The States and Union. [volume] (Ashland, Ohio) 1868-1872, 1871-11-22
Selett Stnrp,
A TALE OF BLOOD.
By BLoBBs.

BY BLoBBs.
On cold, clustering evening in the
latter part of February, 19-, a single
horscman might have been seen wend
ing his weary way through lonely
gorge in the Rocky Mountains. The
sun was fast sinking behind the west
ern hills, and his dying rays covered
, the tall peaks with crowns of glory
but had left the canyons and valleys
in a gloom that was but the more
apparent from the brightness above
: them. The wind was rising and was
sending his hoarse and warning whis-
pers among the wild and gloomy
mountains where nightly he held his
mad and frantic frolics.
The time and scene were indeed
calculated to stir the deepest feelings
of our nature, but to a man in the
position of our traveller, shelterless
and supperless, it was anything but
pleasant. There were other sounds
than the whispers of the wind, for the
distant howl of the wolf, and the near
er scream of the panther smote upon
the ear of the solitary horseman, and
caused him to clasp his rifle with a
tirmer grasp. Carefully picking his
way as he descended the western
slope, he cast his eye Che had lost the
other) searchingIy around him. Sud
denly he caught sight of clump of
bushes which lay in his path. Draw
ing rein, and shading his eye with his
hand he peered with something nearly
approaching to fear at this extraordin-
airy object
| AS he gazed, the sharp click of a
rifle lock sounded on his ear. With a
deft and graceful movement, which at
once stamped him as. an accomplished
we'll trained steed, who placed him
self facing the enemy with barren
teeth and starting eyeballs las regards
eyeballs, he was more fortunate than
his master, for only slight feck dis
figured his left optic). Our hero fell
gracefully on one knee, drew his rifle
to his shoulder and aimed at his enc
my through the widespread and
firmly planted legs of his noble stall
ion, who meanwhile "chawed his Bit
with fierce, determined mien. Our
hero, who was known among the
Indian tribes as Gasb-ab-um-luk, or
in English, Single Optic, now called
in loud and wonderfully powerful
voice, "Come eout, ye blarsted red
imp, an show yer ugly beak l''
As he ceased speaking there slowly
arose from the clump of bushes (which
an ordinary man would have passed
without notice, but which the we'll
trained eye of our hero had recognized
as murderous ambush prepared by
the devilish ingenuity of the blood
thirsty savage) the feathered crest of
Bloodstew Indian. whose savage
, nature had doubtless been unable to
resist the mandate delivered in the
civilized and cultivated voice of Single
Optic. With a gutteral "ughl" he
drew a bead on the devoted head of
our hero, who, on the first appearance
of the Bloodstew, had attempted to
fire, but his fire, in which he trusted
with faith able to remove Indians,
had only snapped fire.
At this extraordinary result, the
faithful steed ceased chawing for a
moment the. beautifully ornamented
Mexican bit, looked round in undis-
guised astonishment, raised his right
hind leg, and placed his magnifcently
formed hoof on the breast of his mas
ter. With a sardonic grin (which is
the usual expression of Indians) the
Bloodstew examined the printing of
his highly ornamented Revolutionary
musket, closed both eyes and blazed
away. With loud snort, the exper-
fenced steed of Single Optic gave an
energetic kick which laid our hero
flat on his back, then with leap for
ward, which denoted long practice, he
caught the messenger of death ii. e.
the bullet) between his white and ex-
quisitively shaped teeth, and then with
a wild rush toward the savage, reared,
and, strange to relate, with one pow
erful blow of his fore foot, laid the
villainous Bloodstew sprawling on his
back in agony as wounded dignity and
Uranium.
In the meantime Single Optic ad-
vanced with graceful tread, and with
a well directed kick, broke the jaw of
, the barbarious Bloodstew, sending the
teeth flying in every direction, to the
evident delight of his full blooded
equine companion, who once more
drew near the now nearly insensible
redskin, who viewed his approach with
savage terror, making it painfully
ivident that he had not been instructed
in that beautiful faith in the instinct
of the animal creation which distin'
guished the civilized from the uncivil-
zed man.
Nero (which was the name Of this
noble animaD walked slowly up to
the Indian, and evidently enjoying
his terror, bent his gracefully arched
neck with playful whinny over the
PROSTATE form of the aboriginal, and
in a wonderfully intelligent manner
carefully took that individuals pro
boscis between his grinning jaws
At this playful demonstration the
unreasonable savage uttered howl
of expostulation, which was quickly
silenced by timely touch from the
boot of Single optic, who now led
away the smiling steed, and secured
him to small tree at little distance
from the Bloodstew, of whom Nero
had full view, and showed his ap-
probation of the scene by executing
double shuttle, which he had ae-