"We're likely to travel with the river for a while," said Tom Ross, "an' we must purvide a way." "We'll do it soon," said Henry. They camped that night in a dense grove near the bank but they built no fire. After midnight Henry and Shif'less Sol slipped away and went northward. "'Bout four miles on we'll strike them Spaniards," said the shiftless one. It was a close calculation, as at the end of the four miles they saw the light of a fire flaring through the trees and bushes and knew that they had come upon Alvarez and his men. Their camp lay on rather low ground beside a little bay of the Mississippi, and the keen eyes of the two woodsmen saw at once that the force of Alvarez had been increased. "He's got about seventy men whar he had about fifty afore," said Shif'less Sol as they crept nearer. "They came on boats as I thought," replied Henry, "and he left a detachment here with the boats, while he went across country. Maybe he was on an exploring expedition or something of that kind, when Braxton Wyatt overtook him with his proposition." Sol looked at Henry and Henry looked at Sol. A ray of moonlight fell upon their tanned and stern faces. Then as they looked a twinkle appeared in the eye of each. The twinkle deepened and the two broke simultaneously into a soundless laugh. "We want one of those boats," said Henry. "We shorely do," said Shif'less Sol. "We need it in the course of our duty," said Henry. "We jest can't git along without it," said Shif'less Sol. "It will be much easier floating down the middle of the Mississippi in a boat than it will be walking along the bank all the way." "It will shorely save the feet, an' give a feller time to think, while the current's doin' the work. It jest suits a lazy man like me." Again they broke simultaneously into a laugh that contained no sound, but which was full of mirth. "It's taking what doesn't belong to us, and we are not at war with the Spanish," said Henry. "They tried to hold Paul a prisoner, and they're not at war with us," rejoined Sol. "We've got a right to hit back. Besides, we're doin' it to save a war, and we're only borrowin' their boat fur their own good." The two, without further ado, made a circuit around the Spanish camp, coming down on the northern side. There fortunately for them the trees and bushes were thick to the water's edge, and the shore was very low. In fact, the river, owing to the flood, overlapped the bushes. They redoubled their caution, using every art and device of woodcraft to approach without noise. They could see the flare of the camp fire beyond the bushes, and now and then they caught sight of a sentinel's head. They felt amply justified in this attempt, for Alvarez had not only held Paul a prisoner, but was plotting with the Indian chiefs to slay all the white people in Kentucky. "Here are the boats," whispered Henry.