The people were moving along the Bighorn, with the long lodge poles
dragging along the ground. Some dozen girls with toy tents were
transporting them in imitation of their mothers. Takes-the-pipe was
riding with the Hammers, a boys’ club patterned on the men’s societies.
The members treated dogs or deer as enemies and practised counting coup
on them. Takes-the-pipe as one of the daredevils carried one of the
emblems of the organization, a long stick with a wooden hammer-head
pivoted some two feet from its top. Suddenly an idea struck him.
“Hammers,” he cried, “let us offer a seat on our horses to the girls we
like!” No sooner said than done. He himself had had his eye on Otter
for some time, and presently the two were riding double.
In the evening when the women of the camp pitched their lodges, the
Hammer boys’ sweethearts set up theirs a little way off. They played at
married life. Takes-the-pipe sneaked into his mother’s lodge, purloined
some meat, brought it near Otter’s tent, and bade her fetch the food,
which she then cooked for him. Other boys and girls did likewise. Thus
they played every day while on the march. Once Takes-the-pipe killed
a young wolf and brought a lock of its hair to the young folks’ camp.
He pretended that it was an enemy’s scalp and set it on a pole and all
the girls had to dance the scalp dance around it. There followed a
recital of deeds; the boys who had struck wolves were allowed to claim
coups against the Dakota, and those who had touched deer might boast of
having stolen picketed horses.
It was a gay journey. But one evening when Takes-the-pipe had bragged
of his mock exploits, Cherry-necklace suddenly appeared on the scene
and taunted him before all his playmates, “You think you are a man,
because you are as tall as Deaf-bull,” he cried, “you are nothing
but a child fit to play with little girls. Have you ever been on the
war-path? _I_ went with Long-horse and struck a Piegan.” Takes-the-pipe
hung his head. It was only too true. Cherry-necklace was not so much
older, yet he had already distinguished himself and might recite his
coup in any public assembly. Takes-the-pipe had no answer for he knew
nothing to fling back in his “joking-relative’s” teeth, but he resolved
forthwith to join a war party at the earliest opportunity.
Not long after this Shinbone let it be known that he was setting out
on a horse-raid against the Dakota. Now Takes-the-pipe had his chance.
Well provided with moccasins by his clanswomen, he joined a dozen young
men starting afoot on the perilous adventure,—perilous because, though
Shinbone was a brave man, this was his first attempt at leading a party
and it remained to be seen whether “his medicine was good.” They walked
for four days. As Takes-the-pipe was the youngest of the company, he
had to fetch water and firewood, and one morning when he slept too late
they poured water all over him.
Warily the party advanced. On the fourth evening Shinbone ordered them
to halt on a little knoll. “Yonder are the Dakota lodges,” he said,
“early to-morrow morning we will go there.” He took his sacred bundle,
unwrapping a weasel skin stuffed with deer hair, and pointed it toward
the camp. “The Dakota are tired,” he said, “they will sleep late.”
Before dawn he roused the party. He appointed two young men as scouts.
They came back. “Well,” he asked, “how is it?”
“Where you pointed, there are the Dakota lodges,” they replied.
“It is well,” he said. He chose four others to drive all the loose
horses out of the camp. They left. They had not gone far when they were
overtaken by Takes-the-pipe. “What are you doing? Go back. He did not
send _you_.”
“I am going to the camp to cut a horse or strike a coup.”
“You are crazy! We are older than you and are still without honors. We
are here to steal horses, not to score deeds. The one who is carrying
our pipe is a new leader, he may not be very powerful and you will
spoil his luck. Go back!”
But though they threatened to beat him, Takes-the-pipe would not return
and so all five approached the camp. There were the lodges ranged in a
circle. The inmates seemed plunged in sleep. Near the edge a herd of
horses were peacefully grazing. The scouts quietly stole up to them and
began to drive them off toward the rest of their party. In the meantime
Takes-the-pipe was getting his bearings in the strange encampment. He
cast about for a picketed horse, but there was none to be seen. Then of
a sudden, chance favored him. Out of a little tent on the outskirts of
the circle a wizened old man came hobbling on a staff. Takes-the-pipe
stole up behind him and dealt him a stunning blow. “Hēha!” he
cried, counting coup on the prostrate foe. Then he dashed towards his
friends, who had watched him from a little distance. As yet there was
no alarm, but no time was to be lost. They mounted and drove the horses
before them. When they reached Shinbone, the rest of the party got on
horseback. “Now we will run!” said the captain.
They had come and gone to the Dakota afoot and slowly enough; now they
were mounted, and traveled at top speed, for they knew that before
long the enemy would be in their wake. They rode on and on till they
got to the brink of a rapid stream. Here, some of their stolen horses
turned back, but the greatest number they saved, driving them through
the ice-cold water, where they themselves felt as though they must die
from the cold. They traveled that day and all through the night without
stopping to eat. On the following morning they reached the Crow camp,
sore and worn out, but with sixty head of horses. By rights they all
belonged to Shinbone, but after the fashion of a good leader, he was
generous to his followers and let them have nearly half of the herd.
Takes-the-pipe won three horses.
His parents rejoiced when they heard of his coup and his booty. His
mother and her sisters at once prepared a magnificent feast, to which
all the Sore-lip women contributed. On such occasions it behooved a
young man to give lavish entertainment to his father’s kin, so that
he might live to be an old man. So Deaf-bull invited all the eminent
Whistling-water men, and Takes-the-pipe selected Sliding-beaver from
among them, presenting him with a fine bay horse. Then Sliding-beaver
trudged through camp, leading Takes-the-pipe’s horse and singing the
young man’s praises.