Martinsburg independent. [volume] (Martinsburg, W. Va.) 1875-1900, 1875-07-17

I've mt EN- Tor nlgn onto thirty years.
He was a grim looking old man, with
grizzly locks in view under his coon-skiu
cap. He had on bear-skin coat, In
dian moccasins, buckskin shirt and leg
gins, and he held a long rife between
his knees as we talked.
'sTbesc Western railroads are rapidly
civilizing the coutry fast killing of In
dams, and wolves, and buffaloes.
He looked around the car, which was
handsomely furnished, and sighed as
be replied:
Eyes, times are gittin wuss an wuss
down this way. I've been thinkin' Of
goin' up to the Yellowstone, whar man
can 60 out any time o. day and git up a
squar fight with q grizzly, or raise a
rnmpus with the reds"
"You mus. be quite an old man?'
"Only bout sixty. Amt quite SO
timber on a long run, an cant sleep
quite so we'll with the rain pouring down
into my face, but IL I thought I wasn't
good for any three Injuns on the plains,
or any grizzly that ever stood on legs,
I'd AK ye to shoot MEL
you must have seen wild times out
here?'i
"Purty wild--purty Wild unused the
old man; "there used to be heaps O. reds
out here, to say nothing of the wolves,
bars and rattlcsnakes. an thar was
times when death rose up to shake
hands with me-
ever taken prlsoner7"
II mought hav been--I guess ] vast"
he said, as he uncovered his head
tWhy, you've been scalped!"
"They called it sculping, strangerl'
"Apd who did that?''
"1'his same blasted Red Cloud. He
didn't use the kni fe. but he stood by and
holered and encouraged the chap who
did do it,
Your sensations must have been ter
rible.p
s'There wasn't time to feel any sensa-
tons, stranger. They sneaked in on me
an Tom as we dozed, an' when / woke
up Tom was riddled an my ssulp was
hanging TO an Injun's beltl"
"And what them"
Nothing much. go up and kill
ed two, wounded another, and legged it
up a canon and got away. Ifit was to
do over again I'd git my topknot back
or fight the whole Sioux nation till sum-
body went underl"
He seemed lost In reflection for q mo-
ment, and then continued:
II don't know what sculps are with
in the market, but guess I've got the
full value O. mine. I've knocked over
risin' Of thirty Sioux since that night,
an guess I'd be willin' TO pass re-
ceipts!v
Il suppose you've had turn at half
a dozen tribes?"
Less see?' he unused. 'Thar's the ST.
oux, Blackfcet, Pawnees. Arrapahoes,
Choyennes, an three or four
other tribes. They've all hunted me,
and I've hunted them an can't say as
they owe me anything.
Il notice bad scar on your face
Purity good scar for a common man,
but kin show ye the sculp-lock Of the
Pawnee who made it. He jumped on
to me fist after had swum a river, an
he thought he'd got hold Of a jack-rab-
bit Twas bad cut, aud it kind
o inazed me at fust, but when did cum
to, he was gone afore he could yell twice!
| said it was a purity good scar, but it
isn't quite ekal to this.
And he pushed up the Logging on his
right leg and exhibited scar which
made me draw back The foot, ankle,
and the leg as high as could see had
been burned by fire.
The BIackfeet had me fast to stake
once, ye absarve," he explained. That
was the time when they poked each
other in the ribs an said they had
dead-sure thing on o d Carter, but they
wuz mistaken They had me three days,
and I'd been kicked an cuffed around
until there wasn't any more fun in it.
an they tied me to stake an lighted
a fire around me. Twas pretty clus,
strange pretty clusl'
Ard how did you escaped
Half dozen. Of my old pards came
along jist 10 time to knock over half the
band, and save me.
There was silence again while he UNI
buttoped his shirt and showed me bo-
som literally grid-ironed with scars.
Well, thar may be two or three knife
cuts thar, he explained, but the heft o
them scars wuz made bya grizzly. He
wasn't one O. these bar calves that sum
folks knock over an then blow about,
but regular three story, old fashioned
grizzly, such as ye don't find outside o.
the darkest canens in the Rockies. /
wuz bendin' over the fire when the var
mint slid down a canon an wuz right
on hand aforc | had any waruin'."
And was il hard tight2'