Year: 1878

White tTapptIS WOulu DC OVeIWnSlihSu.


"There's only one chance, Rip" cried
Sam.


And that r.


"The canoe"


"I am your man." cried the giant trap
per. "You push the canoe into the wa
ter and throw in the weapons while | keep
those fellows at bay. Oh, would you ?
Take that"


An Indian had raised his tufted head
to get better shot at the happers, but
before he could get back the unfailing eye
Of the trapper had looked through the
double sight and the rifle cracked The
Indian sprung suddenly to his feet, spun
sharp around upon his heel, and fell dead
in his tracks.


The next moment the canoe shot from
the bank and headed down through the
boiling food, plunging in the canyon be-
low SO rapidly that the Indians had scarce
ly time to recover from their amazement
at the sudden exodous, before the trappers
were out of sight. One of the Indians
bounded to his feet and uttered low sig
nal-whoop, and two large canoes, con
tanning in all about fifteen men, rounded
a point in the river above the canyon and
came flying down under the strokes of the
paddles. The Indians on the shore sim
ply pointed down stream, and the canoes
dashed by at furious speed, the wild yell
of the paddlers announcing 10 the white
men that they were pursued. The first
rapid passed, they entered long stretch
of water where the current was only four
or five miles an hour, and there the pro-
pelling force in the other canoes began to
tell, and the Indians gained rapidly.


On each side of the canoe the canyon
was like wall, 200 feet in height, and
the trappers could only put all their
strength in the paddles and dash on as
fast as they could. Two miles further and
the pursuing canoes were scarcely a hun
dred yards behind, the Indians yelling like
demons as they saw the white men almost
within their grasp. Rip Ford shook MS
head as he looked over his shoulder, when
suddenly his canoe was seized by mighty
force and hurled downward, like bullet
from rifle. They had struck another
rapid more powerful than the first, and the
rocks absolutely seemed to fly past them.


"This is something like it." cried the
daring Buckskin Sam. How we do
move


i should say we did, old boy" replied
Rip. 81 am only afraid we are moving
too fast"


/" Don't you believe it; those fellows
seem to be standing STILL" said Sam.


"They will get in the current in a mo-
ment," gasped Rip. "Look at that"


The headmost canoe of the Indians ap-
peared upon the crest Of the rapid and
came flying down after the trappers at a
furious speed. The Indians no longer
used their paddles with the exception of
the man who sat at the stern and by
touch on the water, row on one side, now
on the other, regulated the course of the
canoe. The second canoe followed in
few moments, little further in shore. AS
thev gazed, the bow of the last canoe was
suddenly lifted into the air, as it strrck a
brown rock in the channel, which the oc-
cupants tried in vain to avoid. The fierce
current caught the stern, and in an instant
there was nothing left of the craft save
broken fragments, while the occupants,
with loud shrieks of terror, were borne
swiftly on by the resistless tide. " That
ends them," said Rip Ford. "Be careful,
Sam, for your life.l"


On, on, borne by the power which they
could not resist, the two canoes were hur-
ried. There was scene of exultation in
the hearts Of the white men, for they
could see that their enemy would have
escaped if they could from the perils that
surrounded them. Their mad desire for
scalps and plumber had led them into
trap, and they no longer thought Of the
canoe in advance. They knew, what the
whites did not, the terrible danger before
them, for they had explored the banks Of
the stream on foot many times. The riv-
er suddenly narrowed, and the trappers
rushed into a canyon barely twenty feet
wide, and nearly rooted over BY the cliffs
on each side. The current was not quite