The smoke swept down upon her, and when I next could see, she was stooped with her shawl drawn around her head; or was she on her knees?  Then she rose, and turning from the fire, ran as fast as she could, until I wheeled my horse across her path, jumped to the ground and stopped her with my arm about her waist.  I looked at her.  It was Rowena Fewkes.

“Rowena,” I shouted, “what you doin’ here?  Don’t you know you’ll get burnt up?”

“I couldn’t go any closer,” she said, as if excusing herself.  “Would it hurt much?  I got scared, Jake.  Oh, don’t let me burn!”

There was no chance to make the circuit of the slew now, even if I had not been hampered with her.  I told her to do as she was told, and not bother me.  Then I gave her the horse to hold, and sternly ordered her not to let loose of him no matter what he did.

I gathered a little armful of dry grass, and lighted it with a match to the leeward of us.  It spread fast, though I lighted it where the grass was thin so as to avoid a hot fire; but on the side toward the wind, where the blaze was feeble, I carefully whipped it out with my slouch hat.  In a minute, or so, I had a line two or three rods long, of little blazes, each a circle of fire burning more and more fiercely on the leeward side, and more feebly on the side where the blaze was fanned away from its fuel.  This side of each circle I whipped out with my hat, some of them with difficulty.  Soon, we had a fierce fire raging, leaving in front of us a growing area of black ashes.  We were now between two fires; the great conflagration from which we were trying to protect ourselves came on from the west like a roaring tornado, its ashes falling all about us, its hot breath beginning to scorch us, its snapping and crackling now reaching the ear along with its roar; while on the east was the fire of my own kindling, growing in speed, racing off away from us, leaving behind it our haven of refuge, a tract swept clean of food for the flames, but hot and smoking, and as yet all too small to be safe, for the heat and smoke might kill where the flames could not reach.  Between the two fires was the fast narrowing strip of dry grass from which we must soon move.  Our safety lay in the following of one fire to escape the other.

The main army of the flames coming on from the west, with its power of suction, fanned itself to a faster pace than our new line could attain, and the heat increased, both from the racing crimson line to the west, and the slower-moving back-fire on the other side.  We sweltered and almost suffocated.  Rowena buried her face in her shawl, and swayed as if falling.  I took her by the arm, and leading the excited horse, we moved over into our zone of safety.  She was trembling like a leaf.