The collision checked his progress, and
swung the canoe round by the side of the log. Satisfied that Jaspar
would fire as soon as he saw the canoe, his ready ingenuity supplied him
with the means of avoiding the ball, and of escaping further pursuit.
Taking the will in his mouth, he grasped the canoe with one hand, and
paddled silently with the other and with his feet. He had turned the
canoe adrift, and Jaspar, without waiting to examine it, had fired.
Hatchie then jumped up in the water, and produced the splash which had
deceived his pursuers.
With much difficulty the mulatto had propelled the log beyond the reach
of the current into comparatively still water. Here he remained quietly
on the log, using only sufficient exertion to avoid the current, until
he was satisfied that Jaspar and his companion had departed from the
bank. He then returned to the shore, using the greatest precaution to
avoid his enemies; but all was still.
Immediate danger being at an end, he bethought him of securing his
future safety,--a matter of extreme difficulty for one in his position.
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