The Opelousas courier., 1889-03-09
A FRONTIER STORY.
a White Mans Figuring Against
Indian Cunning.

directly following the close OF Lne
Indian campaign in which the gallant
Custer lostSzis life, there vas a year
of dangerous peace On the frontiersd |
mean by that that while the redsE ms
were supposed to have been thrashed
inte submission, and while they were
apparently at peace, they lost no OPP
portunity to murder helpless people.
The whites were bound by honor to
observe the peace and to trust them to
a certain limit, and, knowing this, the
more dissatisfied bucks took every adj
vantage.
/ was still in the employ of the Gov
eminent as a scout and rider, and It'd
was my luck to bring about the cap
ture of four bucks who were guilty of
numbering an old man. They wer
awaiting trial when a young warrior
named Black Serpent. who was the son
of one of the arrested men, sent me
word that he would have my life in re-
venge. I was stationed at Fort Hays,
and he sent word in by a trader. Black
Serpent was an Apache. and was de-
scribed to me as being about twenty
three years of age, strong, feet and as
cunning as a fox. / did not know him
by sight, while he doubtless had the
advantage of knowing me. In two or
three instances when such messages
had been brought in they were accom-
panied by the further Information that
the sender would be at a certain place
at a certain hour. The recipient had
his choice to show up and kill or be
killed in o fair exchange of shots, or
return the message in contempt, and
take his chance of being assassinated.
Black Serpent gave me no alternative.
He meant to catch me off my guard
and kill me.
While it wasn't very pleasant to
have such a threat hanging over anan,
/ did not worry mucR aboutit. Indeed,
it was the habit Of every scout to take
all possible precautions anyhow. cL
simply felt that / had the right, he
having sent me the message, to shoot
the young buck on sight, and as for
what he was going to dY ] left that all
to him.
About q week later T was called up
On to make a ride of about seventy
miles to a camp on the Smoky Hill
stage route, and as I was ready to set
out several of my friends came to me
and cautioned me to look out for Black
Serpent, who had been seen the day be-
fore about ten miles from the fort and
directly on the route / should travel.
According to the terms OF surrender he
should have been under supervision at
the agency, endorsed and disarmed,
but here he was, g~alloping about on q
war pony, armed with a Winchester
and a navy revolver, and lying in wait
TO do murder. ! was as ready as j
could be to encounter him. / had the
same firearms and a splendid horse,
and unless he ambushed me he would
have no odds In his favor.
So far as animal cunning goes the
American Indian has nc superior on
earth. He is quick of ear and vision,
keen TO take in d situation, and he
reasons pretty well up to a certain
point. Novelists have. however, ele-
waited him too high. a white man who
has been trained in the Indian country
y see, hear, or smell just as keenly,
run just az fast, shoot better, GO with
out food or water just as long, and
when 1t comes to Figuring he can
beat the sharpest redskin by a length.
I don't say this because / had to figure
against Black Serpent, but because !
have seen II proved in fifty instances.
When an Indian plots against q
white man he plots something to
be- executed under cover of darkness.
While my route lay over a lonely
and broken country, small detach-
ments of soldiers were shifting about.
and I reasoned that Black Serpent
would hardly take the chances Oh an
ambush. The report Of his gun nigh,
be heard or he might miss me III
shooting, or he might be 9 Ia the
locality Of the deed and suspected OF 1t.
WkSe be would have an opportunity
at every mile Of the journey To- shoot
tine from behind rock, Or bush, ol
ridge. 4 rode along without special Wig.
lance arguing for reasons above
given, that he would not dare do it.
i was one o'clock IN the AFTERNOON