Daily globe. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1878-1884, 1883-03-10

Indian country and the trail into Hidden
Valley.
A brisk walk of twenty minutes
brought the miners to the foot of the
castle struggle of ten minutes placed
them at its summit.
Night had now fairly fallen, and the
stars were beginning to shine. The
howl of distant coyote calling to his
faithless mate was the only sound that
broke upon the quiet air. The men
seated themselves.
"Tom, said Moore. in half whisper,
there's just two places where the reds
could get up eff they should try, and one
man armed as we are he patted his
Winchester and touched his knife-"kin
keep an army down. You stay here
q hind this yer rock, and I'll take keer
o the other place over yonder. We'd
better not sleep-anyhow, not till after
moonup. Should anything happen, jes>
croak twice, an III be with ye the
same for me Watch out, nowl'
agreed p said Tom.
And his companion crept away in the
shadows to hide himself, close to where
the other pathway reached the top Of
the castle. This point faced the east,
while the one guarded by Nutting was
approachable only from the west.
Black night had now drawn its sable
curtains, and but for the rents through
which peeped the winking stars entire
darkness shrouded the scene.
Yet to the watchers this made little
difference. Educated by frontier life,
and trained in indian warfare, their ears
were eyes to them when the light was
gone, and the slightest sound was as
easily understood In the absolute quiet
ness Of the night as though they plainly
saw the thing which caused it. And so,
motionless. each in his place, they kept
their solitary guard.
Far away lonely wind sighed among
the tall pines upon the ridge; but It's
breath swept not about the Giants Cas-
tie, and the ever-repeated cry Of the
wandering coyote, now near and again
far, was for long time the only animate
sound that broke the hushed silence.
The moments passed, slowly it is
true, and yet one by one until hours had
fed, and away to the east there came q
Frightening glow, as of a growing fire,
&nd beyond the ragged mountain tops
the night blush, ''faint and silvery ;"
then Dick knew the moon was rising.
"This 'ere's hard bed !" muttered
that worthy, as he cautiously arose from
his haif-reclining position and stretched
himself. cts nigh about midnight, I
reckon, an doubt the reds comm after
this. l wonder how Tom stands it,?
Leaning his rifle against jagged bold
der, the froutiersman stepped lightly
across the rough summit OF the castle a
half dozen rods to the spot where he
left his companion.
To his surprise it was empty
"Where the deuce he growIed,
when he was suddenly interrupted by
the cry of coyote near at hand.
He started and listened intently.
EFF that amt two-legged WOLF" he
whispered excitedly to himself, "then
never heard one Where is Tom 2"
He dropped on his hands and knees
| and crawled toward the verge of the
rock. At this point there was an almost
perpendicular descent of some twenty
feet to ledge or shelf of rock upon the
face of the cliff, which shelf was part Of
the very pathway by which they had
assembled and might be easily reached
by winding trail. AS he peered into
the darkness beneath him the coyotes
howl again rang mournfully out from
below, and was answered from q ridge
half mile away.
"That's queer! The first cry war
human, OF I'm no jedge, but the other
war genuine kiote. What kind O.
trickery is this ? All, thar's Tom p he
continued, ioyfully- asleep below thar.
Jest like the careless cuss. The reds
might carry him off eff he didn't depend
on my earsI'
The silvery rim of the coming moon
appeared above the distant mountains.
Moore drew himself carefully into the
shadow, SO that he might see but not be
seen.
CHOW I'll watch a bit. Eff that wolf
howls ag'in, kin spot him certain, an
know whether he's copper colored or
gray"
Motionless as the rock about him he
waited.
Once or twice the distant, genuine
whine reached his listening ears, but
there came no response from below.
The queen of night climbed slowly up
the eastern sky, flecking the plain with
moonlight and shade. The soft breezes
that always travel in her train swept
gently by, laden with fresh and piney
Odors.
Toms figure, outstretched in deep
slumber upon the rock shelf beneath,
came more boldly into view, but the
suspicious wolf bark did not sound
again.
A full half hour passed and there had
been no repetition of it.
"Thar's somethin' wrong" muttered
Dick, with bated breath" somethin'
wrong. The more I think O. that call
the more sure am tibet it war out O. a
human throat. I'll go down and wake
Tom, an talk bit with him."
He arose to his feet, still standing in
the shadow, and was on the point of turn
ing toward the trail that led to the
ledge wherein Tom was, when he sud-
denly paused motionless as if cut from
stone
And this was what he saw:
Close beneath him, at the very edge
of the shelf where lay his friend, ap-
peared wolf, his nose in air, his ears
uplifted-a wolf with shaggy head and
| hide lint with hands and feet for 1,axvS 7