He had not yet seen any wild animals, and was hopeful that he would suffer no disturbance from them.

The single charge of his rifle was to precious to be thrown away upon any such game as that.
The lad was in the very act of leaving the ravine, when his step was arrested by a sound too distinct to be mistaken.

It was not imagination this time, and he paused to identify it.

The sound was faint and of the nature of a jarring or murmur.

He suspected that it was caused by horses' hoofs, and he listened but a few minutes when he became certain that such was the fact.
"There must be a big lot of them," he thought, as he listened to the sound growing plainer and plainer every minute.