The Home advocate. (Farmerville, La.) 1885-1???, 1885-04-24
THE HOME ADVOCATE.
FARMERvILLE, LOUISIANA
Camp Life on the Prairics,
Chapter ".
By A. H. p.

picket rope from Jack, put thei
horses out to feed, and FOLLOWED
him into the cabin. The yOunge
man, Jim, flung himself on tn
ground without u word, but tn
other man, taking hold of the try
iDg-pan, began to help Jack t,
prepare the supper.
No further conversation pasSet
between the Young herder and III
strange guests, except a question
or two concerning the whereabouts
of the food Vt utensils. Soon ;
substantial meal was prepared
and the three sat down to devOul
it with butcher. knives and fingers
After he had demolished the best
part of a painful of beans, several
slices Of bread and bacon, and
drunk some deep Jraughts Of coffee,
the eldest stranger. who was adj
dressed by his companion as Luke,
raised his head, and, without fur
ther preface, began his story in
these wOrds:-
"You would like to know, Cap'n,
what me and Jim here were loplng
along in such a cussed hurry for,
ell? Well young man, don't get
more scared than you can help,
but l guess by the time the moon
rises, at ten o'clock tonight, there
may be something like one humid
red Indians around this 'ere dug
Out.n
"Inlians ~ exclaimed Jack.
"(iood God what do you mean 2"
"Nhat l say, | guess" replied
Luke, dfyly, helping himself to the
last slice of bacon. "The facts is
these. Me and two other boy s,
Jim here, and another, Tom Lakln
were hunting up some beef steers,
supposed to be in this locality
somewhere, belonging to our boss,
old man Williams don't know
whether you're acquainted with
him.
"Well, we had been foOlin' round
all day, and were watering our
horses at the Chicareeka river,
about ten miles from here, when
all of Il sudden we heard yell.
and before we could pull out our.
six-shooters, much less use 'em,
We were surrounded by about fifty
Ute and Apache Indians, and rop.
ed like SO many calves. Well it
was Il cheerful lookout, 1 tell you.
The diy1ls had their war-paint Oh,
and yew know how much mercy
cowboys have to expect from lii
dams then.
'HOwever, we were the first
whites they had got bold of, and
they were in such an almighty
hurry to begin that they stripped
and tied mp poor Tom Lakin at
once. and left Jim and me pretty
much to our own devices, crOwdm'
round Tom, enjoying his agony,
like-like the devils that they are.
Devils, did s..yi BY the Lord
= Thoroughbred devil would he a.
shamed to do the thing that a Ute
Indian delights in.
"However, us was saying, the
skunks left Jim and me to ourselves
and pretty soon l wrigle,l Que hand |
loose aud got at my knife. Which
they had not even stripped ME
in their cussed hurry for the fun
to begin; and in about two
minutes we had found our ponies
and left. We struck direct east
towards the settlements, and your
camps the first place we came
uoapss."
DO you think they will follow
I" said Jack anxiously.
Follow us?" replied Luke with
9 scornful laugh. "Didn't l tell
you they'd be all around this camp
BY ten o'clock tonight? Why,
they are sc00ting along on our
tracks this minute, I expect
This was an extremely pleasant
prospect. Three men with one re-
volver between them and three
knives, against q band Of Indians,
armed-as they always are nova.
days with repeating rifles. The
terrible significance of this fact
prevented Jack from speaking for
) moment. His visitor saw his a.
larm, and said, reassuringly:-
III we keep q look out, and fire
HE eix-shO0ter in their direction,
when we hear them getting too
Nose. I guess we shall he all right,
Remember, Indians amt going to
Axe chances any more than any
30dy else and, for all they know, !
70 may have q dozen rifles here in
Itead Of q solitary pistol; and un-
ess they are put to it, they never d
Ittack 9 ranch that has On armed
nam IN it, 0ss tie alert. Why, boy,
lol,t you know that they come a I
oand this country pretty near ev- ]
amy1