The Mitchell capital. (Mitchell, Dakota [S.D.]) 1879-1918, 1905-08-18
CHAPTER XIV.
HOW UNcANooLA TRAPPED THF
GREAT BEAR.

HOW UNCANOOLA TRAPPED THE
GREAT BEAR.
Twas Richard Jennifer who first
broke the noontide silence Of the noun
tain top, voieing the query which was
thrusting sharp at all Of us.
Now how in the name of all the
.fiends did they make shift to burrow
from yonder bag-bottom into this? 2"
he would say.
"Ez I allow, that's Jest what the good
Lord fetched us here for-to find OUT
was Yeates' r%ejoinder. DO you and
the chief, Cap'n John, circumambylate'
this here pitfall yon way, whilst Cap'n
Dick and I go t'other way round. BY
time we've made the circuit and fined
company again, l reckon Well know for
sartin whether r no they climm' the
mountaing to get In"
So when we had breathed us a little
the circutting was begun. Ephraim
Yeates and Jennifer going toward the
lower end of the sink, and the Catawba
and l in the opposite direction.
Since we must examine closely every
rift and crevice in the boundary cliff,
1t was a most tedious undertaking; and
1 do remember how my great trooper
boots. sun-drying on my feet. made
every step a wincing agony. They say
an army goes upon its belly, but an old
campaigner will tell you that you can
march a soldier till he be too thin to
cast a shadow IL only he hath ease of
his footgear.
Taking it all in all, 1t proved a SLOW
business, this looping OF the sunken
valley; and when we had worked
around to the eastern cliff and to q
meeting point with the old hunter and
Richard Jennifer, the sun was level in
our faces and the day was waning.
Coming together again, we made
haste to compare notes. There was lit
tie enough to add to the COMMON fund
Of information. n the mystery OF the
lost trail remained a mystery. True.
we, the Indian and 1 had found a rn-
vine at the extreme ppe end Of the
valley through which, we thought. a
sure footed horse might be led at q
pinch. up or down; but this ravine. had.
not been used by the powder train. and.
apart from 1t there was no practicable
horse path leading down from the
plateau.
AS for the hunter n Richard. thew
had made q discovery which might
stand for what 1t was worth. At its
lower extremity the sunken valley was
separated from the great gorge with
out only by a ridge which was no more
than a huge dam; n this diking ridge
was evidently tunneled by the stream.
since the latter had no visible outlet.
Inasmuch as the most favorable point.
OF espial upon the camp below was the
clin whence we had first looked dow
into the sink. we harked back thither,
passing around the lower end Of the
valley and yet along the barrier ridge.
Plan we had none as yet. for the pre-
liminary to M attempt at q rescue
must be some better knowledge Of the
way into and out Of Falconnet's cum
ningly chosen stronghold. True. we
might win in and out again by the
ravine which the chief and I had <
plored at the upper end, and Dick was
for trying this when the night should
give vi the curtain Of darkness for 4
shield. But the old hunter would hold.
this forlorn hope In reserve a. . last
resort.
Sort 1t out for yourself. Cap'n Dick.
he argued. ''Whatsonnedeyer We mafa
out to do-four on us ag,inst that there
whole enduring army o. tholrsn-haa;
got to bs done on the keen jump. With
. tolec'bls plain hoss-road for -