The Kootenai herald. [volume] (Kootenai, Idaho) 1891-1904, 1892-09-16

1t for awhile. 1t is too wild place for him
to take his wife and little girl, though, and
consequently he has established them at
the little town of Garfield, about forty
miles northeast of his place, where he
visits them every two or three weeks. Just
before | visited that section he had been
to Garfield and had taken his little eight
year-old Bessie back with him to the
ranch as he expected to return in few
days on business. He had not been able to
return. however, and Mrs Wilson asked
me if l would not bring the little girl home
after | had made my visit, and | gladly
told her would do so, as intended spend
ing only a couple Of days there
THE two days passed with Tom were
very pleasant indeed, and one bright win
ter morning jumped into my sleigh with
little Bessie and started across the prairie
1T was about noon, when, to my amaze
AxSent and indignation, saw one of those
mean, and in my opinion then, Contempt
BILE long gray wolves following us in his
swinging gallop. No one unacquainted
with the wolf of our northwestern prairie
can appreciate or fully realize the wonder
full speed and remarkable endurance of
this animal. AS you are no doubt aware.
wolves never catch their prey by living in
ambush or by stealing up to it, but they
run it down fairly in open chase. And
when they assemble in packs and organize
an attack, the danger is the greatest con-
ceivable
Notwithstanding my knowledge of my
enemies, | felt no uneasiness even when |
saw the one wolf increase to ten and then
to twenty. | felt satisfied they would
close upon the sleigh gradually, and by
the time they began to be really dangerous
I 4 t,f., i
had only few more miles to go. Bessie
had lived long enough in the west to re-
alize our danger, and the dear little crea-
ture sat there trembling with fear and
biting her lips to keep the tears back. MY
whole endeavor was to hold the horses
down to their work and not rush them,
and yet at the same time keep myself from
getting excited.
consequently | resisted the temptation
of shooting at the rascals. In my efforts l
succeeded quite we'll, till one of those vim
dictive gray devils took a squirt forward
and snapped at one of the horses. After
shat might as we'll have tried TO hold a
cyclone. The horses fairly few, and con
sidered myself lucky in holding them in
the road. | still did not feel very uneasy
for ! felt sure they could hold up to their
work and we were getting that much
nearer the town. The wolves were keep
ing right along with us. when suddenly
the sleigh went into a little gulch, there
was snap and crash, felt myself jerked
over the dashboard by the reins, and when
let them go away went the horses over
the prairie, while Bessie and | and the
wolves were left behind
Il really then gave up hope, and expected
to be devoured in few minutes, but with
the exception of this one thought nothing
else entered my mind except the deter
mination to fight the beasts away from
little Bessie as long as could. Bessie was
wrapped in buffalo robe and the sudden
jar had thrown her TO the bottom of the
sleigh, completely enveloped and hidden
from view. | sprang right back to the
sleigh, emptying my revolver as / did so.
The six wolves that | killed in this way
gave me time 20 spring forward and tear
loose a singletree from the sleigh, which
had been almost entirely torn off by the
horses when the crash came, and with this
leaped into the bottom of the sleigh, and
standing over Bessie began the fight for
our lives.
II don't know how long fought there.