Evening journal., 1892-09-28

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She 70 iUas tCho kncli beside the grduo Of
the old hunter
hunter, laid away in such unseemly
haste and with 80 little ceremony, and
uttered short prayer in behalf Of the
dead, and though somo Of the wilder
spirits affected TO ridicule, there was
look Of pride on their faces as they
turned them upon the girl kneeling be-
foro them.
Who was Joe Blyn? An American Of /
twenty-four, ranchman, scout, gold /
hunter; brave as lion and tender as a
woman. He had been with Sheridan |
and Custer, with Miles ana Cook. He /
had carried dispatches from field to fort, |
from post to headquarters. The soldiers /
and civilians knew him as Joe; the In
dams called him "The White Wind"
More than once they had found bis trail
and pushed him hard, butnover had they
oyertaken him. And within an hour
from the time Joe Blyn helped Bess Har
l1ins to q seat on the wagon he knew that
he loved her, and she realized that she
/ had fallen in with agreeable company.
Who was Taylor? An Iowa farmer;
man Of will and nerve, who thirsted to
acquire wealth speedily People at
home called him stingy and gragping.
An hour after the old hunters death
the light of ayarice shone SO brightly in
his eyes that a physiognomist would
have whispered to HIMSELF There Is
.I / 4. .fr,. F.u fff.fl1Nf
With the others we have little to do.
Expeditions such as this are made up Of
anybody and everybody. No one asks
where they come from and certificates
of character arc not demanded.
When one speaks Of the plains Of the
great west you must not confound thom
with the prairies. "God made the prai-
ries." SAYS an Indian legend, while
satan made the plains" The'one is a
level. covered with rich grass and car
peted with flowers, and the soil turned
M by the plow is the richest Of ear1h.
The other is rolling, broken ground,
ridged, tumbled, confused. Rock out
crops, the soil is almost flint and nature
can scarcely force weed or bush to
grow. Wolye and serpents are at home
on these desolate stretches Of country.
but all other living things avoid them.
There is a lOnesomeness and desolation
and homesickness about them which
has caused men 80 80 mad.
It was owe. such stretch Of country
that the wagon train slowly picked its
way. Ridge after ridge dip after dip,
always the same sterile scenery; alway.
the same vultures flying in circles SC
high up that they looked no larger than
robins.
They speak of boundless prairies. Sc
are the plains boundless-or seem to be
You may ride for 200 miles before ther,
is a change Of soil or scenery.
Noon comes and d brief halt is made
Tke men have grown more anxious
within the last hour.
, "Sigus" are more plentiful
The feathered heads of Indians have
;, been seen above the banks Of the DIR.
ravines at short intervals, and it is plaiI
3 to all that the train is under espionage
Your noble red man is n coward. IL
. must fight with the odds in his favor
he fights at all Honest warfare is un
= known to him. In his death song b.
\ will sing of his brave deeds, but no lie
4 about them.
Men and women argue and contenl
thai the red man Of America has bee
10 cheated. abused and maligned. The
view him from distance. In hisnatiy
~ state he lives by choice like a dog. II
is vicious in every sense. He was Dor
with a desire TO torture and kill. III
n love is tyranny and abuse-his friend
y. ship to be avoided. II he believes in
:. great Manitol, that belief doas not pr'
- vent him from being beast and dey
= combined. lie betrays hir own kindred
- He steals from his own tribe. He tor
lures q priso,er of his own kind with 9
much relish Es he does = white mei
- Taken &c n whole. he has not ons sing
trait or continent to prove his right
10 cunber the earth.
- Avei the rcd devils had been watcl
. ine that train for tho last t1voniy houi
- AZ q cat watcher its viciira when rcloarc
!. for tho moment. Tnoy wcro ahead q
~ -bshind-to tho right-,ho lcit, Z
= first two or throo-thon soycn o. cigh..
=. then lftecn--thea thirty They woi
y tho scou1s nad spios, and every be-
hour one rode away 20 the west 60 bea
- information 30 the chiefs in waiting.
AZ The gold hunters must be wiped OF
TO the last man. Their number ha
been counted over and over, the
-. weapons noted and the chances calcl
y, lated. The time was not yet. The Ia
- Of the ground was not suitable az
=. enough Indians had not come up The
80 dared not attack with ffty-a hundre
y IA hundred and fifty, They wou
move upon the little band with two hui
dred or more-four or Ave to one. Th
~ is Indian bravery
on When 4 dozen of them have run doN
81 a hunter and lifted his scalp there q
.si shouts Of victory-words Of boasting-
ba war dance about his body. They nev
n figure on odds--unless against theI
~. selves.
ia When the train was ready TO move
~ after its halt the leader called all {
Al; men together for counsel. lie had be
~. q soldier. rs had many Of the men.
III knew what to expect, and was prudei