The Prairie (Fiscle Part 3) Of 2 - J Fenimore Cooper (books to improve english TXT) 📗
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Errand. But The Eye Of The Teton Chief Was Not Less Quick And Certain
Than That Of His Enemy. He Threw Himself From His Horse The Moment
Preceding The Report, And Sunk Into The Water. The Beast Snorted With
Terror And Anguish, Throwing Half His Form Out Of The River In A
Desperate Plunge. Then He Was Seen Drifting Away In The Torrent, And
Dyeing The Turbid Waters With His Blood.
The Teton Chief Soon Re-Appeared On The Surface, And Understanding The
Nature Of His Loss, He Swam With Vigorous Strokes To The Nearest Of
The Young Men, Who Relinquished His Steed, As A Matter Of Course, To
So Renowned A Warrior. The Incident, However, Created A Confusion In
The Whole Of The Dahcotah Band, Who Appeared To Await The Intention Of
Their Leader, Before They Renewed Their Efforts To Reach The Shore. In
The Mean Time The Vessel Of Skin Had Reached The Land, And The
Fugitives Were Once More United On The Margin Of The River.
The Savages Were Now Swimming About In Indecision, As A Flock Of
Pigeons Is Often Seen To Hover In Confusion After Receiving A Heavy
Discharge Into Its Leading Column, Apparently Hesitating On The Risk
Of Storming A Bank So Formidably Defended. The Well-Known Precaution
Of Indian Warfare Prevailed, And Mahtoree, Admonished By His Recent
Adventure, Led His Warriors Back To The Shore From Which They Had
Come, In Order To Relieve Their Beasts, Which Were Already Becoming
Unruly.
"Now Mount You, With The Tender Ones, And Ride For Yonder Hillock,"
Said The Trapper; "Beyond It, You Will Find Another Stream, Into Which
You Must Enter, And Turning To The Sun, Follow Its Bed For A Mile,
Until You Reach A High And Sandy Plain; There Will I Meet You. Go;
Mount; This Pawnee Youth And I, And My Stout Friend The Physician, Who
Is A Desperate Warrior, Are Men Enough To Keep The Bank, Seeing That
Show And Not Use Is All That Is Needed."
Middleton And Paul Saw No Use In Wasting Their Breath In Remonstrances
Against This Proposal. Glad To Know That Their Rear Was To Be Covered,
Even In This Imperfect Manner, They Hastily Got Their Horses In
Motion, And Soon Disappeared On The Required Route. Some Twenty Or
Thirty Minutes Succeeded This Movement Before The Tetons On The
Opposite Shore Seemed Inclined To Enter On Any New Enterprise.
Mahtoree Was Distinctly Visible, In The Midst Of His Warriors, Issuing
His Mandates And Betraying His Desire For Vengeance, By Occasionally
Shaking An Arm In The Direction Of The Fugitives; But No Step Was
Taken, Which Appeared To Threaten Any Further Act Of Immediate
Hostility. At Length A Yell Arose Among The Savages, Which Announced
The Occurrence Of Some Fresh Event. Then Ishmael And His Sluggish Sons
Were Seen In The Distance, And Soon The Whole Of The United Force
Moved Down To The Very Limits Of The Stream. The Squatter Proceeded To
Examine The Position Of His Enemies, With His Usual Coolness, And, As
If To Try The Power Of His Rifle, He Sent A Bullet Among Them, With A
Force Sufficient To Do Execution, Even At The Distance At Which He
Part 3 Chapter 24 Pg 74Stood.
"Now Let Us Depart!" Exclaimed Obed, Endeavouring To Catch A Furtive
Glimpse Of The Lead, Which He Fancied Was Whizzing At His Very Ear;
"We Have Maintained The Bank In A Gallant Manner, For A Sufficient
Length Of Time; Quite As Much Military Skill Is To Be Displayed In A
Retreat, As In An Advance."
The Old Man Cast A Look Behind Him, And Seeing That The Equestrians
Had Reached The Cover Of The Hill, He Made No Objections To The
Proposal. The Remaining Horse Was Given To The Doctor, With
Instructions To Pursue The Course Just Taken By Middleton And Paul.
When The Naturalist Was Mounted And In Full Retreat, The Trapper And
The Young Pawnee Stole From The Spot In Such A Manner As To Leave
Their Enemies Some Time In Doubt As To Their Movements. Instead,
However, Of Proceeding Across The Plain Towards The Hill, A Route On
Which They Must Have Been In Open View, They Took A Shorter Path,
Covered By The Formation Of The Ground, And Intersected The Little
Water-Course At The Point Where Middleton Had Been Directed To Leave
It, And Just In Season To Join His Party. The Doctor Had Used So Much
Diligence In The Retreat, As To Have Already Overtaken His Friends,
And Of Course All The Fugitives Were Again Assembled.
The Trapper Now Looked About Him For Some Convenient Spot, Where The
Whole Party Might Halt, As He Expressed It, For Some Five Or Six
Hours.
"Halt!" Exclaimed The Doctor, When The Alarming Proposal Reached His
Ears; "Venerable Hunter, It Would Seem, That On The Contrary, Many
Days Should Be Passed In Industrious Flight."
Middleton And Paul Were Both Of This Opinion, And Each In His
Particular Manner Expressed As Much.
The Old Man Heard Them With Patience, But Shook His Head Like One Who
Was Unconvinced, And Then Answered All Their Arguments, In One General
And Positive Reply.
"Why Should We Fly?" He Asked. "Can The Legs Of Mortal Men Outstrip
The Speed Of Horses? Do You Think The Tetons Will Lie Down And Sleep;
Or Will They Cross The Water And Nose For Our Trail? Thanks Be To The
Lord, We Have Washed It Well In This Stream, And If We Leave The Place
With Discretion And Wisdom, We May Yet Throw Them Off Its Track. But A
Prairie Is Not A Wood. There A Man May Journey Long, Caring For
Nothing But The Prints His Moccasin Leaves, Whereas In These Open
Plains A Runner, Placed On Yonder Hill, For Instance, Could See Far On
Every Side Of Him, Like A Hovering Hawk Looking Down On His Prey. No,
No; Night Must Come, And Darkness Be Upon Us, Afore We Leave This
Spot. But Listen To The Words Of The Pawnee; He Is A Lad Of Spirit,
And I Warrant Me Many Is The Hard Race That He Has Run With The Sioux
Bands. Does My Brother Think Our Trail Is Long Enough?" He Demanded In
The Indian Tongue.
"Is A Teton A Fish, That He Can See It In The River?"
Part 3 Chapter 24 Pg 75
"But My Young Men Think We Should Stretch It, Until It Reaches Across
The Prairie."
"Mahtoree Has Eyes; He Will See It."
"What Does My Brother Counsel?"
The Young Warrior Studied The Heavens A Moment, And Appeared To
Hesitate. He Mused Some Time With Himself, And Then He Replied, Like
One Whose Opinion Was Fixed--
"The Dahcotahs Are Not Asleep," He Said; "We Must Lie In The Grass."
"Ah! The Lad Is Of My Mind," Said The Old Man, Briefly Explaining The
Opinion Of His Companion To His White Friends. Middleton Was Obliged
To Acquiesce, And, As It Was Confessedly Dangerous To Remain Upon
Their Feet, Each One Set About Assisting In The Means To Be Adopted
For Their Security. Inez And Ellen Were Quickly Bestowed Beneath The
Warm And Not Uncomfortable Shelter Of The Buffaloe Skins, Which Formed
A Thick Covering, And Tall Grass Was Drawn Over The Place, In Such A
Manner As To Evade Any Examination From A Common Eye. Paul And The
Pawnee Fettered The Beasts And Cast Them To The Earth, Where, After
Supplying Them With Food, They Were Also Left Concealed In The Fog Of
The Prairie. No Time Was Lost When These Several Arrangements Were
Completed, Before Each Of The Others Sought A Place Of Rest And
Concealment, And Then The Plain Appeared Again Deserted To Its
Solitude.
The Old Man Had Advised His Companions Of The Absolute Necessity Of
Their Continuing For Hours In This Concealment. All Their Hopes Of
Escape Depended On The Success Of The Artifice. If They Might Elude
The Cunning Of Their Pursuers, By This Simple And Therefore Less
Suspected Expedient, They Could Renew Their Flight As The Evening
Approached, And, By Changing Their Course, The Chance Of Final Success
Would Be Greatly Increased. Influenced By These Momentous
Considerations The Whole Party Lay, Musing On Their Situation, Until
Thoughts Grew Weary, And Sleep Finally Settled On Them All, One After
Another.
The Deepest Silence Had Prevailed For Hours, When The Quick Ears Of
The Trapper And The Pawnee Were Startled By A Faint Cry Of Surprise
From Inez. Springing To Their Feet, Like Men, Who Were About To
Struggle For Their Lives, They Found The Vast Plain, The Rolling
Swells, The Little Hillock, And The Scattered Thickets, Covered Alike
In One, White, Dazzling Sheet Of Snow.
"The Lord Have Mercy On Ye All!" Exclaimed The Old Man, Regarding The
Prospect With A Rueful Eye; "Now, Pawnee, Do I Know The Reason Why You
Studied The Clouds So Closely; But It Is Too Late; It Is Too Late! A
Squirrel Would Leave His Trail On This Light Coating Of The 'Arth. Ha!
There Come The Imps To A Certainty. Down With Ye All, Down With Ye;
Your Chance Is But Small, And Yet It Must Not Be Wilfully Cast Away."
Part 3 Chapter 24 Pg 76
The Whole Party Was Instantly Concealed Again, Though Many An Anxious
And Stolen Glance Was Directed Through The Tops Of The Grass, On The
Movements Of Their Enemies. At The Distance Of Half A Mile, The Teton
Band Was Seen Riding In A Circuit, Which Was Gradually Contracting
Itself, And Evidently Closing Upon The Very Spot Where The Fugitives
Lay. There Was But Little Difficulty In Solving The Mystery Of This
Movement. The Snow Had Fallen In Time To Assure Them That Those They
Sought Were In Their Rear, And They Were Now Employed, With The
Unwearied Perseverance And Patience Of Indian Warriors, In Circling
The Certain Boundaries Of Their Place Of Concealment.
Each Minute Added To The Jeopardy Of The Fugitives. Paul And Middleton
Deliberately Prepared Their Rifles, And As The Occupied Mahtoree Came,
At Length, Within Fifty Feet Of Them, Keeping His Eyes Riveted On The
Grass Through Which He Rode, They Levelled Them Together And Pulled
The Triggers. The Effort Was Answered By The Mere Snapping Of The
Locks.
"Enough," Said The Old Man, Rising With Dignity; "I Have Cast Away The
Priming; For Certain Death Would Follow Your Rashness. Now Let Us Meet
Our Fates Like Men. Cringing And Complaining Find No Favour In Indian
Eyes."
His Appearance Was Greeted By A Yell, That Spread Far And Wide Over
The Plain, And In A Moment A Hundred Savages Were Seen Riding Madly To
The
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