Presently Leo rose, the water running from his face and beard, and said--"What shall we do now?
The river seems to be wide, over a hundred yards, and it is low, but there may be deep water in the middle.

Shall we try to cross, in which case we might drown, or stop where we are till daylight and take our chance of the death-hounds ?" "I can't go another foot," I murmured faintly, "much less try to ford an unknown river." Now, about thirty yards from the shore was an island covered with reeds and grasses.
"Perhaps we could reach that," he said.

"Come, get on to my back, and we will try." I obeyed with difficulty, and we set out, he feeling his way with the handle of the spear.

The water proved to be quite shallow; indeed, it never came much above his knees, so that we reached the island without trouble.

Here Leo laid me down on the soft rushes, and, returning to the mainland, brought over the black horse and the remaining weapons, and having unsaddled the beast, knee-haltered and turned it loose, whereon it immediately lay down, for it was too spent to feed.
Then he set to work to doctor my wounds.