The People's vindicator. [volume] (Natchitoches, La.) 1874-1883, 1879-08-02

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About 10 o'clock the Indian gave it
up 10 despair aud came down the
tree; We rolled Ourselves up 10 our
rugs, pulled the hoods Of our blanket
close over our heads and went to
sleep. Iawoke literally shaking with
cold. 1t was still the dead of night;
and the stars were shining with 10.
tense brilliancy, to my great dissp.
pointment, for l was in hopes Of see.
ing the frat streaks Of dawn. 1t was
freezing very hard, far too hard for
me to think of going to sleep again.
So reused the Indian and suggested
that he should try another call u
two.
Accordingly be stole down to the
edge Of the little point Of wood in
which We had enscoUced ourselves,
and in q few minutes the forest was
re>echoipg tho plaintiff notes Of the
moose. Not an answer, not . sound
utter silence, a. il all tho world
were dead broken suddenly and
horribly BY yell that made the blood
curdle in ones veins. 1t was the
long. quavering, human, but unearth>
" scream of . loon on the distant
lake. After what seemed to me
many hours, but what WAS 10 reality
but = short time, tho first indications
ofdawn repealed themselves in tho
rising Of tho morning star, aud the
slightest possible pslins of tho east>
ern ky. The cold grew almost uu-
bearable. That curious SILVER that
runs through naiure-the 6rst icy
current Of air that precedes the day
chilled us to tho bones. rolled
myself up in my blanket and lighted .
pipe, trying to retain what little csloric
remained 10 my body, while the Indian
again ascended the tree. By tho time
he had called twice it was gray dawn.
Birds were beginning to move about,
aud busy squirrUls to look out for their
breakfast Of pine buds. I cat listening
intently, and watching tho blank, emo.
tionless face of tho Indisn a. be gazed
around him, when suddenly saw bic
cOuntenance blaze up with vivid excite.
ment. His eyes seemed to start from bic
head, bis muscles twitched, bis face glow
ed, be seemed Transformed in . moment
into different being. At the same
time be began with the utmost celebrity,
but with extreme caution to descend to
the ground. He motioned to me to mako
no noise, and whispered that . moose
WAS coming across the barren and must
he close BY. Grasping my rifle, Ne
crswled carefully through the grass,
crisp aud noisy with frost, down to the
edge of the island of woods, and there,
after peeriug cautiously around some
stunted juniper bushes, I saw standing
about sixty yards of, . bull moose. He
looked gigantic in the thin morning mist
which was beginning to drift up from
tho surface Of the barren. Great vol.
umes Of steam issued from bic nostrils,
aud bis whole aspect, looming in tho
fox, was vast and almost terrific. He
stood there perfectly motionless, staring
at tho spot from which be had heard tho
cry Of tho supposed COW, irresolute
whether to come on or not. The In
dian was anxious to bring him little
closer, but I did not wish to run tho
risk # soaring him, and 90, taking aim
~ fairly 40 l could, considering was
shaking all over With cold, I fred aud
struck him behind tho shoulder. He
plunged forward on his knees, jumped
up, rushed forward for about two hun.
bred yards, and then fell dead at tho
edge Of the heavy timber on the far side
Of tho barren.