The Shasta courier., 1869-05-22

showed Doidiy into the lake, and padded
rapidly down toward where the house stood.
Leonora OWNED their intent Instantly.
Ha!' she said to herself, Z" they design
capturing me, too. They deem that an
easy JOB, perhaps !" and her eyes flashed
and her face flushed with anger. "See
there is a fourth canoe, which they nc
doubt suppose will carry me. This villain
Gus work has been we'll calculated; but ha
you bad savages you have. mistaken your
girl this time. Leonora Brown had been
taught more things than cook a venison
steak! Oh, dear, dear father, your Leonora
will soon show you how bravely she can
suecor you, and how your instructing hei
the use of this rifle has saved you this day
And you, too, darling Henry Watson,
have won logger lease Of your precious
life by presenting me with this splendid
revolving rife. Six bullets for six ruffians
Miss one Of them ah, if should-there's
my trusty knife No, Leonora you must
not miss one of them"
The girl now crept stealthily through the
underbrush up the bank of the prairie
above. She knew that to reach the house
the Indians would have to cross a broad
fiat field, where there was no shelter for
their persons. She did not think they
would hesitate to do this, because, having
taken the two men, they would hardly ex-
pect any resistance from single girl
About thirty rods to the right of the path
cattle yard had been erected by her
father, and in the corner of the fence stood
an immense elm tree. Inside of this ward
climbed Leonora, and behind the big elm
she concealed herself
A few moments more proved she was
right in her conjecture The Indians, after
having tied stout rawhide thongs around
the feet of their prisoners, laid them down
in the bottom of their canoes, s;xode gaily
and laughingly along toward the house,
without any attempt at concealment.
Leonoras heart grew as hard as a stone,
and her nerves-which fluttered little
before-now grew as firm as steel She
had put fresh water proof caps upon each
nipple of her rifle, and putting the barrel
on the rail of the fence, drew sharp bead
upon the foremost Indian; but as her
finger curved to press the trigger, she heard
what actually seemed to be voice whisper !:
Not yet, Leonora."
She paused, and then, asif by inspiration,
flashed the thought into her mind:
"Wait until they get nearer to the house,
then shoot the hindmost Indian first"
She obeyed the impression, and let them
come on few rods nearer. Suddenly the
thought came again
Now's your time !"
Clapping her face to the rifle. breech, she
trained the death dealing tube steadily at
the chest of the rearmost Indian for an in
slant and fired.
The bullet proved true to its mark, and
the burly Indian merely threw up his arms
and fell dead, the rife ball having gone di-
rectly through the savage's heart.
A clap of thunder from clear sky could
not have so utterly astonished those re-
naming Indians Wildly they looked in
every direction to see from whence comes
the fatal shot. In the next instant bang |!
went Leonora's rifle again, and another of
their number dropped dead.
But they saw the smoke of the last shot
and caught glimpse of the shooter. At
once they comprehended their perils.-
They could not hide, and their only show
for life was in running to the tree and toma-
hawking their presumptuous foe on the
spot. Instantly sounding the war-whoop,
they bounded forward, but with the notes
half uttered another of their number leaped
into the air and fell back to rise no more
Leonora had fred again.
The remaining three rushed on, but
again the brave girls rife rang like the
knell of doom, and fourth savage pitched
headlong to the ground
The terror of the remaining two was now
pitiful to behold; they stopped short in
their onward course, uttering the most tear
full screams, discharging their rifles at the
tree in the widest and most unavailing
manner. But again the relentless rife
blazed, and another of the remaining two
sunk to the ground as the bullet went
crushing through his brain.
Immediately the one left threw down his
rife and cried out:
"No shoot me no shoot me Me give
up !"
Leonora had drawn bead on him, but
now that they seemed so perfectly in her
power she lowered her rife, and stepping
from behind the tree, climbed the fence
briskly, and commenced approaching the
savage.
Tne surprise and indignation of the
Indian at sight of the girl was intense, and
his supplicating cry, he put his
hand behind him and drew forth his toma-
hawk to throw at her.
Leonora's eve was as sharp as an eagles.
She saw the treacherous move, and just as
the bright blade of the hatchet cleaned
for the throw, she raised her rifle and shot
the faithless scoundTel dead in his tracks.
With the speed of deer she now bound
ed forward to the lake.
Harry Watson shouted, Glory hallelu-
iah knew it was Leonora = and the
father cried for joy as ber little form ap-
peared on the bluff, rife in hand.
Quickly she descended to the canoes and
unbound the two men, who embraced her
and cried over her in the most extravagant
manner