Ashtabula weekly telegraph. [volume] (Ashtabula, Ohio) 1853-1873, 1869-04-24
LEONoRA BROWN.
A STONY or A HEROIC ernL.

On the border of Green Lake. in Min
ncsota, there live sturdy, white-haired
fronticrsman named Walter Brown. lie
was one Of those adventurous spirits
ever 10 be found in the van of advancing
civilization, always courtinp the free
wild air Of the prairics, and rejoicing in
the profound depths of uninhabited for.
ests.
But the country became more and more
thickly settled, and Walter Brown be-
came uneasy. His wife had borne him n
daughter the third or fourth year of their
residence at the headwaters of the 81.
Croix, whom he called Lconora. She
was good girl and the idol of her IA
thcr. He purchased rifle for her when
she was but twelve years old, and took
the utmost pains III teaching her the use
of it. She was brave and steady of nerve.
aud soon acquired wonderful skill as n
shot, aud the number Of prairie chickens.
partridges, wild water fowls, and other
small game she managed to shoot each
day was really large. Occasionally she
would shoot deer, and one evcntful
morning, by lncky shot through the
eye into the brain she killed bear.
When she came home with the news
her father could scarcely credit her.
But, krowiug her perfectly truthful na.
turc, he danced about the room for Joy,
and seizing the sturdy little maid, he
mounted her upon his shoulders and in.
sisted upon carrying her all the way to
the spot where the dead bruin lay.
Thicker aud thicker flowed the tide of
emigration ihto Minnesota and Wiscou.
sin, following the navigabe rivers as a
matter OF course, aud more and more un.
oasy and "crowdcd" tclt Walter Brown.
At length his wife died. Lconofa was
then sixteen, and engaged to be married
to u handsome Young trapper bv the
name of Watson, who had Joined her
father in business.
The death of the mother had made it
necessary 10 postpone the wedding. and in
the interim old Walter decided to move to
Northwest Minnesota. Neghbors were
getting too near, and hunting and trap
ping were bad. AS the Young man had
proved up and pro-empted quarter sec
tion of land near Taylor's Falls, he did
not wish 10 either abandon or sell it lust
then, aud persuading Leonora to agree
To write to him, he badc her an affection
ate goodbye.
Brown lived in Minnesota for three or
four years i'll peace and quiet, finding
good trapping aud hunting grounds,
when all at once young Watson arrived,
and renewed the proposition OF marriage
with Ltonora. The old man had about
determined to move no more, and had
accordingly located and pre-cmpted sew
cral thousand acres of land about him,
and learning from Watson that he had
money enough to do likewise, proposed
that he should go down to st. Paul and
buy land warrants with his money, and
take up all the Lard he could swing
lie might then marry Leo@orl, and they
two would go to work, and after build
ing plenty OF stabling, etc, would get a
good stock OF cattle and sheep, and try
and lead pastoral life ;or the rest OF
their days.
To this proposition the young man
heartily assented, and after returning
from st. Paul went bravcly to work in
the woods telling trees for building pur-
poses. it was agreed first that they
should build Il new hewed long house for
the united family, us Watson had only
got upa small, single-room cabin. Then
the wedding was to take place, and the
men would again resume their work.
While thus busily engaged the Sioux
war broke out. 1t was the habit of Lc-
onora to take her rifle ont every morn
ing aud shoot prairie chickens for the la
BILE, while her lover and father were hard
at work on the new house. Watson had
brought her as present from st. Paul n
light land handsome revolving rifle, of
which she was immensely fond, and with
winch she became SO expert that she
could shoot dack or prairie chicken
with almost absolute certainty.
Onp morning, as she was stroling
around the lake, rifle in hand, she motto
ed three canoe loads of Indians padding
carefully along the oppotite side of the
water steadily and steathily approach
ing the spot where her father and lover
were at work. She did not Immediately
apprch bend any tragedy, but in some un-
accoun ntable way she felt impelled to re,
main and watch their motions. She
thereto fore concealed herself behind the
top OF fallen tree, and observed their
vehents, which grew more aud more
suspicious. There were two Indians in
each canoe, and after pulling steadily to
a point whore thick, ovcrhauging
birch tree afforded conceaIment for their
canoes, they disembarked, and crept care
fully and noiselessly along until they
were within few feet OF where the two
unsusPecting men were chopping. Sud
denly with y yell that made the forest
ring, and which echoed and re,echoed
across the broad, still lake, they sprang
upon their victims and bore them to tho
Leonora tremblod with excitement and
apprehension, expecting nothing less thar
to witness the horrible hatchery Of heI
father and lover at once. ,a aE saa
Bat this dil not seem to be the pus
pose of the Indians, for, tying the arms
of their cartiyes behind them, they tool
to the canoes, where, taking the old mar
into one, and the young man into til,
other, they showed boldly into the lake
/ 4 l.