Rocky Mountain Sam — page 111: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

102 | ROCKY MOUNTAIN SAM. “Tt sha’n’t be lost!’ cried Big Horn, swinging to the front, with an oath. ‘‘Ten men to back me,” he roared, looking back, ‘‘only ten, an’ we'll save the gas-bag! Rocky Mountain Sam’s in danger! who’s with me?” ‘‘Here! here! I! I! Big Horn to the rescue!” cried half a score of voices; and the next instant the front line of the Indians parted, as before a driving wedge, as Big Horn and his handful of braves hewed a bloody lane toward the be- leaguered balloon. 1’o witness the redoubtable Big Horn in a battle was to cease to wonder at the universal dread and respect in which he was held by the Indians. On foot, with a knife in either hand, and his rugged features lit by the splendor of his bat- tle smile, his massive shoulders towered above the press, seeming to make no more of the blows showered upon him from every side than if they had been thistle-down and feathers, and horse and rider seemed to go down at every stroke of his reeking knives. The majority of them did not dare to even offer resist- ance. | “For that large-molded man, His visage all agrin as at a wake, Made at them through the press, and, staggering back With stroke on stroke the horsemen, came As comes the pillar of electric cloud, Flaying the roofs and sucking up the drains, Aad shadowing down the champaign till it strikes On a wood, and takes, and breaks, and cracks, and splits, And twists the grain with such a roar that Earth Reels, and the herdsmen cry, for everything Gave way before him.” Big Horn’s ten followers, inspired by his example, kept close together, retaining the wedge-form at every hazard, and performing prodigies of valor as they steadily pushed their way, step by step and foot by foot, through the say- ages, their companions keeping up an incessant fire to pro- tect their rear. “Cheer up, pard!” cried out Big Horn to Sam. ‘Keep it up three minutes longer and you're all hunky. The old man’s a comin’!” | The balloonists certainly needed all the encouragement they could get. Old Max lay on his back in the center of the car, half-stunned by a blow he had just received. Fay- away crouched beside him, faint and trembling with exhaus- 1 <¢om (@) ‘S (e(0) m 900 LA : é >. - - : P y [es -