That day our hunters dined, for the first time, on fresh buffalo-beef.
After dinner they were not idle, but spent the remainder of the evening
in drying a portion of the meat over a fire. They had resolved to
encamp on the spot for the night, and follow up the trail in the
morning. They therefore busied themselves, until a late hour, in
preparing as much broiled buffalo-meat as would last them for several
days.
It was near midnight before they thought of retiring to rest. As they
had done upon like occasions before, it was agreed that one should keep
watch--so as to keep off the wolves from the meat--while the other two
slept.
Their camp was in the open ground, near the spot where the buffalo had
been skinned. At a little distance off their animals were browsing upon
the grass. The wolves were in great force--both prairie-wolves, and
those of the large grey species. The scent of the broiling meat had
attracted them from afar; and throughout the night they kept up a
continuous howling, trotting all over the meadow around the camp.
Francois kept the first watch, and Lucien the second; Basil's turn came
next, and it was to extend till daybreak, when all were to be aroused--
so that they might pack up at a very early hour, and continue the
journey. They did not wish to lose a moment more than was necessary--as
they knew that every hour the migrating herd would be gaining upon them,
and thus prolong the pursuit.
Basil's watch was a long one; and, having sat up so late, he felt
sleepy. He was, therefore, in no very friendly humour with the wolves--
upon whose account he was thus compelled to keep awake. Every now and
then, as he saw them sneaking about in the darkness, he could not help
muttering an angry ejaculation; and he had made up his mind, as soon as
morning came, to empty his gun at one of the pack, by way of satisfying
his feelings.
After a spell of watching, that lasted nearly three hours, he perceived
the first streaks of dawn in the east.
"By the time we get breakfast cooked," thought Basil, "there will be
light enough to follow the trail; so I'll rouse Frank and Luce; and, by
way of a change, I'll give them a _reveille_ with my rifle. Let me pick
out the largest of these sneaking wolves; I'll put one of them at least
from keeping anybody awake hereafter, I guess."
Basil, as he reflected thus, raised himself upon his knees, and looked
around to select a victim. Strange to say, the wolves, as if they had
guessed his intention, had scattered away from the neighbourhood of the
fire, though several could still be seen stealing along the edge of the
willows. Basil chose one of these which appeared in the dim light to be
a large grey one; and, levelling his piece, fired at it. As he was not
very anxious whether he killed the animal or not, he fired carelessly.
Following the shot there was heard a loud scream, that was answered by
fifty others, from all sides of the valley. It awoke the sleeping
hunters; who, along with Basil, sprang to their feet. It was not the
scream of wolves they had heard, but a cry of far different import. It
was the yell of human voices--_the war-cry of Indians_!
All three stood speechless with terror; but, even could they have
spoken, there was scarcely time allowed them to have uttered a word;
for, almost simultaneous with the yells, there was a rushing forward of
dark forms; and the next moment fifty tall savages were around them.
Basil, who had been farthest out from the fire, was knocked senseless by
a blow; while Lucien and Francois, who did not think of using their
guns, were seized by the brawny arms of the Indians and held fast. It
was fortunate for them that they did not make any resistance, else the
savages would have killed all three upon the spot. As it was, even,
they seemed for a while undetermined whether to do so or not--as it was
one of their number that Basil had mistaken for a wolf, and the shot had
wounded the Indian, which, of course, exasperated them greatly.
Perceiving, however, the small force of the party, and that the boys
made no farther resistance, they gave up the idea of killing them on the
spot, but bound the arms of all three behind their backs; and then,
after having mounted them on their horses, and gathered up their guns
and blankets, led them out of the valley. At a short distance off, the
Indians reached a spot where their own horses were tied. Here they
halted for a moment--until each had got into his saddle--and then the
whole party, prisoners and all, set off at a brisk trot over the
prairie.
In about an hour they arrived at a large encampment upon the bank of a
broad shallow river. There were nearly an hundred lodges standing upon
the plain; and the ground was littered with buffalo-horns and hides,
while vast quantities of the flesh of these animals were hanging from
poles in front of every lodge. There were fires, and camp-kettles, and
dogs, and Indian ponies, and women, and children--all mixed up together,
or moving to and fro among the tents.
In front of the encampment, and near the bank of the stream, the
prisoners were thrown upon the ground. Their captors left them; but
they were at once surrounded by a crowd of yelling squaws and children.
These at first regarded them only with curiosity; but as soon as they
heard that one of the Indians had been wounded, they uttered the most
hideous and piercing cries, and approached their captives with
threatening looks and gestures. They commenced their cowardly torture
by pulling the ears and hair of the boys, and sticking arrow-points into
their arms and shoulders; and then, by way of having a little fun,
several of the squaws seized hold of, and dragged the three prisoners
out into the middle of the stream. Here they ducked them, keeping their
heads for a long time under water, all the while yelling and laughing
like so many demons. The poor captives for a while believed that these
women were about to drown them, and, tied as they were, they could make
no effort to save themselves. This, however, was not the intention of
the squaws; they were only disposed to have as much fun out of them as
possible. After they had got tired of this amusement, they dragged the
boys back again to the bank, and flung them dripping upon the grass.
But what was Basil doing all this time? Did he not possess a charm
about him, that would have put an end to all this torturing treatment,
and have made the Indians friends instead of such cruel enemies? Ah!
poor Basil! he had suffered worse than any of the three. I shall tell
you how it was with him.
At their capture Basil had been stunned by the blow of a tomahawk. He
had been knocked quite senseless; and although he recovered himself so
far as to be able to ride to the Indian camp, it was not until after the
ducking he received in the cold river that he fairly came to himself.
As soon as he did so, he bethought himself of that which he carried
under the breast of his hunting-shirt. In fact, his brothers had been
reminding him of it every moment, anxiously entreating him to make use
of a secret of which neither of them fully understood the nature. But,
up to this time, Basil, bewildered by the blow, was scarcely conscious
of what he did. He had now recovered himself, and was making every
effort to get at the string, and draw the embroidered pouch from his
breast; but his hands were tied behind him, and he could not use them!
He essayed to reach it with his mouth, but all his efforts were in vain.
He then turned towards his brothers, so that they might stretch forward
and draw out the string with their teeth. They were no longer near him!
The squaws had dragged them to some distance off; and, like himself,
their ankles were tied together, and they could not move from the spot
where they had been placed.
Basil saw all this with a feeling of consternation; for, judging from
the cruel treatment to which they had been submitted, and from the
excited and exasperated manner of the Indians, he began to fear the
worst, and to doubt whether the charm he carried might, after all, avail
them. He used every effort to give it a trial. Failing to reach it, he
made signs to the squaws around him, nodding with his head, and casting
his eyes downward towards his breast. These, however, did not
understand his meaning; and only laughed at what appeared to them a
somewhat comic pantomime.
During the continuance of this scene, the Indian men stood apart,
conversing together, and evidently deliberating what they should do with
their prisoners. The manner of some of them was angry and excited.
They talked loudly, and gesticulated with violence, occasionally
pointing to a spot of level ground in front of the camp. The captives
could see that among these loud talkers was the man whom Basil had
wounded, as he carried his arm in a bandage. He was an ill-favoured,
ferocious-looking savage; and the boys, although they knew not a word
that was uttered, could tell by his manner that he was speaking against
them. To their consternation, they at length saw that he and his party
had carried their point, and all the others appeared to acquiesce. What
could their decision have been? Were they going to murder them?
Agonised with these terrible apprehensions, the boys watched every
action of the Indians with the keenest solicitude.
All at once each one of the savages was seen to arm himself with a bow;
while two of their number, carrying a large stake, proceeded out into
the open ground, and planted it firmly in the earth. O God! the horrid
truth now became clear. It was their intention to tie their prisoners
to the stake, and use them as a target for their arrows! The boys had
heard that this was a common custom among Indians with their captives;
and each of them uttered a cry of terror, as they recognised the fearful
preparations.
They had but little time to shout to each other; and what they said was
drowned by the yells of the squaws and children, who leaped and danced
over the ground, evidently delighted with the prospect of the horrid
spectacle they were about to witness.
Fortunately Basil was selected as the first victim. His superior size
and age, no doubt, obtained him that preference. He was rudely seized
by a pair of Indians and dragged up to the stake, where the savages
commenced stripping him--by way of making a better mark of his naked
body!
As soon as they had loosened his arms and pulled off his hunting-shirt,
the embroidered pouch attracted their attention. One of them seized it,
and drew forth its contents--which proved to be _a pipe-head of the red
clay-stone_--the celebrated steatite. As soon as the savage set his
eyes upon it, he uttered a strange exclamation, and handed it to his
companion. The latter took it into his hands, uttered a similar
ejaculation, and carrying it with him, ran back to the crowd. These, as
soon as it reached them, could be seen passing it from hand to hand,
each examining it minutely, and making some remark; but one Indian, more
than the rest, seemed to be excited upon beholding it; and this one,
after he had gazed upon it for a moment, ran hurriedly towards Basil,
followed by all the others!
This was the opportunity which Basil wished for; and as the Indian stood
in front of him, and pointed to the pipe, as if waiting for an
explanation, the boy, his hands being now free, deliberately and with
coolness made several signs which had been taught him by his father.
These signs were at once understood by the Indian, who sprang forward,
pulled off the cords that bound Basil's ankles, raised him to his feet,
embracing him as he did so with friendly exclamations! All the other
Indians now pressed forward, and grasped him by the hand, while some ran
to Lucien and Francois, who, in a few moments, were likewise set free!
All three were now carried to one of the tents; dry clothes were put
upon them, and as soon as it could be got ready, a feast was set before
them: so that their captors, who but the moment before were about to put
them one by one to a most cruel death, now seemed to strive with each
other which should honour them the most! The Indian, however, who had
shown so much interest at seeing the mysterious pipe-head, was allowed
to take precedence in waiting upon them; and it was into his tent that
our adventurers had been carried.
You will by this time wonder what there could be in a simple pipe-head,
to have caused all this sudden and mysterious effect. I will tell you
in as few words as possible.
You have no doubt heard of the celebrated Shawano chief Tecumseh--
perhaps the greatest Indian warrior that ever lived, as well as the most
remarkable of Indian statesmen. You may have heard, too, that during
the last war between England and the United States, Tecumseh, taking
advantage of the difference between these nations, endeavoured to excite
the Indians to a general rising, for the purpose of driving all white
men from the soil of America. Tecumseh had a brother, Elswatawa, better
known by the name of "the Prophet." This brother was to the full as
enthusiastic as the chief himself in the wish to carry out their great
design; and for this purpose he undertook a crusade to every tribe of
Indians in the western parts of America. He was a man of great talents
and eloquence, and was received with friendship wherever he went. The
cause which he advocated was dear to all Indians; and of course he was
listened to, and smoked the _calumet_ with the men of every tribe. Now
this very calumet, which had been used by the Prophet throughout all his
wanderings, was the identical one which Basil carried, and which, by its
strange carvings and hieroglyphics, was at once recognised by these
Indians, who were of the Osage tribe,--one of those which the Prophet
had visited.
But you will ask, how this calumet came into the possession of Basil's
father, and why its possession insured such mysterious protection to our
adventurers. That I can also explain. Tecumseh was killed in the war
with the Americans; but the Prophet lived for many years afterwards.
Shortly after having emigrated to America, during one of his excursions
near Saint Louis, the Colonel--the father of our boy hunters--met with
this strange Indian; and, through some circumstances which happened, the
Frenchman and he became fast friends. Presents were exchanged between
them, and that which was received by the latter was the _red calumet_.
The Prophet, on giving it, told the Colonel, that if ever he should have
occasion to wander among the Indian tribes, it might prove useful to
him; and at the same time initiated him into certain signs which he was
to make use of in such time of need. In these signs the Colonel had
instructed Basil, and we have already witnessed their effect. The
Indian who had best understood them, and in whom they had produced the
strongest emotions, happened to be a Shawano himself--one of that very
tribe to which both the Prophet and Tecumseh belonged; and which is now
but a remnant--most of its warlike sons being either dead, or scattered
among the nomad bands that roam over the great western prairies. Such,
then, was the history of the red calumet, which had proved the protector
of our adventurous hunters.
In a short time they were enabled to communicate with the Indians by
signs; for no people can understand such language better than Indians.
The boys informed the Shawano who they were, and for what purpose they
had ventured upon the prairies. On learning the nature of their
expedition, the Indians were filled with astonishment as well as
admiration for the courage of these young hunters. They told the
latter, in return, that they themselves were out hunting the buffaloes--
that they were now on the skirts of the great herd, and they believed
that one or two _white_ buffaloes had been seen. Furthermore, they
added, that if the boys would remain, and hunt for a few days in company
with them, no pains should be spared to kill or capture one of these
animals, which should be placed at the disposal of their young guests.
Of course, this invitation was cheerfully accepted.
I might narrate many more adventures that befell our _Boy Hunters_; but
I fear, young reader, you are already tired of the prairies. Suffice
it, then, to say, that after some days spent in hunting with the
Indians, a _white buffalo_ was at length killed, his skin taken off in
the proper manner, and, after being saturated with a _preserving_
ointment, which Lucien had brought along with him, was carefully packed
upon the back of the mule Jeanette. Our adventurers now bade farewell
to their Indian friends, and set out on their return homewards. They
were accompanied to the confines of Louisiana by the Shawano and several
other Indians, who there took leave of them. In due time they safely
reached the old house at Point Coupee; where I need not tell you they
met with a joyous and affectionate welcome, both from their father and
the _ex-chasseur_, Hugot. The old naturalist had gained what he wished
for, and was as happy as man could be. He was prouder than ever of his
_boy-men_--his "young Nimrods," as he now called them--and on many a
winter's night by the cheerful log-fire, did he take pleasure in
listening to the story of their _adventures in search of a white
buffalo_.