THE OUTLAW'S FEAR OF DAY 175 



His hurried movements showed that he had 

 full knowledge of the risk he ran in the open, 

 where he looked a monster as he crossed the 

 patches of sward amongst the bilberry. Indeed, 

 so fast did he cover the ground that no sprinter 

 could have kept up with him, especially when he 

 breasted the long, boulder-strewn ascent to the 

 Kites' Cairn. There old Ikey must have viewed 

 him had he been on his way to the pools at his 

 usual hour ; but he was late, and soon the otter 

 was amongst the crags. His feet were here 

 delayed momentarily by the rising sun, whose 

 light he dreaded as much as did the witches of 

 Crowz-an- Wra. But there was no staying where 

 he was : he must press on to marsh or sea, now 

 both in his view ; and at panic speed he made his 

 way down the bare slope and up the opposite 

 rise to the great furze brake that runs down 

 almost to the margin of the mere. Leisurely he 

 threaded his way through the close cover to a 

 point where he stood and listened to the crowing 

 of a cock before slipping into the water and 

 crossing to the old hover on the edge of the reed- 

 bed. He made his careful toilet as usual, and 

 before the marshman discovered his tracks he 

 had curled up and fallen asleep. 



But whilst the otter slept in untroubled 



