Daily Ohio statesman. [volume] (Columbus, Ohio) 1855-1870, 1868-10-30
The Timely Warming, or, n Fight
.IsH fa for Life.
BY !. HARVEY SMITH.


There were six of US sitting around
the camp fire. 81
We were sitting in an attitude of at
tention, for our guide, Jake Carver, was
about to tell us story.
He took an extra chew of "nigger
head" and commenced:
ss"It wur about six years ago that this
ere adventure happened to me. wur a
toting young feller across the perairy
to Browns Hole (Fort David Crockett
is its right name)-in course you all
know where that is. Wall, we run
about six miles, maybe more, from the
Hole, and it wur pretty dark, so | con-
cluded it wur best to stay where we wur
till mornin'. knew there wur an old
shanty near by that would shelter me;
not that 1 cared, you understand, about
sleeping in the open air, but on account
of Hamlin; that wur the young feller as
I told you about. Wall, we soon found
the shanty and wur nicely housed in it
in no time. / soon had fire blazing,
not to cook anything. but just for the
comfort of it. Wall, I lit my pipe. but
the youngster wouldn't smoke, 'kause he
said tobacco was pison, though it never
poisoned me, and I've been smokin' it
ever since l wur little shaver; but
that's got nothin' to do with my story.
We sot there fur long while saying
nothin', when suddenly Hamlin says:
"'Jake, wonder whether there's emmy
Injins around p
G"ssNo, says !, latin, in course not;
what would emmy Injins be doing around
here, unless they wur friendly ones 2 so
you needn't be afraid He hewed up
at this.
81 am not afraid he said, kinder
mad like, but don't feel easy to night,
somehow. / feel as if something were
going to happen
'"Wall, to tell the truth, I felt just the
same, though l didn't say so, for fear of
making him worse. Ennyhow, I deter
mined to stay awake, that night, if ].
had to prop my eyelids open with my
fingers. L felt for my rife, and found
that the priming wur all right. AS lay
listening, heard sound as of some-
body outside, walking around the house.
/ set up and waited. Putty soon the
door was pushed open, fur we didn't
have anything to fasten it with, and a
girl stepped into the room. was set
tin in the corner in the shade, but the
fire shone right in her face, and / knew
she was a white girl
"She wur dressed like an Injin squaw,
an had a rife in her hand. She look
ed all around the room and then saw me,
for she came right up to me and touched
me. eT r.
".Get up she said, the Indians are
all around you !. ~ =
You'd better believe, boys, that I
didn't let time fly much before I awaken
ed Hamlin and told him. r.rT
".Where are they?' he shouted; cant
we escape?'
".Hush.' said the girl, in a whisper;
.they are not more than a hundred yards
off,. and they will hear you. Your lives
depend on your silence
".How many are there? asked.
".Seven,' answered the girl. eff you
can keep them off for an hour, you will
be safe.
".How?' I asked; but she had gone,
and we then commenced to work at our
defenses. First 1 took look out of a
crack in the logs, and saw the Injins
creeping up toward the hut. Isaid we
went to work at our defenses; but, in
fact, the only defenses we had wur our
rifles and knives, and one pistol that
Hamlin had. We cudn't fasten the door,
so it all depended on keeping them at
bay, and not let them get near the door,
We'll, they cum nearer and nearer, till
thew wern't more nor fifty feet from us,
when we let drive, an two Injins were
sbot. The other five dropped as quick
as a fash. We reloaded, and arter
while redskin popped up, an ! drop
ned him, and just then Hamlin fred at
another. The Injins knew how many
there were now of us, an four OF them
the other two wur dead, an one of
these four wur wounded in the head
rose to their feet am rushed toward us.
aAs they cum in hedoor l struck the
first with the butt of my rife, but the
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