The evening was cool; but evidently fever had begun to attack Pan Andrei, for he repeated,--
«Your highness, it is life or death between us!»
At last it became dark altogether, and Soroka was thinking of a night camp; but because they had entered a damp forest and the ground began to yield under the hoofs of their horses, they continued to ride in order to reach high and dry places.
They rode one hour and a second without being able to pass the swamp. Meanwhile it was growing lighter, for the moon had risen. Suddenly Soroka, who was in advance, sprang from the saddle and began to look carefully at the ground.
«Horses have passed this way,» said he, at sight of tracks in the soft earth.
«Who could have passed, when there is no road?» asked one of the soldiers supporting Pan Kmita.
«Bu
