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Running Fox

<h1 id='t3550'>CHAPTER IX—FORCED INTO HIDING</h1> The Delawares had not gone far when they heard sounds which convinced them that the Mohawks were already searching for them. The thought spurred them to greater efforts, and they scrambled frantically to the top of a low hardwood ridge to reconnoiter. They saw what appeared to be a large spruce swamp directly ahead of them, and they determined to make it their hiding place. “If we reach that place it will be hard for the Mohawks to find us,” said Running Fox. As they started down the ridge, however, the piercing Mohawk war-cry rang in their ears, and an arrow hummed angrily between them. Spotted Deer instantly turned to fight, but Running Fox seized his arm and dragged him forward. “Run! If we stop we may be surrounded!” cried Running Fox. They tore through the undergrowth at top speed and another arrow flew harmlessly above their heads. As they ran Running Fox continued to shout, “Saganaga! Saganaga!” It was the name by which the Delawares were known to the Iroquois, and Spotted Deer could not guess his reason for proclaiming his identity. They heard the Mohawk yelling savagely somewhere behind them, and they knew that he was leading his comrades to the trail. “Let us wait, and kill that warrior,” proposed Spotted Deer. “Yes, yes, as soon as we get to the swamp,” replied Running Fox. However, as they neared the swamp they heard other cries still farther behind them, and they realized that more Mohawks had joined the chase. Then the cries and signals suddenly ceased, and the Delawares knew that their foes were hurrying along in silence in the hope of surprising them. The lads dared not slacken their pace, and when they finally reached the border of the swamp they were almost exhausted. Then they turned at bay, and waited in ambush to kill the Mohawk who had attacked them on the summit of the ridge. “How did that warrior come up with us so fast?” inquired Spotted Deer, “Well, I believe that warrior was there all the time,” declared Running Fox. “Perhaps he was traveling along that ridge when he heard the danger cry of his people. Then he stopped to listen. Pretty soon he heard us coming through there. Then he tried to kill us. I do not believe he knows who we are.” “Then why did you keep calling out ‘Saganaga’?” demanded Spotted Deer. “Now he will know that we are Delawares.” “No, he will not know it,” laughed Running Fox. “I called out that way to fool him. He will take us for Shawnees. Yes, he will say, ‘Hi, the frightened Shawanos took me for a Saganaga.’ Yes, he will tell his people about it. They will take us for the boastful Shawnees.” “Running Fox, you are very sharp,” said Spotted Deer. “Now I see that you have done a good thing. But we must kill that warrior who found us on the ridge. Yes, he will lead his people to this place, and perhaps they will find us.” “Well, I would like to kill him, but I do not believe he will rush ahead alone,” replied Running Fox. “Perhaps he was with a war-party. I believe the best thing we can do will be to go into this big swamp and hide.” They watched and listened a few moments longer, and then they retreated into the dreary depths of the swamp. Two-thirds of the day had passed, and they believed that it would be impossible for the Mohawks to find them before it grew dark. Then they hoped to steal away under cover of the night. However, the Mohawks seemed determined to transform the swamp into a trap, for instead of following the fugitives they scattered and surrounded their hiding place. At nightfall the Delawares heard them signaling on all sides of them, and their hearts filled with gloom. Running Fox began to fear that he had blundered. “Spotted Deer, I believe we have done a foolish thing,” he said, bitterly. “Yes, I believe we should have kept out of this place.” “The Mohawks cannot find us here,” Spotted Deer declared, confidently. “Well, I am not sure about it,” replied Running Fox. “But it will be hard to get away.” It was too late for regrets, however, and the Delawares determined to make the best of their predicament. When it grew dark, therefore, they began a cautions advance toward the edge of the swamp. They moved through the darkness as silently as phantoms. They had gone a considerable distance when Running Fox suddenly stopped and whispered a warning to Spotted Deer, who was following a bow-length behind him. “Listen, something is coming,” cautioned Running Fox. “Where is it?” inquired Spotted Deer. “Sh,” breathed Running Fox. Then, as they hastily prepared their arrows and stood there endeavoring to identify the sound, they heard stealthy footfalls somewhere ahead of them. They had little doubt that it was one of their foes. They wondered if it was the warrior who had surprised them on the ridge. A moment later a pair of great glassy eyes glowed in the darkness, and then they heard a frightened snort. The next instant a deer crashed off toward the border of the swamp. “It was only Achtu,” said Spotted Deer. “It is bad,” declared Running Fox. “If the Mohawks are watching they will hear Achtu. Then they will say, ‘Something has frightened that deer. Perhaps it was the people we are looking for.’ Yes, they will know where we are. We must turn and go a different way.” “Yes, I believe it would be a good thing to do,” agreed Spotted Deer. The lads immediately changed their course, and planned to leave the swamp farther to the west. They were moving cautiously in that direction when they heard the call of Gokhos, the owl. They felt quite sure it was a signal. In a few moments it was answered by the husky harking of Woakus, the fox. Both calls seemed to come from somewhere in the swamp, and the Delawares feared that the Mohawks had sent scouts to explore their hiding place. “The scouts have come to find us,” said Running Fox. “We will fool them.” They were almost at the border of the swamp when they were turned back by voices directly ahead of them. Then, as they retreated into the night, they again heard the short, quick yapping of Woakus, the fox. This time it seemed to be almost within bow-shot, and the lads realized their peril. They stopped and waited for the Mohawk scout to pass them. In a few moments they heard him. Then he seemed to stop, and the Delawares wondered if he had discovered them. Long, anxious moments passed while they stood there, with arrows ready, peering expectantly into the night. At last, however, they heard their foe moving toward the edge of the swamp, and they knew that for the moment at least they were safe. “We must go back to the place we came from,” whispered Running Fox. “The Mohawks are all around us. We cannot get away.” “We will hide until they go away,” said Spotted Deer. They began a slow, cautious retreat toward the middle of the swamp. They were stopped many times by mysterious sounds which often seemed within bow-length of them, but each time the danger passed, and they finally gained the depths of the swamp in safety. Then they concealed themselves in the dense top of a fallen hemlock, and determined to stay there until daylight. “Now we must find a better place,” said Running Fox, as the soft gray light of dawn penetrated their hiding place. “Pretty soon the Mohawks will come here to look for us. Then we must hide as close as Wisawanik, the squirrel.” “This is a good place,” replied Spotted Deer. “If we keep still it will be hard to see us in here.” “No, I do not like this place,” declared Running Fox. “The Mohawks will be sure to look into this tree-top. We must hide where they will not expect to find us.” “Where shall we go?” asked Spotted Deer. “Come, I will find a place,” Running Fox assured him. Running Fox led the way to a great black spruce with low sweeping branches. Then, as he began to climb, he asked Spotted Deer to remain upon the ground. When Running Fox finally settled himself well up toward the top of the tree, he called down to Spotted Deer and asked if he could see him. “No, I do not see anything of you,” replied Spotted Deer, after he had walked carefully about the tree. “That is good,” said Running Fox. “Now you must climb up here.” As Spotted Deer began to climb they heard the first Mohawk signal. It sounded a short distance south of them. In a few moments they heard other signals from the east, the west and the north. “The Mohawks have made a circle,” said Running Fox. “Pretty soon they will draw together. Well, I do not believe they will find anything in their trap.” “No, Wisawanik has told us how to hide, and we will fool them,” laughed Spotted Deer. It was a long time before the lads heard anything further from their foes. Then a flock of crows made a great commotion a short distance to the right of them, and the Delawares believed that the noisy birds had discovered one of the Mohawk scouts. They took delight in picturing the rage of the helpless Mohawk as he heard the crows proclaiming his advance to all within hearing distance of them. “Ahas is warning us,” whispered Running Fox. “We must watch sharp.” “Ahas is a good friend,” replied Spotted Deer. When they had watched a long time without seeing any one they decided that either Ahas had fooled them, or else the Mohawk had turned in some other direction. Then the noise began again, and this time the crows were much nearer. Peering carefully through the branches, the Delawares saw them circling about above the tree-tops. As-they watched them, and realized that the Mohawk scout might move directly toward their hiding place, the lads suddenly understood their peril. “I do not like that,” Running Fox said, uneasily. “If Ahas flies this way it will be bad. Yes, he will see us, and make a great noise. Then the Mohawks will know where to find us.” “That is true,” agreed Spotted Deer. They watched the crows with great anxiety. The birds were flying about in short circles, and making a great racket. Then some of the crows swung off, and flew directly toward the stand of spruces in which the Delawares had taken refuge. “Now we will see what is going to happen,” said Spotted Deer. “Keep very still,” cautioned Running Fox. As the crows approached their hiding place the Delawares huddled close to the trunk of the tree, and sat as motionless as statues. The crows passed so near that the lads distinctly heard the sound of their wings. They escaped discovery, however, and the thought gave them confidence. “See, those other birds are going away,” Spotted Deer whispered, excitedly, a few moments afterward. The crows had suddenly ceased their noise, and were flying off toward the opposite end of the swamp. The Delawares watched them with thankful hearts. They believed that Getanittowit had suddenly chased them away. However, the lads knew that the danger was far from over, for at that moment they heard a signal within bow-shot of their tree. A few moments afterward they heard an answer. Then they heard twigs snapping, and they looked at each other in alarm. “The Mohawks are here,” whispered Running Fox. They looked carefully down between the branches and saw a Mohawk warrior emerge from the shadows. He stopped within bow-length of the spruce, and the lads breathed fast with excitement. Then they heard him speak, and they saw that another Mohawk had joined him. The newcomer had approached so quietly that they had failed to hear him, and they realized how easily one of those soft-footed scouts might steal upon them under cover of the night. The two Mohawks exchanged a few words, and then they moved cautiously toward the top of the fallen hemlock. The lads trembled as they realized what would have happened if they had remained in that hiding place. The Mohawks stooped and looked carefully into the dense tangle of branches, and then they seated themselves upon the prostrate trunk. It was not long, however, before another signal sounded close at hand, and one of the warriors raised his hands to his mouth and imitated the gobble of the wild turkey. It brought an immediate response, and soon afterward a third warrior appeared. It looked as if the Mohawks had selected that very spot for a meeting place, and the alarmed Delawares feared the result. They knew that at any moment one of the keen-eyed scouts might decide to look into the tree-tops, and the possibility kept them in painful suspense. Signals were constantly being exchanged between the scouts who had met, and those who were still searching the swamp, and the crafty Delawares were careful to memorize the calls. When the signaling finally ceased the lads courted ten Mohawks sitting in council near the base of the spruce. They were stern, fierce looking men, and the Delawares could easily guess what their fate would be if they fell into their hands. Finally, after what seemed an eternity to the anxious lads in the tree-top, the Mohawks rose and prepared to leave. However, at the very moment when the Delawares were rejoicing in their good fortune, one of the scouts turned and looked toward the big spruce. The lads believed that in some mysterious way he had suddenly learned their whereabouts. Their hearts almost stopped beating at the thought. The Mohawk was still looking up at the tree, and saying something to one of his companions. That warrior, too, seemed to have discovered something of interest in the top of the spruce. The Delawares were almost afraid to breathe. They knew that the slightest move would betray them. Then as the moments passed, and the Mohawks showed no intention of attacking them, they began to hope that they had not been seen. Still the two Mohawks continued to talk, and watch the tree. The other scouts had already passed from sight. “Come, these warriors are alone, let us kill them before they tell their friends about us,” whispered Spotted Deer. “No, we must wait until we are sure they have found us,” cautioned Running Fox. A moment afterward they saw the wisdom of his advice, for the two Mohawks turned and disappeared after their comrades. The Delawares looked after them in wide-eyed astonishment. They could scarcely believe that they had gone. “See, the robe Wisawanik gave us hides us from our enemies,” said Running Fox. “Yes, Ahas flew over us, and could not find us. Then the boastful Mohawks looked into this tree, and could not see us.” “Perhaps the Mohawks have gone to tell their friends about us,” suggested Spotted Deer. “Perhaps they will come back.” “No, they would not leave us here to get away,” replied Running Fox. “I believe that warrior was looking at this great tree. Yes, I believe he was telling his friend something about it. Perhaps something happened to him at this place. I do not believe he saw us.” However, the lads watched anxiously for some time after the Mohawks had disappeared. More than once they thought they heard them returning, but as the time passed and they failed to appear the Delawares began to hope that they had actually left the swamp. They had little doubt that other Mohawks were stationed along the boundaries of the swamp, and they believed it would be folly to attempt to leave their hiding place before their foes had abandoned the search. They felt quite certain that the Mohawks would loiter along the edge of the swamp through the night, hoping that the fugitives would attempt to escape under cover of darkness. Therefore, the wily Delawares determined to remain in the swamp until the following day. “It is the best thing to do,” declared Running Fox. “If the Mohawks do not hear anything of us when it grows dark, then I believe they will give up the hunt. Yes, I believe they will go away before the next sun appears.” “You are a good leader,” Spotted Dear declared, loyally, “You have fooled the Mohawks. Now I believe we will get out of here.” <div style="break-after:column;"></div>

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