Wichita eagle., 1889-01-30
UNCLE JOE'S ESCAPE.
An Indian Is After Him and q
Panther After the Indian.
Veteran of the Plains and Mountains
Tells How a Wild Beast Which Had
Been Watching for Him Prob
ably Saved His Life.
IN. Y. SUM-


sIwas huntin' and trappin' along the
Columbia river on the Oregon side,'' said
Uncle Joe, a veteran of the plains and
mountains land while | was right in the
Injun country / kivered my tracks so well
that it was weeks before they got on to me.
built brush hut in heavily -timbered
bottom, and the keerful manner in which /
moved around that neighborhood would
have done credit to cat. l used the bow
and arrow altogether in KILN game, and
my traps brought me in a back load of
furs about as fast as could take keer of
,em.
81 guess / had bin located about six
weeks, and had become sort o. careless, as
was material, when 1 got sudden eye
opener. Ons AFTERNOON l cum plump on
the moccasin track of an Injun, and from
the way it circumlocuted around, soon
made up my mind that he was huntin' fur
me. Twas a bit puzzled at first, because
there was only one track, but by and by
fggered out how it was. 1t was either
some Injun who had slipped off to trap
by hisself fur few days, or it was some
warrior who had had his suspicious aroused
and was dom q leetle investigation on his
own hook. If he got my scalp he was SO
much ahead, and glory awaited him. If
he got nuthin' be wouldn't be laughed at
by the rest of his tribe, fur none Of 'em
would know Of his adventure. The mint
diskivered his footprints l pulled myself
together fur bizness, and hadn't follered
his trail over twenty rods before ] found
that he was follerin' an old trail of mine.
at didn't take me mint to realize that
one of us had got to die afore that hunt
would be ended. 1t was question of fish
or cut bait with me. l should be follered
if / left the bottoms, fur that redskin
wanted my life, and couldn't stay if he
did. On his side, it would never do fur
him to abandon the place arter he had dis
kivered that | was alone. He must stake
his life agin mine and abide the issue.
Mebbe you kin realize suthin' of the feelin'
which comes over a man when he knows
that he is bein' tracked by some body who
demands his life. I'd rather have had a
whole tribe of redskins come whoopin and
yellin' down upon me than to know that a
sarpent was dodgin' and crawlin' along my
trail, silent, determined and implacable.
l bit the feller'S trail about half mile
from the hut, and the hour was abont three
O'Clock. | knew that he must sooner or
later strike one of my fresh trails and
bring up at the hut and instead Of follerin'
as he follered nv old trail broke off after
few minutes and made directly fur the
hut. Near by was a mass of rock which
offered secure hidin' place, and l could
reach it without bein' seen l shouln have
an advantage. That is, it was reasonable
L,l,a l.. Oh II
shootin' distance durin the next twenty
four hours
Il made the tallest kind o. tracks when |
once got started. had to take the chances
of his havin' found the hut an bein' in am
bush, and I'm not disputin' that 1t was
great load off my mind when ] got safely
settled among the rocks. / dashed into the
hut and got my rifle and a hunk of cold
meat, and in twenty seconds more l was
safe for the time bein' Jist what direc-
ton the varmint would approach from |
could not guess, but he would be still more
puzzled to know what had become Of me.
Fur the first hour the place was as silent as
a graveya ard, and was lookin' and listen
in as only man can when his life is at
stake to git a hint of the whereabouts of the
tHcHll' hhdlly SOO Il oiS L. n JUN uccI
cum runnin' past me in d way to show that
be had seen human bein' not fur off, and
fingered that the redskin was approachin'
from the east He had made complete
half circle of my hidin' place. Fur the
next half hour | used my eyes and ears
until my head ached. | knew the varmint
was approachin the hut, but he was comm
so cautiously that l could not tell the exact
direction.
''The sun was now gettin' purity low, and
I allowed that if he didn't show up purity
soon I'd be badly boxed up fur the night. l
was all on aige and slleercely able to hold
myself, when, all of sudden, the silence
was broken by an awful yell, follered by
cry from some human bein'. 1t wasn't
way off, but right there within stones
throw, and L riZ up as if had springs under
me- Right there before my eyes, and not
hundred feet away, panther and an In
jun was havin' 1t hot and heavy, the beast
usin' his claws and teeth and the redskin
cutting and slashin' with his knife. l was
so astonished that l couldn't move for a
mint or two, and when | got ready there
was no use in movin'. The two varmints
rolled over and over a dozen times, too
badly mixed fur me to tell which was
which, and then the panther kinder drawed
out of the fight He might have got fifteen
feet away when he keeled over and kicked
in q way to tell me that he'd got his full.
The Injun uttered faint whoop as the
panther drawed off, but when l reached
him be was dead as a door nail He had
fit it out hand TO hand usin' his huntin'
knife, and I'm tellin' you he was terrible
iookin' object. The beast had tore almost
every inch of clothin' off'n him, and he was
bit and clawed until he was like raw beef
We'll, fggered it outpurty easy. That
painter had slowed hisself away on a limb
calkelatin' to make it hot fur me- reckon
he didn't get up there un I'll arter had am
pushed myself, and when the redskin cum
crawlin' along the beast didn't stop to see
whether he was white or black. l was
panther skin, rife, tomahawk and huntin'
knife ahead, and, although l remained
there for three weeks longer, / saw no fur
Their signs of lnjuns-'
Why Her Head Ached.