Some of the pursuers might still be lurking near, or straying within sight.

They had so far escaped death, as if by a miracle, and they were cautious of again tempting fate.

They determined that for some time yet they would not venture out upon the ledge, but keep inside the grotto that had given them such well-timed shelter.
Some sulky savage, disappointed at not getting their scalps, might take it into his head to return and hurl down into the hole another shower of stones.

Such a whim was probable to a prairie Indian.
Cautious against all like contingencies, the guide counselled his younger companion to patience, and for a considerable time they remained without stirring out of their obscure chamber.
At length, however, perceiving that the tranquillity continued, they no longer deemed it rash to make a reconnoissance; and for this purpose Walt Wilder crawled out upon the ledge and looked upward.

A feeling of surprise, mingled with apprehension, at once seized upon him.
"Kin it be night ?" he asked, whispering the words back into the grotto.
"Not yet, I should think ?" answered Hamersley.