Willmar tribune. [volume] (Willmar, Minn.) 1895-1931, 1905-03-22

shade. Altogether we were for tunate,
and we concluded to make log noon
ing and get good rest
Greasewood was soon ha:ked of. A
fire was lighted, and several prairie
hens which had been taken in the morn
ing were set TO cook for dinner. l re-
member was playing with homemade
doll under the cottonwood-trees when
low rumbling like deep, far-distan1
thunder attracted eyeryone's attention.
The Sky was clear. There were no in
dicatiOns of shower approaching. But
the rumble grew louder every instant.
and soon the ground began to tremble.
Its an earthquake" Tobias Tucker
shouted. Truly the continuous Earring
did suggest the approach OF an earth
quake; but it seemed strange that it
came on so slowly.
The horses all stopped grazing ami
gazed anXiOusly off in the direction
from which the sounds came. Then
they began to snort and plunge and
strain at their halters.
Something is wrong, that's sure"
said Aunt .Lolisa's husband, gravely.
All at once, while we scanned tho
plains, brown cloud rolled slowly up
from behind swell of land mile to tho
north of the creek. The next moment
e long line of dark objects surged over
the crest
It's buffalo run. Get to the wag-
ons. all of you!" Dakes cried.
| NO! No! For your liyes!" shouted
F.! father and Tobias together. lon TO thu
| horses. double, treble. anyhow. and ride!
! Quick or we're lost''
! The men jumped for the horses, lifted
on the women and children, and swung
| themselves up ahead.
| The earth was shaking beneath nus
as the black line of shaggy heads-a mile
wide seemingly, and still pouring over
i the ridge in countless numbers-bore
! down toward u.s. nearer nearer, a thirst
maddened throng turning neither 10
right or left
| Before we could start the horses half
! the distance between us had been COW
! cred. It seemed hopeless race, but On
we went. clinging for life. gathering
across the rocky creek-bed, taking
southwest and quartering course to xer
out of range of the oncoming multitude.
! Dismay filled every heart. The vOnl-
| en- and children shrieked and covered
; their heads. the men shouted hoarsely
and spurred the frightened horses TO
their utmost speed.
The ground throbbed beneath us. the
! air was filed with horrible rumbling,
! the dust rolled over us in clouds.
! On we galloped, and on Numbered thu
living mass behind. If our horses could
Z! only hold on to take us outside the line
| of death-dealing hoofs!
Faster we urged the horses and for
p, little time we kept the distance good:
heavily loaded, they began to fall be-
hind. and every moment we expected 10
be blotted out forever.
Nothing could be heard above the roar
of the advancing mass. The dust clouds
| choked and blinded us. We could not.
see Tobias big roam, whose lead We
were to follow, and each staggered on
for himself in the rush for life.
Now the usually sure-footed gray
horse on which I was seated behind
father stumbled into gopher burrow.
We held our breath. He almost went
!! down. Then, gathering himself, he
plunged forward again. was thrown
of my feet by the last sudden lurch, but
I hung with a desperate grip to fathers
homespun jacket
Then all in moment We found We
were out of reach, and the living torrent
swept by us and went roaring and crash
! ing on over the plains toward the Platte
river, their goal of thirsty desire leay-
ing us half dead with the terror of flight
After the air cleared We pulled our
selves together and reraced our way to
! the midway camp. A wagOn-whee1 here,
a bit of canvas there. slivered boards and
q few scraps of the iron kettles markell
the place. All else had been swept away
The COWS and Bouncer and poor old
Peleg had either been borne OF bodily
in the laundering herd, or else trodden
down and annihilated in moments
space-a fate we ourselves had narrow
~ escaped.
The sea-chest had gone in the general
! wreck, of course, together with the lin
en- and bedding it had taken lis so Tonga
! time to get together. But the silver
milking, hurled behind large stone in
+, the creek-bed. had miraculously escaped
absolute ruin, although its beauty was
! gone forever.
; Here was an overwhelming calamity:
Not only were our provisions gone, but
also the guns and ammunition that
might have procured meat But it would
not do to wait and mourn over our losses.
We had to push on and find help.
This We did, and two days later fell In
with a government surveying party.
From it We bought three wagons-for
/; fortunately our men had carried their
! money on their persons-someg guns, and
provisions enough to starve along with
until we reached our destination
| Grandmother Decoster died the next
year. She had given me the battered lit
tie milking with the old coat-of-arms.
Keep it, my DEAR she said, Ito remind
! you of that day when Gods kind prov
idence brought us all unframed out OF
| threatened destruction. youths Com
panion.