Daily globe. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1878-1884, 1880-08-15
/" WIPED OUT,

What is that?
Look closer, and you will see that it
is gaunt, grim wolf, creeping out Of
the little grove of cottonwoods toward o
buffalo calf gamboling around its mother.
Raise your eyes little more, and you
will see that the prairie around is alive
with buffalo. Count them You might
as well try to count the leaves on giant
maplel They are moving foot by foot
as they crop the juicy grass, and living
waves rise and fall as the herd slowly
sweeps on. Afar out to the right and
ieft-mere specks on the plain-are the
Hankers-brave old buffaloes, which
catch bite of grass and then sniff the
air and scan the horizon for intimation
of danger. They are the sentinels of
the herd, and right well can they be
trusted.
The wolf creeps nearer
All the afternoon the great herd has
fed In peace, and, as it now slowly moves
toward the distant river, it is all uncon-
scious that danger is near. Look you
well and watch the wolf, for you are go
ing to see such sight as not one man in
10000 has ever beheld.
Creep-crawl- skulk-now behind q
knoll-now drawing himself over the
grass-now raising its head above o
thistle to mark the locality Of its victim.
It low, stumbling, skulking wolf,
lame and spitefu and treacherous.
Wounded or ailing, he has been left to
get on as best he may, and his green
eyes light up with fercer blaze as he
draws nearer to his unconscious prey.
Therei No, he is yet too far away.
Creep oreep-creep Now he is
twenty feet away-now fifteen, now ten.
He hugs the earth, gathers his feet
under him, and he bounds through the
air as if shot from a gun. He is rolling
the calf over and over on the grass in
three seconds after he springs.
AtOH WoeShu
A cry of pain from the Gala furious
pellow from the mother as she wheels
and charges the VOLTA startled move
ment from dozen Of the nearest ami
mails, and rush begins. The one wolf
is magnified into hundred, the hun
dred into thousand Short, sharp bel
lows-notes of alarm rush, and in
Fifty seconds after the wolf has wet his
fangs with blood that living mass is in
motion to get away from an unknown
terror.
The waves rise higher and higher as
the confusion spreads. One instant it
seems as if 10000 solid acres Of prairie
were moving bodily away-again waves
rise and fall as the towards behind rush
upon those In front who wait to sniff the
air and learn the danger. In one min
ute the alarm runs down the herd to the
leaders, further than the eye can see,
and the entire herd is going off at mad
gallop, heads down, eyes rolling, and no
thought but that of escape If Lake
Erie were to dash itself against wall
the shock would be no greater than the
awful crash with which this mass of rat
Ting hoofs, sharp horns and hairy
bodies would meet it. The clatter of
hoofs and rattle of horns would drown
the noise of a brigade of cavalry gal
Looping over stone-payed road.
Ride out on their trail. Here where
the stampede began the ground is torn
and furrowed as if Thousand cannon
had been firing solid shot at targets.
Here and there are calves which have
been gored OF crushed-here and there
older animals with broken legs and disa-
Hing wounds. Here, where the herd
was fairly off, you might as well hunt
for gold dollar as blade of grass.
You look for three miles as you look
across it. It is trail of dirt and dust,
and rats and burrows, where half an
hour ago was @ carpet of green grass
and smiling flowers. The most dread
fnl cyclone known to man could not
have left more horrible scars behind.
Miles away, on the bank of winding.
growing river, are three white-topped
emigrant wagons. A campfire blazes
up to boil the kettle-men, women and
children stand about, peering over the
setting sun at the distant mountains and
glad that their journey is almost done.
Butterflies come and go on lazy wing
the cfickets chirp cheerily in the grass,
and the eagles sailing the blue evening
air have no warning to give.
Hark II that thunder?
Men and women turn In their tracks
as they look in vain for a cloud in the
sky. That rumble comes again as they
look into each others faces. II grows
louder as women turn pale and men
reach for their rusty rifles. The ground
irembles, and afar off comes q din
which strikes terror to the heart. elm
diansi'' they whisper. No! A thou
sand fi1,,aa hotter fT,,, xhnyr, If eovaoa