noon before
Nothing was therefore left to the conspirators but to rely entirely on the skill of Mountain . The night had been frosty , the ground quite hard ; and the sun was no sooner up than a strong thaw set in . It was Mountain 's boast that few men could have followed that trail , and still fewer -LRB- even of the native Indians -RRB- found it . The Master had thus a long start before his pursuers had the scent , and he must have travelled with surprising energy for a pedestrian so unused , since it was near noon before Mountain had a view of him . At this conjuncture the trader was alone , all his companions following , at his own request , several hundred yards in the rear ; he knew the Master was unarmed ; his heart was besides heated with the exercise and lust of hunting ; and seeing the quarry so close , so defenceless , and seeming so fatigued , he vain-gloriously determined to effect the capture with his single hand . A step or two farther brought him to one margin of a little clearing ; on the other , with his arms folded and his back to a huge stone , the Master sat . It is possible Mountain may have made a rustle , it is certain , at least , the Master raised his head and gazed directly at that quarter of the thicket where his hunter lay ; `` I could not be sure he saw me , '' Mountain said ; `` he just looked my way like a man with his mind made up , and all the courage ran out of me like rum out of a bottle . ''