"Sometimes I think," he said, "that the invention o' writin' wuz
a mistake. You kin send a man a letter an' call him names an'
talk mighty big when he's a hundred miles away, but when you've
got to stan' up to him face to face an' say it, wa'al, you change
your tune an' sing a pow'ful sight milder. You ain't gen'ally
any roarin' lion then."
"I think I'll keep this letter," said Henry, "an' we five will
give an answer to it later on."
He tapped the muzzle of his rifle, and every one of the four
gravely tapped the muzzle of his own rifle after him. It was a
significant action. Nothing more was needed.
The next morning they bade farewell to the grateful Mary Newton
and her children, and with fresh supplies of food and ammunition,
chiefly ammunition, left the fort, plunging once more into the
deep forest. It was their intention to do as much damage as they
could to the Iroquois, until some great force, capable of dealing
with the whole Six Nations, was assembled. Meanwhile, five
redoubtable and determined borderers could achieve something.
It was about the first of August, and they were in the midst of
the great heats. But it was a period favoring Indian activity,
which was now at its highest pitch.
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