"A series of masterly and rapid evolutions with the 
 horses now commenced. The wheelings, the charges, 
 the advances and the circuitous retreats were like the 
 flights of circling swallows. " 
 
THE LEATHER STOCKING TALES 
 UNCAS EDITION 
 
 BY 
 
 W 
 
 J. FENIMORE COOPER 
 
 fo 
 - i f 
 
 CURRENT LITERATURE PUBLISHING COMPANY 
 
 NEW YORK 
 
INTRODUCTION 
 
 THE geological formation of that portion of the Amer 
 ican Union which lies between the Alleghanies and the 
 Rocky Mountains, has given rise to many ingenious theo 
 ries. Virtually, the whole of this immense region is a 
 plain. For a distance extending nearly fifteen hundred 
 miles east and west, and six hundred north and south, 
 there is scarcely an elevation worthy to be called a moun 
 tain. Even hills are not common; though a good deal of 
 the face of the country has more or less of that "rolling" 
 character, which is described in the opening pages ot this 
 work. 
 
 There is much reason to believe that the territory which 
 now composes Ohio, Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, and a 
 large portion of the country west of the Mississippi, lay 
 formerly under water. The soil of all the former States 
 has the appearance of an alluvial deposit; and isolated 
 rocks have been found, of a nature and in situations which 
 render it difficult to refute the opinion that they have 
 been transferred to their present beds by floating ice. 
 This theory assumes that the Great Lakes were the deep 
 pools of one immense body of fresh water, which lay too 
 low to be drained by the irruption that laid bare the land. 
 
 It will be remembered that the French, when masters 
 of the Canadas and Louisiana, claimed the whole of the 
 territory in question. Their hunters and advanced troops 
 held the first communications with the savage occupants, 
 and the earliest written accounts we possess of these vast 
 regions are from the pens of their missionaries. Many 
 
 iii 
 
iv INTRODUCTION 
 
 French words have, consequently, become of local use in 
 this quarter of America, and not a few names given in 
 that language have been perpetuated. When the adven 
 turers, who first penetrated these wilds, met, in the center 
 of the forests, immense plains covered with rich verdure 
 of rank grasses, they naturally gave them the appellation 
 of meadows. As the English succeeded the French, and 
 found a peculiarity of nature differing from all they had 
 yet seen on the continent, already distinguished by a word 
 that did not express anything in their own language, they 
 left these natural meadows in possession of their title of 
 convention. In this manner has the word "prairie" been 
 adopted into the English tongue. 
 
 The American prairies are of two kinds. Those which 
 lie east of the Mississippi are comparatively small, are 
 exceedingly fertile, and are always surrounded by forests. 
 They are susceptible of high cultivation, and are fast be 
 coming settled. They abound in Ohio, Michigan, Illinois, 
 and Indiana. They labor under the disadvantages of a 
 scarcity of wood and water evils of a serious character, 
 until art has had time to supply the deficiencies of nature. 
 As coal is said to abound in all that region, and wells are 
 generally successful, the enterprise of the emigrants is 
 gradually prevailing against these difficulties. 
 
 The second description of these natural meadows lies 
 west of the Mississippi, at a distance of a few hundred 
 miles from that river, and is called the Great Prairies. 
 They resemble the steppes of Tartary more than any other 
 known portion of the world; being, in fact, a vast country, 
 incapable of sustaining a dense population, in the absence 
 of the two great necessaries already named. Rivers abound, 
 it is true; but this region is nearly destitute of brooks 
 and the smaller water-courses, which tend so much to 
 comfort and fertility. 
 
INTRODUCTION v 
 
 The origin and date of the Great American Prairies 
 form one of nature s most majestic mysteries. The general 
 character of the United States, of the Canadas, and of 
 Mexico, is that of luxuriant fertility. It would be diffi 
 cult to find another portion of the world, of the same ex 
 tent, which has so little useless land as the inhabited parts 
 of the American Union. Most of the mountains are arable; 
 and even the prairies, in this section of the republic, are 
 of deep alluvian. The same is true between the Rocky 
 Mountains and the Pacific. Between the two lies the 
 broad belt of comparative desert, which is the scene of 
 this tale, appearing to interpose a barrier to the progress 
 of the American people westward. Since the original pub 
 lication of this book, however, the boundaries of the re 
 public have been carried to the Pacific, and the "settler," 
 preceded by the "trapper," has already established him 
 self on the shores of that vast sea. 
 
 The Great Prairies appear to be the final gathering- 
 place of the red men. The remnants of the Mohicans and 
 the Delawares, of the Creeks, Choctaws, and Cherokees, 
 are destined to fulfill their time on these vast plains. The 
 entire number of the Indians within the Union is differ 
 ently computed at between one and five hundred thousand 
 souls. Most of them inhabit the country west of the 
 Mississippi. At the period of the tale they dwelt in open 
 hostility, national feuds passing from generation to gen 
 eration. The power of the republic has done much to 
 restore peace to these wild scenes, and it is now possible 
 to travel in security where civilized man did not dare to 
 pass unprotected five-and-twenty years ago. 
 
 Recent events have brought the Grand Prairies mtc 
 familiar notice, and we now read of journeys across then 
 as, half a century since, we perused the narratives of t 
 emigrants to Ohio and Louisiana. It is a singular commen 
 
vi INTRODUCTION 
 
 tary on the times that places for railroads across these 
 vast plains are in active discussion, and that men have 
 ceased to regard the project as chimerical. 1 
 
 This book closes the career of Leather-Stocking. Pressed 
 upon by time, he had ceased to be the hunter and the war 
 rior, and has become a trapper of the great west. The 
 sound of the axe has driven him from his beloved forests 
 to seek a refuge, by a species of desperate resignation, 
 on the denuded plains that stretch to the Rocky Mountains. 
 Here he passes the few closing years of his life, dying as 
 he had lived, a philosopher of the wilderness, with few of 
 the failings, none of the vices, and all the nature and 
 truth of his position. 
 
 i NOTE. The writers of half a century ago had a very inadequate conception 
 of the rapid stride of American enterprise. Railroads that run in everv direction 
 across the "vast prairies" and onward to the Pacific, have long been an accom 
 plished fact; the teeming tides of population make them self-supporting; and 
 the pioneers have pressed on to the frozen barriers of the north, and to the un 
 explored regions of the southern hemisphere. [ED.] 
 
THE PRAIRIE 
 
 CHAPTER I 
 
 "I pray thee, shepherd, if that love, or gold 
 Can in this desert place buy entertainment. 
 Bring us where we may rest ourselves and feed." 
 
 As You LIKE IT. 
 
 MUCH was said and written, at the time, concerning the 
 policy of adding the vast regions of Louisiana to the al 
 ready immense and but half -tenanted territories of the 
 United States. As the warmth of controversy, however, 
 subsided, and party considerations gave place to more 
 liberal views, the wisdom of the measure begun to be gen 
 erally conceded. It soon became apparent to the meanest 
 capacity, that while nature had placed a barrier of desert 
 to the extension of our population in the west, the meas 
 ure had made us the masters of a belt of fertile country, 
 which, in the revolutions of the day, might have become 
 the property of a rival nation. It gave us the sole com 
 mand of the great thoroughfare of the interior, and placed 
 the countless tribes of savages, who lay along our borders, 
 entirely within our control; it reconciled conflicting 
 rights, and quieted national distrusts; it opened a thou 
 sand avenues to the inland trade, and to the waters of the 
 Pacific; and, if ever time or necessity shall require a 
 peaceful division of this vast empire, it assures us of a 
 neighbor that will possess our language, our religion, our 
 institutions, and, it is also to be hoped, our sense of 
 political justice. 
 
 Although the purchase was made in 1803, the spring of 
 the succeeding year was permitted to open, before the 
 official prudence of the Spaniard, who held the province 
 for his European master, admitted the authority, or eve 
 the entrance of its new proprietors. But the forms of the 
 l 1 
 
2 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 transfer were no sooner completed, and the new govern 
 ment acknowledged, than swarms of that restless people 
 which is ever found hovering on the skirts of American 
 society, plunged into the thickets that fringed the right 
 bank of the Mississippi, with the same careless hardihood 
 that had already sustained so many of them in their toil 
 some progress from the Atlantic States to the eastern 
 shores of the "Father of Rivers." 1 
 
 Time was necessary to blend the numerous and affluent 
 colonists of the lower province with their new compatriots; 
 but the thinner and more humble population above, was 
 almost immediately swallowed in the vortex which attended 
 the tide of instant emigration. The inroad from the east 
 was a new and sudden outbreaking of a people who had 
 endured a momentary restraint, after having been rend 
 ered nearly resistless by success. The toils and hazards of 
 former undertakings were forgotten, as these endless and 
 unexplored regions, with all their fancied as well as real 
 advantages, were laid open to their enterprise. The con 
 sequences were such as might easily have been anticipated, 
 from so tempting an offering, placed, as it was, before 
 the eyes of a race long trained in adventure, and nurtured 
 in difficulties. 
 
 Thousands of the elders of what were then called the 
 new States 2 broke up the enjoyment of their hard-earned 
 indulgences, and were to be seen leading long files of de 
 scendants, born and reared in the forests of Ohio and Ken 
 tucky, deeper into the land, in quest of that which might 
 be termed, without the aid of poetry, their natural and 
 more congenial atmosphere. The distinguished and reso 
 lute forester who first penetrated the wilds of the latter 
 State, was of the number. This adventurous and vener 
 able patriarch was now seen making his last remove, plac 
 ing the endless river between him and the multitude his 
 own success had drawn around him, and seeking for the 
 renewal of enjoyments which were rendered worthless in 
 
 !The Mississippi is thus termed in several of the Indian languages. The 
 reader will gain a more just idea of the importance of this stream, if he recalls 
 ta mind the fact, that the Missouri and the Mississippi are properly the same 
 river. Their united lengths cannot be greatly short of four thousand miles 
 
 2 All the States admitted to the American Union, since the Revolution, are 
 called now States, with the exception of Vermont; that had claims before the 
 war, which were not, however, admitted until a later day. 
 
THE PRAIRIE 3 
 
 his eyes, when trammeled by the forms of human institu 
 tions. 1 
 
 In the pursuit of adventures such as these, men are or 
 dinarily governed by their habits or deluded by their 
 wishes. A few, led by the phantoms of hope, and ambi 
 tious of sudden affluence, sought the mines of the virgin 
 territory; but by far the greater portion of the emigrants 
 were satisfied to establish themselves along the margins 
 of the larger water-courses, content with the rich returns 
 that the generous alluvial bottoms of the rivers never fail 
 to bestow on the most desultory industry. In this manner 
 were communities formed with magical rapidity; and 
 most of those who witnessed the purchase of the empty 
 empire, have lived to see already a populous and sovereign 
 State parceled from its inhabitants, and received into the 
 bosom of the national Union on terms of political equality. 
 The incidents and scenes which are connected with this 
 legend occurred in the earliest periods of the enterprises 
 which have led to so great and so speedy a result. 
 
 The harvest of the first year of our possession had long 
 been passed, and the fading foliage of a few scatt< 
 trees was already beginning to exhibit the hues and t 
 of autumn, when a train of wagons issued from the 
 of a dry rivulet, to pursue its course across the undulating 
 surface of what, in the language of the country of i 
 we write, is called a "rolling prairie." The vehicl 
 loaded with household goods and implements of husban< 
 the few straggling sheep and cattle that were herde< m 
 the rear, and the rugged appearance and careless IT 
 the sturdy men who loitered at the sides of the linger i 
 teams, united to announce a band of emigrants seeking 
 for the Eldorado of the West. Contrary to -the j usual prac 
 tise of the men of their caste, this party had left 
 tile bottoms of the low country, and had found 
 
 "Tcolonel Boone, the ^^^^S^SS^f^S^ 
 gS^ia^S,^!^^ 1 ^!^ of ten to the . 
 
 mile inconveniently close. 
 
4 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 tend, with so little diversity of character, to the bases of 
 the Rocky Mountains; and many long and dreary miles in 
 their rear, foamed the swift and turbid waters of La 
 Platte. 
 
 The appearance of such a train in that bleak and solitary 
 place was rendered the more remarkable by the fact that 
 the surrounding country offered so little that was tempt 
 ing to the cupidity of speculation, and, if possible, still 
 less that was flattering to the hopes of an ordinary settler 
 of new lands. 
 
 The meagre herbage of the prairie promised nothing in 
 favor of a hard and unyielding soil, over which the wheels 
 of the vehicles rattled as lightly as if they traveled on a 
 beaten road; neither wagons nor beasts making any deeper 
 impression than to mark that bruised and withered grass, 
 which the cattle plucked from time to time, and as often 
 rejected, as food too sour for even hunger to render pal 
 atable. 
 
 Whatever might be the final destination of these adven 
 turers, or the secret causes of their apparent security in 
 so remote and unprotected a situation, there was no vis 
 ible sign of uneasiness, uncertainty, or alarm, among 
 them. Including both sexes, and every age, the number 
 of the party exceeded twenty. 
 
 At some little distance in front of the whole, marched 
 the individual, who, by his position and air, appeared to 
 be the leader of the band. He was a tall, sunburnt man, 
 past the middle-age, of a dull countenance and listless 
 manner. His frame appeared loose and flexible; but it 
 was vast, and in reality of prodigious power. It was only 
 at moments, however, as some slight impediment opposed 
 itself to his loitering progress, that his person, which, in 
 its ordinary gait, seemed so lounging and nerveless, dis 
 played any of those energies which lay latent in his sys 
 tem, like the slumbering and unwieldy, but terrible, 
 strength of the elephant. The inferior lineaments of his 
 countenance were coarse, extended, and vacant; while the 
 superior, or those nobler parts which are thought to affect 
 the intellectual being, were low, receding, and mean. 
 
 The dress of this individual was a mixture of the coars 
 est vestments of a husbandman, with the leathern garments 
 
THE PRAIRIE 5 
 
 that fashion, as well as use, had in some degree rendered 
 necessary to one engaged in his present pursuits. There 
 was, however, a singular and wild display of prodigal and 
 ill-judged ornaments blended with his motley attire. In 
 place of the usual deerskin belt, he wore around his body 
 a tarnished silken sash of the most gaudy colors; the buck- 
 horn haft of his knife was prof usely decorated with plates 
 of silver; the martin s fur of his cap was of a fineness and 
 shadowing that a queen might covet; the buttons of his 
 rude and soiled blanket-coat were of the glittering coinage 
 of Mexico; the stock of his rifle was of beautiful mahog 
 any, riveted and banded with the same precious metal; 
 and the trinkets of no less than three worthless watches 
 dangled from different parts of his person. In addition to 
 the pack and the rifle which were slung at his back, to 
 gether with the well-filled and carefully guarded pouch 
 and horn, he had carelessly cast a keen and bright wood- 
 axe across his shoulder, sustaining the weight of the whole 
 with as much apparent ease as if he moved unfettered in 
 limb, and free from incumbrance. 
 
 A short distance in the rear of this man came a group 
 of youths, very similarly attired, and bearing sufficient 
 resemblance to each other, and to their leader, to distin 
 guish them as the children of one family. Though the 
 youngest of their number could not much have passed the 
 period that, in the nicer judgment of the law, is called the 
 age of discretion, he had proved himself so far worthy of 
 his progenitors as to have reared already his aspiring per 
 son to the standard height of his race. There were one or 
 two others, of different mould, whose descriptions must, 
 however, be referred to the regular course of the narrative. 
 
 Of the females, there were but two who had arrived at 
 womanhood; though several white-headed, olive-skinned 
 faces were peering out of the foremost wagon of the train, 
 with eyes of lively curiosity and characteristic animation. 
 The elder of the two adults was the sallow and wrinkled 
 mother of most of the party, and the younger was a 
 sprightly active girl of eighteen, who, in figure, d 
 and mien, seemed to belong to a station in society & 
 gradations above that of any one of her visible associa 
 The second vehicle was covered with a top of cloth s 
 
6 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 tightly drawn as to conceal its contents with the nicest 
 care. The remaining wagons were loaded with such rude 
 furniture and other personal effects as might be supposed 
 to belong to one ready at any moment to change his abode, 
 without reference to season or distance. 
 
 Perhaps there was little in this train, or in the appear 
 ance of its proprietors, that is not daily to be encountered 
 on the highways of this changeable and moving country. 
 But the solitary and peculiar scenery in which it was so un 
 expectedly exhibited, gave to the party a marked character 
 of wildness and adventure. 
 
 In the little valleys, which in the regular formation of 
 the land, occurred at every mile of their progress, the 
 view was bounded on two of the sides by the gradual and 
 low elevations which give name to the description of 
 prairie we have mentioned; while on the others, the 
 meagre prospect ran off in long, narrow, barren, perspec 
 tives, but slightly relieved by a pitiful show of coarse, 
 though somewhat luxuriant, vegetation. From the sum 
 mits of the swells, the eye became fatigued with the same 
 ness and chilling dreariness of the landscape. The easth 
 was not unlike the ocean, when its restless waters are 
 heaving heavily, after the agitation and fury of the temp 
 est have begun to lessen. There was the same waving and 
 regular surface, the same absence of foreign objects, and 
 the same boundless extent to the view. Indeed, so very 
 striking was the resemblance between the water and the 
 land, that, however much the geologist might sneer at so 
 simple a theory, it would have been difficult for a poet not 
 to have felt that the formation of the one had been pro 
 duced by the subsiding dominion of the other. Here and 
 there a tall tree rose out of the bottoms, stretching its 
 naked branches abroad, like some solitary vessel; and, to 
 strengthen the delusion, far in the distance appeared two 
 or three rounded thickets, looming in the misty horizon 
 like islands resting on the waters. It is unnecessary to 
 warn the practised reader that the sameness of the sur 
 face, and the low stands of the spectators, exaggerated 
 the distances; but, as swell appeared after swell, and 
 island succeeded island, there was a disheartening assur 
 ance that long and seemingly interminable tracts of terri- 
 
THE PRAIRIE 7 
 
 tory must be passed, before the wishes of the humblest 
 agriculturist could be realized. 
 
 Still the leader of the emigrants steadily pursued his 
 way with no other guide than the sun, turning his back 
 resolutely on the abodes of civilization, and plunging at 
 each step more deeply, if not irretrievably into the haunts 
 of the barbarous and savage occupants of the country. As 
 the day drew nigher to a close, however, his mind, which 
 was, perhaps, incapable of maturing any connected system 
 of forethought, beyond that which related to the interests 
 of the present moment, became in some slight degree 
 troubled with the care of providing for the wants of the 
 hours of darkness. 
 
 On reaching the crest of a swell that was a little higher 
 than the usual elevations, he lingered a minute, and cast 
 a half curious eye, on either hand, in quest of those well- 
 known signs which might indicate a place where the three 
 grand requisites of water, fuel, and fodder, were to be 
 obtained in conjunction. 
 
 It would seem that his search was fruitless; for after a 
 few moments of indolent and listless examination, he 
 suffered his huge frame to descend the gentle declivity, in 
 the same sluggish manner that an overfatted beast would 
 have yielded to the downward pressure. 
 
 His example was silently followed by those who si 
 ceeded him, though not until the young men had mam 
 fested much more of interest, if not of concern, 11 
 brief inquiry which each in his turn made on gaining 
 same lookout. It was now evident, by the tardy move 
 ments both of beasts and men, that the time of necess 
 rest was not far distant. The matted grass of the 1 
 land presented obstacles which fatigue began to r 
 formidable, and the whip was becoming necess 
 the lingering teams to their labor. At fcis moment^ 
 with the exception of the principal individual a genera 
 lassitude was getting the mastery of the travelers^ 
 every eye was cast, by a sort of common ^pulse i si 
 fully forward, the whole party was brought to a halt, b 
 a spectacle as sudden as it was unexpected. 
 
 The sun had fallen below the crest of 
 of the prairie, leaving the usual rich and 
 
8 THE PKAIRIE 
 
 its track. In the center of this flood of fiery light a human 
 form appeared, drawn against the gilded background as 
 distinctly, and seeming as palpable, as though it would 
 come within the grasp of any extended hand. The figure 
 was colossal; the attitude musing and melancholy; and 
 the situation directly in the route of the travelers. But 
 imbedded, as it was, in its setting of garish light, it was 
 impossible to distinguish its just proportions or true 
 character. 
 
 The effect of such a spectacle was instantaneous and 
 powerful. The man in front of the emigrants came to a 
 stand, and remained gazing at the mysterious object with 
 dull interest, that soon quickened into superstitious awe. 
 
 His sons, so soon as the first emotions of surprise had a 
 little abated, drew slowly around him, and as they who 
 governed the teams gradually followed their example, the 
 whole party was soon condensed in one silent and wonder 
 ing group. Notwithstanding the impression of a super 
 natural agency was very general among the travelers, the 
 ticking of gun-locks was heard, and one or two of the 
 bolder youths cast their rifles forward, in readiness for 
 service. 
 
 "Send the boys off to the right, exclaimed the resolute 
 wife and mother, in a sharp, dissonant voice; "I warrant 
 me Asa or Abner will give some account of the creature!" 
 
 "It may be well enough to try the rifle," muttered a 
 dull-looking man, whose features, both in outline and ex 
 pression, bore no small resemblance to the first speaker, 
 and who loosened the stock of his piece and brought it 
 dexterously to the front, while delivering this opinion; 
 "the Pawnee-Loups are said to be hunting by hundreds in 
 the plains; if so, they ll never miss a single man from 
 their tribe." 
 
 "Stay!" exclaimed a soft-toned, but alarmed female 
 voice, which was easily to be traced to the trembling lips of 
 the younger of the two women; "we are not all together; 
 it may be a friend!" 
 
 "Who is scouting now?" demanded the father, scan 
 ning, at the same time, the cluster of his stout sons, with 
 a displeased and sullen eye. "Put by the piece, put by 
 the piece," he continued, diverting the other s aim with 
 
THE PRAIRIE 9 
 
 the finger of a giant, and with the air of one it might be 
 dangerous to deny. "My job is not yet ended; let us fin 
 ish the little that remains in peace." 
 
 The man who manifested so hostile an intention ap 
 peared to understand the other s allusion, and suffered 
 himself to be diverted from his object. The sons turned 
 their inquiring looks on the girl who had so eagerly spoken, 
 to require an explanation; but, as if content with the res 
 pite she had obtained for the stranger, she sank back in 
 her seat, and chose to affect a maidenly silence. 
 
 In the mean time the hues of the heavens had often 
 changed. In place of the brightness which had dazzled 
 the eye, a gray and more sober light had succeeded, and 
 as the setting lost its brilliancy, the proportions of the 
 fanciful form became less exaggerated, and finally distinct. 
 Ashamed to hesitate, now that the truth was no longer 
 doubtful, the leader of the party resumed his jourm-y. 
 using the precaution, as he ascended the slight acclivity, 
 to release his own rifle from the strap, and to cast it into 
 a situation more convenient for sudden use. 
 
 There was little apparent necessity, however, for such 
 watchfulness. From the moment when it had thus una< 
 countably appeared, as it were, between the heavens 
 the earth, the stranger s figure had neither mov 
 given the smallest evidence of hostility. Had he h:irb 
 any such evil intentions, the individual who now c 
 plainly into view seemed but little qualified t 
 
 t Tframe that had endured the hardships of more than 
 eighty seasons was not qualified to awaken apprehcns.o 
 in the breast of one as powerful as the emigrant 
 withstanding his years, and his look of . 
 
 of suffering, there was that about this * 
 however ? which said that time and **** 
 his hand heavily W ^ ^^tM~ 
 
 the further approaches of decay. 
 
10 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 skins, worn with the hair to the weather; a pouch and 
 horn were suspended from his shoulders; and he leaned 
 on a rifle of uncommon length, but which, like its owner, 
 exhibited the wear of long and hard service. 
 
 As the party drew nigher to this solitary being, and 
 came within a distance to be heard, a low growl issued 
 from the grass at his feet, and then a tall, gaunt, tooth 
 less hound arose lazily from his lair, and, shaking himself, 
 made some show of resisting the nearer approach of the 
 travelers. 
 
 "Down, Hector, down!" said his master, in a voice that 
 was a little tremulous and hollow with age. "What have 
 ye to do, pup, with men who journey on their lawful 
 callings?" 
 
 "Stranger, if you are much acquainted in this coun 
 try," said the leader of the emigrants, "can you tell a 
 traveler where he may find necessaries for the night? 
 
 "Is the land filled on the other side of the Big River?" 
 demanded the old man solemnly, and without appearing 
 to hearken to the other s question; "or why do I see a 
 sight I had never thought to behold again?" 
 
 "Why, there is country left, it is true, for such as have 
 money, and ar not particular in the choice," returned 
 the emigrant; "but to my taste, it is getting crowdy. 
 What may a man call the distance from this place to the 
 nighest point on the main river?" 
 
 "A hunted deer could not cool his sides in the Missis 
 sippi, without traveling a weary hundred miles." 
 
 "And what may you name the district here-away?" 
 
 "By what name," returned the old man, pointing sig 
 nificantly upwards, "would you call the spot where you 
 see yonder cloud?" 
 
 The emigrant looked at the other like one who did not 
 comprehend his meaning, and who half suspected he was 
 trifled with; but he contented himself by saying: 
 
 "You ar but a new inhabitant, like myself, I reckon, 
 stranger, or otherwise you would not be backward in 
 helping a traveler to some advice. Words cost but little, 
 and sometimes lead to friendships." 
 
 "Advice is not a gift, but a debt that the old owe to 
 the young. What would you wish to know?" 
 
THE PRAIRIE 11 
 
 i 
 
 "Where I may camp for the night. I m no great diffi 
 culty maker as to bed and board; but all old journeyers 
 like myself know the virtue of sweet water, and a good 
 browse for the cattle." 
 
 "Come, then, with me, and you shall be master of 
 both; and little more is it that I can offer on this hungry 
 prairie." 
 
 As the old man was speaking he raised his heavy rifle to 
 his shoulder with a facility a little remarkable for his 
 years and appearance, and without further words led the 
 way over the acclivity to the adjacent bottom. 
 
CHAPTER II 
 
 " Up with my tent; here will I lie to-night, 
 But where, to-morrow ? Well, all s one for that." 
 
 RICHARD THE THIRD. 
 
 THE travelers soon discovered the usual and unerring 
 evidences that the several articles necessary to their situ 
 ation were not far distant. A clear and gurgling spring 
 burst out of the side of the declivity, and joining its 
 waters to those of other similar little fountains in its 
 vicinity, their united contributions formed a run, which 
 was easily to be traced for miles along the prairie, by the 
 scattering foliage and verdure which occasionally grew 
 within the influence of its moisture. Hither, then, the 
 stranger held his way, eagerly followed by the willing 
 teams, whose instinct gave them a prescience of refresh 
 ment and rest. 
 
 On reaching what he deemed a suitable spot, the old 
 man halted, and, with an inquiring look, he seemed to 
 demand if it possessed the needed conveniences. The 
 leader of the emigrants cast his eyes anderstandingly about 
 him, and examined the place with the keenness of one com 
 petent to judge of so nice a question, though in that dil 
 atory and heavy manner, which rarely permitted him to 
 betray precipitation. 
 
 "Ay, this may do," he said, when satisfied with his 
 scrutiny; "boys, you have seen the last of the sun; be 
 stirring." 
 
 The young men manifested a characteristic obedience. 
 The order, for such in tone and manner it was, in truth, 
 was received with respect; but the utmost movement was 
 the falling of an axe or two from the shoulder to the 
 ground, while their owners continued to regard the place 
 with listless and incurious eyes. In the mean time, the 
 elder traveler, as if familiar with the nature of the im 
 pulses by which his children were governed, disencum- 
 
 12 
 
THE PRAIRIE 13 
 
 bered himself of his pack and rifle, and, assisted by the 
 man already mentioned as disposed to appeal so promptly 
 to the rifle, he quietly proceeded to release the cattle from 
 the gears. 
 
 At length the eldest of the sons stepped heavily for 
 ward, and, without any apparent effort, he buried his axe 
 to the eye in the soft body of a cotton-wood tree. He 
 stood a moment regarding the effect of the blow, with 
 that sort of contempt with which a giant might be sup 
 posed to contemplate the puny resistance of a dwarf, and 
 then flourishing the implement above his head, with the 
 grace and dexterity with which a master of the art of 
 offense would wield his nobler though Jess useful weapon, 
 he quickly severed the trunk of the tree, bringing its tall 
 top crashing to the earth in submission to his prowess. 
 His companions regarded the operation with indolent 
 curiosity, until they saw the prostrate trunk stretched on 
 the ground, when, as if a signal for a general attack had 
 been given, they advanced in a body to the work; and in 
 a space of time, and with a neatness of execution, that 
 would have astonished an ignorant spectator, they stripped 
 a small but suitable spot of its burden of forest, as effect 
 ually, and almost as promptly, as if a whirlwind had 
 passed along the place. 
 
 The stranger had been a silent but attentive observer of 
 their progress. As tree after tree came whistling down, 
 he cast his eyes upwards at the vacancies they left in the 
 heavens, with a melancholy gaze, and finally turned away, 
 muttering to himself, with a bitter smile, like one who 
 disdained giving a more audible utterance to his discon 
 tent. Pressing through the group of active and busy chil 
 dren who had already lighted a cheerful fire, the attention 
 of the old man became next fixed on the movements of 
 the leader of the emigrants and of his savage- look ing 
 
 These two had already liberated the cattle, which were 
 eagerly browsing the grateful and nutritious extremiti 
 of the fallen trees, and were now employed about 
 wagon, which has been described as having its content* 
 concealed with so much apparent care. Notwithstan< 
 this particular conveyance appeared to be as silent and as 
 
14 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 tenantless as the rest of the vehicles, the men applied their 
 strength to its wheels and rolled it apart from the others, 
 and to a dry and elevated spot near the edge of the thicket. 
 Here they brought certain poles, which had seemingly 
 been long employed in such a service, and fastening their 
 larger ends firmly in the ground, the smaller were attached 
 to the hoops that supported the covering of the wagon. 
 Large folds of cloth were next drawn out of the vehicle, and 
 after being spread around the whole, were pegged to the 
 earth in such a manner as to form a tolerably capacious 
 and an exceedingly convenient tent. After surveying their 
 work with inquisitive and perhaps jealous eyes, arranging 
 a fold here, and driving a peg more firmly there, the men 
 once more applied their strength to the wagon, pulling it 
 by its projecting tongue from the center of the canopy 
 until it appeared in the open air deprived of its covering, 
 and destitute of any other freight than a few light articles 
 of furniture. The latter were immediately removed by 
 the traveler into the tent with his own hands, as though 
 to enter it were a privilege to which even his bosom com 
 panion was not entitled. 
 
 Curiosity is a passion that is rather quickened than de 
 stroyed by seclusion, and the old inhabitant of the prairies 
 did not view these precautionary and mysterious move 
 ments without experiencing some of its impulses. He ap 
 proached the tent, and was about to sever two of its folds, 
 with the very obvious intention of examining more closely 
 into the nature of its contents, when the man who had 
 once already placed his life in jeopardy, seized him by the 
 arm, and with a rude exercise of his strength threw him 
 from the spot he had selected as the one most convenient 
 for his object. 
 
 "It s an honest regulation, friend," the fellow dryly 
 observed, though with an eye that threatened volumes, 
 "and sometimes it is a safe one, which says, mind your 
 own business. 
 
 "Men seldom bring anything to be concealed into these 
 deserts," returned the old man, as if willing, and yet a 
 little ignorant how to apologize for the liberty he had 
 been about to take, "and I had hoped no offense in exam 
 ining your comforts. 
 
THE PRAIRIE 15 
 
 They seldom bring: themselves, I reckon; though this 
 has the look of an old country, to my eye it seems not to 
 be overly peopled." 
 
 "The land is as aged as the rest of the works of the 
 Lord, I believe; but you say true concerning its inhabi 
 tants. Many months have passed since I have laid eyes on 
 a face of my own color before your own. I say again 
 friend, I meant no harm; I did not know but there was 
 something behind the cloth that might bring former days 
 to my mind." 
 
 As the stranger ended his simple explanation he walked 
 meekly away, like one who felt the deepest sense of the 
 right which every man has to the quiet enjoyment of his 
 own, without any troublesome interference on the part of 
 his neighbor; a wholesome and a just principle that he 
 had also most probably imbibed from the habits of his 
 secluded life. As he passed towards the little encampment 
 of the emigrants, for such the place had now become, he 
 heard the voice of the leader calling aloud, in its hoarse 
 tones, the name of: 
 "Ellen Wade!" 
 
 The girl who has been already introduced to the reader, 
 and who was occupied with the others of her sex around 
 the fires, sprang willingly forward at this summons; and, 
 passing the stranger with the activity of a young antelope, 
 she was instantly lost behind the forbidden folds of the 
 tent. Neither her sudden disappearance, nor any of the 
 arrangements we have mentioned, seemed, however, to 
 excite the smallest surprise among the remainder of the 
 party. The young men, who had already completed their 
 tasks with the axe, were all engaged after their lounging 
 and listless manner; some in bestowing equitable portions 
 of the fodder among the different animals; others in ply 
 ing the heavy pestle of a movable hominy-mortar; 1 and 
 one or two in wheeling the remainder of the wagons aside, 
 and arranging them in such a manner as to form a sort of 
 outwork for their otherwise defenseless bivouac. 
 
 These several duties were soon performed, and as dark 
 ness now began to conceal the objects on the surrounding 
 
 1 Hominy is a dish composed chiefly of cracked corn or maize. 
 
16 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 prairie, the shrill-toned termagant, whose voice since the 
 halt had been diligently exercised among her idle and 
 drowsy offspring, announced, in tones that might have 
 been heard at a dangerous distance, that the evening meal 
 waited only for the approach of those w r ho were to con 
 sume it. Whatever may be the other qualities of a bor- 
 derman, he is seldom deficient in the virtue of hospitality. 
 The emigrant no sooner heard the sharp call of his wife, 
 than he cast his eyes about him in quest of the stranger, 
 in order to offer him the place of distinction in the rude 
 entertainment to which they were so unceremoniously 
 summoned. 
 
 "I thank you, friend, the old man replied to the rough 
 invitation to take a seat nigh the smoking kettle; "you 
 have my hearty thanks; but I have eaten for the day, and 
 am not one of them who dig their graves with their teeth. 
 Well; as you wish it, I will take a place, for it is long 
 sin I have seen people of my color eating their daily 
 bread." 
 
 "You ar an old settler in these districts, then?" the 
 emigrant rather remarked than inquired, with a mouth 
 filled nearly to overflowing with the delicious hominy, 
 prepared by his skillful, though repulsive, spouse. "They 
 told us, below, we should find settlers something thinnish 
 hereaway, and I must say the report was mainly true; 
 for, unless we count the Canada traders on the Big River, 
 you ar the first white face I have met in a good five hun 
 dred miles; that is calculating according to your own 
 reckoning." 
 
 "Though I have spent some years in this quarter, I can 
 hardly be called a settler, seeing that I have no regular 
 abode, and seldom pass more than a month at a time on 
 the same range. 
 
 "A hunter, I reckon?" the other continued, glancing 
 his eyes aside, as if to examine the equipments of his new 
 acquaintance; "your fixen seem none of the best for such 
 a calling." 
 
 "They are old, and nearly ready to be laid aside, like 
 their master," said the old man, regarding his rifle with 
 a look in which affection and regret were singularly 
 blended; "and I may say they are but little needed, too. 
 
THE PRAIRIE 17 
 
 You are mistaken, friend, in calling me a hunter; I am 
 nothing better than a trapper." 1 
 
 "If you ar much of the one, I m bold to say you ar 
 something of the other; for the two callings go mainly 
 together in these districts." 
 
 "To the shame of the man who is able to follow the 
 first be it so said!" returned the trapper, whom in future 
 we shall choose to designate by his pursuit; "for more 
 than fifty years did I carry my rifle in the wilderness, 
 without so much as setting a snare for even a bird that 
 flies the heavens; much less a beast that has nothing but 
 legs for its gifts." 
 
 "I see but little difference whether a man gets 
 peltry by the rifle or by the trap, said the ill-looking com 
 panion of the emigrant, in his rough manner. 
 was made for our comfort; and, for that matter, s. 
 
 <C You seem to have but little plunder, 2 stranger, for one 
 who is far abroad," bluntly interrupted the emigrant, a 
 if he had a reason for wishing to change the conversatu 
 "I hooe vou ar better off for skins." 
 
 "I make but little use of either," the trapper quietly 
 replied "At my time of life, food and clothing be i 
 thatt needed; and I have little occasion fo, -wh* ^ .call 
 plunder, unless it may be now and then to b 
 
 parts by natur , friend," 
 having in his mind the exception 
 
 SA 1 T ^S?%S5S5ftS in regions more cml* 
 
18 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 to turn their eyes on some unexpected object of general 
 interest. One or two of the young men repeated the words 
 sea-shore;" and the woman tendered him one of those 
 civilities with which, uncouth as they were, she was little 
 accustomed to grace her hospitality, as if in deference to 
 the traveled dignity of her guest. After a long, and seem 
 ingly a meditating silence, the emigrant, who had, how 
 ever, seen no apparent necessity to suspend functions of 
 his masticating powers, resumed the discourse. 
 
 "It is a long road, as I have heard, from the waters of 
 the west to the shores of the main sea?" 
 
 "It is a weary path, indeed, friend; and much have I 
 seen, and something have I suffered in journeying over 
 it." 
 
 "A man would see a good deal of hard travel in going 
 its length!" 
 
 "Seventy and five years have I been upon the road; and 
 there are not half that number of leagues in the whole 
 distance, after you leave the Hudson, on which I have not 
 tasted venison of my own killing. But this is vain boast 
 ing. Of what use are former deeds, when time draws to 
 an end?" 
 
 "I once met a man that had boated on the river he 
 names," observed the eldest son, speaking in a low tone 
 of voice, like one who distrusted his knowledge, and 
 deemed it prudent to assume a becoming diffidence in the 
 presence of a man who had seen so much; "from his tell, 
 it must be a considerable stream, and deep enough for a 
 keel-boat from top to bottom." 
 
 "It is a wide and deep water-course, and many sightly 
 towns are there growing on its banks," returned the 
 trapper; "and yet it is but a brook to the waters of the 
 endless river!" 
 
 "I call nothing a stream that a man can travel round," 
 exclaimed the ill-looking associate of the emigrant; "a 
 real river must be crossed; not headed, like a bear in a 
 county hunt." 1 
 
 1 There is a practice in the new countries, to assemble the men of a large dis 
 trict, sometimes of an entire county, to exterminate the beasts of prey. They 
 form themselves into a circle several miles in extent, and gradually draw nearer, 
 killing all before them. The allusion is to this custom, in which the hunted beast 
 is turned from one to another. 
 
THE PRAIRIE 19 
 
 "Have you been far towards the sundown, friend?" in 
 terrupted the emigrant, as if he desired to keep his rough 
 companion as much as possible out of the discourse. "I 
 find it is a wide tract of clearing this, into which I have 
 fallen." 
 
 "You may travel weeks, and you will see it the same. 
 I often think the Lord has placed this barren belt of 
 prairie behind the States to warn men to what their folly 
 may yet bring the land! Ay, weeks, if not months, may 
 you journey in these open fields, in which there is neither 
 dwelling nor habitation for man nor beast. Even the sav 
 age animals travel miles on miles to seek their dens; and 
 yet the wind seldom blows from the east, but I conceit 
 the sound of axes, and the crash of falling trees, are in 
 my ears." 
 
 As the old man spoke with a seriousness and dignity 
 that age seldom fails to communciate even to less striking 
 sentiments, his auditors were deeply attentive, and as si 
 lent as the grave. Indeed, the trapper was left to renew 
 the dialogue himself, which he soon did by asking a ques 
 tion, in the indirect manner so much in use by the border 
 inhabitants. 
 
 "You found it no easy matter to ford the water-courses, 
 and to make your way so deep into the prairies friend, 
 with teams of horses and herds of horned beasts? 
 
 "I kept the left bank of the main river," the emigrant 
 replied, "until I found the stream leading too much 
 the north, when we rafted ourselves across without i 
 great suffering. The woman lost a fleece or two from tl 
 next year s shearing, and the girls have one cow h 
 their dairy. Since then, we have done bravely, by t 
 ing a creek every day or two." 
 
 "It is likely you will continue west until you come i 
 land more suitable for a settlement? 
 
 "Until I see reason to stop, or to turn ag in 
 igrant bluntly answered, rising at the same time, and 
 
 o to presene e e P of their g uest, the travelers 
 make their dispositions to pass the night. 
 
20 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 bowers, or rather huts, had already been formed of the 
 tops of trees, blankets of coarse country manufacture, and 
 the skins of buffaloes, united without much reference to 
 any other object than temporary comfort. Into these covers 
 the children, with their mother, soon drew themselves, 
 where, it is more than possible, they were all speedily lost 
 in the oblivion of sleep. Before the men, however, could 
 seek their rest, they had sundry little duties to perform; 
 such as completing their works of defense, carefully con 
 cealing the fires, replenishing the fodder of their cattle, 
 and setting the watch that was to protect the party in the 
 approaching hours of night. 
 
 The former was effected by dragging the trunks of a 
 few trees into the intervals left by the wagons, and along 
 the open space between the vehicles and the thicket, on 
 which, in military language, the encampment would be 
 said to have rested; thus forming a sort of chevaux-de- 
 frise on three sides of the position. Within these narrow 
 limits (with the exception of what the tent contained), 
 both man and beast were now collected; the latter being 
 far too happy in resting their weary limbs to give any 
 undue annoyance to their scarcely more intelligent asso 
 ciates. Two of the young men took their rifles; and, first 
 renewing the priming, and examining the flints with the 
 utmost care, they proceeded, the one to the extreme right, 
 and the other to the left of the encampment, where they 
 posted themselves within the shadows of the thicket; but 
 in such positions as enabled each to overlook a portion of 
 the prairie. 
 
 The trapper loitered about the place, declining to share 
 the straw of the emigrant, until the whole arrangement 
 was completed; and then, without the ceremony of an 
 adieu, he slowly retired from the spot. 
 
 It was now in the first watch of the night; and the pale, 
 quivering, and deceptive light from a new moon, was 
 playing over the endless waves of the prairie, tipping the 
 swells with gleams of brightness, and leaving the interval 
 land in deep shadow. Accustomed to scenes of solitude 
 like the present, the old man, as he left the encampment, 
 proceeded alone into the waste, like a bold vessel leaving 
 its haven to enter on the trackless field of the o^ean. He 
 
THE PRAIRIE 21 
 
 appeared to move for some time without object, or, in 
 deed, without any apparent consciousness whither his limbs 
 were carrying him. At length, on reaching the rise of 
 one of the undulations, he came to a stand; and, for the 
 first time since leaving the band who had caused such a 
 flood of reflections and recollections to crowd upon his 
 mind, the old man became aware of his present situation. 
 Throwing one end of his rifle to the earth, he stood lean 
 ing on the other, again lost in deep contemplation for 
 several minutes, during which time his hound came and 
 crouched at his feet. A deep, menacing growl, from the 
 faithful animal, first aroused him from his musing. 
 
 "What now, dog?" he said, looking down at his com 
 panion, as if he addressed a being of intelligence equal to 
 his own, and speaking in a voice of great affection. 
 "What is it, pup? Ha! Hector; what is it nosing now? 
 It won t do, dog; it won t do; the very fa ans play in 
 open view of us, without minding so worn out curs as you 
 and I. Instinct is their gift, Hector; and they have found 
 out how little we are to be feared, they have!" 
 
 The dog stretched his head upwards, and responded to 
 the words of his master by a long and plaintive whine, 
 which he even continued after he had again buried his 
 head in the grass, as if he held an intelligent communica 
 tion with one who so well knew how to interpret dumb 
 discourse. 
 
 "This is a manifest warning, Hector!" thetrappe 
 tinued, dropping his voice to the tones of caution, and 
 looking warily about him. "What is it, pup; speak 
 plainer, dog; what is it?" 
 
 The hound had, however, already laid his nos 
 earth, and was silent; appearing to slumber, 
 keen quick glances of his master soon caught a gli 
 of a distant figure, which seemed, through the deceptn 
 light, floating along the very elevation on which he 
 placed himself. Presently its proportions became 
 distinct, and then an airy female form appeared 1 
 tate, as if considering whether it would be prudent t 
 vance. Though the eyes of the dog were now to > be se 
 glancing in the rays of the moon, opening and shutting 
 lazily, he gave no further signs of displeasure. 
 
22 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 "Come nigher; we are friends," said the trapper, asso 
 ciating himself with his companion by long use, and prob 
 ably through the strength of the secret tie that connected 
 them together; "we are your friends; none will harm 
 you." 
 
 Encouraged by the mild tones of his voice, and perhaps 
 led on by the earnestness of her purpose, the female ap 
 proached until she stood at his side; when the old man 
 perceived his visitor to be the young woman with whom 
 the reader has already become acquainted by the name of 
 "Ellen Wade." 
 
 "I had thought you were gone," she said, looking tim 
 idly and anxiously around. "They said you were gone; 
 and that we should never see you again. I did not think it 
 was you!" 
 
 "Men are no common objects in these empty fields," 
 returned the trapper, "and I humbly hope, though I have 
 so long consorted with the beasts of the wilderness, that I 
 have not yet lost the look of my kind." 
 
 "Oh! I knew you to be a man, and I thought I knew the 
 whine of the hound too," she answered hastily, as if will 
 ing to explain she knew not what, and then checking her 
 self, like one fearful of having already said too much. 
 
 "I saw no dogs among the teams of your father," the 
 trapper remarked. 
 
 "Father!" exclaimed the girl feelingly, "I have no 
 father! 1 had nearly said no friend." 
 
 The old man turned towards her with a look of kindness 
 and interest that was even more conciliating than the 
 ordinary upright and benevolent expression of his weather- 
 beaten countenance. 
 
 "Why then do you venture in a place where none but 
 the strong should come?" he demanded. "Did you not 
 know that when you crossed the Big River you left a 
 friend behind you that is always bound to look to the 
 young and feeble like yourself?" 
 
 "Of whom do you speak?" 
 
 "The law! Tis bad to have it, but I sometimes think 
 it is worse to be entirely without it. Age and weakness 
 have brought me to feel such weakness at times. Yes, yes, 
 the law is needed when such as have not the gifts of 
 
THE PRAIRIE 23 
 
 strength and wisdom are to be taken care of I hone 
 young woman, if you have no father, you have at least a 
 brother. 
 
 The maiden felt the tacit reproach conveyed in this 
 covert question, and for a moment she remained in an 
 embarrassed silence. But, catching a glimpse of the mild 
 and serious features of her companion, as he continued to 
 gaze on her with a look of interest, she replied firmly, and 
 in a manner that left no doubt she comprehended his 
 meaning: 
 
 "Heaven forbid that any such as you have seen snould 
 be a brother of mine, or anything else near or dear to me! 
 But tell me, do you then actually live alone in this desert 
 district, old man; is there really none here besides your 
 self?" 
 
 "There are hundreds, nay, thousands of the rightful 
 owners of the country, roving about the plains, but few 
 of our own color. 
 
 "And have you then met none who are white but us?" 
 interrupted the girl, like one too impatient to await the 
 tardy explanations of age and deliberation. 
 
 "Not in many days. Hush, Hector, hush!" he added, in 
 reply to a low and nearly inaudible growl from his hound. 
 "The dog scents mischief in the wind! The black bears 
 from the mountains sometimes make their way even lower 
 than this. The pup is not apt to complain of the harmless 
 game. I am not so ready and true with the piece as I 
 used-to-could-be, yet I have struck even the fiercest ani 
 mals of the prairie in my time; so you have little reason 
 for fear, young woman. - 
 
 The girl raised her eyes in that pecuilar manner which 
 is so of ten practised by her sex when they commence their 
 glances, by examining the earth at their feet, and termi 
 nate them by noting everything within the power of 
 human vision; but she rather manifested the quality of 
 impatience than any feeling of alarm. 
 
 A short bark from the dog, however, soon gave a new 
 direction to the looks of both, and then the real object of 
 his second warning became dimly visible. 
 
CHAPTER III 
 
 " Come, come, thou art as hot as a Jack in thy mood, as any in Italy; and as 
 soon moved to be moody, and as soon moody to be moved." 
 
 ROMEO AND JULIET. 
 
 THOUGH the trapper manifested some surprise when he 
 perceived that another human figure was approaching 
 him, and that, too, from a direction opposite to the place 
 where the emigrant had made his encampment, it was 
 with the steadiness of one long accustomed to scenes of 
 danger. 
 
 "This is a man," he said; "and one who has white 
 blood in his veins, or his step would be lighter. It would 
 be well to be ready for the worst, as the half-and-halfs 1 
 that one meets in these distant districts are altogether 
 more barbarous than the real savage." 
 
 He raised his rifle while he spoke, and assured himself 
 of the state of its flint, as well as of the priming, by 
 manual examination. But his arm was arrested while in 
 the act of throwing forward the muzzle of the piece, by 
 the eager and trembling hands of his companion. 
 
 "For God s sake be not too hasty," she said; "it may 
 be a friend an acquaintance a neighbor." 
 
 "A friend!" the old man repeated, deliberately releas 
 ing himself at the same time from her grasp. "Friends 
 are rare in any land, and less in this, perhaps, than in 
 another; and the neighborhood is too thinly settled to 
 make it likely that he who comes towards us is even an 
 acquaintance. 
 
 "But though a stranger, you would not seek his blood !" 
 
 The trapper earnestly regarded her anxious and fright 
 ened features, and then he dropped the butt of his rifle on 
 the ground, like one whose purpose had undergone a sud 
 den change. 
 
 1 Half-breeds; men born of Indian women by white fathers. This race has 
 much of the depravity of civilization without the virtues of the savage. 
 
 24 
 
THE PRAIRIE 25 
 
 "No," he said, speaking rather to himself than to his 
 companion, "she is right; blood is not to be spilt, to save 
 the life of one so useless, and so near his time. Let him 
 come on; my skins, my traps, and even my rifle shall be 
 his, if he sees fit to demand them." 
 
 "He will ask for neither; he wants neither," returned 
 the girl; "if he be an honest man, he will surely be con 
 tent with his own, and ask for nothing that is the property 
 of another. 
 
 The trapper had not time to express the surprise he felt 
 at this incoherent and contradictory language, for the 
 man who was advancing was already within fifty feet of 
 the place where they stood. In the mean time Hector had 
 not been an indifferent witness of what was passing. At 
 the sound of the distant footsteps, he had arisen from his 
 warm bed at the feet of his master; and now, as the 
 stranger appeared in open view, he stalked slowly towards 
 him, crouching to the earth like a panther about to take 
 his leap. 
 
 "Call in your dog," said a firm, deep, manly voice, in 
 tones of friendship rather than of menace; "I love a 
 hound, and should be sorry to do an injury to the animal. 
 
 "You hear what is said about you, pup?" the trapper 
 answered; "come hither, fool. His growl and his bark are 
 all that is left him now. You may come on, friend; the 
 hound is toothless." 
 
 The stranger profited by the intelligence. He sprang 
 eagerly forward, and at the next instant stood at the side 
 of Ellen Wade. After assuring himself of the identity of 
 the latter, by a hasty but keen glance, he turned his 
 tention, with a quickness and impatience that proved the 
 interest he took in the result, to a similar examination o: 
 her companion. ,, 
 
 "From what cloud have you fallen, my good old man. 
 he said, in a careless, off-hand, heedless manner, that 
 seemed too natural to be assumed; "or do you act 
 live, hereaway, in the prairies?" 
 
 "I have been long on earth, and never, I hope nigh 
 to heaven that I am at this moment," returned I 
 ner- "mv dwelling, if dwelling I may be said to have, is 
 To far distant. g Now may I take the liberty with you, 
 
26 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 that you are so willing to take with others? Whence do 
 you come, and where is your home?" 
 
 "Softly, softly; when I have done with my catechism, 
 it will be time to begin with yours. What sport is this 
 you follow by moonlight? You are not dodging buffaloes 
 at such an hour ! 
 
 "I am, as you see, going from an encampment of trav 
 elers, which lies over yonder swell in the land, to my own 
 wigwam. In doing so, I wrong no man." 
 
 "All fair and true. And you got this young woman to 
 show you the way, because she knows it so well, and you 
 know so little about it yourself!" 
 
 "I met her, as I have met you, by accident. For ten 
 tiresome years have I dwelt on these open fields, and never, 
 before to-night, have I found human beings with white 
 skins on them, at this hour. If my presence here gives 
 offense, I am sorry, and will go my way. It is more than 
 likely that when your young friend has told her story, you 
 will be better given to believe mine." 
 
 "Friend!" said the youth, lifting a cap of skins from 
 his head, and running his fingers leisurely through a dense 
 mass of black and shaggy locks, "if I have ever laid eyes 
 on the girl before to-night, may I 
 
 "You ve said enough, Paul," interrupted the female, 
 laying her hand on his mouth, with a familiarity that 
 gave something very like the lie direct to his intended as- 
 servation. "Our secret will be safe with this honest old 
 man. I know it by his looks and kind words. 
 
 "Our secret! Ellen, have you forgot 
 
 "Nothing. I have not forgotten anything I should re 
 member. But still I say we are safe with this honest 
 trapper. 
 
 "Trapper! is he then a trapper? Give me your hand, 
 father; our trades should bring us acquainted." 
 
 "There is little call for handicrafts in this region," 
 returned the other, examining the athletic and active 
 form of the youth, as he leaned carelessly and not ungrace 
 fully on his rifle; "the art of taking the creatur s of God 
 in traps and nets, is one that needs more cunning than 
 manhood, and yet am I brought to practise it in my 
 age! But it would be quite as seemly in one like you 
 
THE PRAIRIE 27 
 
 becoming> vour y ears and 
 
 "I! I never took even a slinking mink or a paddling 
 muskrat in a cage; though I admit having peppered a few 
 of the dark-skinned devils, when I had much better have 
 kept my powder in the horn and the lead in its pouch 
 Not I, old man; nothing that crawls the earth is for mv 
 sport." 
 
 "What then may you do for a living, friend? for lit 
 tle profit is to be made in these districts, if a man denies 
 himself his lawful right in the beasts of the field." 
 
 "I deny myself nothing. If a bear crosses my path, 
 he is soon the mere ghost of Bruin. The deer begin to 
 nose me; and as for the buffalo, I have killed more beef, 
 old stranger, than the largest butcher in all Kentucky." 
 
 "You can shoot, then!" demanded the trapper, with a 
 glow of latent fire glimmering about his eyes; "is your 
 hand true and your look quick?" 
 
 "The first is like a steel trap, and the last nimbler than 
 a buck-shot. I wish it was hot noon now, grand ther; 
 and that there was an acre or two of your white swans or 
 of black feathered ducks going south, over our heads; you 
 or Ellen here might set your heart on the finest in the 
 flock, and my character against a horn of powder, that the 
 bird would be hanging head downwards in five minutes, 
 and that too with a single ball. I scorn a shot-gun! No 
 man can say he ever knew me to carry one a rod." 
 
 "The lad has good in him! I see it plainly by his man 
 ner," said the trapper, turning to Ellen with an encour 
 aging air; "I will take it on myself to say, that you are 
 not unwise in meeting him as you do. Tell me, lad; did 
 you ever strike a leaping buck atwixt the antlers? Hector! 
 quiet, pup quiet! The very name of venison quickens 
 the blood of the cur; did you ever take an animal in that 
 fashion, on the long leap?" 
 
 "You might just as well ask me, Did you ever eat? 
 There is no fashion, old stranger, that a deer has not been 
 touched by my hand, unless it was when asleep." 
 
 "Ay, ay; you have a long and a happy ay, and an 
 honest life afore you! I am old, and I suppose I might 
 also say, worn out and useless; but if it was given me i 
 
28 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 choose my time and place again as such things are not 
 and ought not ever to be given to the will of man though 
 if such a gift was to be given me, I would say, twenty and 
 the wilderness! But tell me; how do you part with the 
 peltry?" 
 
 "With my pelts! I never took a skin from a buck nor 
 a quill from a goose in my life! I knock them over now 
 and then for a meal, and sometimes to keep my finger true 
 to the touch; but when hunger is satisfied the prairie 
 wolves get the remainder. No, no; I keep to my calling, 
 which pays me better than all the fur I could sell on the 
 other side of the Big River." 
 
 The old man appeared to ponder a little; but shaking 
 his head, he soon continued: 
 
 "I know of but one business that can be followed here 
 with profit 
 
 He was interrupted by the youth, who raised a small 
 cup of tin which dangled at his neck before the other s 
 eyes, and, springing its lid, the delicious odor of the finest 
 flavored honey diffused itself over the organs of the 
 trapper. 
 
 "A bee-hunter!" observed the latter, with a readiness 
 that proved he understood the nature of the occupation, 
 though not without some little surprise at discovering one 
 of the other s spirited mien engaged in so humble a pur 
 suit. "It pays well in the skirts of the settlements, but I 
 should call it a doubtful trade in the more open districts." 
 
 "You think a tree is wanting for a swarm to settle in! 
 But I know differently; and so I have stretched out a few 
 hundred miles farther west than common to taste your 
 honey. And now I have bated your curiosity, stranger, 
 you will just move aside while I tell the remainder of my 
 story to this young woman. 
 
 "It is not necessary, I m sure it is not necessary, that 
 he should leave us," said Ellen, with a haste that implied 
 some little consciousness of the singularity if not of the 
 impropriety of the request. "You can have nothing to 
 say that the whole world might not hear. 
 
 "No! well, may I be stung to death by drones if I un 
 derstand the buzzings of a woman s mind! For my part, 
 Ellen, I care for nothing nor anybody; and am just as 
 
THE PRAIRIE 29 
 
 ready to go down to the place where your uncle, if uncle 
 you can call one who I ll swear is no relation, has hoppled 
 his teams, and tell the old man my mind now, as I shall 
 be a year hence. You have only to say a single word, and 
 the thing is done; let him like it or not." 
 
 "You are ever so hasty and rash, Paul Hover, that I 
 seldom know when I am safe with you. How can you, 
 who know the danger of our being seen together, speak of 
 going before my uncle and his sons?" 
 
 "Has he done that of which he has reason to be 
 ashamed?" demanded the trapper, who had not moved an 
 inch from the place he first occupied. 
 
 "Heaven forbid! but there are reasons why he should 
 not be seen just now, that could do him no harm if known, 
 but which may not yet be told. And so if you will wait, 
 father, near yonder willow bush, until I have heard what 
 Paul can possibly have to say, I shall be sure to come and 
 wish you a good-night before I return to the camp." 
 
 The trapper drew slowly aside, as if satisfied with the 
 somewhat incoherent reason Ellen had given why he should 
 retire. When completely out of earshot of the earnest 
 and hurried dialogue that instantly commenced between 
 the two he had left, the old man again paused, and pa 
 tiently awaited the moment when he might renew his 
 conversation with beings in whom he felt a growing inter 
 est, no less from the mysterious character of their inter 
 course than from a natural sympathy in the welfare of a 
 pair so young, and who, as in the simplicity of his heart he 
 was also fain to believe, were also so deserving. He was 
 accompanied by his indolent but attached dog, who once 
 more made his bed at the feet of his master, and soon lay 
 slumbering as usual, with his head nearly buried in the 
 dense fog of the prairie grass. 
 
 It was a spectacle so unusual to see the human form 
 amid the solitude in which he dwelt, that the trapper bent 
 his eyes on the dim figures of his new acquaintances wit. 
 sensations to which he had long been a stranger, 
 presence awakened recollections and emotions to wh 
 his sturdy but honest nature had latterly paid but 
 homage, and his thoughts began to wander over 
 varied scene* of a life of hardships that had been strangely 
 
30 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 blended with scenes of wild and peculiar enjoyment. The 
 train taken by his thoughts had already conducted him in 
 imagination far into an ideal world, when he was once 
 more suddenly recalled to the reality of his situation by 
 the movements of the faithful hound. 
 
 The dog, who, in submission to his years and infirmities, 
 had manifested such a decided propensity to sleep, now 
 arose and stalked from out the shadow cast by the tall 
 person of his master, and looked abroad into the prairie, 
 as if his instinct apprised him of the presence of still an 
 other visitor. Then, seemingly content with his examina 
 tion, he returned to his comfortable post, and disposed 
 of his weary limbs with the deliberation and care of one 
 who was no novice in the art of self-preservation. 
 
 "What; again, Hector!" said the trapper in a soothing 
 voice, which he had the caution, however, to utter in an 
 undertone; "what is it, dog? Tell it all to his master, 
 pup; what is it?" 
 
 Hector answered with another growl, but was content 
 to continue in his lair. These were evidences of intelli 
 gence and distrust, to which one as practised as the trapper 
 could not turn an inattentive ear. He again spoke to the 
 dog, encouraging him to watchfulness by a low, guarded 
 whistle. The animal, however, as if conscious of having 
 already discharged his duty, obstinately refused to raise 
 his head from the grass. 
 
 "A hint from such a friend is far better than man s 
 ad vice! "muttered the trapper, as he slowly moved towards 
 the couple who were yet too earnestly and abstractedly 
 engaged in their own discourse to notice his approach; 
 "and none but a conceited settler would hear it and not 
 respect it as he ought. Children," he added, when nigh 
 enough to address his companions, "we are not alone in 
 these dreary fields; there are others stirring, and, there 
 fore, to the shame of our kind be it said, danger is nigh." 
 
 "If one of the lazy sons of skirting Ishmael is prowling 
 out of his camp to-night, said the young bee-hunter, with 
 great vivacity, and in tones that might easily have been 
 excited to a menace, "he may have an end put to his 
 journey sooner than either he or his father is dreaming!" 
 
 "My life on it they are all with the teams," hurriedly 
 
THE PRAIRIE 31 
 
 answered the girl. "I saw the whole of them asleep my- 
 self, except the two on watch; and their natures have 
 greatly changed if they too are not both dreaming of a 
 turkey hunt or a courthouse fight at this very moment." 
 
 ^"Some beast with a strong scent has passed between the 
 wind and the hound, father, and it makes him uneasy; or 
 perhaps he too is dreaming. I had a pup of my own in 
 Kentuck, that would start upon a long chase from a deep 
 sleep; and all upon the fancy of some dream. Go to him 
 and pinch his ear, that the beast may feel the life within 
 him." 
 
 "Not so not so," returned the trapper, shaking his 
 head, as one who better understood the qualities of his 
 dog. "Youth sleeps, ay, and dreams, too; but age is 
 awake and watchful. The pup is never false with his 
 nose, and long experience tells me to heed his warnings." 
 
 "Did you ever run him upon the trail of carrion?" 
 
 "Why, I must say that the ravenous beasts have some 
 times tempted me to let him loose, for they are as greedy 
 as men after the venison, in its season; but then I know 
 the reason of the dog would tell him the object! No, no; 
 Hector is an animal known in the ways of man, and will 
 never strike a false trail when a true one is to be fol 
 lowed!" 
 
 "Ay, ay, the secret is out! You have run the hound 
 on the track of a wolf, and his nose has a better memory 
 than his master!" said the bee-hunter, laughing. 
 
 "I have seen the creatur sleep for hours with pack after 
 pack in open view. A wolf might eat out of his tray with 
 out a snarl, unless there was a scarcity; then, indeed, 
 Hector would be apt to claim his own." 
 
 "There are panthers down from the mountains; I saw 
 one make a leap at a sick deer, as the sun was setting. 
 Go go you back to the dog, and tell him the truth, 
 father; in a minute, I 
 
 He was interrupted by a long, loud, and piteou; 
 from the hound, which rose on the air of the evening, 
 like the wailing of some spirit of the place, and passed c 
 into the prairie, in cadences that rose and fell i 
 undulating surface. The trapper was impressively s 
 listening intently. Even the reckless bee-hunter was s 
 
32 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 with the wailing wildness of the sounds. After a short 
 pause the former whistled the dog to his side, and, turn 
 ing to his companions, he said with the seriousness which 
 in his opinion the occasion demanded: 
 
 "They who think man enjoys all the knowledge of the 
 creatur s of God, will live to be disappointed, if they 
 reach, as I have done, the age of fourscore years. I will 
 not take upon myself to say what mischief is brewing, nor 
 will I vouch that even the hound himself knows so much; 
 but, that evil is nigh, and that wisdom invites us to avoid 
 it, I have heard from the mouth of one who never lies. I 
 did think the pup had become unused to the footsteps of 
 man, and that your presence made him uneasy; but his 
 nose has been on a long scent the whole evening, and what 
 I mistook as a notice of your coming, has been intended 
 for something more serious. If the advice of an old man 
 is, then, worth hearkening to, children, you will quickly 
 go different ways to your places of shelter and safety." 
 
 "If I quit Ellen at such a moment," exclaimed the 
 youth, "may I 
 
 "You ve said enough!" the girl interrupted, by again 
 interposing a hand that might, both by its delicacy and 
 color, have graced a far more elevated station in life; "my 
 time is out, and we must part at all events. So good 
 night, Paul. Father, good-night." 
 
 "Hist!" said the youth, seizing her arm, as she was in 
 the very act of tripping from his side. "Hist! do you 
 hear nothing? There are buffaloes playing their pranks at 
 no great distance. That sound beats the earth like a herd 
 of the mad scampering devils!" 
 
 His two companions listened, as people in their situa 
 tion would be apt to lend their faculties to discover the 
 meaning of any doubtful noises, especially when heard 
 after so many and such startling warnings. The unusual 
 sounds were unequivocally, though still faintly, audible. 
 The youth and his female companion had made several 
 hurried and vacillating conjectures concerning their nature 
 when a current of the night air brought the rush of tramp 
 ling footsteps too sensibly to their ears, to render mistake 
 any longer possible. 
 
 "I am right!" said the bee-hunter; "a panther is driv- 
 
THE PRAIRIE 33 
 
 ing a herd before him; or, mabye, there is a battle among 
 the beasts. 
 
 "Your ears are cheats," returned the old man, who 
 from the moment his own organs had been able to catch 
 the distant sounds, stood like a statue made to represent 
 deep attention; "the leaps are too long for the buffalo 
 and too regular for terror. Hist! now they are in a bot 
 tom where the grass is high, and the sound is deadened! 
 Ay, there they go on the hard earth! and now they come 
 up the swell, dead upon us. They will be here afore you 
 can find a cover ! 
 
 "Come, Ellen," cried the youth, seizing his companion 
 by the hand, "let us make a trial for the encampment." 
 "Too late! too late!" exclaimed the trapper, "for the 
 creatur s are in open view; and a bloody band of accursed 
 Sioux they are, by their thieving look, and the random 
 fashion in which they ride!" 
 
 "Sioux or devils, they shall find us men!" said the 
 bee-hunter, with a mien as fierce as if he had led a party 
 of superior strength, and of a courage equal to his own. 
 "You have a piece, old man, and will pull a trigger in 
 behalf of a helpless Christian girl!" 
 
 "Down, down into the grass down with ye both," 
 whispered the trapper, intimating to them to turn aside 
 to the tall weeds, which grew in a denser body than com 
 mon near the place where they stood. "You ve not the 
 time to fly, nor the numbers to fight, foolish boy. Down 
 into the grass, if you prize the young woman, or value 
 the gift of life!" 
 
 His remonstrance, seconded as it was by a prompt and 
 energetic action, did not fail to produce the submission 
 to his order which the occasion seemed, indeed, imperi 
 ously to require. The moon had fallen behind a sheet of 
 thin, fleecy clouds, which skirted the horizon, leaving just 
 enough of its faint and fluctuating light to render objects 
 visible, dimly revealing their forms and proportions. The 
 trapper, by exercising that species of influence over his 
 companions, which experience and decision usually assert 
 in cases of emergency, had effectually succeeded in con 
 cealing them in the grass; and by the aid of the feeble 
 rays of the luminary, he was enabled to scan the < 
 3 
 
34 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 derly party, which was riding, like so many madmen, 
 directly upon them. 
 
 A band of beings, who resembled demons rather than 
 men, sporting in their nightly revels across the bleak 
 plain, was in truth approaching at a fearful rate, and in 
 a direction to leave little hope that some one among them, 
 at least, would not pass over the spot where the trapper 
 and his companions lay. At intervals, the clattering of 
 hoofs was borne along by the night wind, quite audibly in 
 their front, and then again their progress through the fog 
 of the autumnal grass was swift and silent; adding to the 
 unearthly appearance of the spectacle. The trapper, who 
 had called in his hound, and bidden him crouch at his 
 side, now kneeled in the cover also, and kept a keen and 
 watchful eye on the route of the band, soothing the fears 
 of the girl, and restraining the impatience of the youth 
 in the same breath. 
 
 "If there s one, ther s thirty of the miscreants!" he 
 said, in a sort of episode to his whispered comments. 
 "Ay, ay; they are edging towards the river. Peace, pup 
 peace; no, here they come this way again the thieves 
 don t seem to know their own errand! If there were just 
 six of us, lad, what a beautiful ambushment we might 
 make upon them, from this very spot. It won t do, it 
 Won t do, boy; keep yourself closer, or your head will be 
 seen besides, I m not altogether strong in the opinion it 
 would be lawful, as they have done us no harm. There 
 they bend again to the river; no, here they come up the 
 swell. Now is the moment to be as still as if the breath 
 had done its duty and departed the body." 
 
 The old man sank into the grass while he was speaking, 
 as if the final separation to which he alluded had in his 
 own case actually occurred, and, at the next instant, a 
 band of wild horsemen whirled by them, with the noise 
 less rapidity in which it might be imagined a troop of 
 specters would pass. The dark and fleeting forms were 
 already vanished, when the trapper ventured again to 
 raise his head to a level with the tops of the bending 
 herbage, motioning at the same time to his companions to 
 maintain their positions and their silence. 
 
 "They are going down the swell towards the encamp- 
 
THE PRAIRIE 35 
 
 ment," he continued, in his former guarded tone; "no, 
 they halt in the bottom, and are clustering together like 
 deer in council. By the Lord, they are turning again 
 and we are not yet done with the reptiles!" 
 
 Once more he sought his friendly cover, and at the next 
 instant the dark troop was to be seen riding, in a disor 
 derly manner, on the very summit of the little elevation 
 on which the trapper and his companions lay. It was now 
 soon apparent that they had returned to avail themselves 
 of the height of the ground, in order to examine the dim 
 horizon. 
 
 Some dismounted, while others rode to and fro, like 
 men engaged in a local inquiry of much interest. Happily 
 for the hidden party, the grass in which they were con 
 cealed not only served to screen them from the eyes of the 
 savages, but opposed an obstacle to prevent their horses, 
 which were no less rude and untrained than their riders, 
 from trampling on them, in their irregular and wild paces. 
 
 At length an athletic and dark-looking Indian, who, by 
 his air of authority, would seem to be the leader, sum 
 moned his chiefs about him, to a consultation, which was 
 held mounted. This body was collected on the very mar 
 gin of that mass of herbage in which the trapper and his 
 companions were hid. As the young man looked up and 
 saw the fierce aspect of the group, which was increasing 
 at each instant by the accession of some countenance and 
 figure apparently more forbidding than any which had 
 preceded it, he drew his rifle, by a very natural impulse, 
 from beneath him, and commenced putting it in a state 
 for service. The female at his side buried her face in the 
 grass, by a feeling that was, possibly, quite as natural to 
 her sex and habits, leaving him to follow the impulses of 
 his hot blood; but his aged and more prudent adviser 
 whispered sternly in his ear: "The tick of the lock is as 
 well known to the knaves as the blast of a trumpet to a 
 soldier! lay down the piece lay down the piece; should 
 the moon touch the barrel, it could not fail to be seen by 
 the devils, whose eyes are keener than the blackest snake s 
 The smallest motion, now, would be sure to bring an 
 arrow among us. 
 
 The bee-hunter so far obeyed as to continue immovabl< 
 
36 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 and silent. But there was still sufficient light to convince 
 his companion, by the contracted brow and threatening 
 eye of the young man, that a discovery would not bestow 
 a bloodless victory on the savages. Finding his advice 
 disregarded, the trapper took his measures accordingly, 
 and awaited the result with a resignation and calmness 
 that were characteristic of the individual. 
 
 In the mean time, the Sioux (for the sagacity of the 
 old man was not deceived in the character of his danger 
 ous neighbors) had terminated their council, and were 
 again dispersed along the ridge of land as if they sought 
 some hidden object. 
 
 "The imps have heard the hound!" whispered the trap 
 per, "and their ears are too true to be cheated in the 
 distance. Keep close, lad, keep close; down with your 
 head to the very earth, like a dog that sleeps." 
 
 "Let us rather take to our feet, and trust to manhood, 
 returned his impatient companion. 
 
 He would have proceeded; but feeling a hand laid 
 rudely on his shoulder, he turned his eyes upwards, and 
 beheld the dark and savage countenance of an Indian 
 gleaming full upon him. Notwithstanding the surprise 
 and the disadvantage of his attitude, the youth was not 
 disposed to become a captive so easily. Quicker than a 
 flash of his own gun he sprang upon his feet, and was 
 throttling his opponent with a power that would soon have 
 terminated the contest, when he felt the arms of the trap 
 per thrown around his body, confining his exertions by a 
 strength very little inferior to his own. Before he had 
 time to reproach his comrade for this apparent treachery, 
 a dozen Sioux were around them, and the whole party 
 were compelled to yield themselves as prisoners. 
 
CHAPTER IV 
 
 T . "With much more dismay, 
 
 1 view the fight, than those who make the fray." 
 
 MERCHANT OF VENICE. 
 
 THE unfortunate bee-hunter and his companions had 
 become the captives of a people who might, without ex 
 aggeration, be called the Ishmaelites of the American 
 deserts. From time immemorial the hands of the Sioux 
 had been turned against their neighbors of the prairies; 
 and even at this day, when the influence and authority of 
 a civilized government are beginning to be felt around 
 them, they are considered a treacherous and dangerous 
 race. At the period of our tale the case was far worse; 
 few white men trusting themselves in the remote and un 
 protected regions where so false a tribe was known t:> 
 dwell. 
 
 Notwithstanding the peaceable submission of the trap 
 per, he was quite aware of the character of the band into 
 whose hands he had fallen. It would have been difficult, 
 however, for the nicest judge to have determined whether 
 fear, policy, or resignation formed the secret motive of 
 the old man, in permitting himself to be plundered as he 
 did, without a murmur. So far from opposing any re 
 monstrance to the rude and violent manner in which his 
 conquerors performed the customary office, he even antici 
 pated their cupidity, by tendering to the chiefs such 
 articles as he thought might prove the most acceptable. 
 On the other hand, Paul Hover, who had been literally a 
 conquered man, manifested the strongest repugnance to 
 submit to the violent liberties that were taken with his 
 person and property. He even gave several exceedingly 
 unequivocal demonstrations of his displeasure during the 
 summary process, and would, more than once, have broken 
 out in open and desperate resistance, but for the admoni 
 tions and entreaties of the trembling girl, who clung to 
 
 37 
 
38 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 his side in a manner so dependent, as to show the youth 
 that her hopes were now placed no less on his discretion, 
 than on his disposition to serve her. 
 
 The Indians had, however, no sooner deprived the cap 
 tives of their arms and ammunition, and stripped them of 
 a few articles of dress of little use, and perhaps of less 
 value, than they appeared disposed to grant them a res 
 pite. Business of greater moment pressed on their hands, 
 and required their attention. Another consultation of the 
 chiefs was convened, and it was apparent, by the earnest 
 and vehement manner of the few who spoke, that the 
 warriors conceived their success as yet to be far from 
 complete. 
 
 "It will be well," whispered the trapper, who knew 
 enough of the language he heard to comprehend perfectly 
 the subject of the discussion, "if the travelers who lie 
 near the willow brake are not awoke out of their sleep by 
 a visit from these miscreants. They are too cunning to 
 believe that a woman of the pale faces is to be found so 
 far from the settlements, without having a white man s 
 inventions and comforts at hand." 
 
 "If they will carry the tribe of wandering Ishmael to the 
 Rocky Mountains," said the young bee-hunter, laughing 
 in his vexation with a sort of bitter merriment, "I may 
 forgive the rascals." 
 
 "Paul! Paul!" exclaimed his companion in atone of 
 reproach, "you forget all! Think of the dreadful conse 
 quences ! 
 
 "Ay, it was thinking of what you call consequences, 
 Ellen, that prevented me from putting the matter, at 
 once, to yonder red devil, and making it a real knock 
 down and drag-out! Old trapper, the sin of this cowardly 
 business lies on your shoulders! But it is no more than 
 your daily calling, I reckon, to take men, as well as 
 beasts, in snares." 
 
 "I implore you, Paul, to be calm to be patient." 
 
 "Well, since it is your wish, Ellen," returned the 
 youth, endeavoring to swallow his spleen, "I will make 
 the trial, though, as you ought to know, it is part of the 
 religion of a Kentuckian to fret himself a little at a mis 
 chance. 
 
THE PRAIRIE 39 
 
 "I fear your friends in the other bottom will not escape 
 the eyes of the imps!" continued the trapper, as coolly 
 as though he had not heard a syllable of the intervening 
 discourse. "They scent plunder; and it would be as hard 
 to drive a hound from his game, as to throw the varmints 
 from the trail." 
 
 "Is there nothing to be done?" asked Ellen, in an im 
 ploring manner, which proved the sincerity of her concern. 
 
 "It would be an easy matter to call out in so loud a 
 voice as to make old Ishmael dream that the wolves were 
 among his flock, " Paul replied; "I can make myself heard 
 a mile in these open fields, and his camp is but a short 
 quarter from us. 
 
 "And get knocked on the head for your pains, returned 
 the trapper. "No, no; cunning must match cunning, or 
 the hounds will murder the whole family." 
 
 "Murder! no no murder. Ishmael loves travel so 
 well, there would be no harm in his having a look at the 
 other sea, but the old fellow is in a bad condition to take 
 the long journey! I would try a lock myself before he 
 should be quite murdered." 
 
 "His party is strong in number, and well armed; do 
 you think it will fight?" 
 
 "Look here, old trapper: Few men love Ishmael Bush 
 and his seven sledge-hammer sons less than one Paul Hover; 
 but I scorn to slander even a Tennessee shot-gun. There 
 is as much of the true stand-up courage among them as 
 there is in any family that was ever raised in Kentuck 
 itself. They are a long-sided and a double-jointed breed 
 and, let me tell you, that he who takes the measure of one 
 of them on the ground must be a workman at a hug. 
 
 "Hist! The savages have done their talk, and areabo 
 to set their accursed devices in motion. Let us be patient; 
 something may yet offer in favor of your friends 
 
 "Friends! Call none of the race a friend of mine, 
 trapper, if you have the smallest regard for my affed 
 What I say in their favor is less from love than hones y.^ 
 
 "I did not know but the young woman was of 1 
 returned the other, a little dryly; "but no offense shou 
 be taken, where none was intended." 
 
 The mouth of Paul was again stopped by the hand 
 
40 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 Ellen, who took upon herself to reply, in her conciliating 
 tones: "We should be all of a family, when it is in our 
 power to serve each other. We depend entirely on your 
 experience, honest old man, to discover the means to ap 
 prise our friends of their danger." 
 
 "There will be a real time of it," muttered the bee- 
 hunter, laughing, "if the boys get at work, in good earn 
 est, with these red-skins!" 
 
 He was interrupted by a general movement which took 
 place among the band. The Indians dismounted to a man, 
 giving their horses in charge to three or four of the party, 
 who were also intrusted with the safe-keeping of the pris 
 oners. They then formed themselves in a circle around a 
 warrior who appeared to possess the chief authority; and 
 at a given signal the whole array moved slowly and cau 
 tiously from the center in straight and consequently in 
 diverging lines. Most of their dark forms were soon 
 blended with the brown covering of the prairie; though 
 the captives, who watched the slightest movement of their 
 enemies with vigilant eyes, were now and then enabled 
 to discern a human figure drawn against the horizon, as 
 some one, more eager than the rest, rose to his greatest 
 height in order to extend the limits of his view. But it 
 was not long before even these fugitive glimpses of the 
 moving and constantly increasing circle were lost, and un 
 certainty and conjecture were added to apprehension. In 
 this manner passed many anxious and weary minutes, dur 
 ing the close of which the listeners expected at each 
 moment to hear the whoop of the assailants and the shrieks 
 of the assailed, rising together on the stillness of the 
 night. But it would seem, that the search which was so 
 evidently making, was without a sufficient object; for at 
 the expiration of half an hour the different individuals of 
 the band began to return singly, gloomy and sullen, like 
 men who were disappointed. 
 
 "Our time is at hand, observed the trapper, who noted 
 the smallest incident, or the slightest indication of hos 
 tility among the savages; "we are now to be questioned; 
 and if I know anything of the policy of our case, I should 
 say it would be wise to choose one among us to hold the 
 discourse, in order that our testimony may agree. And 
 
THE PRAIRIE 41 
 
 furthermore, if an opinion from one as old and as worth 
 less as a hunter of fourscore is to be regarded, I would 
 just venture to say, that man should be the one most 
 skilled in the natur of an Indian, and that he should also 
 know something of their language. Are you acquainted 
 with the tongue of the Sioux, friend?" 
 
 Swarm your own hive, returned the discontented bee- 
 hunter. "You are good at buzzing, old trapper, if you 
 are good at nothing else." 
 
 " Tis the gift of youth to be rash and heady," the 
 trapper calmly retorted. "The day has been, boy, when 
 my blood was like your own, too swift and too hot to run 
 quietly in my veins. But what will it profit to talk of 
 silly risks and foolish acts at this time of life? A gray 
 head should cover a brain of reason, and not the tongue of 
 o V)o?mi"f i T" 
 
 "True, true," whispered Ellen; "and we have other 
 things to attend to now! Here comes the Indian to put 
 his questions." 
 
 The girl, whose apprehensions had quickened her s< 
 was not deceived. She was speaking when a tall, half 
 naked savage approached the spot where they stood, and 
 after examining the whole party as closely as 
 light permitted, for more than a minute in perfe 
 ness he gave the usual salutation in the harsh and gu 
 tural tones of his own language. The trapper rep iu 
 well as he could, which it seems was sufficiently we 
 understood. In order to escape the imputation of pedantry 
 we shall render the substance, and, so far as nt is jx* 
 the form of the dialogue that succeeded, into tl 
 
 the palefaces eaten their own buffaloe 
 taken the skins from all their own beavers 
 
 savae-e allowing the usual moment of decon 
 *% Swords of greeting, **"* 
 "that they come to count how many are 
 
 e of us are here to buy and I .. to ; |; 
 turned the trapper; "but none will follow if tho 
 
42 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 snow; why do we talk of a people who are so far, when 
 we are in the country of the Pawnees?" 
 
 "If the Pawnees are the owners of this land, then white 
 and red are here by equal right." 
 
 "Have not the pale faces stolen enough from the red 
 men, that you come so far to a cry a lie? I have said 
 that this is a hunting-ground of my tribe." 
 
 "My right to be here is equal to your own," the trap 
 per rejoined, with undisturbed coolness; "I do not speak 
 as I might it is better to be silent. The Pawnees and 
 the white men are brothers, but a Sioux dare not show his 
 face in the village of the Loups." 
 
 "The Dahcotahs are men!" exclaimed the savage, 
 fiercely; forgetting in his anger to maintain the character 
 he had assumed, and using the appellation of which his 
 nation was most proud; "the Dahcotahs have no fear! 
 Speak; what brings you so far from the villages of the 
 pale faces?" 
 
 "I have seen the sun rise and set on many councils, and 
 have heard the words of wise men. Let your chiefs come, 
 and my mouth shall not be shut." 
 
 "I am a great chief!" said the savage, affecting an air 
 of offended dignity. "Do you take me for an Assini- 
 boine? Weucha is a warrior often named, and much 
 believed!" 
 
 "Am I a fool, not to know a burnt- wood Teton?" 
 demanded the trapper, with a steadiness that did great 
 credit to his nerves. "Go; it is dark, and you do not see 
 that my head is gray!" 
 
 The Indian now appeared convinced that he had adopted 
 too shallow an artifice to deceive one so practised as the 
 man he addressed, and he was deliberating what fiction 
 he should next invent, in order to obtain his real object, 
 when a slight commotion among the band put an end at 
 once to all his schemes. Casting his eyes behind him, as 
 if fearful of a speedy interruption, he said, in tones much 
 less pretending than those he had first resorted to: 
 
 "Give Weucha the milk of the Long-knives, and he will 
 sing your name in the ears of the great men of his tribe." 
 
 "Go," repeated the trapper, motioning him away, with 
 strong disgust. "Your young men are speaking of Mah- 
 toree. My words are for the ears of a chief. 
 
THE PRAIRIE 43 
 
 The savage cast a look on the other, which notwith 
 standing the dim light, was sufficiently indicative of im 
 placable hostility. He then stole away among his fellows 
 anxious to conceal the counterfeit he had attempted to 
 practise, no less than the treachery he had contemplated 
 against a fair division of the spoils, from the man named 
 by the trapper, whom he now also knew to be approach 
 ing, by the manner in which his name passed from one to 
 another, in the band. He had hardly disappeared before 
 a warrior of powerful frame advanced out of the dark 
 circle, and placed himself before the captives, with that 
 high and proud bearing for which a distinguished Indian 
 chief is ever so remarkable. He was followed by all the 
 party, who arranged themselves around his person, in a 
 deep and respectful silence. 
 
 "The earth is very large," the chief commenced, after 
 a pause of that true dignity which his counterfeit had so 
 miserably affected; "why can the children of my great 
 white father never find room on it?" 
 
 "Some among them have heard that their friends in 
 the prairies are in want of many things," returned the 
 trapper; "and they have come to see if it be true. Some 
 want, in their turns, what the red men are willing to sell, 
 and they come to make their friends rich with powder 
 and blankets." 
 
 "Do traders cross the Big River with empty hands?" 
 
 "Our hands are empty because your young men thought 
 we were tired, and they have lightened us of our load. 
 They were mistaken; I am old, but I am still strong." 
 
 "It cannot be. Your load has fallen in the prairies. 
 Show my young men the place, that they may pick it up 
 before the Pawnees find it." 
 
 "The path to the spot is crooked, and it is night. The 
 hour is come for sleep," said the trapper, with perfect 
 composure. "Bid your warriors go over yonder hill; 
 there is water and there is wood; let them light thrir 
 fires and sleep with warm feet. When the sun com.-s 
 again I will speak to you." 
 
 A low murmur, but one that was clearly indicative c 
 dissatisfaction, passed among the attentive listeners, and 
 served to inform the old man that he had not been sum- 
 
44 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 ciently wary in proposing a measure that he intended 
 should notify the travelers in the brake of the presence of 
 their dangerous neighbors. Mahtoree, however, without 
 betraying in the slightest degree the excitement which 
 was so strongly exhibited by his companions, continued 
 the discourse in the same lofty manner as before. 
 
 "I know that my friend is rich," he said; "that he has 
 many warriors not far off, and that horses are plentier 
 with him than dogs among the red skins." 
 
 "You see my warriors and my horses." 
 
 "What! has the woman the feet of a Dahcotah, that 
 she can walk for thirty nights in the prairies, and not 
 fall ! I know the red men of the woods make long marches 
 on foot, but we, who live where the eye cannot see from 
 one lodge to another, love our horses." 
 
 The trapper now hesitated, in his turn. He was per 
 fectly aware that deception, if detected, might prove dan 
 gerous; and for one of his pursuits and character, he was 
 strongly troubled with an unaccommodating regard for 
 the truth. But recollecting that he controlled the fate of 
 others as well as of himself, he determined to let things 
 take their course, and to permit the Dahcotah chief to 
 deceive himself, if he would. 
 
 "The women of the Sioux and of the white men are 
 not of the same wigwam," he answered, evasively. "Would 
 a Teton warrior make his wife greater than himself? I 
 know he would not ; and yet my ears have heard there are 
 lands where the councils are held by squaws." 
 
 Another slight movement in the dark circle apprised 
 the trapper that his declaration was not received without 
 surprise, if entirely without distrust. The chief alone 
 seemed unmoved ; nor was he disposed to relax from the 
 loftiness and high dignity of his air. 
 
 "My white fathers who live on the Great Lakes have 
 declared," he said, "that their brothers towards the ris 
 ing sun are not men; and now I know they did not lie! 
 Go; what is a nation whose chief is a squaw! Are you 
 the dog and not the husband of this woman?" 
 
 "I am neither. Never did I see her face before this 
 day. She came into the prairies because they had told 
 her a great and generous nation called the Dahcotahs lived 
 
THE PRAIRIE 45 
 
 there, and she wished to look on men. The women of the 
 pale faces, like the women of the Sioux, open their 
 eyes to see things that are new; but she is poor, like my 
 self, and she will want corn and buffaloes, if you take 
 away the little that she and her friend still have." 
 
 "My ears listen to many wicked lies!" exclaimed the 
 Teton warrior, in a voice so stern that it startled even 
 his red auditors. "Am I a woman? Has not a Dahcotah 
 eyes? Tell me, white hunter; who are the men of your 
 color that sleep near the fallen trees?" 
 
 As he spoke, the indignant chief pointed in the direction 
 of Ishmael s encampment, leaving the trapper no reason 
 to doubt that the superior industry and sagacity of this 
 man had effected a discovery which had eluded the search 
 of the rest of his party. Notwithstanding his regret at 
 an event that might prove fatal to the sleepers, and some 
 little vexation at having been so completely outwitted in 
 the dialogue just related, the old man continued to main 
 tain his air of inflexible composure. 
 
 "It may be true," he answered, "that white men are 
 sleeping in the prairie. If my brother says it, it is true; 
 but what men thus trust to the generosity of the Tetons, 
 I cannot tell. If there be strangers asleep, send your 
 young men to wake them up, and let them say why they 
 are here; every pale face has a tongue." 
 
 The chief shook his head with a wild and fierce smile, 
 answering abruptly, as he turned away to put an end to 
 the conference: 
 
 "The Dahcotahs are a wise race, and Mahtoree i 
 chief! He will not call to the strangers, that they may 
 rise and speak to him with their carbines. He will whis 
 per softly in their ears. When this is done, let 
 of their own color come and awake them!" 
 
 As he uttered these words, and turned on h 
 low and approving laugh passed around the dark 
 which instantly broke its order, and followed 
 little distance from the stand of the captives, where 
 who might presume to mingle opinions i w great 
 warrior, again gathered about him in consult* 
 cha profited by this occasion to renew his import 
 but the trapper, who had discovered how great a count 
 
46 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 feit he was, shook him off in displeasure. An end was, 
 however, more effectually put to the annoyance of this 
 malignant savage, by a mandate for the whole party, in 
 cluding men and beasts, to change their positions. The 
 movement was made in dead silence, and with an order 
 that would have done credit to more enlightened beings. 
 A halt, however, was soon made; and when the captives 
 had time to look about them, they found they were in 
 view of the low, dark outline of the copse near which lay 
 the slumbering party of Ishmael. 
 
 Here another short but grave and deliberate consultation 
 was held. 
 
 The beasts, which seemed trained to such covert and 
 silent attacks, were once more placed under the care of 
 keepers, who, as before, were charged with the duty of 
 watching the prisoners. The mind of the trapper was in 
 no degree relieved from the uneasiness which was at each 
 instant getting a stronger possession of him, when he 
 found Weucha was placed nearest to his own person, and 
 as it appeared by the air of triumph and authority he as 
 sumed, at the head of the guard also. The savage, how 
 ever, who doubtless had his secret instructions, was con 
 tent, for the present, with making a significant gesture 
 with his tomahawk, which menaced death to Ellen. After 
 admonishing in this expressive manner his male captives 
 of the fate that would instantly attend their female com 
 panion on the slightest alarm proceeding from any of the 
 party, he was content to maintain a rigid silence. This 
 unexpected forbearance on the part of Weucha, enabled 
 the trapper and his two associates to give their undivided 
 attention to the little that might be seen of the interesting 
 movements which were passing in their front. 
 
 Mahtoree took the entire disposition of the arrange 
 ments on himself. He pointed out the precise situation 
 he wished each individual to occupy, like one intimately 
 acquainted with the qualifications of his respective fol 
 lowers, and he was obeyed with the deference and prompti 
 tude with which an Indian warrior is wont to submit to 
 the instructions of his chief in moments of trial. Some 
 he despatched to the right, and others to the left. Each 
 man departed with the noiseless and quick step peculiar 
 
THE PRAIRIE 47 
 
 to the race, until all had assumed their allotted stations, 
 with the exception of two chosen warriors, who remained 
 nigh the person of their leader. When the rest had dis 
 appeared, Mahtoree turned to these select companions, and 
 intimated by a sign that the critical moment had arrived, 
 when the enterprise he contemplated was to be put in 
 execution. 
 
 Each man laid aside the light fowling-picee, which, 
 under the name of a carbine, he carried in virtue of his 
 rank; and divesting himself of every article of exterior or 
 heavy clothing, he stood resembling a dark and fierce- 
 looking statue, in the attitude, and nearly in the garb of 
 nature. Mahtoree assured himself of the right position of 
 his tomahawk, felt that his knife was secure in its sheath 
 of skin, tightened his girdle of wampum, and saw that 
 the lacing of his fringed and ornamented leggings was 
 secure, and likely to offer no impediment to his exertions. 
 Thus prepared at all points, and ready for his desperate 
 undertaking, the Teton gave the signal to proceed. 
 
 The three advanced in a line with the encampment of 
 the travelers, until, in the dim light by which they were 
 seen, their dusky forms were nearly lost to the eyes of the 
 prisoners. Here they paused, looking around them like 
 men who deliberate and ponder long on the consequences 
 before they take a desperate leap. Then, sinking together, 
 they became lost in the grass of the prairie. 
 
 It is not difficult to imagine the distress and anxietj 
 the different spectators of these threatening movements. 
 Whatever might be the reasons of Ellen for entertain 
 no strong attachment to the family in which she has 
 been seen by the reader, the feelings of her sex and p. 
 haps, some lingering seeds of kindness, P redom ^ at< * d 
 More than once she felt tempted to brave the ajful an 
 instant danger that awaited such an offense, and 
 her feeble, and, in truth, impotent voice in warnmj 
 strong, indeed, and so very natural was the incl. ition, 
 that she would most probably have put it into exect 
 for the often-repeated, though whispered remon 
 of Paul Hover. In the breast of the young bee-hi 
 himself there was a singular union of emot ons. His first 
 and chief solicitude was certainly m behalf of his 
 
48 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 and dependent companion; but the sense of her danger 
 was mingled in the breast of the reckless woodsman, with 
 a consciousness of a high and wild, and by no means an 
 unpleasant, excitement. Though united to the emigrants 
 by ties still less binding than those of Ellen, he longed to 
 hear the crack of their rifles, and, had occasion offered, he 
 would gladly have been among the first to rush to their 
 rescue. There were, in truth, moments when he felt in 
 his turn an impulse that was nearly resistless, to spring 
 forward and awake the unconscious sleepers; but a glance 
 at Ellen would serve to recall his tottering prudence, and 
 to admonish him of the consequences. The trapper alone 
 remained calm and observant, as if nothing that involved 
 his personal comfort or safety had occurred. His* ever- 
 moving, vigilant eyes watched the smallest change, with 
 the composure of one too long inured to scenes of danger 
 to be easily moved, and with an expression of cool deter 
 mination which denoted the intention he actually harbored, 
 of profiting by the smallest oversight on the part of the 
 captors. 
 
 In the mean time the Teton warriors had not been idle. 
 Profiting by the high fog which grew in the bottoms they 
 had wormed their way through the matted grass, like so 
 many treacherous serpents stealing on their prey, Until 
 the point was gained where an extraordinary caution be 
 came necessary to their further advance. Mahtoree alone 
 had occasionally elevated his dark, grim countenance above 
 the herbage, straining his eyeballs to penetrate the gloom 
 which skirted the border of the brake. In these momen 
 tary glances he gained sufficient knowledge, added to that 
 he had obtained in his former search, to be the perfect 
 master of the position of his intended victims, though he 
 was still profoundly ignorant of their numbers, and of 
 their means of defense. 
 
 His efforts to possess himself of the requisite knowledge 
 concern ing these two latter and essential points were, how 
 ever, completely baffled by the stillness of the camp, which 
 lay in a quiet as deep as if it were literally a place of 
 the dead. Too wary and distrustful to rely, in circum 
 stances of so much doubt, on the discretion of any less 
 firm and crafty than himself, the Dahcotah bade his com- 
 
THE PRAIRIE 49 
 
 panions remain where they lay, and pursued the adventure 
 alone. 
 
 The progress of Mahtoree was now slow, and, to one 
 less accustomed to such a species of exercise, it woulcj 
 have proved painfully laborious. But the advance of the 
 wily snake itself is not more certain or noiseless than was 
 his approach. He drew his form, foot by foot, through 
 the bending grass, pausing at each movement to catch the 
 smallest sound that might betray any knowledge, on the 
 part of the travelers, of his proximity. He succeeded, at 
 length in dragging himself out of the sickly light of the 
 moon into the shadows of the brake, where not only his 
 own dark person was much less liable to be seen, but 
 where the surrounding objects became more distinctly 
 visible to his keen and active glances. 
 
 Here the Teton paused long and warily to make his 
 observations before he ventured further. His position 
 enabled him to bring the whole encampment, with its tent, 
 wagons, and lodges, into a dark but clearly marked profile; 
 furnishing a clue by which the practised warrior was led 
 to a tolerably accurate estimate of the force he was about 
 to encounter. Still, an unnatural silence pervaded the 
 spot, as if men suppressed even the quiet breathings 
 sleep in order to render the appearance of their coi 
 dence more evident. The chief bent his head to the earth, 
 and listened intently. He was about to raise it again, ir 
 disappointment, when the long-drawn and trembhr 
 piration of one who slumbered imperfectly met his 
 The Indian was too well skilled in all the means of decep 
 tion to become himself the victim of any common art 
 He knew the sound to be natural, by its peculiar quiver 
 ing, and he hesitated no longer. 
 
 A man of nerves less tried than those of the fierce and 
 
 the vindictive animosity of a red man, jealoub and 
 ful of the inroads of the stranger. 
 
 ; 
 
50 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 Turning from the line of his former route, the Teton 
 dragged himself directly towards the margin of the 
 thicket. When this material object was effected in safety, 
 he arose to his seat, and took a better survey of his situ 
 ation. A single moment served to apprise him of the 
 place where the unsuspecting traveler lay. The reader 
 will readily anticipate that the savage had succeeded in 
 gaining a dangerous proximity to one of those slothful 
 sons of Ishmael who were deputed to watch over the iso 
 lated encampment of the travelers. 
 
 When certain that he was undiscovered, the Dahcotah 
 raised his person again, and bending forward, he moved 
 his dark visage above the face of the sleeper, in that sort 
 of wanton and subtle manner with which the reptile is 
 seen to play about its victim before it strikes. Satisfied 
 at length, not only of the condition but of the character 
 of the stranger, Mahtoree was in the act of withdrawing 
 his head, when a slight movement of the sleeper announced 
 the symptoms of reviving consciousness. The savage 
 seized the knife which hung at his girdle, and in an instant 
 it was poised above the breast of the young emigrant. 
 Then, changing his purpose, with an action as rapid as his 
 own flashing thoughts, he sank back behind the trunk of 
 the fallen tree against which the other reclined, and lay in 
 its shadow, as dark, as motionless, and apparently as in 
 sensible as the wood itself. 
 
 The slothful sentinel opened his heavy eyes, and, gazing 
 upwards for a moment at the hazy heavens, he made an 
 extraordinary exertion, and raised his powerful frame 
 from the support of the log. Then he looked about him, 
 with an air of something like watchfulness, suffering his 
 dull glance to run over the misty objects of the encamp 
 ment until they finally settled on the distant and dim field 
 of the open prairie. Meeting with nothing more attrac 
 tive than the same faint outlines of swell and interval 
 which everywhere rose before his drowsy eyes, he changed 
 his position so as completely to turn his back on his dan 
 gerous neighbor, and suffered his person to sink sluggishly 
 down into its former recumbent attitude. A long, and, 
 on the part of the Teton, an anxious and painful silence 
 succeeded, before the deep breathing of the traveler 
 
THE PRAIRIE 51 
 
 again announced that he was indulging in his slumbers. 
 The savage was, however, far too jealous of a counter 
 feit to trust to the first appearance of sleep. But the 
 fatigues of a day of unusual toil lay too heavy on the sen 
 tinel to leave the other long in doubt. Still, the motion 
 with which Mahtoree again raised himself to his knees 
 was so noiseless and guarded, that even a vigilant observer 
 might have hesitated to believe he stirred. The change 
 was, however, at length effected, and the Dahcotah chief 
 then bent again over his enemy, without having produced 
 a noise louder than that of the cottonwood leaf which 
 fluttered at his side in the currents of the passing air. 
 
 Mahtoree now felt himself master of the sleeper s fate. 
 At the same time that he scanned the vast proportions 
 and athletic limbs of the youth, in that sort of admiration 
 which physical excellence seldom fails to excite in the 
 breast of a savage, he coolly prepared to extinguish the 
 principle of vitality which could alone render them for 
 midable. After making himself sure of the seat of life, 
 by gently removing the folds of the intervening cloth, he 
 raised his keen weapon, and was about to unite his strength 
 and skill in the impending blow, when the young man 
 threw his brawny arm carelessly backwards, exhibiting in 
 the action the vast volume of its muscles. 
 
 The sagacious and wary Teton paused. It struck his 
 acute faculties that sleep was less dangerous to him, at 
 that moment, than even death itself might prove. The 
 smallest noise, the agony of struggling, with which such 
 a frame would probably relinquish its hold of life, sug 
 gested themselves to his rapid thoughts, and were all 
 present to his experienced senses. He looked back 
 the encampment, turned his head into the thicket, and 
 glanced his glowing eyes abroad into the wild and I 
 prairies. Bending once more over the respited victim, 
 he assured himself that he was sleeping heavily, and 
 abandoned his immediate purpose in obedience aloi 
 the suggestions of a more crafty policy. 
 
 The retreat of Mahtoree was still and guarded t 
 been his approach. He now took the direction i of 1 
 campment, stealing along the margin of the br 
 cover into which he might easily plunge at the smalie 
 
52 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 alarm. The drapery of the solitary hut attracted his 
 notice in passing. After examining the whole of its ex 
 terior, and listening with painful intensity, in order to 
 gather counsel from his ears, the savage ventured to raise 
 the cloth at the bottom, and to thrust his dark visage 
 beneath. It might have been a minute before the Teton 
 chief drew back, and seated himself with the whole of his 
 form without the linen tenement. Here he sat, seemingly 
 brooding over his discovery, for many moments, in rigid 
 inaction. Then he resumed his crouching attitude, and 
 once more projected his visage beyond the covering of the 
 tent. His second visit to the interior was longer, and, if 
 possible, more ominous than the first. But it had, like 
 everything else, its termination, and the savage again 
 withdrew his glaring eyes from the secrets of the place. 
 
 Mahtoree had drawn his person many yards from the 
 spot, in slow progress towards the cluster of objects which 
 pointed out the center of the position, before he again 
 stopped. He made another pause, and looked back at the 
 solitary little dwelling he had left, as if doubtful whether 
 he should not return. But the chevaux-de-f rise of branches 
 now lay within reach of his arm and the very appearance 
 of precaution it presented, as it announced the value of 
 the effects it encircled, tempted his cupidity, and induced 
 him to proceed. 
 
 The passage of the savage, through the tender and brit 
 tle limbs of the cotton-wood, could be likened only to the 
 sinuous and noiseless winding of the reptiles which he 
 imitated. When he had effected his object, and had taken 
 an instant to become acquainted with the nature of the 
 localities within the inclosure, the Teton used the precau 
 tion to open a way through which he might make a swift 
 retreat. Then raising himself on his feet, he stalked 
 through the encampment, like the master of evil, seeking 
 whom and what he should first devote to his fell purposes. 
 He had already ascertained the contents of the lodge in 
 which were collected the woman and her young children, 
 and had passed several gigantic frames, stretched on dif 
 ferent piles of brush, which happily for him lay in uncon 
 scious helplessness, when he reached the spot occupied by 
 Ishmael in person. It could not escape the sagacity of one 
 
THE PRAIRIE 53 
 
 like Mahtoree, that he had now within his power the prin 
 cipal man among the travelers. He stood long, hovering 
 above the recumbent and Herculean form of the emigrant, 
 keenly debating in his own mind the chances of his enter 
 prise, and the most effectual means of reaping its richest 
 harvest. 
 
 He sheathed the knife, which, under the hasty and 
 burning impulse of his thoughts, he had been tempted to 
 draw, and was passing on, when Ishmael turned in his 
 lair, and demanded roughly who was moving before his 
 half-opened eyes. Nothing short of the readiness and 
 cunning of a savage could have evaded the crisis. Imita 
 ting the gruff tones and nearly unintelligible sounds he 
 heard, Mahtoree threw his body heavily on the earth, and 
 appeared to dispose himself to sleep. Though the whole 
 movement was seen by Ishmael, in a sort of stupid obser 
 vation, the artifice was too bold and too admirably exe 
 cuted to fail. The drowsy father closed his eyes and 
 slept heavily, with this treacherous inmate in the very 
 bosom of his family. 
 
 It was necessary for the Teton to maintain the position 
 he had taken for many long and weary minutes, in order 
 to make sure that he was no longer watched. Though his 
 body lay so motionless, his active mind was not idk 
 profited by the delay to mature a plan which he intended 
 should put the whole encampment, including both its 
 effects and their proprietors, entirely at his mercy. 
 instant he could do so with safety, the indefatigabl 
 age was again in motion. He took his way towards 
 slight pen which contained the domestic animals wo 
 himself along the ground in his former subtle and , 
 
 m ThlTfirst animal he encountered among the beasts oc 
 casioned a long and hazardous delay The weary creature 
 perhaps conscious, through its secret instinct, 
 endless wastes of the prairies its surest protec 
 be found in man, was so exceedingly docile as qu 
 submit to the close examination it was doom* to . 
 
 The hand of the wandering Teton passed over 
 coat, the meek countenance, and the ** 
 gentle creature, with untiring curiosity, but 
 
54 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 abandoned the prize, as useless in his predatory expedi 
 tions, and offering too little temptation to the appetite. 
 As soon, however, as he found himself among the beasts 
 of burden, his gratification was extreme, and it was with 
 difficulty that he restrained the customary ejaculations of 
 pleasure that were more than once on the point of burst 
 ing from his lips. Here he lost sight of the hazards by 
 which he had gained access to his dangerous position; and 
 the watchfulness of the wary and long-practised warrior 
 was momentarily forgotten in the exultation of the savage. 
 
CHAPTER V 
 
 " Why, worthy father, what have we to lose? 
 
 The law 
 
 Protects us not. Then why should we be tender 
 To let an arrogant piece of flesh threat us ! 
 Play judge and executioner." 
 
 CYMBELTNE. 
 
 WHILE the Teton thus enacted his subtle and charac 
 teristic part, not a sound broke the stillness of the sur 
 rounding prairie. The whole band lay at their several 
 posts, waiting, with the well-known patience of the natives, 
 for the signal which was to summon them to action. To 
 the eyes of the anxious spectators who occupied the little 
 eminence, already described as the position of the captives, 
 the scene presented the broad, solemn view of a waste, 
 dimly lighted by the glimmering rays of a clouded moon. 
 The place of the encampment was marked by a gloom 
 deeper than that which faintly shadowed out the courses 
 of the bottoms, and here and there a brighter streak tinged 
 the rolling summits of the ridges. As for the rest, it was 
 the deep, imposing quiet of a desert. 
 
 But to those who so well knew how much was brooding 
 beneath this mantle of stillness and night, it was a scene 
 of high and wild excitement. Their anxiety gradually in 
 creased, as minute after minute passed away, and not the 
 smallest sound of life arose out of the calm and darkness 
 which enveloped the brake. The breathing of Paul grew 
 louder and deeper, and more than once Ellen trembled at 
 she knew not what, as she felt the quivering of his active 
 frame, while she leaned dependently on his arm for 
 support. 
 
 The shallow honesty, as well as the besetting mfir 
 of Weucha, have already been exhibited. The readei 
 therefore, will not be surprised to learn that he was tt 
 first to forget the regulations he had himself impose 
 was at the precise moment when we left Mahtoree yieldir 
 to his nearly ungovernable delight, as he surveyed 
 
 55 
 
56 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 number and quality of Ishmael s beasts of burden, that the 
 man he had selected to watch his captives, chose to indulge 
 in the malignant pleasure of tormenting those it was his 
 duty to protect. Bending his head nigh the ear of the 
 trapper, the savage rather muttered than whispered : 
 
 "If the Tetons lose their great chief by the hands of the 
 Long-knives, 1 old shall die as well as young!" 
 
 "Life is the gift of the Wahcondah," was the unmoved 
 reply. "The burnt-wood warrior must submit to his laws, 
 as well as his other children. Men only die when He 
 chooses ; and no Dahcotah can change the hour. 
 
 "Look!" returned the savage, thrusting the blade of his 
 knife before the face of his captive. "Weucha is the 
 Wahcondah of a dog." 
 
 The old man raised his eyes to the fierce visage of his 
 keeper, and, for a moment, a gleam of honest and powerful 
 disgust shot from their deep cells; but it instantly passed 
 away, leaving in its place an expression of commiseration, 
 if not of sorrow. 
 
 "Why should one made in the real image of God suffer 
 his natur to be provoked by a mere effigy of reason?" he 
 said in English, and in tones much louder than those in 
 which Weucha had chosen to pitch the conversation. The 
 latter profited by the unintentional offense of his captive, 
 and, seizing him by the thin, gray locks, that fell from 
 beneath his cap, was on the point of passing the blade of 
 his knife in malignant triumph around their roots, when 
 a long, shrill yell rent the air, and was instantly echoed 
 from the surrounding waste, as if a thousand demons 
 opened their throats in common at the summons. Weucha 
 relinquished his grasp, and uttered a cry of exultation. 
 
 "Now!" shouted Paul, unable to control his impatience 
 any longer, "now, old Ishmael, is the time to show the 
 native blood of Kentucky! Fire low, boys level into the 
 swales, for the red-skins are settling to the very earth!" 
 
 His voice was, however, lost, or rather unheeded, in the 
 midst of the shrieks, shouts, and yells that were, by this 
 time, bursting from fifty mouths on every side of him. 
 The guards still maintained their posts at the side of the 
 
 1 The whites are so called by the Indians, from their swords. 
 
THE PRAIRIE 57 
 
 captives, but it was with that sort of difficulty with which 
 steeds are restrained at the starting-post, when expecting 
 the signal to commence the trial of speed. They tossed 
 their arms wildly in the air, leaping up and down more 
 like exulting children than sober men, and continued to 
 utter the most frantic cries. 
 
 In the midst of this tumultuous disorder a rushing sound 
 was heard, similar to that which might be expected to 
 precede the passage of a flight of buffaloes, and then came 
 the flocks and cattle of Ishmael in one confused and fright 
 ened drove. 
 
 "They have robbed the squatter of his beasts!" said the 
 attentive trapper. The reptiles have left him as hoofless 
 as a beaver ! " He was yet speaking, when the whole body 
 of the terrified animals rose the little acclivity, and swept 
 by the place where he stood, followed by a band of dusky 
 and demon-like looking figures, who pressed madly on 
 their rear. 
 
 The impulse was communicated to the Teton horses, 
 long accustomed to sympathize in the untutored passions 
 of their owners, and it was with difficulty that the keepers 
 were enabled to restrain their patience. At this moment, 
 when all eyes were directed to the passing whirlwind of 
 men and beasts, the trapper caught the knife from the 
 hands of his inattentive keeper, with a power that his age 
 would have seemed to contradict, and, at a single blow, 
 severed the thong of hide which connected the whole of 
 the drove. The wild animals snorted with joy and terror, 
 and tearing the earth with their heels, they dashed away 
 into the broad prairies, in a dozen different directions. 
 
 Weucha turned upon his assailant with the ferocity and 
 agility of a tiger. He felt for the weapon of which he had 
 been so suddenly deprived, fumbled with impotent haste 
 for the handle of his tomahawk, and at the same moment 
 glanced his eyes after the flying cattle, with the longings 
 of a Western Indian. The struggle between thirst for 
 vengeance and cupidity was severe but short. The latter 
 quickly predominated in the bosom of one whose passions 
 were proverbially groveling; and scarcely a moment inter 
 vened between the flight of the animals and the swift pur 
 suit of the guards. The trapper had continued calmly 
 
58 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 facing his foe, during the instant of suspense that succeeded 
 his hardy act; and now that Weucha was seen following 
 his companions, he pointed after the dark train, saying, 
 with his deep and nearly inaudible laugh: 
 
 "Red natur is red natur , let it show itself on a prairie 
 or in a forest ! A knock on the head would be the smallest 
 reward to him who would take such a liberty with a 
 Christian sentinel; but there goes the Teton after his 
 horses as if he thought two legs as good as four in such a 
 race! And yet the imps will have every hoof of them 
 afore the day sets in, because it s reason agin instinct. 
 Poor reason, I allow; but still there is a great deal of the 
 man in the Indian. Ah s me! your Delawares were the 
 red-skins of which America might boast; but few and 
 scattered is that mighty people, now! Well! the traveler 
 may just make his pitch where he is; he has plenty of 
 water, though natur has cheated him of the pleasure of 
 stripping the arth of its lawful trees. He has seen the 
 last of his four-footed creatures, or I am but little skilled 
 in Sioux cunning." 
 
 "Had we not better join the party of Ishmael?" said 
 the bee-hunter. "There will be a regular fight about this 
 matter, or the old fellow has suddenly grown chicken- 
 hearted." 
 
 "No, no, no," hastily exclaimed Ellen. 
 
 She was stopped by the trapper, who laid his hand gently 
 on her mouth, as he answered : 
 
 "Hist! hist! the sound of voices might bring us into 
 danger. Is your friend," he added, turning to Paul, "a 
 man of spirit enough?" 
 
 "Don t call the squatter a friend of mine!" interrupted 
 the youth. "I never yet harbored with one who could not 
 show hand and seal for the land which fed him." 
 
 "Well well. Let it then be acquaintance. Is he a man 
 to maintain his own, stoutly, by dint of powder and lead?" 
 
 "His own! ay, and that which is not his own, too ! 
 Can you tell me, old trapper, who held the rifle that did the 
 deed for the sheriff s deputy, that thought to rout the un 
 lawful settlers who had gathered nigh the Buffalo Lick in 
 old Kentucky? I had lined a beautiful swarm that very 
 day into the hollow of a dead beech, and there lay the peo- 
 
THE PRAIRIE 59 
 
 pie s officer at its roots, with a hole directly through the 
 grace of God which he carried in his jacket pocket cov 
 ering his heart, as if he thought a bit of sheepskin was a 
 breastplate against a squatter s bullet! Now, Ellen, you 
 needn t be troubled; for it never strictly was brought 
 home to him; and there were fifty others who had pitched 
 in that neighborhood with just the same authority from 
 the law." 
 
 The poor girl shuddered, struggling powerfully to sup 
 press the sigh which arose in spite of her efforts, as if from 
 the very bottom of her heart. 
 
 Thoroughly satisfied that he understood the character of 
 the emigrants, by the short but comprehensive description 
 conveyed in Paul s reply, the old man raised no further 
 question concerning the readiness of Ishmael to revenge 
 his wrongs, but rather followed the train of thought which 
 was suggested to his experience, by the occasion. 
 
 "Each one knows the ties which bind him to his fellow 
 creatures best," he answered. "Though it is greatly to 
 be mourned that color, and property, and tongue, and 
 I arning should make so wide a difference in those who, 
 after all, are but the children of one father! Howsom- 
 ever, " he continued, by a transition not a little character 
 istic of the pursuits and feelings of the man, "as this is 
 a business in which there is much more likelihood of a 
 fight than need for a sermon, it is best to be prepared for 
 what may follow. Hush! there is a movement below; it 
 is an equal chance that we are seen." 
 
 "The family is stirring," cried Ellen, with a tremor 
 that announced nearly as much terror at the approach of 
 her friends, as she had before manifested at the presence 
 of her enemies. "Go, Paul, leave me. You, at least, 
 must not be seen!" 
 
 "If I leave you, Ellen, in this desert, before ] 
 safe in the care of Ishmael at least, may I never hear 1 
 hum of another bee, or what is worse, fail in sight 1 
 him to his hive!" 
 
 "You forget this good old man. He will not leave r 
 Though I am sure, Paul, we have parted before, wn 
 there has been more of a desert than this." 
 
 "Never! These Indians may come whooping bacK, ai 
 
60 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 then where are you ! Half-way to the Rocky Mountains 
 before a man can fairly strike the line of your flight. What 
 think you, old trapper? How long may it be before these 
 Tetons, as you call them, will be coming for the rest of old 
 Ishmael s goods and chattels?" 
 
 "No fear of them," returned the old man, laughing in 
 his own peculiar and silent manner; "I warrant me the 
 devils will be scampering after their beasts these six hours 
 yet! Listen! you may hear them in the willow bottoms 
 at this very moment; ay, your real Sioux cattle will run 
 like so many long-legged elks. Hist! crouch again into 
 the grass; down with ye both; as I m a miserable piece of 
 clay, I heard the clicking of a gun-lock!" 
 
 The trapper did not allow his companions time to hesi 
 tate, but dragging them both after him, he nearly buried 
 his own person in the fog of the prairie, while he was 
 speaking. It was fortunate that the senses of the aged 
 hunter remained so acute, and that he had lost none of his 
 readiness of action. The three were scarcely bowed to the 
 ground, when their ears were saluted with the well-known, 
 sharp, short reports of the western rifle, and instantly the 
 whizzing of the ragged lead was heard, buzzing within 
 dangerous proximity of their heads. 
 
 "Well done, young chips! well done, old block!" whis 
 pered Paul, whose spirits no danger nor situation could 
 entirely depress. As pretty a volley as one would wish to 
 hear on the wrong end of a rifle ! What d ye say, trapper? 
 here is likely to be a three-cornered war. Shall I give em 
 as good as they send?" 
 
 "Give them nothing but fair words," returned the other 
 hastily, "or you are both lost." 
 
 "I m not certain it would much mend the matter, if I 
 were to speak with my tongue instead of the piece," said 
 Paul, in a tone half jocular, half bitter. 
 
 "For the sake of heaven, do not let them hear you!" 
 cried Ellen. "Go Paul, go; you can easily quit us now!" 
 
 Several shots in quick succession, each sending its dan 
 gerous messenger still nearer than the preceding discharge, 
 cut short her speech, no less in prudence than in terror. 
 
 "This must end," said the trapper, rising with the dig 
 nity of one bent only on the importance of his object. "I 
 
THE PRAIRIE 61 
 
 know not what need ye may have, children, to fear those 
 you should both love and honor, but something must be 
 done to save your lives. A few hours more or less can 
 never be missed from the time of one who has already 
 numbered so many days; therefore, I will advance. Here 
 is a clear space around you. Profit by it as you need, 
 and may God bless and prosper each of you, as ye de 
 serve. 
 
 Without waiting for any reply, the trapper walked boldly 
 down the declivity in his front, taking the direction of 
 the encampment, neither quickening his pace in trepida 
 tion, nor suffering it to be retarded by fear. The light 
 of the moon fell brighter for a moment on his tall, gaunt 
 form, and served to warn the emigrants of his approach. 
 Indifferent, however, to this unfavorable circumstance, 
 he held his way silently and steadily towards the copse, 
 until a threatening voice met him with the challenge 
 of 
 
 "Who comes; friend or foe?" 
 
 "Friend," was the reply; "one who has lived too long 
 to disturb the close of life with quarrels." 
 
 "But not so long as to forget the tricks of his youth," 
 said Ishmael, rearing his huge frame from beneath the 
 slight covering of a low bush, and meeting the trapper 
 face to face; "old man, you have brought this tribe of red 
 devils upon us, and to-morrow you will be sharing the 
 booty." 
 
 "What have you lost?" calmly demanded the trappei 
 
 "Eight as good mares as ever traveled in gears, besides 
 a foal that is worth thirty of the brightest Mexicans that 
 bear the face of the King of Spain. Then the woman has 
 not a cloven hoof for her dairy or her loom, and 1 
 even the grunters, foot-sore as they be, are ploughing 
 prairie. And now, stranger," he added, dropping 
 butt of his rifle on the hard earth, with a violence and , 
 clatter that would have intimidated one less firm t 
 man he addressed, "how many of these creatures may f 
 
 to your lot?" 
 
 "Horses have I never craved, nor even used; th 
 few have journeyed over more of the wide lands of A .me, 
 than myself, old and feeble as I seem. But little u* 
 
62 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 there for a horse among the hills and woods of York that 
 is, as York was, but as I greatly fear York is no longer; 
 as for woolen covering and cow s milk, I covet no such 
 womanly fashions! The beasts of the field give me food 
 and raiment. No, I crave no cloth better than the skin of 
 a deer, nor any meat richer than his flesh." 
 
 The sincere manner of the trapper, as he uttered this 
 simple vindication, was not entirely thrown away on the 
 emigrant, whose dull nature was gradually quickening 
 into a flame that might speedily have burst forth with 
 dangerous violence. He listened like one who doubted, 
 though not entirely convinced; and he muttered between 
 his teeth the denunciation, with which a moment before 
 he intended to precede the summary vengeance he had 
 certainly meditated. 
 
 "This is brave talking," he at length grumbled; "but, 
 to my judgment, too lawyer-like, for a straight-forward, 
 fair-weather and foul-weather hunter." 
 
 "I claim to be no better than a trapper, " the other 
 meekly answered. 
 
 "Hunter or trapper, there is little difference. I have 
 come, old man, into these districts, because I found the 
 law sitting too tight upon me, and I am not over fond of 
 neighbors who can t settle a dispute without troubling a 
 justice and twelve men; but I didn t come to be robbed 
 of my plunder, and then to say thankee to the man who 
 did it!" 
 
 "He who ventures far into the prairie must abide by 
 the ways of its owners." 
 
 "Owners!" echoed the squatter, "I am as rightful an 
 owner of the land I stand on as any governor of the States ! 
 Can you tell me, stranger, where the law or the reason is 
 to be found, which says that one man shall have a section, 
 or a town, or perhaps a county to his use, and another 
 have to beg for earth to make his grave in? This is not 
 nature, and I deny that it is law. That is, your legal 
 law." 
 
 "I cannot say that you are wrong," returned the trap 
 per, whose opinions on this important topic, though drawn 
 from very different premises, were in singular accordance 
 with those of his companion, "and I have often thought 
 
THE PRAIRIE 63 
 
 and said as much, when and where I have believed my 
 voice could be heard. But your beasts are stolen by 
 them who claim to be masters of all they find in the 
 deserts. 
 
 "They had better not dispute that matter with a man 
 who knows better," said the other in a portentous voice, 
 though it seemed deep and sluggish as he spoke. "I call 
 myself a fair trader, and one who gives to his chaps as 
 good as he receives. You saw the Indians?" 
 
 "I did; they held me a prisoner, while they stole into 
 your camp." 
 
 "It would have been more like a white man and a Chris 
 tian, to have let me known as much in better season," 
 retorted Ishmael, casting another ominous sidelong glance 
 at the trapper, as if still meditating evil. "I am not much 
 given to call every man I fall in with cousin, but color 
 should be something, when Christians meet in such a place 
 as this. But what is done, is done, and cannot be mended 
 by words. Come out of your ambush, boys; here is no 
 one but the old man; he has eaten of my bread, and should 
 be our friend; though there is such good reason to sus 
 pect him of harboring with our enemies." 
 
 The trapper made no reply to the harsh suspicion which 
 the other did not scruple to utter without the smallest 
 delicacy, notwithstanding the explanations and denials 
 which he had just listened. The summons of the unnurfr 
 squatter brought an immediate accession to their party. 
 Four or five of his sons made their appearance from 
 neath as many covers, where they had been posted, u 
 the impression that the figures they had seen, on tl 
 of the prairie, were a part of the Sioux band. As each 
 man approached, and dropped his rifle into the hollow o 
 his arm, he cast an indolent but inquiring glance 
 stranger, though none of them expressed the least cunos. 
 to know whence he had come or why he was there, 
 forbearance, however, proceeded only in par 
 sluggishness of their common temper; for long 
 quent experience in scenes of a similar characte 
 tSt them the virtue of discretion. The trapper endured 
 thefr suHen scru iny with the steadiness of one as prac- 
 fsed i themselves, and with the entire composure of ,n- 
 
64 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 nocence. Content with the momentary examination he had 
 made, the eldest of the group, who was in truth the de 
 linquent sentinel by whose remissness the wily Mahtoree 
 had so well profited, turned towards his father, and said 
 bluntly : 
 
 "If this man is all that is left of the party I saw on the 
 upland, yonder, we haven t altogether thrown away our 
 ammunition." 
 
 "Asa, you are right," said the father, turning suddenly 
 on the trapper, a lost idea being recalled by the hint of 
 his son. "How is it stranger; there were three of you, 
 just now, or there is no virtue in moonlight!" 
 
 "If you had seen the Tetons racing across the prairies, 
 like so many black-looking evil ones, on the heels of your 
 cattle, my friend, it would have been an easy matter to 
 have fancied them a thousand." 
 
 "Ay, for a town-bred boy or a skeary woman; though, 
 for that matter, there is old Esther; she has no more fear 
 of a red-skin than of a suckling cub or of a wolf pup. I ll 
 warrant ye, had your thievish devils made their push by 
 the light of the sun, the good woman would have been 
 smartly at work among them, and the Sioux would have 
 found she was not given to part with her cheese and her 
 butter without a price. But there ll come a time, stranger, 
 right soon, when justice will have its dues, and that, too, 
 without the help of what is called the law. We ar of a 
 slow breed, it may be said, and it is often said of us; but 
 slow is sure; and there ar few men living who can say 
 they ever struck a blow that they did not get one as hard 
 in return from Ishmael Bush. 
 
 "Then has Ishmael Bush followed the instinct of the 
 beasts, rather than the principle which ought to belong to 
 his kind, returned the stubborn trapper. "I have struck 
 many a blow myself, but never have I felt the same ease 
 of mind that of right belongs to a man who follows his 
 reason, after slaying even a fawn, when there was no call 
 for his meat or hide, as I have felt at leaving a Mingo 
 unburied in the woods, when following the trade of open 
 and honest warfare. 
 
 "What, you have been a soldier, have you trapper! I 
 made a forage or two among the Cherokees, when I was a 
 
THE PRAIRIE Go 
 
 lad, myself; and I followed Mad Anthony, 1 one season, 
 through the beeches; but there was altogether too much 
 tattooing and regulating among his troops for me; so I 
 left him, without calling on the paymaster to settle my ar 
 rearages. Though, as Esther afterwards boasted, she had 
 made such use of the pay-ticket, that the States gained 
 no great sum by the oversight. You have heard of such a 
 man as Mad Anthony, if you tarried long among the 
 soldiers." 
 
 "I fou t my last battle, as I hope, under his orders," 
 returned the trapper, a gleam of sunshine shooting from 
 nis dim eyes, as if the event was recollected with pleasure, 
 ^nd then a sudden shade of sorrow succeeding, as though 
 ie felt a secret admonition against dwelling on the violent 
 scenes in which he had so often been an actor. "I was 
 passing from the States on the sea-shore into these far 
 regions, when I crossed the trail of his army, and I fell 
 in, on his rear, just as a looker-on; but when they got to 
 blows, the crack of my rifle was heard among the rest, 
 though to my shame it may be said I never knew the right 
 of the quarrel, as well as a man of threescore and ti-n 
 should know the reason of his acts afore he takes mortal 
 life, which is a gift he never can return!" 
 
 "Come, stranger," said the emigrant, his rugged nature 
 a good deal softened when he found that they had fought 
 on the same side in the wild warfare of the West, "it is of 
 small account what may be the groundwork of the < 
 turbance, when it s a Christian agin a savage. We 
 hear more of this horse-stealing to-morrow ^to-night we 
 can do no wiser or safer thing than to sleep." 
 
 So saying, Ishmael deliberately led the way back toward! 
 his rifled encampment, and ushered the man, whose 
 few minutes before had been in real jeopardy I 
 resentment, into the presence of his family 
 a very few words of explanation, mingled with scare 
 ominous denunciations against the plunderers, he ma< 
 wife acquainted with the state of things onjtl 
 
 and subsequently against th * Indian *,^ titteof ^ad^Anth.my^Grneral Wayne 
 regiment which excited his military ardor. 
 
 5 
 
66 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 and announced his own determination to compensate him 
 self for his broken rest, by devoting the remainder of the 
 night to sleep. 
 
 The trapper gave his ready assent to the measure, and 
 adjusted his gaunt form on the pile of brush that was 
 offered him, with as much composure as a sovereign could 
 resign himself to sleep, in the security of his capital, and 
 surrounded by his armed protectors. The old man did not 
 close his eyes, however, until he had assured himself that 
 Ellen Wade was among the females of the family, and that 
 her relation or lover, whichever he might be, had observed 
 the caution of keeping himself out of view; after which 
 he slept, though with the peculiar watchfulness of one long 
 accustomed to vigilance, even in the hours of deepest 
 night. 
 
CHAPTER VI 
 
 "He is too picked, too spruce, too affected, too odd, 
 As it were too peregrinate, as I may call it. " 
 
 SHAKESPEARE. 
 
 THE Anglo-American is apt to boast, and not without 
 reason, that his nation may claim a descent more truly 
 honorable than that of any other people whose history is 
 to be credited. Whatever might have been the weaknesses 
 of the original colonists, their virtues have rarely been 
 disputed. If they were superstitious, they were sincerely 
 pious, and, consequently, honest. The descendants of 
 these simple and single-minded provincials have been con 
 tent to reject the ordinary and artificial means by which 
 honors have been perpetuated in families, and have sub 
 stituted a standard which brings the individual himself to 
 the ordeal of the public estimation, paying as little defer 
 ence as may be to those who have gone before him. This 
 forbearance, self-denial, or common sense, or by whatever 
 term it may be thought proper to distinguish the measure, 
 has subjected the nation to the imputation of having an 
 ignoble origin. Were it worth the inquiry, it would be 
 found that more than a just proportion of the renowned 
 names of the mother-country are, at this hour, to be found 
 in her c : devant colonies; and it is a fact well known to 
 the few who have wasted sufficient time to become the 
 masters of so unimportant a subject, that the direct de 
 scendants of many a failing line, which the policy nf Eng 
 land has seen fit to sustain by collateral supporters, are 
 now discharging the simple duties of citizens in the bosom 
 of this republic. The hive has remained stationary, and 
 they who flutter around the venerable straw are wont to 
 claim the empty distinction of antiquity, regardless alike 
 of the frailty of their tenement, and of the enjoyments 
 the numerous and vigorous swarms that are culling 
 fresher sweets of a virgin world. But as this is a subject 
 
 67 
 
68 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 which belongs rather to the politician and historian than 
 to the humble narrator of the home-bred incidents we are 
 about to reveal, we must confine our reflections to such 
 matters as have an immediate relation to the subject of 
 the tale. 
 
 Although the citizen of the United States may claim so 
 just an ancestry, he is far from being exempt from the 
 penalties of his fallen race. Like causes are well known 
 to produce like effects. That tribute, which it would seem 
 nations must ever pay, by way of a weary probation, 
 around the shrine of Ceres, before they can be indulged 
 in her fullest favors, is in some measure exacted in Amer 
 ica, from the descendants instead of the ancestor. The 
 march of civilization with us, has a strong analogy to that 
 of all coming events, which are known "to cast their 
 shadows before." The gradations of society, from that 
 state which is called refined to that which approaches as 
 near barbarity as connection with an intelligent people 
 will readily allow, are to be traced from the bosom of the 
 States where wealth, luxury, and the arts are beginning 
 to seat themselves, to those distant and ever-receding 
 borders which mark the skirts and announce the approach 
 of the nation, as moving mists precede the signs of the 
 day. 
 
 Here, and here only, is to be found that widely spread, 
 though far from numerous class, which may be at all lik 
 ened to those who have paved the way for the intellectual 
 progress of nations, in the Old World. The resemblance 
 between the American borderer and his European proto 
 type is singular, though not always uniform. Both might 
 be called without restraint, the one being above, the other 
 beyond the reach of the law brave, because they were 
 inured to danger proud, because they were independent 
 - and vindictive, because each was the avenger of his own 
 wrongs. It would be unjust to the borderer to pursue the 
 parallel much further. He is irreligious, because he has 
 inherited the knowledge that religion does not exist in 
 forms, and his reason rejects mockery. He is not a knight, 
 because he has not the power to bestow distinctions; and 
 he has not the power, because he is the offspring and not 
 the parent of a system. In what manner these several 
 
THE PRAIRIE 69 
 
 qualities are exhibited, in some of the most strongly 
 marked of the latter class, will be seen in the course of 
 the ensuing narrative. 
 
 Ishmael Bush had passed the whole of a life of more 
 than fifty years on the skirts of society. He boasted that 
 he had never dwelt where he might not safely fell every 
 tree he could view from his own threshold; that the law 
 had rarely been known to enter his clearing; and that his 
 ears had never willingly admitted the sound of a chureh 
 bell. His exertions seldom exceeded his wants, which 
 were peculiar to his class, and rarely failed of being sup 
 plied. He had no respect for any learning, except that 
 of the leech; because he was ignorant of the application 
 of any other intelligence than such as met the senses. His 
 deference to this particular branch of science had induced 
 him to listen to the application of a medical man, whose 
 thirst for natural history had led him to the desire of 
 profiting by the migratory propensities of the squatter. 
 This gentleman he had cordially received into his family, 
 or rather under his protection, and they had journeyed 
 together thus far through the prairies, in perfect harmony; 
 Ishmael often felicitating his wife on the possession of a 
 companion, who would be so serviceable in their new 
 abode, wherever it might chance to be, until the family 
 were thoroughly "acclimated. " The pursuits of the nat 
 uralist frequently led him, however, for days at a time, 
 from the direct line of the route of the squatter, who 
 rarely seemed to have any other guide than the sun. Most 
 men would have deemed themselves fortunate to have been 
 absent on the perilous occasion of the Sioux inroad, as 
 was Obed Bat (or, as he was fond of hearing himself 
 called, Battius), M. D. and fellow of several cis-Atlantic 
 learned societies the adventurous gentleman in quest 
 
 Although the sluggish nature of Ishmael was not actually 
 awakened, it was sorely pricked by the liberties which had 
 just been taken with his property. He slept, however, R 
 it was the hour he had allotted to that refreshment, a 
 because he knew how impotent any exertions to n 
 his effects must prove in the darkness of midnight. 
 also knew the danger of his present position too we I 
 hazard what was left, in pursuit of that which was lost. 
 
70 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 Much as the inhabitants of the prairie were known to love 
 horses, their attachment to many other articles, still in 
 the possession of the travelers, was equally well under 
 stood. It was a common artifice to scatter the herds and 
 to profit by the confusion. But Mahtoree had, as it would 
 seem, in this particular, undervalued the acuteness of the 
 man he had assailed. The phlegm with which the squatter 
 learned his loss, has already been seen; and it now remains 
 to exhibit the results of his more matured determinations. 
 
 Though the encampment contained many an eye that 
 was long unclosed, and many an ear that listened greedily 
 to catch the faintest evidence of any new alarm, it lay in 
 deep quiet during the remainder of the night. Silence 
 and fatigue finally performed their accustomed offices, and 
 before morning all but the sentinels were again buried in 
 sleep. How well these indolent watchers discharged their 
 duties after the assault has never been known, inasmuch 
 as nothing occurred to confirm or to disprove their subse 
 quent vigilance. 
 
 Just as day, however, began to dawn, and a gray light 
 was falling from the heavens on the dusky objects of the 
 plain, the half-startled, anxious, and yet blooming coun 
 tenance of Ellen Wade was reared above the confused mass 
 of children, among whom she had clustered on her stolen 
 return to camp. Arising warily, she stepped lightly 
 across the recumbent bodies, and proceeded with the same 
 caution to the utmost limits of the defenses of Ishmael. 
 Here she listened, as if doubting the propriety of ventur 
 ing further. The pause was only momentary, however; 
 and long before the drowsy eyes of the sentinel, who over 
 looked the spot where she stood, had time to catch a 
 glimpse of her active form, it had glided along the bottom, 
 and stood on the summit of the nearest eminence. 
 
 Ellen now listened, intently anxious to catch some other 
 sound than the breathings of the morning air, which 
 faintly rustled the herbage at her feet. She was about to 
 turn in disappointment from the inquiry, when the tread 
 of human feet making their way through the matted grass, 
 met her ear. Springing eagerly forward, she soon beheld 
 the outlines of a figure advancing up the eminence, on the 
 side opposite to the camp. She had already uttered the 
 
THE PRAIRIE 71 
 
 name of Paul, and was beginning to speak in the hurried 
 and eager voice with which female affection is apt to 
 greet a friend, when, drawing back, the disappointed girl 
 closed her salutation by coldly adding: 
 
 "I did not expect, Doctor, to meet you at this unusual 
 hour." 
 
 "All hours and all seasons are alike, my good Ellen, to 
 the genuine lover of nature," returned a small, slightly 
 made, but exceedingly active man, dressed in an odd mix 
 ture of cloth and skins, a little past the middle age, and 
 who advanced directly to her side, with the familiarity of 
 an old acquaintance; "and he who does not know how to 
 find things to admire by this gray light, is ignorant of a 
 large portion of the blessings he enjoys." 
 
 "Very true, " said Ellen, suddenly recollecting the neces 
 sity of accounting for her own appearance abroad at th t 
 unseasonable hour; "I know many who think the earth 
 has a pleasanter look in the night, than when seen by the 
 brightest sunshine." 
 
 "Ah! Their organs of sight must be too convex! But 
 the man who wishes to study the active habits of the fe 
 line race, or the variety albinos, must indeed be stirring 
 at this hour. I dare say there are men who prefer even 
 looking at objects by twilight, for the simple reason that 
 they see better at that time of the day." 
 
 "And is this the cause why you are so much abroad in 
 
 the night?" 
 
 "I am abroad at night, my good girl, because the eartl 
 in its diurnal revolutions leaves the light of the sun but 
 half the time on any given meridian, and because what J 
 have to do cannot be performed in twelve or fifteen con- 
 secutive hours. Now have I been off two days from 
 family, in search of a plant that is known to exisi 
 tributaries of La Platte, without seeing even a blade of 
 grass that is not already enumerated and classed.^ 
 "You have been unfortunate, Doctor, but- 
 "Unfortunate!" echoed the little man, sidling n.gher 
 to his companion, and producing to^^*g 
 which exultation struggled strangely with an affectation 
 of self-abasement. "No, no, Ellen, I am Anything but 
 unfortunate! Unless, indeed, a man may be so called, 
 
72 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 whose fortune is made, whose fame may be said to be 
 established forever, whose name will go down to posterity 
 with that of Buff on. Buff on! a mere compiler; one who 
 flourishes on the foundation of other men s labors. No; 
 pari passu with Solander, who bought his knowledge 
 with pain and privations." 
 
 "Have you discovered a mine, Doctor Bat?" 
 "More than a mine; a treasure coined, and fit for in 
 stant use, girl. Listen ! I was making the angle necessary 
 to intersect the line of your uncle s march, after my fruit 
 less search, when I heard sounds like the explosion pro 
 duced by fire-arms 
 
 Yes, exclaimed Ellen, eagerly, we had an alarm 
 "And thought I was lost, continued the man of science, 
 too much bent on his own ideas to understand her inter 
 ruption. "Little danger of that! I made my own base, 
 knew the length of the perpendicular by calculation, and 
 to draw the hypothenuse had nothing to do but to work 
 my angle. I supposed the guns were fired for my benefit, 
 and changed my course for the sounds not that I think 
 the senses more accurate, or even as accurate as a mathe 
 matical calculation, but I feared that some of the children 
 might need my services." 
 "They are all happily 
 
 "Listen," interrupted the other, already forgetting his 
 affected anxiety for his patients, in the greater importance 
 of the present subject. "I had crossed a large tract of 
 prairie for sound is conveyed far where there is little 
 obstruction when I heard the trampling of feet, as if 
 bisons were beating the earth. Then I caught a distant 
 view of a herd of quadrupeds, rushing up and down the 
 swells, animals which would have still remained unknown 
 and undescribed, had it not been for a most felicitous ac 
 cident! One, and he a noble specimen of the whole! was 
 running a little apart from the rest. The herd made an 
 inclination in my direction, in which the solitary animal 
 coincided, and this brought him within fifty yards of the 
 spot where I stood. I profited by the opportunity, and 
 by the aid of steel and taper, I wrote his description on 
 the spot. I would have given a thousand dollars, Ellen, 
 for a single shot from the rifle of one of the boys!" 
 
THE PRAIRIE 73 
 
 "You carry a pistol, Doctor; why didn t you use it?" 
 said the half inattentive girl, anxiously examining the 
 prairie, but still lingering where she stood, quite willing 
 to be detained. 
 
 "Ay, but it carries nothing but the most minute par 
 ticles of lead, adapted to the destruction of the larger in 
 sects and reptiles. No, I did better than to attempt wag 
 ing a war in which I could not be the victor. I recorded 
 the event; noting each particular with the precision neces 
 sary to science. You shall hear, Ellen; for you are a good 
 and improving girl, and by retaining what you learn in 
 this way, may be yet of great service to learning, should 
 any accident occur to me. Indeed, my worthy Ellen, mine 
 is a pursuit which has its dangers as well as that of the 
 warrior. This very night," he continued, glancing his 
 eyes behind him, "this awful night, has the principle of 
 life itself been in great danger of extinction!" 
 
 "By what?" 
 
 "By the monster I have discovered. It approached me 
 often, and ever as I receded, it continued to advance. I 
 believe nothing but the little lamp I carried was my pro 
 tector. I kept it between us whilst I wrote, making i 
 serve the double purpose of luminary and shield. But you 
 shall hear the character of the beast, and you may then 
 judge of the risks we promoters of science run in behalf 
 of mankind." 
 
 The naturalist raised his tablets to the heavens, and 
 disposed himself to read as well as he could by the dim 
 light they yet shed upon the plain, premising with saying: 
 
 "Listen, girl, and you shall hear with what a treasure 
 it has been my happy lot to enrich the pages of nati 
 
 " "It Y is then a creature of your forming?" said Ellen, 
 turning away from her fruitless examination, wil 
 sudden lighting of her sprightly blue eyes, that show 
 she knew how to play with the foible of her learned 
 
 ^"iTthe power to give life to inanimate matter the gift 
 of man? * would it were! You should speedily i e a 
 Historia Naturalis Americana, that would put peer 
 ing imitators of the Frenchman, De Buffon, to shame! A 
 
74 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 great improvement might be made in the formation of all 
 quadrupeds; especially those in which velocity is a virtue. 
 Two of the inferior limbs should be on the principle of 
 the lever ; wheels perhaps as they are now formed ; though 
 I have not yet determined whether the improvement might 
 better be applied to the anterior or posterior members, 
 inasmuch as I am yet to learn whether dragging or shov 
 ing requires the greatest muscular exertion. A natural 
 exudation of the animal might assist in overcoming the 
 friction, and a powerful momentum be obtained. But all 
 this is hopeless at least for the present!" he added, rais 
 ing his tablets again to the light, and reading aloud: 
 " Oct. 6, 1805. That s merely the date, which I dare 
 say you know better than I. Mem. Quadruped; seen 
 by starlight, and by the aid of a pocket-lamp, in the prairies 
 of North America see Journal for latitude and me 
 ridian. Genus, unknown ; therefore named after the dis 
 coverer, and from the happy coincidence of having been 
 seen in the evening, Vespertilio horribilis Americanus. 
 Dimensions (by estimation): greatest length, eleven feet; 
 height, six feet; head, erect; nostrils, expansive; eyes, 
 expressive and fierce; teeth, serrated and abundant; tail, 
 horizontal, waving, and slightly feline; feet, large and 
 hairy; talons, long, curvated, dangerous; ears, inconspic 
 uous; horns, elongated, diverging, and formidable; color, 
 plumbeous-ashy, with fiery spots; voice, sonorous, mar 
 tial, and appalling; habits, gregarious, carnivorous, fierce 
 and fearless. There," exclaimed Obed, when he had 
 ended this sententious but comprehensive description, 
 "there is an animal which will be likely to dispute with 
 the lion his title to be called the king of beasts!" 
 
 "I know not the meaning of all you have said, Doctor 
 Battius, " returned the quick-witted girl, who understood 
 the weakness of the philosopher, and often indulged him 
 with a title he loved so well to hear; "but I shall think it 
 dangerous to venture far from the camp, if such monsters 
 are prowling over the prairies." 
 
 "You may well call it prowling, " returned the natural 
 ist, nestling still closer to her side, and dropping his voice 
 to such low and undignified tones of confidence, as con 
 veyed a meaning still more pointed than he had intended. 
 
THE PRAIRIE 75 
 
 "I have never before experienced such a trial of the 
 nervous system; there was a moment, I acknowledge, when 
 the fortiter in re faltered before so terrible an enemy; but 
 the love of natural science bore me up, and brought me 
 off in triumph!" 
 
 "You speak a language so different from what we use 
 in Tennessee," said Ellen, struggling to conceal her 
 laughter, "that I hardly know whether I understand your 
 meaning. If I am right, you wish to say you were 
 chicken-hearted. 
 
 "An absurd simile drawn from the ignorance of the for 
 mation of the biped. The heart of a chicken has a just 
 proportion to its other organs, and the domestic fowl is, 
 in a state of nature, a gallant bird. Ellen," he added, 
 with a countenance so solemn as to produce an impression 
 on the attentive girl, "I was pursued, hunted, and in a 
 danger that I scorn to dwell on what s that?" 
 
 Ellen started; for the earnestness and simple sincerity 
 of her companion s manner had produced a certain degree 
 of credulity, even on her buoyant mind. Looking in the 
 direction indicated by the Doctor, she beheld, in fact, a 
 beast coursing over the prairie, and making a straight and 
 rapid approach to the spot they occupied. The day was 
 not yet sufficiently advanced to enable her to distinguish 
 its form and character, though enough was discernible to 
 induce her to imagine it a fierce and savage animal. 
 
 "It comes! it comes!" exclaimed the Doctor, fumbling, 
 by a sort of instinct, for his tablets, while he fairy tottered 
 on his feet under the powerful efforts he made to maintain 
 his ground. "Now, Ellen, has fortune given me an oppor 
 tunity to correct the errors made by starlight hold ashy 
 plumbeous no ears horns excessive." His voice and 
 hand were both arrested by a roar, or rather a shriek, 
 from the beast, that was sufficiently terrific to appal even 
 a stouter heart than that of the naturalist. The cries of 
 the animal passed over the prairie in strange cadences, and 
 then succeeded a deep and solemn silence, that was only 
 broken by an uncontrolled fit of merriment from the more 
 musical voice of Ellen Wade. In the mean time the nat 
 uralist stood like a statue of amazement, permitting a 
 well-grown ass, against whose approach he no longer 
 
76 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 offered his boasted shield of light, to smell his person, 
 without comment or hindrance. 
 
 "It is your own ass," cried Ellen, the instant she found 
 breath for words; "your own patient, hard-working hack!" 
 
 The doctor rolled his eyes from the beast to the speaker, 
 and from the speaker to the beast; but gave no audible 
 expression of his wonder. 
 
 "Do you refuse to know an animal that has labored so 
 long in your service?" continued the laughing girl. "A 
 beast that, I have heard you say a thousand times, has 
 served you well, and whom you loved like a brother!" 
 
 "Asinus domesticus!" ejaculated the Doctor, drawing 
 his breath like one who had been near suffocation. "There 
 is no doubt of the genus; and I will always maintain that 
 the animal is not of the species equus. This is undeniably 
 Asinus himself, Ellen Wade; but this is not the Vesper- 
 tilio horribilis of the prairies! Very different animals, 
 I can assure you, young woman, and differently character 
 ized in every important particular. That, carnivorous," 
 he continued, glancing his eye at the open page of his 
 tablets; "this granivorous; habits, fierce, dangerous; 
 habits, patient, abstemious; ears, inconspicuous; ears, 
 elongated; horns, diverging, etc.; horns, none!" 
 
 He was interrupted by another burst of merriment from 
 Ellen, which served in some measure to recall him to his 
 recollection. 
 
 "The image of the Vespertilio was on the retina," the 
 astounded inquirer into the secrets of nature observed, in 
 a manner that seemed a little apologetic, "and I was silly 
 enough to mistake my own faithful beast for the monster. 
 Though even now I greatly marvel to see this animal run 
 ning at large!" 
 
 Ellen then proceeded to explain the history of the attack 
 and its results. She described, with an accuracy that 
 might have raised suspicions of her own movements in the 
 mind of one less simple than her auditor, the manner in 
 which the beasts burst out of the encampment, and the 
 headlong speed with which they had dispersed themselves 
 over the open plain. Although she forbore to say as much 
 in terms, she so managed as to present before the eyes of 
 her listener the strong probability of having mistaken the 
 
THE PRAIRIE 77 
 
 frightened drove for savage beasts, and then terminated 
 her account by a lamentation for their loss, and some very 
 natural remarks on the helpless condition in which it had 
 left the family. The naturalist listened in silent wonder 
 neither interrupting her narrative, nor suffering a single 
 exclamation of surprise to escape him. The keen-eyed 
 girl, however, saw that as she proceeded, the important 
 leaf was torn from the tablets, in a manner which showed 
 that their owner had got rid of his delusion at the same 
 instant. From that moment the world has heard no more 
 of the Vespertilio horribilis Americanus, and the natural 
 sciences have irretrievably lost an important link in that 
 great animated chain which is said to connect earth and 
 heaven, and in which man is thought to be so familiarly 
 complicated with the monkey. 
 
 When Dr. Bat was put in full possession of all the cir 
 cumstances of the inroad, his concern immediately took a 
 different direction,. He had left sundry folios, and certain 
 boxes well stored with botanical specimens and defunct 
 animals, under the good keeping of Ishmael, and it im 
 mediately struck his acute mind, that marauders as subtle 
 as the Sioux would never neglect the opportunity to 
 despoil him of these treasures. Nothing that Ellen could 
 say to the contrary served to appease his apprehensions, 
 and, consequently, they separated ; he to relieve his doubts 
 and fears together, and she to glide, as swiftly and silently 
 as she had before passed it, into the still and solitary tent. 
 
CHAPTER VII 
 
 " What ! fifty of my followers, at a clap !" 
 
 KING LEAR. 
 
 THE day had now fairly opened on the seemingly inte 
 minable waste of the prairie. The entrance of Obed ; 
 such a moment into the camp, accompanied as it was I 
 vociferous lamentations over his anticipated loss, did n< 
 fail to rouse the drowsy family of the squatter. Ishma 
 and his sons, together with the forbidding-looking brothi 
 of his wife, were all speedily afoot; and then, as the si 
 began to shed his light on the place, they became gradual 
 apprised of the extent of their loss. 
 
 Ishmael looked round upon the motionless and heavi 
 loaded vehicles with his teeth firmly compressed, cast 
 glance at the amazed and helpless group of children, whi< 
 clustered around their sullen but desponding mother, ar 
 walked out upon the open land, as if he found the air 
 the encampment too confined. He was followed by sever 
 of the men, who were attentive observers, watching tl 
 dark expression of his eye as the index of their own futu 
 movements. The whole proceeded in profound and mooc 
 silence to the summit of the nearest swell, whence th< 
 could command an almost boundless view of the nak< 
 plains. Here nothing was visible but a solitary buffa 
 that gleaned a meagre subsistence from the decaying her 
 age, at no great distance, and the ass of the physiciai 
 who profited by his freedom to enjoy a meal richer thj 
 common. 
 
 "Yonder is one of the creatures left by the villains 
 mock us," said Ishmael, glancing his eye towards the la 
 ter, "and that the meanest of the stock. This is a hai 
 country to make a crop in, boys; and yet food must I 
 found to fill many hungry mouths!" 
 
 "The rifle is better than the hoe in such a place 
 this," returned the eldest of his sons, kicking the ha] 
 
 78 
 
THE PRAIRIE 79 
 
 and thirsty soil on which he stood, with an air of con 
 tempt. "It is good for such as they who make their din 
 ner better on beggars beans than hominy. A crow would 
 shed tears if obliged by its errand to fly across the 
 district." 
 
 "What say you, trapper?" returned the father, show 
 ing the slight impression his powerful heel had made on 
 the compact earth, and laughing with frightful ferocity. 
 "Is this the quality of land a man would choose who never 
 troubles the county clerk with title deeds?" 
 
 "There is richer soil in the bottoms," returned the old 
 man calmly, "and you have passed millions of acres to get 
 to this dreary spot, where he who loves to till the arth 
 might have received bushels in return for pints, and that 
 too at the cost of no very grievous labor. If you have 
 come in search of land, you have journeyed hundreds of 
 miles too far or as many leagues too little." 
 
 There is then a better choice towards the other ocean?" 
 demanded the squatter, pointing in the direction of the 
 Pacific. 
 
 "There is, and I have seen it all," was the answer of 
 the other, who dropped his rifle to the earth, and stood 
 leaning on its barrel, like one who recalled the scenes he 
 had witnessed with melancholy pleasure. "I have seen 
 the waters of the two seas! On one of them was I born, 
 and raised to be a lad like yonder tumbling boy. America 
 has grown, my men, since the days of my youth, to be a 
 country larger than I once had thought the world itself to 
 be. Near seventy years I dwelt in York, province and 
 State together. You ve been in York, tis like?" 
 
 "Not I not I; I never visited the towns; but often 
 have heard the place you speak of named. Tis a wide 
 clearing there, I reckon." 
 
 "Too wide! too wide! They scourge the very 
 with their axes. Such hills and hunting-grounds as I have 
 seen stripped of the gifts of the Lord, without remorse or 
 shame ! I tarried till the mouths of my hounds were del 
 ened by the blows of the chopper, and then I came A 
 in search of quiet. It was a grievous journey that I 
 a grievous toil to pass through falling timber, and 
 breathe the thick air of smoky clearings, week after week, 
 
80 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 as I did. Tis a far country too, that State of York, from 
 this!" 
 
 "It lies agin the outer edge of old Kentuck, I reckon; 
 though what the distance may be I never knew. 
 
 "A gull would have to fan a thousand miles of air to 
 find the eastern sea. And yet it is no mighty reach to 
 hunt across, when shade and game are plenty! The time 
 has been when I followed the deer in the mountains of the 
 Delaware and Hudson, and took the beaver on the streams 
 of the upper lakes, in the same season; but my eye was 
 quick and certain at that day, and my limbs were like the 
 legs of a moose! The dam of Hector," dropping his look 
 kindly to the aged hound that crouched at his feet, "was 
 then a pup, and apt to open on the game the moment she 
 struck the scent. Sh e gave me a deal of trouble, that 
 slut, she did!" 
 
 "Your hound is old, stranger, and a rap on the head 
 would prove a mercy to the beast. 
 
 "The dog is like his master," returned the trapper, 
 without appearing to heed the brutal advice the other 
 gave, "and will number his days when his work amongst 
 the game is over, and not before. To my eye things seem 
 ordered to meet each other in this creation. Tis not the 
 swiftest running deer that always throws off the hounds, 
 nor the biggest arm that holds the truest rifle. Look 
 around you, men; what will the Yankee choppers say, 
 when they have cut their path from the eastern to the 
 western waters, and find that a hand, which can lay the 
 arth bare at a blow, has been here and swept the country, 
 in very mockery of their wickedness. They will turn on 
 their tracks like a fox that doubles, and then the rank 
 smell of their own footsteps will show them the madness 
 of their waste. Howsomever, these are thoughts that are 
 more likely to rise in him who has seen the folly of eighty 
 seasons, than to teach wisdom to men still bent on the 
 pleasures of their kind! You have need, yet, of a stirring 
 time, if you think to escape the craft and hatred of the 
 burnt-wood Indians. They claim to be the lawful owners 
 of this country, and seldom leave a white more than the 
 skin he boasts of, when once they get the power, as they 
 always have the will, to do him harm." 
 
THE PRAIRIE 81 
 
 "Old man," said Ishmael sternly, "to which people do 
 you belong? You have the color and speech of a Christian, 
 while it seems that your heart is with the red-skins." 
 
 "To me there is little difference in nations. The people 
 I loved most are scattered as the sands of the dry river 
 beds fly before the fall hurricanes, and life is too short to 
 make use and custom with strangers, as one can do with 
 such as he has dwelt amongst for years. Still am I a man 
 without the cross of Indian blood; and what is due from 
 a warrior to his nation, is owing by me to the people of 
 the States; though little need have they, with their militia 
 and their armed boats, of help from a single arm of four 
 score." 
 
 "Since you own your kin, I may ask a simple question. 
 Where are the Sioux who have stolen my cattle?" 
 
 "Where is the herd of buffaloes, which was chased by 
 the panther across this plain, no later than the morning 
 of yesterday! It is as hard 
 
 "Friend," said Dr. Battius, who had hitherto been an 
 attentive listener, but who now felt a sudden impulse to 
 mingle in the discourse, "lam grieved when I find a ven- 
 ator or hunter of your experience and observation, follow 
 ing the current of vulgar error. The animal you describe 
 is in truth a species of the bos ferus (or bos sylvestris, as 
 he has been happily called by the poets), but, though of 
 close affinity, it is altogether distinct from the common 
 bubulus. Bison is the better word ; and I would suggest 
 the necessity of adopting it in future, when you shall have 
 occasion to allude to the species." 
 
 "Bison orbuffalo,itmakesbutlittlematter. Thecreatur 
 is the same, call it by what name you will, and- 
 
 " Pardon me, venerable venator; as classification^ 
 
 but about the beginning ^^S^L^SS-SStSfAi awy 
 plains which extend to the base of the Rocky Mou ns ana iner 
 before the advancing tide of settlement Every ^\fiZ$ stretchm* the 
 " ians. Their method of makm* 
 
 bon, " was useful to the Indians. Their 
 
 ^aSsffAis^^sc 
 
 5&JBLSkAsxgRa& . 
 
 is reduced and put D 
 
82 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 very soul of the natural sciences, the animal or vegetable 
 must of necessity be characterized by the peculiarities of 
 its species, which is always indicated by the name 
 
 "Friend," said the trapper, a little positively, "would 
 the tail of a beaver make the worse dinner for calling it 
 a mink; or could you eat of the wolf with relish, because 
 some bookish man had given it the name of venison?" 
 
 As these questions were put with no little earnestness 
 and some spirit, there was every probability that a hot 
 discussion would have succeeded between two men, of 
 whom one was so purely practical and the other so much 
 given to theory, had not Ishmael seen fit to terminate the 
 dispute, by bringing into view a subject that was much 
 more important to his own immediate interests.;! 
 
 "Beavers tails and minks flesh may do to talk about 
 before a maple fire and a quiet hearth," interrupted the 
 squatter, without the smallest deference to the interested 
 feelings of the disputants; "but something more than 
 foreign words or words of any sort, is now needed. Tell 
 me, trapper, where are your Sioux skulking?" 
 
 "It would be as easy to tell you the colors of the hawk 
 that is floating beneath yonder white cloud! When a red 
 skin strikes his blow, he is not apt to wait until he is paid 
 for the evil deed in lead." 
 
 "Will the beggarly savages believe they have enough, 
 when they find themselves masters of all the stock?" 
 
 "Natur is much the same, let it be covered by what 
 skin it may. Do you ever find your longings after riches 
 less when you have made a good crop, than before you 
 were master of a kernel of corn? If you do, you differ 
 from what the experience of a long life tells me is the 
 common cravings of man." 
 
 "Speak plainly, old stranger," said the squatter, strik 
 ing the butt of his rifle heavily on the earth, his dull 
 capacity finding no pleasure in a discourse that was con 
 ducted in so obscure allusions; "I have asked a simple 
 question, and one I know well that you can answer." 
 
 "You are right you are right. I can answer, for I 
 have too often seen the disposition of my kind to mistake 
 it, when evil is stirring. When the Sioux have gathered 
 in the beasts, and have made sure that you are not upon 
 
THE PRAIRIE 83 
 
 out stopping to nose their prey." 
 
 "You have then seen the animals you mention!" ex 
 claimed Dr. Battius, who had now been thrown out of the 
 conversation quite as long as his impatience could well 
 brook, and who approached the subject with his tablets 
 ready opened, as a book of reference. "Can you tell me 
 it what you encountered was of the species ursus horribilis 
 - with the ears, roundedfront, arquatedeyes desti 
 tute of the remarkable supplemental lid with six incisors 
 one talse, and four perfect molars 
 
 "Trapper, go on, for we are engaged in reasonable dis 
 course, interrupted Ishmael; "you believe we shall see 
 more of the robbers?" 
 
 "Nay, nay; I do not call them robbers, for it is the 
 usage of their people, and what may be called the prairie 
 law. 
 
 "I have come five hundred miles to find a place where 
 no man can ding the words of the law in my ears," said 
 Ishmael, fiercely, "and I am not in a humor to stand 
 quietly at a bar, while a red-skin sits in judgment. I tell 
 you, trapper, if another Sioux is seen prowling around 
 my camp, wherever it may be, he shall feel the contents 
 of old Kentuck," slapping his rifle in a manner that could 
 not be easily misconstrued, "though he wore the medal 
 of Washington * himself. I call the man a robber, who 
 takes that which is not his own." 
 
 "The Teton, and the Pawnee, and the Konza, and men 
 of a dozen other tribes, claim to own these naked fields." 
 "Nafeur gives them the lie in their teeth. The air, 
 the water, and the ground, are free gifts to man, and no 
 one has the power to portion them out in parcels." Man 
 must drink, and breathe, and walk, and therefore each 
 has a right to his share of arth. Why do not the sur 
 veyors of the States set their compasses and run their 
 
 lr rhe American government creates chiefs among- the Wetern tribes, and 
 decorates them with silver medals bearing the impression of the different prw- 
 dents. That of Washing-ton is the most prized. 
 
 2 This sounds like the doctrine of Henry George.- [ED.] 
 
84 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 lines over our heads as well as beneath our feet? Why do 
 they not cover their shining sheepskins with big words, 
 giving to the landholder, or perhaps he should be called 
 airholder, so many rods of heaven, with the use of such a 
 star for a boundary-mark, and such a cloud to turn a 
 mill?" 
 
 As the squatter uttered his wild conceit, he laughed 
 from the very bottom of his chest, in scorn. The derid 
 ing but frightful merriment passed from the mouth of 
 one of his ponderous sons to that of the other, until it 
 had made the circuit of the whole family. 
 
 "Come, trapper," continued Ishmael, in a tone of bet 
 ter humor, like a man who feels that he has triumphed, 
 "neither of us, I reckon, has ever had much to do with 
 title deeds, or county clerks, or blazed trees; therefore 
 we will not waste words on fooleries. You ar a man 
 that has tarried long in this clearing; and now I ask your 
 opinion, face to face, without fear or favor, if you had 
 the lead in my business what would you do?" 
 
 The old man hesitated, and seemed to give the required 
 advice with deep reluctance. As every eye, however, 
 was fastened on him, and whichever way he turned his 
 face, he encountered a look riveted on the lineaments of 
 his own working countenance, he answered in a low, 
 melancholy tone: 
 
 "I have seen too much mortal blood poured out in 
 empty quarrels, to wish ever to hear an angry rifle again. 
 Ten weary years have I sojourned alone on these naked 
 plains, waiting for my hour, and not a blow have I struck 
 agin an enemy more humanized than the grizzly bear." 
 
 "Ursus horriblis, " muttered the doctor. 
 
 The speaker paused at the sound of the other s voice, 
 but perceiving it was no more than a sort of mental 
 ejaculation, he continued in the same strain: 
 . "More humanized than the grizzly bear, or the panther 
 of the Rocky Mountains, unless the beaver, which is a 
 wise and knowing animal, may be so reckoned. What 
 would I advise? Even the female buffalo will fight for 
 her young ! 
 
 "It never then shall be said, that Ishmael Bush has less 
 kindness for his children than the bear for her cubs!" 
 
THE PRAIRIE 85 
 
 "And yet this is but a naked spot for a dozen men to 
 make head in, agin five hundred." 
 
 "Ay, it is so," returned the squatter, glancing his 
 eye towards his humble camp; "but something might be 
 done with the wagons and the cotton-wood." 
 
 The trapper shook his head incredulously, and pointed 
 across the rolling plain in the direction of the west, as 
 he answered: 
 
 "A rifle would send a bullet from these hills into your 
 very sleep ing- cab ins; nay, arrows from the thicket in your 
 rear would keep you all burrowed, like so many prairie 
 dogs; it wouldn t do, it wouldn t do. Three long miles 
 from this spot is a place where, as I have often thought in 
 passing across the desert, a stand might be made for days 
 and weeks together, if there were hearts and hands ready 
 to engage in the bloody work." 
 
 Another low, deriding laugh passed among the young 
 men, announcing, in a manner sufficiently intelligible, 
 their readiness to undertake a task even more arduous. 
 The squatter himself eagerly seized the hint which had 
 been so reluctantly extorted from the trapper, who, by 
 some singular process of reasoning, had evidently per 
 suaded himself that it was his duty to be strictly neutral. 
 A few direct and pertinent inquiries served to obtain the 
 little additional information that was necessary, in order 
 to make the contemplated movement, and then Ishmael, 
 who was, on emergencies, as terrifically energetic as he 
 was sluggish in common, set about effecting his object 
 without delay. 
 
 Notwithstanding the industry and zeal of all engaged, 
 the task was one of great labor and difficulty. The loaded 
 vehicles were to be drawn by hand across a wide distance 
 of plain, without track, or guide of any sort, except that 
 which the trapper had furnished by communicating his 
 knowledge of the cardinal points of the compass. In ac 
 complishing this object, the gigantic strength of the men 
 was taxed to the utmost, nor were the females or the chi 
 dren spared a heavy proportion of the toil. While the 
 sons distributed themselves about the heavily 
 wagons, and drew them by main strength up the r 
 boring swell, their mother and Ellen, surrounded by t 
 
86 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 amazed group of little ones, followed slowly in the rear, 
 bending under the weight of such different articles as 
 were suited to their several strengths. 
 
 Ishmael himself superintended and directed the whole, 
 occasionally applying his colossal shoulder to some lagging 
 vehicle until he saw that the chief difficulty, that of gain 
 ing the level of their intended route, was accomplished. 
 Then he pointed out the required course, cautioning his 
 sons to proceed in such a manner that they should not 
 lose the advantage they had with so much labor obtained, 
 and, beckoning to the brother of his wife, they returned 
 together to the empty camp. 
 
 Throughout the whole of this movement, which occupied 
 an hour of time, the trapper had stood apart, leaning on 
 his rifle, with the aged hound slumbering at his feet, a 
 silent but attentive observer of all that passed. Occasion 
 ally a smile lighted hishard, muscular, but wasted features, 
 like a gleam of sunshine flitting across a ragged ruin, and 
 betrayed the momentary pleasure he found in witnessing 
 from time to time the vast power the youths discovered. 
 Then, as the train drew slowly up the ascent, a cloud of 
 thought and sorrow threw all into the shade again, leaving 
 the expression of his countenance in its usual state of 
 quiet melancholy. As vehicle after vehicle left the place 
 of the encampment, he noted the change with increasing 
 attention; seldom failing to cast an inquiring look at the 
 little neglected tent, which, with its proper wagon, still 
 remained as before, solitary and apparently forgotten. 
 The summons of Ishmael to his gloomy associate had, 
 however, as it would now seem, this hitherto neglected 
 portion of his effects for its object. 
 
 First casting a cautious and suspicious glance on every 
 side of him, the squatter and his companion advanced to 
 the little wagon, and caused it to enter within the folds of 
 the cloth much in the manner that it had been extricated 
 the preceding evening. They both then disappeared be 
 hind the drapery, and many moments of suspense suc 
 ceeded, during which the old man, secretly urged by a 
 burning desire to know the meaning of so much mystery, 
 insensibly drew nigh to the place, until he stood within a 
 few yards of the proscribed spot. The agitation of the 
 
THE PRAIRIE 87 
 
 cloth betrayed the nature of the occupation of those whom 
 it concealed, though their work was conducted in rigid 
 silence. It would appear that long practise had made each 
 of the two acquainted with his particular duty; for neither 
 sign nor direction of any sort was necessary from Ishmael, 
 in order to apprise his surly associate of the manner in 
 which he was to proceed. In less time than has been con 
 sumed in relating it, the interior portion of the arrange 
 ment was completed, when the men reappeared without 
 the teat. Too busy with his occupation to heed the pres 
 ence of the trapper, Ishmael began to release the folds of 
 the cloth from the ground, and to dispose of them in such 
 a manner around the vehicle, as to form a sweeping train 
 to the new form the little pavilion had now assumed. 
 The arched roof trembled with the occasional movement 
 of the light vehicle which, it was now apparent, once 
 more supported its secret burden. Just as the work was 
 ended, the scowling eye of Ishmael s assistant caught a 
 glimpse of the figure of the attentive observer of their 
 movements. Dropping the shaft, which he had already 
 lifted from the ground, preparatory to occupying the place 
 that was usually filled by an animal less reasoning and 
 perhaps less dangerous than himself, he bluntly exclaimed: 
 
 "I am a fool as you often say! But look for yourself. 
 If that man is not an enemy, I will disgrace father and 
 mother, call myself an Indian, and go hunt with the 
 Sioux!" 
 
 The cloud, as it is about to discharge the subtle I 
 ning, is not more dark nor threatening, than the look w 
 which Ishmael greeted the intruder. He turned his head 
 on every side of him, as if seeking some engine sufficiently 
 terrible to annihilate the offending trapper at a blow; and 
 then possibly recollecting the further occasion he mighl 
 have for his counsel, he forced himself to say, with an 
 appearance of moderation that nearly choked him: 
 
 "Stranger, I did believe this prying into the concei 
 of others was the business of women in the towi 
 settlements, and not the manner in which men v 
 used to live where each has room for himself, deal < 
 the secrets of their neighbors. To what lawyer or s 
 do you calculate to sell your news?" 
 
88 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 "I hold but little discourse except with one, and then 
 chiefly of my own affairs," returned the old man without 
 the least observable apprehension, and pointing imposingly 
 upward ; "a Judge; and Judge of all. Little does He need 
 knowledge from my hands, and but little will your wish 
 to keep anything secret from Him profit you, even in this 
 desert. 
 
 The mounting tempers of his untutored listeners were 
 rebuked by the simple, solemn manner of the trapper. 
 Ishmael stood sullen and thoughtful; while his companion 
 stole a furtive and involuntary glance at the placid sky, 
 which spread so wide and blue above his head, as if he ex 
 pected to see the Almighty eye itself beaming from the 
 heavenly vault. But impressions of a serious character 
 are seldom lasting on minds long indulged in forgetful- 
 ness. The hesitation of the squatter was consequently of 
 short duration. The language, however, as well as the 
 firm and collected air of the speaker, were the means of 
 preventing much subsequent abuse, if not violence. 
 
 "It would be showing more of the kindness of a friend 
 and comrade," Ishmael returned, in a tone sufficiently 
 sullen to betray his humor, though it was no longer 
 threatening, "had your shoulder been put to the wheel of 
 one of yonder wagons, instead of edging itself in here, 
 wh^re none are wanted but such as are invited." 
 
 "I can put the little strength that is left me," returned 
 the trapper, "to this, as well as to another of your loads. 
 
 "Do you take us for boys!" exclaimed Ishmael, laugh 
 ing, half in ferocity and half in derision, applying his 
 powerful strength at the same time to the little vehicle, 
 wkich rolled over the grass with as much seeming facility 
 as if it were drawn by its usual team. 
 
 The trapper paused, and followed the departing wagon 
 with his eye, marveling greatly as to the nature of its 
 concealed contents, until it had also gained the summit of 
 the eminence, and in its turn disappeared behind the 
 swell of the land. Then he turned to gaze at the desola 
 tion of the scene around him. The absence of human 
 forms would have scarce created a sensation in the bosom 
 of one so long accustomed to solitude, had not the site of 
 the deserted camp furnished such strong memorial of its 
 
THE PRAIRIE 89 
 
 recent visitors, and as the old man was quick to detect, of 
 their waste also. He cast his eye upward, with a shake 
 of the head, at the vacant spot in the heavens which had 
 so lately been filled by the branches of those trees that 
 now lay stripped of their verdure, worthless and deserted 
 logs at his feet. 
 
 "Ay," he muttered to himself, "I might have knowed 
 it I might have knowed it! Often have I seen the same 
 before; and yet I brought them to the spot myself, and 
 have now sent them to the only neighborhood of their 
 kind within many long leagues of the spot where I stand. 
 This is man s wish, and pride, and waste, and sinfulness! 
 He tames the beasts of the field to feed his idle wants; 
 and having robbed the brutes of their natural food, he 
 teaches them to strip the arth of its trees to quiet their 
 hunger. 
 
 A rustling in the low bushes which still grew, for some 
 distance, along the swale that formed the thicket on which 
 the camp of Ishmael had rested, caught his ear at the 
 moment, and cut short the soliloquy. The habits of so 
 many years spent in the wilderness caused the old man to 
 bring his rifle to a poise, with something like the activity 
 and promptitude of his youth; but, suddenly recovering 
 his recollection, he dropped it into the hollow of his arm 
 again, and resumed his air of melancholy resignation. 
 
 "Come forth, come forth!" he said aloud; "be ye bird 
 or be ye beast, ye are safe from these old hands. I have 
 eaten and I have drunk; why should I take life, when my 
 wants call for no sacrifice? It will not be long afore the 
 birds will peck at eyes that shall not see them, and per 
 haps light on my very bones; for if things like these arc 
 only made to perish, why am I to expect to live forever? 
 Come forth, come forth; you are safe from harm at these 
 weak hands." 
 
 "Thank you for the good word, old trapper! cried 
 Paul Hover, springing actively forward from his place of 
 concealment. "There was an air about you, when you 
 threw forward the muzzle of your piece, that I did not 
 like, for it seemed to say that you were master of all 
 rest of the motions." 
 
 "You are right you are right!" cried the trapper, 
 
90 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 laughing with inward self-complacency at the recollection 
 of his former skill. "The day has been when few men 
 knew the virtues of a long rifle like this I carry, better 
 than myself, old and useless as I now seem. You are 
 right, young man; and the time was when it was danger 
 ous to move a leaf within ear-shot of my stand; or," he 
 added, dropping his voice and looking serious, "for a red 
 Mingo to show an eyeball from his ambushment You 
 have heard of the red Mingoes?" 
 
 "I have heard of minks," said Paul, taking the old 
 man by the arm, and gently urging him towards the 
 thicket as he spoke; while at the same time he cast quick 
 and uneasy glances behind him, in order to make sure he 
 was not observed. "Of your common black minks; but 
 none of any other color." 
 
 "Lord! Lord!" continued the trapper, shaking his 
 head, and still laughing in his deep, but quiet manner; 
 "the boy mistakes a brute for a man! Though a Mingo 
 is little better than a beast; or, for that matter, he is 
 worse, when rum and opportunity are placed before his 
 eyes. There was that accursed Huron from the upper 
 lakes, that I knocked from his perch among the rocks in 
 the hills, back of the Hori 
 
 His voice was lost in the thicket, into which he had 
 suffered himself to be led by Paul while speaking, too 
 much occupied by thoughts which dwelt on scenes and 
 acts that had taken place half a century earlier in the his 
 tory of the country, to offer the smallest resistance. 
 
CHAPTER VIII 
 
 "Now they are clapper-clawing one another; I ll go look on. That dissem 
 bling abominable varlet, Diomed, has got that same scurvy, doting, foolish young 
 knave in his helm." 
 
 TBOILUS AND CRESSIDA. 
 
 IT is necessary in order that the thread of the narrative 
 should not be spun to a length which might fatigue the 
 reader, that he should imagine a week to have intervened 
 between the scene with which the preceding chapter closed 
 and the events with which it is our intention to resume 
 its relation in this. The season was on the point of chang 
 ing its character; the verdure of summer giving place 
 more rapidly to the brown and partly-colored livery of 
 the fall. 1 The heavens were clothed in driving clouds, 
 piled in vast masses one above the other, which whirled 
 violently in the gusts; opening, occasionally, to admit 
 transient glimpses of the bright and glorious sight of the 
 heavens, dwelling in a magnificence by far too grand and 
 durable to be disturbed by the fitful efforts of the lower 
 world. Beneath, the wind swept across the wild and 
 naked prairies with a violence that is seldom witnessed 
 in any section of the continent less open. It would have 
 been easy to have imagined, in the ages of fable, that the 
 god of the winds had permitted his subordinate agents 
 to escape from their den, and that they now rioted in 
 wantonness across wastes where neither tree, nor work of 
 man, nor mountain, nor obstacle of any sort, opposed it 
 self to their gambols. 
 
 Though nakedness might, as usual, be given as the per 
 vading character of the spot whither it is now necessary 
 to transfer the scene of the tale, it was not entirely with 
 out the signs of human life. Amid the monotonous roll 
 ing of the prairie, a single naked and ragged rock arose 
 on the margin of a little water-course which found its 
 
 1 The Americans call the autumn the " fall," from the fall of the leaf. 
 
 91 
 
92 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 way, after winding a vast distance through the plains, 
 into one of the numerous tributaries of the Father of 
 Rivers. A swale of low land lay near the base of the emi 
 nence, and as it was still fringed with a thicket of alders 
 and sumach, it bore the signs of having once nurtured a 
 feeble growth of wood. The trees themselves had been 
 transferred, however, to the summit and crags of the 
 neighboring rocks. On this elevation, the signs of man, 
 to which the allusion just made applies, were to be 
 found. 
 
 Seen from beneath, there were visible a breastwork of 
 logs and stones, intermingled in such a manner as to save 
 all unnecessary labor, a few low roofs made of bark and 
 boughs of trees, an occasional barrier, constructed like 
 the defenses on the summit, and placed on such points of 
 the acclivity as were easier of approach than the general 
 face of the eminence; and a little dwelling of cloth, 
 perched on the apex of a small pyramid that shot up on 
 one angle of the rock, the white covering of which glim 
 mered from a distance like a spot of snow, or, to make 
 the simile more suitable to the rest of the subject, like a 
 spotless and carefully guarded standard, which was to be 
 protected by the dearest blood of those who defended the 
 citadel beneath. It is hardly necessary to add, that this 
 rude and characteristic fortress was the place where Ish- 
 mael Bush had taken refuge, after the robbery of his 
 flocks and herds. 
 
 On the day to which the narrative is advanced, the 
 squatter was standing near the base of the rocks, leaning 
 on his rifle, and regarding the sterile soil that supported 
 him with a look in which contempt and disappointment 
 were strongly blended. 
 
 Tis time to change our naturs, " he observed to the 
 brother of his wife, who was rarely far from his elbow; 
 "and to become ruminators, instead of people used to the 
 fare of Christians and free men. I reckon, Abiram, you 
 could glean a living among the grasshoppers; you ar an 
 active man, and might outrun the nimblest skipper of 
 them all." 
 
 "The country will never do," returned the other, who 
 relished but little the forced humor of his kinsman; "and 
 
THE PRAIRIE 93 
 
 it is well to remember that a lazy traveler makes a lone 
 journey. 
 
 "Would you have me draw a cart at my heels, across 
 this desert, for weeks ay, months?" retorted Ishmael, 
 who, like all of his class, could labor with incredible 
 efforts on emergencies, but who too seldom exerted con 
 tinued industry on any occasion to brook a proposal that 
 offered so little repose. "It may do for your people, who 
 live in settlements, to hasten on to their houses; but, 
 thank Heaven! my farm is too big for its owner ever to 
 want a resting-place." 
 
 "Since you like the plantation, then, you have only to 
 make your crop." 
 
 "That is easier said than done, on this corner of the 
 estate. I tell you, Abiram, there is need of moving, for 
 more reasons than one. You know I m a man that very 
 seldom enters into a bargain, but who always fulfills his 
 agreements better than your dealers in wordy contracts 
 written on rags of paper. If there s one mile, there ar 
 a hundred still needed to make up the distance, for which 
 you have my honor." 
 
 As he spoke, the squatter glanced his eye upward at the 
 little tenement of cloth, which crowned the summit of his 
 ragged fortress. The look was understood and answered 
 by the other; and by some secret influence, which operated 
 either through their interests or feelings, it served to re 
 establish that harmony between them, which had just been 
 threatened with something like a momentary breach. 
 
 "I know it and feel it in every bone of my body. But 
 I remember the reason why I have set myself on this ac 
 cursed journey too well, to forget the distance between 
 me and the end. Neither you nor I will ever be the better 
 for what we have done, unless we thoroughly finish what 
 is so well begun. Ay, that is the doctrine of the whole 
 world, I judge. I heard a traveling preacher, who was 
 skirting it down the Ohio, a time since, say, if a man 
 should live up to the faith for a hundred years, and then 
 fall from his work a single day, he would find the settle 
 ment was to be made for the finishing blow that he had put 
 to his job, and that all the bad, and none of the good, 
 would come into the final account." 
 
94 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 "And you believed the hungry hypocrite!" 
 
 "Who said that I believed it?" retorted Abiram with a 
 bullying look, that betrayed how much his fears had dwelt 
 on the subject he affected to despise. "Is it believing to 
 tell what a roguish and yet, Ishmael, the man might 
 have been honest after all ! He told us that the world 
 was, in truth, no better than a desert, and that there was 
 but one hand that could lead the most learned man through 
 all its crooked windings. Now, if this be true of the 
 whole, it may be true of a part. 
 
 "Abiram, out with your grievances like a man," inter 
 rupted the squatter, with a hoarse laugh. "You want to 
 pray! But of what use will it be, according to your own 
 doctrine, to serve God five minutes and the devil an hour? 
 Harkee, friend; I m not much of a husbandman, but this 
 I know to my cost: that to make a right good crop, even 
 on the richest bottom, there must be hard labor; and your 
 snufflers liken the arth to a field of corn, and the men, 
 who live on it, to its yield. Now I tell you, Abiram, that 
 you are no better than a thistle or a mullein; yea, ye ar 
 a wood of too open a pore to be good even to burn. 
 
 The malign glance which shot from the scowling eye of 
 Abiram announced the angry character of his feelings; 
 but as the furtive look quailed, immediately, before the 
 unmoved, steady countenance of the squatter, it also be 
 trayed how much the bolder spirit of the latter had 
 obtained the mastery over his craven nature. 
 
 Content with his ascendency, which was too apparent, 
 and had been too often exerted on similar occasions, to 
 leave him in any doubt of its extent, Ishmael coolly con 
 tinued the discourse, by adverting more directly to his 
 future plans. 
 
 "You will own the justice of paying every one in kind, 
 he said; "I have been robbed of my stock, and I have a 
 scheme to make myself as good as before, by taking hoof 
 for hoof; or, for that matter, when a man is put to the 
 trouble of bargaining for both sides, he is a fool if he 
 don t pay himself something in the way of commission." 
 
 As the squatter made this declaration in a tone which 
 was a little excited by the humor of the moment, four or 
 five of his lounging sons, who had been leaning against 
 
THE PRAIRIE 95 
 
 the foot of the rock, came forward with the indolent step 
 so common to the family. 
 
 "I have been calling Ellen Wade, who is on the rock 
 keeping the lookout, to know if there is anything to be 
 seen," observed the eldest of the young men; "and she 
 shakes her head, for an answer. Ellen is sparing of her 
 words for a woman; and might be taught manners, at least 
 without spoiling her good looks." 
 
 Ishmael cast his eye upwards to the place where the 
 offending but unconscious girl was holding her anixous 
 watch. She was seated at the edge of the uppermost crag, 
 by the side of the little tent, and at least two hundred 
 feet above the level of the plain. Little else was to be 
 distinguished, at that distance, but the outline of her 
 form, her fair hair streaming in the gusts beyond her 
 shoulders, and the steady and seemingly unchangeable 
 look that she riveted on some remote point of the prairie. 
 
 "What is it, Nell?" cried Ishmael, lifting his powerful 
 voice a little above the rushing of the element. "Have 
 you got a glimpse of anything bigger than a burrowing 
 barker?" 
 
 The lips of the attentive Ellen parted; she rose to the 
 utmost height her small stature admitted, seeming still 
 to regard the unknown object; but her voice, if she spoke 
 at all, was not sufficiently loud to be heard amid the wind. 
 
 "It ar a fact that the child sees something more un 
 common than a buffalo, or a prairie dog!" continued Ish 
 mael. "Why, Nell, girl, ar ye deaf ? Nell, I say; I hope 
 it is an army of red-skins she has in her eye; for I should 
 relish the chance to pay them for their kindness, under 
 the favor of these logs and rocks!" 
 
 As the squatter accompanied his vaunt with correspond 
 ing gestures, and directed his eyes to the circle of his 
 equally confident sons while speaking, he drew their gaze 
 from Ellen to himself; but now, when they turned together 
 to note the succeed ing movements of their female sentinel, 
 the place which had so lately been occupied by her form 
 was vacant. "As I am a sinner," exclaimed Asa, usually 
 one of the most phlegmatic of the youths, "the girl is 
 blown away by the wind!" 
 
 Something like a sensation was exhibited among them, 
 
96 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 which might have denoted that the influence of the laugh 
 ing blue eyes, flaxen hair, and glowing cheeks of Ellen, 
 had not been lost on the dull natures of the young men; 
 and looks of amazement, mingled slightly with concern, 
 passed from one to the other as they gazed, in dull wonder, 
 at the point of the naked rock. 
 
 "It might well be!" added another; "she sat on a sliv 
 ered stone, and I have been thinking of telling her she 
 was in danger- for more than an hour." 
 
 "Is that a ribbon of the child, dangling from the corner 
 of the hill below?" cried Ishmael; "ha! who is moving 
 about the tent? have I not told you all 
 
 "Ellen! tis Ellen!" interrupted the whole body of his 
 sons in a breath, and at that instant she reappeared to put 
 an end to their different surmises, and to relieve more 
 than one sluggish nature from its unwonted excitement. 
 As Ellen issued from beneath the folds of the tent, she ad 
 vanced with a light and fearless step to her former giddy 
 stand, and pointed towards the prairie, appearing to speak 
 in an eager and rapid voice to some invisible auditor. 
 
 "Nell is mad!" said Asa, half in contempt, and yet not 
 a little in concern. "The girl is dreaming with her eyes 
 open; and thinks she sees some of them fierce creatur s 
 with hard names, with which the Doctor fills her ears." 
 
 "Can it be that the child has found a scout of the 
 Sioux?" said Ishmael, bending his look towards the 
 plain; but a low, significant whisper from Abiram drew 
 his eyes quickly upwards again, where they were turned 
 just in time to perceive that the cloth of the tent was agi 
 tated by a motion very evidently different from the quiv 
 ering occasioned by the wind. "Let her, if she dare!" 
 the squatter muttered in his teeth. "Abiram, they know 
 my temper too well to play the prank with me!" 
 
 "Look for yourself! If the curtain is not lifted, I can 
 see no better than the owl by daylight. 
 
 Ishmael struck the breech of his rifle violently on the 
 earth, and shouted in a voice that might easily have been 
 heard by Ellen, had not her attention still continued rapt 
 on the subject which so unaccountably attracted her eyes 
 in the distance. 
 
 "Nell!" continued the squatter, "away with you, fool! 
 
THE PRAIRIE 97 
 
 will you bring down punishment on your own head? Why, 
 Nell! she has forgotten her native speech; let us see if 
 she can understand another language. 
 
 Ishmael threw his rifle to his shoulder, and at the next 
 moment it was pointed upwards at the summit of the rock. 
 Before time was given for a word of remonstrance, it had 
 sent forth its contents, in its usual streak of bright flame. 
 Ellen started like the frightened chamois, and, uttering a 
 piercing scream, she darted into the tent with a swiftness 
 that left it uncertain whether terror or actual injury had 
 been the penalty of her offense. 
 
 The action of the squatter was too sudden and unexpected 
 to admit of prevention; but the instant it was done, his 
 sons manifested, in an unequivocal manner, the temper 
 with which they witnessed the desperate measure. Angry 
 and fierce glances were interchanged, and a murmur of 
 disapprobation was uttered by the whole, in common. 
 
 "What has Ellen done, father," said Asa, with a degree 
 of spirit which was the more striking from being unusual, 
 "that she should be shot at like a straggling deer or a 
 hungry wolf?" 
 
 "Mischief," deliberately returned the squatter; but 
 with a cool expression of defiance in his eye, that showed 
 how little he was moved by the ill-concealed humor of his 
 children. "Mischief, boy; mischief ! take your heed that 
 the disorder don t spread!" 
 
 "It would need a different treatment in a man than in 
 yon screaming girl." 
 
 "Asa, you ar a man, as you have often boasted; but 
 remember, I am your father, and your better. 
 
 "I know it well; and what sort of a father?" 
 
 "Harkee, boy; I more than half believe that your 
 drowsy head let in the Sioux. Be modest in speech, 
 my watchful son, or you may have to answer yet for the 
 mischief your own bad conduct has brought upon us. 
 
 "I ll stay no longer, to be hectored like a child in pel 
 ticoats. You talk of law, as if you knew of none, and yet 
 you keep me down as though I had not life and wants of 
 my own. I ll stay no longer to be treated like one of yoi 
 meanest cattle!" , 
 
 "The world is wide, my gallant boy, and there a many 
 
98 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 a noble plantation on it, without a tenant. Go; you have 
 title deeds signed and sealed to your hand. Few fathers 
 portion their children better than Ishmael Bush; you will 
 say that for me at least, when you get to be a wealthy 
 landholder. 
 
 "Look! father, look!" exclaimed several voices at once, 
 seizing with avidity an opportunity to interrupt a dialogue 
 which threatened to become more violent. 
 
 "Look!" repeated Abiram, in a voice which sounded 
 hollow and warning; "if you have time for anything but 
 quarrels, Ishmael, look!" 
 
 The squatter turned slowly from his offending son, and 
 cast an eye that still lowered with deep resentment up 
 ward; but which, the instant it caught a view of the ob 
 ject that now attracted the attention of all around him, 
 changed its expression to one of astonishment and dismay. 
 
 A female stood on the spot from which Ellen had been 
 so fearfully expelled. Her person was of the smallest size 
 that is believed to comport with beauty, and which poets 
 and artists have chosen as the beau ideal of female love 
 liness. Her dress was of a dark and glossy silk, and flut 
 tered like gossamer around her form. Long, flowing, and 
 curling tresses of hair, still blacker and more shining than 
 her robe, fell at times about her shoulders, completely 
 enveloping the whole of her delicate bust in their ringlets. 
 or at others streaming in the wind. The elevation at 
 which she stood prevented a close examination of the linea 
 ments of a countenance which, however, it might be seen 
 was youthful, and at the moment of her unlooked-for ap 
 pearance, eloquent with feeling. So young, indeed, did 
 this fair and fragile being appear, that it might be doubted 
 whether the age of childhood was entirely passed. One 
 small and exquisitely moulded hand was pressed on her 
 heart, while with the other she made an impressive ges 
 ture, which seemed to invite Ishmael, if further violence 
 was meditated, to direct it against her bosom. 
 
 The silent wonder with which the group of borderers 
 gazed upwards at so extraordinary a spectacle, was only 
 interrupted as the person of Ellen was seen emerging with 
 timidity from the tent, as if equally urged by apprehen 
 sions in behalf of herself, and the fears which she felt on 
 
A THE PRAIRIE 99 
 
 account of her companion, to remain concealed and to ad 
 vance. She spoke, but her words were unheard by those 
 below, and unheeded by her to whom they were addressed. 
 The latter, however, as if content with the offer she had 
 made of herself as a victim to the resentment of Ishmael, 
 now calmly retired, and the spot she had so lately occupied 
 became vacant, leaving a sort of stupid expression on the 
 spectators beneath, not unlike that which it might be 
 supposed would have been created, had they just been 
 gazing at some supernatural vision. 
 
 More than a minute of profound silence succeeded, dur 
 ing which the sons of Ishmael still continued gazing at the 
 naked rock in stupid wonder. Then, as eye met eye, an 
 expression of novel intelligence passed from one to the 
 other, indicating that to them, at least, the appearance 
 of this extraordinary tenant of the pavilion was as unex 
 pected as it was incomprehensible. At length Asa, in 
 right of his years, and moved by the rankling impulse of 
 the recent quarrel, took on himself the office of inter 
 rogator. Instead, however, of braving the resentment of 
 his father, of whose fierce nature, when aroused, he had 
 had too frequent evidence to excite it wantonly, he turned 
 upon the cowering person of Abiram, observing with a 
 sneer: 
 
 "This then is the beast you were bringing into the 
 prairies for a decoy! I know you to be a man who seldom 
 troubles truth when anything worse may answer, but I 
 never knew you to outdo yourself so thoroughly before. 
 The newspapers of Kentuck have called you a dealer in 
 black flesh a hundred times, but little did they reckon 
 that you drove the trade into white families." 
 
 "Who is a kidnapper?" demanded Abiram, with a 
 blustering show of resentment. "Am I to be called to 
 account for every lie they put in print throughout the 
 States? Look to your own family, boy; look to your 
 selves. The very stumps of Kentucky and Tennessee cry 
 out agin ye. Ay, my tonguey gentleman, I have j 
 father, mother, and three children, yourself for one pub 
 lished on the logs and stubs of the settlements, with doll 
 enough for reward to have made an honest man rich, 
 for " 
 
100 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 He was interrupted by a back-handed but violent blow 
 on the mouth that caused him to totter, and which left 
 the impression of its weight in the starting blood and 
 swelling lips. 
 
 "Asa," said the father, advancing with a portion of 
 that dignity with which the hand of Nature seems to have 
 invested the parental character, "you have struck the 
 brother of your mother ! 
 
 "I have struck the abuser of the whole family, returned 
 the angry youth; "and, unless he teaches his tongue a 
 wiser language, he had better part with it altogether, as 
 the unruly member. I m no great performer with the 
 knife, but on an occasion could make out, myself, to cut 
 off a slande 
 
 "Boy, twice have you forgotten yourself to-day. Be 
 careful that it does not happen the third time. When the 
 law of the land is weak, it is right the law of nature 
 should be strong. You understand me, Asa; and you 
 know me. As for you, Abiram, the child has done you 
 wrong, and it is my place to see you righted. Remember; 
 I tell you justice shall be done; it is enough. But you 
 have said hard things agin me and my family. If the 
 hounds of the law have put their bills on the trees and 
 stumps of the clearings, it was for no act of dishonesty, 
 as you know, but because we maintain the rule that arth 
 is common property. No, Abiram ; could I wash my hands 
 of things done by your advice, as easily as I can of the 
 things done by the whisperings of the devil, my sleep 
 would be quieter at night, and none who bear my name 
 need blush to hear it mentioned. Peace, Asa, and you, 
 too, man; enough has been said. Let us all think well 
 before anything is added, that may make what is already 
 so bad still more bitter." 
 
 Ishmael waved his hand with authority, as he ended, 
 and turned away with the air of one who felt assured that 
 those he had addressed would not have the temerity to 
 dispute his commands. Asa evidently struggled with him 
 self to compel the required obedience, but his heavy nature 
 quietly sank into its ordinary repose, and he soon appeared 
 again the being he really was; dangerous only at moments, 
 and one whose passions were too sluggish to be long main- 
 
THE PRAIRIE 10 1 
 
 tained at the point of ferocity. Not so with Abiram 
 While there was an appearance of a personal conflict be 
 tween him and his colossal nephew, his mien had expressed 
 the infallible evidences of engrossing apprehension; but 
 now that the authority as well as gigantic strength of the 
 father were interposed between him and his assailant, his 
 countenance changed from paleness to a livid hue, that 
 bespoke how deeply the injury he had received rankled in 
 his breast. Like Asa, however, he acquiesced in the de 
 cision of the squatter; and the appearance, at least, of 
 harmony was restored again among a set of beings, who 
 were restrained by no obligations more powerful than the 
 frail web of authority with which Ishmael had been able 
 to envelop his children. 
 
 One effect of the quarrel had been to divert the thoughts 
 of the young man from their recent visitor. With the dis 
 pute that succeeded the disappearance of the fair stranger, 
 all recollection of her existence appeared to have vanished. 
 A few ominous and secret conferences, it is true, were 
 held apart, during which the direction of the eyes of the 
 different speakers betrayed their subject; but these threat 
 ening symptoms soon disappeared, and the whole party 
 was again seen broken into its usual, listless, silent, and 
 lounging groups. 
 
 "I will go upon the rock, boys, and look abroad for the 
 savages," said Ishmael shortly after, advancing towards 
 them with a mien which he intended should be conciliat 
 ing, at the same time that it was authoritative. "If there 
 is nothing to fear, we will go out on the plain; the day is 
 too good to be lost in words, like women in the towns 
 wrangling over their tea and sugared cakes." 
 
 Without waiting for approbation or dissent, the squat 
 ter advanced to the base of the rock, which formed a sort 
 of perpendicular wall, nearly twenty feet high, around 
 the whole acclivity. Ishmael, however, directed his foot 
 steps to a point where an ascent might be made through a 
 narrow cleft, which he had taken the precaution to fortify 
 with a breastwork of cotton-wood logs, and which, in its 
 turn, was defended by a chevaux-de-frise of the branches 
 of the same tree. Here an armed man was usually kept, 
 as at the key of the whole position, and here one of the 
 
102 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 young men now stood, indolently leaning against the rock, 
 ready to protect the pass, if it should prove necessary, 
 until the whole party could be mustered at the several 
 points of defense. 
 
 From this place the squatter found the ascent still diffi 
 cult, partly by nature, and partly by artificial impedi 
 ments, until he reached a sort of terrace, or to speak more 
 properly, the plain of the elevation, where he had estab 
 lished the huts in which the whole family dwelt. These 
 tenements were, as already mentioned, of that class which 
 are so often seen on the borders, and such as belonged to 
 the infancy of architecture; being simply formed of logs, 
 bark, and poles. The area on which they stood contained 
 several hundred square feet, and was sufficiently elevated 
 above the plain greatly to lessen, if not to remove, all 
 danger from Indian missiles. Here Ishmael believed he 
 might leave his infants in comparative security, under the 
 protection of their spirited mother; and here he now found 
 Esther engaged at her ordinary domestic employments, 
 surrounded by her daughters, and lifting her voice, in 
 declamatory censure, as one or another of the idle fry in 
 curred her displeasure, and far too much engrossed with the 
 tempest of her own conversation to know anything of the 
 violent scene which had been passing below. 
 
 "A fine windy place you have chosen for the camp, Ish 
 mael!" she commenced, or rather continued, by merely 
 diverting the attack from a sobbing girl of ten, at her 
 elbow, to her husband. "My word! if I haven t to count 
 the young ones every ten minutes, to see they are not fly 
 ing away among the buzzards or the ducks. Why do ye 
 all keep hovering round the rock, like lolloping reptiles 
 in the spring, when the heavens are beginning to be alive 
 with birds, man! D ye think mouths can be filled, and 
 hunger satisfied by laziness and sleep?" 
 
 You ll have your say, Eester, said the husband, using 
 the provincial pronunciation of America for the name, 
 and regarding his noisy companions with a look of habitual 
 tolerance rather than of affection. "But the birds you 
 shall have, if your own tongue don t frighten them to take 
 too high a flight. Ay, woman," he continued, standing 
 on the very spot whence he had so rudely banished Ellen, 
 
THE PRAIRIE 103 
 
 which he had by this time gained, "and buffalo, too if my 
 eye can tell the animal at the distance of a Spanish league. 
 
 "Come down; come down, and be doing, instead of 
 talking. A talking man is no better than a barking dog 
 Nell shall hang out the cloth, if any of the red-skins show 
 themselves, in time to give you notice. But, Ishmael, 
 what have you been killing, my man; for it was your rifle 
 I heard a few minutes agone, unless I have lost my skill 
 in sounds. 
 
 "Poh! twas to frighten the hawk you see sailing above 
 the rock." 
 
 "Hawk indeed! at your time of day to be shooting at 
 hawks and buzzards, with eighteen open mouths to feed! 
 Look at the bee, and at the beaver, my good man, and 
 learn to be a provider. Why, Ishmael ! I believe my soul, " 
 she continued, dropping the tow she was twisting on a 
 distaff, "the man is in that tent ag in! More than half his 
 time is spent about the worthless, good-for-nothing 
 
 The sudden reappearance of her husband closed the 
 mouth of the wife; and, as the former descended to the 
 place where Esther had resumed her employment, she was 
 content to grumble forth her dissatisfaction, instead of 
 expressing it in more audible terms. 
 
 The dialogue that now took place between the affection 
 ate pair was sufficiently succinct and expressive. The 
 woman was at first a little brief and sullen in her answers, 
 but care for her family soon rendered her more complais 
 ant. As the purport of the conversation was merely an 
 engagement to hunt during the remainder of the day, in 
 order to provide the chief necessary of life, we shall not 
 stop to record it. 
 
 With this resolution, then, the squatter descended to 
 the plain and divided his forces into two parts, one of 
 which was to remain as a guard with the fortress, and the 
 other to accompany him to the field. He warily included 
 Asa and Abiram in his own party, well knowing that no 
 authority short of his own was competent to repress the 
 fierce disposition of his headlong son, if fairly awakened. 
 When these arrangements were completed, the hunters 
 sallied forth, separating at no great distance from the rock 
 in order to form a circle about the distant herd of buffaloes. 
 
CHAPTER IX 
 
 " Priscian a little scratched : 
 Twill serve." 
 
 LOVE S LABOR LOST. 
 
 HAVING made the reader acquainted with the manner 
 in which Ishmael Bush had disposed of his family, under 
 circumstances that might have proved so embarrassing to 
 most other men, we shall again shift the scene a few short 
 miles from the place last described, preserving, however, 
 the due and natural succession of time. At the very mo 
 ment that the squatter and his sons departed in the manner 
 mentioned in the preceding chapter, two men were intently 
 occupied in a swale that lay along the borders of a little 
 run, just out of cannon-shot from the encampment, discus 
 sing the merits of a savory bison s hump, that had been 
 prepared for their palates with the utmost attention to 
 the particular merits of that description of food. The 
 choice morsel had been judiciously separated from the 
 adjoining and less worthy parts of the beast, and enveloped 
 in the hairy coating provided by nature, it had duly un 
 dergone the heat of the customary subterraneous oven, 
 and was now laid before its proprietors in all the culinary 
 glory of the prairies. So far as richness, delicacy and 
 wildness of flavor, and substantial nourishment were con 
 cerned, the viand might well have claimed a decided 
 superiority over the meretricious cookery and labored 
 compounds of the most renowned artist; though the ser 
 vice of the dainty was certainly achieved in a manner far 
 from artificial. It would appear that the two fortunate 
 mortals, to whose happy lot it fell to enjoy a meal in which 
 health and appetite lent so keen a relish to the exquisite 
 food of the American deserts, were far from being insen 
 sible of the advantage they possessed. 
 
 The one to whose knowledge in the culinary art the 
 other was indebted for his banquet, seemed the least dis 
 posed of the two to profit by his own skill. He ate, it is 
 
 104 
 
THE PRAIRIE 105 
 
 true, and with a relish; but it was always with the mod- 
 eration with which age is apt to temper the appetite No 
 such restraint, however, was imposed on the inclination of 
 iis companion. In the very flower of his days and in the 
 vigor of manhood, the homage that he paid to the work of 
 his more aged friend s hands was of the most profound 
 and engrossing character. As one delicious morsel suc 
 ceeded another, he rolled his eyes towards his companion, 
 and seemed to express that gratitude which he had not 
 speech to utter, in looks of the most benignant nature. 
 
 "Cut more into the heart of it, lad," said the trapper, 
 for it was the venerable inhabitant of those vast wastes, 
 who had served the bee-hunter with the banquet in ques 
 tion; "cut more into the center of the piece; there you 
 will find the genuine riches of natur ; and that without 
 need from spices, or any of your biting mustard, to give 
 it a foreign relish." 
 
 "If I had but a cup of metheglin," said Paul, stopping 
 to perform the necessary operation of breathing, "I should 
 swear this was the strongest meal that was ever placed 
 before the mouth of man!" 
 
 "Ay, ay, well you may call it strong!" returned the 
 other, laughing after his peculiar manner, in pure satis 
 faction at witnessing the infinite contentment of his com 
 panion; "strong it is, and strong it makes him who eats 
 it! Here, Hector," tossing the patient hound, who was 
 watching his eye with a wistful look, a portion of the 
 meat, "you have need of strength, my friend, in your old 
 days as well as your master. Now, lad, there is a dog that 
 has eaten and slept wiser and better, ay, and that of 
 richer food, than any king of them all! and why? Because 
 he has used and not abused the gifts of his Maker. He 
 was made a hound, and like a hound has he feasted. Them 
 did He create men; but they have eaten like famished 
 wolves. A good and prudent dog has Hector proved, and 
 never have I found one of his breed false in nose or friend 
 ship. Do you know the difference between the cookery of 
 the wilderness and that which is found in the settlements? 
 No; I see plainly you don t, by your appetite; then I will 
 tell you. The one follows man, the other natur . One 
 thinks he can add to the gifts of the Creator, while the 
 
106 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 other is humble enough to enjoy them; therein lies the 
 secret. 
 
 "I tell you, trapper," said Paul, who was very little 
 edified by the morality with which his associate saw fit to 
 season their repast, "that every day while we are in this 
 place, and they are likely to be many, I will shoot a buffalo 
 and you shall cook his hump!" 
 
 "I cannot say that I cannot say that. The beast is 
 good, take him in what part you will, and it was to be 
 food for man that he was fashioned; but I cannot say that 
 I will be a witness and a helper to the waste of killing 
 one daily." 
 
 "The devil a bit of waste shall there be, old man. If 
 they all turn out as good as this, I will engage to eat them 
 clean myself, even to the hoofs. How now, who comes 
 here! Some one with a long nose, I will answer; and one 
 that has led him on a true scent, if he is following the 
 trail of a dinner. 
 
 The individual who interrupted the conversation, and 
 who had elicited the foregoing remark of Paul, was seen 
 advancing along the margin of the run with a deliberate 
 pace, in a direct line for the two revelers. As there was 
 nothing formidable nor hostile in his appearance, the bee- 
 hunter, instead of suspending his operations, rather in 
 creased his efforts, in a manner which would seem to imply 
 that he doubted whether the hump would suffice for the 
 proper entertainment of all who were now likely to par 
 take of the delicious morsel. With the trapper, however, 
 the case was different. His more tempered appetite was 
 already satisfied, and he faced the new-comer with a look 
 of cordiality that plainly evinced how very opportune he 
 considered his arrival. 
 
 "Come on, friend," he said, waving his hand, as he 
 observed the stranger to pause a moment, apparently in 
 doubt. "Come on, I say; if hunger be your guide, it has 
 led you to a fitting place. Here is meat, and this youth 
 can give you corn, parched till it be whiter than the up 
 land snow; come on, without fear. We are not ravenous 
 beasts, eating of each other, but Christian men, receiving 
 thankfully that which the Lord hath seen fit to give." 
 
 "Venerable hunter," returned the Doctor, for it was 
 
THE PRAIRIE 107 
 
 no other than the naturalist, on one of his daily exploring 
 expeditions, "I rejoice greatly at this happy meeting- we 
 areJovers of the same pursuits, and should be friends " 
 
 Lord, Lord!" said the old man, laughing, without 
 much deference to the rules of decorum, in the philos 
 opher s very face, "it is the man who wanted to make me 
 believe that a name could change the natur of a beast! 
 Come, friend, you are welcome, though your notions are 
 a little blinded with reading too many books. Sit ye 
 down, and, after eating of this morsel, tell me, if you 
 can, the name of the creatur that has bestowed on you its 
 flesh for a meal ? 
 
 The eyes of Doctor Battius (for we deem it decorous to 
 give the good man the appellation he most preferred) 
 the eyes of Doctor Battius sufficiently denoted the satis 
 faction with which he listened to this proposal. The exer 
 cise he had taken, and the sharpness of the wind, proved 
 excellent stimulants; and Paul himself had hardly been in 
 better plight to do credit to the trapper s cookery, than 
 was the lover of nature, when the grateful invitation met 
 his ears. Indulging in a small laugh, which his exertions 
 to repress reduced nearly to a simper, he took the indicated 
 seat by the old man s side, and made the customary dis 
 positions to commence his meal without further ceremony. 
 
 "I should be ashamed of my profession, " he said, swal 
 lowing a morsel of the hump with evident delight, slyly 
 endeavoring at the same time to distinguish the peculiar 
 ities of the singed and defaced skin, "I ought to be 
 ashamed of my profession, were there beast or bird, on 
 the continent of America, that I could not tell by some one 
 of the many evidences which science has enlisted in her 
 cause. This then the food is nutritious and savory a 
 mouthful of your corn, friend, if you please?" 
 
 Paul, who continued eating with increasing industry, 
 looking askant not unlike a dog when engaged in the same 
 agreeable pursuit, threw him his pouch, without deeming 
 it at all necessary to suspend his own labors. 
 
 "You were saying, friend, that you have many ways of 
 telling the creatur ?" observed the attentive trapper. 
 
 "Many; many, and infallible. Now, the animals that 
 are carnivorous are known by their incisors." 
 
108 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 "Their what?" demanded the trapper. 
 
 "The teeth with which nature has furnished them for 
 defense, and in order to tear their food. Again 
 
 "Look you then for the teeth of this creatur ," inter 
 rupted the trapper, who was bent on convicting a man 
 who had presumed to enter into competition with himself, 
 in matters pertaining to the wilds, of gross ignorance; 
 "turn the piece round and find your inside-overs." 
 
 The Doctor complied, and, of course, without success; 
 though he profited by the occasion to take another fruit 
 less glance at the wrinkled hide. 
 
 "Well, friend, do you find the things you need, before 
 you can pronounce the creatur a duck or a salmon?" 
 
 "I apprehend the entire animal is not here?" 
 
 "You may well say as much," cried Paul, who was now 
 compelled to pause from pure repletion; "I will answer 
 for some pounds of the fellow, weighed by the truest steel 
 yards west of the Alleghanies. Still you may make out to 
 keep soul and body together with what is left, reluctantly 
 eyeing a piece large enough to feed twenty men, but 
 which he felt compelled to abandon from satiety; "cut in 
 nigher to the heart, as the old man says, and you will find 
 the riches of the piece." 
 
 "The heart!" exclaimed the Doctor, inwardly delighted 
 to learn there was a distinct organ to be submitted to his 
 inspection. "Ay, let me see the heart it will at once 
 determine the character of the animal ; certes this is not 
 the cor ay, sure enough it is the animal must be of 
 the order belluae, from its obese habits!" 
 
 He was interrupted by a long and hearty, but still a 
 noiseless fit of merriment, from the trapper, which was 
 considered so ill-timed by the offended naturalist, as to 
 produce an instant cessation of speech, if not stagnation 
 of ideas. 
 
 "Listen to his beasts habits and belly orders," said the 
 old man, delighted with the evident embarrassment of his 
 rival; "and then he says it is not the core! Why, man, 
 you are further from the truth than you are from the 
 settlements, with all your bookish I arning and hard 
 words; which I have, once for all, said cannot be under 
 stood by any tribe or nation east of the Rocky Mountains. 
 Beastly habits or no beastly habits, the creauir e to be 
 
THE PRAIRIE 109 
 
 seen cropping the prairies by tens of thousands, and the 
 
 THPfP in vrm-r Kau1 , tj 4-Ug nn r a n f 
 
 "My aged companion," said Obed, struggling to keep 
 down a rising irascibility, that he conceived would ill 
 comport with the dignity of his character, "your system 
 is erroneous, from the premises to the conclusion; and 
 your classification so faulty, as utterly to confound the 
 distinctions of science. The buffalo is not gifted with a 
 hump at all; nor is his flesh savory and wholesome as I 
 must acknowledge it would seem the subject before us 
 may well be characterized 
 
 "There I m dead against you, and clearly with the trap 
 per," interrupted Paul Hover. "The man who denies 
 that buffalo beef is good, should scorn to eat it!" 1 
 
 The Doctor, whose observation of the bee-hunter had 
 hitherto been exceedingly cursory, stared at the new 
 speaker with a look which denoted something like recog 
 nition. 
 
 "The principal characteristics of your countenance, 
 friend," he said, "are familiar; either you, or some 
 other specimen of your class, is known to me." 
 
 "I am the man you met in the woods east of the Big 
 River, and whom you tried to persuade to line a yellow 
 hornet to his nest; as if my eye was not too true to mis 
 take any other animal for a honey-bee, in a clear day! 
 We tarried together a week, as you may remember; you 
 at your toads and lizards, and I at my high holes and hol 
 low trees; and a good job we made of it between us! I 
 filled my tubs with the sweetest honey I ever sent to the 
 settlements, besides housing a dozen hives; and your bag 
 was near bursting with a crawling museum. I never was 
 bold enough to put the question to your face, stranger, 
 but I reckon you are a keeper of curiosities?" 
 
 1 It is scarcely necessary to tell the reader, that the animal BO often alluded to 
 in this book, and which is vulgarly called the buffalo, is in truth the bison ; hence 
 so many contretemps between the men of the prairies and the men of science. 
 
 2 The pursuit of a bee-hunter is not uncommon, on the skirts of American 
 society, though it is a little embellished here. When the bees are seen suckinjt 
 the flowers, their pursuer contrives to capture one or two. He then chooset 
 proper spot, and suffering: one to escape, the insect invariably takes its flight 
 towards the hive. Changing his ground to a greater or less distance, accortlinsr 
 to circumstances, the bee-hunter permits another to escape. Havinir watched 
 the courses of the bees, which is technically called lining, he is enabled to calcu 
 late the intersecting angle of the two lines, which is the hive. 
 
110 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 "Ay! that is another of their wanton wickednesses!" 
 exclaimed the trapper. "They slay the buck, and the 
 moose, and the wild-cat, and all the beasts that range the 
 woods, and, stuffing them with worthless rags, and plac 
 ing eyes of glass into their heads, they set them up to be 
 stared at, and call them thecreatur s of the Lord; as if 
 any mortal effigy could equal the works of his hand ! 
 
 "I know you well!" returned the Doctor, on whom the 
 plaint of the old man produced no visible impression. "I 
 know you," offering his hand cordially to Paul; "it was 
 a prolific week, as my herbal and catalogues shall one day 
 prove. Ay, I remember you well, young man. You are 
 of the class, mammalia; order, primates; genus, homo; 
 species, Kentucky." Pausing to smile at his own humor, 
 the naturalist proceeded. "Since our separation, I have 
 journeyed far, having entered into a compactum or agree 
 ment with a certain man named Ishmael 
 
 "Bush!" interrupted the impatient and reckless Paul. 
 "By the Lord, trapper, this is the very blood-letter that 
 Ellen told me of!" 
 
 "Then Nelly has not done me credit for what I trust I 
 deserve," returned the single-minded Doctor, "for I am 
 not of the phlebotomizing school at all ; greatly preferring 
 the practise which purifies the blood instead of abstracting 
 it." 
 
 "It was a blunder of mine, good stranger; the girl 
 called you a skilful man." 
 
 "Therein she may have exceeded my merits, Dr.Battius 
 continued, bowing with sufficient meekness. "But Ellen 
 is a good, and a kind, and a spirited girl, too. A kind 
 and a sweet girl I have ever found Nelly Wade to be!" 
 
 "The devil you have!" cried Paul, dropping the morsel 
 he was sucking, from sheer reluctance to abandon the 
 hump, and casting a fierce and direct look into the very 
 teeth of the unconscious physician. "I reckon, stranger, 
 you have a mind to bag Ellen, too!" 
 
 "The riches of the whole vegetable and animal world 
 united would not tempt me to harm a hair of her head! I 
 love the child with what may be called amor naturalis 
 or rather paternus the affection of a father." 
 
 "Ay; that, indeed, is more befitting the difference in 
 
THE PRAIRIE 111 
 
 your years," Paul coolly rejoined, stretching forth his 
 hand to regain the rejected morsel. "You would be no 
 better than a drone at your time of day, with a young hive 
 to feed and swarm." 
 
 "Yes, there is reason, because there is natur , in what 
 he says," observed the trapper; "but, friend, you have 
 said you were a dweller in the camp of one Ishmael Bush?" 
 
 "True; it is in virtue of a compactum 
 
 "I know but little of the virtue of packing, though I 
 follow trapping, in my old age, for a livelihood. They 
 tell me that skins are well kept in the new fashion; but it 
 is long since I have left off killing more than I need for 
 food and garments. I was an eye-witness, myself, of the 
 manner in which the Sioux broke into your encampment, 
 and drove off the cattle; stripping the poor man you call 
 Ishmael of his smallest hoofs, counting even the cloven 
 feet." 
 
 "Asinus excepted," muttered the Doctor, who by this 
 time was discussing his portion of the hump, in utter 
 forgetfulness of all its scientific attributes. "Asinus 
 domesticus Americanus excepted." 
 
 " I am glad to hear that so many of them are saved, though 
 I know not the value of the animals you name; which is 
 nothing uncommon, seeing how long it is that I have been 
 out of the settlements. But can you tell me, friend, what 
 the traveler carries under the white cloth he guards with 
 teeth as sharp as a wolf that quarrels for the carcass the 
 hunter has left?" 
 
 "You ve heard of it!" exclaimed the other, droppi 
 the morsel he was conveying to his mouth in manifest 
 surprise. 
 
 "Nay I have heard nothing; but I have seen thec 
 and had like to have been bitten for^no greater crime 
 than wishing to know what it covered." 
 
 "Bitten! then, after all, the animal must be carnivor 
 ous! It is too tranquil for the Ursus horridus; i 
 the Canis latrans the voice would betray it. 
 Nelly Wade be so familar with any of the genus 
 Venerable hunter! the solitary animal confined 
 wagon by day, and in the tent at night has occasi< 
 me more perplexity of mind than the whole catalo] 
 
112 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 quadrupeds besides; and for this plain reason; I did not 
 know how to class it." 
 
 "You think it a ravenous beast?" 
 
 "I know it to be a quadruped; your own danger proves 
 it to be carnivorous." 
 
 During this broken explanation Paul Hover had sat 
 silent and thoughtful, regarding each speaker with deep 
 attention. But, suddenly moved by the manner of the 
 Doctor, the latter had scarcely time to utter his positive 
 assertion, before the young man bluntly demanded: 
 
 "And pray, friend, what may you call a quadruped?" 
 
 "A vagary of nature, wherein she has displayed less of 
 her infinite wisdom than is usual. Could rotary levers be 
 substituted for two of the limbs, agreeably to the improve 
 ment in my new order of phalangacrura, which might be 
 rendered into the vernacular as lever-legged, there would 
 be a delightful perfection and harmony in the construc 
 tion. But as the quadruped is now formed, I call it a 
 mere vagary of nature; no other than a vagary." 
 
 "Harkee, stranger! in Kentucky we are but small dealers 
 in dictionaries. Vagary is as hard a word to turn into 
 English as quadruped." 
 
 "A quadruped is an animal with four legs a beast." 
 
 "A beast! Do you then reckon that Ishmael Bush 
 travels with a beast caged in that wagon?" 
 
 "I know it; and lend me your ear not literally, friend," 
 observing Paul to start and look surprised; "but figura 
 tively through its functions, and you shall hear. I have 
 already made known that, in virtue of a compactum, I 
 journey with the aforesaid Ishmael Bush; but though I am 
 bound to perform certain duties while the journey lasts, 
 there is no condition which says that the said journey 
 shall be sempiternum, or eternal. Now, though this 
 region may scarcely be said to be wedded to science, being 
 to all intents a virgin territory as respects the inquirer 
 into natural history, still it is greatly destitute of the 
 treasures of the vegetable kingdom. I should, therefore, 
 have tarried some hundreds of miles more to the eastward, 
 were it not for the inward propensity that I feel to have 
 the beast in question inspected and suitably described and 
 classed. For that matter," he continued, dropping his 
 
THE PRAIRIE 1 13 
 
 voice like one who imparts an important secret, "I am not 
 without hopes of persuading Ishmael to let me dissect it " 
 "You have seen the creature?" 
 
 " Not with the organs of sight; but with much more 
 infallible instruments of vision: the conclusions of reason, 
 and the deductions of scientific premises. I have watched 
 the habits of the animal, young man; and can fearlessly 
 pronounce, by evidence that would be thrown away on 
 ordinary observers, that it is of vast dimensions, inactive, 
 possibly torpid, of voracious appetite, and, as it now ap 
 pears by the direct testimony of this venerable hunter, 
 ferocious and carnivorous!" 
 
 "I should be better pleased, stranger," said Paul, on 
 whom the Doctor s description was making a very sensible 
 impression, "to be sure the creature was a beast at all." 
 "As to that, if I wanted evidence of a fact, which is 
 abundantly apparent by the habits of the animal, I have 
 the word of Ishmael himself. A reason can be given for 
 my smallest deductions. I am not troubled, young man, 
 with a vulgar and idle curiosity, but all my aspirations 
 after knowledge, as I humbly believe, are first, for the 
 advancement of learning, and secondly, for the benefit of 
 my fellow-creatures. I pined greatly in secret to know 
 the contents of the tent, which Ishmael guarded so care 
 fully, and which he had covenanted that I should swear 
 (jurare per deos) not to approach nigher than a defined 
 number of cubits, for a definite period of time. Your 
 jusjurandum, or oath, is a serious matter, and not to be 
 dealt in lightly; but, as my expedition depended on comply 
 ing, I consented to the act, reserving to myself at all 
 times the power of distant observation. It is now some 
 ten days since Ishmael, pitying the state in which he saw 
 me, a humble lover of science, imparted the fact that the 
 vehicle contained a beast, which he was carrying into the 
 prairies as a decoy, by which he intends to entrap others 
 of the same genus, or perhaps species. Since then my 
 task has been reduced simply to watch the habits of the 
 animal, and to record the results. When we reach a cer 
 tain distance, where these beasts are said to abound, I am 
 to have the liberal examination of the specimen." 
 
 Paul continued to listen, in the most profound silence, 
 
114 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 until the Doctor concluded his singular but characteristic 
 explanation; then the incredulous bee-hunter shook his 
 head, and saw fit to reply by saying: 
 
 "Stranger, old Ishmael has burrowed you in the very 
 bottom of a hollow tree, where your eyes will be of no 
 more use than the sting of a drone. I, too, know some 
 thing of that very wagon, and I may say that I have lined 
 the squatter down into a flat lie. Harkee, friend ; do you 
 think a girl like Ellen Wade would become the companion 
 of a wild beast?" 
 
 "Why not? why not?" repeated the naturalist; "Nelly 
 has a taste, and often listens with pleasure to the treasures 
 that I am sometimes compelled to scatter in this desert. 
 Why should she not study the habits of any animal, even 
 though it were a rhinoceros?" 
 
 "Softly, softly," returned the equally positive, and, 
 though less scientific, certainly on this subject better in 
 structed bee-hunter; "Ellen is a girl of spirit, and one too 
 that knows her own mind, or I m much mistaken; but 
 with all her courage and brave looks, she is no better than 
 a woman after all. Haven t I often had the girl crying 
 
 "You are an acquaintance, then, of Nelly s?" 
 
 "The devil a bit. But I know woman is woman; and 
 all the books in Kentucky couldn t make Ellen Wade go 
 into a tent alone with a ravenous beast!" 
 
 "It seems to me," the trapper calmly observed, "that 
 there is something dark and hidden in this matter. I am 
 a witness that the traveler likes none to look into the tent, 
 and I have proof more sure than what either of you can 
 lay claim to, that the wagon does not carry the cage of a 
 beast. Here is Hector, come of a breed with noses as true 
 and faithful as a Hand that is all-powerful has made any 
 of their kind, and had there been a beast in the place, the 
 hound would long since have told it to his master." 
 
 "Do you pretend to oppose a dog to a man! brutality 
 to learning! instinct to reason!" exclaimed the Doctor, in 
 some heat. "In what manner, pray, can a hound dis 
 tinguish the habits, species, or even the genus of an 
 animal, like reasoning, learned, scientific, triumphant 
 man!" 
 
 "In what manner!" coolly repeated the veteran woods- 
 
THE PRAIRIE 115 
 
 man. "Listen; and if you believe that a schoolmaster can 
 make a quicker wit than the Lord, you shall be made to 
 see how much you re mistaken. Do you not hear some 
 thing move in the brake? It has been cracking the twigs 
 these five minutes. Now tell me what the creatur is?" 
 
 "I hope nothing ferocious!" exclaimed the Doctor, who 
 still retained a lively impression of his rencounter with the 
 Vespertilio horribilis. "You have rifles, friends; would 
 it not be prudent to prime them? for this fowling-piece 
 of mine is little to be depended on." 
 
 "There may be reason in what he says," returned the 
 trapper, so far complying as to take his piece from the 
 place where it had lain during the repast, and raising its 
 muzzle in the air. "Now tell me the name of the creatur !" 
 
 "It exceeds the limits of earthly knowledge! Buffon 
 himself could not tell whether the animal was a quadruped, 
 or of the order serpens! a sheep, or a tiger!" 
 
 "Then was your buffoon a fool to my Hector! Here, 
 pup! What is it, dog? Shall we run it down, pup, or 
 shall we let it pass?" 
 
 The hound, which had already manifested to the expe 
 rienced trapper, by the tremulous motion of his ears, his 
 consciousness of the proximity of a strange animal, lifted 
 his head from his forepaws and slightly parted his lips, 
 as if about to show the remnants of his teeth. But, sud 
 denly abandoning his hostile purpose, he snuffed the air 
 a moment, gaped heavily, shook himself, and peaceably 
 resumed his recumbent attitude. 
 
 "Now, Doctor," cried the trapper, triumphantly, 
 am well convinced there is neither game nor ravenous 
 beast in the thicket; and that I call substantial knowledge 
 to a man who is too old to be a spendthrift of his strength, 
 and yet who would not wish to be a meal for a pantt 
 
 The dog interrupted his master by a growl, but 
 kept his head crouched to the earth. 
 
 "It is a man!" exclaimed the trapper, rising, 
 man, if I am a judge of the creatur s ways. There i, 
 little said atwixt the hound and me, but we seldoi 
 take each other s meaning!" 
 
 Paul Hover sprang to his feet like lightning, 
 throwing forward his rifle, he cried in a voice of 
 
116 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 "Come forward, if a friend; if an enemy, stand ready 
 for the worst!" 
 
 "A friend, a white man, and, I hope, a Christian," 
 returned a voice from the thicket; which opened at the 
 same instant, and at the next the speaker made his 
 appearance. 
 
CHAPTER X 
 
 " Go apart, Adam, and thou shall hear 
 How he will shake me up." 
 
 -As You LIKE IT. 
 
 IT is well known, that even long before the immense 
 regions of Louisiana changed their masters for the second, 
 and, as it is to be hoped, for the last time, its unguarded 
 territory was by no means safe from the inroads of white 
 adventurers. The semi-barbarous hunters from the Can- 
 adas, the same description of population, a little more 
 enlightened, from the States, and the metiffs or half- 
 breeds, who claimed to be ranked in the class of white 
 men, were scattered among the different Indian tribes, or 
 gleaned a scanty livelihood in solitude, amid the haunts 
 of the beaver and the bison; or, to adopt the popular 
 nomenclature of the country of the buffalo. 1 
 
 It was, therefore, no unusual thing for strangers to en 
 counter each other in the endless wastes of the west. By 
 signs which an unpractised eye would pass unobserved, a 
 borderer knew when one of his fellows was in his vicinity, 
 and he avoided or approached the intruder as best com 
 ported with his feelings or his interests. Generally, these 
 interviews were pacific; for the whites had a common 
 enemy to dread, in the ancient and perhaps more lawful 
 occupants of the country; but instances were not rare, in 
 which jealousy and cupidity had caused them to terminate 
 in scenes of the most violent and ruthless treachery. The 
 meeting of two hunters on the American desert, as we find 
 it convenient sometimes to call this region, was conse 
 quently somewhat in the suspicious and wary manner in 
 which two vessels draw together in a sea that is known to 
 
 1 In addition to the scientific distinctions which mark the two species, it mmy 
 be added, with due reference to Dr. Battius, that a much more important partic 
 ular is the fact, that while the former of these animals is delicious and nourish 
 ing food, the latter is scarcely edible. 
 
 117 
 
118 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 be infested with pirates. While neither party is willing 
 to betray its weakness, by exhibiting distrust, neither is 
 disposed to commit itself by any acts of confidence, from 
 which it may be difficult to recede. 
 
 Such was, in some degree, the character of the present 
 interview. The stranger drew nigh deliberately; keeping 
 his eyes steadily fastened on the movements of the other 
 party, while he purposely created little difficulties to im 
 pede an approach which might prove too hasty. On the 
 other hand, Paul stood playing with the lock of his rifle, 
 too proud to let it appear that three men could manifest 
 any apprehension of a solitary individual, and yet too 
 prudent to omit, entirely, the customary precautions. The 
 principal reason of the marked difference which the two 
 legitimate proprietors of the banquet made in the recep 
 tions of their guests, was to be explained by the entire 
 difference which existed in their respective appearances. 
 
 While the exterior of the naturalist was decidedly pacific, 
 not to say abstracted, that of the new-comer was distin 
 guished by an air of vigor, and a front and step which it 
 would not have been difficult to have at once pronounced 
 to be military. 
 
 He wore a forage-cap of fine blue eloth, from which 
 depended a soiled tassel in gold, and which was nearly 
 buried in a mass of exuberant, curling, jet-black hair. 
 Around his throat he had negligently fastened a stock of 
 black silk. His body was enveloped in a hunting-shirt of 
 dark green, trimmed with the yellow fringes and orna 
 ments that were sometimes seen among the border-troops 
 of the confederacy. Beneath this, however, were visible 
 the collar and lapels of a jacket, similar in color and cloth 
 to the cap. His lower limbs were protected by buckskin 
 leggings, and his feet by the ordinary Indian moccasins. 
 A richly ornamented and exceedingly dangerous straight 
 dirk was stuck in a sash of red silk network; another 
 girdle, or rather belt, of uncolored leather contained a 
 pair of the smallest sized pistols, in holsters nicely made 
 to fit, and across his shoulder was thrown a short, heavy, 
 military rifle; its horn and pouch occupying the usual 
 places beneath his arms. At his back he bore a knapsack, 
 marked by the well-known initials that have since gained 
 
THE PRAIRIE 119 
 
 for the government of the United States the good-humored 
 and quaint appellation of Uncle Sam. 
 
 "I come in amity," the stranger said, like one too much 
 accustomed to the sight of arms to be startled at the ludi 
 crously belligerent attitude which Dr. Battius had seen 
 fit to assume. 1 come as a friend ; and am one whose pur 
 suits and wishes will not at all interfere with your own." 
 
 "Harkee, stranger," said Paul Hover, bluntly; "do 
 you understand lining a bee from this open place into a 
 wood, distant, perhaps, a dozen miles?" 
 
 The bee is a bird I have never been compelled to seek," 
 returned the other, laughing; "though I have too, been 
 something of a fowler in my time." 
 
 "I thought as much," exclaimed Paul, thrusting forth 
 his hand frankly, and with the true freedom of manner 
 that marks an American borderer. "Let us cross fingers. 
 You and I will never quarrel about the comb, since you 
 set so little store by the honey. And now, if your stomach 
 has an empty corner, and you know how to relish a gen 
 uine dew-drop when it falls into your very mouth, there 
 lies the exact morsel to put into it. Try it, stranger; and 
 having tried it, if you don t call it as snug a fit as you 
 have made since How . long are you from the settle 
 ments, pray?" 
 
 " Tis many weeks, and I fear it may be as many more 
 before I can return. I will, however, gladly profit by 
 your invitation, for I have fasted since the rising of yes 
 terday s sun, and I know too well the merits of a bison s 
 hump to reject the food." 
 
 "Ah! you are acquainted with the dish! Wei 
 you have the advantage of me, in setting out, though I 
 think I may say we could now start on equal ground, 
 should be the happiest fellow between Kentucky and the 
 Rocky Mountains, if I had a snug cabin, near some 
 wood that was filled with hollow trees, just such a hump 
 every day as that for dinner, a load of fresh straw f 
 
 hives, and little El 
 
 "Little what? "demanded the stranger, evidently amus 
 with the communicative and frank disposition of 
 
 hunter. 
 
 "Something that I shall have one day, and which c 
 
120 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 cerns nobody so much as myself," returned Paul, picking 
 the flint of his rifle, and beginning very cavalierly to 
 whistle an air well known on the waters of the Mississippi. 
 
 During this preliminary discourse the stranger had 
 taken his seat by the side of the hump, and was already 
 making a serious inroad on its relics. Dr. Battius, how 
 ever, watched his movements with a jealousy still more 
 striking than the cordial reception which the open-hearted 
 Paul had just exhibited. 
 
 But the doubts, or rather apprehensions, of the natural 
 ist were of a character altogether different from the con 
 fidence of the bee-hunter. He had been struck with the 
 stranger s using the legitimate, instead of the perverted 
 name of the animal off which he was making his repast; 
 and as he had been among the foremost himself to profit 
 by the removal of the impediments which the policy of 
 Spain had placed in the way of all explorers of her trans 
 atlantic dominions, whether bent on the purposes of com 
 merce, or, like himself, on the more laudable pursuits of 
 science, he had a sufficiency of every-day philosophy to 
 feel that the same motives which had so powerfully urged 
 himself to his present undertaking, might produce a like 
 result on the mind of some other student of nature. Here, 
 then, was the prospect of an alarming rivalry, which bade 
 fair to strip him of at least a moiety of the just rewards 
 of all his labors, privations, and dangers. Under these 
 views of his character, therefore, it is not at all surpris 
 ing that the native meekness of the naturalist s disposition 
 was a little disturbed, and that he watched the proceed 
 ings of the other with such a degree of vigilance as he 
 believed best suited to detect his sinister designs. 
 
 "This is truly a delicious repast," observed the uncon 
 scious young stranger, for both young and handsome he 
 was fairly entitled to be considered; "either hunger has 
 given a peculiar relish to the viand, or the bison may lay 
 claim to be the finest of the ox family!" 
 
 "Naturalists, sir, are apt, when they speak familiarly, 
 to give the cow the credit of the genus, " said Dr. Battius, 
 swelling with secret distrust, and clearing his throat 
 before speaking, much in the manner that a duellist 
 examines the point of the weapon he is about to plunge 
 
THE PRAIRIE 121 
 
 into the body of his foe. "The figure is more perfect; 
 as the bos, meaning the ox, is unable to perpetuate his 
 kind ; and the bos, in its most extended meaning, or vacca, 
 is altogether the nobler animal of the two." 
 
 The Doctor uttered this opinion with a certain air, that 
 he intended should express his readiness to come, at once, 
 to any of the numerous points of difference which he 
 doubted not existed between them; and he now awaited 
 the blow of his antagonist, intending that his next thrust 
 should be still more vigorous. But the young stranger 
 appeared much better disposed to partake of the good 
 cheer with which he had been so providentially provided, 
 than to take up the cudgels of argument on this, or on any 
 other of the knotty points which are so apt to furnish the 
 lovers of science with the materials of a mental joust. 
 
 "I dare say you are very right, sir," he replied, with 
 a most provoking indifference to the importance of the 
 points he conceded. "I dare say you are quite right; and 
 that vacca would have been the better word." 
 
 "Pardon me, sir; you are giving a very wrong con 
 struction to my language, if you suppose I include, without 
 many and particular qualifications, the Bibulus Ameri- 
 canus, in the family of the vacca. For, as you well know, 
 sir or, as I presume I should say, Doctor you have the 
 medical diploma, no doubt?" 
 
 "You give me credit for an honor I cannot claim," 
 interrupted the other. 
 
 "An under-graduate! or perhaps your degrees have 
 been taken in some other of the liberal sciences?" 
 
 "Still wrong, I do assure you." 
 
 "Surely, young man, you have not entered on this im 
 portantI may say, this awful service, without some 
 evidence of your fitness for the task! some commission by 
 which you can assert an authority to proceed, or by which 
 you may claim an affinity and a communion with your 
 fellow- workers in the same beneficent pursuits!" 
 
 "I know not by what means, or for what purposes, you 
 have made yourself master of my objects!" exclaimed the 
 youth, reddening and rising with a quickness which man 
 ifested how little he regarded the grosser appetites wht 
 a subject nearer his heart was approached. Still, sir. 
 
122 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 your language is incomprehensible. That pursuit, which 
 in another might perhaps be justly called beneficent, is, 
 in me, a dear and cherished duty; though why a commis 
 sion should be demanded or needed is, I confess, no less 
 a subject of surprise. 
 
 "It is customary to be provided with such a document, 
 returned the Doctor, gravely; "and, on all suitable occa 
 sions, to produce it, in order that congenial and friendly 
 minds may, at once, reject unworthy suspicions, and step 
 ping over what may be called the elements of discourse, 
 come at once to those points which are desiderata to 
 both." 
 
 "It is a strange request!" the youth muttered, turning 
 his frowning eye from one to the other, as if examining 
 the characters of his companions, with a view to weigh 
 their physical powers. Then, putting his hand into his 
 bosom, he drew forth a small box, and, extending it with 
 an air of dignity towards the Doctor, he continued, "You 
 will find by this, sir, that I have some right to travel in 
 a country which is now the property of the American 
 States." 
 
 "What have wa here!" exclaimed the naturalist, open 
 ing the folds of a large parchment. "Why, this is the 
 sign-manual of the philosopher, Jefferson! The seal of 
 state! Countersigned by the minister of war! Why, this 
 is a commission creating Duncan Uncas Middleton a cap 
 tain of artillery!" 
 
 "Of whom? of whom?" repeated the trapper, who had 
 sat regarding the stranger, during the whole discourse, 
 with eyes that seemed greedily to devour each lineament. 
 "How is the name? did you call him Uncas? Uncas! 
 Was it Uncas?" 
 
 "Such is my name," returned the youth, a little 
 haughtily. "It is the appellation of a native chief, that 
 both my uncle and myself bear with pride; for it is the 
 memorial of an important service done my family by a 
 warrior in the old wars of the provinces." 
 
 "Uncas! did ye call him Uncas?" repeated the trapper, 
 approaching the youth and parting the dark curls which 
 clustered over his brow, without the slightest resistance 
 on the part of their wondering owner. "Ah! my eyes are 
 
THE PRAIRIE 123 
 
 old and not so keen as when I was a warrior myself; but I 
 can see the look of the father in the son! I saw it when 
 he first came nigh; but so many things have since passed 
 before my failing sight, that I could not name the place 
 where I had met his likeness! Tell me, lad, by what name 
 is your father known?" 
 
 "He was an officer of the States in the War of the 
 Revolution, and of my own name of course; my mother s 
 brother was called Duncan Uncas Heyward." 
 
 "Still Uncas! still Uncas!" echoed the other, trembling 
 with eagerness. "And his father?" 
 
 "Was called the same, without the application of the 
 native chief. It was to him, and to my grandmother, that 
 the service of which I have just spoken was rendered." 
 
 "I knowed it! I knowed it!" shouted the old man, in 
 his tremulous voice, his rigid features working power 
 fully, as if the names the other mentioned awakened some 
 long dormant emotions, connected with the events of an 
 anterior age. "I knowed it! son or grandson, it is all 
 the same! it is the blood, and tis the look! Tell me, is 
 he they called Duncan, without the Uncas is he living?" 
 
 The young man shook his head sorrowfully, as he replied 
 in the negative. 
 
 "He died full of days and of honors. Beloved, happy, 
 and bestowing happiness!" 
 
 "Full of days!" repeated the trapper, looking down at 
 his own meagre, but still muscular hands. "Ah! he lived 
 in the settlements, and was wise only after their fashions. 
 But you have often seen him; and you have heard him 
 discourse of Uncas, and of the wilderness?" 
 
 "Often! he was then an officer of the king; but when 
 the war took place between the crown and her colonies, 
 my grandfather did not forget his birthplace, but threy 
 off the empty allegiance of names, and was true to his 
 proper country; he fought on the side of liberty." 
 
 "There was reason in it, and what is better, there 
 was natur ! Come, sit ye down beside me, lad; sit 
 ye down, and tell me of what your grand ther used 
 speak when his mind dwelt on the wonders of the wildei 
 ness 
 
 The youth smiled, no less at the importunity than at the 
 
124 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 interest manifested by the old man; but as he found there 
 was no longer the least appearance of any violence being 
 contemplated, he unhesitatingly complied. 
 
 "Give it all to the trapper, by rule, and by figures of 
 speech, said Paul, very coolly taking his seat on the other 
 side of the young soldier. "It is the fashion of old age 
 to relish these ancient traditions, and for that matter I 
 can say that I don t dislike to listen to them myself." 
 
 Middleton smiled again, and perhaps with a slight air 
 of derision; but good-naturedly turning to the trapper he 
 continued: 
 
 "It is a long, and might prove a painful story. Blood 
 shed and all the horrors of Indian cruelty and of Indian 
 warfare are fearfully mingled in the narrative. 
 
 "Ay, give it all to us, stranger," continued Paul; "we 
 are used to these matters in Kentuck, and I must say I 
 think a story none the worse for having a few scalps in 
 it." 
 
 "But he told you of Uncas, did he?" resumed the trap 
 per, without regarding the slight interruptions of the bee- 
 hunter, which amounted to no more than a sort of by-play. 
 "And what thought he and said he of the lad, in his 
 parlor, with the comforts and ease of the settlements at 
 his elbow?" 
 
 "I doubt not he used a language similar to that he 
 would have adopted in the woods, and had he stood face 
 to face with his friend 
 
 "Did he call the savage his friend; the poor, naked, 
 painted warrior? He was not too proud, then, to call the 
 Indian his friend?" 
 
 "He even boasted of the connection; and, as you have 
 already heard, bestowed a name on his first-born, which is 
 likely to be handed down as an heirloom among the rest 
 of his descendants." 
 
 "It was well done; like a man; ay! and like a Chris 
 tian, too! He used to say the Delaware was swift of foot 
 did he remember that?" 
 
 "As the antelope! Indeed, he often spoke of him by 
 the appellation of Le Cerf Agile, a name he had obtained 
 by his activity." 
 
 "And bold, and fearless, lad?" continued the trapper, 
 
THE PRAIRIE 125 
 
 looking up into the eyes of his companion, with a wist- 
 fulness that bespoke the delight he received in listening 
 to the praises of one, whom it was so evident he had once 
 tenderly loved. 
 
 "Brave as a blooded hound! Without fear! He always 
 quoted Uncas and his father, who from his wisdom was 
 called the Great Serpent, as models of heroism and con 
 stancy. 
 
 "He did them justice! he did them justice! Truer men 
 were not to be found in tribe or nation, be their skins of 
 what color they might. I see your grand ther was just, 
 and did his duty, too, by his offspring! Twas a perilous 
 time he had of it, among them hills, and nobly did he 
 play his own part! Tell me, lad, or officer, I should say- 
 since officer you be was this all?" 
 
 "Certainly not; it was, as I have said, a fearful tale 
 full of moving incidents, and the memories both of my 
 grandfather and of my grandmother 
 
 "Ah!" exclaimed the trapper, tossing a hand into the 
 air as his whole countenance lighted with the recollections 
 the name revived. "They called her Alice! Elsie or 
 Alice; tis all the same. A laughing, playful child she 
 was, when happy; and tender and weeping in her misery! 
 Her hair was shining and yellow, as the coat of the young 
 fawn, and her skin clearer than the purest water that 
 drips from the rock. Well do I remember her! I remember 
 her right well!" 
 
 The lip of the youth slightly curled, and he regarded the 
 old man with an expression which might easily have been 
 construed into a declaration that such were not his own 
 recollections of his venerable and revered ancestor, though 
 it would seem he did not think it necessary to say as much 
 in wcrds. He was content to answer: 
 
 "They both retained impressions of the dangers they 
 had passed, by far too vivid easily to lose the recollection 
 of any of their fellow-actors." 
 
 The trapper looked aside, and seemed to struggle with 
 some deeply innate feeling; then, turning again towards 
 his companion, though his honest eyes no longer dwelt 
 with the same open interest, as before, on the countenance 
 of the other, he continued : 
 
126 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 "Did he tell you of them all? Were they all red-skins, 
 but himself and the daughters of Munro?" 
 
 "No. There was a white man associated with the Del- 
 awares. A scout of the English army, but a native of the 
 provinces." 
 
 "A drunken, worthless vagabond, like most of his color 
 who harbor with the savages, I warrant you!" 
 
 "Old man, your gray hairs should caution you against 
 slander. The man I speak of was of great simplicity of 
 mind, but of sterling worth. Unlike most of those who 
 live a border life he united the better instead of the worst 
 qualities of the two people. He was a man endowed with 
 the choicest and perhaps rarest gift of nature, that of 
 distinguishing good from evil. His virtues were those of 
 simplicity, because such were the fruits of his habits, as 
 were indeed his very prejudices. In courage he was the 
 equal of his red associates; in warlike skill, being better 
 instructed, their superior. In short, he was a noble shoot 
 from the stock of human nature, which never could attain 
 its proper elevation and importance, for no other reason 
 that because it grew in the forest. Such, old hunter, 
 were the very words of my grandfather, when speaking 
 of the man you imagine so worthless!" 
 
 The eyes of the trapper had sunk to the earth, as the 
 stranger delivered this character in the ardent tones of 
 generous youth. He played with the ears of his hound, 
 fingered his own rustic garment, and opened and shut the 
 pan of his rifle, with hands that trembled in a manner 
 that would have implied their total unfitness to wield the 
 weapon. When the other had concluded he hoarsely added : 
 
 "Your grand ther didn t then entirely forget the white 
 man!" 
 
 "So far from that, there are already three among us, 
 who have also names derived from that scout. 
 
 A name, did you say ? exclaimed the old man, starting; 
 "what, the name of the solitary, unl arned hunter? Do 
 the great, and the rich, and the honored, and, what is 
 better still, the just, do they bear his very, actual name?" 
 
 "It is borne by my brother, and by two of my cousins, 
 whatever may be their titles to be described by the terms 
 you have mentioned." 
 
THE PRAIRIE 127 
 
 "Do you mean the actual name itself; spelt with the 
 beginning with an N and endin g with 
 
 "Exactly the same, the youth smilingly replied. "No 
 no, we have forgotten nothing that was his. I have at 
 this moment a dog brushing a deer, not far from this 
 who is come of a hound that very scout sent as a present 
 after his friends, and which was of the stock he always 
 used himself; a truer breed, in nose and foot, is not to be 
 found in the wide Union." 
 
 "Hector!" said the old man, struggling to conquer an 
 emotion that nearly suffocated him, and speaking to his 
 hound in the sort of tones he would have used to a child, 
 "do ye hear that, pup! your kin and blood are in the 
 prairies! A name it is wonderful very wonderful!" 
 
 Nature could endure no more. Overcome by a flood of 
 unusual and extraordinary sensations, and stimulated by 
 tender and long dormant recollections, strangely and un 
 expectedly revived, the old man had just self-command 
 enough to add, in a voice that was hollow and unnatural, 
 through the efforts he made to command it: 
 
 "Boy, I am that scout; a warrior once, a miserable 
 trapper now!" when the tears broke over his wasted 
 cheeks, out of fountains that had long been dried, and, 
 sinking his face between his knees, he covered it decently 
 with his buckskin garment, and sobbed aloud. 
 
 The spectacle produced correspondent emotions in his 
 companions. Paul Hover had actually swallowed each 
 syllable of the discourse as they fell alternately from the 
 different speakers, his feelings keeping equal pace with 
 the increasing interest of the scene. Unused to such 
 strange sensations, he was turning his face on every side 
 of him, to avoid he knew not what, until he saw the tears 
 and heard the sobs of the old man, when he sprang to his 
 feet, and grappling his guest fiercely by the throat, he 
 demanded by,,what authority he had made his aged com 
 panion weep. A flash of recollection crossing his brain at 
 the same instant, he released his hold, and, stretching 
 forth an arm in the very wantonness of gratification, he 
 seized the Doctor by the hair, which instantly revealed its 
 artificial formation, by cleaving to his hand, leaving the 
 
128 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 white and shining poll of the naturalist with a covering 
 no warmer than the skin. 
 
 "What think you of that, Mr. Bug-gatherer?" he rather 
 shouted than cried; "is not this a strange bee to line into 
 his hole?" 
 
 " Tis remarkable! wonderful! edifying!" returned the 
 lover of nature, good-humoredly recovering his wig, with 
 twinkling eyes and a husky voice. " Tis rare and com 
 mendable! Though I doubt not in the exact order of 
 causes and effects. 
 
 With this sudden outbreaking, however, the commotion 
 instantly subsided; the three spectators clustering around 
 the trapper with a species of awe at beholding the tears 
 of one so aged. 
 
 "It must be so, or how could he be so familiar with a 
 history that is little known beyond my own family?" at 
 length the youth observed, not ashamed to acknowledge 
 how much he had been affected, by unequivocally drying 
 his own eyes. 
 
 True ! echoed Paul ; "if you want any more evidence I 
 will swear to it! I know every word of it myself to be 
 true as the gospel ! 
 
 "And yet we had long supposed him dead!" continued 
 the soldier. "My grandfather had filled his days with 
 honor, and he had believed himself the junior of the two." 
 
 "It is not often that youth has an opportunity of thus 
 looking down on the weakness of age ! the trapper ob 
 served, raising his head, and looking around him with 
 composure and dignity. "That I am still here, young 
 man, is the pleasure of the Lord, who has spared me until 
 I have seen fourscore long and laborious years, for his own 
 secret ends. That I am the man I say, you need not doubt; 
 for why should I go to my grave with so cheap a lie in my 
 mouth?" 
 
 "I do not hesitate to believe; I only marvel that it 
 should be so! But why do I find you, venerable and excel 
 lent friend of my parents, in these wastes, so far from the 
 comforts and safety of the lower country?" 
 
 "I have come into these plains to escape the sound of 
 the axe; for here, surely, the chopper can never follow! 
 But I may put the like question to yourself. Are you of 
 
THE PRAIRIE 129 
 
 the party which the States have sent into their new pur 
 chase, to look after the natur of the bargain they have 
 made?" 
 
 "I am not. Lewis is making his way up the river, some 
 hundreds of miles from this. I come on a private adven 
 ture." 
 
 "Though it is no cause of wonder that a man whose 
 strength and eyes have failed him as a hunter, should be 
 seen nigh the haunts of the beaver, using a trap instead 
 of a rifle, it is strange that one so young and prosperous, 
 and bearing the commission of the Great Father, should 
 be moving among the prairies, without even a camp-color- 
 man to do his biddings!" 
 
 "You would think my reasons sufficient did you know 
 them, as know them you shall, if you are disposed to listen 
 to my story. I think you all honest, and men who would 
 rather aid than betray one bent on a worthy object." 
 
 "Come, then, and tell us at your leisure, " said the trap 
 per, seating himself, and beckoning to the youth to follow 
 his example. The latter willingly complied; and after 
 Paul and the Doctor had disposed of themselves to their 
 several likings, the new comer entered into a narrative of 
 the singular reasons which had led him so far into the 
 deserts. 
 
CHAPTER XI 
 
 "So foul a sky clears not without a storm." 
 
 -KlNq JOHN. 
 
 IN the meantime the industrious and irreclaimable hours 
 continued their labors. The sun, which had been strug 
 gling through such masses of vapor throughout the day, 
 fell slowly into a streak of clear sky, and thence sank 
 gloriously into the gloomy wastes, as he is wont to settle 
 into the waters of the ocean. The vast herds which had 
 been grazing among the wild pastures of the prairies, 
 gradually disappeared, and the endless flocks of aquatic 
 birds, that were pursuing their customary annual journey 
 from the virgin lakes of the north towards the gulf of 
 Mexico, ceased to fan that air, which had now become 
 loaded with dew and vapor. In short, the shadows of night 
 fell upon the rock, adding the mantle of darkness to the 
 other dreary accompaniments of the place. 
 
 As the light began to fail, Esther collected her younger 
 children at her side, and placing herself on a projecting 
 point of her insulated fortress, she sat patiently awaiting 
 the return of the hunters. Ellen Wade was at no great 
 distance, seeming to keep a little aloof from the anxious 
 circle, as if willing to mark the distinction which existed 
 in their characters. 
 
 "Your uncle is, and always will be, a dull calculator, 
 Nell," observed the mother, after a long pause in a con 
 versation that had turned on the labors of the day; "a 
 lazy hand at figures and foreknowledge is that said Ish- 
 mael Bush! Here he sat lolloping about the rock from 
 light till noon, doing nothing but scheme scheme scheme 
 with seven as noble boys at his elbows as woman ever 
 gave to man; and what s the.upshot? why, night is setting 
 in and his needful work not yet ended." 
 
 "It is not prudent, certainly, aunt," Ellen replied, 
 
 130 
 
THE PRAIRIE 131 
 
 with a vacancy in her air, that proved how little she knew 
 what she was saying; "and it is setting a very bad example 
 to his sons. 
 
 "Hoity toity, girl ! who has reared you up as a judge over 
 your elders, ay, and your betters, too! I should like to 
 see the man on the whole frontier, who sets a more honest 
 example to his children than this same Ishmael Bush! 
 Show me, if you can, Miss Fault-finder, but not fault- 
 mender, a set of boys who will, on occasion, sooner chop 
 a piece of logging and dress it for the crop, than my own 
 children; though I say it myself, who, perhaps, should be 
 silent; or a cradler that knows better how to lead a gang 
 of hands through a field of wheat, leaving a cleaner stubble 
 in his track, than my own good man! Then, as a father, 
 he is generous as a lord; for his sons have only to name 
 the spot where they would like to pitch, and he gives em 
 a deed of the plantation, and no charge for papers is ever 
 made!" 
 
 As the wife of the squatter concluded, she raised a hol 
 low, taunting laugh, that was echoed from the mouths of 
 several juvenile imitators, whom she was training to a 
 life as shiftless and lawless as her own; but which, not 
 withstanding its uncertainty, was not without its secret 
 charms. 
 
 "Holloa! old Eester," shouted the well-known voice of 
 her husband, from the plain beneath; "ar you keeping 
 your junkets, while we are finding you in venison and 
 buffalo beef? Come down come down, old girl, with all 
 your young, and lend us a hand to carry up the meat; why, 
 what a frolic you ar in, woman! Come down, come down, 
 for the boys are at hand, and we have work here for 
 double your number." 
 
 Ishmael might have spared his lungs more than a moiety 
 of the effort they were compelled to make in order that he 
 should be heard. He had hardly uttered the name of his 
 wife, before the whole of the crouching circle rose in a 
 body, and tumbling over each other, they precipitated 
 themselves down the dangerous passes of the rock with 
 ungovernable impatience. Esther followed the young fry 
 with a more measured gait, nor did Ellen deem it wise, or 
 rather discreet, to remain behind. Consequently, the 
 
132 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 whole were soon assembled at the base of the citadel, on 
 the open plain. 
 
 Here the squatter was found staggering under the weight 
 of a fine, fat buck, attended by one or two of his younger 
 sons. Abiram quickly appeared, and before many minutes 
 had elapsed, most of the hunters dropped in, singly and in 
 pairs, each man bringing with him some fruits of his 
 prowess in the field. 
 
 "The plain is free from red-skins, to-night at least," 
 said Ishmael, after the bustle of reception had a little 
 subsided: "for I have scoured the prairie for many long 
 miles, on my own feet, and I call myself a judge of the 
 print of an Indian moccasin. So, old woman, you can give 
 us a few steaks of the venison, and then we will sleep on 
 the day s work." 
 
 "I ll not swear there are no savages near us," said 
 Abiram. "I, too, know something of the trail of a red 
 skin; and, unless my eyes have lost some of their sight, I 
 would swear, boldly, that there ar Indians at hand. But 
 wait till Asa comes in. He passed the spot where I found 
 the marks, and the boy knows something of such matters, 
 too." 
 
 "Ay, the boy knows too much of many things, returned 
 Ishmael, gloomily. "It will be better for him when he 
 thinks he knows less. But what matters it, Hetty, if all 
 the Sioux tribes west of the Big River are within a mile 
 of us; they will find it no easy matter to scale this rock 
 in the teeth of ten bold men." 
 
 "Call em twelve at once, Ishmael; call em twelve!" 
 cried his termagant assistant. "For if your moth-gather 
 ing, bug-hunting friend can be counted a man, I beg you 
 will set me down as two. I will not turn my back to him 
 with the rifle or the shot-gun; and for courage! the year 
 ling heifer, that them skulking devils the Tetons stole, was 
 the biggest coward among us all, and after her came your 
 driveling Doctor. Ah! Ishmael, you rarely attempt a 
 regular trade but you come out the loser; and this man, 
 I reckon, is the hardest bargain among them all ! Would 
 you think it? the fellow ordered me a blister around my 
 mouth, because I complained of a pain in the foot!" 
 
 "It is a pity, Eester, " the husband coolly answered, 
 
THE PRAIRIE 133 
 
 "that you did not take it; I reckon that it would have 
 done considerable good. But, boys, if it should turn out 
 as Abiram thinks, that there are Indians near us, we may 
 have to scamper up the rock, and lose our suppers after 
 all ; therefore, we will make sure of the game and talk over 
 the performances of the Doctor when we have nothing 
 better to do." 
 
 The hint was taken; and in a few minutes the exposed 
 situation in which the family was collected, was exchanged 
 for the more secure elevation of the rock. Here Esther 
 busied herself, working and scolding with equal industry, 
 until the repast was prepared ; when she summoned her 
 husband to his meal in a voice as sonorous as that with 
 which the Imaum reminds the faithful of a more important 
 duty. 
 
 When each had assumed his proper and customary place 
 around the smoking viands, the squatter set the example 
 by beginning to partake of a delicious venison steak, pre 
 pared like the hump of the bison, with a skill that rather 
 increased than concealed its natural properties. A painter 
 would gladly have seized the moment to transfer the wild 
 and characteristic scene to the canvas. 
 
 The reader will remember that the citadel of Ishmael 
 stood insulated, lofty, ragged, and nearly inaccessible. A 
 bright, flashing fire that was burning on the center of its 
 summit, and around which the busy group was clustered, 
 lent it the appearance of some tall Pharos placed in the 
 center of the deserts, to light such adventurers as wandered 
 through their broad wastes. The flashing flame gleamed 
 from one sunburnt countenance to another, exhibiting 
 every variety of expression, from the juvenile simplicity 
 of the children, mingled, as it was, with a shade of the 
 wildness peculiar to their semi-barbarous lives, to the dull 
 and immovable apathy that dwelt on the features of the 
 squatter when unexcited. Occasionally a gust of wind 
 would fan the embers; and, as a brighter light shot up 
 wards, the little solitary tent was seen as it were sus 
 pended in the gloom of the upper air. All beyond was 
 enveloped, as usual at that hour, in an impenetrable body 
 of dsrkriGSS 
 
 "It is unaccountable that Asa should choose to be out 
 
134 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 of the way at such a time as this," Esther pettishly ob 
 served. "When all is finished and to rights, we shall have 
 the boy coming up, grumbling for his meal, and hungry 
 as a bear after his winter s nap. His stomach is as true 
 as the best clock in Kentucky, and seldom wants winding 
 up to tell the time, whether of day or night. A desperate 
 eater is Asa, when a-hungered by a little work!" 
 
 Ishmael looked sternly around the circle of his silent 
 sons, as if to see whether any among them would presume 
 to say aught in favor of the absent delinquent. But now, 
 when no exciting causes existed to arouse their slumber 
 ing tempers, it seemed to be too great an effort to enter 
 on the defense of their rebellious brother. Abiram, how 
 ever, who since the pacification, either felt, or affected to 
 feel, a more generous interest in his late adversary, saw fit 
 to express an anxiety, to which the others were strangers. 
 
 "It will be well if the boy has escaped the Tetons!" he 
 muttered. "I should be sorry to have Asa, who is one of 
 the stoutest of our party, both in heart and hand, fall 
 into the power of the red devils." 
 
 "Look to yourself, Abiram; and spare your breath, if 
 you can use it only to frighten the woman and her hud 
 dling girls. You have whitened the face of Ellen Wade 
 already; who looks as pale as if she was staring to-day at 
 the very Indians you name, when I was forced to speak to 
 her through the rifle, because I couldn t reach her ears 
 with my tongue. How was it, Nell! you have never given 
 the reason of your deafness?" 
 
 The color of Ellen s cheek changed as suddenly as the 
 squatter s piece had flashed on the occasion to which he 
 alluded, the burning glow suffusing her features, until it 
 even mantled her throat with its fine healthful tinge. She 
 hung her head abashed, but did not seem to think it 
 needful to reply. 
 
 Ishmael, too sluggish to pursue the subject, or content 
 with the pointed allusion he had just made, rose from his 
 seat on the rock, and stretching his heavy frame, like a 
 well-fed and fattened ox, he announced his intention to 
 sleep. Among a race who lived chiefly for the indulgence 
 of the natural wants, such a declaration could not fail of 
 meeting with sympathetic dispositions. One after another 
 
THE PRAIRIE 135 
 
 disappear^, each seeking his or her rude dormitory; and 
 before many minutes, Esther, who by this time had scolded 
 the younger fry to sleep, found herself, if we except the 
 usual watchman below, in solitary possession of the naked 
 rock. 
 
 Whatever less valuable fruits had been produced in this 
 uneducated woman by her migratory habits, the great 
 principle of female nature was too deeply rooted ever to 
 be entirely eradicated. Of a powerful, not to say fierce 
 temperament, her passions were violent and difficult to be 
 smothered. But, however she might and did abuse the 
 accidental prerogatives of her situation, love for her off 
 spring, while it often slumbered, could never be said to 
 become extinct. She liked not the protracted absence of 
 Asa. Too fearless herself to have hesitated an instant on 
 her own account about crossing the dark abyss, into which 
 she now sat looking with longing eyes, her busy imagi 
 nation, in obedience to this inextinguishable sentiment, 
 began to conjure nameless evils on account of her son. It 
 might be true, as Abiram had hinted, that he had become 
 a captive to some of the tribes who were hunting the 
 buffalo in that vicinity, or even a still more dreadful ca 
 lamity might have befallen. So thought the mother, while 
 silence and darkness lent their aid to the secret impulses 
 of nature. 
 
 Agitated by these reflections, which put sleep at defiance, 
 Esther continued at her post, listening with that sort of 
 acuteness which is termed instinct in the animals a few 
 degrees below her in the scale of intelligence, for any of 
 those noises which might indicate the approach of foot 
 steps. At length, her wishes had an appearance of being 
 realized, for the long desired sounds were distinctly aud 
 ible, and presently she distinguished the dim form of a 
 man at the base of the rock. 
 
 "Now, Asa, richly do you deserve to be left with an 
 earthen bed this blessed night!" the woman began to 
 mutter, with a revolution in her feelings that will not be 
 surprising to those who have made the contradictions that 
 give variety to the human character a study. "And a 
 hard one I ve a mind it shall be! Why Abner; Abner; 
 you Abner; do you sleep? Let me not see you dare to 
 
136 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 open the hole, till I get down. I will know who it is that 
 wishes to disturb a peaceable, ay, and an honest family, 
 too, at such a time in the night as this!" 
 
 "Woman!" exclaimed a voice, that intended to bluster, 
 while the speaker was manifestly a little apprehensive of 
 the consequences; woman, I forbid you on pain of the law 
 to project any of your infernal missiles. I am a citizen, 
 and a freeholder, and a graduate of two universities; and 
 I stand upon my rights! Beware of malice prepense, of 
 chance-medley, and of manslaughter. It is I your amicus; 
 a friend and inmate. I Dr. Obed Battius. 
 
 Who? demanded Esther, in a voice that nearly refused 
 to convey her words to the ears of the anxious listener 
 beneath. "Did you say it was not Asa?" 
 
 "Nay, I am neither Asa, nor Absalom, nor any of the 
 Hebrew princes, but Obed, the root and stock of them all. 
 Have I not said, woman, that you keep one in attendance 
 who is entitled to a peaceable as well as an honorable ad 
 mission? Do you take me for an animal of the class am 
 phibia, and that I can play with my lungs as a blacksmith 
 does with his bellows?" 
 
 The naturalist might have expended his breath much 
 longer without producing any desirable result, had Esther 
 been his only auditor. Disappointed and alarmed, the 
 woman had already sought her pallet, and was preparing, 
 with a sort of desperate indifference, to compose herself 
 to sleep. Abner, the sentinel below, however, had been 
 aroused from an exceedingly equivocal situation by the 
 outcry; and as he had now regained sufficient conscious 
 ness to recognize the voice of the physician, the latter 
 was admitted with the least possible delay. Dr. Battius 
 bustled through the narrow entrance with an air of singu 
 lar impatience, and was already beginning to mount the 
 difficult ascent, when catching a view of the porter, he 
 paused, to observe with an air that he intended should be 
 impressively admonitory: 
 
 "Abner, there are dangerous symptoms of somnolency 
 about thee! It is sufficiently exhibited in the tendency to 
 hiation, and may prove dangerous not only to yourself, 
 but to all thy father s family." 
 
 "You never made a greater mistake, Doctor," returned 
 
THE PRAIRIE 137 
 
 the youth, gaping like an indolent lion; "I haven t a symp 
 tom, as you call it, about any part of me; and as to father 
 and the children, I reckon the small-pox and the measles 
 have been thoroughly through the breed these many 
 months ago." 
 
 Content with his brief admonition, the naturalist had 
 surmounted half the difficulties of the ascent before the 
 deliberate Abner ended his justification. On the summit, 
 Obed fully expected to encounter Esther, of whose lingua- 
 cious powers he had too often been furnished with the 
 most sinister proofs, and of which he stood in awe too 
 salutary to covet a repetition of the attacks. The reader 
 can foresee that he was to be agreeably disappointed. 
 Treading lightly, and looking timidly over his shoulder, 
 as if he apprehended a shower of something even more 
 formidable than words, the Doctor proceeded to the place 
 which had been allotted to himself in the disposition of 
 the dormitories. 
 
 Instead of sleeping, the worthy naturalist sat rumina 
 ting over what he had both seen and heard that day, until 
 the tossing and mutterings which proceeded from the cabin 
 of Esther, who was his nearest neighbor, advised him 
 of the wakeful situation of its inmate. Perceiving the 
 necessity of doing something to disarm this female Cer 
 berus, before his own purpose could be accomplished, the 
 Doctor, reluctant as he was to encounter her tongue, found 
 himself compelled to invite a colloquial communication. 
 
 "You appear not to sleep, my very kind and worthy 
 Mrs. Bush," he said, determined to commence his appli 
 cations with a plaster that was usually found to adhere; 
 "you appear to rest badly, my excellent hostess; can I 
 administer to your ailings?" 
 
 "What would you give me, man?" grumbled Esther; 
 "a blister to make me sleep?" 
 
 "Say rather a cataplasm. But if you are in pain, here 
 are some cordial drops, which, taken in a glass of my own 
 cognac, will give you rest, if I know aught of the materia 
 medica." 
 
 The Doctor, as he very well knew, had assailed 
 on her weak side; and as he doubted not of the acceptable 
 quality of his prescription, he set himself at work, with- 
 
138 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 out unnecessary delay, to prepare it. When he made his 
 offering, it was received in a snappish and threatening 
 manner, but swallowed with a facility that sufficiently 
 proclaimed how much it was relished. The woman mut 
 tered her thanks, and her leech reseated himself in silence, 
 to await the operation of the dose. In less than half an 
 hour the breathing of Esther became so profound, and, as 
 the Doctor himself might have termed it, so very ab 
 stracted, that had he not known how easy it was to ascribe 
 this new instance of somnolency to the powerful dose of 
 opium with which he had garnished the brandy, he might 
 have seen reason to distrust his own prescription. With 
 the sleep of the restless woman, the stillness became pro 
 found and general. 
 
 Then Dr. Battius saw fit to arise, with the silence and 
 caution of the midnight robber, and to steal out of his 
 own cabin, or rather kennel, for it deserved no better 
 name, towards the adjoining dormitories. Here he took 
 time to assure himself that all his neighbors were buried 
 in deep sleep. Once advised of this important fact, he 
 hesitated no longer, but commenced the difficult ascent 
 which led to the upper pinnacle of the rock. His 
 advance, though abundantly guarded, was not entirely 
 noiseless; but while he was felicitating himself on having 
 successfully effected his object, and he was in the very 
 act of placing his foot on the highest ledge, a hand was 
 laid upon the skirts of his coat, which as effectually put 
 an end to his advance, as if the gigantic strength of 
 Ishmael himself had pinned him to the earth. 
 
 "Is there sickness in the tent," whispered a soft voice 
 in his very ear, "that Dr. Battius is called to visit it at 
 such an hour?" 
 
 So soon as the heart of the naturalist had returned from 
 its hasty expedition into his throat, as one less skilled 
 than Dr. Battius in the formation of the animal would 
 have been apt to have accounted for the extraordinary 
 sensation with which he received this unlooked-for inter 
 ruption, he found resolution to reply; using, as much in 
 terror as in prudence, the same precaution in the indul 
 gence of his voice. 
 
 "My worthy Nelly! I am greatly rejoiced to find it is 
 
THE PRAIRIE I3 t) 
 
 no other than thee. Hist, child, hist! Should Ishmael 
 gain a knowledge of our plans, he would not hesitate to 
 cast us both from this rock, upon the plain beneath. Hist 
 Nelly, hist! " 
 
 As the Doctor delivered his injunctions between the in 
 tervals of his ascent, by the time they were concluded 
 both he and his auditor had gained the upper level 
 <, " An ^ now > Dr - Battius," the girl gravely demanded, 
 
 may I know the reason why you have run so great a risk 
 of flying from this place, without wings, and at the cer 
 tain expense of your neck?" 
 
 "Nothing shall be concealed from thee, worthy and 
 trusty Nelly but are you certain that Ishmael will not 
 awake?" 
 
 "No fear of him; he will sleep until the sun scorches 
 his eyelids. The danger is from my aunt." 
 
 "Esther sleepeth!" the Doctor sententiously replied. 
 "Ellen, you have been watching on this rock to-day?" 
 
 "I was ordered to do so." 
 
 "And you have seen the bison, and the antelope, and 
 the wolf, and the deer, as usual; animals of the orders 
 pecora, belluae, and ferae. 
 
 "I have seen the creatures you named in English, but I 
 know nothing of the Indian languages." 
 
 "There is still an order that I have not named, which 
 you have also seen. The primates is it not true?" 
 
 "I cannot say. I know no animal by that name." 
 
 "Nay, Ellen, you confer with a friend. Of the genus 
 homo, child?" 
 
 "Whatever else I may have had in view, I have not seen 
 the Vespertilio horribi 
 
 "Hush, Nelly, thy vivacity will betray us! Tell me, 
 girl, have you not seen certain bipeds, called men, wander 
 ing about the prairies?" 
 
 "Surely. My uncle and his sons have been hunting the 
 buffalo, since the sun began to fall." 
 
 "I must speak in the vernacular, to be comprehended. 
 Ellen, I would say of the species Kentucky. 
 
 Though Ellen reddened like the rose, her blushes were 
 concealed by the darkness. She hesitated an instant, and 
 then summoned sufficient spirit to say decidedly: 
 
140 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 "If you wish to speak in parables, Doctor Battius, you 
 must find another listener. Put your questions plainly 
 in English, and I will answer them honestly in the same 
 tongue. 
 
 "I have been journeying in this desert, as thou knowest, 
 Nelly, in quest of animals that have been hidden from the 
 eyes of science, until now. Among others, I have discov 
 ered a primates, of the genus, homo; species, Kentucky; 
 which I term Paul 
 
 "Hist, for the sake of mercy!" said Ellen; "speak 
 lower. Doctor, or we shall be ruined." 
 
 "Hover. By profession a collector of the apes, or bee, 
 continued the other. "Do I use the vernacular now am 
 I understood?* 
 
 "Perfectly, perfectly," returned the girl, breathing 
 with difficulty, in her surprise. "But what of him? Did 
 he tell you to mount this rock? He knows nothing, him 
 self; for the oath I gave my uncle has shut my mouth." 
 
 "Ay, but there is one that has taken no oath, who has 
 revealed all. I would that the mantle which is wrapped 
 around the mysteries of nature, were as effectually with 
 drawn from its hidden treasures ! Ellen! Ellen! the man 
 with whom I have unwittingly formed a compactum, or 
 agreement, is sadly forgetful of the obligations of honesty ! 
 Thy uncle, child." 
 
 "You mean Ishmael Bush, my father s brother s widow s 
 husband," returned the offended girl, a little proudly. 
 "Indeed, indeed, it is cruel to reproach me with a tie that 
 chance has formed, and which I would rejoice so much to 
 break forever ! 
 
 The humbled Ellen could utter no more, but sinking on 
 a projection of the rock, she began to sob in a manner 
 that rendered their situation doi&ly critical. The Doctor 
 muttered a few words, which he intended as an apologetic 
 explanation, but before he had time to complete his labored 
 vindication, she arose and said with decision: 
 
 "I did not come here to pass my time in foolish tears, 
 nor you to try to stop them. What, then, has brought you 
 hither?" 
 
 "I must see the inmate of that tent." 
 
 "You know what it contains?" 
 
THE PRAIRIE 141 
 
 "I am taught to believe I do; and I bear a letter which 
 I must deliver with my own hands. If the animal prove 
 a quadruped, Ishmael is a true man if a biped, fledged 
 or unfledged, I care not, he is false, and our compactum 
 at an end ! 
 
 Ellen made a sign for the Doctor to remain where he 
 was, and to be silent. She then glided into the tent, where 
 she continued many minutes, that proved exceedingly 
 weary and anxious to the expectant without; but the in 
 stant she returned, she took him by the arm, and together 
 they entered beneath the folds of the mysterious cloth. 
 
CHAPTER XII 
 
 " Pray God the Duke of York excuse himself." 
 
 KING HENRY VI. 
 
 THE mustering of the borderers on the following morn 
 ing was silent, sullen, and gloomy. The repast of that hour 
 was wanting in the inharmonious accompaniment with 
 which Esther ordinarily enlivened their meals; for the 
 effects of the powerful opiate the Doctor had administered 
 still muddled her intellects. The young men brooded over 
 the absence of their elder brother; and the brows of Ish- 
 mael himself were knit, as he cast his scowling eyes from 
 one to the other, like a man preparing to meet and to re 
 pel an expected assault on his authority. In the midst of 
 this family distrust, Ellen and her midnight confederate, 
 the naturalist, took their usual places among the children, 
 without awakening suspicion or exciting comment. The 
 only apparent fruits of the adventure in which they had 
 been engaged, were occasional uplif tings of the eyes, on 
 the part of the Doctor, which were mistaken by the ob 
 servers for some of his scientific contemplations of the 
 heavens, but which, in reality, were no other than furtive 
 glances at the fluttering walls of the proscribed tent. 
 
 At length the squatter, who had waited in vain for some 
 more decided manifestation of the expected rising among 
 his sons, resolved to make a demonstration of his own 
 intentions. 
 
 "Asa shall account to me for this undutiful conduct," 
 he observed. "Here has the livelong night gone by, and 
 he out-lying on the prairie, when his hand and his rifle 
 might both have been wanted in a brush with the Sioux, 
 for any right he had to know the contrary. 
 
 "Spare your breath, good man," retorted his wife; "be 
 saving of your breath; for you may have to call long 
 enough for the boy before he will answer!" 
 
 "It ar a fact that some men be so womanish as to let 
 
 142 
 
THE PRAIRIE 143 
 
 the young master the old! But you, old Esther, should 
 know better than to think such will ever be the nature of 
 things in the family of Ishmael Bush." 
 
 "Ah^you are a hectorer with the boys when need calls; 
 I know it well, Ishmael; and one of your sons have you 
 driven from you by your temper; and that, too, at a time 
 when he is most wanted." 
 
 "Father, said Abner, whose sluggish nature had grad 
 ually been stimulating itself to the exertion of taking 
 so bold a stand, "the boys and I have pretty generally 
 concluded to go out on the search of Asa. We are dis 
 agreeable about his camping on the prairie, instead of 
 coming in to his own bed, as we all know he would like 
 to do." 
 
 "Pshaw!" muttered Abiram; "the boy has killed a 
 buck; or perhaps a buffalo; and he is sleeping by the car 
 cass to keep off the wolves till day. We shall soon see 
 him, or hear him bawling for help to bring in his load." 
 
 " "Pis little help that a son of mine will call for, to 
 shoulder a buck or to quarter your wild-beef," returned 
 the mother. "And you, Abiram, to say so uncertain a 
 thing! you who said yourself that the red-skins had been 
 prowling around this place, no later than yesterday 
 
 "I!" exclaimed her brother, hastily, as if anxious to 
 retract an error; "I said it then, and I say it now; and 
 so you will find it to be. The Tetons are in our neighbor 
 hood, and happy will it prove for the boy if he is well 
 shut of them." 
 
 "It seems to me," said Dr. Battius, speaking with the 
 sort of deliberation and dignity one is apt to use after 
 having thoroughly ripened his opinions by sufficient reflec 
 tion "it seems to me a man but little skilled in the signs 
 and tokens of Indian warfare, especially as practised in 
 these remote plains, but one who, I may say without van 
 ity, has some insight into the mysteries of nature it 
 seems, then, to me, thus humbly qualified, that when 
 doubts exist in a matter of moment, it would always be 
 the wisest course to appease them." 
 
 "No more of your doctoring for me!" cried the grum 
 Esther; "no more of your quiddities in a healthy family, 
 say I! Here was I doing well, only a little out of sorts 
 
144 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 with over instructing the young, and you dosed me with a 
 drug that hangs about my tongue like a pound weight on 
 a humming-bird s wing!" 
 
 "Is the medicine out?" dryly demanded Ishmael; "it 
 must be a rare dose that gives a heavy feel to the tongue 
 of Eester!" 
 
 "Friend," continued the Doctor, waving his hand for 
 the angry wife to maintain the peace, "that it cannot per 
 form all that is said of it the very charge of good Mrs. 
 Bush is a sufficient proof. But to speak of the absent Asa. 
 There is doubt as to his fate, and there is a proposition to 
 solve it. Now, in the natural sciences truth is always a 
 desideratum; and I confess it would seem to be equally so 
 in the present case of domestic uncertainty, which may be 
 called a vacuum where, according to the laws of physic, 
 there should exist some pretty palpable proofs of ma- 
 terialty." 
 
 "Don t mind him, don t mind him," cried Esther, ob 
 serving that the rest of his auditors listened with an atten 
 tion which might proceed equally from acquiescence in 
 his proposal, or ignorance of its meaning. "There is a 
 drug in every word he utters." 
 
 "Dr. Battius wishes to say," Ellen modestly interposed, 
 "that as some of us think Asa is in danger, and some 
 think otherwise, the whole family might pass an hour or 
 two in looking for him." 
 
 "Does he?" interrupted the woman; "then Dr. Battius 
 has more sense in him that I believed! She is right, Ish 
 mael; and what she says, shall be done. I will shoulder 
 a rifle myself; and woe betide the red-skin that crosses 
 my path ! I have pulled a trigger before to-day ; ay, and 
 heard an Indian yell, too, to my sorrow." 
 
 The spirit of Esther diffused itself, like the stimulus 
 which attends a war-cry, among her sons. They arose in 
 a body, and declared their determination to second so bold 
 a resolution. Ishmael prudently yielded to an impulse he 
 could not resist, and, in a few minutes the woman appeared, 
 shouldering her arms, prepared to lead forth, in person, 
 such of her descendants as chose to follow. 
 
 "Let them stay with the children that please," she 
 said, "and them follow me, who are not chicken-hearted ! 
 
THE PRAIRIE 145 
 
 "Abiram, it will not do to leave the huts without some 
 guard," Ishmael whispered, glancing his eye upwards. 
 
 The man whom he addressed started, and betrayed ex 
 traordinary eagerness in his reply. 
 
 "I will tarry and watch the camp." 
 
 A dozen voices were instantly raised in objection to this 
 proposal. He was wanted to point out the places where 
 the hostile tracks had been seen, and his termagant sister 
 openly scouted at the idea, as unworthy of his manhood. 
 The reluctant Abiram was compelled to yield, and Ishmael 
 made a new disposition for the defense of the place; which 
 was admitted, by every one, to be all-important to their 
 security and comfort. 
 
 He offered the post of commandant to Dr. Battius, who, 
 however, peremptorily and somewhat haughtily, declined 
 the doubtful honor; exchanging looks of intelligence with 
 Ellen, as he did so. In this dilemma the squatter was 
 obliged to constitute the girl herself castellan; taking 
 care, however, in deputing this important trust, to omit 
 no words of caution and instruction. When this prelim 
 inary point was settled, the young men proceeded to 
 arrange certain means of defense, and signals of alarm, 
 that were adapted to the weakness and character of the 
 garrison. Several masses of rock were drawn to the edge 
 of the upper level, and so placed as to leave it at the dis 
 cretion of the feeble Ellen and her associates, to cast them 
 or not, as they might choose, on the heads of any invaders, 
 who would, of necessity, be obliged to mount the emi 
 nence by the difficult and narrow passage already so often 
 mentioned. In addition to this formidable obstruction, 
 the barriers were strengthened and rendered nearly im 
 passable. Smaller missiles, that might be hurled even by 
 the hands of the younger children, but which would prove, 
 from the elevation of the place, exceedingly dangerous, 
 were provided in profusion. A pile of dried leaves and 
 splinters was placed, as a beacon, on the upper rock, and 
 then, even in the jealous judgment of the squatter, the 
 post was deemed competent to maintain a creditable siege. 
 The moment the rock was thought to be in a state of 
 sufficient security, the party who composed what might be 
 called the sortie, sallied forth on their anxious expedition. 
 
 10 
 
146 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 The advance was led by Esther in person, who, attired in 
 a dress half masculine, and bearing a weapon like the 
 rest, seemed no unfit leader for the group of wildly clad 
 frontiersmen, that followed in her rear. 
 
 "Now, Abiram!" cried the Amazon, in a voice that was 
 cracked and harsh, for the simple reason of being used too 
 often on a strained and unnatural key, "now, Abiram, 
 run with your nose low; show yourself a hound of the true 
 breed, and do some credit to your training. You it was 
 that saw the prints of the Indian moccasin, and it behooves 
 you to let others be as wise as yourself. Come; come to 
 the front, man; and give us a bold lead." 
 
 The brother, who appeared at all times to stand in awe 
 of his sister s authority, complied; though it was with a 
 reluctance so evident, as to excite sneers even among the 
 unobservant and indolent sons of the squatter. Ishmael, 
 himself, moved among his tall children, like one who ex 
 pected nothing from the search, and who was indifferent 
 alike to its success or failure. In this manner the party 
 proceeded until their distant fortress had sunk so low, as 
 to present an object no larger nor more distinct than a 
 hazy point, on the margin of the prairie. Hitherto their 
 progress had been silent and somewhat rapid, for as swell 
 after swell was mounted and passed, without varying, or 
 discovering a living object to enliven the monotony of the 
 view, even the tongue of Esther was hushed to increasing 
 anxiety. Here, however, Ishmael chose to pause, and 
 casting the butt of his rifle from his shoulder to the 
 ground, he observed: 
 
 "This is enough. Buffalo signs, and deer signs, are 
 plenty; but where are thy Indian footsteps, Abiram?" 
 
 "Still further west, " returned the other, pointing in 
 the direction he named. "This was the spot where I 
 struck the tracks of the buck; it was after I took the deer 
 that I fell upon the Teton trail." 
 
 "And a bloody piece of work you made of it, man," 
 cried the squatter, pointing tauntingly to the soiled gar 
 ments of his kinsman, and then directing the attention of 
 the spectators to his own, by the way of a triumphant 
 contrast. "Here have I cut the throats of two lively does, 
 and a scampering fawn, without spot or stain; while you, 
 
THE PRAIRIE 147 
 
 blundering dog as you are, have made as much work for 
 Eester and her girls, as though butchering was your reg 
 ular calling. Come, boys; it is enough. I am too old 
 not to know the signs of the frontiers; no Indian has been 
 here since the last fall of water. Follow me; and I will 
 make a turn that shall give us at least the beef of a fal 
 low cow for our trouble. 
 
 "Follow me/" echoed Esther, stepping undauntedly for 
 ward. "I am leader to-day, and I will be followed. Who 
 so proper, let me know, as a mother, to head a search for 
 her own lost child?" 
 
 Ishmael regarded his intractable mate with a smile of 
 indulgent pity. Observing that she had already struck out 
 a path for herself, different both from that of Abiram 
 and the one he had seen fit to choose, and being unwill 
 ing to draw the cord of authority too tight, just at that 
 moment, he submitted to her will. But Dr. Battius, who 
 had hitherto been a silent and thoughtful attendant on the 
 woman, now saw fit to raise his feeble voice in the way 
 of remonstrance. 
 
 "I agree with thy partner in life, worthy and gentle 
 Mrs. Bush," he said, "in believing that some ignis fatuus 
 of the imagination has deceived Abiram, in the signs or 
 symptoms of which he has spoken." 
 
 "Symptoms, yourself!" interrupted the termagant. 
 "This is no time for bookish words, nor is this a place to 
 stop and swallow medicines. If you are a leg-weary say 
 so, as a plain-speaking man should; then seat yourself on 
 the prairie, like a hound that is foot sore, and take your 
 natural rest." 
 
 "I accord in the opinion, the naturalist calmly replied, 
 complying literally with the opinion of the deriding 
 Esther by taking his seat very coolly by the side of an in 
 digenous shrub; the examination of which he commenced 
 on the instant, in order that science might not lose any 
 of its just and important dues. "I honor your excellent 
 advice, Mistress Esther, as you may perceive. Go thou 
 in quest of thy offspring, while I tarry here, in pursuit 
 of that which is better; namely, an insight into the arcana 
 of Nature s volume." 
 
 The woman answered with a hollow, unnatural, and 
 
148 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 scornful laugh; and even her heavy sons, as they slowly 
 passed the seat of the already abstracted naturalist, did 
 not disdain to manifest their contempt in smiles. In a 
 few minutes the train mounted the nearest eminence, and 
 as it turned the rounded acclivity, the Doctor was left to 
 pursue his profitable investigations in entire solitude. 
 
 Another half-hour passed, during which Esther contin 
 ued to advance, on her seemingly fruitless search. Her 
 pauses, however, were becoming frequent, and her looks 
 wandering and uncertain, when footsteps were heard clat 
 tering through the bottom, and at the next instant a buck 
 was seen to bound up the ascent, and to dart from before 
 their eyes, in the direction of the naturalist. So sudden 
 and unlocked for had been the passage of the animal, and 
 so much had he been favored by the shape of the ground, 
 that before any one of the foresters had time to bring his 
 rifle to his shoulders, it was already beyond the range of 
 a bullet. 
 
 "Look out for the wolf!" shouted Abner, shaking his 
 head in vexation, at being a single moment too late. "A 
 wolf s skin will be no bad gift in a winter s night; ay, 
 yonder the hungry devil comes!" 
 
 "Hold!" cried Ishmael, knocking up the leveled weapon 
 of his too eager son.. " Tis not a wolf; but a hound of 
 thorough blood and bottom. Ha! we have hunters nigh; 
 there ar two of them!" 
 
 He was still speaking, when the animals in question 
 came leaping on the track of the deer, striving with noble 
 ardor to outdo each other. One was an aged dog, whose 
 strength seemed to be sustained purely by generous emu 
 lation, and the other a pup, that gamboled even while he 
 pressed most warmly on the chase. They both ran, how 
 ever, with clean and powerful leaps, carrying their noses 
 high, like animals of the most keen and subtle scent. They 
 had passed ; and in another minute they would have been 
 running open-mouthed with the deer in view, had not the 
 younger dog suddenly bounded from the course, and ut 
 tered a cry of surprise. His aged companion stopped 
 also, and returned panting and exhausted to the place 
 where the other was whirling around in swift, and appar 
 ently in mad evolutions circling the spot in his own foot- 
 
THE PRAIRIE 149, 
 
 steps, and continuing his outcry, in a short snappish 
 barking. But, when the elder hound had reached the 
 spot, he seated himself and, lifting his nose high into the 
 air, he raised a long, loud, and wailing howl. 
 
 It must be a strong scent, said Abner, who had been, 
 with the rest of the family, an admiring observer of the 
 movements of the dogs, "that can break off two such 
 creatur s so suddenly from their trail." 
 
 "Murder them!" cried Abiram; "I ll swear to the old 
 hound; tis the dog of the trapper, whom we now know 
 to be our mortal enemy." 
 
 Though the brother of Esther gave so hostile advice, he 
 appeared in no way ready to put it in execution himself. 
 The surprise which had taken possession of the whole 
 party, exhibited itself in his own vacant, wondering stare, 
 as strongly as in any of the admiring visages by whom he 
 was surrounded. His denunciations, therefore, notwith 
 standing its dire import, was disregarded; and the dogs 
 were left to obey the impulses of their mysterious instinct, 
 without let or hindrance. 
 
 It was long before any of the spectators broke the silence; 
 but the squatter at length so far recollected his authority, 
 as to take on himself the right to control the movements 
 of his children. 
 
 "Come away, boys; come away, and leave the hounds 
 to sing their tunes for their own amusement," Ishmael 
 said, in his coldest manner. "I scorn to take the life of 
 a beast, because its master has pitched himself too nigh 
 my clearing; come away, boys, come away; we have 
 enough of our own work before us, without turning aside 
 to do that of the whole neighborhood." 
 
 "Come not away!" cried Esther, in tones that sounded 
 like the admonitions of some sibyl. "I say, come not 
 away, my children. There is a meaning and a warning in 
 this; and as I am a woman and a mother, well I know the 
 truth of it all!" 
 
 So saying, the awakened wife brandished her weapon, 
 with an air that was not without its wild and secret inn 
 ence, and led the way towards the spot where the dogs 
 still remained, filling the air with her long-drawn an< 
 piteous complaints. The whole party followed in 6 
 
150 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 steps, some too indolent to oppose, others obedient to her 
 will, and all more or less excited by the uncommon char 
 acter of the scene. 
 
 "Tell me, you Abner Abiram Ishmael!" the woman 
 cried, standing over a spot where the earth was trampled 
 and beaten, and plainly sprinkled with blood; "tell me, 
 you who ar hunters! what sort of animal has here met 
 his death? Speak! Ye ar men, and used to the signs of 
 the plains; is it the blood of wolf or panther?" 
 
 "A buffalo and a noble and powerful creatur has it 
 been!" returned the squatter, who looked down calmly on 
 the fatal signs which so strangely affected his wife. "Here 
 are the marks of the spot where he has struck his hoofs 
 into the earth, in the death-struggle; and yonder he has 
 plunged and torn the ground with his horns. Ay, a buffalo 
 bull of wonderful strength and courage has he been!" 
 
 "And who has slain him?" continued Esther; "man! 
 where are the offals? Wolves! They devour not the hide! 
 Tell me, ye men and hunters, is this the blood of a beast?" 
 
 "The creatur has plunged over the hillock, said Abner, 
 who had proceeded a short distance beyond the rest of the 
 party. "Ah! there you will find it, in yon swale of alders. 
 Look! a thousand carrion birds ar hovering above the 
 carcass." 
 
 "The animal has still life in him," returned the squat 
 ter, "or the buzzards would settle upon their prey! By 
 the action of the dogs it must be something ravenous; I 
 reckon it is the white bear from the upper falls. They 
 are said to cling desperately to life!" 
 
 "Let us go back," said Abiram; "there may be danger, 
 and there can be no good in attacking a ravenous beast. 
 Remember, Ishmael, twill be a risky job, and one of 
 small profit!" 
 
 The young men smiled at this new proof of the well 
 known pusillanimity of their uncle. The oldest even pro 
 ceeded so far as to express his contempt, by bluntly saying: 
 
 "It will do to cage with the other animal we carry; 
 then we may go back double-handed into the settlements, 
 and set up for showmen, around the court-houses and jails 
 of Kentucky." 
 
 The threatening frown which gathered on the brow of 
 
THE PRAIRIE 151 
 
 his father admonished the young man to forbear. Ex 
 changing looks that were half rebellious with his brethren, 
 he saw fit to be silent. But instead of observing the 
 caution recommended by Abiram, they proceeded in a 
 body, until they again came to a halt within a few yards 
 of the matted cover of the thicket. 
 
 The scene had now, indeed, become wild and striking 
 enough to have produced a powerful effect on minds better 
 prepared than those of the unnurtured family of the squat 
 ter, to resist the impressions of so exciting a spectacle. 
 The heavens were, as usual at the season, covered with 
 dark, driving clouds, beneath which interminable flocks 
 of aquatic birds were again on the wing, holding their 
 toilsome and heavy way towards the distant waters of the 
 south. The wind had risen, and was once more sweeping 
 over the prairie in gusts, which it was often vain to op 
 pose; and then again the blasts would seem to mount into 
 the upper air, as if to sport with the drifting vapor, 
 whirling and rolling vast masses of the dusky and ragged 
 volumes over each other, in a terrific and yet grand dis 
 order. Above the little brake, the flocks of birds still 
 held their flight, circling with heavy wings about the 
 spot, struggling at times against the torrent of wind, and 
 then favored by their position and height, making bold 
 swoops upon the thicket, away from which, however, 
 they never failed to sail, screaming in terror, as if ap 
 prised, either by sight or instinct, that the hour of their 
 voracious dominion had not yet fully arrived. 
 
 Ishmael stood for many minutes, with his wife and chil 
 dren clustering together, in an amazement with which awe 
 was singularly mingled, gazing in death-like stillness on 
 the sight. The voice of Esther at length broke the charm 
 and reminded the spectators of the necessity of resolving 
 their doubts in some manner more worthy of their man 
 hood, than by dull and inactive observation. 
 
 "Call in the dogs!" she said, "call in the hounds, and 
 put them into the thicket; there ar men enough of ye, if 
 ye have not lost the spirit with which I know ye were 
 born, to tame the tempers of all the bears west of the Big 
 River. Call in the dogs, I say; you Enoch! Abner! Ga 
 briel! has wonder made ye deaf?" 
 
152 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 One of the young men complied; and having succeeded 
 in detaching the hounds from the place around which, 
 until then, they had not ceased to hover, he led them 
 down to the margin of the thicket. 
 
 Put them in, boy ; put them in, " continued the woman ; 
 "and you, Ishmael and Abiram, if anything wicked or 
 hurtful comes forth, show them the use of your rifles, like 
 frontier-men. If ye ar wanting in spirit, before the eyes 
 of my children will I put ye both to shame!" 
 
 The youths, who, until now, had detained the hounds, 
 let slip the thongs of skin by which they had been held, and 
 urged them to the attack with their voices. But it would 
 seem that the elder dog was restrained by some extraor 
 dinary sensation, or that he was much too experienced to 
 attempt the rash adventure. After proceeding a few yards 
 to the verge of the brake, he made a sudden pause and 
 stood trembling in all his aged limbs, apparently as unable 
 to recede as to advance. The encouraging calls of the young 
 men were disregarded, or only answered by a low and 
 plaintive whining. For a minute the pup also was simi 
 larly affected; but less sage, or more easily excited, he was 
 induced at length to leap forward, and finally to dash into 
 the cover. An alarmed and startling howl was heard, and 
 at the next minute, he broke out of the thicket, and com 
 menced circling the spot, in the same wild and unsteady 
 manner as before. 
 
 "Have I a man among my children?" demanded Esther. 
 "Give me a truer piece than a childish shot-gun, and I will 
 show ye what the courage of a frontier woman can do!" 
 
 "Stay mother," exclaimed Abner and Enoch; "if you 
 will see the creatur let us drive it into view." 
 
 This was quite as much as the youths were accustomed 
 to utter, even on more important occasions; but having 
 given a pledge of their intentions, they were far from 
 being backward in redeeming it. Preparing their arms 
 with the utmost care, they advanced with steadiness 
 to the brake. Nerves less often tried than those of the 
 young borderers might have shrunk before the dangers of 
 so uncertain an undertaking. As they proceeded, the 
 howls of the dogs became more shrill and plaintive. The 
 vultures and buzzards settled so low as to flap the bushr-i 
 
THE PRAIRIE 153 
 
 with their heavy wings, and the wind came hoarsely 
 sweeping along the naked prairie, as if the spirits of the 
 air had also descended to witness the approaching devel 
 opment. 
 
 There was a breathless moment, when the blood of the 
 undaunted Esther flowed backwards to her heart, as she saw 
 her sons push aside the matted branches of the thicket and 
 bury themselves in its labyrinth. A deep and solemn pause 
 succeeded. Then arose two loud and piercing cries, in 
 quick succession, which were followed by a quiet, still 
 more awful and appalling. 
 
 "Come back come back, my children!" cried the 
 woman, the feelings of a mother getting the ascendency. 
 
 But her voice was hushed, and every faculty seemed 
 frozen with horror, as at that instant the bushes once more 
 parted, and the two adventurers reappeared, pale, and 
 nearly insensible themselves, and laid at her feet the stiff 
 and motionless body of the lost Asa, with the marks of a 
 violent death but too plainly stamped on every pallid 
 lineament. 
 
 The dogs uttered a long and closing howl, and then 
 breaking off together, they disappeared on the forsaken 
 trail of the deer. The flight of birds wheeled upwards 
 into the heavens, filling the air with their complaints at 
 having been robbed of a victim which, frightful and dis 
 gusting as it was, still bore too much of the impression 
 of humanity to become the prey of their obscene appetites. 
 
CHAPTER XIII 
 
 " A pickaxe, and a spade, a spade. 
 
 For and a shrouding sheet 
 
 Oh, a pit of clay for to be made 
 
 For such a guest is meet." 
 
 -SONG IN HAMLET. 
 
 "STAND back! stand off, the whole of ye!" said Esther 
 hoarsely to the crowd, which pressed too closely on the 
 corpse; "I am his mother, and my right is better than 
 that of ye all! Who has done this? Tell me, Ishmael, 
 Abiram, Abner! open your mouths and your hearts, and 
 let God s truth and no other issue from them. Who has 
 done this bloody deed?" 
 
 Her husband made no reply, but stood, leaning on his 
 rifle, looking sadly, but with an unaltered eye, at the 
 mangled remains of his son. Not so the mother; she threw 
 herself on the earth, and receiving the cold and ghastly 
 head into her lap, she sat contemplating those muscular 
 features, on which the death-agony was still horridly im 
 pressed, in a silence far more expressive than any language 
 of lamentation could have proved. 
 
 The voice of the woman was frozen in grief. In vain 
 Ishmael attempted a few words of rude consolation: she 
 neither listened nor answered. Her sons gathered about 
 her in a circle, and expressed, after their uncouth manner, 
 their sympathy in her sorrow, as well as their sense of 
 their own loss; but she motioned them away, impatiently, 
 with her hand. At times her fingers played in the matted 
 hair of the dead, and at others they lightly attempted to 
 smooth the painfully expressive muscles of its ghastly 
 visage, as the hand of the mother is seen lingering fondly 
 about the features of her sleeping child. Then starting 
 from their revolting office, her hands would flutter around 
 her, and seem to seek some fruitless remedy against the 
 violent blow, which had thus suddenly destroyed the child 
 io whom she had not only placed her greatest hopes, but 
 
 154 
 
THE PRAIRIE 155 
 
 so much of her maternal pride. While engaged in the 
 latter incomprehensible manner, the lethargic Abner 
 turned aside, and swallowing the unwonted emotions 
 which were arising in his own throat, he observed: 
 
 "Mother means that we should look for the signs, that 
 we may know in what manner Asa has come to his end." 
 
 "We owe it to the accursed Sioux!" answered Ish- 
 mael; "twice have they put me deeply in their debt! The 
 third time the score shall be cleared!" 
 i But, not content with this plausible explanation, and 
 perhaps secretly glad to avert their eyes from a spectacle 
 which awakened so extraordinary and unusual sensations 
 in their sluggish bosoms, the sons of the squatter turned 
 away in a body from their mother and the corpse, and 
 proceeded to make the inquiries which they fancied the 
 former had so repeatedly demanded. Ishmael made no 
 objections; but, though he accompanied his children while 
 they proceeded in the investigation, it was more with the 
 appearance of complying with their wishes, at a time 
 when resistance might not be seemly, than with any visible 
 interest in the result. As the borderers, notwithstanding 
 their usual dullness, were well instructed in most things 
 connected with their habits of life, an inquiry, the success 
 of which depended so much on signs and evidences that 
 bore so strong a resemblance to a forest trail, was likely 
 to be conducted with skill and acuteness. Accordingly, 
 they proceeded to the melancholy task with great readiness 
 and intelligence. 
 
 Abner and Enoch agreed in their accounts as to the po 
 sition in which they had found the body. It was seated 
 nearly upright, the back supported by a mass of matted 
 brush, and one hand still grasping a broken twig of the 
 alders. It was most probably owing to the former circum 
 stance that the body had escaped the rapacity of the carrion 
 birds, which had been seen hovering above the thicket, 
 and the latter proved that life had not yet entirely aban 
 doned the hapless victim when he entered the brake. The 
 opinion now became general, that the youth had received 
 his death-wound in the open prairie, and had dragged his 
 enfeebled form into the cover of the thicket for the pur 
 pose of concealment. A trail through the bushes confirmed 
 
156 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 this opinion. It also appeared, on examination, that a 
 desperate struggle had taken place on the very margin of 
 the thicket. This was sufficiently apparent by the trodden 
 branches, the deep impressions on the moist ground, and 
 the lavish flow of blood. 
 
 "He has been shot in the open ground and come here 
 f or a cover, " said Abiram; "these marks would clearly 
 prove it. The boy has been set upon by the savages in a 
 body, and has fou t like a hero as he was, until they have 
 mastered his strength, and then drawn him to the bushes. " 
 
 To this probable opinion there was now but one dis 
 senting voice, that of the slow-minded Ishmael, who de 
 manded that the corpse itself should be examined in order 
 to obtain a more accurate knowledge of its injuries. On 
 examination it appeared that a rifle bullet had passed di 
 rectly through the body of the deceased, entering beneath 
 one of his brawny shoulders, and making its exit by the 
 breast. It required some knowledge in gun-shot wounds 
 to decide this delicate point, but the experience of the 
 borderers was quite equal to the scrutiny; and a smile of 
 wild and certainly of singular satisfaction, passed among 
 the sons of Ishmael, when Abner confidently announced 
 that the enemies of Asa had assailed him in the rear. 
 
 "It must be so," said the gloomy but attentive squat 
 ter. "He was of too good a stock, and too well trained, 
 knowingly to turn the weak side to man or beast! Re 
 member, boys, that while the front of manhood is to your 
 enemy, let him be who or what he may, you ar safe from 
 cowardly surprise. Why, Eester, woman! you ar getting 
 beside yourself with picking at the hair and the garments 
 of the child. Little good can you do him now, old girl." 
 
 "See!" interrupted Enoch, extricating from the frag 
 ments of cloth the morsel of lead which had prostrated 
 the strength of one so powerful; "here is the very bullet!" 
 
 Ishmael took it in his hand and eyed it long and closely. 
 
 "There s no mistake," at length he muttered through 
 his compressed teeth. "It is from the pouch of that ac 
 cursed trapper. Like many of the hunters, he has a mark 
 in his mould, in order to know the work his rifle per 
 forms; and here you see it plainly six little holes laid 
 crossways. 
 
THE PRAIRIE 157 
 
 "I ll swear to it, "cried Abiram, triumphantly. "He 
 showed me his private mark, himself, and boasted of the 
 number of deer he had laid upon the prairies with these 
 very bullets. Now, Ishmael, will you believe me when I 
 tell you the old knave is a spy of the red-skins?" 
 
 The lead passed from the hand of one to that of another; 
 and unfortunately for the reputation of the old man, sev 
 eral among them remembered also to have seen the afore 
 said private bullet-marks, during the curious examination 
 which all had made of his accouterments. In addition to 
 this wound, however, were many others of a less dangerous 
 nature, all of which were deemed to confirm the supposed 
 guilt of the trapper. 
 
 The traces of many different struggles were to be seen 
 between the spot where the first blood was spilt and the 
 thicket to which it was now generally believed Asa had 
 retreated as a place of refuge. These were interpreted 
 into so many proofs of the weakness of the murderer, who 
 would have sooner despatched his victim, had not even the 
 dying strength of the youth rendered him formidable to 
 the infirmities of one so old. The danger of drawing some 
 others of the hunters to the spot, by repeated firing, was 
 deemed a sufficient reason for not again resorting to the 
 rifle after it had performed the important duty of disabling 
 the victim. The weapon of the dead man was not to be 
 found, and had doubtless, together with many other less 
 valuable and lighter articles that he was accustomed to 
 carry about his person, become a prize to his destroyer. 
 
 But what, in addition to the tell-tale bullet, appeared 
 to fix the ruthless deed with peculiar certainty on the 
 trapper, was the accumulated evidence furnished by the 
 trail; which proved, notwithstanding his deadly hurt, that 
 the wounded man had still been able to make a long and i 
 desperate resistance to the subsequent efforts of his mur 
 derer Ishmael seemed to press this proof with a smgula 
 mixture of sorrow and pride: sorrow at the loss of a si 
 whom, in their moments of amity, he highly valued; an< 
 pride at the courage and power he had manifest 
 last and weakest breath. 
 
 "He died as a son of mine should die," said the squat 
 ter, gleaning a hollow consolation from so unnatura 
 
158 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 exultation; "a dread to his enemy to the last, and with 
 out help from the law! Come, children; we have the grave 
 to make, and then to hunt his murderer." 
 
 The sons of the squatter set about their melancholy 
 office in silence and in sadness. An excavation was made 
 in the hard earth at a great expense of toil and time, and 
 the body was wrapped in such spare vestments as could be 
 collected among the laborers. When these arrangements 
 were completed, Ishmael approached the seemingly un 
 conscious Esther, and announced his intention to inter the 
 dead. She heard him, and quietly relinquished her grasp 
 of the corpse, rising in silence to follow it to its narrow 
 resting-place. Here she seated herself again at the head 
 of the grave, watching each movement of the youths with 
 eager and jealous eyes. When a sufficiency of earth was 
 laid upon the senseless clay of Asa to protect it from injury, 
 Enoch and Abner entered the cavity, and trod it into a 
 solid mass by the weight of their huge frames, with an 
 appearance of a strange, not to say savage, mixture of 
 care and indifference. This well-known precaution was 
 adopted to prevent the speedy exhumation of the body by 
 some of the carnivorous beasts of the prairie, whose in 
 stinct was sure to guide them to the spot. Even the rapa 
 cious birds appeared to comprehend the nature of the 
 ceremony, for, mysteriously apprised that the miserable 
 victim was now about to be abandoned by the human race, 
 they once more began to make their airy circuits above 
 the place, screaming as if to frighten the kinsmen from 
 their labor of caution and love. 
 
 Ishmael stood, with folded arms, steadily watching the 
 manner in which this necessary duty was performed, and 
 when the whole was completed, he lifted his cap to his 
 sons, to thank them for their services, with a dignity that 
 would have become one much better nurtured. Through 
 out the whole of a ceremony which is ever solemn and 
 admonitory, the squatter had maintained a grave and seri 
 ous deportment. His vast features were visibly stamped 
 with an expression of deep concern; but at no time did 
 they falter, until he turned his back, as he believed for 
 ever, on the grave of his first-born. Nature was then 
 stirring powerfully within him, and the muscles of his 
 
THE PRAIRIE 159 
 
 stern visage began to work perceptibly. His children 
 fastened their eyes on his, as if to seek a direction to the 
 strange emotions which were moving their own heavy 
 natures, when the struggle in the bosom of the squatter 
 suddenly ceased, and, taking his wife by the arm, he 
 raised her to her feet as if she had been an infant, saying 
 in a voice that was perfectly steady, though a nice ob 
 server would have discovered that it was kinder than usual : 
 
 "Eester, we have now done all that man and woman 
 can do. We raised the boy, and made him such as few 
 others ^were like, on the frontiers of America; and we 
 have given him a grave. Let us go our way. " 
 
 The woman turned her eyes slowly from the fresh earth, 
 and laying her hands on the shoulders of her husband 
 stood, looking him anxiously in the eyes. 
 
 "Ishmael! Ishmael!" she said, "you parted from the 
 boy in your wrath!" 
 
 "May the Lord pardon his sins freely as I have forgiven 
 his worst misdeeds!" calmly returned the squatter; 
 "woman go you back to the rock and read your Bible; a 
 chapter in that book always does you good. You caw- 
 read, Eester; which is a privilege I never did enjoy." 
 
 "Yes, yes," muttered the woman, yielding to his 
 strength, and suffering herself to be led, though with 
 strong reluctance, from the spot. "I can read; and how 
 have I used the knowledge! But he, Ishmael, he has not 
 the sin of wasted Taming to answer for. We have spared 
 him that at least! whether it be in mercy or in cruelty, 
 I know not. 
 
 Her husband made no reply but continued steadily to 
 lead her in the direction of her temporary abode. When 
 they reached the summit of the swell of the land, which 
 they knew was the last spot from which the situation of 
 the grave of Asa could be seen, they all turned, as by 
 common concurrence, to take a farewell view of the place. 
 The little mound itself was not visible; but it was fright 
 fully indicated by the flock of screaming birds which hov 
 ered above. In the opposite direction a low, blue hillock, 
 in the skirts of the horizon, pointed out the place where 
 Esther had left the rest of her young, and served as an 
 attraction to draw her reluctant steps from the last abode 
 
160 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 of her eldest-born. Nature quickened in the bosom of the 
 mother at the sight; and she finally yielded the rights of 
 the dead to the more urgent claims of the living. 
 
 The foregoing occurrences had struck a spark from the 
 stern tempers of a set of beings so singularly moulded in 
 the habits of their uncultivated lives, which served to 
 keep alive among them the dying embers of family affec 
 tion. United to their parents by ties no stronger than 
 those which use had created, there had been great danger, 
 as Ishmael had foreseen, that the overloaded hive would 
 swarm, and leave him saddled with the difficulties of a 
 young and helpless brood, unsupported by the exertions of 
 those whom he had already brought to a state of maturity. 
 The spirit of insubordination, which emanated from the 
 unfortunate Asa, had spread among his juniors; and the 
 squatter had been made painfully to remember the time 
 when, in the wantonness of his youth and vigor, he had, 
 reversing the order of the brutes, cast off his own aged 
 and failing parents, to enter into the world unshackled 
 and free. But the danger had now abated, for a time at 
 least; and if his authority was not restored with all its 
 former influence, it was admitted to exist, and to main 
 tain its ascendency a little longer. 
 
 It is true that his slow-minded sons, even while they 
 submitted to the impressions of the recent event, had 
 glimmerings of terrible distrust as to the manner in 
 which their eldest brother had met with his death. There 
 were faint and indistinct images in the minds of two or 
 three of the oldest, which portrayed the father himself as 
 ready to imitate the example of Abraham, without the 
 justification of the sacred authority which commanded the 
 holy man to attempt the revolting office. But then these 
 images were so transient, and so much obscured in intel 
 lectual mists, as to leave no very strong impressions; and 
 the tendency of the whole transaction, as we have already 
 said, was rather to strengthen than to weaken the author 
 ity of Ishmael. 
 
 In this disposition of mind the party continued their 
 route towards the place whence they had that morning 
 issued on a search which had been crowned with so mel 
 ancholy a success. 
 
THE PRAIRIE 161 
 
 The long and fruitless march which they had made 
 under the direction of Abiram, the discovery of the body 
 and its subsequent interment, had so far consumed the day 
 that by the time their steps were retraced across the broad 
 tract of waste which lay between the grave of Asa and the 
 rock, the sun had fallen far below his meridian altitude. 
 The hill had gradually risen as they approached, like 
 some tower emerging from the bosom of the sea, and 
 when within a mile, the minuter objects that crowned its 
 height came dimly into view. 
 
 "It will be a sad meeting for the girls!" said Ishmael, 
 who, from time to time, did not cease to utter something 
 which he intended should be consolatory to the bruised 
 spirit of his partner. "Asa was much regarded by all the 
 young, and seldom failed to bring in from his hunts some 
 thing that they loved." 
 
 "He did, he did," murmured Esther; "the boy was the 
 pride of the family. My other children are as nothing 
 to him." 
 
 "Say not so, good woman," returned the father, glanc 
 ing his eye a little proudly at the athletic train which 
 followed at no great distance in the rear. "Say not so, 
 old Eester; for few fathers and mothers have greater 
 reason to be boastful than ourselves. 
 
 "Thankful, thankful," muttered the humbled woman; 
 "ye mean thankful, Ishmael!" 
 
 "Then thankful let it be, if you like the word better, 
 my good girl, but what has become of Nelly and the 
 young! The child has forgotten the charge I gave her, 
 and has not only suffered the children to sleep, but I war 
 rant you is dreaming of the fields of Tennessee at this 
 very moment. The mind of your niece is mainly fixed on 
 the settlements, I reckon." 
 
 "Ay, she is not for us; I said it, and thought it, when 
 I took her, because death had stripped her of all other 
 friends. Death is a sad worker in the bosoms of families, 
 Ishmael! Asa had a kind feeling to the child, and they 
 might have come one day into our places, had things been 
 so ordered." 
 
 "Nay, she is not gifted for a frontier wife, if this is 
 the manner she is to keep house while the husband is on 
 
 11 
 
162 THE PRAIEIE 
 
 the hunt. Abner, let off your rifle, that they may know 
 we ar coming. I fear Nelly and the young ar asleep." 
 
 The young man complied with an alacrity that mani 
 fested how gladly he would see the rounded, active figure 
 of Ellen enlivening the ragged summit of the rock. But 
 the report was succeeded by neither signal nor answer of 
 any sort. For a moment the whole party stood in suspense, 
 awaiting the result, and then a simultaneous impulse 
 caused the whole to let off their pieces at the same instant, 
 producing a noise which might not fail to reach the ears 
 of all within so short a distance. 
 
 "Ah! there they come at last!" cried Abiram, who was 
 usually among the first to seize on any circumstance which 
 promised relief from disagreeable apprehensions. 
 
 "It is a petticoat fluttering on the line," said Esther; 
 "I put it there myself." 
 
 "You are right: but now she comes; the jade has been 
 taking her comfort in the tent!" 
 
 "It is not so, " said Ishmael, whose usually inflexible 
 features were beginning to manifest the uneasiness he 
 felt. "It is the tent itself blowing about loosely in the 
 wind. They have loosened the bottom, like silly children 
 as they ar and unless care is had, the whole will come 
 down!" 
 
 The words were scarcely uttered before a rushing blast 
 of wind swept by the spot where they stood, raising the 
 dust in little eddies, in its progress; and then, as if guided 
 by a master hand, it quitted the earth, and mounted to the 
 precise spot on which all eyes were just then riveted. The 
 loosened linen felt its influence and tottered; but regained 
 its poise, and for a moment it became tranquil. The cloud 
 of leaves next played in circling revolutions around the 
 place, and then descended with the velocity of a swooping 
 hawk, and sailed away into the prairie in long straight 
 lines, like a flight of swallows resting on their expanded 
 wings. They were followed for some distance by the snow 
 white tent, which, however, soon fell behind the rock, 
 leaving its highest peak as naked as when it lay in the 
 entire solitude of the desert. 
 
 The murderers have been here ! moaned Esther. "My 
 babes! my babes!" 
 
THE PRAIRIE 163 
 
 For a moment even Ishmael faltered before the weight 
 of so unexpected a blow. But shaking himself like an 
 awakened lion, he sprang forward, and pushing aside the 
 impediments of the barrier as if they had been feathers, 
 he rushed up the ascent with an impetuosity which proved 
 how formidable a sluggish nature may become when 
 thoroughly aroused. 
 
CHAPTER XIV 
 
 " Whose party do the townsmen yet admit?" 
 
 KING JOHN. 
 
 IN order to preserve an even pace between the incidents 
 of the tale, it becomes necessary to revert to such events 
 as occurred during the ward of Ellen Wade. 
 
 For the first few hours the cares of the honest and warm 
 hearted girl were confined to the simple offices of satisfy 
 ing the of ten- repeated demands which her younger asso 
 ciates made on her time and patience, under the pretenses 
 of hunger, thirst, and all the other ceaseless wants of cap 
 tious and inconsiderate childhood. She had seized a mo 
 ment from their importunities to steal into the tent, where 
 she was administering to the comforts of one far more 
 deserving of her tenderness, when an outcry among the 
 children recalled her to the duties she had momentarily 
 forgotten. 
 
 "See, Nelly, see!" exclaimed half a dozen eager voices; 
 "yonder ar men; and Phoebe says that they ar Sioux 
 Indians!" 
 
 Ellen turned her eyes in the direction in which so many 
 arms were already extended, and to her consternation be 
 held several men advancing, manifestly and swiftly, in a 
 straight line towards the rock. She counted four, but 
 was unable to make out anything concerning their charac 
 ters, except that they were not any of those who of right 
 were entitled to admission into the fortress. It was a fear 
 ful moment for Ellen. Looking around at the juvenile and 
 frightened flock that pressed upon the skirts of her gar 
 ments, she endeavored to recall to her confused faculties 
 some one of the many tales of female heroism with which 
 the history of the western] frontier abounded. In one, a 
 stockade had been successfully defended by a single man, 
 supported by three or four women, for days, against the 
 assaults of a hundred enemies. In another, the women 
 alone had been able to protect the children, and the less. 
 
 164 
 
THE PRAIRIE 165 
 
 valuable effects of their absent husbands; and a third was 
 not wanting, in which a solitary female had destroyed her 
 sleeping captors and given liberty not only to herself but 
 to a brood of helpless young. This was the case most 
 nearly assimilated to the situation in which Ellen now 
 found herself; and, with flushing cheeks and kindling eyes, 
 the girl began to consider, and to prepare her slender 
 means of defense. 
 
 She posted the larger girls at the little levers that were 
 to cast the rocks on the assailants; the smaller were to be 
 used more for show than any positive service they could 
 perform; while like any other leader she reserved her own 
 person as a superintendent and encourager of the whole. 
 When these dispositions were made she endeavored to 
 await the issue with an air of composure that she intended 
 should inspire her assistants with the confidence necessary 
 to insure success. 
 
 Although Ellen was vastly their superior in that spirit 
 which emanates from moral qualities, she was by no 
 means the equal of the two oldest daughters of Esther, in 
 the important military property of insensibility to dan 
 ger. Reared in the hardihood of a migrating life on the 
 skirts of society, where they had become familiarized to 
 the sights and dangers of the wilderness, these girls prom 
 ised fairly to become, at some future day, no less distin 
 guished than their mother for daring and for that singular 
 mixture of good and evil, which, in a wider sphere of 
 action, would probably have enabled the wife of the 
 squatter to enroll her name among the remarkable females 
 of her time. Esther had already, on one occasion, made 
 good the log tenement of Ishmael against an inroad of 
 savages ; and on another, she had been left for dead by her 
 enemies, after a defense that, with a more civilized foe, 
 would have entitled her to the honors of a liberal capitula 
 tion. These facts, and sundry others of a similar nature, 
 had often been recapitulated with suitable exultation in 
 the presence of her daughters, and the bosoms of the 
 young Amazons were now strangely fluctuating between 
 natural terror and the ambitious wish to do something 
 that might render them worthy of being the children of 
 such a mother. It appeared that the opportunity for dis- 
 
166 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 tinction of this wild character was no longer to be denied 
 them. 
 
 The party of strangers was already within a hundred 
 rods of the rock. Either consulting their usual wary 
 method of advancing, or admonished by the threatening 
 attitudes of two figures, who had thrust forth the barrels 
 of as many old muskets from behind the stone entrench 
 ment, the new-comers halted, under favor of an inequality 
 in the ground, where a growth of grass thicker than com 
 mon offered the advantage of concealment. From this 
 spot they reconnoitered the fortress for several anxious, 
 and to Ellen, interminable minutes. Then one advanced 
 singly, and apparently more in the character of a herald 
 than of an assailant. 
 
 "Phoebe, do you fire," and "No, Hetty, you," were 
 beginning to be heard between the half frightened and 
 yet eager daughters of the squatter, when Ellen probably 
 saved the advancing stranger from some imminent alarm, 
 if from no greater danger, by exclaiming: 
 
 "Lay down the muskets; it is Dr. Battius!" 
 
 Her subordinates so far complied as to withdraw their 
 hands from the locks, though the threatening barrels still 
 maintained the portentous levels. The naturalist, who 
 had advanced with sufficient deliberation to note the 
 smallest hostile demonstration of the garrison, now raised 
 a white handkerchief on the end of his fusee, and came 
 within speaking distance of the fortress. Then assuming 
 what he intended should be an imposing and dignified 
 semblance of authority, he blustered forth in a voice that 
 might have been heard at a much greater distance: 
 
 "What, ho! I summon ye all, in the name of the Con 
 federacy of the United Sovereign States of North America, 
 to submit yourselves to the laws." 
 
 "Doctor or no Doctor; he is an enemy, Nelly; hear him! 
 hear him! he talks of the law." 
 
 "Stop! stay till I hear his answer!" said the nearly 
 breathless Ellen, pushing aside the dangerous weapons 
 which were again pointed in the direction of the shrink 
 ing person of the herald. 
 
 "I admonish and forewarn ye all," continued the start 
 led Doctor, "that I am a peaceful citizen of the before 
 
THE PRAIRIE 167 
 
 named Confederacy, or to speak with greater accuracy, 
 Union, a supporter of the social compact, and a lover of 
 good order and amity;" then, perceiving that the danger 
 was at least temporarily removed, he once more raised his 
 voice to the hostile pitch: "I charge ye all, therefore, to 
 submit to the laws." 
 
 "I thought you were a friend, Ellen replied ; "and that 
 you traveled with my uncle, in virtue of an agreement." 
 
 "It is void! I have been deceived in the very prem 
 ises, and I hereby pronounce a certain compactum, entered 
 into and concluded between Ishmael Bush, squatter, and 
 Obed Battius, M. D., to be incontinently null and of non- 
 effect. Nay, children, to be null is merely a negative 
 property, and is fraught with no evil to your worthy par 
 ent; so lay aside the fire-arms, and listen to the admoni 
 tions of reason. I declare it vicious null abrogated. 
 As for thee, Nelly, my feelings towards thee are not at all 
 given to hostility; therefore listen to that which I have 
 to utter, nor turn away thine ears in the wantonness of 
 security. Thou knowest the character of the man with 
 whom thou dwellest, young woman, and thou also knowest 
 the danger of being found in evil company. Abandon 
 then, the trifling advantages of thy situation, and yield 
 the rock peaceably to the will of those who accompany me 
 a legion, young woman I do assure you an invincible 
 and powerful legion! Render, therefore, the effects of 
 this lawless and wicked squatter nay, children, such dis 
 regard of human life is frightful in those who have so 
 recently received the gift, in their own persons! Point 
 those dangerous weapons aside, I entreat of you; more for 
 your own sakes than for mine. Hetty, hast thou forgotten 
 who appeased thine anguish, when thy auricular nerves 
 were tortured by the colds and damps of the naked earth ! 
 and thou, Phoebe, ungrateful and forgetful Phoebe! but 
 for this very arm, which you would prostrate with an 
 endless paralysis, thy incisors would still be giving thee 
 pain and sorrow! Lay, then, aside thy weapons, and 
 hearken to the advice of one who has always been thy 
 friend. And now, young women, still keeping a jealous 
 eye on the muskets which the girl had suffered to b 
 verted a little from their own aim, "and now young 
 
168 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 women, for the last, and therefore the most solemn ask 
 ing: I demand of thee the surrender of this rock, without 
 delay or resistance, in the joint names of power, of jus 
 tice, and of the" law he would have added; but recol 
 lecting that this ominous word would again provoke the 
 hostility of the squatter s children, he succeeded in swal 
 lowing it in good season, and concluded with the less dan 
 gerous and more convertible term of "reason." 
 
 This extraordinary summons failed, however, of pro 
 ducing the desired effect. It proved utterly unintelligible 
 to his younger listeners, with the exception of the few 
 offensive terms, already sufficiently distinguished; and 
 though Ellen better comprehended the meaning of the 
 herald, she appeared as little moved by his rhetoric as her 
 companions. At those passages which he intended should 
 be tender and affecting, the intelligent girl, though tor 
 tured by painful feelings, had even manifested a disposi 
 tion to laugh, while to the threats she turned an utterly 
 insensible ear. 
 
 "I know not the meaning of all you wish to say, Dr. 
 Battius, " she quietly replied, when he had ended; "but I 
 am sure if it would teach me to betray my trust, it is 
 what I ought not to hear. I caution you to attempt no 
 violence, for let my wishes be what they may, you see I 
 am surrounded by a force that can easily put me down, 
 and you know, or ought to know, too well the temper of 
 this family, to trifle in such a matter with any if its 
 members, let them be of what sex or age they may." 
 
 "I am not entirely ignorant of human character," re 
 turned the naturalist, prudently receding a little from 
 the position which he had until now stoutly maintained at 
 the very base of the hill. "But here comes one who may 
 know its secret windings still better than I." 
 
 "Ellen! Ellen Wade," cried Paul Hover, who had ad 
 vanced to his elbow, without betraying any of that sensi 
 tiveness which had so manifestly discomposed the Doctor, 
 "I didn t expect to find an enemy in you!" 
 
 "Nor shall you, when you ask that which I can grant 
 without treachery. You know that my uncle has trusted 
 his family to my care, and shall I so far betray the trust 
 as to let in his bitterest enemies to murder his children 
 
THE PRAIRIE 169 
 
 perhaps, and to rob him of the little which the Indians 
 have left?" 
 
 "Arn^I a murderer is this old man this officer of the 
 States, " pointing to the trapper and his newly discovered 
 friend, both of whom by this time stood at his side, "is 
 either of these likely to do the things you name?" 
 
 "What is it then you ask of me?" said Ellen, wringing 
 her hands, in excessive doubt. 
 
 "The beast! nothing more or less than the squatter s 
 hidden ravenous, dangerous beast!" 
 
 "Excellent young woman," commenced the young 
 stranger, who had so lately joined himself to the party on 
 the prairie but his mouth was immediately stopped by 
 a significant sign from the trapper, who whispered in his 
 ear: 
 
 "Let the lad be our spokesman. Natur will work in 
 the bosom of the child, and we shall gain our object in 
 good time." 
 
 "The whole truth is out, Ellen," Paul continued, "and 
 we have lined the squatter into his most secret misdoings. 
 We have come to right the wronged and to free the im 
 prisoned; now, if you are the girl of a true heart, as 1 
 have always believed, so far from throwing straws in our 
 way, you will join in the general swarming, and leave old 
 Ishmael and his hive to the bees of his own breed." 
 "I have sworn a solemn oath 
 
 "A compactum which is entered into through ignorance 
 or in duresse, is null in the sight of all good moralists," 
 cried the Doctor. 
 
 "Hush, hush," again the trapper whispered; "leave it 
 all to natur and the lad!" 
 
 "I have sworn in the sight and by the name of Him 
 who is the founder and ruler of all that is good, whether 
 it be in morals or in religion," Ellen continued, "neither 
 to reveal the contents of that tent nor to help its prisoner 
 to escape. We are both solemnly, terribly sworn; our 
 lives perhaps have been the gift we received for the prom 
 ises. It is true you are masters of the secret, but not 
 through any means of ours; nor do I know that I can jus 
 tify myself for even being neutral, while you attempt to 
 invade the dwelling of my uncle in this hostile manner." 
 
170 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 "I can prove beyond the power of refutation," the 
 naturalist eagerly exclaimed, "by Paley, Berkeley, ay, 
 even by the immortal Bynkershoeck, that a compactum, 
 concluded while one of the parties, be it a state or be it 
 an individual, is in durance 
 
 "You will ruffle the temper of the child with your 
 abusive language," said the cautious trapper, "while the 
 lad, if left to human feelings, will bring her down to the 
 meekness of a fawn. Ah! you are like myself, little 
 knowing in the natur of hidden kindnesses!" 
 
 "Is this the only vow you have taken, Ellen?" Paul 
 continued, in a tone which for the gay, light-hearted bee- 
 hunter, sounded dolorous and reproachful. "Have you 
 sworn only to this? are the words which the squatter says 
 to be as honey in your mouth, and all other promises like 
 so much useless comb?" 
 
 The paleness which had taken possession of the usually 
 cheerful countenance of Ellen, was hid in a bright glow 
 that was plainly visible even at the distance at which she 
 stood. She hesitated a moment, as if struggling to repress 
 something very like resentment, before she answered with 
 all her native spirit. 
 
 "I know not what right any one has to question me 
 about oaths and promises, which can only concern her 
 who has made them, if, indeed, any of the sort you men 
 tion have ever been made at all. I shall hold no further 
 discourse with one who thinks so much of himself, and 
 takes advice merely of his own feelings." 
 
 "Now, old trapper, do you hear that!" said the unso 
 phisticated bee-hunter, turning abruptly to his aged 
 friend. "The meanest insect that skims the heavens, 
 when it has got its load, flies straight and honestly to its 
 nest or hive, according to its kind; but the ways of a 
 woman s mind are as knotty as a gnarled oak, and more 
 crooked than the windings of the Mississippi!" 
 
 "Nay, nay child," said the trapper, good-naturedly 
 interfering in behalf of the offending Paul, "you are to 
 consider that youth is hasty, and not overgiven to thought. 
 But then a promise is a promise, and not to be thrown 
 aside and forgotten, like the hoofs and horns of a buffalo." 
 
 "I thank you for reminding me of my oath," said the 
 
THE PRAIRIE 171 
 
 still resentful Ellen, biting her pretty nether lip with 
 vexation; "I might else have proved forgetful!" 
 
 "Ah! female natur is awakened in her," said the old 
 man, shaking his head in a manner to show how much he 
 was disappointed in the result; "but it manifests itself 
 against the true spirit!" 
 
 "Ellen!" cried the young stranger, who until now had 
 been an attentive listener to the parley, "since Ellen is 
 
 the name by which you are known " 
 
 "They often add to it another. I am sometimes called 
 by the name of my father. 
 
 "Call her Nelly Wade at once," muttered Paul; "it is 
 her rightful name, and I care not if she keeps it forever!" 
 "Wade, I should have added," continued the youth. 
 "You will acknowledge that, though bound by no oath 
 myself, I at least have known how to respect those of 
 others. You are a witness yourself that I have forborne 
 to utter a single call, while I am certain it could reach 
 those ears it would gladden so much. Permit me then to 
 ascend the rock, singly; I promise a perfect indemnity to 
 your kinsman, against any injury his effects may sustain." 
 Ellen seemed to hesitate, but catching a glimpse of 
 Paul, who stood leaning proudly on his rifle, whistling, 
 with an appearance of the utmost indifference, the air of 
 a boating song, she recovered her recollection in time to 
 answer : 
 
 "I have been left the captain of the rock, while my 
 uncle and his sons hunt, and captain will I remain till he 
 returns to receive back the charge." 
 
 "This is wasting moments that will not soon return, 
 and neglecting an opportunity that may never occur 
 again," the young soldier gravely remarked. "The sun 
 is beginning to fall already, and many minutes cannot 
 elapse before the squatter and his savage brood will be 
 returning to their huts." 
 
 Doctor Battius cast a glance behind him, and took up 
 the discourse by saying: 
 
 "Perfection is always found in maturity, whether it be 
 in the animal or in the intellectual world. Reflection is 
 the mother of wisdom, and wisdom the parent of success. 
 I propose that we retire to a discreet distance from this 
 
172 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 impregnable position, and there hold a convocation, or 
 council, to deliberate on what manner we may sit down 
 regularly before the place; or, perhaps, by postponing 
 the siege to another season, gain the aid of auxiliaries 
 from the inhabited countries, and thus secure the dignity 
 of the laws from any danger of a repulse. 
 
 "A storm would be better," the soldier smilingly an 
 swered, measuring the height and scanning all its diffi 
 culties with a deliberate eye; " twould be but a broken 
 arm or a bruised head at the worst." 
 
 "Then have at it!" shouted the impetuous bee-hunter, 
 making a spring that at once put him out of danger from 
 shot, by carrying him beneath the projecting ledge on 
 which the garrison was posted; "now do your worst, young 
 devils of a wicked breed; you have but a moment to work 
 your mischief!" 
 
 "Paul! rash Paul!" shrieked Ellen; "another step and 
 the rocks will crush you! They hang but by a thread, 
 and these girls are ready and willing to let them fall!" 
 
 "Then drive the accursed swarm from the hive; for 
 scale the rock I will, though I find it covered with 
 hornets. 
 
 "Let her if she dare!" tauntingly cried the eldest of 
 the girls, brandishing a musket with a mien and resolu 
 tion that would have done credit to her Amazonian dam. 
 "I know you, Nelly Wade; you are with the lawyers in 
 your heart, and if you come a foot nigher, you shall have 
 frontier punishment. Put in another pry, girls; in with 
 it! I should like to see the man of them all that dare 
 come up into the camp of Ishmael Bush, without asking 
 leave of his children!" 
 
 "Stir not Paul, for your life keep beneath the rock!" 
 
 Ellen was interrupted by the same bright vision, which 
 on the preceding day had stayed another scarcely less por 
 tentous tumult, by exhibiting itself on the same giddy 
 height where it was now seen. 
 
 "In the name of Him who commandeth all, I implore 
 you to pause both you, who so madly incur the risk, and 
 you, who so rashly offer to take that which you never can 
 return!" said a voice, in a slightly foreign accent, that 
 instantly drew all eyes upwards. 
 
THE PRAIRIE 173 
 
 
 
 "Inez!" cried the officer, "do I again see you! Mine 
 shall you now be, though a million devils were posted on 
 this rock. Push up, brave woodsman, and give room for 
 another ! 
 
 The sudden appearance of the figure from the tent had 
 created a momentary stupor among the defenders of the 
 rock, which might, with suitable forbearance, have been 
 happily improved; but startled by the voice of Middleton, 
 the surprised Phoebe discharged her musket at the female, 
 scarcely knowing whether she aimed at the life of a mor 
 tal or at some being which belonged to another world. 
 Ellen uttered a cry of horror, and then sprang after her 
 alarmed or wounded friend, she knew not which, into the 
 tent. 
 
 During this moment of dangerous by-play, the sounds 
 of a serious attack were very distinctly audible beneath. 
 Paul had profited by the commotion over his head to 
 change his place so far as to make room for Middleton. 
 The latter was followed by the naturalist, who, in a state 
 of mental aberration, produced by the report of the 
 musket, had instinctively rushed towards the rocks for 
 cover. The trapper remained where he was last seen, an 
 unmoved but close observer of the several proceedings. 
 Though averse to enter into actual hostilities, the old man 
 was, however, far from being useless. Favored by his 
 position, he was enabled to apprise his friends of the 
 movements of those who plotted their destruction above, 
 and to advise and control their advance accordingly. 
 
 In the meantime, the children of Esther were true to 
 the spirit they had inherited from their redoubtable 
 mother. The instant they found themselves delivered 
 from the presence of Ellen and her unknown companion, 
 they bestowed an undivided attention on their more mas 
 culine and certainly more dangerous assailants, who by 
 this time had made a complete lodgment among the crags 
 of the citadel. The repeated summons to surrender, which 
 Paul uttered in a voice that he intended should strike ter 
 ror into their young bosoms, were as little heeded as were 
 the calls of the trapper to abandon a resistance whicl 
 might prove fatal to some among them, without offerin 
 the smallest probability of eventual success. Encouraging 
 
174 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 each other to persevere, they poised the fragments of 
 rocks, prepared the lighter missiles for immediate service, 
 and thrust forward the barrels of the muskets with a busi 
 ness-like air, and a coolness, that would have done credit 
 to men practised in warfare. 
 
 "Keep under the ledge," said the trapper, pointing out 
 to Paul the manner in which he should proceed; "keep in 
 your foot more, lad ah! you see the warning was not 
 amiss! had the stone struck it, the bees would have had 
 the prairies to themselves. Now, namesake of my friend; 
 Uncas, in name and spirit! now, if you have the activity 
 of Le Cerf Agile, you may make a fair leap to the right, 
 and gain twenty feet without danger. Beware the bush 
 beware the bush! twill prove a treacherous hold! Ah! 
 he has done it; safely and bravely has he done it! Your 
 turn comes next, friend, that follows the fruits of natur . 
 Push you to the left, and divide the attention to the chil 
 dren. Nay, girls, fire my old ears are used to the whis 
 tling of lead; and little reason have I to prove a doe-heart 
 with fourscore years on my back. " He shook his head 
 with a melancholy smile, but without flinching in a muscle 
 as the bullet, which the exasperated Hetty fired, passed 
 innocently at no great distance from the spot where he 
 stood. 
 
 "It is safer keeping in your track than dodging when a 
 weak finger pulls the trigger," he continued; "but it is 
 a solemn sight to witness how much human natur is in 
 clined to evil, in one so young! Well done, my man of 
 beasts and plants! Another such leap, and you may laugh 
 at all the squatter s bars and walls. The Doctor has got 
 his temper up! I see it in his eye, and something good 
 will come of him! Keep closer, man keep closer!" 
 
 The trapper, though he was not deceived as to the state 
 of Dr. Battius mind, was, however, greatly in error as to 
 the exciting cause. While imitating the movements of his 
 companions, and toiling his way upwards with the utmost 
 caution, and not without great inward tribulation, the 
 eye of the naturalist had caught a glimpse of an unknown 
 plant, a few yards above his head, and in a situation more 
 than commonly exposed to the missiles which the girls were 
 unceasingly hurling in the direction of the assailants. 
 
THE PRAIRIE 175 
 
 Forgetting, in an instant, everything but the glory of 
 being the first to give this jewel to the catalogues of 
 science, he sprang upwards at the prize with the avidity 
 with which the sparrow darts upon the butterfly. The 
 rocks, which instantly came thundering down, announced 
 that he was seen; and for a moment, while his form was 
 concealed in the cloud of dust and fragments which fol 
 lowed the furious descent, the trapper gave him up for 
 lost; but the next instant he was seen safely seated in a 
 cavity, formed by some of the projecting stones which had 
 yielded to the shock, holding triumphantly in his hand 
 the captured stem, which he was already devouring with 
 delighted, and certainly not unskillful eyes. Paul profited 
 by the opportunity. Turning his course, with the quick 
 ness of thought, he sprang to the post which Obed thus 
 securely occupied, and unceremoniously making a footstool 
 of his shoulder, as the latter stooped over his treasure, he 
 bounded through the breach left by the fallen rock, and 
 gained the level. He was followed by Middleton, who 
 joined him in seizing and disarming the girls. In this 
 manner a bloodless and complete victory was obtained over 
 that citadel which Ishmael had vainly flattered himself 
 might prove impregnable. 
 
CHAPTER XV 
 
 "So smile the heavens upon this holy actv 
 That after-hours with sorrow chide us not." 
 
 SHAKESPEARET. 
 
 IT is proper that the course of the narrative should be 
 stayed, while we revert to those causes which have brought 
 in their train of consequences the singular contest just 
 related. The interruption must necessarily be as brief 
 as we hope it may prove satisfactory to that class of read 
 ers who require that no gap should be left by those who 
 assume the office of historians, for their own fertile 
 imaginations to fill. 
 
 Among the troops sent by the government of the United 
 States, to take possession of its newly acquired territory 
 in the west, was a detachment led by the young soldier 
 who has become so busy an actor in the scenes of our 
 legend. The mild and indolent descendants of the ancient 
 colonists received their new compatriots without distrust, 
 well knowing that the transfer raised them from the con 
 dition of subjects to the more enviable distinction of citi 
 zens in a government of laws. The new rulers exercised 
 their functions with discretion, and wielded their dele 
 gated authority without offense. In such a novel inter 
 mixture, however, of men born and nurtured in freedom, 
 and the compliant minions of absolute power, the Catholic 
 and the Protestant, the active and the indolent, some 
 little time was necessary to blend the discrepant elements 
 of society. In attaining so desirable an end, woman was 
 made to perform her accustomed and grateful office. The 
 barriers of prejudice and religion were broken through 
 by the irresistible power of the master passion; and fam 
 ily unions, ere long, began to cement the political tie 
 which had made a forced conjunction between people so 
 opposite in their habits, their educations, and their 
 opinions. 
 
 Middleton was among the first of the new possessors of 
 
 176 
 
THE PRAIRIE 177 
 
 the soil, who became captive to the charms of a Louisi- 
 anian lady. In the immediate vicinity of the post he had 
 been directed to occupy, dwelt the chief of one of those 
 ancient colonial families, which had been content to slum 
 ber for ages amid the ease, indolence, and wealth of the 
 Spanish provinces. He was an officer of the crown, and 
 had been induced to remove from the Floridas, among 
 the French of the adjoining province, by a rich succession 
 of which he had become the inheritor. The name of Don 
 Augustin de Certavallos was scarcely known beyond the 
 limits of the little town in which he resided, though he 
 found a secret pleasure himself in pointing it out, in 
 large scrolls of musty documents, to an only child, as en 
 rolled among the former heroes and grandees of Old and 
 of New Spain. This fact, so important to himself and of 
 so little moment to anybody else, was the principal reason 
 that, while his more vivacious Gallic neighbors were not 
 slow to open a frank communion with their visitors, he 
 chose to keep aloof, seemingly content with the society 
 of his daughter, who was a girl just emerging from the 
 condition of childhood into that of a woman. 
 
 The curiosity of the youthful Inez, however, was not so 
 inactive. She had not heard the martial music of the 
 garrison melting on the evening air, nor seen the strange 
 banner which fluttered over the heights that rose at no 
 great distance from her father s extensive grounds, with 
 out experiencing some of those secret impulses which art- 
 thought to distinguish the sex. Natural timidity, and that 
 retiring and perhaps peculiar lassitude, which forms th? 
 very groundwork of female fascination in the tropical 
 provinces of Spain, held her in their seemingly indissol 
 uble bonds; and it is more than probable, that had not 
 an accident occurred in which Middleton was of some 
 personal service to her father, so long a time would have 
 elapsed before they met, that another direction might 
 have been given to the wishes of one who was just of an 
 age to be alive to all the power of youth and beauty. 
 
 Providence or if that imposing word is too just to t 
 classical, fate had otherwise decreed. The haughty ani 
 reserved Don Augustin was by far too observant of th< 
 forms of that station, on which he so much valued 
 12 
 
178 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 self, to forget the duties of a gentleman. Gratitude for 
 the kindness of Middleton induced him to open his doors 
 to the officers of the garrison, and to admit of a guarded 
 but polite intercourse. Reserve gradually gave way be 
 fore the propriety and candor of their spirited young 
 leader, and it was not long ere the affluent planter rejoiced 
 as much as his daughter, whenever the well-known signal 
 at the gate announced one of these agreeable visits from 
 the commander of the post. 
 
 It is unnecessary to dwell on the impression which the 
 charms of Inez produced on the soldier, or to delay the 
 tale in order to write a wire-drawn account of the pro 
 gressive influence that elegance of deportment, manly 
 beauty, and undivided assiduity and intelligence, were 
 likely to produce on the sensitive mind of a romantic, 
 warm-hearted, and secluded girl of sixteen. It is suffi 
 cient for our purpose to say that they loved, that the youth 
 was not backward to declare his feelings, that he prevailed 
 with some facility over the scruples of the maiden, and 
 with no little difficulty over the objections of her father, 
 and that before the province of Louisiana had been six 
 months in the possession of the States, the officer of the 
 latter was the affianced husband of the richest heiress on 
 the banks of the Mississippi. 
 
 Although we have presumed the reader to be acquainted 
 with the manner in which such results are commonly at 
 tained, it is not to be supposed that the triumph of Mid 
 dleton, either over the prejudices of the father or over 
 those of the daughter, was achieved without difficulty. 
 Religion formed a stubborn and nearly irremovable ob 
 stacle with both. The devoted young man patiently sub 
 mitted to a formidable essay which Father Ignatius was 
 deputed to make in order to convert him to the true faith. 
 The effort on the part of the worthy priest was system 
 atic, vigorous, and long sustained. A dozen times (it 
 was at those moments when glimpses of the light, sylph- 
 like form of Inez flitted like some fairy being past the 
 scene of their conferences) the good father fancied he 
 was on the eve of a glorious triumph over infidelity; but 
 all his hopes were frustrated by some unlooked-for oppo 
 sition on the part of the subject of his pious labors. So 
 
THE PRAIRIE 1 79 
 
 ^ 8 the assault on his faith was distant and feeble 
 Middleton, who was no great proficient in polemics sub 
 mitted to its effects with the patience and humility of a 
 martyr; but the moment the good father, who felt such 
 concern in his future happiness, was tempted to improve 
 his vantage ground by calling in the aid of some of the 
 peculiar subtilties of his own creed, the young man was 
 too good a soldier not to make head against the hot at 
 tack. He came to the contest, it is true, with no weapons 
 more formidable than common sense, and some little 
 knowledge of the habits of his country as contrasted with 
 that of his adversary; but with these home-bred imple 
 ments he never failed to repulse the father with some 
 thing of the power with which a nervous cudgel-player 
 would deal with a skillful master of the rapier, setting 
 at naught his passadoes by the direct and unanswerable 
 arguments of a broken head and a shivered weapon. 
 
 Before the controversy was terminated, an inroad of 
 Protestants had come to aid the soldier. The reckless 
 freedom of such among them as thought only of this life, 
 and the consistent and tempered piety of others, caused 
 the honest priest to look about him in concern. The in 
 fluence of example on the one hand, and the contamina 
 tion of too free an intercourse on the other, began to 
 manifest themselves even in that portion of his own flock 
 which he had supposed to be too thoroughly folded in 
 spiritual government ever to stray. It was time to turn 
 his thoughts from the offensive, and to prepare his fol 
 lowers to resist the lawless deluge of opinion which 
 threatened to break down the barriers of their faith. 
 Like a wise commander who finds he has occupied too 
 much ground for the amount of his force, he began to 
 curtail his outworks. The relics were concealed from 
 profane eyes; his people were admonished not to speak of 
 miracles before a race that not only denied their exist 
 ence, but who had even the desperate hardihood to chal 
 lenge their proofs; and even the Bible itself was prohib 
 ited with terrible denunciations, for the triumphant reason 
 that it was liable to be misinterpreted. 
 
 In the meantime it became necessary to report to Don 
 Aug^istin tke effects his arguments and prayers had pro- 
 
180 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 duced on the heretical disposition of the young soldier. 
 No man is prone to confess his weakness at the very 
 moment when circumstances demand the utmost efforts 
 of his strength. By a species of pious fraud, for which 
 no doubt the worthy priest found his absolution in the 
 purity of his motives, he declared that while no positive 
 change was actually wrought in the mind of Middleton, 
 there was every reason to hope the entering wedge of 
 argument had been driven to its head, and that in conse 
 quence an opening was left through which it might 
 rationally be hoped the blessed seeds of a religious fruc 
 tification would find their way, especially if the subject 
 was left uninterruptedly to enjoy the advantage of Cath 
 olic communion. 
 
 Don Augustin himself was now seized with the desire 
 of proselyting. Even the soft and amiable Inez thought 
 it would be a glorious consummation of her wishes to be 
 a humble instrument of bringing her lover into the bosom 
 of the true Church. The offers of Middleton were promptly 
 accepted; and, while the father looked forward impa 
 tiently to the day assigned for the nuptials as to the 
 pledge of his own success, the daughter thought of it 
 with feelings in which the holy emotions of her faith 
 were blended with the softer sensations of her years and 
 situation. 
 
 The sun rose, the morning of her nuptials, on a day so 
 bright and cloudless, that Inez hailed it as a harbinger 
 of future happiness. Father Ignatius performed the 
 offices of the church in a little chapel attached to the 
 estate of Don Augustin; and long ere the sun had begun 
 to fall, Middleton pressed the blushing and timid young 
 Creole to his bosom, his acknowledged and unalienable 
 wife. It had pleased the parties to pass the day of the 
 wedding in retirement, dedicating it solely to the best 
 and purest affections, aloof from the noisy and heartless 
 rejoicings of a compelled festivity. 
 
 Middleton was returning through the grounds of Don 
 Augustin, from a visit of duty to his encampment, at 
 that hour in which the light of the sun begins to melt 
 into the shadows of evening, when a glimpse of a robe 
 similar to that in which Inez had accompanied him to the 
 
THE PRAIRIE 181 
 
 altar, caught his eye through the foliage of a retired 
 arbor. He approached the spot with a delicacy that was 
 rather increased than diminished by the claim she had 
 perhaps given him to intrude on her private moments; 
 but the sounds of her soft voice, which was offering up 
 prayers in which he heard himself named oy the dearest 
 of all appellations, overcame his scruples, and induced 
 him to take a position where he might listen without the 
 fear of detection. It was certainly grateful to the feel 
 ings of a husband to be able in this manner to lay bare 
 the spotless soul of his wife, and to find that his own 
 image lay enshrined amid its purest and holiest aspira 
 tions. His self-esteem was too much flattered not to in 
 duce him to overlook the immediate object of the peti 
 tioner. While she prayed that she might become the 
 humble instrument of bringing him into the flock of the 
 faithful, she petitioned for forgiveness on her own be 
 half, if presumption or indifference to the counsel of the 
 church had caused her to set too high a value on her in 
 fluence, and led her into the dangerous error of hazarding 
 her own soul by espousing a heretic. There was so much 
 of fervent piety mingled with so strong a burst of natural 
 feeling, so much of the woman blended with the angel in 
 her prayers, that Middleton would have forgiven her had 
 she termed him a pagan, for the sweetness and interest 
 with which she petitioned in his favor. 
 
 The young man waited until his bride arose from her 
 knees, and then he joined her, as if entirely ignorant of 
 what had occurred. 
 
 "It is getting late, my Inez," he said, "and Don Au- 
 gustin would be apt to reproach you with inattention to 
 your health, in being abroad at such an hour. What 
 then am I to do, who am charged with all his authority, 
 and twice his love?" 
 
 "Be like him in everything," she answered, looking up 
 in his face, with tears in her eyes, and speaking with em 
 phasis; "in everything. Imitate my father, Middleton, 
 and I can ask no more of you." 
 
 "Nor for me, Inez? I doubt not that I should be i 
 you can wish, were I to become as good as the worthy and 
 respectable Don Augustin. But you are to make son 
 
182 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 allowances for the infirmities and habits of a soldier. 
 Now let us go and join this excellent father." 
 
 "Not yet," said his bride, gently extricating herself 
 from the arm that he had thrown around her slight form, 
 while he urged her from the place. "I have still another 
 duty to perform, before I can submit so implicitly to 
 your orders, soldier though you are. I promised the 
 worthy Inesella, my faithful nurse, she who, as you heard, 
 has so long been a mother to me, Middleton I promised 
 her a visit at this hour. It is the last, as she thinks, that 
 she can receive from her own child, and I cannot disap 
 point her. Go you then to Don Augustin; in one short 
 hour I will rejoin you." 
 
 "Remember it is but an hour!" 
 
 "One hour," replied Inez, as she kissed her hand to 
 him; and then blushing, ashamed at her own boldness, 
 she darted from the arbor, and was seen for an instant 
 gliding towards the cottage of her nurse, in which at the 
 next moment she disappeared. 
 
 Middleton returned slowly and thoughtfully to the 
 house, often bending his eyes in the direction in which 
 he had last seen his wife, as if he would fain trace her 
 lovely form, in the gloom of the evening, still floating 
 through the vacant space. Don Augustin received him 
 with warmth, and for many minutes his mind was amused 
 by relating to his new kinsman plans for the future. The 
 exclusive old Spaniard listened to his glowing but. true 
 account of the happiness of those States of which he had 
 been an ignorant neighbor half his life, partly in wonder 
 and partly with that sort of incredulity with which one 
 attends to what he fancies are the exaggerated descrip 
 tions of a too partial friendship. 
 
 In this manner the hour for which Inez had conditioned 
 passed away much sooner than her husband could have 
 thought possible, in her absence. At length his looks be 
 gan to wander to the clock, and then the minutes were 
 counted as one rolled by after another, and Inez did not 
 appear. The hand had already made half of another cir 
 cuit around the face of the dial, when Middleton arose 
 and announced his determination to go and offer himself 
 as an escort to the absentee. He found the night dark, 
 
THE PRAIRIE 183 
 
 and the heavens charged with threatening vapor, which 
 in that climate was the infallible forerunner of a gust. 
 Stimulated no less by the unpropitious aspect of the skies 
 than by his secret uneasiness, he quickened his pace, 
 making long and rapid strides in the direction of the 
 cottage of Inesella. Twenty times he stopped, fancying 
 that he caught glimpses of the fairy form of Inez, trip 
 ping across the grounds on her return to the mansion- 
 house, and as often he was obliged to resume his course 
 in disappointment. He reached the gate of the cottage, 
 knocked, opened the door, entered, and even stood in the 
 presence of the aged nurse, without meeting the person 
 of her he sought. She had already left the place on her 
 return to her father s house! Believing that he must 
 have passed her in the darkness, Middleton retraced his 
 steps to meet with another disappointment. Inez had 
 not been seen. Without communicating his intention to 
 any one, the bridegroom proceeded with a palpitating 
 heart to the little sequestered arbor, where he had over 
 heard his bride offering up those petitions for his happi 
 ness and conversion. Here, too, he was disappointed; 
 and then all was afloat in the painful incertitude of doubt 
 and conjecture. 
 
 For many hours a secret distrust of the motives of his 
 wife caused Middleton to proceed in the search with deli 
 cacy and caution. But as day dawned, without restoring 
 her to the arms of her father or her husband, reserve was 
 thrown aside, and her unaccountable absence was loudly 
 proclaimed. The inquiries after the lost Inez were now 
 direct and open; but they proved equally fruitless. No 
 one had seen her or heard of her, from the moment that 
 she left the cottage of her nurse. 
 
 Day succeeded day, and still no tidings rewarded the 
 search that was immediately instituted, until she was 
 finally given over by most of her relations and friends, 
 as irretrievably lost. 
 
 An event of so extraordinary a character was not likely 
 to be soon forgotten. It excited speculation, gave rise to 
 an infinity of rumors, and not a few inventions. The 
 prevalent opinion, among such of those emigrants who 
 were overrunning the country, as had time in the multi- 
 
184 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 tude of their employments to think of any foreign con 
 cerns, was the simple and direct conclusion that the ab 
 sent bride was no more nor less than a felo de se. Father 
 Ignatius had many doubts and much secret compunction 
 of conscience; but, like a wise chief, he endeavored to 
 turn the sad event to some account in the impending war 
 fare of faith. Changing his battery, he whispered in the 
 ears of a few of his oldest parishioners that he had been 
 deceived in the state of Middleton s mind, which he was 
 now compelled to believe was completely stranded on the 
 quicksands of heresy. He began to show his relics again, 
 and was even heard to allude once more to the delicate 
 and nearly forgotten subject of modern miracles. In con 
 sequence of these demonstrations on the part of the vener 
 able priest, it came to be whispered among the faithful, 
 and finally it was adopted as part of the parish creed, 
 that Inez had been translated to heaven. 
 
 Don Augustin had all the feelings of a father, but they 
 were smothered in the lassitude of a Creole. Like his 
 spiritual governor, he began to think that they had been 
 wrong in consigning one so pure, so young, so lovely, and 
 above all so pious, to the arms of a heretic; and he was 
 fain to believe that the calamity which had befallen his 
 age was a judgment on his presumption and want of ad 
 herence to established forms. It is true, that as the 
 whispers of the congregation came to his ears he found 
 present consolation in their belief; but then nature was 
 too powerful, and had too strong a hold of the old man s 
 heart, not to give rise to the rebellious thought that the 
 succession of his daughter to the heavenly inheritance 
 was a little premature. 
 
 But Middleton, the lover, the husband, the bridegroom 
 Middleton was nearly crushed by the weight of the un 
 expected and terrible blow. Educated himself under the 
 dominion of a simple and rational faith in which nothing 
 is attempted to be concealed from the believers, he could 
 have no other apprehensions for the fate of Inez than 
 such as grew out of his knowledge of the superstitious 
 opinions she entertained of his own church. It is need 
 less to dwell on the mental tortures that he endured, or 
 all the various surmises, hopes, and disappointments, that 
 he was fated to experience in the first few weeks of his 
 
THE PRAIRIE 185 
 
 misery. A jealous distrust of the motives of Inez, and a 
 secret, lingering hope that he should yet find her, had 
 tempered his inquiries, without, however, causing him 
 to abandon them entirely. But time was beginning to 
 deprive him even of the mortifying reflection that he was 
 intentionally, though perhaps temporarily deserted, and 
 he was gradually yielding to the more painful conviction 
 that she was dead, when his hopes were suddenly revived 
 in a new and singular manner. 
 
 The young commander was slowly and sorrowfully re 
 turning from an evening parade of his troops to his own 
 quarters, which stood at some little distance from the 
 place of the encampment, and on the same high bluff of 
 land, when his vacant eyes fell on the figure of a man, 
 who by the regulations of the place was not entitled to be 
 there at that forbidden hour. The stranger was meanly 
 dressed, with every appearance about his person and coun 
 tenance of squalid poverty and of the most dissolute 
 habits. Sorrow had softened the military pride of Mid- 
 dleton, and, as he passed the crouching form of the in 
 truder, he said, in tones of great mildness, or rather of 
 kindness : 
 
 "You will be given a night in the guard-house, friend, 
 should the patrol find you here. There is a dollar; go 
 and get a better place to sleep in, and something to eat! 
 
 "I swallow all my food, captain, without chewing," 
 returned the vagabond, with the low exultation of an ac 
 complished villain, as he eagerly seized the silver. J Make 
 this Mexican twenty, and I will sell you a secret." 
 
 "Go, go," said the other, with a little of a soldier s 
 severity returning to his manner. "Go, before I order 
 the guard to seize you." 
 
 "Well, go I will; but if I do go, captain, I shall take 
 my knowledge with me; and then you may live a widower 
 bewitched till the tattoo of life is beat off." 
 
 "What mean you, fellow?" exclaimed Middleton, turn 
 ing quickly towards the wretch, who was already drag 
 ging his diseased limbs from the place. 
 
 "I mean to have the value of this dollar in Spanish 
 brandy, and then come back and sell you my seci 
 enough to buy a barrel." 
 
 "If you have anything to say, speak now, continue 
 
186 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 Middleton, restraining with difficulty the impatience 
 that urged him to betray his feelings. 
 
 "I am a-dry, and I can never talk with elegance when 
 my throat is husky, captain. How much will you give to 
 know what I can tell you? Let it be something hand 
 some ; such as one gentleman can offer to another. 
 
 "I believe it would be better justice to order the drum 
 mer to pay you a visit, fellow. To what does your boasted 
 secret relate?" 
 
 "Matrimony; a wife and no wife; a pretty face and a 
 rich bride; do I speak plain now, captain?" 
 
 "If you know anything relating to my wife, say it at 
 once ; you need not fear for your reward. 
 
 "Ay, captain, I have drove many a bargain in my time, 
 and sometimes I have been paid in money, and sometimes 
 I have been paid in promises; now the last are what I call 
 pinching food." 
 
 "Name your price." 
 
 "Twenty no, damn it, it s worth thirty dollars, if it s 
 worth a cent!" 
 
 "Here, then, is your money; but remember, if you tell 
 me nothing worth knowing, I have a force that can easily 
 deprive you of it again, and punish your insolence into 
 the bargain. 
 
 The fellow examined the bank-bills he received, with a 
 jealous eye, and then pocketed them, apparently well sat 
 isfied of their being genuine. 
 
 "I like a Northern note," he said very coolly; "they 
 have a character to lose like myself. No fear of me, 
 captain; I am a man of honor, and I shall not tell you a 
 word more nor a word less than I know of my own 
 knowledge to be true. 
 
 "Proceed then without further delay, or I may repent, 
 and order you to be deprived of all your gains; the silver 
 as well as the notes. 
 
 "Honor, if you die for it?" returned the miscreant, 
 holding up a hand in affected horror at so treacherous a 
 threat. "Well, captain, you must know that gentlemen 
 don t all live by the same calling; some keep what they ve 
 got, and some get what they can. 
 
 "You have been a thief." 
 
THE PRAIRIE 187 
 
 "I scorn the word. I have been a humanity hunter 
 Do you knew what that means? Ay, it has many inter 
 pretations. Some people think the woolly-heads are mis 
 erable, working on hot plantations under a broiling sun 
 and all such sorts of inconveniences. Well, captain, I 
 have been, in my time, a man who has been willing to 
 give them the pleasures of variety, at least, by changing 
 the scene for them. You understand me?" 
 
 "You are, in plain language, a kidnapper." 
 
 "Have been, my worthy captain have been; but just 
 now a little reduced, like a merchant who leaves off sell 
 ing tobacco by the hogshead, to deal in it by the yard. I 
 have been a soldier, too, in my day. What is said to be 
 the great secret of our trade, can you tell me that?" 
 
 "I know not," said Middleton, beginning to tire of the 
 fellow s trifling; "courage?" 
 
 "No, legs legs to fight with, and legs to run away 
 with and therein you see my two callings agreed. My 
 legs are none of the best just now, and without legs a 
 kidnapper would carry on a losing trade; but then there 
 are men enough left, better provided than I am." 
 
 "Stolen!" groaned the horror-struck husband. 
 
 "On her travels, as sure as you are standing still!" 
 
 "Villain, what reason have you for believing a thing 
 so shocking?" 
 
 "Hands off hands off do you think my tongue can do 
 its work the better, for a little squeezing of the throat! 
 Have patience, and you shall know it all; but if you treat 
 me so ungenteelly again, I shall be obliged to call in the 
 assistance of the lawyers." 
 
 "Say on; but if you utter a single word more or less 
 than the truth, expect instant vengeance!" 
 
 "Are you fool enough to believe what such a scoundrel 
 as I am tells you, captain, unless it has a probability to 
 back it? I know you are not; therefore I will give my 
 facts and my opinions, and then leave you to chew on 
 them, while I go and drink of your generosity. I know 
 a man who is called Abiram White. I believe the knave 
 took that name to show his enmity to the race of black* 
 But this gentleman is now, and has been for years, to my 
 certain knowledge, a regular translator of the human 
 
188 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 body from one State to another. I have dealt with him 
 in my time, and a cheating dog he is! No more honor in 
 him than meat in my stomach. I saw him here in this 
 very town, the day of your wedding. He was in company 
 with his wife s brother, and pretended to be a settler on 
 the hunt for new land. A noble set they were, to carry 
 on business seven sons, each of them as tall as your ser 
 geant with his cap on. Well, the moment I heard that 
 your wife was lost, I saw at once that Abiram had laid 
 his hands on her." 
 
 "Do you know this can this be true? What reason 
 have you to fancy a thing so wild?" 
 
 "Reason enough; I know Abiram White. Now, will 
 you add a trifle just to keep my throat from parching?" 
 
 "Go, go; you are stupefied with drink already, miser 
 able man, and know not what you say. Go, go; and be 
 ware the drummer." 
 
 "Experience is a good guide," the fellow called after 
 the retiring Middleton; and then turning, with a chuck 
 ling laugh, like one well satisfied with himself, he made 
 the best of his way towards the shop of the sutler. 
 
 A hundred times in the course of that night did Mid 
 dleton fancy that the communication of the miscreant 
 was entitled to some attention, and as often did he reject 
 the idea as too wild and visionary for another thought. 
 He was awakened early on the following morning, after 
 passing a restless and nearly sleepless night, by his or 
 derly, who came to report that a man was found dead on 
 the parade, at no great distance from his quarters. 
 Throwing on his clothes he proceeded to the spot, and 
 beheld the individual with whom he had held the preced 
 ing conference, in the precise situation in which he had 
 first been found. 
 
 The miserable wretch had fallen a victim to his intem 
 perance. This revolting fact was sufficiently proclaimed 
 by his obtruding eye-balls, his bloated countenance, and 
 the nearly insufferable odors that were even then exhaling 
 from his carcass. Disgusted with the odious spectacle, 
 the youth was turning from the sight, after ordering the 
 corpse to be removed, when the position of one of the 
 dead man s hands struck him. On examination, he found 
 
THE PRAIRIE 189 
 
 the fore-finger extended, as if in the act of writing in 
 the sand, with the following incomplete sentence, nearly 
 illegible, but yet in a state to be deciphered: "Captain 
 it is true, as I am a gentle He had either died, or 
 fallen into a sleep, the forerunner of his death, before 
 the latter word was finished. 
 
 Concealing this fact from the others, Middleton repeated 
 his orders and departed. The pertinacity of the deceased, 
 and all the circumstances united, induced him to set on 
 foot some secret inquiries. He found that a family an 
 swering the description which had been given him, had in 
 fact passed the place the day of his nuptials. They were 
 traced along the margin of the Mississippi for some dis 
 tance, until they took boat and ascended the river to its 
 confluence with the Missouri. Here they had disap 
 peared, like hundreds of others, in pursuit of the hidden 
 wealth of the interior. 
 
 Furnished with these facts, Middleton detailed a small 
 guard of his most trusty men, took leave of Don Augus- 
 tin without declaring his hopes or his fears, and having 
 arrived at the indicated point he pushed into the wilder 
 ness in pursuit. It was not difficult to trace a train like 
 that of Ishmael until he was assured its object lay far be 
 yond the usual limits of the settlements. This circum 
 stance in itself quickened his suspicions and gave addi 
 tional force to his hopes of final success. 
 
 After getting beyond the assistance of verbal directions, 
 the anxious husband had recourse to the usual signs of a 
 trail, in order to follow the fugitives. This he also found 
 a task of no difficulty until he reached the hard and un 
 yielding soil of the rolling prairies. Here, indeed, he 
 was completely at fault. He found himself, at length, 
 compelled to divide his followers, appointing a place of 
 rendezvous at a distant day, and to endeavor to find the 
 lost trail by multiplying, as much as possible, the num 
 ber of his eyes. He had been alone a week, when accident 
 brought him in contact with the trapper and the bee- 
 hunter. Part of their interview has been related, and 
 the reader can readily imagine the explanations that suc 
 ceeded the tale he recounted, and which led, as has already 
 been seen, to the recovery of his bride. 
 
CHAPTER XVI 
 
 "These likelihoods confirm her flight from hence; 
 Therefore, I pray you, stay not to discourse, 
 But mount you presently." 
 
 SHAKESPEARE. 
 
 AN hour has slid by in hasty and nearly incoherent 
 questions and answers, before Middleton, hanging over 
 his recovered treasure with that sort of jealous watchful 
 ness with which a miser would regard his hoards, closed 
 the disjointed narrative of his own proceedings by de 
 manding: 
 
 "And you, my Inez; in what manner were you treated?" 
 
 "In everything but the great injustice they did in sep 
 arating me so forcibly from my friends, as well, perhaps, 
 as the circumstances of my captors would allow. I think 
 the man who is certainly the master here is but a new 
 beginner in wickedness. He quarreled frightfully in my 
 presence with the wretch who seized me, and then they 
 made an impious bargain, to which I was compelled to 
 acquiesce, and to which they bound me as well as them 
 selves, by oaths. Ah! Middleton, I fear the heretics are 
 not so heedful of their vows as we who are nurtured in 
 the bosom of the true Church ! 
 
 "Believe it not; these villains are of no religion? Did 
 they forswear themselves?" 
 
 "No, not perjured; but was it not awful to call upon 
 the good God to witness so sinful a compact?" 
 
 "And so we think, Inez, as truly as the most virtuous 
 cardinal of Rome. But how did they observe their oath, 
 and what was its purport?" 
 
 "They conditioned to leave me unmolested, and free 
 from their odious presence, provided I would give a pledge 
 to make no effort to escape; and that I would not even 
 show myself until a time that my masters saw fit to 
 name. 
 
 190 
 
THE PRAIRIE 191 
 
 "And that time?" demanded the impatient Middleton, 
 who so well knew the religious scruples of his wife 
 "that time?" 
 
 "It is already past. I was sworn by my patron saint, 
 and faithfully did I keep the vow, until the man they call 
 Ishmael forgot the terms by offering violence. I then 
 made my appearance on the rock, for the time too was 
 past; though I even think Father Ignatius would have ab 
 solved me from the vow, on account of the treachery of 
 my keepers." 
 
 "If he had not," muttered the youth between his com 
 pressed teeth, "I would have absolved him forever from 
 his spiritual care of your conscience!" 
 
 "You, Middleton!" returned his wife, looking up into 
 his flushed face, while a bright flush suffused her own 
 sweet countenance; "you may receive my vows, but surely 
 you can have no power to absolve me from their observ 
 ance ! 
 
 "No, no, no. Inez, you are right. I know but little 
 of these conscientious subtilties, and I am anything but 
 a priest; yet tell me, what has induced these monsters to 
 play this desperate game to trifle thus with my happi 
 ness?" 
 
 "You know my ignorance of the world, and how ill I 
 am qualified to furnish reasons for the conduct of beings 
 so different from any I have ever seen before. But does 
 not love of money drive men to acts even worse than this? 
 I believe they thought that an aged and wealthy father 
 could be tempted to pay them a rich ransom for his child; 
 and, perhaps," she added, stealing an inquiring glance 
 through her tears at the attentive Middleton, "they 
 counted something on the fresh affections of a bride 
 groom." 
 
 "They might have extracted the blood from my heart 
 
 drop by drop!" 
 
 "Yes," resumed his young and timid wife, instantly 
 withdrawing the stolen look she had hazarded, and hur 
 riedly pursuing the train of the discourse, as if glad 
 make him forget the liberty she had just taken, 
 been told there are men so base as to perjure themselves 
 ?t the altar in order to command the gold of ignorant and 
 
192 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 confiding girls; and if love of money will lead to such 
 baseness, we may surely expect it will hurry those who 
 devote themselves to gain into acts of lesser fraud." 
 
 "It must be so; and now, Inez, though I am here to 
 guard you with my life, and we are in possession of this 
 rock, our difficulties, perhaps our dangers, are not ended. 
 You will summon all your courage to meet the trial, and 
 prove yourself a soldier s wife, my Inez?" 
 
 "I am ready to depart this instant. The letter you 
 sent by the physician had prepared me to hope for the 
 best, and I have everything arranged for flight at the 
 shortest warning. 
 
 "Let us then leave this place and join our friends." 
 
 "Friends!" interrupted Inez, glancing her eyes around 
 the little tent in quest of the form of Ellen. "I, too, 
 have a friend who must not be forgotten, but who is 
 pledged to pass the remainder of her life with us. She 
 is gone!" 
 
 Middleton gently led her from the spot, as he smilingly 
 answered : 
 
 "She may have had, like myself, her own private com 
 munications for some favored ear." 
 
 The young man had not, however, done justice to the 
 motives of Ellen Wade. The sensitive and intelligent 
 girl had readily perceived how little her presence was 
 necessary in the interview that has just been related, and 
 had retired with that intuitive delicacy of feeling which 
 seems to belong more properly to her sex. She was now 
 to be seen seated on a point of the rock, with her person 
 so entirely enveloped in her dress as to conceal her fea 
 tures. Here she had remained for near an hour, no one 
 approaching to address her, and as it appeared to her own 
 quick and jealous eyes, totally unobserved. In the latter 
 particular, however, even the vigilance of the quick- 
 sighted Ellen was deceived. 
 
 The first act of Paul Hover, on finding himself the mas 
 ter of Ishmael s citadel, had been to sound the note of 
 victory, after the quaint and ludicrous manner that is so 
 often practised among the borderers of the west. Flap 
 ping his sides with his hands, as the conquering game 
 cock is wont to do with his wings, he raised a loud and 
 
THE PRAIRIE 193 
 
 laughable imitation of the exultation of this bird; a cry 
 which might have proved a dangerous challenge, had any 
 one of the athletic sons of the squatter been within 
 hearing. 
 
 "This has been a regular knock-down and drag-out," 
 he cried, "and no bones broke! How now, old trapper, 
 you have been one of your training, platoon, rank and 
 file soldiers in your day, and have seen forts taken and 
 batteries stormed before this am I right?" 
 
 "Ay, ay, that have I," answered the old man, who still 
 maintained his post at the foot of the rock, so little dis 
 turbed by what he had just witnessed as to return the 
 grin of Paul with a hearty indulgence in his own silent 
 and peculiar laughter; "you have gone through the ex 
 ploit like men!" 
 
 Now tell me, is it not in rule to call over the names 
 of the living, and to bury the dead after every bloody 
 battle?" 
 
 "Some did and some others didn t. When Sir William 
 pushed the German, Dieskau, through the defiles at the 
 foot of the Hori 
 
 "Your Sir William was a drone to Sir Paul, and knew 
 nothing of regularity. So here begins the roll-call by 
 the bye, old man, what between bee-hunting and buffalo 
 humps, and certain other matters, I have been too busy 
 to ask your name; for I intend to begin with my rear 
 guard, well knowing that my man in front is too busy to 
 answer. 
 
 "Lord, lad, I ve been called in my time by as many 
 names as there are people among whom I ve dwelt. Now 
 the Delawares named me for my eyes, and I was called 
 after the far-sighted hawk. Then ag in, the settlers in 
 the Otsego hills christened me anew from the fashion of 
 my leggings- and various have been the names by which 
 I have gone through life; but little will it matter when 
 the time shall come that all are to be mustered, face to 
 face, by what titles a mortal has played his part! 
 bly trust I shall be able to answer to any of mine 
 loud and manly voice." 
 
 Paul paid little or no attention to this reply, more than 
 half of which was lost in the distance, but pursuing t 
 13 
 
194 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 humor of the moment, he called out in a stentorian voice 
 to the naturalist to answer to his name. Dr. Battius had 
 not thought it necessary to push his success beyond the 
 comfortable niche which accident had so opportunely 
 formed for his protection, and in which he now reposed 
 from his labors with a pleasing consciousness of security, 
 added to great exultation at the possession of the botan 
 ical treasure already mentioned. 
 
 "Mount, mount, my worthy mole-catcher! come and 
 behold the prospect of skirting Ishmael; come and look 
 nature boldly in the face, and not go sneaking any longer 
 among the prairie grass and mullein tops, like a gobbler 
 nibbling for grasshoppers." 
 
 The mouth of the light-hearted and reckless bee-hunter 
 was instantly closed, and he was rendered as mute as he 
 had just been boisterous and talkative, by the appearance 
 of Ellen Wade. When the melancholy maiden took her 
 seat on the point of the rock as mentioned, Paul affected 
 to employ himself in conducting a close inspection of the 
 household effects of the squatter. He rummaged the 
 drawers of Esther with no delicate hands, scattered the 
 rustic finery of her girls on the ground without the least 
 deference to its quality or elegance, and tossed her pots 
 and kettles here and there as though they had been vessels 
 of wood instead of iron. All this industry was, however, 
 manifestly without an object. He reserved nothing for 
 himself, not even appearing conscious of the nature of the 
 articles which suffered by his familiarity. When he had 
 examined the inside of every cabin, taken a fresh survey 
 of the spot where he had confined the children, and where 
 he had thoroughly secured them with cords, and kicked 
 one of the pails of the woman like a foot-ball fifty feet 
 into the air in sheer wantonness, he returned to the edge 
 of the rock, and thrusting both his hands through his 
 wampum belt, he began to whistle the "Kentucky Hunt 
 ers" as diligently as if he had been hired to supply his 
 auditors with music by the hour. In this manner passed 
 the remainder of the time until Middleton, as has been 
 related, led Inez forth from the tent, and gave a new di 
 rection to the thoughts of the whole party. He summoned 
 Paul from his flourish of music, tore the Doctor from the 
 
THE PRAIRIE 195 
 
 study of his plant, and, as acknowledged leader, gave the 
 necessary orders for immediate departure. 
 
 In the bustle and confusion that were likely to succeed 
 such a mandate, there was little opportunity to indulge 
 in complaints or reflections. As the adventurers had not 
 come unprepared for victory, each individual employed 
 himself in such offices as were best adapted to his strength 
 and situation. The trapper had already made himself mas 
 ter of the patient Asinus, who was quietly feeding at no 
 great distance from the rock, and he was now busy in 
 fitting his back with the complicated machinery that Dr. 
 Battius saw fit to term a saddle of his own invention. 
 The naturalist himself seized upon his portfolios, herbals, 
 and collection of insects, which he quickly transferred 
 from the encampment of the squatter to certain pockets 
 in the aforesaid ingenious invention, and which the trap 
 per as uniformly cast away the moment his back was 
 turned. Paul showed his dexterity in removing such 
 light articles as Inez and Ellen had prepared for their 
 flight to the foot of the citadel; while Middleton, after 
 mingling threats and promises in order to induce the 
 children to remain quietly in their bondage, assisted the 
 females to descend. As time began to press upon them, 
 and there was great danger of Ishmael s returning, these 
 several movements were made with singular industry and 
 despatch. 
 
 The trapper bestowed such articles as he conceived were 
 necessary to the comfort of the weaker and more delicate 
 members of the party, in those pockets from which he had 
 so unceremoniously expelled the treasures of the uncon 
 scious naturalist, and then gave way for Middleton to 
 place Inez in one of those seats which he had prepared on 
 the back of the animal for her and her companion. 
 
 "Go, child," the old man said, motioning to Ellen to 
 follow the example of the lady, and turning his head^ a 
 little anxiously to examine the waste behind him. 
 cannot be long afore the owner of this place will be com 
 ing to look after his household; and he is not a man to 
 give up his property, however obtained, without com 
 plaint!" 
 
 "It is true," cried Middleton; "we have wasted mo- 
 
196 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 ments that are precious, and have the utmost need of 
 industry." 
 
 "Ay, ay, I thought it; and would have said it, captain; 
 but I remembered how your grand ther used to love to 
 look upon the face of her he had led away for a wife, in 
 the days of his youth and his happiness. "Pis natur , tis 
 natur , and tis wiser to give way a little before its feel 
 ings, than to try to stop a current that will have its 
 course. 
 
 Ellen advanced to the side of the beast, and seizing 
 Inez by the hand, she said, with heartfelt warmth, after 
 struggling to suppress an emotion ^hat nearly choked her: 
 
 "God bless you, sweet lady! I hope you will forget 
 and forgive the wrongs you have received from my 
 uncle 
 
 The humbled and sorrowful girl could say no more, her 
 voice becoming entirely inaudible in an ungovernable 
 burst of grief. 
 
 "How is this?" cried Middleton; "did you not say, 
 Inez, that this excellent young woman was to accompany 
 us, and to live with us the remainder of her life; or at 
 least, until she found some more agreeable residence for 
 herself?" 
 
 "I did; and I still hope it. She has always given me 
 reason to believe, that after having shown so much com 
 miseration and friendship in my misery, she would not 
 desert me, should happier times return." 
 
 "I cannot I ought not," continued Ellen, getting the 
 better of her momentary weakness. "It has pleased God 
 to cast my lot among these people, and I ought not to 
 quit them. It would be adding the appearance of treach 
 ery to what will already seem bad enough, with one of 
 his opinions. He has been kind to me, an orphan, after 
 his rough customs, and I cannot steal from him at such a 
 moment. 
 
 "She is just as much a relation of skirting Ishmael as 
 I am a bishop!" said Paul, with a loud hem, as if his 
 throat wanted clearing. "If the old fellow has done the 
 honest thing by her, in giving her a morsel of venison 
 now and then, or a spoon around his hominy dish, hasn t 
 she paid him in teaching the young devils to read their 
 
THE PRAIRIE 197 
 
 Bible, or in helping old Esther to put her finery in shape 
 and fashion? Tell me that a drone has a sting, and I ll 
 believe you as easily as I will that this young woman is a 
 debtor to any of the tribe of Bush ! 
 
 "It is but little matter who owes me, or where I am in 
 debt. There are none to care for a girl who is fatherless 
 and motherless, and whose nearest kin are the offcasts of 
 all honest people. No, no; go, lady, and Heaven forever 
 bless you! I am better here, in this desert, where there 
 are none to know my shame. 
 
 "Now, old trapper," retorted Paul, "this is what I 
 call knowing which way the wind blows! You ar a man 
 that has seen life, and you know something of fashions; 
 I put it to your judgment plainly, isn t it in the nature 
 of things for the hive to swarm when the young get their 
 growth, and if children will quit their parents, ought one 
 who is of no kith or kin 
 
 "Hist!" interrupted the man he addressed, " 
 discontented. Say it out plainly, pup; what is it, dog 
 what is it?" 
 
 The venerable hound had risen, and was scentu 
 fresh breeze which continued to sweep heavily over the 
 prairie At the words of his master he growled and con 
 tracted the muscles of his lips, as if half disposed 
 threaten with the remnants of his teeth. The younger 
 doo- who was resting after the chase of the morning, a! 
 made some signs that his nose detected a taint in the air 
 and then the two resumed their slumbers, as li 
 
 d0 Th<Ttrapper seized the bridle of the ass, and cried, 
 
 ^^e^isTo tiletor words. The squatter and his 
 brood are within a mile or two of this blessed spot! 
 
 Middleton lost all recollection of Ellen in , tte . ganger 
 which now so imminently beset his recovered bride n< 
 Sit necessary to add that Dr. Battius did not wait for a 
 second admonition to commence ^s retreat 
 
 Following the route indicated by the old 
 turnedThe ?ock in a body, and f^g** 
 as possible across the prairie under the favor 
 it afforded. 
 
198 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 Paul Hover, however, remained in his tracks, sullenly 
 leaning on his rifle. Near a minute had elapsed before 
 he was observed by Ellen, who had buried her face in her 
 hands to conceal her fancied desolation from herself. 
 
 "Why do you not fly" the weeping girl exclaimed, the 
 instant she perceived she was not alone. 
 
 "I m not used to it." 
 
 "My uncle will soon be here! You have nothing to 
 hope from his pity." 
 
 "Nor from that of his niece, I reckon. Let him come, 
 he can only knock me on the head!" 
 
 "Paul, Paul, if you love me, fly." 
 
 "Alone! if I do may I be 
 
 "If you value your life, fly!" 
 
 "I value it not, compared to you." 
 
 "Paul!" 
 
 "Ellen!" 
 
 She extended both her hands, and burst into another 
 and a still more violent flood of tears. The bee-hunter 
 put one of his sturdy arms around her waist, and in 
 another moment he was urging her over the plain, in 
 rapid pursuit of their flying friends. 
 
CHAPTER XVII 
 
 "Approach the chamber, and destroy your sight 
 With a new Gorgon. Do not bid me speak ; 
 See, and then speak yourselves." 
 
 -SHAKESPEARE. 
 
 THE little run which supplied the family of the squatter 
 with water, and nourished the trees and bushes that grew 
 near the base of the rocky eminence, took its rise at no 
 great distance from the latter, in a small thicket of cot 
 ton-wood and vines. Hither, then, the trapper directed 
 the flight, as to the place affording the only available 
 cover in so pressing an emergency. It will be remem 
 bered that the sagacity of the old man, which, from long 
 practise in similar scenes, amounted nearly to an instinct 
 in all cases of sudden danger, had first induced him to 
 take this course, as it placed the hill between them and 
 the approaching party. Favored by this circumstance, he 
 succeeded in reaching the bushes in sufficient time; and 
 Paul Hover had just hurried the breathless Ellen into the 
 tangled brush as Ishmael gained the summit of the rock 
 in the manner already described, where he stood like a 
 man momentarily bereft of sense, gazing at the confusion 
 which had been created among his chattels, or at his 
 gagged and bound children, who had been safely bestowed, 
 by the forethought of the bee-hunter, under the cover of 
 a bark roof, in a sort of irregular pile. A long rifle 
 would have thrown a bullet from the height on which the 
 squatter now stood into the very cover where the fugi 
 tives who had wrought all this mischief were clustered. 
 
 The trapper was the first to speak, as the man on whose 
 intelligence and experience they all depended for counsel, 
 after running his eye over the different individuals who 
 gathered about him, in order to see that none were 
 missing. 
 
 "Ah! natur is natur ; and has done its work!" he said 
 nodding to the exulting Paul, with a smile of approba- 
 
 199 
 
200 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 tion. "I thought it would be hard for those who had so 
 often met in fair and foul, by starlight and under the 
 clouded moon, to part at last in anger. Now is there 
 little time to lose in talk, and everything to gain by in 
 dustry ! It cannot be long afore some of yonder brood 
 will be nosing along the arth for our trail, and should 
 they find it, as find it they surely will, and should they 
 push us to stand on our courage, the dispute must be set 
 tled with the rifle; which may He in heaven forbid! 
 Captain, can you lead us to the place where any of your 
 warriors lie? for the stout sons of the squatter will make 
 a manly brush of it, or I am but little of a judge in war 
 like dispositions!" 
 
 "The place of rendezvous is many leagues from this, 
 on the banks of La Platte." 
 
 "It is bad it is bad. If fighting is to be done, it is 
 always wise to enter on it on equal terms. But what has 
 one so near his time to do with ill blood and hot blood at 
 his heart! Listen to what a gray head and some experi 
 ence have to offer, and then if any among you can point 
 out a wiser fashion for a retreat, we can just follow his 
 design and forget that I have spoken. This thicket 
 stretches for a mile, as it may be, slanting from the 
 rock, and leads towards the sunset instead of the settle 
 ments. 
 
 "Enough, enough," cried Middleton, too impatient to 
 wait until the deliberative and perhaps loquacious old 
 man could end his minute explanation. "Time is too 
 precious for words. Let us fly. " 
 
 The trapper made a gesture of compliance, and turning 
 in his tracks, he led Asinus across the trembling earth of 
 the swale, and quickly emerged on the hard ground on 
 the side opposite to the encampment of the squatter. 
 
 "If old Ishmael gets a squint at that highway through 
 the brush," cried Paul, casting, as he left the place, a 
 hasty glance at the broad trail the party had made through 
 the thicket, "he ll need no finger-board to tell him which 
 way his road lies. But let him follow! I know the vag 
 abond would gladly cross his breed with a little honest 
 blood, but if any son of his ever gets to be the husband 
 of " 
 
THE PRAIRIE 201 
 
 "Hush, Paul, hush!" said the terrified young woman, 
 who leaned on his arm for support; "your voice might be 
 heard." 
 
 The bee-hunter was silent, though he did not cease to 
 cast ominous looks behind him as they flew along the edge 
 of the run, which sufficiently betrayed the belligerent 
 condition of his mind. As each one was busy for himself, 
 but a few minutes elapsed before the party rose a swell of 
 the prairie, and descending without a moment s delay on 
 the opposite side, they were at once removed from every 
 danger of being seen by the sons of Ishmael, unless the 
 pursuers should happen to fall upon their trail. The old 
 man now profited by the formation of the land to take 
 another direction, with a view to elude pursuit, as a ves 
 sel changes her course in fogs and darkness to escape from 
 the vigilance of her enemies. 
 
 Two hours, passed in the utmost diligence, enabled them 
 to make a half circuit around the rock, and to reach a 
 point that was exactly opposite to the original direction 
 of their flight. To most of the fugitives their situation 
 was as entirely unknown as is that of a ship in the middle 
 of the ocean to the un instructed voyager; but the old man 
 proceeded at every turn, and through every bottom, with 
 a decision that inspired his followers with confidence, as 
 it spoke favorably of his own knowledge of the localities. 
 His hound, stopping now and then to catch the expression 
 of his eye, had preceded the trapper throughout the whole 
 distance with as much certainty as though a previous and 
 intelligible communion between them had establ 
 route by which they were to proceed. But, at the expira 
 tion of the time just named, the dog suddenly came to a 
 stand, and then seating himself on the prairie, he snuffe 
 the air a moment, and began a low and piteous whmm 
 
 "Ay pup ay I know the spot I know the spot, am 
 reason there is to remember it well!" said the old man, 
 stopping by the side of his uneasy associate, until 
 who followed had time to come up. "Now, yonder 
 thicket before us," he continued, pointing forward 
 "where we may lie till tall trees grow on these nake 
 fields afore any of the squatter s kin will venture to mol 
 us." 
 
202 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 This is the spot where the body of the dead man lay!" 
 cried Middleton, examining the place with an eye that 
 revolted at the recollection. 
 
 "The very same. But whether his friends have put 
 him in the bosom of the ground or not, remains to be 
 seen. The hound knows the scent, but seems to be a little 
 at a loss, too. It is therefore necessary that you advance, 
 friend bee-hunter, to examine, while I tarry to keep the 
 dogs from complaining in too loud a voice." 
 
 "I ! " exclaimed Paul, thrusting his hand into his shaggy 
 locks, like one who thought it prudent to hesitate before 
 he undertook so formidable an adventure; "now, harkee, 
 old trapper; I ve stood in my thinnest cottons in the midst 
 of many a swarm that has lost its queen-bee, without 
 winking, and let me tell you the man who can do that is 
 not likely to fear any living son of skirting Ishmael; but 
 as to meddling with dead men s bones, why it is neither 
 my calling nor my inclination; so, after thanking you for 
 the favor of your choice, as they say when they make a 
 man a corporal in Kentucky, I decline serving." 
 
 The old man turned a disappointed look towards Mid 
 dleton, who was too much occupied in solacing Inez to 
 observe his embarrassment, which was, however, suddenly 
 relieved from a quarter, whence, from previous circum 
 stances, there was little reason to expect such a demon 
 stration of fortitude. 
 
 Doctor Battius had rendered himself a little remarkable 
 throughout the whole of the preceding retreat, for the ex 
 ceeding diligence with which he had labored to effect that 
 desirable object. So very conspicuous was his zeal, indeed, 
 as to have entirely got the better of all his ordinary pre 
 dilections. The worthy naturalist belonged to that species 
 of discoverers who make the worst possible traveling com 
 panions to a man who has reason to be in a hurry. No 
 stone, no bush, no plant, is ever suffered to escape the 
 examination of their vigilant eyes, and thunder may mut 
 ter, and rain fall, without disturbing the abstraction of 
 their reveries. Not so, however, with the disciple of 
 Linnasus, during the momentous period that it remained 
 a mooted point at the tribunal of his better judgment, 
 whether the stout descendants of the squatter were not 
 
THE PRAIRIE 203 
 
 likely to dispute his right to traverse the prairie in free 
 dom. The highest blooded and best trained hound with 
 his Same m view, could not have run with an eye more 
 riveted than that with which the Doctor had pursued his 
 curvilinear course. It was perhaps lucky for his fortitude 
 that he was ignorant of the artifice of the trapper in lead 
 ing them around the citadel of Ishmael, and that he had 
 imbibed the soothing impression that every inch of prairie 
 he traversed was just so much added to the distance be 
 tween his own person and the detested rock. Notwith 
 standing the momentary shock he certainly experienced 
 when he discovered this error, he now boldly volunteered 
 to enter the thicket in which there was some reason to 
 believe the body of the murdered Asa still lay. Perhaps 
 the naturalist was urged to show his spirit on this occasion, 
 by some secret consciousness that his excessive industry 
 in the retreat might be liable to misconstruction; and it 
 is certain that whatever might be his peculiar notions of 
 danger from the quick, his habits and his knowledge had 
 placed him far above the apprehension of suffering harm 
 from any communication with the dead. 
 
 "If there is any service to be performed which requires 
 the perfect command of the nervous system," said the 
 man of science, with a look that was slightly blustering, 
 "you have only to give a direction to his intellectual fac 
 ulties, and here stands one on whose physical powers you 
 may depend." 
 
 "The man is given to speak in parables," muttered the 
 single-minded trapper; "but I conclude there is always 
 some meaning hidden in his words, though it is as hard to 
 find sense in his speeches as to discover three eagles on 
 the same tree. It will be wise, friend, to make a cover, 
 lest the sons of the squatter should be out skirting on our 
 trail, and as you well know, there is some reason to fear 
 yonder thicket contains a sight that may horrify a woman s 
 mind. Are you man enough to look death in the face; or 
 shall I run the risk of the hounds raising an outcry, and 
 go in myself? You see the pup is willing to run in with 
 an open mouth already." 
 
 "Am I man enough! Venerable trapper, our commun 
 ications have a recent origin, or thy interrogatory might 
 
204 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 have a tendency to embroil us in angry disputation. Am 
 I man enough! I claim to be of the class, mammalia; 
 orger, primates; genus, homo! Such are my physical at 
 tributes; of my moral properties let posterity speak! it 
 becomes me to be mute." 
 
 "Physic may do for such as relish it; to my taste and 
 judgment it is neither palatable nor healthy; but morals 
 never did harm to any living mortal, be it that he was a 
 sojourner in the forest, or a dweller in the midst of glazed 
 windows and smoking chimneys. It is only a few hard 
 words that divide us, friend; for I am of opinion, that 
 with use and freedom we should understand one another, 
 and mainly settle down into the same judgments of man 
 kind, and of the ways of the world. Quiet, Hector, quiet; 
 what ruffles your temper, pup; is it not used to the scent 
 of human blood?" 
 
 The doctor bestowed a gracious but commiserating smile 
 on the philosopher of nature, as he retrograded a step or 
 two from the place whither he had been impelled by his 
 excess of spirit, in order to reply with less expenditure of 
 breath, and with a greater freedom of air and attitude. 
 
 "A homo is certainly a homo, he said, stretching forth 
 an arm in an argumentative manner; so far as the animal 
 functions extend, there are the connecting links of har 
 mony, order, conformity, and design, between the whole 
 genus ; but there the resemblance ends. Man may be de 
 graded to the very margin of the line which separates him 
 from the brute, by ignorance; or he may be elevated to a 
 communion with the great Master Spirit of all, by knowl 
 edge; nay, I know not, if time and opportunity were given 
 him, but he might become the master of all learning, and 
 consequently equal to the great moving principle." 
 
 The old man, who stood leaning on his rifle in a thought 
 ful attitude, shook his head, as he answered with a native 
 steadiness that entirely eclipsed the imposing air which 
 his antagonist had seen fit to assume: 
 
 "This is neither more nor less than mortal wickedness. 
 Here have I been a dweller on the earth for fourscore and 
 six changes of the seasons, and all that time have I looked 
 at the growing and the dying trees, and yet do I not know 
 the reasons why the bud starts under the summer sun, or 
 
THE PRAIRIE 205 
 
 the leaf falls when it is pinched by the frosts. Your 
 1 arnmg, though it is man s boast, is folly in the eves of 
 Him who sits in the clouds, and looks down in sorrow at 
 the pride and vanity of His creatur s. Many is the hour 
 that I ve passed lying in the shades of the woods or 
 stretched upon the hills of these open fields, looking up 
 into the blue skies, where I could fancy the Great One 
 had taken his stand, and was solemnizing on the way 
 wardness of man and brute below, as I myself had often 
 looked at the ants tumbling over each other in their eager 
 ness, though in a way and a fashion more suited to His 
 mightiness and power. Knowledge! It is His plaything. 
 Say, you who think it so easy to climb into the judgment- 
 seat above, can you tell me anything of the beginning and 
 the end? Nay, you re a dealer in ai lings and cures. 
 What is life, and what is dsath? Why does the eagle live 
 so long, and why is the time of the butterfly so short? 
 Tell me a simpler thing: Why is this hound so uneasy, 
 while you who have passed your days in looking into books 
 can see no reason to be disturbed?" 
 
 The Doctor, who had been a little astounded by the 
 dignity and energy of the old man, drew a long breath, 
 like a sullen wrestler who is just released from the throt 
 tling grasp of his antagonist, and seized on the opportun 
 ity of the pause to reply: 
 "It is his instinct." 
 "And what is the gift of instinct?" 
 An inferior gradation of reason. A sort of mysterious 
 combination of thought and matter." 
 
 "And what is that which you call thought?" 
 "Venerable venator, this is a method of reasoning which 
 sets at naught the uses of definitions, and such as I do as 
 sure you is not at all tolerated in the schools." 
 
 "Then is there more cunning in your schools than I had 
 thought, for it is a certain method of showing them their 
 vanity," returned the trapper, suddenly abandoning a 
 discussion from which the naturalist was just beginning to 
 anticipate great delight, by turning to his dog, whose 
 restlessness he attempted to appease by playing with his 
 ears. 
 
 "This is foolish, Hector; more like an untrained pup 
 
206 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 than a sensible hound; one who has got his education by 
 hard experience, and not by nosing over the trails of other 
 dogs, as a boy in the settlements follows on the track of 
 his masters, be it right or be it wrong. Well, friend; 
 you who can do so much, are you equal to looking into the 
 thicket? or must I go in myself?" 
 
 The Doctor again assumed his air of resolution, and 
 without further parlance proceeded to do as desired. The 
 dogs were so far restrained by the remonstrances of the 
 old man as to confine their noise to low but often repeated 
 whinings. When they saw the naturalist advance, the 
 pup, however, broke through all restraint, and made a 
 swift circuit around his person, scenting the earth as he 
 proceeded, and then, returning to his companion, he 
 howled aloud. 
 
 "The squatter and his brood have left a strong scent on 
 the earth, said the old man, watching as he spoke for 
 some signal from his learned pioneer to follow; "I hope 
 yonder school-bred man knows enough to remember the 
 errand on which I have sent him. 
 
 Doctor Battius had already disappeared in the bushes, 
 and the trapper was beginning to betray additional evi 
 dences of impatience, when the person of the former was 
 seen retiring from the thicket backwards, with his face 
 fastened on the place he had just left, as if his look was 
 bound in the thraldom of some charm. 
 
 "Here is something skeary, by the wildness of the crea- 
 tur s countenance!" exclaimed the old man, relinquishing 
 his hold of Hector, and moving stoutly to the side of the 
 totally unconscious naturalist. "How is it, friend; have 
 you found a new leaf in your book of wisdom?" 
 
 "It is a basilisk!" muttered the Doctor, whose altered 
 visage betrayed the utter confusion which beset his facul 
 ties. "An animal of the order, serpens. I had thought 
 its attributes were fabulous, but mighty nature is equal 
 to all that man can imagine!" 
 
 "What is t? what is t? The snakes of the prairies are 
 harmless, unless it be now and then an angered rattler, 
 and he always gives you notice with his tail afore he works 
 his mischief with his fangs. Lord, Lord, what a hum 
 bling thing is fear! Here is one who in common delivers 
 
THE PRAIRIE 207 
 
 words too big for a humble mouth to hold, so much beside 
 himself that his voice is as shrill as the whistle of the 
 whip-poor-will! Courage! what is it, man? what is 
 
 1 V i 
 
 "A prodigy! a lusus naturae! a monster that nature 
 has delighted to form in order to exhibit her power! 
 Never before have I witnessed such an utter confusion in 
 her laws, or a specimen that so completely bids defiance 
 to the distinctions of class and genera. Let me record its 
 appearance," fumbling for his tablets with hands that 
 trembled too much to perform their office, "while time 
 and opportunity are allowed eyes, enthralling; color, 
 various, complex, and profound 
 
 "One would think the man was crazed with his enthral 
 ling looks and piebald colors!" interrupted the discon 
 tented trapper, who began to grow a little uneasy that 
 his party was all this time neglecting to seek the protec 
 tion of some cover. "If there is a reptile in the brush, 
 show me the creatur , and should it refuse to depart 
 peaceably, why there must be a quarrel for the possession 
 of the place. 
 
 "There!" said the Doctor, pointing into a dense mass 
 of the thicket, to a spot within fifty feet of that where 
 they both stood. The trapper turned his look with per 
 fect composure in the required direction, but the instant 
 his practised glance met the object which had so utterly 
 upset the philosophy of the naturalist, he gave a start 
 himself, threw his rifle forward, and as instantly recovered 
 it, as if a second flash of thought convinced him he was 
 wrong. Neither the instinctive movement nor the sudden 
 recollection was without a sufficient object. At the very 
 margin of the thicket, and in absolute contact with the 
 earth, lay an animate ball that might easily, by the sin 
 gularity and fierceness of its aspect, have justified the 
 disturbed condition of the naturalist s mind. It were 
 difficult to describe the shape or colors of this extraor 
 dinary substance, except to say in general terms, that it 
 was nearly spherical, and exhibited all the hues of the 
 rainbow, intermingled without reference to harmony, and 
 without any very ostensible design. The predominant 
 hues were a black and bright vermilion. With these, 
 
208 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 however, the several tints of white, yellow, and crimson, 
 were strangely and wildly blended. 
 
 Had this been all, it would have been difficult to have 
 pronounced that the object was possessed of life, for it lay 
 motionless as any stone; but a pair of dark, glaring, and 
 moving eye-balls, which watched with jealousy the small 
 est movements of the trapper and his companion, suffi 
 ciently established the important fact of its possessing 
 vitality. 
 
 "Your reptile is a scouter, or I m no judge of Indian 
 paints and Indian deviltries!" muttered the old man, 
 dropping the butt of his weapon to the ground, and gazing 
 with a steady eye at the frightful object, as he leaned on 
 its barrel, in an attitude of great composure. "He wants 
 to face us out of sight and reason, and makes us think the 
 head of a red-skin is a stone covered with the autumn leaf; 
 or he has some other devilish artifice in his mind!" 
 
 "Is the animal human?" demanded the Doctor, "of the 
 genus homo? I had fancied it a nondescript." 
 
 "It s as human, and as mortal too, as a warrior of these 
 prairies is ever known to be. I have seen the time when 
 a red-skin would have shown a foolish daring to peep out 
 of his ambushment in that fashion on a hunter I could 
 name, but who is too old now, and too near his time, to 
 be anything better than a miserable trapper. It will be 
 well to speak to the imp, and to let him know he deals 
 with men whose beards are grown. Come forth from your 
 cover, friend," he continued, in the language of the ex 
 tensive tribes of the Dahcotahs; "there is room on the 
 prairie for another warrior." 
 
 The eyes appeared to glare more fiercely than before, 
 but the mass which, according to the trapper s opinion, 
 was neither more nor less than a human head shorn, as 
 usual among the warriors of the west, of its hair, still 
 continued without motion, or any other sign of life. 
 
 "It is a mistake!" exclaimed the Doctor. "The animal 
 is not even of the class, mammalia, much less a man." 
 
 "So much for your knowledge!" returned the trapper, 
 laughing with great exultation. "So much for the Tam 
 ing of one who has looked into so many books, that his 
 eyes are not able to tell a moose from a wild-cat! Now, 
 
THE PRAIRIE 209 
 
 my Hector, here, is a dog of education after his fashion, 
 and, though the meanest primer in the settlements would 
 puzzle his information, you could not cheat the hound in 
 a matter like this. As you think the object no man, you 
 shall see his whole formation, and then, let an ignorant old 
 trapper, who never willingly passed a day within reach of 
 a spelling-book in his life, know by what name to call it. 
 Mind, I mean no violence; but just to start the devil from 
 his ambushment. " 
 
 The trapper very deliberately examined the priming of 
 his rifle, taking care to make as great a parade as possible 
 of his hostile intentions, in going through the necessary 
 evolutions with the weapon. When he thought the stranger 
 began to apprehend some danger, he very deliberately 
 presented the piece, and called aloud: 
 
 "Now, friend, I am all for peace, or all for war, as you 
 may say. No! Well it is no man, as the wiser one here 
 says, and there can be no harm in just firing into a bunch 
 of leaves. 
 
 The muzzle of the rifle fell as he concluded, and the 
 weapon was gradually settling into a steady, and what 
 would easily have proved a fatal aim, when a tall Indian 
 sprang from beneath that bed of leaves and brush, which 
 he had collected about his person at the approach of the 
 party, and stood upright, uttering the exclamation: 
 
 "Wagh!" 
 14 
 
CHAPTER XVIII 
 
 "My visor is Philemon s roof ; within the house is Jove. " 
 
 SHAKESPEARE. 
 
 THE trapper, who had meditated no violence, dropped 
 his rifle again, and laughing at the success of his experi 
 ment, with great seeming self-complacency, he drew the 
 astounded gaze of the naturalist from the person of the 
 savage to himself, by saying: 
 
 "The imps will lie for hours, like sleeping alligators, 
 brooding their deviltries in dreams and other craftiness, 
 until such time as they see some real danger is at hand, 
 and then they look to themselves the same as other mor 
 tals. But this is a scouter in his war-paint! There 
 should be more of his tribe at no great distance. Let us 
 draw the truth out of him; for an unlucky war-party may 
 prove more dangerous to us than a visit from the whole 
 family of the squatter. 
 
 "It is truly a desperate and dangerous species!" said 
 the Doctor, relieving his amazement by a breath that 
 seemed to exhaust his lungs of air; "a violent race, and 
 one that it is difficult to define or class, within the usual 
 boundaries of definitions. Speak to him, therefore; but 
 let thy words be strong in amity." 
 
 The old man cast a keen eye on every side of him, to 
 ascertain the important particular whether the stranger 
 was supported by any associates, and then making the 
 usual signs of peace, by exhibiting the palm of his naked 
 hand, he boldly advanced. In the meantime, the Indian 
 betrayed no evidence of uneasiness. He suffered the trap 
 per to draw nigh, maintaining by his own mien and atti 
 tude a striking air of dignity and fearlessness. Perhaps 
 the wary warrior also knew that, owing to the difference 
 in their weapons, he should be placed more on an equality, 
 by being brought nearer to the strangers. 
 
 210 
 
THE PRAIRIE 211 
 
 As a description of this individual may furnish some idea 
 of the personal appearance of a whole race, it may be we^ 
 to detain the narrative, in order to present it to the reader 
 in our hasty and imperfect manner. Would the truant 
 eyes of Allston or Greenough turn, but for a time, from 
 their gaze at the models of antiquity, to contemplate this 
 wronged and humbled people, little would be left for such 
 interior artists as ourselves to delineate. 
 
 The Indian in question was in every particular a war 
 rior of fine stature and admiral proportions. As he cast 
 aside his mask, composed of such party-colored leaves as 
 he had hurriedly collected, his countenance appeared in 
 all the gravity, the dignity, and, it may be added, in the 
 terror of his profession. The outlines of his lineaments 
 were strikingly noble, and nearly approaching to Roman, 
 though the secondary features of his face were slightly 
 marked with the well-known traces of his Asiatic origin. 
 The peculiar tint of the skin, which in itself is so well 
 designed to aid the effect of a martial expression, had re 
 ceived an additional aspect of wild ferocity from the colors 
 of the war-paint. But, as if he disdained the usual arti-r 
 fices of his people, he bore none of those strange and hor 
 rid devices, with which the children of the forest are 
 accustomed, like the more civilized heroes of the mous 
 tache, to back their reputation for courage, contenting 
 himself with a broad and deep shadowing of black, that 
 served as a sufficient and an admirable foil to the brighter 
 gleamings of his native swarthiness. His head was, as 
 usual, shaved to the crown, where a large and gallant 
 scalp-lock seemed to challenge the grasp of his enemies. 
 The ornaments that were ordinarily pendent from the 
 cartilages of his ears had been removed, on account of hs 
 present pursuit. His body, notwithstanding the lateness 
 of the season, was nearly naked, and the portion which 
 was clad bore a vestment no warmer than a light robe of 
 the finest dressed deerskin, beautifully stained with the 
 rude design of some daring exploit, and which was care 
 lessly worn as if more in pride than from any unmanly 
 regard to comfort. His leggings were of bright scarlet 
 cloth, the only evidence about his person that he had held 
 communion with the traders of the pale-faces. But as if 
 
212 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 to furnish some offset to this solitary submission to a 
 womanish vanity, they were fearfully fringed, from the 
 gartered knee to the bottom of the moccasin, with the 
 hair of human scalps. He leaned lightly with one hand 
 on a short hickory bow, while the other rather touched 
 than sought support, from the long, delicate handle of an 
 ashen lance. A quiver made of the cougar skin, from 
 which the tail of the animal depended, as a characteristic 
 ornament, was slung at his back; and a shield of hides, 
 quaintly emblazoned with another of his warlike deeds, 
 was suspended from his neck by a thong of sinews. 
 
 As the trapper approached, this warrior maintained his 
 calm, upright attitude, discovering neither an eagerness 
 to ascertain the character of those who advanced upon 
 him, nor the smallest wish to avoid a scrutiny in his own 
 person. An eye that was darker and more shining than 
 that of the stag, was incessantly glancing, however, from 
 one to another of the stranger party, seemingly never 
 knowing rest for an instant. 
 
 "Is my brother far from his village?" demanded the 
 old man, in the Pawnee language, after examining the 
 paint, and those other little signs by which a practised 
 eye knows the tribe of the warrior he encounters in the 
 American deserts, with the same readiness, and by the 
 same sort of mysterious observations, as that by which the 
 seaman knows the distant sail. 
 
 "It is further to the towns of the Big-knives, " was the 
 laconic reply. 
 
 "Why is a Pawnee-Loup so far from the fork of his 
 own river, without a horse to journey on, and in a spot 
 empty as this?" 
 
 "Can the women and children of a pale-face live with 
 out the meat of the bison? There was hunger in my 
 lodge." 
 
 "My brother is very young to be already the master of 
 a lodge," returned the trapper, looking steadily into the 
 unmoved countenance of the youthful warrior; "but I dare 
 say he is brave, and that many a chief has offered him his 
 daughters for wives. But he has been mistaken, pointing 
 to the arrow, which was dangling from the hand that held 
 the bow, "in bringing a loose and barbed arrow-head to 
 
THE PRAIRIE 213 
 
 kill the buffalo. Do the Pawnees wish the wounds they 
 give their game to rankle?" 
 
 "It is good to be ready for the Sioux. Though not in 
 sight, a bush may hide him." 
 
 "The man is a living proof of the truth of his words " 
 muttered the trapper in English, "and a close-jointed and 
 gallant-looking lad he is; but far too young for a chief of 
 any importance. It is wise, however, to speak him fair 
 for a single arm thrown into either party, if we come to 
 blows with the squatter and his brood, may turn the day 
 "You see my children are weary," he continued in the 
 dialect of the prairies, pointing, as he spoke, to the rest 
 of the party, who by this time were also approaching. 
 "We wish to camp and eat. Does my brother claim this 
 spot?" 
 
 "The runners from the people on the Big River tell us 
 that your nation have traded with the Tawney-faces who 
 live beyond the salt-lake, and that the prairies are now 
 the hunting-grounds of the Big- knives!" 
 
 "It is true, as I hear also from the hunters and trappers 
 on La Platte. Though it is with the Frenchers, and not 
 with the men who claim to own the Mexicos, that my 
 people have bargained." 
 
 "And warriors are going up the Long River to see that 
 they have not been cheated in what they have bought?" 
 
 "Ay, that is partly true, too, I fear; and it will not 
 be long before an accursed band of choppers and loggers 
 will be following on their heels, to humble the wilderneB* 
 which lies so broad and rich on the western banks of the 
 Mississippi, and then the land will be a peopled desert, 
 from the shores of the main sea to the foot of the Rocky 
 Mountains; filled with all the abominations and craft of 
 man, and stript of the comforts and loveliness it received 
 from the hands of the Lord ! 
 
 "And where were the chiefs of the Pawnee-Loups when 
 this bargain was made?" suddenly demanded the youthful 
 warrior, a look of startling fierceness gleaming, at the 
 same instant, athwart his dark visage. "Is a nation to 
 be sold like the skin of a beaver?" 
 
 "Right enough right enough, and where were truth 
 and honesty also? But might is right, according to the 
 
214 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 fashions of the arth; and what the strong choose to do, 
 the weak must call justice. If the law of the Wahcondah 
 was as much hearkened to, Pawnee, as the laws of the 
 Long-knives, your right to the prairies would be as good 
 as that of the greatest chief in the settlements to the 
 house which covers his head." 
 
 "The skin of the traveler is white, " said the young 
 native, laying a finger impressively on the hard and 
 wrinkled hand of the trapper. "Does his heart say one 
 thing, and his tongue another?" 
 
 "The Wahcondah of a white man has ears, and He shuts 
 them to a lie. Look at my head; it is like a frosted pine, 
 and must soon be laid in the ground. Why then should I 
 wish to meet the Great Spirit face to face, while his coun 
 tenance is dark upon me?" 
 
 The Pawnee gracefully threw his shield over one shoul 
 der, and placing a hand on his chest, he bent his head, in 
 deference to the gray locks exhibited by the trapper ; after 
 which his eye became more steady, and his countenance 
 less fierce. Still he maintained every appearance of a dis 
 trust and watchfulness that were rather tempered and 
 subdued than forgotten. When this equivocal species of 
 amity was established between the warrior of the prairies 
 and the experienced old trapper, the latter proceeded to 
 give his directions to Paul, concerning the arrangements 
 of the contemplated halt. While Inez and Ellen were 
 dismounting, and Middleton and the bee-hunter were at 
 tending to their comforts, the discourse was continued, 
 sometimes in the language of the natives, but often, as 
 Paul and the Doctor mingled their opinions with the two 
 principal speakers, in the English tongue. There was a 
 keen and subtle trial of skill between the Pawnee and the 
 trapper, in which each endeavored to discover the objects 
 of the other, without betraying his own interest in the 
 investigation. As might be expected, when the struggle 
 was between adversaries so equal, the result of the en 
 counter answered the expectations of neither. The latter 
 had put all the interrogatories his ingenuity and practise 
 could suggest concerning the state of the tribe of the 
 Loups, their crops, their store of provisions for the ensu 
 ing winter, and their relations with their different war- 
 
THE PRAIRIE 215 
 
 like neighbors, without extorting any answer, which in 
 the slightest degree elucidated the cause of his finding a 
 solitary warrior so far from his people. On the other 
 hand, while the questions of the Indian were far more 
 dignified and delicate, they were equally ingenious. He 
 commented on the state of the trade in peltries, spoke of 
 the good or ill success of many white hunters, whom he 
 had either encountered or heard named, and even alluded 
 to the steady march which the nation of his great father, 
 as he cautiously termed the government of the States, was 
 making towards the hunting-grounds of his tribe. It was 
 apparent, however, by the singular mixture of interest, 
 contempt, and indignation, that were occasionally gleam 
 ing through the reserved manner of this warrior, that he 
 knew the strange people, who were thus trespassing on his 
 native rights, much more by report than by any actual 
 intercourse. This personal ignorance of the whites was 
 as much betrayed by the manner in which he regarded the 
 females, as by the brief but energetic expressions which 
 occasionally escaped him. 
 
 While speaking to the trapper he suffered his wandering 
 glances to stray towards the intellectual and nearly infan 
 tile beauty of Inez, as one might be supposed to gaze upon 
 the loveliness of an ethereal being. It was very evid 
 that he now saw, for the first time, one of those females, 
 of whom the fathers of his tribe so often spoke, and wh< 
 were considered of such rare excellence as to equal all that 
 savaze ingenuity could imagine in the way of loveliness. 
 
 H fs observation of Ellen was less marked, but notwith- 
 standmo- the warlike and chastened expression of his ye, 
 there was much of the homage which man is made to pay 
 to woman, even in the more cursory ^ok he sometn.es 
 turned on her maturer and perhaps more am mated 
 This admiration, however, was so tempered 1 
 and so smothered in the pride of a warrior, as comple 
 to elude every eye but that of the trapper who was oo 
 well skilled in Indian customs, and was too well insti .ea 
 7n the importance of rightly conceiving the charac *er of 
 the stranger, to let the smallest trait, or the mo sttnfl n* 
 
216 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 resolute Inez, with her accustomed assiduity and tender 
 ness, exhibiting in her frank features those changing 
 emotions of joy and regret which occasionally beset her, 
 as her active mind dwelt on the decided step she had just 
 taken, with the contending doubts and hopes, and possibly 
 with some of the mental vacillation, that was natural to 
 her situation and sex. 
 
 Not so Paul; conceiving himself to have obtained the 
 two things dearest to his heart, the possession of Ellen 
 and a triumph over the sons of Ishmael, he now enacted 
 his part in the business of the moment, with as much 
 coolness as though he was already leading his willing 
 bride, from solemnizing their nuptials before a border 
 magistrate, to the security of his own dwelling. He had 
 hovered around the moving family, during the tedious 
 period of their weary march, concealing himself by day, 
 and seeking interviews with his betrothed as opportunity 
 offered, in the manner already described, until fortune 
 and his own intrepidity had united to render him success 
 ful, at the very moment when he was beginning to des 
 pair; and he now cared neither for distance, nor violence, 
 nor hardships. To his sanguine fancy and determined 
 resolution all the rest was easily to be achieved. Such 
 were his feelings, and such in truth they seemed to be. 
 With his cap cast on one side, and whistling a low air, he 
 thrashed among the bushes, in order to make a place suit 
 able for the females to repose on, while, from time to 
 time, he cast an approving glance at the agile form of 
 Ellen, as she tripped past him, engaged in her own share 
 of the duty. 
 
 "And so the Wolf-tribe of the Pawnees have buried 
 the hatchet with their neighbors the Konzas?" said the 
 trapper, pursuing a discourse which he had scarcely per 
 mitted to flag, though it had been occasionally interrupted 
 by the different directions with which he occasionally 
 saw fit to interrupt it. (The reader will remember that, 
 while he spoke to the native warrior in his own tongue, 
 he necessarily addressed his white companions in Eng 
 lish.) "The Loups and the light-faced red-skins are again 
 friends. Doctor, that is a tribe of which I ll engage 
 you ve often read, and of which many a round lie has 
 
THE PRAIRIE 217 
 
 been whispered in the ears of the ignorant people who 
 w C i ? the ?ettlements. There was a story of a nation of 
 Welshers, that lived here-away in the prairies, and how 
 they came into the land afore the uneasy-minded man 
 who first led in the Christians to rob the heathens of 
 their inheritance, had ever dreamt that the sun set on a 
 country as big as that it rose from. And how they knew 
 the white ways and spoke with white tongues, and a thou 
 sand other follies and idle conceits." 
 
 "Have I not heard of them?" exclaimed the naturalist, 
 dropping a piece of jerked bison s meat, which he was 
 rather roughly discussing, at the moment. "I should be 
 greatly ignorant not to have often dwelt with delight on 
 so beautiful a theory, and one which so triumphantly 
 establishes two positions, which I have often maintained 
 are unanswerable, even without such living testimony in 
 their favor; namely, that this continent can claim a more 
 remote affinity with civilization than the time of Colum 
 bus, and that color is the fruit of climate and condition, 
 and not a regulation of nature. Propound the latter ques 
 tion to this Indian gentleman, venerable hunter; he is of 
 a reddish tint himself, and his opinion may be said to 
 make us masters of the two sides of the disputed point." 
 "Do you think a Pawnee is a reader of books, and a 
 believer of printed lies, like the idlers in the towns?" re 
 torted the old man laughing. "But it may be as well to 
 humor the likings of the man, which, after all, it is quite 
 possible, are neither more nor less than his natural gift, 
 and therefore to be followed, although they may be pitied. 
 What does my brother think? all whom he sees here have 
 pale skins, but the Pawnee warriors are red; does he be 
 lieve that man changes with the season, and that the son 
 is not like his father?" 
 
 The young warrior regarded his interrogator for a mo 
 ment with a steady and deliberating eye; then raising his 
 finger upwards, he answered with dignity: 
 
 "The Wahcondah pours the rain from his clouds; when 
 He speaks, He shakes the hills; and the fire, which scorches 
 the trees, is the anger of his eye; but He fashioned his 
 children with care and thought. What He has thus made, 
 never alters!" 
 
218 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 "Ay, tis in the reason of natur that it should be so, 
 Doctor, continued the trapper, when he had interpreted 
 this answer to the disappointed naturalist. The Pawnees 
 are a wise and a great people, and I ll engage they abound 
 in many a wholesome and honest tradition. The hunters 
 and trappers that I sometimes see, speak of a great warrior 
 of your race." 
 
 "My tribe are not women. A brave is no stranger in 
 my village." 
 
 "Ay; but he they speak of most is a chief far beyond 
 the renown of common warriors, and one that might have 
 done credit to that once mighty but now fallen people, 
 the Delawares of the hills." 
 
 "Such a warrior should have a name?" 
 
 "They call him Hard-Heart, from the stoutness of his 
 resolution; and well is he named, if all I have heard of 
 his deeds be true." 
 
 The stranger cast a glance which seemed to read the 
 guileless soul of the old man, as he demanded: 
 
 "Has the pale face seen the partisan of my people?" 
 
 "Never. It is not with me now as it used to be some 
 forty years ago, when warfare and bloodshed were my 
 calling and my gifts!" 
 
 A loud shout from the reckless Paul interrupted his 
 speech, and at the next moment the bee-hunter appeared, 
 leading an Indian war-horse from the side of the thicket 
 opposite to the one occupied by the party. 
 
 "Here is a beast for a red-skin to straddle!" he cried, 
 as he made the animal go through some of its wild paces. 
 "There s not a brigadier in all Kentucky that can call 
 himself master of so sleek and well-jointed a nag! A 
 Spanish saddle, too, like a grandee of the Mexicos! and 
 look at the mane and tail, braided and plaited down with 
 little silver balls, as if it were Ellen herself getting her 
 shining hair ready for a dance or a husking frolic! Isn t 
 this a real trotter, old trapper, to eat out of the manger 
 of a savage?" 
 
 "Softly, lad, softly. The Loups are famous for their 
 horses, and it is often that you see a warrior on the prai 
 ries far better mounted than a congressman in the settle 
 ments. But this, indeed, is a beast that none but a 
 
THE PRAIRIE 219 
 
 powerful chief should ride! The saddle, as you rightly 
 think, has been sat upon in its day by a great Spanish 
 captain, who has lost it and his life together in some of 
 the battles which this people often fight against the 
 southern provinces. I warrant me, I warrant me the 
 youngster is the son of a great chief; maybe of the 
 mighty Hard-Heart himself!" 
 
 During this rude interruption to the discourse the 
 young Pawnee manifested neither impatience nor displeas 
 ure, but when he thought his beast had been the subject 
 of sufficient comment, he very coolly, and with the air of 
 one accustomed to have his will respected, relieved Paul 
 of the bridle, and throwing the reins on the neck of the 
 animal, he sprang upon his back with the activity of a 
 professor of the equestrian art. Nothing could be finer 
 or firmer than the seat of the savage. The highly wrought 
 and cumbrous saddle was evidently more for show than 
 use. Indeed it impeded rather than aided the action of 
 limbs which disdained to seek assistance or admit of 
 restraint from so womanish inventions as stirrups. The 
 horse, which immediately began to prance, was, like its 
 rider, wild and untutored in all its motions, but while 
 there was so little of art there was all the freedom and 
 grace of nature in the movements of both. The animal 
 was probably indebted to the blood of Araby for its excel 
 lence, through a long pedigree that embraced the steed of 
 Mexico, the Spanish barb, and the Moorish charger. The 
 rider, in obtaining his steed from the provinces of Central 
 America, had also obtained that spirit and grace in con 
 trolling him which unite to form the most intrepid and 
 perhaps the most skilful horseman in the world. _ 
 
 Notwithstanding this sudden occupation of his animal 
 the Pawnee discovered no hasty wish to depart. More at 
 his ease, and possibly more independent, now he found 
 himself secure of the means of retreat, he rode back and 
 forth, eying the different individuals of the party wij 
 far greater freedom than before. But, at each extrermt: 
 of his ride, just as the sagacious trapper expected to sc 
 him profit by his advantage and fly, he would turn 
 horse and pass over the same ground, sometimes wit 
 rapidity of the flying deer, and at others more slowly an< 
 
220 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 with greater dignity of mien and attitude. Anxious to 
 ascertain such facts as might have an influence on his fu 
 ture movements, the old man determined to invite him 
 to a renewal of their conference. He therefore made a 
 gesture expressive at the same time of his wish to resume 
 the interrupted discourse, and of his own pacific inten 
 tions. The quick eye of the stranger was not slow to note 
 the action, but it was not until a sufficient time had 
 passed to allow him to debate the prudence of the measure 
 in his own mind, that he seemed willing to trust himself 
 again so near a party that was so much superior to him 
 self in physical power and consequently one that was able 
 at any instant to command his life, or control his personal 
 liberty. When he did approach nigh enough to converse 
 with facility, it was with a singular mixture of haughti 
 ness and of distrust. 
 
 "It is far to the village of the Loups, " he said, stretch 
 ing his arm in a direction contrary to that in which the 
 trapper well knew the tribe dwelt, "and the road is 
 crooked. What has the Big-knife to say?" 
 
 "Ay, crooked enough!" muttered the old man in Eng 
 lish, "if you are to set out on your journey by that path, 
 but not half so winding as the cunning of an Indian s 
 mind. Say, my brother, do the chiefs of the Pawnees 
 love to see strange faces in their lodges?" 
 
 The young warrior bent his body gracefully, though 
 but slightly, over the saddle-bow, as he replied: 
 
 "When have my people forgotten to give food to the 
 stranger?" 
 
 "If I lead my daughters to the doors of the Loups will 
 the women take them by the hand and will the warriors 
 smoke with my young men?" 
 
 "The country of the pale faces is behind them. Why 
 do they journey so far towards the setting sun? Have 
 they lost the path, or are these the women of the white 
 warriors that I hear are wading up the river of the 
 troubled waters? 
 
 "Neither. They who wade the Missouri are the war 
 riors of my great father, who has sent them on his message; 
 but we are peace-runners. The white men and the red 
 are neighbors, and they wish to be friends. Do not the 
 
THE PRAIRIE 221 
 
 Omahaws visit the Loups when the tomahawk is buried 
 in the path between the two nations?" 
 
 "The Omahaws are welcome." 
 
 "And the Yanktons, and the burnt- wood Tetons, who 
 live in the elbow of the river with muddy water; do 
 they not come into the lodges of the Loups and smoke?" 
 
 "The Tetons are liars!" exclaimed the other. "They 
 dare not shut their eyes in the night. No; they sleep in 
 the sun. See," he added, pointing with fierce triumph 
 to the frightful ornaments of his leggings, "their scalps 
 are so plenty that the Pawnees tread on them ! Go ; let a 
 Sioux live in banks of snow; the plains and buffaloes are 
 for men!" 
 
 "Ah! the secret is out," said the trapper to Middleton, 
 who was an attentive because a deeply interested observer 
 of what was passing. "This good-looking young Indian 
 is scouting on the track of the Sioux you may see it by 
 his arrow-heads and his paint; ay, and by his eye, too, 
 for a red-skin lets his natur follow the business he is on, 
 be it for peace or be it for war, quiet, Hector, quiet. 
 Have you never scented a Pawnee afore, pup? keep 
 down, dog keep down! My brother is right. The Sioux 
 are thieves. Men of all colors and nations say it of them, 
 and say it truly. But the people from the rising sun 
 are not Sioux, and they wish to visit the lodges of the 
 Loups. 
 
 "The head of my brother is white, " returned the Paw 
 nee, throwing one of those glances at the trapper which 
 were so remarkably expressive of distrust, intelligence, 
 and pride, and then pointing, as he continued, towards 
 the eastern horizon, "and his eyes have looked on many 
 things; can he tell me the name of what he sees yonder 
 is it a buffalo?" 
 
 "It looks more like a cloud peeping above the skirt ot 
 the plain with the sunshine lighting its edges. It is the 
 smoke of the heavens. 
 
 "It is a hill of the earth, and on its top are the lodges 
 of pale faces! Let the women of my brother wash then 
 feet among the people of their own color." 
 
 "The eyes of a Pawnee are good if he can see a WBI 
 skin so far. 
 
222 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 The Indian turned slowly towards the speaker, and after 
 a pause of a moment he sternly demanded : 
 
 "Can my brother hunt?" 
 
 Alas ! I claim to be no better than a miserable trapper ! 
 
 "When the plain is covered with the buffaloes, can he 
 see them?" 
 
 "No doubt, no doubt it is far easier to see than to 
 take a scampering bull." 
 
 "And when the birds are flying from the cold, and the 
 clouds are black with their feathers, can he see them, too?" 
 
 "Ay, ay, it is not hard to find a duck or a goose when 
 millions are darkening the heavens." 
 
 When the snow falls and covers the lodges of the Long- 
 knives, can the stranger see flakes in the air?" 
 
 "My eyes are none of the best now," returned the old 
 man a little resentfully, "but the time has been when I 
 had a name for my sight!" 
 
 "The red-skins find the Big-knives as easily as the 
 strangers see the buffalo, or the traveling birds, or the 
 falling snow. Your warriors think the Master of life has 
 made the whole earth white. They are mistaken. They 
 are pale, and it is their own faces that they see. Go! a 
 Pawnee is not blind that he need look long for your 
 people ! 
 
 The warrior suddenly paused and bent his face aside, 
 like one who listened with all his faculties absorbed in 
 the act. Then turning the head of his horse, he rode to 
 the nearest angle of the thicket, and looked intently 
 across the bleak prairie, in a direction opposite to the 
 side on which the party stood. Returning slowly from 
 this unaccountable, and to his observers, startling pro 
 cedure, he riveted his eyes on Inez, and paced back and 
 forth several times with the air of one who maintained a 
 warm struggle on some difficult point in the recesses of 
 his own thoughts. He had drawn the reins of his impa 
 tient steed, and was seemingly about to speak, when his 
 head again sank on his chest, and he resumed his former 
 attitude of attention. Galloping like a deer to the place 
 of his former observations, he rode for a moment swiftly 
 in short and rapid circles, as if still uncertain of his 
 course, and then darted away like a bird that had been 
 
THE PRAIRIE 223 
 
 fluttering around its nest before it takes a distant flight. 
 After scouring the plain for a minute he was lost to the 
 eye behind a swell of the land. 
 
 The hounds, who had also manifested great uneasiness 
 for sometime, followed him for a little distance, and then 
 terminated their chase by seating themselves on the ground 
 and raising their usual low, whining, and warning howls. 
 
CHAPTER XIX 
 
 " How if he will not stand ?" 
 
 SHAKESPEARE. 
 
 THE several movements related in the close of the pre 
 ceding chapter had passed in so short a space of time, that 
 the old man, while he neglected not to note the smallest 
 incident, had no opportunity of expressing his opinion 
 concerning the stranger s motives. After the Pawnee had 
 disappeared, however, he shook his head and muttered, 
 while he walked slowly to the angle of the thicket that 
 the Indian had just quitted. 
 
 There are both scents and sounds in the air, though 
 my miserable senses are not good enough to hear the one 
 or to catch the taint of the other. 
 
 "There is nothing to be seen," cried Middleton, who 
 kept close at his side. "My eyes and my ears are good, 
 and yet I can assure you that I neither hear nor see any 
 thing." 
 
 "Your eyes are good! and you are not deaf!" returned 
 the other, with a slight air of contempt; "no, lad, no; 
 they may be good to see across a church, or hear a town- 
 bell, but afore you had passed a year in these prairies you 
 would find yourself taking a turkey for a buffalo, or con 
 ceiting fifty times that the roar of a buffalo bull was the 
 thunder of the Lord! There is a deception of natur in 
 these naked plains in which the air throws up the images 
 like water, and then it is hard to tell the prairie from a 
 sea. But yonder is a sign that a hunter never fails to 
 know!" 
 
 The trapper pointed to a flight of vultures that were 
 sailing over the plain at no great distance, and apparently 
 in the direction in which the Pawnee had riveted his eyes. 
 At first Middleton could not distinguish the small dark 
 objects that were dotting the dusky clouds; but as they 
 
 224 
 
THE PRAIRIE 225 
 
 came swiftly onward, first their forms and then their 
 heavy waving wings became distinctly visible. 
 
 "Listen!" said the trapper, when he had succeeded in 
 making Middleton see the moving column of birds. "Now 
 you hear the buffaloes, or bisons, as your knowing Doctor 
 sees fit to call them, though buffaloes is their name among 
 all the hunters of these regions. And I conclude that a 
 hunter is a better judge of a beast and of its name," he 
 added, winking at the young soldier, "than any man who 
 has turned over the leaves of a book instead of traveling 
 over the face of the arth, in order to find out the naturs 
 of its inhabitants." 
 
 "Of their habits, I will grant you," cried the naturalist, 
 who rarely missed an opportunity to agitate any disputed 
 point in his favorite studies. "That is, provided always 
 deference is had to the proper use of definitions, and that 
 they are contemplated with scientific eyes." 
 
 "Eyes of a mole! as if any man s eyes were not as good 
 for names as the eyes of any other creatur ! Who named 
 the works of His hand? can you tell me that, with your 
 book and college wisdom? Was it not the first man in the 
 Garden, and is it not a plain consequence that his children 
 inherit his gifts?" 
 
 "That is certainly the Mosaic account of the event," 
 said the Doctor; "though your reading is by far too 
 literal!" 
 
 "My reading: nay, if you suppose that I have wasted 
 my time in schools, you do such a wrong to my knowledge 
 as one mortal should never lay to the door of another with 
 out sufficient reason. If I have ever craved the art of 
 reading, it has been that I might better know the sayings 
 of the book you name, for it is a book which speaks in 
 every line according to human feelings, and therein 
 according to reason." 
 
 "And do you then believe," said the Doctor, a little 
 provoked by the dogmatism of his stubborn adversary, 
 and perhaps secretly too confident in his own more liberal, 
 though scarcely as profitable attainments, "do you then 
 believe that all these beasts were literally collected in a 
 garden to be enrolled in the nomenclature of the first 
 man?" 
 15 
 
226 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 "Why not? I understand your meaning; for it is not 
 needful to live in towns to hear all the devilish devices 
 that the conceit of man can invent to upset his own hap 
 piness. What does it prove, except indeed it may be said 
 to prove that the garden He made was not after the miser 
 able fashions of our times, thereby directly giving the lie 
 to what the world calls its civilizing? No, no; the garden 
 of the Lord was the forest then, and is the forest now, 
 where the fruits do grow and the birds do sing, according 
 to his own wise ordering. Now, lady, you may see the 
 mystery of the vultures! There come the buffaloes them 
 selves, and a noble herd it is! I warrant me that Pawnee 
 has a troop of his people in some of the hollows nigh by; 
 and as he has gone scampering after them, you are about 
 to see a glorious chase. It will serve to keep the squatter 
 and his brood under cover, and for ourselves there is little 
 reason to fear. A Pawnee is not apt to be a malicious 
 savage. 
 
 Every eye was now drawn to the striking spectacle that 
 succeeded. Even the timid Inez hastened to the side of 
 Middleton to gaze at the sight, and Paul summoned Ellen 
 from her culinary labors to become a witness of the lively 
 scene. 
 
 Throughout the whole of those moving events which it 
 has been our duty to record, the prairies had lain in the 
 majesty of perfect solitude. The heavens had been black 
 ened with the passage of the migratory birds, it is true; 
 but the dogs of the party and the ass of the Doctor were 
 the only quadrupeds that had enlivened the broad surface 
 of the waste beneath. There was now a sudden exhibition 
 of animal life which changed the scene, as it were by 
 magic, to the very opposite extreme. 
 
 A few enormous bison bulls were first observed, scour 
 ing along the most distant roll of the prairie, and then 
 succeeded long files of single beasts, which, in their turn, 
 were followed by a dark mass of bodies, until the dun- 
 colored herbage of the plain was entirely lost, in the 
 deeper hue of their shaggy coats. The herds, as the col 
 umn spread and thickened, was like the endless flocks of 
 the smaller birds, whose extended flanks are so often seen 
 to heave up out of the abyss of the heavens, until they 
 
THE PRAIRIE 227 
 
 appear as countless as the leaves in those forests, over 
 which they wing their endless flight. Clouds of dust shot 
 up in little columns from the center of the mass, as some 
 animal, more furious than the rest, ploughed the plain 
 with his horns, and, from time to time, a deep hollow 
 bellowing was borne along on the wind, as if a thousand 
 throats vented their plaints in a discordant murmuring. 
 
 A long and musing silence reigned in the party, as they 
 gazed on this spectacle of wild and peculiar grandeur. It 
 was at length broken by the trapper, who, having been 
 long accustomed to similar sights, felt less of its influence, 
 or, rather, felt it in a less thrilling and absorbing manner, 
 than those to whom the scene was more novel. 
 
 There go ten thousand oxen in one drove, without 
 keeper or master, except Him who made them, and gave 
 them these open plains for their pasture! Ay, it is here 
 that man may see the proofs of his wantonness and folly ! 
 Can the proudest governor in all the States go into his 
 fields, and slaughter a nobler bullock than is here offered 
 to the meanest hand; and when he has gotten his sirloin 
 or his steak, can he eat it with as good a relish as he who 
 has sweetened his food with wholesome toil, and earned it 
 according to the law of natur , by honestly mastering 
 that which the Lord hath put before him?" 
 
 "If the prairie platter is smoking with a buffalo s 
 hump, I answer, No," interrupted the luxurious bee- 
 hunter. 
 
 "Ay, boy, you have tasted, and you feel the genuine 
 reasoning of the thing! But the herd is heading a little 
 this-away, and it behooves us to make ready for their 
 visit. If we hide ourselves altogether, the horned brutes 
 will break through the place and trample us beneath then 
 feet, like so many creeping worms; so we will just put 
 the weak ones apart, and take post, as becomes men and 
 hunters, in the van. 
 
 As there was but little time to make the necessary ar 
 rangements, the whole party set about them in good ear 
 nest Inez and Ellen were placed in the edge of the thicket 
 on the side farthest from the approaching herd. ASH 
 was posted in the center, in consideration of his nerves; 
 and then the old man, with his three male companions, 
 
228 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 divided themselves in such a manner as they thought 
 would enable them to turn the head of the rushing column, 
 should it chance to approach too nigh their position. By 
 the vacillating movements of some fifty or a hundred bulls 
 that led the advance, it remained questionable, for many 
 moments, what course they intended to pursue. But a 
 tremendous and painful roar, which came from behind the 
 cloud of dust that rose in the center of the herd, and 
 which was horridly answered by the screams of the carrion 
 birds that were greedily sailing directly above the flying 
 drove, appeared to give a new impulse to their flight, and 
 at once to remove every symptom of indecision. As if 
 glad to seek the smallest signs of the forest, the whole of 
 the affrighted herd became steady in its direction, rushing 
 in a straight line towards the little cover of bushes which 
 has already been so often named. 
 
 The appearance of danger was now, in reality, of a 
 character to try the stoutest nerves. The flanks of the 
 dark, moving mass, were advanced in such a manner as to 
 make a concave line of the front, and every fierce eye, that 
 was glaring from the shaggy wilderness of hair in which 
 the entire heads of the males were enveloped, was riveted 
 with mad anxiety on the thicket. It seemed as if each 
 beast strove to outstrip his neighbor, in gaining this de 
 sired cover; and as thousands in the rear pressed blindly 
 on those in front, there was the appearance of an immi 
 nent risk that the leaders of the herd would be precipitated 
 on the concealed party, in which case the destruction of 
 every one of them was certain. Each of our adventurers 
 felt the danger of his situation, in a manner peculiar to 
 his individual character and circumstances. 
 
 Middleton wavered. At times he felt inclined to rush 
 through the bushes, and, seizing Inez, attempt to fly. 
 Then recollecting the impossibility of outstripping the 
 furious speed of an alarmed bison, he felt for his arms, 
 determined to make head against the countless drove. 
 The faculties of Dr. Battius were quickly wrought up to 
 the very summit of mental delusion. The dark forms of 
 the herd lost their distinctness, and then the naturalist 
 began to fancy he beheld a wild collection of all the crea 
 tures of the world, rushing upon him in a body, as if to 
 
THE PRAIRIE 229 
 
 revenge the various injuries, which, in the course of a life 
 of indefatigable labor in behalf of the natural sciences, 
 he had inflicted on their several genera. The paralysis it 
 occasioned in his system was like the effect of the incubus. 
 Equally unable to fly or to advance, he stood riveted to 
 the spot, until the infatuation became so complete, that 
 the worthy naturalist was beginning, by a desperate effort 
 of scientific resolution, even to class the different speci 
 mens. On the other hand, Paul shouted, and called on 
 Ellen to come and assist him in shouting, but his voice 
 was lost in the bellowings and trampling of the herd. 
 Furious, and yet strangely excited by the obstinacy of the 
 brutes and the wiidness of the sight, and nearly maddened 
 by sympathy and a species of unconscious apprehension, 
 in which the claims of nature were singularly mingled 
 with concern for his mistress, he nearly split his throat 
 in exhorting his aged friend to interfere. 
 
 "Come forth, old trapper," he shouted, "with your 
 prairie inventions! or we shall be all smothered under a 
 mountain of buffalo humps!" 
 
 The old man, who had stood all this while leaning on 
 his rifle, and regarding the movements of the herd with a 
 steady eye, now deemed it time to strike his blow. Level 
 ing his piece at the foremost bull, with an agility that 
 would have done credit to his youth, he fired. The animal 
 received the bullet on the matted hair between his horns, 
 and fell to his knees; but shaking his head he instantly 
 arose, the very shock seeming to increase his exertions. 
 There was now no longer time to hesitate. Throwing 
 down his rifle, the trapper stretched forth his arms, and 
 advanced from the cover with naked hands, directly to 
 wards the rushing column of the beasts. The figure of a 
 man, when sustained by the firmness and steadiness that 
 intellect can only impart, rarely fails of commanding re 
 spect from all the inferior animals of the creation. The 
 leading bulls recoiled, and for a single instant there was 
 a sudden stop to their speed, a dense mass of bodies roll 
 ing up in front, until hundreds were seen floundering and 
 tumbling on the plain. Then came another of those hollow 
 bellowings from the rear, and set the herd again in mo 
 tion. The head of the column, however, divided; the 
 
230 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 immovable form of the trapper cutting it, as it were, into 
 two gliding streams of life. Middleton and Paul instantly 
 profited by his example, and extended the feeble barrier 
 by a similar exhibition of their own persons. 
 
 For a few moments, the new impulse given to the animals 
 in front served to protect the thicket. But, as the body 
 of the herd pressed more and more upon the open line of 
 its defenders, and the dust thickened, so as to obscure 
 their persons, there was, at each instant, a renewed dan 
 ger of the beasts breaking through. It became necessary 
 for the trapper and his companions to become still more 
 and more alert; and they were gradually yielding before 
 the headlong multitude, when a furious bull darted by 
 Middleton so near as to brush his person, and, at the next 
 instant, swept through the thicket with the velocity of the 
 wind. 
 
 "Close, and dive for the ground," shouted the old man, 
 "or a thousand of the devils will be at his heels!" 
 
 All their efforts would have proved fruitless, however, 
 against the living torrent, had not Asinus, whose domains 
 had just been so rudely entered, lifted his voice in the 
 midst of the uproar. The most sturdy and furious of the 
 bulls trembled at the alarming and unknown cry, and then 
 each individual brute was seen madly pressing from that 
 very thicket, which the moment before he had endeavored 
 to reach, with the eagerness with which the murderer 
 seeks the sanctuary. 
 
 As the stream divided, the place became clear; the two 
 dark columns moving obliquely from the copse, to unite 
 again at the distance of a mile, on its opposite side. The 
 instant the old man saw the sudden effect which the voice 
 of Asinus had produced, he coolly commenced reloading 
 his rifle, indulging, at the same time, in a heartfelt fit of 
 his silent and peculiar merriment. 
 
 "There they go, like dogs with so many half -filled 
 shot-pouches dangling at their tails, and no fear of their 
 breaking their order; for what the brutes in the rear 
 didn t hear with their own ears, they ll conceit they did: 
 besides, if they change their minds, it may be no hard 
 matter to get the Jack to sing the rest of his tune ! 
 
 "The ass has spoken, but Balaam is silent!" cried the 
 
THE PRAIRIE 231 
 
 bee-hunter, catching his breath after a repeated burst of 
 noisy mirth, that might possibly have added to the panic 
 of the buffaloes by its vociferation. "The man is as 
 completely dumbfounded, as if a swarm of young bees had 
 settled on the end of his tongue, and he not willing to 
 speak, for fear of their answer." 
 
 "How now, friend, "continued the trapper, addressing 
 the still motionless and entranced naturalist; "how now, 
 friend; are you, who make your livelihood by booking the 
 names and naturs of the beasts of the fields and the fowls 
 of the air, frightened at a herd of scampering buffaloes? 
 Though, perhaps, you are ready to dispute my right to call 
 them by a word that is in the mouth of every hunter and 
 trader on the frontier!" 
 
 The old man was, however, mistaken, in supposing he 
 could excite the benumbed faculties of the Doctor, by pro 
 voking a discussion. From that time, henceforth, he was 
 never known, except on one occasion, to utter a word that 
 indicated either the species, or the genus of the animal. 
 He obstinately refused the nutritious food of the whole ox 
 family; and even to the present hour, now that he is es 
 tablished in all the scientific dignity and security of a 
 savant in one of the maritime towns, he turns his back 
 with a shudder on those delicious and unrivaled viands, 
 that are so often seen at the suppers of the craft, and 
 which are unequaled by anything that is served under the 
 same name, at the boasted chop-houses of London, or at 
 the most renowned of the Parisian restauran ts. In short, 
 the distaste of the worthy naturalist for beef was not un 
 like that which the shepherd sometimes produces, by first 
 muzzling and fettering his delinquent dog, and then leav 
 ing him as a stepping-stone for the whole flock to use in 
 its transit over a wall, or through the opening of a sheep- 
 fold; a process which is said to produce in the culprit a 
 species of surfeit on the subject of mutton, forever after. 
 By the time Paul and the trapper saw fit to terminate the 
 fresh bursts of merriment which the continued abstraction 
 of their learned companion did not fail to excite, he com 
 menced breathing again, as if the suspended action of the 
 lungs had been renewed by the application of a pair of 
 artificial bellows, and was heard to make use of the ever 
 
232 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 afterwards proscribed term, on that solitary occasion to 
 which we have just alluded. 
 
 "Boves Americani horridi!" exclaimed the Doctor, lay 
 ing great stress on the latter word; after which he con 
 tinued mute, like one who pondered on strange and unac 
 countable events. 
 
 " Ay, horrid eyes enough, I will willingly allow," re 
 turned the trapper; "and altogether the creatur has a 
 frightful look, to one unused to the sights and bustle of a 
 natural life; but then the courage of the beast is in no 
 way equal to its countenance. Lord, man, if you should 
 once get fairly beset by a brood of grizzly bears, as hap 
 pened to Hector and I, at the great falls of the Miss 
 Ah, here comes the tail of the herd, and yonder goes a 
 pack of hungry wolves, ready to pick up the sick, or such 
 as get a disjointed neck by a tumble. Ha! there are 
 mounted men on their trail, or I m no sinner! here, lad; 
 you may see them here-away, just where the dust is scat 
 tering afore the wind. They are hovering around a 
 wounded buffalo, making an end of the surly devil with 
 their arrows!" 
 
 Middleton and Paul soon caught a glimpse of the dark 
 group that the quick eye of the old man had so readily 
 detected. Some fifteen or twenty horsemen were in truth, 
 to be seen riding, in quick circuits, about a noble bull 
 which stood at bay, too grievously hurt to fly, and yet 
 seeming to disdain to fall, notwithstanding his hardy 
 body had already been the target for a hundred arrows. 
 A thrust from the lance of a powerful Indian, however, 
 completed his conquest, and the brute gave up his obstinate 
 hold of life with a roar that passed bellowing over the 
 place where our adventurers stood, and reaching the ears 
 of the affrighted herd, added a new impulse to their flight. 
 
 "How well the Pawnee knew the philosophy of a buffalo 
 hunt!" said the old man, after he had stood regarding the 
 animated scene for a few moments with evident satisfac 
 tion. "You saw how he went off like the wind afore the 
 drove. It was in order that he might not taint the air, 
 and that he might turn the flank and join Ha! how is 
 this! yonder red-skins are no Pawnees! The feathers in 
 their heads are from the wings and tails of owls. Ah! as 
 
THE PRAIRIE 233 
 
 I am but a miserable half-sighted trapper, it is a band of 
 the accursed Sioux! To cover, lads, to cover. A single 
 cast of an eye this-away would strip us of every rag of 
 clothes, as surely as the lightning scorches the bush, and 
 it might be that our very lives would be far from safe." 
 
 Middleton had already turned from the spectacle to seek 
 that which pleased him better the sight of his young and 
 beautiful bride. Paul seized the Doctor by the arm; and, 
 as the trapper followed with the smallest possible delay, 
 the whole party was quickly collected within the cover of 
 the thicket. After a few short explanations concerning 
 the character of this new danger, the old man, on whom 
 the whole duty of directing their movements was devolved 
 in deference to his great experience, continued his dis 
 course as follows: 
 
 "This is a region, as you must all know, where a strong 
 arm is far better than the right, and where the white law 
 is as little known as needed. Therefore does everything 
 now depend on judgment and power. If," he continued, 
 laying his finger on his cheek, like one who considered 
 deeply all sides of the embarrassing situation in which he 
 found himself, "if an invention could be framed which 
 would set those Sioux and the brood of the squatter by 
 the ears, then might we come in, like the buzzards after 
 a fight atween the beasts, and pick up the gleanings of the 
 ground; there are Pawnees nigh us, too! It is a certain 
 matter, for yonder lad is not so far from his village with 
 out an errand. Here are, therefore, four parties within 
 sound of a cannon, not one of whom can trust the other. 
 All which makes movement a little difficult in a district 
 where covers are far from plenty. But we are three 
 well-armed, and I think I may say three stout-hearted 
 men 
 
 "Four," interrupted Paul. 
 
 "Anan!" said the old man, looking up simply at his 
 companion. 
 
 "Four," repeated the bee-hunter, pointing to the nat 
 uralist. 
 
 "Every army has its hangers-on and idlers," rejoined 
 the blunt border-man. "Friend, it will be necessary to 
 slaughter this ass. 
 
234 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 "To slay Asinus! such a deed would be an act of super 
 erogatory cruelty." 
 
 "I know nothing of your words, which hide their mean 
 ing in sound; but that is cruel which sacrifices a Christian 
 to a brute. This is what I call the reason of mercy. It 
 would be just as safe to blow a trumpet as to let the ani 
 mal raise his voice again, inasmuch as it would prove a 
 manifest challenge to the Sioux." 
 
 "I will answer for the discretion of Asinus, who seldom 
 speaks without a reason." 
 
 "They say a man can be known by the company he 
 keeps," retorted the old man, "and why not a brute? I 
 once made a forced march, and went through a great deal 
 of jeopardy, with a companion who never opened his mouth 
 but to sing; and trouble enough and great concern of 
 mind did the fellow give me. It was in that very business 
 with your gran ther, captain. But then he had a human 
 throat, and well did he know how to use it, on occasion, 
 though he didn t always stop to regard the time and sea 
 sons fit for such outcries. Ah s me! if I was now as I 
 was then, it wouldn t be a band of thieving Sioux that 
 should easily drive me from such a lodgment as this! But 
 what signifies boasting when sight and strength are both 
 failing. The warrior that the Delawares once saw fit to 
 call after the hawk for the goodness of his eyes, would 
 now be better termed the Mole! In my judgment, there 
 fore, it will be well to slay the brute." 
 
 "There s argument and good logic in it," said Paul; 
 "music is music, and it s always noisy, whether it comes 
 from a fiddle or a jackass. Therefore I agree with the 
 old man, and say, Kill the beast." 
 
 "Friends," said the naturalist, looking with a sorrow 
 ful eye from one to another of his bloodily disposed com 
 panions, "slay not Asinus; he is a specimen of his kind 
 of whom much good and little evil can be said. Hardy 
 and docile for his genus; abstemious and patient even for 
 his humble species. We have journeyed much together, 
 and his death would grieve me. How would it trouble 
 thy spirit, venerable venator, to separate in such an un 
 timely manner from your faithful hound?" 
 
 "The animal shall not die," said the old man, suddenly 
 
THE PRAIRIE 235 
 
 clearing his throat in a manner that proved he felt the 
 force of the appeal; "but his voice must be smothered. 
 Bind his jaws with the halter, and then I think we may 
 trust the rest to Providence. 
 
 With this double security for the discretion of Asinus, 
 for Paul instantly bound the muzzle of the ass in the man 
 ner required, the trapper seemed content. After which 
 he proceeded to the margin of the thicket to reconnoiter. 
 
 The uproar which attended the passage of the herd was 
 now gone, or rather it was heard rolling along the prairie, 
 at the distance of a mile. The clouds of dust were already 
 blown away by the wind, and a clear range was left to the 
 eye in that place where ten minutes before there existed 
 a scene of so much wildness and confusion. 
 
 The Sioux had completed their conquest, and, apparently 
 satisfied with this addition to the numerous previous cap 
 tures they had made, they now seemed content to let the 
 remainder of the herd escape. A dozen remained around 
 the carcass, over which a few buzzards were balancing 
 themselves with steady wings and greedy eyes, while the 
 rest were riding about in quest of such further booty as 
 might come in their way on the trail of so vast a drove. 
 The trapper measured the proportions and scanned the 
 equipments of such individuals as drew nearer to the side 
 of the thicket with careful eyes. At length he pointed 
 out one among them to Middleton as Weucha. 
 
 Now know we not only who they are, but their errand, 
 the old man continued, deliberately shaking his head. 
 "They have lost the trail of the squatter, and are on its 
 hunt. These buffaloes have crossed their path, and in 
 chasing the animals, bad luck has led them in open sight 
 of the hill on which the brood of Ishmael have^harbored. 
 Do you see yon birds watching for the offals of the beast 
 they have killed? Therein is a moral which teaches 
 manner of a prairie life. A band of Pawnees are outlying 
 for these very Sioux, as you see the buzzards looking down 
 for their food; and it behooves us, as Christian men who 
 have so much at stake, to look down upon them both.^ 
 what brings yonder two skirting reptiles to a stand? 
 you live they have found the place where the miserabl 
 son of the squatter met his death!" 
 
236 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 "The old man was not mistaken. Weucha, and a savage 
 who accompanied him, had reached that spot which has 
 already been mentioned as furnishing the frightful evi 
 dences of violence and bloodshed. There they sat on their 
 horses, examining the well-known signs with the intelli 
 gence that distinguishes the habits of Indians. Their 
 scrutiny was long, and apparently not without distrust. 
 At length they raised a cry that was scarcely less piteous 
 and startling than that which the hounds had before 
 made over the same fatal signs, and which did not fail to 
 draw the whole band immediately around them, as the 
 fell bark of the jackal is said to gather his comrades to 
 the chase. 
 
CHAPTER XX 
 
 "Welcome, ancient Pistol." 
 
 SHAKESPEARE. 
 
 IT was not long before the trapper pointed out the com 
 manding person of Mahtoree as the leader of the Sioux. 
 This chief, who had been among the last to obey the voci 
 ferous summons of Weucha, no sooner reached the spot 
 where his whole party was now gathered, than he threw 
 himself from his horse, and proceeded to examine the 
 marks of the extraordinary trail with that degree of dig 
 nity and attention which became his high and responsible 
 station. The warriors, for it was but too evident that 
 they were to a man of that fearless and ruthless class, 
 awaited the result of his investigation with patient re 
 serve; none but a few of the principal braves presuming 
 even to speak while their leader was thus gravely occupied. 
 It was several minutes before Mahtoree seemed satisfied. 
 He then directed his eyes along the ground to those several 
 places where Ishmael had found the same revolting evi 
 dences of the passage of some bloody struggle, and mo 
 tioned to his people to follow. 
 
 The whole band advanced in a body towards the thicket, 
 until they came to a halt within a few yards of the precise 
 spot where Esther had stimulated her sluggish sons to 
 break into the cover. The reader will readily imagine 
 that the trapper and his companions were not indifferent 
 observers of so threatening a movement. The old man 
 summoned all who were capable of bearing arms to his 
 side, and demanded in very unequivocal terms, though in 
 a voice that was suitably lowered in order to escape the ears 
 of their dangerous neighbors, whether they were disposed 
 to make battle for their liberty or whether they should 
 try the milder expedient of conciliation. As it was a sub 
 ject in which all had an equal interest, he put the question 
 as to a council of war, and not without some slight exhi- 
 
 237 
 
238 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 bition of the lingering vestiges of a nearly extinct mili 
 tary pride. Paul and the Doctor were diametrically 
 opposed to each other in opinion; the former declaring 
 for an immediate appeal to arms, and the latter as warmly 
 espousing the policy of pacific measures. Middleton, who 
 saw that there was great danger of a hot verbal dispute 
 between two men who were governed by feelings so dia 
 metrically opposed, saw fit to assume the office of arbiter; 
 or rather to decide the question, his situation making 
 him a sort of umpire. He also leaned to the side of peace, 
 for he evidently saw that in consequence of the vast supe 
 riority of their enemies, violence would irretrievably lead 
 to their destruction. 
 
 The trapper listened to the reasons of the young soldier 
 with great attention; and as they were given with the 
 steadiness of one who did not suffer apprehension to blind 
 his judgment, they did not fail to produce a suitable im 
 pression. 
 
 "It is rational," rejoined the trapper, when the other 
 had delivered his reasons; "it is very rational, for what 
 man cannot move with his strength he must circumvent 
 with his wits. It is reason that makes him stronger than 
 the buffalo and swifter than the moose. Now stay you 
 here, and keep yourselves close. My life and my traps 
 are but of little value, when the welfare of so many human 
 souls is concerned; and moreover, I may say that I know 
 the windings of Indian cunning. Therefore will I go 
 alone upon the prairie. It may so happen that I can yet 
 draw the eyes of a Sioux from this spot, and give you time 
 and room to fly." 
 
 As if resolved to listen to no remonstrance, the old man 
 quietly shouldered his rifle, and moving leisurely through 
 the thicket, he issued on the plain at a point whence he 
 might first appear before the eyes of the Sioux without 
 exciting their suspicions that he came from its cover. 
 
 The instant that the figure of a man dressed in the garb 
 of a hunter, and bearing the well-known and much dreaded 
 rifle, appeared before the eyes of the Sioux, there was a 
 sensible though a suppressed sensation in the band. The 
 artifice of the trapper had so far succeeded as to render it 
 extremely doubtful whether he came from some point on 
 
THE PRAIRIE 239 
 
 the open prairie or from the thicket; though the Indians 
 still continued to cast frequent and suspicious glances at 
 the cover. They had made their halt at the distance of an 
 arrow-flight from the bushes; but when the stranger came 
 sufficiently nigh to show that the deep coating of red and 
 brown which time and exposure had given to his features, 
 was laid upon the original color of a pale face, they 
 slowly receded from the spot, until they reached a distance 
 that might defeat the aim of firearms. 
 
 In the meantime the old man continued to advance, 
 until he had got nigh enough to make himself heard with 
 out difficulty. Here he stopped, and dropping his rifle 
 to the earth, he raised his hand with the palm outward, 
 in token of peace. After uttering a few words of reproach 
 to his hound, who watched the savage group with eyes 
 that seemed to recognize them, he spoke in the Sioux 
 tongue. 
 
 "My brothers are welcome," he said, cunningly con 
 stituting himself the master of the region in which they 
 had met, and assuming the offices of hospitality. "They 
 are far from their villages, and are hungry. Will they 
 follow to my lodge, to eat and sleep?" 
 
 No sooner was his voice heard, than the yell of pleasure 
 which burst from a dozen mouths, convinced the sagacious 
 trapper that he also was recognized. Feeling that it was 
 too late to retreat, he profited by the confusion which 
 prevailed among them, while Weucha was explaining his 
 character, to advance, until he was again face to face 
 with the redoubtable Mahtoree. The second interview 
 between these two men, each of whom was extraordinary 
 in his way, was marked by the usual caution of the fron 
 tiers. They stood, for nearly a mniute, examining each 
 other without speaking. 
 
 "Where are your young men?" demanded the Teton 
 chieftain, after he found that the immovable features of 
 the trapper refused to betray any of their master s 
 secrets, under his intimidating look. 
 
 "The Long-knives do not come in bands to trap the 
 beaver. I am alone." 
 
 "Your head is white, but you have a forked tongue. 
 Mahtoree has been in your camp. He knows that you are 
 
240 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 not alone. Where is your young wife, and the warrior 
 that I found upon the prairie?" 
 
 "I have no wife. I have told my brother that the 
 woman and her friend were strangers. The words of a 
 gray head should be heard, and not forgotten. The Dah- 
 cotahs found travelers asleep, and they thought they had 
 no need of horses. The women and children of a pale 
 face are not used to go far on foot. Let them be sought 
 where you left them." 
 
 The eyes of the Teton flashed fire as he answered : 
 
 "They are gone: but Mahtoree is a wise chief, and his 
 eyes can see a great distance!" 
 
 "Does the partisan of the Tetons see men on these naked 
 fields?" retorted the trapper, with great steadiness of 
 mien. "I am very old, and my eyes grow dim. Where do 
 they stand?" 
 
 The chief remained silent a moment, as if he disdained 
 to contest any further the truth of a fact concerning which 
 he was already satisfied. Then pointing to the traces on 
 the earth, he said, with a sudden transition to mildness 
 in his eye and manner: 
 
 "My father has learnt wisdom, in many winters; can 
 he tell me whose moccasin has left this trail?" 
 
 "There have been wolves and buffaloes on the prairies; 
 and there may have been cougars, too." 
 
 Mahtoree glanced his eye at the thicket, as if he thought 
 the latter suggestion not impossible. Pointing to the 
 place, he ordered his young men to reconnoiter it more 
 closely, cautioning them at the same time, with a stern 
 look at the trapper, to beware of treachery from the Big- 
 knives. Three or four half-naked, eager-looking youths 
 lashed their horses at the word, and darted away to obey 
 the mandate. The old man trembled a little for the dis 
 cretion of Paul, when he saw this demonstration. The 
 Tetons encircled the place two or three times, approaching 
 nigher and nigher at each circuit, and then galloped back 
 to their leader to report that the copse seemed empty. 
 Notwithstanding the trapper watched the eye of Mahtoree, 
 to detect the inward movements of his mind, and if pos 
 sible to anticipate, in order to direct his suspicions, the 
 utmost sagacity of one so long accustomed to study the 
 
THE PRAIRIE 241 
 
 cold habits of the Indian race could, however, detect no 
 symptom, or expression, that denoted how far he credited 
 or distrusted this intelligence. Instead of replying to the 
 information of his scouts, he spoke kindly to his horse, 
 and motioning to a youth to receive the bridle, or rather 
 halter, by which he governed the animal, he took the 
 trapper by the arm, and led him a little apart from the 
 rest of the band. 
 
 "Has my brother been a warrior?" said the wily Teton, 
 in a tone that he intended should be conciliating. 
 
 "Do the leaves cover the trees in the season of fruits? 
 Go; tha Dahcotahs have not seen as many warriors living 
 as I have looked on in their blood ! But what signifies idle 
 remembrancing, " he added, in English, "when limbs 
 grow stiff, and sight is failing!" 
 
 The chief regarded him a moment with a severe look, 
 as if he would lay bare the falsehood he had heard; but 
 meeting in the calm eye and steady mien of the trapper a 
 confirmation of the truth of what he said, he took the hand 
 of the old man, and laid it gently on his head, in token of 
 the respect that was due to the other s years and experience. 
 
 "Why then do the Big-knives tell their red brethren to 
 bury the tomahawk," he said, "when their own young 
 men never forget that they are braves, and meet each other 
 so often with bloody hands?" 
 
 "My nation is more numerous than the buffaloes on the 
 prairies or the pigeons in the air. Their quarrels are 
 frequent; yet their warriors are few. None go out on the 
 war-path but they who are gifted with the qualities of a 
 brave, and therefore such see many battles. 
 
 "It is not so my father is mistaken," returned Mah- 
 toree, indulging in a smile of exulting penetration at the 
 very instant he corrected the force of his denial in defer 
 ence to the years and service of one so aged. "The Big- 
 knives are very wise, and they are men; all of them would 
 be warriors. They would leave the red-skins to dig roots 
 and hoe the corn. But a Dahcotah is not born to live like 
 a woman; he must strike the Pawnee and theOmahaw, or 
 he will lose the name of his fathers." 
 
 "The Master of Life looks with open eye on his children 
 who die in a battle that is fought for t.b* riprht: 
 16 
 
242 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 is blind and his ears are shut to the cries of an Indian 
 who is killed when plundering or doing evil to his 
 neighbor. 
 
 "My father is old," said Mahtoree, looking at his aged 
 companion with an expression of irony that sufficiently 
 denoted he was one of those who overstep the trammels of 
 education, and who are perhaps a little given to abuse the 
 mental liberty they thus obtain. "He is very old: has 
 he made a journey to the far country; and has he been at 
 the trouble to come back to tell the young men what he 
 has seen?" 
 
 "Teton," returned the trapper, throwing the breech of 
 his rifle to the earth with startling vehemence, and regard 
 ing his companion with steady serenity, "I have heard 
 that there are men among my people who study their 
 great medicines until they believe themselves to be gods, 
 and who laugh at all faith except in their own vanities. 
 It may be true. It is true; for I have seen them. When 
 man is shut up in towns and schools with his own follies, 
 it may be easy to believe himself greater than the Master 
 of Life; but a warrior who lives in a house with the clouds 
 for its roof, where he can at any moment look both at the 
 heavens and at the earth, and who daily sees the power of 
 the Great Spirit, should be more humble. A Dahcotah 
 chieftain ought to be too wise to laugh at justice." 
 
 The crafty Mahtoree, who saw that his free-thinking 
 was not likely to produce a favorable impression on the 
 old man, instantly changed his ground, by alluding to the 
 more immediate subject of their interview. Laying his 
 hand gently on the shoulder of the trapper, he led him 
 forward until they both stood within fifty feet of the mar 
 gin of the thicket. Here he fastened his penetrating eyes 
 on the other s honest countenance, and continued the 
 discourse. 
 
 "If my father has hid his young men in the bush, let 
 him tell them to come forth. You see that a Dahcotah is 
 not afraid. Mahtoree is a great chief! A warrior whose 
 head is white, and who is about to go to the Land of 
 Spirits, cannot have a tongue with two ends, like a ser 
 pent." 
 
 "Dahcotah, I have told no lie. Since the Great Spirit 
 
THE PRAIRIE 243 
 
 made me a man I have lived in the wilderness, or on these 
 naked plains, without lodge or family. I am a hunter, 
 and go on my path alone." 
 
 "My father has a good carabin. Let him point it in 
 the bush and fire." 
 
 The old man hesitated a moment, and then slowly pre 
 pared himself to give this delicate assurance of the truth 
 of what he said, without which he plainly perceived the 
 suspicions if his crafty companion could not be lulled. As 
 he lowered his rifle, his eye, although greatly dimmed and 
 weakened by age, ran over the confused collection of ob 
 jects that lay imbedded amid the partly colored foliage of 
 the thicket, until it succeeded in catching a glimpse of 
 the brown covering of the stem of a small tree. With this 
 object in view, he raised the piece to a level and fired. 
 The bullet had no sooner glided from the barrel than a 
 tremor seized the hands of the trapper, which, had it oc 
 curred a moment sooner, would have utterly disqualified 
 him for so hazardous an experiment. A frightful silence 
 succeeded the report, during which he expected to hear 
 the shrieks of the females; and then, as the smoke whirled 
 away in the wind, he caught a view of the fluttering 
 bark, and felt assured that all his former ski 11 was not en 
 tirely departed from him. Dropping the piece to the 
 earth, he turned again to his companion with an air of 
 the utmost composure, and demanded: 
 
 "Is my brother satisfied?" 
 
 "Mahtoree is a chief of the Dahcotahs," returned the 
 cunning Teton, laying his hand on his chest, in acknowl 
 edgment of the other s sincerity. "He knows that a war 
 rior who has smoked at so many council-fires, until his 
 head has grown white, would not be found in wicked com 
 pany. But did not my father once ride on a horse, like a 
 rich chief of the pale faces, instead of traveling on foot 
 like a hungry Konza?" 
 
 "Never! The Wahcondah has given me legs, and he 
 has given me resolution to use them. For sixty summers 
 and winters did I journey in the woods of America, and 
 ten tiresome years have I dwelt on these open fields, with 
 out finding need to call often upon the gifts of the other 
 creaturs of the Lord to carry me from place to place. 
 
244 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 "If my father has so long lived in the shade, why has he 
 come upon the prairies? The sun will scorch him." 
 
 The old man looked sorrowfully about for a moment, 
 and then, turning with a confidential air to the other, he 
 replied: 
 
 "I passed the spring, summer, and autumn of life 
 among the trees. The winter of my days had come, and 
 found me where I loved to be, in the quiet ay, and in the 
 honesty of the woods! Teton, then I slept happily, where 
 my eyes could look up through the branches of the pines 
 and the beeches, to the very dwelling of the Good Spirit 
 of my people. If I had need to open my heart to Him, 
 while his fires were burning above my head, the door was 
 open and before my eyes. But the axes of the choppers 
 awoke me. For a long time my ears heard nothing but 
 the uproar of clearings. I bore it like a warrior and a 
 man; there was reason that I should bear it: but when 
 that reason was ended, I bethought me to get beyond the 
 accursed sounds. It was trying to the courage and to the 
 habits, but I had heard of these vast and naked fields, and 
 I came hither to escape the wasteful temper of my people. 
 Tell me, Dahcotah, have I done well?" 
 
 The trapper laid his long, lean finger on the naked 
 shoulder of the Indian as he ended, and seemed to demand 
 his felicitations on his ingenuity and success, with a 
 ghastly smile, in which triumph was singularly blended 
 with regret. His companion listened intently, and replied 
 to the question by saying, in the sententious manner of 
 his race: 
 
 "The head of my father is very gray; he has always 
 lived with men, and he has seen everything. What he 
 does is good; what he speaks is wise. Now let him say, 
 is he sure that he is a stranger to the Big-knives, who are 
 looking for their beasts on every side of the prairies and 
 cannot find them?" 
 
 "Dahcotah, what I have said is true. I live alone, and 
 never do I mingle with men whose skins are white, if 
 
 His mouth was suddenly closed by an interruption that 
 was as mortifying as it was unexpected. The words were 
 still on his tongue, when the bushes on the side of the 
 thicket where they stood opened, and the whole of the 
 
THE PRAIRIE 245 
 
 party whom he had just left, and in whose behalf he was 
 endeavoring 1 to reconcile his love of truth to the necessity 
 of prevaricating, came openly into view. A pause of mute 
 astonishment succeeded this unlooked-for spectacle. Then 
 Mahtoree, who did not suffer a muscle or a joint to betray 
 the wonder and surprise he actually experienced, motioned 
 towards the advancing friends of the trapper with an air 
 of assumed civility, and a smile that lighted his fierce, 
 dark visage, as the glare of the setting sun reveals the 
 volume and load of the cloud, that is charged to bursting 
 with the electric fluid. He, however, disdained to speak, 
 or to give any other evidence of his intentions than by 
 calling to his side the distant band, who sprang forward 
 at his beck, with the alacrity of willing subordinates. 
 
 In the meantime the friends of the old man continued 
 to advance. Middleton himself was foremost, supporting 
 the light and aerial looking figure of Inez, on whose anx 
 ious countenance he cast such occasional glances of tender 
 interest, as, in similar circumstances, a father would have 
 given to his child. Paul led Ellen, close in their rear. 
 But while the eye of the bee-hunter did not neglect his 
 blooming companion, it scowled angrily, resembling more 
 the aspect of the sullen and retreating bear than the soft 
 intelligence of a favored suitor. Obed and Asinus came 
 last, the former leading his companion with a degree of 
 fondness that could hardly be said to be exceeded by any 
 other of the party. The approach of the naturalist was 
 far less rapid than that of those who preceded him. His 
 feet seemed equally reluctant to advance or to remain sta 
 tionary; his position bearing a great analogy to that of 
 Mahomet s coffin, with the exception that the quality 
 of repulsion rather than that of attraction held him in a 
 state of rest. The repulsive power in his rear, however, 
 appeared to predominate; and by a singular exception, as 
 he would have said himself, to all philosophical principles, 
 it rather increased than diminished by distance. As the 
 eyes of the naturalist steadily maintained a position that 
 was the opposite of his route, they served to give a direc 
 tion to those of the observers of all these movements, and 
 at once furnished a sufficient clue by which to unravel the 
 mystery of so sudden a debouchement from the cover. 
 
246 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 Another cluster of stout and armed men was seen at no 
 great distance, just rounding a point of the thicket, and 
 moving directly though cautiously towards the place 
 where the band of the Sioux was posted, as a squadron of 
 cruisers is often seen to steer across the waste of waters, 
 towards the rich but well protected convoy. In short the 
 family of the squatter or at least such among them as 
 were capable of bearing arms, appeared in view, on 
 the broad prairie, evidently bent on revenging their 
 wrongs. 
 
 Mahtoree and his party slowly retired from the thicket, 
 the moment they caught a view of the strangers, until 
 they halted on a swell that commanded a wide and unob 
 structed view of the naked fields on which they stood. 
 Here the Dahcotah appeared disposed to make his stand, 
 and to bring matters to an issue. Notwithstanding this 
 retreat, in which he compelled the trapper to accompany 
 him, Middleton still advanced until he too halted on the 
 same elevation, and within speaking distance of the war 
 like Sioux. The borderers in their turn took a favorable 
 position, though at a much greater distance. The three 
 groups now resembled so many fleets at sea, lying with 
 their topsails to the masts, with the commendable precau 
 tion of reconnoitering before each could ascertain who 
 among the strangers might be considered as friends and 
 who as foes. 
 
 During this moment of suspense, the dark, threatening 
 eye of Mahtoree rolled from one of the strange parties to 
 the other, in keen and hasty examination, and then it 
 turned its withering look on the old man, as the chief 
 said, in a tone of high and bitter scorn: 
 
 "The Big-knives are fools! It is easier to catch the 
 cougar asleep, than to find a blind Dahcotah. Did the 
 white-head think to ride on the horse of a Sioux?" 
 
 The trapper, who had found time to collect his perplexed 
 faculties, saw at once that Middleton, having perceived 
 Ishmael on the trail by which they had fled, preferred 
 trusting to the hospitality of the savages, than to the 
 treatment he would be likely to receive from the hands of 
 the squatter. He therefore disposed himself to clear the 
 way for the favorable reception of his friends, since he 
 
THE PRAIRIE 247 
 
 found that the unnatural coalition became necessary to 
 secure the liberty, if not the lives, of the party. 
 
 "Did my brother ever go on a war-path to strike my 
 people? he calmly demanded of the indignant chief who 
 still awaited his reply. 
 
 The lowering aspect of the Teton warrior so far lost its 
 severity as to suffer a gleam of pleasure and triumph to 
 lighten its ferocity, as sweeping his arm in an entire 
 circle around his person, he answered: 
 
 "What tribe or nation has not felt the blows of the 
 Dahcotahs? Mahtoree is their partisan." 
 
 "And has he found the Big-knives women, or has he 
 found them men?" 
 
 A multitude of fierce passions were struggling in the 
 tawny countenance of the Indian. For a moment inextin 
 guishable hatred seemed to hold the mastery, and then a 
 nobler expression, and one that better became the char 
 acter of a brave, got possession of his features, and main 
 tained itself until, first throwing aside his light robe of 
 pictured deerskin, and pointing to the scar of a bayonet 
 in his breast, he replied: 
 
 "It was given as it was taken, face to face." 
 
 "It is enough. My brother is a brave chief, and he 
 should be wise. Let him look: is that a warrior of the 
 pale faces? Was it one such as that who gave the great 
 Dahcotah his hurt?" 
 
 The eyes of Mahtoree followed the direction of the old 
 man s extended arm, until they rested on the drooping 
 form of Inez. The look of the Teton was long, riveted and 
 admiring. Like that of the young Pawnee, it resembled 
 more the gaze of a mortal on some heavenly image, than 
 the admiration with which man is wont to contemplate 
 ever the loveliness of woman. Starting, as if suddenly 
 self-convicted of forgetfulness, the chief next turned his 
 eyes on Ellen, where they lingered an instant with a much 
 more intelligible expression of admiration, and then pur 
 sued their course until they had taken another glance at 
 each individual of the party. 
 
 "My brother sees that my tongue is not forked," con 
 tinued the trapper, watching the emotions the other be 
 trayed, with a readiness of comprehension little inferior 
 
248 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 to that of the Teton himself. "The Big-knives do not 
 send their women to war. I know that the Dahcotahs will 
 smoke with the strangers." 
 
 "Mahtoree is a great chief! The Big-knives are wel 
 come," said the Teton, laying his hand on his breast with 
 an air of lofty politeness that would have done credit to 
 any state of society. "The arrows of my young men are 
 in their quivers." 
 
 The trapper motioned to Middleton to approach, and in 
 a few moments the two parties were blended in one, each 
 of the males having exchanged friendly greetings, after 
 the fashions of the prairie warriors. But even while en 
 gaged in this hospitable manner, the Dahcotah did not 
 fail to keep a strict watch on the more distant party of 
 white men, as if he still distrusted an artifice, or sought 
 further explanation. The old man, in his turn, perceived 
 the necessity of being more explicit, and of securing the 
 slight and equivocal advantage he had already obtained. 
 While affecting to examine the group which still lingered 
 at the spot where it had first halted, as if to discover the 
 characters of those who composed it, he plainly saw that 
 Ishmael contemplated immediate hostilities. The result 
 of a conflict on the open prairie between a dozen resolute 
 border-men and the half-armed natives, even though sec 
 onded by their white allies, was, in his experienced judg 
 ment, a point of great uncertainity; and though far from 
 reluctant to engage in the struggle on account of himself, 
 the aged trapper thought it far more worthy of his years 
 and his character, to avoid than to court the contest. His 
 feelings were, for obvious reasons, in accordance with those 
 of Paul and Middleton, who had lives still more precious 
 than their own to watch over and protect. In this dilemma 
 the three consulted on the means of escaping the frightful 
 consequences which might immediately follow a single act 
 of hostility on the part of the borderers; the old man tak 
 ing care that their communication should, in the eyes of 
 those who noted the expression of their countenances with 
 jealous watchfulness, bear the appearance of explanations 
 as to the reason why such a party of travelers was met so 
 far in the deserts. 
 
 "I know that the Dahcotahs are a wise and great 
 
THE PRAIRIE 249 
 
 people," at length the trapper commenced, again address 
 ing himself to the chief; "but does not their partisan 
 know a single brother who is base?" 
 
 The eye of Mahtoree wandered proudly around his band, 
 but rested a moment reluctantly on Weucha, as he an 
 swered, "The Master of Life has made chiefs, and war 
 riors, and women;" conceiving that he thus embraced all 
 the gradations of human excellence from the highest to 
 the lowest. 
 
 "And he has also made pale faces who are wicked. Such 
 are they whom my brother sees yonder. 
 
 "Do they go on foot to do wrong?" demanded the 
 Teton, with a wild gleam from his eyes, that sufficiently 
 betrayed how well he knew the reason why they were 
 reduced to so humble an expedient. 
 
 "Their beasts are gone. But their powder, and their 
 lead, and their blankets remain." 
 
 "Do they carry their riches in their hands, like miser 
 able Konzas? or are they brave, and leave them with the 
 women, as men should do, who know where to find what 
 they lose?" 
 
 "My brother sees the spot of blue across the prairie; 
 look, the sun has touched it for the last time to-day." 
 
 "Mahtoree is not a mole." 
 
 "It is a rock; on it are the goods of the Big-knives." 
 
 An expression of savage joy shot into the dark counte 
 nance of the Teton as he listened; turning to the old man 
 he seemed to read his soul, as if to assure himself he was 
 not deceived. Then he bent his look on the party of 
 Ishmael, and counted its number. 
 
 "One warrior is wanting," he said. 
 
 "Does my brother see the buzzards? there is his grave. 
 Did he find blood on the prairie? It was his." 
 
 "Enough ! Mahtoree is a wise chief. Put your women 
 on the horses of the Dahcotahs ; we shall see, for our eyes 
 are open very wide." 
 
 The trapper wasted no unnecessary words in explana 
 tion. Familiar with the brevity and promptitude of the 
 natives, he immediately communicated the result to his 
 companions. Paul was mounted in an instant, with Ellen 
 at his back. A few more moments were necessary to 
 
250 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 assure Middleton of the security and ease of Inez. While 
 he was thus engaged, Mahtoree advanced to the side of the 
 beast he had allotted to this service, which was his own, 
 and manifested an intention to occupy his customary place 
 on its back. The young soldier seized the reins of the 
 animal, and glances of sudden anger and lofty pride were 
 exchanged between them. 
 
 "No man takes this seat but myself," said Middleton, 
 sternly, in English. 
 
 "Mahtoree is a great chief!" retorted the savage; 
 neither comprehending the meaning of the other s words. 
 
 "The Dahcotah will be too late," whispered the old 
 man at his elbow; "see; the Big-knives are afraid, and 
 they will soon run." 
 
 The Teton chief instantly abandoned his claim, and 
 threw himself on another horse, directing one of his young 
 men to furnish a similar accommodation for the trapper. 
 The warriors who were dismounted, got up behind as many 
 of their companions. Doctor Battius bestrode Asinus; 
 and, notwithstanding the brief interruption, in half the 
 time we have taken to relate it, the whole party was pre 
 pared to move. 
 
 When he saw that all were ready, Mahtoree gave the 
 signal to advance. A few of the best mounted of the war 
 riors, the chief himself included, moved a little in front, 
 and made a threatening demonstration, as if they intended 
 to attack the strangers. The squatter, who was in truth 
 slowly retiring, instantly halted his party, and showed a 
 willing front. Instead, however, of coming within reach 
 of the dangerous aim of the Western rifle, the subtle sav 
 ages kept wheeling about the strangers until they had 
 made a half circuit, keeping the latter in constant expec 
 tation of an assault. Then, perfectly secure of their 
 object, the Tetons raised a loud shout, and darted across 
 the prairie in a line for the distant rock, with the direct 
 ness and nearly with the velocity of the arrow that has just 
 been shot from its bow. 
 
CHAPTER XXI 
 
 "Dally not with the gods, but get thee gone." 
 
 SHAKESPEARE. 
 
 MAHTOREE had scarcely given the first intimation of his 
 real design, before a general discharge from the border 
 ers proved how well they understood it. The distance, 
 and the rapidity of the flight, however, rendered the fire 
 harmless. As a proof how little he regarded the hostility 
 of their party, the Dahcotah chieftain answered the report 
 with a yell; and, flourishing his carabin above his head, 
 he made a circuit on the plain, followed by his chosen 
 warriors, in scorn of the impotent attempt of his enemies. 
 As the main body continued the direct course, this little 
 band of the elite, in returning from its wild exhibition 
 of savage contempt, took its place in the rear, with a 
 dexterity and a concert of action that showed the maneuver 
 had been contemplated. 
 
 Volley swiftly succeeded volley, until the enraged squat 
 ter was reluctantly compelled to abandon the idea of 
 injuring his enemies by means so feeble. Relinquishing 
 his fruitless attempt, he commenced a rapid pursuit, oc 
 casionally discharging a rifle in order to give the alarm 
 to the garrison, which he had prudently left under the 
 command of the redoubtable Esther herself. In this man 
 ner the chase was continued for many minutes, the horse 
 men gradually gaining on their pursuers, who maintained 
 the race, however, with an incredible power of foot. 
 
 As the little speck of blue rose against the heavens, like 
 an island issuing from the deep, the savages occasionally 
 raised a yell of triumph. But the mists of evening were 
 already gathering along the whole of the eastern margin 
 of the prairie, and before the band had made half of the 
 necessary distance, the dim outline of the rock had melted 
 into the haze of the background. Indifferent to this cir 
 cumstance, which rather favored than disconcerted his 
 
 251 
 
252 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 plans, Mahtoree, who had again ridden in front, held on 
 his course with the accuracy of a hound of the truest scent, 
 merely slackening his speed a little, as the horses of his 
 party were by this time thoroughly blown. It was at this 
 stage of the enterprise that the old man rode up to the 
 side of Middleton, and addressed him as follows in English: 
 
 "Here is likely to be thieving business, and one in 
 which I must say I have but little wish to be a partner." 
 
 "What would you do? It would be fatal to trust our 
 selves in the hands of the miscreants in our rear." 
 
 "Tut for miscreants, be they red or be they white. 
 Look ahead, lad, as if ye were talking of our medicines, 
 or perhaps praising the Teton beasts. For the knaves 
 love to hear their horses commended, the same as a fool 
 ish mother in the settlements is fond of hearing the praises 
 of her wilful child. So; pat the animal, and lay your 
 hand on the gewgaws with which the red-skins have orna 
 mented his mane, giving your eye as it were to one 
 thing, and your mind to another. Listen: If matters are 
 managed with judgment, we may leave these Tetons as 
 the night sets in." 
 
 "A blessed thought!" exclaimed Middleton, who re 
 tained a painful remembrance of the look of admiration 
 with which Mahtoree had contemplated the loveliness of 
 Inez, as well as of his subsequent presumption in daring 
 to wish to take the office of her protector on himself. 
 
 "Lord, Lord! what a weak creatur is man, when the 
 gifts of natur are smothered in bookish knowledge and 
 womanly manners! Such another start would tell these 
 imps at our elbows that we were plotting against them, 
 just as plainly as if it were whispered in their ears by a 
 Sioux tongue. Ay, ay, I know the devils; they look as 
 innocent as so many frisky fawns, but there is not one 
 among them all that has not an eye on our smallest mo 
 tions. Therefore, what is to be done is to be done in 
 wisdom, in order to circumvent their cunning. That is 
 right; pat his neck and smile, as if you praised the horse, 
 and keep the ear on my side open to my words. Be care 
 ful not to worry your beast, for though but little skilled 
 in horses, reason teaches that breath is needful in a hard 
 push, and that a weary leg makes a dull race. Be ready 
 
THE PRAIRIE 253 
 
 to mind tha signal, when you hear a whine from old 
 Hector. The first will be to make ready; the second, to 
 edge out of the crowd; and the third, to go am I under 
 stood?" 
 
 "Perfectly, perfectly," said Middleton, trembling in 
 his excessive eagerness to put the plan in instant execu 
 tion, and pressing the little arm, which encircled his 
 body, to his heart. "Perfectly. Hasten, hasten." 
 
 "Ay, the beast is no sloth," continued the trapper in 
 the Teton language, as if he continued the discourse, 
 edging cautiously through the dusky throng at the same 
 time, until he found himself riding at the side of Paul. 
 He communicated his intentions in the same guarded 
 manner as before. The high-spirited and fearless bee- 
 hunter received the intelligence with delight, declaring 
 his readiness to engage the whole of the savage band, 
 should it become necessary to effect their object. When 
 the old man drew off from the side of this pair also, he 
 cast his eyes about him to discover the situation occupied 
 by the naturalist. 
 
 The Doctor, with infinite labor to himself and Asinus, 
 had maintained a position in the very center of the Sioux, 
 so long as there existed the smallest reason for believing 
 that any of the missiles of Ishmael might arrive in con 
 tact with his person. After this danger had diminished, 
 or rather disappeared entirely, his own courage revived, 
 while that of his steed began to droop. To this mutual 
 but very material change was owing the fact that the 
 rider and the ass were now to be sought among the por 
 tion of the band who formed a sort of rear-guard. Hither, 
 then, the trapper contrived to turn his steed, without 
 exciting the suspicions of any of his subtle companions. 
 
 "Friend," commenced the old man, when he found him 
 self in a situation favorable to discourse, "should you 
 like to pass a dozen years among the savages with a shaved 
 head, and a painted countenance, with, perhaps, a couple 
 of wives and five or six children of the half-breed, to call 
 you father?" 
 
 "Impossible!" exclaimed the startled naturalist, 
 am indisposed to matrimony in general, and more espe 
 cially to all admixture of the varieties of species, which 
 
254 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 only tend to tarnish the beauty and to interrupt tae har 
 mony of nature. Moreover, it is a painful innovation on 
 the order of all nomenclatures. 
 
 "Ay, ay, you have reason enough for your distaste to 
 such a life; but should these Sioux get you fairly into 
 their village, such would be your luck, as certain as that 
 the sun rises and sets at the pleasure of the Lord." 
 
 "Marry me to a woman who is not adorned with the 
 comeliness of the species!" responded the Doctor. "Of 
 what crime have I been guilty, that so grievous a punish 
 ment should await the offense? To marry a man against 
 the movements of his will, is to do a violence to human 
 nature!" 
 
 "Now, that you speak of natur , I have hopes that the 
 gift of reason has not altogether deserted your brain," 
 returned the old man, with a covert expression playing 
 about the angles of his deep-set eyes, which betrayed he 
 was not entirely destitute of humor. "Nay, they may 
 conceive you a remarkable subject for their kindness, and 
 for that matter marry you to five or six. I have known, 
 in my days, favored chiefs, who had numberless wives." 
 
 "But why should they meditate this vengeance?" de 
 manded the Doctor, whose hair began to rise, as if each 
 fibre was possessed of sensibility; "what evil have I 
 done?" 
 
 "It is the fashion of their kindness. When they come 
 to learn that you are a great medicine, they will adopt 
 you into the tribe, and some mighty chief will give you 
 his name, and perhaps his daughter, or it may be a wife 
 or two of his own, who have dwelt long in his lodge, and 
 of whose value he is a judge by experience. 
 
 "The Governor and Founder of natural harmony protect 
 me!" ejaculated the Doctor. "I have no affinity to a 
 single consort, much less to duplicates and triplicates of 
 the class! I shall certainly essay a flight from their abodes 
 before I mingle in so violent a conjunction." 
 
 "There is reason in your words; but why not attempt 
 the race you speak of now?" 
 
 The naturalist looked fearfully around, as if he had an 
 inclination to make an instant exhibition of his desperate 
 intention; but the dusky figures who were riding on every 
 
THE PRAIRIE 255 
 
 side of him seemed suddenly tripled in number, and the 
 darkness that was already thickening on the prairie, ap 
 peared in his eyes to possess the glare of high noon. 
 
 "It would be premature, and reason forbids it," he 
 answered. "Leave me, venerable venator, to the counsel 
 of my own thoughts, and when my plans are properly 
 classed, I will advise you of my resolutions." 
 
 "Resolutions!" repeated the old man, shaking his head 
 a little contemptuously as he gave the rein to his horse, 
 and allowed him to mingle with the steeds of the savages. 
 "Resolution is a word that is talked of in the settlements, 
 and felt on the borders. Does my brother know the beast 
 on which the pale face rides?" he continued, addressing 
 a gloomy-looking warrior in his own tongue, and making 
 a motion with his arm that at the same time directed his 
 attention to the naturalist and the meek Asinus. 
 
 The Teton turned his eyes for a minute on the animal, 
 but disdained to manifest the smallest portion of that 
 wonder he had felt, in common with all his companions, 
 on first viewing so rare a quadruped. The trapper was 
 not ignorant that while asses and mules were beginning 
 to be known to those tribes who dwelt nearest the Mexi- 
 cos, they were not usually encountered so far north as 
 the waters of La Platte. He therefore managed to read 
 the mute astonishment that lay so deeply concealed in 
 the tawny visage of the savage, and took his measures 
 accordingly. 
 
 "Does my brother think that the rider is a warrior of 
 the pale faces?" he demanded, when he believed that 
 sufficient time had elapsed for a full examination of the 
 pacific mien of the naturalist. 
 
 The flash of scorn which shot across the features of the 
 Teton was visible even by the dim light of the stars. 
 
 "Is a Dahcotah a fool?" was the answer. 
 
 "They are a wise nation, whose eyes are never shut; 
 much do I wonder that they have not seen the great 
 medicine of the Big-knives!" 
 
 "Wagh!" exclaimed his companion, suffering thewnc 
 of his amazement to burst out of his dark, rigid counte 
 nance at the surprise, like a flash of lightning illuminating 
 the gloom of midnight. 
 
256 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 "The Dahcotah knows that my tongue is not forked. 
 Let him open his eyes wider. Does he not see a very 
 great medicine?" 
 
 The light was not necessary to recall to the savage each 
 feature in the really remarkable costume and equipage of 
 Dr. Battius. In common with the rest of the band, and 
 in conformity with the universal practise of the Indians, 
 this warrior, while he had suffered no gaze of idle curi 
 osity to disgrace his manhood, had not permitted a single 
 distinctive mark which might characterize ary one of the 
 strangers to escape his vigilance. He knew the air, the 
 stature, the dress, and the features, even to the color of 
 the eyes and of the hair, of every one of the Big-knives 
 whom he had thus strangely encountered, and deeply had 
 he ruminated on the causes which could have led a party 
 so singularly constituted, into the haunts of the rude in 
 habitants of his native wastes. He had already considered 
 the several physical powers of the whole party, and had 
 duly compared their abilities with what he supposed might 
 have been their intentions. Warriors they were not, for 
 the Big-knives, like the Sioux, left their women in their 
 villages when they went out on the bloody path. The 
 same objections applied to them as hunters, and even as 
 traders, the two characters under which the white men 
 commonly appeared in their villages. He had heard of a 
 great council at which the Menahashah, or Long-knives, 
 and the Washsheomantiqua, or Spaniards, had smoked 
 together, when the latter had sold to the former their 
 incomprehensible rights over those vast regions, through 
 which his nation had roamed in freedom for so many 
 ages. His simple mind had not been able to embrace the 
 reasons why one people should thus assume a superiority 
 over the possessions of another; and it will readily be 
 perceived that, at the hint just received from the trapper, 
 he was not indisposed to fancy that some of the hidden 
 subtlety of that magical influence of which he was so firm 
 a believer, was about to be practised by the unsuspecting 
 subject of their conversation, in furtherance of these 
 mysterious claims. Abandoning, therefore, all the reserve 
 and dignity of his manner under the conscious helplessness 
 of ignorance, he turned to the old man, and stretching 
 
THE PRAIRIE 257 
 
 forth his arms, as if to denote how much he lay at his 
 mercy, he said : 
 
 "Let my father look at me. I am a wild man of the 
 prairies; my body is naked; my hands empty; my skin 
 red. I have struck the Pawnees, the Konzas, the Oma- 
 haws, the Osages, and even the Long-knives. I am a man 
 amid warriors, but a woman among the conjurors. Let 
 my father speak; the ears of the Teton are open. He 
 listens like a deer to the step of the cougar." 
 
 "Such are the wise and uns archable ways of One who 
 alone knows good from evil!" exclaimed the trapper, in 
 English. "To some He grants cunning, and on others he 
 bestows the gift of manhood! It is humbling and it is 
 afflicting to see so noble a creatur as this, who has fou t 
 in many a bloody fray, truckling before his superstition 
 like a beggar asking for the bones you would throw to 
 the dogs. The Lord will forgive me for playing with the 
 ignorance of the savage, for He knows I do it in no 
 mockery of his state, or in idle vaunting of my own; but 
 in order to save mortal life, and to give justice to the 
 wronged, while I defeat the deviltries of the wicked! 
 Teton," speaking again in the language of the listener, 
 "I ask you, is not that a wonderful medicine? If the 
 Dahcotahs are wise, they will not breathe the air he 
 breathes, nor touch his robes. They know that the Wah- 
 conshecheh (bad spirit) loves his own children, and will 
 not turn his back on him that does them harm." 
 
 The old man delivered this opinion in an ominous and 
 sententious manner, and then rode apart as if he had said 
 enough. The result justified his expectations. The warrior 
 to whom he had addressed himself was not slow to com 
 municate his important knowledge to the rest of the rear 
 guard, and in a very few moments the naturalist was the 
 object of general observation and reverence. The trap 
 per, who understood that the natives often worshiped, 
 with a view to propitiate the evil spirit, awaited the 
 workings of his artifice, with the coolness of one who had 
 not the smallest interest in its effects. It was not long 
 before he saw one dark figure after another lashing his 
 horse, and galloping ahead into the center of the band, 
 until Weucha alone remained nigh the persons of himself 
 17 
 
258 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 and Obed. The very dullness of this groveling-minded 
 savage, who continued gazing at the supposed conjuror 
 with a sort of stupid admiration, opposed now the only 
 obstacle to the complete success of his artifice. 
 
 Thoroughly understanding the character of this Indian, 
 the old man lost no time in getting rid of him also. 
 Riding to his side he said, in an affected whisper: 
 
 "Has Weucha drunk of the milk of the Big-knives 
 to-day?" 
 
 "Hugh!" exclaimed the savage, every dull thought 
 instantly recalled from heaven to earth by the question. 
 
 "Because the great captain of my people, who rides in 
 front, has a cow that is never empty. I know it will not 
 be long before he will say, Are any of my red brethren 
 dry? " 
 
 The words were scarcely uttered, before Weucha, in his 
 turn, quickened the gait of his beast, and was soon blended 
 with the rest of the dark group, who were riding, at a 
 more moderate pace, a few rods in advance. The trapper, 
 who knew how fickle and sudden were the changes of 
 a savage mind, did not lose a moment in profiting by 
 this advantage. He loosened the reins of his own im 
 patient steed, and in an instant he was again at the side 
 of Obed. 
 
 "Do you see the twinkling star, that is, maybe, the 
 length of four rifles above the prairie? here-away to the 
 North I mean." 
 
 "Ay, it is of the constellation 
 
 "A tut for your constellations, man; do you see the 
 star I mean? Tell me in the English of the land, yes or 
 no." 
 
 "Yes." 
 
 "The moment my back is turned, pull upon the rein of 
 your ass, until you lose sight of the savages. Then take 
 the Lord for your dependence, and yonder star for your 
 guide. Turn neither to the right hand nor to the left, 
 but make diligent use of your time, for your beast is not 
 quick of foot, and every inch of prairie you gain, is a day 
 added to your liberty, or to your life." 
 
 Without waiting to listen to the queries which the 
 naturalist was about to put, the old man again loosened 
 
THE PRAIRIE 259 
 
 the reins of his horse, and presently he too was blended 
 with the group in front. 
 
 Obed was now alone. Asinus willingly obeyed the hint 
 which is master soon gave, rather in desperation than 
 with any very collected understanding of the orders he 
 had received, and checked his pace accordingly. As the 
 Tetons, however, rode at a hand-gallop, but a moment of 
 time was necessary, after the ass began to walk, to remove 
 them effectually from before the vision of his rider. 
 Without plan, expectation, or hope of any sort, except 
 that of escaping from his dangerous neighbors, the Doctor, 
 first feeling to assure himself that the package which 
 contained the miserable remnants of his specimens and 
 notes was safe at his crupper, turned the head of the 
 beast in the required direction, and kicking him with a 
 species of fury, he soon succeeded in exciting the speed 
 of the patient animal into a smart run. He had barely 
 time to descend into a hollow and ascend the adjoining 
 swell of the prairie before he heard, or fancied he heard, 
 his name shouted in good English from the throats of 
 twenty Tetons. The delusion gave a new impulse to his 
 ardor; and no professor of the saltant art ever applied 
 himself with greater industry than the naturalist now 
 used his heels on the ribs of Asinus. The conflict endured 
 for several minutes without interruption, and to all ap 
 pearances it might have continued to the present moment 
 had not the meek temper of the beast become unduly ex 
 cited. Borrowing an idea from the manner in which his 
 master exhibited his agitation, Asinus so far changed the 
 application of his own heels as to raise them simultane 
 ously with a certain indignant flourish into the air, a 
 measure that instantly decided the controversy in his 
 favor. Obed took leave of his seat as of a position no 
 longer tenable, continuing, however, the direction of his 
 flight; while the ass, like a conqueror, took possession of 
 the field of battle, beginning to crop the dry herbage as 
 the fruits of victory. 
 
 When Doctor Battius had recovered his feet and rallied 
 his faculties, which were in a good deal of disorder from 
 the hurried manner in which he had abandoned his former 
 situation, he returned in quest of his specimens and of 
 
260 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 his ass. Asinus displayed enough of magnanimity to ren 
 der the interview amicable, and thenceforth the natural 
 ist continued the required route with very commendable 
 industry, but with a much more tempered discretion. 
 
 In the meantime the old trapper had not lost sight of 
 the important movements that he had undertaken to con 
 trol. Obed had not been mistaken in supposing that he 
 was already missed and sought, though his imagination 
 had corrupted certain savage cries into the well-known 
 sounds that composed his own latinized name. The truth 
 was simply this. The warriors of the rear-guard had not 
 failed to apprise those in front of the mysterious char 
 acter with which it had pleased the trapper to invest the 
 unsuspecting naturalist. The same untutored admiration 
 which on the receipt of this intelligence had driven those 
 in the rear to the front, now drove many of the front to 
 the rear. The Doctor was of course absent, and the out 
 cry was no more than the wild yells which were raised in 
 the first burst of savage disappointment. 
 
 But the authority of Mahtoree was prompt to aid the 
 ingenuity of the trapper, in suppressing these dangerous 
 sounds. When order was restored, and the former was 
 made acquainted with the reason why his young men 
 had betrayed so strong a mark of indiscretion, the old 
 man, who had taken a post at his elbow, saw with alarm 
 the gleam of keen distrust that flashed in his swarthy 
 visage. 
 
 "Where is your conjuror?" demanded the chief, turn 
 ing suddenly to the trapper, as if he meant to make him 
 responsible for the reappearance of Obed. 
 
 "Can I tell my brother the number of the stars? the 
 ways of a great medicine are not like the ways of other 
 men. 
 
 "Listen to me, gray-head, and count my words," con 
 tinued the other, bending on his rude saddle-bow like 
 some chevalier of a more civilized race, and speaking in 
 the haughty tones of absolute power; "the Dahcotahs 
 have not chosen a woman for their chief; when Mahtoree 
 feels the power of a great medicine he will tremble; un 
 til then he will look with his own eyes without borrowing 
 sight from a pale face. If your conjuror is not with his 
 
THE PRAIRIE 261 
 
 friends in the morning, my young men shall look for him. 
 Your ears are open. Enough!" 
 
 The trapper was not sorry to find that so long a respite 
 was granted. He had before found reason to believe, 
 that the Teton partisan was one of those bold spirits who 
 overstep the limits which use and education fix to the 
 opinions of man in every state of society, and he now saw 
 plainly that he must adopt some artifice to deceive him, 
 different from that which had succeeded so well with his 
 followers. The sudden appearance of the rock, however, 
 which hove up, a bleak and ragged mass, out of the dark 
 ness ahead, put an end for the present to the discourse. 
 Mahtoree giving all his thoughts to the execution of his 
 designs on the rest of the squatter s movables. A mur 
 mur ran through the band, as each dark warrior caught 
 a glimpse of the desired haven, after which the nicest ear 
 might have listened in vain to catch a sound louder than 
 the rustling of feet among the tall grass of the prairie. 
 
 But the vigilance of Esther was not easily deceived. 
 She had long listened anxiously to the suspicious sounds 
 which approached the rock across the naked waste, nor 
 had the sudden outcry been unheard by the unwearied 
 sentinels of the rock. The savages, who had dismounted 
 at some little distance, had not time to draw around the 
 base of the hill in their customary silent and insidious 
 manner, before the voice of the Amazon was raised, de 
 manding: 
 
 "Who is beneath? Answer for your lives! Sioux or 
 devils, I fear ye not!" 
 
 No answer was given to this challenge, every warrior 
 halting where he stood, confident that his dusky form was 
 blended with the shadows of the plain. It was at this 
 moment that the trapper determined to escape. He had 
 been left with the rest of his friends, under the surveil 
 lance of those who were assigned to the duty of watching 
 the horses, and as they all continued mounted, the moment 
 appeared favorable to his project. The attention of the 
 guards was drawn to the rock, and a heavy cloud driving 
 above them at that instant, obscured even the feeble light 
 which fell from the stars. Leaning on the neck of his 
 horse, the old man muttered: 
 
262 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 "Where is my pup? Where is it Hector where is 
 it, dog?" 
 
 The hound caught the well-known sounds, and answered 
 by a whine of friendship, which threatened to break out 
 into one of his piercing howls. The trapper was in the 
 act of raising himself from this successful exploit, when 
 he felt the hand of Weucha grasping his throat, as if de 
 termined to suppress his voice by the very unequivocal 
 process of strangulation. Profiting by the circumstance, 
 he raised another low sound, as in the natural effort of 
 breathing, which drew a second responsive cry from the 
 faithful hound. Weucha instantly abandoned his hold of 
 the master in order to wreak his vengeance on the dog. 
 But the voice of Esther was again heard, and every other 
 design was abandoned in order to listen. 
 
 "Ay, whine and deform your throats as you may, ye 
 imps of darkness, she said, with a cracked but scornful 
 laugh; "I know ye; tarry, and ye shall have light for 
 your misdeeds. Put in the coal, Phoebe; put in the coal; 
 your father and the boys shall see that they are wanted 
 at home, to welcome their guests." 
 
 As she spoke, a strong light, like that of a brilliant 
 star, was seen on the very pinnacles of the rock; then 
 followed a forked flame, which curled for a moment amid 
 the windings of an enormous pile of brush, and flashing 
 upwards in an united sheet, it wavered to and fro in the 
 passing air, shedding a bright glare on every object with 
 in its influence. A taunting laugh was heard from the 
 height, in which the voices of all ages mingled, as though 
 they triumphed at having so successfully exposed the 
 treacherous intentions of the Tetons. 
 
 The trapper looked about him to ascertain in what sit 
 uations he might find his friends. True to the signals, 
 Middleton and Paul had drawn a little apart, and now 
 stood ready, by every appearance, to commence their 
 flight at the third repetition of the cry. Hector had 
 escaped his savage pursuer, and was again crouching at 
 the heels of his master s horse. But the broad circle of 
 light was gradually increasing in extent and power, and 
 the old man, whose eye and judgment so rarely failed 
 him, patiently awaited a more propitious moment for his 
 enterprise. 
 
THE PRAIRIE 263 
 
 "Now, Ishmael, my man, if sight and hand ar true as 
 ever, now is the time to work upon these red-skins, who 
 claim to own all your property, even to your wife and 
 children! Now, my good man, prove both breed and 
 character ! 
 
 A distant shout was heard in the direction of the ap 
 proaching party of the squatter, assuring the female gar 
 rison that succor was not far distant. Esther answered 
 to the grateful sounds by a cracked cry of her own, lift 
 ing her form, in the first burst of exultation, above the 
 rock in a manner to be visible to all below. Not content 
 with this dangerous exposure of her person, she was in 
 the act of tossing her arms in triumph, when the dark 
 figure of Mahtoree shot into the light and pinioned them 
 to her side. The forms of three other warriors glided 
 across the top of the rock, looking like naked demons 
 flitting among the clouds. The air was filled with the 
 brands of the beacon, and a heavy darkness succeeded, 
 not unlike that of the appalling instant when the last rays 
 of the sun are excluded by the intervening mass of the 
 moon. A yell ef triumph burst from the savages in their 
 turn, and was rather accompanied than followed by a long, 
 loud whine from Hector. 
 
 In an instant the old man was between the horses of 
 Middleton and Paul, extending a hand to the bridle of 
 each, in order to check the impatience of their riders. 
 
 "Softly, softly," he whispered, "their eyes are as mar- 
 velously shut for the minute, as if the Lord had stricken 
 them blind; but their ears are open. Softly, softly; for 
 fifty rods, at least, we must move no faster than a walk. 
 
 The five minutes of doubt that succeeded appeared like 
 an age to all but the trapper. As their sight was grad 
 ually restored, it seemed to each that the momentary 
 gloom which followed the extinction of the beacon, was to 
 be replaced by as broad a light as that of noonday. Grad 
 ually the old man, however, suffered the animals to quicken 
 their steps, until they had gained the center of one of the 
 prairie bottoms. Then laughing in his quiet manner, he 
 released the reins, and said: 
 
 "Now let them give play to their legs; but keep on the 
 old fog to deaden the sounds. 
 
264 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 It is needless to say how cheerfully he was obeyed. In 
 a few more minutes they ascended and crossed a swell of 
 the land, after which the flight was continued at the top 
 of their horses speed, keeping the indicated star in view, 
 as the laboring bark steers for the light which points the 
 way to a haven and security. 
 
CHAPTER XXII 
 
 The clouds and sunbeams o er his eye, 
 That once their shades and glories threw, 
 
 Have left, in yonder silent sky, 
 No vestige where they flew." 
 
 MONTGOMBKT. 
 
 A STILLNESS, as deep as that which marked the gloomy 
 wastes in their front, was observed by the fugitives to 
 distinguish the spot they had just abandoned. Even the 
 trapper lent his practised faculties, in vain, to detect any 
 of the well-known signs which might establish the impor 
 tant fact that hostilities had actually commenced between 
 the parties of Mahtoree and Ishmael; but their horses 
 carried them out of the reach of sounds, without the oc 
 currence of the smallest evidence of the sort. The old 
 man, from time to time, muttered his discontent, but 
 manifested the uneasiness he actually entertained in no 
 other manner, unless it might be in exhibiting a growing 
 anxiety to urge the animals to increase their speed. He 
 pointed out in passing, the deserted swale where the fam 
 ily of the squatter had encamped, the night they were in 
 troduced to the reader, and afterwards he maintained an 
 ominous silence; ominous, because his companions had 
 already seen enough of his character to be convinced that 
 the circumstances must be critical indeed, which possessed 
 the power to disturb the well-regulated tranquil ity of 
 the old man s mind. 
 
 "Have we not done enough?" Middleton demanded, in 
 tenderness to the inability of Inez and Ellen to endure so 
 much fatigue, at the end of some hours; "we have ridden 
 hard, and have crossed a wide tract of plain. It is time 
 to seek a place of rest. 
 
 "You must seek it then in heaven, if you find yourselves 
 unequal to a longer march," murmured the old trapper. 
 "Had the Tetons and the squatter come to blows, as any 
 one might see in the natur of things they were bound 
 
 265 
 
266 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 to do, there would be time to look about us, and to cal 
 culate not only the chances but the comforts of the jour 
 ney; but as the case actually is, I should consider it 
 certain death, or endless captivity, to trust our eyes with 
 sleep until our heads are fairly hid in some uncommon 
 cover. 
 
 "I know not," returned the youth, who reflected more 
 on the sufferings of the fragile being he supported, than 
 on the experience of his companion, "I know not; we 
 have ridden leagues, and I can see no extraordinary signs 
 of danger; if you fear for yourself, my good friend, be 
 lieve me you are wrong, for 
 
 Your gran ther, were he living and here," interrupted 
 the old man, stretching forth a hand, and laying a finger 
 impressively on the arm of Middleton, "would have 
 spared those words. He had some reason to think that, 
 in the prime of my days, when my eye was quicker than 
 the hawk s, and my limbs were as active as the legs of the 
 fallow deer, I never clung too eagerly and fondly to life; 
 then why should I now feel such a childish affection for a 
 thing that I know to be vain, and the companion of pain 
 and sorrow? Let the Tetons do their worst; they will 
 not find a miserable and worn-out trapper the loudest in 
 his complaints, or his prayers." 
 
 "Pardon me, my worthy, my inestimable friend," ex 
 claimed the repentant young man, warmly grasping the 
 hand which the other was in the act of withdrawing; "I 
 knew not what I said or rather I thought only of those 
 whose tenderness we are most bound to consider. 
 
 "Enough. It s natur , and it is right. Therein your 
 gran ther would have done the very same. Ah s me! 
 what a number of seasons, hot and cold, wet and dry, 
 have rolled over my poor head, since the time we worried 
 it out together, among the red Hurons of the Lakes, back 
 in those rugged mountains of old York! and many a noble 
 buck has since that day fallen by my hand; ay, and many 
 a thieving Mingo, too! Tell me, lad, did the general 
 for general I know he got to be did he ever tell you of 
 the deer we took that night the outlyers of the accursed 
 tribe drove us to the caves on the island, and how we 
 feasted and drunk in security?" 
 
THE PRAIRIE 267 
 
 "I have often heard him mention the smallest circum 
 stance of the night you mean; but 
 
 "And the singer; and his open throat; and his shout 
 ings in the fights!" continued the old man, laughing joy 
 ously at the strength of his own recollections. 
 
 "All all; he forgot nothing, even to the most trifling 
 incident. Do you not 
 
 "What! did he tell you of the imp behind the log and 
 of the miserable devil who went over the fall or of the 
 wretch in the tree?" 
 
 "Of each and all, with everything that concerned them l 
 I should think 
 
 "Ay," continued the old man, in a voice which be 
 trayed how powerfully his own faculties retained the im 
 pression of the spectacle, "I have been a dweller in forests 
 and in the wilderness for threescore and ten years, and 
 if any can pretend to know the world, or to have seen 
 skeary sights, it is myself! But never, before nor since, 
 have I seen human man in such a state of mortal despair 
 as that very savage; and yet he scorned to speak, or to 
 cry out, or to own his forlorn condition! It is their gift, 
 and nobly did he maintain it!" 
 
 "Harkee, old trapper," interrupted Paul, who, content 
 with the knowledge that his waist was grasped by one of 
 the arms of Ellen, had hitherto ridden in unusual silence; 
 "my eyes are as true and as delicate as a humming-bird s 
 in the day; but they are nothing worth boasting of by 
 starlight. Is that a sick buffalo crawling along in the 
 bottom there, or is it one of the stray cattle of the 
 savages?" 
 
 The whole party drew up, in order to examine the ob 
 ject which Paul had pointed out. During most of the 
 time they had ridden in the little vales in order to seek 
 the protection of the shadows, but just at that moment 
 they had ascended a roll of the prairie in order to cross 
 into the very bottom where this unknown animal was 
 now seen. 
 
 "Let us descend," said Middleton; "be it beast or 
 man, we are too strong to have any cause of fear." 
 
 1 They who have read the preceding books, In which the trapper appears as a 
 hunter and a scout, will readily understand the allusions. 
 
268 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 "Now, if the thing was not morally impossible," cried 
 the trapper, who the reader must have already discovered 
 was not always exact in the use of qualifying words, "if 
 the thing was not morally impossible, I should say that 
 was the man who journeys in search of reptiles and in 
 sects; our fellow-traveler, the Doctor. " 
 
 "Why impossible? did you not direct him to pursue 
 this course, in order to join us?" 
 
 "Ay, but I did not tell him to make an ass outdo the 
 speed of a horse. You are right you are right, said 
 the trapper, interrupting himself, as by gradually lessen 
 ing the distance between them, his eyes assured him it 
 was Obed and Asinus whom he saw; "you are right, as 
 certainly as the thing is a miracle. Lord, what a thing 
 is fear! How now, friend? you have been industrious to 
 have got so far ahead in so short a time. I marvel at the 
 speed of the ass!" 
 
 "Asinus is overcome," returned the naturalist, mourn 
 fully. "The animal has certainly not been idle since we 
 separated, but he declines all my admonitions and invita 
 tions to proceed. I hope there is no instant fear from 
 the savages?" 
 
 "I cannot say that I cannot say that; matters are not 
 as they should be, atween the squatter and the Tetons, nor 
 will I answer as yet for the safety of any scalp among us. 
 The beast is broken down! You have urged him beyond 
 his natural gifts, and he is like a worried hound. There 
 is pity and discretion in all things, even though a man be 
 riding for his life." 
 
 "You indicated the star," returned the Doctor, "and I 
 deemed it expedient to use great diligence in pursuing 
 the direction." 
 
 "Did you expect to reach it by such haste? Go, go, 
 you talk boldly of the creatur s of the Lord, though I 
 plainly see you are but a child in matters that concern 
 their gifts and instincts. What a plight would you now 
 be in, if there was need for a long and a quick push with 
 our heels?" 
 
 "The fault exists in the formation of the quadruped," 
 said Obed, whose placid temper began to revolt under so 
 many scandalous imputations. "Had there been rotary 
 
THE PRAIRIE 269 
 
 levers for two of the members, a moiety of the fatigue 
 would have been saved, for one item 
 
 "That, for your moieties and rotaries and items, man! 
 a jaded ass is a jaded ass, and he who denies it is but a 
 brother of the beast itself. Now, captain, are we driven 
 to choose one of two evils. We must either abandon this 
 man, who has been too much with us through good and 
 bad to be easily cast away, or we must seek a cover to 
 let the animal rest." 
 
 "Venerable venator!" exclaimed the alarmed Obed; "I 
 conjure you by all the secret sympathies of our common 
 nature, by all the hidden 
 
 "Ah, fear has brought him to talk a little rational 
 sense! It is not natur , truly, to abandon a brother in 
 distress, and the Lord He knows that I have never yet 
 done the shameful deed. You are right, you are right; 
 we must all be hidden, and that speedily. But what to 
 do with the ass! Friend Doctor, do you truly value the 
 life of the creator ?" 
 
 "He is an ancient and faithful servant," returned the 
 disconsolate Obed, "and with pain should I see him come 
 to any harm. Fetter his lower limbs, and leave him to 
 repose in this bed of herbage. I will engage he shall be 
 found where he is left, in the morning." 
 
 "And the Sioux? What would become of the beast 
 should any of the red imps catch a peep at his ears, grow 
 ing up out of the grass like two mullein- tops?" cried the 
 bee-hunter. "They would stick him as full of arrows as 
 a woman s cushion is full of pins, and then believe they 
 had done the job for the father of all rabbits! My word 
 for it but they would find out their blunder at the first 
 mouthful!" 
 
 Middleton, who began to grow impatient under 1 
 protracted discussion, interposed, and, as a good deal of 
 deference was paid to his rank, he quickly prevailed in 
 his efforts to effect a sort of compromise. The humble 
 Asinus, too meek and too weary to make any resistance, 
 was soon tethered and deposited in his bed of dying grass, 
 where he was left with a perfect confidence on the part of 
 his master of finding him again, at the expiration of a 
 few hours. The old man strongly remonstrated against 
 
270 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 this arrangement, and more than once hinted that the 
 knife was much more certain than the tether; but the 
 petitions of Obed, aided perhaps by the secret reluctance 
 of the trapper to destroy the beast, were the means of 
 saving its life. When Asinus was thus secured, and as 
 his master believed secreted, the whole party proceeded 
 to find some place where they might rest themselves 
 during the time required for the repose of the animal. 
 
 According to the calculations of the trapper, they had 
 ridden twenty miles since the commencement of their 
 flight. The delicate frame of Inez began to droop under 
 the excessive fatigue, nor was the more robust, but still 
 feminine person of Ellen, insensible to the extraordinary 
 effort she had made. Middleton himself was not sorry to 
 repose, nor did the vigorous and high-spirited Paul hesi 
 tate to confess that he should be all the better for a little 
 rest. The old man alone seemed indifferent to the usual 
 claims of nature. Although but little accustomed to the 
 unusual description of exercise he had just been taking, 
 he appeared to bid defiance to all the usual attacks of 
 human infirmities. Though evidently so near its disso 
 lution, his attenuated frame still stood like the shaft of 
 seasoned oak, dry, naked, and tempest-riven, but unbend 
 ing, and apparently indurated to the consistency of stone. 
 On the present occasion he conducted the search for a 
 resting-place, which was immediately commenced, with 
 all the energy of youth, tempered by the discretion and 
 experience of his great age. 
 
 The bed of grass in which the Doctor had been met, 
 and in which his ass had just been left, was followed a 
 little distance, until it was found that the rolling swells 
 of the prairie were melting away into one vast level plain, 
 that was covered, for miles^ on miles, with the same 
 species of herbage. 
 
 "Ah, this may do this may do, " said the old man, 
 when they arrived on the borders of this sea of withered 
 grass. "I know the spot, and often have I lain in its 
 secret holes, for days at a time, while the savages have 
 been hunting the buffaloes on the open ground. We must 
 enter it with great care, for a broad trail might be seen, 
 and Indian curiosity is a dangerous neighbor." 
 
THE PRAIRIE 271 
 
 Leading the way himself, he selected a spot where the 
 tall, coarse herbage stood most erect, growing not unlike 
 a bed of trees, both in height and density. Here he en 
 tered, singly, directing the others to follow as nearly as 
 possible in his own footsteps. When they had passed for 
 some hundred or two feet into the wilderness of weeds, 
 he gave his directions to Paul and Middleton, who con 
 tinued a direct route deeper into the place, while he dis 
 mounted and returned on his tracks to the margin of the 
 meadow. Here he passed many minutes in replacing the 
 trodden grass, and in effacing, as far as possible, every 
 eivdence of their passage. 
 
 In the meantime the rest of the party continued their 
 progress, not without toil, and consequently at a very 
 moderate gait, until they had penetrated a mile into the 
 place. Here they found a spot suited to their circum 
 stances, and, dismounting, they began to make their dis 
 positions to pass the remainder of the night. By this 
 time the trapper had rejoined the party, and again re 
 sumed the direction of their proceedings. 
 
 The weeds and grass were soon plucked and cut from 
 an area of sufficient extent, and a bed for Inez and Ellen 
 was speedily made, a little apart, which for sweetness 
 and ease might have rivaled one of down. The exhausted 
 females, after receiving some light refreshments from 
 the provident stores of Paul and the old man, now sought 
 their repose, leaving their more stout companions at 
 liberty to provide for their own necessities. Middleton 
 and Paul were not long in following the example of their 
 betrothed, leaving the trapper and the naturalist sti 
 seated around a savory dish of bison s meat, which had 
 been cooked at a previous halt, and which was, as usual, 
 eaten cold. 
 
 A certain lingering sensation, which had so long 
 uppermost in the mind of Obed, temporarily banished 
 sleep; and as for the old man, his wants were rendered, 
 by habit and necessity, as seemingly subject to his will as 
 if they altogether depended on the pleasure of the mo 
 ment. Like his companion, he chose, therefore, to wat< 
 instead of sleeping. 
 
 "If the children of ease and security knew the hardships 
 
272 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 and dangers the students of nature encounter in their 
 behalf," said Obed, after a moment of silence when Mid- 
 dleton took his leave for the night, "pillars of silver and 
 statues of brass would be reared as the everlasting monu 
 ments of their glory!" 
 
 "I know not I know not, " returned his companion; 
 "silver is far from plenty, at least in the wilderness, and 
 your brazen idols are forbidden in the commandments of 
 the Lord." 
 
 "Such indeed was the opinion of the great law-giver of 
 the Jews, but the Egyptians and the Chaldeans, the Greeks 
 and the Romans, were wont to manifest their gratitude 
 in these types of the human form. Indeed, many of the 
 illustrious masters of antiquity have, by the aid of science 
 and skill, even outdone the works of nature, and exhibited 
 a beauty and perfection in the human form that are diffi 
 cult to be found in the rarest living specimens of any of 
 the species; genus, homo." 
 
 "Can your idols walk or speak, or have they the glorious 
 gift of reason?" demanded the trapper, with some indig 
 nation in his voice; "though but little given to run into 
 the noise and chatter of the settlements, yet I have been 
 into the towns in my day, to barter the peltry for lead 
 and powder, and often have I seen your waxen dolls with 
 their tawdry clothes and glass eyes 
 
 "Waxen dolls!" interrupted Obed; "it is profanation, 
 in the view of the arts, to liken the miserable handiwork 
 of the dealers in wax to the pure models of antiquity!" 
 
 "It is profanation in the eyes of the Lord," retorted 
 the old man, "to liken the works of his creatures to the 
 power of his own hand." 
 
 "Venerable venator, " resumed the naturalist, clearing 
 his throat like one who was much in earnest, "let us dis 
 cuss understand ingly and in amity. You speak of the 
 dross of ignorance, whereas my memory dwells on those 
 precious jewels which it was my happy fortune formerly 
 to witness among the treasured glories of the Old World." 
 
 "Old World!" retorted the trapper, "that is the 
 miserable cry of all the half-starved miscreants that have 
 come into this blessed land since the days of my boyhood! 
 They tell you of the Old World; as if the Lord had not 
 
THE PRAIRIE 273 
 
 the power and the will to create the universe in a day, or 
 as if He had not bestowed his gifts with an equal hand, 
 though not with an equal mind, or equal wisdom, have 
 they been received and used. Were they to say a worn- 
 out, and an abused, and a sacrilegious world, they might 
 not be so far from the truth!" 
 
 Dr. Battius, who found it quite as arduous a task to 
 maintain any of his favorite positions with so irregular 
 an antagonist, as he would have found it difficult to keep 
 his feet within the hug of a Western wrestler, hemmed 
 aloud, and profited by the new opening the trapper had 
 made, to shift the grounds of the discussion. 
 
 "By Old and New World, my excellent associate," he 
 said, "it is not to be understood that the hills and the 
 valleys, the rocks and the rivers of our own moiety of the 
 earth do not, physically speaking, bear a date as ancient 
 as the spot on which the bricks of Babylon are found; it 
 merely signifies that its moral existence is not coequal 
 with its physical or geological formation." 
 
 "Anan!" said the old man, looking up inquiringly into 
 the face of the philosopher. 
 
 "Merely that it has not been so long known in morals, 
 as the other countries of Christendom." 
 
 "So much the better so much the better. I am no 
 great admirator of your old morals, as you call them, for 
 I have ever found, and I have lived long as it were in the 
 very heart of natur , that your old morals are none of the 
 best. Mankind twist and turn the rules of the Lord, to 
 suit their own wickedness, when their devilish cunning 
 has had too much time to trifle with his commands." 
 
 "Nay, venerable hunter, still am I not comprehended. 
 By morals I do not mean the limited and literal signifi 
 cation of the term, such as is conveyed in its synonym, 
 morality, but the practises of men, as connected with 
 their daily intercourse, their institutions, and their laws. 
 
 "And such I call barefaced and downright wantonness 
 and waste," interrupted his sturdy disputant. 
 
 "Well be it so," returned the Doctor, abandonm 
 explanation in despair. "Perhaps I have conceded too 
 much " he then instantly added, fancying that 
 saw the glimmerings of an argument through a 
 18 
 
274 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 chink in the discourse. "Perhaps I have conceded too 
 much in saying that this hemisphere is literally as old 
 in its formation as that which embraces the venerable 
 quarters of Europe, Asia, and Africa." 
 
 "It is easy to say a pine is not so tall as an alder, but 
 it would be hard to prove. Can you give a reason for 
 such a belief?" 
 
 The reasons are numerous and powerful, returned the 
 Doctor, delighted by this encouraging opening. "Look 
 into the plains of Egypt and Arabia; their sandy deserts 
 teem with the monuments of their antiquity; and then 
 we have also recorded documents of their glory, doubling 
 the proofs of their former greatness, now that they lie 
 stripped of their fertility, while we look in vain for 
 similar evidences that man has ever reached the summit 
 of civilization on this continent, or search, without our 
 reward, for the path by which he has made the downward 
 journey to his present condition of second childhood." 
 
 "And what see you in all this?" demanded the trapper, 
 who, though a little confused by the terms of his com 
 panion, seized the thread of his ideas. 
 
 "A demonstration of my problem, that nature did not 
 make so vast a region to lie an uninhabited waste so many 
 ages. This is merely the moral view of the subject; as 
 to the more exact and geological 
 
 "Your morals are exact enough for me," returned the 
 old man, "for I think I see in them the very pride of 
 folly. I am but little gifted in the fables of what you 
 call the Old World, seeing that my time has been mainly 
 passed looking natur steadily in the face, and in reason 
 ing on what I ve seen rather than on what I ve heard in 
 traditions. But I have never shut my ears to the words 
 of the good book, and many is the long winter evening 
 that I have passed in the wigwams of the Delawares, 
 listening to the good Moravians, as they dealt forth the 
 history and doctrines of the elder times, to the people of 
 the Lenape! It was pleasant to hearken to such wisdom 
 after a weary hunt! Right pleasant did I find it, and 
 often have I talked the matter over with the Great Ser 
 pent of the Delawares, in the more peaceful hours of 
 our outlyings, whether it might be on the trail of a war- 
 
THE PRAIRIE 275 
 
 party of the Mingoes, or on the watch for a York deer I 
 remember to have heard it, then and there, said, that the 
 Blessed Land was once fertile as the bottoms of the Mis 
 sissippi, and groaning with its stores of grain and fruits; 
 but that the judgment has since fallen upon it, and that 
 it is now more remarkable for its barrenness than any 
 qualities to boast of." 
 
 "It is true; but Egypt nay, much of Africa furnishes 
 still more striking proofs of this exhaustion of nature." 
 
 "Tell me," interrupted the old man, "is it a certain 
 truth that buildings are still standing in that Land of 
 Pharaoh, which may be likened, in their stature, to the 
 hills of the arth?" 
 
 "It is as true as that nature never refuses to bestow her 
 incisors on the animals, mammalia; genus, homo " 
 
 "It is very marvelous; and it proves how great He 
 must be, when his miserable creatur s can accomplish 
 such wonders! Many men must have been needed to finish 
 such an edifice; ay, and men gifted with strength and 
 skill, too! Does the land abound with such a race to this 
 hour?" 
 
 "Far from it. Most of the country is a desert, and 
 but for a mighty river, all would be so." 
 
 "Yes; rivers are rare gifts to such as till the ground, 
 as any one may see who journeys far atween the Rocky 
 Mountains and the Mississippi. But how do you account 
 for these changes on the face of the arth itself, and for 
 this downfall of nations, you men of the schools?" 
 
 "It is to be ascribed to moral cau 
 
 "You re right it is their morals; their wickedness 
 and their pride, and chiefly their waste, that has done it 
 all! Now listen to what the experience of an old man 
 teaches him. I have lived long, as these gray hairs and 
 wrinkled hands will show, even though my tongue should 
 fail in the wisdom of my years. And I have seen much 
 of the folly of man; for his natur is the same, be he 
 born in the wilderness, or be he born in the towns. To 
 my weak judgment it hath ever seemed that his gifts are 
 not equal to his wishes. That he would mount into the 
 heavens, with all his deformities about him, if he only 
 knew the road, no one will gainsay, tha,t witnesses his 
 
276 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 bitter strivings upon arth. If his power is not equal to 
 his will, it is because the wisdom of the Lord hath set 
 bounds to his evil workings." 
 
 "It is much too certain that certain facts will warrant 
 a theory, which teaches the natural depravity of the genus ; 
 but if science could be fairly brought to bear on a whole 
 species at once, for instance, education might eradicate 
 the evil principle." 
 
 "That, for your education! The time has been when I 
 have thought it possible to make a companion of a beast. 
 Many are the cubs, and many are the speckled fawns that 
 I have reared with these old hands, until I have even 
 fancied them rational and altered beings but what did it 
 amount to? the bear would bite, and the deer would run, 
 notwithstanding my wicked conceit in fancying that I 
 could change a temper that the Lord himself had seen fit 
 to bestow. Now if man is so blinded in his folly as to 
 go on, ages on ages, doing harm chiefly to himself, there 
 is the same reason to think that he has wrought his evil 
 here as in the countries you call so old. Look about you, 
 man; where are the multitudes that once peopled these 
 prairies; the kings and the palaces; the riches and the 
 mightinesses of this desert?" 
 
 "Where are the monuments that would prove the truth 
 of so vague a theory?" 
 
 "I know not what you call a monument." 
 
 "The works of man! The glories of Thebes, and Baal- 
 bee: columns, catacombs, and pyramids! standing amid 
 the sands of the East, like wrecks on a rocky shore, to 
 testify to the storms of ages!" 
 
 "They are gone. Time has lasted too long for them. 
 For why? Time was made by the Lord, and they were 
 made by man. This very spot of reeds and grass, on 
 which you now sit, may once have been the garden of 
 some mighty king. It is the fate of all things to ripen, 
 and then to decay. The tree blossoms, and bears its fruit, 
 which falls, rots, withers, and even the seed is lost! Go, 
 count the rings of the oak and of the sycamore; they lie 
 in circles, one about another, until the eye is blinded in 
 striving to make out their numbers; and yet a full change 
 of the seasons comes round while the stem is winding one 
 
THE PRAIRIE 277 
 
 of these little lines about itself, like the buffalo changing 
 his coat, or the buck his horns; and what does it all 
 amount to? There does the noble tree fill its place in the 
 forest, loftier, and grander, and richer, and more difficult 
 to imitate, than any of your pitiful pillars, for a thousand 
 years, until the time which the Lord hath given it is full. 
 Then come the winds, that you cannot see, to rive its 
 bark; and the waters from the heavens, to soften its 
 pores; and the rot, which all can feel and none can under 
 stand, to humble its pride and bring it to the ground. 
 From that moment its beauty begins to perish. It lies 
 another hundred years, a mouldering log, and then a 
 mound of moss and arth; a sad effigy of a human grave. 
 This is one of your genuine monuments, though made by 
 a very different power than such as belongs to your chisel 
 ing masonry! and after all, the cunningest scout of the 
 whole Dahcotah nation might pass his life in searching 
 for the spot where it fell, and be no wiser when his eyes 
 grew dim, than when they were first opened. As if that 
 was not enough to convince man of his ignorance; and as 
 though it were put there in mockery of his conceit, a 
 pine shoots up from the roots of the oak, just as barren 
 ness comes after fertility, or as these wastes have been 
 spread, where a garden may have been created. Tell me 
 not of your worlds that are old! it is blasphemous to set 
 bounds and seasons, in this manner, to the works of the 
 Almighty, like a woman counting the ages of her young." 
 
 "Friend hunter, or trapper," returned the naturalist, 
 clearing his throat in some intellectual confusion at the 
 vigorous attack of his companion, "your deductions, if 
 admitted by the world, would sadly circumscribe the 
 efforts of reason, and much abridge the boundaries of 
 knowledge. 
 
 "So much the better so much the better; for I have 
 always found that a conceited man never knows content. 
 All things prove it. Why have we not the wings of the 
 pigeon, the eyes of the eagle, and the legs of the moose, 
 if it had been intended that man should be equal to all 
 his wishes?" 
 
 "There are certain physical defects, venerable trapper, 
 in which I am always ready to admit great and happy 
 
278 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 alterations might be suggested. For example, in my own 
 order of Phalangacru 
 
 "Cruel enough would be the order that should come 
 from miserable hands like thine! A touch from such a 
 finger would destroy the mocking deformity of a monkey! 
 Go, go; human folly is not needed to fill up the great 
 design of God. There is no stature, no beauty, no pro 
 portions, nor any colors in which man himself can well 
 be fashioned, that is not already done to his hands." 
 
 "That is touching another great and much disputed 
 question," exclaimed the Doctor, who seized upon every 
 distinct idea that the ardent and somewhat dogmatic old 
 man left exposed to his mental grasp, with the vain hope 
 of inducing a logical discussion, in which he might bring 
 his battery of syllogisms to annihilate the unscientific 
 defenses of his antagonist. 
 
 It is, however, unnecessary to our narrative to relate 
 the erratic discourse that ensued. The old man eluded 
 the annihilating blows of his adversary, as the light-armed 
 soldier is wont to escape the efforts of the more regular 
 warrior, even while he annoys him most; and an hour 
 passed away without bringing any of the numerous sub 
 jects, on which they touched, to a satisfactory conclusion. 
 The argument acted, however, on the nervous system of 
 the Doctor like so many soothing soporifics; and by the 
 time his aged companion was disposed to lay his head on 
 his pack, Obed, refreshed by his recent mental joust, was 
 in a condition to seek his natural rest, without enduring 
 the torments of the incubus, in the shape of Teton 
 warriors and bloody tomahawks. 
 
CHAPTER XXIII 
 
 " Save you, sir. " 
 
 SHAKESPEARE. 
 
 THE sleep of the fugitives lasted for several hours. 
 The trapper was the first to shake off its influence, as he 
 had been the last to court its refreshment. Rising, just 
 as the gray light of day began to brighten that portion 
 of the studded vault which rested on the eastern margin 
 of the plain, he summoned his companions from their 
 warm lairs, and pointed out the necessity of their being 
 once more on the alert. While Middleton attended to the 
 arrangements necessary to the comforts of Inez and Ellen, 
 in the long and painful journey which lay before them, 
 the old man and Paul prepared the meal, which the former 
 had advised them to take before they proceeded to horse. 
 These several dispositions were not long in making, and 
 the little group was soon seated about a repast which, 
 though it might want the elegances to which the bride of 
 Middleton had been accustomed, was not deficient in the 
 more important requisites of savor and nutriment. 
 
 "When we get lower into the hunting-grounds of the 
 Pawnees," said the trapper, laying a morsel of delicate 
 venison before Inez, on a little trencher neatly made of 
 horn, and expressly for his own use, "we shall find the 
 buffaloes fatter and sweeter, the deer in more abundance, 
 and all the gifts of the Lord abounding to satisfy our 
 wants. Perhaps we may even strike a beaver, and get a 
 morsel from his tail 1 by way of a rare mouthful." 
 
 "What course do you mean to pursue, when you have 
 once thrown these bloodhounds from the chase?" demanded 
 Middleton. 
 
 "If I might advise," said Paul, "it would be to strike 
 a water-course, and get upon its downward current as 
 
 lr The American hunters consider the tail of the beaver the most nourishing of 
 all food. 
 
 279 
 
280 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 soon as may be. Give me a cottonwood, and I will turn 
 you out a canoe that shall carry us all, the jackass excepted, 
 in perhaps the work of a day and a night. Ellen, here, 
 is a lively girl enough, but then she is no great race- 
 rider; and it would be far more comfortable to boat six 
 or^eight hundred miles, than to go loping along like so 
 many elks measuring the prairies; besides, water leaves 
 no trail." 
 
 "1 will not swear to that," returned the trapper; "I 
 have often thought the eyes of a red-skin would find a 
 trail in air." 
 
 "See, Middleton, " exclaimed Inez, in a sudden burst 
 of youthful pleasure, that caused her for a moment to 
 forget her situation, "how lovely is that sky; surely it 
 contains a promise of happier times!" 
 
 "It is glorious!" returned her husband. "Glorious 
 and heavenly is that streak of vivid red, and here is a 
 still brighter crimson; rarely have I seen a richer rising 
 of the sun. 
 
 "Rising of the sun!" slowly repeated the old man, 
 lifting his tall person from its seat with a deliberate and 
 abstracted air, while he kept his eye riveted on the chang 
 ing and certainly beautiful tints, that were garnishing 
 the vault of heaven. "Rising of the sun! I like not such 
 risings of the sun. Ah s me! the imps have circumvented 
 us with a vengeance. The prairie is on fire!" 
 
 "God in heaven protect us!" cried Middleton, catching 
 Inez to his bosom, under the instant impression of the 
 imminence of their danger. "There is no time to lose, 
 old man; each instant is a day; let us fly!" 
 
 "Whither?" demanded the trapper, motioning him, 
 with calmness and dignity, to arrest his steps. "In this 
 wilderness of grass and reeds, you are like a vessel in the 
 broad lakes without a compass. A single step on the 
 wrong course might prove the destruction of us all. It is 
 seldom danger is so pressing, that there is not time 
 enough for reason to do its work, young officer; therefore 
 let us await its biddings." 
 
 "For my own part," said Paul Hover, looking about 
 him with no equivocal expression of concern, "I acknowl 
 edge, that should this dry bed of weeds get fairly in a 
 
THE PRAIRIE 281 
 
 flame, a bee would have to make a flight higher than 
 common to prevent his wings from scorching. Therefore, 
 old trapper, I agree with the captain, and say, mount 
 and run." 
 
 "Ye are wrong ye are wrong; man is not a beast to 
 follow the gift of instinct, and to snuff up his knowledge 
 by a taint in the air, or a rumbling in the sound; but he 
 must see and reason, and then conclude. So follow me a 
 little to the left, where there is a rise in the ground, 
 whence we may make our reconnoiterings. " 
 
 The old man waved his hand with authority, and led 
 the way without further parlance to the spot he had indi 
 cated, followed by the whole of his alarmed companions. 
 An eye less practised than that of the trapper might have 
 failed in discovering the gentle elevation to which he 
 alluded, and which looked on the surface of the meadow 
 like a growth a little taller than common. When they 
 reached the place, however, the stinted grass itself an 
 nounced the absence of that moisture, which had fed the 
 rank weeds of most of the plain, and furnished a clue to 
 the evidence by which he had judged of the formation of 
 the ground hidden beneath. Here a few minutes were 
 lost in breaking down the tops of the surrounding herb 
 age, which, notwithstanding the advantage of their posi 
 tion, rose even above the heads of Middleton and Paul, and 
 in obtaining a lookout that might command a view of the 
 surrounding sea of fire. 
 
 The frightful prospect added nothing to the hopes of 
 those who had so fearful a stake in the result. Although 
 the day was beginning to dawn, the vivid colors of the 
 sky continued to deepen, as if the fierce element were 
 bent on an impious rivalry of the light of the sun. Bright 
 flashes of flame shot up here and there, along the margin 
 of the waste, like the nimble coruscations of the North, 
 but far more angry and threatening in their color and 
 changes. The anxiety on the rigid features of the trapper 
 sensibly deepened, as he leisurely traced these evidences 
 of a conflagration, which spread in a broad belt about 
 their place of refuge, until he had encircled the whole 
 horizon. 
 
 Shaking his head, as he again turned his face to the 
 
282 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 point where the danger seemed nighest and most rapidly 
 approaching, the old man said : 
 
 "Now have we been cheating ourselves with the belief 
 that we had thrown these Tetons from our trail, while 
 here is proof enough that they not only know where we 
 lie, but that they intend to smoke us out, like so many 
 skulking beasts of prey. See; they have lighted the fire 
 around the whole bottom at the same moment, and we 
 are as completely hemmed in by the devils as an island 
 by its waters." 
 
 "Let us mount and ride!" cried Middleton; "is life not 
 worth a struggle?" 
 
 "Whither would ye go? Is a Teton horse a salamander 
 that can walk amid fiery flames unhurt, or do you think 
 the Lord will show his might in your behalf, as in the 
 days of old, and carry you harmless through such a fur 
 nace as you may see glowing beneath yonder red sky? There 
 are Sioux, too, hemming the fire with their arrows and 
 knives on every side of us, or I am no judge of their mur 
 derous deviltries." 
 
 "We will ride into the center of the whole tribe," re 
 turned the youth fiercely; "and put their manhood to the 
 test." 
 
 "Ay, it s well in words, but what would it prove in 
 deeds? Here is a dealer in bees, who can teach you wis 
 dom in a matter like this. 
 
 "Now for that matter, old trapper," said Paul, stretch 
 ing his athletic form like a mastiff conscious of his 
 strength, "I am on the side of the captain, and am clearly 
 for a race against the fire, though it line me into a Teton 
 wigwam. Here is Ellen, who will 
 
 "Of what use, of what use are your stout hearts, when 
 the element of the Lord is to be conquered as well as 
 human men? Look about you, friends; the wreath of 
 smoke, that is rising from the bottoms, plainly says that 
 there is no outlet from the spot, without crossing a belt 
 of fire. Look for yourselves, my men ; look for yourselves ; 
 if you can find a single opening, I will engage to follow." 
 
 The examination, which his companions so instantly and 
 so intently made, rather served to assure them of their 
 desperate situation, than to appease their fears. Huge 
 
THE PRAIRIE 283 
 
 columns of smoke rolling up from the plain, and thicken 
 ing in gloomy masses around the horizon; the red glow 
 which gleamed upon their enormous folds, now lighting 
 their volumes with the glare of the conflagration, and 
 now flashing to another point, as the flame beneath glided 
 ahead, leaving all behind enveloped in awful darkness, 
 and proclaiming louder than words the character of the 
 imminent and approaching danger. 
 
 This is terrible!" exclaimed Middleton, folding the 
 trembling Inez to his heart. "At such a time as this, and 
 in such a manner!" 
 
 "The gates of heaven are open to all who truly believe, " 
 murmured the pious devotee in his bosom. 
 
 "This resignation is maddening! But we are men, and 
 will make a struggle for our lives! How now, my brave 
 and spirited friend, shall we yet mount and push across 
 the flames, or shall we stand here, and see those we most 
 love perish in this frightful manner, without an effort?" 
 
 "I am for a swarming time and a flight before the hive 
 is too hot to hold us," said the bee-hunter, to whom it 
 will be at once seen that Middleton addressed himself. 
 "Come, old trapper, you must acknowledge this is but a 
 slow way o~Z getting out of danger. If we tarry here much 
 longer, it will be in the fashion that the bees lie around 
 the straw after the hive has been smoked for its honey. 
 You may hear the fire begin to roar already, and I know 
 by experience, that when the flames once gets fairly into 
 the prairie grass, it is no sloth that can outrun it." 
 
 "Think you," returned the old man, pointing scornfully 
 at the mazes of the dry and matted grass which environed 
 them, "that mortal feet can outstrip the speed of fire on 
 such a path! If I only knew now on which side these mis 
 creants lay!" 
 
 "What say you, friend Doctor," cried the bewildered 
 Paul, turning to the naturalist with that sort of helpless 
 ness with which the strong are often apt to seek aid of the 
 weak when human power is baffled by the hand of a 
 mightier Being; "what say you; have you no advice to 
 give away in a case of life and death?" 
 
 The naturalist stood, tablets in hand, looking at the 
 awful spectacle with as much composure as if the confla- 
 
284 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 gration had been lighted in order to solve the difficulties of 
 some scientific problem. Aroused by the question of his 
 companion, he turned to his equally calm though differ 
 ently occupied associate, the trapper, demanding with the 
 most provoking insensibility to the urgent nature of their 
 situation. 
 
 "Venerable hunter, you have often witnessed similar 
 prismatic experiments 
 
 He was rudely interrupted by Paul, who struck the 
 tablets from his hands with a violence that betrayed the 
 utter intellectual confusion which had overset the equa 
 nimity of his mind. Before time was allowed for remon 
 strance, the old man, who had continued during the whole 
 scene like one much at loss how to proceed, though also 
 like one who was rather perplexed than alarmed, sud 
 denly assumed a decided air, if as he no longer doubted 
 on the course it was most advisable to pursue. 
 
 "It is time to be doing," he said, interrupting the con 
 troversy that was about to ensue between the naturalist 
 and the bee-hunter; "it is time to leave off books and 
 meanings, and to be doing." 
 
 "You have come to your recollections too late, miser 
 able old man," cried Middleton; "the flames are within a 
 quarter of a mile of us, and the wind is bringing them 
 down in this quarter with dreadful rapidity." 
 
 "Anan! the flames! I care but little for the flames. If 
 I only knew how to circumvent the cunning of the Tetons 
 as I know how to cheat the fire of its prey, there would be 
 nothing needed but thanks to the Lord for our deliverance. 
 Do you call this a fire? If you had seen what I have wit 
 nessed in the Eastern hills, when mighty mountains were 
 like the furnace of a smith, you would have known what 
 it was to fear the flames and to be thankful that you were 
 spared! Come, lads, come; tis time to be doing now, 
 and to cease talking; for yonder curling flame is truly 
 coming on like a trotting moose. Put hands upon this 
 short and withered grass where we stand, and lay bare 
 the arth." 1 
 
 1 A wise expedient for quenching the flames, or arresting their progress. "The 
 prairie on fire " is not to be despised. In a stiff gale the flames travel faster than 
 the race horse, and stories of death by fire overtaking the fugitive are innumer 
 able. 
 
THE PRAIRIE 285 
 
 "Would you think to deprive the fire of its victims in 
 this childish manner?" exclaimed Middleton. 
 
 A faint but solemn smile passed over the features of 
 the old man as he answered: 
 
 "Your gran ther would have said, that when the enemy 
 was nigh, a soldier could do no better than to obey." 
 
 The captain felt the reproof, and instantly began to 
 imitate the industry of Paul, who was tearing the decayed 
 herbage from the ground in a sort of desperate compliance 
 with the trapper s direction. Even Ellen lent her hands 
 to the labor, nor was it long before Inez was seen simi 
 larly employed, though none amongst them knew why or 
 wherefore. When life is thought to be the reward of 
 labor, men are wont to be industrious. A very few mo 
 ments sufficed to lay bare a spot of some twenty feet in 
 diameter. Into one edge of this little area the trapper 
 brought the females, directing Middleton and Paul to 
 cover their light and inflammable dresses with the blankets 
 of the party. So soon as this precaution was observed, 
 the old man approached the opposite margin of the grass 
 which still environed them in a tall and dangerous circle, 
 and selecting a handful of the driest of the herbage he 
 placed it over the pan of his rifle. The light combustible 
 kindled at the flash. Then he placed the little flame in a 
 bed of the standing fog, and withdrawing from the spot 
 to the center of the ring, he patiently awaited the result. 
 
 The subtle element seized with avidity upon its new 
 fuel, and in a moment forked flames were gliding among 
 the grass, as the tongues of ruminating animals are seen 
 rolling among their food, apparently in quest of its 
 sweetest portions. 
 
 "Now," said the old man, holding up a finger, and 
 laughing in his peculiarly silent manner, "you shall see 
 fire fight fire! Ah s me! many is the time I have burnt 
 a smooty path, from wanton laziness to pick my way across 
 a tangled bottom." 
 
 "But is this not fatal?" cried the amazed Middleton; 
 "are you not bringing the enemy nigher to us instead of 
 avoiding it?" 
 
 "Do you scorch so easily? your gran ther had a tougher 
 skin. But we shall live to see we shall all live to see." 
 
286 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 The experience of the trapper was in the right. As the 
 fire gained strength and heat, it began to spread on three 
 sides, dying of itself on the fourth, for want of ailment. 
 As it increased, and the sullen roaring announced its 
 power, it cleared everything before it, leaving the black 
 and smoking soil far more naked than if the scythe had 
 swept the place. The situation of the fugitives would 
 have still been hazardous had not the area enlarged as 
 the flame encircled them. But by advancing to the spot 
 where the trapper had kindled the grass, they avoided the 
 heat, and in a very few moments the flames began to re 
 cede in every quarter, leaving them enveloped in a cloud 
 of smoke, but perfectly safe from the torrent of fire that 
 was still furiously rolling onwards. 
 
 The spectators regarded the simple expedient of the 
 trapper, with that species of wonder with which the cour 
 tiers of Ferdinand are said to have viewed the manner in 
 which Columbus made his egg stand on its end, though 
 with feelings that were filled with gratitude instead of 
 envy. 
 
 "Most wonderful!" said Middleton, when he saw the 
 complete success of the means by which they had been 
 rescued from a danger that he had conceived to be un 
 avoidable. "The thought was a gift from Heaven, and 
 the hand that executed it should be immortal!" 
 
 "Old trapper, cried Paul, thrusting his fingers through 
 his shaggy locks, "I have lined many a loaded bee into 
 his hole, and know something of the nature of the woods, 
 but this robbing a hornet of his sting without touching 
 the insect!" 
 
 "It will do it will do," returned the old man, who 
 after the first moment of his success seemed to think no 
 more of the exploit; "now get the horses in readiness. 
 Let the flames do their work for a short half hour, and 
 then we will mount. That time is needed to cool the 
 meadow, for these unshod Teton beasts are as tender on 
 the hoof as a barefooted girl." 
 
 Middleton and Paul, who considered this unlooked-for 
 escape as a species of resurrection, patiently awaited the 
 time the trapper mentioned with renewed confidence in 
 the infallibility of his judgment. The Doctor regained 
 
THE PRAIRIE 287 
 
 his tablets, a little the worse from having fallen among 
 the grass which had been subject to the action of the 
 flames, and was consoling himself for this slight misfor 
 tune by recording uninterruptedly such different vacilla 
 tions in light and shadow as he chose to consider phe 
 nomena. 
 
 In the meantime the veteran, on whose experience 
 they all so implicitly relied for protection, employed him 
 self in reconnoitering objects in the distance, through the 
 openings which the air occasionally made in the immense 
 bodies of smoke, that by this time lay in enormous piles 
 on every part of the plain. 
 
 "Look you here, lads," the trapper said, after a long 
 and anxious examination, "your eyes are young, and may 
 prove better than my worthless sight though the time 
 has been, when a wise and brave people saw reason to 
 think me quick on a lookout; but those times are gone, 
 and many a true and tried friend has passed away with 
 them. Ah s me! if I could choose a change in the order- 
 ings of Providence which I cannot, and which it would 
 be blasphemy to attempt, seeing that all things are gov 
 erned by a wiser mind than belongs to mortal weakness 
 but if I were to choose a change, it would be to say, that 
 such as they who have lived long together in friendship 
 and kindness, and who have proved their fitness to go in 
 company, by many acts of suffering and daring in each 
 other s behalf, should be permitted to give up life at such 
 times, as when the death of one leaves the other but little 
 reason to live," 
 
 "Is it an Indian that you see?" demanded the impatient 
 Middleton. 
 
 "Red-skin or white-skin, it is much the same. Friend 
 ship and use can tie men as strongly together in the woods 
 as in the towns ay, and for that matter, stronger. Here 
 are the young warriors of the prairies. Often do they 
 sort themselves in pairs, and set apart their lives for deeds 
 of friendship; and well and truly do they act up to their 
 promises. The death-blow to one is commonly mortal to 
 the other! I have been a solitary man much of my time, 
 if he can be called solitary who has lived for seventy 
 years in the very bosom of natur , and where he could at 
 
288 THE PRAIKIE 
 
 any instant open his heart to God, without having to strip 
 it of the cares and wickednesses of the settlements; but 
 making that allowance, have I been a solitary man; and 
 yet have I always found that intercourse with my kind 
 was pleasant, and painful to break off, provided that the 
 companion was brave and honest. Brave, because a skeary 
 comrade in the woods," suffering his eyes inadvertently 
 to rest a moment on the person of the abstracted natural 
 ist, "is apt to make a short path long; and honest, inas 
 much as craftiness is rather an instinct of the brutes, than 
 a gift becoming the reason of a human man." 
 "But the object that you saw was it a Sioux?" 
 "What the world of America is coming to, and where 
 the machinations and inventions of its people are to have 
 an end, the Lord, He only knows. I have seen in my day 
 the chief who, in his time, had beheld the first Christian 
 that placed his wicked foot in the regions of York! How 
 much has the beauty of the wilderness been deformed in 
 two short lives! My own eyes were first opened on the 
 shores of the eastern sea, and well do I remember that I 
 tried the virtues of the first rifle I ever bore, after such a 
 march, from the door of my father to the forest, as a 
 stripling could make between sun and sun; and that with 
 out offense to the rights or prejudices of any man who set 
 himself up to be the owner of the beasts of the fields. 
 Natur then lay in its glory along the whole coast, giving 
 a narrow stripe, between the woods and the ocean, to the 
 greediness of the settlers. And where am I now? Had I 
 the wings of an eagle, they would tire before a tenth of 
 the distance, which separates me from that sea, could be 
 passed; and towns and villages, farms and highways, 
 churches and schools, in short, all the inventions and dev 
 iltries of man, are spread across the region. I have known 
 the time when a few red-skins shouting along the borders, 
 could set the provinces in a fever; and men were to be 
 armed; and troops were to be called to aid from a distant 
 land; and prayers were said, and the women frighted and 
 few slept in quiet, because the Iroquois were on the war 
 path, or the accursed Mingo had the tomahawk in hand. 
 How is it now? The country sends out her ships to for 
 eign lands to wage their battles; cannon are plentier than 
 
THE PRAIRIE 289 
 
 the rifle used to be; and trained soldiers are never want 
 ing, in tens of thousand, when need calls for their serv 
 ices. Such is the difference atween a province and a 
 state, my men; and I, miserable and worn out as I seem, 
 have lived to see it all!" 
 
 "That you must have seen many a chopper skimming 
 the cream from the face of the earth, and many a settler 
 getting the very honey of nature, old trapper," said 
 Paul, "no reasonable man can, or, for that matter, shall 
 doubt. But here is Ellen getting uneasy about the 
 Sioux, and now you have opened your mind so freely con 
 cerning these matters, if you will just put us on the line 
 of our flight, the swarm will make another move. 
 
 "Anan!" 
 
 "I say that Ellen is getting uneasy; and as the smoke 
 is lifting from the plain, it may be prudent to take another 
 flight." 
 
 "The boy is reasonable. I had forgotten we were in 
 the midst of a raging fire, and that Sioux were round 
 about us like hungry wolves watching a drove of buffaloes. 
 But when memory is at work in my old brain, on times 
 long past, it is apt to overlook the matters of the day. 
 You say right, my children; it is time to be moving, and 
 now comes the real nicety of our case. It is easy to out 
 wit a furnace, for it is nothing but raging element; and 
 it is not always difficult to throw a grizzly bear from his 
 scent, for the creatur is both enlightened and blinded by 
 his instinct; but to shut the eyes of a waking Teton is a 
 matter of greater judgment, inasmuch as his deviltry is 
 backed by reason." 
 
 Notwithstanding the old man appeared so conscious of 
 the difficulty of the undertaking, he set about its achiev- 
 ment with great steadiness and alacrity. After completing 
 the examination, which had been interrupted by the mel 
 ancholy wanderings of his mind, he gave the signal to 
 his companions to mount. The horses, which had continued 
 passive and trembling amid the raging of the fire, received 
 their burdens with a satisfaction so very evident, as to 
 furnish a favorable augury of their future industry, 
 trapper invited the Doctor to take his own steed, declar 
 ing his intention to proceed on foot. 
 19 
 
290 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 "I am but little used to journeying with the feet of 
 others," he added, as a reason for the measure, "and my 
 legs are a-weary of doing nothing. Besides, should we 
 light suddenly on an ambushment, which is a thing far 
 from impossible, the horse will be in a better condition 
 for a hard run with one man on his back than with two. 
 As for me, what matters it whether my time is to be a 
 day shorter or a day longer! Let the Tetons take my 
 scalp, if it be God s pleasure: they will find it covered 
 with gray hairs; and it is beyond the craft of man to 
 cheat me of the knowledge and experience by which they 
 have been whitened." 
 
 As no one among the impatient listeners seemed disposed 
 to dispute the arrangement, it was acceded to in silence. 
 The Doctor, though he muttered a few mourning excla 
 mations on behalf of the lost Asinus, was by far too well 
 pleased in finding that his speed was likely to be sustained 
 by four legs instead of two, to be long in complying; and, 
 consequently, in a very few moments the bee-hunter, who 
 was never last to speak on such occasions, vociferously 
 announced that they were ready to proceed. 
 
 "Now look off yonder to the east," said the old man, as 
 he began to lead the way across the murky and still smok 
 ing plain; "little fear of cold feet in journeying such a 
 path as this; but look you off to the east, and if you see 
 a sheet of shining white, glistening like a plate of beaten 
 silver through the openings of the smoke, why that is 
 water. A noble stream is running there-away, and I 
 thought I got a glimpse of it a while since; but other 
 thoughts came, and I lost it. It is a broad and swift 
 river, such as the Lord has made of its fellows in this 
 desert. For here may natur be seen in all its richness, 
 trees alone excepted. Trees, which are to the arth as 
 fruits are to a garden; without them nothing can be 
 pleasant, or thoroughly useful. Now watch all of you, 
 with open eyes, for that stripe of glittering water: we 
 shall not be safe until it is flowing between our trail and 
 these sharp-sighted Tetons." 
 
 The latter declaration was enough to insure a vigilant 
 lookout for the desired stream, on the part of all the 
 trapper s followers. With this object in view, the party 
 
THE PRAIRIE 291 
 
 proceeded in profound silence, the old man having admon 
 ished them of the necessity of caution, as they entered the 
 clouds of smoke, which were rolling like masses of fog 
 along the plain, more particularly over those spots where 
 the fire had encountered occasional pools of stagnant water. 
 
 They traveled near a league in this manner, without 
 obtaining the desired glimpse of the river. The fire was 
 still raging in the distance, and as the air swept away the 
 first vapor of the conflagration, fresh volumes rolled along 
 the place, limiting the view. At length the old man, who 
 had begun to betray some little uneasiness, which caused 
 his followers to apprehend that even his acute faculties 
 were beginning to be confused, in the mazes of the smoke, 
 made a sudden pause, and dropping his rifle to the ground, 
 he stood, apparently musing over some object at his feet. 
 Middleton and the rest rode up to his side, and demanded 
 the reason of the halt. 
 
 "Look ye here," returned the trapper, pointing to the 
 mutilated carcass of a horse, that lay more than half con 
 sumed in a little hollow of the ground: "here may you see 
 the power of a prairie conflagration. The arth is moist, 
 here-away, and the grass has been taller than usual. This 
 miserable beast has been caught in his bed. You see the 
 bones; the crackling and scorched hide, and the grinning 
 teeth. A thousand winters could not wither an animal so 
 thoroughly as the element has done it in a minute." 
 
 "And this might have been our fate," said Middleton, 
 "had the flames come upon us in our sleep!" 
 
 "Nay, I do not say that, I do not say that. Not but 
 that man will burn as well as tinder; but, that being 
 more reasoning than a horse, he would better know how 
 to avoid the danger." 
 
 "Perhaps this, then, has been but the carcass of an 
 animal, or he too would have fled?" 
 
 "See you these marks in the damp soil? Here have 
 been his hoofs, and there is a moccasin print, as I m a 
 sinner! The owner of the beast has tried hard to move 
 him from the place, but it is in the instinct of the creatur 
 to be faint-hearted and obstinate in a fire." 
 
 "It is a well-known fact. But if the animal has had a 
 rider, where is he?" 
 
292 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 "Ay, therein lies the mystery," returned the trapper, 
 stooping to examine the signs in the ground with a closer 
 eye. Yes, yes, it is plain there has been a long struggle 
 atween the two. The master has tried hard to save his 
 beast, and the flames must have been very greedy, or he 
 would have had better success. 
 
 "Harkee, old trapper," interrupted Paul, pointing to a 
 little distance, where the ground was drier, and the herb 
 age had, in consequence, been less luxuriant; "just call 
 them two horses. Yonder lies another." 
 
 "The boy is right! can it be that the Tetons have been 
 caught in their own snares? Such things do happen; and 
 here is an example to all evil-doers. Ay, look you here, 
 this is iron; there have been some white inventions about 
 the trappings of the beast it must be so it must be so 
 a party of the knaves have been skirting in the grass 
 after us, while their friends have fired the prairie, and 
 look you at the consequences; they have lost their beasts, 
 and happy have they been if their own souls are not now 
 skirting along the path which leads to the Indian heaven. 
 
 "They had the same expedient at command as yourself, 
 rejoined Middleton, as the party slowly proceeded, ap 
 proaching the other carcass, which lay directly on their 
 route. 
 
 "I know not that. It is not every savage that carries 
 his steel and flint, or as good a rifle-pan as this old friend 
 of mine. It is slow making a fire with two sticks, and 
 little time was given to consider or invent, just at this 
 spot, as you may see by yon streak of flame, which is 
 flashing along afore the wind, as if it were on a trail of 
 powder. It is not many minutes since the fire has passed 
 here-away, and it may be well to look at our primings; 
 not that I would willingly combat the Tetons, God forbid! 
 but if a fight needs be, it is always wise to get the first 
 shot." 
 
 "This has been a strange beast, old man," said Paul, 
 who had pulled the bridle, or rather halter of his steed, 
 over the second carcass, while the rest of the party were 
 already passing, in their eagerness to proceed; "a strange 
 horse do I call it; it had neither head nor hoofs!" 
 
 "The fire has not been idle," returned the trapper, 
 
THE PRAIRIE 293 
 
 keeping his eye vigilantly employed in profiting by those 
 glimpses of the horizon, which the whirling smoke offered 
 to his examination. "It would soon bake you a buffalo 
 whole, or for that matter powder his hoofs and horns into 
 white ashes. Shame, shame, old Hector; as for the cap 
 tain s pup, it is to be expected that he would show his 
 want of years, and I may say, I hope without offense, his 
 want of education, too; but, for a hound like you, who 
 have lived so long in the forest afore you came into these 
 plains, it is very disgraceful, Hector, to be showing your 
 teeth, and growling at the carcass of a roasted horse, the 
 same as if you were telling your master that you had 
 found the trail of a grizzly bear." 
 
 "I tell you, old trapper, this is no horse; neither in 
 hoofs, head, nor hide." 
 
 "Anan! Not a horse? your eyes are good for the bees 
 and for the hollow trees, my lad, but bless me, the boy 
 is right! That I should mistake the hide of a buffalo, 
 scorched and crimpled as it is, for the carcass of a horse! 
 Ah s me! The time has been, my men, when I would tell 
 you the name of a beast, as far as eye could reach, and 
 that too with most of the particulars of color, age, and 
 sex." 
 
 "An inestimable advantage have you then enjoyed, 
 venerable venator!" observed the attentive naturalist. 
 "The man who can make these distinctions in a desert, is 
 saved the pain of many a weary walk, and often of an in 
 quiry that in its result proves useless. Pray tell me, did 
 your exceeding excellence of vision extend so far as to 
 enable you to decide on their order or genusT 
 
 "I know not what you mean by your orders of genius." 
 
 "No!" interrupted the bee-hunter, a little disdainfully 
 for him, when speaking to his aged friend; "now, old 
 trapper, that is admitting your ignorance of the English 
 language, in a way I should not expect from a man of 
 your experience and understanding. By order, our com 
 rade means whether they go in promiscuous droves, like a 
 swarm that is following its queen-bee, or in single file, as 
 you often see the buffaloes trailing each other through a 
 prairie. And as for genius, I m sure that is a word well 
 understood, and in everybody s mouth. There is the con- 
 
294 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 gressman in our district, and that tonguey little fellow 
 who puts out the paper in our county they are both so 
 called for their smartness; which is what the Doctor 
 means, as I take it, seeing that he seldom speaks without 
 some considerable meaning." 
 
 When Paul finished this very clever explanation, he 
 looked behind him with an expression which, rightly in 
 terpreted, would have said, "You see, though I don t often 
 trouble myself in these matters, I am no fool." 
 
 Ellen admired Paul for anything but his learning. 
 There was enough in his frank, fearless, and manly char 
 acter, backed as it was by great personal attraction, to 
 awaken her sympathies, without the necessity of prying 
 into his mental attainments. The poor girl reddened like 
 a rose, her pretty fingers played with the belt by which 
 she sustained herself on the horse, and she hurriedly ob 
 served, as if anxious to direct the attentions of the other 
 listeners from a weakness on which her own thoughts 
 could not bear to dwell, 
 
 "And this is not a horse, after all?" 
 
 It is nothing more nor less than the hide of a buffalo, 
 continued the trapper, who had been no less puzzled by 
 the explanation of Paul than by the language of the Doc 
 tor; "the hair is beneath; the fire has run over it, as you 
 see; for being fresh, the flames could take no hold. The 
 beast has not been long killed, and it may be that some of 
 the beef is still here-away. 
 
 "Lift the corner of the skin, old trapper," said Paul 
 with the tone of one who felt as if he had now proved his 
 right to mingle his voice in any council; "if there is a 
 morsel of the hump left, it must be well cooked, and it 
 shall be welcome." 
 
 The old man laughed heartily at the conceit of his com 
 panion. Thrusting his foot beneath the skin, it moved. 
 Then it was suddenly cast aside, and an Indian warrior 
 sprang from its cover to his feet, with an agility that 
 bespoke how urgent he deemed the occasion. 
 
CHAPTER XXIV 
 
 "I would it were bedtime, Hal, and all well." 
 
 SHAKESPEARE. 
 
 A SECOND glance sufficed to convince the whole of the 
 startled party that the young Pawnee, whom they had al 
 ready encountered, again stood before them. Surprise 
 kept both sides mute, and more than a minute was passed 
 in surveying each other with eyes of astonishment, if not 
 of distrust. The wonder of the young warrior was, how 
 ever, much more tempered and dignified than that of his 
 Christian acquaintances. While Middleton and Paul felt 
 the tremor which shook the persons of their dependent 
 companions, thrilling through their own quickened blood, 
 the glowing eye of the Indian rolled from one to another, 
 as if it could never quail before the rudest assaults. His 
 gaze, after making the circuit of every wondering coun 
 tenance, finally settled in a steady look on the equally 
 immovable features of the trapper. The silence was first 
 broken by Dr. Battius, in the ejaculation of 
 
 "Order, primates; genus, homo; species, prairie!" 
 
 "Ay, ay; the secret is out," said the old trapper, shak 
 ing his head, like one who congratulated himself on having 
 mastered the mystery of some knotty difficulty. "The 
 lad has been in the grass for a cover; the fire has come 
 upon him in his sleep, and having lost his horse, he has 
 been driven to save himself under that fresh hide of a 
 buffalo. No bad invention, when powder and flint were 
 wanting to kindle a ring. I warrant me, now, this is a 
 clever youth, and one that it would be safe to journey 
 with! I will speak to him kindly, for anger can at least 
 serve no turn of ours. My brother is welcome again," 
 using the language which the other understood; "the 
 Tetons have been smoking him, as they would a raccoon." 
 
 The young Pawnee rolled his eyes over the place, as if 
 he were examining the terrific danger from which he had 
 
 295 
 
296 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 just escaped, but he disdained to betray the smallest 
 emotion at its imminency. His brow contracted, as he 
 answered to the remark of the trapper by saying: 
 
 "A Teton is a dog. When the Pawnee war-whoop is in 
 their ears, the whole nation howls." 
 
 "It is true. The imps are on our trail, and I am glad 
 to meet a warrior, with the tomahawk in his hand, who 
 does not love them. Will my brother lead my children to 
 his village. If the Sioux follow on our path, my young 
 men shall help him to strike them." 
 
 The young Pawnee turned his eyes from one to another 
 of the strangers, in a keen scrutiny, before he saw fit to 
 answer so important an interrogatory. His examination 
 of the males was short, and apparently satisfactory. But 
 his gaze was fastened long and admiringly, as in their 
 former interview, on the surpassing and unwonted beauty 
 of a being so fair and so unknown as Inez. Though his 
 glance wandered, for moments, from her countenance to 
 the more intelligible and yet extraordinary charms of 
 Ellen, it did not fail to return promptly to the study of a 
 creature who, in the view of his unpractised eye and un 
 tutored imagination, was formed with all that perfection 
 with which the youthful poet is apt to endow the glowing 
 images of his brain. Nothing so fair, so ideal, so every 
 way worthy to reward the courage and self-devotion of a 
 warrior, had ever before been encountered on the prairies, 
 and the young brave appeared to be deeply and intuitively 
 sensible to the influence of so rare a model of the loveli 
 ness of the sex. Perceiving, however, that his gaze gave 
 uneasiness to the subject of his admiration, he withdrew 
 his eyes, and laying his hand impressively on his chest, he 
 modestly answered: 
 
 "My father shall be welcome. The young men of my 
 nation shall hunt with his sons; the chiefs shall smoke 
 with the gray-head. The Pawnee girls will sing in the 
 ears of his daughters." 
 
 "And if we meet the Tetons?" demanded the trapper, 
 who wished to understand, thoroughly, the more impor 
 tant conditions of this new alliance. 
 
 "The enemy of the Big-knives shall feel the blow of the 
 Pawnee." 
 
THE PRAIRIE 297 
 
 "It is well. Now let my brother and I meet in council, 
 that we may not go on a crooked path, but that our road 
 to his village may be like the flight of the pigeons." 
 
 The young Pawnee made a significant gesture of assent, 
 and followed the other a little apart, in order to be re 
 moved from all danger of interruption from the reckless 
 Paul, or the abstracted naturalist. Their conference was 
 short, but, as it was conducted in the sententious manner 
 of the natives, it served to make each of the parties 
 acquainted with all the necessary information of the other. 
 When they rejoined their associates, the old man saw fit 
 to explain a portion of what had passed between them as 
 follows: 
 
 "Ay, I was not mistaken, " he said; "this good-looking 
 young warrior for good-looking and noble-looking he is, 
 though a little horrified perhaps with paint this good- 
 looking youth, then, tells me he is out on the scout for 
 these very Tetons. His party was not strong enough to 
 strike the devils, who are down from their towns in great 
 numbers to hunt the buffalo, and runners have gone to 
 the Pawnee villages for aid. It would seem that this lad 
 is a fearless boy, for he has been hanging on their skirts 
 alone, until, like ourselves, he was driven to the grass for 
 a cover. But he tells me more, my men, and what I am 
 mainly sorry to hear, which is, that the cunning Mahtoree, 
 instead of going to blows with the squatter, has become 
 his friend, and that both broods, red and white, are on 
 our heels, and outlying around this very burning plain, to 
 circumvent us to our destruction." 
 
 "How knows he all this to be true?" demanded Middle- 
 ton. 
 
 "Anan!" 
 
 "In what manner does he know that these things are 
 
 so?" 
 
 "In what manner! Do you think newspapers and 
 criers are needed to tell a scout what is doing on the 
 prairies, as they are in the bosom of the States? No gos 
 siping woman, who hurries from house to house to spread 
 evil of her neighbor, can carry tidings with her tongue s 
 fast as these people will spread their meaning, by signs 
 and warnings that they alone understand. 
 
298 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 I arning, and what is better, it is got in the open air, 
 and not within the walls of a school. I tell you, captain, 
 that what he says is true. 
 
 "For that matter," said Paul, "I m ready to swear to 
 it. It is reasonable, and therefore it must be true. 
 
 "And well you might, lad well you might. He further 
 more declares, that my old eyes for once were true to me, 
 and that the river lies here-away, at about the distance of 
 half a league. You see the fire has done most of its work 
 in that quarter, and our path is clouded in smoke. He 
 also agrees that it is needful to wash our trail in water. 
 Yes, we must put that river atween us and the Sioux eyes, 
 and then by the favor of the Lord, not forgetting our own 
 industry, we may gain the village of the Loups. " 
 
 "Words will not forward us a foot," said Middleton; 
 "let us move." 
 
 The old man assented, and the party once more prepared 
 to renew its route. The Pawnee threw the skin of the 
 buffalo over his shoulder and led the advance, casting 
 many a stolen glance behind him as he proceeded, in order 
 to fix his gaze on the extraordinary and, to him, unac 
 countable loveliness of the unconscious Inez. 
 
 An hour sufficed to bring the fugitives to the bank of 
 the stream, which was one of the hundred rivers that 
 serve to conduct, through the mighty arteries of the 
 Missouri and Mississippi, the waters of that vast and still 
 uninhabited region to the ocean. The river was not deep, 
 but its current was troubled and rapid. 
 
 The flames had scorched the earth to its very margin, 
 and as the warm streams of the fluid mingled, in the 
 cooler air of the morning, with smoke of the raging con 
 flagration, most of its surf ace was wrapped in a mantle of 
 moving vapor. The trapper pointed out the circumstance 
 with pleasure, saying, as he assisted Inez to dismount on 
 the margin of the water-course: 
 
 "The knaves have outwitted themselves! I am far 
 from certain that I should not have fired the prairie, to 
 have got the benefit of this very smoke to hide our move 
 ments, had not the heartless imps saved us the trouble. 
 I ve known such things done in my day, and done with 
 success. Come, lady, put your tender foot upon the 
 
THE PRAIRIE 299 
 
 ground for a fearful time has it been to one of your 
 breeding and skeary qualities. Ah s me! what have I not 
 known the young, and the delicate, and the virtuous, and 
 the modest, to undergo, in my time, among the horrifica- 
 tions and circumventions of Indian warfare! Come, it is 
 a short quarter of a mile to the other bank, and then our 
 trail, at least, will be broken." 
 
 Paul had by this time assisted Ellen to dismount, and 
 he now stood looking, with rueful eyes, at the naked banks 
 of the river. Neither tree nor shrub grew along its bor 
 ders, with the exception of here and there a solitary 
 thicket of low bushes, from among which it would not 
 have been an easy matter to have found a dozen stems of 
 a size sufficient to make an ordinary walking-stick. 
 
 "Harkee, old trapper," the moody looking bee-hunter 
 exclaimed; "it is very well to talk of the other side of 
 this ripple of a river, or brook, or whatever you may call 
 it, but in my judgment it would be a smart rifle that 
 would throw its lead across it that is, to any detriment 
 to Indian or deer." 
 
 "That it would that it would; though I carry a piece, 
 here, that has done its work in time of need at as great a 
 distance." 
 
 "And do you mean to shoot Ellen and the captain s lady 
 across; or do you intend them to go, trout fashion, with 
 their mouths under water?" 
 
 "Is this river too deep to be forded?" asked Middle- 
 ton, who, like Paul, began to consider the impossibility 
 of transporting her, whose safety he valued more than his 
 own, to the opposite shore. 
 
 "When the mountains above feed it with their torrents, 
 it is, as you see, a swift and powerful stream. Yet have 
 I crossed its sandy bed, in my time, without wetting a 
 knee. But we have the Sioux horses; I warrant me that 
 the kicking imps will swim like so many deer." 
 
 "Old trapper," said Paul, thrusting his fingers into his 
 mop of a head, as was usual with him, when any difficulty 
 confounded his philosophy, "I have swum like a fish in 
 my day, and I can do it again, when there is need; nor 
 do I much regard the weather; but I question if you get 
 Nelly to sit a horse, with this water whirling like a mill- 
 
300 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 race before her eyes; besides it is manifest the thing is 
 not to be done dry-shod." 
 
 "Ah, the lad is right. We must to our inventions, 
 therefore, or the river cannot be crossed." Then cutting 
 the discourse short, he turned to the Pawnee, and ex 
 plained to him the difficulty which existed in relation 
 to the women. The young warrior listened gravely, and 
 throwing the buffalo-skin from his shoulder, he imme 
 diately commenced, assisted by the occasional aid of the 
 understanding old man, the preparations necessary to 
 effect this desirable object. 
 
 The hide was soon drawn into the shape of an umbrella 
 top, or an inverted parachute, by thongs of deerskin, 
 with which both the laborers were well provided. A few 
 light sticks served to keep the parts from collapsing, or 
 falling in. When this simple and natural expedient was 
 arranged, it was placed on the water, the Indian making 
 a sign it was reaady to receive its freight. Both Inez and 
 Ellen hesitated to trust themselves in a bark of so frail a 
 construction, nor would Middleton or Paul consent that 
 they should do so, until each had assured himself, by actual 
 experiment, that the vessel was capable of sustaining a 
 load much heavier than it was destined to receive. Then, 
 indeed, their scruples were reluctantly overcome, and the 
 skin was made to receive its precious burden. 
 
 "Now leave the Pawnee to be the pilot," said the trap 
 per; "my hand is not so steady as it used to be; but he 
 has limbs like toughened hickory. Leave all to the wis 
 dom of the Pawnee. 
 
 The husband and lover could not well do otherwise, and 
 they were fain to become deeply interested, it is true, 
 but passive spectators of this primitive species of ferrying. 
 The Pawnee selected the beast of Mahtoree from among 
 the three horses, with a readiness that proved he was far 
 from being ignorant of the properties of that noble ani 
 mal, and throwing himself upon its back, he rode into the 
 margin of the river. 
 
 Thrusting an end of his lance into the hide, he bore 
 the light vessel up against the stream, and giving his 
 steed the rein, they pushed boldly into the current. Mid 
 dleton and Paul followed, pressing as nigh the bark as 
 
THE PRAIRIE 301 
 
 prudence would at all warrant. In this manner the young 
 warrior bore his precious cargo to the opposite bank in 
 perfect safety, without the slightest inconvenience to the 
 passengers, and with a steadiness and celerity which 
 proved that both horse and rider were not unused to the 
 operation. When the shore was gained, the young Indian 
 undid his work, threw the skin over his shoulder, placed 
 the sticks under his arm, and returned, without speaking, 
 to transfer the remainder of the party in a similar man 
 ner, to what was very justly considered the safer side of 
 the river. 
 
 "Now, friend Doctor," said the old man, when he saw 
 the Indian plunging into the river a second time, "do I 
 know there is faith in yonder red-skin. He is a good- 
 looking, ay, and an honest-looking youth, but the winds 
 of heaven are not more deceitful than these savages, when 
 the devil has fairly beset them. Had the Pawnee been a 
 Teton, or one of them heartless Mingoes that used to be 
 prowling through the woods of York, a time back, that 
 is, some sixty years agone, we should have seen his back 
 and not his face turned towards us. My heart had its 
 misgivings when I saw the lad choose the better horse for 
 it would be as easy to leave us with that beast, as it would 
 for a nimble pigeon to part company from a flock of noisy 
 and heavy-w T inged crows. But you see that truth is in the 
 boy, and make a red-skin once your friend, he is yours so 
 long as you deal honestly by him." 
 
 "What may be the distance to the sources of this 
 stream?" demanded Dr. Battius, whose eyes were rolling 
 over the whirling eddies of the current, with a very por 
 tentous expression of doubt. "At what distance may its 
 secret springs be found?" 
 
 "That may be as the weather proves. I warrant me 
 your legs would be a- weary before you had followed its 
 bed into the Rocky Mountains; but then there are seasons 
 when it might be done without wetting a foot." 
 
 "And in what particular divisions of the year do these 
 periodical seasons occur?" 
 
 "He that passes this spot a few months from this time, 
 will find that foaming water-course a desert of drifting 
 sand." 
 
302 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 The naturalist pondered deeply. Like most others who 
 are not endowed with a superfluity of physical fortitude, 
 the worthy man had found the danger of passing the river, 
 in so simple a manner, magnifying itself in his eyes so 
 rapidly, as the moment of adventure approached, that he 
 actually contemplated the desperate effort of going round 
 the river in order to escape the hazard of crossing it. It 
 may not be necessary to dwell on the incredible ingenuity 
 with which terror will at any time prop a tottering argu 
 ment. The worthy Obed had gone over the whole subject 
 with commendable diligence, and had just arrived at the 
 consoling conclusion, that there was nearly as much glory 
 in discerning the hidden sources of so considerable a 
 stream, as in adding a plant or an insect to the lists of 
 the learned, when the Pawnee reached the shore for the 
 second time. The old man took his seat with the utmost 
 deliberation, in the vessel of skin (so soon as it had been 
 duly arranged for his reception), and having carefully 
 disposed of Hector between his legs, he beckoned to his 
 companion to occupy the third place. 
 
 The naturalist placed a foot in the frail vessel, as an 
 elephant will try a bridge, or a horse is often seen to make 
 a similar experiment before he will trust the whole of his 
 corporal treasure on the dreaded flat, and then withdrew 
 just as the old man believed he was about to seat himself. 
 
 "Venerable venator," he said, mournfully, "this is a 
 most unscientific bark. There is an inward monitor which 
 bids me distrust its security!" 
 
 "Anan!" said the old man, who was pinching the ears 
 of the hound, as a father would play with the same mem 
 ber in a favorite child. 
 
 "I incline not to this irregular mode of experimenting 
 on fluids. The vessel has neither form nor proportions." 
 
 "It is not as handsomely turned as I have seen a canoe 
 in birchen bark, but comfort may be taken in a wigwam 
 as well as in a palace!" 
 
 "It is impossible that any vessel constructed on prin 
 ciples so repugnant to science can be safe. This tub, ven 
 erable hunter, will never reach the opposite shore in 
 safety." 
 
 "You are a witness of what it has done." 
 
THE PRAIRIE 303 
 
 "Ay; but it was an anomaly in prosperity. If excep 
 tions were to be taken as rules in the government of 
 things, the human race would speedily be plunged in the 
 abysses of ignorance. Venerable trapper, this expedient 
 in which you would repose your safety, is, in the annals 
 of regular inventions \vhaialusus naturae may be termed 
 in the lists of natural history a monster!" 
 
 How much longer Dr. Battius might have felt dis 
 posed to prolong the discourse it is difficult to say, for in 
 addition to the powerful personal considerations which 
 induced him to procrastinate an experiment which was 
 certainly not without its dangers, the pride of reason was 
 beginning to sustain him in the discussion. But, fortu 
 nately for the credit of the old man s forbearance, when 
 the naturalist reached the word with which he terminated 
 his last speech, a sound arose in the air that seemed a sort 
 of supernatural echo to the idea itself. The young Paw 
 nee, who had awaited the termination of the incompre 
 hensible discussion with grave and characteristic patience, 
 raised his head and listened to the unknown cry, like a 
 stag whose mysterious faculties had detected the footsteps 
 of the distant hounds in the gale. The trapper and the 
 Doctor were not, however, entirely so uninstructed as to 
 the nature of the extraordinary sounds. The latter recog 
 nized in them the well-known voice of his own beast, and 
 he was about to rush up the little bank which confined the 
 current, with all the longings of strong affection, when 
 Asinus himself galloped into view, at no great distance, 
 urged to the unnatural gait by the impatient and brutal 
 Weucha, who bestrode him. 
 
 The eyes of the Teton and those of the fugitives met. 
 The former raised a long, loud, and piercing yell, in which 
 the notes of exultation were fearfully blended with those 
 of warning. The signal served for a finishing blow to the 
 discussion on the merits of the bark, the Doctor stepping 
 as promptly to the side of the old man, as if a mental 
 mist had been miraculously removed from his eyes. In 
 another instant the steed of the young Pawnee was strug 
 gling with the torrent. 
 
 The utmost strength of the horse was needed to urge 
 the fugitives beyond the flight of arrows that came sailing 
 
304 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 through the air, at the next moment. The cry of Weucha 
 had brought fifty of his comrades to the shore, but for 
 tunately, among them all, there was not one of a rank 
 sufficient to entitle him to the privilege of bearing a fusee. 
 
 One half the stream, however, was not passed, before 
 the form of Mahtoree himself was seen on its bank, and 
 an ineffectual discharge of firearms announced the rage 
 and disappointment of the chief. More than once the 
 trapper had raised his rifle, as if about to try its power 
 on his enemies, but he as often lowered it, without firing. 
 The eyes of the Pawnee warrior glared like those of the 
 cougar, at the sight of so many of the hostile tribe, and 
 he answered the impotent effort of their chief, by tossing 
 a hand into the air in contempt, and raising the war-cry 
 of his nation. The challenge was too taunting to be en 
 dured. The Tetons dashed into the stream in a body, and 
 the river became dotted with the dark forms of beasts and 
 riders. 
 
 There was now a fearful struggle for the friendly bank. 
 As the Dahcotahs advanced with beasts which had not, 
 like that of the Pawnee, expended their strength in for 
 mer efforts, and as they moved unencumbered by anything 
 but their riders, the speed of the pursuers greatly out 
 stripped that of the fugitives. The trapper, who clearly 
 comprehended the whole danger of their situation, calmly 
 turned his eyes from the Tetons to his young Indian asso 
 ciate, in order to examine whether the resolution of the 
 latter began to falter, as the former lessened the distance 
 between them. Instead of betraying fear, however, or 
 any of that concern which might so readily have been ex 
 cited by the peculiarity of his risk, the brow of the young 
 warrior contracted to a look which indicated high and 
 deadly hostility. 
 
 "Do you greatly value life, friend Doctor?" demanded 
 the old man, with a sort of philosophical calmness, which 
 made the question doubly appalling to his companion. 
 
 "Not for itself," returned the naturalist, sipping some 
 of the water of the river from the hollow of his hand, in 
 order to clear his husky throat. "Not for itself, but ex 
 ceedingly, inasmuch as natural history has so deep a stake 
 in my existence. Therefore " 
 
THE PRAIRIE 305 
 
 "Ay!" resumed the other, who mused too deeply to 
 dissect the ideas of the Doctor with his usual sagacity, 
 
 tis in truth the history of natur , and a base and craven 
 feeling it is! Now is life as precious to this young Paw 
 nee as to any governor in the States, and he might save 
 it, or at least stand some chance of saving it, by letting 
 us go down the stream; and yet you see he keeps his faith 
 manfully, and like an Indian warrior. For myself, I am 
 old, and willing to take the fortune that the Lord may see 
 fit to give, nor do I conceit that you are of much benefit 
 to mankind; and it is a crying shame, if not a sin, that so 
 fine a youth as this should lose his scalp for two beings so 
 worthless as ourselves. I am therefore disposed, provided 
 that it shall prove agreeable to you, to tell the lad to make 
 the best of his way, and to leave us to the mercy of the 
 Tetons." 
 
 "I repel the proposition, as repugnant to nature, and 
 as treason to science!" exclaimed the alarmed naturalist. 
 "Our progress is miraculous; and as this admirable in 
 vention moves with so wonderful a facility, a few more 
 minutes will serve to bring us to land." 
 
 The old man regarded him intently for an instant, and 
 shaking his head he said: 
 
 "Lord, what a thing is fear! it transforms the creatur s 
 of the world and the craft of man, making that which is 
 ugly, seemly in our eyes, and that which is beautiful, 
 unsightly! Lord, Lord, what a thing is fear!" 
 
 A termination was, however, put to the discussion, by 
 the increasing interest of the chase. The horses of the 
 Dahcotahs had by this time gained the middle of the cur 
 rent, and their riders were already filling the air with 
 yells of triumph. At this moment Middleton and Paul, 
 who had led the females to a little thicket, appeared again 
 on the margin of the stream, menacing their enemies with 
 the rifle. 
 
 "Mount, mount," shouted the trapper, the instant he 
 beheld them; "mount and fly, if you value those who lean 
 on you for help. Mount, and leave us in the hands of the 
 Lord." 
 
 "Stoop your head, old trapper," returned the voice of 
 Paul, "down with ye both into your nest. The Teton 
 
 20 
 
306 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 devil is in your line; down with your heads and make way 
 for a Kentucky bullet. 
 
 The old man turned his head, and saw that the eager 
 Mahtoree, who preceded his party some distance, had 
 brought himself nearly in a line with the bark and the 
 bee-hunter, who stood perfectly ready to execute his hos 
 tile threat. Bending his body low, the rifle was dis 
 charged, and the swift lead whizzed harmlessly past him, 
 on its more distant errand. But the eye of the Teton 
 chief was not less quick and certain than that of his 
 enemy. He threw himself from his horse the moment 
 preceding the report, and sank into the water. The beast 
 snorted with terror and anguish, throwing half his form 
 out of the river in a desperate plunge. Then he was seen 
 drifting away in the torrent, and dyeing the turbid waters 
 with his blood. 
 
 The Teton chief soon reappeared on the surface, and 
 understanding the nature of his loss, he swam with vigor 
 ous strokes to the nearest of the young men, who relin 
 quished his steed, as a matter of course, to so renowned a 
 warrior. The incident, however, created a confusion in 
 the whole of the Dahcotah band, who appeared to await 
 the intention of their leader, before they renewed their 
 efforts to reach the shore. In the meantime the vessel of 
 skin had reached the land, and the fugitives were once 
 more united on the margin of the river. 
 
 The savages were now swimming about in indecision, 
 as a flock of pigeons is often seen to hover in confusion 
 after receiving a heavy discharge into its leading column, 
 apparently hesitating on the risk of storming a bank so 
 formidably defended. The well-known precaution of 
 Indian warfare prevailed, and Mahtoree, admonished by 
 his recent adventures, led his warriors back to the shore 
 from which they had come, in order to relieve their 
 beasts, which were already becoming unruly. 
 
 "Now, mount you with the tender ones, and ride for 
 yonder hillock," said the trapper; "beyond it you will 
 find another stream, into which you must enter, and turn 
 ing to the sun, follow its bed for a mile, until you reach 
 a high and sandy plain; there will I meet you. Go; 
 mount; this Pawnee youth and I, and my stout friend the 
 
THE PRAIRIE 307 
 
 physician, who is a desperate warrior, are men enough to 
 keep the bank, seeing that show and not use is all that is 
 needed." 
 
 Middleton and Paul saw no use in wasting their breath 
 in remonstrances against this proposal. Glad to know 
 that their rear was to be covered, even in this imperfect 
 manner, they hastily got their horses in motion, and soon 
 disappeared on the required route. Some twenty or thirty 
 minutes succeeded this movement, before the Tetons on 
 the opposite shore seemed inclined to enter on any new 
 enterprise. Mahtoree was distinctly visible, in the midst 
 of his warriors, issuing his mandates and betraying his 
 desire for vengeance, by occasionally shaking an arm in 
 the direction of the fugitives; but no step was taken which 
 appeared to threaten any further act of immediate hostil 
 ity. At length a yell arose among the savages, which 
 announced the occurrence of some fresh event. Then Ish- 
 mael and his sluggish sons were seen in the distance, and 
 soon the whole of the united force moved down to the very 
 limits of the stream. The squatter proceeded to examine 
 the position of his enemies with his usual coolness, and 
 as if to try the power of his rifle, he sent a bullet among 
 them, with a force sufficient to do execution, even at the 
 distance at which he stood. 
 
 "Now let us depart!" exclaimed Obed, endeavoring to 
 catch a furtive glimpse of the lead, which he fancied was 
 whizzing at his very ear; "we have maintained the bank 
 in a gallant manner for a sufficient length of time; quite 
 as much military skill is to be displayed in a retreat as in 
 an advance." 
 
 The old man cast a look behind him, and seeing that the 
 equestrians had reached the cover of the hill, he made no 
 objections to the proposal. The remaining horse was given 
 to the Doctor, with instructions to pursue the course just 
 taken by Middleton and Paul. When the naturalist was 
 mounted and in full retreat, the trapper and the young 
 Pawnee stole from the spot in such a manner as to leave 
 their enemies for some time in doubt as to their move 
 ments. Instead, however, of proceeding across the plain 
 towards the hill, a route on which they must have been in 
 open view, they took a shorter path, covered by the for- 
 
308 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 mation of the ground, and intersected the little water 
 course at the point where Middleton had been directed to 
 leave it, and just in season to join his party. The Doctor 
 had used so much diligence in the retreat as to have al 
 ready overtaken his friends, and of course all the fugitives 
 were again assembled. 
 
 The trapper now looked about him for some convenient 
 spot where the whole party might halt, as he expressed it, 
 for some five or six hours. 
 
 "Halt!" exclaimed the Doctor, when the alarming pro 
 posal reached his ears; "venerable hunter, it would seem 
 that on the contrary many days should be passed in indus 
 trious flight." 
 
 Middleton and Paul were both of this opinion, and each 
 in his particular manner expressed as much. 
 
 The old man heard them with patience, but shook his 
 head like one who was unconvinced, and then answered all 
 their arguments in one general and positive reply. 
 
 "Why should we fly?" he asked. "Can the legs of 
 mortal men outstrip the speed of horses? Do you think 
 the Tetons will lie down and sleep; or will they cross the 
 water and nose for our trail? Thanks be to the Lord, we 
 have washed it well in this stream, and if we leave the 
 place with discretion and wisdom we may yet throw them 
 off its track. But a prairie is not a wood. There a man 
 may journey long, caring for nothing but the prints his 
 moccasin leaves, whereas on these open plains a runner 
 placed on yonder hill, for instance, could see far on every 
 side of him, like a hovering hawk looking down on his 
 prey. No, no; night must come and darkness be upon us 
 afore we leave this spot. But listen to the words of the 
 Pawnee; he is a lad of spirit, and I warrant me many is 
 the hard race that he has run with the Sioux bands. Does 
 my brother think our trail is long enough?" he demanded 
 in the Indian tongue. 
 
 "Is a Teton a fish, that he can see it in the river?" 
 
 "But my young men think we should stretch it until it 
 reaches across the prairie." 
 
 "Mahtoree has eyes; he will see it." 
 
 "What does my brother counsel?" 
 
 The young warrior studied the heavens a moment, and 
 
THE PRAIRIE 309 
 
 appeared to hesitate. He mused some time with himself, 
 and then he replied, like one whose opinion was fixed: 
 
 "The Dahcotahs are not asleep," he said; "we must lie 
 in the grass." 
 
 "Ah! the lad is of my mind," said the old man, briefly 
 explaining the opinion of his companion to his white 
 friends. Middleton was obliged to acquiesce, and, as it 
 was confessedly dangerous to remain upon their feet, each 
 one set about assisting in the means to be adopted for 
 their security. Inez and Ellen were quickly bestowed 
 beneath the warm and not uncomfortable shelter of the 
 buffalo skins, which formed a thick covering, and tall 
 grass was drawn over the place in such a manner as to 
 evade any examination from a common eye. Paul and the 
 Pawnee fettered the beasts and cast them to the earth, 
 where, after supplying them with food, they were also 
 left concealed in the fog of the prairie. No time was lost 
 when these several arrangements were completed before 
 each of the others sought a place of rest and concealment, 
 and then the plain appeared again deserted to its solitude. 
 
 The old man had advised his companions of the absolute 
 necessity of their continuing for hours in this concealment. 
 All their hopes of escape depended on the success of the 
 artifice. If they might elude the cunning of their pursuers 
 by this simple and therefore less suspected expedient, they 
 could renew their flight, as the evening approached, and, 
 by changing their course, the chance of final success 
 would be greatly increased. Influenced by these momen 
 tous considerations the whole party lay musing on their 
 situation, until thoughts grew weary, and sleep finally 
 settled on them all, one after another. 
 
 The deepest silence had prevailed for hours, when the 
 quick ears of the trapper and the Pawnee were startled 
 by a faint cry of surprise from Inez. Springing to their 
 feet, like men who were about to struggle for their lives, 
 they found the vast plain, the rolling swells, the little 
 hillock, and the scattered thickets, covered alike in one 
 white, dazzling sheet of snow. 
 
 "The Lord have mercy on ye all!" exclaimed the 
 man, regarding the prospect with a rueful eye; "now, 
 Pawnee, do I know the reason why you studied the clouds 
 
310 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 so closely; but it is too late; it is too late! A squirrel 
 would leave his trail on this light coating of the arth. 
 Ha! there come the imps to a certainty. Down with ye 
 all, down with ye; your chance is but small, and yet it 
 must not be wilfully cast away." 
 
 The whole party was instantly concealed again, though 
 many an anxious and stolen glance was directed through 
 the tops of the grass, on the movements of their enemies. 
 At the distance of half a mile, the Teton band was seen 
 riding in a circuit, which was gradually contracting itself, 
 and evidently closing upon the very spot where the fugi 
 tives lay. There was but little difficulty in solving the 
 mystery of this movement. The snow had fallen in time 
 to assure them that those they sought were in their rear, 
 and they were now employed, with the unwearied perse 
 verance and patience of Indian warriors, in circling the 
 certain boundaries of their place of concealment. 
 
 Each minute added to the jeopardy of the fugitives. 
 Paul and Middleton deliberately prepared their rifles, and 
 as the occupied Mahtoree came, at length, within fifty 
 feet of them, keeping his eyes riveted on the grass through 
 which he rode, they leveled them together and pulled the 
 triggers. The effort was answered by the mere snapping 
 of the locks. 
 
 "Enough," said the old man, rising with dignity; "I 
 have cast away the priming; for certain death would fol 
 low your rashness. Now let us meet our fates like men. 
 Cringing and complaining find no favor in Indian eyes." 
 
 His appearance was greeted by a yell that spread far 
 and wide over the plain, and in a moment a hundred sav 
 ages were seen riding madly to the spot. Mahtoree re 
 ceived his prisoners with great self-restraint, though a 
 single gleam of fierce joy broke through his clouded 
 brow, and the heart of Middleton grew cold as he caught 
 the expression of that eye, which the chief turned on the 
 nearly insensible but still lovely Inez. 
 
 The exultation of receiving the white captives was so 
 great, as for a time to throw the dark and immovable 
 form of their young Indian companion entirely out of 
 view. He stood apart, disdaining to turn an eye on his 
 enemies, as motionless as if he were frozen in that attitude 
 
THE PRAIRIE 311 
 
 of dignity and composure. But when a little time had 
 passed, even this secondary object attracted the attention 
 of the Tetons. Then it was that the trapper first learned, 
 by the shout of triumph and the long-drawn yell of delight, 
 which burst at once from a hundred threats, as well as by 
 the terrible name which filled the air, that his youthful 
 friend was no other than that redoubtable and hitherto 
 invincible warrior, Hard-Heart. 
 
CHAPTER XXV 
 
 " What, are ancient Pistol and you friends, yet ?" 
 
 SHAKESPEARE. 
 
 THE curtain of our imperfect drama must fall to rise 
 upon another scene. The time is advanced several days 
 during which very material changes had occurred in the 
 situation of the actors. The hour is noon, and the place 
 an elevated plain, that rose, at no great distance from the 
 water, somewhat abruptly from a fertile bottom which 
 stretched along the margin of one of the numberless water 
 courses of that region. The river took its rise near the 
 base of the Rocky Mountains, and, after washing a vast 
 extent of plain, it mingled its waters with a still larger 
 stream, to become finally lost in the turbid current of the 
 Missouri. 
 
 The landscape was changed materially for the better; 
 though the hand which had impressed so much of the 
 desert on the surrounding region, had laid a portion of 
 its power on this spot. The appearance of vegetation was. 
 however, less discouraging than in the more sterile wastes 
 of the rolling prairies. Clusters of trees were scattered 
 in greater profusion, and a long outline of ragged forest 
 marked the northern boundary of the view. Here and 
 there, on the bottom, were to be seen the evidences of a 
 hasty and imperfect culture of such indigenous vegetables 
 as were of a quick growth, and which were known to flour 
 ish without the aid of art in deep and alluvial soils. On 
 the very edge of what might be called the table-land, were 
 pitched the hundred lodges of a horde of wandering Sioux. 
 Their light tenements were arranged without the least 
 attention to order. Proximity to the water seemed to be 
 the only consideration which had been consulted in their 
 disposition, nor had even this important convenience been 
 always regarded. While most of the lodges stood along 
 
 312 
 
THE PRAIRIE 313 
 
 the brow of the plain, many were to be seen at greater 
 distances, occupying such places as had first pleased the 
 capricious eyes of their untutored owners. The encamp 
 ment was not military, nor in the slightest degree pro 
 tected from surprise by its position or defenses. It was 
 open on every side, and on every side as accessible as any 
 other point in those wastes, if the imperfect and natural 
 obstruction offered by the river be excepted. In short, 
 the place bore the appearance of having been tenanted 
 longer than its occupants had originally intended, while it 
 was not wanting in the signs of readiness for a hasty, or 
 even a compelled departure. 
 
 This was the temporary encampment of that portion of 
 his people who had long been hunting under the direction 
 of Mahtoree, on those grounds which separated the sta 
 tionary abodes of his nation from those of the warlike 
 tribes of the Pawnees. The lodges were tents of skin, 
 high, conical, and of the most simple and primitive con 
 struction. The shield, the quiver, the lance, and the bow 
 of its master, were to be seen suspended from a light post 
 before the opening or door of each habitation. The differ 
 ent domestic implements of his one, two, or three wives, 
 as the brave was of greater or lesser renown, were care 
 lessly thrown at its side, and here and there the round, 
 full, patient countenance of an infant might be found 
 peeping from its comfortless wrappers of bark, as, sus 
 pended by a deerskin thong from the same post, it rocked 
 in the passing air. Children of a larger growth were 
 tumbling over each other in piles, the males, even at that 
 early age, making themselves distinguished for that spe 
 cies of domination which, in after life, was to mark the 
 vast distinction between the sexes. Youths were in the 
 bottom, essaying their juvenile powers in curbing the 
 wild steeds of their fathers, while here and there a truant 
 girl was to be seen stealing from her labors to admire 
 their fierce and impatient daring. 
 
 Thus far the picture was the daily exhibition of an en 
 campment confident in its security. But immediately in 
 front of the lodges was a gathering that seemed to fore 
 bode some movements of more than usual interest. A few 
 of the withered and remorseless crones of the band were 
 
314 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 clustering together, in readiness to lend their fell voices, 
 if needed, to aid in exciting their descendants to an 
 exhibition which their depraved tastes coveted, as the 
 luxurious Roman dame witnessed the struggles and the 
 agony of the gladiator. The men were subdivided into 
 groups, assorted according to the deeds and reputa 
 tions of the several individuals of whom they were com 
 posed. 
 
 They who were of that equivocal age which admitted 
 them to the hunts, while their discretion was still too 
 doubtful to permit them to be trusted on the war-path, 
 hung around the skirts of the whole, catching from the 
 fierce models before them that gravity of demeanor and 
 restraint of manner which in time was to become so deeply 
 ingrafted in their own characters. A few of the still older 
 class, and who had heard the whoop in anger, were a little 
 more presuming, pressing nigher to the chiefs, though far 
 from presuming to mingle in their councils, sufficiently 
 distinguished by being permitted to catch the wisdom 
 which fell from lips so venerated. The ordinary warriors 
 of the band were still less diffident, not hesitating to 
 mingle among the chiefs of lesser note, though far from 
 assuming the right to dispute the sentiments of any 
 established brave, or to call in question the prudence of 
 measures that were recommended by the more gifted 
 counselors of the nation. 
 
 Among the chiefs themselves there was a singular com 
 pound of exterior. They were divided into two classes; 
 those who were mainly indebted for their influence to 
 physical causes and to deeds in arms, and those who had 
 become distinguished rather for their wisdom than for 
 their services in the field. The former was by far the 
 most numerous and the most important class. They were 
 men of stature and mien, whose stern countenances were 
 often rendered doubly imposing by those evidences of 
 their valor which had been roughly traced on their linea 
 ments by the hands of their enemies. That class which 
 had gained its influence by a moral ascendency was ex 
 tremely limited. They were uniformly to be distinguished 
 by the quick and lively expression of their eyes, by the 
 air of distrust that marked their movements, and occa- 
 
THE PRAIRIE 315 
 
 sionally by the vehemence of their utterance in those sud 
 den outbreakings of the mind by which their present con 
 sultations were from time to time distinguished. 
 
 In the very center of a ring formed by these chosen 
 counselors was to be seen the person of the disquieted, but 
 seemingly calm, Mahtoree. There was a conjunction of 
 all the several qualities of the others in his person and 
 character. Mind as well as matter had contributed to 
 establish his authority. His scars were as numerous and 
 deep as those of the whitest head in his nation; his limbs 
 were in their greatest vigor; his courage at its fullest 
 height. Endowed with this rare combination of moral 
 and physical influence, the keenest eye in all that assembly 
 was wont to lower before his threatening glance. Courage 
 and cunning had established his ascendency, and it had 
 been rendered in some degree sacred by time. He knew 
 so well how to unite the powers of reason and force, that 
 in a state of society which admitted of greater display of 
 his energies, the Teton would in all probability have been 
 both a conqueror and a despot. 
 
 A little apart from the gathering of the band was to be 
 seen a set of beings of an entirely different origin. Taller 
 and far more muscular in their persons, the lingering ves 
 tiges of their Saxon and Norman ancestry were yet to be 
 found beneath the swarthy complexions which had been 
 bestowed by an American sun. It would have been a 
 curious investigation for one skilled in such an inquiiy 
 to have traced those points of difference by which the off 
 spring of the most western European was still to be dis 
 tinguished from the descendant of the most remote Asiatic, 
 now that the two, in the revolutions of the world, were 
 approximating in their habits, their residence, and not a 
 little in their characters. The group of whom we write 
 was composed of the family of the squatter. They stood, 
 indolent, lounging, and inert as usual when no immediate 
 demand was made on their dormant energies, clustered in 
 front of some four or five habitations of skin, for which 
 they were indebted to the hospitality of their Teton allies. 
 The terms of their unexpected confederation were suffi 
 ciently explained by the presence of the horses and 
 domestic cattle that were quietly grazing on the bottom 
 
316 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 beneath, under the jealous eyes of the spirited Hetty. 
 Their wagons were drawn about the lodges in a sort of 
 irregular barrier, which at once manifested that their 
 confidence was not entirely restored, while, on the other 
 hand, their policy or indolence prevented any very positive 
 exhibition of distrust. There was a singular union of 
 passive enjoyment and of dull curiosity slumbering in 
 every dull countenance, as each of the party stood leaning 
 on his rifle regarding the movements of the Sioux confer 
 ence. Still no sign of expectation or interest escaped from 
 the youngest among them, the whole appearing to emulate 
 the most phlegmatic of their savage allies in an exhibi 
 tion of patience. They rarely spoke; and when they did 
 it was in some short and contemptuous remark, which 
 served to put the physical superiority of a white man and 
 that of an Indian in a sufficiently striking point of view. 
 In short, the family of Ishmael appeared now to be in the 
 plenitude of an enjoyment which depended on inactivity, 
 but which was not entirely free from certain confused 
 glimmerings of a perspective in which their security stood 
 in some litttle danger of a rude interruption from Teton 
 treachery. Abiram alone formed a solitary exception to 
 this state of equivocal repose. 
 
 After a life passed in the commission of a thousand 
 mean and insignificant villainies, the mind of the kidnap 
 per had become hardy enough to attempt the desperate 
 adventure which has been laid before the reader in the 
 course of the narrative. His influence over the bolder 
 but less active spirit of Ishmael was far from great, and 
 had not the latter been suddenly expelled a fertile bottom, 
 of which he had taken possession with intent to keep it 
 without much deference to the forms of law, he would 
 never have succeeded in enlisting the husband of his sister 
 in an enterprise that required so much decision and fore 
 thought. Their original success and subsequent disappoint 
 ment have been seen; and Abiram now sat apart, plotting 
 the means by which he might secure to himself the advan 
 tages of his undertaking, which he perceived were each 
 moment becoming more uncertain through the open ad 
 miration of Mahtoree for the innocent subject of his vil- 
 lany. We shall leave him to his vacillating and confused 
 
THE PRAIRIE 317 
 
 expedients, in order to pass to the description of certain 
 other personages in the drama. 
 
 There was still another corner of the picture that was 
 occupied. On a little bank at the extreme right of the 
 encampment lay the forms of Middleton and Paul. Their 
 limbs were painfully bound with thongs cut from the skin 
 of a bison, while, by a sort of refinement in cruelty, they 
 were so placed that each could see a reflection of his own 
 misery in the case of his neighbor. Within a dozen yards 
 of them a post was set firmly in the ground, and against 
 it was bound the light and Apollo-like person of Hard- 
 Heart. Between the two stood the trapper, deprived of 
 his rifle, his pouch, and his horn, but otherwise left in a 
 sort of contemptuous liberty. Some five or six young war 
 riors, however, with quivers at their backs and long tough 
 bows dangling from their shoulders, who stood with grave 
 watchfulness at no great distance from the spot, sufficiently 
 proclaimed how fruitless any attempt to escape on the part 
 of one so aged and so feeble might prove. Unlike the 
 other spectators of the important conference, these indi 
 viduals were engaged in a discourse that for them con 
 tained an interest of its own. 
 
 "Captain," said the bee-hunter, with an expression of 
 comical concern that no misfortune could depress in one 
 of his buoyant feelings, "do you really find that accursed 
 strap of untanned leather cutting into your shoulder, or 
 is it only the tickling in my own arm that I feel?" 
 
 "When the spirit suffers so deeply the body is insensible 
 to pain, returned the more refined, though scarcely so 
 spirited Middleton; "would to Heaven that some of my 
 trusty artillerists might fall upon this accursed encamp 
 ment." 
 
 "You might as well wish that these Teton lodges were 
 so many hives of hornets, and that the insects would come 
 forth and battle with yonder tribe of half-naked savages. " 
 Then, chuckling with his own conceit, the bee-hunter 
 turned away from his companion, and sought a momen 
 tary relief from his misery by imagining that so wild an 
 idea might be realized, and fancying the manner in which 
 the attack would upset even the well-established patience 
 of an Indian. 
 
318 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 Middleton was glad to be silent; but the old man, who 
 had listened to their words, drew a little nigher, and 
 continued the discourse. 
 
 "Here is likely to be a merciless and a hellish busi 
 ness!" he said, shaking his head in a manner to prove 
 that even his experience was at a loss for a remedy in so 
 trying a dilemma. "Our Pawnee friend is already staked 
 for the torture, and I well know, by the eye and the coun 
 tenance of the great Sioux, that he is leading on the 
 temper of his people to further enormities." 
 
 "Harkee, old trapper," said Paul, writhing in his bonds 
 to catch a glimpse of the other s melancholy face; "you 
 ar skilled in Indian tongues, and know somewhat of Indian 
 deviltries. Go you to the council, and tell their chiefs in 
 my name, that is to say, in the name of Paul Hover, of 
 the State of Kentucky, that provided they will guarantee 
 the safe return of one Ellen Wade into the States, they are 
 welcome to take his scalp when and in such manner as 
 best suits their amusements; or, if-so-be they will not 
 trade on these conditions, you may throw in an hour or 
 two of torture beforehand, in order to sweeten the bargain 
 to their damnable appetites." 
 
 "Ah! lad, it is little they would hearken to such an 
 offer, knowing, as they do, that you are already like a 
 bear in a trap, as little able to fight as to fly. But be not 
 downhearted, for the color of a white man is sometimes 
 his death-warrant among these far tribes of savages, and 
 sometimes his shield. Though they love us not, cunning 
 often ties their hands. Could the red nations work their 
 will, trees would shortly be growing again on the ploughed 
 fields of America, and woods would be whitened with 
 Christian bones. No one can doubt that, who knows the 
 quality of the love which a red-skin bears a pale face; but 
 they have counted our numbers until their memories fail 
 them, and they are not without their policy. Therefore 
 is our fate unsettled ; but I fear me there is small hope 
 left for the Pawnee!" 
 
 As the old man concluded, he walked slowly towards 
 the subject of his latter observation, taking his post at no 
 great distance from his side. Here he stood, observing 
 such a silence and mien as became him to manifest, to a 
 
THE PRAIRIE 319 
 
 chief so renowned and so situated as his captive associate. 
 But the eye of Hard-Heart was fastened on the distance, 
 and his whole air was that of one whose thoughts were 
 entirely removed from the present scene. 
 
 "The Sioux are in council on my brother," the trap 
 per at length observed, when he found he could only 
 attract the other s attention by speaking. 
 
 The young partisan turned his head with a calm smile 
 as he answered: 
 
 "They are counting the scalps over the lodge of Hard- 
 Heart!" 
 
 "No doubt, no doubt; their tempers begin to mount, as 
 they remember the number of Tetons you have struck, 
 and better would it be for you now, had more of your days 
 been spent in chasing the deer, and fewer on the war 
 path. Then some childless mother of this tribe might take 
 you in the place of her lost son, and your time would be 
 filled in peace." 
 
 "Does my father think that a warrior can ever die? 
 The Master of Life does not open His hand to take away 
 His gifts again. When He wants his young men He calls 
 them, and they go. But the red-skin He has once breathed 
 on lives forever." 
 
 "Ay, this is a more comfortable and a more humble 
 faith than that which yonder heartless Teton harbors! 
 There is something in these Loups which opens my inmost 
 heart to them; they seem to have the courage, ay, and 
 the honesty, too, of the Delawares of the hills. And this 
 lad it is wonderful, it is very wonderful ; but the age, 
 and the eye, and the limbs are as if they might have been 
 brothers! Tell me Pawnee, have you ever in your tradi 
 tions heard of a mighty people who once lived on the 
 shores of the Salt-lake hard by the rising sun?" 
 
 "The earth is white, by people of the color of my 
 father." 
 
 "Nay, nay, I speak not now of any strollers who have 
 crept into the land to rob the lawful owners of their 
 birthright, but of a people who are, or rather were, what 
 with nature and what with paint, red as the berry on the 
 bush." 
 
 "I have heard the old me say, that there were bands 
 
320 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 who hid themselves in the woods under the rising sun, 
 because they dared not come- upon the open prairies to 
 fight with men." 
 
 "Do not your traditions tell you of the greatest, the 
 bravest, and the wisest nation of red-skins that the 
 Wahcondah has ever breathed upon?" 
 
 Hard-Heart raised his head, with a loftiness and dignity 
 that even his bonds could not repress, as he answered : 
 
 "Has age blinded my father; or does he see so many 
 Sioux that he believes there are no longer any Pawnees?" 
 
 "Ah! such is mortal vanity and pride!" exclaimed the 
 disappointed old man in English; "natur is as strong in 
 a red-skin as in the bosom of a man of white gifts. Now 
 would a Delaware conceit himself far mightier than a 
 Pawnee, just as a Pawnee boasts himself to be of the 
 princes of the arth. And so it was atween the Frenchers 
 of the Canadas and the red-coated English, that the king 
 did use to send into the States, when States they were 
 not, but outcrying and petitioning provinces; they fou t 
 and they fou t, and what marvelous boastings did they 
 give forth to the world of their own valor and victories, 
 while both parties forgot to name the humble soldier of 
 the land who did the real service, but who, as he was 
 not privileged then to smoke at the great council-fire of 
 his nation, seldom heard of his deeds after they were 
 once bravely done. 
 
 When the old man had thus given vent to the nearly 
 dormant, but far from extinct military pride, that had 
 so unconsciously led him into the very error he depre 
 cated, his eye, which had begun to quicken and glimmer 
 with some of the ardor of his youth, softened and turned 
 its anxious look on the devoted captive, whose countenance 
 was also restored to its former cold look of abstraction 
 and thought. 
 
 "Young warrior," he continued, in a voice that was 
 growing tremulous, "I have never been father or brother. 
 The Wahcondah made me to live alone. He never tied my 
 heart to house or field, by the cords with which the men 
 of my race are bound to their lodges; if He had, I should 
 not have journeyed so far, and seen so much. But I have 
 tarried long among a people who lived in those woods you 
 
THE PRAIRIE 321 
 
 mention, and much reason did I find to imitate their 
 courage and love their honesty. The Master of Life has 
 made us all, Pawnee, with a feeling for our kind. I 
 never was a father, but well do I know what is the love 
 of one. You are like a lad I valued, and I had even begun 
 to fancy that some of his blood might be in your veins. 
 But what matters that? You are a true man, as I know 
 by the way in which you keep your faith; and honesty is 
 a gift too rare to be forgotten. My heart yearns to you, 
 boy, and gladly would I do you good." 
 
 The youthful warrior listened to the words which came 
 from the lips of the other with a force and simplicity 
 that established their truth, and he bowed his head on 
 his naked bosom, in testimony of the respect with which 
 he met the proffer. Then lifting his dark eye to the level 
 of the view, he seemed to be again considering of things 
 removed from every personal consideration. The trapper, 
 who well knew how high the pride of a warrior would 
 sustain him in those moments he believed to be his last, 
 awaited the pleasure of his young friend, with a meekness 
 and patience that he had acquired by his association with 
 that remarkable race. At length the gaze of the Pawnee 
 began to waver; and then quick, flashing glances were 
 turned from the countenance of the old man to the air, 
 and from the air to his deeply marked lineaments again, 
 as if the spirit, which governed their movements, was 
 beginning to be troubled. 
 
 "Father," the young brave finally answered, in a voice 
 of confidence and kindness, "I have heard your words. 
 They have gone in at my ears, and are now within me. 
 The white-headed Long-knife has no son; the Hard-Heart 
 of the Pawnees is young, but he is already the oldest of 
 his family. He found the bones of his father on the 
 hunting-ground of the Osages, and he has sent them to 
 the prairies of the Good Spirits. No doubt the great 
 chief, his father, has seen them, and knows what is part 
 of himself. But the Wahcondah will soon call to us both; 
 you, because you have seen all that is to be seen in this 
 country; and Hard-Heart, because He has need of a war 
 rior who is young. There is no time for the Pawnee to 
 show the pale face the duty that a son owes to his father. 
 21 
 
322 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 "Old as I am, and miserable and helpless as I now 
 stand, to what I once was, I may live to see the sun go 
 down in the prairie. Does my son expect to do as much?" 
 
 "The Tetons are counting the scalps on my lodge!" 
 returned the young chief, with a smile whose melancholy 
 was singularly illuminated by a gleam of triumph. 
 
 "And they find them many. Too many for the safety 
 of its owner, while he is in their revengeful hands. My 
 son is not a woman, and he looks on the path he is about 
 to travel with a steady eye. Has he nothing to whisper 
 in the ears of his people before he starts? These legs are 
 old, but they may yet carry me to the forks of the Loup 
 river." 
 
 "Tell them that Hard-Heart has tied a knot in his 
 wampum for every Teton!" burst from the lips of the 
 captive, with that vehemence with which sudden passion 
 is known to break through the barriers of artificial re 
 straint; "if he meets one of them all in the prairies of 
 the Master of Life, his heart will become Sioux!" 
 
 "Ah! that feeling would be a dangerous companion 
 for a man with white gifts to start with on so solemn a 
 journey," muttered the old man in English. "This is 
 not what the good Moravians said to the councils of the 
 Delawares, nor what is so often preached to the white- 
 skins in the settlements, though, to the shame of the 
 color be it said, it is so little heeded. Pawnee, I love 
 you; but being a Christian man, I cannot be the runner 
 to bear such a message. 
 
 "If my father is afraid the Tetons will hear him, let 
 him whisper it softly to our old men." 
 
 "As for fear, young warrior, it is no more the shame 
 of a pale face than of a red-skin. The Wahcondah teaches 
 us to love the life He gives; but it is as men love their 
 hunts, and their dogs, and their carabins, and not with 
 the doting that a mother looks upon her infant. The 
 Master of Life will not have to speak aloud twice when 
 He calls my name. I am as ready to answer to it now as 
 I shall be to-morrow, or at any time it may please his 
 mighty will. But what is a warrior without his tradi 
 tions? Mine forbid me to carry your words." 
 
 The chief made a dignified motion of assent, and here 
 
THE PRAIRIE 323 
 
 there was great danger that those feelings of confidence 
 which had been so singularly awakened, would as sud 
 denly subside. But the heart of the old man had been 
 too sensibly touched, through long dormant but still liv 
 ing recollections, to break off the communication so 
 rudely. He pondered for a minute, and then bending 
 his look wistfully on his young associate, again continued: 
 
 "Each warrior must be judged by his gifts. I have 
 told my son what I cannot, but let him open his ears to 
 what I can do. An elk shall not measure the prairie 
 much swifter than these old legs, if the Pawnee will give 
 me a message that a white man may bear." 
 
 "Let the pale face listen," returned the other, after 
 hesitating a single instant longer, under a lingering sen 
 sation of his former disappointment. "He will stay here 
 till the Sioux have done counting the scalps of their 
 dead warriors. He will wait until they have tried to 
 cover the heads of eighteen Tetons with the skin of one 
 Pawnee; he will open his eyes wide, that he may see the 
 place where they bury the bones of a warrior." 
 
 "All this will I, and may I do, noble boy." 
 
 "He will mark the spot, that he may know it." 
 
 "No fear, no fear that I shall forget the place," in 
 terrupted the other, whose fortitude began to give way 
 under so trying an exhibition of calmness and resignation. 
 
 "Then I know that my father will go to my people. 
 His head is gray, and his words will not be blown away 
 with the smoke. Let him get on my lodge, and call the 
 name of Hard-Heart aloud. No Pawnee will be deaf. 
 Then let my father ask for the colt that has never been 
 ridden, but which is sleeker than the buck, and swifter 
 than the elk. 
 
 "I understand you, boy, I understand you," interrupted 
 the attentive old man; "and what you say shall be done, 
 ay, and well done, too, or I m but little skilled in the 
 wishes of a dying Indian." 
 
 "And when my young men have given my father the 
 halter of that colt, he will lead him by a crooked path to 
 the grave of Hard-Heart?" 
 
 "Will I! ay, that I will, brave youth, though the win 
 ter covers these plains in banks of snow, and the sun is 
 
324 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 hidden as much by day as by night. To the head of the 
 holy spot will I lead the beast, and place him with his 
 eyes looking towards the setting sun." 
 
 "And my father will speak to him, and tell him that 
 the master who has fed him since he was foaled has now 
 need of him." 
 
 "That, too, will I do; though the Lord, He knows that 
 I shall hold discourse with a horse, not with any vain 
 cbnceit that my words will be understood, but only to 
 satisfy the cravings of Indian superstition. Hector, my 
 pup, what think you, dog, of talking to a horse?" 
 
 "Let the gray-beard speak to him with the tongue of a 
 Pawnee," interrupted the young victim, perceiving that 
 his companion had used an unknown language for the 
 preceding speech. 
 
 "My son s will shall be done. And with these old 
 hands, which I had hoped had nearly done with blood 
 shed, whether it be of man or beast, will I slay the 
 animal on your grave!" 
 
 "It is good," returned the other, a gleam of satisfac 
 tion flitting across his features. "Hard-Heart will ride 
 his horse to the blessed prairies, and he will come before 
 the Master of Life like a chief!" 
 
 The sudden and striking change which instantly occurred 
 in the countenance of the Indian, caused the trapper to 
 look aside, when he perceived that the conference of the 
 Sioux had ended, and that Mahtoree, attended by one or 
 two of the principal warriors, was deliberately approach 
 ing his intended victim. 
 
CHAPTER XXVI 
 
 " I am not prone to weeping, as our sex 
 Commonly are. 
 
 But I have that honorable 
 Grief lodged here, which burns worse than 
 Tears drown." 
 
 SHAKESPEARE. 
 
 WHEN within twenty feet of the prisoners, the Tetons 
 stopped, and their leader made a sign to the old man to 
 draw nigh. The trapper obeyed, quitting the young 
 Pawnee with a significant look, which was received, as 
 it was meant, for an additional pledge that he would 
 never forget his promise. So soon as Mahtoree found 
 that the other had stopped within reach of him, he 
 stretched forth his arm, and laying a hand upon the 
 shoulder of the attentive old man, he stood regarding 
 him a minute, with eyes that seemed willing to penetrate 
 the recesses of his most secret thoughts. 
 
 Is a pale face always made with two tongues?" he de 
 manded, when he found that, as usual with the subject of 
 this examination, he was as little intimidated by his pres 
 ent frown, as moved by any apprehensions of the future. 
 
 "Honesty lies deeper than the skin." 
 
 "It is so. Now let my father hear me. Mahtoree has 
 but one tongue, the gray-head has many. They may be 
 all straight, and none of them forked. A Sioux is no 
 more than a Sioux, but a pale face is everything! He 
 can talk to the Pawnee, and the Konza, and the Omahaw, 
 and he can talk to his own people." 
 
 "Ay, there are linguisters in the settlements that can 
 do still more. But what profits it all? The Master of 
 Life has an ear for every language!" 
 
 The gray-head has done wrong. He has said one thing 
 when he meant another. He has looked before him with 
 his eyes, and behind him with his mind. He has ridden 
 the horse of a Sioux too hard; he has been the friend of 
 a Pawnee, and the enemy of my people." 
 
 325 
 
326 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 "Teton, I am your prisoner. Though my words are 
 white, they will not complain. Act your will." 
 
 "No. Mahtoree will not make a white hair red. My 
 father is free. The prairie is open on every side of him. 
 But before the gray-head turns his back on the Sioux, let 
 him look well at them, that he may tell his own chief 
 how great is a Dahcotah!" 
 
 "I am not in a hurry to go on my path. You see a man 
 with a white head, and no woman, Teton; therefore shall 
 I not run myself out of breath, to tell the nations of the 
 prairies what the Sioux are doing." 
 
 "It is good. My father has smoked with the chiefs at 
 many councils," returned Mahtoree, who now thought 
 himself sufficiently sure of the other s favor to go more 
 directly to his object. "Mahtoree will speak with the 
 tongue of his very dear friend and father. A young 
 pale face will listen when an old man of that nation opens 
 his mouth. Go; my father will make what a poor Indian 
 says fit for a white ear. 
 
 "Speak aloud!" said the trapper, who readily under 
 stood the metaphorical manner in which the Teton ex 
 pressed a desire that he should become an interpreter of 
 his words into the English language; "speak, my young 
 men listen. Now, captain, and you, too, friend bee- 
 hunter, prepare yourselves to meet the deviltries of this 
 savage with the stout hearts of white warriors. If you 
 find yourselves giving way under his threats, just turn 
 your eye on that noble-looking Pawnee, whose time is 
 measured with a hand as niggardly as that with which a 
 trader in the towns gives forth the fruits of the Lord, 
 inch by inch, in order to satisfy his covetousness. A 
 single look at the boy will set you both up in resolution." 
 
 "My brother has turned his eyes on the wrong path," 
 interrupted Mahtoree, with a complacency that betrayed 
 how unwilling he was to offend his intended interpreter. 
 
 "The Dahcotah will speak to my young men?" 
 
 "After he has sung in the ear of the flower of the 
 pale faces. 
 
 "The Lord forgive the desperate villain!" exclaimed 
 the old man in English. "There are none so tender, or 
 so young, or so innocent, as to escape his ravenous wishes. 
 
THE PRAIRIE 327 
 
 But hard words and cold looks will profit nothing; there 
 fore it will be wise to speak him fair. Let Mahtoree 
 open his mouth." 
 
 "Would my father cry out that the women and children 
 should hear the wisdom of chiefs? We will go into the 
 lodge and whisper." 
 
 As the Teton ended, he pointed significantly towards a 
 tent, vividly emblazoned with the history of one of his 
 own boldest and most commended exploits, and which 
 stood a little apart from the rest, as if to denote it was 
 the residence of some privileged individual of the band. 
 The shield and quiver at its entrance were richer than 
 common, and the high distinction of a fusee attested the 
 importance of its proprietor. In every other particular 
 it was rather distinguished by signs of poverty than of 
 wealth. The domestic utensils were fewer in number and 
 simpler in their forms than those to be seen about the 
 openings of the meanest lodges, nor was there a single 
 one of those highly prized articles of civilized life, which 
 were occasionally bought of the traders, in bargains that 
 bore so hard on the ignorant natives. All these had been 
 bestowed, as they had been acquired, by the generous 
 chief, on his subordinates, to purchase an influence that 
 might render him the master of their lives and persons; 
 a species of wealth that was certainly more noble in it 
 self, and far dearer to his ambition. 
 
 The old man well knew this to be the lodge of Mah 
 toree, and, in obedience to the sign of the chief, he held 
 his way towards it with slow and reluctant steps. But 
 there were others present who were equally interested in 
 the approaching conference, whose apprehensions were 
 not to be so easily suppressed. The watchful eyes and 
 jealous ears of Middleton had taught him enough to fill 
 his soul with horrible forebodings. With an incredible 
 effort he succeeded in gaining his feet, and called aloud 
 to the retiring trapper: 
 
 "I conjure you, old man, if the love you bore my 
 parents was more than words, or if the love you bear 
 your God is that of a Christian man, utter not a syllable 
 that may wound the ear of that innocent 
 
 Exhausted in spirit and fettered in limbs, he then fell 
 
328 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 like an inanimate log to the earth, where he lay like one 
 dead. 
 
 Paul had, however, caught the clue, and completed the 
 exhortation in his peculiar manner. 
 
 "Harkee, old trapper," he shouted, vainly endeavoring 
 at the same time to make a gesture of defiance with his 
 hand; "if you ar about to play the interpreter, speak 
 such words to the ears of that damnable savage as becomes 
 a white man to use, and a heathen to hear. Tell him, 
 from me, that if he does or says the thing that is uncivil 
 to the girl called Nelly Wade, that I ll curse him with my 
 dying breath; that I ll pray for all good Christians in 
 Kentucky to curse him; sitting and standing; eating and 
 drinking; fighting, praying, or at horse-races; in-doors 
 and out-doors; in summer or winter, or in the month of 
 March; in short, I ll ay, it ar a fact, morally true 
 I ll haunt him, if the ghost of a pale face can contrive to 
 lift itself from a grave made by the hands of a red-skin!" 
 
 Having thus ventured the most terrible denunciation 
 he could devise, and the one which, in the eyes of the 
 honest bee-hunter, there seemed the greatest likelihood 
 of his being able to put in execution, he was obliged to 
 await the fruits of his threat with that resignation which 
 would be apt to govern a western border-man who, in 
 addition to the prospects just named, had the advantage 
 of contemplating them in fetters and bondage. We shall 
 not detain the narrative to relate the quaint morals with 
 which he next endeavored to cheer the drooping spirits 
 of his more sensitive companion, or the occasional pithy 
 and peculiar benedictions that he pronounced, on all the 
 bands of the Dahcotahs, commencing with those whom he 
 accused of stealing or murdering, on the banks of the 
 distant Mississippi, and concluding, in terms of suitable 
 energy, with the Teton tribe. The latter more than once 
 received from his lips curses as sententious and as com 
 plicated as that celebrated anathema of the Church, for a 
 knowledge of which most unlettered Protestants are in 
 debted to the pious researches of the worthy Tristram 
 Shandy. But as Middleton recovered from his exhaustion 
 he was fain to appease the boisterous temper of his asso 
 ciate, by admonishing him of the uselessness of such 
 
THE PRAIRIE 329 
 
 denuni cations, and of the possibility of their hastening 
 the very evil he deprecated, by irritating the resentments 
 of a race who were sufficiently fierce and lawless, even in 
 their most pacific moods. 
 
 In the meantime the trapper and the Sioux chief pur 
 sued their way to the lodge. The former had watched 
 with painful interest the expression of Mahtoree s eye, 
 while the words of Middleton and Paul were pursuing 
 their footsteps; but the mien of the Indian was far too 
 much restrained and self-guarded, to permit the smallest 
 of his emotions to escape through any of those ordinary 
 outlets by which the condition of the human volcano is 
 commonly betrayed. His look was fastened on the little 
 habitation they approached; and, for the moment, his 
 thoughts appeared to brood alone on the purposes of this 
 extraordinary visit. 
 
 The appearance of the interior of the lodge corre 
 sponded with its exterior. It was larger than most of the 
 others, more finished in its form, and finer in its mate 
 rials; but there its superiority ceased. Nothing could be 
 more simple and republican than the form of living that 
 the ambitious and powerful Teton chose to exhibit to the 
 eyes of his people. A choice collection of weapons for the 
 chase, and three or four medals, bestowed by the traders 
 and political agents of the Canadas as a homage to, or 
 rather as an acknowledgment of his rank, with a few of 
 the most indispensable articles of personal accommodation, 
 composed its furniture. It abounded in neither venison 
 nor the wild beef of the prairies; its crafty owner having 
 well understood that the liberality of a single individual 
 would be abundantly rewarded by the daily contributions 
 of a band. Although as pre-eminent in the chase as in 
 war, a deer or a buffalo was never seen to enter whole 
 into his lodge. In return, an animal was rarely brought 
 into the encampment that did not contribute to support 
 the family of Mahtoree. But the policy of the chief sel 
 dom permitted more to remain than sufficed for the wants 
 of the day, perfectly assured that all must suffer before 
 hunger, the bane of savage life, could lay its fell fangs 
 on so important a victim. 
 
 Immediately beneath the favorite bow of the chief, and 
 
330 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 encircled in a sort of magical ring of spears, shields, 
 lances, and arrows, all of which had in their time done 
 good service, was suspended the mysterious and sacred 
 medicine-bag. It was highly wrought in wampum, and 
 profusely ornamented with beads and porcupines quills, 
 after the most cunning devices of Indian ingenuity. The 
 peculiar freedom of Mahtoree s religious creed has been 
 more than once intimated, and by a singular species of 
 contradiction, he appeared to have lavished his attention 
 on this emblem of a supernatural agency, in a degree that 
 was precisely inverse to his faith. It was merely the 
 manner in which the Sioux imitated the well-known ex 
 pedient of the Pharisees, "in order that they might be 
 seen of men. 
 
 The tent had not, however, been entered by its owner 
 since his return from the recent expedition. As the 
 reader has already anticipated, it had been made the 
 prison of Inez and Ellen. The bride of Middleton was 
 seated on a simple couch of sweet-scented herbs covered 
 with skins. She had already suffered so much, and wit 
 nessed so many wild and unlooked-for events, within the 
 short space of her captivity, that every additional mis 
 fortune fell with a diminished force on her seemingly 
 devoted head. Her cheeks were bloodless, her dark and 
 usually animated eye was contracted in an expression of 
 settled concern, and her form appeared shrinking and 
 sensitive, nearly to extinction. But in the midst of these 
 evidences of natural weakness, there were at times such 
 an air of pious resignation, such gleams of meek but holy 
 hope lighting her countenance, as might well have ren 
 dered it a question whether the hapless captive was most 
 a subject of pity, or of admiration. All the precepts of 
 father Ignatius were riveted in her faithful memory, and 
 not a few of his pious visions were floating before her 
 imagination. Sustained by so sacred resolutions, the 
 mild, the patient, and the confiding girl was bowing her 
 head to this new stroke of Providence, with the same sort 
 of meekness as she would have submitted to any other 
 prescribed penitence for her sins, though nature, at mo 
 ments, warred powerfully with so compelled a humility. 
 
 On the other hand, Ellen had exhibited far more of the 
 
THE PRAIRIE 331 
 
 woman, and consequently of the passions of the world. 
 She had wept until her eyes were swollen and red. Her 
 cheeks were flushed and angry, and her whole mien was 
 distinguished by an air of spirit and resentment, that was 
 not a little, however, qualified by apprehensions for the 
 future. In short, there was that about the eye and step 
 of the betrothed of Paul, which gave a warranty that 
 should happier times arrive, and the constancy of the 
 bee-hunter finally meet with its reward, he would possess 
 a partner every way worthy to cope with his own thought 
 less and buoyant temperament. 
 
 There was still another and a third figure in that little 
 knot of females. It was the youngest, the most highly 
 gifted, and, until now, the most favored of the wives of 
 the Teton. Her charms had not been without the most 
 powerful attraction in the eyes of her husband, until they 
 had so unexpectedly opened on the surpassing loveliness 
 of a woman of the pale faces. From that hapless moment 
 the graces, the attachment, the fidelity of the young 
 Indian, had lost their power to please. Still, the com 
 plexion of Tachechana, though less dazzling than that of 
 her rival, was, for her race, clear and healthy. Her hazel 
 eye had the sweetness and playfulness of the antelope s; 
 her voice was soft and joyous as the song of the wren, 
 and her happy laugh was the very melody of the forest. 
 Of all the Sioux girls, Tachechana (or the Fawn) was the 
 lightest-hearted and the most envied. Her father had 
 been a distinguished brave, and her brothers had already 
 left their bones on a distant and dreary war-path. Num 
 berless were the warriors who had sent presents to the 
 lodge of her parents, but none of them were listened to 
 until a messenger from the great Mahtoree had come. 
 She was his third wife, it is true, but she was confessedly 
 the most favored of them all. Their union had existed 
 but two short seasons, and its fruits now lay sleeping at 
 her feet, wrapped in the customary ligatures of skin and 
 bark, which form the swaddlings of an Indian infant. 
 
 At the moment when Mahtoree and the trapper arrived 
 at the opening of the lodge, the young Sioux wife was 
 seated on a simple stool, turning her soft eyes with looks 
 that varied, like her emotions, with love and wonder, for 
 
332 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 the unconscious child to those rare beings who had filled 
 her youthful and uninstructed mind with so much ad 
 miration and astonishment. Though Inez and Ellen had 
 passed an entire day in her sight, it seemed as if the 
 longings of her curiosity were increasing with each new 
 gaze. She regarded them as beings of an entirely differ 
 ent nature and condition from the females of the prairie. 
 Even the mystery of their complicated attire had its 
 secret influence on her simple mind, though it was the 
 grace and charms of sex, to which nature has made every 
 people so sensible, that most attracted her admiration. 
 But while her ingenuous disposition freely admitted the 
 superiority of the strangers over the less brilliant attrac 
 tions of the Dahcotah maidens, she had seen no reason to 
 deprecate their advantages. The visit that she was now 
 about to receive was the first which her husband had 
 made to the tent since his return from the recent inroad, 
 and he was ever present to her thoughts as a successful 
 warrior, who was not ashamed in the moments of inaction 
 to admit the softer feelings of a father and a husband. 
 
 We have everywhere endeavored to show that while 
 Mahtoree was in all essentials a warrior of the prairies, 
 he was much in advance of his people in those acquire 
 ments which announce the dawnings of civilization. He 
 had held frequent communion with the traders and troops 
 of the Canadas, and the intercourse had unsettled many 
 of those wild opinions which were his birthright, withoujt 
 perhaps substituting any others of a nature sufficiently 
 definite to be profitable. His reasoning was rather subtle 
 than true, and his philosophy far more audacious than 
 profound. Like thousands of more enlightened beings 
 who fancy they are able to go through the trials of human 
 existence without any other support than their own reso 
 lutions, his morals were accommodating and his motives 
 selfish. These several characteristics will be understood 
 always with reference to the situation of the Indian, 
 though little apology is needed for finding resemblances 
 between men who essentially possess the same nature, 
 however it may be modified by circumstances. 
 
 Notwithstanding the presence of Inez and Ellen, the 
 entrance of the Teton warrior into the lodge of his favorite 
 
THE PRAIRIE 333 
 
 wife was made with the tread and mien of a master. The 
 step of his moccasin was noiseless, but the rattling of his 
 bracelets and of the silver ornaments of his leggings, 
 sufficed to announce his approach as he pushed aside the 
 skin covering of the opening of the tent, and stood in the 
 presence of its inmates. A faint cry of pleasure burst 
 from the lips of Tachechana in the suddenness of her sur 
 prise, but the emotion was instantly suppressed in that 
 subdued demeanor which should characterize a matron of 
 her tribe. Instead of returning the stolen glance of his 
 youthful and secretly rejoicing wife, Mahtoree moved to 
 the crouch occupied by his prisoners, and placed himself 
 in the haughty, upright attitude of an Indian chief be 
 fore their eyes. The old man had glided past him, and 
 already taken a position suited to the office he had been 
 commanded to fill. 
 
 Surprise kept the females silent and nearly breathless. 
 Though accustomed to the sight of savage warriors in the 
 horrid panoply of their terrible profession, there was 
 something so startling in the entrance, and so audacious 
 in the inexplicable look of their conqueror, that the eyes 
 of both sank to the earth under a feeling of terror and 
 embarrassment. Then Inez recovered herself, and ad 
 dressing the trapper, she demanded with the dignity of 
 an offended gentlewoman, though with her accustomed 
 grace, to what circumstance they owed this extraordinary 
 and unexpected visit. The old man hesitated; but clear 
 ing his throat like one who was about to make an effort 
 to which he was little used, he ventured on the following 
 reply : 
 
 "Lady," he said, "a savage is a savage, and you are 
 not to look for the uses and formalities of the settlements 
 on a bleak and windy prairie. As these Indians would 
 say, fashion and courtesies are things so light that they 
 would blow av/ay. As for myself, though a man of the 
 forest, I have seen the ways of the great in my time, and 
 I am not to learn that they differ from the ways of the 
 lowly. I was long a serving-man in my youth, not one of 
 your beck-and-nod runners about a household, but a man 
 that went through the servitude of the forest with his 
 officer, and well do I know in what manner to approach 
 
334 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 the wife of a captain. Now, had I the ordering of this 
 visit, I would first have hemmed aloud at the door in 
 order that you might hear that strangers were coming, 
 and then I 
 
 "The manner is indifferent," interrupted Inez, too 
 anxious to await the prolix explanations of the old man; 
 "why is the visit made?" 
 
 "Therein shall the savage speak for himself. The 
 daughters of the pale faces wish to know why the great 
 Teton has come into his lodge?" 
 
 Mahtoree regarded his interrogator with a surprise 
 which showed how extraordinary he deemed the question. 
 Then placing himself in a posture of condescension, after 
 a moment s delay, he answered: 
 
 "Sing in the ears of the dark-eye. Tell her the lodge 
 of Mahtoree is very large, and that it is not full. She 
 shall find room in it, and none shall be greater than she. 
 Tell the light-hair, that she too may stay in the lodge of 
 a brave, and eat of his venison. Mahtoree is a great 
 chief. His hand is never shut." 
 
 "Teton," returned the trapper, shaking his head in 
 evidence of the strong disapprobation with which he 
 heard this language. "The tongue of a red-skin must be 
 colored white, before it can make music in the ears of a 
 pale face. Should your words be spoken, my daughters 
 would shut their ears, and Mahtoree would seem a trader 
 to their eyes. Now listen to what comes from a gray- 
 head, and then speak accordingly. My people is a mighty 
 people. The sun rises on their eastern and sets on their 
 western border. The land is filled with bright-eyed and 
 laughing girls, like these you see ay, Teton, I tell no 
 lie," observing his auditor to start with an air of dis 
 trust "bright-eyed and pleasant to behold, as these 
 before you. 
 
 "Has my father a hundred wives?" interrupted the 
 savage, laying his finger on the shoulder of the trapper, 
 with a look of curious interest in the reply. 
 
 "No, Dahcotah. The Master of Life has said to me, 
 Live alone; your lodge shall be the forest; the roof of 
 your wigwam, the clouds. But, though never bound in 
 the secret faith which, in my nation, ties one man to one 
 
THE PRAIRIE 335 
 
 woman, often have I seen the workings of that kindness 
 which brings the two together. Go into the regions of 
 my people; you will see the daughters of the land flutter 
 ing through the towns like many-colored and joyful birds 
 in the season of blossoms. You will meet them singing 
 and rejoicing along the great paths of the country, and 
 you will hear the woods ringing with their laughter. 
 They are very excellent to behold, and the young men find 
 pleasure in looking at them." 
 
 "Hugh!" ejaculated the attentive Mahtoreo.. 
 
 "Ay, well may you put faith in what you hear, for it 
 is no lie. But when a youth has found a maiden to please 
 him, he speaks to her in a voice so soft that none else can 
 hear. He does not say, My lodge is empty, and there is 
 room for another; but, Shall I build, and will the virgin 
 show me near what spring she would dwell? His voice 
 is sweeter than honey from the locust, and goes into the 
 ear thrilling like the song of a wren. Therefore, if my 
 brother wishes his words to be heard, he must speak with 
 a white tongue." 
 
 Mahtoree pondered deeply, and in a wonder that he did 
 not attempt to conceal. It was reversing all the order of 
 society, and, according to his established opinions, en 
 dangering the dignity of a chief for a warrior thus to 
 humble himself before a woman. But as Inez sat before 
 him, reserved and imposing in air, utterly unconscious of 
 his object, and least of all suspecting the true purport of 
 so extraordinary a visit, the savage felt the influence of 
 a manner to which he was unaccustomed. Bowing his 
 head in acknowledgment of his error, he stepped a little 
 back, and placing himself in an attitude of easy dignity, 
 he began to speak with the confidence of one who had 
 been no less distinguished for eloquence than for deeds in 
 arms. Keeping his eyes riveted on the unconscious bride 
 of Middleton, he proceeded in the following words: 
 
 "I am a man with a red skin, but my eyes are dark. 
 They have been open since many snows. They have seen 
 many things they know a brave from a coward. When 
 a boy, I saw nothing but the bison and the deer. I went 
 to the hunts, and I saw the cougar and the bear. This 
 made Mahtoree a man. He talked with his mother no 
 
336 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 more. His ears were open to the wisdom of the old men. 
 They told him everything they told him of the Big- 
 knives. He went on the war-path. He was then the last 
 now he is the first. What Dahcotah dare say he will 
 go before Mahtoree into the hunting grounds of the Paw 
 nees? The chiefs met him at their doors, and they said, 
 My son is without a home. They gave him their lodges, 
 they gave him their riches, and they gave him their 
 daughters. Then Mahtoree became a chief, as his fathers 
 had been. He struck the warriors of all the nations, and 
 he could have chosen wives from the Pawnees, the Oma- 
 haws, and the Konzas; but he looked at the hunting- 
 grounds, and not at his village. He thought a horse was 
 pleasanter than a Dahcotah girl. But he found a flower 
 on the prairies, and he plucked it, and brought it into 
 his lodge. He forgets that he is the master of a single 
 horse. He gives them all to the stranger, for Mahtoree 
 is not a thief; he will only keep the flower he found on 
 the prairie. Her feet are very tender. She cannot walk 
 to the door of her father; she will stay in the lodge of a 
 valiant warrior forever." 
 
 When he had finished this extraordinary address, the 
 Teton awaited to have it translated, with the air of a 
 suitor who entertained no very disheartening doubts of 
 his success. The trapper had not lost a syllable of the 
 speech, and he now prepared himself to render it into 
 English in such a manner as should leave its principal 
 idea even more obscure than in the original. But as his 
 reluctant lips were in the act of parting, Ellen lifted a 
 finger, and with a keen glance from her quick eye, at the 
 still attentive Inez, she interrupted him. 
 
 "Spare your breath," she said: "all that a savage says 
 is not to be repeated before a Christian lady." 
 
 Inez started, blushed, and bowed with an air of reserve, 
 as she coldly thanked the old man for his intentions, and 
 observed that she could now wish to be alone. 
 
 "My daughters have no need of ears to understand 
 what a great Dahcotah says, returned the trapper, ad 
 dressing himself to the expecting Mahtoree. "The look 
 he has given, and the signs he has made are enough. They 
 understand him; they wish to think of his words; for the 
 
THE PRAIRIE 337 
 
 children of great braves, such as their fathers are, do 
 nothing without much thought." 
 
 With this explanation, so flattering to the energy of 
 his eloquence, and so promising to his future hopes, the 
 Teton was every way content. He made the customary 
 ejaculation of assent, and prepared to retire. Saluting 
 the females in the cold but dignified manner of his people 
 he drew his robe about him, and moved from the spot 
 where he had stood with an air of ill-concealed triumph. 
 
 But there had been a stricken, though a motionless 
 and unobserved auditor of the foregoing scene. Not a 
 syllable had fallen from the lips of the long and anxiously 
 expected husband that had not gone directly to the heart 
 of his unoffending wife. In this manner had he wooed her 
 from the lodge of her father, and it was to listen to simi 
 lar pictures of the renown and deeds of the greatest brave 
 in her tribe that she had shut her ears to the tender tales 
 of so many of the Sioux youths. 
 
 As the Teton turned to leave his lodge in the manner 
 just mentioned, he found this unexpected and half-forgot 
 ten object before him. She stood in the humble guise 
 and with the shrinking air of an Indian girl, holding the 
 pledge of their former love in her arms, directly in his 
 path. Starting, the chief regained the marble-like indif 
 ference of countenance which distinguished in so remark 
 able a degree the restrained or more artificial expression 
 of his features, and signed to her with an air of authority 
 to give place. 
 
 "Is not Tachechana the daughter of a chief? "demanded 
 a subdued voice, in which pride struggled with anguish; 
 "were not her brothers braves?" 
 
 "Go; the men are calling their partisan. He has no 
 ears for a woman." 
 
 "No," replied the supplicant; "it is not the voice of 
 Tachechana that you hear, but this boy, speaking with 
 the tongue of his mother. He is the son of a chief, and 
 his words will go up to his father s ears. Listen to what he 
 says: When was Mahtoree hungry, and Tachechana had 
 not food for him? When did he go on the path of the 
 Pawnees and find it empty, that my mother did not weep? 
 When did he come back with the marks of their blows, 
 22 
 
338 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 that she did not sing? What Sioux girl has given a brave 
 a son like me? Look at me well, that you may know 
 me. My eyes are the eagle s. I look at the sun and 
 laugh. In a little time the Dahcotahs will follow me to 
 the hunts and on the war-path. Why does my father turn 
 his eyes from the woman that gives me milk? Why has 
 he so soon forgotten the daughter of a mighty Sioux?" 
 
 There was a single instant, as the exulting father suf 
 fered his cold eye to wander to the face of the laughing 
 boy, that the stern nature of the Teton seemed touched. 
 But shaking off the grateful sentiment, like one who 
 would gladly be rid of any painful, because reproachful 
 emotion, he laid his hand calmly on the arm of his wife, 
 and led her directly in front of Inez. Pointing to the 
 sweet countenance that was beaming on her own, with a 
 look of tenderness and commiseration, he paused, to allow 
 his wife to contemplate a loveliness which was quite as ex 
 cellent to her ingenuous mind as it had proved dangerous 
 to the character of her faithless husband. When he thought 
 abundant time had passed to make the contrast sufficiently 
 striking, he suddenly raised a small mirror that dangled 
 at her breast, an ornament he had himself bestowed, in 
 an hour of fondness, as a compliment to her beauty, and 
 placed her own dark image in its place. Wrapping his 
 robe again about him, the Teton motioned to the trapper 
 to follow, and stalked haughtily from the lodge, mutter 
 ing as he went: 
 
 "Mahtoree is very wise! What nation has so great a 
 chief as the Dahcotahs?" 
 
 Tachechana stood frozen into a statue of humility. Her 
 mild and usually joyous countenance worked, as if the 
 struggle within was about to dissolve the connection be 
 tween her soul and that more material part, whose defor 
 mity was becoming so loathsome. Inez and Ellen were 
 utterly ignorant of the nature of her interview with her 
 husband, though the quick and sharpened wits of the lat 
 ter led her to suspect a truth to which the entire innocence 
 of the former furnished no clue. They were both, how 
 ever, about to tender those sympathies which are so nat 
 ural to, and so graceful in the sex, when their necessity 
 seemed suddenly to cease. The convulsions in the features 
 
THE PRAIRIE 339 
 
 of the young Sioux disappeared, and her countenance be 
 came cold and rigid, like chiseled stone. A single expres 
 sion of subdued anguish, which had made its impression 
 on a brow that had rarely before contracted with sorrow, 
 alone remained. It was never removed, in all the changes 
 of seasons, fortunes, and years, which, in the vicissitudes 
 of a suffering, female, savage life, she was subsequently 
 doomed to endure. As in the case of a premature blight, 
 let the plant quicken and revive as it may, the effects of 
 that withering touch were always present. 
 
 Tachechana first stripped her person of every vestige of 
 those rude but highly prized ornaments, which the liber 
 ality of her husband had been wont to lavish on her, and 
 she tendered them meekly, and without a murmur as an 
 offering to the superiority of Inez. The bracelets were 
 forced from her wrists, the complicated mazes of beads 
 from her leggings, and the broad silver band from her 
 brow. Then she paused, long and painfully. But it would 
 seem that the resolution she had once adopted was not to 
 be conquered by the lingering emotions of any affection, 
 however natural. The boy himself was next laid at the 
 feet of her supposed rival, and well might the self-abased 
 wife of the Teton believe that the burden of her sacrifice 
 was now full. 
 
 While Inez and Ellen stood regarding these several 
 strange movements with eyes of wonder, a low, soft, mus 
 ical voice was heard saying in a language that to them 
 was unintelligible: 
 
 "A strange tongue will tell my boy the manner to be 
 come a man. He will hear sounds that are new, but he 
 will learn them, and forget the voice of his mother. It 
 is the will of the Wahcondah, and a Sioux girl should not 
 complain. Speak to him softly, for his ears are very lit 
 tle; when he is big, your words may be louder. Let him 
 not be a girl, for very sad is the life of a woman. Teach 
 him to keep his eyes on the men. Show him how to strike 
 them that do him wrong, and let him never forget to re 
 turn blow for blow. When he goes to hunt, the flower of 
 the palefaces," she concluded, using in bitterness the 
 metaphor which had been supplied by the imagination of 
 her truant husband, "will whisper softly in his ears that 
 
340 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 the skin of his mother was red, and that she was once the 
 Fawn of the Dahcotahs." 
 
 Tachechana pressed a kiss on the lips of her son, and 
 withdrew to the farther side of the lodge. Here she drew 
 her light calico robe over her head, and took her seat, 
 in token of humility, on the naked earth. All efforts to 
 attract her attention were fruitless. She neither heard 
 remonstrances, nor felt the touch. Once or twice her voice 
 rose, in a sort of wailing song, from beneath her quivering 
 mantle, but it never mounted into the wildness of savage 
 music. In this manner she remained unseen for hours, 
 while events were occurring without the lodge, which not 
 only materially changed the complexion of her own for 
 tunes, but left a lasting and deep impression on the future 
 movements of the wandering Sioux. 
 
CHAPTER XXVII 
 
 "I ll no swaggerers. I am in good name and fame with the very best; shut 
 the door, there comes no swaggerers here. I have not lived all this while to have 
 swaggering now ; shut the door, I pray you." 
 
 KING HENRY IV. 
 
 MAHTOREE encountered, at the door of his lodge, Ish- 
 mael, Abiram, and Esther. The first glance of his eye, 
 at the countenance of the heavy-moulded squatter, served 
 to tell the cunning Teton, that the treacherous truce he 
 had made with these dupes of his superior sagacity was in 
 some danger of a violent termination. 
 
 "Look you here, old gray-beard," said Ishmael, seizing 
 the trapper, and whirling him round as if he had been a 
 top; "that I am tired of carrying on a discourse with 
 fingers and thumbs, instead of a tongue, ar a natural 
 fact; so you ll play linguister and put my words into 
 Indian, without much caring whether they suit the 
 stomach of a red-skin or not." 
 
 "Say on, friend," calmly returned the trapper; "they 
 shall be given as plainly as you send them. 
 
 "Friend!" repeated the squatter, eying the other for an 
 instant with an expression of indefinable meaning. "But 
 it is no more than a word, and sounds break no bones, and 
 survey no farms. Tell this thieving Sioux, then, that I 
 come to claim the conditions of our solemn bargain, made 
 at the foot of the rock. 
 
 When the trapper had rendered his meaning into the 
 Sioux language, Mahtoree demanded, with an air of sur 
 prise: 
 
 "Is my brother cold? buffalo-skins are plenty. Is he 
 hungry? Let my young men carry venison into his lodges. 
 
 The squatter elevated his clenched fist in a menacing 
 manner, and struck it with violence on the palm of his 
 open hand, by way of confirming his determination, as he 
 answered : 
 
 "Tell the deceitful liar, I have not come like a beggar 
 341 
 
342 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 to pick his bones, but like a freeman asking for his own; 
 and have it I will. And, moreover, tell him I claim that 
 you, too, miserable sinner as you ar , should be given up 
 to justice. There s no mistake. My prisoner, my niece, 
 and you, I demand the three at his hands, according to a 
 sworn agreement." 
 
 The immovable old man smiled, with an expression 
 of singular intelligence, as he answered : 
 
 "Friend squatter, you ask what few men would be will 
 ing to grant. You would first cut the tongue from the 
 mouth of the Teton, and then the heart from his bosom. 
 
 "It is little that Ishmael Bush regards who or what is 
 damaged in claiming his own. But put you the questions 
 in straight-going Indian, and when you speak of yourself, 
 make such a sign as a white man will understand, in order 
 that I may know there ^s no foul play. 
 
 The trapper laughed in his silent fashion, and muttered 
 a few words to himself before he addressed the chief: 
 
 "Let the Dahcotah open his ears very wide," he said, 
 "that big words may have room to enter. His friend, 
 the Big-knife, comes with an empty hand, and he says 
 that the Teton must fill it." 
 
 "Wagh! Mahtoree is a rich chief. He is master of the 
 prairies." 
 
 "He must give the dark-hair. " 
 
 The brow of the chief contracted in an ominous frown, 
 that threatened instant destruction to the audacious squat 
 ter; but as suddenly recollecting his policy, he craftily 
 replied: 
 
 "A girl is too light for the hand of such a brave. I 
 will fill it with buffaloes." 
 
 "He says he has need of the light-hair, too; who has 
 his blood in her veins." 
 
 "She shall be the wife of Mahtoree; then the Long- 
 knife will be the father of a chief." 
 
 "And me," continued the trapper, making one of those 
 expressive signs by which the natives communicate with 
 nearly the same facility as with their tongues, and turning 
 to the squatter at the same time, in order that the latter 
 might see he dealt fairly by him; "he asks for a miserable 
 and worn-out trapper." 
 
THE PRAIRIE 343 
 
 The Dahcotah threw his arm over the shoulder of the 
 old man, with an air of great affection, before he replied 
 to this third and last demand. 
 
 "My friend is old, he said, "and cannot travel far. He 
 will stay with the Tetons, that they may learn wisdom 
 from his words. What Sioux has a tongue like my father! 
 No; let his words be very soft, but let them be very clear. 
 Mahtoree will give skins and buffaloes. He will give the 
 young men of the pale faces wives, but he cannot give 
 away any who live in his own lodge." 
 
 Perfectly satisfied himself, with this laconic reply, the 
 chief was moving towards his expecting counselors, when 
 suddenly returning, he interrupted the translation of the 
 trapper by adding: 
 
 "Tell the Great Buffalo" (a name by which the Tetons 
 had already christened Ishmael) "that Mahtoree has a 
 hand which is always open. See," he added, pointing to 
 the hard and wrinkled visage of the attentive Esther, "his 
 wife is too old for so great a chief. Let him put her out 
 of his lodge. Mahtoree loves him as a brother. He is 
 his brother. He shall have the youngest wife of the Teton. 
 Tachechana, the pride of the Sioux girls, shall cook his 
 venison, and many braves will look at him with longing 
 minds. Go; a Dahcotah is generous." 
 
 The singular coolness with which the Teton concluded 
 this audacious proposal, confounded even the practised 
 trapper. He stared after the retiring form of the Indian, 
 with an astonishment he did not care to conceal, nor did 
 he renew his attempt at interpretation, until the person 
 of Mahtoree was blended with the cluster of warriors, who 
 had so long, and with so characteristic patience, awaited 
 his return. 
 
 "The Teton chief has spoken very plainly, the old man 
 contined; "he will not give you the lady, to whom the 
 Lord in heaven knows you have no claim, unless it be such 
 as the wolf has to the lamb. He will not give you the 
 child you call your niece; and therein I acknowledge that 
 I am far from certain he has the same justice on his side. 
 Moreover, neighbor squatter, he flatly denies your demand 
 for me, miserable and worthless as I am; nor do I think 
 he has been unwise in so doing, seeing that I should have 
 
344 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 many reasons against journeying far in your company. 
 But he makes an offer, which it is right and convenient 
 you should know. The Teton says through me, who am no 
 more than a mouth-piece, and therein not answerable for 
 the sin of his words, but he says, as this good woman is 
 getting past the comely age, it is reasonable for you to 
 tire of such a wife. He therefore tells you to turn her 
 out of your lodge, and when it is empty, he will send his 
 own favorite, or rather she was his favorite, the Skipping 
 Fawn, as the Sioux call her, to fill her place. You see, 
 neighbor, though the red-skin is minded to keep your 
 property, he is willing to give you wherewithal to make 
 yourself some return ! 
 
 Ishmael listened to these replies to his several demands, 
 with that species of gathering indignation with which the 
 dullest tempers mount into the most violent paroxysms 
 of rage. He even affected to laugh at the conceit of ex 
 changing his long-tried partner for the more flexible sup 
 port of the youthful Tachechana, though his voice was 
 hollow and unnatural in the effort. But Esther was far 
 from giving the proposal so facetious a reception. Lift 
 ing her voice to its most audible key, she broke forth, 
 after catching her breath like one who had been in some 
 imminent danger of strangulation, as follows: 
 
 "Hoity-toity! who set an Indian up for a maker and 
 breaker of the rights of wedded wives? Does he think a 
 woman is a beast of the prairie, that she is to be chased 
 from a village by dog and gun? Let the bravest squaw 
 of them all come forth and boast of her doings; can she 
 show such a brood as mine? A wicked tyrant is that 
 thieving red-skin, and a bold rogue, I warrant me. He 
 would be captain in-doors as well as out! An honest 
 woman is no better in his eyes than one of your broomstick 
 jumpers. And you, Ishmael Bush, the father of seven 
 sons and so many comely daughters, to open your sinful 
 mouth, except to curse him! Would ye disgrace color, 
 and family, and nation, by mixing white blood with red, 
 and would ye be the parent of a race of mules! The devil 
 has often tempted you, my man, but never before has he 
 set so cunning a snare as this. Go back among your 
 children, friend; go, and remember that you are not a 
 
THE PRAIRIE 345 
 
 prowling bear, but a Christian man, and thank God that 
 you ar a lawful husband!" 
 
 The clamor of Esther was anticipated by the judicious 
 trapper. He had easily foreseen that her meek temper 
 would overflow at so scandalous a proposal as repudiation 
 and he now profited by the tempest, to retire to a place 
 where he was at least safe from any immediate violence 
 on the part of her less excited, but certainly more dan 
 gerous husband. Ishmael, who had made his demands with 
 a stout determination to enforce them, was diverted by 
 the windy torrent, like many a more obstinate husband 
 from his purpose; and in order to appease a jealousy that 
 resembled the fury with which the bear defends her cubs, 
 was fain to retire to a distance from the lodge that was 
 known to contain the unoffending object of the sudden 
 uproar. 
 
 "Let your copper-colored minx come forth, and show 
 her tawny beauty before the face of a woman who has 
 heard more than one church bell, and seen a power of real 
 quality," cried Esther, flourishing her hand in triumph, 
 as she drove Ishmael and Abiram before her, like two 
 truant boys, towards their own encampment. "I warrant 
 me, I warrant me, here is one who would shortly talk her 
 down! Never think to tarry here, my men; never think to 
 shut an eye in a camp, through which the devil walks as 
 openly as if he were a gentleman, and sure of his wel 
 come. Here, you Abner, Enoch, Jesse, where ar ye got 
 ten to? Put to, put to; if that weak-minded, soft-feeling 
 man, your father, eats or drinks again in this neighbor 
 hood, we shall see him poisoned with the craft of the red 
 skins. Not that I care, who comes into my place when it 
 is once lawfully empty, but Ishmael, I never thought that 
 you, who have had one woman with a white skin, would 
 find pleasure in looking on a brazen ay, that she is cop 
 per ar a fact; you can t deny it, and I warrant me, brazen 
 enough is she, too!" 
 
 Against this ebullition of wounded female pride, the 
 experienced husband made no other head, than by an oc 
 casional exclamation, which he intended to be the precur 
 sor of a simple asseveration of his own innocence. The 
 fury of the woman would not be appeased. She listened 
 
346 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 to nothing but her own voice, and consequently nothing 
 was heard but her mandates to depart. 
 
 The squatter had collected his beasts and loaded his 
 wagons, as a measure of precaution, before proceeding to 
 the extremity he contemplated. Esther consequently 
 found everything favorable to her wishes. The young 
 men stared at each other, as they witnessed the extraor 
 dinary excitement of their mother, but took little interest 
 in an event which, in the course of their experience, had 
 found so many parallels. By command of their father, 
 the tents were thrown into the vehicles as a sort of re 
 prisal for the want of faith in their late ally, and then the 
 train left the spot, in its usual listless and sluggish order. 
 
 As a formidable division of well-armed borderers pro 
 tected the rear of the retiring party, the Sioux saw it 
 depart without manifesting the smallest evidence of sur 
 prise or resentment. The savage, like the tiger, rarely 
 makes his attack on an enemy who expects him; and if 
 the warriors of the Tetons meditated any hostility, it was 
 in the still and patient manner with which the feline 
 beasts watch for the incautious moment, in order to insure 
 the blow. The counsels of Mahtoree, however, on whom 
 so much of the policy of his people depended, lay deep in 
 the depository of his own thoughts. Perhaps he rejoiced 
 at so easy a manner of getting rid of claims so trouble 
 some; perhaps he awaited a fitting time to exhibit his 
 power; or it even might be, that matters of so much 
 greater importance were pressing on his mind, that it ( 
 had not leisure to devote any of its faculties to an event- 
 of so much indifference. j 
 
 But it would seem that while Ishmael made such a con 
 cession to the awakened feelings of Esther, he was far 
 from abandoning his original intentions. His train fol 
 lowed the course of the river for a mile, and then it came 
 to a halt on the brow of the elevated land, and in a place 
 which afforded the necessary facilities. Here he again 
 pitched his tents, unharnessed his teams, sent his cattle 
 on the bottom, and, in short, made all the customary 
 preparations to pass the night, with the same coolness and 
 deliberation as if he had not hurled an irritating defiance 
 into the teeth of his dangerous neighbors. 
 
THE PRAIRIE 347 
 
 In the meantime the Tetons proceeded to the more 
 regular business of the hour. A fierce and savage joy 
 had existed in the camp, from the instant when it had 
 been announced that their own chief was returning with 
 the long-dreaded and hated partisan of their enemies. 
 For many hours the crones of the tribe had been going 
 from lodge to lodge, in order to stimulate the tempers of 
 the warriors to such a pass, as might leave but little room 
 for mercy. To one they spoke of a son, whose scalp was 
 drying in the smoke of a Pawnee lodge. To another, they 
 enumerated his own scars, his disgraces, and defeats; with 
 a third, they dwelt on his losses of skins and horses; and 
 a fourth was reminded of vengeance by a significant 
 question concerning some flagrant adventure in which he 
 was known to have been a sufferer. 
 
 By these means the men had been so far excited as to 
 have assembled, in the manner already related, though it 
 still remained a matter of doubt how far they intended to 
 carry their revenge. A variety of opinions prevailed on 
 the policy of executing their prisoners; and Mahtoree had 
 suspended the discussions, in order to ascertain how far 
 the measure might propitiate, or retard, his own particu 
 lar views. Hitherto the consultations had merely been 
 preliminary, with a design that each chief might discover 
 the number of supporters his particular views would be 
 likely to obtain, when the important subject should come 
 before a more solemn council of the tribe. The mo 
 ment for the latter had now arrived, and the preparations 
 were made with a dignity and solemnity suited to the 
 momentous interests of the occasion. 
 
 With a refinement in cruelty that none but an Indian 
 would have imagined, the place selected for this grave 
 deliberation, was immediately about the post to which 
 the most important of its subjects was attached. Middle- 
 ton and Paul were brought in their bonds, and laid at the 
 feet of the Pawnee; then the men began to take their 
 places, according to their several claims to distinction. 
 As warrior after warrior approached, he seated himself 
 in the wide circle with a mien as composed and thought 
 ful as if his mind were actually in a condition to deal out 
 justice, tempered, as it should be, with the heavenly 
 
348 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 quality of mercy. A place was reserved for three or four 
 of the principal chiefs; and a few of the oldest of the 
 women, as withered as age, exposure, hardships, and lives 
 of savage passions could make them, thrust themselves 
 into the foremost circle with a temerity to which they 
 were impelled by their insatiable desire for cruelty, and 
 which nothing but their years and long-tried fidelity to 
 the nation could have excused. 
 
 All, but the chiefs already named, were now in their 
 places. These had delayed their appearance, in the vain 
 hope that their own unanimity might smooth the way to 
 that of their respective factions, for, notwithstanding the 
 superior influence of Mahtoree, his power was to be main 
 tained only by constant appeals to the opinions of his in 
 feriors. As these important personages at length entered 
 the circle in a body, their sullen looks and clouded brows, 
 notwithstanding the time given for consultation, suffi 
 ciently proclaimed the discontent which reigned among 
 them. The eye of Mahtoree was varying in its expres 
 sion, from sudden gleams, that seemed to kindle with the 
 burning impulses of his soul, to that cold and guarded 
 steadiness which was thought more peculiarly to become 
 a chief in council. He took his seat with the studied 
 simplicity of a demagogue; though the keen and flashing 
 glance that he immediately threw around the silent assem 
 bly, betrayed the more predominant temper of a tyrant. 
 
 When all were present, an aged warrior lighted the 
 great pipe of his people, and blew the smoke toward the 
 four quarters of the heavens. So soon as this propitiatory 
 offering was made, he tendered it to Mahtoree, who, in 
 affected humility, passed it to a gray-headed chief by his 
 side. After the influence of the soothing weed had been 
 courted by all, a grave silence succeeded as if each was 
 not only qualified to, but actually did think more deeply 
 on the matters before them. Then an old Indian arose, 
 and spoke as follows: 
 
 "The eagle, at the falls of the endless river, was in its 
 egg, many snows after my hand had struck a Pawnee. 
 What my tongue says, my eyes have seen. Bohrecheena is 
 very old. The hills have stood longer in their places, 
 than he has been in his tribe, and the rivers were full 
 
THE PRAIRIE 349 
 
 and empty, before he was born; but where is the Sioux 
 that knows it besides myself? What he says, they will 
 hear. If any of his words fall to the ground, they will 
 pick them up and hold them to their ears. If any blow 
 away in the wind, my young- men, who are very nimble, 
 will catch them. Now listen. Since water ran and trees 
 grew, the Sioux has found the Pawnee on his war-path. 
 As the cougar loves the antelope, the Dahcotah loves his 
 enemy. When the wolf finds the fawn, does he lie down 
 and sleep? When the panther sees the doe at the spring, 
 does he shut his eyes? You know that he does not. He 
 drinks, too; but it is of blood! A Sioux is a leaping 
 panther, a Pawnee a trembling deer. Let my children 
 hear me. They will find my words good. I have spoken. " 
 
 A deep guttural exclamation of assent broke from the 
 lips of all the partisans of Mahtoree, as they listened to 
 this sanguinary advice from one who was certainly among 
 the most aged men of the nation. That deeply seated love 
 of vengeance, which formed so prominent a feature in 
 their characters, was gratified by his metaphorical allu 
 sions; and the chief himself augured favorably of the 
 success of his own schemes, by the number of supporters 
 who manifested themselves to be in favor of the counsels 
 of his friend. But still unanimity was far from prevail 
 ing. A long and decorous pause was suffered to succeed 
 the words of the first speaker, in order that all might 
 duly deliberate on their wisdom, before another chief took 
 on himself the office of refutation. The second orator, 
 though past the prime of his days, was far less aged than 
 the one who had preceded him. He felt the disadvantage 
 of this circumstance, and endeavored to counteract it, as 
 far as possible, by the excess of his humility. 
 
 "I am but an infant," he commenced, looking furtively 
 around him, in order to detect how far his well-estab 
 lished character for prudence and courage contradicted 
 his assertion. "I have lived with the women since my 
 father has been a man. If my head is getting gray, it is 
 not because I am old. Some of the snow which fell on it 
 while I have been sleeping on the war-paths, has frozen 
 there, and the hot sun, near the Osage villages, has not 
 been strong enough to melt it." Alow murmur was 
 
350 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 heard, expressive of admiration of the services to which 
 he thus artfully alluded. The orator modestly awaited 
 for the feeling to subside a little, and then he continued, 
 with increasing energy, encouraged by their commenda 
 tions. "But the eyes of a young brave are good. He 
 can see very far. He is a lynx. Look at me well. I 
 will now turn my back, that you may see both sides of 
 me. Now do you know I am your friend, for you look 
 on a part that a Pawnee never yet saw. Now look at my 
 face; not in this seam, for there your eyes can never see 
 into my spirit. It is a hole cut by a Konza. But here 
 is an opening made by the Wahcondah, through which 
 you may look into the soul. What am I? A Dahcotah, 
 within and without. You know it. Therefore hear me. 
 The blood of every creature on the prairie is red. Who 
 can tell the spot where a Pawnee was struck, from the 
 place where my young men took a bison? It is of the 
 same color. The Master of Life made them for each other. 
 He made them alike. But will the grass grow green 
 where a pale face is killed? My young men must not 
 think that nation so numerous, that it will not miss a 
 warrior. They call them over often, and say, Where are 
 my sons? If they miss one, they will send into the 
 prairies to look for him. If they cannot find him, they 
 will tell their runners to ask for him, among the Sioux. 
 My brethren, the Big-knives are not fools. There is a 
 mighty medicine of their nation now among us; who can 
 tell how loud is his voice, or how long is his arm?" 
 
 The speech of the orator, who was beginning to enter 
 into his subject with warmth, was cut short by the impa 
 tient Mahtoree, who suddenly arose and exclaimed, in a 
 voice in which authority was mingled with contempt, and 
 at the close with a keen tone of irony also: 
 
 "Let my young men lead the evil spirit of the paleface 
 to the council. My brother shall see his medicine face to 
 face!" 
 
 ^ A death-like and solemn stillness succeeded this extraor 
 dinary interruption. It not only involved a deep offense 
 against the sacred courtesy of debate, but the mandate 
 was likely to brave the unknown power of one of those 
 incomprehensible beings, whom few Indians were enlight- 
 
THE PRAIRIE 351 
 
 ened enough at that day to regard without reverence, or 
 few hardy enough to oppose. The subordinates, however, 
 obeyed, and Obed was led forth from the lodge mounted 
 onAsinus, with a ceremony and state which was certainly 
 intended for derision, but which nevertheless was greatly 
 enhanced by fear. As they entered the ring, Mahtoree, 
 who had foreseen and then endeavored to anticipate the 
 influence of the Doctor by bringing him into contempt, 
 cast an eye around the assembly in order to gather his 
 success in the various dark visages by which he was 
 encircled. 
 
 Truly, nature and art had combined to produce such, 
 an effect from the air and appointments of the naturalist, 
 as might have made him the subject of wonder in any 
 place. His head had been industriously shaved, after 
 the most approved fashion of Sioux taste. A gallant 
 scalp-lock, which would probably not have been spared 
 had the Doctor himself been consulted in the matter, was 
 all that remained of an exuberant, and at that particular 
 season of the year, far from uncomfortable head of hair. 
 Thick coats of paint had been laid on the naked poll, and 
 certain fanciful designs in the same material had even 
 been extended into the neighborhood of the eyes and 
 mouth, lending to the keen expression of the former a 
 a look of twinkling cunning, and to the dogmatism of the 
 latter not a little of the grimness of necromancy. He had 
 been despoiled of his upper garments, and in their stead 
 his body was sufficiently protected from the cold by a fan 
 tastically painted robe of dressed deerskin. As if in 
 mockery of his pursuit, sundry toads, frogs, lizards, but 
 terflies, etc., all duly prepared to take their places at 
 some future day in his own private cabinet, were attached 
 to the solitary lock on his head, to his ears, and to various 
 other conspicuous parts of his person. If, in addition to 
 the effect produced by these quaint auxiliaries to his cos 
 tume, we add the portentous and troubled gleamings of 
 doubt, which rendered his visage austere, and proclaimed 
 the misgivings of the worthy Obed s mind as he beheld 
 his personal dignity thus prostrated, and what was of far 
 greater moment in his eyes, himself led forth, as he 
 firmly believed, to be the victim of some heathenish sac- 
 
352 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 rifice, the reader will find no difficulty in giving credit 
 to the sensation of awe that was excited by his appearance 
 in a band already more than half prepared to worship 
 him as a powerful agent of the evil spirit. 
 
 Weucha led Asinus directly into the center of the circle, 
 and leaving them together (for the legs of the naturalist 
 were attached to the beast in such a manner, that the two 
 animals might be said to be incorporated, and to form a 
 new order), he withdrew to his proper place, gazing at 
 the conjuror, as he retired, with a wonder and admira 
 tion that where natural to the groveling dullness of his 
 mind. 
 
 The astonishment seemed mutual, between the specta 
 tors and the subject of this strange exhibition. If the 
 Tetons contemplated the mysterious attributes of the 
 medicine with awe and fear, the Doctor gazed on every 
 side of him, with a mixture of quite as many extraordi 
 nary emotions, in which the latter sensation, however, 
 formed no inconsiderable ingredient. Everywhere his 
 eyes, which just at that moment possessed a secret magni 
 fying quality, seemed to rest on several dark, savage, 
 and obdurate countenances at once, from none of which 
 could he extract a solitary gleam of sympathy or com 
 miseration. At length his wandering gaze fell on the 
 grave and decent features of the trapper, who, with Hec 
 tor at his feet, stood in the edge of the circle, leaning on 
 that rifle which he had been permitted, as an acknowl 
 edged friend, to resume, and apparently musing on the 
 events that were likely to succeed a council marked by so 
 many and such striking ceremonies. 
 
 "Venerable venator, or hunter, or trapper," said the 
 disconsolate Obed, "I rejoice greatly in meeting thee 
 again; I fear that the precious time, which had been 
 allotted me, in order to complete a mighty labor, is draw 
 ing to a premature close, and I would gladly unburden 
 my mind to one who, if not a pupil of science, has at 
 least some of the knowledge which civilization imparts to 
 its meanest subjects. Doubtless many and earnest in 
 quiries will be made after my fate, by the learned soci 
 eties of the world, and perhaps expeditions will be sent 
 into these regions to remove any doubt which may arise 
 
THE PRAIRIE 353 
 
 on so important a subject. I esteem myself happy that a 
 man, who speaks the vernacular, is present, to preserve 
 the record of my end. You will say that after a well spent 
 and glorious life, I died a martyr to science, and a victim 
 to mental darkness. As I expect to be particularly calm 
 and abstracted in my last moments, if you add a few de 
 tails concerning the fortitude and scholastic dignity with 
 which I met my death, it may serve to encourage future 
 aspirants for similar honors, and assuredly give offense 
 to no one. And now, friend trapper, as a duty I owe to 
 human nature, I will conclude by demanding if all hope 
 has deserted me, or if any means still exist by which so 
 much valuable information maybe rescued from the grasp 
 of ignorance, and preserved to the pages of natural his 
 tory?" 
 
 The old man lent an attentive ear to this melancholy 
 appeal, and apparently he reflected on every side of the 
 important question, before he would presume to answer. 
 
 "I take it, friend physicianer, " he at length gravely 
 replied, "that the chances of life and death, in your par 
 ticular case, depend altogether on the will of Providence, 
 as it may be pleased to manifest it through the accursed 
 windings of Indian cunning. For my own part, I see no 
 great difference in the main end to be gained, inasmuch 
 as it can matter no one greatly, yourself excepted, whether 
 you live or die." 
 
 "Would you account the fall of a cornerstone from the 
 foundations of the edifice of learning, a matter of indif 
 ference to contemporaries or to posterity?" interrupted 
 Obed. "Besides, my aged associate," he reproachfully 
 added, "the interest that a man has in his own existence, 
 is by no means trifling, however it maybe eclipsed by his 
 devotion to more general and philanthropic feelings." 
 
 "What I would say is this," resumed the trapper, who 
 was far from understanding all the subtle distinctions 
 with which his more learned companion so often saw fit 
 to embellish his discourse; "there is but one birth and 
 one death to all things, be it hound or be it deer; be it 
 red-skin or be it white. Both are in the hands of the 
 Lord, it being as unlawful for man to strive to hasten 
 the one, as impossible to prevent the other. But I will 
 23 
 
354 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 not say that something may not be done to put the last 
 moment aside, for a while at least, and therefore it is a 
 question, that any one has a right to put to his own wis 
 dom, how far he will go, and how much pain he will 
 suffer, to lengthen out a time that may have been too 
 long already. Many a dreary winter and scorching sum 
 mer has gone by since I have turned to the right hand or 
 to the left, to add an hour to a life that has already 
 stretched beyond fourscore years. I keep myself as ready 
 to answer to my name as a soldier at evening roll-call. 
 In my judgment, if your cases are left to Indian tempers, 
 the policy of the Great Sioux will lead his people to 
 sacrifice you all ; nor do I put much dependence on his 
 seeming love for me; therefore it becomes a question 
 whether you are ready for such a journey; and, if, being 
 ready, whether this is not as good a time to start as 
 another. Should my opinion be asked, thus far will I 
 give it in your favor; that is to say, it is my belief your 
 life has been innocent enough, touching any great offenses 
 that you may have committed, though honesty compels 
 me to add, that I think all you can lay claim to, on the 
 score of activity in deeds, will not amount to anything 
 worth naming in the great account. 
 
 Obed turned a rueful eye on the calm, philosophic 
 countenance of the other, as he answered with so dis 
 couraging a statement of his case, clearing his throat, as 
 he did so, in order to conceal the desperate concern which 
 began to beset his faculties, with a vestige of that pride 
 which rarely deserts poor human nature, even in the 
 greatest emergencies. 
 
 "I believe, venerable hunter," he replied, "considering 
 the question in all its bearings, and assuming that your 
 theory is just, it will be the safest to conclude that I am 
 not prepared to make so hasty a departure, and that 
 measures of precaution should be forthwith resorted to." 
 
 "Being in that mind," returned the deliberate trapper, 
 "I will act for you as I would for myself; though as time 
 has begun to roll down the hill with you, I will just ad 
 vise that you look to your case speedily, for it may so 
 happen that your name will be heard when quite as little 
 prepared to answer to it as now." 
 
THE PRAIRIE 355 
 
 With this amicable understanding, the old man drew 
 back again into the ring, where he stood musing on the 
 course he should now adopt, with the singular mixture of 
 decision and resignation that proceeded from his habits 
 and his humility, and which united to form a character, 
 in which excessive energy, and the most meek submission 
 to the will of Providence, were oddly enough combined. 
 
CHAPTER XXVIH 
 
 " The witch, in Smithfield, shall be burned to ashes, 
 And you three shall be strangled on the gallows." 
 
 SHAKESPEARE. 
 
 THE Sioux had awaited the issue of the foregoing 
 dialogue with commendable patience. Most of the band 
 were restrained by the secret awe with which they re 
 garded the mysterious character of Obed; while a few of 
 the more intelligent chiefs gladly profited by the oppor 
 tunity, to arrange their thoughts for the struggle that 
 was plainly foreseen. Mahtoree, influenced by neither of 
 these feelings, was content to show the trapper how much 
 he conceded to his pleasure; and when the old man dis 
 continued the discourse, he received from the chief a 
 glance that was intended to remind him of the patience 
 with which he had awaited his movements. A profound 
 and motionless silence succeeded the short interruption. 
 Then Mahtoree arose, evidently prepared to speak. First 
 placing himself in an attitude of dignity, he turned a 
 steady and severe look on the whole assembly. 
 
 The expression of his eye, however, changed as it 
 glanced across the different countenances of his supporters 
 and of his opponents. To the former the look, though 
 stern, was not threatening, while it seemed to tell the 
 latter all the hazards they incurred, in daring to brave 
 the resentment of one so powerful. 
 
 Still, in the midst of so much hauteur and confidence, 
 the sagacity and cunning of the Teton did not desert him. 
 When he had thrown the gauntlet, as it were, to the whole 
 tribe, and sufficiently asserted his claim to superiority, 
 his mien became more affable and his eye less angry. 
 Then it was that he raised his voice in the midst of a 
 death-like stillness varying its tones to suit the changing 
 character of his images and of his eloquence. 
 
 "What is a Sioux?" the chief sagaciously began; "he 
 356 
 
THE PRAIRIE 357 
 
 is ruler of the prairies, and master of its beasts. The 
 fishes in the river of troubled waters know him, and 
 come at his call. He is a fox in counsel; an eagle in 
 sight; a grizzly bear in combat. A Dahcotah is a man!" 
 After waiting for the low murmur of approbation which 
 followed this flattering portrait of his people to subside, 
 the Teton continued, "What is a Pawnee? A thief, who 
 only steals from women; a red-skin who is not brave; a 
 hunter that begs for his venison. In counsel he is a 
 squirrel, hopping from place to place; he is an owl, that 
 goes on the prairies at night; in battle he is an elk, whose 
 legs are long. A Pawnee is a woman. Another pause 
 succeeded, during which a yell of delight broke from 
 several mouths, and a demand was made that the taunting 
 words should be translated to the unconscious subject of 
 their fitting contempt. The old man took his cue from the 
 eyes of Mahtoree, and complied. Hard-Heart listened 
 gravely, and then, as if apprised that his time to speak 
 had not arrived, he once more bent his look on the vacant 
 air. The orator watched his countenance, with an expres 
 sion that manifested how inextinguishable was the hatred 
 he felt for the only chief, far and near, whose fame might 
 advantageously be compared with his own. Though disap 
 pointed in not having touched the pride of one whom he 
 regarded as a boy, he proceeded, what he considered as 
 far more important, to quicken the tempers of the men 
 of his own tribe, in order that they might be prepared to 
 work his savage purposes. "If the earth was covered with 
 rats, which are good for nothing," he said, "there would 
 be no room for buffaloes, which give food and clothes to 
 an Indian If the prairies were covered with Pawnees, 
 there would be no room for the foot of a Dahcotah. A 
 Loup is a rat, a Sioux a heavy buffalo; let the buffaloes 
 tread upon the rats, and make room for themselves. 
 
 "My brothers, a little child has spoken to you. He 
 tells you his hair is not gray, but frozen; that the grass 
 will not grow where a pale face has died! Does he know 
 the color of the blood of a Big-knife? No! I know he 
 does not; he has never seen it. What Dahcotah besides 
 Mahtoree has ever struck a pale face? Not one. But 
 Mahtoree must be silent. Every Teton will shut his ears 
 
358 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 when he speaks. The scalps over his lodge were taken 
 by the women. They were taken by Mahtoree, and he is 
 a woman. His mouth is shut; he waits for the feasts, 1 
 to sing among the girls!" 
 
 Notwithstanding the exclamations of regret and resent 
 ment which followed so abasing a declaration, the chief 
 took his seat, as if determined to speak no more. But the 
 murmurs grew louder and more general, and there were 
 threatening symptoms that the council would dissolve it 
 self in confusion; and he arose and resumed his speech, 
 by changing his manner to the fierce and hurried enuncia 
 tion of a warrior bent on revenge. 
 
 "Let my young men go look for Tetao!" he cried; 
 "they will find his scalp drying in Pawnee smoke. Where 
 is the son of Bohrecheena? His bones are whiter than 
 the faces of his murderers. Is Mahhah asleep in his 
 lodge? You know it is many moons since he started for 
 the blessed prairies; would he were here, that he might 
 say of what color was the hand that took his scalp!" 
 
 In this strain the artful chief continued for many min 
 utes, calling those warriors by name who were known to 
 have met their deaths in battle with the Pawnees, or in 
 some of those lawless frays which so often occurred be- 
 
 1 Bishop Whipple thus describes this feast in " Home and Abroad " for May, 
 1872: 
 
 " With Rev. Mr. Hinman, missionary to the Sioux, and a party of ladies I once 
 visited an Indian village at the time of the Maiden Feast. An old medicine-man, 
 with gray hair and venerable form, went from tipi to tipi, telling every one that 
 the Dahcotahs (Sioux) were about to hold this feast. The Indians came flocking 
 to the place selected, which was a beautiful level prairie. They were all clad in 
 holiday garb ; the men with war paint and feathers, colored blankets and belts, 
 and garters of beads and wampum. The women and maidens were dressed with 
 all the care of Indian belles. The crier placed a sacred stone in the center of the 
 gathering place, and ornamented it with feathers. The people formed into a 
 large circle inclosing a space of about two acres. The old man then addressed 
 them, telling them in solemn words of the antiquity of this feast ; that it was one 
 of the many customsof their fathers in days when red men were like the leaves 
 of the forest for multitude ; that he was sad when he thought how many of his 
 people had forsaken them ; that for this neglect their young men and maidens 
 were wandering out of the way. He told them of the object of this feast ; that it 
 was only for the pure and gentle maidens, such as were worthy to be daughters 
 of the Dahcotahs. He said that any one who was impure would be driven from the 
 feast, and urged all who were worthy to come to it, as the greatest honor that 
 could belong to womanhood. 
 
 His simple speech produced a deep impression, and, as he ended, a prolonged 
 shout of Ho Ho ! came as with one heart and voice from the tribe. There was 
 a momentary pause, and a hushed stillness, so that one could almost hear the 
 heart beat. A mother led her daughter, neatly dressed, and with flowers in her 
 hair, to the sacred stone, and deposited on the ground an offering of food for the 
 feast. The maiden, a girl of sixteen years, bent down and touched the sacred 
 Btone. Another and another came, each led by her mother s hand. It was beau- 
 
THE PRAIRIE 359 
 
 tween the Sioux bands and a class of white men who were 
 but little removed from them in the qualities of civiliza 
 tion. Time was not given to reflect on the merits, or 
 rather the demerits, of most of the different individuals 
 to whom he alluded, in consequence of the rapid manner 
 in which he ran over their names; but so cunningly did 
 he time his events, and so thrillingly did he make his 
 appeals, aided as they were by the power of his deep- 
 toned and stirring voice, that each of them struck an an 
 swering chord in the breast of some one of his auditors. 
 It was in the midst of one of his highest flights of elo 
 quence, that a man, so aged as to walk with the greatest 
 difficulty, entered the very center of the circle, and took 
 his stand directly in front of the speaker. An ear of 
 great acuteness might possibly have detected that the 
 tones of the orator faltered a little, as his flashing look 
 first fell on this unexpected object; though the change 
 was so trifling, that none but such as thoroughly knew 
 the parties would have suspected it. The stranger had 
 once been as distinguished for his beauty and propor 
 tions, as had been his eagle eye for its irresistible and 
 terrible glance. But his skin was now wrinkled, and his 
 features furrowed with so many scars as to have obtained 
 
 tiful to see the flushed cheeks of the Indian maidens, and the fond look of the 
 proud mothers. 
 
 i, " The materials for the feast were of the best they could bring wild duck veni 
 son, the fruits of the chase, and raisins, figs, and nuts purchased from the traders. 
 
 "The old medicine-man addressed his people, and in a few words spoke of the 
 charms of these maidens, and said that any Dahcotah who had been on the war 
 path, and killed his enemy before he had made love to a woman, was entitled to eat 
 at the Maiden s Feast. A young brave, decked with one eagle s feather, stepped 
 proudly across the open space, and, stooping down, touched the stone, and then 
 in a deep-toned, earnest voice, told the story of following his enemy on the war 
 path ; how he crossed prairies and streams ; how he followed blind trails in the 
 forest ; how he lurked for him in ambush ; and at last killed him and brought 
 his^ scalp as a trophy to his people. 
 
 " Another and another followed, and when all who chose had come, the old 
 crier challenged the people, telling them that they had heard the story of the 
 young men, and had seen the vow of these maidens. If any one knew of any 
 reason why these should not oat of the Maiden s Feast, he was to corre forward 
 and proclaim it to the tribe. For a moment there was silence. A young man 
 walked across the open space, and, laying his hand on one of the Indian girls, 
 told the reason why he believed she was not worthy. The maiden with flushed 
 cheek, answered, and he in turn replied. His last statement seemed to carry 
 conviction to the crowd, and, amid shouts of derision, she left her fellows, and it 
 was understood would henceforth be branded as a child of shame. There were 
 two things in the observance of this feast which deeply impressed me. The tes 
 timony to bravery, and that to virtue 
 
 " This was the only time I had ever heard of this feast, and an old trader who 
 was with me said he had not witnessed it for thirty years, but that when he first 
 came to the country it was an annual occurrence." 
 
360 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 for him, half a century before, from the French of the 
 Canadas, a title which has been borne by so many of the 
 heroes of France, and which had now been adopted into 
 the language of the wild horde of whom we are writing, 
 as the one most expressive of the deeds of their own brave. 
 The murmur of "Le Balafre," that ran through the 
 assembly when he appeared, announced not only his name, 
 and the high estimation of his character, but how ex 
 traordinary his visit was considered. As he neither spoke 
 nor moved, however, the sensation created by his appear 
 ance soon subsided, and then every eye was again turned 
 upon the speaker, and every ear once more drank in the 
 intoxication of his maddening appeals. 
 
 It would have been easy to have traced the triumph of 
 Mahtoree in the reflecting countenances of his auditors. 
 It was not long before a look of ferocity and of revenge 
 was to be seen seated on the grim visages of most of the 
 warriors, and each new and crafty allusion to the policy 
 of extinguishing their enemies was followed by fresh and 
 less restrained bursts of approbation. In the height of 
 this success the Teton closed his speech by a rapid appeal 
 to the pride and hardihood of his native band, and sud 
 denly took his seat. 
 
 In the midst of the murmurs of applause which suc 
 ceeded so remarkable an effort of eloquence, a low, feeble, 
 and hollow voice was heard rising on the ear, as if it 
 rolled from the inmost cavities of the human chest, and 
 gathered strength and energy as it issued into the air. 
 A solemn stillness followed the sounds, and then the lips 
 of the aged man were first seen to move. 
 
 "The day of Le Balafre is near its end," were the first 
 words that were distinctly audible. "He is like a buffalo 
 on whom the hair will grow no longer. He will soon be 
 ready to leave his lodge to go in search of another, that 
 is far from the villages of the Sioux; therefore, what he 
 has to say concerns not him, but those he leaves behind 
 him. His words are like the fruit on the tree, ripe, and 
 fit to be given to chiefs. 
 
 "Many snows have fallen since Le Balafre has been 
 found on the war-path. His blood has been very hot, but 
 it has had time to cool. The Wahcondah gives him 
 
THE PRAIRIE 361 
 
 dreams of war no longer; he sees that it is better to live 
 in peace. 
 
 "My brothers, one foot is turned to the happy hunting- 
 grounds, the other will soon follow, and then an old chief 
 will be seen looking for the prints of his father s mocca 
 sins that he may make no mistake, but be sure to come 
 before the Master of Life by the same path as so many 
 good Indians have already traveled. But who will follow? 
 Le Balafre has no son. His oldest has ridden too many 
 Pawnee horses; the bones of the youngest have been 
 gnawed by Konza dogs! Le Balafre has come to look for 
 a young arm on which he may lean, and to find a son, 
 that when he is gone his lodge may not be empty. Tach- 
 echana, the Skipping Fawn of the Tetons, is too weak to 
 prop a warrior who is old. She looks before her, and 
 not backwards. Her mind is in the lodge of her hus 
 band." 
 
 The enunciation of the veteran warrior had been calm, 
 but distinct and decided. His declaration was received 
 in silence; and though several of the chiefs, who were in 
 the counsels of Mahtoree, turned their eyes on their 
 leader, none presumed to oppose so aged and so venerated 
 a brave, in a resolution that was strictly in conformity 
 to the usages of the nation. The Teton himself was con 
 tent to await the result with seeming composure, though 
 the gleams of ferocity that played about his eye, occa 
 sionally betrayed the nature of those feelings with which 
 he witnessed a procedure that was likely to rob him of 
 that one of all his intended victims whom he most hated. 
 
 In the meantime Le Balafre moved with a slow and 
 painful step towards the captives. He stopped before the 
 person of Hard-Heart, whose faultless form, unchanging 
 eye, and lofty mien, he contemplated long, with high and 
 evident satisfaction. Then making a gesture of author 
 ity, he awaited until his order had been obeyed, and the 
 youth was released from the post and his bonds by the 
 same blow of the knife. When the young warrior was 
 led nearer to his dimmed and failing sight, the examina 
 tion was renewed with strictness of scrutiny, and that 
 admiration which physical excellence is so apt to excite 
 in the breast of a savage. 
 
362 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 "It is good," the wary veteran murmured, when h^ 
 found that all his skill in the requisites of a brave could 
 detect no blemish; "this is a leaping panther! Does my 
 son speak with the tongue of a Teton?" 
 
 The intelligence which lighted the eyes of the captive 
 betrayed how well he understood the question, but still he 
 was far too haughty to communicate his ideas through the 
 medium of a language that belonged to a hostile people. 
 Some of the surrounding warriors explained to the old 
 chief, that the captive was a Pawnee-Loup. 
 
 "My son opened his eyes on the waters of the wolves, 
 said Le Balafre, in the language of that nation, "but he 
 will shut them in the bend of the river with a troubled 
 stream. He was born a Pawnee, but he will die a Dah- 
 cotah. Look at me. I am a sycamore that once covered 
 many with my shadow. The leaves are fallen, and the 
 branches begin to drop. But a single sucker is springing 
 from my roots; it is a little vine, and it winds itself 
 about a tree that is green. I have long looked for one fit 
 to grow by my side. Now have I found him. Le Balafre 
 is no longer without a son; his name will not be forgotten 
 when he is gone. Men of the Tetons, I take this youth 
 into my lodge." 
 
 No one was bold enough to dispute a right that had 
 so often been exercised by warriors far inferior to the 
 present speaker, and the adoption was listened to in 
 grave and respectful silence. Le Balafre took his in 
 tended son by the arm, and leading him into the very 
 center of the circle, he stepped aside with an air of 
 triumph, in order that the spectators might approve of 
 his choice. Mahtoree betrayed no evidence of his inten 
 tions, but rather seemed to await a moment better suited 
 to the crafty policy of his character. The more experi 
 enced and sagacious chiefs, distinctly foresaw the utter 
 impossibility of two partisans so renowned, so hostile, 
 and who had so long been rivals in fame, as their prisoner 
 and their native leader, existing amicably in the same 
 tribe. Still the character of Le Balafre was so imposing, 
 and the custom to which he had resorted so sacred, that 
 none dared to lift a voice in opposition to the measure. 
 They watched the result with increasing interest, but 
 
THE PRAIRIE 363 
 
 with a coldness of demeanor that concealed the nature of 
 their inquietude. From this state of embarrassment, and 
 as it might readily have proved of disorganization, the 
 tribe was unexpectedly relieved by the decision of one 
 most interested in the success of the aged chief s designs. 
 
 During the whole of the foregoing scene it would have 
 been difficult to have traced a single distinct emotion in 
 the lineaments of the captive. He had heard his release 
 proclaimed, with the same indifference as the order to 
 bind him to the stake. But, now that the moment had 
 arrived when it became necessary to make his election, he 
 spoke in a way to prove that the fortitude which had 
 brought him so distinguished a name, had in no degree 
 deserted him. 
 
 "My father is very old, but he has not yet looked upon 
 everything," said Hard-Heart, in a voice so clear as to be 
 heard by all in presence. "He has never seen a buffalo 
 change to a bat; he will never see a Pawnee become a 
 Sioux!" 
 
 There was a suddenness, and yet a calmness in the man 
 ner of delivering this decision, which assured most of the 
 auditors that it was unalterable. The heart of Le Balafre, 
 however, was yearning towards the youth, and the fond 
 ness of age was not so readily repulsed. Reproving the 
 burst of admiration and triumph to which the boldness of 
 the declaration and the freshened hopes of revenge had 
 given rise, by turning his gleaming eye around the band, 
 the veteran again addressed his adopted child, as if his 
 purpose was not to be denied. 
 
 "It is well," he said; "such are the words a brave 
 should use, that the warriors may see his heart. The day 
 has been when the voice of Le Balafre was loudest among 
 the lodges of the Konzas. But the root of a white hair is 
 wisdom. My child will show the Tetons that he is brave, 
 by striking their enemies. Men of the Dahcotahs, this is 
 my son!" 
 
 The Pawnee hesitated a moment, and then stepping in 
 front of the chief, he took his hard and wrinkled hand, 
 and laid it with reverence on his head, as if to acknowl 
 edge the extent of his obligation. Then recoiling a step, 
 he raised his person to its greatest elevation, and looked 
 
364 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 upon the hostile band by whom he was environed, with an 
 air of loftiness and disdain, as he spoke aloud in the lan 
 guage of the Sioux: 
 
 "Hard-Heart has looked at himself within and without. 
 He has thought of all he has done in the hunts and in the 
 wars. Everywhere he is the same. There is no change. 
 He is in all things a Pawnee. He has struck so many 
 Tetons that he could never eat in their lodges. His arrows 
 would fly backwards; the point of his lance would be on 
 the wrong end; friends would weep at every whoop he 
 gave; their enemies would laugh. Do the Tetons know a 
 Loup? Let them look at him again. His head is painted; 
 his arm is flesh; his heart is rock. When the Tetons see 
 the sun come from the Rocky Mountains, and move towards 
 the land of the pale faces, the mind of Hard-Heart will 
 soften, and his spirit will become Sioux. Until that day 
 he will live and die a Pawnee." 
 
 A yell of delight, in which admiration and ferocity 
 were strangely mingled, interrupted the speaker, and but 
 too clearly announced the character of his fate. The cap 
 tive awaited a moment for the commotion to subside, and 
 then turning again to Le Balafre, he continued, in tones 
 conciliating and kind, as if he felt the propriety of soft 
 ening his refusal, in a manner not to wound the pride of 
 one who would so gladly be his benefactor. 
 
 "Let my father lean heavier on the Fawn of the Dah- 
 cotahs, " he said; "she is weak now, but as her lodge fills 
 with young, she will be stronger. See," he added, direct 
 ing the eyes of the other to the earnest countenance of the 
 attentive trapper; "Hard-Heart is not without a gray - 
 head to show him the path to the blessed prairies. If he 
 ever has another father, it shall be that just warrior. 
 
 Le Balafre turned away in disappointment from the 
 youth, and approached the stranger who had thus antici 
 pated his design. The examination between these two 
 aged men was long, mutual, and curious. It was not easy 
 to detect the real character of the trapper, through the 
 mask which the hardships of so many years had laid upon 
 his features, especially when aided by his wild and pecu 
 liar attire. Some moments elapsed before the Teton spoke, 
 and then it was in doubt whether he addressed one like 
 
THE PRAIRIE 365 
 
 himself, or some wanderer of that race who, he had heard, 
 were spreading themselves like hungry locusts throughout 
 the land. 
 
 "The head of my brother is very white," he said; "but 
 the eye of Le Balafre is no longer like the eagle s. Of 
 what color is his skin?" 
 
 The Wahcondah made me like these you see waiting for 
 a Dahcotah judgment; but fair and foul has colored me 
 darker than the skin of a fox. What of that! though the 
 bark is ragged and riven, the heart of the tree is sound." 
 
 "My brother is a Big-knife! Let him turn his face 
 towards the setting sun, and open his eyes. Does he see 
 the Salt-lake beyond the mountains?" 
 
 "The time has been, Teton, when few could see the 
 white on an eagle s head farther than I; but the glare of 
 fourscore and seven winters has dimmed my eyes, and but 
 little can I boast of sight in my latter days. Does the 
 Sioux think a pale face is a god, that he can look through 
 the hills!" 
 
 "Then let my brother look at me. I am nigh him, and 
 he can see that I am a foolish red man. Why cannot his 
 people see everything, since they crave all?" 
 
 "I understand you, chief, nor will I gainsay the justice 
 of your words, seeing that they are too much founded in 
 truth. But though born of the race you love so little, my 
 worst enemy, not even a lying Mingo, would dare to say 
 that I ever laid hands on the goods of another, except 
 such as were taken in manful warfare; or that I ever 
 coveted more ground than the Lord has intended each man 
 to fill." 
 
 "And yet my brother has come among the red-skins to 
 find a son?" 
 
 The trapper laid a finger on the naked shoulder of Le 
 Balafre, and looked into his scarred countenance with a 
 wistful and confidential expression, as he answered: 
 
 "Ay; but it was only that I might do good to the boy. 
 If you think, Dahcotah, that I adopted the youth in order 
 to prop my age, you do as much injustice to my good-will 
 as you seem to know little of the merciless intentions of 
 your own people. I have made him my son, that he may 
 know that one is left behind him. Peace, Hector, peace! 
 
366 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 Is this decent, pup, when gray-heads are counseling 
 together, to break in upon their discourse with the whin- 
 ings of a hound! The dog is old, Teton; and though well 
 taught in respect to behavior, he is getting, like our 
 selves, I fancy, something forgetful of the fashions of his 
 youth." 
 
 Further discourse, between these veterans, was inter 
 rupted by a discordant yell, which burst at that moment 
 from the lips of the dozen withered crones, who have al 
 ready been mentioned as having forced themselves into a 
 conspicuous part of the circle. The outcry was excited by 
 a sudden change in the air of Hard-Heart. When the old 
 men turned towards the youth, they saw him standing in 
 the very center of the ring, with his head erect, his eye 
 fixed on vacancy, one leg advanced and an arm a little 
 raised, as if all his faculties were absorbed in the act of 
 listening. A smile lighted his countenance for a single 
 moment, and then the whole man sank again into his for 
 mer look of dignity and coldness, suddenly recalled to self- 
 possession. The movement had been construed into con 
 tempt, and even the tempers of the chiefs began to be 
 excited. Unable to restrain their fury, the women broke 
 into the circle in a body, and commenced their attack by 
 loading the captive with the most bitter revilings. They 
 boasted of the various exploits which their sons had 
 achieved at the expense of the different tribes of the Paw 
 nees. They undervalued his own reputation, and told him 
 to look at Mahtoree, if he had never yet seen a warrior. 
 They accused him of having been suckled by a doe, and of 
 having drunk in cowardice with his mother s milk. In 
 short, they lavished upon their unmoved captive a torrent 
 of that vindictive abuse, in which the women of the sav 
 ages are so well known to excel, but which has been too 
 often described to need a repetition here. 
 
 The effect of this outbreaking was inevitable. Le Bal- 
 afre turned away disappointed, and hid himself in the 
 crowds; while the trapper, whose honest features were 
 working with inward emotion, pressed nigher to his young 
 friend, as those who are linked to the criminal by ties so 
 strong as to brave the opinions of men are often seen to 
 stand about the place of execution to support his dying 
 
THE PRAIRIE 367 
 
 moments. The excitement soon spread among the inferior 
 warriors, though the chiefs still forebore to make the sig 
 nal which committed the victim to their mercy. Mahtoree, 
 who had awaited such a movement among his fellows, 
 with the wary design of concealing his own jealous hatred 
 soon grew weary of delay, and, by a glance of his eye, 
 encouraged the tormentors to proceed. 
 
 Weucha, who, eager for this sanction, had long stood 
 watching the countenance of the chief, bounded forward 
 at the signal like a blood-hound loosened from the leash. 
 Forcing his way into the center of the hags, who were 
 already proceeding from abuse to violence, he reproved 
 their impatience, and bade them wait until a warrior had 
 begun to torment, and then they should see their victim 
 shed tears like a woman. 
 
 The heartless savage commenced his efforts by flourish 
 ing his tomahawk about the head of the captive, in such 
 a manner as to give reason to suppose that each blow 
 would bury the weapon in the flesh, while it was so gov 
 erned as not to touch the skin. To this customary expedi 
 ent, Hard-Heart was perfectly insensible. His eye kept 
 the same steady, riveted look on the air, though the glit 
 tering axe described in its evolutions a bright circle of 
 light before his countenance. Frustrated in this attempt, 
 the callous Sioux laid the cold edge on the naked head of 
 his victim, and began to describe the different manners in 
 which a prisoner might be flayed. The women kept time 
 to his cruelties with their taunts, and endeavored to force 
 some expression of the lingerings of nature from the in 
 sensible features of the Pawnee. But he evidently reserved 
 himself for the chiefs, and for those moments of extreme 
 anguish, when the loftiness of his spirit might evince it 
 self in a manner better becoming his high and untarnished 
 reputation. 
 
 The eyes of the trapper followed every movement of the 
 tomahawk with the interest of a real father, until at 
 length, unable to command his indignation, he exclaimed: 
 
 "My son has forgotten his cunning. This is a low- 
 minded Indian, and one easily hurried into folly. I can 
 not do the thing myself, for my traditions forbid a dying 
 warrior to revile his persecutors, but the gifts of a red- 
 
368 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 skin are different. Let the Pawnee say the bitter words 
 and purchase an easy death. I will answer for his success, 
 provided he speaks before the grave men set their wisdom 
 to back the folly of this fool." 
 
 The savage Sioux, who heard his words without compre 
 hending their meaning, turned to the speaker, and menaced 
 him with death for his temerity. 
 
 "Ay, work your will," said the unflinching old man; 
 "I am as ready now as I shall be to-morrow. Though it 
 would be a death that an honest man might not wish to 
 die. Look at that noble Pawnee, Teton, and see what a 
 red-skin may become, who fears the Master of Life, and 
 follows his laws. How many of your people has he sent 
 to the distant prairies!" he continued, in a sort of pious 
 fraud, thinking, that while the danger menaced himself, 
 there could surely be no sin in extolling the merits of an 
 other; "how many howling Sioux has he struck, like a 
 warrior in open combat, while arrows were sailing in the 
 air plentier than flakes of falling snow. Go! will Weucha 
 speak the name of one enemy he has ever struck?" 
 
 "Hard-Heart!" shouted the Sioux, turning in his fury, 
 and aiming a deadly blow at the head of his victim. His 
 arm fell into the hollow of the captive s hand. For a 
 single moment the two stood, as if entranced in that atti 
 tude, the one paralyzed by so unexpected a resistance, and 
 the other bending his head, not to meet his death, but in 
 the act of the most intense attention. The women screamed 
 with triumph, for they thought the nerves of the captive 
 had at length failed him. The trapper trembled for the 
 honor of his friend; and Hector, as if conscious of what 
 was passing, raised his nose into the air, and uttered a 
 piteous howl. 
 
 But the Pawnee hesitated only for that moment. Rais 
 ing the other hand, like lightning, the tomahawk flashed 
 in the air, and Weucha sank to his feet, brained to the 
 eye. Then cutting a way with the bloody weapon he darted 
 through the opening left by the frightened women, and 
 seemed to descend the declivity at a single bound. 
 
 Had a bolt from heaven fallen in the midst of the Teton 
 band it would not have occasioned greater consternation 
 than this act of desperate hardihood. A shrill, plaintive 
 
THE PRAIRIE 369 
 
 cry burst from the lips of all the women, and there was a 
 moment that even the oldest warriors appeared to have 
 lost their faculties. This stupor endured only for the 
 instant. It was succeeded by a yell of revenge, that burst 
 from a hundred throats, while as many warriors started 
 forward at the cry, bent on the most bloody retribution. 
 But a powerful and authoritative call from Mahtoree ar 
 rested every foot. The chief, in whose countenance dis 
 appointment and rage were struggling with the affected 
 composure of his station, extended an arm towards the 
 river, and the whole mystery was explained. 
 
 Hard-Heart had already crossed half the bottom which 
 lay between the acclivity and the water. At this precise 
 moment a band of armed and mounted Pawnees turned a 
 swell, and galloped to the margin of the stream, into 
 which the plunge of the fugitive was distinctly heard. A 
 few minutes sufficed for his vigorous arm to conquer the 
 passage, and then the shout from the opposite shore told 
 the humbled Tetons the whole extent of the triumph of 
 their adversaries. 
 
 24 
 
CHAPTER XXIX 
 
 " If that shepherd be not in hand-fast, let him fly ; the curses he shall have, the 
 tortures he shall feel, will break the back of man, the heart of monster. " 
 
 SHAKESPEARE. 
 
 IT will readily be seen that the event just related was 
 attended by an extraordinary sensation among the Sioux. 
 In leading the hunters of the band back to the encamp 
 ment, their chief had neglected none of the customary 
 precautions of Indian prudence, in order that his trail 
 might escape the eyes of his enemies. It would seem, 
 however, that the Pawnees had not only made the danger 
 ous discovery, but had managed with great art to draw 
 nigh the place by the only side on which it was thought 
 unnecessary to guard the approaches with the usual line 
 of sentinels. The latter, who were scattered along the 
 different little eminences which lay in the rear of the 
 lodges, were among the last to be apprised of the danger. 
 
 In such a crisis there was little time for deliberation. 
 It was by exhibiting the force of his character in scenes 
 of similar difficulty, that Mahtoree had obtained and 
 strengthened his ascendency among his people, nor did he 
 seem likely to lose it by the manifestation of any inde 
 cision on the present occasion. In the midst of the screams 
 of the young, the shrieks of the women, and the wild 
 howlings of the crones, which were sufficient of themselves 
 to have created a chaos in the thoughts of one less accus 
 tomed to act in emergencies, he promptly asserted his 
 authority, issuing his orders with the coolness of a veteran. 
 
 While the warriors were arming, the boys were des 
 patched to the bottom for the horses. The tents were 
 hastily struck by the women, and disposed of on such of 
 the beasts as were not deemed fit to be trusted in combat. 
 The infants were cast upon the backs of their mothers; 
 and those children, who were of a size to march, were 
 driven to the rear, like a herd of less reasoning animals. 
 Though these several movements were made amid outcries, 
 
 370 
 
THE PRAIRIE 371 
 
 and a clamor, that likened the place to another Babel, they 
 were executed with incredible alacrity and intelligence. 
 
 In the meantime, Mahtoree neglected no duty that be 
 longed to his responsible station. From the elevation on 
 which he stood, he could command a perfect view of the 
 force and evolutions of the hostile party. A grim smile 
 lighted his visage, when he found that, in point of num 
 bers, his own band was greatly superior. Notwithstand 
 ing this advantage, however, there were other points of 
 inequality, which would probably have a tendency to ren 
 der his success, in the approaching conflict, exceedingly 
 doubtful. His people were the inhabitants of a more north 
 ern and less hospitable region than their enemies, and 
 were far from being rich in that species of property, 
 horses and arms, which constitutes the most highly prized 
 wealth of a western Indian. The band in view was 
 mounted to a man; and as it had come so far to rescue, or 
 to revenge, their greatest partisan, he had no reason to 
 doubt its being composed entirely of braves. On the other 
 hand, many of his followers were far better in a hunt than 
 in a combat; men who might serve to divert the attention 
 of his foes, but from whom he could expect little desper 
 ate service. Still, his flashing eye glanced over a body of 
 warriors on whom he had often relied, and who had never 
 deceived him; and though, in the precise position in 
 which he found himself, he felt no disposition to precipi 
 tate the conflict, he certainly would have had no intention 
 to avoid it, had not the presence of his women and 
 children placed the option altogether in the power of his 
 adversaries. 
 
 On the other hand, the Pawnees, so unexpectedly suc 
 cessful in their first and greatest object, manifested no 
 intention to drive matters to an issue. The river was a 
 dangerous barrier to pass, in the face of a determined foe, 
 and it would now have been in perfect accordance with 
 their cautious policy, to have retired for a season, in order 
 that their onset might be made in the hours of darkness, 
 and of seeming security. But there was a spirit in their 
 chief that elevated him, for the moment, above the ordi 
 nary expedients of savage warfare. His bosom burned with 
 the desire to wipe out that disgrace of which he had been 
 
372 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 the subject; and it is possible that he believed the retiring 
 camp of the Sioux contained a prize that began to have a 
 value in his eyes, far exceeding any that would be found 
 in fifty Teton scalps. Let that be as it might, Hard-Heart 
 had no sooner received the brief congratulations of his 
 band, and communicated to the chiefs such facts as were 
 important to be known, than he prepared himself to act 
 such a part in the coming conflict, as would at once main 
 tain his well earned reputation, and gratify his secret 
 wishes. A led horse, one that had been long trained in 
 the hunts, had been brought to receive his master, with 
 but little hope that his services would ever be needed 
 again in this life. With a delicacy and consideration that 
 proved how much the generous qualities of the youth had 
 touched the feelings of his people, a bow, a lance, and a 
 quiver, were thrown across the animal, which it had been 
 intended to immolate on the grave of the young brave; a 
 species of care that would have superseded the necessity 
 for the pious duty that the trapper had pledged himself to 
 perform. 
 
 Though Hard-Heart was sensible of the kindness of his 
 warriors, and believed that a chief, furnished with such 
 appointments, might depart with credit for the distant 
 hunting-grounds of the Master of Life, he seemed equally 
 disposed to think that they might be rendered quite as 
 useful in the actual state of things. His countenance 
 lighted with stern pleasure, as he tried the elasticity of 
 the bow, and poised the well-balanced spear. The glance 
 he bestowed on the shield was more cursory and indifferent; 
 but the exultation with which he threw himself on the 
 back of his favored war-horse was so great, as to break 
 through the forms of Indian reserve. He rode to and fro 
 among his scarcely less delighted warriors, managing the 
 animal with a grace and address that no artificial rules 
 can ever supply; at times flourishing his lance, as if to 
 assure himself of his seat, and at others examining criti 
 cally into the condition of the fusee, with which he had 
 also been furnished, with the fondness of one who was 
 miraculously restored to the possession of treasures that 
 constituted his pride and his happiness. 
 
 At this particular moment, Mahtoree, having completed 
 
THE PRAIRIE 373 
 
 the necessary arrangements, prepared to make a more 
 decisive movement. The Teton had found no little em 
 barrassment in disposing of his captives. The tents of 
 the squatter were still in sight, and his wary cunning did 
 not fail to apprise him, that it was quite as necessary to 
 guard against an attack from that quarter, as to watch 
 the motions of his more open and more active foes. His 
 first impulse had been to make the tomahawk suffice for the 
 men, and to trust the females under the same protection 
 as the women of his band; but the manner in which many 
 of his braves continued to regard the imaginary medicine 
 of the Long-knives, forewarned him of the danger of so 
 hazardous an experiment on the eve of a battle. It might 
 be deemed the omen of defeat. In this dilemma he 
 motioned to a superannuated warrior, to whom he had 
 confided the charge of the non-combatants, and leading 
 him apart, he placed a finger significantly on his shoulder, 
 as he said, in a tone in which authority was tempered by 
 confidence : 
 
 "When my young men are striking the Pawnees, give 
 the women knives. Enough; my father is very old; he 
 does not want to hear wisdom from a boy." 
 
 The grim old savage returned a look of ferocious assent 
 and then the mind of the chief appeared to be at rest in 
 this important subject. From that moment he bestowed 
 all his care on the achievement of his revenge, and the 
 maintenance of his martial character. Throwing himself 
 on his horse, he made a sign, with the air of a prince to 
 his followers, to imitate his example, interrupting, with 
 out ceremony, the war-songs and solemn rites by which 
 many among them were stimulating their spirits to deeds 
 of daring. When all were in order, the whole moved with 
 great steadiness and silence towards the margin of the 
 river. 
 
 The hostile bands were now separated by the water. 
 The width of the stream was too great to admit of the use 
 of the ordinary Indian missiles, but a few useless shots 
 were exchanged from the fusees of the chiefs, more in 
 bravado than with any expectation of doing execution. As 
 some time was suffered to elapse in demonstrations and 
 abortive efforts, we shall leave them, for that period, to 
 
374 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 return to such of our characters as remained in the hands 
 of the savages. 
 
 We have shed much ink in vain, and wasted quires, that 
 might possibly have been better employed, if it be neces 
 sary now to tell the reader that few of the foregoing move 
 ments escaped the observation of the experienced trapper. 
 He had been, in common with the rest, astonished at the 
 sudden act of Hard-Heart; and there was a single moment 
 when a feeling of regret and mortification got the better 
 of his longings to save the life of the youth. The simple 
 and well intentioned old man would have felt, at witness 
 ing any failure of firmness on the part of a warrior who 
 had so strongly excited his sympathies, the same species 
 of sorrow that a Christian parent would suffer in hanging 
 over the dying moments of an impious child. But when, 
 instead of an impotent and unmanly struggle for existence, 
 he found that his friend had forborne, with the customary 
 and dignified submission of an Indian warrior, until an 
 opportunity had offered to escape, and that he had then 
 manifested the spirit and decision of the most gifted 
 brave, his gratification became nearly too powerful to be 
 concealed. In the midst of the wailing and commotion 
 which succeeded the death of Weucha and the escape of 
 the captive, he placed himself nigh the persons of his 
 white associates, with a determination of interfering, at 
 every hazard, should the fury of the savages take that 
 direction. The appearance of the hostile band spared him 
 however, so desperate and probably so fruitless an effort, 
 and left him to pursue his observations, and to mature 
 his plans more at leisure. 
 
 He particularly remarked that, while by far the greater 
 part of the women and all the children, together with the 
 effects of the party, were hurried to the rear, probably 
 with an order to secrete themselves in some of the adjacent 
 woods, the tent of Mahtoree himself was left standing, 
 and its contents undisturbed. Two chosen horses, how 
 ever, stood near by, held by a couple of youths, who were 
 too young to go into the conflict, and yet of an age to un 
 derstand the management of the beasts. The trapper 
 perceived in this arrangement the reluctance of Mahtoree 
 to trust his newly found "flowers" beyond the reach of 
 
THE PRAIRIE 375 
 
 his eye; and, at the same time, his forethought in provid 
 ing against a reverse of fortune. Neither had the manner 
 of the Teton, in giving his commission to the old savage, 
 nor the fierce pleasure with which the latter had received 
 the bloody charge, escaped his observation. From all these 
 mysterious movements, the old man was aware that a 
 crisis was at hand, and he summoned the utmost knowledge 
 he had acquired, in so long a life, to aid him in the des 
 perate conjuncture. While musing on the means to be 
 employed, the Doctor again attracted his attention to 
 himself, by a piteous appeal for assistance. "Venerable 
 trapper, or, as I may now say, liberator," commenced the 
 dolorous Obed, "it would seem that a fitting time has at 
 length arrived to dissever the unnatural and altogether 
 irregular connection which exists between my inferior 
 members and the body of Asinus. Perhaps if such a por 
 tion of my limbs were released as might leave me master 
 of the remainder, and this favorable opportunity were 
 suitably improved, by making a forced march towards the 
 settlements, all hopes of preserving the treasures of knowl 
 edge, of which I am the unworthy receptacle, would not 
 be lost. The importance of the results is surely worth the 
 hazard of the experiment." 
 
 "I know not I know not, " returned the deliberate old 
 man; "the vermin and reptiles, which you bear about 
 you, were intended by the Lord for the prairies, and I see 
 no good in sending them into regions that may not suit 
 their natur s. And, moreover, you may be of great and 
 particular use as you now sit on the ass, though it creates 
 no wonder in my mind to perceive that you are ignorant 
 of it, seeing that usefulness is altogether a new calling to 
 so bookish a man." 
 
 "Of what service can I be, in this painful thraldom, 
 in which the animal functions are in a manner suspended, 
 and the spiritual or intellectual blinded by the secret 
 sympathy that unites mind to matter? There is likely to 
 be blood spilt between yonder adverse hosts of heathens; 
 and, though but little desiring the office, it would be 
 better that I should employ myself in surgical experi 
 ments, than in thus wasting the precious moments, morti 
 fying both soul and body." 
 
376 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 "It is little that a red-skin would care to have a "phy 
 sician to his hurts, while the whoop is ringing in his ears. 
 Patience is a virtue in an Indian, and can be no shame to 
 a Christian white man. Look at these hags of squaws, 
 friend Doctor; I have no judgment in savage tempers, if 
 they are not bloody-minded, and ready to work their ac 
 cursed pleasures on us all. Now, so long as you keep upon 
 the ass, and maintain the fierce look which is far from 
 being your natural gift, fear of so great a medicine may 
 serve to keep down their courage. I am placed here, like 
 a general at the opening of the battle, and it has become 
 my duty to make such use of all my force as, in my judg 
 ment, each is best fitted to perform. If I know these 
 niceties, you will be more serviceable for your countenance 
 just now than in any more stirring exploits." 
 
 "Harkee, old trapper," shouted Paul, whose patience 
 could no longer maintain itself under the calculating and 
 prolix explanations of the other, "suppose you cut two 
 things I can name, short off. That is to say, your con 
 versation, which is agreeable enough over a well-baked 
 buffalo s hump, and these damnable thongs of hide, which, 
 according to my experience, can be pleasant nowhere. A 
 single stroke of your knife would be of more service, just 
 now, than the longest speech that was ever made in a 
 Kentucky courthouse." 
 
 "Ay, courthouses are the happy hunting-grounds, as 
 a red-skin would say, for them that are born with gifts no 
 better than such as lie in the tongue. I was carried into 
 one of the lawless holes myself once, and it was all about 
 a thing of no more value than the skin of a deer. The 
 Lord forgive them! the Lord forgive them! they knew 
 no better, and they did according to their weak judgments, 
 and therefore the more are they to be pitied; and yet it 
 was a solemn sight to see an aged man, who had always 
 lived in the air, laid neck and heels by the law, and held 
 up as a spectacle for the women and boys of a wasteful 
 settlement to point their fingers at!" 
 
 "If such be your opinions of confinement, honest friend 
 you had better manifest the same by putting us at liberty 
 with as little delay as possible," said Middleton, who, 
 like his companion, began to find the tardiness of his often- 
 
THE PRAIRIE 377 
 
 tried companion quite as extraordinary as it was dis 
 agreeable. 
 
 "I should greatly like to do the same; especially in your 
 behalf, captain, who, being a soldier, might find not only 
 pleasure but profit in examining, more at your ease, into 
 the circumventions and cunning of an Indian fight. As to 
 our friend, here, it is of but little matter how much of 
 this affair he examines, or how little, seeing that a bee is 
 not to be overcome in the same manner as an Indian. 
 
 "Old man, this trifling with our misery is inconsiderate, 
 to give it a name no harsher 
 
 "Ay, your gran ther was of a hot and hurrying mind, 
 and one must not expect that the young of the panther 
 will crawl the arth like the litter of a porcupine. Now 
 keep you both silent, and what I say shall have the appear 
 ance of being spoken concerning the movements that are 
 going on in the bottom; all of which will serve to put jeal 
 ousy to sleep, and to shut the eyes of such as rarely close 
 them on wickedness and cruelty. In the first place, then, 
 you must know that I have reason to think yonder treach 
 erous Teton has left an order to put us all to death, so 
 soon as he thinks the deed may be done secretly, and 
 without tumult. 
 
 "Great Heaven! will you suffer us to be butchered like 
 unresisting sheep?" 
 
 "Hist, captain, hist? a hot temper is none of the best, 
 when cunning is more needed than blows. Ah, the Pawnee 
 is a noble boy! it would do your heart good to see how 
 he draws off from the river, in order to invite his enemies 
 to cross; and yet, according to my failing sight, they count 
 two warriors to his one! But as I was saying, little good 
 comes of haste and thoughtlessness. The facts are so plain 
 that any child may see their wisdom. The savages are of 
 many minds as to the manner of our treatment. Some 
 fear us for our color, and would gladly let us go, and other 
 some would show us the mercy that the doe receives from 
 the hungry wolf. When opposition gets fairly into the 
 councils of a tribe, it is rare that humanity is the gainer. 
 Now see you these wrinkled and cruel minded squaws no, 
 you cannot see them as you lie, but nevertheless they are 
 here, ready and willing, like so many raging she bears, to 
 
378 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 work their will upon us so soon as the proper time shall 
 come." 
 
 "Harkee, old gentleman trapper," interrupted Paul, 
 with a little bitterness in his manner; "do you tell us 
 these matters for our amusement, or for your own? If 
 for ours, you may keep your breath for the next race you 
 run, as I am tickled nearly to suffocation, already, with 
 my part of the fun." 
 
 "Hist!" said the trapper, cutting with great dexterity 
 and rapidity the thong which bound one of the arms of 
 Paul to his body, and dropping his knife at the same time 
 within reach of the liberated hand. "Hist, boy, hist! 
 that was a lucky moment ! The yell from the bottom drew 
 the eyes of these bloodsuckers in another quarter, and so 
 far we are safe. Now make a proper use of your advan 
 tages; but be careful that what you do is done without 
 being seen." 
 
 "Thank you for this small favor, old deliberation," 
 muttered the bee-hunter, "though it comes like a snow in 
 May, somewhat out of season." 
 
 "Foolish boy!" reproachfully exclaimed the other, who 
 had moved to a little distance from his friends, and ap 
 peared to be attentively regarding the movements of the 
 hostile parties, "will you never learn to know the wisdom 
 of patience? And you, too, captain; though a man myself 
 that seldom ruffles his temper by vain feelings, I see that 
 you are silent because you scorn to ask favors any longer 
 from one you think too slow to grant them. No doubt ye 
 are both young, and filled with the pride of your strength 
 and manhood, and I daresay you thought it only needful 
 to cut the thongs to leave you masters of the ground. But 
 he that has seen much is apt to think much. Had I run 
 like a bustling woman to have given you freedom, these 
 hags of the Sioux would have seen the same, and then 
 where would you both have found yourselves? Under the 
 tomahawk and the knife, like helpless and outcrying chil 
 dren, though gifted with the size and beards of men. Ask 
 our friend, the bee-hunter, in what condition he finds 
 himself to struggle with a Teton boy, after so many hours 
 of bondage; much less with a dozen merciless and blood 
 thirsty squaws!" 
 
THE PRAIRIE 379 
 
 "Truly, old trapper," returned Paul, stretching his 
 limbs, which were by this time entirely released, and 
 endeavoring to restore the suspended circulation, "you 
 have some judgmatical notions in these matters. Now 
 here am I, Paul Hover, a man who will give in to few at 
 wrestle or race, nearly as helpless as the day I paid my first 
 visit to the house of old Paul, who is dead and gone the 
 Lord forgive him any little blunders he may have made 
 while he tarried in Kentucky! Now there is my foot on 
 the ground, so far as eyesight has any virtue, and yet it 
 would take no great temptation to make me swear it didn t 
 touch the earth by six inches. I say, honest friend, since 
 you have done so much, have the goodness to keep these 
 damnable squaws, of whom you say so many interesting 
 things, at a little distance, till I have got the blood of this 
 arm in motion and am ready to receive them." 
 
 The trapper made a sign that he perfectly understood 
 the case; and he walked towards the superannuated sav 
 age, who began to manifest an intention of commencing 
 his assigned task, leaving the bee-hunter to recover the use 
 of his limbs as well as he could, and to put Middleton in 
 a similar situation to defend himself. 
 
 Mahtoree had not mistaken his man in selecting the one 
 he did to execute his bloody purpose. He had chosen one 
 of those ruthless savages, more or less of whom are to be 
 found in every tribe, who had purchased a certain share 
 of military reputation, by the exhibition of a hardihood 
 that found its impulses in an innate love of cruelty. Con 
 trary to the high and chivalrous sentiment which among 
 the Indians of the prairies renders it a deed of even 
 greater merit to bear off the trophy of victory from a 
 fallen foe than to slay him, he had been remarkable for 
 preferring the pleasure of destroying life to the glory of 
 striking the dead. While the more self-devoted and am 
 bitious braves were intent on personal honor, he had 
 always been seen, established behind some favorable cover, 
 depriving the wounded of hope, by finishing that which a 
 more gallant warrior had begun. In all the cruelties of 
 the tribe he had ever been foremost; and no Sioux was so 
 uniformly found on the side of merciless counsels. 
 
 He had awaited with an impatience which his long 
 
380 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 practised restraint could with difficulty subdue, for the 
 moment to arrive when he might proceed to execute the 
 wishes of the great chief, without whose approbation and 
 powerful protection he would not have dared to undertake 
 a step that had so many opposers in the nation. But 
 events had been hastening to an issue between the hostile 
 parties; and the time had now arrived, greatly to his 
 secret and malignant joy, when he was free to act his will. 
 
 The trapper found him distributing knives to the 
 ferocious hags, who received the presents, chanting a low 
 monotonous song, that recalled the losses of their people 
 in various conflicts with the whites, and which extolled 
 the pleasures and glory of revenge. The appearance of 
 such a group was enough of itself to have deterred one 
 less accustomed to such sights than the old man, from 
 trusting himself within the circle of their wild and repul 
 sive rites. 
 
 Each of the crones, as she received the weapon, com 
 menced a slow and measured, but ungainly step, around 
 the savage, until the whole were circling him in a sort of 
 magic dance. The movements were timed, in some degree, 
 by the words of their songs, as were their gestures by the 
 ideas. When they spoke of their own losses, they tossed 
 their long straight locks of gray into the air, or suffered 
 them to fall in confusion upon their withered necks; but as 
 the sweetness of returning blow for blow was touched upon, 
 by any among them, it was answered by a common howl, 
 as well as by gestures that were sufficiently expressive of 
 the manner in which they were exciting themselves to the 
 necessary state of fury. 
 
 Into the very center of this ring of seeming demons the 
 trapper now stalked, with the same calmness and observa 
 tion as he would have walked into a village church. No 
 other change was made by his appearance than a renewal 
 of the threatening gestures, with, if possible, a still less 
 equivocal display of their remorseless intentions. Making 
 a sign for them to cease, the old man demanded : 
 
 "Why do the mothers of the Tetons sing with bitter 
 tongues? The Pawnee prisoners are not yet in their vil 
 lage; their young men have not come back loaded with 
 scalps!" 
 
THE PRAIRIE 381 
 
 He was answered by a general howl, and a few of the 
 boldest of the furies even ventured to approach him, flour 
 ishing their knives within a dangerous proximity of his 
 own steady eyeballs. 
 
 "It is a warrior you see, and no runner of the Long- 
 knives, whose face grows pale at the sight of a tomahawk, 
 returned the trapper, without moving a muscle. "Let the 
 Sioux women think; if one white-skin dies, a hundred 
 spring up where he falls. 
 
 Still the hags made no other answer than by increasing 
 their speed in the circle, and occasionally raising the 
 threatening expressions of their chant into louder and 
 more intelligible strains. Suddenly one of the oldest and 
 the most ferocious of them all, broke out of the ring, and 
 skirred away in the direction of her victims, like a rapa 
 cious bird that, having wheeled on poised wings for the 
 time necessary to insure its object, makes the final dart 
 upon its prey. The others followed, a disorderly and 
 screaming flock, fearful of being too late to reap their 
 portion of the sanguinary pleasure. 
 
 "Mighty medicine of my people!" shouted the old man, 
 in the Teton tongue; "lift your voice and speak, that the 
 Sioux nation may hear." 
 
 Whether Asinus had acquired so much knowledge by 
 his recent experience as to know the value of his sonorous 
 properties, or the strange spectacle of a dozen hags flitting 
 past him, filling the air with such sounds as were even 
 grating to the ears of an ass, most moved his temper, it is 
 certain that the animal did that which Obed was requested 
 to do, and probably with far greater effect than if the 
 naturalist had striven with his mightiest effort to be 
 heard. It was the first time the strange beast had spoken, 
 since his arrival in the encampment. Admonished by so 
 terrible a warning, the hags scattered themselves like 
 vultures frightened from their prey, still screaming, and 
 but half diverted from their purpose. 
 
 In the meantime the sudden appearance, and imminency 
 of the danger, quickened the blood in the veins of Paul 
 and Middleton, more than all their laborious frictions and 
 physical expedients. The former had actually risen to his 
 feet, and assumed an attitude which perhaps threatened 
 
382 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 more than the worthy bee-hunter was able to perform, 
 and even the latter had mounted to his knees, and shown 
 a disposition to do good service for his life. The unac 
 countable release of the captives from their bonds was 
 attributed, by the hags, to the incantations of the medi 
 cine; and the mistake was probably of as much service as 
 the miraculous and timely interposition of Asinus in their 
 favor. 
 
 "Now is the time to come out of our ambushment, " 
 exclaimed the old man, hastening to join his friends, 
 "and to make open and manful war. It would have been 
 policy to have kept back the struggle until the captain was 
 in better condition to join, but as we have unmasked our 
 battery, why, we must maintain the ground 
 
 He was interrupted by feeling a gigantic hand on his 
 shoulder. Turning, under a sort of confused impression 
 that necromancy was actually abroad in the place, he found 
 that he was in the hands of a sorcerer no less dangerous 
 and powerful than Ishmael Bush. The file of the squatter s 
 well-armed sons, that was seen issuing from behind the 
 still standing tent of Mahtoree, explained at once not only 
 the manner in which their rear had been turned, while 
 their attention had been so earnestly bestowed on matters 
 in front, but the utter impossibility of resistance. 
 
 Neither Ishmael nor his sons deemed it necessary to 
 enter into prolix explanations. Middleton and Paul were 
 bound again, with extraordinary silence and despatch, and 
 this time not even the aged trapper was exempt from a 
 similar fortune. The tent was struck, the females placed 
 upon the horses, and the whole were on the way towards 
 the squatter s encampment, with a celerity that might 
 well have served to keep alive the idea of magic. 
 
 During this summary and brief disposition of things, 
 the disappointed agent of Mahtoree and his callous asso 
 ciates were seen flying across the plain, in the direction 
 of the retiring families; and when Ishmael left the spot 
 with the prisoners and his booty, the ground, which had 
 so lately been alive with the bustle and life of an exten 
 sive Indian encampment, was as still and empty as any 
 other spot in those extensive wastes. 
 
CHAPTER XXX 
 
 " Is this proceeding just and honorable ? " 
 
 SHAKESPEARE. 
 
 DURING the occurrence of these events on the upland 
 plain, the warriors on the bottom had not been idle. We 
 left the adverse bands watching one another on the oppo 
 site banks of the stream, each endeavoring to excite its 
 enemy to some act of indiscretion, by the most reproach 
 ful taunts and re vi lings. But the Pawnee chief was not 
 slow to discover that his crafty antagonist had no objection 
 to waste the time so idly, and, as they mutually proved, 
 in expedients that were so entirely useless. He changed 
 his plans, accordingly, and withdrew from the bank, as 
 has been already explained through the mouth of the 
 trapper, in order to invite the more numerous host of the 
 Sioux to cross. The challenge was not accepted, and the 
 Loups were compelled to frame some other method to 
 attain their end. 
 
 Instead of any longer throwing away the precious mo 
 ments in fruitless endeavors to induce his foe to cross the 
 stream, the young partisan of the Pawnee led his troops, 
 at a swift gallop, along its margin, in quest of some fav 
 orable spot, where by a sudden push he might throw his 
 own band without loss to the opposite shore. The instant 
 his object was discovered, each mounted Teton received a 
 footman behind him, and Mahtoree was still enabled to 
 concentrate his whole force against the effort. Perceiving 
 that his design was anticipated, and unwilling to blow his 
 horses by a race that would disqualify them for service, 
 even after they had succeeded in outstripping the more 
 heavily-burdened cattle of the Sioux, Hard-Heart drew 
 up, and came to a dead halt on the very margin of the 
 water-course. 
 
 As the country was too open for any of the usual devices 
 of savage warfare, the time was so pressing, the chivalrous 
 
 383 
 
384 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 Pawnee resolved to bring on the result by one of those 
 acts of personal daring for which the Indian braves are so 
 remarkable, and by which they often purchase their high 
 est and dearest renown. The spot he had selected was 
 favorable to such a project. The river, which throughout 
 most of its course was deep and rapid, had expanded there 
 to more than twice its customary width, and the rippling 
 of its waters proved that it flowed over a shallow bottom. 
 In the center of the current there was an extensive and 
 naked bed of sand, but a little raised above the level of 
 the stream, and of a color and consistency which war 
 ranted, to a practised eye, that it afforded a firm and safe 
 foundation for the foot. To this spot the partisan now 
 turned his wistful gaze, nor was he long in making his 
 decision. First speaking to his warriors, and apprising 
 them of his intentions, he dashed into the current, and 
 partly by swimming, and more by the use of his horse s 
 feet, he reached the island in safety. 
 
 The experience of Hard-Heart had not deceived him. 
 When his snorting steed issued from the water, he found 
 himself on a tremendous but damp and compact bed of 
 sand, that was admirably adapted to the exhibition of the 
 finest powers of the animal. The horse seemed conscious 
 of the advantage, and bore his warlike rider with an 
 elasticity of step and a loftiness of air that would have 
 done no discredit to the highest trained and most gener 
 ous charger. The blood of the chief himself quickened 
 with the excitement of his situation. He sat the beast as 
 if conscious that the eyes of two tribes were on his move 
 ments; and as nothing could be more acceptable and grate 
 ful to his own band than this display of native grace and 
 courage, so nothing could be more taunting and humiliat 
 ing to their enemies. 
 
 The sudden appearance of the Pawnee on the sands was 
 announced among the Tetons by a general yell of savage 
 anger. A rush was made to the shore, followed by a dis 
 charge of fifty arrows and a few fusees, and on the part 
 of several braves there was a plain manifestation of a 
 desire to plunge into the water in order to punish the 
 temerity of their insolent foe. But a call and a mandate 
 from Mahtoree, checked the rising and nearly ungovern- 
 
THE PRAIRIE 385 
 
 able temper of his band. So far from allowing a single 
 foot to be wet, or a repetition of the fruitless efforts of 
 his people to drive away their foe with missiles, the whole 
 of the party was commanded to retire from the shore, 
 while he himself communicated his intentions to one or 
 two of his most favored followers. 
 
 When the Pawnees observed the rush of their enemies, 
 twenty warriors rode into the stream; but so soon as they 
 perceived that the Tetons had withdrawn, they fell back 
 to a man, leaving the young chief to the support of his 
 own often-tried skill and well-established courage. The 
 instructions of Hard-Heart, on quitting his band, had been 
 worthy of the self-devotion and daring of his character. 
 So long as single warriors came against him he was to be 
 left to the keeping of the Wahcondah and his own arm; 
 but should the Sioux attack him in numbers, he was to be 
 sustained man for man, even to the extent of his whole 
 force. These generous orders were strictly obeyed; and 
 though so many hearts in the troop panted to share in the 
 glory and danger of their partisan, not a warrior was 
 found among them all, who did not know how to conceal 
 his impatience under the usual mask of Indian self- 
 restraint. They watched the issue with quick and jealous 
 eyes, nor did a single exclamation of surprise escape them 
 when they saw, as will soon be apparent, that the experi 
 ment of their chief was as likely to conduce to peace as to 
 war. 
 
 Mahtoree was not long in communicating his plans to 
 his confidants, whom he as quickly dismissed to join their 
 fellows in the rear. The Teton entered a short distance 
 into the stream and halted. Here he raised his hands 
 several times, with the palm outwards, and made several 
 of those other signs which are construed into a pledge of 
 amicable intentions among the inhabitants of those 
 regions. Then, as if to confirm the sincerity of his faith, 
 he cast his fusee to the shore and entered deeper into the 
 water, where he again came to a stand in order to see 
 in what manner the Pawnee would receive his pledge of 
 peace. 
 
 The crafty Sioux had not made his calculations on the 
 noble and honest nature of his more youthful rival in vain. 
 25 
 
386 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 Hard-Heart had continued galloping across the sands dur 
 ing the discharge of missiles and the appearance of a gen 
 eral onset, with the same proud and confident mien as that 
 with which he had first braved the danger. When he 
 saw the well-known person of the Teton partisan enter the 
 river, he waved his hand in triumph, and flourishing his 
 lance, he raised the thrilling war-cry of his people as a 
 challenge for him to come on. But when he saw the signs 
 of a truce, though deeply practised in the treachery of 
 savage combats, he disdained to show a less manly reliance 
 on himself than that which his enemy had seen fit to 
 exhibit. Riding to the farthest extremity of the sands he 
 cast his own fusee from him, and returned to the point 
 whence he had started. The two chiefs were now armed 
 alike. Each had his spear, his bow, his quiver, his little 
 battle-axe, and his knife; and each had also a shield of 
 hides, which might serve as a means of defense against a 
 surprise from any of these weapons. The Sioux no longer 
 hesitated, but advanced deeper into the stream, and soon 
 landed on a point of the island which his courteous adver 
 sary had left free for that purpose. Had one been there 
 to watch the countenance of Mahtoree as he crossed the 
 water that separated him from the most formidable and 
 the most hated of all his rivals, he might have fancied 
 that he could trace the gleamings of a secret joy breaking 
 through the cloud which deep cunning and heartless treach 
 ery had drawn before his swarthy visage; and yet there 
 would have been moments when he might have believed 
 that the flashings of the Teton s eye, and the expansion of 
 his nostrils, had their origin in a nobler sentiment, and 
 one more worthy of an Indian chief. 
 
 The Pawnee awaited the time of his enemy with calm 
 ness and dignity. The Teton made a short turn or two to 
 curb the impatience of his steed, and to recover his seat 
 after the effort of crossing, and then he rode into the 
 center of the place, and invited the other, by a courteous 
 gesture, to approach. Hard-Heart drew nigh until he 
 found himself at a distance equally suited to advance or 
 to retreat, and, in his turn, he came to a stand, keeping 
 his glowing eye riveted on that of his enemy. A long and 
 grave pause succeeded this movement, during which these 
 
THE PRAIRIE 387 
 
 two distinguished braves, who were now for the first time 
 confronted with arms in their hands, sat regarding each 
 other like warriors who knew how to value the merits of 
 a gallant foe, however hated. But the mien of Mahtoree 
 was far less stern and warlike than that of the partisan of 
 the Loups. Throwing his shield over his shoulder, as if 
 to invite the confidence of the other, he made a gesture of 
 salutation, and was the first to speak. 
 
 "Let the Pawnees go upon the hills," he said, "and 
 look from the morning to the evening sun, from the coun 
 try of snows to the land of many flowers, and they will 
 see that the earth is very large. Why cannot the red-men 
 find room on it for all their villages?" 
 
 "Has the Teton ever known a warrior of the Loups 
 come to his towns to beg a place for his lodge?" returned 
 the young brave, with a look in which pride and contempt 
 were not attempted to be concealed; "when the Pawnees 
 hunt, do they send runners to ask Mahtoree if there are 
 no Sioux on the prairies?" 
 
 "When there is hunger in the lodge of a warrior, he 
 looks for the buffalo, which is given him for food," the 
 Teton continued, struggling to keep down the ire excited 
 by the other s scorn. "The Wahcondah has made more 
 of them than He has made Indians. He has not said: 
 This buffalo shall be for a Pawnee, and that for a Dah- 
 cotah; this beaver for a Konza, and that for an Omahaw. 
 No; He said, There are enough. I love my red children, 
 and I have given them great riches. The swiftest horse 
 shall not go from the village of the Tetons to the village 
 of the Loups in many suns. It is far from the towns of 
 the Pawnees to the river of the Osages. There is room 
 for all that I love. Why then should a red man strike his 
 brother?" 
 
 Hard-Heart dropped one end of his lance to the earth, 
 and having also cast his shield across his shoulder, he sat 
 leaning lightly on the weapon, as he answered with a 
 smile of no doubtful expression: 
 
 "Are the Tetons weary of the hunts and of the war 
 path? Do they wish to cook the venison, and not to kill 
 it? Do they intend to let the hair cover their heads, that 
 their enemies shall not know where to find their scalps? 
 
388 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 Go; a Pawnee warrior will never come among such Sioux 
 squaws for a wife!" 
 
 A frightful gleam of ferocity broke out of the restraint 
 of the Dahcotah s countenance, as he listened to this bit 
 ing insult; but he was quick in subduing the tell-tale 
 feeling, in an expression much better suited to his present 
 purpose. 
 
 "This is the way a young chief should talk of war," he 
 answered with singular composure; "but Mahtoree has 
 seen the misery of more winters than his brother. When 
 the nights have been long, and darkness has been in his 
 lodge, while the young men slept, he has thought of the 
 hardships of his people. He has said to himself, Teton, 
 count the scalps in your smoke. They are all red but two! 
 Does the wolf destroy the wolf, or the rattler strike his 
 brother? You know they do not; therefore, Teton, are 
 you wrong to go on a path that leads to the village of a 
 red-skin, with a tomahawk in your hand." 
 
 "The Sioux would rob the warrior of his fame! He 
 would say to his young men, Go, dig roots in the prairies, 
 and find holes to bury your tomahawks in; you are no 
 longer braves!" 
 
 "If the tongue of Mahtoree ever says thus," returned 
 the crafty chief, with an appearance of strong indignation, 
 "let his women cut it out, and burn it with the offals of 
 the buffalo. No," he added, advancing a few feet nigher 
 to the immovable Hard-Heart, as if in the sincerity of 
 confidence; "the red-man can never want an enemy; they 
 are plentier than the leaves on the trees, the birds in the 
 heavens, or the buffaloes on the prairies. Let my brother 
 open his eyes wide; does he nowhere see an enemy he 
 would strike?" 
 
 "How long is it since the Teton counted the scalps of 
 his warriors, that were drying in the smoke of a Pawnee 
 lodge? The hand that took them is here, and ready to 
 make eighteen, twenty." 
 
 "Now, let not the mind of my brother go on a crooked 
 path. If a red-skin strikes a red-skin forever, who will 
 be masters of the prairies, when no warriors are left to 
 say They are mine? Hear the voices of the old men. 
 They tell us that in their days many Indians have come out 
 
THE PRAIRIE 389 
 
 of the woods under the rising sun, and that they have 
 filled the prairies with their complaints of the robberies 
 of the Long-knives. Where a pale face comes, a red-man 
 cannot stay. The land is too small. They are always 
 hungry. See, they are here already!" 
 
 As the Teton spoke, he pointed towards the tents of 
 Ishmael, which were in plain sight, and then he paused, 
 to await the effect of his words on the mind of his ingenu 
 ous foe. Hard-Heart listened like one in whom a train 
 of novel ideas had been excited by the reasoning of the 
 other. He mused for a minute before he demanded : 
 
 "What do the wise chiefs of the Sioux say must be 
 done?" 
 
 "They think that the moccasin of every pale face should 
 be followed, like the track of the bear. That the Long- 
 knife, who comes upon the prairie, should never go back. 
 That the path shall be open to those who come, and shut 
 to those who go. Yonder are many. They have horses 
 and guns. They are rich, but we are poor. Will the 
 Pawnees meet the Tetons in council? and when the sun is 
 gone behind the Rocky Mountains, they will say, This is 
 for a Loup and this for a Sioux." 
 
 Teton no ! Hard-Heart has never struck the stranger. 
 They come into his lodge and eat, and they go out in 
 safety. A mighty chief is their friend! When my people 
 call the young men to go on the war-path, the moccasin 
 of Hard-Heart is the last. But his village is no sooner hid 
 by the trees, than it is the first. No, Teton; his arm will 
 never be lifted against the stranger." 
 
 "Fool; die, with empty hands!" Mahtoree exclaimed, 
 setting an arrow to his bow, and sending it, with a sudden 
 and deadly aim, full at the naked bosom of his generous 
 and confiding enemy. 
 
 The action of the treacherous Teton was too quick, and 
 too well matured, to admit of any of the ordinary means 
 of defense on the part of the Pawnee. His shield was 
 hanging at his shoulder, and even the arrow had been 
 suffered to fall from its place, and lay in the hollow of the 
 hand which grasped his bow. But the quick eye of the 
 brave had time to see the movement, and his ready 
 thoughts did not desert him. Pulling hard and with a 
 
39". THE PRAIRIE 
 
 jerk upon the rein, his steed reared his forward legs into 
 the air, and as the rider bent his body low, the horse 
 served for a shield against the danger. So true, however, 
 was the aim, and so powerful the force by which it was 
 sent, that the arrow entered the neck of the animal, and 
 broke the skin on the opposite side. 
 
 Quicker than thought Hard-Heart sent back an answer 
 ing arrow. The shield of the Teton was transfixed, but his 
 person was untouched. For a few moments the twang of 
 the bow and the glancing of arrows were incessant, not 
 withstanding the combatants were compelled to give so 
 large a portion of their care to the means of defense. The 
 quivers were soon exhausted; and though blood had been 
 drawn, it was not in sufficient quantities to impair the 
 energy of the combat. 
 
 A series of masterly and rapid evolutions with the horses 
 now commenced. The wheelings, the charges, the advances, 
 and the circuitous retreats, were like the flights of circling 
 swallows. Blows were struck with the lance, the sand was 
 scattered in the air, and the shocks often seemed to be 
 unavoidably fatal; but still each party kept his seat, and 
 still each rein was managed with a steady hand. At length 
 the Teton was driven to the necessity of throwing himself 
 from his horse, to escape a thrust that would otherwise 
 have proved fatal. The Pawnee passed his lance through 
 the beast, uttering a shout of triumph as he galloped by. 
 Turning in his tracks, he was about to push the advantage, 
 when his own mettled steed staggered and fell, under a 
 burden that he could no longer sustain. Mahtoree an 
 swered his premature cry of victory, and rushed upon the 
 entangled youth with knife and tomahawk. The utmost 
 agility of Hard-Heart had not sufficed to extricate himself 
 in season from the fallen beast. He saw that his case 
 was desperate. Feeling for his knife, he took the blade 
 between a finger and thumb, and cast it with admirable 
 coolness at his advancing foe. The keen weapon whirled 
 a few times in the air, and its point meeting the naked 
 breast of the impetuous Sioux, the blade was buried to 
 the buck-horn haft. 
 
 Mahtoree laid his hand on the weapon, and seemed to 
 hesitate whether to withdraw it or not. For a moment 
 
THE PRAIRIE 391 
 
 his countenance darkened with the most inextinguishable 
 hatred and ferocity, and then, as if inwardly admonished 
 how little time he had to lose, he staggered to the edge of 
 the sands, and halted with his feet in the water. The 
 cunning and duplicity which had so long obscured the 
 brighter and nobler traits of his character, were lost in 
 the never dying sentiment of pride, which he had imbibed 
 in youth. 
 
 "Boy of the Loups!" he said, with a smile of grim sat 
 isfaction, "the scalp of a mighty Dahcotah shall never dry 
 in Pawnee smoke!" 
 
 Drawing the knife from the wound, he hurled it towards 
 the enemy in disdain. Then shaking his arm at his suc 
 cessful foe, his swarthy countenance appearing to struggle 
 with volumes of scorn and hatred, that he could not utter 
 with the tongue, he cast himself headlong into one of the 
 most rapid veins of the current, his hand still waving in 
 triumph above the fluid, even after his body had sunk into 
 the tide forever. Hard-Heart was by this time free. The 
 silence, which had hitherto reigned in the bands, was sud 
 denly broken by general and tumultuous shouts. Fifty of 
 the adverse warriors were already in the river, hastening 
 to destroy or to defend the conqueror, and the combat was 
 rather on the eve of its commencement than near its ter 
 mination. But to all these signs of danger and need, the 
 young victor was insensible. He sprang for the knife, and 
 bounded with the foot of an antelope along the sands, 
 looking for the receding fluid which concealed his prize. 
 A dark, bloody spot indicated the place, and, armed with 
 the knife, he plunged into the stream, resolute to die in 
 the flood, or to return with his trophy. 
 
 In the meantime, the sands became a scene of bloodshed 
 and violence. Better mounted and perhaps more ardent, 
 the Pawnees had, however, reached the spot in sufficient 
 numbers to force their enemies to retire. The victors 
 pushed their success to the opposite shore, and gained the 
 solid ground in the melee of the fight. Here they were 
 met by all the unmounted Tetons, and, in their turn, they 
 were forced to give way. 
 
 The combat now became more characteristic and cir 
 cumspect. As the hot impulses which had driven both 
 
392 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 parties to mingle in so deadly a struggle, began to cool, 
 the chiefs were enabled to exercise their influence, and to 
 temper the assaults with prudence. In consequence of 
 the admonitions of their leaders, the Sioux sought such 
 covers as the grass afforded, or here and there some bush 
 or slight inequality of the ground, and the charges of the 
 Pawnee warriors necessarily became more wary, and of 
 course less fatal. 
 
 In this manner the contest continued with a varied suc 
 cess, and without much loss. The Sioux had succeeded in 
 forcing themselves into a thick growth of rank grass, 
 where the horses of their enemies could not enter, or 
 where, when entered, they were worse than useless. It 
 became necessary to dislodge the Tetons from this cover, 
 or the object of the combat must be abandoned. Several 
 desperate efforts had been repulsed, and the disheartened 
 Pawnees were beginning to think of a retreat, when the 
 well-known war-cry of Hard-Heart was heard at hand, 
 and at the next instant the chief appeared in their center, 
 flourishing the scalp of the Great Sioux, as a banner that 
 would lead to victory. 
 
 He was greeted by a shout of delight, and followed into 
 the cover with an impetuosity that, for the moment, drove 
 all before it. But the bloody trophy in the hand of the 
 partisan served as an incentive to the attacked, as well as 
 to the assailants. Mahtoree had left many a daring brave 
 behind him in his band, and the orator who in the debates 
 of that day had manifested such pacific thoughts, now ex 
 hibited the most generous self -devotion, in order to wrest 
 the memorial of a man he had never loved from the hands 
 of the avowed enemies of his people. 
 
 The result was in favor of numbers. After a severe 
 struggle, in which the finest displays of intrepidity were 
 exhibited by the chiefs, the Pawnees were compelled to 
 retire upon the open bottom, closely pressed by the Sioux, 
 who failed not to seize each foot of the ground ceded by 
 their enemies. Had the Tetons stayed their efforts on the 
 margin of the grass, it is probable that the honor of the 
 day would have been theirs, notwithstanding the irretriev 
 able loss they had sustained in the death of Mahtoree. 
 But the more reckless braves of the band were guilty of 
 
THE PRAIRIE 393 
 
 an indiscretion that entirely changed the fortunes of the 
 flight, and suddenly stripped them of their hard-earned 
 advantages. 
 
 A Pawnee chief had sunk under the numerous wounds 
 he had received, and he fell, a target for a dozen arrows, 
 in the very last group of his retiring party. Regardless 
 alike of inflicting further injury on their foes, and of the 
 temerity of the act, the Sioux braves bounded forward 
 with a whoop, each man burning with a wish to reap the 
 high renown of striking the body of the dead. They were 
 met by Hard-Heart and a chosen knot of warriors, all of 
 whom were just as stoutly bent on saving the honor of 
 their nation from so foul a stain. The struggle was hand 
 to hand, and blood began to flow more freely. As the 
 Pawnees retired with the body, the Sioux pressed upon 
 their footsteps, and at length the whole of the latter broke 
 out of the cover with a common yell, and threatened to 
 bear down all opposition by sheer physical superiority. 
 
 The fate of Hard-Heart and his companions, all of whom 
 would have died rather than relinquish their object, would 
 have been quickly sealed, but for a powerful and unlocked 
 for interposition in their favor. A shout was heard from 
 a little brake on the left, and a volley from the fatal 
 western rifle immediately succeeded. Some five or six 
 Sioux leaped forward in the death agony, and every arm 
 among them was as suddenly suspended, as if the lightning 
 had flashed from the clouds to aid the cause of the Loups. 
 
 Then came Ishmael and his stout sons in open view, 
 bearing down upon their late treacherous allies, with looks 
 and voices that proclaimed the character of the succor. 
 
 The shock was too much for the fortitude of the Tetons. 
 Several of their bravest chiefs had already fallen, and 
 those that remained were instantly abandoned by the 
 whole of the inferior herd. A few of the most desperate 
 braves still lingered nigh the fatal symbol of their honor, 
 and there nobly met their deaths, under the blows of the 
 reencouraged Pawnees. A second discharge from the 
 rifles of the squatter and his party completed the victory. 
 
 The Sioux were now to be seen flying to more distant 
 covers, with the same eagerness and desperation, as, a few 
 moments before, they had been plunging into the fight. 
 
394 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 The triumphant Pawnees bounded forward in chase, like 
 so many high-blooded and well-trained hounds. On every 
 side were heard the cries of victory, or the yell of re 
 venge. A few of the fugitives endeavored to bear away 
 the bodies of their fallen warriors, but the hot pursuit 
 quickly compelled them to abandon the slain, in order to 
 preserve the living. Among all the struggles which were 
 made on that occasion, to guard the honor of the Sioux 
 from the stain which their peculiar opinions attached to 
 the possession of the scalp of a fallen brave, but one soli 
 tary instance of success occurred. 
 
 The opposition of a particular chief to the hostile pro 
 ceedings in the councils of that morning has been already 
 seen. But, after having raised his voice in vain, in sup 
 port of peace, his arm was not backward in doing its duty 
 in the war. His prowess has been mentioned; and it was 
 chiefly by his courage and example, that the Tetons sus 
 tained themselves in the heroic manner they did, when the 
 death of Mahtoree was known. This warrior, who, in the 
 figurative language of his people, was called the "Swoop 
 ing Eagle," had been the last to abandon the hopes of 
 victory. When he found that the support of the dreaded 
 rifle had robbed his band of their hard-earned advantages, 
 he sullenly retired, amid a shower of missiles, to the secret 
 spot where he had hid his horse, in the mazes of the high 
 est grass. Here he found a new and an entirely unex 
 pected competitor, ready to dispute with him for the 
 possession of the beast. It was Bohrecheena, the aged 
 friend of Mahtoree; he whose voice had been given in 
 opposition to his own wiser opinions, transfixed with an 
 arrow, and evidently suffering under the pangs of ap 
 proaching death. 
 
 "I have been on my last war-path," said the grim old 
 warrior, when he found that the real owner of the animal 
 had come to claim his property; "shall a Pawnee carry 
 the white hairs of a Sioux into his village, to be a scorn to 
 his women and children?" 
 
 The other grasped his hand, answering to the appeal 
 with a stern look of inflexible resolution. With this silent 
 pledge, he assisted the wounded man to mount. So soon 
 as he had led the horse to the margin of the cover, he 
 
THE PRAIRIE 395 
 
 threw himself also on its back, and securing his companion 
 to his belt, he issued on the open plain, trusting entirely 
 to the well-known speed of the beast for their mutual 
 safety. The Pawnees were not long in catching a view of 
 these new objects, and several turned their steeds to pur 
 sue. The race continued for a mile, without a murmur 
 from the sufferer, though, in addition to the agony of his 
 body, he had the pain of seeing his enemies approach at 
 every leap of their horses. 
 
 "Stop," he said, raising a feeble arm to check the speed 
 of his companion; "the Eagle of my tribe must spread 
 his wings wider. Let him carry the white hairs of an old 
 warrior into the burnt-wood village!" 
 
 Few words were necessary between men who were gov 
 erned by the same feelings of glory, and who were so well 
 trained in the principles of their romantic honor. The 
 Swooping Eagle threw himself from the back of the horse, 
 and assisted the other to alight. The old man raised his 
 tottering frame to its knees, and first casting a glance 
 upwards at the countenance of his countryman, as if to 
 bid him adieu, he streched out his neck to the blow he 
 himself invited. A few strokes of the tomahawk, with a 
 circling gash of the knife, sufficed to sever the head from 
 the less valued trunk. The Teton mounted again, just in 
 season to escape a flight of arrows which came from his 
 eager and disappointed pursuers. Flourishing the grim 
 and bloody visage, he darted away from the spot with a 
 shout of triumph, and was seen scouring the plains, as if 
 he were actually borne along on the wings of the powerful 
 bird from whose qualities he had received his flattering 
 name. The Swooping Eagle reached his village in safety. 
 He was one of the few Sioux who escaped from the mas 
 sacre of that fatal day; and for a long time he alone of 
 the saved was able to lift his voice, in the councils of his 
 nation, with undiminished confidence. 
 
 The knife and the lance cut short the retreat of the 
 larger portion of the vanquished. Even the retiring party 
 of the women and children were scattered by the con 
 querors; and the sun had long sunk behind the rolling 
 outline of the western horizon, before the fell business of 
 that disastrous defeat was entirely ended. 
 
CHAPTER XXXI 
 
 "Which is the merchant here, and which the Jew?" 
 
 MERCHANT OF VENICE. 
 
 THE day dawned, the following morning, on a more 
 tranquil scene. The work of blood had entirely ceased; 
 and as the sun arose, its light was shed on a broad ex 
 panse of quiet and solitude. The tents of Ishmael were 
 still standing where they had been last seen, but not 
 another vestige of human existence could be traced in any 
 other part of the waste. Here and there little flocks of 
 ravenous birds were sailing and screaming above those 
 spots where some heavy-footed Teton had met his death, 
 but every other sign of the recent combat had passed 
 away. The river was to be traced far through the end 
 less meadows, by its serpentine and smoking bed; and the 
 little silvery clouds of vapor, which hung above the pools 
 and springs, were beginning to melt in air, as they felt 
 the quickening warmth, which, pouring from the glowing 
 sky, shed its bland and subtle influence on every object of 
 the vast and unshadowed region. The prairie was like the 
 heavens after the passage of the gust, soft, calm, and 
 soothing. 
 
 It was in the midst of such a scene that the family of 
 the squatter assembled to make their final decision, con 
 cerning the several individuals who had been thrown into 
 their power by the fluctuating chances of the incidents 
 related. Every being possessing life and liberty had been 
 afoot, since the first streak of gray had lighted the east; 
 and even the youngest of the erratic brood seemed con 
 scious that the moment had arrived, when circumstances 
 were about to occur that might leave a lasting impression 
 on the wild fortunes of their semi -barbarous condition. 
 
 Ishmael moved through his little encampment, with the 
 seriousness of one who had been unexpectedly charged 
 with matters of a gravity exceeding any of the ordinary 
 
 396 
 
THE PRAIRIE 397 
 
 occurrences of his irregular existence. His sons, however, 
 who had so often found occasions to prove the inexorable 
 severity of their father s character, saw, in his sullen mien 
 and cold eye, rather a determination to adhere to his reso 
 lutions, which usually were as obstinately enforced as 
 they were harshly conceived, than any evidences of waver 
 ing or doubt. Even Esther was sensibly affected by the 
 important matters that pressed so heavily on the interests 
 of her family. While she neglected none of those domes 
 tic offices which would probably have proceeded under any 
 conceivable circumstances, just as the world turns round 
 with earthquakes rending its crust and volcanoes consum 
 ing its vitals, yet her voice was pitched to a lower and 
 more foreboding key than common, and the still frequent 
 chidings of her children were tempered by something like 
 the milder dignity of parental authority. 
 
 Abiram, as usual, seemed the one most given to solici 
 tude and doubt. There were certain misgivings, in the 
 frequent glances that he turned on the unyielding coun 
 tenance of Ishmael, which might have betrayed how little 
 of their former confidence and good understanding existed 
 between them. His looks appeared to be vacillating be 
 tween hope and fear. At times, his countenance lighted 
 with the gleamings of a sordid joy, as he bent his look on 
 the tent which contained his recovered prisoner, and then, 
 again, the impression seemed unaccountably chased away 
 by the shadows of intense apprehension. When under 
 the influence of the latter feeling, his eye never failed to 
 seek the visage of his dull and impenetrable kinsman. 
 But there he rather found reason for alarm than grounds 
 of encouragement, for the whole character of the squat 
 ter s countenance expressed the fearful truth, that he had 
 redeemed his dull faculties from the influence of the kid 
 napper, and that his thoughts were now brooding only on 
 the achievement of his own stubborn intentions. 
 
 It was in this state of things that the sons of Ishmael, 
 in obedience to an order from their father, conducted the 
 several subjects of his contemplated decisions from their 
 places of confinement into the open air. No one was ex 
 empted from this arrangement. Middletonand Inez, Paul 
 and Ellen, Obed and the trapper, were all brought forth 
 
398 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 and placed in situations that were deemed suitable to re 
 ceive the sentence of their arbitrary judge. The younger 
 children gathered around the spot in momentary but en 
 grossing curiosity, and even Esther quitted her culinary 
 labors and drew nigh to listen. 
 
 Hard-Heart alone, of all his band, was present to wit 
 ness the novel and far from unimposing spectacle. He 
 stood leaning gravely on his lance, while the smoking 
 steed that grazed nigh showed that he had ridden far and 
 hard to be a spectator on the occasion. 
 
 Ishmael had received his new ally with a coldness that 
 showed his entire insensibility to that delicacy which had 
 induced the young chief to come alone, in order that the 
 presence of his warriors might not create uneasiness or 
 distrust. He neither courted their assistance nor dreaded 
 their enmity, and he now proceeded to the business of the 
 hour with as much composure as if the species of patri 
 archal power he wielded was universally recognized. 
 
 There is something elevated in the possession of author 
 ity, however it may be abused. The mind is apt to make 
 some efforts to prove the fitness between its qualities and 
 the condition of its owner, though it may often fail, and 
 render that ridiculous which was only hated before. But 
 the effect on Ishmael Bush was not so disheartening. 
 Grave in exterior, saturnine by temperament, formidable 
 by his physical means, and dangerous from his lawless 
 obstinacy, his self -constituted tribunal excited a degree 
 of awe to which even the intelligent Middleton could not 
 bring himself to be entirely insensible. Little time, how 
 ever, was given to arrange his thoughts; for the squatter, 
 though unaccustomed to haste, having previously made up 
 his mind, was not disposed to waste the moments in delay. 
 When he saw that all were in their places he cast a dull 
 look over his prisoners, and addressed himself to the cap 
 tain as the principal man among the imaginary delin 
 quents. 
 
 "I am called upon this day to fill the office which in 
 the settlements you give unto judges, who are set apart 
 to decide on matters that arise between man and man. I 
 have but little knowledge of the ways of the courts, 
 though there is a rule that is known unto all, and which 
 
THE PRAIRIE 399 
 
 teaches that an eye must be returned for an eye, and a 
 tooth for a tooth. I am no troubler of county-houses, 
 and least of all do I like living on a plantation that the 
 sheriff has surveyed; yet there is a reason in such a law 
 that makes it a safe rule to journey by, and therefore it 
 ar a solemn fact that this day shall I abide by it, and 
 give unto all and each that which is his due and no more. 
 
 When Ishmael had delivered his mind thus far, he 
 paused and looked about him as if he would trace the 
 effects in the countenances of his hearers. When his eye 
 met that of Middleton he was answered by the latter: 
 
 "If the evil-doer is to be punished and he that has 
 offended none to be left to go at large, you must change 
 situations with me, and become a prisoner instead of a 
 judge." 
 
 "You mean to say that I have done you wrong in taking 
 the lady from her father s house, and leading her so far 
 against her will into these districts," returned the un 
 moved squatter, who manifested as little resentment as he 
 betrayed compunction at the charge. "I shall not put the 
 lie on the back of an evil deed, and deny your words. 
 Since things have come to this pass between us I have 
 found time to think the matter over at my leisure, and 
 though none of your swift thinkers, who can see, or who 
 pretend to see, into the nature of all things by a turn of 
 the eye, yet am I a man open to reason, and, give me my 
 time, one who is not given to deny the truth. There 
 fore have I mainly concluded that it was a mistake to take 
 a child from its parent, and the lady shall be returned 
 whence she has been brought, as tenderly and as safely as 
 man can do it." 
 
 "Ay, ay," added Esther, "the man is right. Poverty 
 and labor bore hard upon him, especially as county officers 
 were getting troublesome, and in a weak moment he did 
 the wicked act; but he has listened to my words, and his 
 mind has got round again into its honest corner. An 
 awful and a dangerous thing it is to be bringing the 
 daughters of other people into a peaceable and well gov 
 erned family!" 
 
 "And who will thank you for the same, after what has 
 been already done?" muttered Abiram, with a grin of 
 
400 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 disappointed cupidity, in which malignity and terror were 
 disgustingly united; "when the devil has once made out 
 his account, you may look for your receipt in full only at 
 his hands." 
 
 "Peace!" said Ishmael, stretching his heavy hand 
 towards his kinsman in a manner that instantly silenced 
 the speaker. "Your voice is like a raven s in my ears. 
 If you had never spoken, I should have been spared this 
 shame. 
 
 "Since, then, you are beginning to lose sight of your 
 errors and to see the truth," said Middleton, "do not 
 things by halves, but by the generosity of your conduct 
 purchase friends who may be of use in warding off any 
 future danger from the law 
 
 "Young man," interrupted the squatter, with a dark 
 frown, "you, too, have said enough. If fear of the law 
 had come over me, you would not be here to witness the 
 manner in which Ishmael Bush deals out justice." 
 
 "Smother not your good intentions; and remember, if 
 you contemplate violence to any among us, that the arm 
 of that law you affect to despise, reaches far, and that 
 though its movements are sometimes slow, they are not 
 the less certain!" 
 
 "Yes, there is too much truth in his words, squatter," 
 said the trapper, whose attentive ears rarely suffered a 
 syllable to be utterly unheeded in his presence. "A busy 
 and a troublesome arm it often proves to be here in this 
 land of America; where, as they say, man is left greatly 
 to the following of his own wishes, compared to other 
 countries; and happier, ay, and more manly and more 
 honest, too, is he for the privilege ! Why, do you know, my 
 man, that there are regions where the law is so busy as 
 to say, In this fashion shall you live, in that fashion shall 
 you die, and in such another fashion shall you take leave 
 of the world, to be sent before the judgment-seat of the 
 Lord! A wicked and a troublesome meddling is that, 
 with the business of One who has not made his creatures 
 to be herded like oxen, and driven from field to field as 
 their stupid and selfish keepers may judge of their need 
 and wants. A miserable land must that be where they fetter 
 the mind as well as the body, and where the creatures of 
 
THE PRAIRIE 401 
 
 God, being born children, are kept so by the wicked in 
 ventions of men who would take upon themselves the office 
 of the great Governor of all ! " 
 
 During the delivery of this pertinent opinion, Ishmael 
 was content to be silent, though the look with which he 
 regarded the speaker manifested any other feeling than 
 that of amity. When the old man had done, he turned 
 to Middleton, and continued the subject which the other 
 had interrupted. 
 
 "As to ourselves, young captain, there has been wrong 
 on both sides. If I have borne hard upon your feelings 
 in taking away your wife with an honest intention of 
 giving her back to you when the plans of that devil in 
 carnate were answered, so have you broken into my en 
 campment, aiding and abetting, as they have called many 
 an honester bargain, in destroying my property. 
 
 "But what I did was to liberate 
 
 "The matter is settled between us," interrupted Ish 
 mael, with the air of one who, having made up his own 
 opinion on the merits of the question, cared very little for 
 those of other people; "you and your wife are free to go 
 and come when and how you please. Abner, set the cap 
 tain at liberty; and now, if you will tarry until I am 
 ready to draw nigher to the settlements, you shall both 
 have the benefit of carriage; if not, never say that you 
 did not get a friendly offer." 
 
 "Now, may the strong oppress me, and my sins be 
 visited harshly on my own head, if I forget your honesty, 
 however slow it has been in showing itself," cried Mid 
 dleton, hastening to the side of the weeping Inez, the in 
 stant he was released; "and, friend, I pledge you the 
 honor of a soldier that your own part of this transaction 
 shall be forgotten, whatever I may deem fit to have done, 
 when I reach a place where the arm of government can 
 make itself felt." 
 
 The dull smile with which the squatter answered to 
 this assurance, proved how little he valued the pledge 
 that the youth, in the first revulsion of his feelings, was 
 so free to make. 
 
 "Neither fear nor favor, but what I call justice, has 
 brought me to this judgment," he said; "do you that 
 26 
 
402 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 which may seem right in your eyes, and believe that the 
 world is wide enough to hold us both, without our cross 
 ing each other s path again! If you ar content, well; if 
 you ar not content, seek to ease your feelings in your 
 own fashion. I shall not ask to be let up, when you once 
 put me fairly down. And now, Doctor, have I come to 
 your leaf in my accounts. It is time to foot up the small 
 reckoning that has been running on for some time atwixt 
 us. With you, I entered into open and manly faith; in 
 what manner have you kept it?" 
 
 The singular felicity with which Ishmael had contrived 
 to shift the responsibility of all that had passed from his 
 own shoulders to those of his prisoners, backed as it was 
 by circumstances that hardly admitted of a very philo 
 sophical examination of any mooted point in ethics, was 
 sufficiently embarrassing to the several individuals, who 
 were so unexpectedly required to answer for a conduct 
 which, in their simplicity, they had deemed so meritori 
 ous. The life of Obed had been so purely theoretic, that 
 his amazement was not the least embarrassing at a state 
 of things, which might not have proved so very remark 
 able had he been a little more practised in the ways of 
 the world. The worthy naturalist was not the first by 
 many, who found himself, at the precise moment when he 
 was expecting praise, suddenly arraigned to answer for 
 the very conduct on which he rested all his claims to 
 commendation. Though not a little scandalized at the 
 unexpected turn of the transaction, he was fain to make 
 the* best of circumstances, and to bring forth such matter 
 in justification as first presented itself to his disordered 
 faculties. 
 
 "That there did exist a certain compactum, or agree 
 ment between Obed Batt, M. D., and Ishmael Bush, viator 
 or erratic husbandman," he said, endeavoring to avoid 
 all offense in the use of terms, "I am not disposed to 
 deny. I will admit that it was therein conditioned, or 
 stipulated, that a certain journey should be performed 
 conjointly, or in company, until so many days had been 
 numbered. But as the said time has fully expired, I pre 
 sume it fair to infer that the bargain may now be said 
 to be obsolete." 
 
THE PRAIRIE 403 
 
 "Ishmael!" interrupted the impatient Esther, "make 
 no words with a man who can break your bones as easily 
 as set them, and let the poisoning devil go! He s a cheat, 
 from box to vial. Give him half the prairie, and take 
 the other half yourself. He an acclimator! I will engage 
 to get the brats acclimated to a fever- and -ague bottom in 
 a week, and not a word shall be uttered harder to pro 
 nounce than the bark of a cherry-tree, with perhaps a 
 drop or two of western comfort. One thing ar a fact, 
 Ishmael; I like no fellow-travelers who can give a heavy 
 feel to an honest woman s tongue, I and that with 
 out caring whether her household is in order or out of 
 order." 
 
 The air of settled gloom which had taken possession of 
 the squatter s countenance, lighted for an instant with a 
 look of dull drollery, as he answered : 
 
 "Different people might judge differently, Esther, of 
 the virtue of the man s art. But sin it is your wish to 
 let him depart, I will not plough the prairie to make the 
 walking rough. Friend, you are at liberty to go into the 
 settlements, and there I would advise you to tarry, as 
 men like me who make but few contracts, do not relish 
 the custom of breaking them so easily." 
 
 "And now, Ishmael," resumed his conquering wife, 
 "in order to keep a quiet family and to smother all heart 
 burnings between us, show yonder red-skin and his daugh 
 ter," pointing to the aged Le Balafre and the widowed 
 Tachechana, "the way to their village, and let us say to 
 them God bless you, and Farewell, in the same breath!" 
 
 "They are the captives of the Pawnee, according to the 
 rules of Indian warfare, and I cannot meddle with his 
 rights." 
 
 "Beware the devil, my man! He s a cheat and a 
 tempter, and none can say they ar safe with his awful 
 delusions before their eyes! Take the advice of one who 
 has the honor of your name at heart, and send the tawny 
 Jezebel away." 
 
 The squatter laid his broad hand on her shoulder, and 
 looking her steadily in the eye, he answered in tones that 
 were both stern and solemn : 
 
 "Woman, we have that before us which calls our 
 
404 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 thoughts to other matters than the follies you mean. 
 Remember what is to come, and put your silly jealousy 
 to sleep. 
 
 "It is true, it is true," murmured his wife, moving 
 back among her daughters; "God forgive me that I should 
 forget it!" 
 
 "And now, young man; you who have so often come 
 into my clearing under the pretense of lining the bee 
 into his hole," resumed Ishmael, after a momentary 
 pause, as if to recover the equilibrium of his mind, 
 "with you there is a heavier account to settle. Not sat 
 isfied with rummaging my camp, you have stolen a girl 
 who is akin to my wife, and whom I had calculated to 
 make one day a daughter of my own. 
 
 A stronger sensation was produced by this than by any 
 of the preceding interrogations. All the young men bent 
 their curious eyes on Paul and Ellen, the former of whom 
 seemed in no small mental confusion, while the latter 
 bent her face on her bosom in shame. 
 
 "Harkee, friend Ishmael Bush," returned the bee- 
 hunter, who found that he was expected to answer to the 
 charge of burglary as well as to that of abduction; "that 
 I did not give the most civil treatment to your pots and 
 pails I am not going to gainsay. If you will name the 
 price you put upon the articles, it is possible the damage 
 may be quietly settled between us, and all hard feelings 
 forgotten. I was not in a church-going humor when we 
 got upon your rock, and it is more than probable there was 
 quite as much kicking as preaching among your wares; but 
 a hole in the best man s coat can be mended by money. As 
 to the matter of Ellen Wade, here, it may not be got over 
 so easily. Different people have different opinions on the 
 subject of matrimony. Some think it is enough to say 
 yes and no to the questions of the magistrate or of the 
 parson, if one happens to be handy, in order to make a 
 quiet house; but I think that where a young woman s 
 mind is fairly bent on going in a certain direction, it will 
 be quite as prudent to let her body follow. Not that I 
 mean to say Ellen was not altogether forced to what she 
 did, and therefore she is just as innocent in this matter 
 as yonder jackass, who was made to carry her, and greatly 
 
THE PRAIRIE 405 
 
 against his will, too, as I am ready to swear he would say 
 himself, if he could speak as loud as he can bray." 
 
 "Nelly," resumed the squatter, who paid very little 
 attention to what Paul considered a highly creditable and 
 ingenious vindication, "Nelly, this is a wide and a wicked 
 world on which you have been in such a hurry to cast 
 yourself. You have fed and you have slept in my camp 
 for a year, and I did hope that you had found the free air 
 of the borders enough to your mind to wish to remain 
 among us. 
 
 "Let the girl have her will," muttered Esther, from 
 the rear; "he who might have persuaded her to stay is 
 sleeping in the cold and naked prairie, and little hope is 
 left of changing her humor; besides, a woman s mind is 
 a wilful thing, and not easily turned from its wayward 
 ness, as you know yourself, my man, or I should not be 
 here the mother of your sons and daughters. 
 
 The squatter seemed reluctant to abandon his views on 
 the abashed girl so easily; and before he answered to the 
 suggestion of his wife, he turned his usual dull look along 
 the line of the curious countenances of his boys, as if to 
 see whether there was not one among them to fill the 
 place of the deceased. Paul was not slow to observe the 
 expression, and hitting nigher than usual on the secret 
 thoughts of the other, he believed he had fallen on an 
 expedient which might remove every difficulty. 
 
 "It is quite plain, friend Bush," he said, "that there 
 are two opinions in this matter; yours for your sons, and 
 mine for myself. I see but one amicable way of settling 
 this dispute, which is as follows: do you make a choice 
 among your boys of any you will, and let us walk off to 
 gether for the matter of a few miles into the prairie; the 
 one who stays behind can never trouble any man s house 
 or his fixin , and the one who comes back may make the 
 best of his way he can, in the good wishes of the young 
 woman. 
 
 "Paul!" exclaimed the reproachful but smothered voice 
 of Ellen. 
 
 "Never fear, Nelly," whispered the literal bee-hunter, 
 whose straight-going mind suggested no other motive of 
 uneasiness on the part of his mistress, than concern for 
 
406 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 himself; "I have taken the measure of them all, and you 
 may trust an eye that has seen to line many a bee into 
 his hole!" 
 
 "I am not about to set myself up as a ruler of inclina 
 tions," observed the squatter. "If the heart of the child 
 is truly in the settlements, let her declare it; she shall 
 have no let or hindrance from me. Speak, Nelly, and let 
 what you say come from your wishes, without fear or 
 favor. Would you leave us to go with this young man 
 into the settled countries, or will you tarry and share the 
 little we have to give, but which to you we give so 
 freely?" 
 
 Thus called upon to decide, Ellen could no longer hesi 
 tate. The glance of her eye was at first timid and 
 furtive. But as the color flushed her features, and her 
 breathing became quick and excited, it was apparent that 
 the native spirit of the girl was gaining the ascendency 
 over the bashfulness of sex. 
 
 You took me a fatherless, impoverished, and friendless 
 orphan," she said, struggling to command her voice, 
 "when others, who live in what may be called affluence 
 compared to your state, chose to forget me; and may 
 Heaven in its goodness bless you for it! The little I have 
 done will never pay you for that one act of kindness. I 
 like not your manner of life; it is different from the 
 ways of my childhood, and it is different from my wishes; 
 still, had you not led this sweet and unoffending lady 
 from her friends, I should never have quitted you until 
 you yourself had said, Go, and the blessing of God go 
 with you! 
 
 "The act was not wise, but it is repented of; and so 
 far as it can be done, in safety, it shall be repaired. 
 Now, speak freely, will you tarry, or will you go?" 
 
 "I have promised the lady," said Ellen, dropping her 
 eyes again to the earth, "not to leave her; and after she 
 has received so much wrong from all hands, she may have 
 a right to claim that I keep my word." 
 
 "Take the cords from the young man," said Ishmael. 
 When the order was obeyed, he motioned for all his sons 
 to advance, and he placed them in a row before the eyes 
 of Ellen. "Now let there be no trifling, but open your 
 
THE PRAIRIE 407 
 
 heart. Here ar all I have to offer, besides a hearty 
 welcome." 
 
 The distressed girl turned her abashed look from the 
 countenance of one of the young men to that of another 
 until her eyes met the troubled and working features of 
 Paul. Then nature got the better of forms. She threw 
 herself into the arms of the bee-hunter, and sufficiently 
 proclaimed her choice by sobbing aloud. Ishmael signed 
 to his sons to fall back, and evidently mortified, though 
 perhaps not disappointed by the result, he no longer 
 hesitated. 
 
 "Take her," he said, "and deal honestly and kindly by 
 her. The girl has that in her which should make her 
 welcome in any man s house, and I should be loath to 
 learn that she ever came to harm. And now I have settled 
 with you all, on terms that I hope you will not find hard, 
 but, on the contrary, just and manly. I have only another 
 question to ask, and that is of the captain; do you choose 
 to profit by my teams in going into the settlements, or 
 not?" 
 
 "I hear that some soldiers of my party are looking for 
 me near the villages of the Pawnees," said Middleton, 
 "and I intend to accompany this chief, in order to join 
 my men." 
 
 "Then the sooner we part the better. Horses are plenty 
 on the bottom. Go; make your choice, and leave us in 
 peace. 
 
 "That is impossible, while the old man, who has been a 
 friend of my family near half a century, is left a prisoner. 
 What has he done that he, too, is not released?" 
 
 "Ask no questions that may lead to deceitful answers," 
 sullenly returned the squatter; "I have dealings of my 
 own with that trapper, that it may not befit an officer of 
 the States to meddle with. Go, while your road is open. " 
 
 "The man may be giving you honest counsel, and that 
 which it concerns you all to hearken to," observed the 
 old captive, who seemed in no uneasiness at the extraor 
 dinary condition in which he found himself. "The Sioux 
 are a numberless and bloody-minded race, and no one can 
 say how long it maybe afore they will be out again on the 
 scent of revenge. Therefore, I say to you, go, also; and 
 
408 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 take special heed, in crossing the bottoms, that you get 
 not entangled again in the fires, for the honest hunters 
 often burn the grass at this season, in order that the 
 buffaloes may find a sweeter and a greener pasturage in 
 the spring." 
 
 "I should forget not only my gratitude, but my duty 
 to the laws, were I to leave this prisoner in your hands, 
 even by his own consent, without knowing the nature of 
 his crime, in which we may have all been his innocent 
 accessories. 
 
 "Will it satisfy you to know that he merits all he will 
 receive?" 
 
 "It will at least change my opinion of his character." 
 
 "Look then at this," said Ishmael, placing before the 
 eyes of the captain the bullet that had been found about 
 the person of the dead Asa; "with this morsel of lead did 
 he lay low as fine a boy as ever gave joy to a parent s 
 eyes ! 
 
 "I cannot believe that he has done this deed, unless 
 in self-defense, or on some justifiable provocation. That 
 he knew of the death of your son, I confess, for he pointed 
 out the brake in which the body lay, but that he has 
 wrongfully taken his life, nothing but his own acknowl 
 edgment shall persuade me to believe." 
 
 I have lived long," commenced the trapper, who found 
 by the general pause that he was expected to vindicate 
 himself from the heavy imputation, "and much evil have 
 I seen in my day. Many are the prowling bears and 
 leaping panthers that I have met, fighting for the morsel 
 which has been thrown in their way; and many are the 
 reason ing men that I have looked on striving against each 
 other unto death, in order that human madness might 
 also have its hour. For myself, I hope there is no boast 
 ing in saying, that though my hand has been needed in 
 ting down wickedness and oppression, it has never 
 struck a blow of which its owner will be ashamed to hear, 
 at a reckoning that shall be far mightier than this. 
 
 f my father has taken life from one of his tribe," 
 said the young Pawnee, whose quick eye had read the 
 meaning of what was passing, in the bullet and in the 
 :ountenances of the others, "let him give himself up to 
 
THE PRAIRIE 409 
 
 the friends of the dead, like a warrior. He is too just to 
 need thongs to lead him to judgment." 
 
 "Boy, I hope you do me justice. If I had done the foul 
 deed with which they charge me, I should have manhood 
 enough to come and offer my head to the blow of punish 
 ment, as all good and honest red-men do the same." 
 Then giving his anxious Indian friend a look, to reassure 
 him of his innocence, he turned to the rest of his atten 
 tive and interested listeners, as he continued in English. 
 "I have a short story to tell, and he that believes it will 
 believe the truth, and he that disbelieves it will only lead 
 himself astray, and perhaps his neighbor, too. We were 
 all outlying about your camp, friend squatter, as by this 
 time you may begin to suspect, when we found that it 
 contained a wronged and imprisoned lady, with inten 
 tions neither more honest nor dishonest than to set her 
 free, as in nature and justice she had a right to be. See 
 ing that I was more skilled in scouting than the others, 
 while they lay back in the cover, I was sent upon the 
 plain, on the business of the reconnoiterings. You little 
 thought that one was so nigh, who saw into all the cir 
 cumventions of your hunt; but there was I, sometimes 
 flat behind a bush or a tuft of grass, sometimes rolling 
 down a hill into a bottom, and little did you dream that 
 your motions were watched, as the panther watches the 
 drinking deer. Lord, squatter, when I was a man in the 
 pride and strength of my days, I have looked in at the 
 tent door of the enemy, and they sleeping, ay, and dream 
 ing, too, of being at home and in peace. I wish there 
 was time to give you the partic 
 
 "Proceed with your explanation," interrupted Mid- 
 dleton. 
 
 "Ah! and a bloody and wicked sight it was! There I 
 lay in a low bed of grass, as two of the hunters came 
 nigh each other. Their meeting was not cordial, nor such 
 as men, who meet in a desert should give each other; but 
 I thought they would have parted in peace, until I saw 
 one put his rifle to the other s back, and do what I call a 
 treacherous and sinful murder. It was a noble and a 
 manly youth, that boy! Though the powder burnt his 
 coat, he stood the shock for more than a minute before 
 
410 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 he fell. Then was he brought to his knees, and a desperate 
 and manful fight he made to the brake, like a wounded 
 bear seeking a cover!" 
 
 "And why, in the name of heavenly justice, did you 
 conceal this?" cried Middleton. 
 
 "What! think you, captain, that a man who has spent 
 more than threescore years in the wilderness, has not 
 learned the virtue of discretion? What red warrior runs 
 to tell the sights he has seen, until a fitting time? I took 
 the Doctor to the place, in order to see whether his skill 
 might not come in use; and our friend, the bee-hunter, 
 being in company, was knowing to the fact that the bushes 
 held the body." 
 
 "Ay; it ar true," said Paul; "but not knowing what 
 private reasons might make the old trapper wish to hush 
 the matter up, I said as little about the thing as possible; 
 which was just nothing at all." 
 
 "And who was the perpetrator of this deed?" demanded 
 Middleton. 
 
 "If by the perpetrator you mean him who did the act, 
 yonder stands the man; and a shame and a disgrace is it 
 to our race, that he is of the blood and family of the 
 dead." 
 
 "He lies! he lies!" shrieked Abiram. "I did no mur 
 der; I gave but blow for blow." 
 
 The voice of Ishmael was deep, and even awful, as he 
 answered : 
 
 "It is enough. Let the old man go. Boys, put the 
 brother of your mother in his place." 
 
 "Touch me not!" cried Abiram. "I ll call on God to 
 curse ye if you touch me!" 
 
 The wild and disordered gleam of his eye at first in 
 duced the young men to arrest their steps; but when 
 Abner, older and more resolute than the rest, advanced 
 full upon him, with a countenance that bespoke the hostile 
 
 ate of his mind, the affrighted criminal turned, and 
 
 ting an abortive effort to fly, fell with his face to the 
 
 th, to all appearance perfectly dead. Amid the low 
 
 mations of horror which succeeded, Ishmael made a 
 
 e which commanded his sons to bear the body into 
 
 
 
THE PRAIRIE 411 
 
 "Now," he said, turning to those who were strangers 
 in his camp, "nothing is left to be done, but each to go 
 his own road. I wish you all well; and to you, Ellen, 
 though you may not prize the gift, I say, God bless you!" 
 
 Middleton, awe-struck by what he believed a manifest 
 judgment of Heaven, made no further resistance, but 
 prepared to depart. The arrangements were brief, and 
 soon completed. When they were all ready, they took a 
 short and silent leave of the squatter and his family; and 
 then the whole of the singularly constituted party were 
 seen slowly and silently following the victorious Pawnee 
 towards his distant villages. 
 
CHAPTER XXXII 
 
 " And I beseech you, 
 Wrest once the law, to your authority 
 To do a great right, do a little wrong. " 
 
 SHAKESPEARE. 
 
 ISHMAEL awaited long and patiently for the motley train 
 of Hard-Heart to disappear. When his scout reported 
 that the last straggler of the Indians, who had joined 
 their chief so soon as he was at such a distance from the 
 encampment as to excite no jealousy by their numbers, 
 had gone behind the most distant swell of the prairie, he 
 gave forth the order to strike his tents. The cattle were 
 already in the gears, and the movables were soon trans 
 ferred to their usual places in the different vehicles. 
 When all these arrangements were completed, the little 
 wagon, which had so long been the tenement of Inez, was 
 drawn before the tent into which the insensible body of 
 the kidnapper had been borne, and preparations were evi 
 dently made for the reception of another prisoner. Then 
 it was, as Abiram appeared, pale, terrified, and tottering 
 beneath a load of detected guilt, that the younger mem 
 bers of the family were first apprised that he still belonged 
 to the class of the living. A general and superstitious 
 impression had spread among them, that his crime had 
 been visited by a terrible retribution from Heaven; and 
 they now gazed at him, as at a being who belonged rather 
 to another world, than as a mortal, who, like themselves, 
 had still to endure the last agony before the great link 
 of human existence could be broken. The criminal him 
 self appeared to be in a state in which the most sensitive 
 and startling terror was singularly combined with total 
 physical apathy. The truth was, that while his person 
 had been numbed by the shock, his susceptibility to ap- 
 
 -ehension kept his agitated mind in unrelieved distress. 
 When he found himself in the open air, he looked about 
 him, in order to gather, if possible, some evidences of 
 
 412 
 
THE PRAIRIE 413 
 
 his future fate, from the countenances of those gathered 
 round. Seeing everywhere grave but composed features, 
 and meeting in no eye any expression that threatened im 
 mediate violence, the miserable man began to revive; and, 
 by the time he was seated in the wagon, his artful faculties 
 were beginning to plot the expedients of parrying the 
 just resentment of his kinsmen, or, if these should fail 
 him, the means of escaping from a punishment that his 
 forebodings told him would be terrible. 
 
 Throughout the whole of these preparations, Ishmael 
 rarely spoke. A gesture, or a glance of the eye, served 
 to indicate his pleasure to his sons, and with these simple 
 methods of communication all parties appeared content. 
 When the signal was made to proceed, the squatter threw 
 his rifle into the hollow of his arm, and his axe across 
 his shoulder, taking the lead as usual. Esther buried 
 herself in the wagon which contained her daughters; the 
 young men took their customary places among the cattle 
 or nigh the teams; and the whole proceeded, at their 
 ordinary dull but unremitted gait. 
 
 For the first time in many a day the squatter turned 
 his back towards the setting sun. The route he held was 
 in the direction of the settled country, and the manner in 
 which he moved sufficed to tell his children, who had 
 learned to read their father s determinations in his mien, 
 that their journey on the prairie was shortly to have an 
 end. Still, nothing else transpired for hours, that might 
 denote the existence of any sudden or violent revolution 
 in the purposes or feelings of Ishmael. During all that 
 time he marched alone, keeping a few hundred rods in 
 front of his teams, seldom giving any sign of extraordi 
 nary excitement. Once or twice, indeed, his huge figure 
 was seen standing on the summit of some distant swell, 
 with the head bent towards the earth, as he leaned on his 
 rifle; but then these moments of intense thought were 
 rare, and of short continuance. The train had long thrown 
 its shadow towards the east, before any material altera 
 tion was made in the disposition of their march. Water 
 courses were waded, plains were passed, and rolling 
 ascents risen and descended, without producing the small 
 est change. Long practised in the difficulties of that 
 
414 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 peculiar species of traveling in which he was engaged, 
 the squatter avoided the more impracticable obstacles of 
 their route by a sort of instinct, invariably inclining to 
 the right or left in season, as the formation of the land, 
 the presence of trees, or the signs of rivers, forewarned 
 him of the necessity of such movements. 
 
 At length the hour arrived when charity to man and 
 beast required a temporary suspension of labor. Ishmael 
 chose the required spot with his customary sagacity. The 
 regular formation of the country, such as it has been 
 described in the earlier pages of our book, had long been 
 interrupted by a more unequal and broken surface. There 
 were, it is true, in general, the same wide and empty 
 wastes, the same rich and extensive bottoms, and that 
 wild and singular combination of swelling fields and of 
 nakedness, which gives that region the appearance of an 
 ancient country, incomprehensibly stripped of its people 
 and their dwellings. But those distinguishing features 
 of the roll ing prairies had long been interrupted by irreg 
 ular hillocks, occasional masses of rock, and broad belts 
 of forest. 
 
 Ishmael chose a spring that broke out of the base of a 
 rock some forty or fifty feet in elevation, as a place well 
 suited to the wants of his herds. The water moistened a 
 small swale that lay beneath the spot, which yielded, in 
 return for the fecund gift, a scanty growth of grass. A 
 solitary willow had taken root in the alluvion, and profit 
 ing by its exclusive possession of the soil, the tree had 
 sent up its stem far above the crest of the adjacent rock, 
 whose peaked summit had once been shadowed by its 
 branches. But its loveliness had gone with the mysteri 
 ous principle of life. As if in mockery of the meager 
 low of verdure that the spot exhibited, it remained a 
 
 We and solemn monument of former fertility. The 
 
 larger ragged, and fantastic branches still obtruded 
 
 hemselves abroad, while the white and hoary trunk stood 
 
 naked and tempest-riven. Not a leaf nor a sign of vege- 
 
 tionwas to be teen about it. In all things it proclaimed 
 frailty of existence, and the fulfilment of time. 
 
 re Ishmael, after making the customary signal for 
 the tram to approach, threw his vast frame upon the 
 
THE PRAIRIE 415 
 
 earth, and seemed to muse on the deep responsibility of 
 his present situation. His sons were not long in arriving; 
 for the cattle no sooner scented the food and water than 
 they quickened their pace, and then succeeded the usual 
 bustle and avocations of a halt. 
 
 The impression made by the scene of that morning was 
 not so deep or lasting on the children of Ishmael and 
 Esther, as to induce them to forget the wants of nature. 
 But while the sons were searching among their stores for 
 something substantial to appease their hunger, and the 
 younger fry were wrangling about their simple dishes, 
 the parents of the unnurtured family were differently 
 employed. 
 
 When the squatter saw that all, even to the reviving 
 Abiram, were busy in administering to their appetites, 
 he gave his downcast partner a glance of his eye, and 
 withdrew towards a distant roll of the land, which bounded 
 the view towards the east. The meeting of the pair in 
 this naked spot was like an interview held above the grave 
 of their murdered son. Ishmael signed to his wife to take 
 a seat beside him on a fragment of rock, and then fol 
 lowed a space during which neither seemed disposed to 
 speak. 
 
 "We have journeyed together long, through good and 
 bad," Ishmael at length commenced; "much have we had 
 to try us, and some bitter cups have we been made to 
 swallow, my woman; but nothing like this has ever before 
 lain in my path." 
 
 "It is a heavy cross for a poor, misguided, and sinful 
 woman to bear!" returned Esther, bowing her head to 
 her knees, and partly concealing her face in her dress. 
 "A heavy and a burdensome weight is this to be laid upon 
 the shoulders of a sister and a mother!" 
 
 "Ay; therein lies the hardship of the case. I had 
 brought my mind to the punishment of that houseless 
 trapper, with no great strivings, for the man had done 
 me few favors, and God forgive me if I suspected him 
 wrongfully of much evil! This is, however, bringing 
 shame in at one door of my cabin in order to drive it out 
 at the other. But shall a son of mine be murdered, and 
 he who did it go at large? the boy would never rest!" 
 
416 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 "Oh, Ishmael, we pushed the matter far! Had little 
 been said, who would have been the wiser? Our con 
 sciences might then have been quiet." 
 
 "Eester,"said the husband, turning on her a reproach 
 ful, but still a dull regard, "the hour has been, my 
 woman, when you thought another hand had done this 
 wickedness." 
 
 "I did, I did! the Lord gave me the feeling as a pun 
 ishment for my sins! but His mercy was not slow in lift 
 ing the veil; I looked into the Book, Ishmael, and there 
 I found the words of comfort." 
 
 "Have you that book at hand, woman? it may happen 
 to advise in such a dreary business." 
 
 Esther fumbled in her pocket, and was not long in pro 
 ducing the fragment of a Bible which had been thumbed 
 and smoke-dried till the print was nearly illegible. It 
 was the only article in the nature of a book that was to 
 be found among the chattels of the squatter, and it had 
 been preserved by his wife as a melancholy relic of more 
 prosperous, and possibly of more innocent days. She had 
 long been in the habit of resorting to it under the pres 
 sure of such circumstances as were palpably beyond human 
 redress, though her spirit and resolution rarely needed 
 support under those that admitted of reparation through 
 any of the ordinary means of reprisal. In this manner 
 Esther had made a sort of convenient ally of the Word 
 of God; rarely troubling it for counsel, however, except 
 when her own incompetency to avert an evil was too ap 
 parent to be disputed. We shall leave casuists to deter 
 mine how far she resembled any other believers in this 
 particular, and proceed directly with the matter before us. 
 
 "There are many awful passages in these pages, Ish 
 mael," she said, when the volume was opened, and the 
 leaves were slowly turning under her finger, "and some 
 there ar that teach the rules of punishment." 
 
 Her husband made a gesture for her to find one of those 
 brief rules of conduct which have been received among 
 all Christian nations as the direct mandates of the Creator, 
 and which have been found so just, that even they who 
 deny their high authority, admit their wisdom. Ishmael 
 listened with grave attention as his companion read all 
 
THE PRAIRIE 417 
 
 those verses which her memory suggested, and which 
 were thought applicable to the situation in which they 
 found themselves. He made her show him the words, 
 which he regarded with a sort of strange reverence. A 
 resolution once taken was usually irrevocable in one who 
 was moved with so much difficulty. He put his hand 
 upon the book and closed the pages himself, as much as 
 to apprise his wife that he was satisfied. Esther, who so 
 well knew his character, trembled at the action, and 
 casting a glance at his steady eye, she said: 
 
 "And yet, Ishmael, my blood and the blood of my chil 
 dren is in his veins! cannot mercy be shown?" 
 
 "Woman," he answered, sternly, "when we believed 
 that miserable old trapper had done this deed, nothing 
 was said of mercy!" 
 
 Esther made no reply, but folding her arms upon her 
 breast she sat silent and thoughtful for many minutes. 
 Then she once more turned her anxious gaze upon the 
 countenance of her husband, where she found all passion 
 and care apparently buried in the coldest apathy. Satis 
 fied now that the fate of her brother was sealed, and 
 possibly conscious how well he merited the punishment 
 that was meditated, she no longer thought of mediation. 
 No more words passed between them. Their eyes met 
 for an instant, and then both arose and walked in pro 
 found silence towards the encampment. 
 
 The squatter found his children expecting his return in 
 the usual listless manner with which they awaited all com 
 ing events. The cattle were already herded, and the 
 horses in their gears in readiness to proceed, so soon as 
 he should indicate that such was his pleasure. The chil 
 dren were already in their proper vehicle, and, in short, 
 nothing delayed the departure but the absence of the 
 parents of the wild brood. 
 
 "Abner, " said the father, with the deliberation with 
 which all his proceedings were characterized, "take the 
 brother of your mother from the wagon, and let him 
 stand on the arth. 
 
 Abiram issued from his place of concealment, trem 
 bling, it is true, but far from destitute of hopes as to his 
 final success in appeasing the just resentment of his kins- 
 27 
 
418 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 man. After throwing a glance around him with the vain 
 wish of finding a single countenance in which he might 
 detect a solitary gleam of sympathy, he endeavored to 
 smother those apprehensions that were by this time reviv 
 ing in their original violence, by forcing a sort of friendly 
 communication between himself and the squatter: 
 
 "The beasts are getting jaded, brother," he said; "and 
 as we have made so good a march already, is it not time 
 to camp? To my eye you may go far before a better place 
 than this is found to pass the night in. 
 
 " "Pis well you like it. Your tarry here ar likely to 
 be long. My sons, draw nigh and listen. Abiram White, 
 he added, lifting his cap, and speaking with a solemnity 
 and steadiness that rendered even his dull mien imposing, 
 "you have slain my first-born, and according to the laws 
 of God and man must you die ! 
 
 The kidnapper started at this terrible and sudden sen 
 tence, with the terror that one would exhibit who unex 
 pectedly found himself in the grasp of a monster from 
 whose power there was no retreat. Although filled with 
 the most serious forebodings of what might be his lot, his 
 courage had not been equal to look his danger in the face, 
 and with the deceitful consolation with which timid 
 tempers are apt to conceal their desperate condition from 
 themselves, he had rather courted a treacherous relief in 
 his cunning, than prepared himself for the worst. 
 
 "Die!" he repeated, in a voice that scarcely issued from 
 his chest; "a man is surely safe among his kinsmen?" 
 
 "So thought my boy," returned the squatter, motion 
 ing for the team that contained his wife and the girls to 
 proceed, as he very coolly examined the priming of his 
 piece. "By the rifle did you destroy my son; it is fit 
 and just that you meet your end by the same weapon. 
 
 Abiram stared about him with a gaze that bespoke an 
 unsettled reason. He even laughed, as if he would not 
 only persuade himself but others that what he heard was 
 some pleasantry intended to try his nerves. But nowhere 
 did his frightful merriment meet with an answering echo. 
 All around was solemn and still. The visages of his 
 nephews were excited, but cold towards him, and that of 
 his former confederate frightfully determined. This very 
 
THE PRAIRIE 419 
 
 steadiness of mien was a thousand times more alarming 
 and hopeless than any violence could have proved. The 
 latter might possibly have touched his spirit and awakened 
 resistance, but the former threw him entirely on the 
 feeble resources of himself. 
 
 "Brother," he said, in a hurried, unnatural whisper, 
 "did I hear you?" 
 
 "My words are plain, Abiram White; thou hast done 
 murder, and for the same must thou die!" 
 
 "Esther! sister, sister, will you leave me! Oh, sister! 
 do you hear my call?" 
 
 "I hear one speak from the grave!" returned the husky 
 tones of Esther, as the wagon passed the spot where the 
 criminal stood. "It is the voice of my first-born, calling 
 aloud for justice! God have mercy, God have mercy on 
 your soul!" 
 
 The team slowly pursued its route, and the deserted 
 Abiram now found himself deprived of the smallest ves 
 tige of hope. Still he could not summon fortitude to 
 meet his death, and had not his limbs refused to aid him 
 he would yet have attempted to fly. Then, by a sudden 
 revolution from hope to utter despair, he fell upon his 
 knees, and commenced a prayer in which cries for mercy 
 to God and to his kinsman were wildly and blasphemously 
 mingled. The sons of Ishmael turned away in horror at 
 the disgusting spectacle, and even the stern nature of the 
 squatter began to bend before so abject misery. 
 
 "May that which you ask of Him be granted," he said; 
 "but a father can never forget a murdered child." 
 
 He was answered by the most humble appeals for time. 
 A week, a day, an hour, were each implored with an 
 earnestness commensurate to the value they receive when 
 a whole life is compressed into their short duration. The 
 squatter was troubled, and at length he yielded in part 
 to the petitions of the criminal. His final purpose was 
 not altered, though he changed the means. "Abner," he 
 said, "mount the rock and look on every side that we may 
 be sure none are nigh." 
 
 While his nephew was obeying this order, gleams of 
 reviving hope were seen shooting across the quivering 
 features of the kidnapper. The report was favorable, 
 
420 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 nothing having life, the retiring teams excepted, was to 
 be seen. A messenger was, however, coming from the 
 latter in great apparent haste. Ishmael awaited its ar 
 rival. He received from the hands of one of his wonder 
 ing and frighted girls a fragment of that book which 
 Esther had preserved with so much care. The squatter 
 beckoned his child away, and placed the leaves in the 
 hands of the criminal. 
 
 "Esther has sent you this," he said, "that in your last 
 moments you may remember God." 
 
 "Bless her, bless her! a good and kind sister has she 
 been to me! But time must be given that I may read; 
 time, my brother, time!" 
 
 "Time shall not be wanting. You shall be your own 
 executioner, and this miserable office shall pass away 
 from my hands. 
 
 Ishmael proceeded to put his new resolution in force. 
 The immediate apprehensions of the kidnapper were 
 quieted by an assurance that he might yet live for days, 
 though his punishment was inevitable. A reprieve to 
 one abject and wretched as Abiram, temporarily produced 
 the same effects as a pardon. He was even foremost in 
 assisting in the appalling arrangements, and of all the 
 actors in that solemn tragedy, his voice alone was face 
 tious and jocular. 
 
 A thin shelf of the rock projected beneath one of the 
 ragged arms of the willow. It was many feet from the 
 ground, and admirably adapted to the purpose which, in 
 fact, its appearance had suggested. On this little plat 
 form the criminal was placed, his arms bound at the el 
 bows behind his back, beyond the possibility of liberation, 
 with a proper cord leading from his neck to the limb of 
 the tree. The latter was so placed, that when suspended 
 the body could find no foothold. The fragment of the 
 Bible was placed in his hands, and he was left to seek his 
 consolation as he might from its pages. 
 
 "And now, Abiram White," said the squatter, when 
 his sons had descended from completing this arrangement, 
 "I give you a last and solemn asking. Death is before 
 you in two shapes. With this rifle can your misery be 
 cut short, or by that cord, sooner or later, must you meet 
 your end." 
 
THE PRAIRIE 421 
 
 "Let me yet live! Oh, Ishmael, you know not how 
 sweet life is when the last moment draws so nigh!" 
 
 " Tis done," said the squatter, motioning for his 
 assistants to follow the herds and teams. "And now, 
 miserable man, that it may prove a consolation to your 
 end, I forgive you my wrongs and leave you to your 
 God." 
 
 Ishmael turned and pursued his way across the plain at 
 his ordinary sluggish and ponderous gait. Though his 
 head was bent a little towards the earth, his inactive 
 mind did not prompt him to cast a look behind. Once, 
 indeed, he thought he heard his name called in tones that 
 were a little smothered, but they failed to make him 
 pause. 
 
 At the spot where he and Esther had conferred he 
 reached the boundary of the visible horizon from the 
 rock. Here he stopped, and ventured a glance in the 
 direction of the place he had just quitted. The sun was 
 near dipping into the plains beyond, and its last rays 
 lighted the naked branches of the willow. He saw the 
 ragged outline of the whole drawn against the glowing 
 heavens, and he even traced the still upright form of the 
 being he had left to his misery. Turning the roll of the 
 swell, he proceeded with the feelings of one who had 
 been suddenly and violently separated from a recent con 
 federate forever. 
 
 Within a mile the squatter overtook his teams. His 
 sons had found a place suited to the encampment for the 
 night, and merely awaited his approach to confirm their 
 choice. Few words were necessary to express his acquies 
 cence. Everything passed in a silence more general and 
 remarkable than ever. The chidings of Esther were not 
 heard among her young, or, if heard, they were more in 
 the tones of softened admonition than in her usual up 
 braiding key. 
 
 No questions nor explanations passed between the hus 
 band and his wife. It was only as the latter was about 
 to withdraw among her children for the night, that the 
 former saw her taking a furtive look at the pan of his 
 rifle. Ishmael bade his sons seek their rest, announcing 
 his intention to look to the safety of the camp in person. 
 
422 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 When all was still, he walked out upon the prairie with 
 a sort of sensation that he found his breathing among the 
 tents too straitened. The night was well adapted to 
 heighten the feelings which had been created by the 
 events of the day. 
 
 The wind had risen with the moon, and it was occa 
 sionally sweeping over the plain in a manner that made 
 it not difficult for the sentinel to imagine strange and un 
 earthly sounds were mingling in the blasts. Yielding to 
 the extraordinary impulses of which he was the subject, 
 he cast a glance around to see that all were slumbering in 
 security, and then he strayed towards the swell of land 
 already mentioned. Here the squatter found himself at 
 a point that commanded a view to the east and to the 
 west. Light fleecy clouds were driving before the moon, 
 which was cold and watery, though there were moments 
 when its placid rays were shed from clear blue fields, 
 seeming to soften objects to its own mild loveliness. 
 
 For the first time, in a life of so much wild adventure, 
 Ishmael felt a keen sense of solitude. The naked prairies 
 began to assume the forms of illimitable and dreary 
 wastes, and the rushing of the wind sounded like the 
 whisperings of the dead. It was not long before he 
 thought a shriek was borne past him on a blast. It did 
 not sound like a call from earth, but it swept frightfully 
 through the upper air, mingled with the hoarse accom 
 paniment of the wind. The teeth of the squatter were 
 compressed and his huge hand grasped the rifle, as if it 
 would crush the metal. Then came a lull, a fresher blast, 
 and a cry of horror that seemed to have been uttered at 
 the very portals of his ears. A sort of echo burst invol 
 untarily from his own lips, as men shout under unnatural 
 excitement, and throwing his rifle across his shoulder, he 
 proceeded towards the rock with the strides of a giant. 
 
 It was not often that the blood of Ishmael moved at the 
 rate with which the fluid circulates in the veins of ordi 
 nary men; but now he felt it ready to rush from every 
 pore in his body. The animal was aroused, in his most 
 t energies. Ever as he advanced he heard those 
 shrieks, which sometimes seemed ringing among the 
 louds, and sometimes passed so nigh, as to appear to 
 
THE PRAIRIE 423 
 
 brush the earth. At length there came a cry in which 
 there could be no delusion, or to which the imagination 
 could lend no horror. It appeared to fill each cranny of 
 the air, as the visible horizon is often charged to fulness 
 by one dazzling flash of the electric fluid. The name of 
 God was distinctly audible, but it was awfully and blas 
 phemously blended with sounds that may not be repeated. 
 The squatter stopped, and for a moment he covered his 
 ears with his hands. When he withdrew the latter, a low 
 and husky voice at his elbow asked in smothered tones: 
 
 "Ishmael, my man, heard ye nothing?" 
 
 "Hist!" returned the husband, laying a powerful arm 
 on Esther, without manifesting the smallest surprise at 
 the unlooked-for presence of his wife. "Hist, woman! 
 if you have the fear of Heaven, be still!" 
 
 A profound silence succeeded. Though the wind rose 
 and fell as before, its rushing was no longer mingled 
 with those fearful cries. The sounds were imposing and 
 solemn, but it was the solemnity and majesty of nature. 
 
 "Let us go on," said Esther; "all is hushed." 
 
 "Woman, what has brought you here?" demanded her 
 husband, whose blood had returned into its former chan 
 nels, and whose thoughts had already lost a portion of 
 their excitement. 
 
 "Ishmael, he murdered our first-born; but it is not 
 meet that the son of my mother should lie upon the 
 ground, like the carrion of a dog." 
 
 "Follow!" returned the squatter, again grasping his 
 rifle, and striding towards the rock. The distance was 
 still considerable; and their approach, as they drew nigh 
 the place of execution, was moderated by awe. Many 
 minutes had passed before they reached a spot where they 
 might distinguish the outlines of the dusky objects. 
 
 "Where have you put the body?" whispered Esther. 
 "See, here are pick and spade, that a brother of mine 
 may sleep in the bosom of the earth!" 
 
 The moon broke from behind a mass of clouds, and the 
 eye of the woman was enabled to follow the finger of 
 Ishmael. It pointed to a human form swinging in the 
 wind, beneath the ragged and shining arm of the willow. 
 Esther bent her head and veiled her eyes from the sight. 
 
424 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 But Ishmael drewnigher, and long contemplated his work 
 in awe though not in compunction. The leaves of the 
 sacred book were scattered on the ground, and even a 
 fragment of the shelf had been displaced by the kidnapper 
 in his agony. But all was now in the stillness of death. 
 The grim and convulsed countenance of the victim was at 
 times brought full into the light of the moon, and again 
 as the wind lulled, the fatal rope drew a dark line across 
 its bright disk. The squatter raised his rifle with ex 
 treme care, and fired. The cord was cut, and the body 
 came lumbering to the earth, a heavy and insensible mass. 
 
 Until now Esther had not moved nor spoken. But her 
 hand was not slow to assist in the labor of the hour. The 
 grave was soon dug. It was instantly made to receive its 
 miserable tenant. As the lifeless form descended, Esther, 
 who sustained the head, looked up into the face of her 
 husband with an expression of anguish, and said: 
 
 "Ishmael, my man, it is very terrible! I cannot kiss 
 the corpse of my father s child!" 
 
 The squatter laid his broad hand on the bosom of the 
 dead, and said: 
 
 "Abiram White, we all have need of mercy; from my 
 soul do I forgive you! May God in heaven have pity on 
 your sins!" 
 
 The woman bowed her face, and imprinted her lips long 
 and fervently on the pallid forehead of her brother. 
 After this came the falling clods and all the solemn sounds 
 of filling a grave. Esther lingered on her knees, and 
 Ishmael stood uncovered while the woman muttered a 
 prayer. All was then finished. 
 
 On the following morning the teams and herds of the 
 squatter were seen pursuing their course towards the 
 settlements. As they approached the confines of society 
 the train was blended among a thousand others. Though 
 some of the numerous descendants of this peculiar pair 
 were reclaimed from their lawless and semi -barbarous 
 lives, the principals of the family themselves were never 
 heard of more. 
 
CHAPTER XXXIII 
 
 "No leave take I; for I will ride, 
 As far as land will let me, by your side. " 
 
 SHAKESPEAHE. 
 
 THE passage of the Pawnee to his village was interrupted 
 by no scene of violence. His vengeance had been as com 
 plete as it was summary. Not even a solitary scout of the 
 Sioux was left on the hunting-grounds he was obliged to 
 traverse, and of course the journey of Middleton s party 
 was as peaceful as if made in the bosom of the States. 
 The marches were timed to meet the weakness of the 
 females. In short, the victors seemed to have lost every 
 trace of ferocity with their success, and appeared disposed 
 to consult the most trifling of the wants of that engrossing 
 people who were daily encroaching on their rights, and 
 reducing the red-men of the west from their state of proud 
 independence to the condition of fugitives and wanderers. 
 
 Our limits will not permit a detail of the triumphal entry 
 of the conquerors. The exultation of the tribe was pro 
 portioned to its previous despondency. Mothers boasted 
 of the honorable deaths of their sons; wives proclaimed 
 the honor and pointed to the scars of their husbands; and 
 Indian girls rewarded the young braves with songs of 
 triumph. The trophies of their fallen enemies were ex 
 hibited, as conquered standards are displayed in more 
 civilized regions. The deeds of former warriors were re 
 counted by the aged men, and declared to be eclipsed by 
 the glory of this victory. While Hard-Heart himself, so 
 distinguished for his exploits from boyhood to that hour, 
 was unanimously proclaimed the worthiest chief and the 
 stoutest brave that the Wahcondah had ever bestowed on 
 his most favored children, the Pawnees of the Loups. 
 
 Notwithstanding the comparative security in which 
 Middleton found his recovered treasure, he was not sorry 
 to see his faithful and sturdy artillerists standing among 
 
 425 
 
426 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 the throng as he entered in che wild train, and lifting 
 their voices in a martial shout, to greet his return. The 
 presence of this force, small as it was, removed every 
 shadow of uneasiness from his mind. It made him master 
 of his movements, gave him dignity and importance in the 
 eyes of his new friends, and would enable him to overcome 
 the difficulties of the wide region which still lay between 
 the village of the Pawnees and the nearest fortress of his 
 countrymen. A lodge was yielded to the exclusive pos 
 session of Inez and Ellen; and even Paul, when he saw an 
 armed sentinel in the uniform of the States pacing before 
 its entrance, was content to stray among the dwellings 
 of the "red-skins," prying with but little reserve into 
 their domestic economy, commenting sometimes jocularly, 
 sometimes gravely, and always freely, on their different 
 expedients, or endeavoring to make the wondering house 
 wives comprehend his quaint explanations of what he 
 conceived to be the better customs of the whites. 
 
 This inquiring and troublesome spirit found no imitators 
 among the Indians. The delicacy and reserve of Hard- 
 Heart were communicated to his people. When every 
 attention that could be suggested by their simple manners 
 and narrow wants had been fulfilled, no intrusive foot 
 presumed to approach the cabins devoted to the service of 
 the strangers. They were left to seek their repose in the 
 manner which most comported with their habits and 
 inclinations. The songs and rejoicings of the tribe, how 
 ever, ran far into the night, during the deepest hours of 
 which the voice bf more than one warrior was heard, 
 recounting, from the top of his lodge, the deeds of his 
 people and the glory of their triumphs. 
 
 Everything having life, notwithstanding the excesses of 
 the night, was abroad with the appearance of the sun. 
 The expression of exultation, which had so lately been 
 seen on every countenance, was now changed to one better 
 suited to the feeling of the moment. It was understood 
 by all that the pale faces, who had befriended their chief, 
 were about to take their final leave of the tribe. The 
 soldiers of Middleton, in anticipation of his arrival, had 
 
 rgamed with an unsuccessful trader for the use of his 
 boat, which lay in the stream ready to receive its cargo, 
 
THE PRAIRIE 427 
 
 and nothing remained to complete the arrangements for 
 the long journey. 
 
 Middleton did not see this moment arrive entirely with 
 out distrust. The admiration with which Hard-Heart 
 regarded Inez had not escaped his jealous eye, any more 
 than had the lawless wishes of Mahtoree. He knew the 
 consummate manner in which a savage could conceal his 
 designs, and he felt that it would be a culpable weakness 
 to be unprepared for the worst. Secret instructions were 
 therefore given to his men, while the preparations they 
 made were properly masked behind the show of military 
 parade, with which it was intended to signalize their 
 departure. 
 
 The conscience of the young soldier reproached him, 
 when he saw the whole tribe accompanying his party to 
 the margin of the stream, with unarmed hands and sor 
 rowful countenances. They gathered in a circle around 
 the strangers and their chief, and became not only peace 
 ful, but highly interested observers of what was passing. 
 As it was evident that Hard-Heart intended to speak, the 
 former stopped, and manifested their readiness to listen, 
 the trapper performing the office of interpreter. Then 
 the young chief addressed his people, in the usual meta 
 phorical language of an Indian. He commenced by allud 
 ing to the antiquity and renown of his own nation. He 
 spoke of their successes in the hunts and on the war-path; 
 of the manner in which they had always known how to de 
 fend their rights and to chastise their enemies. After he 
 had said enough to manifest his respect for the greatness 
 of the Loups, and to satisfy the pride of the listeners, he 
 made a sudden transition to the race of whom the strangers 
 were members. He compared their countless numbers to 
 the flights of migratory birds in the season of blossoms, 
 or in the fall of the year. With a delicacy that none knew 
 better how to practise than an Indian warrior, he made 
 no direct mention of the rapacious tempers that so many 
 of them had betrayed in their dealings with the red-men. 
 Feeling that the sentiment of distrust was strongly en 
 grafted in the tempers of his tribe, he rather endeavored 
 to soothe any just resentment they might entertain, by 
 indirect excuses and apologies. He reminded the listeners 
 
428 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 that even the Pawnee Loups had been obliged to chase 
 many unworthy individuals from their villages. The 
 Wahcondah sometimes veiled His countenance from a red- 
 man. No doubt the Great Spirit of the pale faces often 
 looked darkly on His children. Such as were abandoned 
 to the worker of evil could never be brave or virtuous, let 
 the color of the skin be what it might. He bade his 
 young men look at the hands of the Big-knives. They 
 were not empty, like those of hungry beggars. Neither 
 were they filled with goods, like those of knavish traders. 
 They were, like themselves, warriors, arid they carried 
 arms which they knew well how to use they were worthy 
 to be called brothers! 
 
 Then he directed the attention of all to the chief of the 
 strangers. He was a son of their great white father. He 
 had not come upon the prairies to frighten the buffaloes 
 from their pastures, or to seek the game of the Indians. 
 Wicked men had robbed him of one of his wives; no doubt 
 she was the most obedient, the meekest, the loveliest of 
 them all. They had only to open their eyes to see that 
 his words must be true. Now that the white chief had 
 found his wife, he was about to return to his own people 
 in peace. He would tell them that the Pawnees were just, 
 and there would be a line of wampum between the two 
 nations. Let all his people wish the strangers a safe re 
 turn to their towns. The warriors of the Loups knew 
 both how to receive their enemies, and how to clear the 
 briers from the path of their friends. 
 
 The heart of Middleton beat quick as the young partisan 1 
 alluded to the charms of Inez, and for an instant he cast 
 an impatient glance at his little line of artillerists; but 
 the chief from that moment appeared to forget he had ever 
 seen so fair a being. His feelings, if he had any on the 
 subject, were veiled behind the cold mask of Indian self- 
 denial. He took each warrior by the hand, not forgetting 
 the meanest soldier, but his cold and collected eye never 
 
 The Americans and the Indians have adopted several words, which each believe 
 ecuhar to the languatce of the others. Thus "squaw, " "papoose, " or child, 
 wigwam, etc., etc., though it is doubtful whether they belonged at all to any 
 Man dialect, are much used by both white and red men in cheir intercourse, 
 any words are denved from the French, in this species of prairie nomaic. Par 
 tisan, brave, etc., are of the number. 
 
THE PRAIRIE 429 
 
 wandered for an instant towards either of the females. 
 Arrangements had been made for their comfort, with a 
 prodigality and care that had not failed to excite some 
 surprise in his young men, but in no other particular did 
 he shock their manly pride, by betraying any solicitude in 
 behalf of the weaker sex. 
 
 The leave-taking was general and imposing. Each male 
 Pawnee was sedulous to omit no one of the strange war 
 riors in his attentions, and of course the ceremony occupied 
 some time. The only exception, and that was not general, 
 was in the case of Dr. Battius. Not a few of the young 
 men, it is true, were indifferent about lavishing civilities 
 on one of so doubtful a profession, but the worthy natur 
 alist found some consolation in the more matured polite 
 ness of the old men, who had inferred, that though not of 
 much use in war the medicine of the Big-knives might 
 possibly be made serviceable in peace. 
 
 When all of Middleton s party had embarked, the trap 
 per lifted a small bundle, which had lain at his feet dur 
 ing the previous proceedings, and whistling Hector to his 
 side, he was the last to take his seat. The artillerists gave 
 the usual cheers, which were answered by a shout from 
 the tribe, and then the boat was shoved into the current, 
 and began to glide swiftly down its stream. 
 
 A long and a musing, if not a melancholy silence, suc 
 ceeded this departure. It was first brolcen by the trapper, 
 whose regret was not the least visible in his dejected and 
 sorrowful eye: 
 
 "They are a valiant and an honest tribe," he said; 
 "that will I say boldly in their favor; and second only do 
 I take them to be to that once mighty but now scattered 
 people, the Delawares of the hills. Ah s me, captain, if 
 you had seen as much good and evil as I have seen in these 
 nations of red-skins, you would know of how much value 
 was a brave and simple-minded warrior. I know that 
 some are to be found, who both think and say that an 
 Indian is but little better than the beasts of these naked 
 plains. But it is needful to be honest in one s self, to be 
 a fitting judge of honesty in others. No doubt, no doubt, 
 they know their enemies, and little do they care to show 
 to such any great confidence or love. 
 
430 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 "It is the way of man," returned the captain; "and it 
 is probable they are not wanting in any of his natural 
 qualities." 
 
 "No, no; it is little that they want, that natur has 
 had to give. But as little does he know of the temper of 
 a red-skin, who has seen but one Indian, or one tribe, as 
 he knows of the color of feathers who has only looked upon 
 a crow. Now, friend steersman, just give the boat a 
 sheer towards yonder low sandy point, and a favor will be 
 granted at a short asking." 
 
 "Forwhat?" demanded Middleton; "we are now in the 
 swiftest of the current, and by drawing to the shore we 
 shall lose the force of the stream." 
 
 "Your tarry will not be long," returned the old man, 
 applying his own hand to the execution of that which he 
 had requested. The oarsmen had seen enough of his in 
 fluence with their leader not to dispute his wishes, and 
 before time was given for further discussion on the sub 
 ject, the bow of the boat had touched the land. Captain, 
 resumed the other, untying his little wallet with great 
 deliberation, and even in a manner to show he found sat 
 isfaction in the delay, "I wish to offer you a small matter 
 of trade. No great bargain, mayhap; but still the best 
 that one, of whose hand the skill of the rifle has taken 
 leave, and who has become no better than a miserable 
 trapper, can offer before we part. 
 
 "Part!" was echoed from every mouth, among those 
 who had so recently shared his dangers, and profited by 
 his care. 
 
 "What the devil, old trapper, do you mean to foot it to 
 the settlements, when here is a boat that will float the 
 distance in half the time that the jackass the Doctor has 
 given the Pawnee, could trot along the same?" 
 
 Settlements, boy! It is long sin I took my leave of 
 the waste and wickedness of the settlements and the vil 
 lages. If I live in a clearing, here, it is one of the Lord s 
 making, and I have no hard thoughts on the matter; but 
 never again shall I be seen running wilfully into the 
 danger of immoralities." 
 
 "I had not thought of parting," answered Middleton, 
 endeavoring to seek some relief from the uneasiness he 
 
THE PRAIRIE 431 
 
 felt, by turning his eyes on the sympathizing countenances 
 of his friends; "on the contrary, I had hoped and believed 
 that you would have accompanied us below, where, I give 
 you a sacred pledge, nothing shall be wanting to make 
 your days comfortable." 
 
 "Yes, lad, yes; you would do your endeavors; but what 
 are the strivings of man against the working of the devil? 
 Ay, if kind offers and good wishes could have done the 
 thing, I might have been a congressman, or perhaps a 
 governor, years agone. Your gran ther wished the same, 
 and there are them still living in the Otsego mountains, 
 as I hope, who would gladly have given me a palace for 
 my dwelling. But what are riches without content? My 
 time must now be short, at any rate, and I hold it s no 
 mighty sin for one who acted his part honestly near ninety 
 winters and summers, to wish to pass the few hours that 
 remain in comfort. If you think I have done wrong in 
 coming thus far to quit you again, captain, I will own the 
 reason of the act, without shame or backwardness. Though 
 I have seen so much of the wilderness, it is not to be gain 
 said, that my feelings, as well as my skin, are white. 
 Now it would not be a fitting spectacle that yonder Pawnee 
 Loup should look upon the weakness of an old warrior, if 
 weakness he should happen to show in parting forever 
 from those he has reason to love, though he may not set 
 his heart so strongly on them as to wish to go into the 
 settlements in their company." 
 
 "Harkee, old trapper," said Paul, clearing his throat 
 with a desperate effort, as if determined to give his voice 
 a clear exit; "I have just one bargain to make, since you 
 talk of trading, which is neither more nor less than this. 
 I offer you, as my side of the business, one half of my 
 shanty, nor do I much care if it be the biggest half; the 
 sweetest and the purest honey that can be made of the 
 wild locust; always enough to eat, with now and then a 
 mouthful of venison, or, for that matter, a morsel of buf 
 falo s hump, seeing that I intend to push my acquaintance 
 with the animal, and as good and as tidy cooking as can 
 come from the hands of one like Ellen Wade, here, who 
 will shortly be Nelly somebody-else, and altogether such 
 general treatment as a decent man might be supposed to 
 
432 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 pay to his best friend, or, for that matter, to his own 
 father; in return for the same, you ar to give us at odd 
 moments some of your ancient traditions, perhaps a little 
 wholesome advice on occasions, in small quantities at a 
 time, and as much of your agreeable company as you 
 please." 
 
 "It is well it is well, boy," returned the old man, 
 fumbling at his wallet; "honestly offered, and not un- 
 thankfully declined but it cannot be; no, it can never 
 be." 
 
 "Venerable venator, " said Dr. Battius; "there are ob 
 ligations which every man owes to society and to human 
 nature. It is time that you should return to yoar country 
 men, to deliver up some of those stores of experimental 
 knowledge that you have doubtless obtained by so long a 
 sojourn in the wilds, which, however they may be cor 
 rupted by preconceived opinions, will prove acceptable 
 bequests to those whom, as you say, you must shortly 
 leave forever. 
 
 "Friend physician," returned the trapper, looking the 
 other steadily in the face, "as it would be no easy matter 
 to judge of the temper of the rattler by considering the 
 fashions of the moose, so it would be hard to speak of the 
 usefulness of one man by thinking too much of the deeds 
 of another. You have your gifts like others, I suppose, 
 and little do I wish to disturb them. But as to me, the 
 Lord has made me for a doer and not a talker, and there 
 fore do I consider it no harm to shut my ears to your 
 invitation." 
 
 "It is enough," interrupted Middleton; "I have seen 
 and heard so much of this extraordinary man, as to know 
 that persuasions will not change his purpose. First, we 
 
 11 hear your request, my friend, and then we will con 
 sider what may be best done for your advantage." 
 
 "It is a small matter, captain," returned the old man, 
 succeeding at length in opening his bundle. "A small and 
 trifling matter is it, to what I once used to offer in the 
 way of bargain; but then it is the best I have, and therein 
 not to be despised. Here are the skins of four beavers, 
 that I took, it might be a month afore we met, and here 
 is another from a raccoon, that is of no great matter to 
 
THE PRAIRIE 433 
 
 be sure, but which may serve to make weight atween 
 us." 
 
 "And what do you propose to do with them?" 
 
 "I offer them in lawful barter. Them knaves the Sioux 
 the Lord forgive me for ever believing it was the Kon- 
 zas! have stolen the best of my traps, and driven me 
 altogether to make-shift inventions, which might foretell 
 a dreary winter for me, should my time stretch into an 
 other season. I wish you therefore to take the skins, and 
 to offer them to some of the trappers you will not fail to 
 meet below, in exchange for a few traps, and to send the 
 same into the Pawnee village in my name. Be careful to 
 have my mark painted on them; a letter N, with a hound s 
 ear, and the lock of a rifle. There is no red-skin who will 
 then dispute my right. For all which trouble I have little 
 more to offer than my thanks, unless my friend, the bee- 
 hunter here, will accept of the raccoon, and take on him 
 self the special charge of the whole matter." 
 
 If I do may I be The mouth of Paul was stopped 
 by the hand of Ellen, and he was obliged to swallow the 
 rest of the sentence, which he did with a species of emo 
 tion that bore no slight resemblance to the process of 
 strangulation. 
 
 "Well, well," returned the old man, meekly; "I hope 
 there is no heavy offense in the offer. I know that the 
 skin of a raccoon is of small price, but then it was no 
 mighty labor that I asked in return. 
 
 "You entirely mistake the meaning of our friend," 
 interrupted Middleton, who observed that the bee-hunter 
 was looking in every direction but the right one, and that 
 he was utterly unable to make his own vindication. "He 
 did not mean to say that he declined the charge, but 
 merely that he refused all compensation. It is unneces 
 sary, however, to say more of this; it shall be my office 
 to see that the debt we owe is properly discharged, and 
 that all your necessities shall be anticipated." 
 
 "Anan!" said the old man, looking up inquiringly into 
 the other s face, as if to ask an explanation. 
 
 "It shall all be as you wish. Lay the skins with my 
 baggage. We will bargain for you as for ourselves. 
 
 "Thankee, thankee, captain; your gran ther was of a 
 28 
 
434 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 free and generous mind. So much so, in truth, that those 
 just people, the Delawares, called him the Open Hand. 
 I wish, now, I was as I used to be, in order that I might 
 send in the lady a few delicate martins for her tippets and 
 overcoats, just to show you that I know how to give cour 
 tesy for courtesy. But do not expect the same, for I am 
 too old to give a promise! It will all be just as the Lord 
 shall see fit. I can offer you nothing else, for I haven t 
 lived so long in the wilderness not to know the scrupulous 
 ways of a gentleman. 
 
 "Harkee, old trapper," cried the bee-hunter, striking 
 his own hand into the open palm which the other had ex 
 tended, with a report but little below the crack of a rifle, 
 "I have just two things to say: firstly, that the captain has 
 told you my meaning better than I can myself; and sec 
 ondly, if you want a skin, either for your private use or 
 to send abroad, I have it at your service; and that is the 
 skin of one Paul Hover!" 
 
 The old man returned the grasp he received, and opened 
 his mouth to the utmost, in his extraordinary, silent laugh. 
 
 "You couldn t have given such a squeeze, boy, when the 
 Teton squaws were about you with their knives! Ah! you 
 are in your prime, and in your vigor and happiness, if 
 honesty lies in your path." Then the expression of his 
 rugged features suddenly changed to a look of seriousness 
 and thought. "Come hither, lad," he said, leading the 
 bee-hunter by a button, to the land, and speaking apart in 
 a tone of admonition and confidence; "much has passed 
 atween us on the pleasures and respectableness of a life in 
 the woods or on the borders. I do not now mean to say 
 that all you have heard is not true; but different tempers 
 call for different employments. You have taken to your 
 bosom, there, a good and kind child, and it has become 
 your duty to consider her, as well as yourself, in setting 
 forth in life. You are a little given to skirting the settle 
 ments; but to my poor judgment the girl would be more 
 like a flourishing flower in the sun of a clearing, than in 
 the winds of a prairie. Therefore forget anything you 
 may have heard from me, which is nevertheless true, and 
 turn your mind on the ways of the inner country. 
 
 Paul could only answer with a squeeze that would have 
 
THE PRAIRIE 435 
 
 brought tears from the eyes of most men, but which pro 
 duced no other effect on the indurated muscles of the 
 other than to make him laugh and nod, as if he received 
 the same as a pledge that the bee-hunter would remember 
 his advice. The trapper then turned away from his rough, 
 but warm-hearted companion, and having called Hector 
 from the boat, he seemed anxious still to utter a few 
 words more. 
 
 "Captain," he at length resumed," I know when a poor 
 man talks of credit he deals in a delicate word, according 
 to the fashions of the world; and when an old man talks of 
 life, he speaks of that which he may never see; neverthe 
 less there is one thing I will say, and that is not so much 
 on my own behalf as on that of another person. Here is 
 Hector, a good and faithful pup, that has long outlived 
 the time of a dog; and, like his master, he looks more to 
 comfort, now, than to any deeds in running. But the 
 creatur has his feelings as well as a Christian. He has 
 consorted latterly with his kinsman, there, in such a sort 
 as to find great pleasure in his company, and I will ac 
 knowledge that it touches my feelings to part the pair so 
 soon. If you will set a value on your hound, I will en 
 deavor to send it to you in the spring, more especially 
 should them same traps come safe to hand; or, if you dis 
 like parting with the animal altogether, I will just ask 
 you for his loan through the winter. I think I can see my 
 pup will not last beyond that time, for I have judgment in 
 these matters, since many is the friend, both hound and 
 red-skin, that I have seen depart in my day, though the 
 Lord hath not yet seen fit to order his angels to sound 
 forth my name." 
 
 "Take him, take him," cried Middleton; "take all, or 
 anything!" 
 
 The old man whistled the younger dog to the land; and 
 then he proceeded to the final adieux. Little was said on 
 either side. The trapper took each person solemnly by the 
 hand, and uttered something friendly and kind to all. 
 Middleton was perfectly speechless, and was driven to 
 affect busying himself among the baggage. Paul whistled 
 with all his might, and even Obed took his leave with an 
 effort that bore the appearance of desperate philosophical 
 
436 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 resolution. When he had made the circuit of the whole, 
 the old man, with his own hands, shoved the boat into the 
 current, wishing God to speed them. Not a word was 
 spoken, nor a stroke of the oar given, until the travelers 
 had floated past a knoll that hid the trapper from their 
 view. He was last seen standing on the low point, lean 
 ing on his rifle, with Hector crouched at his feet, and the 
 younger dog frisking along the sands, in the playfulness 
 of youth and vigor. 
 
CHAPTER XXXIV 
 
 " Me thought I heard a voice. " 
 
 -SHAKESPEARE. 
 
 THE water-courses were at their height, and the boat 
 went down the swift current like a bird. The passage 
 proved prosperous and speedy. In less than a third of the 
 time that would have been necessary for the same journey 
 by land, it was accomplished by the favor of those rapid 
 rivers. Issuing from one stream into another, as the veins 
 of the human body communicate with the larger channels 
 of life, they soon entered the grand artery of the western 
 waters, and landed safely at the very door of the father 
 of Inez. 
 
 The joy of Don Augustin, and the embarrassment of the 
 worthy father Ignatius, may be imagined. The former 
 wept and returned thanks to Heaven; the latter returned 
 thanks and did not weep. The mild provincials were too 
 happy to raise any questions on the character of so joyful 
 a restoration; and, by a sort of general consent, it soon 
 came to be an admitted opinion that the bride of Middle- 
 ton had been kidnapped by a villain, and that she was re 
 stored to her friends by human agency. There were, as 
 respects this belief, certainly a few skeptics, but then they 
 enjoyed their doubts in private, with that species of sub 
 limated and solitary gratification that a miser finds in 
 gazing at his growing, but useless hoards. 
 
 In order to give the worthy priest something to employ 
 his mind, Middleton made him the instrument of uniting 
 Paul and Ellen. The former consented to the ceremony, 
 because he found that all his friends laid great stress on 
 the matter; but shortly after he led his bride into the 
 plains of Kentucky, under the pretense of paying certain 
 customary visits to sundry members of the family of 
 Hover. While there, he took occasion to have the mar 
 riage properly solemnized by a justice of the peace of his 
 
 437 
 
438 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 acquaintance, in whose ability to forge the nuptial chain 
 he had much more faith than in that of all the gownsmen 
 within the pale of Rome. Ellen, who appeared conscious 
 that some extraordinary preventives might prove necessary 
 to keep one of so erratic a temper as her partner within 
 the proper matrimonial boundaries, raised no objections 
 to these double knots, and all parties were content. 
 
 The local importance Middleton had acquired, by his 
 union with the daughter of so affluent a proprietor as Don 
 Augustin, united to his personal merit, attracted the at 
 tention of the government. He was soon employed in 
 various situations of responsibility and confidence, which 
 both served to elevate his character in the public estima 
 tion, and to afford the means of patronage. The bee- 
 hunter was among the first of those to whom he saw fit to 
 extend his favor. It was far from difficult to find situa 
 tions suited to the abilities of Paul, in the state of society 
 that existed three-and-twenty years ago in those regions. 
 The efforts of Middleton and Inez, in behalf of her hus 
 band, were warmly and sagaciously seconded by Ellen, and 
 they succeeded, in process of time, in working a great and 
 beneficial change in his character. He soon became a land 
 holder, then a prosperous cultivator of the soil, and shortly 
 after a town-officer. By that progressive change in for 
 tunes, which in the republic is often seen to be so singu 
 larly accompanied by a corresponding improvement in 
 knowledge and self-respect, he went on, from step to step, 
 until his wife enjoyed the maternal delight of seeing her 
 children placed far beyond the danger of returning to that 
 state from which both their parents had issued. Paul is 
 actually at this moment a member of the lower branch of 
 the legislature of the State where he has long resided; 
 and he is even notorious for making speeches that have a 
 tendency to put that deliberative body in good humor, and 
 ch, as they are based on great practical knowledge 
 
 lited to the condition of the country, possess a merit 
 
 s much wanted in many more subtle and finespun 
 
 theories, that are daily heard in similar assemblies, to issue 
 
 from the lips of certain instinctive politicians. But all 
 
 iese happy fruits were the results of much care, and of a 
 long period of time. Middleton, who fills, with a credit 
 
THE PRAIRIE 439 
 
 better suited to the difference in their educations, a seat 
 in a far higher branch of legislative authority, is the 
 source from which we have derived most of the intelligence 
 necessary to compose our legend. In addition to what he 
 has related of Paul, and of his own continued happiness, 
 he has added a short narrative of what took place on a 
 subsequent visit to the prairies, with which, as we con 
 ceive it a suitable termination to what has gone before, 
 we shall judge it wise to conclude our labors. 
 
 In the autumn of the year that succeeded the season in 
 which the preceding events occurred, the young man, still 
 in the military service, found himself on the waters of 
 the Missouri, at a point not far remote from the Pawnee 
 towns. 
 
 Released from any immediate calls of duty, and strongly 
 urged to the measure by Paul, who was in his company, 
 he determined to take horse, and cross the country to 
 visit the partisan, and to inquire into the fate of his 
 friend the trapper. As his train was suited to his func 
 tions and rank, the journey was effected, with the priva 
 tions and hardships that are the accompaniments of all 
 traveling in a wild country, but without any of those dan 
 gers and alarms that marked his former passage through 
 the same regions. When within a proper distance, he des 
 patched an Indian runner, belonging to a friendly tribe, to 
 announce the approach of himself and party, continuing 
 his route at a deliberate pace, in order that the intelligence 
 might, as was customary, precede his arrival. To the 
 surprise of the travelers, their message was unanswered. 
 Hour succeeded hour, and mile after mile was passed, 
 without bringing either the signs of an honorable recep 
 tion, or the more simple assurances of a friendly welcome. 
 At length the cavalcade, at whose head rode Middleton 
 and Paul, descended from the elevated plain, on which 
 they had long been journeying, to a luxuriant bottom, 
 that brought them to the level of the village of the Loups. 
 The sun was beginning to fall, and a sheet of golden light 
 was spread over the placid plain, lending to its even sur 
 face those glorious tints and hues, that the human imagi 
 nation is apt to conceive, form the embellishment of still 
 more imposing scenes. The verdure of the year yet re- 
 
440 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 mained, and herds of horses and mules were grazing 
 peacefully in the vast natural pasture, under the keeping 
 of vigilant Pawnee boys. Paul pointed out among them 
 the well-known form of Asinus, sleek, fat, and luxuriat 
 ing in the fulness of content, as he stood with reclining 
 ears and closed eyelids, seemingly musing on the exquisite 
 nature of his present indolent enjoyment. 
 
 The route of the party led them at no great distance 
 from one of those watchful youths, who was charged with 
 a trust heavy as the principal wealth of his tribe. He 
 heard the trampling of the horses, and cast his eye aside, 
 but instead of manifesting curiosity or alarm, his look 
 instantly returned whence it had been withdrawn, to the 
 spot where the village was known to stand. 
 
 "There is something remarkable in all this," muttered 
 Middleton, half offended at what he conceived to be not 
 only a slight to his rank, but offensive to himself per 
 sonally; "yonder boy has heard of our approach, or he 
 would not fail to notify his tribe; and yet he scarcely 
 deigns to favor us with a glance. Look at your arms, 
 men; it may be necessary to let these savages feel our 
 strength." 
 
 "Therein, captain, I think you re in an error," re 
 turned Paul; "if honesty is to be met on the prairies at 
 all, you will find it in our old friend Hard-Heart; neither 
 is an Indian to be judged of by the rules of a white. See ! 
 we are not altogether slighted, for here comes a party at 
 last to meet us, though it is a little pitiful as to show 
 and numbers. 
 
 Paul was right in both particulars. A group of horse 
 men were at length seen wheeling round a little copse, 
 and advancing across the plain directly towards them. 
 The advance of this party was slow and dignified. As it 
 drew nigh, the partisan of the Loups was seen at its head, 
 followed by a dozen younger warriors of his tribe. They 
 were all unarmed, nor did they even wear any of those 
 ornaments or feathers which are considered testimonials 
 respect to the guest an Indian receives, as well as 
 evidence of his own importance. 
 
 The meeting was friendly though a little restrained on 
 both sides. Middleton, jealous of his own consideration, 
 
THE PRAIRIE 441 
 
 no less than of the authority of his government, suspected 
 some undue influence on the part of the agents of the 
 Canadas; and, as he was determined to maintain the au 
 thority of which he was the representative, he felt him 
 self constrained to manifest a hauteur that he was far 
 from feel ing. It was not so easy to penetrate the motives 
 of the Pawnees. Calm, dignified, and yet far from repul 
 sive, they set an example of courtesy, blended with re 
 serve, that many a diplomatist of the most polished court 
 might have striven in vain to imitate. 
 
 In this manner the two parties continued their course to 
 the town. Middleton had time during the remainder of 
 the ride, to revolve in his mind all the probable reasons 
 which his ingenuity could suggest for this strange recep 
 tion. Although he was accompanied by a regular inter 
 preter, the chiefs made their salutations in a manner that 
 dispensed with his services. Twenty times the captain 
 turned his glance on his former friend, endeavoring to 
 read the expression of his rigid features. But every effort 
 and all conjectures proved equally futile. The eye of Hard- 
 Heart was fixed, composed, and a little anxious; but as to 
 every other emotion, impenetrable. He neither spoke 
 himself, nor seemed willing to invite discourse in his vis 
 itors; it was therefore necessary for Middleton to adopt 
 the patient manners of his companions, and to await the 
 issue for the explanation. 
 
 When they entered the town, its inhabitants were seen 
 collected in an open space, where they were arranged 
 with the customary deference- to age and rank. The whole 
 formed a large circle, in the center of which were perhaps 
 a dozen of the principal chiefs. Hard-Heart waved his 
 hand as he approached, and, as the mass of bodies opened, 
 he rode through, followed by his companions. Here they 
 dismounted ; and as the beasts were led apart, the strangers 
 found themselves environed by a thousand grave, com 
 posed, but solicitous faces. 
 
 Middleton gazed about him in growing concern, for no 
 cry, no song, no shout welcomed him among a people, 
 from whom he had so lately parted with regret. His 
 uneasiness, not to say apprehensions, was shared by all 
 his followers. Determination and stern resolution began 
 
442 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 to assume the place of anxiety in every eye, as each man 
 silently felt for his arms, and assured himself that his 
 several weapons were in a state for service. But there 
 was no answering symptom of hostility on the part of 
 their hosts. Hard-Heart beckoned for Middleton and 
 Paul to follow, leading the way towards the cluster of 
 forms that occupied the center of the circle. Here the 
 visitors found a solution of all the movements which had 
 given them so much reason for apprehension. 
 
 The trapper was placed on a rude seat, which had been 
 made, with studied care, to support his frame in an up 
 right and easy attitude. The first glance of the eye told 
 his former friends, that the old man was at length called 
 upon to pay the last tribute of nature. His eye was 
 glazed, and apparently as devoid of sight as of expression. 
 His features were a little more sunken and strongly marked 
 than formerly; but there, all change, so far as exterior 
 was concerned, might be said to have ceased. His ap 
 proaching end was not to be ascribed to any positive 
 disease, but had been a gradual and mild decay of the 
 physical powers. Life, it is true, still lingered in his 
 system; but it was as if at times entirely ready to de 
 part, and then it would appear to reanimate the sinking 
 form, reluctant to give up the possession of a tenement 
 that had never been corrupted by vice or undermined by 
 disease. It would have been no violent fancy to have 
 imagined that the spirit fluttered about the placid lips of 
 the old woodsman, reluctant to depart from a shell that 
 had so long given it an honest and honorable shelter. 
 
 His body was placed so as to let the light of the setting 
 sun fall full upon the solemn features. His head was 
 bare, the long, thin locks of gray fluttering lightly in the 
 evening breeze. His rifle lay upon his knee, and the 
 other accouterments of the chase were placed at his side, 
 within reach of his hand. Between his feet lay the figure 
 of a hound, with its head crouching to the earth, as if it 
 slumbered; and so perfectly easy and natural was its 
 position, that a second glance was necessary to tell Mid 
 dleton he saw only the skin of Hector, stuffed, by Indian 
 tenderness and ingenuity, in a manner to represent the 
 living animal. His own dog was playing at a distance 
 
THE PRAIRIE 443 
 
 with the child of Tachechana and Mahtoree. The mother 
 herself stood at hand, holding in her arms a second off 
 spring, that might boast of a parentage no less honorable 
 than that which belonged to the son of Hard-Heart. Le 
 Balafre was seated nigh the dying trapper, with every 
 mark about his person that the hour of his own departure 
 was not far distant. The rest of those immediately in the 
 center were aged men, who had apparently drawn near in 
 order to observe the manner in which a just and- fearless 
 warrior would depart on the greatest of his journeys. 
 
 The old man was reaping the rewards of a life remark 
 able for temperance and activity, in a tranquil and placid 
 death. His vigor in a manner endured to the very last. 
 Decay, when it did occur, was rapid, but free from pain. 
 He had hunted with the tribe in the spring, and even 
 throughout most of the summer; when his limbs suddenly 
 refused to perform their customary offices. A sympathiz 
 ing weakness took possession of all his faculties; and the 
 Pawnees believed that they were going to lose, in this 
 unexpected manner, a sage and counselor whom they had 
 begun both to love and respect. But, as we have already 
 said, the immortal occupant seemed unwilling to desert 
 its tenement. The lamp of life flickered, without becom 
 ing extinguished. On the morning of the day on which 
 Middleton arrived, there was a general reviving of the 
 powers of the whole man. His tongue was again heard 
 in wholesome maxims, and his eye from time to time 
 recognized the persons of his friends. It merely proved 
 to be a brief and final intercourse with the world, on the 
 part of one who had already been considered, as to mental 
 communion, to have taken his leave of it forever. 
 
 When he had placed his guests in front of the dying 
 man, Hard-Heart, after a pause, that proceeded as much 
 from sorrow as decorum, leaned a little forward, and 
 demanded : 
 
 "Does my father hear the words of his son?" 
 
 "Speak," returned the trapper, in tones that issued 
 from his chest, but which were rendered awfully distinct 
 by the stillness that reigned .in the place. "I am about 
 to depart from the village of the Loups, and shortly shall 
 be beyong the reach of your voice." 
 
444 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 "Let the wise chief have no cares for his journey," 
 continued Hard-Heart, with an earnest solicitude that led 
 him to forget, for the moment, that others were waiting 
 to address his adopted parent; "a hundred Loups shall 
 clear his path from briers." 
 
 "Pawnee, I die, as I have lived, a Christian man!" 
 resumed the trapper, with a force of voice that had the 
 same startling effect on his hearers as is produced by the 
 trumpet, when its blast rises suddenly and freely on the 
 air, after its obstructed sounds have been heard strug 
 gling in the distance; "as I came into life so will I leave 
 it. Horses and arms are not needed to stand in the 
 presence of the Great Spirit of my people. He knows my 
 color, and according to my gifts will he judge my deeds." 
 
 "My father will tell my young men how many Mingoes 
 he has struck, and what acts of valor and justice he has 
 done, that they may know how to imitate him." 
 
 "A boastful tongue is not heard in the heaven of a 
 white man!" solemnly returned the old man. "What I 
 have done, He has seen. His eyes are always open. That 
 which has been well done will He remember; wherein I 
 have been wrong will He not forget to chastise, though 
 He will do the same in mercy. No, my son; a pale face 
 may not sing his own praises, and hope to have them 
 acceptable before his God!" 
 
 A little disappointed, the young partisan stepped mod 
 estly back, making way for the recent comers to approach. 
 Middleton took one of the meager hands of the trapper 
 and struggling to command his voice, he succeeded in 
 announcing his presence. 
 
 The old man listened like one whose thoughts were 
 dwelling on a very different subject; but when the other 
 had succeeded in making him understand that he was 
 present, an expression of joyful recognition passed over 
 his faded features. 
 
 "I hope you have not so soon forgotten those whom you 
 
 so materially served ! Middleton concluded. It would 
 
 pain me to think my hold on your memory was so light." 
 
 Little that I have ever seen is forgotten, " returned 
 
 trapper; "I am at the close of many weary days, but 
 
 there is not one among them all that I could wish to over- 
 
THE PRAIRIE 445 
 
 look. I remember you, with the whole of your company; 
 ay, and your gran ther, that went before you. I am glad 
 that you have come back upon these plains, for I had 
 need of one who speaks the English, since little faith can 
 be put in the traders of these regions. Will you do a 
 favor to an old and dying man?" 
 
 "Name it," said Middleton; "it shall be done." 
 
 "It is a far journey to send such trifles," resumed the 
 old man, who spoke at short intervals, as strength and 
 breath permitted; "a far and weary journey is the same, 
 but kindnesses and friendships are things not to be for 
 gotten. There is a settlement among the Otsego hills 
 
 "I know the place," interrupted Middleton, observing 
 that he spoke with increasing difficulty; "proceed to tell 
 me what you would have done. 
 
 "Take this rifle, and pouch, and horn, and send them 
 to the person whose name is graven on the plates of the 
 stock a trader cut the letters with his knife for it is 
 long that I have intended to send him such a token of my 
 love!" 
 
 "It shall be so. Is there more that you could wish?" 
 
 "Little else have I to bestow. My traps I give to my 
 Indian son, for honestly and kindly has he kept his faith. 
 Let him stand before me." 
 
 Middleton explained to the chief what the trapper had 
 said, and relinquished his own place to the other. 
 
 "Pawnee," continued the old man, always changing 
 his language to suit the person he addressed, and not un- 
 frequently according to the ideas he expressed, "it is a 
 custom of my people for the father to leave his blessing 
 with the son before he shuts his eyes forever. This bless 
 ing I give to you; take it; for the prayers of a Christian 
 man will never make the path of a just warrior to the 
 blessed prairies either longer or more tangled. May the 
 God of a white man look on your deeds with friendly eyes, 
 and may you never commit an act that shall cause Him to 
 darken His face. I know not whether we shall ever meet 
 again. There are many traditions concerning the place 
 of Good Spirits. It is not for one like me, old and ex 
 perienced though I am, to set up my opinion against a 
 nation s. You believe in the blessed prairies, and I have 
 
446 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 # 
 
 faith in the sayings of my fathers. If both are true, our 
 parting will be final; but if it should prove that the same 
 meaning is hid under different words, we shall yet stand 
 together, Pawnee, before the face of your Wahcondah, 
 who will then be no other than rny God. There is much 
 to be said in favor of both religions, for each seems suited 
 to its own people, and no doubt it was so intended. I 
 fear I have not altogether followed the gifts of my color, 
 inasmuch as I find it a little painful to give up forever 
 the use of the rifle, and the comforts of the chase. But 
 then the fault has been my own, seeing that it could not 
 have been His. Ay, Hector," he continued, leaning for 
 ward a little, and feeling for the ears of the hound, "our 
 parting has come at last, dog, and it will be a long hunt. 
 You have been an honest, and a bold, and a faithful 
 hound. Pawnee, you cannot slay the pup on my grave, 
 for where a Christian dog falls there he lies forever; but 
 you can be kind to him after I am r one, for the love you 
 bear his master." 
 
 "The words of my father are in my ears," returned the 
 young partisan, making a grave and respectful gesture 
 of assent. 
 
 "Do you hear what the chief has promised, dog?" de 
 manded the trapper, making an effort to attract the notice 
 of the insensible effigy of his hound. Receiving no answer 
 ing look, nor hearing any friendly whine, the old man 
 felt for the mouth, and endeavored to force his hand 
 between the cold lips. The truth then flashed upon him, 
 although he was far from perceiving the whole extent of 
 the deception. Falling back in his seat, he hung his 
 head, like one who felt a severe and unexpected shock. 
 Profiting by this momentary forgetfulness, two young 
 Indians removed the skin with the same delicacy of feeling 
 that had induced them to attempt the pious fraud. 
 
 "The dog is dead!" muttered the trapper, after a pause 
 of many minutes; "a hound has his time as well as a 
 man ; and well has he filled his days ! Captain, he added, 
 making an effort to wave his hand for Middleton, "I am 
 glad you have come; for though kind, and well-meaning 
 according to the gifts of their color, these Indians are not 
 the men to lay the head of a white man in his grave. I 
 
THE PRAIRIE 447 
 
 have been thinking, too, of this dog at my feet; it will 
 not do to set forth the opinion that a Christian can expect 
 to meet his hound again; still there can be little harm in 
 placing what is left of so faithful a servant nigh the 
 bones of his master. 
 
 "It shall be as you desire." 
 
 "I m glad you think with me in this matter. In order, 
 then, to save labor, lay the pup at my feet; or for that 
 matter, put him side by side. A hunter need never be 
 ashamed to be found in company with his dog!" 
 
 "I charge myself with your wish." 
 
 The old man made a long and apparently a musing 
 pause. At times he raised his eyes wistfully, as if he 
 would again address Middleton, but some innate feeling 
 appeared always to suppress his words. The other, who 
 observed his hesitation, inquired in a way most likely to 
 encourage him to proceed, whether there was aught else 
 that he could wish to have done. 
 
 "I am without kith or kin in the wide world!" the 
 trapper answered; "when I am gone there will be an end 
 of my race. We have never been chiefs; but honest, and 
 useful in our way, I hope it cannot be denied we have 
 always proved ourselves. My father lies buried near 
 the sea, and the bones of his son will whiten on the 
 prairies 
 
 "Name the spot, and your remains shall be placed by 
 the side of your father," interrupted Middleton. 
 
 "Not so, not so, captain. Let me sleep where I have 
 lived beyond the din of the settlements! Still I see no 
 need why the grave of an honest man should be hid, like 
 a red-skin in his ambushment. I paid a man in the set 
 tlements to make and put a graven stone at the head of 
 rny father s resting-place. It was of the value of twelve 
 beaver-skins, and cunningly and curiously was it carved! 
 Then it told to all comers that the body of such a Christian 
 lay beneath; and it spoke of his manner of life, of his 
 years, and of his honesty. When we had done with the 
 Frenchers in the old war I made a journey to the spot, in 
 order to see that all was rightly performed, and glad I 
 am to say, the workman had not forgotten his faith." 
 
 "And such a stone you would have at your grave?" 
 
448 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 "I! no, no; I have no son but Hard-Heart, and it is 
 little that an Indian knows of white fashions and usages. 
 Besides, I am his debtor already, seeing it is so little I 
 have done since I have lived in his tribe. The rifle might 
 bring the value of such a thing but then I know it will 
 give the boy pleasure to hang the piece in his hall, for 
 many is the deer and the bird that he has seen it destroy. 
 No, no, the gun must be sent to him whose name is graven 
 on the lock!" 
 
 "But there is one who would gladly prove his affection 
 in the way you wish; he who owes you not only his own 
 deliverance from so many dangers, but who inherits a 
 heavy debt of gratitude from his ancestors. The stone 
 shall be put at the head of your grave. 
 
 The old man extended his emaciated hand, and gave 
 the other a squeeze of thanks. 
 
 "I thought you might be willing to do it, but I was 
 backward in asking the favor," he said, "seeing that you 
 are not of my kin. Put no boastful words on the same, 
 but just the name, the age, and the time of death, with 
 something from the Holy Book; no more, no more. My 
 name will then not be altogether lost on arth; I need no 
 more." 
 
 Middleton intimated his assent, and then followed a 
 pause that was only broken by distant and broken sentences 
 from the dying man. He appeared now to have closed his 
 accounts with the world, and to await merely for the final 
 summons to quit it. Middleton and Hard-Heart placed 
 themselves on the opposite sides of his seat, and watched 
 with melancholy solicitude the variations of his coun 
 tenance. For two hours there was no very sensible altera 
 tion. The expression of his faded and time-worn features 
 was that of a calm and dignified repose. From time to 
 time he spoke, uttering some brief sentence in the way 
 of advice, or asking some simple questions concerning 
 those in whose fortunes he still took a friendly interest. 
 During the whole of that solemn and anxious period each 
 individual of the tribe kept his place, in the most self- 
 restrained patience. When the old man spoke, all bent 
 their heads to listen; and when his words were uttered, 
 they seemed to ponder on their wisdom and usefulness. 
 
THE PRAIRIE 449 
 
 As the flame drew nigher to the socket his voice was 
 bushed, and there were moments when his attendants 
 doubted whether he still belonged to the living. Middle- 
 ton, who watched each wavering expression of his weather- 
 beaten visage with the interest of a keen observer of human 
 nature, softened by the tenderness of personal regard, 
 fancied he could read the workings of the old man s soul 
 in the strong lineaments of his countenance. Perhaps 
 what the enlightened soldier took for the delusion of mis 
 taken opinion did actually occur for who has returned 
 from that unknown world to explain by what forms, and 
 in what manner, he was introduced into its awful pre 
 cincts? Without pretending to explain what must ever 
 be a mystery to the quick, we shall simply relate facts as 
 they occurred. 
 
 The trapper had remained nearly motionless for an 
 hour. His eyes alone had occasionally opened and shut. 
 When opened, his gaze seemed fastened on the clouds 
 which hung around the western horizon, reflecting the 
 bright colors, and giving form and loveliness to the glor 
 ious tints of an American sunset. The hour the calm 
 beauty of the season the occasion, all conspired to fill 
 the spectators with solemn awe. Suddenly, while musing 
 on the remarkable position in which he was placed, Mid- 
 dleton felt the hand which he held grasp his own with 
 incredible power, and the old man, supported on either 
 side by his friends, rose upright to his feet. For a mo 
 ment he looked about him, as if to invite all in presence 
 to listen (the lingering remnant of human frailty), and 
 then, with a fine military elevation of the head, and with 
 a voice that might be heard in every part of that numer 
 ous assembly, he pronounced the word: 
 
 "Here!" 
 
 A movement so entirely unexpected, and the air of 
 grandeur and humility which were so remarkably united 
 in the mien of the trapper, together with the clear and 
 uncommon force of his utterance, produced a short period 
 of confusion in the faculties of all present. When Mid- 
 dleton and Hard-Heart, each of whom had involuntarily 
 extended a hand to support the form of the old man, 
 turned to him again, they found that the subject of their 
 29 
 
450 THE PRAIRIE 
 
 interest was removed forever beyond the necessity of 
 their care. They mournfully placed the body in its seat, 
 and Le Balafre arose to announce the termination of the 
 scene to the tribe. The voice of the old Indian seemed a 
 sort of echo from that invisible world to which the meek 
 spirit of the trapper had just departed. 
 
 "A valiant, a just, and a wise warrior has gone on the 
 path which will lead him to the blessed grounds of his 
 people!" he said. "When the voice of the Wahcondah 
 called him, he was ready to answer. Go, my children; 
 remember the just chief of the pale faces, and clear your 
 own tracks from briers!" 
 
 The grave was made beneath the shade of some noble 
 oaks. It has been carefully watched to the present hour 
 by the Pawnees of the Loup, and is often shown to the 
 traveler and the trader as a spot where a just white man 
 sleeps. In due time the stone was placed at its head, with 
 the simple inscription which the trapper had himself re 
 quested. The only liberty taken by Middleton was to 
 add, "May no wanton hand ever disturb his remains!" 
 
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