"
"Sails of what, Ready?" said William, hastily.
"Of the Indian canoes; I knew that they would come. Take the glass and
look yourself; my eye is quite dim from straining it so long."
"Yes, I have them now," replied William, with his eye to the glass. At
last he said:
"Why, there are twenty or thirty of them, Ready, at least."
"And with twenty or thirty men in each too, William."
"What must we do, Ready? How frightened my poor mother will be! I'm
afraid we can do nothing against such a number."
"Yes, William, we can do a great deal, and we must do a great deal.
That there are hundreds of savages there is no doubt; but recollect
that we have a stockade, which they cannot easily climb over, and
plenty of firearms and ammunition, so that we can make a good fight of
it, and perhaps beat them off, for they have nothing but clubs and
spears."
"How fast they come down, Ready; why, they will be here in an hour."
"No, sir, nor in two hours either; those are very large canoes.
However, there is no time to be lost. While I watch them for a few
minutes till I make them more clearly out, do you run up to the house
and beckon your father to come down to me; and then, William, get all
the muskets ready, and bring the casks of powder, and of made-up
cartridges, from the old house into the stockade.
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