Red Plume — page 95: what you’re looking at

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

AN AWKWARD SITUATION 95 a convenient distance, and saw his deadly encounter with the sentry at Ellen’s lodge, and his subsequent flight and pursuit. When the Indians returned from chasing him, bringing no pris- oner, and reported that two of their number had been killed and one ‘badly wounded, Eben went to his lodge and laid down to sleep, with a more satisfactory feeling than be had tately experienced. * The next day, however, his uneasiness returned, and even jucreased. Nip-muck-we was slowly but surely sinking, and é{ was apparent that his life could not be prolonged much longer ; in fact he might drop off at any-moment. Eben did all he could to keep him up, but the candle of life was flicker- ing in the socket. Again, As-moo-tah had become loud in his praise, and everywhere proclaimed the almost successful result of the beauty-making. experiment. This was. satisfac- tory, but there was too much reason to fear that he might be besieged by a crowd of old women, who, deemiug themselves sufficiently strong to undergo the ordeal, would clamor to be made beautiful. His position was, indeed, an awkward one; it seemed that whenever he achieved a success, it brought him jnto trouble, and he’ knew that the penalty of failure would be certain death. “$0 Eben passed along and troubled day, wishing that he could get an interview with his cousin, but finding no chance of even seeing her, although he had been relieved from the surveillance that had recently annoyed, him. The wonder- ful report of As-moo-tah had tended to raise him in the esti- -mation of the public, but he saw. that the spiteful old warrior still had his suspicions, and knew that he would Jet slip no opportunity of making mischief. In the evening, a shower of rain fell, and Eben thought of his prophecy in regard to the war-party. He wished that he had not complicated the mat- _ ter by speaking about the rain, but; he had felt sure, from his, knowledge of weather-signs, that there would be showers, and he shrewdly guessed that, if an attack was made on Captain Steele’s party, the expedition would fail. . Still, he could not help feeling uneasy, for in any event, there would be dead chiefs for him to bring to life, or wounded ‘men for him to cure. = Shortly after dark, a few of the war-party, who had parti- x , | cComicbooks.cGom