The Saline County journal. [volume] (Salina, Kan.) 1871-1893, 1879-06-05

about a year after that.
There was a rowing family of Indians
eucamped near the settlements; hunting,
fishing and making moccaslns and bask-
cts. which they traded with the whites.
Zone afternoon tie Red-Sky-of-the-
Morning, wife Of the Water-SnAke with
the-Long-Tal, came over to the settle
ment with some of their truck for sale.
She had papoose on her back strapped
on a board, another squaw travelled with
her, carrying an empty jug.
"Almost within sight of Germans gro
Gerry, Red-Sky took off her papoose and
hung it on tree. The fellows around the
store had made fun of it when she was
there once before, 90 she preferred to leave
it in the woods rather than to expose it to
the coarse jokes of the boys. The little
thing was used to such treatment.
Whether carried or hung up, papoosey
never cried.
"The squaws traded off the truck. and
bought, with other Injuries of civilization,
gallon of whisky. They drank out Of
the jug, and then looked at more goods.
Then they drank again. and from being
shy and silent, as at first they giggled and
chatted like a couple of silly white girls.
They spent good deal more time and
money at Germans than they would if it
hadn't been for the whisky, but finally
! they started to go back through the woods.
''They went chattering and giggling to
the tree where the papoose had been left.
There was no papoose there!
This discovery sobered them. They
thought at first that the fellows around
the store had played them trick by tax
ing it away; but by-and-by the Red-Sky-
of-the morning set up shrek.
''She had found the board not far of,
but no papoose strapped to it, only some
! thing that told the story Of what had hap
pened.
There were bear tracks around the
spot. One OF the prints showed only two
claws.
"The Red-Sky-of-the Morning went back
to the camp with the news; the other
sSuaw followed with the Jug.
when the Water-Snake-with-the Long
Tail heard that his papoose had been eat
en- by bear, he felt, suppose, very
much as any white father would have felt
under the circumstances. He vowed ven
geance against Old Two Claws, but con-
soled himself with drink Of the fire.
, water before starting on the hunt.
1.-The braves with him followed his ex-
ample. 1t wasn't in Indian nature to
start until they had emptied the Jug, so it
happened that Old Two Claws got off
again. Tipsy braves can't follow trail
| worth a cent.
'Not very long after that woman in a
neighboring settlement heard her child
rem scream one day In the woods near the
house. She rushed out, and actually saw
bear lugglng off her youngest.
"She was a sickly, feeble sort Of wom-
an, but such a sight was enough to give
her the strength and courage Of man.
She ran and caught up an axe. Luckily,
she had big dog. The two went at the
bear.
1.-The old fellow had no notion of losing
his dinner just for woman and mon
grel cur But she struck him tremend-
GUS blow on the pack; at the same time
the pup got hi N by the leg. He dropped
the young one to defend himself. She
caught it up and ran, leaving the two
beasts to have it out together.
1.-The bear made short work with the
cur, but instead of following the woman
and child he skulked off into the woods.
1.-THE settlers got together for grand
hunt; but Old Two Claws-for the tracks
showed that he was the scoundrel--es-
capped into the mountains and lived to
make more trouble another dag.
The child? Oh, the child was scarcely
hurt. 1t had got squeezed and scratched
little in the final tussle; that was all.
'As to the bear. he was next heard of
in our settlement"
The hostler hesitated. winked his one
eye with an odd expression, put fresh
quid into his cheek, and finally resumed:
"A brother in-law of my uncle. man
ping in the woods about half mile from
him his luncheon.
about FIVE years old, and baby Just big
enough to toddle around.
THE boy had often been told that if ne
bear might carry them of, and she charged
him again that forenoon not to go away
from the house; but he was an enterprise
ing little fellow, and when the sun shone
so pleasant and the woods looked so
1.-THE woman stopped to see her husband
fell a big beech he was cutting and then
went back to the house. Just before she
got there she saw the oldest boy coming
out of the woods on the other side. He
was alone. He was white as a sheet,
and so frightened at first that he couldn't
speak.
"'Johnny,' said she. catching hold Of
him, what is the matter?'
"A bear!' he gasped out at last.
Where is your little brother:' was
her next question.
81 don't know said he. too much
frightned to know anything just then.
"'Where did you leave your brother?'
says she.
Then he seemed to have gotten his
wits together little. A bear took him.
said he.
you can guess what sort of agony the
mother was in.
"'Oh, Johnny, tell me true! Think,
Where was it?'
"'ln the woods, he said. Bear came
along-I run.
''She caught him up. and hurried with
him into the woods. She begged him to
show her where he was with his little
brother when the bear came along. He
pointed out two or three places. In one
of them the earth was soft. There were
fresh tracks crossing it-bear tracks.
There was no doubt about it.
at was terrible situation for a poor
woman, Whether TO follow the bear and
try to recover her child, or 90 at once for
her husband. or alarm the neighbors;
what to do with Johnny meanwhile-all
that would have been hard enough for her
to decide, even if she had had her wits
about her.
She hardly knew what she did. but Just