White Otter

“ Each moment the noise sounded farther from the village, and it soon became evident [244] that the Pawnees were withdrawing. A mighty chorus of yells from the camp convinced White Otter and his companions that the Sioux had finally been victorious. The thought sent them into an ecstasy of joy.
"Listen, my brothers!" White Otter cried, delightedly. "The Pawnees are running away. Yes, my people have made a great fight. The Wolf People know about this great war party. They are running away before our people come. But we will follow them. Yes, Curly Horse and Laughing Bird will chase them. ”

“ At that time the lads pledged themselves to an undying friendship, and Sun Bird and Little Raven accompanied White Otter to the Ogalala village. When they departed White Otter gave each two splendid ponies, and promised to visit them the following spring. Now the time was at hand and he was eager to go.
When Wolf Robe learned White Otter's intention he said: "It is good; the Minneconjoux are our brothers. Curly Horse, their chief, is a great man. You will see many brave warriors in that camp. Sun Bird and Little Raven are your friends. They will tell their people about you. ”

“ White Otter saw that he and Feather Dog had caused a sudden stir in the Minneconjoux camp. A great crowd had gathered at the edge of the village, and seemed to be regarding them with considerable suspicion. Several horsemen were riding excitedly about the plain driving the ponies toward the camp, and it was evident that the Sioux feared an attack.
"Perhaps your people believe that we are Crow scouts," suggested White Otter.
"No, it is not so. My people have eyes like the eagle, but they are very cautious," laughed Feather Dog. ”

“ Feeling sure of escape, therefore, he sat erect and shook his bow defiantly at the helpless Pawnees. They replied with wild yells of rage, and White Otter laughed mockingly.
The Pawnees continued the chase until darkness finally blotted them from sight. Then White Otter turned sharply from his course, and rode directly toward the north. Feeling confident that the maneuver would baffle his foes, he slackened the pace of his pony to an easy canter. Thus he rode until the night was half gone, and then he stopped and dismounted from the tired little buckskin. ”

“ The Wolf People have fooled us. It is bad. I do not know what to do."
Little Raven remained silent. He realized [256] that in such a predicament he must submit to the greater experience of White Otter. The loyal Minneconjoux had implicit confidence in the ability of his friend. He believed that the sharp-witted Ogalala would eventually think of a way to overcome the difficulty. Many moments passed while they sat quietly on their ponies, gazing gloomily at the confusing trails. Then White Otter determined on a plan of action.
"There is only one thing to do," he said. ”

“ It took them a long time to drag the heavy body of the mountain lion to the mouth of the cave. Once outside, however, they each counted coup upon the carcass, and danced joyfully about the trophy. Then White Otter cut off the claws, and removed the coarse tawny pelt. He also cut out the heart, which he said they would eat at their fire, as old Yellow Horse, the Ogalala medicine-man, declared it would give the hunter the strength and courage of the great cat itself.
"Yes, it is true," declared Sun Bird. "I have heard my father say it is a good thing to do." ”

“ Yes, I am going with you."
"Little Raven, your words make me feel big in my heart," White Otter replied, with genuine emotion. "But I must tell you that you [251] are doing a foolish thing. You are very brave, but you must keep your life. Wolf Robe is my grandfather. He has given me many good things. There is only one thing to do if he is alive: I must try to get him away. There is only one thing to do if he is dead: I must go into the camp and kill as many Pawnees as I can. ”

“ It was at this season that White Otter, the grandson of Wolf Robe, the famous Ogalala war chief, had planned to visit the Minneconjoux camp to see his friends, Sun Bird and his brother Little Raven. The three young warriors had shared many perilous adventures the [2] previous year, when White Otter won fame by recovering the Red Arrow, a Sioux medicine trophy which had been stolen by the Pawnees, and Sun Bird rescued his brother from captivity. ”

“ He felt certain that the Pawnees had really departed, and he raced toward the camp with little attempt at concealment.
"We must be cautious when we come near the village," High Eagle warned him. "Our people will be watching. When they hear us perhaps they will take us for Pawnees. Perhaps they will send their arrows through us."
"Yes, what you say is so," agreed White Otter. "But we will stop before we go near enough to be killed. Then I will make the sound of the little gray fox. When our people hear that they will feel good again." ”

“ Behind the hunters followed the women, leading the pack animals loaded with buffalo meat. There was a great quantity, and the Sioux attributed their success to the efforts of Rain Crow and the Buffalo Dancers, who they believed had gained the favor of the Great Mystery.
"You have been very brave; Kicking Bull has told me about it," said Sun Bird, as he and White Otter rode along together.
"Kicking Bull is a great man," replied White Otter, affectionately stroking the neck of the faithful little buckskin. ”

“ Those songs will stay in my ears a long time," replied White Otter.
"Well, you will see something else when the next sun comes," declared Sun Bird. "My people will dance the great Buffalo Dance. You will see how they do it. You will see scouts go away to watch on the ridges. And I will tell you another thing. Our brothers, the brave Uncapapas, are coming to hunt with us. You will see a great camp. Many things will happen while these people are with us. Yes, we will run races, and ride horses, and try our arrows. The Uncapapas are great warriors. They have fought in many battles. ”

“ Sun Bird at first talked against it, but when he found White Otter and several of his closest friends determined to go, he yielded.
"My brothers, a good war leader must always listen to the words of his friends. You [82] say that you will go to fight the Kiowas. You say that those people have many good ponies. You say that the Kiowas are our enemies. You say that the Cheyennes are our brothers. You say that a Dacotah must help his brother, and fight his enemy. ”

“ Sun Bird said soothingly.
"It is true; my heart is filled with clouds," replied White Otter. "I am thinking about my grandfather, the great chief Wolf Robe. I am thinking about my grandmother, the good Singing Wind. I am thinking about my friends. [213] High Eagle has told me something bad. The Pawnees are on every side of the village. They are like the grass. It is bad. The Ogalalas are very brave, but many wolves can kill a bear. I do not know what has happened. Two suns have passed since High Eagle left that camp. We are riding fast, but another sun will pass before we come near that place. ”

“ They were willing to take desperate chances to get within sight of the Ogalala village and learn the answer to the question that was torturing their minds. As they actually neared the vicinity, however, White Otter himself advised greater caution.
"We are coming close to our enemies," he said. "If they kill us then what we have done will be foolish. A scout must save himself to help his people. Now we will go ahead easy. We must watch, and listen like the fox."
They slackened their ponies and advanced very cautiously. ”

“ The young Ogalala had been taught to reverence these mysterious dreamers of visions, and he looked with superstitious awe upon the crude red emblems which announced Rain Crow's mysterious powers to the people. The medicine-man's buffalo-hide war shield was suspended from a tripod of poles beside the lodge, [108] and White Otter particularly noted the two red pipes which had been painted on it.
"My brother, I see that your father is a very great man," he told Sun Bird. "He has seen the mysterious Thunder Beings. That is a wonderful thing to happen to a man. ”

“ Maclean, the heir of Col, a man of middle stature, informed me that he once shot an otter, of which the tail reached the ground, when he held up the head to a level with his own. I expected the otter to have a foot particularly formed for the art of swimming; but upon examination, I did not find it differing much from that of a spaniel. As he preys in the sea, he does little visible mischief, and is killed only for his fur. White otters are sometimes seen.
In Raasay they might have hares and rabbits, for they have no foxes. ”

“ Then Sun Bird mounted his pony and rode rapidly in a circle. Assured by the maneuver, the great company of Sioux warriors thundered across the plain to join their tribesmen.
When Curly Horse and Laughing Bird learned that the scouts had seen nothing to arouse suspicion, they led the war party to a distant grove of aspens, which High Eagle said marked a water-hole. White Otter and his companions accompanied them, but as soon [216] as they had refreshed themselves and their ponies at the little pool they galloped away to reconnoiter in advance of the company. ”

“ It seemed, therefore, that the panting beasts would soon slacken their pace, and White Otter believed the safest plan would be to continue with the herd until the tired buffaloes finally slowed down sufficiently to allow the pony to escape from their midst. Kicking Bull destroyed his hope, however, by warning him that not far ahead was a rocky stretch of plain which would cause sad havoc if the buffaloes attempted to race over it. ”

“ As she caught the hunted glare of his eyes she felt the swift pang of remorse she had experienced in the midst of the exhilaration and excitement of her first otter hunt. One against many! A pang contracted her heart.
The shadows wiped out the face, and she noticed, with dull curiosity, that two of the maidens were grovelling on the floor, groping among the rushes, which they piled up in high heaps. Then she found she was with them, helping them to raise a plank that gave under her shaking fingers. ”

“ As the old dog otter stretched himself out on the kelp-raft, his cylindrical body, all gleaming ebony and silver in the sunlight, showed nearly as long as that of a man, and weighed perhaps a hundred and twenty-five pounds. It was the great otter's pelt, however, that stamped him as the sea king that he was. Lustrous as light on the water, the inner fur had a close pile like velvet and, frosted with long white hairs, showed a tinge of silver-purple gleaming through its long loose folds.
For some time the old dog otter gravely surveyed his mate and his new cub, approvingly. ”

“ Our people will talk about it a long time," declared Feather Dog.
The Sioux made their way across the plain with great caution, for they were fearful of losing their prizes to a superior force of foes. [98] As a precaution, therefore, White Otter and Feather Dog proceeded some distance ahead of their companions, reconnoitering from the ridges and keeping a sharp watch for enemies. However, they saw only antelope and wolves on the plain, and deer and elk in the swales and along the base of the foothills. The third day after leaving the Cheyennes they came in sight of their destination. ”

“ The mythical zoology of Sutherland contains also a white otter. These animals have a king, sometimes all white, sometimes dun with a white star. He has a jewel in his forehead, and is only vulnerable in one spot on the breast. ”

“ Very gradually the light increased, and it seemed to Otter that the mist was somewhat thinner than was usual at this hour, though as yet it hung densely between them and the mountain snows. Now he could trace the walls of the amphitheatre, now he could see the black shimmer of the water beneath, and distinguish the glitter of many hundreds of upturned eyeballs as they glared at him and beyond him. The silence grew more and more intense, for none spoke or moved: all were waiting to see the dawn break upon the slope of snow, and wondering—would it be red or white? Must the gods die or live? ”

“ Quadrupeds that prey on fish are amphibious: such is the otter, which by nature is so well formed for diving, that it makes great havoc among the inhabitants of the waters. Not supposing that we had any of those beasts in our shallow brooks, I was much pleased to see a male otter, brought to me, weighing twenty-one pounds, that had been shot on the bank of our stream below the Priory, where the rivulet divides the parish of Selborne from Harteley Wood. ”

“ The otter has no heel, but a round ball under the sole of the foot, by which its track in the mud is easily distinguished, and is termed the seal. The general shape of the otter is somewhat similar to that of an overgrown weasel, being long and slender; its colour is entirely a deep brown, except two small spots of white on each side the nose, and one under the chin; the skin is valuable, if killed in the winter, and makes gloves more durable, and which at the same time will retain their pliancy and softness after being repeatedly wetted, beyond any other leather. ”

“ Sea otters, distant relatives of land otters, are heavy-bodied animals, about 4 feet long, with broad webbed hind feet. When in the water they have a general resemblance to seals, whose mode of life is similar to theirs. Their fur is extremely dense and on the skins of adult males is almost black, closely sprinkled with long white-tipped hairs. The fur of prime skins has a silky luster, equaled in beauty by only the finest silver-tipped fox skins. For centuries sea-otter fur has been highly prized and single skins have brought more than $1,000 in the London market. ”