Page:Taras Bulba. A Tale of the Cossacks. 1916.djvu/76

70 a greyhound, then disappeared, like a stag, on perceiving that the kazáks were thirty strong. "And now, my lads, try to overtake the Tatár! But don't try: you would never catch him to all eternity; his horse is swifter than my Devil." Nevertheless, Bulba took precautions, fearing there might be hidden ambushes here or there. They galloped to a small stream called the Tatarka, which emptied into the Dnyeper, rode their horses into the water, and swam down it a long time to conceal their trail; and then, climbing out on the shore, they continued on their way.

Three days later they were not far from the place which formed the goal of their journey. The air grew suddenly colder: they could feel the vicinity of the Dnyeper. And yonder it gleamed afar off, distinguishable as a dark streak against the horizon. It exhaled waves of cold air, and spread nearer, nearer, and finally embraced half the entire surface of the earth. This was the part of the Dnyeper where the river, hitherto confined by the rapids, at last forced its way freely, and roared like the sea, pouring forth at will where the islands, flung into its midst, pressed it further from the shores, and its waves spread broadly over the earth, encountering neither cliffs nor hills. The kazáks alighted from their horses, entered the ferry-boat, and after a sail of three hours'