Fayetteville observer. [volume] (Fayetteville, Tenn.) 1850-1966, 1856-12-11
THRILLING ADVENTURE.

The fist Of June, lS49! seve
years ago! How stranger than Fl,
ton 1t seems that on this sevent
anniversary Of that evemful day, a
Ter traversing all the vicissitudes Z
experience, after boxing the CON
pass oi hfe's stormy sea, and sbak
ing bands with every extremity o
fortune, should be seated at las
IN this quiet little saactum: the hum
oil that mighty city, which was ther
tlle goal of all our hopes, arount
me; the wild freedom of the illim
liable prairies exchanged for lhs
Confines of dingy office; my snort
ing charger discarded for this old
arm chair; the badge of the pioneer
laid aside for more peaceful wea.
pom, this 'grey-goose quill"
II was on this day seven years
ago. Eighty-five Of us, weary
wanderers over the trackIess prai.
rles, were day after day, and month
alter month, toiling on to the land
OF gold, whose lofty sierras and sum.
mer plains have since gathered to
their eternal embrace so many
members of that gallant youthful
band. Ii was Sunday in the wilder.
ness, The wagons all "corrsIeG" on
the banks of The "Little Blue" the
toi[woru mules scattered around,
lJoyiuliy cropping The grass under
the watchiul vigilance Of The guard.
Some of the. party were bathing 10
the clear stream, some cooking,
mending clothes, washing, Iounging,
or smoking, and all enjoying to the
fall glorious sunshine day OF rest
and Incidence, when some evil ge-
Mus possessed me with desire 10
be the first Of the party to slay the
long expected "buffalo," an animal
we had not yet encountered, but
which now had begun to be the
constant theme of conversation and
conjecture. Several Of the boys
were hunting turkeys in the mar.
gin of the timber, which skirted on
the river, so that when / saddled
up my steec, and, with rifle at my
saddle-bow, started out 10 the
Northwafd, the few who observed
my departure exchanged sly winks
at my probable disappointment, but
never dreamed of the thrilling ad-
venture that ! was SO rashly rush
ing into.
Although we knew that we were
about the confines of the Pawnee
Territories, had indeed been warn
ed by convoy Of trappers, whom
we had met but few days pre-
vious, returning from their distant
wintering ground jn the mountains,
that war pSfties were out, yet, con-
fident in our numbers, aud the en-
tire inability of our unpracliced
eyes to detect any trace of them,
we had attributed the well:meant
warning of the old monntaineers
rather TO spirit of news.monger.
ing than anything else, and rather
despised these wild Bedouins of the
prairies of whom we heard so
much, ba; had as YET failed TO see.
Far sN ay over the ulduf;ssshg
and velsal bosom of the .rackless
prairies, | rode gently, on the qui
Uive for any Indications Of the OBJ
ject of my desire, bat though l
scanned the horizon eagerly as l
proceeded, not living thing met
my eyes but few antelopes, whose
wary caution and quick perception
rendered them impossible OF an aP-
proach on the open prairies.
As far as the vision could reach,
nought but monstrously undula.
ting surface Of gently swelling and
naked hills, covered only BY the
buffalo grass and flowers Of every
hue, extended in every direction to-
wards the far horizon, when the
blue sky of summer kissed the dis
iant bills glowing in the fresh yer-
d,re Of the advancing season.
Struck with the yoice'ess solitude
of this nntrodden dessert, / rode
slowly along, g,lisilessly musing on the
strange vicissiludes which so sud-.
denly translated me from college
halls TO these wild scenes, and had
almost imperceptibly placed some
seven Or eight miles between me
and the camp. when, far in the dis.
tance, directly in front Of me, ! dis
cerned a column Of dust, which, as
| supposed, betokened the long de-
sired buffalo. AWAY went romance