be termed a flank movement by turning to the right, running rapidly
several paces and then diving in among the trees, as though he were
plunging into the water for a bath.

The few minutes occupied in making this change were those which Mickey
felt were of great danger; for, if he should reach the wood and find
himself opposed to but a single man, or even two, the situation would not
be so uneven by any means. No shots were fired, and he drew a great sigh
of relief when he gained the desired covert.

"Now I can dodge back and forth, and work me way up to them," he
concluded; "and when they stick their heads out from behind the trees,
I'll whack 'em for 'em, just as we used to do at Donnybrook when the fun
began."

He waited where he was for some time, in the expectation that his foe
would reveal himself by an attempt to draw out. But if there is any one
thing which distinguishes a scout, whether white or red, at such a time,
it is his patience. It is like that of the Esquimaux, who will sit for
sixteen hours, without stirring, beside an airhole in the ice, waiting for
a seal to appear. Mickey O'Rooney was not burdened with overmuch patience,
and acted upon the principle of Mohammed going to the mountain. He began
picking his way through the shadows and among the trees, determined to
keep forward until the mystery was solved.




CHAPTER XII.