Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1908-08-05
KALZA TOA !:
(TALE OF AN ::
OLD FREIGHTER) +;
Pr Enrrr,r Wu-r Harn Z
By FRANKLIN WELLEs CALKINs.


THE tallest, strongest and swiftest
man ever knew said the ex-freight-
or, Uncle Dick Weymeier, twas Katza-
toa, q chief of the Kiowa Indians.
II there was ever another such a run
ner among men as Katzatoa, I've new
or heard of him.
Il reckon, red, white or black, the
men have been mighty scarce who
could run alongside herd of stamped
ing buffaloes and shoot arrows or
bullets into a critter as they kept the
pace. That's what Katzatoa, seven
feet In his moccasins, a giant looming
In a cloud Of dust, was doing when
saw him first.
Twas on my second trip, whacl-
ing six yoke of bulls over the Santa
Fe trail, that our team got mixed in
a run Of buffaloes. l was young, Just
OF the Illinois praIries, and though
was a good ox-driver, wasn't train
ed to stampedes. My string of bulls
was thrown out of line and got go
Ing. I jumped my fore wagon and
put on the brake, but we were going
down long slope, and we went faster
and faster.
after couple of miles of night
mare running, swamped in buffaloes
and befrogged in dust, I found my
self, with my trail wagon snapped off,
one OK dead and dragging, slowing
up at the tail of the herd.
1T was at this minute that I saw
an Indian, about as tall as my wag-
on+bows, looping along but a few PAGES
on my left. l saw him send an ar
Tow, his last one, through a buffalo,
and then, before could say Jack
Robinson, he'd bowled alongside and
swung himself into my seat. He was
grinning and gasping good-naturedly,
and was such a natural curiosity in
the way of size and speed that it did
not occur to me to look for hostil-
titles. AS he painted and sweated,
glowing like a furnace, he roared out
great grunts of laughter, tickled as
boy at the chance to ride on a run
away wagon.
MY bulls were still galloping,
though pretty well done UP, when the
dust suddenly cleared, and Indians.
apparently dropped out of the clouds,
came riding at us, whooping hilari-
ously.
AS the foremost of these came I'D
the giant in my seat threw an arm
about me, leaped to his feet, and then
to the ground, minding my weight no
more than if I'd been a papoose. I
knew that fighting would be worse
than useless, and so 1 stood beside
my captor, looking on while a dozen
or fifteen kiOwas shot down the oxen
and rified my wagon. Then 1 saw the
freight-train cOrraled on a distant hill
and big troop of Indians on another
rise, evidently considering whether to
attack or not.
In any event, I saw that there was
no rescue for me to be hoped for
from the freighters, and I gave my
self up for lost. l expected to be
put to the torture, but | was happily
disappointed
The Kiowas were all in great good
humor. They'd made a big killing
~ 001AstAOCSs anu OuI VI lily NdSOH
they got calicoes and cutlery enough
to fit out their whole tribe. In the
end they let the freight-train go on
without a fight And the freighters
moved, taking it for granted that the
indians had made way with me.
well, we went into camp, and
whole village of Kiowas came on for
the cutting up and curing of the meat.
Among all the Indians who came strag-
Cling in, there was no hostile act or
look toward me. The big Indian took
away my revolvers and installed me
in his teepee, where his mother. a
pleasant though none too clean old
woman, kept house for him.
HE made me understand that he,
Katzatoa, had adopted me as his broth
er, and it suited him to pretend that
my coming, with a big load of pres-
ents for the Kiowas, had been fore
told by a medicine-man.
Il was an Indian, Katzatoa said, and
not white, as 1 had always thought
myself Well, was tied up at night
and watched closely until under