South-eastern Independent. (McConnelsville, Ohio) 1871-1871, 1871-06-23


= VOLTS tail hanging down between hi
shoulders, presented himse at the doc
of the cabin to crave some little courtesy
r Lindsey closed the front door and brough
{ out the articles asked for from the bach
like a medieval chieftain guarding his cas-
r tie. But all the time that poor Emili
: could hear the voice of the tall trapper he
heart beat two beats for one. For was
nota human voice speaking her own Ian
guage? And the days on which he wa
visible were accounted as the gates of par
, adise, and the moments in which he spok
in her hearing were as paradise itself
This churlish, inhospitable manner mad,
, Lindsey many enemies in land in which
one cannot afford to have enemies. Ever
half-breed hunter took the old mans sus
picious manner as personal affront. " III
thinks we are horse-thieves," they said
, scornfully. And Jaques Bourbon, tn,
half-breed who had filed on" the CLAIM
alongside Lndsley's, and even claimed
uDjustly a "forty" of Lindsley's town
plot, had no difficulty in securing the sym
pathy of the settlers and nomads, who
looked on Lindsey as monster quite
capable of anything He was even report
ed to have beaten his daughter, and tC
have confined her in the wilderness that
he might keep her out of animmense for
tune which she had inherited. So Linds
ley grew every day in disfavOr in a region
where unpopularity in its mildest form is
sure to take a most unpleasant way OF
making itself known. Emilia knew
enough to understand this danger, and she
was shaken with a nameless fear when
ever she heard the sharp words that pass
ed between her father and Bourbon the
half-breed. The resentment of the latter
reached its climax when the decision OF
the land-office was rendered in favor OF
Mr.. Lindsey. From that hour the re-
venge of this man, whose hot French was
mixed with relentless Indian blood, hung
over the head of the old man, who still
read and wrote, and invented and theo-
rized, in utter ignorance of any peril ex-
cept the danger that some man, not fool,
should marry his daughter.
The Fourth of July was celebrated at
Gager's. People came from fifty miles
round. Patriotism? Mo- But love of
human fellowship. The celebrated Pierre
Bottineau and the other Canadians and
half breeds were there, mellowed with
drink singing the sensual and almost lewd
Fren N rowing songs their fathers had
sung on the st. Lawrence. Whiskey
JIM" the retired stage-driver, and Hans
Brinkerhof and the other German set
tiers, with two or three Yankees, COM
pleted the slender crowd, which com
prised almost the entire population of six
skeleton counties And the over popular
Edwards was among them, his tall, grave
face and flowing ringlets rising above
them all. A man so ready to serve any
body as he, was idolized among frontier
men, whose gratitude is almost equal to
their revenge Captain Oscar, the popular
politician, who wore his hair long and
swore and drank, just to keep in with his
widely scattered constituents, whom he
represented in the Minnesota Senate each
winter (snd who usually cast half dozen
votes apiece for him), made buncombe
speech, and then Edwards, who wouldn't
drink, but who knew how to tell strange
stories, kept them laughing for half an
hour. Edwards was type of man not so
uncommon on the frontier as those imagine
who think the trapper always half-horse,
half-alligator creature, such as they read
of in the Beadle novels. / knew one
trapper who was student of numismatics,
another who devoted his spare time to
astronomy, and several traders and trap
pers who were men of considerable cul-
bOAO1 SSANAoAAJ AiOA III
are little morbid or eccentric in their
mental structure. All Edwards natural
abilities, which were sufficient to have
earned him distinction had he been
in civilization" were concentrated on
the pursuits of his wild life, and such
a man always surpasses the coarsest
and duller Indian or half-breed in his own
field.
After game of ball, and other sports
initiated from the Indians, the bots brules%
began to be too much softened with whis-
ky to keep up athletic exercises, and some
thing in their manner led Edwards to sus-
pect that there were other amusements on
the programme into the secret of which
he had not been admitted.
By adroit management he contrived to
overhear part of conversation in which
'.pOlEdre canon" was mixed up with the
name of Lindslee. He inferred that the
blowing up of Lindsley's house was to
finish the celebration of the national hoi-
day Treating Bourbon to an extra glass
of whiskey, and seasoning it with some
well timed denunciations of "the old mon
ster," he gathered that the plan was to
plant keg of powder under the chimney
on the northside of the cabin and blow it
W JuSb W cCdlC tuC luOuSkCI Oul, VI
kill him and his daughter, it did not mat
ter which. Edwards praised the plan.
He said that if it were not that he had to
go to Pelican Lake that very night, he
would go along and help to blow up the |
old rascal.
Soon after this he shook hands all around |
and wished them bon Ooyage in their trip
to Eindsleyville. He winked his eyes
knowingly, playing the hypocrite hand
somely. Oscar and Bottineau left in diff
ferent directions, the Germans had gone |
home drunk, and only "Whiskey Jim
Joined the half-breeds in their trip. They |
took possession of an immigrant team that |
was in Gager's stable, and just after sunset |
started on their patriotic errand. They |
were going to celebrate the fourth by blow
ing up the tyrant.
Meantime, Edwards had taken long |
strides, but his moccasin-clad feet were not |
carrying him in the direction of Pelican |
Lake. Half the time walking as only |
the Long Trapper" could walk, half the |
time in a swinging trot, he MADE the best |
possible speed towards Lindsleyville. He |
had start of the alf-breeds, but how |
much he could not tell; and there was no
time to be lost. At the summit of every |
knOwl he looked back to see if they were |
coming, crouching in the grass lest they
should discover him.
Lindsey received him suspiciously as |
ever, and positively refused to believe his
story. But by using his telescope Ed |
wards soon convinced him that the party
were just leaving Gager's. The dusk of |
the evening was coming on, and Lindsley's |
fright was great as he realized his daugh-
ter's peril.
al will fight them to the death" he |
said, getting down his revolver, with an
air that would have done honor to Don
Quixote. -.... ..--.-.-
If you fight them and whip them, they
will waylay you and kill you. But there |
are ten of them, and if you fight them
you will be killed, and this lady will be
without a protector. If you run away,
the house will be destroyed, and you will |
be killed whenever you are found. But |
what have you herel a magic lantern?"
The old gentleman had, before Edwards
arrival, taken down the instrument to in
troduce some improvement which he had
Just invented. When Edwards stumbled /
over it and called it a magic lantern he
looked at him scornfully.
"a magic lanternp he cried. "No, sir;
hat is dissolving view, oxy-calcium,
MISREPRESENTATION"