The Washburn leader. [volume] (Washburn, McLean County, N.D.) 1890-1986, 1890-07-05
A rENoEaFooT FACES sAosAoNEs


He Levels a Rifle at Them, Much to the
Disgust of the Indians.
"One summer about eleven years ago,
when / was out in Wyoming" said the
colonel, "my younger brother, who was
then a college boy, came u to spend his
summer vacation with us. Will gave the
rough men out there q good deal of amuse-
ment with his ideas of how q man should
dress on the plains. But he wasn't a bad
fellow, for he had no little spirit and was
always willing to do his share of the work.
IF w. ever met a Shoshone Indian ut
that time Ecu know what a perfect type Of
a lazy, peaceful, harmless redskin is. We
used to consider that the Shoshones were
born to be kicked about, and I am afraid
that many of us lived up to u beliefs. A
man would never hesitate If there had
been any petty thieving around the camp
to walk four or five miles, go into an In
dian camp single handed and kick things
about, or drag the mighty braves from
their blankets until he had found his
saddle, his bride, his rifle, or whatever it
vas that had been stolen. Having found
it he would sling it IN his back and stride
off amid the disappointed grunts of the
dirty braves.
''But Will, fresh from the east and never
having seen an Indian before, could not
understand this boldness. When there
were Indians in the camp begging for to-
bacco he was always suspicious of treach-
cry. At such times he kept AZ anxious eye
on the guns and watched every movement
of the visitors closely, while we used never
to think of such a thing.
eve left him in charge of the camp one
day and started for the mountains after
deer. Finding ourselves several miles from
camp that night we started a fire, broiled
a steak over the wood Goals, and gathering
some lcafy branches for beds and pillows
turned in and slept the sleep of the just.
"As we drew nea camp the next even
ing we saw a sight which sent us into
roars of laughter. Will was ensconced
behind a barricade which he had made of
saddles, boxes, bedding-anything he could
find. He was standing there with a pale
look of agony On his face, all the spare
guns and six shooters carefully arranged
around him. Two hundred yards away
from the breastworks sat a half dozen Sho-
shones looking utterly nonplused and dis
gusted. Coming up to the Indians first
we tried to find out what the trouble was.
From their grunts and grimaces, gestures
and sna.ches of broken English, we learn
ed that they had come to pay us a visit on
the preceding afternoon. They had caught
the young tenderfoot mapping, and he had
not noticed their approach until they were
within n few feet of him. AS soon as he
saw them coming up silently, as Indians
always do, he seized his rifle and frantical-
ly waved them back. Nor would he rest
until they had fallen back to the position
which they then held.
"When we failed to appear that night
the boy Immediately decided that We had
been massacred and hastily began to throw
up big breastworks. The Shoshones rolled
themselves in their blankets and went to
sleep, but Will stood guard all that night
and watched them with eagle eye until we
returned the next day. Even then, when
we walked toward him, the Indians follow
ing us in solemn wonder, he was for shoot
ing, but we laughed at him 80 immoder.
ately that he threw down his rifle sulkily.
As for the braves, their opinion of the boy
was shown by the action of n big, solemn
faced buck, who, going up to Will, touched
him on the forehead, and even then Will
started back. The buck looked at him a
moment, we ready to burst into roars
again, tapped his own forehead slowly,
shook his head gravely and turning away
said 'Ughl' in toncs of the deepest disgust.
"In tho opinion of that Indian only an
insane man could believe that there was
any fight in u Nintah county Shoshone.". ~
New York Tribune.