His brother got away. The Indians were very angry with John. They did
not kill him. But they gave him a good beating. These Indians were
from Can-a-da. They took their pris-on-ers to their own village. When
they were coming home, they shouted to let the people know that they
had prisoners.

[Illustration: Stark running the Gauntlet]

The young Indian war-ri-ors stood in two rows in the village. Each
prisoner had to run between these two rows of Indians. As he passed,
every one of the Indians hit him as hard as he could with a stick, or
a club, or a stone.

The young man who was with Stark was badly hurt in running between
these lines. But John Stark knew the Indians. He knew that they liked
a brave man.

When it came his turn to run, he snatched a club from one of the
Indians. With this club he fought his way down the lines. He hit hard,
now on this side, and now on that. The young Indians got out of his
way. The old Indians who were looking on sat and laughed at the
others. They said that Stark was a brave man.

One day the Indians gave him a hoe and told him to hoe corn. He knew
that the Indian war-ri-ors would not work. They think it a shame for a
man to work. Their work is left for slaves and women. So Stark
pre-tend-ed that he did not know how to hoe. He dug up the corn
instead of the weeds. Then he threw the hoe into the river. He said,
"That is work for slaves and women."