The hound, which we had taken with us, ran with his nose close to the ground, sometimes moving within a few feet of the trees, and then starting off, scouring the prairie in his search, but always returning, until he suddenly stopped before what seemed a dense thicket.  During all the time that he had been upon the scent not a cry had escaped him; indeed, he seemed to realize that silence was our only safety, and acted accordingly.

“The dog has found the trail of the bushrangers,” the convict said, suddenly halting, and waiting for the rest of us to join him.

“The dog is keen on the scent, and acts as though trained to track runaways,” cried Smith, resting his heavy axe upon the ground, and rubbing his shoulder where the skin was nearly worn off by friction.

The animal bounded towards us, wagged his tail, looked into our faces with his knowing eyes, and then trotted slowly back to the thicket before which he had halted in the first place.

“Don’t let us stand here all day under this broiling sun,” cried Fred, impatiently.  “If we are to search for bushrangers, let’s begin and get through with the job as soon as possible.”

“There is no haste,” cried the aged convict, in a tone of reproach.  “Our success depends upon the degree of caution that we employ.  Our object is to surprise the party we are in pursuit of, and not let them surprise us.”

“O, I understand,” replied Fred, indifferently; “something of the Indian style of warfare, hey?  Well, we are somewhat used to that, and can follow a trail as well as any amateur hunters in the country.”

The convict made no reply, but examined the priming of his gun, tightened the sash which he wore around his waist, and then, briefly surveying the little party, as though calculating on the relative strength of each man, he moved forward.

We gained the thicket, where the dog was awaiting us.  No entrance through the dense undergrowth met our view; and had we not known that the dog came from a breed of hounds that never deceive, we should have deemed it impossible for human beings to have entered the forest in that direction.

For some time we examined the premises to find an opening; but none appearing, Smith swung his axe over his head and let its sharp edge strike the bushes, intending to cut a passage.  As if by magic the boughs gave way, and we discovered an opening which bore the appearance of having been frequently used.

A brief examination convinced us of the fact.  The branches of young trees and the tops of the bushes were so interlaced that no one would have suspected that an entrance into the forest was possible in that quarter.  It proved to us that we were near the encampment of bushrangers, but whether the party we were in pursuit of, was more than we could tell.

We motioned to the hound to lead the way, and the noble animal, after a brief examination of the ground, trotted slowly forward.