"I have not hitherto found it necessary to state,"
continued Wacousta, his brow lowering with fierce and
gloomy thought, "that more than once, latterly, on my
return from the oasis, which was usually at a stated
hour, I had observed a hunter hovering near the end of
the ledge, yet quickly retreating as I advanced. There
was something in the figure of this man that recalled to
my recollection the form of your father; but ever, on my
return to quarters, I found him in uniform, and exhibiting
any thing but the appearance of one who had recently been
threading his weary way among rocks and fastnesses.
Besides, the improbability of this fact was so great,
that it occupied not my attention beyond the passing
moment. On the present occasion, however, I saw the same
hunter, and was more forcibly than ever struck by the
resemblance to my friend. Prior to my quitting the point
where I had liberated your mother from the netting, I
had, in addition to the disguise of the cloak, found it
necessary to make some alteration in the arrangement of
her hair; the redundancy of which, as it floated gracefully
over her polished neck, was in itself sufficient to betray
her sex.
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