His head was bare, and his hair matted with sweat over his forehead; his face was unshorn, and the black roots of his beard showed against the deadly pallor of his skin, except where it was scratched by thorns, or where the red spots over his cheek bones made his cheeks look as if painted.  His eyes were as insanely bright, he panted as quickly, he showed his white teeth as perpetually, his movements were as convulsive, as those captured animals she had known.  Yet he did not attempt to fly, and it was only when, with a sudden effort and groan of pain, he half lifted himself above the stockade, that she saw that his leg, bandaged with his cravat and handkerchief, stained a dull red, dragged helplessly beneath him.  He stared at her vacantly for a moment, and then looked hurriedly into the wood behind her.

The child was more interested than frightened, and more curious than either.  She had grasped the situation at a glance.  It was the hunted and the hunters.  Suddenly he started and reached for his rifle, which he had apparently set down outside when he climbed into the stockade.  He had just caught sight of a figure emerging from the wood at a distance.  But the weapon was out of his reach.

“Hand me that gun!” he said roughly.

But Peggy did not stir.  The figure came more plainly and quite unconsciously into full view, an easy shot at that distance.

The man uttered a horrible curse, and turned a threatening face on the child.  But Peggy had seen something like that in animals she had captured.  She only said gravely,—­

“Ef you shoot that gun you’ll bring ’em all down on you!”

“All?” he demanded.

“Yes! a dozen folks with guns like yours,” said Peggy.  “You jest crouch down and lie low.  Don’t move!  Watch me.”

The man dropped below the stockade.  Peggy ran swiftly towards the unsuspecting figure, evidently the leader of the party, but deviated slightly to snatch a tiny spray from a white-ash tree.  She never knew that in that brief interval the wounded man, after a supreme effort, had possessed himself of his weapon, and for a moment had covered her with its deadly muzzle.  She ran on fearlessly until she saw that she had attracted the attention of the leader, when she stopped and began to wave the white-ash wand before her.  The leader halted, conferred with some one behind him, who proved to be the deputy sheriff.  Stepping out he advanced towards Peggy, and called sharply,

“I told you to get out of this!  Come, be quick!”

“You’d better get out yourself,” said Peggy, waving her ash spray, “and quicker, too.”

The deputy stopped, staring at the spray.  “Wot’s up?”

“Rattlers.”

“Where?”

“Everywhere round ye—­a reg’lar nest of ’em!  That’s your way round!” She pointed to the right, and again began beating the underbrush with her wand.  The men had, meantime, huddled together in consultation.  It was evident that the story of Peggy and her influence on rattlesnakes was well known, and, in all probability, exaggerated.  After a pause, the whole party filed off to the right, making a long circuit of the unseen stockade, and were presently lost in the distance.  Peggy ran back to the fugitive.  The fire of savagery and desperation in his eyes had gone out, but had been succeeded by a glazing film of faintness.