Yellowstone Jack: Trappers of the Enchanted Ground — page 32: what you’re looking at

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

80 Since sunset, the sky had suddenly become overcast with clouds, broken and fast-scudding, yet dense enough to almost entirely shut out the light of moon and stars. Thus groping through darkness, despite his thorough knowledge of the ground, Pethonista was forced to advance cautiously, lest a misstep should precipi- tate him into one of the many “ man- traps” that lay upon either hand. So it was that they did not reach comparatively _ level ground again until nearly midnight. A few minutes afterward, Pethonista suddenly paused, with a contemptuous erunt, as he uttered: , “See, dere you’ frien’s, by spring. Big fools, dough! T’ink Blackfoot need fire to see how lift scalp.” Ada gavea gaspof joy. Before them, though still nearly a mile distant, she could just distinguish the faint gleam of -acamp-fire. Beyond a doubt it was,as the chief said, the camp of her friends. No Indian would have set up such a beacon in an enemy’s country. “Thank Heaven! at last! Oh, hasten —hasten! I must tel! them about poor Minnie.” ‘Too fast—too slow; both bad. Don’t know—mebbe Injun out dere hunting for scalps. Plenty room—dark hide ’em. We run, dey hear steps; go slow—creep like snake, den no hear, no ses—squaw git through all right. Dat my talk,” inter- rupted Pethonista. “But you, lam afraid to go alone now, since you think there are Indians there,” faltered Ada. “No go ‘lone—EKagle go, too. Not inside camp; dat bad, ’cause pale-face Eagle’s en’my, too. But squaw mus’n’t be scare’. Mus’ be quick, cunning, all same like snake. Mebbe no Injun ; mebbe not git here yet. Mus’ act like uey was, dough; sure not git fooled, en,” Though trembling with fear and exhaustion, Ada saw the sense of Pethonista’s reasoning, and endeavoured to conquer her weakness. Crouching down like a panther lying in wait for its prey, Pethonista listened intently. No suspicious sound broke the air. HKverything seemed peaceful and quiet. Yet this only served to confirm the chief's suspicions that his brethren were even then creeping upon the doomed train. What had silenced the querulous yelping of coyotes that nightly YELLOWSTONE JAOK, | Trap ae ae surround a camp, rendering night hideous _ with their howling, snapping cries? A score of coyotes will surround a wounded ~ buffalo, in diabolical concert. But, leta — huge grey or black wolf appear, andthey — draw off, dumbly sitting upon their — haunches, patiently waiting for the rem- — nants of the feast. More than once Pethonista had known them to show the ~ same deference to the two-legged wolves, — = ¥ and he believed ’twas the case now. \ With an uneasy glance at Ada’s light- coloured dress, he crept noiselessly on toward the faint twinking point of light. The maiden imitated his example as — closely as possible. | oh, ¥, _ They had crossed nearly two-thirds — of the distance without seeing or hearing | anything beyond the common, when — suddenly the full moon sailed from be- — neath a dense cloud, pouring a flood of — silver light over the scene. > ie A cry of surprise rose to Ada’s lips, but — quick as thought the Eagle’s broad palm — rested upon them and forcibly held her ~ close to the ground. a The level before and upon both sides — of them was dotted with scores of dark, — oblong figures. Not one moved,notone © gave the slightest indication of being ~ other than inanimate objects, but Peth- — onista well knew that they were Black- — foot warriors, thirsting for blood; that — they had been stealing up to the camp, — when the flood of moonlight causedthem ~ to lie motionless and still as stones. | The waggons were drawn up into a corral-like shape, seemingly close against — the wall of rock, The only evidence of life was in that tiny fire, built close out- — side the row of vehicles. Then the tableau changed like magic, — A single jet of flame issued from the corral ; a loud, clear voice uttered a de- — fiant shout that mingled strangely with the shrill, unearthly scream as one of the dark figures leaped convulsively into the | air, then falling, tore and bit the hard — ground in its death-agony. As though this was the signal for which they were awaiting, the crawling serpents changed to bounding cougarsas — they sprang forward to the attack, yelling screeching, shouting—the mingled war-— cries of both red and white savages. Again that clear shout from the corral ; and the dark line seemed fairly grilled with fire, as twenty rifles vomited forth their contents, hurling death and con- Comiecbooks :