Francis Lynde Kroll

“ He told that he had thought of the shortest way to camp. He had taken the risk of running to the first tepee and walking from it to the nearest tripod. It had occurred to him that the squaws would pay no attention to one boy. He had been right. He had grabbed a piece of meat and was away from the camp while the other boys were still crawling toward the tripods.
“You did well,” the teacher praised. “Sometimes it is better to take greater risks in order to catch the enemy unprepared. This eagle feather is the reward for your coup. You may wear it as a warrior would who had counted coup.” ”

“ Sly Fox told of how he had chased the buffalo and how his horse had fallen.
“If Bent Arrow and his horse hadn’t acted quickly, the buffalo would have killed me,” Sly Fox finished.
Chief Barking Wolf turned toward Bent Arrow.
“You did well,” he praised, a smile replacing the stern look on his face. “I like an almost-warrior who doesn’t make excuses. A good Crow knows when orders must be disobeyed.”
Bent Arrow felt a lump rising in his throat as it had done when his uncle praised his running. ”

“ Taking the horse from the herd had to be done slowly and carefully. Any rapid movement might arouse a warrior. Bent Arrow had to hold back his own impatience. By the time that he had worked his horse out of the herd, he was about halfway up the hill out of the valley. Here the shadows were dark, and there was small danger of being seen even if a Sioux warrior chanced to waken. A few steps and he would be across the hill and completely out of sight of the Sioux camp. The horse suddenly swung its head, jerking the rope tight. ”

“ Clawing Bear stood.
“When a youth does a great deed,” Clawing Bear spoke solemnly, “his nearest relative is entitled to give gifts and to give the youth a new name. Twelve summers ago a party of Sioux injured a Crow boy—injured him so badly that the boy could not walk erect and so was given the name Bent Arrow. Now that boy has been cured. He has raided a Sioux camp. He has run a great distance in as short a time as any Crow has ever run it. When he reached us, he was ready to drop, but he was running erectly. I say that the boy, Bent Arrow, has become the warrior, True Arrow, a true Crow.” ”

“ It was now that Rock proved Flying Arrow’s wisdom in selecting him for Bent Arrow. The pack horses seemed to want to go anywhere except where the warriors were going. First one horse would try to break out of the herd and then another. Every time one tried to break away, Rock was there to head him off. He acted as though he could guess when a horse was going to try to get away.
“I was feeling sorry for you when Flying Arrow gave you Rock to ride,” Sly Fox admitted. “Now I see that you are lucky he did. Rock is making the work easier for all of us.” ”

“ At the end of the story, Flying Arrow nodded his head in approval.
“You did well,” he praised.
“Are we going to raid the Sioux camp tonight?” Bent Arrow asked.
“We are,” Flying Arrow assured him. “I was close to their camp before daylight. Their scouts had found a herd of buffalo across the river. They are hunting today. Tonight they will gorge themselves on buffalo meat. They will sleep so soundly that we will be able to take our pick of their horses. Their chief has two fine ones.”
“Why would that warrior have been at the river alone?” Bent Arrow wondered. ”

“ A Sioux warrior might catch the thud of running feet.
It was all Bent Arrow could do to keep from running. Step by slow step, he went down the hill and came to the trees. In his mind he had been thinking of the trees as a hiding place. When he reached them, he knew he must go on. Undoubtedly the Sioux would select this spot for their camp. He crossed the valley and climbed the hill at that side, constantly looking back. At the top of the hill, he took one last backward glance. The head of a Sioux horse was just coming into sight at the top of the hill on the other side of the valley. ”

“ Gently he touched Flying Arrow’s arm.
“I believe that is Rock alone on the far side of the herd,” he whispered.
Flying Arrow turned his head to look in that direction. He watched the horse carefully.
“I believe you’re right,” he agreed. “You crawl to him. By the time you get to him, I will have a horse. We must work swiftly. Everything depends upon being able to surprise the Sioux.”
Bent Arrow reached inside his shirt and touched the eagle feather. He felt a great wave of confidence. This time there would be no failure. His medicine was more powerful than any the Sioux could have. ”

“ As he and his uncle hurried along, Bent Arrow noticed that the darkness was deepening. He glanced toward the sky. Clouds were blotting out the stars. A short time later, he felt snowflakes hitting against his face. Flying Arrow turned from the chain of hills and led the way into a valley where there were a few trees.
“We can camp now,” he said. “Old-Man-of-the-North is sending more snow. It will cover our trail. The Sioux won’t be able to find us.” ”

“ Bent Arrow pushed himself back. Each inch that he moved back was torture. Every movement had to be painstakingly careful or it would attract attention. A Sioux warrior looked up from his work and glanced directly at Bent Arrow. Bent Arrow held himself motionless. When the warrior went back to his work, Bent Arrow resumed his backward crawling. When he was finally across the hill, he continued to crawl until he could stand without being seen from the other side. ”

“ Bent Arrow nodded. Every Crow carried a small pouch in which he had his medicine. The medicine wasn’t carried as something to cure sickness; it was to help guard the warrior from danger. Not all warriors had the same things in their medicine bags. Usually a warrior learned in a dream what he should put in his medicine bag to protect him. In Flying Arrow’s medicine bag there were the claw of a bear, a piece of the fur of a wolf, and a hawk’s feather. In a dream a bear had told Flying Arrow to get a hawk’s feather to carry with a bear’s claw and a piece of wolf fur. ”

“ He had to grit his teeth to keep from limping, but he was determined that his uncle shouldn’t think he was using his injured leg as an excuse for not winning.
“I’m sorry you have to be ashamed because I can’t win a race,” Bent Arrow said as soon as he was beside his uncle.
“Ashamed!” Flying Arrow exclaimed. “I’m not ashamed. I’m proud that you were able to beat two runners as good as Sly Fox and Laughing Deer. Running Elk and Lone Eagle are a summer older than you. When you are in your fourteenth summer, you will be an even better runner.” ”

“ Clawing Bear continued. “When you leaned toward the buffalo to shoot your arrow, the buzzard started down. Then I caught sight of an eagle above the buzzard. A feather fell from the eagle’s tail. It passed just ahead of the buzzard’s beak. The buzzard turned and flew away. You must have an eagle’s feather. It is your good medicine to protect you from danger.”
“How am I to get an eagle’s feather?” Bent Arrow asked. “The eagles nest far up on the peaks. Already the snow is deep there.”
“You must have an eagle feather,” Clawing Bear insisted. ”

“ When he did remount, he had to struggle to get back on his horse.
“Only a little farther,” Flying Arrow encouraged. “We’ll be at Bear Trap Canyon. There I can watch while you rest.”
Bent Arrow had been dimly aware of a darker shadow looming ahead of them. He realized that this was Bear Trap Canyon. Actually the canyon was only a narrow cup, circled by hills which rose up out of the prairie. On both sides the hills rose so steeply that it was almost impossible for a man to get up the sides. Bent Arrow remembered having heard warriors talk about the hills. ”

“ There were two halters left in Bent Arrow’s hand when he stopped in front of Clawing Bear.
“Two horses to you, Clawing Bear,” he said, “to show you that I am grateful to you for healing my leg and telling me to get an eagle feather.”
There was a murmur of approval as Bent Arrow sat down. Flying Arrow got to his feet. He, too, went around the circle, giving each man a halter. When he had finished, he still had one halter in his hand. He turned to Bent Arrow.
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“As a raider,” he smiled, “you have proved yourself a good Crow. You have proved yourself worthy of a good horse. ”

“ Flying Arrow explained. “With a storm coming, the horses will be restless and uneasy. If they catch a strange scent, they may make enough disturbance to rouse the Sioux camp.”
“I should have thought of that,” Bent Arrow acknowledged.
“It is well to ask questions,” Flying Arrow assured him. “A boy remembers better when he knows why a thing is done.” ”

“ When he spoke, his voice was so low that Bent Arrow had to lean forward to catch his words.
“You were in great danger today,” Clawing Bear told him. “You did not have the proper medicine. When I saw you chasing that buffalo, there was a buzzard soaring above you.”
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Bent Arrow shivered. Buzzards were the omen of misfortune. They picked the flesh from slain animals and from warriors who had not been given proper burial. ”

“ Flying Arrow exclaimed. “The mounted riders will stop and catch each horse. Very likely they’ll wait while one warrior takes the captured horse back to those on foot so that there’ll be another warrior to join the chase.”
Bent Arrow pulled Rock to one side so that he wouldn’t cause the herd to turn. He urged the horse forward until he was just behind the two leaders. Rock seemed to understand what was wanted. He dashed between the two lead horses and crowded one of them to the side. He kept that horse away from the others, while the herd moved on. ”

“ As an added punishment for hunting when he was ordered not to, he was given the task of dragging the heavy buffalo hides to the river where the squaws would tan them.
Bent Arrow worked eagerly. It was good to see the supply of meat being prepared for winter use. Best of all, meat hanging on the tripods meant that tomorrow would come the call for a game of wolves.
Twice during the day, Bent Arrow saw the swimming teacher, but the warrior didn’t speak to him. If he had plans for a game of wolves, the teacher was keeping them to himself. ”

“ Flying Arrow got to his feet to speak next.
“Barking Wolf has spoken wisely,” Flying Arrow agreed. “We are far from other Crow warriors. Yet it is bad to allow the Sioux to spy on our camp, to make plans to steal our horses and take our scalps. They should be punished. I believe we should send a party of warriors to teach those Sioux a lesson.”
Bent Arrow expected to hear shouts of approval come from the circle of warriors. Instead, the warriors sat silently looking into the fire. Again Chief Barking Wolf lit the pipe and started it around the circle. ”

“ Chief Barking Wolf continued, “but you are to do no hunting. A dream has warned us that the Great Spirit does not want boys to hunt buffaloes today.”
Bent Arrow was given an arrow by one of the warriors, while other warriors handed arrows to each of the other boys. If he hadn’t been so badly disappointed about not being allowed to hunt, Bent Arrow would have been highly elated at receiving the arrow. It was a fine one, probably the best one in the warrior’s quiver. ”

“ Flying Eagle answered. “We’ll start at once. It will be harder traveling after darkness falls.”
Flying Arrow and Bent Arrow went together to get the horses. Flying Arrow mounted his own horse, while Bent Arrow got on Rock. The horse they had captured from the Sioux was left behind. Flying Arrow led the way, with Bent Arrow close behind him. Traveling was difficult. The driving snow made it hard for them to see. It was impossible to judge the depth of the drifts. Twice Flying Arrow started through what looked to be ordinary drifts only to find them so deep that the horse couldn’t get through. ”

“ By eating its heart, you will become braver.”
It was a triumphant band of hunters that rode back into camp as the sun was sinking in the western sky. Here was a great supply of meat to be added to the tribe’s winter store. In a few days the hunting party could start back toward the big winter camp of all the Crow tribes.
As soon as the pack horses were unloaded and put back into the corral, Flying Arrow cooked fresh buffalo steaks.
“You must take a gift to Clawing Bear,” he told Bent Arrow. “The medicine man will want to know about your hunting. ”

“ Although he wanted to jump up and run over to look at the first deer he had ever shot, Bent Arrow remained hidden in the clump of willows. It was possible that a Sioux warrior would be hunting along the river. ”

“ Again Bent Arrow cared for the horses while his uncle made camp. This time, when Bent Arrow returned to camp, there was no fire.
“We’ll eat some of the dried meat we brought,” Flying Arrow told him. “The Sioux have sharp noses. Even the smallest fire might give off enough smoke to warn them.” ”

“ The horse’s hoofs slipped, but it got another footing and scrambled out. It stood in the snow blowing and pulling.
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“This is too dangerous,” Flying Arrow decided. “We almost lost one of our horses. We’ll return to camp and make a better plan or at least wait until we can travel.”
Bent Arrow tried to hide his disappointment. Anxious as he was to make another attempt to capture a Sioux horse, he knew the wisdom of his uncle’s decision. It would be foolhardy to try to travel in the storm.
“Perhaps the sun will melt most of Old-Man-of-the-North’s snow tomorrow,” he said. ”

“ Still, there was an uneasy doubt in his mind. He thought back to the teacher’s instructions. They had been that a prize went to the one who captured the largest one. Captured—His thoughts were interrupted by the call to food. ”

“ There was a ledge above the one he was on, but it was out of his reach. Determined not to give up, he took his knife and gouged out a place above his head so that he could get a grip with his hands. He made another place just above his knees. He reached up and dug his hands into the place he had made above his head. He put his toes in the other place. Slowly he pulled himself up. ”