Still the grass grew on either side of the road, and Charlton did not feel much alarm until, coming almost under the very shadow of the bluff, the grass suddenly ceased abruptly, and all was water, with what appeared to be an inaccessible cliff beyond.

The road which lost itself in this pool or pond, must come out somewhere on the other side.

But where?
To the right or left?
And how bottomless might not the morass be if he should miss the road! But in such a strait one must do something.

So he selected a certain point to the left, where the hill on the other side looked less broken, and, turning the horse's head in that direction, struck him smartly with the whip.

The horse advanced a step or two, the water rose quickly to his body, and he refused to go any farther.