Ottumwa tri-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1903-1916, 1915-09-16

CcSSlN6 uTOuSll III lIouOlCSoiilS Soiii'
anches. Our route thus far had been
parallel with the Arkansas liver out
the Aubury trail led westward at al
most right angles with the river. About
noon we came to a rolling prairie COW
cred with a thick growth of buffalo
grass but there were no signs of the
great bison of the desert.
Here we too a rest and turned the
stock out to Craze but we did not tarry
long and were soon again In full swing,
travelling straight into the great un-
known. We held a consultation before
breaking camp and We agreed that l
taxi three trusty men and push on
ahead on an exploring trip. Stanley told
me to choose whom / might as to the
other three men. At this the genial
Parson Brownlow declared he should
be one of the three for he was going to
stick to the boy, meaning me, no mat
ter what come or did not come. Irish
Mike insisted on being n of the four
also, so ! had u n selection to make
and l choose my boon companion Jim
Morrow. Jim was a neighbor boy at
home and his father and mine served
in the same company during the war
and were both wounded at Missionary
Ridge when Grants reserves went to
the relief Of Hooker and Sherman who
We're battling above the clouds, hence
Jim and Jim were inseparable friends.
We soon stocked UP a few things to
eat and Stanley let Irish Mike have his
saddle horse which next to my horse,
Old Nick, was the best the outfit az
forded. AS the wagons fell in line three
men and a boy, myself, could be seen
cantering westward along the trail. We
knew nothing Of the country which lay
before us. The desert mirage was dense
and delusive and we did not know at
what m we might collide wrtn a
band of savages or some other inhabi-
tants of the sandy waste. Parson
Brownlee had seen service under the
stars and stripes. Jim Marrow had no
military training but he was a good
shot and a good horseman. We were
well armed and well mounted and we
could be likened to nothing more than
Arabs of the Sahara looking for an
oasis in the desert. It was agreed be-
tween Stanley and I that we leave
trailers, notes, at intervals along the
trail. This l did, leaving n each hour
as we travelled. AS the day wore into
the evening and the sun was setting
behind the desert mirage we called a
halt, ~dismounted, picketed our horses
and ate a part of our provender. We
had brought but little cooked stuff but
we had a small sack Of ground coffee
and each of is had a good supply Of
salt. Before starting out we agreed
with Stanley that in case he had no
word Of us that he was to go into cor
raj promptly at shutdown and when we
ate our meal we figured that our out
fit was going into camp at that mo-
ment and that we We're twenty-five
miles further on the trail AS the sun
set the mirage disappeared entirely and
while the west was clad in all it's gold
en- splendors I Immediately trained my
field glasses in the direction and could
family make out objects moving in the
twilight. We were in our saddles In
Jig time and riding straight toward the
moving objects. AS we drew close the
moving objects became stationary and
we soon discovered that it was two
oxen. At this we were not much sur
prised as 1t vas customary on the
plains to turn out an animal when 1t
became incapacitated for further serv-
Ice. We concluded to let them go their
way and we would mark the trail
where we left it Inc follow the cattle,
who we reasoned, might be going to a
water hole.
We followed in the wake Of the cat
tie for about a quarter Of a mile in a
southwest direction when we ascertain
ed that the oxen had gone down into a
ravine. Here l dismounted and follow
ed on foot for q short distance when
the cattle suddenly came to a halt and
so did I cone to a halt and wormed my
way closer to where the cattle were
and to my great surprise and delight !
found the two oxen drinking from a
well filed buffalo wallow. My presence
did not disturb the cattle in the least
and l walked around the wallow and
found 1t to be Of fair dimensions and
containing a good supply OF water.
There were punches Of prairie willows
in spots along the banks. I kept on my
guard all the time carrying a Colt A
ready for use and 1t was well that I did
for as I was accommodating in a bunch of
willows the unexpected happened as
out Of the willows with a fierce growl
sprang a female prairie wolf which
planted her teeth In the left sleeve OF
my coat and tore 1t away at one snap.
But that was the last snap for I pre-
scented her wolfship with the contents
Of three chambers Of my "A.
When I detached myself from my
companions n trailed after the oxen
I did not note that the faithful Parson
Brownlow~was doing a bit Of trailing
and was not far in my rear when the
three shots were fred. With a yell
that was inborn of southern nativity he
bore down On me and the dead wolf in
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