Red Plume — page 16: what you’re looking at

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

16 | RED PLUME. in the midst of the broad prairie, by-a spring of clear water, from which a sparkling little rivulet trickled away. toward the south-east. The wagons were soon brought within the pro- tection of the timber, the horses were duly picketed and al- lowed to graze, a fire was’ made, and Mys. Carver and her daughter, awkwardly assisted by Eben Gookin, applied them- selves to the cooking of sundry pieces of buffalo-meat, which speedily diffused a pleasant fragrance through the little camp, and excited the appetites of the travelers. The savory repast was soon spread’ before them, and, after Nathan Carver had pronounced a rather elaborate “grace,” all fell to in. earnest, without any too serupulous regard for knives and forks, and mae the humps, ribs and tongues disappear rapidly. When they had satisfied their appetites, pipes were produced, and the men proceeded to digest their supper under the soothing influence of the weed. The Delaware, after a few whiffs of his pipe, took his tifle, and went to reconnoiter aan the camp. “ Darn my buttons!” exclaimed Eben, as he stretched him- self at full length upon the grass, “I do think that whalin’ ain’t a touch to this here business, The sea is a big place, but it’s too much the same thing, while there’s all sorts of variety about these prairies, and, besides, you always have a good place to come to anchor at when night sets in. It is mortal fine fun to kill a big whale, but buffalo huntin’ has got more raal amuse- ment into i, Uncle Nathan, I wouldn’t have missed goin’ on this cruise for a bushel of doflars. Pears like Pye growed out, ot my boots, and I calkilate I’m the outeatinest critter that ever left the old Bay State.” “ We have truly been blessed thus far,” answered Nathan Carver, “and we owe our grateful thanks to the kind Provi- dence who has spared our lives and preserved our health, We are now well advanced on our journey, and we may reasonably hope, if the same good hand shall guard and guide us, to soon reach our destination in the land of toil and promise.” “ Provided always, uncle, as the lawyers say, that some sneakin’ Injuns don’t drop in on us an’ steal our top-knots.” “ Acainst such, we must defend ourselves as best we.can, With the help of Providence. Itis our duty to keep our wea- pons in good order, and to maintain a careful watch, for the coniciooks.conm