。Plugthatcowardlyredskin！"
　　Wetzelkneltononeknee,andthrusttheblackrifleforwardthroughthefernleaves。Slowlythefatalbarrelrosetoalevel,andbecameasmotionlessastheimmovablestones。
　　JonathanfixedhiskeengazeonthehaughtycountenanceofHalfKingashestoodwithfoldedarmsandscornfulmieninfrontoftheChristianshehadjustcondemned。
　　Evenastheshort,stingingcrackofWetzel'sriflebrokethesilence,JonathansawthefierceexpressionofHalfKing'sdarkfacechangetooneofvacantwildness。Hisarmsneverrelaxedfromtheirfoldedposition。Hefell,asfallsamonarchoftheforesttrees,adeadweight。
　　ChapterXXV。
　　"Pleasedonotpreachto—day,"saidNell,raisinghereyesimploringlytoJim'sface。
　　"Nellie,Imustconducttheservicesasusual。Icannotshirkmyduty,norlettheserenegadesseeIfeartofacethem。"
　　"Ihavesuchaqueerfeeling。Iamafraid。Idon'twanttobeleftalone。
　　Pleasedonotleaveme。"
　　Jimstrodenervouslyupanddownthelengthoftheroom。Nell'swornface,herbeseechingeyesandtremblinghandstouchedhisheart。Ratherthanalmostanythingelse,hedesiredtopleaseher,tostrengthenher;yethowcouldheshirkhisduty？
　　"Nellie,whatisityoufear？"heasked,holdingherhandstightly。
　　"Oh,Idon'tknowwhat——everything。Uncleisgrowingweakereveryday。LookatMr。Young;heisonlyashadowofhisformerself,andthisanxietyiswearingMr。Heckewelderout。Heismoreconcernedthanhedaresadmit。Youneedn'tshakeyourhead,forIknowit。ThenthoseIndianswhoarewaiting,waiting——forGodonlyknowswhat！Worsethanalltome,Isawthatrenegade,thatfearfulbeastwhomadewaywithpoordearKate！"
　　Nellburstintotears,andleanedsobbingonJim'sshoulder。
　　"Nell,I'vekeptmycourageonlybecauseofyou,"repliedJim,hisvoicetremblingslightly。
　　Shelookedupquickly。Somethinginthepalefacewhichwasbentoverhertoldthatnow,ifever,wasthetimeforawomantoforgetherself,andtocheer,toinspirethosearoundher。
　　"Iamasillybaby,andselfish！"shecried,freeingherselffromhishold。
　　"Alwaysthinkingofmyself。"Sheturnedawayandwipedthetearsfromhereyes。"Go,Jim,doyouduty;I'llstandbyandhelpyouallawomancan。"
　　ThemissionarieswereconsultinginHeckewelder'scabin。Zeisbergerhadreturnedthatmorning,andhisaggressive,dominatingspiritwasjustwhattheyneededinanhourlikethis。Heraisedthedowncastspiritsoftheministers。
　　"Holdtheservice？Ishouldsaywewill,"hedeclared,wavinghishands。
　　"Whathavewetobeafraidof？"
　　"Idonotknow,"answeredHeckewelder,shakinghisheaddoubtfully。"Idonotknowwhattofear。Girtyhimselftoldmeheboreusnoillwill;butIhardlybelievehim。Allthissilence,thisominouswaitingperplexes,bewildersme。"
　　"Gentlemen,ourdutyatleastisplain,"saidJim,impressively。"ThefaithoftheseChristianIndiansinusissoabsolutethattheyhavenofear。TheybelieveinGod,andinus。ThesethreateningsavageshavefailedsignallytoimpressourChristians。IfwedonotholdtheservicetheywillthinkwefearGirty,andthatmighthaveabadinfluence。"
　　"Iaminfavorofpostponingthepreachingforafewdays。ItellyouIamafraidofGirty'sIndians,notformyself,butfortheseChristianswhomwelovesowell。Iamafraid。"Heckewelder'sfaceboretestimonytohisanxiousdread。
　　"Youareourleader;wehavebuttoobey,"saidEdwards。"YetIthinkweoweittoourconvertstosticktoourworkuntilweareforcedbyviolencetodesist。"
　　"Ah！Whatformwillthatviolencetake？"criedHeckewelder,hisfacewhite。
　　"Youcannottellwhatthesesavagesmean。Ifear！Ifear！"
　　"Listen,Heckewelder,youmustrememberwehadthistogothroughoncebefore,"putinZeisbergerearnestly。"In'78Girtycamedownonuslikeawolfonthefold。HehadnotsomanyIndiansathisbeckandcallasnow;butheharanguedfordays,tryingtoscareusandourhandfulofChristians。Hesethisdrunkenfiendstofrightenus,andhefailed。Westuckitoutandwon。He'stryingthesamegame。Letusstandagainsthim,andholdourservicesasusual。WeshouldtrustinGod！"
　　"Nevergiveup！"criedJim。
　　"Gentlemen,youareright;youshameme,eventhoughIfeelthatIunderstandthesituationanditsdreadpossibilitiesbetterthananyoneofyou。Whateverbefallswe'llsticktoourpost。Ithankyouforrevivingthespiritinmycowardlyheart。Wewillholdtheserviceto—dayasusualandtomakeitmoreimpressive,eachshalladdressthecongregationinturn。"
　　"And,ifneedbe,wewillgiveourlivesforourChristians,"saidYoung,raisinghispaleface。
　　Thedeepmellowpealsofthechurchbellawoketheslumberingechoes。
　　ScarcelyhaditsmelodydiedawayintheforestwhenalineofIndiansissuedfromthechurchandmarchedtowardthemaplegrove。Men,women,youths,maidensandchildren。
　　Glickhican,theoldDelawarechief,headedtheline。Hisstepwasfirm,hisheaderect,hisfacecalminitsnobleausterity。Hisfollowerslikewiseexpressedintheircountenancesthesteadfastnessoftheirbelief。Themaidens'headswerebowed,butwithshyness,notfear。Thechildrenwerehappy,theirbrightfacesexpressiveofthejoythefeltintheanticipationoflisteningtotheirbelovedteachers。
　　Thisprocessionpassedbetweenrowsofpaintedsavages,standingimmovable,withfoldedarms,andsombereyes。
　　NosoonerhadtheChristiansreachedthemaplegrove,whenfromallovertheclearingappearedhostileIndians,whotookpositionsneartheknollwherethemissionariesstood。
　　Heckewelder'sfaithfullittlebandawaitedhimontheplatform。TheconvertedIndiansseatedthemselvesasusualatthefootoftheknoll。Theothersavagescrowdedcloselyonbothsides。Theycarriedtheirweapons,andmaintainedthesamesilencethathadsosingularlymarkedtheirmoodofthelasttwenty—fourhours。Nohumanskillcouldhavedivinedtheirintention。
　　Thiscoldnessmightbeonlyhabitualreserve,anditmightbeanythingelse。
　　HeckewelderapproachedatthesametimethatSimonGirtyandhisbandofrenegadesappeared。WiththerenegadeswerePipeandHalfKing。Thesetwocameslowlyacrosstheclearing,passedthroughtheopeninginthecrowd,andstoppedclosetotheplatform。
　　Heckewelderwenthurriedlyuptohismissionaries。Heseemedbesidehimselfwithexcitement,andspokewithdifficulty。
　　"Donotpreachto—day。Ihavebeenwarnedagain,"hesaid,inalowvoice。
　　"Doyouforbidit？"inquiredEdwards。
　　"No,no。Ihavenotthatauthority,butIimploreit。Wait,waituntiltheIndiansareinabettermood。"
　　Edwardsleftthegroup,and,steppingupontheplatform,facedtheChristians。
　　AtthesamemomentHalfKingstalkedmajesticallyfrombeforehisparty。Hecarriednoweaponsaveablack,knottedwar—club。Asurgingforwardofthecrowdofsavagesbehindhimshowedtheintenseinterestwhichhisactionhadaroused。Hewalkedforwarduntilhestoodhalfwaybetweentheplatformandtheconverts。HeranhisevilglanceslowlyovertheChristians,andthenrestedituponEdwards。
　　"HalfKing'sordersaretobeobeyed。Letthepalefacekeephismouthclosed,"
　　hecriedintheIndiantongue。Theimperiouscommandcameasathunderboltfromaclearsky。ThemissionariesbehindEdwardsstoodbewildered,awaitingtheoutcome。
　　ButEdwards,withoutamoment'shesitation,calmlyliftedhishandandspoke。
　　"BelovedChristians,wemeetto—dayaswehavemetbefore,aswehopetomeetin———"
　　"Spang！"
　　ThewhistlingofabulletovertheheadsoftheChristiansaccompaniedtheloudreportofarifle。Allpresentlyplainlyheardtheleadenmissilestrike。
　　Edwardswheeled,clutchinghisside,breathedhard,andthenfellheavilywithoututteringacry。HehadbeenshotbyanIndianconcealedinthethicket。
　　Foramomentnoonemoved,norspoke。themissionarieswerestrickenwithhorror;theconvertsseemedturnedtostone,andthehostilethrongwaitedsilently,astheyhadforhours。
　　"He'sshot！He'sshot！Oh,Ifearedthis！"criedHeckewelder,runningforward。
　　Themissionariesfollowedhim。Edwardswaslyingonhisback,withabloodyhandpressedtohisside。
　　"Dave,Dave,howisitwithyou？"askedHeckewelder,inavoicelowwithfear。
　　"Notbad。It'stoofarouttobebad,butitknockedmeover,"answeredEdwards,weakly。"Giveme——water。"
　　Theycarriedhimfromtheplatform,andlaidhimonthegrassunderatree。
　　YoungpressedEdwards'hand;hemurmuredsomethingthatsoundedlikeaprayer,andthenwalkedstraightupontheplatform,asheraisedhisface,whichwassublimewithawhitelight。
　　"Paleface！Back！"roaredHalfKing,ashewavedhiswar—club。
　　"YouIndiandog！Besilent！"
　　Young'sclearvoicerolledoutonthequietairsoimperiously,sopowerfulinitswonderfulscornandpassion,thatthehostilesavageswereovercomebyawe,andtheChristiansthrilledanewwithreverentiallove。
　　Youngspokeagaininavoicewhichhadlostitspassion,andwassingularlysweetinitsrichness。
　　"BelovedChristians,ifitisGod'swillthatwemustdietoproveourfaith,thenaswehavetaughtyouhowtolive,sowecanshowyouhowtodie———"
　　"Spang！"
　　Againawhistlingsoundcamewiththebellowofanoverchargedrifle;againthesickeningthudofabulletstrikingflesh。
　　Youngfellbackwardsfromtheplatform。
　　ThemissionarieslaidhimbesideEdwards,andthenstoodinshudderingsilence。AsmileshoneonYoung'spaleface;astreamofdarkbloodwelledfromhisbreast。Hislipsmoved;hewhispered:
　　"Iasknomore——God'swill。"
　　Jimlookeddownonceathisbrothermissionaries;thenwithblanchedface,butresoluteandstern,hemarchedtowardtheplatform。
　　Heckewelderranafterhim,anddraggedhimback。
　　"No！no！no！MyGod！Wouldyoubekilled？Oh！Itriedtopreventthis！"criedHeckewelder,wringinghishands。
　　Onelong,fierce,exultantyellpealedthroughoutthegrove。Itcamefromthosesilentbreastsinwhichwaspentuphatred;itgreetedthisactionwhichproclaimedvictoryoverthemissionaries。
　　AlleyesturnedonHalfKing。WithmeasuredstridehepacedtoandfrobeforetheChristianIndians。
　　Neithercoweringnorshrinkingmarkedtheirmanner;toaman,toachild,theyrosewithproudmien,headserectandeyesflashing。Thismightychiefwithhisblood—thirstycrewcouldburntheVillageofPeace,couldannihilatetheChristians,buthecouldneverchangetheirhopeandtrustinGod。
　　"Blindedfools！"criedHalfKing。"TheHuroniswise;hetellsnolies。ManymoonsagohetoldtheChristianstheyweresittinghalfwaybetweentwoangrygods,whostoodwithmouthsopenwideandlookingferociouslyateachother。
　　Iftheydidnotmovebackoutoftheroadtheywouldbegroundtopowderbytheteethofoneortheother,orboth。HalfKingurgedthemtoleavethepeacefulvillage,toforgetthepalefaceGod;totaketheirhorses,andflocks,andreturntotheirhomes。TheChristiansscornedtheHuronKing'scounsel。ThesunhassetfortheVillageofPeace。Thetimehascome。PipeandtheHuronarepowerful。TheywillnotlistentothepalefaceGod。TheywillburntheVillageofPeace。DeathtotheChristians！"
　　HalfKingthrewtheblackwar—clubwithapassionateenergyonthegrassbeforetheIndians。
　　Theyheardthisdecreeofdeathwithunflinchingfront。Eventhechildrenwerequiet。Notafacepaled,notaneyewaslowered。
　　HalfKingcasttheirdoomintheirteeth。TheChristianseyedhimwithunspokenscorn。
　　"MyGod！MyGod！ItisworsethanIthought！"moanedHeckewelder。"Utterruin！
　　Murder！Murder！"
　　Inthemomentarysilencewhichfollowedhisoutburst,atinycloudofblue—whitesmokecamefromthefernsoverhangingacliff。
　　Crack！
　　Allheardtheshotofarifle;allnoticedthedifferencebetweenitsclear,ringingintonationandtheloudreportsoftheothertwo。Alldistinctlyheardthezipofabulletasitwhistledovertheirheads。
　　All？No,notall。Onedidnothearthatspeedingbullet。Hewhowasthecentralfigureinthistragicscene,hewhohaddoomedtheChristiansmighthaveseenthattinypuffofsmokewhichheraldedhisowndoom,butbeforetheringingreportcouldreachhisearsasmallblueholeappeared,asifbymagic,overhislefteye,andpulse,andsense,andlifehadfledforever。
　　HalfKing,great,cruelchieftain,stoodstillforaninstantasifhehadbeenanimageofstone;hishaughtyheadlostitserectpoise,thefiercenessseemedtofadefromhisdarkface,hisproudplumewavedgracefullyasheswayedtoandfro,andthenfellbeforetheChristians,inertandlifeless。
　　Noonemoved;itwasasifnoonebreathed。Thesuperstitioussavagesawaitedfearfullyanotherrifleshot;anotherlightningstroke,anothervisitationfromthepaleface'sGod。
　　ButJimGirty,withacunningbornofhisterriblefear,hadrecognizedtheringofthatrifle。HehadfeltthezipofabulletwhichcouldjustasreadilyhavefoundhisbrainasHalfKing's。HehadstoodthereasfairamarkasthecruelHuron,yettheAvengerhadnotchosenhim。Washereservedforadifferentfate？WasnotsuchadeathtoomercifulforthefrontierDeathshead？
　　Heyelledinhiscravenfear:
　　"LeventdelaMort！"
　　Thewellknown,dreadedappellationarousedthesavagesfromafearfulstuporintoafiercemanifestationofhatred。Atremendousyellrenttheair。
　　Instantlythescenechanged。
　　ChapterXXVI。
　　IntheconfusionthemissionariescarriedYoungandEdwardsintoMr。Wells'
　　cabin。Nell'scalm,whitefaceshowedthatshehadexpectedsomesuchcatastropheasthis,butsheofallwastheleastexcited。HeckewelderleftthematthecabinandhurriedawaytoconsultCaptainWilliamson。WhileZeisberger,whowasskilledinsurgery,attendedtothewoundedmen,Jimbarredtheheavydoor,shuttherude,swingingwindows,andmadethecabintemporarilyarefugefromprowlingsavages。
　　Outsidetheclamorincreased。Shrillyellsrenttheair,long,rollingwar—criessoundedaboveallthedin。Themeasuredstampofmoccasinedfeet,therushofIndianspastthecabin,thedullthudofhatchetsstruckhardintothetrees——allattestedtotheexcitementofthesavages,andtheimminenceofterribledanger。
　　InthefrontroomofMr。Wells'cabinEdwardslayonabed,hisfaceturnedtothewall,andhissideexposed。Therewasabloodyholeinhiswhiteskin。
　　Zeisbergerwasprobingforthebullet。Hehadnoinstruments,savethoseofhisownmanufacture,andtheyweredarningneedleswithbentpoints,andalongknife—bladegroundthin。
　　"There,Ihaveit,"saidZeisberger。"Holdstill,Dave。There！"AsEdwardsmoanedZeisbergerdrewforththebloodybullet。"Jim,washanddressthiswound。Itisn'tbad。Davewillbeallrightinacoupleofdays。NowI'lllookatGeorge。"
　　Zeisbergerhurriedintotheotherroom。Younglaywithquietfaceandclosedeyes,breathingfaintly。Zeisbergeropenedthewoundedman'sshirtandexposedthewound,whichwasontherightside,ratherhighup。Nell,whohadfollowedZeisbergerthatshemightbeofsomeassistanceifneeded,sawhimlookatthewoundandthenturnapalefaceawayforasecond。Thathurried,shudderingmovementofthesober,practicalmissionarywasmostsignificant。ThenhebentoverYoungandinsertedonoftheprobesintothewound。Hepushedthesteelaninch,two,three,fourinchesintoYoung'sbreast,butthelatterneithermovednormoaned。Zeisbergershookhishead,andfinallyremovedtheinstrument。Heraisedthesufferer'sshouldertofindthebedsaturatedwithblood。Thebulletwoundextendedcompletelythroughthemissionary'sbody,andwasbleedingfromtheback。Zeisbergerfoldedstripsoflinseyclothintosmallpadsandboundthemtightlyoverbothaperturesofthewound。
　　"Howishe？"askedJim,whentheamateursurgeonreturnedtotheotherroom,andproceededtowashthebloodfromhishands。
　　Zeisbergershookhisheadgloomily。
　　"HowisGeorge？"whisperedEdwards,whohadheardJim'squestion。
　　"Shotthroughtherightlung。Humanskillcannotaidhim！OnlyGodcansave。"
　　"Didn'tIhearathirdshot？"whisperedDave,gazingroundwithsad,questioningeyes。"Heckewelder？"
　　"Issafe。HehasgonetoseeWilliamson。Youdidhearathirdshot。HalfKingfelldeadwithabulletoverhislefteye。HehadjustfoldedhisarmsinagrandposeafterhisdeathdecreetotheChristians。"
　　"AjudgmentofGod！"
　　"Itdoesseemso,butitcameintheformofleadendeathfromWetzel'sunerringrifle。Doyouhearallthatyelling？HalfKing'sdeathhassettheIndianswild。"
　　Therewasagentleknockatthedoor,andthentheword,"Open,"inHeckewelder'svoice。
　　Jimunbarredthedoor。Heckeweldercameincarryingoverhisshoulderwhatapparentlywasasackofmeal。HewasaccompaniedbyyoungChristy。
　　Heckewelderputthebagdown,openedit,andliftedoutalittleIndianboy。
　　Thechildgazedroundwithfearfuleyes。
　　"SaveBenny！SaveBenny！"hecried,runningtoNell,andsheclaspedhimcloselyinherarms。
　　Heckewelder'sfacewaslikemarbleasheaskedconcerningEdwards'condition。
　　"I'mnotbadlyoff,"saidthemissionarywithasmile。
　　"How'sGeorge？"whisperedHeckewelder。
　　Nooneansweredhim。Zeisbergerraisedhishands。AllfollowedHeckewelderintotheotherroom,whereYounglayinthesamepositionaswhenfirstbroughtin。Heckewelderstoodgazingdownintothewanfacewithitsterriblysignificantsmile。
　　"Ibroughthimouthere。Ipersuadedhimtocome！"whisperedHeckewelder。
　　"Oh,AlmightyGod！"hecried。Hisvoicebroke,andhisprayerendedwiththemuteeloquenceofclaspedhandsanduplifted,appealingface。
　　"Comeout,"saidZeisberger,leadinghimintothelargerroom。Theothersfollowed,andJimclosedthedoor。
　　"What'stobedone？"saidZeisberger,withhispracticalcommonsense。"WhatdidWilliamsonsay？Telluswhatyoulearned？"
　　"Wait——directly,"answeredHeckewelder,sittingdownandcoveringhisfacewithhishands。Therewasalongsilence。Atlengthheraisedhiswhitefaceandspokecalmly:
　　"Gentlemen,theVillageofPeaceisdoomed。IentreatedCaptainWilliamsontohelpus,butherefused。Saidhedarednotinterfere。IprayedthathewouldspeakatleastawordtoGirty,buthedeniedmyrequest。"
　　"Wherearetheconverts？"
　　"Imprisonedinthechurch,everyoneofthemexceptBenny。Mr。ChristyandI
　　hidthechildinthemealsackandwerethusabletogethimhere。Wemustsavehim。"
　　"Savehim？"askedNell,lookingfromHeckeweldertothetremblingIndianboy。
　　"Nellie,thesavageshavedrivenallourChristiansintothechurch,andshutthemupthere,untilGirtyandhismenshallgivethewordtocompletetheirfiendishdesign。Theconvertsaskedbutonefavor——anhourinwhichtopray。
　　Itwasgranted。Thesavagesintendtomurderthemall。"
　　"Oh！Horrible！Monstrous！"criedNell。"Howcantheybesoinhuman？"SheliftedBennyupinherarms。"They'llnevergetyou,myboy。We'llsaveyou——I'llsaveyou！"Thechildmoanedandclungtoherneck。
　　"TheyarescouringtheclearingnowforChristians,andwillsearchallthecabins。I'mpositive。"
　　"Willtheycomehere？"askedNell,turningherblazingeyesonHeckewelder。
　　"Undoubtedly。WemusttrytohideBenny。Letmethink;wherewouldbeagoodplace？We'lltryadarkcorneroftheloft。"
　　"No,no,"criedNell。
　　"PutBennyinYoung'sbed,"suggestedJim。
　　"No,no,"criedNell。
　　"Puthiminabucketandlethimdowninthewell,"whisperedEdwards,whohadlistenedintentlytotheconversation。
　　"That'sacapitalplace,"saidHeckewelder。"Butmighthenotfalloutanddrown？"
　　"Tiehiminthebucket,"saidJim。
　　"No,no,no,"criedNell。
　　"ButNellie,wemustdecideuponahidingplace,andinahurry。"
　　"I'llsaveBenny。"
　　"You？Willyoustayheretofacethosemen？JimGirtyandDeeringaresearchingthecabins。Couldyoubearittoseethem？Youcouldn't。"
　　"Oh！No,Ibelieveitwouldkillme！Thatman！thatbeast！willhecomehere？"
　　Nellgrewghastlypale,andlookedasifabouttofaint。SheshrunkinhorroratthethoughtofagainfacingGirty。"ForGod'ssake,Heckewelder,don'tlethimseeme！Don'tlethimcomein！Don't！"
　　Evenastheimploringvoiceceasedaheavythumpsoundedonthedoor。
　　"Who'sthere？"demandedHeckewelder。
　　Thump！Thump！
　　Theheavyblowsshookthecabin。Thepansrattledontheshelves。Noanswercamefromwithout。
　　"Quick！HideBenny！It'sasmuchasourlivesareworthtohavehimfoundhere,"criedHeckewelderinafiercewhisper,ashedartedtowardthedoor。
　　"Allright,allright,inamoment,"hecalledout,fumblingoverthebar。