The daily morning Astorian. [volume] (Astoria, Oregon) 1883-1899, 1895-12-28
AN INDIAN pOY,s PONY.
His First Difficult Attenpt to Ride 1t at
a Buffalo Hunt.

From the Century.
Thus lead by those dedicated to re-
ligious service, the tribe leaves its vi lage,
the people by families dropping into line
men, well mounted, bearing their weap-
ons ready for use; women, in ga'a dress,
leading their decorated ponies, older ones
leading the pack horses: little chi dren in
twos and threes upon the backs CT steady
old nags or snugly slowed away in the
swinging pouch between the tent po'es,
and the dogs trotting complacently every
where. HeI1 and there along the line
of the cavalcade is a lad being Initiated
into individual responsibility. He has
been upon the hunt before, as one of the
family, but this is the first step toward
going independently uncared fer as a
child. The father has lassoed a wild
horse, saddled and bridled him and now
bids his son mount the animal. The boy
hangs back; the colt is a fiery creature,
and always FESTIVE under restraint. TIL
father tells the son that the h-Tse han
be his own when he has conquered it,
but the lad does not move. The lockers
on are smiling, and the cava'cade does
not wait. Get up" says the father.
The boy slowly advances, and the colt
quickly recedes, but the hoy, grasp'ng
his name, swings himself into the saddle.
The father let's 20, and so does the colt
rears, jumps, wriggles, humps his back
IKE an Infatuated cat, stands on his fore
legs and kicks at his own tai, paws the
air and stamps the earth, but the boy
clings to him until with a sudden jerk
the saddle Firth Is broken, and he Is
landed over the head of the excited Great
ure mich runs for dear life and liberty.
n.-..-N I--Ir y..aNnHNtnn hui furfCtC and
shakes of his head, he is again mounted
and again frees himself.
After two or three repetitions Of this
sort of thing the boy grows angry and
the mother grows anxious. She runs to
her son as he is scrambling up from the
ground, feels him all over and moves his
legs and arms to see If he is hurt. He
Is impatient at the delay: he is going to
MASTER that pony or die for 1t. This
time he stays on. In vain the animal
'ashes himself into foam n fury; the
Nov sticks to him like the shirt of Nessus,
and the father at last lead the indivisib'e
nair between the tent poles which trail
behind a sophisticated family horse, and
there. fenced in, they journey all dav,
irving to get used to each other. The
pony does not see his way cut cf the
poles, and Is forced to keep up with the
procession.
At the first halt strife is renewed. The
nony jumps over a nest of child en- slung
between tent poles and arouses the ire
If the dogs. With them at his heels. and
The boy on his back, he is an object Of
terror as well as of mirth to the camp.
He goes where he likes. All the boy can
do is to hold on, and hold on he does,
uutil at nightfall he dismounts without
the aid of the pony. The an'ral r"cog-
nlzes this as a defeat, and the struggle
Is over. An admlring uncle presents the
nov with a whip, the handle of which,
decorated with %porcupine quill work, is
terminated by a tassel of elk teeth. and
henceforth he rides his pony with tho
air of a conqueror, while the pony hlmself
Nrarces along as II he, too, were proud
" his own part of the performance.