*CHAPTER XI*
*THE SMOKE-SIGNAL*
"What is the matter, chief?" asked Jack. "What new danger has my redbrother discovered?"
"Look!" replied White Eagle, pointing in the direction of the fort andalong the shore of the lake. "What does my paleface brother seeyonder?"
Jack strained his eyes in the direction indicated, but for some secondseven his keen eyes did not notice anything unusual. At length, however,he perceived a thin column of smoke far away in the distance, risingabove the forest and lake; then a second and a third column, but sofaint as to be nearly indistinguishable.
"I see the smoke from the camp-fires of a party of hunters, perhapsYengeese trappers, but nothing that threatens danger."
The sachem shook his head sagely, as he replied--
"No Yengeese! It is Algonquin smoke. A signal to the paleface warriorsat the fort, who will hurry to burn their powder in the face of WhiteEagle. Too much price on Iroquois scalp!" And here the chief's facerelaxed into the faintest of smiles, as though he appreciated the valuethat was placed upon his head by the French, and considered it a greathonour and a tribute to his prowess and the impotence of his enemies.
Then for an instant his face became clouded and a momentary wave ofirresolution passed over his countenance. To escape the net that wasbeing drawn around him was comparatively easy, but to convey all theplunder of the expedition safely to the lodges of the Iroquois wasanother matter. His resolution, however, was quickly taken. They werenow within ten miles of the mouth of a stream, called "Twelve MileCreek," that entered the forest south of Lake Ontario, and only a dozenmiles from the fort. To gain that creek, to take the loaded canoes upthe stream against the rapids and rifts, and then to make a portage offour miles to gain the Niagara River above the fort, was the daringresolve of the White Eagle.
It was a piece of daring that was worthy of an Iroquois chief, who hadalready secured a reputation for reckless daring that was second to thatof no other chief amongst the Six Nations. The great danger lay in thefact that at one bend in the stream they would be within seven or eightmiles of the fort, with all the possibilities of being ambushed by theirhated foes and also by the Frenchers.
The whole party now took to the canoes, and proceeded as rapidly and assilently as possible along the shore in a westerly direction. Soon aftermid-day they reached the mouth of the creek, and without a moment'sdelay, except to land a couple of scouts on either bank, they paddled asquickly as possible up the narrow stream, while the scouts went ahead toexplore the forest-lined banks and to give the alarm as soon as theyshould discover the slightest sign of the enemy, who could not now befar away. To these eager warriors their progress seemed to be painfullyslow. Fallen trees sometimes blocked their way. At other times thecanoes had to be dragged through the shallows and lifted over rocks.
It was hard work, but the youths bore their share of all this arduoustoil. It was exciting, too, for at any moment they might hear the crackof the Algonquin and French rifles. Sometimes they were up to theirknees in the water, pushing and lifting the canoes forward.
As they advanced further and further up the watercourse, for it couldhardly be called a river, the creek narrowed and the trees overhung andinterlaced, shutting out the sun, so that, though it was little pastmid-day, it was scarcely more than twilight. Not a word was spoken fora while, and except for the music of the stream the forest was as silentas death. Even the birds had ceased to sing, and the little squirrelswatched them furtively from the branches overhead, wondering whatstrange creatures these were who were toiling so arduously at thecanoes.
Not a signal had come as yet from the scouts, on whom they wereimplicitly relying. They were getting perilously near to that fatalbend in the river where if an ambush was in hiding, it was sure to be.The Indians exchanged suspicious glances. They fingered their knivesand tomahawks uneasily and frequently looked to the priming of theirrifles.
"What is that noise I can hear, rising and falling, very faintly, likethe water of the Big Salt Lake in a storm, when the Manitou is angry?"asked Jack of one of the Iroquois braves, who was called the Panther.
"'Tis the Spirit of the Wacondah in the caverns under the Great Falls!"answered the Indian in low and reverent tones.
"Niagara!" whispered Jack to his comrade, "and only a few miles away."
"Yes. The Iroquois believe that the Great Spirit, the God of Thunder,dwells under the Falls, and they speak of him always in a whisper, evenby their firesides far away."
"Hist! What was that?"
The crackle of a twig was heard on the western bank, and the eye ofevery Indian was instantly turned in that direction, while many a handinstinctively grasped its weapon more tightly. The bushes parted, andan Iroquois scout came forth from the cover of the forest and sought theeye of his chief. Evidently he had something of importance tocommunicate.
White Eagle left the batteaux and approached him. Then a few gutturalexclamations passed between them, and the scout disappeared once more asquietly as he had come.
"Did you hear what he said, Panther?"
"Yes. The Algonquins, with whom we fought early this morning, havefallen in with another party under Le Grand Loup, a renowned chief, whois White Eagle's greatest enemy, and they have laid an ambush for us twomiles further up the stream. In addition, help is expected from thefort within an hour," replied the brave.
"Snakes alive! What will the chief do?"
"Ugh! White Eagle no afraid. The Wacondah fights for him."
The scouts had done their work bravely and well. They had soondiscovered the prints of Algonquin moccasins in the woods. Some theyfound had led towards the bend in the river where the ambush had beenlaid. They had even penetrated to this spot, past the enemy's scouts,and had learnt of the juncture of the two parties. They had alsodiscovered the trail of an Indian runner in the direction of the fort,and had heard the drums of the French calling the men to arms.
"What's to be done, Jack? We're scarcely out of one fix before we're inanother."
"It seems so!" said that worthy. "I don't know what the Eagle will do,but something will have to be done, and quickly, if we're to retain ourscalp-locks."
"Look! What is the chief about? The men are dragging the canoes ashoreand piling the brushwood around them."
"Why, he's going to burn them to prevent them falling into the hands ofthe enemy. 'Tis certain that we shall never get them past the next bend;so, after all, our labour has been in vain."
Jack's surmise was correct. Without a moment's hesitation, as soon asthe scout had departed, the sachem ordered the boats to be so placedthat at a given signal they could be immediately fired by a small partywho were to be left in charge. The rest were to follow him and take theenemy unawares in the rear before the French could arrive to theirsupport.
This plan was put into operation without a moment's delay, and leaving asmall party of four in charge of the canoes, the rest entered the forestand moved quickly in the direction of the enemy. As they were likely toencounter the French, the lads decided to accompany the attacking party.They had not proceeded far when the scout met them who had reported thepresence of the enemy.
"The paleface warriors are half-way from the fort. What will WhiteEagle do? They will be here before the sun is below the top-mostbranches of the pines," said the scout, addressing the chief.
"Ugh! Ugh!" merely remarked the Iroquois; then turning towards the twopaleface warriors who accompanied him, he said--
"My brothers, Black Hawk and Red Feather, are great warriors from theland of Wabun. Can they delay the rifles of the French Father for onehour till they hear the scream of the Eagle, while my warriors take thescalps of the Algonquin dogs, who lie in wait like the serpent in thegrass?"
"Give us but a dozen rifles, chief, and we'll hold them back for a day!"exclaimed Jack.
"Ugh! My brother will be a great chief before the snows have settledupon his h
ead. Let him chose a dozen rifles from amongst my braves, andthey shall accompany the paleface chiefs and follow their orders."
A dozen men were quickly chosen, including the scout and the Panther,and they at once started out, led by the scout through the forest in thedirection whence the French must soon come.
Half-a-mile further on they selected a spot where they could await withadvantage the arrival of the soldiers from the fort.
"Here! This spot will do! They will soon be here. Let us make ready,"said Jamie. The Indians were soon under cover on either side of therough track which led to the fort.
They could now hear plainly the drums of the advancing army. Soon theycaught a glimpse of the white uniforms of the French through the vistaof trees.
"There are over a hundred of them, Jamie! Can we hold them back for anhour?"
"We promised the chief that we would, and we must keep our promise,"said Jamie, whose lips were compressed and whose brows were knit, as henarrowly watched the approaching French.
The drums were silent now as the foe, with shouldered rifles and martialequipment, marched boldly forward, threading their circuitous routethrough the forest glades. Careless of any ambush, they came forwardsinging and laughing, to show how much they despised the savage hordethey were expecting shortly to encounter.
Suddenly the sound of distant firing burst upon them. Mingled with theshots were savage yells and whoops, which showed that the Iroquois hadattacked the party at the bend of the river. Louder and louder becamethe din.
"_Avancez, mes camarades! Allez vite donc! Il y a ces diablesIroquois!_"
At this command the French advanced more quickly, lest the fightingshould be all over before they arrived, and the drums beat out againbravely. Their whole attention was engrossed by the distant firing, andthey knew not that already the head of their column was entering anambush, and that fourteen rifles were levelled at their leading files.
"Fire!" shouted Jack, and a deadly hail of bullets followed a blindingflash and a report that echoed through the forest. Taken thus suddenlyby surprise, the head of the column staggered and wavered. Many a manfell to rise no more. A panic seized the whole party, and for a fewmoments it seemed doubtful whether their officers would succeed inrallying them, so susceptible even are the bravest troops to suddenfright when unexpectedly ambushed by an unseen foe.
A second volley was poured in upon the confused mass, and a scene ofindescribable terror prevailed. Hoarse shouts of command were heard.The cries of the wounded and the wild yells of the Iroquois resoundedthrough the woods.
The second fire revealed the position of the Iroquois as well as thepaucity of their numbers, and the French commander shouted out--
"_A moi, camarades! Suivez-moi! Voila l'ennemi!_" and waving his swordhe dashed towards the revealed ambush followed by half his troops withfixed bayonets.
Like chaff before the wind the Indians scattered and sought cover in thedeeper shades of the forest, leaping from tree to tree, and bush tobush, firing upon the foe, who were compelled to deploy and enter thethicket in single file. This was Indian warfare with a vengeance, forneither party came into the open. For an hour this was kept up, and theFrench, who could never come to grips with the wily foe, who alwaysretreated like a phantom before their bayonets, were compelled toretire, for their leader had at length come to see that the whole aim ofthe enemy was merely to delay their approach to the Algonquins.
Suddenly, from a distance, the scream of the Eagle was heard twice inrapid succession.
"Our work is done now, Jamie! Let's give the French a final salute anddepart."
A parting volley was let loose upon the enemy, and then the two palefacechiefs led back their band quickly, and rejoined the victorious warriorsof the Iroquois chief, who had driven the Algonquins across the riverwith great slaughter. Only two were wounded, and none were missing, asJack looked at his dusky warriors, but of the French quite twenty hadbeen killed and wounded.