A BAND OF SCOUTS
"He would rather face three live painters," whispered Israel gleefully.
"I never saw my father scared before."
In a moment, however, the boys were listening intently to what the great
scout was saying.
"I am no speechmaker," began Daniel Boone, his voice trembling slightly
as he spoke. "I know a little of the language of the deer and of the
songs of the birds. The cry of the nighthawk has its meaning for me, to
which it almost would be possible for me to reply. Even the scream of
the painter is in a language which I understand, but when I look into
the faces of my friends, who are much better fitted than I am to say
what is best for this little community, I am at a loss how to proceed."
The hunter paused a moment and the sympathetic interest of his hearers
plainly encouraged him to go on. "It is true," he continued quietly, "I
have a name for being somewhat successful as a scout and a hunter. I
think you will all bear me witness, however, that never yet willingly
have I inflicted pain upon even the weakest of God's creatures.
Whenever I draw a bead on a deer I do so with the thought in my mind
that here is the provision of the Almighty for food for His children.
With all my might, mind, and strength I am opposed to any cruelty to
dumb creatures, and also to any wanton waste of the game in our forests.
I am sure I am giving voice to your convictions also when I say that we
want no man within our settlement who does not have some such feeling as
I have just described. Sometimes our boys are thoughtless and shoot
perhaps more for the sake of killing than to secure provisions for our
homes. We must be patient with them and strive to show them how mistaken
they are. What I desire greatly just now is that a law shall be adopted
to protect the game in our forests." The hunter took his seat and a
murmur of applause at once came from the little assembly.
"Do you make that as a motion?" inquired Colonel Henderson.
"I do," responded the scout, rising and gravely bowing as he spoke.
The motion was seconded, and without one opposing vote the assembly
agreed to the suggestion of Daniel Boone.
As soon as this motion was adopted the great scout once more arose and
in his quiet and dignified manner again began to speak: "There is
another matter in which I am deeply interested. I have never been able
to understand how any man made in the image of his Creator could take
his Creator's name in vain. In my experience I have noticed that
profanity is limited to men who are either weak or vicious. I think, my
friends, that you will agree with me that we want neither class in our
little settlement on the banks of the Kentucky. I therefore move that we
adopt a law prohibiting profanity."
It was manifest that not every one in the assembly agreed with these
sentiments of the hunter, and there was a moment of hesitation. Peleg,
however, always ready to further the efforts of his friend, whom he
admired more than he did any living man, promptly arose and seconded the
motion, which then was passed without any opposition, though not with
the enthusiasm which had greeted the preceding motion.
Once more the tall scout arose and said: "I have still one other desire
in my heart. As you all know, our little settlement has been unusually
free from the brawls which occur in so many of the hamlets on the
border. I am confident it is the desire of every one here that the same
things shall continue to be true. If we must fight, then let us fight
hard; but all petty quarrellings and brawls, let them not henceforth
even be mentioned among us. With this peaceful desire in our minds, I
greatly desire that a law shall be adopted to express the wish of this
settlement that the Sabbath shall not be like other days. We surely toil
so hard throughout six days of the week that if there were no other
purpose in our minds we ought to rest on the Lord's Day. In order that
this may be clearly understood, I move that a law be adopted which shall
voice the sentiment of this community against the profanation of the
Sabbath Day."
There was no openly expressed opposition to the desire of the scout, and
Peleg having promptly seconded this motion, his third suggestion also
was adopted.
Soon afterward, Colonel Henderson called upon the pioneer preacher to
close the meeting with prayer, and the assembly dispersed.
Peleg, Israel Boone, and Henry departed together from the fort. The last
named was now able to express himself in English and, though he was
still reserved in his bearings toward the people in general, his
friendship for Peleg and Israel had strengthened with every passing day.
"I never know such man like your father," said Henry to Israel.
"He is the best man that ever lived!" broke in Peleg enthusiastically.
"He has been just like a father to me, and if he was my real father I
should be the proudest man in all Kentucky."
"That would mean a great many people," suggested Israel with a smile. "I
understand there are new settlers arriving every day. I have heard that
Logan's Fort and Harrodsburgh are filling in very fast."
"So I have heard," responded Peleg.
"If the Indians would only leave us free!"
"But they will not," broke in Henry. "They say white people not make any
more settlements, and it not long before they drive out those that are
here."
"Let them try!" said Israel dryly.
"They have been trying," remarked Peleg. "There is not a day that we
have not seen some signs of the Shawnees or Delawares prowling around
the forts."
"They have not made any open attack for some time now," suggested Israel
Boone.
Henry shook his head as he said: "That means they only wait. Pretty soon
you see. They feel for white men like wolf feel for bear."
"And that is about the same love that a dog has for a cat," suggested
Peleg with a laugh.
"That is it," acknowledged Henry soberly. "I never know why bear and
wolf no like each other. They kill many other things, but when wolf
find trail of bear he call to all his friends and they begin to chase
Mr. Bear. One day I saw a pack of wolves chasing big bear."
"Was the bear running from them?" inquired Israel.
"Yes, he run much fast. By and by he come to place where he can go no
more, then he stand up with his back to tree, and the way he cuff those
wolves first one side, then on other, make me laugh."
"Yes," said Peleg, "I have seen the same thing myself. It is like the
feeling that Sam Oliver says the otter has for the beaver."
"Or the mink for the ermine," suggested Israel.
"Both mink and ermine bad as they can be," said Henry, shaking his head.
"They kill all things not so strong as they."
"Yes," suggested Peleg, "I think the mink and ermine are about the worst
animals alive. The mink is three or four times as big as the ermine is
and has a good deal more strength----"
"But the ermine so quick," interrupted Henry. "He so quick," he
repeated, "and he most bloodthirsty little animal in the forest. When he
begin to fight he always fight on until either he is killed or mink is
killed."
"Sam Oliver was telling me the last time he was in the settlement," said
Peleg, "that last winter he was trailing a fox that was chasing a
rabbit, and when Sam came to his trap-line he heard, away off to one
side, a mink scream. He says you can hear a mink scream almost a quarter
of a mile away. He was trapping minks and he thought he had one caught,
so he turned and started for his trap. When he got there he saw, so he
said, the biggest fight he ever saw in the woods. A mink was caught in
his trap and an ermine was fighting him.
"Pretty quick he saw that instead of there being only one there were two
of the ermine. They kept walking around the mink in a circle and kept
going faster and faster until by and by one of them, quick as lightning,
right in front of the mink, jumped for him, and almost at the same time
the other ermine jumped in, too, and tried to get a grip on the mink's
neck. They must have tried that same thing before, because this time he
heard the mink scream, too, though he was doing something besides. For
about half a minute Sam said he couldn't hear or see much of anything
except the fracas. Then just about as swiftly as the two ermine had
jumped into the fight, they jumped out and began to circle around the
mink again. The next time they tried to get the neck hold only one of
them slipped back. The other got his teeth fastened right where he
wanted them, and you know they are like needles. Then the other ermine
came back and he, too, got a throat hold. In just a few minutes the
whole affair was ended and the ermine came out ahead. Sam said he could
have walked up to them and picked them up, they were so excited,
squeaking like mice, and trying to tear the dead mink all to pieces."
"Sam got the two ermine then, didn't he?" inquired Israel.
"Yes. I told him, though, I thought they had earned their right to live,
but Sam never feels that way about such things."
The reference to Sam Oliver had brought a scowl to the face of Henry and
caused him to become silent as long as the hunter was a topic of
conversation.
In the succeeding days reports of the presence of Indians steadily
increased. Several men toiling in the fields were fired upon by Shawnees
who had crept up to the border of the forest.
Steadily the Indians showed their determination to do their utmost to
prevent the settlers from making homes in their hunting grounds. The
hostilities of the Shawnees became more marked with every passing month.
Indeed, so many were the manifestations of their plan to attack the
settlements that finally Colonel Clark, who at this time had been given
the command of all military forces in Kentucky, became so convinced
that there was a plan in the minds of the Indians to assemble a great
body of their warriors to destroy the border forts and their inhabitants
that he begged the pioneer scout to act as a spy and to assume charge of
other spies that were to be sent among the tribes to learn their numbers
as well as their designs.
Daniel Boone, fully aware of the danger, and in spite of his desire to
remain at home, responded to this new call because he looked upon
himself as in a measure answerable for the safety of the people whom he
had induced to come into Kentucky. At this time the region was known as
the "dark and bloody ground," so many had been the attacks and conflicts
between the incoming whites and their Indian foes.
Daniel Boone ordered his spies to start out in different directions, and
after they had scoured the country for miles around, they were to meet
at a time and place agreed upon and report what they had discovered and
form their plans for the future.
Convinced at last that there was no immediate danger of a concerted
attack by the Indians, the scout returned to Boonesborough and resumed
his labours.
"Peleg," said Boone one day not long after his return, "we must have
some salt. I shall take a party to Blue Licks. Will you come?"
"Yes, sir," replied Peleg promptly.
"I shall leave Israel at home to protect the family, but I shall want
you and Henry to go with me. We ought to have a party of twenty-five or
thirty men not only to make the salt, but to keep back the Shawnees, who
are likely to make trouble for us if we are not strong enough to defend
ourselves."
The following day Daniel Boone, together with Peleg and twenty-six other
men, departed for the salt springs, or Blue Licks, as they were called
by the settlers. Neither of the scouts, however, was aware that he was
there to meet with the most thrilling adventure of his life.