The star. (Reynoldsville, Pa.) 1892-1946, 1906-01-03
Days in the Saddle.
Adventures with Troop of Cavalry
After Indians.
After Indians.

"rosS our DackS would nave straight
ened us up. Crawford carried a
Henry rifle on the saddle in front of
him and lugged around two Colts pis-
tolls day and night. He slept with
them on. We had to do that ourselves
at times, but unless was told to keep
mine on 1t came of promptly when I
lay down. | could get 1t quickly
enough If l needed it.
He had been an Indian fighter all
his life, or said he had, and as he
found us no Indians this trip, and
never made another one with us
Will have to take his word for II, but
from what | saw of him afterward,
II | were an Indian he would be the
man | should want to follow me.
would not expect to have to fight him
oftener than twice day.
We went into camp more than half
mile beyond the cave, and as soon
as our horses were staked out went
to Crawford and asked him II he
would go and examine that cave with
me. No, he did not care to walk that
| far.
ut Is only half mile" said.
Yes, but 1t Is another half mile
back, and I amt used to walking. You
may go down and get that bear IL you
want him"
Il want him. of course, IL he is
there"
"oh. he is there all right. l saw his
tracks there"
| went to the major and asked per-
mission to hunt the bear.
YES" he told me, "hunt him, but
don't crawl into that cave after him,
as Mr.. Crawford was going to do"
| | had no idea of doing that. / did
not want bear quite so badly as that,
and l don't think that Crawford had
ever meant to crawl into it, either.
He YVES not exactly fool.
On my way to the cave began to
study plans to get him out of 1t If he
was In it, without going in and drag
ging him out. l first thought to climb
up there, then give him shot or two
into, but | dismissed that plan. l
might kill him II l did and would
not know it. l was not going in to
see. According to some authorities
on bears, it takes a man and a gun
half day to kill one. Sometimes it
does. | have followed one with rifle
half day, then did not kill him. l
don't know that l ever wounded him,
though I shot at him often enough.
And again l have killed one in less
than two minutes with a pistol 1t
depends good deal on where you hit
the bear how many shots it takes to
kill him.
| got down in front of the cave and
examined the ground for bear signs,
but found none. The ground, what lit
tie there was Of it that was not COW
cred with loose rocks, was hard yellow
clay-an OK team passing over 1t
would hardly leave sign.
Gathering up a lot of dry brush,
weeds and leaves 1 piled them in
front of the cave, set them on fire, and
going off few feet to one side waited
for the bear or bears to come out. |
had Spencer carbine and Colts
pistol, and | though that could stop
all the bears that might be in there.
The wind drove the smoke, right into
the cave, the fire burned out, but no
bear made his appearance. There
would be no danger in going into that
cave now, and l tried it, but as there
was too much smoke in it l had to
crawl out. | went back to camp and
Crawford wanted to know if had seen
the bear.
mo, sir, there is none there, nor has
there been any lately"
"Oh, yes, there has been;" he had
ec~- .'rni-. cionc
'You could not see sign there with
l...>ro,, upe. Inc ground is too
hard
There might be plenty Of signs
there that an old hunter could see,
and you could not. You have not
been in this country long"
Yes, l know; but we have men in
this troop that have been, some Of
them twenty years out on the frontier.
| myself have been pretty well over
the Northwest, and have hunted with
Sioux Indians. They know something
about signs, don't they? We are not
all tenderfeet, if we were born and
raised in the big cities"
"Yes, maybe so, but there has been
bar up thar"
We'll, as the Major told you, We
will let him stay up there. can't
find him."
We started again early next morning
to hunt those Indians of Crawford's,
and soon after breaking camp 1t began
to rain and kept on raining all fore
noon. The Major went into csmp as
soon as he could find grass and wood.
We did not need to look for water.
We had all we wanted of that and
some more.
| The timber here was cypress, and
there was a lot of blocks of 1t that
had been cut to make shingles out Of
which had been left; Indians had pro-
badly interrupted the shingle making
before it had got well started. That
had been some years ago, before the