He had no way of knowing that he had hit, save that no shot came in reply, but Tayoga, who was once again ear to the ground, said that their foes were drawing back a little.
"They find our fire hotter than they had expected," he said.

"If they can shoot in the fog so can we, and the Great Bear is more than a match for them in such a contest." The whole line crept forward and paused again behind another row of stumps.

A general volley met them and they found protection none too soon.

Bullets chipped little pieces off the stumps or struck in the ground about them.

But Robert knew that they had been fired largely at random, or had been drawn perhaps by a slight noise.