In another moment Pepin had landed on his back on top of his four-footed friend, wherefrom he rolled helplessly to earth.  Dorothy ran forward to help him up, but the dwarf could not see her proffered hand now—­it was Antoine he had to do business with.  He was already creeping on all-fours towards the interrupter.  Dorothy’s heart was in her mouth when Pepin, with an unexpected movement, threw his arms round the bear’s neck and proceeded to force its jaws apart with his powerful hands.  He had no twigs or old boots handy, but he meant to try the teeth in its inside by administering earth or young rocks or anything of a nature that could not exactly be called nourishing.  To add to the confusion, the Indian girl fearful that something terrible was about to happen, at once began to indulge in a weird uproar.

What would have happened it is difficult to say had not their attention been suddenly claimed by a couple of shots which rang out from the direction of the gorge.  Pepin released his hold on Antoine, and that resourceful creature took the opportunity of revenging himself by picking up his master’s hat and trotting off with it in his mouth.  He meant to put it where Pepin intended to put the little rocks.

CHAPTER XXVI

A BOLD BID FOR LIBERTY

It was midnight, and Poundmaker’s prisoners, Douglas, Pasmore, Jacques, and Rory, were lying in their tepee under the charge of their armed guards.  They knew the latter were asleep, and in answer to some proposition that Rory had just whispered to Jacques, the latter said—­

“So, that is so.  Keel him not, but to make that he cry not.  The knife to the throat, not to cut, but to silence, that is the thing.”

“S-sh! or by the powers it’s your throat the knife’ll be at.  Now, you to the man at your feet, and I’ll to the man beyant...  Ow, slape, ye gory babes!”

If the wind had not been whistling round the tepees just then, causing some of the loosely-laced hides to flap spasmodically, it is extremely unlikely that either of the two men would have ventured even to whisper.  But the tepee was dark, and Rory had managed to tell his fellow-prisoners that, if they wanted to put their much-discussed scheme of overcoming their guards and making their escape into execution, now was their time.  They might never have such another chance.  Rory, by reason of his experience of such matters in the past, had insisted on leading off with the work.  He had also intimated his intention of securing the arms of some of the other Indians after their guards had been overpowered.

Rory rolled over on his right side and looked at the Indians.  He could only see two dark, prostrate forms outlined blackly against the grey of the doorway.  Luckily the moon was rising, and that would somewhat assist their movements.