The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1879-11-21
Peered thru tangled bush in my front

Peercu tnfo q tangled bush IN my front
for signs Of life ON the opposite bank.
The lire had not yet died out, and the
red light from the stream In front light
led up the opposite shore with a wierd
radiance, which, with my excited brain,
kept me fully awake watching the huge
shadows that chased each other along
the margin of the ssmbre woods. The
minutes seemed hours to me, rs thus
lay In wait, and, as the nigh. air curbed
my bounding pulses, found myself
wondering at the nonchalance with
which regarded my then present occu
patton and the still visible bodies OF the
slain-slsin, too, by ny own hand!
How long lay there had no means
of knowing. All l knew was that no
welcome beams of the wished for sun vet
tinted even the heecy clouds high above
in the starry sky, and that till then l
must keep my wcatisofne watch. l was
trying to Imagine where Marston then
wss, and whether he was more successful
in his vigil than myself, when the sound
OF breaking twig stan tied the stiffness
Of the night, and the next instant loud
whirr of q tomsbswk sounded close to
my ear. l was on my feet in an instant;
but before l could bring my rife to bear
in the right direction, was seized in the
arms OF powerful savage and dashed to
the earth, the rife going off AZ l fell.
We Iell together, my antagonist upper.
most, and half stunned beneath. 1
struggled with all my strength to throw
him from me, but l might as well have
tried to move a mountain. Ny right
hand was a prisoner, caught by the
sleeve of my hunting shirt, together
with the bosom of that too unyielding
garment. In our fall we had cleared
the clump of faithless trees, which !
believed had so securely concealed me,
and In his struggle to hold me down and
to reach the weapon he had thrown at
my head, we had gradually approached
the slope leading to the water; and, Just
as his hand had secured the handle of
the Ratchet, and /, closing my eyes, was
expecting the crushing blow, the sharp
crack of rifle broke upon my over.
strained ears, and l felt my arm freed
from the vice-like grrsp of my enemy.
Opening my eyes, expecting to see my
assailant fall dead at my side, (for |
knew it must be Marston who tired)
/ saw to my horror that he was
uniDjured, but l saw also that he was
startled by the discharge. Quick as
thought threw all my strength into
one last despairing effort, and all IN
prepared the savage was soon struggling
beside me on the dewy sward. As we
rolled swiftly down the slope l seized
my knife and buried it to the hilt in his
side again and again. Almost with his
last expiring groan, however, he lifted
HE in his arms and plunged into the
rolling stream. My head must have
struck upon a projecting rock, for it
seemed to be cleft in twain; the bright
stars danced before my closed eyes; the
yielding waves closed over us, be above
and below, and-I remembered no
more.
When l awoke to consciousness, the
morning sun was shining brightly, and
Marston was pouring cold water over
my head and chest from his cap. When
| was able to sit up, he told me that he
had shot the wounded Indian, who had
placed himself in q position similar to
my own on the opposite bank, and for
similar purpcse-to shoot us down did |
We incsutiOuzly approach the old camp
or the FIRE. The other savage, whose
gigantic body lay jammed between two
rocks in the stream, with woodcraft
equal to my friends, had cautiously crept |
around TO my position with the result
have detailed. Marston found me in
the water and supposed me dead but on |
he found that life had not |
quite fed, and, tanning the feeble |
spark, again enkindled the expiring |
flames.
While Marston prepared breakfast, he
related his adventures in the earlier |
portion OF the preceding day. He dis.
covered the Indian encampment about |
three miles from our own and while
to spy out their numbers,
had been fired upon and wounded by a
prowler. Throwing himself on the saw
age, he stunned him with a blow from
the butt of his rife, and escaped to the |
camp. Here he had taken the precau-
tions to deceive the Indians and to warn
me with which the reader has already
been made acquainted. He was however
speedily pursued by the whole band of
savages, and, after a hard struggle cap
tured. 1t was during this pursuit of
Marston that ] arrived at the camp, and
my having taken the river course, and
their entire ignorance of even my exist
ence, was the reason of my being able to
gain the Bluff unperceived. The In.
dams proved to be Blackfeet, and were
no doubt on plundering expedition, as
their packs were filed with many arti-
cles which belong TO whites alone. We
of course appropriated their horses and
traps, and, having unearthed our con-
cealed peltries, set off for Fort George,
where we arrived without further ad.
venture.
had seen enough of trapper's life,
and though the laurels Marston heaped
upon my brow caused change OK feel.
ing on the part of his rough friends in
my fsvor-so much so that they declared
that would, in time, undoubtedly be.
come terror to both "beaver and
Ipjun," ] determined that the last In.
dian to fall by my hands had fallen, and
that in future ] would coDfine myself to
my legitimate weapon, the pen, and l
have kept my word.
From one of Marston's trips he never
returned, and the rough spirits around
the cid fort gave it as their opinion that
my old friends prophecy regarding his
death had proved true, or, as they said
in their peculiar vernacular, "the
blasted red skins bad snuffed him out at
last. - Ne1c York Sunday Tins.