“I took the hatchet that he gave me to cut some branches for a fire, and went to work very meekly, with my head down.

“I dared not speak to Mary, for fear he might see me, for his eyes were fixed on me every moment.  I baked his corn cake in the ashes, and gave it to him.  By this time it was dark, but the light from our fire shone far out into the woods.

“I noticed Red Feather did not watch me so closely, and his eyes would now and then shut, for he was very tired.

“He leaned forward to light his pipe in the ashes, when instantly, almost without thinking, I seized the hatchet, and struck him with all my might.

“With a loud scream, I plunged into the woods toward home.  Turning an instant, I saw Mary spring up, totter, and fall.  With another sharp report came a twinge of pain in my side.  Suddenly I fell, and in the darkness of the woods, they passed on, leaving me stunned and nearly dead.

“I will not tell you now, my dear Robbie, how I was cared for, and who brought home little Mary and laid her to rest under the elm, beside mother—­but the bullet that struck me then, I still carry in my side, and shall as long as I live.

“Many years have passed since that terrible day, but I can never forget it.  As long as the history of this country lasts, Indian Spring will be remembered, and other boys will listen, with eyes as wide open as yours, to the tale it has to tell.”

* * * * *

Directions for Reading.—­Should the second or third paragraph of the lesson be read the faster?

When do we speak more rapidly—­in telling an exciting story, or in common conversation?

Do our feelings guide us when we speak slowly or rapidly?—­when, we speak quietly or forcibly?

Point out three paragraphs in the lesson that you would read as slowly as Lesson XIII.; three that you would read more rapidly.

In reading rapidly, be careful not to omit syllables, and not to run words together. (See Directions for Reading, page 42.)[05]

[05] See Lesson VII.

* * * * *

LESSON XV.

aft, near the stern of a ship.

anch’or, a large iron for holding a ship.

aimed, directed or pointed at, as a gun.

car’tridge, a small case containing powder and ball.

mood, state of mind; temper.

sul’try, very hot.

cleav’ing, cutting through; dividing.

dis cov’ered, found out; seen clearly.

buoys, floats, made of wood, hollow iron, or copper.

re sults’, what follows an act.

* * * * *

AN ADVENTURE WITH A SHARK.

Our noble ship lay at anchor in the Bay of Tangiers, a town in the north-west part of Africa.