Juniata sentinel. [volume] (Mifflintown, Pa.) 1846-1873, 1870-12-07
NlisttIlansous 4faoina.
THE WESTERN TRAILER.

The Illustrated Annual of Phreno-
logy and Pbysiognomy speaks thus of
the Western trailer:
The trailer is not graceful man. He
carries his head much inclined his eye
is q.ick aud restless, always on the
watch, and he is practicing his art un-
consciously, hardly ever crossing the
track of man or animal without seeing
it. When he enters house, he brings
the habits he contracted in the practice
of his art with him, l know trailer
as soon as he enters my room. lie
comes in through the door softly, and
with an air of exceeding caution. Be-
fore he is fairly in, or at least has sat
down, he has taken note of every ar
ticle and person, though there may be a
dozen vacant chairs in the room His
description of a 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 inter-
estirg. Every war party for that season
had crossed his trail-of course unseen
by hin-he describes with mnuteness
as to their number, the kinds of arms
they had, and stated the tribes they be-
longed to. In the strange revelations
that he made, there was neither imposi-
ton nor supposi,ion, for he gave salts
factory reasons for every assertion he
made.
L have rode several hundred miles
with an experienced guide and trailer,
Hack, whom interrogated upon many
points i'll the practice of this art. 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, at is stray, black horse, with
long, bushy tail, nearly starved TO death,
has split hoof of the left fore foot. and
goes very lame, and he passed here ear
ly this morning" Astonished and in
credulous, l asked him the reasons for
knowing these particulars by the track
of the animal, when he replied ut was
stray horse because it did not go in
direct line; his tail was long, for he
dragged it over the snow iu brushing
against bush lie left some of his hair,
which shows its color, He was very
hungry, for, in going along, he has nip
ped at those high, dry weeds which
horses seldom eat. The issure of the
left fore foot left, also, its track, and the
depth of the indentation shows the de-
gree of his lameness and his tracks
show he was here this morning, when
The snow was hard with frost.''
At another place we came across an
Indian track, and he said, at is an old
Yankton, who came across the Missouri
last evening to look at his traps. In
coming over, he carried in his right hand
a trap, and in his left lasso, to catch
pony which he had lost. He returned
without finding the horse. but had caught
in the trap he had out a prairie wolf,
which he carried home on his back, and
a bundle of kinikinic wood in his right
hand.'' Then he gave his reasons Il
know he is old, by the impression his
gait has made, and Yankton by that of
his moccasins. He is from the other side
of the river, as 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. A 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" "But," l
asked, show do you know it is a wolf :
why not fox, or coyote, or even a
deer!', Said he, "If it had been fox,
or coyote, or any other small game. he
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 q deer, he would not have
crossed this high hill, but would have
gone back by way Of the ravine, and the
load would have made bis steps still more
tottering."