CHAPTER XIII
A FRIEND IN STRANGE GUISE
When the succeeding day had passed without sign from Metipom, David came to the conclusion that the Indians from whom he had escaped had refrained from reporting the incident to the sachem for fear of his wrath, which was, indeed, the true explanation. Relieved of the apprehension of punishment, David’s spirits returned and he gave thought to practical matters. Next to his imprisonment the thing that troubled him most just now was the state of his breeches! None too new when he had been captured, the flight through the forest had left them in tatters. Indeed, they momentarily threatened to part from him altogether! His shirt and doublet were likewise in sorry case, but troubled him less. It seemed to him that those breeches were past all human aid, even had he possessed thread and needle wherewith to mend them. He was still ruefully deliberating when Sequanawah came to him bearing the bow that he had promised and five arrows. Admiration of these put the
