222 MARTIN RATTLER.

upon the shrubs that covered the rocky ledge.
Instantly he arose, ground his teeth together, raised
his eyes for one moment to heaven, and sprang into
the air. For one instant he swept through empty
space, the next he was deep down in the waters of
the dark pool; and when the horrified Indian reached
the edge of the precipice, he beheld his prisoner
struggling on the surface for a moment, ere he was
swept by the rapid stream round the point and out
of view.

Bounding down the slope, the savage sped like a
hunted antelope across the intervening space between
the two cliffs, and quickly gained the brow of the
lower precipice, which he reached just in time to see
Martin Rattler’s straw hat dance for a moment on the
troubled waters of the vortex and disappear in the
awful abyss. But Martin saw it too, from the cleft
in the frowning rock.

On reaching the surface after his leap he dashed
the water from his eyes and looked with intense
earnestness in the direction of the projecting rock
towards which he was hurried. Down he came upon
it with such speed that he felt no power of man
could resist. But there was a small eddy just below
it, into which he was whirled as he stretched forth
his hands and clutched the rock with the energy of