"It don't look much," Jerry said, "but it is a daisy, you bet."

"We will try a shot with it, Jerry. She gave me the bag of bullets and a
box of patches and his powder-horn with it. We will see what it will do
in our hands, we are both pretty good shots."

He loaded the rifle carefully.

"You see that bit of black rock cropping out of the hill-side. I guess
it is about two hundred and fifty yards away, and is about the size a
red-skin's head would be if he were crawling through the grass towards
us. Will you shoot first or shall I?"

"Fire away, Pete."

Hoskings took a steady aim and fired.

"You have hit it," Jerry exclaimed. "Just grazed it at the top."

They walked across to the rock; there was a chip just on the top.

"It was a good shot, Pete; especially considering how you are out of
practice. If it had been a red-skin it would have stunned him sure, for
I doubt whether it is not too high by a quarter of an inch or so, to
have finished him altogether."

[Illustration: JERRY GIVES TOM A LESSON IN SHOOTING.]

"It would have cut his top-knot off, Jerry, and that is all. I doubt
whether it would have even touched his skin."