The Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1837-1867, 1845-05-05
Vol. 5. Whole No. 4O5. No. Al.


dvintes Of his national mythology procured IT thiA
remarkable honor This the poor fellows last
act of pety At that instant, the white poured
upen the seepers n deadly fire, and bursting in with
n fierce shout, beat down those who with axes
ard riAe-buts OF the eleven, all but two were kill
ed at the camp, or ut short distance from it One
Of these two bounded into the dark woods and escap
ed; the other was soon traced TO ghborng 'wind-
fall where no could follow him, among the de-
cayed trunks and roots and tangled branches. Tho
dogs Of the white men, however, penetrated in
to its depths, killed the wounded wretch, and drew
him out.
Thus was a deed achieved, of which the reverend
gentleman b. fore mentioned speaks 10 his dairy with
high praise, act Of eminent service TO God and
man. The actors themselves felt well satisfied Hav-
ing peeled the trophy from each head, they tossed
their carcasses into the bed of cold and sluggish rv-
uet that flowing from the clear springs in the heart
of some granite mountain gided nzly hard by, half
hid by fallen trees decayng logs and mosses,Ond the
abundant vegetation that sprang from the rich forest
soil. There they left them TO be nibbled by the mi
mute tout that dared in the pure icy waters; while
seated nround the rekindled fires, they the
meat which the Indians had left and refreshed them
selves with drnughs from their canteens, They ate
and drank with the spirits of a party of successful
wolf hunters; and when laid do wn, they slept the
sound sleep of toll.
But the morning brought reflection and regrets
They grumbIed their bad luck. One savage had
escaped. The most prominent fgNre in their group
old man, who sat on log, leaning lazy for
ward with his elbows his knees, while he extract
ed the rich marrow from thigh-bone of moose with
his jack knife little straw hat was stuck
aun,y side Of his grey brisy head ibis leath-
cry countenRnce expressed kind of reckless good
humor. which his present discomfort did not wholly
Danish; though you might that his features could
readily assume the expression of anger and fe-
rociry. lie venting his wrath and uneasiness
through his toothess jaws, in a succession of oaths
and injurious expressions, uttered by no means id a
surly but in reckless bousrul spirit, that
! survived his youth. This old rerrobat6 was eager
for gain; had keen relish for chase; and desir-
ous moreover, to exhibit his superiority TO his fellow
! spormen These motives combined to produce the
resolution he presently expressed, ont alone,
and not te0t until he had taken the scalp from the
head OF the remaining Indian. So, calling his dogs
and shoulderng his gun, he calmly marched away;
without word of leave taking either side; after
that cold manner which his countrymen seem to have
caught from their extirpated enemies, the aborgines
and which often hides warm a hea RI as ever bent
in the breast o: man Ills companions returned with
great glory The settlements, whittier we will not
follow; hut turn to pursue the old man on his VEN
turous quest.
For four days, the aunch huntsman tracked the
game northward through forests and over mountains
Whatever his fruits, fear was not one Of them.
Neither the howling or beasts, nor the deep solitude
of his situation nor any Of ferocious pursuit,
disturbed his With his dogs FOR seniinels
he slept quietly on bed OF spruce boughs, to the
music o: some stream, the straw Of his own
frontier cabin His hardened muscles were never
fagued, though no struggled from sunrise tn sunset
through tangled brushwood and sbscure ravnes; over
decaying logs, and the thousand pitfalls and mpedi-
ments that annoy the forest traveller His lay
always through the obscurhy and dampness of the
dense wood; except at times, when he would hear
the noise of stream below him, and emerged from
the Forest darkness into beautiful sun- vista Of
trees and glancing waters. 1T such times, he could
that, as he proceeded, the mountains grew wild.
and higher, and closed gradually around him.
Late afternoon when he had all day ioiIed stub
bornly on in twilight, and looking upward to
catch gimpses of the brgh sky through the lepves
he heard again the sound Of water and by the trans
parency in the screen of maple sapIings before him,
he knew the opening was near at hand In a mo-
ment he put aside the slender Doughs, and stepped
into the broad stony bed of the Saco, just where
il energies from the Notch ofthe White Mountains
II was a wild and beautiful scene The tumbng
waters, the long lines of birch trees, naples and
bepches that reached their branches over il;
The stiff pines that shot up into the air above them;
the great pile of granite crags that from the woods
brstng with frs three thou sand feet sheer upward;
all were tnged with the crimson OF approaching eve
ning all lay in the quiet ofthe Wilderness which the
ripple and murmdr Of the stream m de more impress
sive.
The old man did not trouble himself with the seem
cry. His feelings those of bitter vexation; for
he knew himself close upon his game, and here the
savage had taken the and thrown his dogs off
the scent He dashed into the wide and shallow
stream, and wading up to the middle, sent a dog on
either bank to search for the lost track The very
first angle he tdrned showed him his prey, wadng
naked and unarmed, for he had fled from the massa.
without his gun. The old hunter could not sup
r liz 4. a..