Western Reserve chronicle. [volume] (Warren, Ohio) 1855-1921, 1869-05-12
THE TRAILER.

III. 6dcnenDeTS, OA tue OHlltu
States Post Hospital at Fort Randall
DacOtah Territory, describes the trail
ers in a very graphic manner, and re-
counts some of his experiences with
them. We are indebted to him for
the following instances illustrative OF
( the traileT's powers:
The trailer is not a graceful man.
He carries his head much inclined,
his eye is quick and restless, always
on the watch, and he is pFacticing his
art uncOnsciOusly, hardly ever cross
ing the track of man Oranimal with
I out seeing it. When he enters a
I house, he brings the habits he con-
! tracted i'm the practice of his art with
| him. | know trailer as soon as he
enters nv room. Hecomes in through
/ the door softly, and with an air of
| exceeding caution. Before he is fair
/ ~ in, or at least has sat down, he has
/ taken note of every article and per-
I son, though there may be a dozen va
/ cant chairs in the room. He is not
! used TO chairs, and, like the Indian,
prefers a more humble seat. When
was employed by Gen. Harney last
summer to take charge temporarily
/ of the Indians that were gathered
| here to form new reservation, one
day a guide and trailer came into the
/ Generals headquarters. / told him
I to be seated. He sat down on the
floor, bracing his back against the
wall. The General saw this, and in
vexatiOn cried out, 'Why don't YOU
take a chair, when there are plenty
here not occupied?r The man arose
and seated himself in a chair, but in
so awkward and uncomfortable a
manner that he looked as if he might
slip from it at any moment. But
when this uncOuth person came to
transact his business with the Gen.
he turned out to be a man of no or
binary abilities. His description of
route he took as guide and trailer for
the Ogallalas in bringing them from
the Platte to this place was minute,
and, to me, exceedingly interesting.
Every war party that for the season
had crossed his trail, he described with
minuteness as TO their number, the
kinds of arms they had, and stated
the tribes they belonged to. In the
strange revelations that he made
there was neither imposition nor
sUppositiOn, for he gave satisfactory
reasons for every assertion he made.
have rode several hundred miles
with an experienced guide and trailer,
Hack, whom interrogated upon
many points in the practice of this
art. Nearly all tracks [ saw, either
old or new. as novice in the art,
questioned him about. In going to
the NiObrara River we crossed the
track of an Indian pony. My guide
followed the track a few miles and
then said, "It is a stray, black horse,
with long, bushy tail, nearly starved
to death, has q split hOof of the left
fore foot, and goes very lame, and he
passed here early this morning"
AstOnished and incredulous, / asked
him the reasons for knowing these
particulars by the tracks of the ami
NAL, when he replied: "It was a
stray horse, because it did not go in
direct line; his tail was long, for he
dragged it over the snow; in brush
ing against a bush he left some of
his hair, which shows its color. He
was very hungry, for in going along
he has nipped at those high, dry
weeds which horses seldom eat. The
fissure of the left fore foot left, also,
its track, and the depth of the inden-
tation shows the degree of his lame
ness; and his tracks show he was here
this morning, when the snow was
hard with frost"
At another place we came acros an
Indian track, and he said, at is an
old 6ankton, who came across the
Missouri last evening to look at his
traps. In coming over, he carried in
his right hand trap, and in his left a
lassO, to catch a pony which he had
lost. He returned without finding
the horse, but had caught in the trap
he had out prairie wolf, which he
carried home on his back, and bum
die of kinikinic wood in his right
hand.n Then he gave his reasons:
II know he is old, by the impression
his gait has made, and YanktOn by
that of his mOecasins. He is from
the other side of the river, a. there
are no YanktOns on this side. The
trap he carried struck the snow now
and then. and in the same manner as
when he came, shows that he did not
find his pony. 4 drop of blood in
the center of his tracks shows that he
carried the wolf on his back, and the
bundle of kinikinic wood he used for
a staff for support, and catching a
wolf shows that he had traps Out.n
"But," / asked, chow do YOU know
it is a wolf; why not a fox, or a coy
Otte, or even a deere" Said he, '.IfI
other small game, he would have
slipped the head of the animal in his
waist belt, and so carried it by his
side, and not on his shoulders. Deer
are not caught by traps but if it had
been a deer, he would not have crossed
this high hin, but would have gone
back by way of the ravine, and the
load would have made his steps still |
more tottering."
Another Indian track we saw
twenty miles west of this, he put this |
serious construction upon: He is |
an upper Indian-a prowling horse |
theif-carried a double shotgun, and |
is rascal that killed some white men
lately, and passed here one week ago;
for" said he, "a lone Indian in these |
parts is on mischief, and generally on |
the lookout for horses. He had on /
the shoes of white man whom he !
had, in all probability, killed, but his /
steps are those of an Indian. Going /
through the ravine, the end of his
gun hit into the deep snow. a week
ago we had a very warm day, and the
snow being soft, he made these tracks;
ever since it has been intensely cold
which makes very shallow
tracks," l suggested that perhaps he
bought those shoes. '-Indians don't
buy shoes, and if they did, they
would not buy them as large as these
were, for Indians have very small
reet.n The most noted trailer of this
country was Paul Daloria, half-breed,
who died under my hands of Indian
last summer. At one
time l rode with him, and trailing
was naturally the subject of CONVEX
'atiOn. begged to trail with him an
Did track over the prairie, in order to
earn its history. l had hardly made
he proposition, when he drew up his
horse, which was at q raYine, and
aid ''Well, here is an old elk track,
Let us get OFF our horses and follow
IT, We followed il but a few rods,
when he said it was exactly a month
I'D, and made at two O'Clock in the
ifternOOn. This he knew, = then
We had our last rain, and at the hour
lamed the ground was softer than at
my other time. The track before US
vas then made. He broke up here
nd there clusters of grass that lay in
he path of the track, and showed me
he dry ends of some, the Stumps of
1 flprS and hV numerous ~ nor siunf-