Delaware tribune. [volume] (Wilmington, Del.) 1867-1877, 1869-03-25


u LIFE GLoRIoUsLY sTAKED.
Towards the close of a beautiful day |
June, 1867, a man and woman, mounted UP
on fleet horses, came galloping over one I
the great plains of the West, and drew rel
t in the shade of clump of cotton wood
: upon the bank of beautiful river. The,
e had ridden far and rapidly. Their steed
! were painting, and covered with sweat ant
: foam.
1--WE must give the horses a breathin,
spell, said the former, slipping to the ground
, and his companion nodded graceful assent
: as she followed his example.
The couple were evidently father ant
daughter
The man was in the prime of life, hale and
hearty, with large frame, which was sinewy
and athletic, without ceasing to be refined
and prepossessng. He had the keen, shrewd
look peculiar to the advance-guards Of civili-
cation, and there was an honest, frank ex-
preston on his sun-browned face that pro-
claimed his integrity and courage.
In her way, his daughter was equally pic
turesque and attractive.
In the carly flush of womanhood, with a
pure, sweet, and tender face, with eyes
darkly glowing, with coral-tinted lips, and
cheeks softly flushed with the hue Of the
rose, with amber curls floating behind her,
oho "oo no 6thSCiui 40 u kdLClsCs db IlHuL-
hearted as bird, as lovely as flower, and
as spirited as an untamed antelope.
The stream by which the couple had
halted was Wood river, branch of the
Platte, in Nebraska, at point fifty miles
northwest of Fort Kearny.
"Are you tired, Miriam ?" asked the
hunter, George Dane, with fatherly solictude.
."Tired. fatherl" rejoined the maiden, with
happy laugh. 'Oh, no. How could be
tired after day like thisp Every minute
has been filled with pleasure and excite
ment. l feel as fresh as yonder bird"
The father smiled understandingly, with O
look full of the fondest affection.
| II can guess the cause Of your lightness
OF heart" said be, smilingly. ''The return,
now daily expected of a certain Hubert
Earle, from the mines of Idaho, may ac-
count, l suspect for your present gladness."
A heightened color appeared on Miriam's
face, for the name mentioned was that of her
lover. She answered the glances of her
father, however, with frankness that at
tested his entire sympathy with her, and
| said:
''True, father, my heart has been unusually
light for several days past. How could 1t be
otherwise, since know that Hubert is COM
ing?"
MIR. Dane did not reply. He was looking,
with kindling eyes, over the fair flower-dotted
plain; and his next remark showed how
widely his thoughts had strayed.
II wonder what mother has been doing
without US all day, Miriam. she must be
lonely, with no one to speak to or share her
meals. shouldn't wonder if we could see
our home from this point" and his face
lighted up with a soulful glow. sour cot
tage is not more than seven miles distant;
let me see ?"
He drew from his coat a pocket glass, ad-
justed it to his sight, pointing it in norther-
~ direction, and gazed through it long and
earnestly, towards his rancho upon Carreys
Fork.
Eyes, see it" he said, at last, with a
long. deep, and joyful inspiration, as if the
sight refreshed him in every nerve. "There
is our cottage, as plain as day. can even
see the vines you planted before the win
dows, Miriam. And there, on the grape
vine bench, under the big elm, sits your
mother, busy at her sewing. Bless her !
She does not imagine We are looking at her.
Look, Miriam
He yielded the instrument to his daughter,
who obeycd his injunction, her lovely face
glowing with smiles as she regarded the
distant home.scene.
dear mother!" she murmured at is
treat to her to be able to sit out under the
trees without fear of molestation. There
there, father?"
"No. Red Knife, as you have already |
heard was killed yesterday by settler, and |
his band has retreated towards the noun
tains will confess, Miriam, that during
all the time we have been in the West |
have not felt SO light-hearted and care-free
as since we received news of Red Knifcs |
death You have just seen how this joy |
bubbles over in me. Red Knife was a
demon, rather than savage"
Miriam shuddcred, and her features even
paied at the memory of the Indian men
toned.
.He never spared pale face" she said,
striving to speak calmly. "Desolation and |
cruelty marked his path. For more than |
three years he has ragged to and fro upon the |
plains like rayening wolf. He was the
terror of the border
You have named him appropriately,
Miriam said the hunter. s'He had a
fiendish hatred of the white race, and his
victims have been many"
Mr. Dane held out his hand for the glass,
and Miriam was in the act of restoring it,
when strange, gasping, painting sound
startled them both, and sent them quickly
to their saddles.
The hunter wheeled his horse and looked
down upon the river-bank, from which di-
rection the sound had come, his manner
selfpossessed, but his countenance indica-
tive Of alarm. The maiden followed his
his example.
Her eyes were the first to discover the
cause OF the sound that had startled them,
detecting mans figure creeping along
through the underground of bushes lining
the shore
AT the same moment, their presence in
turn was detected, for the man dropped
suddenly among the protecting bushes, as if
he had been shot.
can Indian?" whispered Miriam, drawing
from her bosom a revolver.
The hunter shook his head, continuing to
watch the spot at which the man had fallen,
his hand on his rifle, his manner that of one {
ready for action.
Suddenly, as the man showed a haggard
face pecring cautiously from his conceal I
ment, Mr.. Danes anxious countenauce broke
into smile, and he cried out: +,
Halo! Is that you, Thompson? Do s
you take us for Indians, that you skulk
there in the bushes r. /
The individual addressed was silent full /
minute, as 1t seemed, from sheer amaze
ment then he sprang out from his hiding
swiftly towards the father and daughter.
He was man Of middle age, of the ordi-
nary type of backwoodsmen, strong and I
brown and stalwart, of the rude, rough type
hat SCENE to belong TO the border. His 1
lace was haggard and white, although COW
cred with Precipitation. His breath came
through his parted lips in quick, uneven
yasps.. He had run far and swiftly, and :
looked as ii about to drop from fatigue.
"What has happened, Thompson p asked
Dane, with keen anxiety, the mans singu-
lar appearance giving him "a sudden shock of !
alarm.
1.-THE Indians !" gasped Thomson, scarce. !
y able to command his voice. ''They are !
coming! Red Knife and his band-diyided
my wife-my children! Help me! Help /
mel" ;
"What talk is this?" cried Dane, agitated
IN spite of his efforts at self-control. cred q
Knife was killed yesterday"
He was only wounded" interrupted
Thompson. 3" He is coming to take his :
vengeance on us settlers. He has divided
ais band into two. They were up at the +
Deer Fork this morning, and are now COM
ng this way. The points to be struck are
your house and mine. .
MY God!" calculated Dane, as his in q