Part 5 (2/2)
”I have lived with my uncle, but I have no desire to go back to him.”
Boone looked keenly into the face of the boy by his side and was silent a moment. ”Peleg,” he resumed, ”I meant what I said just now. If you so desire, you shall be my friend.”
”I do desire it,” said Peleg impulsively. ”There Is nothing I want so much as I do to be with you. It is good of you to think of me----”
”Say no more,” interrupted Boone. ”I shall not forget, though I may not speak to you soon of this matter again. When the time comes, I shall not fail to let you know.”
When night fell the guards of the camp were doubled, for with the coming of darkness the terror of some of the emigrants increased. There were frequent cries heard from the little children, cries which the mothers were unable to quiet and in which some of them even joined. A feeling of terror had settled over the whole camp.
To Peleg was a.s.signed a post of danger, as his position as guard was to be near the gulch. Steep as this was, it would have been possible for a warrior to climb its rocky sides if he were familiar with the spot.
Before Peleg departed for his station he was joined by Israel Boone, a younger brother of James, who insisted upon sharing the vigil. In the light of the campfire Peleg saw the face of the scout change colour when the suggestion was made by his son, but he did not offer any objection, and in spite of Sam Oliver's declaration that ”One boy was a boy and two boys was half a boy,” the leader quietly gave his consent.
When the silence of the outer night became more marked in the deepening darkness, the occasional cries of the children did not cease. They were cries not of suffering, but of terror. There were times when even the two young guards shared in the prevailing fear. The darkness that surrounded them might conceal painted warriors who were watchful of their every act. At any moment a bullet from some unseen enemy might find its way to the heart of a watching sentinel. Such a condition was not long to be endured. As the hours pa.s.sed, both boys grew more eager for the coming of the morning, when, whatever plan might be formed, at least relief from the depressing silence would come.
To Peleg no thought of any change in the plans of the emigrants had occurred, and he was therefore the more astonished the following morning when, after he had been relieved from duty and had obtained a few hours of sleep, he was informed before breakfast that the men were a.s.sembling for a council. Even his feeling of hunger was ignored in the exciting announcement which soon was made by Boone.
CHAPTER VI
SCHOOLMASTER HARGRAVE
Before breakfast had been prepared Peleg was aware of a certain partly suppressed excitement among the members of the band. The women, with tears in their eyes and with their children clinging to their skirts, frequently had been in conference with Daniel Boone or with other men of the party.
It was therefore not without some previous intimation that Peleg heard the scout summon the men to a new conference.
As soon as they were a.s.sembled Boone said, ”It will not be possible for us to proceed at this time.”
”Why not?” demanded Sam Oliver.
”The women are terror-stricken. I myself had not thought that we should so soon be attacked by the savages. I have reason to remember our stay on c.u.mberland Mountain----” For a moment the scout was silent, and an expression of sympathy ran through the entire a.s.sembly. Once more in control of his feelings, Boone continued: ”It is not for myself, as you know, that I am asking this return. It is useless, however, now to go on with such fear among our womenfolk, and the redskins opposing us more strongly the farther we go into Kantuckee.”
”Where can we go?” inquired one of the a.s.sembly.
”I have decided that our best plan is to return to the settlement on the Clinch River.”
”How far is that from here?” asked the inquirer.
”About forty miles.”
”I am not one to favour return just because we have been unfortunate----”
”There is no question,” said Daniel Boone, his eyes flas.h.i.+ng in spite of the quiet manner of his speech, ”about what we shall do. We shall make our plans to return at once.”
Whatever feeling of rebellion may have been aroused in the minds of some of his followers, the decision of the leader was not to be disputed. The confidence of every one in his courage, integrity, and judgment was so strong that no one at the time would have dared oppose the great scout.
Accordingly, hasty preparations were made for the return of the entire band, and within an hour the emigrants were on their way.
The same order was maintained which previously had been used. An advance party of five and three rear guards were formed, but now the scout had in addition a small body moving on each flank, parallel with the main body.
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