The Belmont chronicle, and farmers, mechanics and manufacturers advocate. [volume] (St. Clairsville, Ohio) 1848-1855, 1853-03-11


on the other side, we judged that the her
were all .a-foot and rolling off towards tn
prairies. III .. ~.
We were mistaken; for just as we reine
in our horses on the edge of the belt o
brushwood, which we found to be impossible
a quick cry Of alarm from one Of our party
called our attention towards the river banl
not three hundred yards distant, and there
stretching from the wood to the base of thu
ridge, was a solid wall Of curly pates, vas
humps and brawny shoulders of at least tive
thousand animals which had been concealed
by the bank, SO that we had not seen them
from the ridge. .....'- ......
On they camo-that avalanche ofmonsters
with smoking nostrils, cleaning eyeballs
and their short, sutmpy horns forming serriet
hedge more formidable than ever did the
bayo nets of even Napoleons favorites-the
invincible "Od Guard"
"Back back, to the ridge before they come
upon us." yelled two or three Of our number;
and, very calmly, Old Judah commenced to re.
Ply. ........r
"Back to the ridge, eh! Fools! which OF
you has ever seen horse which has been
ridden fifteen miles, keep pace with buffalo
bull! II is full three hundred rods from here
to the foot of the hill, while those fellows are
less than ais many yards from us. You sec
we must
ella by the heart Of John Jacob Astor
we are in atight place now, lads" he yelled
out, as he was interrupted by the dull, lazy
whiz Of at least dozen rifle bullets, some OF
which came most socially near our persons
as myself judged from sharp tap on my
metal canteen slug under my left arm and a
rather clean cut aperture through the lapel
of my hunting frock,
"Now ye, sec, lads; we must work our
horses into this thicket if we can, so far that
none of them rollin devils will get afoul of u.s.
and when they are all past, we must steer for
the river, for yon fellers are Crows, and we
had better take our chance among the horns
and hoofs of these critters, than to get within
range of them red nigers rifles. Come come,
lads! In with yep
But the old hunters advice had occupied
several moments of our time that should
have been devoted to digging into the brambles
anu GIG SluSlC uOISC Ultdh III
the dense wall of briars twigs and foliage the
bufaloes, with plunge, a roar and crash,
were upon us.
In moment we were separated, and one
here, another there, in among hedge of
horns, and amida a continuous roar of buffalo
bull thunder, we were borne on, helpless and
impotent in the cehtre of the vast herd, while
at short intervals, could hear the sharp
ringing report of the Crow rifles, followed by
the whistle of their bullets; but as if by a
very miracle for full twenty minutes, during
which time the herd was confined between
the belt of brush-wood and the ridge, we
were hurried along with them, without any
one of our number receiving the slightest
injury either from the buffaloes or our friends,
the Crows.
At last when the head of the belt of timber
was gained and the herd began to spread out
and sweep away to the westward, by some
singular chance the old hunter and myself
were flung together, and at the same time, out
clear of the buffalo stream on the left. i.
For single instant we reined iE our
horses, and as we did so, pointed to the
Indians-some fifty in all, I should think
who had ridden along the summit of the ridge,
keeping just about the same distance from us
that they had been at first.
"Yes, see the red .heives," said my COM
panion very calmly, as his eye followed the
direction of my finger. 81 see 'em, Leftenant,
and can tell We that they all carry the Gin
cinnati rife. Too light to kill hard sheled
old feler like me this distance. But our boys
are all off west with the buffaloes; and we
are left here to play at hop and dodge with
these theivin' Crows.
"Well; we must back towards the river,
and ford it, somewhere; for you see them
skunks are divding-about forty of 'em are
coming down to follow the buffaloes and oul
fellers, and them other sneaks--ten of 'em-
will hang round us till they wing us; unes:
we play Indian better than they can. Come
Leltenant," and the next breath we were
dashing away towards the river, while the ten
Crows were gradually closing,in with US at
they urged on their horses towards tht
river.
We were within perhaps two hundred
yards ofthe bank, when the heaps of at leas
tnlTty lHulduS were tiTusL up uuoNc lh'
feathery scarf of fern that grew along th'
very edge Of the bank.
"This won't do, Leftenant," said the oil
hunter, apparently not in the least moved a
far as could discover. 'It won't do sir" ant
he caught my eft hand bride rein, whirlinl
my horse's head away from the ralong will
his own; and as both animals dashed off owe
the ground just traversed, Old Judah wen
on
"It's no use Leftenant, to try for the rive
now. There's Eve hundred of the thievin,
Crows on the other side; and our only chanc
is now to distance them devils on the hill
there, and get far enough ahead of'em to eros
the ridge again and pull out for the steamer
And now, Lcftenant, don't worry down you
animal in the start, nor above every thing else
don'tye waste single bullet. We shal
want 'em, every one before we ever &c
clear"
At the moment that we turned to retrac
our steps, the savages whose heads we ha
only seen above the fern, now rose fully int
view, horses and all as they rushed up tn
bank; and in less than thirty seconds, fifty
1