Centre Democrat. [volume] (Bellefonte, Pa.) 1848-1989, 1880-12-02


licking the trap, astonishing to appease
its anger and coax it into letting go its
grip.
This pantomime so interested the
trapper that he could scarcely take aim
with his rifle. But'not wishing to lose
his good steel trap, he was on the point
of shooting the bear, when he was
startled from it by the neigh of horse
Glancing out over the tops OF the
bushes, he saw, some four or five hun
dred yards down the opposite bank of
the creek, Ia party of six Indians, sitting
on their ponies. They lhnd reined up,
and stood among some little sand-hil-
ocks, looking across, directly toward
where his camp was, in the cottonwoods.
1t then flashed to his mind that it was
his horse which had neighed. That
was why the Indians had pulled up so
suddenly and were staring across the
creek.
Markhecd saw that, even could he
himself escape them, the Indians would
inevitably discover his camp and cap
ture his horse and provisions, together
with all the peltries he had trapped.
That was bad. But was was worse,
there was heavy dew that morning,
and his own trail through the grass
along the bank of the creek must, he
knew, be as plain as pike-staff.
He knew that the Indians would not
| fail to discover his trail, and that they
would follow him like bloodhounds to
his death. 1t is not strange that our
hunter thought no more of the bear,
and that his merriment was cut short
by thissby no means laughable aspect
! of affairs.
But Markhead was quick-witted
fellow, not easily.alarmed, and while he
lay there watching the Blackfeet rs they
stealthily approached the place where
his horse was picketed, he hit on ruse
for outwitting tkem at their own tao
| tics.
Feeling sure that in few minutes
they would be on his track, he slid
down from his perch on the bluff and
ran back to the creek, to the point
where he had left it in pursuit of the
bear.
Here he resumed his way up the
creek, taking care to leave a plainly
marked trail through the wet grass,
with here and there footprint in the
mud or sand, just as if he was leisurely
proceeding along the bank, looking to
his traps.
But he ran on fast, and never slack
ened his pace till he had covered dis.
tance of at least ten miles from the
place where he had seen the Blackfeet
cross the creek. His surmise was that
the savages, on discovering his trail,
would pursue him, but would expect to
&C me upon him at every trap, and hence
would follow on stealthily, and at no
q cat speed.
Having thus planned out a ten-mie
! chase for them, Markhead ran back
across the narrow meadow, and climb
ing the bluffs, made detour for his
camp again, keeping a mile or over
from the creek, back among the sand
hills and cliffs.
Being a fleet and pratced runner, he
was not more than an hour and n half
making the trip back to the vicinity OF
| his camp, among the cottonwoods, the
tall tops of which he could see at a
great distance.
After taking breath few minutes,
and looking to his rifle, Markhead crept
out among the boulders on the crag
overlooking the camping. place; for he
expected the Indians would leave one
of their number 10 watch the horses
That one he was prepared to deal with
From the crag, he soon saw the six
ponies down among the timber. They
were hitched up near his own horse.
Nor was he wrong in his conjecture
about the savages leaving one of their
number with the horses. The packs
had been taken off the ponies backs !;
and after looking n few moments, he
espied an Indian sitting in the shade of
bush, on heap of buffalo skins and
peltries.
Watching the Indian a little, Mark
head crept down, noiseless as a fox. TO
a large cottonwood, rather nearer the
horses, and then, steadying his piece
against the tree-trunk, was just about
to shoot the unwary sentinel, when the
Indian turned partially, and to his gre at
surprise, he saw that it was not Black
foot warrior, but plump and very
comely squaw.
Markhead often admitted that, for the
instant, he was quite nonplussed. lie
did not know what to do. for he would
not shoot the squaw. At length, hs
gave shout, and rushed toward her.
The squaw bounded from her seat,
and seeing the trapper close upon her,
"yelled like a pig" as Markhead said,
and started to run away. Bat she had