Port Royal commercial and Beaufort County Republican. [volume] (Port Royal, S.C.) 1873-1874, 1873-12-25
The Prairie Duel.

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than it does in these days of railroads,
that "belt all creation, remote patch
or corner of one of the great prairics
was counted by the few hunters and
settlers occupying it as district in it.
self, and they called it Little Elk
Prairie. Among the half wild charac-
ters who had built for themselves novels
of driftwood and brush on this bit Of
rolling plain was a huge hulking fellow
of mixed French Canadian, Indian, and
negro blood, whose name was Bendbow
Laval. A complete savage in appear
ance, his clothing, whether in summer
or winter, never consisted OF more than
two garments-a ragged shirt and
trousers, the material of which was
rendered problematical by age and dirt.
The mass of woolly, iron-gray hair by
which his head was thatched was crown
ed by something that had once been
portion of hat /; and his immense
stockingless feet were thrust into rude
cowskin shoes, with holes cut in them
to accommodate certain peculiarities OF
shape and pedal excrescence. From
his huge size and muscular develop.
ment, Laval was more than match for
any one of the dwellers of Little Elk
Prairie, none of whom were " chickens"
as regards physical strength. Entirely
devoid of education-for he did not
know one letter of the alphabet from
another-nevertheless the great coarse
fellow had sort of chivalry about him
which might or might not have been
derived from his share of French blood.
His appreciation of the benefits and
etiquette of dueling was intense, and
he had more than once killed his an
tagonist in fair fight.
A much more dangerous man to deal
with than Laval was Habakuk Sans, by
origin q Yankee, as his name denotes,
but prairie man by prediction and
long residence. "Hab," as he was
called by the men of the plain, was a
thin, wiry man of middle age, with q
brick-red complexion and very light
hair. He was an excellent marksman,
and had reputation for courage, shown
in encounters with Indians and bears;
but he always preferred mild stratagem
to skill or strength for the discontinue
of his foes. He had had several dis
putes with Laval, on the common basis
of accusation that each was in the habit
of stealing animals from the others
traps. This, in the code of the plains,
is an objectionable offense. Men
caught in the act have frequently been
killed on the spot, and when the offend.
er was an Indian there are traditions of
his having been tortured before being
put to DEATH Whether Hab Sans had
ever defrauded Laval by purloinlng fur
creatures from the traps set by the lat.
ter never transpired. Rut that Laval
was fur-thief was established beyond
q doubt when he was seen carrying to
his hovel, one day, black wolf, caught
in a trap set by Hab, and which the lat
ter had left there purposely to test the
honesty Of his rival. Hab's first idea
was to fire upon the purloiner of his
property, and so adjust the matter
without any need of further reference
or appeal. On further consideration,
however, he approached Laval, and,
taxing him with the theft, demanded
restitution of his property or treason
why" "Take that, then," howled the
huge fellow, hurting the wolf with such
force at Hab that it knocked him
down and sent him spinning distance
of several feet. In moment Hab Sans
had risen on one knee, and, taking aim
at his antagonist, fired, but without eff
feet, owing to the furry caused by the
suddenness of the assault.
On proceeding to reload his rifle, he
remembered that he had no powder
but Laval was in similar predicament,
for all the powder in the place had
been expended in a recent hunt, and
they were awaiting the arrival of
messenge: with some from the nearest
trading-post. Drawing their knives
then, the two approached each other
for deadly conflict, which would have
been an unequal one, however, owing
to the superior strength Of Laval, who
was also a proficient in the use of the
knife. knowing how slight his chance
was with such an antagonist, Hab Sans
paused, and looking tixedly at Lava,
said, eff you are man, and not cow
ardly sneak, you will fight it out with
me in another way, and give me an
equal chance of my life. "What way do
yor want to settle it, then?' said the
other. "I'm as good as you anyhow,
and amt afraid to get square with you
any way you please. Name your plan.
and I'll 60 you even on it" "Well,
then" rejoined Hab, "here's what
we'll do, if you have heart enough to
do it, as have. Let's 60 to the place
where the prairie dogs burrow, away
over there. The rattlesnakes that live
there are big, and unfailing with thei'
deadly fangs. Let each of us choose a
burrow, lie down in front of it, thrust
his arm in to the shoulder, and wait to
see Which of us will die first. You're
too white-livered n fellow to fgh
it ont that way with me, ehT
Fearful to back out from this
horrible proposition lest his repu-
tion for valor might become tarnish-
ed forever, Laval agreed to it, trusting
that, if one only keeps still, rattlesnakes
are not apt to bite.
The matter was arranged rs follows:
They were to meet next morning, half
m hour before sunrise, with one wit
ness, who was to act as ump re for both.
The burrows in which thew were to
place their hands were to be selected by
this umpire. who was to see them prop
erly and impartially placed. There they
we're to remain until the first ray Of
the sun beamed above the horizon, q
few minutes before which it is the habit
| of rottlesnakes To crawl forth from