CHAPTER SIX.
MY INDIAN CAPTORS COMMENCE THEIR HOMEWARD JOURNEY--ARRIVAL AT THE CAMP--AGUSKOGAUT THE CHIEF--HIS KINDNESS TO ME--MY ASTONISHMENT ON SEEING MIKEA PRISONER--HIS LUDICROUS FIDDLING--HIS COMICAL ACCOUNT OF HIS CAPTURE--RETURN OF THE WARRIORS FROM THE WAR-PATH--MIKE AND I JOIN THEBUFFALO-HUNTERS--THE HERD--EXCITING SPORT--THE BISON--ITS IMPORTANCE TOTHE INDIANS--MY HOPE OF ESCAPE--I AM IN GREAT DANGER FROM THE HERD--MIKERESCUES ME--OUR RETURN TO CAMP.
My captors led me along at a rapid rate over the rough ground; nimblyclimbing the rocks, and dragging me after them without muchconsideration as to whether I was hurt or not. Of course, I had made upmy mind to attempt escaping on the first opportunity. Perhaps theysuspected this, for they took good care not to afford me the chance.
On we went due west, as I knew by the position of the sun, scorning allimpediments--up hills and across valleys, through streams and marshes.They were, I knew, in an enemy's country, and were in a hurry to get outof it. Their leader did not fail to keep a look-out on every side--sometimes hurrying on ahead to the top of a rock, from whence he couldtake a glance over the country around to ascertain whether any one wasmoving; still they did not appear to be very anxious, and they must havebeen aware of the exact spot in which Kepenau and his tribe wereencamped, while they knew that they were not likely to encounter otherfoes.
We must have traversed a good many miles before the sun set; and a thickgrove now appearing ahead, with a stream running by its side, theyhurried towards it. Having entered the grove, they immediately beganstripping off the bark from some of the older trees, and collectingfirewood. With the bark they formed a lean-to; and igniting the wood,they soon had a fire blazing.
While the daylight lasted they allowed me to search for berries; one ofthe party helping me, but keeping a constant watch on my movements. Therest, in the meantime, toasted on sticks some dried buffalo meat, asmall portion of which they gave to me. Having satisfied my hunger, andfeeling very tired, I lay down before the fire, glad of the warmth; formy clothes, though partly dry, were still damp, and I every now and thengave a shiver, which made me fear that I was going to be seized withillness.
From the way in which my captors had hitherto behaved towards me I hopedthat I should not be ill-treated, and believing that I should some dayor other make my escape, I determined not to be unhappy. I was soon,therefore, fast asleep. Just before I closed my eyes I saw the Indianssitting round the fire smoking their pipes, and eagerly discussing somesubject or other--probably, what they should do with me--but, in spiteof my precarious position, I never slept so soundly in my life as I didfor some hours. When I at length awoke, I saw that a few embers aloneof the fire remained. One of the Indians was walking up and down,acting as sentry; while the others lay, with their feet towards thefire, wrapped in their buffalo robes. I was nearly certain that theywere the same men who had discovered my footprints, and they probablyhad then left their robes concealed somewhere while they searched for mein the river, and had afterwards resumed them.
How I wished that that sentinel would sit down and go to sleep! If heshould do so, I had determined to get up and run away. They would beunable to follow my tracks in the dark, so that I should have a longstart of them; and I thought that I might possibly reach the riverbefore they could overtake me, and either swim down it, or get floateddown on a log of timber or a raft of rushes.
I had still my axe in my belt, which the Indians had not taken from me,as also my hunting-knife. I was nearly throwing away the first whencrossing the river, but, feeling its value, I resolved to keep it aslong as I could, and was very glad I had done so. Once the thought cameinto my mind that, should the sentry at last go to sleep, I might killall the Indians with my axe before they could awake. I remembered astory I had heard of a white woman who had been made prisoner thuskilling all her captors while sleeping, and ultimately escaping; but Iput the idea from me as a temptation of Satan, and felt more happy whenI had done so. They had unjustly made me captive, it is true, but theywere only following the instincts of their savage nature; and it wouldbe a dreadful thing to think of afterwards, should I deprive them oflife.
As the sentry kept his post, and presently brought some more wood, whichhe threw on the embers, I felt sure that he was not likely to neglecthis duty; therefore, closing my eyes, I again went off to sleep. When Inext awoke the Indians were yawning and stretching themselves. One gotup, and then another, and I saw that day had broken.
I sprang to my feet, and the idea came into my head to pretend that Iwas not aware I was their captive; so, putting out my hand, I signifiedthat I would wish them a good morning and take my way homewards. Theyshook their heads--laughing, however, as if they thought the idea a goodjoke; and two of them walking on either side of me, we set off in thesame order as before.
We travelled on all day, till, leaving the hilly country and crossingseveral streams, we saw the wide prairie stretching out before us,beyond some thick clumps of trees. Towards one of these clumps theIndians advanced, when I heard the neigh of a horse. In a few minuteswe saw a couple of Indians, who had charge of several steeds tetheredamong the trees. A few words were exchanged between my captors andthem, after which they immediately set to work to build a lean-to andlight a fire. From this I knew that they were going to pass the nightin the wood. Again the hope rose in my breast that I might have achance of escaping, but I tried to put on as unconcerned an air aspossible.
The Indians we had found in the wood exhibited the carcass of a deer,which they had, I supposed, killed during the day. This was quickly cutup in large pieces, and placed before, the fire to roast.
"I only hope, my friends, that you will gorge yourselves till you areunable to move," I thought. "Then, if I can but get on the back of oneof those horses, I will gallop off to the hills, and not let you see myface again if I can help it."
I was not sorry, however, to eat some of the venison which the Indiansgave me; and then I lay down and pretended to go to sleep. They sat upfeeding for some time after this; then, greatly to my disappointment,one got on his feet and began to walk backwards and forwards, while therest stretched themselves on the ground, as they had done the nightbefore. I watched and watched, and at last believing that they were toocunning to allow me to escape, I closed my eyes and went to sleep. Iawoke twice, and on each occasion observed that one of them was on thewatch.
When daylight appeared they all rose, and after shaking themselves, thehorses were caught and they got on horseback; their leader making a signto me to mount one of the spare animals, of which there were several.This done, we immediately set off at full gallop across the plain,taking a south-westerly direction. We stopped twice during the day, toallow our animals to crop the grass; while we took some food, a streamnear at hand supplying us with water.
Towards evening I espied several wigwams partly concealed by the woodbefore us. On approaching nearer, I saw that they were very differentfrom those to which I had been accustomed further east, where the Indiandwellings are constructed of birch-bark. These were, however, muchlarger; the framework, consisting of long poles tied together at the topin a conical shape, was covered with the tanned skins of buffalo anddeer, and was ornamented with figures of animals and men,--apparentlyhunting scenes.
There were five or six of these wigwams pitched close together. Severalwomen were moving about, or sitting on the ground. In front of onestood a tall man wrapped in a buffalo robe, with a spear in his hand,whom I at once guessed to be the chief. He contemplated us, as we drewnear, without moving, or seeming in any way interested. This mannerwas, I suspected, put on to show his own importance, when he discoveredthat a white person was among our party. Getting still nearer, anotherIndian, who had been, I concluded, sleeping, and just awakened by thetramp of our horses, crawled out of the tent to have a look at us. Itwas a perfect scene of Indian domestic life. Near the chief, his wifesat on the ground playing with her child, a fat little urchin; a secondwoman was busy chopping wood; a
third was coming in, axe in hand, with ahuge bundle of sticks on her back, and a child clinging round her neckwhile a dog was too busy gnawing a bone to turn round and bark at us.
On drawing near, our leader got off his horse, and ordered us also todismount. We then approached the chief, to whom he described, as Iconcluded, the mode in which I had been taken prisoner. The clever wayin which I had hidden myself, and the efforts I had made to escape,elicited no small amount of admiration from the chief. I could, ofcourse, only guess at what he said, but I caught a word here and there;and he looked down on me and smiled with such benignity as his sternfeatures were capable of assuming. At all events, I thought that thesepeople, whatever they might do, would not torture me or put me to death.
My captors having unsaddled their horses, turned them adrift to pick upfood on the surrounding prairie, where the grass grew with unusualluxuriance. The men then went to their lodges, leaving me with thechief. He seemed to have taken a fancy to me from the first, and nowinvited me into his lodge, where his wife brought me a mess of broth,which, hungry as I was, I found very palatable.
The floor of the greater part of the lodge was covered withbuffalo-skins, and a sort of divan, composed of stuffed cushions, wasarranged round the walls; while in the centre burned a large fire, fromwhich ascended volumes of smoke through the aperture at the top, thoughno small quantity pervaded the wigwam. Though disagreeable, it had theeffect of driving away mosquitoes and other flying things.
I had not expected to be so well treated; still, I could not tell howlong the chief might remain in his present good-humour.
The chief's name was, I found, Aguskogaut. The tribe into whose hands Ihad fallen were Sioux, who live entirely on the prairies, and subsist byhunting the buffalo. They had come further east than they generallyventure, in order that their warriors might make predatory excursionsagainst the more pacific and civilised Indians living near the whitemen. They seemed to have no fear of being attacked by the latter, as,being well supplied with horses, they could beat a rapid retreat to thewestward; and I discovered that they had scouts out in all directions togive notice of the approach of a foe.
Not knowing how long I might be kept a prisoner, I set to work at onceto try and learn the language of my captors. The women, especially,were very ready to teach me; and my willingness to learn gaining metheir friendship, they supplied me plentifully with food. I waspuzzled, however, to know on what account they had carried me off, as Icertainly could in no way benefit them. I concluded that one objectmight be to hold me as a hostage, in case any of their party should betaken prisoners.
The chief took me out riding with him, in search of deer or other game.He was armed with his bow and a long spear; and knowing that a bow wouldbe of little use in my hands, he gave me a spear, with which to defendmyself or attack any animals we might come across. He kept a sharplook-out on me, however, in case I might try to escape; but I well knewthat, under present circumstances, it would be useless to make theattempt.
We were successful the first day in running down a young deer, withwhich we returned to the camp. As we approached, what was my surpriseto hear the sound of a fiddle! Surely those tones could be produced byno one but Mike Laffan! Could he have escaped? There, sure enough, aswe rode up to the lodges, was Mike himself, standing in the midst of agroup of Indians; while he was fiddling away with might and main, theywere dancing to the best of their ability, and keeping very good timetoo.
On seeing me he shouted out, "Good luck to ye, Masther Roger! Sure myheart was nigh breaking, when I thought ye had been drownded or shot todeath by these rid gintlemen; but it would not do to show me grafe, lestit would make them think manely of me, so thinks I to meself, I'llfiddle away as long as me elbow can move."
All the time he was speaking, he continued to play as furiously as atfirst; most of those surrounding him jumping and whirling round andround, or keeping time with their hands. The Indians, we knew, musthave been aware that we were friends, and therefore it would be of nouse to pretend that we were strangers to each other.
Mike was at length obliged to stop playing; upon which the chief orderedthat he should be brought before him, and inquired how he had beencaptured. What account those who had taken him gave, I could not makeout; but Mike told me how, after the canoe had been upset, he hadfloated some way down the stream clinging tightly to it. Most of thearticles were soon thrown out. The guns, of course, had at once gone tothe bottom, but the bales floated down. At last he saw his belovedfiddle washed out.
"Faix! it would have broken me heart to lose it," he observed; "so Imade a grab and caught it and the bow, and held them tight, although thewetting, to be sure, was doing them no good. Down I went, fasther andfasther. I could hear the roar of the lower cataract. Thinks I tomeself, If I go over that I shall be done for, and just then I found thecanoe carried by the current towards the shore. I struck out with mefeet to help it; and glad I was when, as I let them dhrop, I felt themtouch the ground. I sprang up the bank, but, to me sorrow, the canoefloated off, and it was more than I could do to get a hold of it again.I climbed to the top of a cliff, hoping to catch sight of you, or ofReuben and the Indian; but no one could I see. And grieving from thebottom of me heart at the thought that you were lost, I scrambled downagain, and made me way through the wood, guided by the sound of thewaterfall.
"I went on and on till I had passed it, looking out for our friends; butnot a glimpse of them could I see. At last, as I was getting prettytired, I thought to meself that I would climb up into a tree to get somerest, and hide away in case the inimy should be looking for me.Scarcely had I stowed meself away among the branches when I heardvoices. I dared not look out, but I guessed they were those of theIndians, who had by some means or other missed me tracks, and havinggone down the bank before me, were now returning. They passed bywithout seeing me, which shows that they are not always so sharp-sightedas is supposed. I stayed up in the tree all night; but next morning,being very hungry, I came down to make me breakfast off the berries Ihad seen growing about. There was no lack of them, and I was luckyenough to knock down two young squirrels with a stick I had picked up.
"I was not happy in me mind all the time at going away without lookingfor you, so, thinks I to myself, I'll try and find him. I started upthe stream again to the place where the canoe was upset. Not a trace ofyou could I discover; so with a sad heart I began to make me way backagain. It struck me that, somehow or other, I must have wandered awayfrom the river; and after trudging along all day I could nowhere findit. I felt still more unhappy than I had done before, and so, thinkingto solace myself, I sat down on a rock, and putting me fiddle to mechin, began playing away. I tried one tune and then another, and amighty dale of good it seemed to do me. I was playing the `Groves ofBlarney,' when half a dozen rid-skinned savages jumped out of the bushesand looked me full in the face.
"`Whoo!' says I. `Whaugh!' says they, in chorus. `Whoo!' says I again.On which they came nearer, flourishing their ugly-lookingscalping-knives.
"`Is that what you're going to be afther?' said I, feeling uncomfortableon the top of me head. `Keep off, me beauties, till I give you anothertune.' And putting up me fiddle to me chin--for I had let it drop, andsmall blame to me!--I began scraping away as if I would be afthershaking me arm off.
"`Whaugh!' says they again, beginning to skip and leap about.
"On this I played faster and faster; and the faster I played, the higherthey bounded. `It's all right,' thinks I to meself; `they will not bedoing me any harm if I can keep them at that game.' So I thought I hadbest give them a tune with me voice into the bargain; and I sang, andscraped, and shook me head, till they all burst out into fits oflaughter.
"On this I got up and made them a low bow; though I clapped my hat onagain pretty quick, in case of accidents. And says I--`If you will allsit down, and behave yourselves like dacent men, I'll tell you a talewhich will astonish you.'
"Whether or not they understood me, I could
not for the life of me tell;but, sure enough, down they all squatted. And I began to recount tothem how Daniel O'Rourke one night, returning from waking Widow Casey atBallybotherem, and having taken a drop more than usual of the`crayther,' saw the fairies come dancing round him; and I went on todescribe what Daniel said, and what the fairies did. `And now,' says I,`just sit quiet where you are till I come back and finish me story.'And on this, giving another whoop, and a hop, skip, and a jump, I wasmaking me way back to the river, when up sprang the Ridskins and camebounding afther me. `Sure, thin,' says I, stopping short, and beginningto scrape away as before on me fiddle, `you don't understand me.' And,by me faith, indade they did not; for without more ado they got roundme, and suspecting that I had been bamboozling them, began to prick mewith their spears behind, as a gentle hint that I was to march forward.
"Seeing that there was no use trying to make me escape--for, of course,six men can run faster than one--I took their hints, which were not tobe mistaken, and stepped out in the direction they pointed, now and thenplaying a tune to keep up me spirits and put them in good-humour.
"The long and the short of it is, that they made me prisoner, andbrought me along with them; until we found some horses, on which--stopping a night or two on the way--we galloped along till we reachedthis place.
"And here I am, Masther Roger! well pleased to find that you're alive,and to bear you company."
And so Mike concluded his story.
The Indians allowed Mike and me to talk together without interferingwith us. I told him that I would try to escape as soon as I could.
"Sure, and that is what I'll be afther," he answered. "But it's moreeasily said than done, I am afraid. However, where there is a willthere is a way; and cunning as the Ridskins think themselves, maybewe'll be even with them."
While we were talking we had observed some commotion among theinhabitants of the lodges; and presently we caught sight of a band ofhorsemen scouring across the prairie towards us, and flourishing theirspears as they came along. At first I thought they might be enemies;but as no preparations were made for the defence of the camp, I knewthat they must be friends. In a few minutes they galloped up; and theleading warriors, decked in war-paint and feathers, dismounted, each ofthem carrying one or more scalps hanging to the end of his spear. Ourchief, Aguskogaut, who had put on his finest robes, advanced to meetthem while they stepped forward; and their leader began a long harangue,which sounded very fine, although I could not make out what it was allabout.
Mike and I stood on one side, thinking it as well to keep out of theway. The new-comers, however, after a time began to point towards wherewe were standing; and I guessed they were talking about us, andinquiring how we happened to be there.
Aguskogaut then, as we supposed, gave them an account of what hadoccurred; to which (as I judged from their gestures) they replied, thatwe ought to have been killed, and our scalps taken to adorn theirlodges. On this Aguskogaut--who was, happily, our friend--made anotherspeech; and lifting up his hand to heaven, appeared to be invoking theGreat Spirit, and letting his countrymen understand that we were underhis protection, and that no harm must happen to us. So successful washis eloquence, that the warriors appeared to be satisfied. At allevents, we were allowed to move about within sight of the camp, no onemolesting us.
The next day there was a great feast in honour of the victory which hadbeen gained.
Mike and I were generally kept apart; but we occasionally foundopportunities for meeting, when we did not fail to discuss plans forescaping. We were, however, too narrowly watched to allow at present ofany of them being feasible: wherever we went, an Indian, apparentlyappointed for the purpose, had his eye on us. Had we managed to mountany of the horses tethered near the lodges or feeding around, we shouldhave been immediately tracked and followed. Still, it kept up ourspirits to talk of what we would do. We were not otherwise ill-treated,and were amply supplied with dried buffalo meat. Sometimes the huntersbrought in a deer or a bear; but as there was always on such occasions agrand feast, the fresh meat did not last long.
At last, one morning the Indians turned out at daybreak, and immediatelybegan taking down the tents and packing up their goods. The coveringsfor the tents were divided and done up in bales, and then secured to thebacks of horses. The poor women were loaded with as much as they couldcarry, in addition to the younger children. The chief's squaws wereallowed to mount; but their animals were also loaded like the rest ofthe horses. The men carried only their arms, and spare buffalo robesstrapped on to their saddles. Mike and I were compelled to assist indoing up the bales, the squaws showing us how to perform the operation;sometimes scolding us, at other times laughing at what they consideredour clumsiness.
When all was done, we were left standing; so we concluded that it wasthe intention of the Indians to compel us to march on foot.
"Begorrah," exclaimed Mike, "I don't like this fun at all, at all! See,there are two mustangs without anything on their backs! Small blame tous if we just get astride them." And suiting the action to the word, heleaped on to one of the ponies, while I mounted the other. Whether theybelonged to any of the Indians, we could not tell, but there wereseveral spare animals besides.
Urging on our steeds, we joined the throng of warriors, who were alreadyforming at a little distance from our late camp. The chief laughed whenhe saw us, and exchanged remarks with some of his companions. Weconcluded that these were in our favour, for we were allowed to retainour steeds.
The signal was now given to advance, and the tribe moved forward in asouth-westerly direction. Though we were glad to be on horseback, yetour spirits sank when we found that we were getting further and furtherfrom home, and saw our chances of escape diminishing.
"No matter," cried Mike; "the longer we stay with these Indians, themore we shall know of their ways, and be the better able to desave them.We must appear to be perfectly continted and happy, and try to spaketheir language--though it gives me a pain in me jaws whenever I utterone of their long words."
"You are right, Mike; I will try to practise your philosophy," Ianswered.
We marched on all day, stopping only for a short time to take our scantymeals. We could proceed but slowly, on account of the women and loadedanimals; but the warriors scoured over the plain on both sides of ourline of march, either looking out for an enemy or in search of game.Mike and I, however, were kept with the main body. At night we encampedeither near a wood or by the side of a stream, where there were alwaystrees to afford us fuel for our fires. Thus we went on for severaldays.
The Indians were, we guessed, making for a region frequented by buffalo,which had not this year come so far east as usual. At last we reachedthe spot at which they considered it desirable to remain; there being afull stream from which water could be obtained, and plenty of wood toafford fuel for our fires. In every other direction, as far as we couldsee, the country was nearly level, with little or no timber of any sizegrowing on it. The women immediately set about their usual avocations.But as our meals were very scanty, it was evident that there was ascarcity of meat in the camp.
Early next morning a band of twenty men mounted their best horses to setout, as we concluded, in search of buffalo. Without asking leave, Mikeand I got on our steeds and joined them. They did not object to this;probably supposing that we should not attempt to make our escape so farfrom home. We each of us obtained a bow and a quiver full of arrows,besides a long spear. None of the tribe possessed firearms.
We rode on for some distance, the main body keeping together, whilescouts were sent forward to look out for buffalo. At last we reached abroad stream, and were proceeding along the bank, when my companionsbecame greatly interested; and looking out to the left, I saw the wholeplain covered with a dense mass of dark objects, which I at once guessedto be buffalo. It was evident that they were making for the river. TheIndians, urging on their horses, dashed forward to try to intercept theherd before they could cross it. It seemed to me,
however, that weshould be too late to do that.
I could see the scouts galloping along the flank of the herd nearest us,trying to find an opening among them into which they might penetrate;while every now and then they let fly one of their arrows into the neckof an animal. As to turning the herd, or preventing it from crossingthe stream, they might as well have attempted to stop the falls ofNiagara in their downward course. With a tramp which shook the earth,and terrific bellowings sounding far across the plain, onward rushed theseemingly maddened creatures, tossing their heads, throwing high theirtails, and turning up the earth in their course.
The river was reached before we could get up to them; and their leadersplunging in, they began to swim across, the animals in the rear drivingthose in front into the water. The former would have treated the latterin the same way had they reached the edge of a precipice, when all wouldhave gone over together. As it was, they proved themselves goodswimmers, quickly gaining the opposite bank, and rushing forward as atfirst.
Before we got within shot of them, the greater number had crossed; butthe hunters, urging on their well-trained steeds, rode boldly up,shooting their arrows within a few feet of the creatures. Three or fouronly fell; others seemed to take no notice of their wounds; and several,springing out of the herd, with heads lowered to the ground, plungedforward furiously at their assailants. The nimble horses wheeled asthey approached, and escaped the attack made on them; their riders neverfailing to discharge one or two arrows in return at the infuriatedbuffalo. Had we possessed firearms, many more would have been killed.
The Indians had no intention of giving up the pursuit. Where the herdhad crossed the river, the water was too deep to allow us to wade over.At a signal from their leader, however, the hunters turned their horses,and galloped back in the direction from whence we had come; soon wereached a ford, where we all crossed, though the water almost coveredthe backs of our short-legged ponies. The herd could still be seen inthe far distance, so we immediately galloped on to overtake it.
Though called buffalo, the animal I am speaking of is really the bison.It has a protuberant hunch on its shoulders, and the body is covered,especially towards the head, by long, fine, woolly hair, which makes theanimal appear much more bulky than it really is. That over the head,neck, and fore part of the body is long and shaggy, and forms a beardbeneath the lower jaw, descending to the knees in a tuft; while on thetop it rises in a dense mass nearly to the tops of the horns, and isstrongly curled and matted on the front. The tail is short, and has atuft at the end--the general colour of the hair being a uniform dun.The legs are especially slender, and appear to be out of all proportionto the body; indeed, it seems wonderful that they are able to bear it,and that the animals can at the same time exhibit the activity theyseemed possessed of.
In summer the buffalo finds an abundance of food by cropping the sweetgrass which springs up after the fires so frequent in one part or otherof the prairies. In winter, in the northern regions, it would starve,were it not possessed of a blunt nose, covered by tough skin, with whichit manages to dig into the snow and shovel it away, so as to get at theherbage below. In winter, too, the hair grows to a much greater lengththan in summer, when the hinder part is covered only by a very shortfine hair, smooth as velvet. Many thousands of these magnificentanimals congregate in herds, which roam from north to south over thewestern prairies. At a certain time of the year the bulls fightdesperately with each other, on which occasions their roaring is trulyterrific.
The hunters select, when they can, female buffalo, as their flesh is farsuperior in quality and tenderness to that of the males. The femalesare, however, far more active than the males, and can run three times asfast, so that swift horses are required to keep up with them. TheIndians complain of the destruction of the buffalo--forgetting thattheir own folly in killing the females is one of the chief causes of thediminution of their numbers.
Huge and unwieldy as is the buffalo, it dashes over the ground at asurprising rate, bounding with large and clumsy-looking strides acrossthe roughest country, plunging down the broken sides of ravines, andtrying the mettle of horses and the courage of riders in pursuit of it.
To the Indians of the prairies the buffalo is of the greatest possiblevalue, for they depend on these animals for their food, tents, clothing,and numerous other articles. They dress the skins with the hair on, andthese serve as cloaks or coverings at night. The horns are convertedinto powder-flasks; the hides, when tanned, serve to cover their tents;and the wool makes a coarse cloth. When the flesh is eaten fresh, it isconsidered superior in tenderness and flavour to that of the domesticox; the hump especially being celebrated for its delicacy. It is alsocut into strips and dried in the sun; or it is pounded up with the fatand converted into pemmican. The hides are used also for leggings,saddles, or, when cut into strips, form halters. With the sinews,strings are made for their bows. From the bones they manufacture avariety of tools--of the smaller ones making needles, and using thefiner sinews as threads. From the ribs, strengthened by some of thestronger sinews, are manufactured the bows which they use sodexterously. The bladder of the animal is used as a bottle; and often,when the Indian is crossing the prairie where no water is to be found,he is saved from perishing of thirst by killing a buffalo and extractingthe water which is found in its inside.
To resume: In spite of the rate at which the buffalo were going, we soonovertook them on our swift mustangs; and now began the most excitingpart of our day's sport. The leading portion of the herd kept closetogether; but in the rear the animals were separated--some laggingbehind, others scattering on either side. The Indians, with their bowsdrawn or their spears couched in their hands, dashed in among them,shooting right and left, or plunging their weapons into the shoulders ofthe brutes--so dexterously aiming the blows, that many of their victimsfell pierced to the heart.
Mike and I, though good horsemen, were but little accustomed to theIndian weapons; and although we did our best, many of the buffalo atwhich we rode either escaped being wounded, or galloped off with ourarrows sticking in their bodies. We each of us, however, managed tokill an animal, and were galloping on, closely following one of theprincipal hunters, when a huge bull, after which the Indian was riding,turned suddenly round, and with its head to the ground rushed madly athim. His horse for a moment stood stock-still, watching the buffalo,while the Indian shot his arrow. It struck the animal on the neck, butfailed to kill it. I expected that the next moment I should see bothhorse and rider rolling on the ground; but the well-trained steed sprangnimbly on one side, and the now infuriated buffalo dashed towards Mikeand me. I shot my last arrow, but it glanced off the skull of thecreature, which now came towards me, looking the picture of savageness.
I endeavoured to make my steed spring on one side, but barely in time toescape the tremendous battering-ram--for to nothing else can I liken thebuffalo's head. The creature went rushing on till it was met by twoIndians, one of whom shot his arrow, while the other struck his spear soexactly in the buffalo's breast that the huge creature immediately fellover dead.
Such was the beginning of our day's hunt. I was completely carried awayby the excitement of the chase, and was as eager to kill buffalo as anyIndian amongst them. As I had exhausted all my arrows, I had now onlymy spear to trust to. Had I been dependent on my own skill, I shouldhave been quickly overthrown, and probably gored to death; but mywell-trained mustang knew far more about the matter than I did, so I lethim get out of the way of any of the animals which attacked me as hethought best.
I had singled out a young bull which turned off from the herd, and Ifollowed it up, expecting to be able to get ahead of it, so that I mightpoint my spear full at its breast in the way I had seen several of theIndians do, knowing that my mustang would spring on one side should itbe necessary. Suddenly the bull stopped; then turning round and seeingme before it, came rushing towards me. I endeavoured to run my spearinto its breast, and then make my steed spring out of the way. I thrustmy
spear with all my force; but before I could let go my grasp it waswhisked out of my hand, after which my horse sprang clear of the animalwith a bound which very nearly threw me from the saddle, and hadgalloped some distance away before I could stop it.
What a glorious opportunity this would be for escaping! I thought tomyself. Had Mike been near me, I should have proposed doing so. I waslooking round, to try and ascertain where he was, when down came mysteed--having stepped into the hole of a prairie dog, numbers of whichhoneycombed the ground around--and I was thrown right over his head. AsI lay half-stunned, I saw to my horror the whole herd of buffalo tearingalong towards me, ploughing up the turf with their hoofs, and bellowingloudly. I fully expected to be trampled to death before many minuteshad passed, or to be tossed high in the air over their shaggy backs. Myhorse, looking up, saw his danger, and seemed to understand the state ofaffairs as well as I did. He made desperate struggles to rise; and Iendeavoured to get on my feet and seize the reins, hoping to mountbefore the herd was upon me. I might thus gallop off, and keep ahead ofthem till I could find an opportunity of turning on one side.
I rose, but fell again before I could reach the reins which hung over mysteed's neck. Already I could almost see the eyes of the infuriatedbeasts; but I was not going to give up my life if I could help it. Itherefore made another desperate effort, and reaching the rein, pattedthe animal's nose, turning his eyes away from the approaching foe; thenin an instant--I scarcely know how I did it--I was on his back.
I was fully aware that the same accident which had brought me to theground might again occur; but of that I must run the risk. Before,however, my horse could spring forward, the herd was close upon us.Digging my heels into his flanks, I urged him on, shrieking at the topof my voice. The sound of the tramping hoofs behind him, the bellowingof the bulls, and the expectation every instant of being probed by theirhorns, made him strain every muscle to keep ahead of them. His speedwas far greater than theirs, and he soon distanced them; but still, thedanger of again falling was imminent, for as we flew along I could seein every direction the burrows of those abominable little prairie dogs,though the inhabitants had taken good care to ensconce themselves fardown out of the way of the hoofs of the buffalo. Looking over myshoulder, I saw that by turning to the right I might soon get clear ofthe herd, which did not extend far on that side. I accordingly pulledthe right rein, so as to ride almost across the course the herd wastaking; and observed, as I did so, a number of the Indians gallopingalong by the side of the buffalo, and shooting their arrows.
I was congratulating myself on the prospect of escaping, when down camemy steed once more; and as I was as unprepared for the accident asbefore, I was thrown over his head, and more severely injured than atfirst. Still, though partly stunned, I could see what was taking place.I fancied that I was, at all events, sufficiently to the right of theherd to escape being trampled to death, when just then a huge bull, whomust have had his eye upon me, wheeled from his companions, and, puttinghis head to the ground, made, as I thought, towards me. To escape bymounting my horse was now out of the question, for I had been thrown toofar to seize the reins, and the poor animal still lay struggling to gethis feet out of the hole. Any other than a prairie horse would havebroken his legs, or sprained himself irretrievably. Just when Iexpected to be trampled to death or gored by the bull's horns, I sawthat the savage creature was making towards my horse instead of me; butas it reached the mustang, the latter drew his feet out of the hole, andthrowing up his heels at the bull's nose, scampered off, followed by hisenemy, while the rest of the herd swept by like a torrent, not ten yardsfrom where I lay. Some stragglers, however, caught sight of me; andanother big bull was rushing on to give me a taste of his horns andhoofs, when a loud "Whallop-ahoo-aboo! Erin go bragh!" sounded in myears.
"Don't be afraid, Masther Roger, me darlint!" shouted Mike, for it washe who had uttered the cry; and dashing forward with spear in rest, hestruck the bull behind the shoulder with such force that his weapon musthave pierced the animal's heart. It swerved on one side, therebyenabling Mike to avoid trampling on me, and the next moment fell overperfectly dead.
A number of Indians passing at the moment, applauded Mike's achievement.I managed at the same time to get on my feet, and pointed to my horse.
"Ay, to be sure; I'll be afther him," cried Mike, "as soon as I can gitme shtick out of this baste's carcass."
He tugged and tugged till he liberated his spear, then galloped off inthe direction my horse had taken, leaving me by the dead bull.
I had no longer any fear of being knocked over by the buffalo, as all,except a few laggards, had passed by, and were further away to the left.I could just see Mike attacking with his spear the animal which hadpursued my horse; but a faintness again came over me, and I was obligedto sit down on the ground. I had no fear of being deserted, as I wassure that the Indians would come to look after the animals they hadkilled; and in a few minutes Mike returned, leading my horse, whoappeared none the worse for his falls or his encounter with the buffalo.
We had by this time reached a part of the country where woods and hillscould be seen rising here and there above the plain. The rearmost ofthe buffalo had become separated, and many of the Indians, havingexhausted their arrows, were now attacking them with their spears; twohunters generally singling out one animal, and riding alongside it tillthey had wounded it to death. As far as I could see, on either side,the country exhibited an animated scene,--the buffalo scampering alongin every direction, with Indians riding after them, their robes wildlyflying in the air, while they flourished their spears above their heads.On the ground over which we had come could be distinguished numerousdark spots,--the bodies of the buffalo we had slain. Indeed, ourcomparatively small party had, I afterwards found, killed upwards of twohundred animals; which will give some idea of the numbers annuallyslaughtered by the Indians.
At length they gave over the chase, and commenced the operation ofskinning their victims, leaving most of the carcasses a prey to thewolves. The tongues and humps, however, were generally secured, as wellas the flesh of the cows, which is, as I have said, far superior intenderness to that of the bulls.
The horses loaded with skins and meat, we returned at night to the camp;and as our captors had now an abundance of provisions, they were in anunusually good-humour.
"Sure, thin, but this wouldn't be a bad opportunity for us to git awayfrom these rid gintlemen," observed Mike, as we watched them feasting onthe produce of the day's hunt--stuffing such huge quantities of fleshinto their insides, that it seemed impossible, were they long tocontinue the operation, that they would be able to move.