A Thousand-Mile Walk 



doubtedly had seen me before I discovered 

 them, for they had stopped their horses and 

 were evidently watching me. I saw at once that 

 it was useless to attempt to avoid them, for 

 the ground thereabout was quite open. I knew 

 that there was nothing for it but to face them 

 fearlessly, without showing the slightest sus 

 picion of foul play. Therefore, without halting 

 even for a moment, I advanced rapidly with 

 long strides as though I intended to walk through 

 the midst of them. When I got within a rod or 

 so I looked up in their faces and smilingly bade 

 them &quot;Howdy.&quot; Stopping never an instant, I 

 turned to one side and walked around them to 

 get on the road again, and kept on without ven 

 turing to look back or to betray the slightest 

 fear of being robbed. 



After I had gone about one hundred or one 

 hundred and fifty yards, I ventured a quick 

 glance back, without stopping, and saw in this 

 flash of an eye that all the ten had turned their 

 horses toward me and were evidently talking 

 about me; supposedly, with reference to what 

 [28] 



