Altsheler, Joseph - [Great West 01] Read online

  "If the worst came to the worst, could we live up there on one of those slopes, a while r" he asked.

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  "Do you mean by that could we find game enough?" said Boyd.

  "Game and shelter both."

  "We could. Like as not the mountain deer are plen- tiful. And there's a kind of buffalo called the wood bison, even bigger than the regular buffalo of the plains, not often found south of Canada, but to be met with now and then in our country. We might run across one of them, and he'd supply meat enough to feed an army. Besides, there are bears and deer and smaller game. Oh, we'd make out, wouldn't we, Tom?"

  "We shorely would," replied the Little Giant, "but between you an* me an* the gate post, Jim, I think I see somethin' movin' on the slope acrost thar to the right. Young William, take your glasses an' study that spot whar the bushes are so thick."

  "I can just barely make out the figures of men among the bushes," announced Will, after a good look.

  "Then they're Indians," said Boyd with emphasis. "You wouldn't find white men lurking here in the un- dergrowth. It's a fresh band, hunters maybe, but dan- gerous just the same. We'd better push on for all we're worth."

  They urged forward the horses and mules, seeking cover in the deep forest along the slope, but without success, as a faint yell soon told them. At the sug- gestion of Boyd, they stopped and examined the ground. The way was steadily growing steeper and more difficult, and the warriors, who were on foot could make greater speed than the fugitives.

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  "Lend me your glasses a minute, young William," said the Little Giant.

  But he did not turn the lenses upon the Indians. In- stead, he looked upward.

  "Thar's a narrow pass not fur ahead," he said. "I think we'd better draw into it an' make a stand. The pass is deep, an* they can't assail us on either flank. It- will have to be a straightaway attack."

  'That's lucky, mighty lucky," said Boyd with heart- felt thankfulness. "Will, you push on with the ani- mals, and maybe if you look back you'll see tha t what I told you about Giant Tom's sharpshooting is true."

  Will hurried the horses and mules ahead, following a shallow dip that was the outlet of the deep pass they were seeking. Behind them he heard again the yells of the Indian warriors, hopeful now of an unexpected triumph. He saw their figures emerging from cover and he judged that they were at least twenty in num- ber. He saw also that the Little Giant had stopped and was looking at the pursuers with a speculative eye, while his repeating rifle lay easily in the hollow of his arm. Then he urged the animals on and presently he looked back a second time.

  He was just in time to see the breech of the rifle leap to the Little Giant's shoulder. "Leap" was the only word to describe it, his action was so swift and so little time did he waste in taking aim. It all passed in an instant, as he pulled the trigger, and the fore- most Indian far down the slope threw up his arms, falling backward without a cry. In another instant he pulled the trigger again and another Indian fell

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  beside the first. The whole band stopped, uttered a tremendous cry of rage, and then darted into the un- dergrowth for cover.

  "Two," said Boyd. "Didn't I tell you, Will, that he was a wonder with the rifle?"

  "I had to do it. I call you both to witness that I had to do it," said the Little Giant in a melancholy voice. "I'm a hunter o' gold an* not properly a killer o' men, even o' savage men. An* yet I find no gold, but I do kill. Sometimes I'm sorry that I happened to be born jest a natcherly good shot. I reckon we'd better whoop up our speed ez much ez we kin now, 'cause after that lesson they'll hang back a while afore follerin'."

  "That's good generalship," said Boyd.

  Will was already urging forward the animals, which, frightened by the shots, were making speed of their own accord toward the pass. The hunter and the Little Giant followed at a more leisurely gait, with their rifles ready to beat off pursuit. Some shots were fired from the bushes, but they fell short, and the two laughed in disdain.

  "They'll have to do a lot better than that, won't they, Giant?" said the hunter.

  "A powerful sight better, but they'll hope to slip up on us in the dark. It hurts my feelin's to hev to shoot any more of 'em, or to shoot anybody, but I'm af card I'll hev to do it, Jim Boyd, afore we git through with this here piece o' business."

  "In that case, Giant, just let your feelings go and shoot your best."

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  Will still led on, and, though his heart beat as hard as ever, it was more from the exertion of climbing than from apprehension. He had seen the two wonderful shots of the Little Giant, he knew what a wonderful marksman Boyd was also, and he felt since they were within the shelter of the pass, their three rifles might keep off any number of Sioux.

  The shallow gully up which they were travelling now narrowed rapidly, and soon they were deep in the looming shadow of the pass, which seemed to end blindly farther on. But for the present it was a Heaven-sent refuge. At one point, where it widened somewhat, the horses and mules could stand, and there was even a little grass for them. A rill of water from the high rocks was a protection against what they had to fear most of all, thirst, and the three human beings in turn drank freely from it, letting the animals follow.

  Boyd deftly tethered the horses and mules to bushes that grew at the foot of the cliff in the wide space, and then he joined the other two, who, lying almost flat, were watching at the entrance to the pass. The rocks there also gave them fine protection, and they felt they had reached a fort which would test all the ingenuity, patience and courage of the Sioux.

  Will drew back behind a stony upthrust, sat up and used his glasses, searching everywhere among the rocks and bushes down the pass.

  "What do you see, Young William?" asked the Little Giant.

  "Nothing yet, Tom, except the bushes, the stones and the slopes of the mountains far across the valley."

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  **«

  "Nor you won't see nothin' fur some time. Took to cover, they hev. An* I don't blame 'em, either. We wouldn't be anxious ourselves to walk up against the mouths o' rifles that don't miss, an* Indians, bein' smart people, don't risk their lives when thar's nothin' to be gained."

  "Then how are they going to get at us ?"

  "Not straight-away, but by means o' tricks."

  "What tricks?"

  "I don't know. Ef they wuz so plain ez all that they wouldn't be tricks. We'll hev to be patient."

  All three of them drew back into the mouth of the pass, where they found abundant shelter behind the stony outcrops, while the Sioux, who lay hidden in the undergrowth farther down the slope, would be com- pelled to advance over open ground, if they made a rush. Young Clarke's confidence grew. That won- derful sharpshooting feat of the Little Giant was still in his mind. In such a position and with such marks- men as Boyd and Bent, they could not be overwhelmed.

  "Take them glasses o' yourn, young William," said the Little Giant, "an* see ef you can pick out any o' the Sioux down the slope."

  Will was able to trace three or four warriors lying down among the short cedars, apparently waiting with illimitable patience for any good idea that might sug- gest itself. The others, though out of sight, were certainly near and he was wondering what plan might occur to them.

  "Do you think it likely that they know the pass ?" he asked Boyd.

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  "Hardly," replied the hunter. "They are mountain Sioux, but on the whole they prefer the plains."

  "Maybe they think then that they can wait, or at least hold us until we are overcome by thirst!"

  "No, the little stream of water breaks a way down the slope somewhere, and when they find it they'll know that it comes from the pass. I think they'll at- tack, but just how and when is more'n I can say. Now, Will, will you go back where the a
nimals are and cook us a good supper, including coffee? When you're besieged it's best to keep yourself well fed and strong. I saw plenty of dead wood there, tumbled from the cliffs above."

  Young Clarke, knowing that he was not needed now at the mouth of the pass, was more than glad to under- take the task, since waiting was hard work.

  He found the horses and mules lying down, and they regarded him with large, contemplative eyes as he lighted the fire and began to cook supper. The animals were on the best of terms, constituting a happy family, and the eyes with which they regarded Will seemed to him to be the eyes of wisdom.

  "Shall we get safely out of this?" he asked, ad- dressing himself to the animal circle.

  Either it was fact, or his imagination was uncom- monly lively, as he saw six large heads nod slowly and with dignity, but with emphasis.

  "All of us?"

  The six heads again moved slowly and with dignity.

  "And with you, our faithful four-footed friends, and with the packs that are so needful to us?"

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  The six heads nodded a little faster, but with the same dignity. Will was just putting the coffee on to, boil when he asked the last question and received the last answer, and he stopped for a moment to stare at the six animals, which were still regarding him with their large, contemplative eyes. Could he refuse to believe what he thought he saw? If fancy were not fact it often became fact a little later. Those were certainly honest beasts and he knew by experience, that they were truthful, too, because he had never yet caught them in a lie. Animals did not know how to lie, wherein they were different from human beings, and while human beings were not prophets, at least in modern times, animals, for all he knew, might be, and he certainly intended to believe that the six, for the present, enjoyed the prophetic afflatus.

  "I accept the omens as you give them," he said aloud. "From this moment I dismiss from my mind all doubt concerning the present affair."

  Then he found himself believing his own words. The omens continued to be favorable. The coffee boiled with uncommon readiness and the strips of venison that he fried over the coals gave forth an aroma of unparalleled richness. Filling two large tin cups with the brown fluid he carried them to the watchers at the mouth of the pass, who drained them, each at a single draught.

  "Best you ever made, Will," said Boyd.

  "Ez good ez anybody ever made, young William," said the Little Giant.

  "Now I'll bring you strips of venison and crackers,"- 103

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  said Will, much pleased, "and after you've eaten them you can have another cup of coffee apiece."

  His little task, his success at it, and the praise of his comrades cheered him wonderfully. When he had taken- them the second cups of coffee and had also served himself, he put out the coals, picked up his rifle and rejoined the others. The first faint breath of the twilight was appearing over the mountains. The great ridges and peaks* were growing dim and afar the wind of night was moaning.

  "It'll be dark soon," said the Little Giant, "an* then we'll hev to watch with all our eyes an' all our ears. Onless the Sioux attack under kiver o' the night they won't attack at all."

  "They'll come. Don't you worry about that, Tom," said Boyd. "The Sioux are as brave fighters as any that tread the earth, and they want our scalps bad, particularly yours. If I was an Indian and loved scalps as they do, I'd never rest until I got yours. The hair is so thick and it stands up so much, I'd give it a place of honor in my tepee, and whenever my warrior friends came in for a sociable evening's talk I'd tell 'em how I defeated you in battle and took your scalp, which is the king scalp."

  "It's a comply-ment you make me to call my scalp the king scalp, but no Indian will ever take it. Do you see something stirring down thar 'mong the little cedars? Young William, them glasses o' yourn a minute or two."

  He made a careful study with the glasses, and, when he handed them back, he announced:

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  "They're movin' 'mong the cedars. I made out at least a half dozen thar. Ez soon ez it's good an* dark they're goin' to try to creep up on us. Well, let 'em. We kin see pretty nigh ez good in the dark ez in the light, can't we, Jim Boyd?"

  "I reckon we can see good enough, Giant, to draw a bead on anything that comes creeping, creeping after our hair."

  Again Will felt pride that he was associated with two such formidable champions of the wild, but he did not let pride keep him from selecting a good high stony outcrop behind which he lay with his rifle ready and his revolver loose in his belt. Now and then, however, he held his rifle in only one hand and used the glasses so valuable to him, and which he was beginning to prize so highly.

  Much time passed, however, and it passed slowly. Young Clarke realized that the other name for the Sioux was patience, but it was hard on his nerves, nevertheless. He wanted to talk, he longed to ask questions of the two borderers, but his will kept him from doing so. He was resolved not to appear nerv- ous or garrulous at such a time.

  The night deepened. The twilight had passed long since. Many of the stars did not come out and heavy waves of dusk rolled up the valley. The slopes of the opposite mountain became invisible, nor did Will see the dwarf cedars in which his glasses told him a por- tion of the Sioux band had lain hidden.

  The time was so long that his muscles felt stiff and sore, and he stretched arms and legs vigorously to re-

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  store the circulation. Moreover the elevation was so great that it was growing quite cold in the pass, and he became eager for the warriors to attack if they were going to attack at all. But he remembered the saying that patience was only another name for Sioux and steeled his heart to endure.

  The three were lying close together, all behind rocky upthrusts, and after a space that seemed a thousand years or so to Will the Little Giant edged toward him and whispered :

  "Young William, you wouldn't mind lendin' me them glasses o' yourn once more?"

  "As often as you like, Giant."

  "Hand 'em over, then. Even ef it's night they've got a way o' cuttin' through the dark, an' I feel it's 'bout time now fur the Sioux to be comin'. They like to jump on an unsuspectin' foe 'bout midnight."

  He took an unusually long look and handed the glasses back to Will. Then he whispered to both the lad and the hunter :

  "I could make 'em out snakin' theirselves up the pass nigh flat on the rock."

  "They hope to get so near in the dark that they can spring up and rush us."

  "I reckon that's jest 'bout thar game, but them glasses o' young William's hev done give them away already. The Sioux hev fixed everythin' mighty care- ful, an' jest one thing that chance hez give us, young William's glasses, is goin' to upset 'em. Take a look, Jim."

  "I can see 'em, so many dark spots moving, always 106

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  moving up the pass and making no noise at all. Now, Will, you look, and after that we'll make ready with the rifles."

  Will through the glasses saw them quite plainly now, more than a score of dark figures, advancing slowly but quite steadily. He threw the glasses over his shoulder and took up his rifle with both hands.

  "Not yet, young William," said the Little Giant. "We don't want to waste any bullets, and so we'll wait until Jim gives the word. Ev'ry army needs a leader. Thar ain't but three in this army, but it hez to hev a leader jest the same and Jim Boyd is the man."

  Will waited motionless, but he could not keep his heart from beating hard, as the Sioux, ruthless and bold, came forward silently to the attack. He did not have the infinite wilderness experience of the older two which had hardened them to every form of danger, and his imagination was alive and leaping. The dusky forms which he could now faintly see with the naked eye were increased by fancy threefold and four, and his eager finger slipped to the trigger of his rifle. He was sure they ought to fire now. The Sioux were cer- tainly near enou
gh! If they came any closer before meeting the bullets of the defense they would have a good chance to spring , up and make a victorious rush. But the word to fire did not come. He glanced at their leader, and Boyd was still calmly watching.

  The three lay very close together, and Will heard the hunter whisper to the Little Giant:

  "How much nearer do you think I ought to let 'em come, Tom?"

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  " 'Bout ten feet more, I reckon, Jim. Then though it's night, thar would be no chance fur a feller to miss, onless he shet his eyes, an* we want all our bullets to hit. Indians, even the bravest, don't like to rush rifle- men that are ez good ez a batt'ry. Ef we strike 'em mighty hard the first time they'll fall back on tricks an' waitin'."

  "Good sound reasoning, Tom. You hear, Will. Be sure you don't miss."

  "1 won't," replied the lad. Nevertheless those ten minutes, every one of them, had a way of spinning themselves out in such an extraordinary manner that his nerves began to jump again, and it required a great effort of the will to keep them quiet. The black shadows were approaching. They had passed over a stretch of rough ground that he had marked four or five minutes before, and the outlines of the figures were growing more distinct. He chose one on the extreme right for his aim. He could not yet see his features, of course, but he was quite certain that they were ugly and that the man was a warrior wicked beyond belief. Before he could fire upon anyone from ambush it was necessary for him to believe the man at whom he aimed to be utterly depraved, and the situa- tion created at once such a belief in his mind.