Part 11 (1/2)

”'Alas! Alas!' I cried, 'is it my fate to injure those who benefit h I an to fear that my destination was suspected at the settle the road before ht be seized, and sent a prisoner to Siberia

”Still, as long as I could, I resolved to struggle on, and trust to God's th to my feet On I went in a direct line towards the scathed pine of which Sidor had toldaccustomed to the marks on the trees, ie frolade, and the tree stood before lade, and had nearly reached the farther side, when I heard a shout, and saw several horse from the shade of the trees The thicket was before me I darted round it, and at once saw the brae To creep under the brae was the work of a rew louder and louder Had I not known of the passage I should not have had a chance of escape I searched with beating heart for the hollow ground My foot discovered it by the sound I removed the branches and the bundle of braain over me I found there was space before ed by the sound of their voices that the horsemen had reached the thicket

”'I saw him near about here, to a certainty,' said one; 'he cannot be far from this'

”'We will unearth him, the impious rebel, if he is hid near here,'

exclaiain on the other side of the thicket,' said a third

”'Let us try this place first,' cried the man who had previously spoken, and immediately several shots were fired into the thicket

”'Coether

”These words gaveof my place of concealment, and also that they possessed no superabundance of bravery or zeal Had they been very zealous, they would not have cried 'coed , while they expended their powder and shot on the harmless bushes My only fear was, that they would shoot each other It would have been wrong, you know, to wish thenorance, they thought their duty

”I lay all the ti that they would go away, and allow me to continuethey said what had become of my kind friend Sidor, but they did not mention him Still, I knew that his chance of escape was very sht be supported in his affliction

”My pursuers continued beating about the bush for so here, one on, depend on it'

”'One hunt o!' shouted another 'Unearth the miscreant!

Unearth the heretic! Drive him out from this--drive him out!--he's here, depend on it!'

”Scarcely had these words been uttered, when a nuain fired into the thicket--the people apparently loading and firing as fast as they could

”'If he is in there, he must be killed or wounded by this time, so now, men, let us try if we can find hier than his co of branches, as if the bushes were being broken and pushed aside as the people forced their way into the thicket

I could not now help feeling some apprehension that my place of retreat should be discovered, for I fancied they had got into the very pathhich led to it, and I feared that Ithe braht have broken sos, which would clearly indicatewith theht the ti about for me At last one of them exclaimed--

”'Are you satisfied that he is not here?'

”'I suppose he is not,' was the answer

”'Well, then, hethat out sooner,'

replied theshelter in the thicket

'We have given hie of it; but let us have no ain, reat relief to me My pursuers apparently worked their way out of the thicket as best they could, with torn clothes and scratched hands, and, h the wood