Show im ERSKINE DALE D A LED PIONEER by JOHN FOX jr copyrighted by chule charles t SON 1 CHAPTER XIII continued 14 sly my son eon spoke words word of truth he proclaimed sonorously lie ile warned us against the king over the wa waters end and told us to make friends with the americans we did not heed ills his words and so BO lie brought tile great chief of the long knives who stood without fear among warriors more numerous than leaves and spoke the same worda to all we are friends of the long knives my son Is the true prophet bring out the false one and crooked lightning and clack black wolf whose life my son saved though tile two were enemies my son eon shall do wah them ns as he pleases anny young braves sprang willingly forward and the three were daled haled before erskine Ersk lne old kattoo waved ills his hand toward them and sat down erskine rose and fixed his eyes sternly on the coic ring prophet pophet lie ile shall go foith from the village and shall never return por lor his words work nork mischief he be does docs foolish thin things s and his dru drumming minin frightens the game lie Is a false prophet prop liet and lie he roust must go ile he turned to crooked lt lightning the indians have made peace with the long anhel and white arrow arlow would make peace with any indian though an enemy crooked lightning shall filial go or stay as he pleases black wolf shall stay tor for the tribe will need him as a hunter and a warrior nga against dinst the english foes of the long knives white arrow does not ask another to spare nn all life ilfe and then take it away bini himself self the braves grunted approval black wolf and crooked lightning averted their faces and the prop liet shambled uneasily nay away again old kattoo proclaimed sonorously it Is and back with erskine to ills his tent there lie sank wearily on a buffalo skin and pleaded with the boy to stay with them as chief in his stead tie ile was very old and now that peace wa nab made with the long knives lie he wall wa willing to die if erskine would but give his promise lie he would never rise again from where lie lay erskine shook ills head and the old mati sorrowfully turned his face and yet erskine lingered on end and on at the village of the white woman lie he had learned little other thau than that she had been bought irom from nn other tribe and adopted by old kali too but it was plain that since the threatened burning of her the she had been bee n held in high respect by the whole tribe lie ile began to wonder about her and whether she might not wish to go back to her own people lie ile had never talked with her but he neier neer moved about the caknip that lie he did not feel her eyes upon him and early morns bloms big soft eyes too never teemed seemed to leave him she brought him bim food she ehe sat at the door of ills his tent she followed him about the village a and bore herself openly as ills lave clave at list last old kattoo Kali too who would not gli gh e up ills his great hope pleaded with him to marry her and while lie be was talking the girl stood at the door of the tent and interrupted them iler iier inot mothers bers eyes were growing dim she said bald tier her mother wanted to talk with white arrow and look upon ills his face before her sight eight should altogether pass nor could erskine know that the white woman wanted to look into the eyes of the man she elie hoped would become her dauab daughters ausba husband nd but kaeton did find he bade ersk erskene inc po go ills his foster mother coming upon the scene see tie scowled but erskine rose and went vent to the white womans comans tent she sat just inside the opening with a blanket across the lower halt half of her face nor did she look at him instead she elie plied piled him alro with nith questions and listened eagerly to ills every word ind drew fron from him every detail of ills his lire as faeback far hack as lie he could remember me aber poor ioor soul it was the first opportunity for many years that she hail had bud bad to talk with any white per son had bad been in the eastern world and freely and frankly he held nothing back liace all the while the pirl girl had bad crouched near looking at erskine with ith doglike eyes anil and when lie ruse rose to go the woman dropped the blanket from her fare face and got to her feet she lifted her ber hands took ills his face liei bei wren them bent close and studied it searchingly what Is your name erskine dale without a word she turned back into lier her tent at dusk ersline stood by the rivers brim with ills his eyes lifted to a rising tation moon and ills his thoughts with barbara on the brink bank of the james behind blin lie heard a rustle and turning lie taw tile the girl her branst throbbing arid and her eyes burning with it ft light tie he had biad never seen before clack black wolf will kill you she whispered clack wolf wants early horn orn and lie he knows that early morn wants white arrow erskine put I lott iott ott hands on her ber shoulders and looked down into her eyes sin she trembled and when ills his arms went about her she surged closer to him and tile me touch of her warm supple body bod nent through him ilk like e fire and then with a triumphant smile she pi tine lincic black adolf will see eee she wills acrea and fled earsl erskene lue sank to the ground with ills his head la in his hands the girl ran back to her tent and the mother peering at the flushed face and shining eyes clove to the truth she said nothing but when the girl was asleep and faintly smiling the white woman sat staring out into the moonlit woods softly beating her breast CHAPTER XIV erskine had given black wolf his life and the young brave had accepted the debt and fretted under it sorely and when erskine had begun to show some heed to early morn a fierce jealousy seized the savage rind and his old hatred was reborn a more strong and that too erskine now knew meat bleat ran low and a hunting party went abroad game was scarce and only after the second lay day was there a kill erskine had sighted sf glit a huge buck had fired quickly and at close range wounded the buck lind had charged erskines knife was twisted in his belt and the buck was upon him before he could get it out lie ile tried to dart for a tree stumbled turned and caught the infuriated beast by the horns borns lie he uttered no DO cry but the angry bellow of the stag reached the ears of black wolf through the woods and he darted toward the sound and he came none too soon erskine heard the crack of a rifle the stag toppled over and he saw blade black wolf standing over him with a curiously triumphant look on ills ilia saturnine face in erskine Ersk lne when he be rose the white man was predominant and he thrust out his hand but clack black wolf ignored it white arrow guie gae black wolf his life the debt Is 13 paid erskine looked at lils ills enemy nodded and the two bore tile the stag away instantly a marked change was plain in black wolf tie ile told the story of the fight with the buck to all boldly badly he throw threw oft off the mantle I 1 erskine put both hands on her seoul ders and looked down into her eyes eye of shame stalked haughtily through the village and went back to open enmity adith erskine Ersk lne at auak a day or two later when lie ho was coming down the path from the white wom ans wiggam black wolf confronted him scowling early morn shall belong to black wolf be said insolently erskine met his baleful laif balf drunk drenken en eyes scornfully we will III leave that to karly barly morn lie said coolly and then thundered suddenly out of my iny black alack wolf hesitated rind and gave way but ever thereafter ershkine Ersi Ers kine liIne was on guard in the white woman too erskine now saw it a diange change once slie she had bad encouraged cou raged him bilm to stay with the indians now she lost no opportunity to urge ng glubt it she had heard beard that hamilton would arly to retake vin cennes that lie ile was coming forming a great force with which to march south sweep through kentucky butter batter down the wooden forts and force tuc klans behind the great mountain all lar alne would be needed hy by the whites whiles who mio would never understand or trust him if lie should sta stay y with the indians all this she spoke oue one day when erskine came to her tent to talk her face had blanched she bad argued passionately that lie he must go and erskine was sorely puzzled the girl too had grown rebel liong and disobedient for tile the change a her mother was plain also to her and nil the elie could not understand moreover stubbornness grew aud and he ie began to flame within at the stalking insolence of clack black wolf who milired through the he shadows of day and tile dusk to the two here ever they came together and one day when the r un dun was midway rind and in the open of tte tle milliee vill iee the clash came clack black wolf darted forth from ills his wigwam his eyes bloodshot with rage and drink and hla his hunting knife in his hand A cry from karly early morn warned erskine and he wheeled As black wolf made a vicious slash at him he be sprung sprang aside and with his list fist caught tho the savage in the jaw black wolf fell heavily and erskine was upon him with hla his own knife at his throat stop therul old kattoo cried sternly but it was waa the ter terrified rIfled shriek of the white woman that stayed erskines era hand two young braves disarmed the fallen indian and kaliton looked inquiringly at his adopted son turn him loose 1 erskine scorned 1 I have no fear of him he Is a woman and drunk but next time I 1 shall kill him 9 the white woman had find run down caught early morn and was leading her back to her tent from inside presently came low passionate pleading from the woman and an occasional sob from the girl and when an hour later at dusk erskine turned upward toward the tent the girl gave a horrified cry flashed fl from the tenth tent and darted tor for the high cliff over the river catch her cried the mother quick erskine fled after her overtook her with her hands upraised for the plunge on the very edge of the cliff and halt half carried her struggling and sobbing back to the tent within the girl dropped in a weeping heap and with her face covered and the woman turned to erskine Ersk lne agonized 1 I told her she whispered and she was coins coln to kill herself you are my son V 0 0 boy still sleepless Ilee ples at dawn dall n the boy rode firefly into alie woods at sunset he came in gaunt with brooding and hunger ills foster mother brought him food but he would not touch it the indian woman stared at him with keen suspicion and presently old kattoo passing slowly bent on nn him the same look but asked no question erskine gave no heed to either but ills mother watching from her wigwam understood and grew fearful quickly she stepped outside and called him and he rose and went to her bewildered she was smiling ng they are watching she said and erskine Ersk lne too understood and kept his back toward the watchers i jy have decided he said you and sho she must leave here and go with me ills ilia mother pretended much displeasure she will till not leave and I 1 will not leave her her lips trembled and I 1 would have gone long azo ago but 1 I understand under sta nd interrupted Ersk erskine lne but you will go now with your son the poor woman had to scowl zo no and you yon must not tell them th the ey y will never let me go and they will use me to keep beep you here you ton must go at once she will never leave this tent as long as you are here and it if you stay she elie will die or kill hill herself some day she turned abruptly and went hack back into her tent erskine wheeled and went to old kah too you want early morn horn asked tho the old man you shall have her no said the hoy boy 1 I am going back to the big chief you are my son and I 1 am old and weak 1 I am a soldier and must obey the big chiefs commands ns as must you 1 I shall live said the old man wearily until you come again erskine nodded and went for his horse black wolf watched him with malignant satisfaction but said nothing nor did crooked lightning ers erg klue turned once as lie rode away ills mother was ns outside her wigwam Ig mournfully she waved her hand behind her and within the tent he could see early morn with both hands at her breast CHAPTER XV dawned 14 81 the war was coming coining into virginia at last virginia falling failing would thrust a great wedge through tho the center of the lie confederacy feed the british armies and end elid the fight cornwallis Cornwa llla was to drive tile the edge bedge and never had tile the opening seemed easier virginia was drained ot of her fighting men and south of the mountains was protected only by a militia fot foi the most part nf if old men iun and boys north and south ran despair the soldiers ha had t I 1 no pay little food and only old workout coats tattered linen overalls rind and one blanket between ix tween three men to pro protect act them from drifting snow and ley icy wind even the great washington was near despair le and in foreign help his big sole hope lay already the traitor arnold had bad taken richmond burned warehouses bou seft and returned but little harassed to portsmouth Cormin ills wax was coming coining on tarle tons white rangers were bedeviling bedevil ng the land and it was at this thre that erskine dale once more mere rode freily to tile the river tames james TO BE CONTINUED |