The San Francisco call., 1910-10-02
nY. ga MES. NJ. TEILoM.

sat his son, Joe The boy was on the
lookout. Every now and then he would
stand on the footboard and scan the
wide horizon in all directions Some
times he would quicken the sluggish
bulls with his long stick. But always
he was looking ahead.
Z, 1t was in the early days, On each
= side of the schooner the canvas read,
California or Bust" painted in crooked
red letters, the work of Joe, who had
seen the same sign on other wagons
when they crossed the Missouri two
weeks before At the present time,
they were in. central Nebraska and well
upon what was then known as the
Great American Desert.
All through Nlis territory the In
:. dians were thick They resented the
intrusion. Of the whites into their coun-
try, and wee taking every measure to-
stop them. Every day bloody battles
were fought Sometimes the whites
drove off their. enemies; often all the
men and children in an outfit met their
!. deaths, and the women were carried off
to become the wives of victorious
braves,
:: There were few settlements on the
way, and these were far apart. They
:. were. trading posts for trappers and
hunters, and We're usually stockaded.
Here the elnigrants could rest in safety
~
these they must protect themselves as
best they could, AS a means of pre-
caution they travelled in large parties.
AT night they formed a circle Of their
wagons, threw out pickets and slept
= with their animals within the circle. "
i so, .%whiIe his father took much
needed rest, Joe and his mother and
+; sisters watched. Their sleep would
come at night, when the older man
must do guard duty.
But the afternoon passed without in
cident, and they were still moving
westward When the sun hung like a
: giant golden disk on the unbroken hor-
izon, they reached the banks Of a slug
gish little stream Here they waited
until the rest of the party arrived.
After a short consultation, a camping
place for the night was chosen. 1t
was an open spot in the creek bottom,
clean OF any obstacles that might Of
fer shelter to sneaking savages
The evening meal was over and the
women were engaged at various tasks
before the hour for bed. The men who
would relieve the watch at midnight
were busy greasing the wagons and
attending the wants of the oxen. All
were laughing over the antics of
boy and girl dancing before the fire,
much to the delight of the smaller
children.
7 A distant shot rang out in the north
stantly the camp was in CONFUSION
Phil Decker, Joe's father, who was in
!, command of the party. ordered the
women and children into the wagons:
:. While he gave hurried orders to the
men another volley broke the silence
OF the plain. This time it was heavier
y and closer They located it as coming
from up stream. Further, they knew
1t was a running fight, and that the
combatants were bearing down upon
them. A. clatter of hoofs. reached their
ears In an instant the. emigrants,
=. weapons in hand stood at their sta
tions Joe, unseen by his father,
climbed to the footboard of one of the.
wagons. and strained his eyes into the
gathering dusk.
What he saw rooted him to the spot.
Two horsemen were approaching at
breakneck speed. One of them reeled
unsteadify in his saddle. AS the boy
looked this man Strengthened wildly
and slipped lifeless to the ground. The
riderless horse swung out OF the creek
. bottom, gained the west bank and dis
appeared.
His companion, leading, did not pause
in his mad race. Instead, he lashed
his pony merclessly. and, flung low
over the animals withers, kept his eyes
glued to the rear. %
Some little distance from the emil
grants camp was thick fringe of
willow and birch. The laundering
horse took this at a jump and for the
first time the covey of schooners loomed
before him directly in his path. In
stinctively he tried to veer. Falling
in this because of the heavy character
Of the wash on either hand, he fell
back suddenly upon his launches in a
wild effort to stop. Too late The
heavy wagon shuddered with the shock
OF impact. The horse sank to the
ground. stunned. and the rider, pitch
ing over his mounts head, crashed
through the canvas top Into the
schooner. # t #..
Screams OF terror smote the air A
terrific struggle took place, quieting
finally except for the weeping of
women and children.
Take him outside" Joe heard his
father say, as he hurried up, III.