The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1869-04-13
LEoNoRA BROWN.
A STORY OF A HEROIC GIRL.

haired frontiersman named Walter
| Brown. He was one of those adVeH~
turous spirits ever to be found In the
van OF advancing civilization, always
counting the free, wild air of the prai-
rle, and rejoicing In the profound
depths of uninhabited forests.
| But the country became more and
moro thickly settled. and Walter Brown
| became uneasy. HisFwite had borne
him a daughter the third or fourth year
OF their residence at the headwaters of
the st. Croix, whom he called Leonora.
She was good girl, and the idol OF
| her father. He purchased a rifle for
her when she was but twelve years old +,
| and took the utmost pains in teaching
her the use of it. She was brave and
steady of nerve, and soon acquired
wonderful skill as shot, and the
number OF prairie chickens, partridges,
Il wild water fowls, and other small game
4 she. managed to shoot each day, wa5
really large. Occasionally che would
shoot a deer, and one eventful morn.
ing, by lucky shot through the eye
| into the brain, she killed a bear.
When she came home with the news
her father could scarcely credit her.
But, knowing her perfectly truthful
nature, he danced about the room for
| ioY, and seiZing the sturdy little maid,
he mounted her upon his shoulders
and insisted upon carrying her all the
way to the spot where the dead bruin
Hay. ~ ~ ~
Thicker and thicker flowed the tide
of emigration into Minnesota and Wis
cOnsin, following the navigable rivers
as II matter OF course, and more and
more uneasy and "crOwded'' felt Wal
ter Brown. At length his wife died.
| LeonOra was then sixteen, and engaged
| to be married to a handsome young
| trapper by the name OF Watson, who
had Joined her father in business
IL Il 4 In kNnF INaI NslHn
necessary to postpo the wedding; and
| in the interim old Walter decided to
move into northwest Minnesota. Neigh
\ bOrs were getting too near and hunting
and trapping were bad. AS the young
man had proved up and preempted a
quarter section OF land near TaylOr's
| Falls, he did not wish 10 either aban-
don or sell 1t just then, and persuading
| LeonOra 10 agree to write TO him, he
| babe her an atIectiOnate goodbye.
Brown lived in Minnesota for three
or four years in peace and quiet, find
| ing good trapping and hunting grounds,
when all at once young Watson arrived,
and removed the proposition OF mar
| rage with LeOnOra. The old man had
about determined to move no more, and
had accordingly located and preempted
several thousand acres of land about
him, and learning from Watson that he
had money enough to do likewise, pro-
posed that he should go down TO st. Paul
and buy land warrants with his money,
and take up all the land he could
"swirg" lie might then marry la
onorn, and they two would go to work,
and after building plenty Of stablinE,
etc, would get n good stock OF cattle
and sheep, and try and lead Il pastoral
life for the rest OF their days.
To this proposition the young man
heartily aSsented, and after returning
from St. Paul, went bravely to work i'll
the woods, telling trees for building
purposes. 1t was agreed first that they
should build a new hewed log house
for the united family, as Watson had
only got up small single room cabin.
Then tho wedding was to take place,
and the two men would again resume
their work.
While thus busily engaged the Sioux
war broke out. 1t was the habit Of
Leonora to take her rifle out every
morning and shoot prairie chickens for
the table, while her lover and father
were hard at work on the new house.
Watson had brought her as q present
from ST. Paul light and handsome re-
volving rifle, of which she was m
mensely fond, and with which she be-
came so expert-that she could shoot u
duck or prairie chicken on the wing
with almost absolute certainty.
One morning, as she was strolling
around the lake, rifle In hand, she no.
ding carefully along the opposite side
of the water, steadily and stealthilY ap.
preaching the spot where her father and
lover were at work. She did not I'M
mediately apprehend any tragedy, but
in some unaCCOuntable way she felt
impelled to remain and watch their
motions. She therefore concealed her
self behind the top of a fallen tree, and
observed their movements, which grew
more and more conspicuous. There
were two Indians in each canoe, and
after pulling steadily 20 point where
a thick, overhanginE birch treo afford
ed cOncealment for their canoes, they
disem barked, and crept carefully and
noiselessly along until they were with-
in a few feet of where the two unsus
pecting men were chOpplng. Sudden
ly, with yell that made the forest
ring, and which echoed and re echoed
across the broad, still lake, they spranR
earth.
Leonora trembled with excitement
and apprehension, expecting nothing
less than to witness the horrible butche-
nv of her father and lover at once.
But this did not seem 10 be the pur-
pose of the Indians, for. tying the arms
of their Captives behind them, they
took 10 the canoes, where taking the
old man into one, and the young man
into the otner, they showed boldly into
the lake, and padded rapidly down
toward where the house stood. Leo
nora devised their intent instantly.
"Ha !" she said to herself, "they de-
sign capturing me, too. They deem
that III easy job, perhaps !" and her
eyes flashed and her face flushed with
anger. "See! there is a fourth canoe,
which they no doubt suppose will car
rY me. This villpinous work has been
we'll calculated; but ha you bad saw
ages! you have mistaken your girl this
time! LeOnOra Brown has been taught
more things than 10 cook venison
steak. oh, dear, dear father, your Leo
nora will soon show you how bravely
she can succor you, and how your in
struCting her the use of this rifle has
saved you this day. And you, too,
darling Henry Watson, have Won a
longer lease of your precious life by
presenting me with this splendid re-
volving rifle. Six bullets for six ruff
there's my knife. No, Leonora, yOu
must not miss one of them"
The girl now crept stealthily through
the underbrush up the bank to the
prairie above She knew that 10 reach
the house the Indians would have 10
cross a broad, fiat fold, 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 expect any re-
sstance from u single girl. About
thirty rods to the right of the path
cattle yard had been erected by her
father. and i'll the corner of the fence
stood an immense elm tree. Inside OF
this yard climbed Leonora, and behind
the big elm she concealed herself.
A few minutes more proved she was