Essex County herald. [volume] (Guildhall, Vt.) 1873-1964, 1884-03-14
ISLAND POND VERMONT. FRIDAY, MARCH IA, 1884.

passed round my wrists in a twinkling,
and drawed so tight that | winked hard !
with the pain, aud felt the veins swell !
almost to bursting,
From my wrists they passed the rope
tight around my waist, then took half
hitch round my neck and knotted it
under my arms. Then they went for my
lAgs with the other end of the rope, and
tied my ankles U'd taken off my boots)
50 tight that my feet ached before they'd
finished knotting.
81 laid there and never opened my
mouth; | wouldn't even let myself think
till they pulled the curtains on me-
When they got through, l told 'em to
draw the curtain and shut me in so that
| might set my medicine at work upon
the ropes. l saw the old medicine-man
| grin as give the order. He showed the
young fellow off the staging and pulled
the curtains to- leaving himself inside
Then | heard a surprised grunt all over
the house, and began to think.
- let my muscles relax and shrunk up
like turtle; but them knots shrunk
with me, and found myself helpless as
baby; and there was that old grinning
wretch bending over me with his snakish
black eyes Just glittering in triumph!
" Guess you've got me, old man,
said 1; what are you going to do about
it ~
'He bent lower over me, and made a
Kissing noise with his mouth, noise that
sounded exactly like the buzz Of rattle
s1iuke's tail. Everything and everybody
in the room was as still as tombstone.
| couldn't hear breath outside. All at
once that wretch stopped his Kissing, and
with q quick movement jerked my head
up between his knees, jammed something
between my jaws, whipped red scarf
out from under his blanket, and passed
1t around my head and mouth-gagged
me, in fact, tight as a double-sinched
bucker
"Tve givsn my last show on this
earth, thought Then the old villain
backed down off the platform and slipped
out from under ,ne curtain.
"There was general grunt of curiosity
and astonishment outside; and heap of
admiration fortheir old juggler was mixed
up with their racket.
" 'Silence!" growled the old wretch in
Comanche. 'Silencel l have breathed
upon the bad medicine-man of the whites.
If l had not done so, his vile, poisonous
breath would have slain every warrior in
the room. At midnight every one of you
would have died. Just as the moon rose
above the tree-tops, your spirits would
: have left your bodies. Your squaws and
your children would have been given to
} them crawling snakes the Greeks and the
Choctaws in the East
; "Of course Pm only trying to give
, you the substance of what he said l
l don't understand their jargon only we'll
enough to get their general meaning.
When the old man ceased speaking the
| crowd just got up and shrieked the
' awfullest blood curdling yells you ever
! dreamed of for minute | thought my
time had come, and that | should be
| torn to pieces by the screeching mob
e but the old man shook his madicine-rat-
tie at 'em and down they set again, quiet
] as you please.
p "'L1sten! he sald. Go home now,
/ my children, to your tepees and sleep;
e come not here till morning, when you'll
find the bad medicine of the whites
8 harmless as the water of the Coder. He
r shall not hurt you. Go and leave me
g with the medicine-dog; for | must
e breathe again upon him, and my breath
c will take away all his charms and all his
c magic He shall ketch no more bullets
}. in his teeth Go, my children, for my
a breath is sacred and can be of no good
Y until all the members of my tribe are il
t, their lodges
e "And do you believe it, they all got
# up and skipped out of there, every
Vt mothers son of EN-! There | was lef
alone with the heedyus old beast. I haC
n worked desputly all the time he wa
;; talking, trying to draw my hands from
er the rope 1 loosened one of 'em just {
d trife, enough to know that in half al
20 hour of hard work l could bring m.
wrist through, by peeling all the skin of
r with it. Well, when they'd gone and
|, the last sound of 'em died away, the ole
? juggler stuck his face inside.
"I go now,' says he, q go to m.
lie tepee to prepare my medicines agains
IN the medicine of the white dog. When
| come again the white mans magic shal
le all be mine; he will tell me all his medi
a. c;nes.' Then he came inside, felt of al
ID my knots, made himself sure of 'sm, ant
at then went out and left me.
t. $50 that's your game, is itT though
|, and | began to take hope at once.
d hadn't time to think over the situation
m | Just worked like beaver, with th
ut sweat pouring off me like rain off
Sc sliczer.
ID "It was struggle for life; for c
m course l hadn't a doubt but the medicine
ct man meant to kill me, whether l toll
him any Of my tricks or not. He woul
ID smother me like a cat in SACK and pre-
ID tend to his tribe that his breath ha
it killed the medicine man of the whites
ne when he would possess himself of m
ne trinkets and be the greatest man tha
ever trod a Comanche town.
oil "Well, he was gone longer than l ha
n any reason to hope for; and after a tim
st wrenched my right hand through IL
m loop that held it. And | peeled it, too
re peeled it horribly. But after that IL
work was easy; got my arm loose, g
my jackknife out of my pocket. manage
e, to open the big blade with the stif
Id swelled fingers of my other hand. The
he | cut and slashed for q minute, tore IL
10 bandage off my mouth, and spit out
a deer's-horn charm. / was near
81 smothered with my efforts; for of cour
by l couldn't breathe through my mouth t
l got the scarf off; but soon gained n
no breath and set up free man.
nd "Then / began to think and to &C
in Ny right hand was just streaming Wi
TO- blood, and an idee struck me. smeart
ar, it all over my face, till it was perfect
ap red with piood. lhen l goc up al