The Opelousas journal. [volume] (Opelousas, La.) 1868-1878, 1868-05-16

human life, echoing to the tread or onSy
feet, rattling with the whirl of machinery
and rush of wheels, aud cleaning with
the thousand anG one evidences OF a
positive, enpr setic, civilized life, was
then vast forests and unbroken prairies.
But by and by the hum of the coming
army was heard. Civilization, with its
face to the setting sun, was urging an
advance along the whole line. The AK
rs cf the pioneers of its great army
mingled their echoes with the ring Of
the hunters rifles. Scythes sang songs
of haying time in the rich grasses OF the
vast prairirs, where for centuries before
only the whir Of grous--wings had shak-
| en- the tall 'bIue joint" Cleaning coult-
ers cut through the fbrous cuticIe OF the
prairie, and broad mould boards turned
up the dark rich sod to the dayli. ht.
Children prattIed wher' wolves had
howled, the OK and the horse fed where
the bison had grazed barn fowls hunted
worms tor their young among the soft
ened earth heaps, where marmo's had
,, made their homes. Thus Mas the desert
made to blossom like there and forests
were converted into fields Of waving
grain.
AS the country grew more and more
thickly settled, old Walter Brown BE-
came uneasy. His wife had borne
him daughter, the third or fourth year
of their residence at the head waters of
the St. Croix, whom he called Leonora.
She was good girl, and the idol Of her
father. He purchased rifle for her
when she was but twelve years old, and
took the utmost pains i'll teaching her
the use of il. She was brave aud steady
of nerve, and very 500: acquired won
derful skill a. marksman, and the
number of prairie chickens, patridges,
wild water fowls, and other small game
she mana ged to shoot esch day, was
really large. Occasionally she would
shoot a deer, and one eventtul morning,
by lucky shot through the eye into
the brain, she killed bear
Whcn sh c NE home with the news,
her ia her could scarcely credit her. Bat
knowing her perfectly truthful nature,
he danced about the house for joy, and,
srizing the sturdy little maid, he mount
ed her upon his shoulders, and insisted
upon carrying her all the way to the
spot where the dead bluin lay
Thicker and thicker flowed the tide
of emigration into Minnesota and Wis
consin, following the navigab,e rivers AS
a matter Of course, and more and more
uneasy and crowded felt Walter
Brown. AT length his wife died. Leo
nora was then sixteen, and engaged to
be married to a handsome Dung trapper,
by the name of Watson, WHO had Joined
her father in business, coming up from
Wabashaw, retreating from thronGing
civilization, then clustering in around
the Lake Pepin country.
The death of the mother made in ne
cesSary to postpone the wedding, and in
the interim old Walter decided to move
into Northwest Minnesota. Nrighbors
were getting too near. and hunting and
trapping were bad. AS the young man
had proved up, pre- empted and improved
a quarter section of land near Tayor's
Falls. then beginning to grow rapidly,
he did not wish to either abandon or sell
it just then, and persuading Leonora to
write him when they got settled, he
babe her an affectiouate goodbye.
This brings us back to the opening
sentence of our story. Old Walter
Brown settled on Green Lake, away in
The interior of Minnesota, where there
were no settlements within twenty miles
in any direction. He lived there for
three or four years in peace and quiet,
finding good trapping and hunting
grounds, when al at once young Wat
son arrived, and renewed the proposal
of marriage with Leonora. The old
man had about determined to move no
more, and had accordingly located and
pre-empted several thousand acres Of
land about him, and lea ming from Wat
son that he had money enough to do
likewise, proposed that he should 90
down to St. Paul, and buy land war
rants with his money, and take up all
he could Swing" He might then mar
ry Leonora, and they two would go to
work, and after building plenty of sta
bling, &c . would get on a good stock of
cattle and sheep, and try and lead a
pastoral life for the rest of their days.
To this proposition the young man
heartily assented, and after returning
from St. Paul he and old Walter took
their axes and went bravcly to work in
the woods telling trees for building pur-
poses. It was agreed first that they
should build a new hewed log house.
fer the united family, asu1 1lIl|1 -
ly put up q dgle.foomec cabin.
Then edding was to take place,
and the two men would resume their
work.
While thus busily engaged the Sioux
war broke out. It was the habit o.! Le-
onora to take her rife out every morn
ing and shoot prairie chickens for the
table, while her lover and father were
hard at work on the new house. Watson
had brought her as present from St.
Paul, light and handsome revolving
rifle, of which she was immensely fond,
and with which she became SO expert
she could shoot duck or prairie chick
en- on the wing with almost absolute
certainty. I'd
One morning as she was strolling
around the lake, rife in hand, she mott
ced three canoe load Of Indians padding
carefully along in the shadow of the
oserhanging branches upon the opposite
side Of the water, steadily and. .stealthil |
approaching the spot where her father
and Iovrr yp-a nj work Sba did not