Adventure Magazine Cover — page 130: what you’re looking at

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

124 look on his face to see if he knew him before he went among the ghosts?” A tall figure, heavily blanketed, detached itself from the group and slowly approached. I was thrilled to hear.a familiar voice reply- ing: ““The medicine of the Night Walker of the Panther Clan of the Chickasaws is very strong. The dead man can not hurt him. The Night Walker went to fight by the side of the Black Snake. His medicine voice told him it was not good. He comes to fight against the Black Snake. He has looked on many dead white men.” Then he strode up to the body, pulled back the blanket and gazed for a moment on the placid face of one who had finished with fear. Replacing the blanket, he straightened and told the waiting group: “The Night Walker does not know this white man. Why is he left above ground like a dog? His medicine will not like it.” Hate-Evil Durgin opened his mouth as if to speak, his bulging eyes alive with sur- prize. I kicked his shin and in Shawnee as- sured the Night Walker— “His bones will be covered this night near the place where they cross from the Point.” The Night Walker, now in the rdle of one who was an enemy to the Americans, did not deign to glance at me. I loudly pro- claimed: ‘““Two white men are here to fight against the Americans. My ears are glad to hear the Chickasaws have taken up the ax against the Thirteen Fires.”’ The Night Walker hooded his head in his blanket. As he returned to the waiting Delawares he coldly announced— “The Chickasaws lift the ax against all dogs.” _ And as he strode away he drew the Dela- ‘wares after him. ' “Tand of love! What does it mean? Has that critter deserted too?” babbled Durgin. ‘Just as you and I have deserted. He has followed us to help us. Didn’t he say he might come to us when one of us died? ‘But if you open that clumsy mouth of yours again and let on that we know him we'll both be roasted.” “T sha’n’t speak “less I’m spoken to,” grumbled Durgin. ‘No use to loud up to me.” Adventure en NOW the] crepuscular tints were RNGwy) fading from the sky, and clouds <M were packing in. We had every promise of an overcast night. We picked up the litter and slowly proceeded up the river. Wedquickly noted that the Shawnees were avoiding us. Women called their children indoors as we approached. When we reached the council place we paused as if to rest, in reality to look for Ball. We were outside the town and were alone. Durgin breathed deep and rapidly, and whispered— ‘Nothing to stop us when we take to our heels!” “Nothing except a hatful of bullets and a bundle of arrows,” I warned him. ‘In the cornfield on our right, and ahead up the river where the timber stretches away from the bank, are men to turn us back.” “T see nothing. It’s too dark,” he muttered. “How do you know they’re there?” “Because they are Indians. I heard something rustling in the corn. It was not the wind. They will not come near us while we are digging and filling the grave. But they are ahead of us and on our right. The town is behind us, and the river is on our left. Every move will be watched. We’re still inside the trap.” We picked up the litter and advanced. A small fire was burning where Ogden was killed, but I saw no one beside it. As we were passing the clump of trees from which Durgin had loosed the deadly bolt, Henry Ball startled us by suddenly stepping into view. He had a pick and a shovel. As he joined us he said warningly: “Not so fast. Give me time to talk a bit. I’ve had words with the Pleiss woman. She speaks well of you; but she can’t prove you ain’t deserters. All she can say was you give her and her fambly a neighborly lift across the Ohio. Of course she believes you’re all right. I didn’t let on I had sus- picions. But I ain’t sure of you. Now this is what Pll do: Ill give you a chance to steal my canoe and git away if you can. If you’re caught you must swear to the Girtys you Stole it.” “Agreed. Where is it?” “Tt’s under the! bank up-stream, where you see the two fallen trees. Go down the bank there, and you'll find it. There’s In- juns in the wood beyond the fallen timbers, and the corn is full of them. They won’t come near this spot till the grave’s filled in. | Comicboooks C©