Rocky Mountain Sam — page 225: what you’re looking at

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

216 | ROCKY MOUNTAIN SAM. loon at the same time shooting up several hundred feet as Teddy threw out two or three heavy sacks of ballast— striking out with hands and elbows, and tossing up an Indian on his head much as an infuriated bull would an urchin upon his horns, the luckless warrior coming down upon the bladed head-piece to be ripped up from belly to ribs, like a porker in a slaughter-house. ws Down they went in every direction before his terrible ad- vance, warriors, otherwise tried and brave, giving away _be- fore him lke little children, and seeming incapable of offer- ing any stable resistance; while the fighters behind the earthworks renewed their vollevs with deafening cheers. ‘Fools! cowards!” roared the renegade, bursting through the reeling ranks of his Indians upon his splendid roan. ‘Is one mana match for hundreds? Make way, you ras- cals!” : : He clapped the muzzle of his revolver almost against the head of Big Horn, and pulled the trigger. The weapon missed fire. ‘he next instant, and in the twinkling of an eye, the splendid roan went tumbling upon his head, ripped up from head to flank by a single sweep of one of the bladed moccasins, and his rider was locked in the hunter’s terrible embrace. Firefoot’s followers reeled back in blank dismay, expect- ing the next moment to see their leader literally cut to pieces. But to their astonishment, as well as that of their enemies, Big Horn spoke to his captive in a low voice which no one else could hear, and with scarcely an effort, tossed him far away, unhurt, into the very midst of his followers. A cry of indignation arose from the whites who had wit- nessed this remarkable scene, for the Indians instantly re- sumed their assault. But Big Horn paid no attention to them, but continued to hew and cut his way toward the works, At last he reached them, and by a flying leap, landed in the midst of the defenders. nine He was at once surrounded by a hundred angry question- ers, but he waved them off with an oath. : “If I fight fur you I claims the right to do as I please with ove prisoner,” he cried, hoarsely. “But, my dear fellow,” said the colonel, forgetting in the heat of the moment, the grave obligations he was under to the man he was speaking to, “‘would not the capture or ‘Ss -c€omicboo rele)