diff options
Diffstat (limited to 'old/67142-h/67142-h.htm')
| -rw-r--r-- | old/67142-h/67142-h.htm | 11381 |
1 files changed, 0 insertions, 11381 deletions
diff --git a/old/67142-h/67142-h.htm b/old/67142-h/67142-h.htm deleted file mode 100644 index 4851aba..0000000 --- a/old/67142-h/67142-h.htm +++ /dev/null @@ -1,11381 +0,0 @@ -<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Strict//EN" - "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-strict.dtd"> -<html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en"> - <head> - <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html;charset=utf-8" /> - <meta http-equiv="Content-Style-Type" content="text/css" /> - - <title> - Lost With Lieutenant Pike, by Edwin L. Sabin—A Project Gutenberg eBook - </title> - - <link rel="coverpage" href="images/cover.jpg" /> - - <style type="text/css"> - -/* DACSoft styles */ - -body { - margin-left: 10%; - margin-right: 10%; -} - -/* General headers */ -h1 { - text-align: center; /* all headings centered */ - color: red; - page-break-before: always; - clear: both; -} - -/* Chapter headers */ -h2 { - text-align: center; - font-weight: bold; - margin: .75em 0; -} - -div.chapter { - page-break-before: always; -} - -h2.nobreak { - page-break-before: avoid; -} - -/* Indented paragraph */ -p { - margin-top: .51em; - margin-bottom: .49em; - text-align: justify; - text-indent: 1em; -} - -/* Unindented paragraph */ -.noi {text-indent: 0em;} - -/* Centered unindented paragraph */ -.noic { - text-indent: 0em; - text-align: center; -} - -/* Non-standard paragraph and other margins */ -.p2 {margin-top: 2em;} -.p6 {margin-top: 6em;} - -.pad2 { - margin-top: 2em; - margin-bottom: 2em; -} - -.spblck4 { - margin-left: 2em; - margin-right: 2em; -} - -/* Horizontal rules */ -hr { - width: 33%; - margin-top: 2em; - margin-bottom: 2em; - margin-left: 33.5%; - margin-right: 33.5%; - clear: both; -} - -hr.chap { - width: 65%; - margin-left: 17.5%; - margin-right: 17.5%; -} - -/* Lists */ -ul { - list-style-type: none; -} - -ul.nopad { - padding-left: 0em; -} - -li { - text-indent: 0em; - padding-left: 0em; -} - -li.p05 {margin-top: 0.5em;} -li.ident4 {padding-left: 4em;} - -/* Tables */ -table { - margin-left: auto; - margin-right: auto; -} - -/* Table cell alignments */ -.tdl {text-align: left;} -.tdc {text-align: center;} - -.tdrb { - text-align: right; - vertical-align: bottom; -} - -.tdrt { - text-align: right; - vertical-align: top; -} - -th { - font-weight: normal; -} - -/* Physical book page and line numbers */ -.pagenum { /* uncomment the next line for invisible page numbers */ - /* visibility: hidden; */ - position: absolute; - right: 3%; -/* left: 92%; */ - font-size: x-small; - font-style: normal; - font-weight: normal; - font-variant: normal; - text-align: right; - color: gray; -} /* page numbers */ - -/* Blockquotes */ -.blockquot { - margin-top: 1em; - margin-left: 10%; - margin-right: 10%; - margin-bottom: 1em; -} - -/* Alignment */ -.right {text-align: right;} - -.flright { - float: right; -} - -.x-ebookmaker .flright { - float: right; -} - -/* Text appearance */ -.smcap {font-variant: small-caps;} - -/* Small fonts and lowercase small-caps */ -.smfont { - font-size: .9em; -} - -.smfontr { - font-size: .75em; - text-align: right; -} - -/* Illustration caption */ -.caption { - font-size: .75em; - font-weight: bold; -} - -/* Images */ -img { - max-width: 100%; /* no image to be wider than screen or containing div */ - height:auto; /* keep height in proportion to width */ -} - -.illowe6 {width: 6em;} - -.figcenter { - margin: auto; - text-align: center; - page-break-inside: avoid; - max-width: 90%; /* div no wider than screen, even when screen is narrow */ -} - -/* Footnotes and sidenotes */ -.footnote {margin-left: 10%; margin-right: 10%; font-size: 0.9em;} - -.footnote .label {position: absolute; right: 84%; text-align: right;} - -.fnanchor { - vertical-align: super; - font-size: .65em; - text-decoration: none; - white-space: nowrap; -} - -/* Transcriber's notes */ -.tnote { - background-color: #E6E6FA; - margin-left: 10%; - margin-right: 10%; - padding: .5em; -} - -.tntitle { - font-size: 1.25em; - font-weight: bold; - text-align: center; - clear: both; -} - -/* Title page borders and content. */ -.title { - font-size: 1.75em; - font-weight: bold; - text-align: center; - clear: both; -} - -.halftitle { - font-size: 1.5em; - text-align: center; - clear: both; -} - -.author { - font-size: 1.25em; - text-align: center; - clear: both; -} - -.works { - font-size: .75em; - text-align: center; - clear: both; -} - -/* Advertisement formatting. */ -.adtitle { - font-size: 1.5em; - font-weight: bold; - text-align: center; - clear: both; -} - -.adauthor { - font-size: 1.25em; - text-align: center; - color: red; - clear: both; -} - -/* Hanging indent. */ -.hang { - text-indent: -2em; - padding-left: 3em; -} - -.lsthang { - text-indent: -1em; - padding-left: 1em; -} - -.ident { - padding-left: 0.3em; -} - - </style> - </head> -<body> -<p style='text-align:center; font-size:1.2em; font-weight:bold'>The Project Gutenberg eBook of Lost with Lieutenant Pike, by Edwin L. Sabin</p> -<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'> -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and -most other parts of the world at no cost and with almost no restrictions -whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms -of the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online -at <a href="https://www.gutenberg.org">www.gutenberg.org</a>. If you -are not located in the United States, you will have to check the laws of the -country where you are located before using this eBook. -</div> - -<p style='display:block; margin-top:1em; margin-bottom:0; margin-left:2em; text-indent:-2em'>Title: Lost with Lieutenant Pike</p> -<p style='display:block; margin-left:2em; text-indent:0; margin-top:0; margin-bottom:1em;'>How from the Pawnee Village the boy named Scar Head marched with the young American Chief clear into the Snowy Mountains; how in the dead of winter they searched for the Lost River and thought that they had found it; and how the Spanish Soldiery came upon them and took them down to Santa Fé of New Mexico, where another surprise awaited them</p> -<p style='display:block; margin-top:1em; margin-bottom:0; margin-left:2em; text-indent:-2em'>Author: Edwin L. Sabin</p> -<p style='display:block; margin-top:1em; margin-bottom:0; margin-left:2em; text-indent:-2em'>Illustrator: Charles H. Stephens</p> -<p style='display:block; text-indent:0; margin:1em 0'>Release Date: January 10, 2022 [eBook #67142]</p> -<p style='display:block; text-indent:0; margin:1em 0'>Language: English</p> - <p style='display:block; margin-top:1em; margin-bottom:0; margin-left:2em; text-indent:-2em; text-align:left'>Produced by: Donald Cummings and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at https://www.pgdp.net (This file was produced from images generously made available by The Internet Archive/American Libraries.)</p> -<div style='margin-top:2em; margin-bottom:4em'>*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK LOST WITH LIEUTENANT PIKE ***</div> - - -<div class="figcenter" id="cover"> - <img src="images/cover.jpg" alt="cover" title="cover" /> -</div> - - - - -<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop" /> - -<div class="chapter"> -<p class="noi halftitle">LOST WITH<br /> -LIEUTENANT PIKE</p> - -<p class="noic">SECOND IMPRESSION</p> -</div> - - - - -<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop" /> - -<div class="chapter"> -<p class="noi adtitle"><i>The American Trail Blazers</i></p> -</div> - -<p class="noic">“THE STORY GRIPS AND THE HISTORY STICKS”</p> - -<p class="p2 noi">These books present in the form of vivid and fascinating -fiction, the early and adventurous phases of American -history. Each volume deals with the life and adventures -of one of the great men who made that history, or with -some one great event in which, perhaps, several heroic -characters were involved. The stories, though based upon -accurate historical fact, are rich in color, full of dramatic -action, and appeal to the imagination of the red-blooded -man or boy.</p> - -<p class="noic">Each volume illustrated in color and black and white</p> - -<p class="noic">12mo.<span class="spblck4"> </span>Cloth.</p> - -<ul> -<li class="p05 lsthang">LOST WITH LIEUTENANT PIKE</li> - -<li class="p05 lsthang">GENERAL CROOK AND THE FIGHTING APACHES</li> - -<li class="p05 lsthang">OPENING THE WEST WITH LEWIS AND CLARK</li> - -<li class="p05 lsthang">WITH CARSON AND FREMONT</li> - -<li class="p05 lsthang">DANIEL BOONE: BACKWOODSMAN</li> - -<li class="p05 lsthang">BUFFALO BILL AND THE OVERLAND TRAIL</li> - -<li class="p05 lsthang">CAPTAIN JOHN SMITH</li> - -<li class="p05 lsthang">DAVID CROCKETT: SCOUT</li> - -<li class="p05 lsthang">ON THE PLAINS WITH CUSTER</li> - -<li class="p05 lsthang">GOLD SEEKERS OF ’49</li> - -<li class="p05 lsthang">WITH SAM HOUSTON IN TEXAS</li> -</ul> - - - - -<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop" /> - -<div class="chapter"> -<div class="figcenter" id="i_frontis"> - <img src="images/i_frontis.jpg" alt="" title="" /> - <div class="caption"> - <p class="noic"><a href="#Page_151">“IT’S THE WRONG PEAK, MEN—YES, THE WRONG PEAK”</a></p> - </div> -</div> -</div> - - - - -<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop" /> - -<h1>LOST WITH<br /> -LIEUTENANT PIKE</h1> - -<div class="blockquot smfont"> - -<p class="noi">HOW FROM THE PAWNEE VILLAGE THE BOY NAMED SCAR -HEAD MARCHED WITH THE YOUNG AMERICAN CHIEF CLEAR -INTO THE SNOWY MOUNTAINS; HOW IN THE DEAD OF WINTER -THEY SEARCHED FOR THE LOST RIVER AND THOUGHT THAT -THEY HAD FOUND IT; AND HOW THE SPANISH SOLDIERY -CAME UPON THEM AND TOOK THEM DOWN TO SANTA FÉ OF -NEW MEXICO, WHERE ANOTHER SURPRISE AWAITED THEM</p> -</div> - -<p class="p2 noic">BY<br /> -<span class="noi author">EDWIN L. SABIN</span></p> - -<p class="noi works">AUTHOR OF “GENERAL CROOK AND THE FIGHTING APACHES,”<br /> -“OPENING THE WEST WITH LEWIS AND CLARK,”<br /> -“BUFFALO BILL AND THE OVERLAND TRAIL,” ETC.</p> - -<p class="p2 noic"><i>WITH ILLUSTRATIONS BY</i><br /> -<span class="noi author">CHARLES H. STEPHENS</span><br /> -<i>PORTRAIT AND A MAP</i></p> - -<div class="pad2"> -<div class="figcenter" id="logo"> - <img class="illowe6" src="images/logo.jpg" alt="logo" title="logo" /> -</div> -</div> - -<p class="noic">PHILADELPHIA & LONDON</p> - -<p class="noi adauthor">J. B. LIPPINCOTT COMPANY</p> - - - - -<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop" /> - -<div class="chapter"> -<p class="noic">COPYRIGHT, 1919, J. B. LIPPINCOTT COMPANY</p> - -<p class="p6 noic">PRINTED BY J. B. LIPPINCOTT COMPANY<br /> -AT THE WASHINGTON SQUARE PRESS<br /> -PHILADELPHIA, U. S. A.</p> -</div> - - - - -<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop" /> - -<div class="chapter"> -<p class="noic">TO THOSE<br /> -<span class="noi author">COUNTLESS OTHER AMERICANS</span></p> - -<p class="noi works">WHO IN 1917 AND 1918 BRAVELY FOLLOWED, LIKE YOUNG<br /> -LIEUTENANT PIKE, THE TRAIL OF HONOR, FLAG AND DUTY</p> -</div> - - - - -<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop" /> - -<div class="chapter"> -<p class="noi ident">I. Always preserve your honor free from blemish.</p> - -<p class="noi">II. Be ready at all times to die for your country.</p> - -<p class="right">General Pike’s rules for his little son.</p> -</div> - - - - -<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop" /> - -<div class="chapter"> -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_7"></a>[7]</span></p> - -<h2 class="nobreak" id="FOREWORD">FOREWORD</h2> -</div> - - -<p>This story takes the adventure trail of that young -soldier-explorer Zebulon Montgomery Pike, who -was lost in the mountains of southern Colorado one -hundred years ago. Another story in the Trail -Blazers Series has told of Captains Lewis and Clark, -who explored the northwestern part of the new -Louisiana Territory. They, also, were young. -Captain Lewis had just turned thirty. But Lieutenant -and Captain Zebulon Pike was younger yet. He -was only twenty-seven when, while Lewis and Clark -were still out, he was sent to lead a handful of men -into the unknown Southwest.</p> - -<p>The vast Province of Louisiana, bought by the -United States from France three years before, for -$15,000,000, was thought by the United States to -extend, in the north, from the Mississippi River to -the Rocky Mountains; in the south it tapered off -to the Gulf of Mexico at New Orleans.</p> - -<p>The southwestern boundary was uncertain. The -United States claimed clear to the lower Rio Grande -River, across Texas; Spain, which had owned -Louisiana Territory before the United States bought -it from France, claimed north even to the Missouri<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_8"></a>[8]</span> -River. Some said that the Arkansas River of southern -Colorado should be the boundary, there; some -said the Red River, further south—which was confused -with the Canadian River. And when Lieutenant -Pike was started out, the United States soldiers -and the Spanish soldiers of Mexico faced each other -across the Sabine River of the western border of -Louisiana State.</p> - -<p>So the trail of young Pike and his handful of -men pointed into a debated land. If the Indians -did not get them, the Spanish might. He had been -instructed not to offend the Spanish, and to keep -away from their settlements of New Mexico; but -he was resolved to stand his ground when he deemed -that he was in the right, and to defend the Flag. -The Spanish had sent six hundred soldiers, with -over two thousand horses and mules, to look for him. -He would certainly have fought them all, with his -twenty men, had they tried to stop him anywhere -outside of New Mexico.</p> - -<p>No braver soldiers ever marched than Lieutenant -Pike and his little platoon. They lost their way; -they struggled with cold below zero and snow to -their waists, in the bleak high mountains. They had -left home with only summer clothing; they were -ragged and lean, and their feet froze until the bones -came out. They went days at a time without food.<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_9"></a>[9]</span> -And they were utterly lost, in a winter country; -alone, one thousand miles from home.</p> - -<p>But only once did a single man complain aloud. -Their wonderful leader sternly silenced him, by -reminding him that they all were sharing and -suffering alike.</p> - -<p>When their lieutenant had been gone from them -two days, seeking meat to relieve a famine, at his -return he writes in his journal: “On the countenances -of the men was not a frown, nor was there -a desponding eye; all seemed happy to hail their -officer and companions; yet not a mouthful had they -eaten for four days.” Indeed, they were planning -to send out and rescue <em>him</em>.</p> - -<p>It was this same spirit which made the American -soldiers in France press forward, ever forward, and -yield not an inch of ground.</p> - -<p>Lieutenant Pike was an officer to love as well -as to respect. He asked no favors; only obedience, -and willingness to endure what he had to endure. -He never spared himself. While others might stay -in camp, he it was that went out into the cold and -snow, hunting for meat. He made it plain that his -honor, his country and his duty were more to him -than his life. These were the three ideals that inspired -him to go on when he might have been excused<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_10"></a>[10]</span> -for camping in safety and giving up his search for -the Red River.</p> - -<p>The name of Pike lives in history. We have a -famous mountain named for him, and we know that -he died—“killed in action”—as a brigadier-general, -aged thirty-four. The names of his brave men have -vanished. What became of John Sparks, Pat Smith, -Jacob Carter, and the rest, we do not know. We -do not know that the Government even rescued from -the Spaniards those whom their lieutenant had been -obliged to leave. We do not know that any of them -received gifts of land and extra pay, such as the -Lewis and Clark men received. But heroes they -were, every one, who did not fail their leader nor -their flag.</p> - -<p>So their company roll is printed in this book, -that they also may live again.</p> - -<p class="right"><span class="smcap">The Author</span></p> - - - - -<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop" /> - -<div class="chapter"> -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_11"></a>[11]</span></p> - -<h2 class="nobreak" id="CONTENTS">CONTENTS</h2> -</div> - - -<table border="0" cellpadding="5" cellspacing="0" summary="Contents"> -<col style="width: 15%;" /> -<col style="width: 70%;" /> -<col style="width: 15%;" /> -<tr> - <th class="smfontr">CHAPTER</th> - <th class="tdl"></th> - <th class="smfontr">PAGE</th> -</tr> -<tr> - <td class="tdrt">I.</td> - <td class="tdl smcap"><a href="#I">The Coming of the Spaniards</a></td> - <td class="tdrb">19</td> -</tr> -<tr> - <td class="tdrt">II.</td> - <td class="tdl smcap"><a href="#II">The Coming of the Americans</a></td> - <td class="tdrb">36</td> -</tr> -<tr> - <td class="tdrt">III.</td> - <td class="tdl smcap"><a href="#III">The Pawnees are of Two Minds</a></td> - <td class="tdrb">52</td> -</tr> -<tr> - <td class="tdrt">IV.</td> - <td class="tdl smcap"><a href="#IV">On the Trail of the Spaniards</a></td> - <td class="tdrb">70</td> -</tr> -<tr> - <td class="tdrt">V.</td> - <td class="tdl smcap"><a href="#V">The Chase of the Big Elk</a></td> - <td class="tdrb">85</td> -</tr> -<tr> - <td class="tdrt">VI.</td> - <td class="tdl smcap"><a href="#VI">Lieutenant Wilkinson Says Good-by</a></td> - <td class="tdrb">99</td> -</tr> -<tr> - <td class="tdrt">VII.</td> - <td class="tdl smcap"><a href="#VII">“The Mountains! The Mountains!”</a></td> - <td class="tdrb">112</td> -</tr> -<tr> - <td class="tdrt">VIII.</td> - <td class="tdl smcap"><a href="#VIII">Bad Hearts in the Way</a></td> - <td class="tdrb">127</td> -</tr> -<tr> - <td class="tdrt">IX.</td> - <td class="tdl smcap"><a href="#IX">A Try at the “Grand Peak”</a></td> - <td class="tdrb">139</td> -</tr> -<tr> - <td class="tdrt">X.</td> - <td class="tdl smcap"><a href="#X">Onward Into Winter</a></td> - <td class="tdrb">156</td> -</tr> -<tr> - <td class="tdrt">XI.</td> - <td class="tdl smcap"><a href="#XI">Seeking the Lost River</a></td> - <td class="tdrb">167</td> -</tr> -<tr> - <td class="tdrt">XII.</td> - <td class="tdl smcap"><a href="#XII">Is It Found at Last?</a></td> - <td class="tdrb">176</td> -</tr> -<tr> - <td class="tdrt">XIII.</td> - <td class="tdl smcap"><a href="#XIII">Meat for the Camp</a></td> - <td class="tdrb">187</td> -</tr> -<tr> - <td class="tdrt">XIV.</td> - <td class="tdl smcap"><a href="#XIV">A Trail of Surprises</a></td> - <td class="tdrb">200</td> -</tr> -<tr> - <td class="tdrt">XV.</td> - <td class="tdl smcap"><a href="#XV">Not Yet Defeated</a></td> - <td class="tdrb">225</td> -</tr> -<tr> - <td class="tdrt">XVI.</td> - <td class="tdl smcap"><a href="#XVI">Blocked by the Great White Mountains</a></td> - <td class="tdrb">237</td> -</tr> -<tr> - <td class="tdrt">XVII.</td> - <td class="tdl smcap"><a href="#XVII">The Fort in the Wilderness</a></td> - <td class="tdrb">250</td> -</tr> -<tr> - <td class="tdrt">XVIII.</td> - <td class="tdl smcap"><a href="#XVIII">Visitors from the South</a></td> - <td class="tdrb">261</td> -</tr> -<tr> - <td class="tdrt">XIX.</td> - <td class="tdl smcap"><a href="#XIX">In the Hands of the Spaniards</a></td> - <td class="tdrb">275</td> -</tr> -<tr> - <td class="tdrt">XX.</td> - <td class="tdl smcap"><a href="#XX">Stub Reaches End o’ Trail</a></td> - <td class="tdrb">289</td> -</tr> -<tr> - <td class="tdrt">XXI.</td> - <td class="tdl smcap"><a href="#XXI">Good-by to Lieutenant Pike</a></td> - <td class="tdrb">306</td> -</tr> -</table> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_12"></a>[12]</span></p> - - - - -<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop" /> - -<div class="chapter"> -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_13"></a>[13]</span></p> - -<h2 class="nobreak" id="ILLUSTRATIONS">ILLUSTRATIONS</h2> -</div> - - -<table border="0" cellpadding="5" cellspacing="0" summary="Illustrations"> -<col style="width: 90%;" /> -<col style="width: 10%;" /> -<tr> - <th> </th> - <th class="smfontr">PAGE</th> -</tr> -<tr> - <td class="tdl lsthang"><a href="#i_frontis">“It’s the Wrong Peak, Men—Yes, the -Wrong Peak”</a> <span class="spblck4 flright"><i>Frontispiece</i></span></td> - <td class="tdrb"> </td> -</tr> -<tr> - <td class="tdl lsthang"><a href="#i_015">Lieutenant Zebulon Montgomery Pike</a></td> - <td class="tdrb">15</td> -</tr> -<tr> - <td class="tdl lsthang"><a href="#i_055">“I Bring You the American Flag”</a></td> - <td class="tdrb">55</td> -</tr> -<tr> - <td class="tdl lsthang"><a href="#i_097">Whang! It Buried Itself Almost Out of Sight -Behind the Elk Chief’s Ribs</a></td> - <td class="tdrb">97</td> -</tr> -<tr> - <td class="tdl lsthang"><a href="#i_203">But Stub Never Felt the Final Crash</a></td> - <td class="tdrb">203</td> -</tr> -<tr> - <td class="tdl lsthang"><a href="#i_298">“In My Proper Character, Sir: An Officer of -the United States Army”</a></td> - <td class="tdrb">298</td> -</tr> -<tr> - <td class="tdc author" colspan="2">MAP</td> -</tr> -<tr> - <td class="tdl lsthang"><a href="#i_019map">The Trail of Lieutenant Pike</a></td> - <td class="tdrb">19</td> -</tr> -</table> - - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_14"></a>[14]</span></p> - - - - -<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop" /> - -<div class="chapter"> -<div class="figcenter" id="i_015"> - <img src="images/i_015.jpg" alt="" title="" /> - <div class="caption"> - <p class="noic">LIEUTENANT <a href="#Page_15">ZEBULON MONTGOMERY PIKE</a></p> - - <p class="noic">From the First Edition of His “Expeditions”<br /> -Philadelphia, 1810</p> - </div> -</div> -</div> - - - - -<div class="chapter"> -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_15"></a>[15]</span></p> - -<h2 class="nobreak">BRIGADIER-GENERAL<br /> -<a href="#i_015">ZEBULON MONTGOMERY PIKE</a></h2> -</div> - -<div class="blockquot"> - -<p>A noble young American soldier and explorer, -whose guiding purpose was: Honor, Country, Duty.</p> -</div> - - -<p>Born January 5, 1779, at Lamberton, near Trenton, New -Jersey.</p> - -<p>His father was Captain Zebulon Pike, of the Fourth Continental -Dragoons, in the War of the Revolution; later major in -the Third and the First Regiments of Infantry, U. S. A., and -brevet lieutenant-colonel.</p> - -<p>The boy Zebulon was brought up as a soldier.</p> - -<p>At fifteen he was a cadet in his father’s infantry regiment -of the United States Third Sub-Legion.</p> - -<p>At twenty, or in March, 1799, he was commissioned second -lieutenant in the Second Regiment of Infantry, U. S. A.</p> - -<p>Commissioned first lieutenant, November, the same year.</p> - -<p>Transferred to the First Infantry, of which his father was -major, in April, 1802. In this regiment Meriwether Lewis, of -the famous Lewis and Clark expedition to the mouth of the -Columbia River, was then a captain.</p> - -<p>At the age of twenty-six, while Captains Lewis and Clark -are exploring through the far northwest of the new Louisiana -Territory purchase, he receives orders, July 30, 1805, from -General James Wilkinson, Chief of the Army, to ascend the -Mississippi River from St. Louis to its source. He is to report -upon the country, the Indians and the fur trade of this, the -eastern border of Upper Louisiana.</p> - -<p>Starts from St. Louis, August 9, 1805, with twenty enlisted -men of the regular army, in a keel-boat seventy feet long, -provisioned for four months. Suffers many hardships by<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_16"></a>[16]</span> -storm, cold and hunger, but returns successful on the last day -of April, 1806, after an absence of almost nine months.</p> - -<p>In less than two months, or on June 24, 1806, he is directed -to ascend the Missouri and Osage Rivers, and restore forty-six -Osage Indians, rescued by the Government from the Potawatomi -Indians, to their people of the Osage towns in western -Missouri. He is to make peace, by order of their American -father, between the Osage and the Kansas nations. He is then -to continue to the Pawnees of present northern Kansas, and ask -them to help him on to make peace with the Comanches in the -southwest on the borders of New Mexico. While with the Comanches -he is to explore the head-waters of the Arkansas and -Red (Canadian) Rivers, but he must avoid trespassing upon -the Spanish territory of New Mexico. Spanish territory is -supposed to extend south from the Red River, although the -Spanish claim that it extends much farther north, even through -Kansas.</p> - -<p>Again he leaves his family, and embarks, July 15, 1806, with -First Lieutenant James B. Wilkinson, First Infantry, the son -of General Wilkinson; Civilian Surgeon John H. Robinson, an -interpreter, and eighteen enlisted men, in two boats. The majority -of the enlisted men had been with him up the Mississippi.</p> - -<p>He visits the Osages, who welcome the return of their relatives, -and agree to peace with the Kansas. The Pawnees try -to stop him, by order of the Spanish, but he defies them. He -fails to find the Comanches. His march by horse and foot -takes him along the Arkansas River clear to the Rocky Mountains, -where he sights the great Pike’s Peak (later named for -him) of Colorado, and attempts to climb it. Searching for -the head of the Red River, that he may follow down to the -military posts of the United States frontier, he loses his way -completely. In the bitter cold and deep snows of a terrible -winter he crosses the front range of the Rockies, and builds a -stockade upon a stream of the Upper Rio Grande River in the -lower end of the San Luis Valley, southern Colorado.</p> - -<p>Here in mid-winter Spanish soldiers from Santa Fé come -upon him and inform him that he is in Spanish territory. They<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_17"></a>[17]</span> -take him down to Santa Fé, the capital of the Province of New -Mexico. He is sent on down to the military headquarters at -Chihuahua, Mexico. From there he is sent to the United -States, and arrives at the American post of Natchitoches, -western Louisiana, on July 1, 1807, after travels of a year.</p> - -<p>As the first Government explorer through far southwestern -Louisiana Territory he brings back much valuable information -upon the country and Indians, and upon the people, military -forces and customs of Mexico. Captains Lewis and Clark -have brought back also their information upon the far Northwest.</p> - -<p>Meanwhile, as a reward for his services, he had been promoted -to captain, August 12, 1806.</p> - -<p>Commissioned major, in the Sixth U. S. Infantry, May, 1808.</p> - -<p>Commissioned lieutenant-colonel, Fourth U. S. Infantry, -December, 1809.</p> - -<p>Commissioned colonel, Fifteenth U. S. Infantry, July, 1812.</p> - -<p>Appointed brigadier-general, adjutant-general and inspector-general, -U. S. A., March, 1813.</p> - -<p>Killed in action, April 27, 1813, while commanding the assault -by the American troops upon York, at Toronto, Canada. -The retreating British garrison blew up a powder magazine, -and a fragment of rock crushed his back. He died wrapped in -the Flag, amidst victory, at the age of only thirty-four.</p> - -<p class="p2 noic">THE PIKE PARTIES</p> - -<p class="noic"><span class="smcap">Up the Mississippi</span> (1805–1806)</p> - -<ul class="nopad"> -<li class="hang">First Lieutenant Zebulon M. Pike, Commanding</li> - -<li class="hang">Pierre Rousseau, Interpreter</li> - -<li class="hang">Sergeant Henry Kennerman (reduced to the ranks)</li> - -<li class="p05 hang">Corporals</li> -<li class="ident4 lsthang">Samuel Bradley</li> -<li class="ident4 lsthang">William E. Meek</li> - -<li class="p05 hang"><i>Privates</i></li> -<li class="ident4 lsthang">Jeremiah Jackson</li> -<li class="ident4 lsthang">John Boley</li> -<li class="ident4 lsthang">Thomas Dougherty</li> -<li class="ident4 lsthang">Solomon Huddleston</li> -<li class="ident4 lsthang">Theodore Miller</li> -<li class="ident4 lsthang">Alexander Roy</li> -<li class="ident4 lsthang">Patrick Smith</li> -<li class="ident4 lsthang">John Brown<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_18"></a>[18]</span></li> -<li class="ident4 lsthang">Jacob Carter</li> -<li class="ident4 lsthang">David Whelply</li> -<li class="ident4 lsthang">William Gordon</li> -<li class="ident4 lsthang">John Mountjoy</li> -<li class="ident4 lsthang">Hugh Menaugh</li> -<li class="ident4 lsthang">John Sparks</li> -<li class="ident4 lsthang">Freegift Stout</li> -<li class="ident4 lsthang">David Owings</li> -<li class="ident4 lsthang">Peter Branden</li> -</ul> - -<p class="p2 noic"><span class="smcap">Into the Southwest</span> (1806–1807)</p> - -<ul class="nopad"> -<li class="hang">First Lieutenant (and Captain) Zebulon M. Pike, Commanding</li> - -<li class="hang">First Lieutenant James B. Wilkinson (descended the Arkansas -River)</li> - -<li class="hang">Civilian Volunteer, Doctor John H. Robinson (went through)</li> - -<li class="hang">Baroney Vasquez, Interpreter (went through)</li> - -<li class="p05 hang">Sergeants</li> -<li class="ident4 lsthang">Joseph Ballenger (accompanied Lieutenant Wilkinson)</li> -<li class="ident4 lsthang">William E. Meek (went through)</li> - -<li class="p05 hang">Corporal Jeremiah Jackson (went through)</li> -<li class="hang">Private John Brown (went through)</li> -<li class="hang">Private Jacob Carter (went through)</li> -<li class="hang">Private Thomas Dougherty (went through)</li> -<li class="hang">Private William Gordon (went through)</li> -<li class="hang">Private Theodore Miller (went through)</li> -<li class="hang">Private Hugh Menaugh (went through)</li> -<li class="hang">Private John Mountjoy (went through)</li> -<li class="hang">Private Alexander Roy (went through)</li> -<li class="hang">Private John Sparks (went through)</li> -<li class="hang">Private Patrick Smith (went through)</li> -<li class="hang">Private Freegift Stout (went through)</li> -<li class="hang">Private John Boley (accompanied Lieutenant Wilkinson)</li> -<li class="hang">Private Samuel Bradley (accompanied Lieutenant Wilkinson)</li> -<li class="hang">Private Solomon Huddleston (accompanied Lieutenant Wilkinson)</li> -<li class="hang">Private John Wilson (accompanied Lieutenant Wilkinson)</li> -<li class="hang">Private Henry Kennerman (deserted)</li> -</ul> - - -<div class="chapter"> -<div class="figcenter" id="i_019map"> - <img src="images/i_019map.jpg" alt="" title="" /> - <div class="caption"> - <p class="noic">THE TRAIL OF LIEUTENANT PIKE</p> - - <div class="noic x-ebookmaker-drop"> - [<a id="i_019maplrg" href="images/i_019map_lrg.jpg" rel="nofollow">click -here for high resolution map</a>] - </div> - </div> -</div> -</div> - - - - -<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop" /> - - -<div class="chapter"> -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_19"></a>[19]</span></p> - -<p class="noi title">LOST WITH<br /> -LIEUTENANT PIKE</p> - -<h2 class="nobreak" id="I">I<br /> -<small>THE COMING OF THE SPANIARDS</small></h2> -</div> - - -<p>“Ai-ee! I see them!” panted Iskatappe, over his -shoulder, and pointing to the west. “The Spanish!”</p> - -<p>“It may be running buffalo, or a big wind,” answered -Skidi.</p> - -<p>“Shall we halt and wait?” proposed Letalesha.</p> - -<p>“No. It is they. It does not move fast enough -for buffalo or wind. It is on this side of the river. -We will cross the river and hide on the other side. -Then we will be safe,” ordered Iskatappe.</p> - -<p>Boy Scar Head, at the rear, peered hard and he, -too, sighted a dust cloud far westward, tinging the -horizon above the rolling, sandy landscape.</p> - -<p>This was the Corn month, July, 1806. The -four were travelling in single file at fast dog-trot -down through the northern end of Texas where the -Canadian River crosses. Iskatappe, or Rich Man, -led. He was second chief of the nation. Skidi, or -Wolf, came next. He was a warrior. Letalesha, or<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_20"></a>[20]</span> -Old Knife, trotted third. He was a sub-chief. And -at the rear there trotted Scar Head, who was not yet -even a warrior, because he was just a boy; but -some day he should be a warrior, and a chief, if he -proved brave and smart.</p> - -<p>They were odd-looking Indians, clad in only -moccasins and buffalo-robes. The three men had -their heads closely shaven except for a short pompadour -ridge like a rooster comb, ending in the scalp-lock. -With a paste of buffalo tallow and red clay -this scalp-lock was made to stand up stiff and curved -forward in shape of a horn. By that sign, and by -the sign of their travelling afoot, and by their tall -stature and high cheek-bones, friends and enemies -would have known them at once as Pawnees from -a nation of fierce fighters.</p> - -<p>However, nobody would have taken Scar Head -for a Pawnee. He did not wear the horn—he was -not yet a warrior. He wore a red cloth band around -his head, to keep his long brown hair out of his eyes. -He was short and stocky, with a pug nose and with -freckles showing through his darkly tanned skin. -No, he did not appear to be a Pawnee, nor an Indian -at all.</p> - -<p>Still, he ranked as a son of Charakterik, head -chief of the Pawnee Republic nation. Chief Charakterik -had sent him out on the warrior trail to get<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_21"></a>[21]</span> -experience. He was called Scar Head by reason of -the patch of white hair that grew over a queer, hot -spot on his head. He felt like an Indian and acted -like an Indian; but all he knew was that he had been -traded by the mountain Utahs to the plains Pawnees, -several years ago, and that Chief Charakterik had -adopted him.</p> - -<p>The four had set out from the main Pawnee -Republic village of round mud huts on the Republican -River in present northern Kansas two weeks back. -The Pawnees always started from home on foot, -except when hunting game. They thought that they -could take care of themselves better that way. A -man on foot could hide in country where a man on -horse might be seen. But they were expected to -return on horseback, with other horses stolen or captured, -for to win horses was the test of a Pawnee -brave.</p> - -<p>Scar Head hoped to learn a great deal about -horse-stealing, although this was not really a horse-stealing -scout. Nevertheless——</p> - -<p>“If we are not given horses by the Spaniards, -we will get them elsewhere,” had said Rich Man.</p> - -<p>“Yes; we will get them from the Spaniards, -anyway,” had replied Skidi. “They will have many -horses, easy to steal. But in order to keep friendly<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_22"></a>[22]</span> -with us, they will surely give us some, when they see -we are poor and afoot.”</p> - -<p>The dust cloud was welcome. It was time that -the Spaniards should be sighted—those Spanish -soldiers who, according to the report received by -Chief Charakterik, were marching from New -Mexico into the Indian country, no one knew why. -To find out was the business of the Iskatappe squad.</p> - -<p>The dust cloud hung in the air, moving slowly -with the distant breeze. When finally the four -reached the bank of the river, the cloud was much -nearer.</p> - -<p>“We will cross, and watch them; and to-night -we will go into their camp,” said Iskatappe.</p> - -<p>So they swam and waded the shallow river, and -crawled out into a clump of willows, to wait until -the strangers should pass.</p> - -<p>Soon, to the west they might see a column of -mounted figures coming on, following the course of -the river but staying back from it on account of the -deep washes, or maybe from fear that their thirsty -horses might bolt into quicksands.</p> - -<p>“They are many times ten,” murmured Skidi, -counting by the fingers on his hands.</p> - -<p>“It is only an advance guard,” Letalesha said. -“A bigger dust cloud is behind them.”</p> - -<p>And that was so. The advance guard of horsemen<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_23"></a>[23]</span> -seemed to be scouting along the river, as if seeking -a good trail to water for the others. Boy Scar -Head strained his eyes to see as much as the warriors -saw. Over the yellow desert shimmering with the -hot air the riders steadily cantered, under several -fluttering pennons borne on lances; and anybody -might tell by the way they rode that they were warriors -themselves.</p> - -<p>They were going to strike the river only a short -distance below. Suddenly Skidi drew quick breath.</p> - -<p>“Apaches! Look! It will be a fight.”</p> - -<p>“Hi!” Iskatappe uttered. “Let nobody move. -We are safe here, if we don’t move.”</p> - -<p>The scene had changed in a twinkling. A perfect -swarm of Indians had burst from the very ground -out there, and with shrill yells were racing to hem -the Spanish between them and the river. How they -had hidden themselves so well was remarkable, but -it was an Indian trick and these were Apaches, who -knew how to hide in the sand itself.</p> - -<p>They outnumbered the Spanish three to one. -The Spanish leader rapidly formed his column—he -rode a white horse, the horses of his men were dark. -On charged the Apaches, whooping and brandishing -their bows and lances, as if they did not intend to -stop until they had ridden right over the enemy; -when on a sudden the guns of the Spanish puffed<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_24"></a>[24]</span> -white smoke. Instantly every Apache fell to hang -on the side of his horse; and back and forth they -all scurried, shooting with their bows. The arrow -stems glinted in the sun like streaks of hail.</p> - -<p>“That is a good chief,” Iskatappe praised. “He -knows how to fight.”</p> - -<p>For the Apache chief had ordered half his men -to dismount, and turn their horses loose. The other -half stayed in the saddle. They charged, with the -footmen running behind; the Spanish horsemen -charged to meet them; then the Apache horsemen -separated to right and left and the footmen volleyed -with arrows.</p> - -<p>This made the Spanish halt, to answer with guns. -The Apache footmen darted back, behind their -horsemen, and these charged again, to lure the -Spanish on into bow-shot.</p> - -<p>Boy Scar Head quivered with excitement. It -was the first real battle that he remembered to have -seen. The others were tense, too, and staring -eagerly.</p> - -<p>“With half that number of Pawnees I would eat -those Spanish up,” Skidi boasted. “We all would -take scalps and horses and be rich.”</p> - -<p>“Those Spanish have guns and much powder -and lead,” replied Old Knife. “It is hard to fight<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_25"></a>[25]</span> -guns with bows. But one big charge, and all would -be over.”</p> - -<p>The battle slowly traveled. It was getting -directly opposite, as the Apaches gradually gave -ground and the Spanish took ground. Scarcely -anybody appeared to have been hurt yet; there were -no dead on the sand and all the wounded stayed -in their saddles. The column in the distance was -making a larger dust, as if hastening to the rescue.</p> - -<p>The Apaches no doubt knew this. Now on a -sudden the noise quieted. The Apache chief had -cantered forward from among his men, shaking his -lance. He was a very heavy man, with a very long -lance; upon his arm was a red shield. He rode a -fine spotted horse.</p> - -<p>“The chiefs will fight, maybe,” quoth Letalesha. -“That is the way to settle it.”</p> - -<p>The Apache chief spoke in a loud voice, holding -his lance high; but the Spanish chief on the white -horse waved him back and evidently said no.</p> - -<p>“The Spanish chief is a coward,” Skidi asserted. -“He has a small heart.”</p> - -<p>“Why should he risk losing his scalp, when he -is winning and he has enough men coming to burn -the Apaches like dry grass?” argued the wise Old -Knife.</p> - -<p>The Apache chief sat a moment, waiting; then<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_26"></a>[26]</span> -he turned back for his own party. From the Spanish -a great shout arose, that made him again turn, -quickly.</p> - -<p>“Ai-ee! It will be a fight, man to man, after -all!” Iskatappe exclaimed.</p> - -<p>A Spanish soldier had dashed past his chief, -and was galloping into the clear, flourishing his -sword. It was a challenge. The chief sped to meet -him. They both crouched behind their round shields. -A moment—and they came together. The Spanish -horseman thrust his shield forward, to throw aside -the chief’s lance point. But he did not catch it full. -He only threw it higher, so that it glanced on and -struck him in the throat—went straight through. -He fell off, backward. Jerking the lance out, the -Apache chief scoured by, in a half circle, with a -whoop of victory.</p> - -<p>“Hi, yi!” Old Knife grunted. “There is blood -and a scalp.”</p> - -<p>What a yell broke from the Apaches and the -Spaniards both—a yell of triumph from the one, a -yell of vengeance from the others! The Spanish -charged, firing their guns, to save the scalp, and to -kill. The Apaches scattered; their chief galloped -hither-thither, urging them to stand, but they had -no stomachs for more fighting at close quarters and -the rest of the Spanish were spurring in.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_27"></a>[27]</span></p> - -<p>Presently all the Apaches, the footmen on horse -again, tore away, making down the river. Without -trying to pursue them the whole Spanish army gathered -on the battlefield. They were too heavily -clothed to overtake Indians.</p> - -<p>“They are as many as a herd of buffalo,” said -Letalesha. “They are a large war party. Where -are they going and what do they want?”</p> - -<p>“We shall find out from them at sundown,” -Rich Man answered. “We will let them camp, -first. They are blood hungry now, and very mad.”</p> - -<p>“It will be no trouble for us to get horses,” -laughed Wolf. “Even a boy like Scar Head could -steal some.”</p> - -<p>“Will you let me try?” Scar Head asked, hopefully.</p> - -<p>“You shall be a warrior and get horses,” Iskatappe -promised, “unless they make us presents of -them.”</p> - -<p>“The Apache chief was Big Thunder,” Old -Knife declared. “I know him. Red is his medicine, -and as long as he carries that red shield nothing -can kill him.”</p> - -<p>“Perhaps the Spanish chief knew, too,” Wolf -proposed. “Of course, nobody wishes to fight -against medicine.”</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_28"></a>[28]</span></p> - -<p>“The Spanish soldier’s medicine was very weak,” -remarked Iskatappe.</p> - -<p>Thus they chatted, waiting and watching. Pretty -soon the Spanish, also, moved on, down river. -There were at least six hundred of them, all mounted, -and twice that number of unsaddled horses and -mules, some packed with supplies. To jingle of -trappings and murmur of voices they proceeded, in -a long column. Rich Man, Old Knife, Wolf and -Boy Scar Head followed, by the other river bank, -keeping out of sight in the brush and hollows.</p> - -<p>At sunset the Spanish halted to form camp, -beside the river.</p> - -<p>“We had better go in before dark,” Rich Man -directed. “Or they might shoot at us. We had -better go in while their pots are full, for my belly -is empty.”</p> - -<p>So they rose boldly from their covert under the -bank of the river, and crossed for the Spanish camp, -their buffalo-robes tightly about them.</p> - -<p>The camp was spread out in a circle over a wide -area. Several chiefs’ lodges had been set up, countless -fires were smoking, horses whinnied, mules -brayed, medicine pipes (horns) tooted, and a myriad -of figures moved busily, getting water, going on -herd, arranging the packs, marching to and fro as -if in a dance, or clustering around the fires.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_29"></a>[29]</span></p> - -<p>These were the Spanish, were they, from the -south? Scar Head had not supposed that so many -could come so far, all together. The nation of the -Spanish must be a great and powerful nation.</p> - -<p>A guard saw the Iskatappe file approaching. He -shouted warning of them, and leveled his gun.</p> - -<p>Iskatappe lifted his hand in the peace sign.</p> - -<p>“Amigos—friends,” he called. He knew a little -Spanish. So did most of the Pawnees—a little -Spanish picked up from the Comanches and southern -Utahs, and a little French picked up from the St. -Louis traders who visited the Pawnee country.</p> - -<p>“Qué tiene—what do you want?” the guard -demanded, stopping them with his gun. He was -dressed in a blue cloth hunting-shirt with red trimmings, -and leather wrappings upon his legs, and huge -loose-topped leather moccasins reaching to his knees, -and a broad-brimmed high-crowned hat with ribbons -on it; and all his face was covered with bushy -black hair. He was armed with a short-barreled gun, -and a long knife in a scabbard. He certainly looked -like a stout warrior.</p> - -<p>“El capitan,” Iskatappe replied, meaning that -he wished to see the chief.</p> - -<p>Other Spanish soldiers came running. Their -head warrior said: “Come,” and with the Iskatappe<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_30"></a>[30]</span> -file stalking proudly after he led the way through the -staring camp to the lodge of the chief.</p> - -<p>He was a black-eyed, dark-skinned, slim young -war chief, splendidly clad in those same high, loose-topped -shiny leather moccasins, and a bright red -cloak flowing to his knees, and a hat turned up at -one side and sparkling with gilt.</p> - -<p>Of course the first thing to do was to eat. Therefore, -after shaking hands with the Spanish war -chief, Rich Man, Old Knife and Wolf sat down; -boy Scar Head sat down likewise. They were served -with plenty of meat, from a pot.</p> - -<p>Gazing curiously about, Scar Head might see -indeed that these Spanish were rich and powerful. -Such quantities of horses and mules, of saddles, -arms, supplies, and soldiers warmly dressed, and -fiercely whiskered not only with hair on cheeks and -chin, but sticking out like horns on either side of the -nose! What did the Spanish wish?</p> - -<p>Having eaten, Iskatappe began to find out. The -Spanish chief filled a pipe and passed it out; Rich -Man, Old Knife and Wolf smoked each a few puffs, -the Spanish chief smoked a few puffs, and Iskatappe -spoke.</p> - -<p>“The Pawnee wish to know why their Spanish -father is sending so many of his soldiers into the -buffalo country.”</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_31"></a>[31]</span></p> - -<p>“The great king who owns all this country is -anxious to be friendly with his children,” responded -the young war chief. “So he has sent me, his lieutenant, -Don Facundo Melgares, with a guard, to -march through, take his red children by the hand, -give them presents, and make the chain of friendship -stronger.”</p> - -<p>“That is good,” said Iskatappe. “The Pawnee -Republic is very poor. But if my father is sending -presents to the Pawnee, why are his men marching -east instead of north? And why does he send so -many soldiers with guns?”</p> - -<p>“We follow a long trail,” explained the war -chief. “There are Indians of bad hearts toward -everybody, like the Apaches; and the Apaches we -will punish. The great king knows how to punish -his enemies, as well as how to reward his friends. -We are marching east because we go first to visit the -Comanches. We bear gifts and friendship to the -Comanches, to the Pawnees, and to the Kansas. -And we march east to clean the country from the -Americans who are stealing in. The great king -will look after his own children. He wishes no foreigners -to view the land. He will not permit the -American traders to cheat the Indians. The American -king pretends to have bought part of the country,<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_32"></a>[32]</span> -but he has no rights here in the south, and the -great king of Spain still owns all the lands beyond -the Pawnees and the Kansas. Now word has come -to the Spanish governor that the Americans are -sending soldiers westward through Spanish country, -to spy out the land. They are led by a chief named -Pike. So we march ready for battle, to meet these -Americans and either turn them back or take them -prisoner.”</p> - -<p>“The Americans of Chief Pike will fight?” -asked Iskatappe.</p> - -<p>The young war chief laughed, showing white -teeth.</p> - -<p>“They cannot fight the soldiers of the great king. -We are many and brave; the Americans are small. -We can punish or reward. The Americans are weak -and poor. Should there be war, we will eat them -up. If they do not keep out of the country, there -will be war. We shall warn them. The Indians -would do very foolishly to help the Americans who -have nothing, and are only greedy, seeking to steal -the Indians’ hunting grounds. First a few will -come, as spies; then more will come by the same -trail, and with their guns kill all the buffalo.”</p> - -<p>“We know little about the Americans, but we -see that the Spanish are many and strong,” Iskatappe<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_33"></a>[33]</span> -replied. “I will take word back to the Pawnee, -about this Pike.”</p> - -<p>“Who is your head chief?”</p> - -<p>“He is Charakterik—White Wolf.”</p> - -<p>“Where does he live?”</p> - -<p>“In his town of the Pawnee nation on the river -of the Pawnee Republic.”</p> - -<p>“Tell him that after we have marched east and -talked with the Comanches and cleaned the foreign -traders from the country, we will march north and -visit him at his town on the River Republican. If -the American chief Mungo-Meri Pike comes there, -the Pawnees must stop him; for the great king will -be angry if the Americans are allowed to pass -through.”</p> - -<p>“I will tell him,” Iskatappe promised. “It is -best that we travel fast. We came down on foot, -for we are very poor. If we have horses to ride -back on, we shall travel faster.”</p> - -<p>“Bueno—good,” answered the Spanish chief. -“Your father the great king of us all is generous -to his children. You shall have horses, so that -you may carry the news quickly.”</p> - -<p>This night the Iskatappe squad slept in the Spanish -camp, and ate frequently. Rich Man explained -to Old Knife and Wolf what had been said to him<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_34"></a>[34]</span> -and not understood by them. Boy Scar Head listened. -In the morning they were treated to a marching -dance, in which the Spanish soldiers moved to -the beat of drums. They were presented with a -horse apiece; and after having shaken hands again -they left, well satisfied.</p> - -<p>Once away from the river they rode fast; for -Skidi had stolen three mules during the night while -the guard was sleepy instead of watchful, and hidden -the animals in a convenient place. But the Spanish -did not pursue.</p> - -<p>“We will tell Charakterik that the Spanish are -strong,” said Iskatappe. “They fought the Apaches; -they have plenty of guns and horses. They will eat -the Americans of that Pike.”</p> - -<p>“I think, myself, that the Pawnee will grow -fatter by helping the Spanish father than by helping -the strange American father,” declared Old Knife.</p> - -<p>“We have gained four horses and three mules,” -Skidi chuckled. “All the whites are stupid. If the -Americans come they will go back afoot; hey?”</p> - -<p>“What kind of men are the Americans?” Boy -Scar Head ventured to ask, from the rear.</p> - -<p>“We are talking,” Letalesha rebuked. “When -chiefs and warriors talk, boys keep silent.”</p> - -<p>So Scar Head got no information. All he<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_35"></a>[35]</span> -knew was, that the Americans were a white nation -living in the far east, beyond St. Louis where the -French traders lived. But three Pawnees had been -taken by the great trader Pierre Chouteau, to visit -the American father in Wash’ton. When they returned, -the Pawnees would know more about the -Americans. And of course that Chief Pike was -likely to appear if the Spanish did not stop him.</p> - -<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop" /> - -<div class="chapter"> -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_36"></a>[36]</span></p> - -<h2 class="nobreak" id="II">II<br /> -<small>THE COMING OF THE AMERICANS</small></h2> -</div> - - -<p>The Spanish came in about three weeks—three -hundred of them, led by their young war chief whose -name was Melgares. A brave sight they made as -they rode with flags and drums and jingle of bridles -and formed camp outside the Chief Charakterik -town.</p> - -<p>Lieutenant Melgares held a council with the -Republican Pawnees and the Grand Pawnees from -the north. The Pawnee Loups, or Wolf Pawnees, -did not send any chiefs, because they were at war -with the other Pawnees.</p> - -<p>The Spanish chief said that he had met the -Ietans or Comanches in the south and signed a treaty -of peace with them. They had promised to help -their Spanish father. But on the way north the -Omahas had stolen many of his horses and mules, -after another council; and by reason of these bad -hearts he had come on with only a few of his men, -in order to smooth the road between the great king -and the great king’s children.</p> - -<p>He was too young to sit in grand council with<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_37"></a>[37]</span> -the head chiefs of the Pawnees. In the spring a -higher chief than he would come, to build a town -near the Pawnee town, and live with the red people -and teach them how to get rich, if they were good. -Meanwhile they must watch out that the Americans -(who were poor but greedy) did not sneak in, and -cheat them of their lands and drive off the game. -The American chief, Mungo-Meri Pike, was on the -way, although he had not been found. If he arrived, -he must be turned back. These were the orders of -the king of the Spanish nation, who ruled all this -country.</p> - -<p>Lieutenant Melgares gave Chief Charakterik and -the head chief of the Grand Pawnees each a large, -fine medal of silver to wear; and a paper signed by -the governor of New Mexico, which made them head -men under the king; and a Spanish flag, and four -mules. He laid on the prairie other gifts, of crimson -cloth and of tobacco and smaller medals; and again -warning them that the great king would be very -angry if the crafty Americans were permitted to -pass, he rode away south, with all his men.</p> - -<p>Chief Charakterik hung the gay Spanish flag of -red and yellow in front of the council lodge, as a sign -for everybody to see. It was plain to him also that -the Spanish nation was a powerful nation, to send so -many soldiers so far, looking for the Americans.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_38"></a>[38]</span></p> - -<p>The Spanish soldiers had not been gone long -when from the Osage towns in the southeast toward -the Missouri River there ran the news that the -Americans of Mungo-Meri Pike were coming indeed. -They were bringing to the Osages almost fifty men -and women whom the Potawatomis had captured -last year, and who had been rescued by the American -father. Two of the Pawnees who had been to -Wash’ton visiting the American father were with -them on the way home.</p> - -<p>“We will let them come this far, so as to get -our brothers back,” said Chief Charakterik. “We -will talk with them and see what kind of men they -are, but they shall go no farther.”</p> - -<p>He sent Pawnee scouts down to the Osage towns, -to watch the Americans.</p> - -<p>Now August, the squash month, had passed, -and September, the month when the buffalo fatten, -had opened. The Americans were reported to be -at the Osage villages, where a welcome had greeted -the Osages returned from the Potawatomis, and a -great council had been held with the Pike men.</p> - -<p>They had traveled in boats up the Osage River -from the Missouri, but were coming on across country -to the Pawnees by horses.</p> - -<p>Only one American appeared, first, riding in -with a Pawnee-who-had-been-to-Wash’ton as his<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_39"></a>[39]</span> -guide. This Pawnee young man had gone to visit -the American father many moons ago, and here he -was again, safe and sound and wearing good clothes. -That spoke well for the Americans.</p> - -<p>He said that the other Pawnee-who-had-been-to-Wash’ton -was coming with the rest of the Americans. -They were bringing several Osages to smoke -with the Pawnees. They had sent word for the -Kansas to meet them and smoke peace. The Americans -were a pleasant people; they numbered thousands. -This American with him was a medicine-man -who cured diseases. The American chief, Pike, had -given the Osages all the rescued captives and had -asked nothing except peace and a chance to buy -horses; he had presents for the Pawnees, too, and -was going to the Comanches. His men were few -although well armed.</p> - -<p>The next day, after having talked with the -American medicine-man in the lodge, Chief Charakterik -took sixty warriors and rode out to meet Chief -Mungo-Meri Pike.</p> - -<p>Charakterik was gone three days, and came in -without having sighted the Americans. But a Pawnee -hunter reported that the Americans were farther -to the southward; so Chief Charakterik sent out -Frank (which was the American name of the<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_40"></a>[40]</span> -Pawnee-who-had-been-to-Wash’ton) and three other -warriors, to find them.</p> - -<p>On the second morning two of the scouts galloped -back into town.</p> - -<p>“The Pike Americans are nearing. They will -be here before noon.”</p> - -<p>“Tell them to wait until I shall meet them and -smoke with them,” Chief Charakterik ordered.</p> - -<p>All the warriors were arrayed, dressed in their -best robes and blankets, and painted with the Pawnee -colors of white, yellow, blue and black. Chief -Charakterik wore his large Spanish medal and finest -white buffalo-robe. Second Chief Iskatappe wore -a red coat given him by his Spanish father.</p> - -<p>Three hundred warriors left the village, with the -chiefs. Riding in their midst, as the son of a great -chief Scar Head felt that the Pawnees need fear -nobody.</p> - -<p>The Americans had halted about three miles out, -just at the other side of a ridge. The Osages were -sitting in front of them. Chief Charakterik shouted -and waved his hand—the Pawnee warriors divided -right and left and swooped down at dead run, yelling -and firing their guns. The Americans stood firm, -not afraid, as if they knew that this was only play. -They were few, as said; scarcely more than the -fingers on two hands.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_41"></a>[41]</span></p> - -<p>After the warriors had charged and had formed -a circle, Chief Charakterik and Second Chief Iskatappe -advanced on foot to shake hands with the -American chief. This Mungo-Meri Pike was a -young man, in a long hunting-shirt or coat of blue -with brass buttons and high standing collar and -lighter blue facings; on his head there was a three-cornered -hat; a curved sword was at his side and -leather moccasins reached to his knees. He was -redder than the Spanish chief Melgares, and had -no hair on his face.</p> - -<p>His men were armed with guns that ended in -sharp-pointed knives, but their clothing was thin -and poor—nothing like the rich clothing of the -Spanish soldiers. They had a flag of red and white -stripes and a starry blue square in one corner, but -they were small in number; and all in all they did not -cut much of a figure when compared with the Spanish. -Certainly they were either brave or foolish, -thought Boy Scar Head as he roundly stared, to -dare the Spanish and the Indians in such fashion.</p> - -<p>The Osages knew how to act when in Pawnee -country. Their chief stood up and offered Chief -White Wolf a pipe. They smoked, as sign of peace. -Then at a signal by White Wolf, he and Mungo-Meri -Pike and the American second chief (also a -young man) rode on for the village. An American<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_42"></a>[42]</span> -head warrior on a white horse rode just behind, -carrying the American flag. The Osages and the -other Americans followed, while the Pawnee warriors -raced back and forth alongside, whooping and -showing off. It was great fun.</p> - -<p>When they all had crossed the ridge and were -near the town, another halt was ordered, in order to -smoke horses with the Osages. The four Osages -sat down together; Chief Charakterik sat down in -front of them, and lighted his pipe. Any Pawnee -who wished to give horses to an Osage took the -pipe and passed it to the Osage. Every time it was -passed it meant a horse, until eight horses had been -given. This was the Horse Smoke.</p> - -<p>The American second chief marched the soldiers -on, to make camp up-river from the town. Chief -Mungo-Meri Pike and his medicine-man stayed for -a talk with White Wolf in his lodge. They were -feasted to stewed corn and squash.</p> - -<p>The Osages also were feasted in the village. -They had come on with the Americans to meet the -Kansas at the Pawnee village and sit in peace council. -Pretty Bird was their head chief.</p> - -<p>Everybody was curious to learn from the Osages -and from the two Pawnee-who-had-been-to-Wash’ton -what kind of people these Americans were.</p> - -<p>“They live in a country wider than a week’s<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_43"></a>[43]</span> -travel by horse,” Frank asserted. “You are never -out of sight of their lodges.”</p> - -<p>“Their women have red cheeks, and their men -are in number of the buffalo,” the other Pawnee -asserted. “They have great guns that shoot a mile -and speak twice.”</p> - -<p>“If they are so powerful and many, why do -they send such a little company into this country, -when the Spanish father sent half a thousand soldiers -at once?” inquired Skidi. “These are spies.”</p> - -<p>“They brought us forty-six of our relatives, -from the Potawatomi,” said an Osage. “They asked -for horses to go on with, but we sold them few. -Now by orders of the great father at Wash’ton we -are to make peace with the Kansas. The great father -wishes his red children to fight no more.”</p> - -<p>“It is all because there is talk of war between the -Spanish and the Americans,” Frank wisely declared. -“That we heard. The Americans wish to keep the -Indians from the war trail, so that they can march -in here and take the land.”</p> - -<p>“We do not want the Americans in here,” spoke -Skidi. “Our Spanish father warned us against them. -They are poor and stingy or they would have sent -a large company and an old chief to treat with us. -They will get no help from the Pawnee, and they -must go back.”</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_44"></a>[44]</span></p> - -<p>The American chief and his medicine-man stayed -a long time in the Charakterik lodge. After a while -Scar Head’s older brother came looking for him.</p> - -<p>“White Wolf says that you are to go on with -the two Americans up to their camp and take a pony -load of corn.”</p> - -<p>“How soon?”</p> - -<p>“Now. They are leaving. The pony is being -packed.”</p> - -<p>So Scar Head hastened to the lodge. The two -Americans were bidding Chief Charakterik goodby, -and were about to mount their horses. The chief -beckoned to Scar Head and pointed to the pony. -Scar Head obediently scrambled atop the corn.</p> - -<p>“Do I come back to-night?” he asked.</p> - -<p>“You may stay till morning, and see what you -can see. Do not talk; and be sure and bring back -the pony.”</p> - -<p>This was quite an adventure—to ride to the -American camp with the head chief and the medicine-man, -and maybe spend the night there. Scar Head’s -heart beat rapidly, but he did not show that he was -either frightened or delighted, for he was Indian, -and son of White Wolf.</p> - -<p>He guided his loaded pony in the rear of the two -trotting horsemen. Outside the town Chief Mungo-Meri<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_45"></a>[45]</span> -Pike reined in and dropped back beside him, -with a smile.</p> - -<p>They eyed each other, although Scar Head did -not smile. He was not ready to smile, and White -Wolf had told him not to talk.</p> - -<p>The American chief had a clear pink and brown -skin and a bright blue eye, with rather large nose -and mouth, and stubborn chin. His manner was -quick and commanding; anybody might see that he -was a chief.</p> - -<p>“What is your name?” he asked, suddenly, in -French.</p> - -<p>“Scar Head,” answered Scar Head, in Pawnee.</p> - -<p>Evidently the American chief did not understand -Pawnee, for he looked a little puzzled.</p> - -<p>“Do you speak French?” he demanded.</p> - -<p>“Yes, little,” answered Scar Head.</p> - -<p>“You are not an Indian?”</p> - -<p>“Yes, Pawnee,” grunted Scar Head.</p> - -<p>“You don’t look like a Pawnee.”</p> - -<p>“Pawnee,” Scar Head insisted, as he had been -ordered always to do, by Charakterik.</p> - -<p>“Who is your father?”</p> - -<p>“White Wolf.”</p> - -<p>“Who was your mother?”</p> - -<p>“Don’t know.”</p> - -<p>“Were you born here?”</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_46"></a>[46]</span></p> - -<p>“Don’t know.”</p> - -<p>“Do you speak English?”</p> - -<p>“No.”</p> - -<p>“How old are you?”</p> - -<p>Scar Head held up the fingers of his two hands; -that was as nearly as he could guess. It didn’t -matter, anyway.</p> - -<p>The American chief hailed the medicine-man in -the American language. Scar Head did not understand, -but the words were: “Doctor, I don’t believe -this is an Indian boy at all.”</p> - -<p>Now the medicine-man (he was a young man, -with brown hair on his face) reined back to ride -upon Scar Head’s other side. He spoke, in French.</p> - -<p>“Are you an Indian?”</p> - -<p>“Yes.”</p> - -<p>“What nation?”</p> - -<p>“Pawnee.”</p> - -<p>“Where did the Pawnee get you?”</p> - -<p>“From Utahs.”</p> - -<p>“Chief Charakterik is not your father, then?”</p> - -<p>“Yes. My father.”</p> - -<p>“Your mother a Utah?”</p> - -<p>“Don’t know.”</p> - -<p>“How long has Charakterik been your father?” -The medicine-man was smart.</p> - -<p>“Two year.”</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_47"></a>[47]</span></p> - -<p>“I see. The Utahs probably traded him to the -Pawnees, doctor,” spoke the chief Mungo-Meri Pike, -across, in the language that Scar Head did not understand. -“And Charakterik adopted him.”</p> - -<p>“The Utahs must have got him somewhere. -He’s no Indian,” replied the medicine-man, in those -strange words. “He’s not Spanish, either.” And -he asked, in French, of Scar Head:</p> - -<p>“You speak Spanish?”</p> - -<p>“A little.”</p> - -<p>“You speak Utah?”</p> - -<p>Scar Head nodded. He was growing tired of -these questionings.</p> - -<p>The medicine-man kept eyeing him.</p> - -<p>“Where did you get this?” And he tapped -his own head, in sign of the patch of white hair.</p> - -<p>“My name,” answered Scar Head.</p> - -<p>“What made it?”</p> - -<p>“Don’t know.”</p> - -<p>“Did the Utahs capture you?”</p> - -<p>“Don’t know.”</p> - -<p>“Where were you before the Utahs had you?”</p> - -<p>“Don’t know.”</p> - -<p>“He may not be all Indian, but he’s enough -Indian so he won’t tell what he doesn’t want to tell,” -laughed the American chief, in the strange words.</p> - -<p>The medicine-man shrugged his shoulders.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_48"></a>[48]</span></p> - -<p>“I’d like to take him along with us and find -out more about him. By the shape of his head -he’s white blood.”</p> - -<p>The three jogged on in silence. Scar Head wondered -what they had said, with those words, but he -was glad to be let alone. White Wolf had forbidden -him to talk with strangers. Nevertheless he -glanced now and then at the two Americans. He -felt more friendly toward them. They seemed kind.</p> - -<p>The American camp was not far. It had guards -stationed, who saluted the American chief when he -passed. At his lodge fire he halted; a head warrior -took Scar Head’s pony, with the corn; other warriors -took the two horses, to lead them away. The -American second chief was here. While he and -Chief Mungo-Meri Pike talked, Scar Head sat by -the fire and looked around, to see what was going on.</p> - -<p>The camp had been placed upon a hill for protection. -There were only four or five lodges, of -canvas, besides the chief’s lodge. The American -flag was flying from a pole. This American camp -appeared poor—nothing. The soldiers, fifteen, wore -shabby uniforms of sky blue; their coats were short -and tight, their leggins thin, and several were -mending their moccasins of heavy leather. They -had only fifteen extra horses, to carry their baggage<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_49"></a>[49]</span> -and the presents. There was a black dog. -They talked and laughed much, as they busied themselves -or waited around the two fires that they had -built. The hair on their heads was of different -colors—brown, and black, and red, and gray. So -was the hair on their faces. They were quick, active -warriors—good men, evidently. If the Pawnees -fought them, it would be hot work before they all -were wiped out.</p> - -<p>Maybe, thought Scar Head, they depended upon -the medicine of their “doctor,” to help them.</p> - -<p>Another man, who could talk sign language and -a little Pawnee, came and sat down beside him. -He was the interpreter for Chief Pike.</p> - -<p>“You’re no Indian; you’re white,” he accused, -of Scar Head.</p> - -<p>“Indian,” said Scar Head.</p> - -<p>“Where did you come from?”</p> - -<p>“Utahs.”</p> - -<p>“Where did they get you?”</p> - -<p>“Don’t know.”</p> - -<p>“Did White Wolf buy you from the Utahs?”</p> - -<p>“He is my father.”</p> - -<p>“You speak with crooked tongue,” the interpreter -accused. “You are white. You are American. -Who was your father?”</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_50"></a>[50]</span></p> - -<p>“White Wolf is my father. I am Pawnee. I -will talk no more,” said Scar Head. “Let me -alone.”</p> - -<p>After that nobody bothered him, although they -all eyed him. Why did they tell him that he was -white? Did he wish to be white? Why should he -be white, or American, when the Pawnee were a -great people who could fight even the Padoucah—the -Comanches or Ietans as they were called. And -if one were white instead of red, it would be better -to be Spanish, for the Spanish were rich and powerful, -and their king owned the country.</p> - -<p>Yet—yet, Scar Head could not help but admit -that these Americans bore themselves like warriors; -this Pike must be a bold young chief, to come so -far with so few men; and after all, perhaps the -Americans might prove strong in medicine. The -Osages and the two Pawnee-who-had-been-to-Wash’ton -spoke well of the nation.</p> - -<p>The medicine-man approached him and suddenly -laid fingers upon his white patch, and pressed.</p> - -<p>“Does that hurt?”</p> - -<p>Scar Head tried not to wince, for hurt it did. -He squirmed free.</p> - -<p>“No.”</p> - -<p>The medicine-man might be putting an evil spell<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_51"></a>[51]</span> -upon him, to change him to white; but the medicine-man -only smiled, and left him.</p> - -<p>Having eaten of meat and corn, Scar Head slept -in the chief’s lodge, with the chief himself and the -medicine-man whose title was “doctor.” When he -awakened in the morning he was safe and sound still.</p> - -<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop" /> - -<div class="chapter"> -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_52"></a>[52]</span></p> - -<h2 class="nobreak" id="III">III<br /> -<small>THE PAWNEES ARE OF TWO MINDS</small></h2> -</div> - - -<p>“The Kansas are coming! They come in peace, -but make ready for them.”</p> - -<p>These were the words of the heralds shouting -through the great town of the Pawnee Republic. -Scar Head heard. He had returned this morning -from the American camp with the interpreter (whose -name was Baroney), and felt rather important as -the other boys curiously questioned him. To Chief -White Wolf he had only good to report of the -Americans. They had treated him well, aside from -bothering him with talk about himself; but he had -told them little. The fact was, he did not know -much that he could tell!</p> - -<p>Baroney had wished to trade for provisions and -horses. Now it was afternoon, and new excitement -arose. The Kansas were coming! A peace party -of them had halted, out on the prairie, and had sent -in one man to announce them. They had come -by order of the American father, to smoke peace -with the Osages.</p> - -<p>The Osages and the Kansas had long been bitter<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_53"></a>[53]</span> -enemies; the Pawnees, too, had lost many scalps to -the Kansas, although just at present there was no -war between them.</p> - -<p>So Chief Charakterik directed that the Kansas -be well received and feasted. Baroney the American -interpreter took word up to the Pike camp that -the Kansas were waiting.</p> - -<p>The two American chiefs exchanged visits with -Chiefs White Wolf and Rich Man, and the Kansas -chiefs. In a council held the next day the Kansas -principal chief, Wah-on-son-gay, and his sub-chiefs, -and the Osage principal chief, Shin-ga-wa-sa or -Pretty Bird, and his sub-chiefs, agreed upon paper -that the nations of the Kansas and the Osage should -be friends, according to the wish of their American -father.</p> - -<p>Wolf, the Pawnee, laughed.</p> - -<p>“It will last only until spring,” he said. “Nobody -can trust the Kansas; and as for those Osage, -they are getting to be a nation of squaws. One-half -their face is red, the other half is white. We Pawnee -are all red. We are not afraid of the Kansas, and -we shall not help the Americans. They are a small -people of small hearts, as the Spanish chief said.”</p> - -<p>This might appear to be the truth. Chief Charakterik -was of the same opinion. He and Second -Chief Iskatappe and two sub-chiefs had been invited<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_54"></a>[54]</span> -to a feast by the American chiefs. When they -returned they were scornful, although White Wolf -had been given a gun with two barrels, an arm band, -and other things, and the other chiefs also had been -rewarded.</p> - -<p>Scar Head heard Rich Man tell about it.</p> - -<p>“Charakterik wore his large medal given him -by the young Spanish chief. They did not ask him -to take it off. They offered me a little American -medal. ‘What shall I do with that?’ I asked. ‘It -is not a medal for a chief. Those two young warriors -who have been to Wash’ton were given bigger medals -than this. Let the American father send me a -chief’s medal, for I can get Spanish medals. I -am not a boy.’ Yes,” continued Iskatappe, “the -American nation must be very mean and stingy. -They send a young man and a few soldiers, with -little medals and a few poor presents, to talk with -the great Pawnee nation. But the Spanish asked us -to wait until next spring, when they will send us a -principal chief and many more soldiers, to live near -us and treat with us in honorable fashion.”</p> - -<p>The council with the Americans had been set -for the next day. The two American chiefs, and -Baroney the interpreter, and the “doctor,” and a -guard of soldiers, rode down. Chief Charakterik -assembled four hundred warriors. The council lodge<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_55"></a>[55]</span> -was crowded, and a throng of women and boys and -girls pressed around, outside, to peer and listen. -Scar Head managed to squeeze inside, to a place -where he might see and hear. The Osages and the -Kansas were inside, too.</p> - -<p>After the pipe had been passed around among -the chiefs, Mungo-Meri Pike stood, to speak. He -threw off his red-lined blue cloak, and stood slim -and straight—a handsome young man.</p> - -<p>Baroney translated for him, in Pawnee and sign -language.</p> - -<p>“The great American father of us all, at Wash’ton, -has sent me,” he said. “He is now your father. -You have no Spanish father. Not long ago the -Spanish gave up all this country, from the big river -to the mountains. The Americans have bought it. -The Spanish have no rights here, any more. Now -your American father has sent me to visit among -his red children, to tell them that his heart is good -toward them, and that he wishes peace. I am to -take back word of them, and of the country, so that -he may know. I am surprised to see that you are -flying the Spanish flag at the lodge door. <a href="#i_055">I bring -you the American flag</a>, to take its place. You cannot -have two fathers and two flags. I have also -brought you gifts. They are here. I ask you to -accept them, as a small token from your American<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_56"></a>[56]</span> -father. I should like your answer.” And he sat -down.</p> - -<div class="figcenter" id="i_055"> - <img src="images/i_055.jpg" alt="" title="" /> - <div class="caption"> - <p class="noic"><a href="#Page_55">“I BRING YOU THE AMERICAN FLAG”</a></p> - </div> -</div> - -<p>Chief Charakterik dropped his buffalo-robe from -his shoulders, to stand and speak.</p> - -<p>“We hear your words,” he said. “We thank -you for the presents. We wish to ask where you -are going from here?”</p> - -<p>“We are going on, to explore the country and -to smoke peace with the Ietans,” replied Chief Pike.</p> - -<p>“We knew that you were coming,” spoke White -Wolf. “The Spanish chief who was here said that -you were coming. He said that the Americans were -a small nation but greedy, and that soon they would -stretch out even to the Pawnee, and claim the country. -Now we see how truly the Spanish chief saw -ahead, for here you are. We do not wish you to go -on. We turned the Spanish back, until they should -come again to live with us. We will turn you back. -It is impossible for you to go on. You are few -and you do not know the country. The Padoucah -(Comanches) are many and powerful. They are -our enemies and the friends of the Spanish and will -kill you all. You must go back by the road that you -came on.”</p> - -<p>The young Chief Mungo-Meri Pike stood up -straighter still, and answered with ringing voice.</p> - -<p>“I have been sent out by our great father to<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_57"></a>[57]</span> -travel through his country, to visit his red children, -and talk peace. You have seen how I have -brought the Osages and the Kansas together. I -wish my road to be smooth, with a blue sky over my -head. I have not seen any blood in the trail. But -the warriors of the American father are not women, -to be turned back by words. If the Pawnee wish to -try to stop me, they may try. We are men, well -armed, and will take many lives in exchange for -our own. Then the great father will send other -warriors, to gather our bones and to avenge our -deaths, and our spirits will hear war-songs sung in -praise of our deeds. We shall go on. I ask you -for horses, and somebody who speaks Comanche, -to help us; and I ask you to take down the Spanish -flag and hoist the flag of your American father, -instead.”</p> - -<p>That was a defiant speech, and Scar Head thrilled. -Surely, the American chief was a man.</p> - -<p>Iskatappe arose.</p> - -<p>“We do not want peace with the Padoucah,” he -said. “They have killed six of our young men. -We must have scalps in payment, so that the young -men’s relatives can wash the mourning paint from -their faces and be happy. It would be foolish for -us to send anybody with you or to give you horses.<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_58"></a>[58]</span> -We have been satisfied with our Spanish father. We -do not wish so many fathers.”</p> - -<p>He sat down.</p> - -<p>“That is true,” Chief Pike retorted. “You do -not wish many fathers. Now you have only the one -great father. He is your American father. You -have not answered me about the flag. I still see the -Spanish flag flying at your door. I think you ought -to lower that flag and put up this American flag, -for I have told you that the Spanish do not rule this -land any more. You cannot be children of two -fathers, and speak with two tongues. I wish an -answer.”</p> - -<p>Nobody said anything for a long time. The -American chiefs sat there, gazing straight in front -of them, and waiting. The blue eyes of Mungo-Meri -Pike seemed to search all hearts. Was it to be -peace or war? Then old Sleeping Bear, the head -councillor of the Pawnee Republic, got up, without -a word, and went to the doorway, and took down -the Spanish flag from its staff, and brought it to -Chief Pike. Chief Pike handed him the American -flag, of red and white stripes like the sunset and the -starry sky in one corner. Old Sleeping Bear carried -it and fastened it to the staff.</p> - -<p>The Osages and the Kansas grunted “Good,” -because they already had accepted the American<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_59"></a>[59]</span> -father; but the Pawnees hung their heads and looked -glum. When the Spanish came back and found -their great king’s flag gone, what would they say?</p> - -<p>Chief Pike saw the downcast faces, and read -the thoughts behind them. His heart was big, after -all, and he did not wish to shame the Pawnee nation, -for he uttered, quickly:</p> - -<p>“You have shown me that you are of good mind -toward your father in Wash’ton. I do not seek to -make trouble between you and the Spanish. We -will attend to the Spanish. Should there be war -between the white people, the wish of your American -father is that his red children stay by their own fires -and not take part. In case that the Spanish come -and demand their flag, here it is. I give it to you. -I ask that you do not put it up while I am with you, -but that you keep the American flag flying.”</p> - -<p>“We thank you. We will do as you say,” White -Wolf responded; and every face had brightened. -“In return, we beg you not to go on. You will -lose your way. It will soon be winter, and you have -no winter clothes, I see. The Spanish will capture -you. If they do not capture you, the Padoucah -will kill you. It will be pitiful.”</p> - -<p>Soon after this the council broke up. Chief -Mungo-Meri Pike was still determined; he had not -been frightened by the words. His men tried to<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_60"></a>[60]</span> -buy horses, but Chief White Wolf had the orders -spread that no horses were to be supplied to the -Americans. When some of the Pawnees went to the -American camp, to trade, Skidi and two other “dog -soldiers” or police followed them and drove them -home with whips of buffalo-hide.</p> - -<p>Iskatappe only waited for other orders, to muster -the warriors and capture the camp.</p> - -<p>“It can be done,” he said. “We doubtless shall -lose many men, for I think the Americans are hard -fighters. We might do better to attack them on the -march.”</p> - -<p>Some of the older men were against fighting.</p> - -<p>“We should not pull hot fat out of the fire with -our fingers, for the Spanish,” they said. “Let the -Spanish stop the Americans, if they can. We will -stay at home and put up the flag of the stronger -nation.”</p> - -<p>Meanwhile the young warriors liked to gallop -near the American camp and shake their lances and -guns at it. The American warriors laughed and -shouted.</p> - -<p>For the next few days Boy Scar Head was all -eyes and ears. The Americans kept close in camp -and were very watchful. Only Baroney the interpreter -rode back and forth, looking for horses. -Chief Charakterik seemed much troubled. He had<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_61"></a>[61]</span> -not counted upon the Americans being so stubborn. -He sent the Kansas home. They had promised to -guide the Americans; but he gave Wah-on-son-ga a -gun and two horses, and told him that the Padoucahs -would certainly kill everybody; so Wah-on-son-ga -took his men home.</p> - -<p>Frank, the Pawnee-who-had-been-to-Wash’ton, -stole the wife of an Osage and ran away with her. -This made the Osages angry; and now the Americans -were getting angry, too.</p> - -<p>They had found only three or four horses. -Then—</p> - -<p>“The Americans are going to march to-morrow!”</p> - -<p>That was the word from the warriors who spied -upon the camp. Chief Pike rode down, unafraid, -with Baroney, to White Wolf’s lodge. Scar Head -hid in a corner, to hear what was said. He liked the -crisp voice and the handsome face of this young -Mungo-Meri Pike. Maybe he would never see him -again.</p> - -<p>“Why have you told the Kansas to go home, -and made them break their promise to me?” demanded -Chief Pike, of White Wolf.</p> - -<p>“The hearts of the Kansas failed them. They -decided they would only be throwing their lives<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_62"></a>[62]</span> -away, to go with such a small party into the country -of the Padoucah,” answered White Wolf.</p> - -<p>“You frightened them with your stories,” Chief -Pike accused. “That was not right. I have come -from your father, to make peace among his red children. -Why do you forbid your men to trade us -horses? You have plenty. Why do you not lend -us a man who speaks the Ietan tongue, to help us?”</p> - -<p>“If, as you say, we all are children of the American -father, then we do not wish our brothers to give -up their lives,” White Wolf said. “But we do not -know. The Spanish claim this country, too. They -are coming back next spring. We promised them -not to let you march through. You can come next -spring and talk with them.”</p> - -<p>“No!” thundered Chief Pike. “We are going -to march on. We are Americans and will go where -we are ordered by the great father. The Osages -have given us five of their horses. They have shown -a good heart. I will speak well of them, to their -father.”</p> - -<p>“They gave you their poor horses, because they -got better ones from us,” replied White Wolf.</p> - -<p>“If the Pawnee try to stop us, it will cost them -at least one hundred warriors,” Chief Pike asserted. -“You will have to kill every one of us, and we will -die fighting. Then the American nation will send<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_63"></a>[63]</span> -such an army that the very name Pawnee will be -forgotten.” He arose, and his flashing blue eyes -marked Boy Scar Head huddled upon a roll of -buffalo-robes. “Who is that boy?” he asked.</p> - -<p>“He is my son,” Charakterik answered.</p> - -<p>“He cannot be your son,” reproved Chief Pike. -“He is white, you are red. I think he is an American. -Where did you get him?”</p> - -<p>“He is my son. I have adopted him,” White -Wolf insisted. “I got him from the Utahs.”</p> - -<p>“Where are his parents?”</p> - -<p>“I am his parent. I do not know anything -more.”</p> - -<p>“You must give him up. He is not an Indian,” -said Chief Pike.</p> - -<p>“He is a Pawnee. Why should I give him up?” -argued Charakterik.</p> - -<p>“Because the great father wishes all captives to -be given up. The Potawatomi had many captives -from the Osage. They have been given up. There -cannot be good feeling between people when they -hold captives from each other. I ask you to send this -boy down river. Two French traders are in your -town now. You can send the boy with them.”</p> - -<p>“I will think upon what you say,” White Wolf -replied.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_64"></a>[64]</span></p> - -<p>So Chief Pike left.</p> - -<p>“Why did you come in here to listen?” scolded -White Wolf, of Scar Head. “You are making me -trouble. Do you want to be sent away with those -traders?”</p> - -<p>“No,” Scar Head admitted. For the two French -traders were dark, dirty little men, not at all like the -Americans. He preferred the Pawnees to those -traders. But if he were an American, himself——? -An American the same as the Pike Americans! That -sounded good.</p> - -<p>He could see that White Wolf was troubled; and -the rest of the day he kept out of sight. Early in -the morning the two French traders went away, but -he had not been sent for. Chief Charakterik probably -had matters of more importance to think about.</p> - -<p>The Americans were breaking camp. The Pawnee -young men, urged by Iskatappe and Skidi, were -painting for battle, while the women filled the quivers -and sharpened the lance points, and cleaned the guns -afresh.</p> - -<p>The sun mounted higher. A close watch was -kept upon the American camp, plain in view up the -Republican River. Shortly after noon the cry -welled:</p> - -<p>“They are coming! Shall we let them pass?”</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_65"></a>[65]</span></p> - -<p>“No! Kill them!”</p> - -<p>“See where they are going, first.”</p> - -<p>“Wait till they are in the village.”</p> - -<p>Nobody knew exactly what to do. The Americans -were marching down, their horses together, -their ranks formed, their guns ready; and they -looked small beside the four hundred and more -warriors of the Pawnees. It was a brave act.</p> - -<p>“They are not striking the village. They are -going around,” Rich Man shouted. “We shall have -to fight them in the open. That is bad.”</p> - -<p>The young warriors like Skidi ran to and fro, -handling their bows and lances and guns. They -waited for orders from White Wolf; but White -Wolf only stood at the door of his lodge, with his -arms folded, and said nothing as he watched the -American column.</p> - -<p>Mungo-Meri Pike was smart. He acted like a -war chief. He was marching around, far enough -out so that if he were attacked the Pawnees could -not hide behind their mud houses. Now to charge -on those well-armed Americans, in the open, would -cost many lives; and no Pawnee wished to be the -first to fall.</p> - -<p>The Americans had come opposite, and no gun -had yet been fired, when on a sudden Chief Pike left<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_66"></a>[66]</span> -them. With Baroney and one soldier he galloped -across, for the village. That was a bold deed, but he -did not seem to fear. He paid no attention to the -warriors who scowled at him. He made way -through them straight to Chief Charakterik. He -spoke loudly, so that all about might hear.</p> - -<p>“I have come to say good-by. I hope that when -we come again we will find the great father’s flag -still flying.”</p> - -<p>“You had better go quickly,” White Wolf replied. -“The Spanish will be angry with us, and -my young men are hard to hold.”</p> - -<p>“We are going,” Chief Pike assured. “We are -going, as we said we would. If your young men -mean to stop us, let them try. Two of our horses -were stolen from us this morning. They were Pawnee -horses. One was returned to us by your men. -The other is missing. I am sure that the Pawnee -do not sell us horses at a high price, so as to steal -them. That is not honest. If you are a chief you -will get the horse back for us, or the Pawnee will -have a bad name for crooked tongues. So I will -leave one of my men, who will receive the horse -and bring it on. He will wait till the sun is overhead, -to-morrow.”</p> - -<p>“I will see what I can do,” White Wolf answered.<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_67"></a>[67]</span> -“The horse may have only strayed. A -present might find him again.”</p> - -<p>“The horse is ours,” reproved Chief Pike. “I -shall not buy it twice. If the Pawnees are honest -and wish to be friends with their American brothers, -they will return the horse to me. I shall expect it, -to-morrow. Adios.”</p> - -<p>“Adios,” grunted White Wolf, wrapping his -robe about him.</p> - -<p>Chief Pike and Baroney the interpreter galloped -for the column. They left the soldier. Now he -was one American among all the Pawnees, but he -did not act afraid, either.</p> - -<p>He sat his horse and gazed about him with a -smile. He was a stout, chunky man, in stained blue -clothes. His face was partly covered with red hair, -and the hair on his head, under his slouched black -hat, was red, too. He carried a long-barreled heavy -gun in the hollow of one arm.</p> - -<p>“Get down,” signed White Wolf. “Come into -my lodge.” And he waved the crowding warriors -back.</p> - -<p>The red-haired soldier got down and entered the -lodge. Here he was safe. Everything of his was -safe as long as he was a guest of a lodge. Scar -Head slipped in after him, but White Wolf stayed -outside.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_68"></a>[68]</span></p> - -<p>“The American chief has lost a horse,” he announced. -“The horse must be brought back, or we -shall have a bad name with our American father.”</p> - -<p>“If the American chief has lost a horse, let him -promise a present and maybe it will be found,” -answered Skidi.</p> - -<p>“That is no way to talk,” Charakterik rebuked. -“I want the horse brought to me; then we will see -about the present.”</p> - -<p>“The present is here already,” laughed Skidi. -“It is in your lodge. The American chief would -have done better to lose all his horses and say nothing, -for a red scalp is big medicine.”</p> - -<p>And all the warriors laughed.</p> - -<p>Inside the lodge the American soldier grinned at -Scar Head. Scar Head grinned back.</p> - -<p>“Hello,” said the soldier.</p> - -<p>Scar Head had heard that word several times. -Now he blurted it, himself.</p> - -<p>“H’lo.”</p> - -<p>This was the end of the conversation, but Scar -Head did a lot of thinking. He well knew where -the horse was. Skidi had stolen it and hidden it out, -and boasted of his feat. Now Skidi was talking of -keeping the red-hair. That did not seem right. The -Americans were brave. If somebody—a boy—should<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_69"></a>[69]</span> -go out and bring the horse in, then Skidi -might not dare to claim it, and White Wolf would -send it and the red-hair on to Pike, and there would -be no more trouble. Yes, being an American, himself -(as they had said), Scar Head decided that he -ought to help the other Americans.</p> - -<p>He would get the horse.</p> - -<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop" /> - -<div class="chapter"> -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_70"></a>[70]</span></p> - -<h2 class="nobreak" id="IV">IV<br /> -<small>ON THE TRAIL OF THE SPANIARDS</small></h2> -</div> - - -<p>Early in the morning, before yet even the -squaws were stirring, Scar Head slipped out to get -the horse. He found it picketed near the river, just -where Skidi had cleverly concealed it. He led it in -and tied it short, before the lodge door. Then he -crept back to bed again. It would be safe, for nobody -would dare remove it from the limits of the -chiefs lodge.</p> - -<p>The squaws were up first, of course, to start -the fires and prepare the breakfasts. Charakterik’s -two wives, an old one and a young one, arose and -went outside. Lying quiet Scar Head heard them -talking.</p> - -<p>“Someone has brought a horse,” said the young -squaw. “It is a Pawnee horse.”</p> - -<p>“That is queer,” said the old squaw. “Who -is making White Wolf such a present? This must -be the horse that was stolen from the Americans. -The thief has changed his heart, and grown afraid.”</p> - -<p>“Or else it is a marriage gift,” giggled the<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_71"></a>[71]</span> -young squaw. “Someone is looking for a wife -in our lodge.”</p> - -<p>“Who is there, to be married?” the old squaw -demanded.</p> - -<p>“We are the only women, so it must be that -someone is in love with me,” the young squaw -giggled again.</p> - -<p>“You!” scoffed the old squaw. “Who would -look at you? You are not worth a horse. No; the -horse offering is made for me.”</p> - -<p>And they both laughed. They knew better than -to rouse Charakterik and tell him. Their business -was to get the breakfast, and let him discover the -horse, himself.</p> - -<p>White Wolf and the American soldier were still -snoozing upon their buffalo-robe couches. Pretty -soon Scar Head could wait no longer. He went -outside, yawning and rubbing his eyes, and pretended -to be surprised by the horse.</p> - -<p>“Whose horse is that?” he queried.</p> - -<p>“Ask it, and maybe you will know more than -we do.”</p> - -<p>“Who brought it?”</p> - -<p>“That is none of our affair; nor of yours, either. -It was here when we came out.”</p> - -<p>“It had not been here very long,” added the<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_72"></a>[72]</span> -young squaw, to the elder. “See? The ground is -only little trampled.”</p> - -<p>“If you want to know where it came from,” -continued the old squaw, to Scar Head, “you should -trail it back, instead of asking silly questions.”</p> - -<p>“Yes, and get into trouble. A gift is a gift, and -not to be doubted,” the young squaw added.</p> - -<p>At this, Scar Head ran off, to the river, for his -morning swim. When he returned, Chief Charakterik -and the American soldier were up and out, -too, and surveying the horse.</p> - -<p>“Do you know where this horse came from?” -White Wolf questioned, of his wives.</p> - -<p>“No. It was here. That is all.”</p> - -<p>“The man who stole the horse from the Americans -has returned it,” declared White Wolf. “Good. -Is this the horse you are waiting for?” he asked, -of the soldier.</p> - -<p>The soldier did not understand the words, but -he understood the gesture. Now he smiled and -replied in his own language—which nobody else -understood. But he nodded and pointed to the -horse and in the direction of the Americans; and -they all understood that.</p> - -<p>“After you have eaten, you may take the horse -and go your way,” White Wolf bade, well satisfied.</p> - -<p>So the matter seemed to be settled; but somehow,<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_73"></a>[73]</span> -Scar Head did not feel quite happy. The -matter was settled too easily. In a few minutes -the soldier would go; then all the Americans would -be gone, and he himself would have lost them. In -fact, he didn’t seem to be getting much out of his -scheme, except that he may have saved the soldier’s -scalp. Skidi would be angry, too, when he found -out that the horse and soldier both had gone. Somebody -would suffer—and Scar Head rather foresaw -who that somebody might be! Skidi could make -things very uncomfortable.</p> - -<p>But before they were done eating, here came -Skidi and several others, of the men, all furious.</p> - -<p>“There is the horse,” exclaimed Skidi. “And -there is the red-haired white man. We are in time.”</p> - -<p>“What is all this shouting about?” reproved -White Wolf. “This is no way to come to a chief’s -lodge.”</p> - -<p>“We come for a horse that has been stolen by -that white man,” Skidi boldly retorted. “There -it is. We claim it.”</p> - -<p>“No. The horse belongs to the American chief. -His soldier is here to get it. We talked about that -yesterday. I will talk no more.”</p> - -<p>“I will talk, for I am a man,” answered Skidi. -“You let the white man eat at your fire and sleep -in your lodge, and during the night he steals a horse.<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_74"></a>[74]</span> -Are you a chief, that you close your eyes to such -things? We ask for our horse, or else a large -present.”</p> - -<p>“Whose horse is it?”</p> - -<p>“It is a Pawnee horse, and that is enough.”</p> - -<p>“The horse was not here last night, but it was -here early this morning,” announced White Wolf. -“The American did not go out and get it. I am -sure of that. If he did, why should he have brought -it here, if he had stolen it? He could have easily -made off with it, and others. No; the thief who -took the horse from the Americans has returned it, -as is right. Let the man who claims to own the -horse come forward. But I think there is nothing -more to be said.”</p> - -<p>The soldier was sitting, in his stained blue clothes, -and gazing around with a good-natured smile on his -hairy face; but Scar Head could see that he was -thinking fast, and ready to spring for the lodge -and his gun.</p> - -<p>“Are you going to send him away with the -horse?”</p> - -<p>“Who owns the horse?” White Wolf replied. -“Why was it left at my lodge door if not for the -American to take with him? Somebody had bad -dreams, and went and got the horse, so that he -might sleep.”</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_75"></a>[75]</span></p> - -<p>“In that case, the man deserves a present,” -Skidi declared. “Let a present be given in exchange -for the horse and the American may go.”</p> - -<p>“To whom shall the present be given?” White -Wolf inquired.</p> - -<p>“I will take the present, and give it to the man -who owns the horse,” said Skidi. “But of course if -he has done this good deed he may wish to be -secret about it, and if he is accused of having done -an evil deed in the first place, he does not wish to -be pointed at as a thief.”</p> - -<p>“The American chief sent no present. He only -asked for a horse that had been taken from him. -Here it is, left on the prairie at my door, and I give -it back to him.”</p> - -<p>With that, Chief Charakterik stood and folded -his robe around him, as sign that he was done. The -soldier rose, also.</p> - -<p>But the squad led by Skidi murmured angrily. -Somebody reached to grasp the horse’s neck rope—</p> - -<p>“No. Let him take it. He will not go far.”</p> - -<p>“There will be a red scalp, for a dance, to-night.”</p> - -<p>“The Americans will think the Pawnee are -cowards, if all they need do is ask for a horse -and get it.”</p> - -<p>“You talk like children,” White Wolf reproved. -“Who among you claims the horse? Nobody. Why<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_76"></a>[76]</span> -was it left at my door, if not for me? Or did it come -of itself? It is mine and I can do with it as I -please.”</p> - -<p>“But the present! You will shame all the town -if you, a great chief, yield this way to the Americans. -There is no proof that they have lost a horse, and -why should you give one up to them, for nothing? -You have no right to give the horse away until you -find out why it was left at your lodge. You should -wait and find out. People do not leave horses at -lodges without expecting something in return. I -may have left the horse, myself; and I might look -for a present. Where is the present?”</p> - -<p>Thus Skidi cunningly argued.</p> - -<p>“Yes, where is the present?” they all demanded. -“You need not make it, yourself. You can ask it -from the Americans. Or tell the soldier to go; and -if he doesn’t like to go alone, we will help him on -his way.”</p> - -<p>Scar Head suddenly spoke up.</p> - -<p>“The American can have the horse, White Wolf. -I brought it, and I want no present.”</p> - -<p>Everybody gaped. White Wolf turned on him -severely.</p> - -<p>“You? You are a boy. Why do you say the -American can have the horse? If you brought it, -where did you get it?”</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_77"></a>[77]</span></p> - -<p>“I found it.”</p> - -<p>“Whose horse is it?”</p> - -<p>“It belongs to the American chief. It is the -one he lost.”</p> - -<p>“How do you know?”</p> - -<p>“I know,” said Scar Head. “It was hidden, -but I went and got it.”</p> - -<p>“You lie! You are a meddler!” Skidi stormed, -furious. “Wait till I lay my hands on you.”</p> - -<p>“I do not lie. I brought the horse, and I can -show where I found it,” Scar Head answered.</p> - -<p>“That is boy’s talk,” appealed Skidi. “Look at -him! He is no Pawnee, as everybody knows. He -is not even an Indian. Who can believe what he -says? Are warriors to be ruled by a boy? I demand -a council, on this horse—and I will attend to -that piece of impudence when I catch him away -from the lodge.”</p> - -<p>Chief Charakterik hesitated. Attracted by the -loud voice of Skidi the village was gathering; Iskatappe -had come, and Old Knife, and other leading -men who were unfriendly to the Americans; and -Scar Head felt small. Now Skidi had called for a -council; and between the council and Skidi the red-haired -soldier and he himself were likely to fare -rather badly. Charakterik, too, looked angry. Only<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_78"></a>[78]</span> -the soldier stood smiling, backed against the lodge -doorway, his gun in his hands.</p> - -<p>But right in the midst of the crisis, somebody else -arrived. It was Baroney, the interpreter for Chief -Pike.</p> - -<p>“Go into the lodge,” ordered White Wolf, to -Scar Head. “You have made bad work. I will -talk with you later.”</p> - -<p>Scar Head went in, disgraced. Outside, the -voices continued, with White Wolf, and Skidi, and -Baroney doing most of the speaking, and Rich Man -and Letalesha adding remarks.</p> - -<p>After a short time they all quit. White Wolf -entered, with Baroney and the soldier.</p> - -<p>“You are going away,” he said. “You may get -your yellow pony and make ready.”</p> - -<p>“Where am I going?”</p> - -<p>“With these two men, to the American camp. -The horse matter is settled. The American chief -has sent a present, for the horse. Everybody is satisfied. -But you did a wrong thing, when you interfered -in men’s affairs. Why did you do that?”</p> - -<p>“I like the Americans,” Scar Head stammered.</p> - -<p>“Yes,” replied White Wolf. “What Skidi said -is true. You are not red, you are white, and they all -know it. You can never be an Indian. Now you -have lost friends. The Pawnee will always look at<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_79"></a>[79]</span> -you sideways, and Skidi is likely to harm you. So -I give you to the American chief, to be rid of you -before you are hurt. He asked me to send you away. -If I keep you it may mean trouble for me also. Get -your horse. These two men are waiting.”</p> - -<p>His brain in a whirl, Scar Head hastened out, -for his yellow pony. As he passed through the village, -there were scowls and jeers, because now nobody -respected him as the chief’s son; but he did not -care. He was an American, and these Pawnees -were no longer his people. So he tried to walk fast, -like an American, and pay no attention to the black -looks and the slurs.</p> - -<p>He rode back, on his pony. The two men were -waiting, on their horses, with the other horse in tow. -White Wolf’s lodge received him kindly. His -brother, White Wolf’s real son, handed him a horn -bow and otter-skin quiver of arrows.</p> - -<p>“They are for you. Do not forget your -brother.”</p> - -<p>The old squaw put new beaded moccasins upon -his feet.</p> - -<p>“They are for you. Do not forget your -mother.”</p> - -<p>The young squaw clasped a silver bracelet upon -his wrist.</p> - -<p>“It is for you. Do not forget your sister.”</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_80"></a>[80]</span></p> - -<p>White Wolf threw a white-tanned robe, soft and -warm, from a young buffalo-cow, over his shoulders.</p> - -<p>“Do not forget your father. You did wrong, -but your heart was good. Remember that you have -been a chief’s son. Always bear yourself like a -warrior. To a warrior, heat and cold and thirst -and hunger are nothing. A brave man lives, while -a coward dies. Now go.”</p> - -<p>“Come,” said Baroney. The stocky soldier -smiled brightly.</p> - -<p>With never a backward glance they galloped out -of the town, into the south and on.</p> - -<p>Baroney began to lead. With the horse in tow, -the soldier slackened, to ride alongside Scar Head. -He grinned, and spoke.</p> - -<p>“Hello,” he said, again.</p> - -<p>“H’lo,” responded Scar Head.</p> - -<p>The soldier rubbed his nose, as if figuring upon -what to say next.</p> - -<p>“American, you?” he queried.</p> - -<p>Scar Head caught the word, and nodded. The -soldier spoke farther, with another question.</p> - -<p>“He asks your name,” called back Baroney. “I -will tell him. His name is Sparks. He is a good -man. They are all good men. You will be happy -with the Americans.”</p> - -<p>“Sparks!” That was a simple name and a<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_81"></a>[81]</span> -good one, because it fitted. Fire might be his medicine; -the stiff bright hairs of his face were the red -sparks, shooting out.</p> - -<p>The American chief had camped at only a short -distance from the Pawnee town, waiting on peace or -war. There were shouts of welcome, for Baroney -and Sparks, and many curious gazes for Scar Head. -He rode proudly, on his yellow pony, with his warrior’s -bow and arrows, his chief-beaded moccasins, -his bracelet and his white cow-robe. He was no -longer afraid of the Americans. Baroney took him -on to Chief Pike, who was standing beside his -saddled horse.</p> - -<p>The camp lodges had been struck, the Americans -were ready to march.</p> - -<p>Baroney explained to the young chief. Chief -Pike listened—he nodded, and spoke, and with a -smile reached to shake Scar Head’s hand. The -medicine man also spoke, and smiled, and shook -hands. The young second chief came and did the -same. Then they got on their horses.</p> - -<p>“It is well,” said Baroney to Scar Head. “You -will ride in front, with the chiefs.”</p> - -<p>“Where do we go?”</p> - -<p>“We go to the mountains, and to find the Ietans.”</p> - -<p>Scar Head said nothing, to that. It was a long -way, and the danger way, but he was with braves<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_82"></a>[82]</span> -who seemed to feel no fears. They appeared to -know what they were about.</p> - -<p>Chief Pike shouted a command and led out. The -second chief repeated the command, and turned in -his saddle to see that it was obeyed; then he galloped -to the fore. The two chiefs rode first, side -by side. Baroney signed, and Scar Head found -himself between Baroney and the medicine-man. -Four Osages, still—Chief Pretty Bird, two warriors -and a woman—followed. The American warriors -trudged after, two by two, in a column, with the -extra horses bearing packs.</p> - -<p>The warriors numbered eighteen. It was a small -party, for a great nation, when one remembered that -the Spanish had sent several hundred and that the -Padoucahs or Ietans (the Comanches) numbered -thousands. The Osages of course need not be -counted. The Pawnees thought little of Osages—a -poor and miserable people.</p> - -<p>The Spanish had left a very broad, plain trail. -The Americans were following it, although it was an -old trail and the Spanish chief had been gone several -weeks. It stretched straight southward, toward the -Kansas country, and the Padoucah and the Spanish -country, beyond. If the young chief Pike followed -far enough, in that direction, he would have need -of all his medicine to get out again. But perhaps<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_83"></a>[83]</span> -he would turn west, in time, and aim for the unknown -mountains, many days’ journey—although what he -expected to find there, nobody might say.</p> - -<p>It was the home of the Utahs, who warred upon -plains people and were friendly to only the Spanish.</p> - -<p>He was a bold man, this young Chief Pike.</p> - -<p>The march southward continued all day, pursuing -the trail, until when the sun was getting low -and the shadows long a place was reached where the -Spanish had camped.</p> - -<p>Chief Pike examined the signs. The Spanish of -Chief Melgares had camped in a circle. There were -fifty-nine burnt spots, from campfires. Allowing six -warriors to each fire, that counted up over three -hundred and fifty. The grasses had been eaten off -by the horses.</p> - -<p>Chief Pike led his eighteen warriors on a little -distance, and ordered camp for the night beside a -fork of the river of the Kansas. Scar Head was -well treated; the American medicine man or “doctor” -eyed him a great deal, but did him no harm; -the warrior Sparks grinned at him, and beckoned -to him, but he did not go. It was a cheerful camp, -with the men singing and joking in their strange -language.</p> - -<p>He ate at the fire of the two chiefs and the medicine-man. -They and Baroney the interpreter talked<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_84"></a>[84]</span> -together. Soon after dark everybody went to bed, -except the guards, and except Chief Pike, who sat -up, in his lodge, making black marks on white leaves, -by the fire of a sputtering white stick!</p> - -<p>Scar Head rolled in his buffalo robe, at one side -of the lodge; the couch for the medicine-man (who -was already on it) and for the chief, was at the -other side. He stayed awake as long as he could, -watching lest the medicine-man should try to feel -of the spot on his head, again; but he was tired, and -before the chief had finished making marks, he fell -asleep.</p> - -<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop" /> - -<div class="chapter"> -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_85"></a>[85]</span></p> - -<h2 class="nobreak" id="V">V<br /> -<small>THE CHASE OF THE BIG ELK</small></h2> -</div> - - -<p>Bang!</p> - -<p>One of the American guards, stationed on a little -rise, had fired his gun, as an alarm signal.</p> - -<p>It was noon, of the second day, and Chief Pike -had halted his men to eat, and graze the horses. At -the signal, everybody looked.</p> - -<p>“Injuns!” cried the Americans, while the guard -pointed and called.</p> - -<p>Scar Head likewise looked.</p> - -<p>“Pawnee,” he said. He knew them instantly, -although they were still far off.</p> - -<p>Chief Pike and the young sub-chief shouted -orders. The soldiers seized their guns and formed -to protect the horses; the guards came running in. -Scar Head strung his bow and plucked a good arrow -from his quiver. The “doctor” or medicine-man, -standing with gun in hand, smiled and asked him a -question, in French.</p> - -<p>“What are you doing? Making ready to fight?”</p> - -<p>“Yes.”</p> - -<p>“Good,” praised the medicine-man. “You will -fight for the Americans?”</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_86"></a>[86]</span></p> - -<p>“I am American,” asserted Scar Head. “American. -No Pawnee.”</p> - -<p>The medicine-man laughed, but he seemed -pleased.</p> - -<p>There were many of the Pawnees—fully three -hundred. They approached swiftly, across the rolling -prairie, from the north. They were horseback, -but they acted like a war party—all were warriors, -with guns and bows and lances. What did they -want? Even Scar Head could not guess. Had -Charakterik decided to let the Americans be attacked? -That was foolish. The Americans were ready, and -would fight hard.</p> - -<p>Or, perhaps Iskatappe and Skidi and other hot-hearts -had planned this without permission, and -were determined to see what they might do.</p> - -<p>The Americans stood in a half circle, facing -the Pawnees, their horses tied short, behind them. -Chief Pike stood in front of the center, his sword -in his hand. His sub-chief was at one end and -the medicine-man at the other end. Scar Head fitted -his arrow upon his bow, twitched his quiver around -so that he might reach it more easily, and ran closer -to the medicine-man’s end, where he could shoot -better. The soldier Sparks was here, too.</p> - -<p>Iskatappe led the Pawnees. They were nearing -fast. Yes, Skidi was among them. Scar Head decided<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_87"></a>[87]</span> -to loose his arrows upon Skidi, who had called -him a liar and who was the mischief-maker. Now -Chief Pike uttered a sharp command, and the gun-locks -of the few Americans all clicked; he uttered -another command, and the guns of the few Americans -all rose to a level line. Scar Head lifted his -bow and bent it, pointing his arrow upward, his eyes -measuring the distance to Skidi.</p> - -<p>But on a sudden the Pawnees stopped short, so -that their ponies’ forehoofs ploughed the sod, and -Iskatappe and another chief rode forward more -slowly, with the peace sign.</p> - -<p>Chief Pike barked a command, so that the Americans’ -guns were lowered. Baroney went out and -joined him, and they two met Iskatappe and the -other chief.</p> - -<p>After all, Iskatappe only gave Chief Pike a piece -of meat. They rode in together, and the Pawnees -came on, and the Americans let them.</p> - -<p>“No war,” smiled the medicine-man, over his -shoulder, at Scar Head.</p> - -<p>“Maybe,” grunted Scar Head, but he was suspicious. -When the Pawnees acted this way, they -were of two minds. The Americans would do well -to watch out. They did watch, but it was hard to -keep so many Pawnees at a distance. They edged -about, smiling and alert for chances.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_88"></a>[88]</span></p> - -<p>“Hello, little sneak,” greeted Skidi, of Scar -Head.</p> - -<p>“Hello, thief,” Scar Head boldly answered. -“You are the sneak. You give with one hand and -take back with the other.”</p> - -<p>“You talk big,” sneered Skidi. “Once you were -a chief’s son; now you are nothing. When I catch -you, some day, you will be less than nothing.”</p> - -<p>“Why don’t you catch me now?” Scar Head -retorted. “I am with the Americans. I am not -afraid of you.”</p> - -<p>“You are not worth the trouble. We are hunting -meat. The Padoucah can have you and those -Osages. They and the Spanish will eat you all, for -us, and save us the bother. If we did not believe -that, we would never have let the Americans come -even this far.”</p> - -<p>It appeared to be true that the Pawnees were -hunting, and not bent upon war. Iskatappe had -brought Chief Pike a present of bear meat, to wipe -out the memory of the horse-theft, he said. But the -Americans stood ready, trying to see what the Pawnees -really were up to—and Scar Head kept his eye -upon the crafty Skidi.</p> - -<p>Pretty soon Chief Pike and Iskatappe shook -hands again. The Pawnees were to ride one way, -the Americans another. Scar Head was just in time.<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_89"></a>[89]</span> -As the Americans started, he brushed against the -medicine-man, so as to warn, with his French words:</p> - -<p>“Knife. No knife.”</p> - -<p>The medicine-man instantly felt of the knife -scabbard on his saddle. It was empty, as Scar Head -well knew, for he had seen the clever Skidi steal -the knife out. Now the “doctor” exclaimed, and -spoke quickly to Chief Pike. They both reined aside, -so did Baroney the interpreter—</p> - -<p>“Come,” beckoned the medicine-man, to Scar -Head; and while the column went on with the second -chief, they turned back to the Pawnees.</p> - -<p>“We have come for a knife that is lost,” announced -Chief Pike, to Iskatappe, with Baroney talking -for him in bad Pawnee.</p> - -<p>“We know nothing about any knife,” asserted -Rich Man, stiffly.</p> - -<p>“A knife is missing from this man’s saddle,” -Chief Pike insisted. “I ask you to get it for me.”</p> - -<p>“You grow angry about a very small thing,” -Iskatappe replied. “What is one knife to you? -Besides, you say it is lost. Very well; then you -should find it. We know nothing about it.”</p> - -<p>Chief Pike flushed, angry indeed. His blue eyes -looked hot.</p> - -<p>“Whether or not it is a small thing, we Americans -are not men who can be robbed. The knife may<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_90"></a>[90]</span> -seem of little value, but it is ours. I am here to get -it from you.”</p> - -<p>“That is strong talk,” Iskatappe answered. “I -have no knife of yours. Where is your knife?”</p> - -<p>“Who has it?” the medicine-man asked, in quick -low voice, of Scar Head.</p> - -<p>“Skidi,” whispered Scar Head.</p> - -<p>The medicine-man pushed forward to Baroney, -and spoke with him.</p> - -<p>“This man says your warrior named Skidi has -his knife,” said Baroney, to Iskatappe.</p> - -<p>“We will see,” replied Iskatappe. He called -Skidi, and told him to throw back his robe; and -sure enough, there was the knife.</p> - -<p>“I did not know that it was that man’s knife,” -Skidi defended. “I found it on the trail. Now it is -mine. If I give it up, I must have another to take -its place.”</p> - -<p>“Your warrior lies,” Chief Pike flatly retorted, -to Iskatappe. “He stole the knife. Otherwise, how -did we know that he had it?”</p> - -<p>Matters looked bad. The Pawnees were surrounding -thicker and thicker, and the other Americans -had gone on. But Chief Pike gave no sign -that he was afraid; neither did the medicine-man. -Only Baroney acted uneasy, and Scar Head’s heart -beat rapidly.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_91"></a>[91]</span></p> - -<p>“What the American chief says, sounds true,” -remarked Iskatappe, while Skidi glared and his -friends jostled and murmured. “But maybe Skidi -is right, too. He should have another knife.”</p> - -<p>“We are not here to trade knives. When an -honest man finds what belongs to another, he returns -it,” Chief Pike replied.</p> - -<p>“Much time is being wasted over a matter of no -account,” growled Iskatappe. “Here is your knife,” -and he plucked it from Skidi’s waist. “I am not -stingy, so I give him one to take its place.” And -so he did.</p> - -<p>Chief Pike passed the knife to the medicine-man. -The medicine-man was wise. He immediately passed -it back to Iskatappe.</p> - -<p>“It is now yours. Keep it. By this you see that -we did not come for the knife; we came for justice.”</p> - -<p>“You show us that your hearts are good, after -all,” Rich Man granted. “I think you have done -well.”</p> - -<p>The faces of the Pawnees cleared, even Skidi -seemed satisfied, and after shaking hands once more -Chief Pike led out for the column and left the Pawnees -to go their way also.</p> - -<p>The Americans under the second chief were a -long way ahead. Chief Pike acted as if in no hurry. -He and the medicine-man cantered easily and chatted<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_92"></a>[92]</span> -and laughed like brothers; Scar Head and Baroney -cantered together, behind them.</p> - -<p>“Our scalps were loose, back there,” uttered -Baroney.</p> - -<p>“Yes,” said Scar Head. “I smelled blood.”</p> - -<p>“You are no Pawnee. They would scalp you, -too. Were you afraid?”</p> - -<p>“No. No one is afraid, with Chief Pike.”</p> - -<p>Baroney laughed. He was a small, dark, black-bearded -man who spoke about as much Pawnee as -Scar Head spoke French, but was good at the sign -language; so by using all three means, with now and -then a word of Spanish, he got along.</p> - -<p>They had ridden about a mile, and were slowly -overtaking the American column, when another band -of figures came charging. The medicine-man sighted -them, the first, for he pointed—and they indeed -looked, at a distance, to be more Indians, issuing -from ambush in a river bottom on the left and -launching themselves to cut off the Chief Pike squad.</p> - -<p>Scar Head himself read them with one keen stare.</p> - -<p>“Elk,” he grunted, in Pawnee, and stiffened -with the hunt feeling.</p> - -<p>Baroney called, excitedly; but Chief Pike had -read, too. He shouted, turned his horse and shook -his reins and flourished his gun, and away he dashed, -to meet the elk. In a flash Scar Head clapped his<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_93"></a>[93]</span> -heels against his pony’s ribs, and tore after. The -medicine-man and Baroney tore, too, on a course -of their own.</p> - -<p>The yellow pony was a fast pony, well trained. -He had been stolen from the Comanches, whose -horses were the best. Scar Head rode light—a boy -in only a buffalo robe. The American horses all -were poor horses, even those traded for with the -Pawnees, and Chief Pike, in his clothes, weighed -twice as much, on the saddle, as Scar Head.</p> - -<p>The yellow pony over-hauled the Chief Pike -horse—crept up, from tail to stirrup, from stirrup -to neck, from neck to nose. Scar Head, his moccasined -feet thrust into thong loops, clung close. -Chief Pike glanced aside at him, with blue eyes glowing, -and smiled.</p> - -<p>“Good meat,” he said, in French. “We two -hunt.”</p> - -<p>“Kill,” answered Scar Head.</p> - -<p>“Can you kill?”</p> - -<p>“Yes.”</p> - -<p>“What with?”</p> - -<p>“This.” And Scar Head shook his strung bow.</p> - -<p>Chief Pike laughed.</p> - -<p>“They are large; you are small. With a gun—yes. -With a bow—I think not.”</p> - -<p>“You will see,” Scar Head promised. His heart<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_94"></a>[94]</span> -was filled with the desire to prove himself to Chief -Pike. But he had never killed an elk—nothing -larger than a badger; he only knew that it might -be done.</p> - -<p>They raced. The elk were foolish things, and -appeared to be thinking more of some danger behind -than the danger before. No—now Baroney and -the medicine-man had frightened them afresh, for -they had swerved, they paralleled the trail, and were -scouring on to gain the open.</p> - -<p>Good riding might head them.</p> - -<p>The yellow pony knew. He ran like a deer, himself. -Chief Pike’s horse lengthened bravely.</p> - -<p>“Hi! Hi!” Scar Head urged.</p> - -<p>“Hurrah!” cheered the chief.</p> - -<p>They were veering in. The band of elk were led -by a splendid buck, whose horns branched like a tree. -The elk chief ran with his nose out and his horns -laid upon his neck, but now and again he shook his -head, and his horns tossed.</p> - -<p>Baroney and the medicine-man were trying to -close in, on the rear flank—the medicine-man had -shot. Scar Head belabored his pony harder. The -wind whistled in his ears, his white robe had dropped -about his thighs, he rode with his legs and notched -an arrow upon his bow-string. His eyes were upon -the elk chief, and he almost lost sight of Chief Pike,<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_95"></a>[95]</span> -although he knew that Pike was thudding close -beside him.</p> - -<p>The reports of the medicine-man and Baroney -guns sounded, driving the elk before them. The elk -chief saw the two enemies cutting him off before. -He recoiled sharply, to turn, but the herd forced -him on; they all bunched, confused. This was the -chance, and in charged Scar Head, on his yellow -pony.</p> - -<p>“Le grand cerf (The large stag)!” Chief Pike -gasped.</p> - -<p>“Oui (yes)!” answered Scar Head.</p> - -<p>The herd broke. On bolted the stag, tossing his -great horns. After him pelted Scar Head and Chief -Pike. It was another chase. But, see! The Pawnees -were coming, from before. The chase was -leading straight for them, they had seen, and fifty -or sixty of their best hunters had galloped in a long -line, for a surround.</p> - -<p>The stag saw, too. Or else he smelled. He -turned at right angles, to escape the net. A minute -or two more, and the yellow pony was at his straining -haunches, and Scar Head was leaning forward -with bow bent to the arrow’s head.</p> - -<p>“Look out! Look out!” Chief Pike shouted.</p> - -<p>With a mighty leap the stag sprang aside, -whirled, and charged the yellow pony. His bristling<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_96"></a>[96]</span> -horns were down, his eyes shone greenly. Around -whirled the yellow pony, also, and scrambled for -safety. Scar Head, clinging and urging, gazed backward -and laughed to show that he was not afraid. -Chief Pike, his pistol held high, pursued, to the -rescue.</p> - -<p>But the elk chief changed heart. The yellow -pony nimbly dodged, and he went on. Scar Head -closed in on him once more. Chief Pike was coming; -the arrow should be sped now or never.</p> - -<p>The elk chief was spattered with froth from -shoulder to haunch; his great horns, polished at the -tips but still ragged with their velvet, lay flat, reaching -to his back. Scar Head forged on farther and -farther, his bow arched from arrow notch to arrow -point; he leaned, aimed quickly, and loosed. It was -a warrior’s bow, and the recoil jarred his whole -arm, but the arrow had sunk to its feathers in the -right spot, just behind the elk’s fore shoulder.</p> - -<p>“Hi!” cheered Scar Head. He whipped another -arrow from his quiver; without slackening -speed he fitted it to the bow.</p> - -<p>The elk chief had given a tremendous bound; -for a moment it seemed as though he would get -away yet. On thudded the yellow pony, in the rear -at the other side on thudded Chief Pike, ready to -use his pistol.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_97"></a>[97]</span></p> - -<p>Before, the Pawnees were yelling. Scar Head -feared that he was going to lose his kill to them, -or to Chief Pike. That would never do. He kicked -his pony fiercely. Ha! The old chief was failing, -as the arrow point worked. The pony drew up on -him. Now another arrow. <a href="#i_097">Whang! It buried itself -almost out of sight behind the elk chief’s ribs.</a></p> - -<div class="figcenter" id="i_097"> - <img src="images/i_097.jpg" alt="" title="" /> - <div class="caption"> - <p class="noic"><a href="#Page_97">WHANG! IT BURIED ITSELF ALMOST OUT OF SIGHT BEHIND THE ELK -CHIEF’S RIBS</a></p> - </div> -</div> - -<p>The elk chief bounded high, screamed, turned -blindly, and with one more bound crashed headlong -to the ground. The yellow pony leaped right across -him as he struggled to rise. But he rose only half -way, still screaming with rage. Then, just as Chief -Pike arrived, and Scar Head, twisting the yellow -pony, leveled a third arrow, he collapsed, gushing -blood from his mouth, and quivered and died.</p> - -<p>Scar Head yelled the scalp halloo. He had killed -the elk chief, a mighty animal indeed.</p> - -<p>Chief Pike, out of breath, swung his hat and -cheered, too. He got off his horse, and walked -around the elk, examining it. He examined the -arrow wounds, with the reddened feather tips just -showing.</p> - -<p>“That was well done,” he said.</p> - -<p>Scar Head sat happy, breathing fast. The scar -under his white mark throbbed and burned, as it -always did when he worked hard or played hard, but<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_98"></a>[98]</span> -he was happy. His heart glowed at the praise by -Chief Pike. He felt like a man.</p> - -<p>“Yours,” he panted. “I kill. You keep.”</p> - -<p>“It is much meat,” replied Chief Pike.</p> - -<p>Baroney and the medicine-man were chasing -hither-thither. The Pawnees were killing. Chief -Pike galloped away to see. But he would see no -arrows buried deeper than these.</p> - -<p>After the hunt was over, the Pawnees cut up -their animals, and the Pike party cut up the big elk. -With Scar Head riding proudly, they four caught -the column under the second chief. The camp -feasted, this night, upon a spot where the Spanish -also had camped. There was only one alarm call, -from the guard, on account of two Pawnees who -came in by mistake. They had not eaten for three -days and thought that this was a camp of their own -people.</p> - -<p>Chief Pike sent them out again, with food for -a sick comrade. He was kind as well as brave.</p> - -<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop" /> - -<div class="chapter"> -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_99"></a>[99]</span></p> - -<h2 class="nobreak" id="VI">VI<br /> -<small>LIEUTENANT WILKINSON SAYS GOOD-BY</small></h2> -</div> - - -<p>“Chief Pike asks you to go back with one man -and find John Sparks.”</p> - -<p>These were the words of Baroney, to Scar Head, -who was just finishing breakfast so as to be ready -to march.</p> - -<p>A number of days had passed since the elk hunt, -and several things had happened. Although the -Americans were brave, the Great Spirit seemed to -be angry with them for marching through the country. -He gave them hungry camps, without wood -and water. He sent rain on them, and made them -sick. Chief Pretty Bird and another Osage man -had left. They said that they wanted better hunting—but -it was plain that they were afraid. And on -the same day the Spanish trail had been blotted out -by buffalo hoofs, and the Americans had lost it.</p> - -<p>By the talk, this was bad. According to what -Scar Head understood, Chief Pike depended upon -the Spanish trail to guide him by the best road -into the south and to the Comanches. The Spanish -knew this country better than the Americans did.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_100"></a>[100]</span></p> - -<p>The rain kept falling, and the men straggled. -Yesterday afternoon the warrior Sparks had dropped -behind. He had pains in his joints, which the medicine-man -had not been able to cure: “rheumatism.” -He could not ride a horse and he could scarcely -walk, using his gun as a crutch. Last night he had -not come into camp. The Spanish trail was lost, -again; and Sparks was lost, too.</p> - -<p>Scar Head was glad to go back and look for him. -He liked Sparks. He liked all the men and was -getting to know them by their names: queer names. -Each man had two—one for each other and one -for the chiefs. There was “Jake” and “Carter”; -the same man. And “Jerry” and “Jackson”; and -“Tom” and “Dougherty”; and “John” and -“Brown”; and “Hugh” and “Menaugh”; and -“Bill” and “Meek”; and “Joe” and “Ballenger”; -and the others. The last two were head warriors, -called “sergeant.” The medicine-man’s names were -“John” and “Doctor Robinson.” The second -chief’s names were “the left’nant” and “Lieutenant -Wilkinson.” Chief Pike was “the cap’n” and -“Lieutenant Pike.”</p> - -<p>The warriors spoke only American, but they -knew Indian ways. The most of them, Baroney said, -had been on a long journey before with Lieutenant<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_101"></a>[101]</span> -Pike, far into the north up a great river, into the -country of the Sioux.</p> - -<p>The medicine-man, Doctor Robinson, was popular, -but he was not a chief. The men did not seem -to fear him. He rode well and shot well. Lieutenant -Pike and he rode and hunted together, while the -second chief, Lieutenant Wilkinson, stayed with the -men. Scar Head also had grown not to fear the -medicine-man, who frequently asked him about his -white spot and where he had come from, to the -Utahs and Pawnees, and tried to teach him American -words.</p> - -<p>Some of the American words were hard and some -easy. On some days they were harder than on other -days; and again Scar Head suddenly spoke words -that he didn’t know at all—they arrived to him of -themselves. That was odd. He was getting to be -an American; he felt as though he had been an -American in his heart all the time, but that his heart -had been shut up. The times when his spot throbbed -and burned were the times when he knew the fewest -words.</p> - -<p>The men had given him a new name. His Pawnee -name was not good enough for them. The new name -was “Stub.” John Sparks had told him of it, first, -by saying it.</p> - -<p>“Hello, Stub? How goes it, Stub?”</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_102"></a>[102]</span></p> - -<p>And the other men laughed and repeated:</p> - -<p>“Here, Stub.”</p> - -<p>“Hello, Stub!”</p> - -<p>“You’re the boy, Stub.”</p> - -<p>“What is ‘Stub’?” he asked, of the medicine-man, -Doctor Robinson.</p> - -<p>“It is ‘short,’ ‘cut off,’ coupé,” carefully explained -the medicine-man. “They like you. It is a -good name, because you are small.”</p> - -<p>“American?”</p> - -<p>“Yes.”</p> - -<p>“Sure, an’ we mane no harm, doctor, sir,” called -“Tom,” whose other name was Dougherty. “If -sawed-off he is, a rale little man he is, too.”</p> - -<p>And while Scar Head (whose other name was -now “Stub,” in American language) did not understand -all those words, he knew that they were kindly -spoken. So his name pleased him.</p> - -<p>John Brown was the man who rode with him -to look for Sparks. They took the back trail and -rode for a long time. Everything was wet from the -rains. Sparks must have spent a miserable night, -alone on the prairie, without food or fire. Finally -they saw him, far ahead, hobbling slowly, trying to -catch up with the march.</p> - -<p>He grinned when they met him, and shouted -cheerfully, although he made faces.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_103"></a>[103]</span></p> - -<p>“Mornin’ to ye, boys. ’Rah for Stub!”</p> - -<p>“H’lo, John. No walk; ride. My pony.” And -Stub sprang off.</p> - -<p>“Can you ride, John?” asked John Brown.</p> - -<p>“Sure, I’ll try. At this rate I dunno whether -I’m goin’ or comin’. You’ll all be to the mountains -an’ back ag’in before I ever ketch up. Hey, Stub?”</p> - -<p>But Stub might only smile.</p> - -<p>With many grunts and awkward movements -John Sparks climbed aboard the yellow pony. It -was near noon when they brought him into the camp.</p> - -<p>Lieutenant Pike and Doctor Robinson had been -hunting for the Spanish trail, again, but had not -found it. There was talk of a large river, the Arkansaw, -somewhere southward yet. The Americans -were anxious to reach the river, which would guide -them; but they had lost the trail to it.</p> - -<p>After eating, they made another march. When -the sun was low, Lieutenant Pike pointed to some -trees a long way ahead and told Lieutenant Wilkinson -to march the men to that place. He beckoned -to Stub.</p> - -<p>“Come with me?” he asked.</p> - -<p>Stub nodded. He and Lieutenant Pike and Doctor -the medicine-man went off by themselves, scouting -up a creek. Lieutenant Pike was still looking -for the Spanish trail.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_104"></a>[104]</span></p> - -<p>They all looked and looked, but did not cross -it. The lieutenant sighted some buffalo; he and the -medicine-man gave chase, and before Stub reached -them they had killed two. That was good. They -took the tongues, and left a coat on the carcasses, to -keep the wolves away; but when the three rode -hard, to get to camp before dark, there was no camp. -The Lieutenant Wilkinson men had not gone to the -trees. Now everybody was lost!</p> - -<p>After searching about and speaking angrily, -Lieutenant Pike ordered camp. It was lucky that -they had taken the buffalo tongues, because now -they might make a fire and cook the tongues.</p> - -<p>What had become of the Lieutenant Wilkinson -men seemed very queer. Early in the morning -Lieutenant Pike led up the creek, from the trees, and -did not find them. The three arrived at the spot -where the two buffalo carcasses were lying. The -wolves were eating the carcasses, in spite of the -coat, but there were marrow bones left. Next, the -lieutenant led down the creek. Not even the smoke -of any campfires might be seen, and there were no -pony tracks or footprints.</p> - -<p>Stub used all his eyes, but discovered nothing. -At night the lieutenant and the doctor were much -worried.</p> - -<p>“Injuns, mebbe?” Stub asked.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_105"></a>[105]</span></p> - -<p>Lieutenant Pike nodded gravely.</p> - -<p>“I fear so. We will hunt more to-morrow.”</p> - -<p>That night it rained, and in the morning was still -raining, cold. But they had had plenty to eat. This -day they rode and rode, up the creek again, in the -rain.</p> - -<p>“It is bad,” said the doctor. “A long way from -home. Only four shots left. No trail, no men, -nada (nothing). Indian country. We look one -more day; then we find the river Arkansaw.”</p> - -<p>“Go to ’Nited States?” Stub queried.</p> - -<p>“Cannot tell. The Great Father sent us out. -We are men; we hate to go back.”</p> - -<p>“Mebbe they there, on Arkansaw. Injuns chase -’em.”</p> - -<p>“Maybe. But it is bad. Maybe Injuns chase us, -next.”</p> - -<p>“We fight,” declared Stub.</p> - -<p>And the doctor laughed.</p> - -<p>“You’re all right. We’ll do our best, eh?”</p> - -<p>Stub had ten arrows; the lieutenant and the -medicine-man each had four loads for their guns. -That was not much, in a fight.</p> - -<p>Early in the morning they again rode, searching -up the creek, with their eyes scanning before and -behind and right and left. When the sun was halfway<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_106"></a>[106]</span> -to noon, they saw two horsemen, coming from -the south. Indians? No! White men—soldiers!</p> - -<p>Lieutenant Pike cried gladly, and fired his gun, -in signal. His face had been dark and stern; now -it lighted up, and they all galloped for the two men. -Lieutenant Wilkinson was only three miles south, -on the Arkansaw.</p> - -<p>“What! The Arkansaw?” Lieutenant Pike -repeated.</p> - -<p>“Yes, sir. It is right close.”</p> - -<p>“Have you found the Spanish trail?”</p> - -<p>“No, sir. But we found the river.”</p> - -<p>The two soldiers guided. When they drew near -where the river was, Lieutenant Wilkinson galloped -out. By the way in which he shook hands with his -chief and with the doctor, he, too, had been worried.</p> - -<p>“Sure, we thought you were lost or scalped,” -said John Sparks, to Stub, in camp.</p> - -<p>“No lost; you lost,” answered Stub.</p> - -<p>“Well, depends on how you look at it,” agreed -John Sparks, scratching his red hair.</p> - -<p>The river was a wide river, flowing between cottonwood -trees. The country was flat, and the trees -had hidden the size of the river. The men began to -look for trees to make boats of. Did this mean -that Chief Pike was going to travel on by boat? -Baroney explained.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_107"></a>[107]</span></p> - -<p>“Lieutenant Wilkinson travels down river by -boat. The captain takes men and marches to the -Comanches.”</p> - -<p>“Lieutenant Wilkinson, how far?” Stub asked.</p> - -<p>“Very far, to the American forts at the mouth -of the river, and to report to the American father.”</p> - -<p>“Captain Pike, how far?”</p> - -<p>Baroney shrugged his shoulders.</p> - -<p>“Who knows?”</p> - -<p>Stub made up his mind what <em>he</em> was going to do.</p> - -<p>Lieutenant Pike moved the camp to the other -side of the river, where the best boat-trees grew. -The river was rising fast, from the rains, and everybody -had to swim and arrived very wet. Rain fell -almost all the time, but it was a good camp, with -plenty of wood and meat.</p> - -<p>While the men under Lieutenant Wilkinson cut -down trees Chief Pike and the doctor medicine-man -scouted up and down the river, hunting meat and the -Spanish trail. There were buffalo and antelope, but -there was no Spanish trail.</p> - -<p>Lieutenant Pike grew curious about the wish-ton-wish, -or prairie dogs. He found a large town -of them, where the rattle-snakes and the tortoise -lived, too. He and the doctor shot them, to eat, and -they were good—as Stub well knew. It took true<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_108"></a>[108]</span> -shooting, because unless a wish-ton-wish is killed -dead, he crawls into his hole.</p> - -<p>The wish-ton-wish is among the smartest of animals. -He digs his hole cunningly. The lieutenant -and the doctor tried to fill one hole with water, and -get the wish-ton-wish that way. Stub said, “No -use”—he and the Pawnee boys had tried it often. -And the men found out that this was true, for they -spent a long time and poured in one hundred and -forty kettles of water, and it all disappeared but no -wish-ton-wish came out.</p> - -<p>Still, the towns were interesting places, where -the dogs sat up straight with their hands across their -stomachs, and held councils, like people, and whistled -“Wish-ton-wish (Look out)!” whenever an enemy -was sighted.</p> - -<p>A great deal of buffalo-meat was dried, for Lieutenant -Wilkinson to take. Making the boats required -several days. The trees were too small and soft. -When one boat had at last been hollowed the men -started to build another out of buffalo and elk hides, -stretched over a frame.</p> - -<p>On the night before Lieutenant Wilkinson was to -leave, Chief Pike the captain said to Stub:</p> - -<p>“Come here. Listen.”</p> - -<p>“What?”</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_109"></a>[109]</span></p> - -<p>“To-morrow you go with Lieutenant Wilkinson.”</p> - -<p>“No,” answered Stub. He had been afraid of -that.</p> - -<p>“Yes. You go with him, to the United States. -That is best.”</p> - -<p>“No.” And Stub shook his head.</p> - -<p>“Why not?”</p> - -<p>“No go. Stay with you.”</p> - -<p>“Don’t you want to be an American, and see -the towns of the Great Father?”</p> - -<p>“Be an American here,” answered Stub.</p> - -<p>“We do not stay here. We go on, a long way, -up the river, to the mountains.”</p> - -<p>“Yes,” said Stub.</p> - -<p>“You will be cold.”</p> - -<p>“Don’t care.”</p> - -<p>“You will be hungry.”</p> - -<p>“Don’t care.”</p> - -<p>“We may all die.”</p> - -<p>“Don’t care.”</p> - -<p>“The Osage were afraid. The Pawnee were -afraid. You are not afraid?”</p> - -<p>“No. No Osage, no Pawnee; American. -March, hunt, fight, stay with you,” Stub appealed, -eagerly.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_110"></a>[110]</span></p> - -<p>The doctor medicine-man laughed, and clapped -him on the shoulder.</p> - -<p>“Good. Let him come, lieutenant.”</p> - -<p>“He may come,” replied the lieutenant. And -Stub’s heart beat gladly.</p> - -<p>Baroney and John Sparks and Tom Dougherty -and John Brown and others of his friends were -coming, too. Had he been sent away with Lieutenant -Wilkinson, in the boat, for the United States, -he would have run off at his first chance and followed -the Pike trail.</p> - -<p>Right after breakfast in the morning camp was -broken. It had been a very cold night, with snow, -and ice floated thickly down the swollen river. But -by help of the Wilkinson boats Lieutenant Pike -moved his men and baggage across the river again, -to the north side which everybody said was the -American side. The men worked hard, to load -the boats and swim the horses, in the slush and ice. -Then Lieutenant Wilkinson made ready to start.</p> - -<p>He took with him, in his two boats, one of the -head soldiers, Sergeant Joe Ballenger; the soldiers -John Boley, Sam Bradley, Sol Huddleston, and John -Wilson; the Osage man and woman who had come -this far, and corn and meat for twenty-one days.</p> - -<p>Head soldier Sergeant Bill Meek marched the -Pike men up-river, but Stub stayed with Lieutenant<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_111"></a>[111]</span> -Pike, the doctor, and Baroney, to see the Wilkinson -men leave. He had no fear of being put aboard, now, -for Chief Pike always spoke the truth.</p> - -<p>Lieutenant Wilkinson shook hands all ’round, -stepped into the boat, made of four buffalo hides and -two elk hides, and with his crew pushed off, after -the other boat. The floating ice did not matter.</p> - -<p>Lieutenant Pike watched them out of sight, in a -bend. Then he turned his horse toward the west.</p> - -<p>“Come,” he said.</p> - -<p>He and Doctor Robinson led; Baroney and Stub -followed.</p> - -<p>“Now to the mountains,” cheered Baroney. -“Huzzah!”</p> - -<p>“Huzzah!” Stub echoed.</p> - -<p>The mountains were far, through Comanche -country, maybe through Spanish country, perhaps -into Utah country; and after that, what? Nobody -had said. Winter was here, as if the Great Spirit -were still angry. The men had shivered, this morning, -in their thin clothes; but nobody had seemed to -care. Young Chief Wilkinson, with a few men, was -going one way, on an unknown trail; young Chief -Pike, with the rest of the men, was going the other -way, on another unknown trail. So, huzzah! To be -an American one must be brave.</p> - -<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop" /> - -<div class="chapter"> -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_112"></a>[112]</span></p> - -<h2 class="nobreak" id="VII">VII<br /> -<small>“THE MOUNTAINS! THE MOUNTAINS!”</small></h2> -</div> - - -<p>The Spanish trail again! They struck it toward -evening of the day after Lieutenant Wilkinson -had left—and they struck it just in time, too. Snow -was falling once more, and dusk was at hand.</p> - -<p>The trail came in from the north, and crossed the -river. Lieutenant Pike ordered camp made. Then -he and the doctor forded the river, through the floating -ice, to see where the trail went on the other side.</p> - -<p>They returned in the dark. They had lost the -trail, among the buffalo tracks, but were going to try -again in the morning.</p> - -<p>“We’ll have to take Stub, and use his eyes, too,” -said the doctor.</p> - -<p>This was another cold night. The snow had quit, -after falling two inches deep. The horses groaned, -where they were picketed to graze; before rolling -themselves in their blankets and buffalo robes, on the -ground, the men huddled about their fires. There -were now thirteen soldiers, and Chief Pike, the doctor, -Baroney and Stub.</p> - -<p>“Heap winter, b’gorry; eh?” spoke Pat Smith, -to Stub, and holding his hands to the blaze.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_113"></a>[113]</span></p> - -<p>Stub gravely nodded.</p> - -<p>“Winter come soon,” he answered.</p> - -<p>“An’ aren’t ye cold, boy?” queried John Sparks. -“In only your skin an’ a buff’lo robe?”</p> - -<p>“No cold,” Stub asserted. That was all the -Pawnees wore. He was used to it.</p> - -<p>The day dawned clear. After eating, Sergeant -Meek marched the men up along the river. With -Lieutenant Pike and the doctor, Stub crossed to -help find the Spanish trail. They had to break a -way through the ice. The ice cut the horses’ legs, the -stinging water splashed high, soaking moccasins and -drenching the lieutenant and the doctor above the -knees. The lieutenant wore thin blue cotton leggins—a -sort of trousers called overalls; now these -clung to him tightly.</p> - -<p>Stub rather preferred his own skin, for it shed -water.</p> - -<p>The Spanish had camped over here. There were -lots of horse sign showing through the snow, in a -space of more than a mile. The Spanish seemed to -have grown in numbers. It was an old camp, and -the trail out of it had been flattened by buffalo tracks, -and by the snows and rains. So they three—Lieutenant -Pike, the doctor, and Stub—made circles, as -they rode up river, to cut the trail farther on.</p> - -<p>They did not find it until noon. But they found<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_114"></a>[114]</span> -something else: Indian signs which were not older -than three days. A party of warriors were ahead. -Stub picked up a worn moccasin: “Pawnee—Grand -Pawnee,” he announced, when he handed it to the -lieutenant “War party. All on foot. Mebbe so -many.” And he opened and shut his fingers five -times.</p> - -<p>The lieutenant and the doctor examined the -moccasin. After that they rode more rapidly, as if -anxious to get to their soldiers.</p> - -<p>The soldiers also had crossed the river, on -account of bad travel, and were camped on this, the -south side. In the morning they all marched by the -Spanish trail, along the river, into the west, over a -country covered with salt. There were more Indian -signs. It looked as though twenty warriors had been -marching in the same direction only a short time -before; and fresh horse tracks pointed down river.</p> - -<p>Whether the Indians were the same Pawnees or -not, was hard to tell. But the horse tracks looked to -be wild-horse tracks.</p> - -<p>“Sure, wouldn’t it be fun to ketch a few o’ them -wild hosses, Stub, lad?” proposed John Sparks, in -camp. “We need ’em. Would ye know how?”</p> - -<p>“Chase ’em; with rope. Chase ’em all day, make -tired, mebbe no ketch ’em,” Stub answered.</p> - -<p>“Or if ye shoot one jest right, through the nape<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_115"></a>[115]</span> -o’ the neck an’ graze the nerve there, ye’ll down him -like as if lightning struck him an’ he won’t be hurt,” -asserted Hugh Menaugh.</p> - -<p>“Yes, but it takes mighty fine shootin’,” said -soldier Bill Gordon. “You’re like to kill him, or -miss him complete.”</p> - -<p>The wild horses were sighted the next evening, -from camp on an island where there was wood and -shelter. The lieutenant and the doctor and Baroney -had come in with two antelope that they had killed -among their own horses, while they themselves were -lying on the ground and resting. They might have -killed more, but they did not need the meat. Now -while spying on the country around, through his -long glass, the lieutenant saw a bunch of moving -figures out there on the prairie, north of the river.</p> - -<p>Indians? No—wild horses, more than one hundred! -Good! Out he went, and the doctor, and -Baroney, and Stub followed, to get a nearer view.</p> - -<p>They were of many colors, those wild horses—blacks -and browns and greys and spotted. They -waited with heads high, as curious as if they had -never seen men before. Then they came charging, -in a broad front, and their hoofs drummed like -thunder. Only a short way off they stopped, to -start and snort.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_116"></a>[116]</span></p> - -<p>“Ma foi, quelle beauté (My gracious, how beautiful)!” -cried Baroney.</p> - -<p>“Try to crease that black, lieutenant,” the doctor -proposed.</p> - -<p>The lieutenant rested his gun upon his empty saddle, -took long aim, and fired. But he did not stun -the black—he missed him entirely—he had not dared -to draw fine enough.</p> - -<p>At that, around the wild horses wheeled, as if by -command, and pelted off, to halt and gaze again.</p> - -<p>“To-morrow we’ll see if we can run some down,” -said the lieutenant. “Shall we, Stub?”</p> - -<p>“Pawnee sometimes run all day. Mebbe ketch -one, mebbe not. Too swift, have too much wind.”</p> - -<p>“Well, we can try,” laughed the doctor.</p> - -<p>The camp was excited, to-night, with the thought -of catching wild horses. The men busied themselves -tying nooses in their picket ropes.</p> - -<p>“But we haven’t a critter that could ketch a -badger,” John Sparks complained; “unless it be the -doctor’s black an’ that yaller pony o’ Stub’s.”</p> - -<p>Stub doubted very much whether his yellow pony -would amount to anything, in racing wild horses. -The Pawnees always used two or three horses, each, -so as to tire the wild horses out.</p> - -<p>However, the lieutenant was bound to try. In -the morning he picked out the six best horses, which<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_117"></a>[117]</span> -included the yellow pony, and appointed the riders. -They were himself, the doctor, Baroney, soldier -John Sparks, soldier Freegift Stout, and Stub. Only -Baroney and Stub had seen wild horses chased -before.</p> - -<p>All the camp, except the camp guards, followed. -The wild horses were in about the same place, a mile -distant. They waited, curious, pawing and snorting -and speaking to the tame horses, until within short -bow shot, or forty steps. On a sudden they wheeled.</p> - -<p>“After ’em!” the lieutenant shouted.</p> - -<p>“Hooray!”</p> - -<p>Ah, but that was sport! Stub’s yellow pony -sprang to the fore; he was nimble and he carried -light. No—another horse and rider forged alongside -him. They were the medicine-man and his -black; a good rider and a good horse.</p> - -<p>Stub hammered and yelled. “Hi! Hi! Hi!” -The doctor lashed and yelled. Already they had -gained the heels of the flying herd. The clods of -earth thrown by the rapid hoofs bombarded them -lustily. Baroney and soldier Sparks and soldier -Stout, and even the lieutenant had been dropped -behind.</p> - -<p>But working hard, they two never got quite far -enough in, to cast the ropes. The wild horses were -playing with them. After about two miles the yellow<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_118"></a>[118]</span> -pony and the doctor’s horse began to wheeze -and to tire; the wild band were running as strongly -as ever—only romping along, biting and kicking -at each other. Then as if to show what they really -could do, led by their black stallion, they lengthened -their strides, opened the gap wider and wider, and -were away.</p> - -<p>The doctor hauled short.</p> - -<p>“No use, Stub,” he called.</p> - -<p>So Stub pulled down, and turned.</p> - -<p>“No use,” he agreed. “But heap fun.”</p> - -<p>“You bet!” pronounced the doctor, panting. -“What do you say ‘heap’ fun for? That’s not -American; that’s Injun. Americans say ‘much’ fun, -or ‘great’ fun.”</p> - -<p>“All right,” Stub admitted—for the doctor -knew. “Heap chase wild horse, much fun.”</p> - -<p>“Oh, pshaw!” the doctor laughed. “If I could -only get into that head of yours I’d take the ‘heaps’ -out of it. How’s your white spot, these days? Burn -any?”</p> - -<p>“Some days burn, some days no. Some days -heavy, some days light.” And with that, Stub kept -his distance. He wished that the doctor would quit -talking about “getting into” his head. A medicine-man -had dangerous power.</p> - -<p>The lieutenant and Baroney and the two soldiers<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_119"></a>[119]</span> -had come as fast as they could. There was a great -deal of laughing and joking as the doctor and Stub -joined them, and all rode back for the main party, -and camp. The lieutenant joked the least. He -never did joke much, anyway; he was stern and -quiet.</p> - -<p>“We’ll delay no more for wild horses, men,” he -said. “Our Country expects something better of -us than such child’s play at the impossible. Forward -again, now. We will hunt only for food, in line of -duty.”</p> - -<p>This afternoon they marched thirteen miles.</p> - -<p>The Spanish trail continued, up the river, and -ever westward. It was a pity that some of the -wild horses had not been caught, for the other horses -were beginning to give out. The grass was short -and thin, and eaten off by the buffalo, and at night -the men cut cottonwood boughs for the horses to -feed upon.</p> - -<p>This was a rich meat country, though. Buffalo -were constantly in sight, by the thousand, many of -them fat cows, and the hunters brought in humps -and tongues. The Spanish had left camp signs—at -one camp almost one hundred fires might be counted, -meaning six hundred or seven hundred warriors. A -whole Spanish army had been through here, but the -lieutenant and his little army of sixteen marched on.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_120"></a>[120]</span></p> - -<p>There were several old camp-places of Indians. -One showed Comanche signs; near by, the Spanish -also had camped, as if making ready to meet the -Comanches, and Baroney and the lieutenant thought -that the Comanche range must be close at hand.</p> - -<p>But where were the mountains? How far were -the mountains, now? The river was getting narrower -and deeper, the country higher and rougher. -Two horses became so weak that they could not -carry their packs. The horses had been traveling, -starved and foot-sore, under heavy loads more than -twenty miles a day.</p> - -<p>John Sparks, who had been out hunting, returned -with news.</p> - -<p>“I sighted an Injun hossback,” he reported. -“He made off up a little ravine south of us. Don’t -know whether he saw me or not.”</p> - -<p>Before night fresh moccasin tracks not over a -few hours old were discovered. A large war party -were somewhere just ahead. This night the camp -guards were doubled, but nothing happened.</p> - -<p>In the morning the lieutenant took the doctor, -John Sparks, and Stub for interpreter, and circled -south, to find the lone horseman. Only his tracks -were found; so they rode back again and the column -marched on.</p> - -<p>Nothing special occurred today, but everybody<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_121"></a>[121]</span> -kept sharp lookout. The country was lonely, broken -by rocky spurs and uplifts, and the buffalo herds -seemed to be less in number.</p> - -<p>The next day the lieutenant and the doctor led, -as usual, with Baroney and Stub behind them, and -the column of toiling men and horses under Sergeant -Meek, following. The two weak horses had fallen -down, to die, and another was barely able to walk.</p> - -<p>Lieutenant Pike frequently used his spy-glass, -which made things ten miles off appear to be only a -few steps. In the middle of the day he halted and -leveled it long.</p> - -<p>“Sees something,” said Baroney, in French.</p> - -<p>In a moment the lieutenant galloped forward to -the doctor, who had gone on, and they both looked. -But they did not signal, and they did not come back; -so what it was that they thought they saw, nobody -knew. Stub and Baroney strained their eyes, seeking. -Aha!</p> - -<p>“Smoke sign,” uttered Baroney.</p> - -<p>“Heap smoke. Big fire. Mebbe cloud,” Stub -answered.</p> - -<p>From the little rise they could just descry, far, -far to the northwest, a tiny tip of bluish color, -jutting into the horizon there. It did not move, it -did not swell nor waver. No smoke, then; cloud—the -upper edge of a cloud. The lieutenant and the<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_122"></a>[122]</span> -doctor had read it, and were riding on. In another -minute it had sunk, swallowed by the land before.</p> - -<p>“N’importe (does not matter),” murmured -Baroney. “Perhaps more snow, my gracious! But -who cares?”</p> - -<p>In about two miles more, the lieutenant and the -doctor halted again, on the top of a low hill that -cut the way. They gazed, through the spy-glass, -examining ahead. They did not leave the hill. -They stayed—and the lieutenant waved his hat. He -had seen something, for sure. Baroney and Stub -were a quarter of a mile from him. The soldiers -were a quarter of a mile farther.</p> - -<p>“Come! He signals,” rapped Baroney. Now he -and Stub galloped, to find out. Behind, the soldiers’ -column quickened pace, for the orders of Sergeant -Meek might be heard, as he shouted them.</p> - -<p>The lieutenant and the doctor were gazing once -more, with eyes and spy-glass both.</p> - -<p>“What is it? The savages?” cried Baroney, -as he and Stub raced in, up to the top of the flat hill.</p> - -<p>Or the Spanish? The Spanish trail had been -lost, for the past day or two. Maybe the Spanish -were encamped, and waiting. The lieutenant -answered.</p> - -<p>“No. The mountains, my man! The mountains, -at last!”</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_123"></a>[123]</span></p> - -<p>“Hurrah!” cheered the doctor. “See them?”</p> - -<p>Baroney stared. Stub stared. It was the same -bluish cloud, only larger and plainer. It jutted -sharply—no, it sort of floated, but it did not move. -It was fastened to the earth. And north from it -there extended a long line of other clouds, lower, as -far as one might see; while southward from it were -still lower clouds, tapering off.</p> - -<p>“One big mountain! A giant! Ma foi, how -big!” Baroney gasped.</p> - -<p>“All mountains. The Mexican mountains, on -the edge of the United States,” announced the lieutenant. -“Take the glass. Look—you and Stub.”</p> - -<p>Look they did. The spy-glass worked wonders. -It brought the clouds much closer, and broke them. -They were no longer clouds—they changed to mountains -indeed. In the spy-glass they shimmered -whitely. That was snow! Or white rocks! They -were medicine mountains. And the big mountain, so -high, so mysterious, so proud: a chief mountain.</p> - -<p>“You have been there?” asked the doctor, eagerly, -of Stub. “With the Utahs?”</p> - -<p>“No.” And Stub shook his head. “Not there. -No remember.”</p> - -<p>“Pshaw!” the doctor answered.</p> - -<p>The column came panting up. The doctor and -the lieutenant again waved their hats.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_124"></a>[124]</span></p> - -<p>“The mountains, men! You see the Mexican -mountains—the Great Stony Mountains. Three -cheers, now, for the Mexican mountains!”</p> - -<p>Everybody cheered three times: “Hooray! -Hooray! Hooray!” Only the horses stood with -heads drooping; they did not care.</p> - -<p>“How far, would you think, cap’n?” Sergeant -Meek queried.</p> - -<p>“We ought to reach their base day after to-morrow.”</p> - -<p>“Hooray!”</p> - -<p>But although they all marched ten more miles -to-day, and more than eleven miles the next day, -and more than twenty-three miles the next day, -from camp on the third evening the big chief mountain -and the lesser mountains seemed no nearer than -before.</p> - -<p>“Sure, they’re marchin’ faster’n we are,” said -John Sparks.</p> - -<p>“Spirit mountains,” Stub decided. “See ’em, -no get ’em.”</p> - -<p>Another horse was about to die. There were -fresh Indian signs, again. The Spanish trail had -been found—it led onward, toward the mountains. -The country was growing more bare, the air thinner -and chillier. Through the spy-glass the mountains -looked bare.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_125"></a>[125]</span></p> - -<p>When the next herd of buffalo were seen, the -lieutenant ordered camp made, and sent hunters out -to kill meat enough for several days. There might -be no buffalo, farther on. It was a poor country. -He himself did not hunt. He went up on a hill and -drew pictures of the mountains, on a piece of paper.</p> - -<p>Stub did not hunt, either; he was almost out -of arrows. He followed Lieutenant Pike to the -hill, and watched him. But the pictures were only -crooked lines, like Indian pictures.</p> - -<p>The lieutenant glanced aside at him, and smiled. -His smile was sweet, when he did smile.</p> - -<p>“Would you like to climb that big blue mountain?” -he asked.</p> - -<p>Stub had to think, a moment. The big blue -mountain! Yes, big and blue it was—and white; -and very far. The thunder spirit might live there. -Winter lived there. Could anybody climb it? It -never was out of sight, now, except at night (and -it never was out of sight, for days and days afterward), -but it seemed hard to reach.<a id="FNanchor_1" href="#Footnote_1" class="fnanchor">[A]</a></p> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p class="noi"><a id="Footnote_1" href="#FNanchor_1" class="label">[A]</a> This was the celebrated Pike’s Peak, of Colorado, later -named for Lieutenant Pike, first white man to tell about it.</p> - -</div> - -<p>“Top?”</p> - -<p>“Yes, clear to the top,” smiled the lieutenant.</p> - -<p>Stub’s eyes widened; and he smiled also.</p> - -<p>“Sure. No afraid, with you.”</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_126"></a>[126]</span></p> - -<p>“Good!” the lieutenant praised. “We’ll see.”</p> - -<p>The hunters killed seventeen buffalo, and -wounded many more. When the best of the meat -had been smoked, there were nine hundred pounds -of it, and one hundred and thirty-six marrow-bones. -The camp finished off the marrow-bones in one -meal, as a feast before marching on to storm the -big blue mountain.</p> - -<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop" /> - -<div class="chapter"> -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_127"></a>[127]</span></p> - -<h2 class="nobreak" id="VIII">VIII<br /> -<small>BAD HEARTS IN THE WAY</small></h2> -</div> - - -<p>“Des sauvages (Indians)!”</p> - -<p>Thus Baroney shouted, pointing, from where he -had checked his horse on the edge of a little rise -overlooking a dip in the trail.</p> - -<p>They all had been marching two more days, -and had covered about forty more miles. This -made seven days’ travel, counting the two days of -meat camp, and eighty-five miles, since the Big -Blue Mountain had first been sighted. Now it and -the lesser mountains were much plainer.</p> - -<p>But here were the Indians, sure enough. The -lieutenant had rather been expecting them. Yesterday -the fresh tracks of the two men, again, had -given warning. So the column were marching close -together.</p> - -<p>The Indians, on foot, were running toward the -column, from some trees on the river bank, at the -right.</p> - -<p>“Close up, men,” the lieutenant ordered.</p> - -<p>“Close up, close up! Look to your priming!” -ordered Sergeant Meek.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_128"></a>[128]</span></p> - -<p>And the lieutenant and the doctor, with Baroney -and Stub ready to interpret for them, led for the -Indians.</p> - -<p>“Pawnee, hein (hey)?” said Baroney.</p> - -<p>“No Republic Pawnee; Grand Pawnee. War -party; no horses,” Stub explained. There was a -difference between the Republic Pawnees and the -Grand Pawnees.</p> - -<p>“Others yonder, lieutenant!” exclaimed the -doctor.</p> - -<p>They looked. Another squad of the Indians were -running down from a hill on the left. They carried -flags on lances—the Grand Pawnee war colors.</p> - -<p>“Make a surround!” guessed Baroney.</p> - -<p>The lieutenant reined his horse, and drew his -curved sword.</p> - -<p>“Company, halt! Watch sharp, men!”</p> - -<p>He glanced right and left, waiting to see if this -was an attack. No—for, as the doctor suddenly -said:</p> - -<p>“Those first fellows act friendly, lieutenant. -They have no arms; they’re holding out empty -hands.”</p> - -<p>“Forward!” ordered the lieutenant.</p> - -<p>In a minute more they met the Indians from the -timber. These Pawnees did indeed act friendly—and -all too friendly! They crowded in among the<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_129"></a>[129]</span> -soldiers, shaking hands, putting their arms around -the soldiers’ necks, even trying to hug the lieutenant -and the doctor and Baroney and the others who -rode horseback.</p> - -<p>The lieutenant got off, good-naturedly; instantly -a Pawnee leaped into the saddle and rode the horse -away. The doctor and Baroney lost their horses, -also; Stub (who knew what the Pawnees were up -to) was almost dragged down, but he stuck fast.</p> - -<p>All was in confusion of laughter and jostling -and pretended play.</p> - -<p>“No, no!” the lieutenant objected, growing -angry; and half drew a pistol. The men were getting -together, wresting their guns from the Pawnees’ -hands and holding them high, to keep them free.</p> - -<p>More Pawnees, from the timber, had joined, -with guns and bows and lances; and the Pawnees -from the hillside had come in. They included two -chiefs.</p> - -<p>The two chiefs issued orders, and the play -stopped. The horses were returned. Then all went -on to the trees by the river, for a talk.</p> - -<p>Here matters again looked bad. The warriors -frolicked, in spite of the chiefs. They were Grand -Pawnees—sixty: a war party out to plunder the -Padoucahs. But they had not found any Padoucahs;<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_130"></a>[130]</span> -so this seemed a good chance to plunder somebody -else, instead of returning home empty-handed.</p> - -<p>The lieutenant’s face was red, as he angrily -warded off the hands that clutched at his pistols and -gun and horse’s bridle.</p> - -<p>“Stand firm, men!” he called. “Don’t let loose -of a thing—don’t let them get behind us!”</p> - -<p>“Kape your distance, you red rascals!” rasped -Tom Dougherty, as they hustled him about.</p> - -<p>“Steady! Steady!” Sergeant Meek cautioned.</p> - -<p>“By thunder, they’d like to strip us,” the doctor -exclaimed.</p> - -<p>Even Stub objected vigorously, in Pawnee. The -Grand Pawnees were indeed rascals.</p> - -<p>Guns were being cocked—click, click; several of -the Pawnees, angry themselves, leveled bended bows. -It was likely to be a fight between the sixteen Americans -and the sixty Pawnees; and Stub sat alert, ready -to pluck an arrow as quick as lightning.</p> - -<p>“Guard those packs, men!” the lieutenant kept -shouting.</p> - -<p>But the two chiefs were working hard, shoving -the warriors back, clearing a space. The head chief -spoke to the lieutenant, and signed.</p> - -<p>“He says: ‘Let us talk,’” Baroney interpreted.</p> - -<p>“Very well. Tell him we will talk or we will<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_131"></a>[131]</span> -fight,” replied the lieutenant. “We won’t be robbed. -If it is peace, we will give him presents.”</p> - -<p>They all sat down in a ring, with the lieutenant -and Baroney and the two chiefs in the center. The -Americans sat under the American flag, the Pawnee -warriors sat under the Grand Pawnee flags. The -doctor, however, stood up, watching everything.</p> - -<p>The Pawnee head chief took out a pipe and -tobacco, for a peace smoke. That looked good. But -before filling the pipe, the two chiefs made speeches.</p> - -<p>“They ask what presents you will give them. -They say they are poor,” Baroney translated. And -that was what they had said.</p> - -<p>“Bring half a bale of tobacco, a dozen knives, -and flints and steels enough for all, sergeant,” the -lieutenant ordered.</p> - -<p>The head chief made another speech. He was -refusing the presents. He asked for corn, powder -and lead, blankets, kettles—all kinds of stuff.</p> - -<p>“Tell him that there are our presents. We have -nothing else for him,” the lieutenant answered. -“We are ready to smoke with him.”</p> - -<p>The chief did not lift the pipe. He and the other -chief sat, with bad spirit showing in their eyes. The -warriors commenced to hoot, and handle their guns -and bows again.</p> - -<p>“He will not smoke such poor presents,” Baroney<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_132"></a>[132]</span> -reported. “I think they mean trouble. A little -tobacco, lieutenant; maybe a little tobacco and -powder.”</p> - -<p>“You had best look out, lieutenant,” warned -the doctor. “I don’t like their looks.”</p> - -<p>“Tell the chief he will get nothing else. He can -take those presents or leave them,” bade the lieutenant, -to Baroney.</p> - -<p>Baroney hated to do it, but he had to obey. The -head chief scowled. Then he signed, and an old -man lugged in a kettle of water, as a return present.</p> - -<p>Stub heard the Pawnee warriors talking scornfully.</p> - -<p>“See what manner of men these white men are, -with their rags and their poor gifts,” they said. -“They do not travel like the Spanish. They look -like beggars.”</p> - -<p>But Stub well knew that although their horses -were thin and sore, and they themselves were lean -and tattered and almost barefoot, these Americans -could fight.</p> - -<p>Now Chief Pike and the two Pawnee chiefs -drank from the kettle of water, out of their hands, -and smoked the pipe, and ate a little dried buffalo -meat. Several Indians were called upon by the chief, -to pass the knives and flints and steels around. Indians<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_133"></a>[133]</span> -who were given the presents threw them upon -the ground.</p> - -<p>The lieutenant shook hands with the chiefs, and -rose.</p> - -<p>“All ready, doctor,” he called. “Pack your -animals, sergeant, where necessary. We march.”</p> - -<p>The Pawnees sprang up, too, and crowded forward -again.</p> - -<p>“They make a surround,” said Baroney.</p> - -<p>“Look out, lieutenant! They’re stealing your -pistols—mine, too!” cried the doctor.</p> - -<p>The lieutenant leaped upon his horse just in time -to rescue his pistols, hanging from the saddle. He -was hemmed in. The soldiers were swearing and -darting back and forth, grabbing at thieves and -protecting the baggage also.</p> - -<p>Now the lieutenant had lost his hatchet. He -exclaimed furiously.</p> - -<p>“Tell the chief my hatchet is gone.”</p> - -<p>The chief only said:</p> - -<p>“These are small matters for a great man.”</p> - -<p>He drew his buffalo robe high and turned his -back.</p> - -<p>The lieutenant flushed, more angry still, and stiffened -in his saddle. He meant business. Stub had -seen him look this way before.</p> - -<p>“Leave the baggage and get your men to one<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_134"></a>[134]</span> -side, sergeant. Quick! Be ready with your guns. -That’s it. Baroney, tell the chief that the next warrior -who touches our baggage or animals shall die -instantly. Sergeant, at the first attempt, let the -men shoot to kill.”</p> - -<p>The Pawnees understood. They saw the muskets -half leveled, and the grim, determined faces behind. -A warrior stretched out his hand, stealthily, to a -pack—and John Spark’s muzzle covered him in a -flash. He jumped back.</p> - -<p>“Go!” suddenly ordered the head chief. The -Pawnees sullenly gathered their presents, and without -another word filed away, the whole sixty.</p> - -<p>“See if we’ve lost anything, sergeant,” said the -lieutenant.</p> - -<p>“One sword, one tomahawk, one axe, five canteens -and some smaller stuff missing, sir,” was the -report.</p> - -<p>The soldiers waited eagerly. They wished to follow -and fight.</p> - -<p>“No matter,” gruffly answered the lieutenant. -“We must save our lives for our work, my men. We -have work to do. Forward, march.” He shrugged -his shoulders, and added, to the doctor: “I feel as -badly as they do. This is the first time I ever swallowed -an insult to the Government and the uniform.<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_135"></a>[135]</span> -But our number is too small to risk failure of our -plans. Now for the mountains.”</p> - -<p>“By gar, once more my scalp was loose,” said -Baroney, to Stub.</p> - -<p>“Yes. They had black hearts, those Grand -Pawnee,” Stub gravely agreed.</p> - -<p>This day they marched seventeen miles, and the -next day nineteen miles. In all they had come more -than one hundred and twenty miles, their eyes upon -the Big Blue Mountain, as the lieutenant called it. -And at last they had just about overtaken it.</p> - -<p>From camp, here where the river split into two -large forks, one out of the west, the other out of the -south, the Big Blue Mountain looked to be quite -near, up a small north fork.</p> - -<p>“Le Grand Mont,” Baroney called it. “The -Grand Peak.” And the men called it that, too.</p> - -<p>“Sure, it can’t be more’n one day’s march now,” -John Sparks declared, as from camp they eyed it -again. “We can be there to-morrow at this time, -with ease, in case those be the orders.”</p> - -<p>In the sunset the mountain loomed vast, its base -blue, but its top pinkish white. After everything -else was shrouded in dusk, its top still shone.</p> - -<p>“How high, d’ye think?” queried soldier -Freegift Stout.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_136"></a>[136]</span></p> - -<p>“Thray miles higher’n we be; mebbe four,” -guessed Pat Smith.</p> - -<p>“He’s a grand wan all right,” sighed Tom -Dougherty. “Even a bur-rd wud nade an ixtra pair -o’ wings to get atop him, I’m thinkin’.”</p> - -<p>“No mortal man, or nothing else on two legs -could do it, I reckon,” said John Brown. “Unless -that be the cap’n himself.”</p> - -<p>“American can,” Stub reminded, proudly.</p> - -<p>“You’re right, boy,” soldier Terry Miller approved. -“Under orders an American would come -pretty close to filling the job.”</p> - -<p>The lieutenant and the doctor had been gazing at -the peak; it fascinated them, like it fascinated the -men, and Stub. That night they talked together -until late, planning for to-morrow. The lieutenant -had decided to climb the mountain.</p> - -<p>He sent for Sergeant Meek. The sergeant stood -before him and saluted.</p> - -<p>“I intend to take Doctor Robinson and two of -the men, and this boy, to-morrow, and set out for -the big mountain,” the lieutenant said. “The camp -will be left in your charge.”</p> - -<p>“Yes, sir,” replied Sergeant Meek.</p> - -<p>“These reports of the journey to date I also -leave, with my personal baggage. The mountain is -only a short day’s march, but I have to consider that<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_137"></a>[137]</span> -we may be cut off or meet with other accident. To-morrow -morning I will lay out a stockade, here, for -the protection of your party. You are to wait here -one week, with due caution against surprises by the -savages and the Spanish. Admit nobody except -your own command into the stockade. If we do not -return or you do not hear from us within the seven -days, you are to take my papers and such baggage -as may be necessary, and march down river by the -safest direct course for the nearest American settlement -or military post, as may be. At the American -frontier you will leave your men under instructions -to report at St. Louis, and you will press ahead at -best speed and deliver my papers to General Wilkinson, -the head of the Army, wherever he may be. In -event of your disability, you will entrust the papers -to Corporal Jackson—acquainting him in advance -with what is expected of him. In the meantime, here -or on the march, keep your men alert and together, -and do not forget that our Country depends upon our -performing our duty without regard to our own -interests.”</p> - -<p>“Yes, sir,” replied the sergeant. He gulped—the -ragged, weather-worn soldier. “Excuse me, sir—’tis -only a day’s march yonder, you say? You’ll -be coming back, sir?”</p> - -<p>“If within human possibility, sergeant. But I<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_138"></a>[138]</span> -must climb that mountain to its highest point, in -order to make certain of our position and ascertain -the trend of the various streams. We are near the -sources of the Arkansaw, as is evident. Our instructions -are to find the heads of the Arkansaw and the -Red River, on our way to the Comanches.”</p> - -<p>“Yes, sir,” replied the sergeant.</p> - -<p>“That is all. Good-night.”</p> - -<p>“Good-night, sir. I make bold to wish you good -luck, sir. I wish I might be going with you, sir.”</p> - -<p>“Thank you, sergeant.”</p> - -<p>The lieutenant sat up late, writing. In his buffalo-robe, -Stub dreamed of to-morrow, and the -Grand Peak. He had understood only part of the -lieutenant’s long speech; but it was enough to understand -that he was to be taken.</p> - -<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop" /> - -<div class="chapter"> -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_139"></a>[139]</span></p> - -<h2 class="nobreak" id="IX">IX<br /> -<small>A TRY AT THE “GRAND PEAK”</small></h2> -</div> - - -<p>Early in the morning the lieutenant set the men -at work cutting down fourteen trees, for stockade -logs. A stockade was a fort. This fort was to be -only a pen, open on the river and five feet high on -the three other sides.</p> - -<p>Soldiers John Brown and Terry Miller were the -men chosen. That made a party of five. They all -took only a blanket or robe apiece, and a little dried -meat, besides their guns and Stub’s bow and arrows. -They started horseback at one o’clock, to cross the -river and travel up the north fork, for the Grand -Peak.</p> - -<p>The men paused long enough to give three cheers, -and wave their caps.</p> - -<p>“Bon voyage (Good journey),” Baroney called.</p> - -<p>“Good luck to yez.”</p> - -<p>“We’ll be lookin’ for you back.”</p> - -<p>“When ye get to the top, be lightin’ us a bonfire, -Terry.”</p> - -<p>The lieutenant raised his hat, in reply. The -doctor waved, the two soldiers and Stub waved.<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_140"></a>[140]</span> -And the five splashed through the ice-cold water -and left the eleven men under Sergeant Meek to -build the fort.<a id="FNanchor_2" href="#Footnote_2" class="fnanchor">[B]</a></p> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p class="noi"><a id="Footnote_2" href="#FNanchor_2" class="label">[B]</a> The fort was near present Pueblo, Colorado. Lieutenant -Pike’s squad marched up the west side of Fountain Creek.</p> - -</div> - -<p>According to the doctor, this was the twenty-fourth -day of the month named November. By the -morning light the Grand Peak, glistening white, -had looked to be nearer than ever. The lieutenant -was certain that a half-day’s march would bring -them to its base; to-morrow they would climb it, -and would be back in camp on the third day.</p> - -<p>Mile after mile they hastened, their eyes scanning -the distance before. The route up along the small -fork was gravelly and bare, except for clumps of -sage brush, and the willows bordering the stream. -In places they had to cross deep washes cut by the -rains. Not a living thing was sighted, save rabbits -and prairie-dogs and a few antelope. And the -Grand Peak and the line of lesser peaks—some white, -some steel-gray, waited.</p> - -<p>The sun sank low and lower, over their southern -end. The Grand Peak grew bluer and colder, and -the other mountains darkened.</p> - -<p>The lieutenant and the doctor led. They always -rode together. Stub and soldiers Miller and Brown -followed close behind. After a while they all quit<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_141"></a>[141]</span> -the stream, to strike westward, on a trail more direct.</p> - -<p>Soldier Miller scratched his head, on which the -hair was long.</p> - -<p>“It’s a queer thing, John,” he said. “There it -is, that peak—and there it’s been for more’n a hundred -miles, with us a-making for it and never reaching -it.”</p> - -<p>“We’ll not reach it this day, that’s sure, lad,” -answered John. “We’ve covered ten miles, and -you’d think we’d been standin’ still!”</p> - -<p>In two miles more the sun had set. The shadows -of the mountains seemed to extend out over the plain -and turn it dark and cold. Stub pulled his robe -closer around his neck. Now the Grand Peak had -changed to deep purple—it had pulled its own robe -up, for the night.</p> - -<p>The lieutenant and the doctor suddenly veered -aside, to a single low cedar, the only tree of the kind, -around. There they halted and swung from their -saddles.</p> - -<p>“We’ll make camp, men,” the lieutenant ordered. -“The base of the mountain evidently is farther than -we had figured. But we’ll reach it to-morrow morning, -easily, and doubtless the top also, before night.”</p> - -<p>This was a cold camp—very cold with the breath -from the mountains. They had dried buffalo-meat -to chew on, but no water except that in the canteens,<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_142"></a>[142]</span> -and the lieutenant wished to save on water, for the -climb.</p> - -<p>He started them out again early, before sunrise. -They headed for the Grand Peak. The horses -were stiff, from the night, and thirsty, and moved -slowly at first. Presently the sun rose. The Grand -Peak flashed white in its beams, and assuredly was -near. The foothills at its base were dark green: -trees.</p> - -<p>And there they stayed, the peak and the foothills, -all day! Stub’s eyes ached with gazing. Soldier -Brown grumbled a little.</p> - -<p>“It’s a wild-goose chase. I’ve said that no man -will ever climb yon peak. We’ll wear out ourselves -and our hosses for nothin’. Even if we ever reach -the foot of it, look what’s ahead of us.”</p> - -<p>“You may be sure the cap’n’ll climb it, whether -or no,” retorted soldier Miller. “He’s set out to do -it, and do it he will.”</p> - -<p>“Oh, well; we’re gettin’ into a more likely country, -anyhow,” John granted. “The sign is better—that’s -one comfort.”</p> - -<p>This was true. They were entering among low -hills, covered with cedars and pines. Up and down, -up and down, and winding over and through, they -hopefully pushed on—and from each rise they might -see the long dark-green slope of the Grand Peak<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_143"></a>[143]</span> -more plainly. What a tremendous huge fellow he -was, as he towered, shadow-flecked, into the floating -clouds! The clouds veiled his top; he pierced them, -and thus he sat gazing above the world.</p> - -<p>“Gosh!” murmured John Brown. “He’s a -neck-cracker.”</p> - -<p>Toward evening the lieutenant and doctor, in -advance and just crossing another of the many rolling -hills, shouted back, and waved.</p> - -<p>“Almost there, men!”</p> - -<p>When the three others toiled up to the same -place, they saw. A shallow valley lay before; at the -farther edge the timbered slope of the Grand Peak -commenced.</p> - -<p>Hurrah!</p> - -<p>Several buffalo were feeding, below. The lieutenant -and the doctor made a dash for them—cleverly -headed them off, shot rapidly, and downed two.</p> - -<p>“Fresh hump for supper,” cheered Terry. “I -could eat a whole one, myself.”</p> - -<p>“Sure, I could drink a river dry, first,” wheezed -John. “Do you mind that we’ve struck no water -since mornin’?”</p> - -<p>“Water there,” Stub hazarded, pointing at a -line of lighter green near the foot of the mountain.</p> - -<p>They arrived below in time to help butcher the -buffalo while the lieutenant and the doctor rode on<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_144"></a>[144]</span> -looking for a good camping place. It was too late -to do anything more this day.</p> - -<p>A good camp spot was found on a little creek of -ice cold water from several springs flowing out of -the mountain’s base.</p> - -<p>“Here we are at last, lads,” the lieutenant welcomed, -as they brought the meat in. “We’ve wood, -meat and water, and to-morrow we’ll climb to the -top. Success awaits us.”</p> - -<p>“It’s been a long pull, eh?” laughed the doctor. -“How about you, Stub? Are you game? I mean, -are you ready to try?”</p> - -<p>“I go,” Stub announced.</p> - -<p>“With the cap’n’s permission we’ll all go, sir,” -added soldier Miller. “’Twill be a view worth the -seeing, up yonder above the clouds.”</p> - -<p>“No tellin’ what we’ll find, I reckon,” put in -John Brown.</p> - -<p>“Whatever happens, we’ll be content in the -knowledge that we’re losing no opportunity,” the -lieutenant declared. “When we stand up there, on -what may prove to be the uttermost southwestern -border of the United States, we will have extended -the authority of the Flag into a region doubtless -never before penetrated by man.”</p> - -<p>“And procured considerable geographic information,” -said the doctor.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_145"></a>[145]</span></p> - -<p>“Yes, sir. The Government will be enabled to -revise its atlases with accuracy, according to our -new data as to the course of certain rivers, and the -National boundary between the United States and -the Mexican territory westward. And we may perceive -a route that will take us directly from the -Arkansaw to the head of the Red River and the -Comanche country.”</p> - -<p>The long slope of the mountain rose dark and -brooding right above them. They were so close in -that from the campfire they could not see the top, -but they felt the snow whitely waiting, up toward -the black sky beyond the million stiffly marshalled, -sighing pines.</p> - -<p>Yes, cold it was, even here at the base; much -colder than last night, out on the plain. In spite of -the fire, their coverings were all too thin. At breakfast, -before sun-up in the morning, the lieutenant’s -instrument by which he read the cold said nine degrees -above freezing. In his moccasins, made from -a piece of his buffalo-robe, Stub’s feet tingled. Several -days back John Sparks had given him an old -pair of cotton trousers, cut off at the knees, but -these did not seem to amount to much, here. Still, -Terry Miller and John Brown had nothing better, -and their bare toes peeped through the holes in their -shoes.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_146"></a>[146]</span></p> - -<p>“We’ll leave the camp as it is,” the lieutenant -briskly ordered. “We’ll be back by night, so we’ll -not need our blankets or meat. See that the horses -are well staked, Miller, where they’ll be able to drink -and forage during the day.”</p> - -<p>Doctor Robinson had gone outside for a minute. -They heard his gun. He came in, packing a partly -dressed deer.</p> - -<p>“It’s a new kind, lieutenant,” he panted.</p> - -<p>“Good. We’ll hang up the hide, to inspect later.”</p> - -<p>The new kind of deer—a large deer with ears like -mule ears—was quickly butchered. They hung its -hide and the best of the meat upon a tree, until -their return at evening.</p> - -<p>“Forward march, to the top, men,” the lieutenant -bade. “Take only your guns and ammunition. -Never mind the canteens. We’ll find plenty of water, -I’m sure. All ready, doctor?”</p> - -<p>“All ready.”</p> - -<p>With the lieutenant in the lead and Stub bringing -up the rear, they attacked the timbered slope. Puff, -puff! Wheeze, wheeze! The pine needles underfoot -and the frosty soil were slippery. Clouds veiled the -sky, the timber depths were dark and cold, but presently -they all were sweating. Gulches and draws cut -the way, so that by sliding down in and clambering -out, or else making circuits they lost much time.<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_147"></a>[147]</span> -The mountain fought them with cliffs and canyons, -too, and sometimes they could scarcely make distance -on hands and knees. Now and then they had to -halt, to rest and catch breath.</p> - -<p>Once or twice they jumped the new species of -deer, from sudden coverts; there were many large -birds, that rose with loud whirr. “Pheasants,” the -doctor and lieutenant called them. And twice, in -the early morning, they saw buffalo feeding—a -smaller buffalo than those upon the plains.</p> - -<p>But they did not stop to hunt any of these.</p> - -<p>About mid-morning they paused to rest again, -and gaze behind from an open rocky knoll. The sun -had burst forth.</p> - -<p>“A fine day after all,” panted the lieutenant.</p> - -<p>“Yes, sir, up here. But look below. Ain’t that -a snowstorm, sir?” wheezed Terry Miller. The feet -of him and of John Brown, where seen through their -worn-out shoes, were bruised and bleeding. Stub’s -moccasins were shredded and soaked. The feet of -the lieutenant and the doctor were in no better shape.</p> - -<p>Now when they gazed backward and down, they -looked upon a layer of dull cloud. With occasional -break, the cloud rested over all the country at the -mountain’s base—and through the breaks might be -seen the spume of falling snow!</p> - -<p>“We’ve come some way, eh?” remarked the<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_148"></a>[148]</span> -doctor. “Thank fortune, we’re above the storm. -We ought to be near the top.”</p> - -<p>But peer as they might, they could not see the -top. The timber and the rocks extended on and on -and on.</p> - -<p>“A pair o’ stockin’s would feel mighty good, on -this kind of a trip,” muttered John Brown. “’Tain’t -what you’d call a barefoot trail, in winter.”</p> - -<p>They rested a minute, the men leaning upon -their muskets. Then——</p> - -<p>“Come, boys,” the lieutenant urged impatiently. -“One more stint and we’ll make it. Forget your -feet. Think only of the top.”</p> - -<p>They climbed, breathing short and fast while -they clambered and slipped. At noon they still had -not reached the top; several times the top seemed at -hand, but when they glimpsed it, shining white, it -always was across another ridge, and higher.</p> - -<p>Stub’s ears rang, his heart drummed, his feet -weighed like lead. The two soldiers staggered and -stumbled. The snowstorm below appeared far. But -the lieutenant and the doctor knew no quitting.</p> - -<p>“We’ll not reach it, this day,” gasped John -Brown. “’Tis the same old story. Marchin’, and -marchin’, and never gettin’ there.”</p> - -<p>“Anyhow, we’ll reach it to-morrow,” Terry -replied.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_149"></a>[149]</span></p> - -<p>The sun sank; the air grew very cold. Up here -there was nothing moving but themselves; the deer -and the pheasants and the squirrels had gone to bed. -The pines were soughing mournfully in an evening -breeze.</p> - -<p>The lieutenant came to a stop before a reddish -cliff which overhung and formed a shallow cave.</p> - -<p>“We’ve done enough for one day,” he panted. -Even he looked tired out. “I think we’ll gain the -top shortly in the morning. We’re into snow, and -the trees are thinning; the top cannot be far. We’ll -take advantage of this cave, for the night. It’s a -shelter, at least.”</p> - -<p>“That’s one piece of luck,” the doctor laughed.</p> - -<p>“We’ll bunk together, so as to keep warm,” -announced the lieutenant. “We’ll waive question -of rank—we’re all men, serving our Flag.”</p> - -<p>He made no mention of the fact that they were -tired, hungry and thirsty after a long day’s climb, -and that they did not have blankets or food or water. -He seemed to think that if he could stand it, they -should stand it, too, for the sake of duty. That was -his style—that was one reason the men loved him. -He never asked them to do more than he did, and -he never took his ease even when he might, as -commander.</p> - -<p>But this proved to be a miserable night. The<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_150"></a>[150]</span> -fire at the mouth of the cave smudged and smouldered. -The rock bed was hard and cold. There -was nothing to eat, nothing to drink, nothing to -see; all around stretched the slope of the mountain, -black and white and silent and lifeless—and cold, -cold, cold.</p> - -<p>Nobody slept much, as they all lay huddled close -to each other for mutual warmth. They only dozed -shiveringly, afraid to move for fear of losing what -little warmth they were making.</p> - -<p>It seemed to Stub that he had just dropped off, -at last, when he was aroused.</p> - -<p>The lieutenant was standing outside the cave. -Daylight had come.</p> - -<p>“Up, men,” the lieutenant cried. “See this -view! Oh, doctor! Be quick. It’s glorious.”</p> - -<p>They piled out, with sundry grunts and groans -over muscles stiffened by yesterday’s work and by -the hard bed. The lieutenant had spoken truly. The -sky overhead was flushed rosily with sunrise—a clear -day, here; but the storm still raged down below. -The clouds there extended, level, in a thick layer -of drab and white and pink, closing off the plains -world from the mountain world.</p> - -<p>“And yonder is the top, boys.” The lieutenant -pointed. “It’s nearer than we thought. Let’s try<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_151"></a>[151]</span> -for it now, and get back to camp and our supplies -before dark.”</p> - -<p>He struck out and upward; in single file they -followed, trudging through the brittle snow, and -weaving among the pines. The final white ridge -which their eyes had been marking during most of -yesterday loomed large and plain above.</p> - -<p>The snow gradually deepened. Its surface bore -not a trace of foot or paw or hoof. Soon it was to -their knees, soon thigh high; but they were out from -the trees and upon the bald space which formed -the top.</p> - -<p>Only a few more steps, now, through snow waist -high, with rocks and gravel underfoot. Whew! -Now for it! Hooray! The lieutenant was there -first, to halt, and gaze about.</p> - -<p>“Is that it, lieutenant?” puffed the doctor, -anxiously.</p> - -<p>Terry Miller huskily cheered, stumbled, but -forged ahead.</p> - -<p>The lieutenant stood, fixedly peering beyond.</p> - -<p>“What!” uttered the doctor, arrived.</p> - -<p>“<a href="#i_frontis">It’s the wrong peak, men</a>,” quietly said the -lieutenant, his voice flat in the thin air. “<a href="#i_frontis">Yes, the -wrong peak.</a>”</p> - -<p>The others floundered to him and the doctor, to -gaze also. They all leaned heavily upon their guns.<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_152"></a>[152]</span> -Stub’s legs trembled; he had nothing upon which -to lean; but he stared, wide-eyed, his heart thumping.</p> - -<p>It was the top. On the other side the mountain -fell away, in a long, long snowy timbered slope, down -into a deep, broad valley of dark pines; and at the -farther edge of the valley there arose a mountain -again—a snow-capped, much higher mountain: the -Grand Peak itself!<a id="FNanchor_3" href="#Footnote_3" class="fnanchor">[C]</a></p> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p class="noi"><a id="Footnote_3" href="#FNanchor_3" class="label">[C]</a> They had climbed Cheyenne Mountain, height 9,407 feet, -south of Pike’s Peak, which is 14,109 feet in height.</p> - -</div> - -<p>“And all our climb’s for nothin’, you say, sir?” -wheezed John Brown. “We’re not on the Grand -Peak at all?”</p> - -<p>“No. But our climb had not been for naught. -We’ve done our best, as soldiers.” The lieutenant’s -tone was dull and disappointed.</p> - -<p>“I don’t see how we made the mistake,” the doctor -proffered. “We thought that we were at the true -base.”</p> - -<p>“We had no means of telling otherwise, doctor. -This mountain looked to be a part of that other; -but that other is separate, and twice as high. I judge -it’s fully fifteen miles distant, now.”</p> - -<p>“Shall we try for it, sir?” Terry Miller asked. -“The day’s young, sir.”</p> - -<p>The lieutenant shook his head decisively.</p> - -<p>“Not this trip, Miller. ’Twould take a whole<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_153"></a>[153]</span> -day to reach its base. You and Brown have no -stockings, we none of us have proper clothing—no -blankets, no provisions, and there’s little prospect of -game. We’ve come so far, and taxed our strength -to the limit. Comparing the height of that mountain -with this, I believe that no human being can climb -the Grand Peak and survive. It is a region of eternal -snow, barred to all vestige of life. We’ll go back -while we can. We have performed our duty, and -we can see nothing from up here by reason of the -cloud bank.”</p> - -<p>He looked at his thermometer.</p> - -<p>“Four degrees below zero.” Zero was the freezing-point.</p> - -<p>He glanced sharply about.</p> - -<p>“We must make haste. The storm is rising -on us.”</p> - -<p>And even as he spoke the air turned raw and -cloud wreaths began to float around them. So they -back-tracked as fast as they could, and guided by -a convenient ravine followed it down with such -speed that they reached their camp at the base before -dark, but in a snowstorm.</p> - -<p>“Well,” sighed John Brown. “The horses are -safe, but the birds and beasts have eaten our deer -and everything else.”</p> - -<p>The lieutenant shot a pheasant; of their meat<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_154"></a>[154]</span> -there was left only two deer-ribs; and they drank -and ate.</p> - -<p>“Rather limited rations, for five hungry persons -after a two-days’ fast,” the doctor joked.</p> - -<p>“We have our blankets, and we are safe, sir,” -the lieutenant answered. “Such a matter as diet -should not enter into the calculations of men who -explore the wilderness. They must expect only -what they will get.”</p> - -<p>“The little cap’n’s a man o’ iron; he’s not flesh -and blood,” Terry murmured, to John and Stub. -“But I reckon he’d not refuse a bit more rib, -himself.”</p> - -<p>“With him, when your belt’s at the last hole, -why, cut another,” said John.</p> - -<p>However, safe they were, although still very hungry. -In the morning they rode down the creek, constantly -getting lower and finding less snow. Just -after noon the men shot two buffalo. That made a -full feast—the first square meal in three days. So -to-night they camped more comfortably under some -shelving rock, outside the hills.</p> - -<p>The place seemed to be a favorite camp ground -for Indians, also. The valley was strewn with their -horse sign, and with broken lodge-poles and old -lodge-pins. The lieutenant thought that these had<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_155"></a>[155]</span> -been Ietan or Comanche camps, and was much -interested.</p> - -<p>The next afternoon they sighted the stockade; -they were almost home.</p> - -<p>“The flag’s still flying. Thank God, the party’s -all right,” exclaimed the lieutenant. “Give them a -cheer, boys, when we arrive. We return disappointed, -but not defeated, and far from conquered.”</p> - -<p>The hoarse cheer was answered. The soldiers—Sergeant -Meek, Corporal Jerry Jackson, Freegift -Stout, Alex Roy, and all—trooped out, to stand in -line and present arms as the lieutenant, leading, rode -through the gate. He saluted them like an officer -again, and smiled wanly as if glad to be back.</p> -<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop" /> - -<div class="chapter"> -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_156"></a>[156]</span></p> - -<h2 class="nobreak" id="X">X<br /> -<small>ONWARD INTO WINTER</small></h2> -</div> - - -<p>“So yez didn’t climb the Grand Peak, after all,” -Tom Dougherty once more queried.</p> - -<p>“We climbed far enough. As I told you before, -nothin’ on two legs or on twice two legs will ever -climb that Grand Peak,” John Brown answered. -“Only an eagle can fly there. We were above the -clouds, with naught to eat and little to breathe; and -yon was the Grand Peak itself, as high again.”</p> - -<p>The men were wearied, but not yet wearied of -hearing about the try for the Grand Peak.</p> - -<p>“You’re right. It’s beyond the reach o’ lungs -and legs,” said Sergeant Meek. “For the cap’n -and the doctor measured it to-day with their instruments, -from a good sight of it. Ten thousand, five -hundred and eighty-one feet above ground they make -it out to be, or a good two miles into the air. And -allowing for the fact that we’re nigh eight thousand -feet up, right where we be, though you might not -think it, that peak rises more’n eighteen thousand feet -above sea level. The cap’n says it’s close to being -the highest mountain in the world.”<a id="FNanchor_4" href="#Footnote_4" class="fnanchor">[D]</a></p> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p class="noi"><a id="Footnote_4" href="#FNanchor_4" class="label">[D]</a> The Lieutenant’s measurement was wrong only about -1,000 feet. The height of the plain where they had been camping -was some 4,500 feet, and Pike’s Peak rises 9,600 feet above.</p> - -</div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_157"></a>[157]</span></p> - -<p>Corporal Jerry Jackson came in, from changing -guard, and stood warming himself by the fire.</p> - -<p>“By jiminy, those hosses are being eaten alive,” -he said. “I do pity ’em. I’d hate to be a hoss, -on a trip like this.”</p> - -<p>“Yes; a man can understand an’ grin an’ bear -it; but a hoss hasn’t any sense o’ the why an’ wherefore.”</p> - -<p>“Those pesky magpies are still at ’em, are they?” -asked the sergeant.</p> - -<p>“A man to a hoss couldn’t keep the things off -with a club.”</p> - -<p>“They even try to take the meat out a fellow’s -hands,” quoth Freegift Stout.</p> - -<p>For the hungry magpies—bold birds of black-and-white, -with long tails—hovered over the unsaddled -and unpacked horses, lighted and pecked -their raw backs until the blood flowed afresh. The -horses, poor weak, thin creatures, kicked and whinneyed -in vain. The magpies stuck fast and rode -upon them, pecking. And as Freegift declared, -swooped at the men also and grabbed for the meat -in their hands.</p> - -<p>“Have Roy and Gordon come in sight yet?” -Sergeant Meek asked.</p> - -<p>“We thought we could see ’em away out,” replied -Corporal Jerry.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_158"></a>[158]</span></p> - -<p>“I don’t wish ’em frozen feet. We’ve got -enough of such in camp.”</p> - -<p>“Yes, and one pair too many, speaking for myself,” -groaned Jake Carter.</p> - -<p>This was the fourth day since leaving the stockade, -and a bitter cold day, albeit warmer, according -to the lieutenant’s instrument, than yesterday. The -thermometer stood at only three degrees below -freezing; yesterday it had been at seventeen below.</p> - -<p>The lieutenant had marched them out of the -stockade, in a heavy snowstorm, on the morning -after the return from the climb. The route was -westward, again, up the south side of the Arkansaw. -Just why he was so impatient to go on, snow or -no snow, none of the men knew. Maybe he was in -hopes of finding the Ietans or Comanches, yet; but -Stub himself was quite certain that the Ietans wintered -farther south. Or if he wished to discover -the head of the Arkansaw and of the Red River, -then the men wondered why he didn’t build warm -quarters, and lay in meat, and make fur clothing, -so as to explore safely.</p> - -<p>“Sure, sometimes I think that what he’s aimin’ -at is to foller this here Spanish trail cl’ar into New -Mexico, an’ fetch up, with all of us, at Santy Fe, -even as prisoners to them Spanish,” John Sparks -hazarded. “We can swear we made a mistake,<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_159"></a>[159]</span> -not knowin’ the country; an’ when we get back home -again we’ll have a nice lot o’ news about them people -an’ the trail in, for the Government.”</p> - -<p>“That’ll do,” Sergeant Meek rebuked. “’Tis for -him to lead and for us to follow; and he’ll do the -thinking.”</p> - -<p>They had marched fifteen miles, the first day, -through the storm, with all on foot because the -horses were getting unable to carry anything but -the packs. In fact, for some days past it had been -more comfortable to walk than to ride.</p> - -<p>All that night it had snowed, and was still snowing -in the morning. The men had slept under one -blanket or robe apiece, in the snow. The little tent -for the lieutenant and the doctor and Stub sagged -with the weight.</p> - -<p>“My gracious, but this is hard on the horses,” -Baroney said. “They paw and paw, to find one -mouthful—and on their backs the ravens take many -mouthfuls.”</p> - -<p>This day there was no marching. The men had -all they could do to keep the fires going, and not -freeze. John Sparks, who was a hunter, went out, -but saw nothing. By evening the snow was a foot -deep on the level—pretty tough for bare feet exposed -in gaping shoes, and even for damp moccasins.</p> - -<p>During the bitter night the sky cleared. It was to<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_160"></a>[160]</span> -be the seventeen-below morning. On the march one -old buffalo bull was sighted, across the river. John -Sparks and Hugh Menaugh mounted and went after -him. They had to swim their horses through the -ice-covered current, but they got the bull. Then, -only two miles farther, everybody was ordered to -cross, because a steep ridge barred the way.</p> - -<p>In wading and breaking the ice, all were drenched -waist high, and their wet clothing froze instantly. -The lieutenant was wearing only thin cotton overalls, -like most of the men, but he seemed not to feel the -cold. He sent back help for John and Hugh, and -set the other men at work building a fire. When -John and Hugh arrived, with the meat, their feet had -been frozen and they had to be lifted from their -horses.</p> - -<p>After they had been thawed out by snow and -rubbing, and clothes had been partially dried, the -march was continued, over a very rough, hilly country, -up the north side of the swiftly flowing river. -Then one of the pack-horses, driven crazy by the -magpies and by hunger, ran off, back down the trail.</p> - -<p>Jake Carter, Terry Miller and Pat Smith had -pursued him on foot. By dusk, when camp was -made at the end of thirteen miles, they were not -in sight. The lieutenant grew worried.</p> - -<p>“It’s foolhardy for them to try to stay out all<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_161"></a>[161]</span> -night, with no food or blankets,” he said; and the -doctor nodded gravely.</p> - -<p>“They’re likely to perish, on that open prairie,” -he agreed. “But what’s to be done? To search for -them would be a fruitless risk, lieutenant.”</p> - -<p>The lieutenant sat up late, waiting for word from -them. This morning they had appeared, Jake Carter -with his feet, also, frozen. It had been a terrible -night, for them. They had found the horse, but -could not bring him in.</p> - -<p>So the lieutenant had directed Alex Roy and -William Gordon to ride and get the horse (which -was almost frozen, itself, the other men had reported); -and he and the doctor, with Stub and -John Sparks, went out to scout. The lieutenant and -the doctor measured the height of the Grand Peak, -from a distance; they and John killed two buffalo-bulls, -for moccasins for the camp, and took after a -cow but didn’t get it.</p> - -<p>The gritty John Sparks stayed, to kill a cow if -he might; the other three returned to camp with the -bull hides.</p> - -<p>Now the men, with numbed fingers, were busy -making moccasins, around the fire, and not envying -John the buffalo-hunter.</p> - -<p>Alex Roy and Bill Gordon came in, with the<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_162"></a>[162]</span> -strayed horse in tow, but at dusk John had not -appeared.</p> - -<p>“He’s still after his cow, and won’t quit till he -fetches meat. That’s him! Well, he has a buffalo-robe -and his flint and steel, so we’ll see him in the -morning.”</p> - -<p>They didn’t worry about John. He was a good -hunter and could take care of himself.</p> - -<p>The lieutenant had decided not to wait for him, -but to pick him up on the way. The next morning, -which was the fifth morning, he broke camp at five -o’clock, long before daylight; and sure enough, before -they had marched far they found John. He -rode in on them, with a load of cow meat. To-day -they marched twenty miles, afoot and ahorse; killed -two more buffalo and six wild turkeys; and what with -the new moccasins and plenty of meat they thought -themselves well fixed.</p> - -<p>The country steadily grew rougher and the march -led higher, but the soil was gravelly and the snow less -than below. Pretty soon the Spanish trail was lost -again. From camp everybody went out, searching -for it, on both sides of the river.</p> - -<p>“Come along wid us, lad,” invited Tom -Dougherty, of Stub; and afoot Stub ascended the -south side of the river with Tom, and John Sparks, -and John Mountjoy. It was a good squad. Tom was<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_163"></a>[163]</span> -scarcely more than a boy, himself: a young warrior -of twenty years.</p> - -<p>Presently they struck a broad horse-trail, pointing -up-river.</p> - -<p>“We’ll see where it goes to,” said John Sparks. -They followed it as rapidly as they could. The river -flowed down shallow and rippling and ice-bordered, -among reddish, bare, rounded hills sprinkled with -cedar and with snow patches. Far northward they -saw, every now and then, the glistening Grand Peak. -It was hard to lose this Grand Peak.</p> - -<p>About noon they emerged from the long valley -of the river into a broadening, with snow peaks -shimmering in the distances, and a line of high flat-topped -hills crossing the route before.</p> - -<p>“Hist! There be Injuns or them Spanish, -likely!” Tom warned, pointing ahead.</p> - -<p>They halted and peered.</p> - -<p>“No. I take it they’re some of our own men,” -said John Mountjoy.</p> - -<p>“What do ye say, Stub?” John Sparks queried.</p> - -<p>Stub nodded. His eyes were true eyes.</p> - -<p>“No Injuns. Our men,” he asserted.</p> - -<p>So they went on, toward the flat-topped hills, -and met the parties of Sergeant Meek and Baroney.</p> - -<p>“Hello to you,” John Sparks greeted “What -luck?”</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_164"></a>[164]</span></p> - -<p>“There’s no good your going much further up -this side,” answered Sergeant Meek. “The trail -ends, and you’ll get nowhere.”</p> - -<p>“Why?”</p> - -<p>“You see where those flat-tops lie? The river -comes out the mountains there, and comes a-whooping. -We followed it up, till the valley got narrower -and narrower; and right soon the river was nothing -but a brook in width, boiling out something tremendous -from betwixt cliffs half a mile high, leaving -no space for man or beast. Nothing gets through -there, except the water. We’re thinking the trail -must cross the river this side the gap, and turn off -north’ard to round it.”<a id="FNanchor_5" href="#Footnote_5" class="fnanchor">[E]</a></p> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p class="noi"><a id="Footnote_5" href="#FNanchor_5" class="label">[E]</a> They had met near where present Canyon City, Colorado, -is located, on the Upper Arkansas River at the mouth of the -famous Grand Canyon of the Arkansas. The gap between the -cliffs was the Royal Gorge, in the Canyon.</p> - -</div> - -<p>“Yes, it doesn’t tackle that gap, anyhow,” the -men all declared.</p> - -<p>“Suppose we might as well ford at a good spot, -an’ scout about a bit,” proffered John Sparks.</p> - -<p>So ford they all did, wading and splashing -through, and slipping on the rounded stones of -the bottom. The trail was found indeed, farther -up, on the north side, where it left the river and -bore northwestward through a dry valley or bottom, -as if seeking a pass.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_165"></a>[165]</span></p> - -<p>“Now, whether to call this the trail o’ the -Spaniards, ag’in, or an Injun trail, I dunno,” mused -John Sparks, as they all grouped, examining.</p> - -<p>“It’s a hoss trail, plain enough,” uttered Bill -Gordon.</p> - -<p>“’Tis hard to read, that’s a fact,” Sergeant Meek -said. “But it leads somewheres, and like as not to -the Red River that the cap’n’s looking for, in -Comanche country. Anyhow, we’ve done all we can, -for to-day; and it’s time we went back down and -reported.”</p> - -<p>“Sure, he’ll have no excuse for takin’ us through -betwixt them high cliffs,” declared Alex Roy. -“We’d be drowneded, hosses an’ all. ’Tis a tough-lookin’ -hole, with no end in sight, an’ the rocks -covered with ice.”</p> - -<p>“Come on, boys,” bade the sergeant, “or we’ll -be late for supper.”</p> - -<p>They turned and marched back, down river, to -camp. This evening the lieutenant talked the report -over with the doctor. They decided to proceed up -the river, to the dry valley, and follow the trail.</p> - -<p>The dry valley, below where the river gushed out -of the break in the cliff barrier, was reached in one -day’s march. Camp was made in it at night-fall. -This, according to the doctor, was the evening of -the tenth day of December. The horses were watered<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_166"></a>[166]</span> -with melted snow, and given one pint of precious -corn, each, brought this far from the Osage and the -Republican Pawnee towns. For the camp there was -plenty of deer meat, killed on the way, and one buffalo. -It was to be the last big meal, through some -days.</p> - -<p>The Spanish trail had been weak, upon entering -the valley. The lieutenant had rather feared that the -sign was only that of a small scouting party. But -farther in it had strengthened. Now at the camp it -appeared to be a fairly well-trodden road, leading -on northwest and probably over the next range of -hills.</p> - -<p>“The road to the Red River—hooray!” cheered -Tom Dougherty. “Then down the Red River we’ll -go, out o’ this cruel cowld, an’ belike we’ll be to -Natchitoches an’ the blessed war-rmth o’ Louisiany -long before spring.”</p> -<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop" /> - -<div class="chapter"> -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_167"></a>[167]</span></p> - -<h2 class="nobreak" id="XI">XI<br /> -<small>SEEKING THE LOST RIVER</small></h2> -</div> - - -<p>“It’s no use to march farther on this line, -doctor.”</p> - -<p>Doctor Robinson answered promptly.</p> - -<p>“I think you’re right, lieutenant. We’re getting -nowhere, only deeper into the mountains. Men and -horses are about at the end of their strength. There -seems to be nothing ahead, except more cold, hunger -and blind scrambling.”</p> - -<p>“The men are brave fellows,” said the lieutenant. -“That human beings, half fed and near naked, -should be called upon to endure such marches and -camps, amidst snow and zero weather, is almost more -than can be expected from even soldiers. Their pay -is a pittance, they don’t know where they’re going, -they were not prepared for winter, yet I’ve heard not -a word of complaint. When we return to the United -States, the Government surely will reward them.”</p> - -<p>The lieutenant and the doctor, with Stub, were -standing upon a high ridge some distance from -camp. A week had passed since they all had entered -the dry valley, to follow the trail north from the<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_168"></a>[168]</span> -Arkansaw, on the search for the head of the Red -River.</p> - -<p>But instead of rounding the gap in the cliffs, -the trail had led away, and away, ever northward, -into the midst of the snow-caps. Presently, or after -a couple of days, it had come out at the bank of -another river, frozen over, forty paces wide, and -flowing, as the lieutenant discovered, <em>northeast</em>!</p> - -<p>That was a disappointment and a surprise. He -and the doctor plainly were puzzled. The river was -wrong. To be the Red River it should have flowed -southeast. The lieutenant decided that this river -must be the Platte River—or the beginnings of it, -for the great Platte River was known to flow mainly -through the plains, far north of the Pawnee country, -and hundreds of miles distant.</p> - -<p>The snowy mountains had closed around. They -rose high and white and coldly silent. There appeared -to be no way out, except by the back trail to -the Arkansaw again, or by following this new river -down-stream, but where?<a id="FNanchor_6" href="#Footnote_6" class="fnanchor">[F]</a></p> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p class="noi"><a id="Footnote_6" href="#FNanchor_6" class="label">[F]</a> If this stream was the South Platte River, as the Lieutenant -thought, then they had entered into the western part of -Central Colorado’s great South Park; very far indeed from -any Red River.</p> - -</div> - -<p>The trail was continuing, up along this frozen -river that wound through a series of snowy valleys<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_169"></a>[169]</span> -between steep wooded hills. They all marched upon -it. It evidently was going somewhere, perhaps to a -better country, perhaps still to the head of the Red -River and the circuit south for the lower regions of -New Mexico. At least, the Spanish had some goal -in view.</p> - -<p>Next, they had come to a large camp, the largest -yet, and only a few weeks old. But it had been -an Indian camp. There were the circles where lodges—many -lodges—had stood, the ashes in the center of -each, and sign of fully one thousand horses.</p> - -<p>“Utah,” declared Baroney, examining a cast-off -moccasin.</p> - -<p>Stub agreed. Moccasins differed, and these were -Utah moccasins, by the cut.</p> - -<p>“Sure, then we’re not follerin’ the Spanish, or -even the Comanches,” John Sparks groaned, doubled -over with rheumatism. The men all were pretty -badly crippled by frost and chilblains and rheumatism, -and their belts were small around their stomachs. -“Weren’t ye ever in this country before, -boy? The Utahs had ye, once, you say.”</p> - -<p>Stub did not know.</p> - -<p>“No remember. Big country, John. Mebbe -here, mebbe somewhere.”</p> - -<p>The lieutenant and the doctor had asked him the -same question; but he was as puzzled as they. He<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_170"></a>[170]</span> -might have been hereabouts in summer; it was very -different in winter. His head hurt, too. So he -could not help them.</p> - -<p>From the old camp, which seemed to have been -a hunting camp, a regular village, and extended six -miles long and two miles wide, covering the valley -bottom, a trail led out, up stream again. In killing -two buffalo (the first fresh meat since leaving the -Arkansaw) another gun had burst—the third in the -march. Its muzzle had got stopped with snow, and -its barrel was very brittle from the frost.</p> - -<p>John Sparks cut the burst end off, so that the -gun might be used. Hugh Menaugh had no gun at -all, and was marching with the lieutenant’s sword -and pistols.</p> - -<p>The trail westward was not made by the Spanish. -The Spanish trail (if there had been any -Spanish trail) was swallowed up, in the big camp. -But the trail out was better than none at all. It led -through still more old camping places, where there -were empty corn-cribs. There were no old cornfields, -though, and this set the men to wondering -whether these Indians might not have got corn from -the Spaniards, after all.</p> - -<p>Then, on a sudden, the trail quit. It left them -stranded, amidst the mountains. That had occurred -this morning. The lieutenant had sent out searching<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_171"></a>[171]</span> -parties. He then had taken the doctor and Stub, -and climbed to the top of the high ridge, to spy out -the country lying around.</p> - -<p>“The men should be rewarded the same as the -Lewis and Clark men will be rewarded—with money -and land,” now the doctor said.</p> - -<p>“A more heroic little band never wore the United -States uniform,” the lieutenant declared.</p> - -<p>The doctor laughed.</p> - -<p>“They’re not wearing that, these days, lieutenant. -No one would take you and them for soldiers.”</p> - -<p>Very true. About the last trace of the blue uniforms -had vanished. Only the lieutenant still had -blue trousers, of thin cloth, for wearing on the -march. His chief’s uniform, of bright shoulder-pieces -and shining buttons, he kept in a trunk, until -he should meet the Spaniards or the Comanches. -From his red-lined cloak he had cut a cap, and sewed -fox-skin to it, for the inside; the rest of the cloak -had gone into socks and mittens, for himself and -Stub. On his feet were buffalo-hide moccasins, on -his body a capote or blanket-coat; and up to his -knees his legs were wrapped in deer-hide. He looked -like a chief, nevertheless.</p> - -<p>All this was little enough, for day and night -wear in cold and storm. The doctor had less. To -be sure, he had made himself a fur cap, of rabbit-skin,<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_172"></a>[172]</span> -and a deer-hide coat and mittens—but buckskin, -without much under it, is cold stuff, as everybody -knows. His trousers were torn so that they -showed his own skin. His feet were clad in socks -cut from a piece of blanket, and in the hide moccasins -which did not fit and had to be tied on with thongs.</p> - -<p>The men, and Stub, had been put to all kinds of -shifts. Some wore coats cut, like the doctor’s socks, -from the gray, threadbare army blankets—and socks -to match. Some wore coats of leather—poorly -tanned hides that they had saved. Some wore even -leather trousers like leggins. All wore buffalo hide -moccasins, but not a one had a hat or cap. Their -long hair protected their heads, and their faces were -covered with shaggy, bristling beards—except Tom -Dougherty, whose beard was only a stubble in -patches. The other men poked a great deal of fun -at young Tom.</p> - -<p>As for Stub, his beautiful robe had long ago been -turned into moccasins and leggins; and he tried to -be comfortable in these, and a shirt from a left-over -piece of John Sparks’ gray blanket, and socks and -mittens from the lieutenant’s red-lined cloak. He -did not need a cap.</p> - -<p>Of course, the blankets and hides that had been -used were needed for coverings, at night; but in -such cold weather it was almost impossible to strip<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_173"></a>[173]</span> -other hides and dress them. They were like boards, -especially the buffalo hides. And deer were scarce.</p> - -<p>From the high ridge where he and the lieutenant -and the doctor stood the view was wide and wonderful, -although not cheering. Mountains, mountains, -mountains, their sides and tips shining white with -snow, their bases, where seen, dark with wooded -hills, the pine branches heavily laden by winter.</p> - -<p>Far in the east and the southeast the mountains -seemed to form a line with every gap stopped.</p> - -<p>“Isn’t that our Grand Peak, away yonder?” -asked the doctor, pointing. “If so, I judge it’s a -hundred miles, as the bird flies.”</p> - -<p>“And unreachable from here, except by a bird, -sir. We’re shut off from it, completely. Besides, -our road does not lie in that direction. Our duty -as explorers demand that we do not give up so -easily.” And the lieutenant turned his glasses, so -as to sweep the north and the northwest.</p> - -<p>On the north were lofty hills, pine covered, -breaking the nearer view; and snow mountains -grouped behind them. The frozen river, marked by -willows, stretched onward, in crooked bed, through -the valley, now broad, now narrowed, into the northwest, -soon to be closed upon by the hills and mountains -there.</p> - -<p>In all the great expanse nothing moved; even the<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_174"></a>[174]</span> -other exploring parties were out of sight. It was a -dead country.</p> - -<p>The lieutenant shrugged his shoulders.</p> - -<p>“Not very promising, eh?” the doctor queried -anxiously.</p> - -<p>“It does not promise success. Our course up -this river should be abandoned. We are constantly -making farther and farther northward, separated -from the Red River by the mountains; game is getting -less, the trail is unreliable, and we shall depend -upon it no longer.”</p> - -<p>He gazed southward. The hills rose to mountains -here also. He used his spy-glass intently. He -handed it to the doctor.</p> - -<p>“You’ll see a great white mountain range, appearing -through a gap almost directly south.”</p> - -<p>“Yes, sir. A thundering way off.”</p> - -<p>“It seems to be the end of a long chain extending -westward from it. That chain, I believe, is the -divide draining on this side into the Platte, on the -other side into the Red River. We’re on the wrong -side. We should march southwest, to cross the -nearer portion of the chain, and eventually come out -upon the head of the Red River. At all events, we’ll -try it, while we can. But our march through here -has not been wasted, for our Country. We can lay -down on our map the sources of the Platte, which no<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_175"></a>[175]</span> -one has supposed to be located at such a distance from -the plains.”</p> - -<p>They all took another look, scanning the region -south and southwest. With his own eyes Stub might -descry the landmark of the Great White Mountains. -The air was very clear, the sun rested just right, -and through the gap there the tops of the mountains, -sharp cut and triangular, stood out plainly amidst the -other, lesser peaks. That called for a long, long -journey.</p> - -<p>They went back to camp. The other parties -came in, and reported nothing but an old Indian -camp, farther up. They had seen no game.</p> - -<p>“An’ what nixt, then, I wonder?” Pat Smith -remarked, at the fire. “Do we kape goin’, wid no -end. Sure, the Red River can’t lay hereabouts. -We’ll be nearer comin’ to Canady.”</p> - -<p>“No keep going,” Stub proudly announced. -“The cap’n say turn ’round, for south. Big ridge -there; big white mountains; Red River other side.”</p> - -<p>“South’ard? Hooray! That’s a good word. -It puts heart into us; hey, lads? We’ll be gettin’ -out o’ this trap where even the Injuns don’t dare -bide in winter, an’ we’ll be findin’ the Red River, -after all.”</p> - -<p>Stub’s news cheered the men greatly. It took -only a little to encourage them.</p> -<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop" /> - -<div class="chapter"> -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_176"></a>[176]</span></p> - -<h2 class="nobreak" id="XII">XII<br /> -<small>IS IT FOUND AT LAST?</small></h2> -</div> - - -<p>“The Red River, men! Three cheers! We -think we’ve found it at last!”</p> - -<p>It was the evening of the second day’s march -into the southwest. The doctor and the lieutenant -had gone out from camp, to survey about, as usual. -The first line of mountains had been crossed and -already every eye was eager and every heart was -keen for the traces of the shifty Red River.</p> - -<p>Matters looked promising, too. Noon camp to-day -had been made at a little spring, the unfrozen -waters of which flowed trickling and formed a small -stream wending southeast for the bottom of the -valley.</p> - -<p>“The beginnings of the Red River—do you -reckon it might be the beginnings of the Red River, -cap’n?” the men queried.</p> - -<p>But the lieutenant smiled and shook his head.</p> - -<p>“I wouldn’t dare say so, lads, and disappoint -you. We may be a long way yet from the real Red -River.”</p> - -<p>Still, some of the men did not believe him, until<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_177"></a>[177]</span> -they had left the valley and the spring behind, and -in a narrow pass of the next ridge had come upon -another spring and another stream, larger. Among -so many springs and streams, who might tell which -was the source of the Red River?</p> - -<p>They followed the stream part way through the -pass, and encamped there in a snowstorm. The -snow, sifting thickly, shut off the view before; it was -glum weather for a hungry camp; the men crouched -close, snow-covered, around the fire, or moved hobbling, -at their various jobs; the gaunt, sore-backed -horses cropped desperately, pawing into the snow, -or hunched, coughing and groaning, in the scant -shelter of the low cedars and spruces.</p> - -<p>The horses of the lieutenant and the doctor, and -Stub’s yellow pony, had been turned into pack animals, -to lessen the loads of the other animals. -Everybody was marching on foot.</p> - -<p>“Did you say that the cap’n an’ the doctor -thought likely we’d have to go cl’ar back south’ard, -fur as the Great White Mountains yonder, so’s to -strike the river?” John Sparks asked, of Stub.</p> - -<p>“Mebbe there, mebbe sooner,” Stub nodded.</p> - -<p>“If we ketch ’em, I hope he won’t be axin’ us -to climb ’em,” spoke John Brown.</p> - -<p>“Got to ketch ’em, first,” laughed somebody.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_178"></a>[178]</span></p> - -<p>“We might as well be chasing a mountain as a -river,” said Terry Miller.</p> - -<p>“Oui,” agreed Baroney. “Ma foi, the mountains -are there, in sight; but the river—it’s nowhere.”</p> - -<p>“Never mind, never mind, lads,” Sergeant Meek -put in. “Not a man of us works as hard as him and -the doctor; they’re always breaking the trail, and -they’re always out whilst we’re resting a bit. Look -at ’em now, scouting in the snow without a bite to -eat. Sure, we ought to be proud to keep a stiff -upper lip and follow ’em as fur as they’ll go, whether -that’s to Canady or Mexico or the Pacific Ocean. -Ain’t we soldiers?”</p> - -<p>“We’ll follow. You bet we will,” the men -chorused. “There’s no harm meant in our talk, -but we got to talk about somethin’ besides our feet -an’ our bellies.”</p> - -<p>Now here came the lieutenant and the doctor—trudging -fast, panting, snowy, their beards plastered -white, but their thin faces lighted with smiles. The -doctor gleefully flourished his fur cap, and hailed -them.</p> - -<p>“The Red River, men! Three cheers! We think -we’ve found it at last!”</p> - -<p>“Hooray! Hooray! Hooray!” The steep -sides of the narrow pass echoed, and the miserable -horses half pricked their ears, dumbly questioning.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_179"></a>[179]</span></p> - -<p>The two came directly to the fire. They were -out of breath. The circle respectfully opened for -them.</p> - -<p>“Did we hear right? Is it true, then, sir? Ye -found the Red River?” eagerly inquired Sergeant -Meek, of the lieutenant.</p> - -<p>“Yes, sergeant.” And the lieutenant beat his -red cap and stamped, to dislodge some of his snow. -“That is, the signs are the most hopeful for many -a day, and we all have good reason to be inspired -of success. Listen, men. The facts are these: Doctor -Robinson and I advanced about four miles, out -of this defile and into a prairie that lies beyond. -There we discovered a fine stream, with all the characteristics -of a river. It is some twenty-five yards -wide, very swift, in a clearly marked rocky channel, -and the general direction of its flow is southeast.”</p> - -<p>“Hooray!”</p> - -<p>“The creek we are now encamped beside evidently -joins it. This is all I have to say at present. -To-morrow, or as soon as marching conditions warrant, -we will proceed, examine the ground more thoroughly, -and demonstrate whether or not we may -consider ourselves actually at the source of the Red -River.”</p> - -<p>“News like that takes the chill off the air,”<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_180"></a>[180]</span> -laughed Freegift Stout, when the lieutenant and the -doctor had gone into their tent, for a rubdown.</p> - -<p>“B’gorry, we been tellin’ ’em that the Red River -was surely hereabouts,” asserted Tom Dougherty. -“Wan spring, an’ then another, an’ then a crick, an’ -then the river itself—an’ nixt, out o’ the mountains -we’ll be an’ wid iv’ry mile gettin’ closer to war-rmth -an’ people.”</p> - -<p>“What do you want o’ people?” Corporal Jerry -demanded. “They may be the Spanish, or the Pawnees -again, or worse.”</p> - -<p>“Come wan, come all,” Tom retorted. “Sure, -I wouldn’t object to a bit of a fight, for a change, -man to man. But fightin’ these mountains is up-hill -work.” And he laughed at his joke.</p> - -<p>“Well, I hope with all my heart the cap’n’s -struck the right trail,” said Sergeant Meek. “And -he’s pretty certain, or he wouldn’t have said so much. -He’s no man to make a brag, as you know. For the -first time since we entered the mountains he’s looking -sort o’ content. He deserves a turn o’ luck. ’Tis -always of his country he’s thinking, and of us, and -never of himself; and though in matter of muscle he’s -the smallest man amongst us, he picks the hardest -jobs.”</p> - -<p>In the morning the snow was falling faster than -ever. They all were anxious to reach the river, but<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_181"></a>[181]</span> -the pass was so clogged with drifts and their horses -were so weak that the march took them only out to -the edge of the bottom-land.</p> - -<p>It was the fifth day without sight of game. The -lieutenant ordered a hunt, before dark; but not even -a rabbit was found. There was nothing but snow, -snow, snow.</p> - -<p>“My belt’s twice around me already, an’ is -startin’ on the third lap,” declared Alex Roy.</p> - -<p>However, the horses were in luck, at last—and -they needed it. John Sparks and Tom Dougherty -reported a fine big patch of long grass down near -the river. In the morning the lieutenant sent -Baroney and Stub, with the wretched animals, to -set them to grazing and herd them—and a long cold -task this proved to be.</p> - -<p>Still, as Baroney said, as he and Stub trudged -about or squatted with their backs to the squalls:</p> - -<p>“If we cannot eat, ourselves, it is a great pleasure -to watch the horses eat; hein?”</p> - -<p>Late in the afternoon Corporal Jerry Jackson -came down.</p> - -<p>“You’re to fetch the horses in with you, at dusk,” -he said. “Never a trace of game, all day, so we’ll -pull out in the mornin’.”</p> - -<p>“Down the Red River, mebbe, Jerry?” Stub -asked.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_182"></a>[182]</span></p> - -<p>“I dunno, but somewhere. The cap’n knows—an’ -he knows we’re on short rations of only a few -mouthfuls to a man.”</p> - -<p>The doctor and Baroney were to start out early, -down river, hunting. The lieutenant and two or -three men were to explore up stream and see where -the river began, if they could. The rest of the men -were to march down river with the baggage, until -they killed enough game so that they might camp -and wait.</p> - -<p>“Miller and Mountjoy, ’tis you with the cap’n,” -ordered Sergeant Meek.</p> - -<p>“I go, too, Bill?” pleaded Stub.</p> - -<p>“Sure, that’s for him to say. I’ve only my -orders, lad,” Sergeant Bill answered.</p> - -<p>So Stub appealed to Lieutenant Pike himself.</p> - -<p>“I go with you, please?”</p> - -<p>But the lieutenant gravely shook his head.</p> - -<p>“Not this time, my boy. You’d best go down -river with the others, where there’s more chance of -finding game. Up stream it’s a rough country, and -the three of us are likely to be hard put for meat. -We’ll only explore for a day or two; you stay with -the party.”</p> - -<p>As anybody might have foretold, the lieutenant -again had taken the heaviest work.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_183"></a>[183]</span></p> - -<p>“I go with the doctor, then, please,” Stub proposed. -“Down river.”</p> - -<p>“He and Baroney will be hunting. You have -no weapon. But you can do your duty like a soldier -by tending the horses.”</p> - -<p>Stub mournfully thought upon his bow, broken -several days ago. Hugh Menaugh spoke up, saluting.</p> - -<p>“Beggin’ your pardon, cap’n—he’s a plucky lad -an’ if you say for him to go wid the doctor he can -have one o’ the pistols you loaned to me. Belike he’ll -fare as well wid the doctor as wid us, an’ mebbe -bring him luck. An’ we’ve all been boys, ourselves, -oneasy for doin’ things.”</p> - -<p>“You’ve a kind heart, my man,” answered the -lieutenant, smiling. “If the doctor is agreeable to -having his company, all right. You may settle it -between you.”</p> - -<p>Settled it was, right speedily, for Doctor Robinson -had a kind heart, too.</p> - -<p>“Here’s your pistol, then,” Hugh bade. “Wid -wan load. Be sure ye get a buff’lo, now.”</p> - -<p>Stub nodded, and carefully stowed the long dragoon -pistol in under his belt. The curved handle -crossed his stomach.</p> - -<p>“I see him, I get him, Hugh.”</p> - -<p>He and the doctor and Baroney set out, first.</p> - -<p>“Down river; we’ll meet you down the Red<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_184"></a>[184]</span> -River, Baroney, old hoss,” called the men. “Here’s -wishin’ you fat meat, doctor, sir—an’ the same for -the rest of us.”</p> - -<p>“I’ll follow the main trail in two days and catch -up,” the lieutenant had promised. “But nobody -is to wait for me until meat has been secured. Do -your best, doctor. There are rations for only forty-eight -hours.”</p> - -<p>It was another lean day. Although the three -did do their best, scouting in advance from the river -to the hills, and exploring the side draws, oftentimes -waist deep in the snow, they stirred never a hoof nor -paw, and rarely a feather. That was discouraging.</p> - -<p>Now and again they saw the main party, who had -crossed the river and were toiling along, down the -other flank of its winding course.</p> - -<p>“Not a thing sighted by us, and not a gunshot -heard from those other fellows,” the doctor sighed, -at evening. “Well, we’d better go over and join -them, for camp, and try again in the morning.”</p> - -<p>They made for the fire that was twinkling, below -and beyond; crossed the river upon the ice, and -arrived.</p> - -<p>“Any luck, sir?” queried Sergeant Meek, of -the doctor.</p> - -<p>“None to-day sergeant; but we have hopes for -to-morrow.”</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_185"></a>[185]</span></p> - -<p>“Yes, sir. The same here, sir.”</p> - -<p>“So ye didn’t fetch in a buffler with that big -pistol?” John Sparks bantered, of Stub.</p> - -<p>“To-morrow,” answered weary Stub.</p> - -<p>“To-morrow is a grand time,” said Baroney. -“If there wasn’t any to-morrow, I don’t know what -we’d do.”</p> - -<p>The supper to-night was a scant meal, for all: -just a few mouthfuls of dried meat and a handful -of parched corn. In the morning the doctor decided -briskly.</p> - -<p>“You’ve rations for only to-day, sergeant?”</p> - -<p>“Yes, sir; and scarce that, but we can make ’em -do.”</p> - -<p>“I feel sure that Baroney and the boy and I -will find game before night. If we do, we’ll come -in with it. But you keep on, as Lieutenant Pike -ordered, until you kill meat or until he joins you, -and never mind our whereabouts. We’ll take care of -ourselves somehow, and I don’t propose to come in -unless loaded.”</p> - -<p>“You’ll likely stay out, in the hills, sir, you -mean?”</p> - -<p>“That depends on the day’s luck,” smiled the -doctor. “But even if we do, we’ll be no worse -off than Lieutenant Pike and Miller and Mountjoy. -We’re all rationed the same, and there’s little to<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_186"></a>[186]</span> -choose between camping together and camping -separately.”</p> - -<p>But even Stub felt the seriousness of it when -again he followed the doctor and Baroney, for the -second day’s hunt. If nothing was killed to-day, -then to-morrow they would begin to starve; pretty -soon they would be eating the horses, and next their -moccasins, and without horses and moccasins they -would die before getting out of the mountains.</p> -<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop" /> - -<div class="chapter"> -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_187"></a>[187]</span></p> - -<h2 class="nobreak" id="XIII">XIII<br /> -<small>MEAT FOR THE CAMP</small></h2> -</div> - - -<p>Buffalo!</p> - -<p>Stub stared hard. He scarcely could believe his -bleared, aching eyes. Was it really true? Buffalo? -Now what to do?</p> - -<p>This was early in the third morning after leaving -the main camp. For two days he and the doctor -and Baroney had been hunting, hunting, from dawn -to dark; ranging up and down, among the hills and -draws, and wading the snow, on only one small meal. -In fact, they practically had had nothing at all to -eat, in forty-eight hours. Through the two nights -they had tended fire and shiveringly dozed, without -blankets, in the best spot they might find, where they -could secure a little protection from the biting wind.</p> - -<p>How they were going to keep on living if they -discovered nothing to eat, this day, he did not know; -Baroney did not know; the doctor hadn’t said. But -they had told the sergeant not to expect them unless -with good news; the other men probably were famishing, -too, and they themselves might as well starve -in one place as another.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_188"></a>[188]</span></p> - -<p>Full of aches and pains (and that was all!) they -had passed a bad night, so that this morning they -really had been glad to stagger up and out again, into -the bleak whity-gray, even though they might be -starting upon only another long day of fruitless -tramping.</p> - -<p>Baroney groaned.</p> - -<p>“Ma foi! My legs move, my head thinks, but -there is nothing between. I have no stomach.”</p> - -<p>“We’ll find meat to-day. Not only for ourselves -but for the boys in camp, remember,” encouraged -the doctor. “They’re likely depending on us, for -we’ve heard no gunshots. We must separate and -hunt widely.”</p> - -<p>They had trudged forth, before sun-up. They -had crossed the first wooded ridge, to the next little -valley.</p> - -<p>“Stub, you follow up, along the high ground -on this side,” the doctor ordered. “Baroney will -take the middle. I’ll take the farther side. Move -slowly and all together, and we’ll surely start something. -Head off anything that comes your way, -Stub, and drive it down to us. Don’t waste the load -in your pistol.”</p> - -<p>“Yes, I will drive,” answered Stub, patiently.</p> - -<p>He waited, shivering, until Baroney had halted -in the bottom, and the doctor had toiled clear across<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_189"></a>[189]</span> -to the other slope, and up. Then they three moved -on together—one searching either flank, the third -in between.</p> - -<p>The valley was not wide. Its bottom was level -and open except for the snow-covered brush; its sides -were dotted with cedars and pines. Keeping near -the top of his side, so as to drive anything down hill, -Stub hunted faithfully, hoping, too, that he would -hear the doctor or Baroney shoot. His eyes scanned -every foot before and to right and left, seeking -tracks. Even a rabbit would be welcomed—yet he -didn’t wish to spend his bullet on a rabbit.</p> - -<p>He saw nothing to make him draw his pistol. It -weighed heavily and rasped his stomach and thigh -as he plodded on.</p> - -<p>The sun was about to rise above the snowy ridges -on the east. They had been hunting for an hour, -at least, and had heard never a sound. Then he -reached a place where his slope broke sharply into -a side valley. A fellow always expected something, -at such places. So he stole forward cautiously; he -came to a ledge of rock, and peered down. What -he saw instantly almost stopped his heart-beating, -and dazed his eyes with sudden excitement.</p> - -<p>Buffalo! Really? Yes, yes—buffalo! He was -not dreaming.</p> - -<p>It was more of a basin than a valley, in there:<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_190"></a>[190]</span> -broadening to a snug cup protected by rim-rock, -just back of the opening into the main valley, and -thence tapering and climbing until it pinched out, -on the ridge. A few leafless aspens (sign of water) -and sprawly evergreens grew in the cup, and there -was marsh grass, in weedy clumps. And the -buffalo.</p> - -<p>Two—three, lying down and comfortable, like -cattle, their legs under them. The snow was well -trodden; they had been in here some time.</p> - -<p>Now what to do? He trembled, and thought -his best. If he only might take the time to signal -Baroney and the doctor. But even as he peered -the sun flashed up, and the first beams streamed -into the cup. One large bull suddenly stirred, and -all at once was on his feet, swaying his shaggy -head and sniffing the air. Was it the sun, or did -the breeze tell him something? He may have scented -the doctor, or Baroney, or Stub, or he might merely -be thinking of breakfast and the day’s program.</p> - -<p>There! The second buffalo was out of bed, and -imitating the first. The third seemed to be getting -uneasy. Stub dared not delay, to signal. His eyes -roved rapidly. He was too far, for pistol shooting. -The buffalo might only start to graze—they might -start to travel, warned by danger smell—and they -were as likely to go one way as another. He must<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_191"></a>[191]</span> -get down in behind them and drive them out where -the doctor and Baroney would see them.</p> - -<p>He drew back, and crouching scurried on a half -circuit, to slip into the basin, above them. He struck -a little ravine, leading down. All his practice at -scouting with the Pawnee boys stood him in good -stead, now. He moved fast but silently, darting -from spot to spot, stepping with care and listening -for alarm sounds; and stealing more gently as he -arrived at the bottom, where the ravine ended in a -cedar and a shoulder of rock.</p> - -<p>The upper edge of the basin was just around -that corner. He planned to step out, into sight. The -buffalo would run in the other direction, and the -doctor or Baroney might be able to head them, and -kill one at least; then follow and maybe kill more.</p> - -<p>But first he drew his big pistol, on the slim -chance of a sure shot, himself. Gradually he thrust -his head beyond the cedar and the rock shoulder—and -jerked back in a jiffy. A fourth buffalo was -standing there almost within touch!</p> - -<p>Stub’s heart beat furiously, and he sank trembling, -to think. He must look again; and he did, -as gradually as a timid prairie-dog emerging from -its burrow.</p> - -<p>Wah! It was a cow, turned broadside to him, -half dozing as she bathed in the sunshine.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_192"></a>[192]</span></p> - -<p>Now he must steady down, and slide out a little -farther, for a sure shot. He huddled back, once -more to take breath. He examined his flint, and -opened the pan, to stir the caked powder of the -priming. Then with both hands he cocked the heavy -hammer—click-click! The noise frightened him, -and he hoped that it had not frightened the cow. -Then he extended the pistol in front of him, and -began to follow it by worming on, inch by inch, -around the low-branching cedar.</p> - -<p>Hoorah! The cow was still there, but she had -heard or smelled. Maybe she had heard the click-click. -She had not moved; only, her head was up, -and she was gazing with her head turned in the -direction of the other buffalo.</p> - -<p>He’d better shoot as quickly as possible. Another -inch, and another, he squirmed, for right position. -Now! She was about fifteen paces—not so -near as he had thought, but this was the best that -he might do with any safety. So he leveled the -long-barreled dragoon pistol, again with both hands; -held breath until the muzzle seemed to be pointing -directly in line with a spot just behind her fore -shoulder—and while it slightly wavered there, he -pressed the trigger.</p> - -<p>Bang! The pistol well-nigh jumped from his -hands; a cloud of smoke had belched—and dimly<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_193"></a>[193]</span> -seen through the smoke, by his watering eyes, the -cow had given a great leap and had vanished.</p> - -<p>She had run the other way, down the basin. Up -Stub leaped, and ran, too. The basin seemed to be -still echoing with the report, but he heard the thud -and clatter of hoofs, also, and a fear that he had -missed her made his heart sick.</p> - -<p>He panted into full sight of the little basin just -in time to see a half score—no, a dozen or more of -the burly animals pelting through for the other end, -to gain the open of the main valley. He’d had no -idea that so many were in here. They’d been hidden -from him, the most of them—lying in cosy beds -where he’d not happened to look.</p> - -<p>Away they went, jostling and stringing out, bolting -blindly. One, the last in the flight, loped painfully—fell -farther and farther behind. It was his -cow! He had hit her, and hit her hard. Hoorah! -He darted for the spot where she had stood. He -trailed her for a few steps, and the trampled snow -was blotched red. Blood! Hoorah! He ran on, -down through the basin, to see her again. Now -Baroney or the doctor might get her, because she -would grow weak.</p> - -<p>He wondered if they had heard him shoot. The -basin was empty, all the buffalo had charged on into -the valley—that was what he had wished them to do,<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_194"></a>[194]</span> -and maybe he had killed one and signaled, besides. -He hoped that the doctor would not be angry. -Now if the buffalo only turned down toward -Baroney——!</p> - -<p>Hark! Another shot! Somebody out there had -fired—Whang! He ran faster—to the mouth of -the basin—into sight of the main valley—and again, -hoorah!</p> - -<p>The fleeing buffalo had blundered against -Baroney. He had been not far outside; he had shot -one—it was down, in the snow; not the cow, either, -for the cow was down, too—there were the two -black spots, motionless, and the little herd were -streaming across the valley, for the other slope, -with Baroney lumbering after—and yonder, on the -slope, the doctor was plunging toward the bottom, -to get in a shot also.</p> - -<p>Could he do it? Yes! He ran quartering, stumbling -and lunging; the leading buffalo sensed him, -swerved, they all swerved; he knelt and aimed and -fired, quickly—around wheeled the buffalo, again -alarmed, and came pelting back for Stub’s side, as -if to escape through their basin—but one lagged, -wavered, halted, and suddenly collapsed. That made -three!</p> - -<p>The remainder of the herd were coming straight -for Stub. He had no load for his pistol; he could<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_195"></a>[195]</span> -only dance and wave his arms and yell, to stop them. -This he did. Once more they tacked; Baroney had -lain flat, hoping; foolish things, they tacked almost -for him—wait—wait—aha! His gun puffed smoke, -the report echoed dully, a buffalo had jumped high -and stiff-legged and Baroney was after him, loading -on the run. Down pitched the buffalo. That made -four!</p> - -<p>The doctor was running again, but the rest of the -buffalo got away, up the valley. All right; they had -left plenty of meat. Hoorah!</p> - -<p>Stub hastened forward, wild with joy. The -doctor was coming. They met Baroney, where two -carcasses—a bull and Stub’s cow—were lying close -together.</p> - -<p>“Hurrah!” cheered the doctor.</p> - -<p>Baroney capered—“Hoozah! Hoozah!”</p> - -<p>“Four! One to me, two to you—that’s good. -And what about this other? Who killed <em>her</em>?”</p> - -<p>“The boy. Oui! I think he killed her, with that -pistol,” Baroney jabbered. “I hear one shot—bang! -I do not know where. Then the buffalo come running -out. And before I can shoot, I see this cow -tumble down, and die. She has a hole in her—a -bullet hole.”</p> - -<p>“Did you shoot her, Stub? With your pistol?”</p> - -<p>Stub nodded.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_196"></a>[196]</span></p> - -<p>“First I see three. Down on bottom. They act -scared. I go to drive them out. She very close. -I shoot her. She run, all run, I run. Then I hear -shooting. Baroney get one, you get one, Baroney get -’nother. Now lots of meat. Hoorah!”</p> - -<p>“The meat! The meat!” cried Baroney, as if -reminded of great hunger. Down he plumped, digging -furiously with his knife and tearing with his -fingers. He wrested out a strip of bloody flesh and -began to chew it and suck it.</p> - -<p>Stub, seeing red, likewise fell to. All of a sudden -he could not wait longer.</p> - -<p>“Here, doctor.” And Baroney, his beard stained -wolfish, passed him a piece.</p> - -<p>But the doctor straightened up.</p> - -<p>“That’s enough. I must carry the news to the -men. You two stay here and butcher what you can -till horses come from the camp. It may be a matter -of life or death for those other fellows. We ought -to get this meat to them without delay.”</p> - -<p>And he was away, walking fast and running -down through the valley, for the river beyond and -the main party somewhere along it.</p> - -<p>“He’s one fine man,” gasped Baroney, gazing -after. “We think only of our stomach, he thinks -of those others.”</p> - -<p>They worked hard, cutting and hacking and hauling<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_197"></a>[197]</span> -before the carcasses got cold and the hides stiff. -With Baroney’s hatchet they cracked a marrow-bone -apiece, so as to scoop out the fatty pith.</p> - -<p>Presently the sun was high and warming. Two -men were coming afoot up the valley. They brought -no horses——</p> - -<p>“Miller and Mountjoy, hein?” Baroney said, -eyeing them as they drew nearer. “Where is the -lieutenant, I want to know?”</p> - -<p>Terry Miller and John Mountjoy they were; and -they staggered and stumbled in their haste at sight of -the meat.</p> - -<p>“Did you lose the lieutenant? What?”</p> - -<p>“No. He’s gone on for camp, with the doctor. -He sent us in here to eat. Give us some meat, -quick.”</p> - -<p>“Nothing but one turkey and a hare for the -three of us, these four days past,” panted Terry, as -he and John sucked and gobbled. “And in the last -two days nothing at all.”</p> - -<p>“Go far?” Stub queried, eager to know.</p> - -<p>“Away up, twenty-five miles or two camps above -where the rest o’ you left us. Up to where the river -petered out to a brook betwixt the mountains. Then -we turned back and traveled day and night with our -clothes froze stiff on us, and our stomachs clean -empty, to ketch the main camp. The cap’n was<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_198"></a>[198]</span> -worrying more about the other men than himself.”</p> - -<p>“And sure, when we met the doctor, by chance, -with news of this meat, the little cap’n told us to -come in and eat, but he wouldn’t. He went on—him -and the doctor—hungry as he was, to find the camp -below,” mumbled John. “They’ll send hosses. How -many did you kill? Four?”</p> - -<p>“Four,” assured Baroney. “Stub one, the doctor -one, I myself had the fortune to kill two. Stub, -he found them; but it was the good God who put -them there, waiting for us.”</p> - -<p>“I suppose we might have a bit of a fire, and -eat like Christians, whilst waiting?” Terry proposed -wistfully.</p> - -<p>“The marrow is strong; we must not get sick,” -Baroney wisely counseled. “Let us butcher, and be -ready for the horses; and to-morrow we will all -have a big Christmas dinner.”</p> - -<p>“To-morrow Christmas?” exclaimed John. -“Right you are! Hooray for Christmas!”</p> - -<p>They cheered for Christmas; and with aching -brain Stub puzzled over the new word.</p> - -<p>Toward the last of their butchering Corporal -Jerry Jackson and Hugh Menaugh arrived with two -horses. The camp was famished, the lieutenant and -the doctor had toiled in, and now everybody there<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_199"></a>[199]</span> -was waiting for the buffalo meat. The camp had -been out of food for two days.</p> - -<p>“I told the doctor that the boy an’ his pistol -would fetch him luck,” Hugh declared. “An’ it -surely did. Faith, a fine little hunter you be, Stub, -me lad.”</p> - -<p>They loaded the horses, at full speed, and made -for the starving camp. It was a joyous place. John -Sparks had come in with more good news—he had -discovered another buffalo herd and had killed four, -himself! Men and horses were out, to get the meat.</p> - -<p>Now with eight buffalo on hand, Christmas Eve -was to be celebrated to-night, and Christmas Day -to-morrow. They were American feasts—feasts for -the Spanish and French and all white people, too, -the doctor and Sergeant Bill said. Stub had heard -the names before, somewhere; perhaps from the -French traders. But he quit thinking and bothering. -He was an American, they were his feasts now; -Lieutenant Pike looked happy, and that was enough.</p> -<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop" /> - -<div class="chapter"> -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_200"></a>[200]</span></p> - -<h2 class="nobreak" id="XIV">XIV<br /> -<small>A TRAIL OF SURPRISES</small></h2> -</div> - - -<p>The lieutenant had explored the source of this -Red River far enough. He was ready to march on -down, for the plains and the United States post of -Natchitoches above the mouth in Louisiana. Everybody -was glad.</p> - -<p>The big meals of buffalo meat had made several -of the men, and Stub also, quite ill; so that on the -day after Christmas the march covered only seven -miles. The tent was turned into a hospital, and the -lieutenant and the doctor slept out in the snow.</p> - -<p>The Great White Mountains, far to the east, had -been in sight from high ground; the river appeared -to lead in that direction. But here at the lower -end of the bottom-land other mountains closed in. -The river coursed through, and everybody rather -believed that by following it they all would come -out, in two or three days, into the open.</p> - -<p>That proved to be a longer job than expected, and -the toughest yet. The river, ice-bound but full of air-holes, -sometimes broadened a little, and gave hope, -but again was hemmed clear to its borders by tremendous<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_201"></a>[201]</span> -precipices too steep to climb. The poor -horses slipped and floundered upon the ice and -rocks; in places they had to be unpacked and the -loads were carried on by hand.</p> - -<p>Soon the lieutenant was ordering sledges built, -to relieve the horses of the loads; men and horses -both pulled them—and now and then sledge and -horse broke through the ice and needs must be -hauled out of the water.</p> - -<p>Twelve miles march, another of sixteen miles, -five miles, eight miles, ten and three-quarter miles, -about five miles—and the river still twisted, an icy -trail, deep set among the cliffs and pinnacles and -steep snowy slopes that offered no escape to better -country.</p> - -<p>The horses were so crippled that some could -scarcely walk; the men were getting well bruised, -too; the dried buffalo meat had dwindled to a few -mouthfuls apiece, and the only game were mountain -sheep that kept out of range. The doctor and -John Brown had been sent ahead, to hunt them and -hang the carcasses beside the river, for the party to -pick up on the way.</p> - -<p>From camp this evening the lieutenant and -Baroney climbed out, to the top, in order to see -ahead. They came down with good news.</p> - -<p>“We’ve sighted an open place, before,” said<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_202"></a>[202]</span> -the lieutenant, gladly. “It’s not more than eight -miles. Another day’s march, my men, and I think -we’ll be into the prairie and at the end of all this -scrambling and tumbling.”</p> - -<p>That gave great hope, although they were too -tired to cheer.</p> - -<p>But on the morrow the river trail fought them -harder than ever. Toward noon they had gained -only a scant half mile. The horses had been falling -again and again, the sledges had stuck fast on the -rocks and in the holes, the ice and snow and rocks -behind were blood-stained from the wounds of men -and animals.</p> - -<p>Now they had come to a narrow spot, where a -mass of broken rocks, forming a high bar, thrust -itself out from the cliff, into the stream, and where -the water was flowing over the ice itself. The horses -balked and reared, while the men tugged and shoved.</p> - -<p>“Over the rocks,” the lieutenant ordered.</p> - -<p>That brought more trouble. Stub’s yellow pony, -thin and scarred like the rest, was among those that -still carried light packs. He was a stout, plucky -pony—or had been. Here he lost heart, at last. -His hoofs were sore, he was worn out. Terry -Miller hauled at his neck-thong, Stub pushed at his -braced haunches. The line was in a turmoil, while<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_203"></a>[203]</span> -everybody worked; the canyon echoed to the shouts -and blows and frenzied, frightened snorting.</p> - -<p>Suddenly the yellow pony’s neck-thong snapped; -he recoiled threshing, head over heels, before Stub -might dodge from him; and down they went, together, -clear into the river. <a href="#i_203">But Stub never felt the -final crash.</a> On his way he saw a burst of stars, -then he plunged into night and kept right on plunging -until he woke up.</p> - -<div class="figcenter" id="i_203"> - <img src="images/i_203.jpg" alt="" title="" /> - <div class="caption"> - <p class="noic"><a href="#Page_203">BUT STUB NEVER FELT THE FINAL CRASH</a></p> - </div> -</div> - -<p>He had landed. No, he was still going. That is, -the snow and cliffs at either side were moving, while -he sat propped and bewildered, dizzily watching -them.</p> - -<p>His head throbbed. He put his hand to it, and -felt a bandage. But whose bowed back was that, -just before? And what was that noise, of crunching -and rasping? Ah! He was on a sledge—he was -stowed in the baggage upon a sledge, and was being -hauled—over the ice and snow—through the canyon—by—by——</p> - -<p>Freegift Stout! For the man doing the hauling -turned his face, and was Freegift Stout!</p> - -<p>Well, well! Freegift halted, and let the sled -run on to him. He shouted also; they had rounded -a curve and there was another loaded sled, and a -man for it; and they, too, stopped.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_204"></a>[204]</span></p> - -<p>“Hello. Waked at last, have ye?” spoke Freegift, -with a grin.</p> - -<p>“Yes, I guess so.” Stub found himself speaking -in a surprisingly easy fashion. A prodigious -amount of words and notions were whirling through -his mind. “Where—where am I, anyhow?”</p> - -<p>“Ridin’ like a king, down the Red River.”</p> - -<p>“What for?”</p> - -<p>“So’s to get out an’ reach Natchitoches, like the -rest of us.”</p> - -<p>Stub struggled to sit up farther. Ouch!</p> - -<p>“What’s your name?” he demanded. Then—“I -know. It’s Freegift Stout. That other man’s -Terry Miller. But what’s my name?”</p> - -<p>“Stub, I reckon.”</p> - -<p>“Yes; of course it is. That’s what they call me. -But how did you know? How’d you know I’m -‘Stub’ for short? I’m Jack. That’s my regular -name—Jack Pursley. I got captured by the Utahs, -from my father; did the Pawnees have me, too? -Wish I could remember. I do sort of remember. -But I’m a white boy. I’m an American, from Kentucky. -And my name’s Jack Pursley—Stub for -short.”</p> - -<p>Freegift roundly stared, his mouth agape amidst -his whiskers.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_205"></a>[205]</span></p> - -<p>“Hey! Come back here, Terry,” he called. -And Terry Miller came back.</p> - -<p>“That crack on the head’s set him to talkin’ -good English an’ turned him into a white lad, sure,” -quoth Freegift. “Did you hear him? Ain’t that -wonderful, though? His name’s Jack Pursley, if you -please; an’ he answers to Stub, jest the same—an’ if -that wasn’t a smart guess by John Sparks I’ll eat my -hat when I get one.”</p> - -<p>“I’ll be darned,” Terry wheezed, blinking and -rubbing his nose. “Jack Pursley, are you? Then -where’s your dad?”</p> - -<p>“I don’t know. We were finding gold in the -mountains, and the Indians stole me and hit me on -the head—and I don’t remember everything after -that.”</p> - -<p>“Sho’,” said Terry. “How long ago, say?”</p> - -<p>“What year is it now, please?”</p> - -<p>“We’ve jest turned into 1807.”</p> - -<p>“I guess that was three years ago, then.”</p> - -<p>“And whereabouts in the mountains?”</p> - -<p>“Near the head of the Platte River.”</p> - -<p>“For gosh’ sake!” Freegift blurted. “We all -jest come from there’bouts. But you didn’t say -nothin’, an’ we didn’t see no gold.”</p> - -<p>“I didn’t remember.”</p> - -<p>“Well, we won’t be goin’ back, though; not for<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_206"></a>[206]</span> -all the gold in the ’arth. Were you all alone up -there?”</p> - -<p>“My father—he was there. Some other men -had started, but they quit. Then we met the Indians, -and they were friendly till they stole me.”</p> - -<p>“Did they kill your father?”</p> - -<p>“I don’t know.”</p> - -<p>“That’s a tall story,” Freegift murmured, to -Terry; and tapped his head. Evidently they didn’t -believe it “Where do you think you are now, -then?” he asked, of Stub.</p> - -<p>“I guess I’m with Lieutenant Pike. But where -is he?”</p> - -<p>“Well, we’ll tell you. You see, that yaller hoss -an’ you went down together. You got a crack on -the head, an’ the hoss, he died. We had to shoot -him. But we picked you up, because you seemed -like worth savin’. The lieutenant put a bandage -on you. Then he took the rest of the outfit up out -the canyon. The hosses couldn’t go on—there wasn’t -any footin’. But he left Terry an’ me to pack the -dead hoss’s load an’ some other stuff that he couldn’t -carry, on a couple of sledges, an’ to fetch them an’ -you on by river an’ meet him below. Understand?”</p> - -<p>Stub nodded. How his brain did whirl, trying -to patch things together! It was as if he had wakened<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_207"></a>[207]</span> -from a dream, and couldn’t yet separate the real -from the maybe not.</p> - -<p>“We’d best be going on,” Terry Miller warned. -“We’re to ketch the cap’n before night, and we’re -short of grub.”</p> - -<p>So the sledges proceeded by the river trail, while -Stub lay and pondered. By the pain now and then -in his head, when the sledge jolted, he had struck -his scar; but somehow he had a wonderful feeling -of relief, there. He was a new boy.</p> - -<p>The trail continued as rough as ever. Most of -the way the two men, John and Terry, had to pull -for all they were worth; either tugging to get their -sledges around open water by route of the narrow -strips of shore, or else slipping and scurrying upon -the snowy ice itself. Steep slopes and high cliffs shut -the trail in, as before. The gaps on right and left -were icy ravines and canyons that looked to be -impassible.</p> - -<p>The main party were not sighted, nor any trace -of them. Toward dusk, which gathered early, Terry, -ahead, halted.</p> - -<p>“It beats the Dutch where the cap’n went to,” -he complained. “He got out, and he hasn’t managed -to get back in, I reckon. Now, what to do?”</p> - -<p>“Only thing to do is to camp an’ wait till -mornin’,” answered Freegift. “An’ a powerful lonesome,<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_208"></a>[208]</span> -hungry camp it’ll be. But that’s soldierin’.”</p> - -<p>“Well, the orders are to ketch him—or to join -him farther down, wherever that may be,” said -Terry. “But we can’t travel by night, in here. So -we’ll have to camp, and foller out our orders -to-morrow.”</p> - -<p>It was a lonesome camp, and a cold camp, and -a hungry camp, here in the dark, frozen depths of -the long and silent defile cut by the mysterious river. -They munched a few mouthfuls apiece of dried meat; -Stub slept the most comfortably, under a blanket -upon the sledge; the two men laid underneath a -single deer-hide, upon the snow.</p> - -<p>They all started on at daybreak. Stub was -enough stronger so that he sprang off to lighten -the load—even pushed—at the worst places. Indeed, -his head was in first-class shape; the scar pained -very little. And he had rather settled down to being -Jack Pursley again. Only, he wished that he knew -just where his father was. Dead? Or alive?</p> - -<p>It was slow going, to-day. The river seemed to -be getting narrower. Where the current had overflowed -and had frozen again, the surface was glary -smooth; the craggy shore-line constantly jutted with -sudden points and shoulders that forced the sledges -out to the middle. The slopes were bare, save for -a sprinkling of low bushes and solitary pines, clinging<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_209"></a>[209]</span> -fast to the rocks. Ice glittered where the sun’s -faint rays struck.</p> - -<p>This afternoon, having worked tremendously, -they came out into the lieutenant’s prairie. At least, -it might have been the prairie he had reported—a -wide flat or bottom where the hills fell back and let -the river breathe.</p> - -<p>“Hooray! Here’s the place to ketch him,” -Freegift cheered. And he called: “See any sign -o’ them, Terry?”</p> - -<p>“Nope.”</p> - -<p>They halted, to scan ahead. All the white expanse -was lifeless.</p> - -<p>“I swan!” sighed Terry. “Never a sign, the -whole day; and now, not a sign here. You’d think -this’d be the spot they’d come in at, and wait for a -fellow or else leave him word.”</p> - -<p>“Yes,” agreed Freegift, “I would that. Do you -reckon they’re behind us, mebbe?”</p> - -<p>“How’s a man to tell, in such a country?” Terry -retorted. “They’re likely tangled up, with half their -hosses down, and the loads getting heavier and heavier. -But where, who knows? We’ll go on a piece, -to finish out the day. We may find ’em lower on, -or sign from ’em. If not, we’ll have to camp again, -and shiver out another night, with nothing to eat. -Eh, Stub? At any rate, orders is orders, and we’re<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_210"></a>[210]</span> -to keep travelling by river until we join ’em. If -they’re behind, they’ll discover our tracks, like as -not, and send ahead for us.”</p> - -<p>“Anyhow, we’re into open goin’. I’m blamed -glad o’ that,” declared Freegift. “Hooray for the -plains, and Natchitoches!”</p> - -<p>“Hooray if you like,” Terry answered back, puffing. -“But ’tisn’t any turnpike, you can bet.”</p> - -<p>Apparently out of the mountains they were; -nevertheless still hard put, for the river wound and -wound, treacherous with boulders and air-holes, -and the snow-covered banks were heavy with willows -and brush and long grass.</p> - -<p>After about four miles Terry, in the lead, shouted -unpleasant news.</p> - -<p>“We might as well quit. We’re running plumb -into another set o’ mountains. I can see where the -river enters. This is only a pocket.”</p> - -<p>Freegift and Stub arrived, and gazed. The -mountains closed in again, before; had crossed the -trail, and were lined up, waiting. Jagged and gleaming -in the low western sunlight, they barred the way.</p> - -<p>“There’s no end to ’em,” said Terry, ruefully. -“Heigh-hum. ’Pears like the real prairies are a long -stint yet. The cap’n will be sore disappointed, if he -sees. I don’t think he’s struck here, though. Anyhow, -we’ll have to camp—I’m clean tuckered; and<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_211"></a>[211]</span> -to-morrow try once more, for orders is orders, and -I’m right certain he’ll find us somewheres, or we’ll -find him.”</p> - -<p>So they made camp. Freegift wandered out, -looking for wood and for trails. He came in.</p> - -<p>“I see tracks, Terry. Two men have been along -here—white men, I judge; travellin’ down river.”</p> - -<p>“Only two, you say?”</p> - -<p>“Yes. Fresh tracks, just the same.”</p> - -<p>They all looked, and found the fresh tracks of -two men pointing eastward.</p> - -<p>“I tell you! Those are the doctor and Brown -hunting,” Terry proposed. “Wish they’d left some -meat. But we may ketch ’em to-morrow. Even -tracks are a godsend.”</p> - -<p>They three had eaten nothing all day; there -was nothing to eat, to-night. To Stub, matters -looked rather desperate, again. Empty stomach and -empty tracks and empty country, winter-bound, gave -one a sort of a hopeless feeling. He and Freegift -and Terry trudged and trudged and trudged, and -hauled and shoved, and never got anywhere. For all -they knew, they might be drawing farther and farther -away from the lieutenant. But, as Terry said, -“orders were orders.”</p> - -<p>“Well, if we ketch the doctor he’ll be mighty interested -in that head o’ yourn,” Freegift asserted, to<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_212"></a>[212]</span> -Stub. “He’s been wantin’ to open it up, I heard -tell; but mebbe that yaller hoss saved him the -trouble.”</p> - -<p>“He’ll not thank the hoss,” laughed Terry, -grimly. “He’d like to have done the job himself! -That’s the doctor of it.”</p> - -<p>Stub privately resolved to show the doctor that -there was no need of the “job,” now. He felt fine, -and he was Jack Pursley.</p> - -<p>Nothing occurred during the night; the false -prairie of the big pocket remained uninvaded except -by themselves. They lingered until about ten o’clock, -hoping that the main party might come in.</p> - -<p>“No use,” sighed Freegift. “We may be losin’ -time; like as not losin’ the doctor. Our orders were, -to travel by river till we joined the cap’n.”</p> - -<p>With one last survey the two men took up their -tow-ropes and, Stub ready to lend a hand when -needed, they plodded on.</p> - -<p>The tracks of the doctor and John Brown led to -the gateway before. The space for the river lessened -rapidly. Soon the sides were only prodigious cliffs, -straight up and down where they faced upon the -river, and hung with gigantic icicles and sheeted with -ice masses. The river had dashed from one side to -the other, so that the boulders were now spattered -with frozen spray.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_213"></a>[213]</span></p> - -<p>The tracks of the doctor and John Brown had -vanished; being free of foot, they might clamber as -they thought best. But the sledges made a different -proposition. Sometimes, in the more difficult spots -amidst ice, rocks and water, two men and a boy -scarcely could budge one.</p> - -<p>Higher and higher towered the cliffs, reddish -where bare, and streaked with motionless waterfalls. -The sky was only a seam. Far aloft, there was -sunshine, and the snow even dripped; but down in -here all was shade and cold. One’s voice sounded -hollow, and echoes answered mockingly.</p> - -<p>The dusk commenced to gather before the shine -had left the world above. Stub was just about tired -out; the sweat had frozen on the clothes of the two -men, and their beards also were stiff with frost.</p> - -<p>Now they had come to a stopping-place. There -was space for only the river. It was crowded so -closely and piled upon itself so deeply, and was -obliged to flow so swiftly that no ice had formed -upon it beyond its very edges. The cliffs rose -abruptly on either side, not a pebble-toss apart, -leaving no footway.</p> - -<p>The trail had ended.</p> - -<p>“I cry ‘Enough,’” Terry panted, as the three -peered dismayed. “We can’t go on—and we can’t<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_214"></a>[214]</span> -spend the night here, either. We’ll have to backtrack -and find some way out.”</p> - -<p>“The doctor an’ Brown must ha’ got out somewheres,” -Freegift argued. “They never passed here. -Let’s search whilst there’s light. If we can fetch -out we may yet sight ’em, or the cap’n. An’ failin’ -better, we can camp again an’ bile that deer-hide for -a tide-me-over. Some sort o’ chawin’ we need bad.”</p> - -<p>“Biled deer-hide for supper, then,” Terry answered. -“It’ll do to fool our stomicks with. But -first we got to get out if we can.”</p> - -<p>They turned back, in the gloomy canyon whose -walls seemed to be at least half a mile high, to seek -a side passage up and out. Freegift was ahead. -There were places where the walls had been sundered -by gigantic cracks, piled with granite fragments. -Freegift had crossed the river, on boulders and ice -patches, to explore a crack opposite—and suddenly -a shout hailed him.</p> - -<p>“Whoo-ee! Hello!”</p> - -<p>He gazed quickly amidst his clambering; waved -his arm and shouted reply, and hastened over.</p> - -<p>“Somebody!” Terry exclaimed. He and Stub -ran forward, stumbling. They rounded a shoulder, -and joining Freegift saw the lieutenant. In the -gloom they knew him by his red cap if by nothing -else. He was alone, carrying his gun.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_215"></a>[215]</span></p> - -<p>“I’ve been looking for you men,” he greeted. -“You passed us, somehow.”</p> - -<p>“Yes, sir,” Freegift admitted. “An’ we’ve been -lookin’ for you, too, sir. We didn’t know whether -you were before or behind.”</p> - -<p>“And begging your pardon, sir, we’re mighty -glad to see you,” added Terry. “Are the men all -behind, the same as yourself, sir?”</p> - -<p>“Part of them.” The lieutenant spoke crisply. -“The doctor and Brown are still ahead, I think. -I haven’t laid eyes on them. You three were next. -The rest of the party is split. From the prairie -back yonder I detached Baroney and two men to -take the horses out, unpacked, and find a road for -them. We have lost several animals by falls upon -the rocks, and the others were unable to travel farther -by river. The remaining eight men are coming -on, two by two, each pair with a loaded sledge. -I have preceded them, hoping to overtake you. The -command is pretty well scattered out, but doing the -best it can.” His tired eyes scanned Stub. “How -are you, my brave lad?”</p> - -<p>“All right, sir. But my name’s Jack Pursley, -now. That knock I got made me remember.”</p> - -<p>“What!”</p> - -<p>“You see, sir,” Freegift explained in haste, and -rather as if apologizing for Stub’s answer, “when<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_216"></a>[216]</span> -he come to after that rap on the head he was sort -o’ bewildered like; an’ ever since then he’s been -claimin’ that he’s a white boy, name o’ Pursley, from -Kaintuck, an’ was stole from his father, by the -Injuns, up in that very Platte River country where -we saw all them camp sign.”</p> - -<p>“Oh!” uttered the lieutenant. “You were -there? How many of you? All white? Where’s -your father? How long ago?”</p> - -<p>“About three years, I think,” Stub stammered. -“Just we two, sir. We were hunting and trading -on the plains, with some Kiowas and Comanches, -and the Sioux drove us into the mountains. Then we -joined the Utahs, and after a while they stole me. -They hit me on the head and I forgot a lot of things—and -I don’t know where my father is, sir.”</p> - -<p>“Hah! I thought we were the first white men -there,” ejaculated the lieutenant. “The first Americans, -at least. It’s a pity you didn’t come to before. -You might have given us valuable information.”</p> - -<p>“He says they found gold in that Platte country, -sir,” said Terry.</p> - -<p>“Yes? Pshaw! But no matter now. We’ll pursue -that subject later. First, we must get out of this -canyon. You discovered no passage beyond?”</p> - -<p>“No, sir. Never space to set a foot.”</p> - -<p>“Have you any food?”</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_217"></a>[217]</span></p> - -<p>“Had none for two days, sir. We were thinking -of biling a deer-hide for our supper.”</p> - -<p>“You’re no worse off than the others. The -whole column is destitute again, but the men are -struggling bravely, scattered as they may be. The -doctor and Brown came this way. You haven’t -sighted them?”</p> - -<p>“No, sir; only their tracks, back a piece.”</p> - -<p>“Then they got out, somehow. We must find -their trail before dark, and follow it up top, where -there’s game. Search well; our comrades behind are -depending on us.”</p> - -<p>They searched on both sides of the canyon. -Stub’s Indian-wise eyes made the discovery—a few -scratches by hands and gun-stocks, in a narrow -ravine whose slopes were ice sheeted. That was -the place.</p> - -<p>They all hurried to the sledges, took what they -might carry, and clawing, slipping, clinging, commenced -to scale the ravine. It was a slow trail, and -a danger trail, but it led them out, to a flat, cedar-strewn -top, where daylight still lingered.</p> - -<p>“The doctor and Brown have been here,” panted -the lieutenant. “Here are their tracks.”</p> - -<p>They followed the tracks a short distance, and -brought up at camp sign. Evidently the doctor and -Brown had stopped here, the night before; had killed<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_218"></a>[218]</span> -a deer, too—but there was nothing save a few shreds -of hide.</p> - -<p>“The birds and beasts have eaten whatever they -may have left,” spoke the lieutenant. “Too bad, -my lads. However, we’re out, and we’ll make shift -some way. Fetch up another load, while I hunt.”</p> - -<p>Out he went, with his gun. They managed to -bring up another load from the sledges. They heard -a gunshot.</p> - -<p>“Hooray! Meat for supper, after all.”</p> - -<p>But when he returned in the darkness he was -empty-handed.</p> - -<p>“I wounded a deer, and lost him,” he reported -shortly; and he slightly staggered as he sank down -for a moment. “We can do no more to-night. -We’ll melt snow for drinking purposes; but the deer-hide -is likely to make us ill, in our present condition. -We’ll keep it, and to-morrow we’ll have better luck.”</p> - -<p>So with a fire and melted snow they passed the -night. Nobody else arrived. The doctor and Brown -seemed to be a day’s march ahead; Baroney and -Hugh Menaugh and Bill Gordon were wandering -with the horses through this broken high country; -and the other eight were toiling as best they could, -with the sledges, in separate pairs, seeking a way out -also.</p> - -<p>The lieutenant started again, early in the morning,<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_219"></a>[219]</span> -to find meat for breakfast. They went down -into the canyon, to get the rest of the loads, and -the sledges—and how they managed, with their legs -so weary and their stomachs so empty, Stub scarcely -knew.</p> - -<p>They heard the lieutenant shoot several times, in -the distance; this helped them. He rarely missed. -But he came into camp with nothing, and with his -gun broken off at the breech—had wounded deer, -had discovered that his gun was bent and shot -crooked—then had fallen and disabled it completely.</p> - -<p>He was exhausted—so were the others; yet he -did not give up. He rested only a minute. Then -he grabbed up the gun that had been stowed among -the baggage. It was only a double-barreled shotgun, -but had to do.</p> - -<p>“I’ll try again, with this,” he said. “You can go -no further; I see that. Keep good heart, my lads, -and be sure that I’ll return at best speed with the -very first meat I secure.”</p> - -<p>“Yes, sir. We’ll wait, sir. And good luck -to ye,” answered Terry.</p> - -<p>Sitting numb and lax beside the baggage, they -watched the lieutenant go stumbling and swerving -among the cedars, until he had disappeared.</p> - -<p>“A great-hearted little officer,” Freegift remarked. -“Myself, I couldn’t take another step.<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_220"></a>[220]</span> -I’m clean petered out, at last. But him—away he -goes, never askin’ a rest.”</p> - -<p>“And he’ll be back. You can depend on that,” -put in Terry. “Yes. He’ll not be thinking of himself. -He’s thinking mainly on his men. He’ll be -back with the meat, before he eats a bite.”</p> - -<p>They heard nothing. The long day dragged; -sometimes they dozed—they rarely moved and they -rarely spoke; they only waited. Up here it was very -quiet, with a few screaming jays fluttering through -the low trees. Stub caught himself nodding and -dreaming: saw strange objects, grasped at meat, and -woke before he could eat. He wondered if Freegift -and Terry saw the same.</p> - -<p>The sun set, the air grew colder.</p> - -<p>“Another night,” Freegift groaned. “He’s not -comin’. Now what if he’s layin’ out somewheres, -done up!”</p> - -<p>“If he’s still alive he’s on his feet, and seeking -help for us,” Terry asserted. “He said to wait and -he’d come. You can depend on him. Orders be -orders. He found us, below, and he’ll find us here.”</p> - -<p>“We’ve got to suck deer-hide, then,” announced -Freegift. “It may carry us over.”</p> - -<p>They managed to arouse themselves; half boiled -strips of deer-hide in a kettle of snow-water, and<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_221"></a>[221]</span> -chewed at the hairy, slimy stuff. But they couldn’t -swallow it.</p> - -<p>“Oh, my!” Terry sighed. “’Tain’t soup nor -meat, nor what I’d call soldiers’ fare at all. We had -hard times before, up the Mississippi with the left’nant; -but we didn’t set teeth to this. What’d I ever -enlist for?”</p> - -<p>“The more I don’t know,” answered Freegift. -“But stow one good meal in us an’ we’d enlist over -again, to foller the cap’n on another trip.”</p> - -<p>Terry tried to grin.</p> - -<p>“I guess you’re right. But, oh my! Down the -Red River, heading for white man’s country, is it? -Then where are we? Nowhere at all, and like to -stay.”</p> - -<p>Through the gnarled cedars beside the mighty -canyon the shadows deepened. The mountain ridges -and peaks, near and far, surrounding the lone flat, -swiftly lost their daytime tints as the rising tide of -night flowed higher and higher. And soon it was -dark again.</p> - -<p>Now they must wait for another morning as -well as for the lieutenant.</p> - -<p>They had already sickened of the deer-hide, and -could not touch it again. So the morning was breakfastless. -The sun had been up only a few minutes,<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_222"></a>[222]</span> -and Stub was drowsing in a kind of stupor, when -he heard Freegift exclaim:</p> - -<p>“He’s comin’, boys! Here comes the cap’n! -Say! Don’t I see him—or not?”</p> - -<p>“There’s two of ’em!” cried Terry. “He’s -found company. No! That ain’t the cap’n. It’s -somebody else. But our men, anyhow.”</p> - -<p>Two men afoot were hastening in through the -cedars, along the canyon rim. They carried packages—meat! -They were Hugh Menaugh and Bill -Gordon. Hooray!</p> - -<p>“Hello to you!”</p> - -<p>“Yes, we’re still here,” replied Terry. “And -if you’ve fetched anything to eat, out with it quick. -Where’s the cap’n? Did you see him?”</p> - -<p>Hugh and Bill busied themselves.</p> - -<p>“Yes, we met up with him last evenin’, below, -down river. He hadn’t come back to you, ’cause he -hadn’t killed anything. But Baroney and us were -packin’ buffalo meat and deer meat both, and he sent -us two out to find you first thing this mornin’, soon -as ’twas light enough to s’arch. After you’ve fed, -we’ll help you on to camp.”</p> - -<p>“Who else is there?”</p> - -<p>“Just the cap’n and Baroney, but they’re expectin’ -the doctor and Brown. Them two are somewheres -in the neighborhood. The cap’n fired a gun<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_223"></a>[223]</span> -as signal to ’em. We’ll have to look for the other -fellers.”</p> - -<p>“What kind of a camp, an’ whereabouts?” Freegift -asked, as he and Terry and Stub greedily -munched.</p> - -<p>“Oh, a good camp, in the open, not fur from -the river.”</p> - -<p>Hugh and Bill acted oddly—with manner mysterious -as if they were keeping something back. -After the meal, Hugh opened up.</p> - -<p>“Now that you’ve eaten, guess I’ll tell you what’s -happened,” he blurted. “You’ll know it, anyhow.”</p> - -<p>“Anybody dead? Not the cap’n!”</p> - -<p>“No. Nothing like that. But this ain’t the -river.”</p> - -<p>“Ain’t the Red River?”</p> - -<p>“Nope.”</p> - -<p>The three stared, dazed.</p> - -<p>“What river might it be, then?” gasped Freegift.</p> - -<p>“The Arkansaw ag’in. An’ camp’s located on -that very same spot in the dry valley where we struck -north last December, scarce a month ago!”<a id="FNanchor_7" href="#Footnote_7" class="fnanchor">[G]</a></p> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p class="noi"><a id="Footnote_7" href="#FNanchor_7" class="label">[G]</a> That was the remarkable and disappointing fact. From -the heads of the Platte River they simply had passed southwestward -to the head of the Arkansas, had fought their way -down through the Grand Canyon of the Arkansas to the Royal -Gorge, and crossing around this were completing a big circle -to the Cañon City region again.</p> - -</div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_224"></a>[224]</span></p> - -<p>“It’s certainly hard on the little cap’n,” Bill -added. “Yesterday, his worst day of all, when -near dead he made out and espied the landmarks, was -his birthday, too.”</p> - -<p>“What’s the date?” Terry queried. “I’ve -forgot.”</p> - -<p>“Fifth o’ January. To-day’s the sixth. It was -December 10 when we camped yonder before.”</p> -<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop" /> - -<div class="chapter"> -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_225"></a>[225]</span></p> - -<h2 class="nobreak" id="XV">XV<br /> -<small>NOT YET DEFEATED</small></h2> -</div> - - -<p>Helped by Hugh Menaugh and Bill Gordon they -might now travel on for the lieutenant’s camp. -They had to cross several gulches and one or two -ridges; then they came out into view of the dry -valley, at the foot of which the Arkansaw issued -from the mountains, to course eastward through -the foothills and down to the plains far beyond.</p> - -<p>It was the same valley. They might see again -the Grand Peak, distant in the north, and mark the -line of the river, nearer in the south. From the -ridges they had been enabled to sight the Great -Snow Mountains, also in the south and much farther -than the Grand Peak in the opposite direction. -Yes, this was the Arkansaw, and the lieutenant -had missed his guess by a wide margin.</p> - -<p>He was waiting at the camp. He greeted them -kindly, but was haggard and seemed much cut up -over the result of all his hard marches. No one -could resist being sorry for him.</p> - -<p>The doctor and John Brown were here, too. -They had brought in six deer, so that now there was -plenty of meat on hand.</p> - -<p>It was two more days before the last of the<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_226"></a>[226]</span> -men had straggled in. Meanwhile the doctor especially -had been interested in the new “Jack Pursley,” -otherwise Stub; had examined his head, and together -with the lieutenant had asked him questions. -But as Stub stuck to his story, they had to accept -it; appeared rather to believe it—the doctor in -particular.</p> - -<p>Considerable of their talk, between themselves, -Stub did not understand. There was something -about “removal of pressure,” “resumption of activity,” -“clearing up of brain area,” and so forth, which -really meant nothing to Stub, except that now he -knew who he was and the spot under his scar no -longer burned or weighed like lead.</p> - -<p>If he might only find his father, whose name, -he remembered, was James, and if the lieutenant -might find the Red River after all, then he would -be perfectly happy.</p> - -<p>The lieutenant acted somewhat worried. He did -not know quite what to do next. He did not like -to waste time; but instead of having found the Red -River, after a month of search which had lost him -horses and crippled others and almost had lost him -men also, here he was with nothing gained except -a little information about the mountain country -north.</p> - -<p>But he was not a man to shilly-shally. He and -the doctor, and sometimes Baroney, talked earnestly<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_227"></a>[227]</span> -together; on the day after the last of the squads -had arrived, and when everybody had eaten well -and had rested, he called a council.</p> - -<p>“I have decided to make another attempt, men,” -he said. “We are soldiers, and our duty to our -orders and our Flag demands that we do not admit -defeat. The thought of defeat is unworthy of brave -men. It is far better to die with honor, in the knowledge -that we have done our utmost, than to live as -cowards and weaklings. Fortune has been trying -us out, but she will not find us lacking. We have -explored to the north, and we know that the Red -River does not lie there. That much has been -accomplished, and not in vain, for we have made -important discoveries and greatly extended the Government’s -knowledge of the sources of the Platte -and the Arkansaw Rivers. It will be impossible -to travel onward with the horses. We have lost a -number of them, and the remainder are unfit. So I -propose to stay here a few days, in order to erect a -block-house and gather meat. Then I shall leave -the horses, and the useless baggage, with two men -in charge; and with the rest of you shall strike southward -to cross the next divide, in the vicinity of the -Great White Mountains, where, I am positive, we -shall emerge upon the head streams of the Red -River. We have demonstrated the fact that the -Red River can lie only in that direction. From there<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_228"></a>[228]</span> -we will send back for the horses, which by that -time will be recovered; and we will descend along -the river to the civilization of our own people and -the just reward, I trust, of a Country appreciative -of your efforts.”</p> - -<p>Sergeant Meek faced the men and flourished -his lean arm.</p> - -<p>“Three cheers for the cap’n and the Red River, -boys! Hooray! Hooray! Hooray!”</p> - -<p>They all spent the next four days in building the -block-house with logs, and in hunting. A good -pasture was found, for the wretched horses. John -Sparks made a new stock for the lieutenant’s broken -gun.</p> - -<p>Baroney and Pat Smith were to stay here. Although -a great deal of the baggage, including the -lieutenant’s own trunk with his “chief’s” uniform, -was left also, what with the ammunition and axes -and spades, and the presents in case the Comanches -or other Indians should be met, and the meat, the -lieutenant and the doctor and the eleven men carried -each seventy pounds, weighed out equally, and Stub -himself had a pack.</p> - -<p>Followed by a good-luck cheer from Baroney -and Pat, they marched out from the block-house on -the morning of January 14, southward bound across<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_229"></a>[229]</span> -the Arkansaw, to find the Red River down in the -region of the Great White Mountains.</p> - -<p>The first day they marched thirteen miles; the -doctor killed a deer. The second day they marched -nineteen miles, up along a stream that opened a -way for them to the mountains; the lieutenant and -the doctor and John Sparks each killed a deer. On -the third day they marched up the same stream, -eighteen miles, in a snowstorm; and nobody killed -anything. So to-night they pretty well finished -their meat. Travelling afoot in winter was hungry -work, and they could carry only a little at a time.</p> - -<p>On the fourth day they marched twenty-eight -miles—and a bad day it proved to be. The Great -White Mountains had been getting nearer, at this -end—their upper end. They formed a tremendous -snowy chain stretching northwest and southeast. -The stream came down from them, and they were -about to bar the trail. Upon the east there were -lesser mountains. But no Red River flowed in this -broad trough between the two ranges; its streams -fed the Arkansaw River; therefore the Red River -must lie upon the farther, or western side, of the -Great White range.<a id="FNanchor_8" href="#Footnote_8" class="fnanchor">[H]</a></p> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p class="noi"><a id="Footnote_8" href="#FNanchor_8" class="label">[H]</a> These Great White Mountains of Lieutenant Pike are -the Sangre de Cristo Range of Southern Colorado. They -extend from the Arkansas River above the Grand Canyon clear -into New Mexico, and are a noble snowy range indeed. The -early Spanish explorers from the south named them Sangre de -Cristo, or Blood of Christ, because when first sighted they -were bathed red in the reflection from a New Mexico sunset. -And this frequently is their sunset coloring today. From the -block-house beyond present Cañon City north of the Arkansas -River the Pike men had marched south across the river, and -probably had followed up Grape Creek, which descends from -the east slope of the Sangre de Cristo—the Great White -Mountains.</p> - -</div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_230"></a>[230]</span></p> - -<p>The mountains seemed to rise from a bare prairie -which grew no wood. The lieutenant had left the -stream, so as to aim more directly for a low place -in the range; but he was not to cross, to-day. The -range was farther than it looked to be. The sun -set—and here they were, in the cold open, without -wood or water either, or a bite to eat.</p> - -<p>“There’s timber at the base of those first slopes,” -he said. “We’ll have to push on, men, until we -reach it. The night will be too cold for existing -with no fires.”</p> - -<p>Suddenly they were barred by the creek, and -needs must ford it through ice that broke under -their moccasins. It was long after dark, and was -stinging cold, when they arrived at the trees. The -men stumbled wearily; Stub could not feel his feet at -all. Nobody had complained, though—but when -the fires had been built and they all started to thaw -themselves out, the doctor found that nine pairs of<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_231"></a>[231]</span> -feet had been frozen, among the men, with Stub’s -pair to be included.</p> - -<p>He, and the lieutenant, Sergeant Meek and Terry -Miller were the only ones to have escaped! John -Sparks and young Tom Dougherty were the worst -off. Their feet were solid white to their ankles. -Hugh Menaugh and Jake Carter were badly off, too. -The doctor did his best—everybody rubbed hard with -snow, and several groaned from the pain; but there -was nothing to eat and the thermometer dropped -to more than eighteen degrees below zero or freezing.</p> - -<p>With cold, hunger and aching feet it was a hard -night. The lieutenant sent Sergeant Meek and Terry -out early in the morning, to hunt in one direction; -he and the doctor made ready to hunt in another.</p> - -<p>“Do the best you can, lads,” they encouraged, -as they set forth. “We’ve all been in tight places -before, and have come out safely. Wait now in -patience, and you shall have the first meat that’s -killed.”</p> - -<p>It was another long day: a cold, bleak day for -this open camp on the edge of the snow-laden pines -and cedars, with the Great White Mountains overlooking, -on the one hand, as far as eye might see, -and the wide prairie bottoms stretching lone and -lifeless on the other hand.</p> - -<p>Stub’s feet were swollen, puffy and tender, but<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_232"></a>[232]</span> -he could walk. He and Corporal Jerry Jackson and -Alex Roy managed to keep the fires going. John -Sparks and Tom Dougherty lay suffering until the -sweat stood on their foreheads. Their feet seemed -to be turning black, and were alive with sharp pains.</p> - -<p>“Sure, we’re like never to walk ag’in, Tom,” -John moaned. “Our country’ll owe us each a pair -o’ feet.”</p> - -<p>“I know that, John. But what’ll we do wid -those we have? That’s what’s botherin’ me. ’Tis -cruel hard.”</p> - -<p>“’Tis harder on you than on me, lad,” John -declared. “For you’re young. An’ still, I’d like -to do a bit more marchin’, myself.”</p> - -<p>They heard never a sound from the hunters, all -day. At dark the sergeant and Terry Miller came in, -completely tuckered. They had not fired a shot; -had seen no game, nor seen the lieutenant and the -doctor, either.</p> - -<p>“We’ll have to pull our belts in another notch, -boys,” quoth the sergeant. “And trust to them -other two. Had they found meat, they’d be in. -If they don’t come to-night, they’ll come to-morrow. -’Tis tough for you, here by the fire; but it’s tougher -on them, out yonder somewheres in the cold, with -their hearts aching at the thought of us waiting and -depending on ’em. Jest the same, I’d rather be any<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_233"></a>[233]</span> -one of us, in our moccasins as we are, than Henry -Kennerman serving time in his boots.”</p> - -<p>Henry Kennerman was a soldier who had -deserted on the way to the Osage towns.</p> - -<p>The next day was the fourth without food. It -passed slowly. The feet of some of the men, like -those of Stub, were much better; but John Sparks -and young Tom could not stand, and Hugh Menaugh -and Jake Carter could not walk.</p> - -<p>Toward evening the sergeant grew very uneasy; -alarm settled over them all. No tidings of any kind -had arrived from the lieutenant and Doctor -Robinson.</p> - -<p>“We’ll wait, the night,” finally said Sergeant -Meek. “In the morning ’twill be up to us, for if we -sit here longer we’ll be too weak to move. We’ll -divide up, those of us who can walk. A part’ll have -to search for them two men, for maybe they’re needing -help worse’n we are, and ’tis the duty of a soldier -never to abandon his officers. The rest’ll look for -meat again. And we’ll none of us come in till we -fetch either news or meat. Shame on us if we can’t -turn to and help our officers and ourselves.”</p> - -<p>“You’re right. There’s nobody can blame the -cap’n an’ the doctor. They’ve never spared themselves. -We’ll all do our best, sergeant.”</p> - -<p>“Only lend me a pair o’ fate, any wan o’ yez<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_234"></a>[234]</span> -whose heart’s too heavy for ’em, an’ I’ll look for -the cap’n meself,” appealed Tom Dougherty.</p> - -<p>They kept up the fires and tried to sleep. The -black, cold night deepened; overhead the steely stars -spanned from prairie to dark slopes. The Great -Bear of the sky, which contained the Pointers that -told the time, drifted across, ranging on his nightly -trail.</p> - -<p>Suddenly, at midnight, they heard a faint, breathless -“Whoo-ee!” And while they listened, another.</p> - -<p>“’Tis the cap’n and the doctor!” the sergeant -exclaimed. “Hooray! Give ’em a yell, now, all -together. Build up the fires.”</p> - -<p>They yelled. They were answered, through the -darkness—and presently through the same darkness -the lieutenant—and the doctor—came staggering in, -bending low, to the fire-light.</p> - -<p>Meat!</p> - -<p>“Here you are, my lads!” the lieutenant panted. -He dropped the load from his back, swayed, sank -to his knees, and the sergeant sprang to catch him.</p> - -<p>“We’re all right, sir. We knew you’d be coming. -You’re a welcome sight, sir, meat or no meat. We -were getting anxious about you and the doctor, sir.”</p> - -<p>“I’ll tend to him, sergeant,” gasped the doctor. -“You be helping the men with the meat. Don’t let -’em over-eat. There’s more, back where we killed.”</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_235"></a>[235]</span></p> - -<p>The lieutenant had almost fainted. It was several -minutes before he could speak again. He and -the doctor had had a terrible two days. The doctor -said that they had wounded a buffalo with three -balls, the first evening, but it had made off. All -that night they had sat up, among some rocks, nearly -freezing to death while they waited for morning. -Then they had sighted a herd of buffalo, at daybreak, -and had crawled a mile through the snow—had -shot eight times, wounded three, and the whole -herd had escaped.</p> - -<p>That second day they had tramped until the lieutenant -was about spent with hunger and lack of rest. -Matters had looked very bad. But they both decided -that they would rather die looking for game, than -return and disappoint the men. Just at dusk, when -they were aiming for a point of timber, there to spend -another night, they saw a third herd of buffalo. The -lieutenant managed to run and hide behind a cedar. -When the buffalo were about to pass, he shot, and -this time crippled one. The doctor ran, and with -three more shots they killed the buffalo. Hurrah!</p> - -<p>Then they butchered it, without stopping to eat; -and carrying as much as they could they had traveled -for six hours, bringing the meat to the camp.</p> - -<p>“It’s a story hard to beat,” said Sergeant Meek, -simply. “You may not be one of the army, yourself,<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_236"></a>[236]</span> -sir; but as officer and man we’re proud to follow you—you -and the cap’n, sir.”</p> - -<p>“The lieutenant and I wondered what you men -were thinking, when we didn’t return,” the doctor -proffered. “You had a right to expect us sooner? -Did you plan to march on and try to save your -lives?”</p> - -<p>“No, sir; not exactly that,” replied rugged Sergeant -Meek. “We knew you hadn’t forgotten us, -and there was no complaining. Seemed like we’d -best search for you, and the same time find meat if -we could; and that we’d ha’ done, the first thing in -the morning, sir.”</p> - -<p>“Your plan, and the way with which you received -us, do you all credit before the world,” spoke -the lieutenant, who overheard. “As your comrades -we thank you, men; and as your officer I am proud -of you. My reports to General Wilkinson and the -Secretary of War shall not omit the devotion to duty -that has characterized your whole march.”</p> -<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop" /> - -<div class="chapter"> -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_237"></a>[237]</span></p> - -<h2 class="nobreak" id="XVI">XVI<br /> -<small>BLOCKED BY THE GREAT WHITE MOUNTAINS</small></h2> -</div> - - -<p>John Sparks and Tom Dougherty were to be -left behind. That was the word.</p> - -<p>“What?”</p> - -<p>“Yes. The doctor says not a step shall they -march, if they would save their feet; an’ poor Tom, -he’s like to lose his, anyhow. An’ since they can’t -march, no more can we carry ’em across the mountains -without hosses. So here they stay till we can -send an’ get ’em.”</p> - -<p>All the buffalo meat had been brought in. The -lieutenant was preparing to march on, for the Red -River. From the camp he had explored farther -westward, to the very foot of the mountains, seeking -a trail over; but the snow was four and five feet deep -even there, the whole country above was white, and -he gave the trail up.</p> - -<p>“We’ll have to march on south along this side, -until we find a better place.”</p> - -<p>Now they made ready. John Sparks and Tom -were fixed as comfortably as possible, with guns -and ammunition, a lean-to for shelter, and the best<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_238"></a>[238]</span> -buffalo-robes, and wood and meat. Their packs, -and the packs of Hugh Menaugh and Jake Carter -(who barely could hobble, using their muskets as -crutches) were hidden under trees.</p> - -<p>Sturdy red-haired John and young Tom felt -badly. So did everybody. The lieutenant’s voice -broke, as he said:</p> - -<p>“We aren’t deserting you, my lads. Never think -of that. As surely as we live we will send for you, -the very first thing, as soon as we locate a desirable -camping spot, to which to bring down the horses. -That will not be long; we have only to cross these -mountains. Rather than desert you, if I should -be the last man alive in the party I would return, -myself, and die with you. Whatever happens, meet -it like soldiers, bearing in mind that you are suffering -for your Country. It is far preferable to perish -thus, in the wilderness, in discharge of duty, rather -than to forfeit honor by evading hardships and toil -like the disloyal Kennerman.”</p> - -<p>“Oh, sir! We’ll act the man, sir,” they replied. -“We’ll keep a stiff upper lip, an’ be waitin’ for the -hosses to come get us.”</p> - -<p>The lieutenant shook hands with them; the doctor -shook hands with them.</p> - -<p>“Now take care of those feet,” he urged.</p> - -<p>Everybody shook hands with them.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_239"></a>[239]</span></p> - -<p>“Good-by, lads.”</p> - -<p>“Good-by to yez. God send yez safe to the Red -River, an’ we’ll join yez there, all bound home -together.”</p> - -<p>“For’d, march!” barked the lieutenant. His -voice was husky. There were tears freezing on his -cheeks.</p> - -<p>“For’d, men,” rasped old Sergeant Meek, and -blew his nose violently.</p> - -<p>A number of the other men were sniffling and -blowing, and Stub choked as he blindly trudged. -Bluff Hugh Menaugh growled gently to himself, -while he and Jake hobbled.</p> - -<p>As long as they could see the little camp and the -two figures sitting they occasionally turned and -waved; and John and Tom waved answer.</p> - -<p>“Well, we did our best for ’em,” sighed Corporal -Jerry. “We took only one meal o’ meat. They -have the rest. ’Twill get ’em through, like as not.”</p> - -<p>“Yes. Once across these mountains, to the Red -River, and we’ll send for them and the hosses.”</p> - -<p>This evening the one meal of meat was eaten. -A little snow fell. In the morning the lieutenant -ordered Sergeant Meek to take the party on, while -he and the doctor hunted. The day was dark and -lowering. Then the storm set in again, snowing -furiously. By noon the snow was knee high; they<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_240"></a>[240]</span> -could not see ten feet around; Hugh and Jake were -unable to move farther; the lieutenant and the doctor -were still out—perhaps lost, like themselves.</p> - -<p>“’Tis no use, men. We’ll make for the nearest -timber and camp there,” ordered Sergeant Meek.</p> - -<p>That was another miserably cold, hungry day, -and a worse night.</p> - -<p>“How flesh and blood may be expected to stand -more of this, I don’t know,” uttered John Brown.</p> - -<p>“And it’s not for you to ask,” the sergeant -sternly rebuked. “If you’re so weak-hearted as to -think them thoughts, keep ’em to yourself. Even -the lad Stub—a mere boy that he is—speaks no such -words. Shame on you—you a soldier!”</p> - -<p>John Brown muttered, but said no more.</p> - -<p>“Heaven help the cap’n an’ the doctor, again,” -spoke Corporal Jerry, as they all huddled about -their fire, and the wind howled and the snow hissed, -and the drifts piled higher against their little bulwark -of packs. “An’ if they don’t find us an’ we don’t -find them, ’twill go hard with Sparks and Dougherty, -too.”</p> - -<p>“If the storm clears, we’ll march on in the morning,” -said Sergeant Meek. “We’ve had orders to -meet ’em, on a piece yet, and that’s our duty.”</p> - -<p>The morning dawned gray and white, but the -storm had ceased. They shook off the snow, reshouldered<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_241"></a>[241]</span> -their packs, and guns in hand stiffly -started. The snow was thigh high; the Great White -Mountains looming in a long front without end on -their right were whiter than ever; the bottoms and -the more distant mountains on their left were white. -It was snow, snow, snow, everywhere; the very dead -of winter.</p> - -<p>Now (Good!) here came the lieutenant and the -doctor, ploughing down a slope, their packs on their -backs, but nothing else. Snowy and breathing hard, -they arrived. The men, plodding, had seen; and -having given up hope plodded on, saying not a word. -Only Sergeant Meek greeted, saluting as best he -might:</p> - -<p>“All well, cap’n. Good morning to you, sirs.”</p> - -<p>“No luck this time, sergeant,” wheezed the lieutenant, -cheerily, but with face pinched and set. “We -missed you, and spent the night together in the snow.”</p> - -<p>“Yes, sir. We couldn’t see, for the storm, sir, -and had to camp in the nearest shelter.”</p> - -<p>“You did right, sergeant. The storm was so -thick that I found even the compass of little help. -The doctor and I became separated and were fearful -that we had lost each other as well as the party. -Halt the men.”</p> - -<p>“Squad, halt,” rasped the sergeant.</p> - -<p>The men waited, panting and coughing.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_242"></a>[242]</span></p> - -<p>“It’s evident there are no buffalo down in the -open, lads,” spoke the lieutenant. “The doctor and -I have sighted never a one nor any sign of one. -The storm has driven them back and higher, into the -timber. We’ll make in the same direction, and be -crossing the mountains while seeking meat.”</p> - -<p>He and the doctor led off, heading westward, to -climb the Great White Mountains. The route commenced -to get more rolling—up and down, up and -down, over the rounded foothills concealed by the -snow. ’Twas leg-wearying, breath-taking work. -The snow grew deeper. In the hollows it had gathered -shoulders high; upon the slopes it was waist -high. The little column was straggling. Stub, the -smallest member, trying to tread in the broken trail, -was at times almost buried.</p> - -<p>In an hour they all had covered a pitiful distance; -to be sure, the prairie was somewhat below, -but the real mountains seemed far above, and the -silent timber still awaited, in a broad belt.</p> - -<p>The lieutenant and the doctor had halted. They -turned and began to plough back. The little column, -steaming with the vapor from lungs and bodies, drew -nearer to them.</p> - -<p>“The snow is too deep, here, lads,” the lieutenant -called, as he and the doctor passed in front of the -file. His voice was tired; anybody might have<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_243"></a>[243]</span> -thought him discouraged—and little wonder. “We’ll -have to keep lower down, and try elsewhere.”</p> - -<p>“To the famine country of the open bottoms,” -he said. Were they never to get across these Great -White Mountains, which faced them unending? -Were they to die in the snow, just for the sake of -hunting the Red River? John Brown, near the head -of the column, broke restraint again and exclaimed -roundly:</p> - -<p>“I say, it’s more than flesh an’ blood can bear, -to march three days with not a mouthful of food, -through snow three feet deep, an’ carry loads only -fit for hosses!”</p> - -<p>Everybody heard. Sergeant Meek turned on him -angrily. Had the lieutenant heard also? No? Yes! -He had paused for an instant, as if to reply; then -without another sign he had proceeded.</p> - -<p>“You’ll be called to answer for this, Brown,” -warned the sergeant.</p> - -<p>John muttered to himself, and a silence fell upon -the file. Stooped and unsteady under their own -loads, the lieutenant and the doctor doggedly continued, -breaking the trail on course obliquing for -the lower country. The others followed, breathing -hard.</p> - -<p>The lieutenant and the doctor had struck down -a shallow draw. Issuing from the end of it, they<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_244"></a>[244]</span> -were out of sight. When the head of the column -arrived at the same spot, there were only the two -packs, and a message scrawled with a ramrod on -the snow. Sergeant Meek read.</p> - -<p>“We see buffalo. Camp in nearest timber and -wait. Z. M. P.”</p> - -<p>Every eye sprang to search the landscape. There! -Far down, upon the prairie! Black dots—slowly -moving across! Buffalo! And where were the -hunters? Their tracks pointed onward from the -two packs. See! They were running, crouched, -down among the billowy swells, as if to head the -animals off. It was a desperate chance.</p> - -<p>“The breeze is with us,” Sergeant Meek cried -hopefully. “Quick! For that timber tip, yon, -and keep out o’ sight. Trust the cap’n and the doctor -to do their best. Let’s take no risk of spoiling -their chance.”</p> - -<p>The column hustled, with strength renewed. The -tip of timber was about a mile distant. The buffalo -had disappeared behind a knoll of the prairie; the -last seen of the lieutenant and the doctor, they -were hastening—stumbling and falling and lunging -again, to reach the same knoll. The doctor had -forged ahead. He was stronger than the lieutenant.</p> - -<p>Then the scene was swallowed up by a dip in the -trail to the timber.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_245"></a>[245]</span></p> - -<p>Next, a dully-sounding gunshot! But only one. -The doctor probably had fired—perhaps at long distance. -Had he landed—disabled, or only wounded, -or missed? Nothing could yet be seen. The men, -and Stub, their lungs almost bursting, shambled as -fast as possible. Just as they emerged at the point -of timber, other shots boomed: two, close together. -Hooray! That meant business. They paused, puffing, -to gaze.</p> - -<p>Again hooray! Down near the knoll a black spot -blotched the snow. At one side of it there were -other black spots, some still, some moving in and out. -It was the herd, and seemed confused. Look! From -the black spot, off by itself—a dead buffalo, that!—smoke -puffs darted and spread. The buffalo herd -surged a little, but did not run. The lieutenant and -the doctor were lying behind the carcass and -shooting.</p> - -<p>“One, anyway, lads!” cheered Sergeant Meek. -“Maybe more. Off with your packs, now. Roy, -Mountjoy, Stout, Brown, you cut wood; the rest -of us’ll be clearing a space. There’ll be meat in camp -before long, and we’ll have fires ready.”</p> - -<p>They all worked fast. No one now felt tired. -The hunt down below sounded like a battle. The -lieutenant and the doctor were firing again and again, -as rapidly as they might load and aim. Toiling<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_246"></a>[246]</span> -with ax and spade and hands, the column, making -camp, scarcely paused to watch; but presently the -firing ceased—the buffalo herd were lumbering away, -at last, with one, two, three of them gradually dropping -behind, to stagger, waver, and suddenly pitch, -dead! Meat, and plenty of it!</p> - -<p>The lieutenant and the doctor were busy, butchering -the carcass that had shielded them. They wasted -no time. Here they came, loaded well. The fires -were crackling and blazing, in readiness; and when -they panted in, spent, bloody and triumphant, the -camp cheered hoarsely.</p> - -<p>“Eat, boys,” gasped the lieutenant. “Fortune -has favored us. There’s more meat below. But -we’ll eat first.”</p> - -<p>Everybody hacked and tore at the red humps, -and in a jiffy the strips from them were being thrust -into the fire by ramrods; without waiting for more -than a scorching and a warming through, the men -devoured like wolves. With the meat juice daubing -his chin and staining the men’s beards, Stub thought -that never before had he tasted such sweetness. He -forgot his other hungers.</p> - -<p>Whew! One by one the men drew back, to chew -the last mouthfuls, and light pipes, contented. The -meat all had vanished.</p> - -<p>“Send Brown to me, sergeant,” the lieutenant<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_247"></a>[247]</span> -ordered. There was something <em>he</em> had not forgotten.</p> - -<p>John Brown arose and shambled to where the -lieutenant and the doctor were sitting. He looked -sheepish and frightened. The lieutenant stood, to -front him; did not acknowledge his salute, but -scanned him sternly, his haggard eyes commencing -to blaze bluely.</p> - -<p>“Brown, you this day presumed to make use of -language that was seditious and mutinous; I then -passed it over, pitying your situation and laying -your conduct to your distress from hunger, rather -than to desire to sow discontent amongst the party. -Had I saved provisions for ourselves, whilst you -were starving,” reproached the lieutenant; “had we -been marching along light and at our ease, whilst you -were weighed down with your burden, then you -would have had some excuse for your remarks: but -when we all were equally hungry, weary, worn, and -charged with burdens which I believe my natural -strength is less able to bear than any man’s in the -party—when we are always foremost in breaking -the road, reconnoitering and enduring the fatigues -of the chase, it was the height of ingratitude in you -to let an expression escape that showed discontent. -Your ready compliance and firm perseverance I had -reason to expect, as the leader of men who are my -companions in misery and danger. But your duty<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_248"></a>[248]</span> -as a soldier (the young lieutenant’s voice rang, and -his eyes flashed) called on your obedience to your -officer, and a suppression of such language. However, -for this time I will pardon; but I assure you, -should that ever be repeated, I will answer your ingratitude -and punish your disobedience by instant -death.”</p> - -<p>John Brown had shrunk and whitened.</p> - -<p>“Yes, sir,” he faltered. “Thank you, sir. I’ll -remember. It shan’t happen again.”</p> - -<p>“You may go.” The lieutenant’s eyes left -Brown’s face and traveled over the other men. “I -take this opportunity,” he said, “likewise to express -to you, soldiers, generally, my thanks for your obedience, -perseverance, and ready contempt of every -danger, which you have in common shown. And -I assure you that nothing shall be lacking on my -part to procure you the rewards of our Government -and the gratitude of your countrymen.”</p> - -<p>“Three cheers for the cap’n, lads,” shouted Sergeant -Meek. “Hooray, now! Hooray! Hooray!”</p> - -<p>“We’re with you to the end, sir!”</p> - -<p>“We’re not complainin’, sir. No more is -Brown.”</p> - -<p>“You’re the leader, sir, and we’re proud to -follow.”</p> - -<p>“Sure, you an’ the doctor do the hard work.”</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_249"></a>[249]</span></p> - -<p>Thus they cried, bravely and huskily; for who -could help loving this stanch little officer, who asked -no favors of rank, except to lead, and who now -stood before them, in his stained red fur-lined cap, -his wet, torn blanket-coat, his bedraggled thin blue -trousers and soaked, scuffed moccasins. He was all -man.</p> - -<p>He raised his hand. His face had flushed, his -eyes had softened moistly, and his lips quivered.</p> - -<p>“That will do, lads. We understand each other, -and I’m sure Brown will not repeat his offense. For -my part, I am determined that we shall not move -again without a supply of food. That imperils our -success, and is more than our duty would require -of us.”</p> - -<p>“Still, we might have made good, hadn’t we left -the bulk of our meat with Sparks and Dougherty, -back yonder,” Freegift Stout remarked, to the others -in his mess. “That’s what pinched us.”</p> -<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop" /> - -<div class="chapter"> -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_250"></a>[250]</span></p> - -<h2 class="nobreak" id="XVII">XVII<br /> -<small>THE FORT IN THE WILDERNESS</small></h2> -</div> - - -<p>Across the Great White Mountains at last!</p> - -<p>That had proved to be not such a hard trip, after -all, although uncomfortable on account of the snow. -First, the meat from the other buffalo (three) had -been brought into camp—had been sliced and the -strips hung on frames, to dry. There was a great -quantity of it; more than could be carried on foot. -So Hugh Menaugh, whose frozen feet still crippled -him badly, was left to guard the extra amount, at -this supply depot; and, loaded well, the twelve others -marched on.</p> - -<p>The lieutenant and the doctor led into the mountains. -Now was the time to cross while the men had -meat and felt strong. In spite of the snow three -feet deep they made fourteen miles, following the -low places; and at evening they were over—they had -come upon a stream flowing west! It surely was a -feeder of the Red River!</p> - -<p>Again they all cheered. But if they were over, -they were not yet through, for ahead they could see -only the same bald or timbered swells and ridges, -snow-covered and still without end.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_251"></a>[251]</span></p> - -<p>Near noon, the next day, the lieutenant and the -doctor, in the advance as usual, turned and gladly -beckoned, and pointed before. They all hastened. -The signs were good—the brush had been flattened -or cut off, down a long draw, and the trees had been -blazed and curiously painted with rude figures. It -was an Indian pass.</p> - -<p>The lieutenant and the doctor had gone on. -When the others arrived at the spot, they saw.</p> - -<p>“We’re coming out, boys!”</p> - -<p>“We’ll be out before night!”</p> - -<p>A separate, distant range of mountains might be -sighted, through the gap made by the blazed trail; -and below, nearer, there was glimpse of the low -country, bordered on this side by bare sandy foothills -of these Great White Mountains themselves.</p> - -<p>At sunset they were down and into the open, -between the timbered slopes and the rolling sand-hills. -On the west, beyond the sand-hills there appeared -to be a wide valley; and beyond the valley -that other range of mountains.</p> - -<p>Camp had to be made soon, here at the base of -the Great White Mountains. The lieutenant went -out alone, to climb the sand-hills, for a view. They -could see him, a small figure, toiling up and standing, -to peer through his spy-glass. He came back in the -dusk, but his face was aglow.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_252"></a>[252]</span></p> - -<p>“I have good news,” he announced. “We have -won success. With the glass I can see from those -sand-hills a larger river coursing from northwest to -southeast through the valley beyond. There can be -no doubt that it is the Red River.”</p> - -<p>They cheered and cheered, and ate with fine appetites. -It was a happy night. As Sergeant Meek -said:</p> - -<p>“Once there—and ’twon’t be long—we can send -back for Menaugh, and poor Sparks and Dougherty, -and Baroney and Smith and the hosses; and we’ll all -be together again, ready for the march home.”</p> - -<p>The sand-hills were five miles wide, and looked -to be about fifteen miles long. The river came down -obliquely through the valley—which was indeed a -broad bottom of prairie-land; so they cut across at an -angle, and not until the second evening, after a day’s -march of twenty-four miles, did they reach the bank -of the river itself, January 30.</p> - -<p>It certainly was the Red River, issuing from the -western mountains, and here turning more southwardly, -in the middle of the valley.</p> - -<p>The valley was a wonderland. It lay flat, with -little snow, full fifty miles wide and in length almost -farther than eye might say. The mountains in the -west were bald, snowy and grim. The Great White -Mountains on the east appeared to end opposite in a<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_253"></a>[253]</span> -huge, dazzling peak with three crests, but a lower -range veered in, narrowing the valley in the south. -Afar in the north, the valley was closed completely.</p> - -<p>The bottoms were dotted with herds of deer, -browsing on the thick dried grasses. Many smaller -streams joined the big river.</p> - -<p>“Aye, ’tis a hunters’ paradise, this,” sighed Freegift -Stout. “We’re in a land o’ plenty. We can -send back word that’ll gladden the hearts of the -boys behind.”</p> - -<p>The lieutenant had decided to make a fortified -camp, so as to have protection from the Indians and -perhaps from the Spanish while the men behind -were being sent for and boats were being built. He -intended to descend the Red River by boat and horse, -both.</p> - -<p>There was no timber at this spot. Some appeared -lower along the river. They marched for it—eighteen -miles. The larger trees were across the river; -therefore the lieutenant led across, also, by way of -the ice and several islands. Then they came to -another river, that looked like a fork, entering from -the west. About five miles from its mouth the -lieutenant found a good place. The fort should be -here.</p> - -<p>It was a small piece of level bottom, grown to -cottonwood trees on the north side of this west fork.<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_254"></a>[254]</span> -The fork was all open water, about thirty paces wide. -Opposite, on the south side, there was a high, partly -bare hill, out of gunshot.</p> - -<p>The next morning, which was February 1, the -lieutenant staked a plan of the fort, on the ground. -Axes rang, spades scraped, picks thudded. As soon -as the fort was far enough along so that it would -stand an attack, a party should be sent back across -the Great Snowy Mountains to get the other men -and the horses.</p> - -<p>“But what I’d like to know, is, what are we -doin’ on this side the main river?” queried Corporal -Jerry, that night.</p> - -<p>“To get at the big trees, and because ’tis the -proper place for the fort,” answered Sergeant Meek.</p> - -<p>“Yes, maybe. But bein’ as this is the Red -River, we’re on the Spanish side, ain’t we? From all -I hear, the Red River’s the dividin’ line betwixt the -United States an’ Mexico, an’ we’re across it into -Mexican territory.”</p> - -<p>“That’s not for you or me to say, my boy,” Sergeant -Meek retorted. “The cap’n has his orders, -you can bet, and all we need do is to foller him. But -sure, this is a fork, at the head-waters, and we’re -on the north side the fork. In a bit more we’ll be -starting on down, like as not keeping safe to our own<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_255"></a>[255]</span> -side again. And meanwhile if the Spanish tackle -us here, all the worse for ’em. Not the whole Spanish -army could budge us from this fort when it’s -done. I wouldn’t mind having a dust with ’em, for a -change from shooting buff’lo and deer.”</p> - -<p>“You’re right. A dust at real fightin’ would -serve to pass the time, sergeant,” the others cried. -“Didn’t we foller ’em, an’ didn’t they lead us -wrong?”</p> - -<p>“Or else we led ourselves wrong, mistaking -Injun trail for white man trail. At any rate, here -we are; and as soon as the ice breaks—which won’t -be long—we’ll all be marching on, for home.”</p> - -<p>The fort was to be a strong one. Lieutenant -Pike, who took great pride in it, explained the scheme, -himself, to Stub.</p> - -<p>“Thirty-six feet square, inside, fronting upon -the river, where the current is too deep to ford. -Bastions (which were small block-houses) at the two -rear corners, to cover the walls on three sides. The -walls, six feet up, of large cottonwood logs two feet -through. Smaller logs to be laid for another six -feet. A ditch will be dug all around, inside, and -sloped off toward the walls, for pickets to rest in. -The pickets will be sharpened and will slant two -and one-half feet over the top of the walls, like a<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_256"></a>[256]</span> -fringe, so that nobody can climb in. All around, -outside, there will be a deep ditch four feet wide, and -filled with water. This is called a moat. We will -cut a row of loopholes in the walls, eight feet up; the -men will stand upon platforms, to shoot through. -Our only entrance will be a hole, about the size of a -man’s body, low down, on the river side; and to use -it, everybody will have to crawl in or out on his -stomach, and cross the big ditch by means of a plank. -There will be no roof; this is what is called a stockade. -But the men doubtless will construct shelters -of brush.”</p> - -<p>“You’ll be a soldier yet,” the doctor laughed, -to Stub, overhearing the explanation.</p> - -<p>“Entrenched here we need have no fear of one -hundred Spanish troops,” the lieutenant remarked. -“We could easily stand them off for a day or two; -then by a sally at night either disperse them, or make -our escape in the darkness, before our supplies were -exhausted.”</p> - -<p>“And Indians?”</p> - -<p>“They would be less dangerous, unless they -sent word to Santa Fe in the south. We would -endeavor to treat with them, which is one of the -purposes of the expedition.”</p> - -<p>Jake Carter and Alex Roy were not able to do<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_257"></a>[257]</span> -much, on account of tender feet. The other men -worked hard, building the stockade around the -American flag that had been planted on a pole, in the -center. The lieutenant and Doctor Robinson hunted -and explored. Stub frequently went with them, to -help bring in the meat.</p> - -<p>Once they discovered a group of springs, at the -base of the hill south of the fork and opposite the -stockade. These were warm springs, and strangely -colored, brown and yellow. Their warm water was -what kept the fork open, clear to the main river -and for some distance down below the mouth of the -fork.</p> - -<p>They discovered also a well-traveled trail up -along an eastern branch of the main river, not far -above the western fork. It was a horse trail. Camps -beside it showed that soldiers—probably Spanish—had -used it. So the Spanish came in here.</p> - -<p>The lieutenant and the doctor talked considerably -of Santa Fe, the capital of New Mexico. It lay -somewhere south. The lieutenant was anxious to -know more about it, so as to make report upon it -to the United States government. He could not -leave the stockade, himself, but the doctor arranged -to go.</p> - -<p>Evidently this had been the plan for some time.<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_258"></a>[258]</span> -A trader by the name of William Morrison, in the -United States, had sent goods there, three years -ago, in charge of another man named Baptiste -Lalande, to be sold. But Lalande had never come -back with the money. Doctor Robinson had agreed -with William Morrison to visit Santa Fe, if near -there, and collect the money. This would be an -excuse for spying around.</p> - -<p>At the end of the first week, when the stockade -was partially finished, the doctor left for Santa Fe. -He set out westward, up the south bank of the fork -(which was the wrong direction, although none of -them knew it), and promised to return with his -report in a week or ten days.</p> - -<p>The men were not so certain about this. Sergeant -Meek wagged his grizzled head dubiously.</p> - -<p>“Not to criticize a superior officer, but strikes -me it’s a risky move. The doctor’s pure grit, all -right enough, to head alone through a country full -o’ Injun sign and Spanish sign to boot, and he’s like -to run his foot into a wolf trap. For if he gets -there, them Spanish will be curyus to know where -he come from; and what’s to prevent their back-trailing -him? Oh, well; there’s something afoot that we -don’t understand. Our duty’s to obey orders, and -if the lieutenant says for us all to go to Santy Fee,<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_259"></a>[259]</span> -go we will. But we’ll not go there by any orders -o’ the Spanish.”</p> - -<p>This evening Corporal Jerry Jackson was started -out, to get John Sparks and Tom Dougherty, if he -could, and also Hugh Menaugh, on the other side -of the mountains. He took with him Freegift Stout, -William Gordon, John Brown and John Mountjoy.</p> - -<p>That left in the stockade only the lieutenant, -Sergeant Meek, Terry Miller, Jake Carter and Alex -Roy (whose feet had been badly frozen), and Stub. -They missed the doctor, and Corporal Jerry’s squad, -but could get along for a few days.</p> - -<p>This was February 7. No word might be expected -from the doctor or Corporal Jerry for at least -a week. Nothing especial happened during the week. -The men and Stub kept on laboring at the stockade, -the lieutenant read in a French book a great deal, -or hunted for deer, taking Stub as companion.</p> - -<p>By the sixteenth the walls of the stockade were -about done, and the inside ditch, for the pickets, -was being pecked out—a slow job in the frozen -earth. Nine days had passed, and still there was -no sign from the doctor or Corporal Jerry. This -morning the lieutenant and Stub went out hunting -again, down the main river. The lieutenant carried -his favorite musket—the one whose grip had been<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_260"></a>[260]</span> -mended. Stub wore a pistol, the mate to Hugh -Menaugh’s, borrowed from the lieutenant.</p> - -<p>They had tramped about six miles, had just -wounded a deer and were trailing it, when the lieutenant -suddenly exclaimed:</p> - -<p>“Halt. Be quiet. Somebody’s coming.”</p> - -<p>Two strangers, horseback, were topping a rise, -half a mile before and a little on the right or west.</p> -<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop" /> - -<div class="chapter"> -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_261"></a>[261]</span></p> - -<h2 class="nobreak" id="XVIII">XVIII<br /> -<small>VISITORS FROM THE SOUTH</small></h2> -</div> - - -<p>“Not wild Indians; Spanish, rather,” mused the -lieutenant, as, standing motionless, he and Stub -gazed. “Hah! They may be videttes (scouts) from -a large party, or they may be hunters like ourselves. -We’ll turn back, my boy; not from fear but to avoid -trouble if possible.”</p> - -<p>So they turned back, in the direction of the -stockade. Glancing behind, Stub saw the two horsemen -descending the hill at a gallop.</p> - -<p>“They’re coming, lieutenant. They’ve seen us.”</p> - -<p>“The sound of our gun no doubt attracted them -first. They seem to be alone. Very well. They -must not be permitted to think that we’re afraid of -them. Should they persist in coming on, we’ll -face them.”</p> - -<p>The two horsemen did come on, flourishing their -lances as if in a charge. They were closing the gap -rapidly—were within gunshot, when the lieutenant -barked the brisk order:</p> - -<p>“Now! Face about! We’ll show them the muzzles -of our guns.”</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_262"></a>[262]</span></p> - -<p>They turned, and leveled musket and pistol. The -two horsemen instantly pulled their mounts short, -whirled, and bending low scudded away. In a short -distance they halted, and sat waiting.</p> - -<p>“We’ll advance on them,” quoth the lieutenant.</p> - -<p>But the first few steps sent the pair scurrying -in retreat again.</p> - -<p>“All right,” said the lieutenant. “They respect -our weapons and see we do not fear theirs. Maybe -they’ll let us take our way.”</p> - -<p>However, when he and Stub proceeded on the -trail for the stockade, on came the two horsemen -in another charge. The lieutenant ordered a face-about—and -away the two scampered, as before. -This game was repeated several times. The stockade -was not in sight, and the lieutenant was growing -angry.</p> - -<p>“We’ll make an end to this, Stub.” His face -had flushed. “I do not propose to be badgered. It -is beneath the dignity of an American officer and -soldier to be toyed with in such child’s play. Pay -no further attention to them until we round that -shoulder yonder. Then we’ll slip into a ravine there -and see if we can’t lure them to close quarters that -will bring them to account.”</p> - -<p>It was back-tickling work, to trudge on, never -turning, with those lances threatening, closer and<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_263"></a>[263]</span> -closer, behind. But the lieutenant gave no sign—until, -when around the shoulder and for a moment -out of sight by the pursuit, he sprang aside.</p> - -<p>“Quick, now!”</p> - -<p>They dived for cover and found it in a heap of -large, brush-screened rocks. They waited, peering -and listening. Pretty soon they might hear the -hoofs of the horses. The two riders cantered into -sight. They were quite near. One was black-bearded—wore -a large ribboned hat and blue and red -coat and leathern leggins, the same as Lieutenant -Melgares’ soldiers had worn. He was a Spanish -dragoon. He carried a lance, a shield and short -musketoon or escopeta hung at his saddle.</p> - -<p>The other was dark, without whiskers: an Indian. -He wore a blue cotton shirt and leggins -wrapped in white from moccasins to knees. His -hair fell in two braids. He, also, carried a lance and -shield.</p> - -<p>They saw nobody ahead of them, and began to -move cautiously, craning, and checking their horses. -Little by little they came on. Now they were within -forty paces.</p> - -<p>“This will do,” the lieutenant whispered. “We -have them. Lay down your pistol and stand up -so they can see you’re unarmed. Then walk out.<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_264"></a>[264]</span> -I’ll follow and cover them. If they show sign of -harm, I’ll fire upon them instantly.”</p> - -<p>Stub bravely stood into full view and spread -his empty hands. He was not afraid; not while -Lieutenant Pike was backing him.</p> - -<p>The two horsemen were completely surprised. -They reined in and sat poised and gawking, on the -verge of flight. But the lieutenant’s gun muzzle held -them fast, while Stub walked toward them, his hand -up in the peace sign. The lieutenant called:</p> - -<p>“Amigos (Friends)! Americanos (Americans)!” -And he must have beckoned, for the two -timidly edged forward, ready to run or to fight. Evidently -they would rather run.</p> - -<p>The lieutenant advanced also, and joined Stub.</p> - -<p>“Take your pistol. Here it is. We’ll talk with -them. Do you know Spanish?”</p> - -<p>“I’ve forgotten,” Stub stammered.</p> - -<p>“We’ll manage with signs and the few words -we do know. At the same time we must stand prepared -to fire.”</p> - -<p>“Where are you from?” he queried sharply, in -French.</p> - -<p>The dragoon seemed to understand.</p> - -<p>“From Santa Fe, señor.”</p> - -<p>“How far is Santa Fe?”</p> - -<p>“Three days as we come, señor.”</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_265"></a>[265]</span></p> - -<p>“What are you doing here?”</p> - -<p>“We hunt.”</p> - -<p>They got off their horses, and led them in nearer; -then they smiled friendly, and sat down and rolled -themselves smokes. The lieutenant and Stub warily -sat down, opposite. It was a little council. Stub -eyed the Indian. He was a tame Indian—one of the -house-building Indians from the south: a Pueblo.</p> - -<p>“What do you hunt?” asked Lieutenant Pike.</p> - -<p>“Game, señor. Do you hunt, also?”</p> - -<p>“We travel down the Red River, to the American -fort of Natchitoches.”</p> - -<p>“Another stranger has arrived, in Santa Fe. -His name is Robinson. He is an American. The -governor received him well. He comes from your -party?”</p> - -<p>“There is no such man in my party,” the lieutenant -answered; which was true, now.</p> - -<p>Presently he arose. It was difficult talking by -signs and short words.</p> - -<p>“A Díos, señores. A pleasant journey to you.”</p> - -<p>“One moment, señor,” begged the dragoon. -“Where is your camp?”</p> - -<p>“It is far; we have several camps. So good-by.”</p> - -<p>He and Stub started on. But the dragoon and -the Indian mounted their horses and followed. They -were determined to find the camp.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_266"></a>[266]</span></p> - -<p>“They are spies,” said the lieutenant. “We cannot -get rid of them without trouble, and I have -orders to avoid trouble. We shall have to take -them in.”</p> - -<p>So he and Stub waited, and it was just as well, -for soon the regular trail up river to the stockade -was reached; the two horsemen struck into it, and -forged ahead, peering eagerly. The trail crossed -the fork above the stockade—and the first thing the -two horsemen knew they were stopped in short order -by Alex Roy who was posted as sentinel.</p> - -<p>That astonished them again. They could just -glimpse the stockade, they heard Alex challenge -them, and saw his gun—and ducking and dodging -they raced back, to the lieutenant.</p> - -<p>“Do not fear. Come,” he spoke.</p> - -<p>He led them on; they left their horses outside, -and, still frightened, followed him and Stub through -an opening in the stockade, which was being used -until the ditch and the hole were ready.</p> - -<p>They stayed all that day. The men had orders -to watch them, but not to talk with them. They -stared about as much as they could. They asked -several times where the Americans’ horses were, and -how many men the lieutenant had. Lieutenant Pike -said that these were only a part of his men, and -that he had marched without horses, through the<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_267"></a>[267]</span> -snow. He was going down the Red River, holding -councils with the Indians on the borders of the -United States. If the governor at Santa Fe would -send somebody who spoke good French or English, -he would explain everything.</p> - -<p>The dragoon and the Pueblo did not believe; -and when they rode away in the morning they were -as suspicious as ever. They said they would be in -Santa Fe in two days with the lieutenant’s message -to the governor, whose name was Don Joaquin del -Real Alencaster. The lieutenant had given them a -few presents, which appeared to please them. The -Pueblo gave the lieutenant some deer meat, part -of a goose, a sack of meal and pieces of flat, hard-baked -bread.</p> - -<p>Everybody was glad to see them go, but——</p> - -<p>“It’s an ill wind that brought ’em,” Sergeant -Meek remarked. “Not blaming him or the cap’n, -the doctor did it. To be sure the Spanish would -set out to s’arch the country. Unless I’m mistaken, -we’ll see more of ’em.”</p> - -<p>The lieutenant thought the same. He ordered -that the work of finishing the stockade be rushed, -and even lent a hand himself. He had no idea -of leaving until Hugh, and John Sparks and -Tom, across the mountains, and Baroney and Pat<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_268"></a>[268]</span> -Smith, on the Arkansaw with the horses, had been -brought in.</p> - -<p>It was high time that Corporal Jerry and party -turned up. They had been gone a long while, and -were needed. Five men and a boy were a small -garrison. This evening Corporal Jerry, with John -Brown, William Gordon and John Mountjoy, did -arrive. After he had reported to the lieutenant, he -told his story to the rest of them.</p> - -<p>“Yes, we found Hugh, but we had to cross in -snow middle deep, to do it. He’s comin’ on with -Freegift. They’ll be down to-morrow. We went -back to Sparks an’ Dougherty, too.”</p> - -<p>“How are they?”</p> - -<p>“Bad off. Ah, boys, ’twould melt your hearts -to see ’em. They sheer wept when we hailed ’em. -They’ve got food enough yet, even after the near -two months; but they can scarce walk a step. Their -feet are gone, an’ they’ve hardly a finger between -’em. So we couldn’t move ’em; not through the -snow of the passes. We did what we could to cheer -’em up, but when we left they acted like they never -expected to see us again. Yes; an’ they sent over -bones from their feet, for the cap’n, an’ made me -promise to give ’em to him as a token an’ to beg -him, by all that’s sacred, not to let the two of ’em -die like beasts, alone in the wilds. When I gave<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_269"></a>[269]</span> -him the bones an’ told him, he turned white an’ his -eyes filled up. ‘They should know me better than -that,’ said he. ‘Never would I abandon them. To -restore them to their homes and their country again -I’d carry the end of a litter, myself, through snow -and mountains for months.’”</p> - -<p>“He’d do it,” asserted Sergeant Meek. “And -so would any of us. Bones from their feet, is it? -Who but a soldier would lose the smallest joint for -such a pittance of pay, even to serve his country? -Surely the Government won’t lose sight o’ men like -poor John and Tom.”</p> - -<p>The lieutenant took prompt measures. The news -from the back trail had affected him sorely. This -same evening he approached the men who were -sitting around the fire. They sprang up, to attention.</p> - -<p>“You have heard of the condition of Sparks and -Dougherty,” he addressed. “They must be brought -in at once, with all possible speed.” He paused, as -if planning.</p> - -<p>Sergeant Meek saluted.</p> - -<p>“One man and myself will take the trip, sir, with -your permission. Jest give us the word, sir.”</p> - -<p>“I’m with you, sergeant,” blurted Terry Miller.</p> - -<p>“None better,” accepted the sergeant. “We’ll -go on back to the Arkansaw, cap’n, for the hosses.<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_270"></a>[270]</span> -And with the hosses we’ll pick up John and Tom, -and if they can’t ride we’ll sling ’em in litters.”</p> - -<p>Lieutenant Pike colored with pleasure.</p> - -<p>“That is handsome of you, sergeant; and of you, -Miller. You will march as soon as Stout and -Menaugh get in, and we can make the preparations. -Your volunteering for a journey afoot of almost -two hundred miles over two ranges of mountains -waist deep in snow, at the risk of encountering savages, -and soldiers of a nation that may not be -friendly, is worthy of the uniform that you have -worn.”</p> - -<p>“By your leave, sir, there are some others who’d -be proud to share the honor with the sergeant and -Terry,” spoke up Jake Carter, crippled though he -was. “I’ll answer for my feet, sir. They’ll carry -me, once I limber ’em up.”</p> - -<p>“Two will be enough. I’m sorry that I can’t -spare more, my man. I see that if you all had your -way you’d leave me without a garrison.”</p> - -<p>Sergeant Meek and Terry felt highly tickled at -having got in ahead of the rest.</p> - -<p>The next morning Hugh and Freegift arrived -all right. The other two were to start early on the -morrow. Ten pounds of deer meat apiece was all -that might be spared them; they said it was plenty—they<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_271"></a>[271]</span> -had to travel light, anyway, and would hunt -as they went.</p> - -<p>The lieutenant, with Corporal Jackson, John -Mountjoy and William Gordon and Stub, walked -with them for six miles, so that they might be shown -a better pass for the horses, than the one used by -the corporal. Jerry had reported that his pass was -four feet deep with snow, during three days’ travel.</p> - -<p>After the sergeant and Terry had trudged on, -the others killed a deer; Stub and Corporal Jerry -were sent back with it, to the stockade, but the lieutenant -took John and Bill with him, on a farther -scout, down the east side of the main river.</p> - -<p>They were gone all day and the night. When -they came in, the next afternoon, they said that they -had discovered fresh signs of men and horses, south. -The lieutenant called the garrison together and issued -strict orders. The two spies had left five days ago; -and if Santa Fe was only two days’ march distant, -soldiers from there were likely to appear at any -moment now.</p> - -<p>“We must especially watch out for Indians, my -lads,” he directed. “The tribes hereabouts are -doubtless under the influence of the Spanish government -in New Mexico. When any strangers are -sighted loitering about or passing, you are to retire -unobserved, if possible. If they see you, you are<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_272"></a>[272]</span> -not to run, however, nor permit them to approach -you with the idea of disarming you or taking you -prisoner. Should you be unable to evade them, you -are to guard your liberty and bring them to the fort, -where I will attend to them.”</p> - -<p>A sentry was posted all day on the top of a hill -at the edge of the stockade prairie, from where he -had a fine view up and down the fork and along the -main river also. During the nights another sentry -kept watch from one of the bastions or little block-houses -on the land-side corners of the stockade.</p> - -<p>The stockade had been enclosed by the log walls, -the pickets had been planted, and within a day or two -the outside ditch would be ready for the water.</p> - -<p>On February 24 the lieutenant took Stub again -upon another scout and hunt. The two spies had -been gone seven days, and nothing had been heard -from them. He was getting nervous while waiting -for the sergeant and Terry to return with the horses, -Baroney, Pat, and John and Tom. Meat was low; -the men themselves had been too busy to hunt—but -the water was in the ditch and everything was snug -and shipshape.</p> - -<p>He and Stub were out two days, scouting eastward, -to examine the traveled road along which the -Spanish might come. They made a circle and arrived<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_273"></a>[273]</span> -“home,” lugging the meat of three deer, about nine -o’clock at night.</p> - -<p>Corporal Jerry greeted them, after the challenge -of Freegift Stout, who was the guard in the bastion.</p> - -<p>“We were beginnin’ to be scared for you, sir,” -he said. “We didn’t know but what the Injuns or -the Spanish had taken you.”</p> - -<p>“All quiet here, corporal?”</p> - -<p>“Yes, sir; all quiet.”</p> - -<p>“That’s good. We’d have been back sooner, -only we hunted farther than we intended, and had -heavy loads to pack in. Now if the other men with -the horses return in safety, we may all march on -unmolested, through American territory.”</p> - -<p>But in the morning, while they were at breakfast, -the musket of John Brown, on the hill, sounded—“Boom!” -It was a signal: “Strangers in sight.” -Corporal Jerry dropped his knife and bolted into a -bastion, to look. Everybody paused, to learn the -news.</p> - -<p>Back ran Corporal Jerry, to the lieutenant, who -was standing at the entrance to his brush lean-to, -buckling on his sword.</p> - -<p>“Two men are crossin’ the prairie for the fort, -sir. Menaugh (Hugh was the sentinel pacing outside) -is about to stop ’em.”</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_274"></a>[274]</span></p> - -<p>“See what they have to say. And if there are -no more, admit them,” ordered the lieutenant.</p> - -<p>Away ran Corporal Jerry, for already Hugh was -calling for the corporal of the guard, while holding -off the two strangers.</p> -<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop" /> - -<div class="chapter"> -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_275"></a>[275]</span></p> - -<h2 class="nobreak" id="XIX">XIX<br /> -<small>IN THE HANDS OF THE SPANIARDS</small></h2> -</div> - - -<p>In a few minutes the two strangers crawled -through the hole. They were clad in blanket-coats and -deer-hide trousers and fur caps; looked like French -traders—and Frenchmen they proved to be, for the -lieutenant called to them, in French, “Come here,” -and he and they talked together in that language.</p> - -<p>Stub might catch only a word now and then; -the men listened, puzzled, prepared to grasp their -stacked guns.</p> - -<p>The lieutenant finished the conversation. The -Frenchmen bowed politely again, he saluted them -and spoke to his party.</p> - -<p>“These are two Frenchmen from Santa Fe, -lads,” he said. “They inform me that the governor -of New Mexico is fearful of an attack upon us by the -Utah Indians, and has sent a detachment of fifty -dragoons for our protection. The detachment is -within two days’ march of us. You know your -duty. I rely upon you to act in a manner that will -reflect credit upon our Country.”</p> - -<p>Scarcely had he spoken when they all heard -the sentinels outside hailing loudly, with “Halt!<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_276"></a>[276]</span> -Who comes there? Corp’ral of the guar-rd! Post -Number One!”</p> - -<p>Out dived Corporal Jerry, once more.</p> - -<p>“To arms! Man the works, men!” the lieutenant -rapped.</p> - -<p>They grabbed guns and hustled for the platforms -under the loopholes. There were more loopholes -than men. Peeping through his, Stub might -see out into the prairie before the stockade. From -up the fork a large body of mounted soldiers had -ridden into the edge of the clearing. John Brown, -who had come in from his hill, and Hugh Menaugh -were holding them back, Corporal Jerry was hastening -to the scene.</p> - -<p>The lieutenant also had seen.</p> - -<p>“That is the company?” he demanded, of the -two Frenchmen.</p> - -<p>“Oui, Monsieur Lieutenant.”</p> - -<p>“Tell the commander with my compliments to -leave his men in the woods where he now is, and I -will meet him on the prairie before the fort.”</p> - -<p>“Oui, oui.”</p> - -<p>Out went the two Frenchmen.</p> - -<p>“They look like a hundred,” remarked Jake -Carter. “We’re only eight, and an officer an’ a -boy. But what’s the difference?”</p> - -<p>“Sure, in case of a dust, Meek and Terry an’<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_277"></a>[277]</span> -the rest of ’em will be sorry to miss it,” replied soldier -Mountjoy.</p> - -<p>“Hooray for a brush, if that’s the word. We’re -equal to it, no matter how many they send ag’in us.”</p> - -<p>The men were keen for a fight. ’Twas a great -thing, thought Stub, to be an American. But the -Spanish soldiers, halted at the edge of the prairie -within short gunshot, looked strong. About fifty, in -one body, were the dragoons; fifty appeared to be a -mixture—a part Indians. But all were well armed -with short muskets, pistols, swords, lances and -shields—some in one style, some in another.</p> - -<p>The lieutenant had left and was striding into the -prairie, to meet two Spanish officers. He had taken -only his sword, by his side. That would show his -rank, for his clothes certainly did not. Nevertheless, -the two Spanish officers, all in their heavy crimson -cloaks, and decorated hats, and long boots, did not -look any more gallant than he in his ragged blanket-coat, -torn trousers, moccasins and fur-lined bedraggled -makeshift cap.</p> - -<p>The three saluted, and talked for a short time. -Beyond, at the timber, the horses pawed and snorted. -Corporal Jerry and the two sentries stayed, vigilant. -At the loopholes, inside the stockade, the five -men and Stub peered, ready.</p> - -<p>Presently one of the Spanish officers shouted a<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_278"></a>[278]</span> -command to the soldiers; they relaxed, at ease—some -dismounted, to stretch their legs; he and the other -officer followed Lieutenant Pike to the stockade.</p> - -<p>“No fight, hey?” uttered Alex Roy.</p> - -<p>“But no surrender, either, you can bet,” grunted -Freegift. “The cap’n likely has something up his -sleeve.”</p> - -<p>The lieutenant entered, through the hole; the two -Spanish officers crawled in after—and an odd sight -they made as they straightened up, to stare about -them curiously. It was plain that they were much -astonished by the completeness of the trap.</p> - -<p>The lieutenant led the two officers to his brush -shelter. Stub heard his own name called—the lieutenant -beckoned to him. So he jumped down and -went over.</p> - -<p>“These two gentlemen of the Spanish army of -New Mexico are to be my guests at breakfast, boy,” -said the lieutenant. “I wish you to serve us. Bring -out the best we have. The provisions given me by -the Indian we met can now be put to good use.”</p> - -<p>It was fortunate indeed that the lieutenant had -saved the meal, goose and pieces of bread particularly. -They were a treat—although doubtless the -Spanish soldiers were used to even that fare. At -any rate, most of the stuff soon disappeared, washed -down by water, after the table had been set, so to -speak.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_279"></a>[279]</span></p> - -<p>The lieutenant and his guests chatted in French. -When they had finished eating, and the two Spanish -officers had wiped their moustaches with fine white -handkerchiefs, the lieutenant said, crisply:</p> - -<p>“Have I the pleasure to understand that this -is a friendly call upon me by his Majesty’s troops, at -the instance of the New Mexico government?”</p> - -<p>The elder officer coughed. He answered politely:</p> - -<p>“Señor, the Governor of New Mexico, being -informed that you have missed your route, has -ordered me to offer you in his name mules, horses, -money, or whatever you may need, for the purpose of -conducting you to the head of the Red River. From -Santa Fe that is eight days’ journey, before open -to navigation. We have guides and know the -routes.”</p> - -<p>“What! Missed my route, sir? Is not this the -Red River?”</p> - -<p>“No, señor. This is the Rio Grande del Norte, -of New Mexico. The Red River is many leagues to -the southeast.”</p> - -<p>The lieutenant flushed red. His thin hands -clinched, and he gazed bewildered.</p> - -<p>“Impossible. Why was I not told this by those -two men ten days ago, and I would have withdrawn?”</p> - -<p>The officer twirled his moustache and shrugged -his shoulders.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_280"></a>[280]</span></p> - -<p>“Quien sabe (Who knows), Señor Don Lieutenant? -But I now have the honor to inform you, and -am at your service.”</p> - -<p>The lieutenant recovered, and stepped outside a -few paces.</p> - -<p>“Stout!”</p> - -<p>“Yes, sir.”</p> - -<p>“Lower the flag and roll it up. It will not be -hoisted again without my orders.”</p> - -<p>“Sir?” Freegift stammered. And——</p> - -<p>“Oh, no, sir! Not that! Not haul down the -flag! Let us keep it flyin’, sir. We can do it.”</p> - -<p>Those were the cries. The lieutenant lifted his -hand.</p> - -<p>“Silence. I thank you, men. This is not surrender. -I have no thought of surrender. But we -are not upon the Red River. We are upon the Rio -del Norte, in Mexican territory, and in courtesy to -that government I am lowering the flag of my own -free-will. By building this stockade we have unwittingly -trespassed.”<a id="FNanchor_9" href="#Footnote_9" class="fnanchor">[I]</a></p> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p class="noi"><a id="Footnote_9" href="#FNanchor_9" class="label">[I]</a> All the Rio Grande River which flows southward through -south central Colorado into New Mexico was Spanish territory. -The Lieutenant Pike party had crossed the Sangre de -Cristo Range and had struck the Rio Grande near present -Alamosa in the southern half of Colorado’s great San Luis -Park or Valley. The largest of the White Mountains, on the -east, was Sierra Blanca (“White Mountain” today), altitude -14,390 feet, ranking third among the peaks of the Rockies. -From the camp at the river the Pike men had travelled south, -and built their stockade about five miles up the Conejos -(Rabbits) River, which enters the Rio Grande from the west. -Did he know this to be the Rio Grande del Norte, or did he -really think it to be the Red River? Why did he stop in what -was certainly Spanish territory? Did he wish to be captured? -Or did he only take a chance? Historians have puzzled over -this ever since.</p> - -</div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_281"></a>[281]</span></p> - -<p>The men muttered; the two visiting officers sat -uneasy; but Freegift lowered the flag, caught it in his -arms, and with rather a black glance at the red -cloaks folded it carefully.</p> - -<p>“By thunder, when we raise it ag’in, it’ll stay,” -he grumbled, as he went to stow it away.</p> - -<p>“His Excellency Governor Alencaster requests -the pleasure of a talk with you at Santa Fe, señor,” -said the elder officer, with a smile, to the lieutenant. -“He is desirous of entertaining you and learning -the story of your journey. For your accommodation -he has provided me with one hundred animals, to -carry your baggage.”</p> - -<p>“I thank His Excellency, but it is impossible for -me to accept the invitation,” replied Lieutenant Pike, -seating himself again. “I can only send him my -apologies for trespassing, by mistake, upon his domain. -I will wait here merely until the return of -my sergeant and the remainder of my company, and -then withdraw at once to American soil. My orders -forbid me entering into Spanish territory.”</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_282"></a>[282]</span></p> - -<p>“His Excellency will be much distressed not -to see you, señor,” the officer insisted. “I must -beg of you to take advantage of our escort. Otherwise -I cannot answer for your safety.”</p> - -<p>At this, the lieutenant straightened, and his eyes -flashed.</p> - -<p>“My safety will be attended to, sir. I shall not -move until the safety of my sergeant and party, some -of whom may be suffering, is assured also. Do I -understand that your intent is to use force to convey -me to the governor?”</p> - -<p>The officer spread his hands and shook his head.</p> - -<p>“No, no, señor! Not in the least. But it is -necessary that for the information of the governor-general -the governor of New Mexico should receive -from you personally an explanation of your presence -within his frontier, that he may send in the proper -report. If you wish to go with us now, very well; -or if you wish to wait for the return of your other -party, very well. But in that case we shall be obliged -to obtain more provisions from Santa Fe, and dispatch -a small number for that purpose.” Even Stub, -who had been listening agog, and catching most of -the words, knew that this meant reinforcements. -“If you decide to march with us now,” the officer -added, “I will leave here an Indian who speaks English, -and a part of my dragoons, to greet your<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_283"></a>[283]</span> -sergeant and escort him and his men to join you at -Santa Fe.”</p> - -<p>The lieutenant bit his lip and fidgeted. He was -of two minds; but one thing was certain: he could -not get rid of these Spanish without a big fight. And -the worst of that would be, that he was an invader -and had broken the law.</p> - -<p>He did not hesitate long.</p> - -<p>“I shall not yield to force, sir,” he said. “We -are American soldiers and prepared to defend ourselves, -as you have seen. However, in consideration -of your courteous attitude I am disposed to go with -your escort to His Excellency, and give him the -explanation that is due from one friendly nation to -another. But I must leave two of my men here, to -receive the sergeant and reassure him; otherwise, I -promise you, he will not come on without a fight, -except by direct orders from me.”</p> - -<p>“That is agreed, señor,” bowed the officer. “And -we may consider the matter very happily settled. -You have my respectful thanks.”</p> - -<p>The lieutenant’s eyes fell upon Stub.</p> - -<p>“Tell Stout to send Corporal Jackson in to me.” -He spoke to the Spanish officer. “I will instruct my -men to permit yours to approach, and would suggest -that you inform your company we are willing to -receive them as friends, if their actions so warrant.”</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_284"></a>[284]</span></p> - -<p>“Thanks, señor.”</p> - -<p>Stub sought Freegift Stout.</p> - -<p>“The lieutenant says for you to tell Jerry to -come in.”</p> - -<p>Freegift climbed down.</p> - -<p>“What’s it all about? Say! Is it true we’re not -on the Red River yet, but on what they call the Rio -del Norte? Sure, that’s not so.”</p> - -<p>“It’s what they say. The lieutenant believes it. -And we’re going to Santa Fe.”</p> - -<p>“For what?”</p> - -<p>“The governor wants to talk with him.”</p> - -<p>“But not without a dust! Oh, no, now! Leave -these good works, an’ go without a dust?”</p> - -<p>Stub nodded soberly. Freegift dared not delay -longer. He went off muttering. The other men also -murmured. The plan was not to their liking.</p> - -<p>Freegift returned with Corporal Jerry. The men -trooped after him, to the lieutenant. Freegift acted -as speaker. He saluted——</p> - -<p>“What’s this? Why have you left your posts?” -the lieutenant demanded.</p> - -<p>“Please, cap’n. Beggin your pardon, sir—but -’tain’t true, is it, that were layin’ down our arms an’ -givin’ up to them Spanish, to march out, an’ no -fight offered? Sure, sir, we’re only eight and a boy; -but we’re behind good walls, an’ you’re the proper<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_285"></a>[285]</span> -kind of an officer, an’ ’twould be no great job at all -to hold them fellers off till we could slip away with -colors flyin’. You can’t trust them fellers, sir. An’ -if you’ll only give us the orders, sir, we’ll hand out a -dose of Yankee Doodle; eh, boys?”</p> - -<p>“Yes, sir! We’re ready for a dust, cap’n, sir. -We’d rather trust to our muskets than to those -Spanish. We’re not afeared of ’em.”</p> - -<p>“That will do,” Lieutenant Pike answered, but -not unkindly. “You’re brave lads. I know I can -depend on you—and with you I’d like to test our -defences at which you’ve worked so faithfully. But -we are marching of our own free will, and shall -retain our arms. My orders are to avoid a conflict -with the Mexican forces, unless attacked. Since we -are unfortunately in Spanish territory, it will be better -if we proceed boldly to the New Mexican capital, -at the invitation of the governor, rather than put -ourselves in the wrong by resistance.”</p> - -<p>“Yes, sir. If you say so, sir,” they replied, with -glum faces.</p> - -<p>“Corporal, you may draw the sentries in,” continued -the lieutenant “The Spanish soldiers are -to be allowed to move freely outside of the works. -Some of the men may meet them, to treat them -civilly, for I wish no sign of suspicion to be shown.”</p> - -<p>The two Spanish officers had gone to their troops.<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_286"></a>[286]</span> -A great cheering arose, from that direction, as if the -soldiery had been told that there would be no fighting, -and were heartily glad.</p> - -<p>The Spanish flocked forward, into the prairie in -front of the stockade. Freegift and several of the -other men, and Stub, did sally out, curious to inspect -their new friends. The Spanish soldiers were -regular dragoons, fifty; and mounted militia, fifty—a -mixture, these, of Spaniards and Mexicans and -Indians.</p> - -<p>And they were kind and friendly, indeed. They -brought food and blankets and insisted that the -Americans accept. Freegift himself finally admitted:</p> - -<p>“Well, I’d still prefer a little dust, for the honor -of the army an’ a proof that a half-froze American -is as good a man as a dozen foreigners; but I don’t -deny they’re treatin’ us mighty handsome, the same -as brothers-at-arms. The colors of ’em are a bit -peculiar, yet their hearts seem white.”</p> - -<p>Toward noon Corporal Jerry sought out all the -garrison and called them together, inside.</p> - -<p>“Mountjoy, you an’ I are to stay here, with -some of the Spanish, an’ a letter from the cap’n to -hand to the sergeant when he comes. The rest of -you are to get ready to march at once. So good luck -to you—an’ we’ll see you later.”</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_287"></a>[287]</span></p> - -<p>“That you will,” they answered. “And be sure -you fetch Sparks and Dougherty. They’re the ones -who need all these fine fixin’s.”</p> - -<p>Horses were provided, as promised by the Spanish -officer. Riding comfortably on these, and -escorted by fifty of the dragoons and militia and -the two officers (whose names were Lieutenant Don -Ignatio Saltelo and Lieutenant Don Bartholomew -Fernandez), after dinner they rode twelve miles -westward up the fork to the Spanish camp. Now -they numbered only Lieutenant Pike, Privates Freegift -Stout, Alex Roy, Hugh Menaugh, William Gordon, -Jacob Carter, John Brown, and Jack Pursley -otherwise Stub. Corporal Jerry Jackson and Private -John Mountjoy remained at the stockade, with the -other fifty Spanish soldiers, to wait for Sergeant -Meek, and Private Terry Miller, who were bringing -in, across the mountains, John Sparks and Tom -Dougherty (lacking feet and fingers), Baroney Vasquez -and interpreter, Pat Smith, and the horses.</p> - -<p>Truly, the little American column had become -much scattered.</p> - -<p>“Jinks! I’d like to be there at the reception -and see the sergeant’s face,” Alex Roy chuckled. -“’Specially when he learns we ain’t been on the Red -River at all!”</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_288"></a>[288]</span></p> - -<p>“It may seem like a joke, but it’s a rough one,” -quoth William Gordon. “A look at the cap’n’s face -is enough for me. To think, after all these -months he’s never got anywhere. ’Twill be a great -report that he’ll have to turn in, ’less he aims to -l’arn something of the Spanish country. At any -rate, we’ve hauled down our flag, and given up -our fort and I’m sorry for him. He deserved better.”</p> -<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop" /> - -<div class="chapter"> -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_289"></a>[289]</span></p> - -<h2 class="nobreak" id="XX">XX<br /> -<small>STUB REACHES END O’ TRAIL</small></h2> -</div> - - -<p>“Santa Fe! The city of Santa Fe! Behold!”</p> - -<p>Those were the cries adown the delighted column. -Here they were, at last; but this was the evening of -the fifth day since leaving the camp, and the distance -was more than one hundred and sixty miles. The -two spies, who had said that Santa Fe was only -two days’ journey from the stockade, had lied.</p> - -<p>The first stage of the trip had been very cold, -in deep snow. Then, on the third day, or March 1, -they had emerged into a country of warmth and -grass and buds, at the first of the Mexican settlements—a -little town named Aqua Caliente or Warm -Springs. Hooray!</p> - -<p>They all, the Americans, viewed it curiously. -The houses were low and one-story, of yellowish -mud, with flat roofs; grouped close together so that -they made an open square in the middle of the town -and their rears formed a bare wall on the four sides.</p> - -<p>“’Tis like a big brick-kiln, by jinks,” remarked -Freegift. “Now I wonder do they build this way -for fear o’ the Injuns?”</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_290"></a>[290]</span></p> - -<p>The people here numbered about five hundred—mainly -Indians themselves, but tame Indians, Pueblos -who lived in houses, with a mingling of Mexican -blood. From the house-tops they welcomed the column; -and thronging to meet it they brought out -food and other gifts for the strangers. That night -there was a dance, with the Americans as guests of -honor.</p> - -<p>“If this is the way they treat prisoners,” the men -grinned, “sure, though some of us can’t shake our -feet yet, we’re agreeable to the good intentions.”</p> - -<p>The same treatment had occurred all the way -down along the Rio Grande del Norte, through a -succession of the flat mud villages. There had been -feasting, dancing, and at every stop the old women -and old men had taken the Americans into the houses -and dressed their frozen feet.</p> - -<p>“This feet-washin’ and food-givin’ makes a feller -think on Bible times,” William Gordon asserted. -“The pity is, that we didn’t ketch up with that Spanish -column that was lookin’ for us and gone right -home with ’em for a friendly visit. They’d likely -have put us on the Red River and have saved us -our trouble.”</p> - -<p>“Well, we ain’t turned loose yet, remember,” -counseled Hugh Menaugh. “From what I l’arn, -the Melgares column didn’t aim to entertain us with<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_291"></a>[291]</span> -anything more’n a fight. But now we’re nicely done, -without fightin’.”</p> - -<p>“Yes, this here politeness may be only a little -celebration,” Alex mused. “It’s cheap. For me, I’d -prefer a dust or two, to keep us in trim.”</p> - -<p>There had been one bit of trouble, which had -proved that the lieutenant, also, was not to be bamboozled. -In the evening, at the village named San -Juan, or St. John, the men and Stub were together -in a large room assigned to them, when the lieutenant -hastily entered. He had been dining at the priest’s -house, with Lieutenant Bartholomew; but now a -stranger accompanied him—a small, dark, sharp-faced -man.</p> - -<p>The lieutenant seemed angry.</p> - -<p>“Shut the door and bar it,” he ordered, of John -Brown. Then he turned on the stranger. “We -will settle our matters here,” he rapped, in French; -and explained, to the men: “This fellow is a spy, -from the governor. He has been dogging me and -asking questions in poor English all the way from -the priest’s house. I have requested him to speak -in his own language, which is French, but he understands -English and would pretend that he is a -prisoner to the Spanish—‘like ourselves,’ he alleges. -I have informed him that we have committed no -crime, are not prisoners, and fear nothing. We are<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_292"></a>[292]</span> -free Americans. As for you,” he continued, to the -man, roundly, “I know you to be only a miserable -spy, hired by the governor in hopes that you will -win my sympathy and get me to betray secrets. I -have nothing to reveal. But it is in my power to -punish such scoundrels as you”—here the lieutenant -drew his sword—“and if you now make the least -resistance I will use the sabre that I have in my hand.”</p> - -<p>“Let us fix him, sir,” cried Hugh, Freegift, and -the others. “We’ll pay him an’ save the governor -the trouble.”</p> - -<p>They crowded forward. The dark man’s legs -gave out under him and down he flopped, to his -knees.</p> - -<p>“No, señores! For the love of God don’t kill me. -I will confess all.” He was so frightened that his -stammering English might scarcely be understood. -“His Excellency the governor ordered me to ask -many questions. That is true. And it is true that -I am no prisoner. I am a resident of Santa Fe, and -well treated. The governor said that if I pretended -hatred of the country you would be glad of my -help. I see now that you are honest men.”</p> - -<p>“What is your name?” the lieutenant demanded.</p> - -<p>“Baptiste Lelande, señor, at your service.”</p> - -<p>“You can be of no service to me save by getting -out of my sight,” retorted the lieutenant, scornfully,<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_293"></a>[293]</span> -and clapping his sword back into its sheath. “You -are a thief, and doubtless depend upon the governor -for your safety. Tell His Excellency that the next -time he employs spies upon us he should choose -those of more skill and sense, but that I question -whether he can find any such, to do that kind of -work. Now begone.”</p> - -<p>John Brown opened the door. The man scuttled -out.</p> - -<p>“My lads,” spoke the lieutenant, when the door -had been closed again, “this is the second time that -I have been approached by spies, on the march. On -the first occasion I assumed to yield, and contented -the rascal by giving into his keeping a leaf or two -copied from my journal—which in fact merely recounted -the truth as to our number and our setting -forth from the Missouri River. The fellow could -not read, and is treasuring the paper, for the eyes of -the governor. If I am to be plagued this way, I -fear that my baggage or person may be searched, and -my records obtained by our long toil be stolen. Accordingly -I shall trust in you, knowing that you will -not fail me. I have decided to distribute my important -papers among you, that you may carry them -on your persons, out of sight.”</p> - -<p>So he did.</p> - -<p>“They’ll be ready for you when you want ’em,<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_294"></a>[294]</span> -cap’n, sir,” Freegift promised, as the men stowed -the papers underneath their shirts. “If the Spanish -want ’em, they’ll have to take our skins at the same -time.”</p> - -<p>“That they will,” was the chorus.</p> - -<p>“To the boy here I consign the most important -article of all,” pursued the lieutenant, “because he -is the least likely to be molested. It is my journal -of the whole trip. If that were lost, much of our -labors would have been thrown away. I can rely -on you to keep it safe, Stub?”</p> - -<p>“Yes, sir.” And Stub also stowed away his -charge—a thin book with stained red covers, in which -the lieutenant had so frequently written, at night.</p> - -<p>“We will arrive at Santa Fe to-morrow, lads,” -the lieutenant had warned. “And if my baggage is -subjected to a search by order of the governor, I -shall feel safe regarding my papers.”</p> - -<p>Presently he left.</p> - -<p>“Lalande, the nincompoop was, was he?” remarked -Jake Carter. “Well, he got his come-upments. -But ain’t he the same that the doctor was -lookin’ for—the sly one who skipped off with a -trader’s goods?”</p> - -<p>“So what more could be expected, than dirty -work, from the likes!” Hugh proposed.</p> - -<p>The lieutenant fared so heartily at the priest’s<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_295"></a>[295]</span> -house that this night he was ill. In the morning, -which was that of March 3, they all had ridden on -southward, led by him and by the pleasant Don -Lieutenant Bartholomew. They had passed through -several more villages, one resembling another; and in -the sunset, after crossing a high mesa or flat tableland -covered with cedars, at the edge they had -emerged into view of Santa Fe, below.</p> - -<p>“Santa Fe! La ciudad muy grande (The great -city)! Mira (See)!”</p> - -<p>Those were the urgent exclamations from the -dragoons and militia.</p> - -<p>“‘Great city,’ they say?” Hugh uttered, to Stub. -“Huh! Faith, it looks like a fleet o’ flatboats, left -dry an’ waitin’ for a spring rise!”</p> - -<p>It was larger than the other villages or towns, -and lay along both flanks of a creek. There were -two churches, one with two round-topped steeples; -but all the other buildings were low and flat-roofed -and ugly, ranged upon three or four narrow crooked -streets. At this side of the town there appeared to -be the usual square, surrounded by the mud buildings. -Yes, the two-steepled church fronted upon it.</p> - -<p>As they rode down from the mesa, by the road -that they had been following, the town seemed to -wake up. They could hear shouting, and might see<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_296"></a>[296]</span> -people running afoot and galloping horseback, making -for the square.</p> - -<p>A bevy of young men, gaily dressed, raced, -ahorse, to meet the column. The whole town evidently -knew that the Americans were coming. The -square was filled with excited men, women and children, -all chattering and staring.</p> - -<p>Lieutenant Bartholomew cleared the way through -them, and halted in front of a very long, low building, -with a porch supported on a row of posts made -of small logs, and facing the square, opposite the -church. He swung off. The dragoons and militia -kept the crowd back.</p> - -<p>Lieutenant Pike, in his old clothes, swung off.</p> - -<p>“Dismount!” he called. “We are to enter here, -lads. Bear yourselves boldly. We are American -soldiers, and have nothing to fear.”</p> - -<p>He strode on, firm and erect, following the guidance -of Lieutenant Bartholomew.</p> - -<p>“Keep together,” Freegift cautioned; and the -men pushed after, trying not to limp, and to carry -their army muskets easily. Stub brought up the -tail of the little procession. He, too, was an American, -and proud of it, no matter how they all looked, -without hats, in rags and moccasins, the hair of -heads and faces long.</p> - -<p>They entered the long-fronted building. The<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_297"></a>[297]</span> -doorway was a full four feet thick. The interior -was gloomy, lighted by small deep-set windows with -dirty panes. There was a series of square, low-ceilinged -rooms—“’Tis like a dungeon, eh?” Freegift -flung back—but the earth floors were strewn with the -pelts of buffalo, bear, panther, what-not.</p> - -<p>They were halted in a larger room, with barred -windows and no outside door. Lieutenant Bartholomew -bowed to Lieutenant Pike, and left. Against -the walls there were several low couches, covered -with furs and gay blankets, for seats. So they sat -down, and the men stared about.</p> - -<p>“Whereabouts in here are we, I wonder,” John -Brown proposed.</p> - -<p>“Did ye see them strings o’ tanned Injun ears -hangin’ acrost the front winders!” remarked Hugh -Menaugh.</p> - -<p>“Sure, we’d never find way out by ourselves,” -declared Alex Roy. “It’s a crookeder trail than -the one to the Red River.”</p> - -<p>The lieutenant briefly smiled; but he sat -anxiously.</p> - -<p>Lieutenant Bartholomew suddenly returned; -close behind him a large, heavy-set, swarthy, hard-faced -man, of sharp black eyes, and dressed in a -much decorated uniform. Lieutenant Pike hastily -arose, at attention; they all rose.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_298"></a>[298]</span></p> - -<p>“His Excellency Don Joaquin del Real Alencaster, -Governor of the Province of New Mexico,” -Lieutenant Bartholomew announced. “I have the -honor to present Lieutenant Don Mungo-Meri-Paike, -of the American army.”</p> - -<p>Lieutenant Pike bowed; the governor bowed, and -spoke at once, in French.</p> - -<p>“You command here?”</p> - -<p>“Yes, sir.” The lieutenant answered just as -quickly.</p> - -<p>“Do you speak French?”</p> - -<p>“Yes, sir.”</p> - -<p>“You come to reconnoiter our country, do you?”</p> - -<p>“I marched to reconnoiter our own,” replied -Lieutenant Pike.</p> - -<p>“In what character are you?”</p> - -<p><a href="#i_298">“In my proper character, sir: an officer of the -United States army.”</a></p> - -<div class="figcenter" id="i_298"> - <img src="images/i_298.jpg" alt="" title="" /> - <div class="caption"> - <p class="noic"><a href="#Page_298">“IN MY PROPER CHARACTER, SIR: AN OFFICER OF THE UNITED -STATES ARMY”</a></p> - </div> -</div> - -<p>“And the man Robinson—is he attached to your -party?”</p> - -<p>“No.” The governor’s voice had been brusque, -and the lieutenant was beginning to flush. But it was -true that the doctor was only an independent -volunteer.</p> - -<p>“Do you know him?”</p> - -<p>“Yes. He is from St. Louis.”</p> - -<p>“How many men have you?”</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_299"></a>[299]</span></p> - -<p>“I had fifteen.” And this also was true, when -counting the deserter Kennerman.</p> - -<p>“And this Robinson makes sixteen?” insisted -the governor.</p> - -<p>“I have already told your Excellency that he -does not belong to my party,” the lieutenant retorted. -“I shall answer no more enquiries on the -subject.”</p> - -<p>“When did you leave St. Louis?”</p> - -<p>“July 15.”</p> - -<p>“I think you marched in June.”</p> - -<p>“No, sir.”</p> - -<p>“Very well,” snapped the governor. “Return -with Don Bartholomew to his house, and come here -again at seven o’clock and bring your papers with -you.”</p> - -<p>He shortly bowed, whirled on his heels and left. -The lieutenant bit his lips, striving to hold his temper. -Lieutenant Bartholomew appeared distressed.</p> - -<p>“A thousand apologies, Don Lieutenant,” he -proffered. “His Excellency is in bad humor; but -never mind. You are to be my guest. Your men -will be quartered in the barracks. Please follow me.”</p> - -<p>They filed out, through the rooms, into daylight -again.</p> - -<p>“A sergeant will show your men, señor. They -are free to go where they please, in the city,” said<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_300"></a>[300]</span> -Lieutenant Bartholomew. “My own house is at -your service.”</p> - -<p>“Go with Lieutenant Bartholomew’s sergeant, -lads,” Lieutenant Pike directed. “Guard your -tongues and actions and remember your duty to your -Government.”</p> - -<p>Beckoning with a flash of white teeth underneath -his ferocious moustache the dragoon sergeant took -them to the barracks. These were another long -building on the right of the first building, fronting -upon the west side of the square and protected by a -wall with a court inside.</p> - -<p>At a sign from the sergeant they stacked their -muskets and hung their pistols, in the court. Then -they were led in to supper.</p> - -<p>“Sure, we’re goin’ to be comfortable,” Freegift -uttered, glancing around as they ate. “The food is -mighty warmin’—what you call the seasonin’? Pepper, -ain’t it, same as we got, above? Yes.”</p> - -<p>“Did you hear what they call that other buildin’, -where we were took first?” asked Jake Carter, of -Stub.</p> - -<p>“The Palace of the Governors, the soldiers said.”</p> - -<p>“Palace!” Jake snorted. “It’s more like the -keep of a bomb-proof fort. I’ve dreamed of palaces, -but never such a one. There’s nothin’ for a governor -to be so high and uppish about.”</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_301"></a>[301]</span></p> - -<p>“The cap’n gave him tit for tat, all right,” -asserted William Gordon. “We’ve got a verse or -two of Yankee Doodle in us yet!”</p> - -<p>They finished supper and shoved back their cowhide -benches.</p> - -<p>“We’re to go where we plaze, ain’t it?” queried -Hugh. “So long as we keep bounds? Well, I’m -for seein’ the town whilst I can.”</p> - -<p>“We’re with you, old hoss,” they cried, and -trooped into the court.</p> - -<p>First thing, they found that their guns had -vanished.</p> - -<p>Freegift scratched his shaggy head.</p> - -<p>“Now, a pretty trick. We’re disarmed. They -come it over us proper, I say.”</p> - -<p>Spanish soldiers were passing to and fro. Some -stared, some laughed, but nobody offered an explanation -or seemed to understand the questions.</p> - -<p>“That wasn’t in the bargain, was it?” Alex Roy -demanded. “The cap’n’ll have a word or two of the -right kind ready, when he learns. Anyhow, we’ll -soon find out whether we’re prisoners as well. -Come on.”</p> - -<p>The gate at the entrance to the court was open. -The guard there did not stop them. They had -scarcely stepped out, to the square, when loitering -soldiers and civilians, chatting with women enveloped<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_302"></a>[302]</span> -in black shawls, welcomed them in Spanish -and beckoned to them, and acted eager to show them -around.</p> - -<p>“‘Buenas noches,’ is it? ‘Good evenin’ to ye,’” -spoke Freegift. “I expect there’ll be no harm in -loosenin’ up a bit. So fare as you like, boys, an’ -have a care. I’m off. Who’s with me?”</p> - -<p>They trooped gaily away, escorted by their new -Santa Fean friends. Stub stuck to Freegift, for a -time; but every little while the men had to stop, and -drink wine offered to them at the shops and even at -the houses near by; so, tiring of this, he fell behind, -to make the rounds on his own account and see what -he chose to see.</p> - -<p>He was crossing the bare, hard-baked square, -or plaza as they called it, to take another look at -the strings of Indian ears festooned on the front of -the Governor’s Palace, when through the gathering -dusk somebody hailed him.</p> - -<p>“Hi! Muchacho! Aqui! (Hi! Boy! Here!)”</p> - -<p>It was Lieutenant Bartholomew, summoning him -toward the barracks. The lieutenant met him.</p> - -<p>“Habla Español (You speak Spanish)?”</p> - -<p>“Very little,” Stub answered.</p> - -<p>“Bien (Good).” And the lieutenant continued -eagerly. “Como se llama Ud. en Americano (What -is your name in American)?”</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_303"></a>[303]</span></p> - -<p>“Me llamo Jack Pursley (My name is Jack -Pursley), señor.”</p> - -<p>“Si, si! Bien! Muy bien! (Yes, yes! Good! -Very good!)” exclaimed the lieutenant. “Ven -conmigo, pues (Come with me, then).”</p> - -<p>On he went, at such a pace that Stub, wondering, -had hard work keeping up with him. They made a -number of twists and turns through the crooked, -darkened streets, and the lieutenant stopped before -a door set in the mud wall of a house flush with -the street itself. He opened, and entered—Stub on -his heels. They passed down a narrow verandah, in -a court, entered another door——</p> - -<p>The room was lighted with two candles. It had -no seats except a couple of blanket-covered couches -against its wall; a colored picture or two of the saints -hung on the bare walls. A man had sprung up. He -was a tall, full-bearded man—an American even -though his clothes were Spanish.</p> - -<p>He gazed upon Stub; Stub gaped at him.</p> - -<p>“It is the boy,” panted Lieutenant Bartholomew. -“Bien?”</p> - -<p>“Jack!” shouted the man.</p> - -<p>“My dad!” Stub blurted.</p> - -<p>They charged each other, and hugged.</p> - -<p>“Good! Good!” exclaimed the lieutenant, dancing<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_304"></a>[304]</span> -delighted. Several women rushed in, to peer -and ask questions.</p> - -<p>“Boy, boy!” uttered Jack’s father, holding him -off to look at him again. “I thought never to see -you, after the Utes got you. They took you somewhere—I -couldn’t find out; and finally they fetched -me down to Santa Fe, and here I’ve been near two -years, carpentering.”</p> - -<p>“Couldn’t you get away?”</p> - -<p>“No. They won’t let me. And now I’m mighty -glad.”</p> - -<p>“Well, I’m here, too,” laughed Stub. “And I -guess I’ll stay; but I’ll have to ask Lieutenant Pike.”</p> - -<p>“He’s gone to the palace, to talk with the -governor again. You and I’ll talk with each other. -I came especially to see him; thought maybe he might -help me, and I hoped to talk with one of his kind. -American blood is powerful scarce in Santa Fe. -There’s only one simon-pure Yankee, except myself. -He’s Sol Colly; used to be a sergeant in the army -and was captured six years ago along with the rest -of a party that invaded Texas. But he doesn’t live -here. A Frenchman or two, here from the States, -don’t count. My, my, it’s good to speak English -and to hear it. As soon as the lieutenant learnt -my name he remembered about you; but he couldn’t -wait, so Don Bartholomew went to find you. Now<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_305"></a>[305]</span> -you’ll go home with me, where we can be snug and -private.”</p> - -<p>He spoke in Spanish to Lieutenant Bartholomew, -who nodded.</p> - -<p>“Certainly, certainly, señor. Until to-morrow -morning.”</p> - -<p>And Jack gladly marched home hand-in-hand -with his father, James Pursley, of Kentucky, the discoverer -of gold in Colorado, and the first American -resident in Santa Fe.</p> -<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop" /> - -<div class="chapter"> -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_306"></a>[306]</span></p> - -<h2 class="nobreak" id="XXI">XXI<br /> -<small>GOOD-BY TO LIEUTENANT PIKE</small></h2> -</div> - - -<p>The lieutenant and men were to be sent clear -to the city of Chihuahua, more than six hundred -miles southward, where the commanding general -of all Mexico had headquarters.</p> - -<p>An officer and two soldiers from Governor Alencaster -had called for him again in the morning immediately -after breakfast. He returned to the Lieutenant -Bartholomew house fuming. Stub never before -had seen him so angry.</p> - -<p>“I protested with all my power,” he related, to -Lieutenant Bartholomew and Stub’s father. “I -said that I should not go unless forced to by military -strength. The governor agreed to give me a paper -certifying to the fact that I march only as compelled -to, but our detention as prisoners is a breach -of faith. I consented to come to Santa Fe, for the -purpose of explaining to him my accidental presence -within his frontiers; and I have so explained. -He has even read my papers and my commission. -Now he orders us still further into the interior.”</p> - -<p>“You have my sympathy, señor,” proffered Lieutenant -Bartholomew.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_307"></a>[307]</span></p> - -<p>“That’s the system here, sir,” added Stub’s -father. “I am an American citizen, and was brought -in by the Injuns, from outside territory; and I can’t -leave without a permit. I’m close watched—but I’ve -still got my old rifle; and give me two hours’ start -and I’ll not ask for any other passport.”</p> - -<p>“When I reminded His Excellency that my unintentional -trespass was not to be compared with his, -when he dispatched five hundred troops far into -the Pawnee country, well within the territory of -the United States, he had no reply,” pursued Lieutenant -Pike. “However, I am to dine with him this -noon, and march soon thereafter, to meet an escort -under that Lieutenant Melgares below.”</p> - -<p>“You will find Don Facundo Melgares to be a -very pleasant gentleman, señor,” spoke Lieutenant -Bartholomew.</p> - -<p>“He spent a great deal of time and money -looking for me,” Lieutenant Pike grimly laughed. -“He might as well have stayed here, for I should -never have yielded to him, north of the Red River; -not while I had a man left. I understand that -Doctor Robinson, whom the governor mentioned, -also has been sent south.”</p> - -<p>“That is possible, señor.”</p> - -<p>The lieutenant shrugged his shoulders.</p> - -<p>“And I suppose my sergeant and the other men<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_308"></a>[308]</span> -will follow me.” He turned to Stub. “Come, boy; -we’ll look up our party and order them to be ready. -Their arms are to be restored to them, at least. We’re -not to be driven like cattle. His Excellency has -promised that, and we’ll march as soldiers.”</p> - -<p>“You take the boy to Chihuahua?” queried -Lieutenant Bartholomew.</p> - -<p>“What?” Stub’s tall father demanded, with a -start.</p> - -<p>Lieutenant Pike smiled.</p> - -<p>“No, sir. He remains here, where he belongs. -I am only too happy to have reunited him and his -father. His service with me ends—and it has been -a greater service than you may imagine.”</p> - -<p>They hastened for the barracks. Midway, the -lieutenant halted in covert of an old wall.</p> - -<p>“You have my journal?” he asked, guardedly.</p> - -<p>“Yes, sir.”</p> - -<p>“Good! You may give it to me, now. Quick! -There!” He swiftly tucked it away. “It is the -only paper unknown to the governor, and I mean -to keep it. Last night, when I considered that he -was done with me, I heard that the men were drinking -wine with the town people. So in case they -should drink too much I sought them out and took -the other papers from them. They’re faithful, but -the wine might have made them careless. I stowed<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_309"></a>[309]</span> -the papers in my trunk again (this was a little hand-trunk -that the lieutenant had carried, with help, -from the Arkansaw, as his only important baggage); -then early this morning the governor unexpectedly -sent for me and my trunk and I had no chance to -open it privately. By trusting in him I was cleverly -outwitted, but thanks to you I’ve saved my journal. -Had I found you last night I would have taken -it, to place it with the other papers.”</p> - -<p>So, thanks to a boy, the journal of Lieutenant -Pike was saved to the world.</p> - -<p>“Can’t you get your trunk again?” Stub asked, -as they hurried on.</p> - -<p>“It will go down to Chihuahua with me, but in -charge of the officer of the escort, for the commanding -general.”</p> - -<p>“Do the papers tell anything wrong?”</p> - -<p>“No, unless they are wrongly read. There are -letters, and scientific notes upon the locations and -distances; and maps. If the commanding general -thinks we were spying out the country, he may try -to keep everything. But the journal would be the -greatest loss.”</p> - -<p>And truth to say, Lieutenant Pike never did get -back any of the papers in the trunk.</p> - -<p>Freegift and John Brown were at the barracks;<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_310"></a>[310]</span> -the other men were rambling about. John went to -find them.</p> - -<p>“To Chihuahua is it, sir?” Freegift gasped. -“Without our guns?”</p> - -<p>“You will get your guns.”</p> - -<p>“An’ don’t we wait for the sergeant an’ them -others, sir?”</p> - -<p>“We’re not permitted. I’ll leave a note for -Meek with this boy, here, telling him to keep up -courage and follow us.”</p> - -<p>“But doesn’t the lad go, too, sir?”</p> - -<p>“No. He stays in Santa Fe.”</p> - -<p>“I’ve found my father, Freegift,” eagerly explained -Stub. “He’s here. The Utahs brought him -here. I’ve got to stay with him.”</p> - -<p>“Found your dad, eh? Well, well! An’ good! -I want to know! That’s all right, then. We’ve been -some worried over you, but sure we felt sartin you -wouldn’t desert. Expect you’d rather have found -your father than the Red River; hey?”</p> - -<p>“I don’t know,” Stub stammered. “I wish we’d -found both.”</p> - -<p>His heart ached for Lieutenant Pike, who seemed -to have found nothing—unless he really had intended -to come here.</p> - -<p>“We soldiers must not complain; we will only -rejoice in your good fortune, my lad,” answered<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_311"></a>[311]</span> -the lieutenant. “All in all, we did not toil in vain, -and we have done what we could. Have the men -ready to march at twelve o’clock, Stout.” And -turning on his heel he strode off.</p> - -<p>“A fine little man, an’ a smart one,” mused -Freegift, gazing after. “We’ll go with him to -Chihuahua—an’ to the ends o’ the earth, if need be.”</p> - -<p>The lieutenant left first, shortly after noon. He -had dined with the governor; when he came out of -the palace, into the public square, prepared to start, -the governor’s coach was waiting, attached to six -gaily harnessed mules. A detachment of dragoons -also were waiting; so were Stub and his father, and -old Sergeant Colly who had been captured, six years -ago, in Spanish territory.</p> - -<p>They shook hands with the lieutenant.</p> - -<p>“Good-by. Good-by, sir.”</p> - -<p>“Good-by.” He held his head high, like an -officer and a free American. He did not mind the -stares of the town people. “Remember, you are -Americans.”</p> - -<p>“Don’t forget us, sir, when you reach the States,” -old Solomon Colly implored. “Don’t forget Sergeant -Colly of the army, who made his only mistake -when he was trapped by these Spanish. You’ll do -what you can for us, sir?”</p> - -<p>“I’ll not forget; not while I have breath in my<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_312"></a>[312]</span> -body,” promised the lieutenant, earnestly. “I will -report you to the Government.”</p> - -<p>The governor had clumped out, in his uniform -and jack-boots. Lieutenant Bartholomew, and Captain -D’Almansa who was to command the escort -southward, were with him. They all entered the -splendid coach decorated with gilt.</p> - -<p>The door slammed. The servant climbed to the -seat beside the driver—the sergeant in charge of the -dragoons shouted an order, and away they went, -mules and horses at a gallop.</p> - -<p>That was the last that Stub or anybody in Santa -Fe ever saw of young Lieutenant Pike.</p> - -<p>Stub went to the barracks with his father and -Solomon Colly, to watch the men off. They were -about to go. He shook hands with them, too: with -Freegift, and Alex Roy, and John Brown, and Hugh -Menaugh, and William Gordon, and Jake Carter—that -brave six, still limping from frozen feet.</p> - -<p>“Good luck to you, boy.”</p> - -<p>“Good luck.”</p> - -<p>“An’ never forget you’ve been a Pike man, on -one o’ the toughest marches in history,” added Freegift. -“Stick up for your country. You’ve l’arned -never to say die—an’ that’s the American of it.”</p> - -<p>“Yes, sir. I know it.”</p> - -<p>“Ah, lads, but Sol and I wish we were going<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_313"></a>[313]</span> -with you,” sighed his father. “But maybe you’ll -be back again, by the thousand, and then we’ll see -the flag floating.”</p> - -<p>“Maybe. There’ll be a time,” replied Freegift. -“There’ll be a time when the flag’ll float over this -very spot. But we won’t need any thousand. Five -hundred of us under Cap’n Pike could take the whole -country. An’ now we know a way in.”</p> - -<p>“I’ve half a notion that the lieutenant wasn’t so -sorry to be made prisoner, after all,” Stub’s father -remarked to him, on the way home. “There’s something -secret about this that he doesn’t tell. As that -soldier friend of yours said, in case of war—and -war over this borderland dispute is likely to break -out any day—the army will know what’s ahead of it.”</p> - -<p>“They’ll let Lieutenant Pike go, won’t they?”</p> - -<p>His father chuckled.</p> - -<p>“They’ll have to. He’s not the kind of man -they can keep. They can’t prove he’s a spy, for he’s -in uniform (what there is of it), and his orders are -plain to read.”</p> - -<p>This day was March 4. It was two weeks later, -or March 18, when at last Lieutenant Saltelo brought -in Sergeant Meek and Corporal Jerry Jackson, Terry -Miller, John Mountjoy, poor John Sparks and Tom -Dougherty, Baroney, Pat Smith and the few miserable<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_314"></a>[314]</span> -horses and the main baggage. There was great -rejoicing, again, in Santa Fe.</p> - -<p>Sergeant Meek was taken at once to Governor -Alencaster, but ’twas safe to say that the governor -would find out little from <em>him</em>. Stub sought the -other men out, at the barracks. John Sparks and -Tom were unable to walk; they had lost their feet, -and the most of their fingers; Baroney and Pat, and, -they said, the sergeant, too, were in bad shape, from -the march through the snows, to the stockade; but -they all welcomed Stub.</p> - -<p>“Where’s the cap’n?”</p> - -<p>“He’s gone to Chihuahua.”</p> - -<p>“And what are ye doin’ here, then? Did you -run off from him? Say!”</p> - -<p>“No. He told me to stay. I found my father. -We’re living here—till we can get away.”</p> - -<p>“You did? Found your father! Want to -know! Hooray! And the cap’n and the rest to -Chihuahua. So it’s to Chihuahua the same for us, -no doubt.”</p> - -<p>“Faith, that’s proper,” declared Tom Dougherty. -“We’ll not desert him. If it be prison for wan -of us let it be prison for all of us. What’s left -o’ me’ll stick to the cap’n. Sure, John an’ me are -only poor cripples—whether we’ll be paid I don’t -know; but all we want is to be with him, doin’ as<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_315"></a>[315]</span> -we can. He’s had the hardest luck an’ he complained -not wance.”</p> - -<p>When Sergeant Meek came, Stub gave him the -note. The sergeant read it.</p> - -<p>“The cap’n says for us to keep our arms, and not -lose the baggage. Yes, that’s the caper. Bear in -mind, lads. We’re for Chihuahua in the morning.”</p> - -<p>They, also, were sent down to Chihuahua. Stub -never saw any of them again, either. He heard, much -later, that the lieutenant and six had safely reached -Natchitoches; but from Chihuahua no word ever -came back of Sergeant Meek, Corporal Jerry, -Baroney the interpreter, Privates Sparks, Dougherty, -Mountjoy, Miller, and Pat Smith, except that -General Salcedo, the commander, had found them -a hard lot to handle and had got them out of his -province as quickly as he might.</p> - -<p>So probably they caught up with Lieutenant Pike -somewhere in the United States; and as likely as not -some of them were with him to support him when -he fell, dying on the field of battle, away north in -Canada, during the War of 1812.</p> - -<p>They all loved him.</p> - - - - -<hr class="chap" /> -<div class="tnote"> -<p class="noi tntitle">Transcriber’s Notes:</p> - -<p class="smfont">Except for the frontispiece, illustrations have been moved to - follow the text that they illustrate, so the page number of the - illustration may not match the page number in the Illustrations.</p> - -<p class="smfont">Printer’s, punctuation and spelling inaccuracies were silently - corrected.</p> - -<p class="smfont">Archaic and variable spelling has been preserved.</p> - -<p class="smfont">Variations in hyphenation and compound words have been preserved.</p> -</div> - -<div style='display:block; margin-top:4em'>*** END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK LOST WITH LIEUTENANT PIKE ***</div> -<div style='text-align:left'> - -<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'> -Updated editions will replace the previous one—the old editions will -be renamed. -</div> - -<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'> -Creating the works from print editions not protected by U.S. copyright -law means that no one owns a United States copyright in these works, -so the Foundation (and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United -States without permission and without paying copyright -royalties. Special rules, set forth in the General Terms of Use part -of this license, apply to copying and distributing Project -Gutenberg™ electronic works to protect the PROJECT GUTENBERG™ -concept and trademark. Project Gutenberg is a registered trademark, -and may not be used if you charge for an eBook, except by following -the terms of the trademark license, including paying royalties for use -of the Project Gutenberg trademark. If you do not charge anything for -copies of this eBook, complying with the trademark license is very -easy. You may use this eBook for nearly any purpose such as creation -of derivative works, reports, performances and research. Project -Gutenberg eBooks may be modified and printed and given away--you may -do practically ANYTHING in the United States with eBooks not protected -by U.S. copyright law. Redistribution is subject to the trademark -license, especially commercial redistribution. -</div> - -<div style='margin:0.83em 0; font-size:1.1em; text-align:center'>START: FULL LICENSE<br /> -<span style='font-size:smaller'>THE FULL PROJECT GUTENBERG LICENSE<br /> -PLEASE READ THIS BEFORE YOU DISTRIBUTE OR USE THIS WORK</span> -</div> - -<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'> -To protect the Project Gutenberg™ mission of promoting the free -distribution of electronic works, by using or distributing this work -(or any other work associated in any way with the phrase “Project -Gutenberg”), you agree to comply with all the terms of the Full -Project Gutenberg™ License available with this file or online at -www.gutenberg.org/license. -</div> - -<div style='display:block; font-size:1.1em; margin:1em 0; font-weight:bold'> -Section 1. General Terms of Use and Redistributing Project Gutenberg™ electronic works -</div> - -<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'> -1.A. By reading or using any part of this Project Gutenberg™ -electronic work, you indicate that you have read, understand, agree to -and accept all the terms of this license and intellectual property -(trademark/copyright) agreement. If you do not agree to abide by all -the terms of this agreement, you must cease using and return or -destroy all copies of Project Gutenberg™ electronic works in your -possession. If you paid a fee for obtaining a copy of or access to a -Project Gutenberg™ electronic work and you do not agree to be bound -by the terms of this agreement, you may obtain a refund from the person -or entity to whom you paid the fee as set forth in paragraph 1.E.8. -</div> - -<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'> -1.B. “Project Gutenberg” is a registered trademark. It may only be -used on or associated in any way with an electronic work by people who -agree to be bound by the terms of this agreement. There are a few -things that you can do with most Project Gutenberg™ electronic works -even without complying with the full terms of this agreement. See -paragraph 1.C below. There are a lot of things you can do with Project -Gutenberg™ electronic works if you follow the terms of this -agreement and help preserve free future access to Project Gutenberg™ -electronic works. See paragraph 1.E below. -</div> - -<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'> -1.C. The Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation (“the -Foundation” or PGLAF), owns a compilation copyright in the collection -of Project Gutenberg™ electronic works. Nearly all the individual -works in the collection are in the public domain in the United -States. If an individual work is unprotected by copyright law in the -United States and you are located in the United States, we do not -claim a right to prevent you from copying, distributing, performing, -displaying or creating derivative works based on the work as long as -all references to Project Gutenberg are removed. Of course, we hope -that you will support the Project Gutenberg™ mission of promoting -free access to electronic works by freely sharing Project Gutenberg™ -works in compliance with the terms of this agreement for keeping the -Project Gutenberg™ name associated with the work. You can easily -comply with the terms of this agreement by keeping this work in the -same format with its attached full Project Gutenberg™ License when -you share it without charge with others. -</div> - -<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'> -1.D. The copyright laws of the place where you are located also govern -what you can do with this work. Copyright laws in most countries are -in a constant state of change. If you are outside the United States, -check the laws of your country in addition to the terms of this -agreement before downloading, copying, displaying, performing, -distributing or creating derivative works based on this work or any -other Project Gutenberg™ work. The Foundation makes no -representations concerning the copyright status of any work in any -country other than the United States. -</div> - -<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'> -1.E. Unless you have removed all references to Project Gutenberg: -</div> - -<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'> -1.E.1. The following sentence, with active links to, or other -immediate access to, the full Project Gutenberg™ License must appear -prominently whenever any copy of a Project Gutenberg™ work (any work -on which the phrase “Project Gutenberg” appears, or with which the -phrase “Project Gutenberg” is associated) is accessed, displayed, -performed, viewed, copied or distributed: -</div> - -<blockquote> - <div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'> - This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and most - other parts of the world at no cost and with almost no restrictions - whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms - of the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online - at <a href="https://www.gutenberg.org">www.gutenberg.org</a>. If you - are not located in the United States, you will have to check the laws - of the country where you are located before using this eBook. - </div> -</blockquote> - -<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'> -1.E.2. If an individual Project Gutenberg™ electronic work is -derived from texts not protected by U.S. copyright law (does not -contain a notice indicating that it is posted with permission of the -copyright holder), the work can be copied and distributed to anyone in -the United States without paying any fees or charges. If you are -redistributing or providing access to a work with the phrase “Project -Gutenberg” associated with or appearing on the work, you must comply -either with the requirements of paragraphs 1.E.1 through 1.E.7 or -obtain permission for the use of the work and the Project Gutenberg™ -trademark as set forth in paragraphs 1.E.8 or 1.E.9. -</div> - -<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'> -1.E.3. If an individual Project Gutenberg™ electronic work is posted -with the permission of the copyright holder, your use and distribution -must comply with both paragraphs 1.E.1 through 1.E.7 and any -additional terms imposed by the copyright holder. Additional terms -will be linked to the Project Gutenberg™ License for all works -posted with the permission of the copyright holder found at the -beginning of this work. -</div> - -<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'> -1.E.4. Do not unlink or detach or remove the full Project Gutenberg™ -License terms from this work, or any files containing a part of this -work or any other work associated with Project Gutenberg™. -</div> - -<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'> -1.E.5. Do not copy, display, perform, distribute or redistribute this -electronic work, or any part of this electronic work, without -prominently displaying the sentence set forth in paragraph 1.E.1 with -active links or immediate access to the full terms of the Project -Gutenberg™ License. -</div> - -<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'> -1.E.6. You may convert to and distribute this work in any binary, -compressed, marked up, nonproprietary or proprietary form, including -any word processing or hypertext form. However, if you provide access -to or distribute copies of a Project Gutenberg™ work in a format -other than “Plain Vanilla ASCII” or other format used in the official -version posted on the official Project Gutenberg™ website -(www.gutenberg.org), you must, at no additional cost, fee or expense -to the user, provide a copy, a means of exporting a copy, or a means -of obtaining a copy upon request, of the work in its original “Plain -Vanilla ASCII” or other form. Any alternate format must include the -full Project Gutenberg™ License as specified in paragraph 1.E.1. -</div> - -<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'> -1.E.7. Do not charge a fee for access to, viewing, displaying, -performing, copying or distributing any Project Gutenberg™ works -unless you comply with paragraph 1.E.8 or 1.E.9. -</div> - -<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'> -1.E.8. You may charge a reasonable fee for copies of or providing -access to or distributing Project Gutenberg™ electronic works -provided that: -</div> - -<div style='margin-left:0.7em;'> - <div style='text-indent:-0.7em'> - • You pay a royalty fee of 20% of the gross profits you derive from - the use of Project Gutenberg™ works calculated using the method - you already use to calculate your applicable taxes. The fee is owed - to the owner of the Project Gutenberg™ trademark, but he has - agreed to donate royalties under this paragraph to the Project - Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation. Royalty payments must be paid - within 60 days following each date on which you prepare (or are - legally required to prepare) your periodic tax returns. Royalty - payments should be clearly marked as such and sent to the Project - Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation at the address specified in - Section 4, “Information about donations to the Project Gutenberg - Literary Archive Foundation.” - </div> - - <div style='text-indent:-0.7em'> - • You provide a full refund of any money paid by a user who notifies - you in writing (or by e-mail) within 30 days of receipt that s/he - does not agree to the terms of the full Project Gutenberg™ - License. You must require such a user to return or destroy all - copies of the works possessed in a physical medium and discontinue - all use of and all access to other copies of Project Gutenberg™ - works. - </div> - - <div style='text-indent:-0.7em'> - • You provide, in accordance with paragraph 1.F.3, a full refund of - any money paid for a work or a replacement copy, if a defect in the - electronic work is discovered and reported to you within 90 days of - receipt of the work. - </div> - - <div style='text-indent:-0.7em'> - • You comply with all other terms of this agreement for free - distribution of Project Gutenberg™ works. - </div> -</div> - -<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'> -1.E.9. If you wish to charge a fee or distribute a Project -Gutenberg™ electronic work or group of works on different terms than -are set forth in this agreement, you must obtain permission in writing -from the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation, the manager of -the Project Gutenberg™ trademark. Contact the Foundation as set -forth in Section 3 below. -</div> - -<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'> -1.F. -</div> - -<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'> -1.F.1. Project Gutenberg volunteers and employees expend considerable -effort to identify, do copyright research on, transcribe and proofread -works not protected by U.S. copyright law in creating the Project -Gutenberg™ collection. Despite these efforts, Project Gutenberg™ -electronic works, and the medium on which they may be stored, may -contain “Defects,” such as, but not limited to, incomplete, inaccurate -or corrupt data, transcription errors, a copyright or other -intellectual property infringement, a defective or damaged disk or -other medium, a computer virus, or computer codes that damage or -cannot be read by your equipment. -</div> - -<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'> -1.F.2. LIMITED WARRANTY, DISCLAIMER OF DAMAGES - Except for the “Right -of Replacement or Refund” described in paragraph 1.F.3, the Project -Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation, the owner of the Project -Gutenberg™ trademark, and any other party distributing a Project -Gutenberg™ electronic work under this agreement, disclaim all -liability to you for damages, costs and expenses, including legal -fees. YOU AGREE THAT YOU HAVE NO REMEDIES FOR NEGLIGENCE, STRICT -LIABILITY, BREACH OF WARRANTY OR BREACH OF CONTRACT EXCEPT THOSE -PROVIDED IN PARAGRAPH 1.F.3. YOU AGREE THAT THE FOUNDATION, THE -TRADEMARK OWNER, AND ANY DISTRIBUTOR UNDER THIS AGREEMENT WILL NOT BE -LIABLE TO YOU FOR ACTUAL, DIRECT, INDIRECT, CONSEQUENTIAL, PUNITIVE OR -INCIDENTAL DAMAGES EVEN IF YOU GIVE NOTICE OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH -DAMAGE. -</div> - -<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'> -1.F.3. LIMITED RIGHT OF REPLACEMENT OR REFUND - If you discover a -defect in this electronic work within 90 days of receiving it, you can -receive a refund of the money (if any) you paid for it by sending a -written explanation to the person you received the work from. If you -received the work on a physical medium, you must return the medium -with your written explanation. The person or entity that provided you -with the defective work may elect to provide a replacement copy in -lieu of a refund. If you received the work electronically, the person -or entity providing it to you may choose to give you a second -opportunity to receive the work electronically in lieu of a refund. If -the second copy is also defective, you may demand a refund in writing -without further opportunities to fix the problem. -</div> - -<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'> -1.F.4. Except for the limited right of replacement or refund set forth -in paragraph 1.F.3, this work is provided to you ‘AS-IS’, WITH NO -OTHER WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT -LIMITED TO WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY OR FITNESS FOR ANY PURPOSE. -</div> - -<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'> -1.F.5. Some states do not allow disclaimers of certain implied -warranties or the exclusion or limitation of certain types of -damages. If any disclaimer or limitation set forth in this agreement -violates the law of the state applicable to this agreement, the -agreement shall be interpreted to make the maximum disclaimer or -limitation permitted by the applicable state law. The invalidity or -unenforceability of any provision of this agreement shall not void the -remaining provisions. -</div> - -<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'> -1.F.6. INDEMNITY - You agree to indemnify and hold the Foundation, the -trademark owner, any agent or employee of the Foundation, anyone -providing copies of Project Gutenberg™ electronic works in -accordance with this agreement, and any volunteers associated with the -production, promotion and distribution of Project Gutenberg™ -electronic works, harmless from all liability, costs and expenses, -including legal fees, that arise directly or indirectly from any of -the following which you do or cause to occur: (a) distribution of this -or any Project Gutenberg™ work, (b) alteration, modification, or -additions or deletions to any Project Gutenberg™ work, and (c) any -Defect you cause. -</div> - -<div style='display:block; font-size:1.1em; margin:1em 0; font-weight:bold'> -Section 2. Information about the Mission of Project Gutenberg™ -</div> - -<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'> -Project Gutenberg™ is synonymous with the free distribution of -electronic works in formats readable by the widest variety of -computers including obsolete, old, middle-aged and new computers. It -exists because of the efforts of hundreds of volunteers and donations -from people in all walks of life. -</div> - -<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'> -Volunteers and financial support to provide volunteers with the -assistance they need are critical to reaching Project Gutenberg™’s -goals and ensuring that the Project Gutenberg™ collection will -remain freely available for generations to come. In 2001, the Project -Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation was created to provide a secure -and permanent future for Project Gutenberg™ and future -generations. To learn more about the Project Gutenberg Literary -Archive Foundation and how your efforts and donations can help, see -Sections 3 and 4 and the Foundation information page at www.gutenberg.org. -</div> - -<div style='display:block; font-size:1.1em; margin:1em 0; font-weight:bold'> -Section 3. Information about the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation -</div> - -<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'> -The Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation is a non-profit -501(c)(3) educational corporation organized under the laws of the -state of Mississippi and granted tax exempt status by the Internal -Revenue Service. The Foundation’s EIN or federal tax identification -number is 64-6221541. Contributions to the Project Gutenberg Literary -Archive Foundation are tax deductible to the full extent permitted by -U.S. federal laws and your state’s laws. -</div> - -<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'> -The Foundation’s business office is located at 809 North 1500 West, -Salt Lake City, UT 84116, (801) 596-1887. Email contact links and up -to date contact information can be found at the Foundation’s website -and official page at www.gutenberg.org/contact -</div> - -<div style='display:block; font-size:1.1em; margin:1em 0; font-weight:bold'> -Section 4. Information about Donations to the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation -</div> - -<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'> -Project Gutenberg™ depends upon and cannot survive without widespread -public support and donations to carry out its mission of -increasing the number of public domain and licensed works that can be -freely distributed in machine-readable form accessible by the widest -array of equipment including outdated equipment. Many small donations -($1 to $5,000) are particularly important to maintaining tax exempt -status with the IRS. -</div> - -<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'> -The Foundation is committed to complying with the laws regulating -charities and charitable donations in all 50 states of the United -States. Compliance requirements are not uniform and it takes a -considerable effort, much paperwork and many fees to meet and keep up -with these requirements. We do not solicit donations in locations -where we have not received written confirmation of compliance. To SEND -DONATIONS or determine the status of compliance for any particular state -visit <a href="https://www.gutenberg.org/donate/">www.gutenberg.org/donate</a>. -</div> - -<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'> -While we cannot and do not solicit contributions from states where we -have not met the solicitation requirements, we know of no prohibition -against accepting unsolicited donations from donors in such states who -approach us with offers to donate. -</div> - -<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'> -International donations are gratefully accepted, but we cannot make -any statements concerning tax treatment of donations received from -outside the United States. U.S. laws alone swamp our small staff. -</div> - -<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'> -Please check the Project Gutenberg web pages for current donation -methods and addresses. Donations are accepted in a number of other -ways including checks, online payments and credit card donations. To -donate, please visit: www.gutenberg.org/donate -</div> - -<div style='display:block; font-size:1.1em; margin:1em 0; font-weight:bold'> -Section 5. General Information About Project Gutenberg™ electronic works -</div> - -<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'> -Professor Michael S. Hart was the originator of the Project -Gutenberg™ concept of a library of electronic works that could be -freely shared with anyone. For forty years, he produced and -distributed Project Gutenberg™ eBooks with only a loose network of -volunteer support. -</div> - -<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'> -Project Gutenberg™ eBooks are often created from several printed -editions, all of which are confirmed as not protected by copyright in -the U.S. unless a copyright notice is included. Thus, we do not -necessarily keep eBooks in compliance with any particular paper -edition. -</div> - -<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'> -Most people start at our website which has the main PG search -facility: <a href="https://www.gutenberg.org">www.gutenberg.org</a>. -</div> - -<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'> -This website includes information about Project Gutenberg™, -including how to make donations to the Project Gutenberg Literary -Archive Foundation, how to help produce our new eBooks, and how to -subscribe to our email newsletter to hear about new eBooks. -</div> - -</div> -</body> -</html> |