Rocky Mountain Sam — page 132: what you’re looking at

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

ROCKY MOUNTAIN SAM, | 123 At last a sight met his gaze which caused him to raise an irrepressible shout of joy. It was a little Indian village in the center of a deep canon, hemmed in on every side by lofty precipices and towering peaks. There were not more than a dozen lodges altogether, and most of these were of the rudest description, even for aboriginal architecture; but situated a little apart from the rest of the overhanging bank of a little brook that veined the gorge like a silver thread, was a tiny house, perhaps merely constructed of a few uprights and light beams, with the skins of wild animals stretched over them; but, never- theless, resembling a civilized habitation in shape and build. A few Indians—apparently squaws and little children—were ~ lounging about the lodges on the edge of the brook; but the object which held the fascinated gaze of the old aeronaut, and which had called the joyful cry to his lps was a slight female figure, dressed in white, and standing at the door of this very little house. The old fellow gave one more long, reassuring gaze, and then began to dance about the car, slapping his shriveled hands together, croaking out, and waving his peaked cap aloft like one possessed. “Sam! Fayaway! getup!” he cried, shaking first one and then the other until they raised their sleepy heads. ‘‘Rouse yourselves! The lost one’s found—the Prairie Blossom is right at our feet!” “Kh, what?” blurted Sam, rubbing his eyes and stagger- ing to his feet, while little Hayaway, upon looking over the — . edge of the car, gave a scream at recognizing the figure be- low. ‘Jerk that throttle-valve!”’ cried the professor; ‘‘we must just light down there an’ scoop her up before the renegade gets there, and he ain’t far behind.” | : Sam pulled the valve, and dropping out of the influence of the air-current that had borne it along so swiftly into a stirless atmosphere, the balloon rapidly descended to the earth. ‘‘Hooray! they see us comin’,” cried Sam, as considerable» commotion in the village showed that they were discovered, the squaws and young ones running hither and thither as if in great alarm, while the figure in white waved its hand to them, and gave other signs of recognition and encourage- ment, (elo) m comicboo