MY confidence was restored, and with it my powers ofendurance. Sleep was out of the question. The night wasbright and frosty; and there was not heat enough in my bodyto dry my flannel shirt. I made shift to pull up some briarbushes; and, piling them round me as a screen, got somelittle shelter from the light breeze. For hours I laywatching Alpha Centauri - the double star of the Great Bear'spointers - dipping under the Polar star like the hour hand ofa clock. My thoughts, strange to say, ran little on themorrow; they dwelt almost solely upon William Nelson. Howfar was I responsible, to what extent to blame, for leadinghim, against his will, to death? I re-enacted the wholeevent. Again he was in my hands, still breathing when I lethim go, knowing, as I did so, that the deed consigned himliving to his grave. In this way I passed the night.
Just as the first streaks of the longed-for dawn broke in theEast, I heard distant cries which sounded like the whoops ofIndians. Then they ceased, but presently began again muchnearer than before. There was no mistake about them now, -they were the yappings of a pack of wolves, clearly enough,upon our track of yesterday. A few minutes more, and thelight, though still dim, revealed their presence coming on atfull gallop. In vain I sought for stick or stone. Even theriver, though I took to it, would not save me if they meantmischief. When they saw me they slackened their pace. I didnot move. They then halted, and forming a half-moon somethirty yards off, squatted on their haunches, and began atintervals to throw up their heads and howl.
My chief hope was in the coming daylight. They were lesslikely to attack a man then than in the dark. I had oftenmet one or two together when hunting; these had alwaysbolted. But I had never seen a pack before; and I knew apack meant that they were after food. All depended on theirhunger.
When I kept still they got up, advanced a yard or two, thenrepeated their former game. Every minute the light grewstronger; its warmer tints heralded the rising sun. Seeing,however, that my passivity encouraged them, and convincedthat a single step in retreat would bring the pack upon me, Idetermined in a moment of inspiration to run amuck, and trustto Providence for the consequences. Flinging my arms wildlyinto the air, and frantically yelling with all my lungs, Idashed straight in for the lot of them. They were, as Iexpected, taken by surprise. They jumped to their feet andturned tail, but again stopped - this time farther off, andhowled with vexation at having to wait till their preysuccumbed.
The sun rose. Samson was on the move. I shouted to him, andhe to me. Finding me thus reinforced the enemy slunk off,and I was not sorry to see the last of my ugly foes. I nowrepeated my instructions about our trysting place, waitedpatiently till Samson had breakfasted (which he did with themost exasperating deliberation), saw him saddle my horse andleave his camp. I then started upon my travels up the river,to meet him. After a mile or so, the high ground on bothbanks obliged us to make some little detour. We then lostsight of each other; nor was he to be seen when I reached theappointed spot.
Long before I did so I began to feel the effects of mylabours. My naked feet were in a terrible state from thecactus thorns, which I had been unable to avoid in the dark;occasional stones, too, had bruised and made them verytender. Unable to shuffle on at more than two miles an hourat fastest, the happy thought occurred to me of tearing up myshirt and binding a half round each foot. This enabled me toget on much better; but when the September sun was high, myunprotected skin and head paid the penalty. I waited for acouple of hours, I dare say, hoping Samson would appear. Butconcluding at length that he had arrived long before me,through the slowness of my early progress, and had gonefurther up the river - thinking perhaps that I had meant someother place - I gave him up; and, full of internal 'd-n' athis incorrigible consistency, plodded on and on for - I knewnot where.
Why, it may be asked, did I not try to cross where I hadintended? I must confess my want of courage. True, theriver here was not half, not a third, of the width of thescene of my disasters; but I was weak in body and in mind.
Had anything human been on the other side to see me - to seehow brave I was, (alas! poor human nature!) - I could haveplucked up heart to risk it. It would have been such acomfort to have some one to see me drown! But it isdifficult to play the hero with no spectators save oneself.
I shall always have a fellow-feeling with the Last Man:
practically, my position was about as uncomfortable as hiswill be.
One of the worst features of it was, what we so oftensuffered from before - the inaccessibility of water. The sunwas broiling, and the and soil reflected its scorching rays.
I was feverish from exhaustion, and there was nothing,nothing to look forward to. Mile after mile I crawled along,sometimes half disposed to turn back, and try the deep butnarrow passage; then that inexhaustible fountain of lasthopes - the Unknown - tempted me to go forward. Ipersevered; when behold! as I passed a rock, an Indian stoodbefore me.
He was as naked as I was. Over his shoulder he carried aspear as long as a salmon rod. Though neither had foreseenthe other, he was absolutely unmoved, showed no surprise, nocuriosity, no concern. He stood still, and let me come up tohim. My only, or rather my uppermost, feeling was gladness.
Of course the thought crossed me of what he might do if heowed the white skins a grudge. If any white man had everharmed one of his tribe, I was at his mercy; and it wascertain that he would show me none. He was a tall powerfulman, and in my then condition he could have done what hepleased with me. Friday was my model; the red man wasRobinson Crusoe. I kneeled at his feet, and touched theground with my forehead. He did not seem the least elated bymy humility: there was not a spark of vanity in him.
Indeed, except for its hideousness and brutality, his facewas without expression.
I now proceeded to make a drawing, with my finger, in thesand, of a mule in the water; while I imitated by pantomimethe struggles of the drowning. I t............