St. Landry democrat. (Opelousas, La.) 1878-1894, 1888-09-15


1resh Indian trail crossing the beate
trail at right angles, and leading u
into the mountains. After careful es
animation OF the tracks and the dire,
ton in which the trail led. h
decided that there were some twent
Indians in the party, and that they ha
selected route along the backbone c
the range, from which point they coul
see any one entering the canyon. Fl
kne" that the presence of his little BAN
would undoubtedly be discovered. an,
he accordingly prepared to meet an,
thing which might occur The men wer
TOLD to carefully examine their weapon
TO see II they were properly loaded ant
In good working order The saddle
were slnehed up, and the lariats thrown
loose and allowed to drag on the
ground, so that the animals could be
easily secured in case it became neces.
sary to dismount. The party, with
rifles thrown across the horns of thei,
saddles, then entered the canyon, one
at time, allowing the distance of about
one hundred yards to intervene between
The riders. In this way the line
stretched out to nearly a thousand
yards, making it impossible for the In.
olans to fire upon more than one man
at time. The party passed through
the canyon in safety, but when Geron-
lmo surrendered, a few months later Il
was learned from the Indians them
selves that they were lying in wait in
the canyon, and saw the men as they
passed. Had they taken no nrecau-
tlons, and started through in close Or
DER the whole party would undoubt-
edly have been killed,
All OF the shrewdness and good judg-
ment OF the scout is needed in selecting
place for camp overnight. The plan
which is generally pursued is to 90 into
camp several hours before dark, and
prepare the evening meal. If there
are Indians in the vicinity they will
surely locate the camp for IL thew were
not already watching the troops, the
smoke from the fires would be very apt
10 attract attention. If Indians locate
a camp, In the evening, they will crawl
close to it, and make an attack at dav-
hight the 1ext morning. 1t is therefore
very necessary to deceive. or at least to
confuse, them; so when the evening
meal has been finished the flres are put
out, and after darkness has set in the
command saddles up and moves off to
some other camping-ground several
miles distant, where the animals are
herded, guards posted, and no fires al
lowed The position usually selected |
for camp is just over the crest of a
hill, so that a good view of the sur
rounding country can be had Exper-
fenced scouts never get out of reach of
their guns under any circumstances. If
they dismount for moment to rest
their horses, Or stop to get drink of
water, the rife is always taken from it's
scabbard and carried in one hand. In
dams find out very quickly when they
are being followed by good scouts, and
when this is the case they avoid fight
as long as it is possible to do SO.
Every scout Is supposed to be good
trailer, and to be expert in this line re-
auires certain natural qualifications as
well as careful practice. Keen eye
sight. quick perception and retentive
memory are the principal requisites,
and it is well-known fact that some
men become good trailers in d Remark
sbly short space of time, while
others never learn, no matter what
heir opportunities may have been.
As a scout rides along the trail, his
yes for an instant rest upon the ground
his feet, and then quickly
weep over the rocks Or plains around
lin. In this way he notes any sign !,
long the trail or detects any movement
within the range OF vision. :
In travelling over country where y
here are no roads or beaten trails he =
must carefully note each prominent 6
af1dmark, tree or rock, so he can pass !,
ne same away again if it is necessary -
0 do SO. In following the trail of -
ostile band there is no guide but the i
marks which have been left behind, -
nd these, when carefully studied, tell ',
tory as plainly as if written in black \
nd white. The tracks made by the
show whether they were
orses, mules or burros. If the r.
nimals are shod, it is easy to
Ill by the impressions made on the
round to whom they belong, for the b
lexicans use one kind of shoe, the u
mericans another, and the regular Ii
rmy has still another style which is N
eculiarly its own. The relative posi- b.
ons OF the tracks made by the four tt
'et OF an animal show whether it was v,
Ding in walk, a trot, or run, and W
Y clearness with which the feet are tt
tied from the ground tells if it was cl
esh or tired. A. WORKOUT animal ri
axes mark by dragging the point of ia
le hoof against the ground, and also d,
stumbles and slides. 1t is m
the case that the trail of an D;
siimal is found under circumstances 10
hich make it uncertain as to whether nc
not it carried a rider; but short in pc
stigation will always tell the story. iu
4 animal left to itself will stop occa- fir
,nally to Craze, while one with a tn
Ter keeps straight on it's way The sp
amer in which the grass is cropped an
will show if the animal had bit in pa
mouth, and the freshness of the trail tn
CHI Il M L,J II