The Banner-Democrat. [volume] (Lake Providence, East Carroll Parish, La.) 1892-current, 1897-09-11
FIELDS OF ADVENTURE.
THRILLING INCIDENTS AND DARING
DEEDS ON LAND AND SEA.

Montana-A California Rancher Rolls
Down Hill Into Lions Embrace.
A few years ago there fourished in
Montana a scout who had an extraor-
binary equipment for his occupation.
He was tall, strong man, well built
except in one respect; his feet grew
the wrong way, his toes pointing back
ward instead of forward. This would
have been a serious drawback to any
man who went much on foot; but 1t
was almost no drawback to "Clubfoot
George" as this scout was called, be-
cause practically he never went on
foot at all. He had a saddle with STIR
rups adapted to his deformity, and
could ride a horse as well as any other
cowboy.
He was an expert at trailing In
dams. and seldom had to dismount IN
order to distinguish even the smallest
detail of Indian "sign." His keen
eyes took in everything from his seat
in the saddle.
He is said to have known personally
all the Indians from Fort Berthold to
the Blackfoot Agency, and was equally
well known to them. But he was
their enemy, and they were his enc
mics. The war was apparently re-
lentless between them.
In the dead of a certain winter,
many years ago, Clubfoot George had
occasion to go from old Fort Browning
to Fort Benton. He was alone, and
had to camp overnight on the way.
Even famous scout sometimes makes
mistake, and George on this occa-
sion hobbled his horse, rather Wild
and Eighty animal, SO insecurity that
in the night it got away, and started
back to Fort Browning.
In the morning, therefore, Clubfoot
George had to confront the necessity
of walking to Fort Benton. 1t was
an unpleasant thing to do, since it
would take even good walker about
two days to cover the distance, and
Clubfoot Georges speciality was not
walking: but he started out manfully
over the snow.
He had walked until about the mid
die of the afternoon, when party OF
hostile Indians, out for white mems
scalps. came upon his trail. His
tracks were plainly visible in the snow;
but of course they pointed in the OPP
posite direction from that in which
George was going.
There was nothing about the tracks
to show that they were Clubfoot
Georges; and besides, the Indians,
though they knew George we'll, had
never before seen the print OF his
boots. SO they started pell-mell II
the direction in which the tracks led!
thirsting for this white mans blood.
But when they had followed the
trail to the spot where George hat
camped the night before, and found
the trail of the horse and the evidence
that some one had come so far OF
horseback and then lost his horse, tht
Indians looked at one another in as
tonishment, until one of them said
"Clubfoot!'' Then they all inspected
closely the tracks they had been fol
lowing.
Who says that Indians have n
sense of humor? No one who know
them we'll. These Indians certainl
had, for they roared with laughter
though the joke was on them. Blu
they determined to transfer 1T to tn
white man.
So they turned back on the trail an
rode furiously all the rest OF the ola
and a part of the night, until the
came to a place where the queer hee
first track went over a bank. The
one of the Indians lay down on h
face and called over the edge of til
bank, in his own language:
!. "Clubfoot, are you there?"
: sYes, I am here! Is that yol
: Howling Dog?"
. What could be done with such
man? The Indians were already mo-
q than half Modified toward the scout
o their enjoyment of the extraordinal
. Joke that he had, quite unintentio
a ally, played on them; and when,
Y the best of humor, George invite
e them to come down and share b
l. camp and make themselves at hom
= they did so, and never molested hir
J. Their unexpected friendliness mu
"a have made an impression on Clubfo
Is George, for the chapters of his adve
lures end with this incident. He ga
up scouting, and ever after lived
a peaceful life.