HUNTING THE HUNTERS.
The first movement of surprise over, the chiefs glared at each other
with looks of implacable meaning, and then Tecumseh turned carelessly
away as if no such person as the Dead Chief lived upon the earth.
"Listen then, Tecumthè," shouted Dead Chief. "When a chief speaks, let
a dog of a Shawnee listen to his words. Do you know that Nabockalish,
the Skeleton Scout of the Americans, is on the trail of the Shawnee?
He follows you from place to place; he saved the Dead Chief and Floyd
from the anger of the Prophet, and he will live to tear the heart from
Tecumthè, from Willimack and Elskwatawa, if the Dead Chief does not do
it first."
"Who has seen Nabockalish?" said Tecumseh, turning to Floyd and paying
no attention to Dead Chief.
"I have seen him," replied Floyd. "So has the Dead Chief and the Long
Man."
"Yaas, yaas," said Seth, "I seen him, darn him. And I will say that, of
all the outlandish critters I ever see, he beats _my_ time."
"Nabockalish is like the wind of the prairies," said Tecumseh. "He
comes and goes as he will. Tecumseh has never seen him, but the dead
men his hand has laid low are many among the Shawnees. Some day
Tecumseh will meet him, and then we shall see who is strongest, the
Shawnee chief or the Skeleton Scout."
The Dead Chief again threw himself in the way of Tecumseh.
"Listen, Shawnee. Did you not bid Elskwatawa to slay me when we met?"
"I think the Weasel is coming, Floyd," said the chief. "I hear his
whistle."
Dead Chief saw that it was the design of Tecumseh to utterly ignore
his presence, and again throwing himself in the way, shook his open
hand in the face of the Shawnee and uttered a single word in the Indian
language. That word was the most bitter and opprobrious epithet which
one Indian could give another, and an insult not to be forgiven or
forgotten. The chief drew a long breath and his fingers which he had
laid upon Floyd's arm, closed with a convulsive gripe, that it left
black and blue spots upon the arm. But, Floyd knew that if the Dead
Chief or Tecumseh ever met, one or the other must go down.
"That saws _yure_ leg off, Dead Chief," whispered Seth, dragging the
Pottawatomie away by main force. "Yew come along, neow. Here's the
Weasel."
As he spoke the mannikin came gliding into camp, and drawing a letter
from his pouch, handed it to the captain, who immediately called up his
lieutenant and gave him his orders in a low voice.
"Tecumseh," he said, "you came among us freely and you must go away
safely; you are at liberty to depart."
"Have you good news from the Governor?" said the chief.
"I can do as I wish," replied the soldier. "I think it better that you
should depart now, and let us go our way. Yankee Seth, come here. The
Dead Chief must stay with me too."
Tecumseh bid them good-by and turned away with a stately step, closely
followed by the Weasel. He had hardly left camp, when the rangers
were in the saddle, and after scouts had beat the bushes on every
side to make sure that no Indians lurked there, they rode away toward
Vincennes, taking the captain's horse with them.
"Take my hand, here, Seth Spink, and you, Dead Chief, and join me in
this vow. I will not turn back from this search or see Vincennes again,
until Madge Carlysle is freed from bondage or I know that she is dead.
And if they have killed her, I swear to give my life to vengeance on
her destroyers. Heaven hear my vow."
"And mine," said Seth, solemnly. "This is business."
"The Dead Chief is with you," added the Pottawatomie, quietly.
The three clasped hands over the compact and stood locked in that firm
clasp, three strong men, confident in each other. Nothing can give a
man respect for another like that of danger shared together.
"Now for the trail," said Floyd. "Can you find it, Seth?"
"I rayther judge I kan," replied the Yankee. "Leastways, I know a
critter that kan do it fur me quicker than you can say scat, ef you kan
find something the gal has worn lately."
"This will do, then," said Floyd, with a visible flush, taking a ribbon
from his pocket. "I stole this from her neck last night when we parted,
and have carried it since. What do you propose to make out of that?"
"I'll show yew."
He raised his hand to his mouth and emitted a long, sharp peculiar
whistle. It had scarcely ceased to vibrate on the morning air when a
rushing sound was heard and a huge wolf-dog, with a cross of the hound
in him, came breaking through the bushes at a rolling gallop after the
fashion of the beast from whom a part of his blood was derived. This
creature fawned upon the scout, who laughed and patted him.
"Wolf is a good dorg," he muttered. "Yew wouldn't think it, but the
pesky brute hez been on our trail ever sence I cum deown the river
last night, and he wouldn't come to me unlest I called him, no matter
how long I was a dewing of it. Here, Wolf; smell tew that ribbin."
The dog put his nose to the ribbon a moment and then ran up to Floyd
and rubbed his cold muzzle against his leg.
"'Twon't dew," said the scout, with a puzzled look. "The ribbin ain't
rite, 'cause yew hev carried it tew long. Must hev something else."
They searched carefully everywhere, until with a cry of delight, Floyd
stooped and picked up a broken bracelet which lay upon the earth,
half-trodden into the soil.
"Here is the very thing, Seth. This bracelet--I gave it to her myself
in happier days--must be the thing to lead me to my darling."
"Let's have it," said the Yankee. "Here, Wolf."
The dog smelled the bracelet over and over, and then threw up his head,
giving utterance to a low howl.
"Silence!" cried the scout. "_Seek her, boy!_"
The dog put his nose to the earth and began to run to and fro in an
erratic manner over the ground, until he struck the scent he sought.
This done, he gave a short yelp and struck into a slow trot, which the
woodmen could easily keep up with, and started for the forest to the
north. They slung their rifles and started upon the trail of the dog,
which led into a forest-path. Keeping just far enough behind so that
they could keep him in sight, they soon were in the dense forest. The
Yankee took the lead with a stride which even the agile savage found
it difficult to keep up with at a walk, and he took the long lope so
characteristic to his race, and kept close to the heels of the Yankee.
Will Floyd, dogged and determined, kept on after them, though it cost
him more of an effort than either of the others. On, on, the forest
growing deeper at every stride, the dog accommodating his pace to that
of the men following, and looking back from time to time, to see that
they had not lost him.
"That is a noble dog," said Floyd. "You must give him to me if we
succeed."
"I couldn't do that, cap. Wolf and I are old friends. It's seven year
now we hev tramped the woods together; but he's gitting old now, the
old dorg is."
"How many Indians do you think the captors of Madge number?"
"Six," replied Long Seth, laconically.
"How do you know that?"
"_Because_ I know it," was the somewhat dogmatic reply. "I ain't going
to give any better reason."
"Is Willimack with them?"
"Ugh," said Dead Chief, laying his finger upon a spot in the path,
"Willimack here; see!"
"I'm not posted enough in scouting to read a trace which might have
been left by a falling leaf, it is so light. Do you see any thing of
Madge?"
"White girl walk woods," replied Dead Chief. "Look close."
The young man stooped and examined the soft earth, and saw there the
imprint of a delicate foot, and he realized how great was the knowledge
of woodcraft possessed by the two men.
"I say no more," he said. "When the time for fighting comes, I shall
not be behind you, but in scouting I am much inferior to either of you.
Do you think we can catch them, Seth?"
"Got tew dew it, ain't we, if we keep our vow? I, fur one, want to see
Vincennes ag'in. The Guvner treated me right well when I was thar this
morning, and give me a rousing good drink, and it tasted mighty well
arter so much river-water last night. Ha! the dorg is puzzled. He is
trying back."
As he spoke the dog doubled suddenly and "tried back" on the trail, but
without success, at first. His master encouraged him to continue, and
at last he stopped at a half-uprooted tree, leaning at a very acute
angle across a little stream, so that its bushy top was hardly ten feet
from the ground on the other side.
"They've begun tew play Injin," said the Yankee. "Yes they hev, and
it suits me. I like a hard job, ef I like any thing in natur'. And
Willimack is a right good scout, once he sets his mind tew it. The dorg
has lost his trail."
"Let us search for it," cried Floyd, eagerly. "My dear fellow, you see
how impatient I am."
"I see it," said Seth, coolly. "The dorg hez lost the trail but I'm
darned ef Seth Spink hez, nor the Dead Chief, either. Hev we, old boy?"
"Wah!" said the Dead Chief. "Willimack is a fool, if he thinks to throw
dust in the eyes of so great a scout as the Yellow Hair."
"Sartin! sartin!" said Seth. "The trail is on the other side of the
creek. Now, I s'pose it puzzles yew tew know how they managed tew break
the trail afore they got tew the bank, capting?"
"It does indeed."
"Then look at this tree. Yew won't be the worse fur a lesson in
woodcraft, and I'm the man tew give it. Yew see that the bark is
scraped off a leetle here at the root. I s'pose Willimack got up, and
one of his men handed up the gal tew him, and then he walked eout intew
the branches, and dropped her on the other side, onlest one of his men
went first tew help her. Anyway, they left footmarks when they dropped."
The Yankee ran up the tree like a cat, and the dog sprung up after him.
The next moment they were clambering in the bushy top and dropped to
the earth on the other bank.
"Thar's the trail," said Seth, "clear as mud. They made a good plant
for green hands tew foller, but they don't half know me, the critters.
Now look at this. By gracious, this is a new plant. The trail ends
here."
"I am afraid we shall never overtake them," said Will.
"Yew shet up! It takes jest ez long tew hide a trail so that Wolf and
me kain't find it as it duz tew find it, and no longer. I'll study that
eout in a minnit."
He looked quickly about him. Under the tree-top, where the Indians had
dropped to the earth, the soil was tramped hard in places, but these
did not extend over a distance of more than ten feet, and none of them
led toward the bank. How had Willimack broken the trail this time? The
dog was at fault, for, though he ran to and fro, upon the trampled
bank, he could not strike the scent again. At last the eye of the
Yankee was attracted by the appearance of the ground toward the stream,
and following the trace it led him to the bank. Looking down into the
clear water he could see the tracks of moccasins in the sand at the
bottom.
"Water don't leave no trail," he muttered. "Yaas, but sand does, bet
yure life! Wolf, this way. Stay here, boys, and if I give a whistle,
follow me as quick as yew could say 'scat'."
He ran swiftly up the bank of the stream, with the dog beside him. Five
minutes after they heard his whistle and rushed after him. He stood
upon the bank of the stream holding his dog by the neck.
"They took to the water. I knowed they would, Floyd."
"But how did they get to it?"
"Stripped a piece of bark from an elm and walked tew the water on it
and then threw the bark intew the crick. 'Twas cute, by gravy. But,
I'll cheat 'em yet, see ef I don't. Go it, Wolf!"
The dog again bounded forward on the trail, and the three men followed
him with unabated vigor. Trick after trick in woodcraft was unraveled
by the perseverance of the Yankee, whose skill was aided by that of
the Dead Chief, no tyro in the art. Night came and found them still on
the trail, which now began to freshen, so that they knew their enemies
could not be many miles ahead. The scout halted when it became too dark
to proceed easily and told them to sit down and eat something.
"Eat; what have we to eat? And besides, I have no appetite for any
thing now."
"Hain't yew? That's jest whar we differ. I'm as hungry as a b'ar, and
I'd like a bit of b'ar-meat tew. But, es that ain't accessible, so tew
speak, we'll hev tew make eout with jerked venison. That won't come so
bad, neither."
The scout produced a pouch and took from it a quantity of jerked
deer-meat, and began to eat heartily, laying the meat out where his
companions could easily reach it. He had hardly begun to eat when he
had two helpers, for, upon second thought, the young soldier found
himself quite as hungry as the others, and he devoured his share.
"That's something like it, boy. What kind of a fight dew yew s'pose
yew'd make 'thout any fodder? Yew'd double up like a dish-clout in the
hands of the fust Injin that yew struck, and that ain't the kind of man
we want."
"Are they far ahead?"
"That's jist what I'm going tew be sartin of. No they ain't very fur
ahead, leastways I think they ain't. Here, Wolf; ketch hold of that."
He threw a large piece of the venison to the dog, who devoured it
eagerly. When they had finished, the scout signaled to them to follow,
and, turning aside from the path they had been pursuing, he broke
through the tangled bushes and came out in the center of a little
clearing made by the hand of man.
In the midst of this sequestered spot some borderman had built a cabin
of rough logs after the manner of the settlers of that day. The grass
was green and bright about the cabin, but the logs were smoke-begrimed
and the roof gone. Upon the grass not far from the door were three
grave-like mounds, laid side by side. The one in the center was the
largest, and the others looked like the graves of children.
"Yew stay here," said the scout. "It's a good place tew rest, and
nobody ever comes here 'cept me and one other."
"Why do they not come here?"
"'Cause the place is ha'nted," replied Seth.
"Haunted!"
"Yes. Them mounds thar are what they look like, graves. And the hunters
hev a story that the dead won't rest thar, because they were foully
dealt with. Mebbe the story's trew, and those are the graves of little
children. It mout be; sadder things hev happened in the history of
these times."
"Do you know any thing of the settler who lived here?"
"He never ha'nted me; that I know, and I've stopped here many a time
tew rest. Keep quiet here and wait for me."
"Suppose any thing should happen to you?" said Floyd.
"It won't. Waal, yew stay here until morning, and if I ain't here then,
go on yure way."
He slung his rifle into the corner, looked to see that his knife and
hatchet were in his belt, and disappeared in the darkness.