The weekly North-Carolina standard., 1869-08-11
SELECTED STORY.
A Night With Wolves.
BY ]. W. WATSON.

Thirty years ago, Council Bluffs, now q
city of many thousand inhabitants, was
comprised of half dozen log houses, a
blacksmith's forge, and chebang, or whis.
key house, dignifed with the title of tavern
where half dime would purchase as much
OF the raw fluid as any strong man would
swallow, or dime would give him the adj
dltion of corn bread and shake down of
straw, for it was always presumahle that the
guests at this hotel brought their own bed
clothes, in the shape of Il good Mackinaw
blanket
It. was my luck at about the time men
tion, to be landed on this heaven lorsaken
spot, for the good steamer Julia Chateau, in
the service of the American Fur Company
all old ST. Louis citizens will remember her
well, as they will remember the beautiful
lady she was named after. was hound for
Prairie du Chien, with knick knacks for the
comfort of both trapper and Indian.
The breed of hunters and trappers that
one then found at the West, has, think,
passed away-the man of iron frame, who
knew nothing of the meaning of fear and
lived almost as near nature as the animals
he hunted; who. made his led wherever the
night happened to catch him; who had but
one love, his good rifle, and never let that
away from the length of his arm
There were few of that kind with us
that would accompany the train that Was to
carry us and our goods to the station, and
that night, as We sat about the stout fire
that blazed and roared up the stone Chin
ney of the tavern, the conversation naturally
turned on hunting scrapes, of which most
OF the party had earned experience. At last
one of them said to me-:
81 say, Cap Short for Captain), Jim
Horne here, has got a new gamer
What is it, Horne 2" asked.
Oh, git out, Cap'n," answered Horne,
squirming about on his bench ''tain't
moth. Bills only trying to stuff ye."
49, Why don't ye tell Cap anyhow 2" says
Bill, rather Grossly; things nat'ral, jim,
an, perhaps he'd like to take hand"
l asked Horne again for an explanation,
and got In this wise:
why, Cap'n, you see I've got little sell
on wolves. The pesky varmints are so thick
abouten har, that they acshaIly come right
up to this very door, sometimes, o'nights.
Their tarnal pelts amt wuth much, but when
you KIN git 'em in heap, without much
risk, why they're wuth suthin. So some of
ms boys, while we was waitin' for the train
to glt ready, jist got mp moonlight excur-
sion on 'em. We git out span OF putty
smork kind of ponies, and take that long
sled that's under the shed yonder, and make
cut across that bit of woods over thar
pointing with his finger westward, with a
pig in tow" =,
"a pig in tow" I said. @What is
that 2" --.---f
why, we just take young pork out
OF Brownsen's stable, and hitch it behind
the sled. q One on Us drives, t'nther makes
the pig squeal, and the rest shoot Last time
we lost the pork. A rousin' old cuss grabbed
It right under our noses, an that don't nav.
no how" f''
There was something original in this. and
thought right away that / would like to
try 1t, thoueh really not understanding it.
said so to Horne.
y, 30 yeu think you can stand it, Cap'n p
My pride was up directly.
Stand it J" said; II guess I'm as able
to stand it as you arc !"
Mebbe so," drawled Horne "Wal T
don t see any reason We mayn't 90 out TO-
night. The moon'll be up in about an bour
Guess Brownson'll let US have a nork
it.n '"o zap wants
Yes" I said "tell him I'll nav for ;tn
In an hour the moon had risen. and tha
SLED was at the door with two fine stout
mustangs hitched to it. The snow was in
elegant order, hard and crisp, almost like
ice, and the route that we were to take was
= clearing about thirty feet wide, right |
Ihrougn the forest for two or three miles.
MADE Dy the loggers in getting out timber
% run down the river. The pig was pro-
uuced and, until he was muzzled. showed
nimseH an elegant squeaer, so much so. that
was afraid ne would bring the "pesky var.
nlnts," as Horne called them, on us befor.
he time. 10 '0'oi0
FlIteen minutes put US well inside the
!, soods, put the moon shone so bright, and
ne 4 lenectlon was so strong on the snow,
'nat we mad no more difficulty in seeing
very ooJect than at MONDAY. The pig was
lnmuzzied and began to squea. Our party
consisted OF Horne and myself, Bill Waller.
ne nrst communicant of the idea to me
'roWnson's boy, to make the pig saueal. and |
tall, cast iron, half-breed, whom We onIv
NEW by the name of Bob. Waller was to
trlVe Horne, myself and Bob would do the
hooting. Wv 'n'
my eyes were everywhere. and 1 caught
ight OF the fir wolf He was well among
ne trees. not approaching US, but with his
ong, striting gallop. keeping pace with us.
n few minutes he was Joined by another
md almost before we could mark them. tLev
,eganAtoaaiose upon US ia dozens, rising as i
sere, out OF the very grouad. Above the
queal OF the pig, Horne shouted for me to
eserye my fire ] confess that turned an
lneasy glance at Waller, IS the Beasts closed
n upon US, tor the horses wese getting res
I've and uneasy, and every now and then
ne sled would strike stump that would
nake It qulVer all over. Iknew that in his
la9ds were our lives, and that an upset
nd the chances were that the morning
would show nothing but some of our laroer
zones the smaller ones. with the rest of
'ur mortal frames, would be in the stomacbs
u the pack trailing after us.