Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1892-07-29
SNYDER.

spider was baddish sort of boy
,scl twelve, whose homo was on the
yery bank OF the Mississippi-so mean
% the water that when his active
ir,dnation or conscience would not
IA, him sleep he had been known 20 ,
30. out Of bed IN the dead watches Of /
M night and plunge ir'o 1t as a .
diversion and a solocc. He had tho |
mighty river as a playmate and al. |
most worshipcd It, without being |
sware that he did so; for tie. Mis- 7
sissipui il a wonderful thing both by .
,icht and by day TO those who +,
achieve familiarity with II, and Sni' .
der was a nature worBhipcr within .
reasonable limits-thc limits of a
savage or a boy Of twelve.
snidcr.s playuiatCs were boys and
girls Of two races, the red and tins
white, and no expressed slight pref
orncc for tho white ON week days
and tho red ON the Sabbath, for, be-
ing baddish boy, no played all day
Sunday. and il is hard 60 get along
harinoniously all day with tho little
white boys who oropcrmitted TO play
on that day. The red people, great
and small. looked on Snidcr as u sort
of phenomenon, and everybody
knows Il Is very soothing to the
nerves Of all ages and sexes TO bo
treated defcrcntially. To have
harmedah Of Snidcr's head would,
in tho opinion of the band Of Chippe-
was. where ho passed current, have
been tho worst kind Of bad mcdi-
cine"
snidcr's sire held the orthodox
Western Wow that "lnjuns is pizcn,"
and did not approve his sons famili.
arity with tho ahoiigincs, but this
did not seriously interfere with the
boys plans, for 1t was not regarded
@strictly necessary that ho should
consult his parents as TO his goings
in and comings out Of the woods.
snidor aud his Indian iplaymates
hliin their intercourse constructed
blend" Of English and Algonquin
that was unintelligible TO other NOR
falls than themselves, and frequently
they used 1t to express sentiments re-.
garding their progcnitors that would
hnyo made things pretty stormy for
them had their elders, into whose
teeth they hurled it, known what
was said.
Sniders best friend and "steady
company" was an Indian maiden of
ten, whose namo in English would
be freely translated Rcd Leaf. but
which in her native tongue could DO
, spelled only by q combination Of let
tiers that would look very discour.
aging 10 civilized people Red Leafs
mother had no warrior sho could call
her own, and this detrac,cd from her
popularity with tho tribe, for it's
malo members were expected 20 di.
vide the produce Of the chase with
her and gratitude was not her
strongest characteristic. Her hus.
bands scalp was blowing about like
dry rag in some Sioux warriors
tepcc, he having been killed in battle
seven or eight years before Snider
formed tho acquaintance OF his
daughter. Tho lady's namc might
have been rendered Alkali in Eng.
llsh, although 1t is quito likely She
had adopted or been given this bitter
title ut u later date than her mar
riagc
Alliali always greeted with q
friendly "How how tho coming OF
snidor, for his pockets usually con
tanned something edible from his
homo lardor, and exc n triiie Of to
bacco from his fathers hoard. II /,
not improbable that Snidcr was in q
measure responsible for the annual
and protractod visit Of this particu
Lar band Of Indians to tho neighbor
hood, for in addition 20 adding 4
triilo 10 The comforts Of tho com
rany he had, ON occasion, been Sc
duced into securing whisky for them
though at the earnest solicitation Of
Red Leaf he had many times declinet
this sinful act of accommodation.
1T is not good to live she said
when the warriors have taken tn,
devils water"
But Snidcr had other sources o.
amusement than the congeninl so
ciety of the Indian maiden. Ono o
these was the casting of stones II
waytarclN from ambush. 1t ohnnceC
one day that no cast stone into
passing Immigrants covered WugOi
and struck a babe on tho head, nal,
ing q cruel wound, aud u chance,
That the chill's father succeeded il
dragging Suidor from his conceal
meut IN the high grpss and dragging
nm TO tho wagon, first to show tn
Nllainy no had done and next I,
swngo him soundly. But whom Sni
der had seen the wound no was 81
AFFECT, so rcmoIBcful, so anxious 4
be 'mitton hip and thigh and made
terrible example OF that the immi
Fant and his wife and tho baby e
boot forgayo him with all thei
hoarts
Others had soon his evil decd, an,
tho nows of It went speedily TO hi
father so that Snider was a bruisc,
ana battered littlo imp when his IA
her sont him supperlcss 10 bed tina
night Ho resented his punishmcn
With bitterness OF spirit reasonin