Henry M. Avery

“ A hundred dusky forms sprung up as if by magic, and the air was filled with murderous yells. Drawing his revolver he shot right and left, an Indian falling with every shot.
The first thought of the brave scout was to join his party as soon as possible, but his afterthought was worthy of him. He knew that to insure the safety of Jehiel, Gray Eagle, and Snowdrop, he must go in an opposite direction, and thus lead the Sioux in pursuit of himself rather than his friends. ”

“ Gray Eagle never forgets! When the White Panther does all he promised, then the pale-faces can come and go when they please, among the Black Hills."
The scout felt the spirit of perverseness rising within him.
"I don't know as I care very much about it any more," he replied. "It is all the same to me if Red Pine keeps the Blackfoot queen, and starves her father to death—as it seems he can if he wants to. Jehiel told me all about it, chief, how you was going off home without making an effort to find me, after I had risked my life half a dozen times for you and your daughter!" ”

“ I love your friend, the White Panther, and will be his wife."
"Lord! that can't be, for White Panther, as you call him, has got a wife already," said Jehiel.
"I do not care. He is a good hunter and can feed more wives than one."
"But, gal, you don't understand. Us white folks has a law which won't allow a feller to have more than one wife at a time."
"Then that law is no good," replied Snowdrop. "Suppose there are two women and only one man—must one woman go without?" ”

“ Gray Eagle talks brave! He forgets that he is the prisoner of Red Pine."
"No, Gray Eagle does not forget. He is ready to die; he does not care as long as his daughter is safe."
"Before the sun goes down Snowdrop will be a prisoner like her father. Sioux warriors are on her trail, and she rides alone. The pale-face has left her to take care of herself, and she shall yet sit in the lodge of Red Pine!" ”

“ The young chief who led the party of Blackfeet accompanied by Snowdrop and Jehiel, now rode forward, leaving the Blackfeet in a body; while Gray Eagle and White Wolf rode out to meet them.
"Has the Blackfoot maiden a sister who looks just like herself?" asked the astonished Pawnee.
"No, Snowdrop has no sister," replied the girl. "I see you thought I was your prisoner. I was, but I did not stay so very long."
"How did you get away?" asked White Wolf.
"I rode away! Your warriors slept too sound, you see." ”

“ The old chief could not avoid showing surprise at the bold, and even threatening language of the scout, and he concluded to adopt a different course.
"Would White Panther see the father of Snowdrop, who loves the pale-face, die here? Gray Eagle has nothing to eat."
"There is no one to blame but yourself," replied the scout. "You should have brought up provisions enough to last you. Are you very hungry?"
"Yes," replied Gray Eagle.
"Then why don't you go down and fight the Sioux? They have plenty to eat, and the plains are covered with buffalo." ”

“ He knew that Snowdrop was merely trying to banter him, and after a moment's reflection, he said:
"The warriors shall die! They are not fit to live if they can not keep one little squaw!"
"No, they will not die!" assented Snowdrop.
The chief looked at her in surprise. He was not in the habit of having squaws contradict his word.
"White Wolf is his own master, and the chief of all the Pawnees! Why does the Blackfoot maiden say they shall not die?" ”

“ The two scouts, well-mounted, and armed to the teeth, were spending a sort of vacation in that dreaded vicinity to satisfy themselves as to the truth of certain rumors, rife at Fort Randall and Yankton, concerning the gold, which it was asserted was laying around loose in the ravines and damp, dark gulches of the Black Hills; and of the existence, in the hills and valleys of the North-west, of bear, elk, antelope and beaver, which an adventurous scout had asserted made that country a perfect paradise for the hunter and trapper. ”

“ Yes, he would have the scalp of the Sioux chief, or die in the attempt to get it.
Nulela, the sister of Red Pine, was indeed happy, and with good reason—the white man whom she had rescued from her brother's power now reciprocated her great love, and she felt herself amply rewarded for the risk she had run and the sacrifice she had made.
Full well she knew that she could not return to her own people, except in disgrace. Such is the moral code of the Sioux—if a maiden of the tribe marries a white man, and he dies, or, as is more generally the case, deserts her, she is thenceforth an outcast. ”

“ Red Pine, the Sioux, has stolen Snowdrop, the daughter of Gray Eagle, and if I can not get her back, then my heart broke!"
"Then you are old Gray Eagle, are you? Are you alone?"
"Gray Eagle all alone. Kill him if you want."
"Well, I don't know as I want to; scalping broken-legged Indians is not my business, just now. But, I'll tell you what I will do! If you will agree not to make war upon the whites again, but let them hunt and trap in these hills when they please, I will go for Snowdrop, and I will not return until I bring her and Red Pine's scalp! ”

“ When I first saw the Sioux girl, Nulela, I was struck by the remarkable resemblance she bore my wife. Indeed, she is the perfect picture of my lost one at her age. But she says she is the sister of the Sioux chief, and for the last time, my hopes are blasted. Should you ever meet a woman bearing upon her arm that figure, tell her how her father died. ”

“ Well, Curtiss, you and I are in luck, no matter who the young lady is. But, if she is a Sioux we will have to keep her close, or she will betray us to her brother. There will be a loud rumpus when they find out you are gone."
"Just listen! They have found it out already," said the Indian girl. "Let us leave here, for Red Pine will have a hundred braves upon our path as soon as the light comes, and he can be cruel when he chooses!" Loud yells could now be heard far down in the valley.
"Did you conceal your trail when you came here?" the scout asked of Curtiss. ”

“ He knew, too, that there were no better trailers in the world than the Pawnees.
Snowdrop was as calm and stoical as if she had been at home among her own people, and gave no sign which might arouse the suspicions of her guard, and Jehiel felt like cheering her for her bravery.
"Ginger! but she's jest the gayest little squaw on earth, and there ain't a Yankee gal living could take things as cool as she does. She's as sweet as they make 'em—she is!" ”

“ When you get ready to take me prisoner, please let me know, and perhaps I can help you—and, chief, if it should accidentally happen that you get taken yourself, let me know that, too; and if I don't help you, it will be because I don't want to!"
The scout and his companion were turning to leave, when Gray Eagle asked:
"What is to hinder Gray Eagle from going down where his pale-face brothers go?"
"Perhaps nothing—perhaps much!" replied the scout. "In the first place, there is some one down there who will shoot the first Indian he sees, whether Blackfoot or Sioux! ”

“ When the sun shows its face above the trees, the pale-face shall die by fire."
"The sooner the better, old stoughton bottle. It's a chilly night, and a little fire will do a fellow good."
"Red Pine says you shall die!"
"Yaas, I heerd you, you dirty squaw thief, but you Sioux will lie so that a feller can't depend on what you say. If you should accidentally be telling the truth, it will be better to die than live around where you are!" ”

“ He looked at her a moment, as if trying to recollect some half-forgotten event, and bowing his head upon his hands, the strong man wept.
"Can it be that I have found my lost one?" he murmured. "My God! If it should be true, what a joyful ending there would be to all these years of sorrow and heart-ache! But no, it can not be! She was stolen by the fierce Apaches, and this one—ha! where is she?" ”

“ Then he added, aloud—"If you and Nulela will remain here with old Pet, I will climb to the top of this rock and see if I can discover what the Sioux are about."
"All right," replied Curtiss—"we will wait here for you. But do not expose yourself unnecessarily, Kelly."
"I am not in the habit of doing that," answered the scout, "but let me advise you to keep on good terms with the girl. The more you can talk love to her, the better it will be for us, because if you make her angry she would not stop short of putting you again in the hands of her brother." ”

“ Speak quick, before I kill you!"
"The Sioux is very brave when he can kill a man who is hurt and bound," replied Gray Eagle. Then he continued: "I did see the Sioux girl go away with the pale-face captive."
"Which way did they go?" demanded the Red Pine.
"If the Sioux is a great brave, as he pretends to be, he can find their trail. Gray Eagle is glad they are gone!"
Red Pine gave up the task of acquiring any information from the Blackfoot chief, and at once the whole camp were searching for the fugitives. In a short time they found it and followed it to the creek, where it was lost. ”

“ Red Pine will never get her. She is far toward the village of the Blackfeet, with the White Panther, and will bring enough of the warriors of Gray Eagle upon the trail of the cowardly Sioux that will sweep them from the face of the earth! ”

“ Gray Eagle and Snowdrop were soon ready for a start.
"Here, Jehiel, you take the chief and the girl and go on down the creek; I will join you in a few minutes."
"Where are you going?" asked Jehiel.
"I am going to tell the strangers to be on their guard," and the brave man, unmindful of his own peril, mounted his horse and started for the camp of the strangers; while Jehiel, and the chief and his daughter, went down the stream.
Kelly had got about half-way to the other camp when a dark figure sprung from the bushes in front of him, and struck at the head of the scout. ”

“ Snowdrop went and told her father what the scout had written, and he immediately sent several warriors to look for the pass.
The top of the hill was inaccessible except at one point, and a dozen well-armed men could have guarded the plateau against all the Indians in the territory.
The shades of night were just falling around the Indian camp, when, without a word as to their intentions, Jehiel and Snowdrop started south, along the base of the hill, in search of the creek which was to lead them to the hiding-place of the brave scout. ”

“ Mebbe we could make some kind of a swap with old Gray Eagle, and get a load of beaver-skins to carry home with us. What do you say?"
"I say that we can have a load of something better to carry, without running any risk."
"I don't know of any thing any better," said Jehiel. "Beaver and mink fetch a good price, now-a-days, and we kin make our 'tarnal fortunes—pervidin', of course, we kin git the contrack. But then, mebbe, arter we'd licked the Sioux, old Gray Eagle wouldn't pay us for it—he's an o'nery old thief. What do you suppose is the reason, Lew, that Snowdrop don't fall in love with me? ”

“ Without a word White Wolf turned and rode toward his band, and Red Pine returned to his warriors.
White Wolf was a big, fat, burly Indian, who has since become quite well known on the plains as the meanest beggar of them all; one who will steal a blanket or murder a white man for the sake of a drink of whisky. He has became very much demoralized since the time we first met him, demanding the prisoner of the Sioux chief. ”

“ He saw the old trapper swing off on the end of the rope, and heard him when he stopped upon the opposite side, and waved his torch as a signal for the scout to catch the rope.
"Now," said Kelly, "you go over."
Jehiel showed signs of cowardice.
"How fur is it over there?" he asked.
"About sixty feet," was the reply.
"But durn it, Lew, I might fall and break my tarnal neck."
"Oh! there is no danger of that—all you have to do is to hang on to the rope; and you see there is a big knot in the end, so that your hands won't slip." ”

“ White Wolf was in a hurry for the same reasons, and also because he was in haste to secure Snowdrop for a wife, as he had no doubt he would.
Both were destined to learn that disappointment is the lot of mankind.
The battle was commenced by the Pawnees discharging a shower of arrows at the Sioux. Then the Sioux returned the compliment, and thus they continued for nearly an hour, not seeming to make much headway, or to cause any very great slaughter. They did yelling enough, however, for an army of twenty thousand men, and this, by the way, is the manner of Indian fighting generally. ”

“ We must leave here as soon as possible; there is danger ahead.
Yours,
Lew."
As he concluded reading, the face of the Indian girl grew bright, and she said:
"I am so glad! I shall see the White Panther once more."
"Yaas, I s'pose so," said Jehiel. "But you'll please to obsarve that he didn't ask you to come along."
"No matter, I shall go!" was the positive reply.
"Waal, jest as you like; but if you want the old man to know any thing about this gittin' on top of the hill, you'd better tell him—I won't! The infarnal old traitor! I wouldn't keer a durn if the Pawnees should lick him like blazes!" ”

“ The hunting party of the Sioux had not yet returned, and Snowdrop would not come until she could bring the Sioux chief with her.
The scout was not long in determining the cause of her delay, when he saw the hunting party coming across the plain.
He explained the situation of affairs to Bear-Paw.
"But," he said, "the girl will surely come, and she will bring the chief with her. Now, if you have another rope, I can make a lasso, and when she brings him near the rock I will throw it over his head; and we can draw him up without killing him. We can draw the girl up in the same way." ”

“ As the firelight flickered about, making strange and grotesque figures upon the wall, all were awake, and trying, amid the dim shadows, to solve the problem of life—to work out the destiny in store for them. ”

“ He saw large parties coming from the north, and knew that they were not all Sioux who where there, but that the Blackfoot braves had come to answer the call of Gray Eagle made by the smoke-signals, which the scout had sent up for the old chief.
"By Jingo!" he muttered, "I wish I could be down there to help one side or the other; but then, where is the difference? It is only dog eat dog after all, and they can fight it out without my assistance. Wish I only knew whether Jehiel is in the scrimmage or not? Reckon not, though, for he has not had time to go to the Blackfoot village and back. ”

“ But, as Jehiel remarked when he saw the Pawnees leaving: "I'll jest bet that critter feels awful demoralized!"
White Wolf knew that somewhere among the hills there was a white man who had been instrumental in rescuing Snowdrop from the hands of the Sioux, and who stood between his wishes and the love of the Blackfoot queen; and he resolved to hunt up that white man, and put him out of the way. ”