Daily Yellowstone journal., 1889-05-09

scufle, had tied the steers'and come
cautiously up 70 the door, gun in hand,
| he found himself confronted by the
muzzles of two riheA which protruded
through a crack which had been made
by removing a board from the nearest
| window.
Drop that gunl' came from within
the cabin.
But instead of dropping the weapon,
the quick witted young settler sprang
to one side, and ran behind the wagon,
under which the belligerent dog was
still barking. Then he called to his
brother.
Say, Jerd, have they hurt vel"
Jared shouted back that they hadn't,
but hat two men had tied him hand
and foot.
Jake picked up a club and threw it
at the dog TO drive it away; then he
| called to the men TO know what they
meant by such outrageous acts. One
| of them-the old man-answered back
that they had taken up a man for as
sault and battery, and meant only to
protect themselves and their rights.
Jake told them they had no business
inside the cabin, which belonged to
himself and his brother; that this
claim had been made and held for two
years, and that they We're liable to
prosecution for assault on his brother.
The elder man answered back thathe
and his son had found an old trapper
| living in the cabin, that they hao
bought his right to il, and laid claim
TO the land, and, what was more, they
should hold il against all corners. 1t
was also stated that acolony of settlers
from Illinois had come in some three
weeks before, having crossed the river
at 1.-THE Portage" and squatted along
on that side; that a general meeting
had already been held, and the usual
regulations adopted, and hal the
speaker inside the cabin had been
chosen constable until a regular cleo
| ton was held.
The young fellow was astounded
and chagrined at this intelligence.
The situation was pulling enough,
for he saw that these claim Jumpers
had greatly the advantage over him.
He and Jared could really prove moth
ing; not a settler on the other side
whom they knew had ever visited
them here or knew of the location of
their claim except by hearsay. Their
only callers had been two or three
stray trappers and an occasional Win
nebago Indian who had at various
times spent n night with them.
It was one Of those trappers, a ras-
cally looking fellow whom he re-
membered he had disliked, who had
pretended to sell this claim TO the pres
ent occupants-and there was a whole
neighborhood to stand by them in pos
| session,
The situation was discouraging even
If Jared had not-according TO the
| code of the region-been lawfully ar
rested for an assault. Jake went out
neal his own wagon and sat down on a
stump tothink.
The night was not dark; the moon
was shining family and a light wind
was moving the tree tops, and as Jake
sat with his face between his hands in
a brown study, the figure of a person
came across his range of vision. A boy
emerged from the woods a short dis
lance west of the cabin and came to-
ward him. As he approached the dog
ran out and began leaping upon him.
"Hullo. misterl wat We dom out
hyerF The voice was that of a lad of
IA or Is.
Jake answered, warily, hat he'd
jes' druv up a bit ago, an wonderin'
where thar might be some water fer
the oxen" He added that he thought
it rather late to wakeu up people to find
out-there was no light that could be
seen from the cabin.
''Oh, I'll show ye." said the boy.
SITS bout forty rod, though, the way
yell hev ter drive T. git down ter the
creek"
That don't make any differ'nce-
the distance said Jake. II want TO
camp by water"-which was true
enough as matters had turned out.
Thereupon he united his oxen,
turned his wagon about and drove
after the boy, who had led him back
very nearly over the way he had
come. Jake, looking back as they en-
tered the timber line, saw the cabin
door swing open, and some n come
out and look after them. But fortu-
nately, the boy was straight ahead and
could not be seen, and the man, who
had probably come out 10 see what
was going on upon hearing the wagon
rattle, turned again, and entered the
| cabin.
IL was fifteen minutes drive down
TO the creek. by the nearest approach
for wagon, but, as Jake well knew,
the stream could be approached on the
opposite side Of the cabin, which was
situated in a bend Of it, by a very
short cut through thick brush. Il
was from that quarter, in fact, that he
and Jared had brought their water for
cooking purposes.
However, it just suited a plan which
had flashed upon him that the boy
should be at the pains Of selecting for
him the best camping place-it got
them out Of sight and hearing OF the
cabin.
Jake walked well up by the steers
and talked TO the boy as they went
forward and learned, as he had ex-
pected, that the lad was the son of the
man who had jumped his claim. The
boy said he had gone over TO o neigh
boris who had just moved into a new
log house, u mile west, and was 10
have stayed all night, but finding that
a number Of land seekers had claimed
the neighbor's hospitality. he had