The Huge Hunter; Or, The Steam Man of the Prairies by Edward Sylvester Ellis (new ebook reader .txt) 📗

perceive him until he had approached quite close, when they again put on a full head of steam, and they went bounding forward at a rate which threatened to tear them to pieces.

But the keen perception of the boy had detected what they were able to do without real risk: and, without putting his invention to its very best, he kept up a speed which steadily drew them away from their pursuer, who finally became discouraged, checked his animal, and turned round and rode back to his friends, a not much wiser man.

This performance gave our friends great delight. It showed them that they were really the owners of a prize whose value was incalculable.

'Ef the old thing will only last,' said Baldy, when they had sunk down to a moderate trot again.

'What's to binder?'

'Dunno; yer oughter be able to tell. But these new-fangled things generally go well at first, and then, afore yer know it, they bust all to blazes.'

'No fear of this. I made this fellow so big that there is plenty of room to have everything strong and give it a chance to work.'

'Wal, you're the smartest feller I ever seen, big or little. Whoever heard of a man going by steam?'

'I have, often; but I never saw it. I expect when I go back to make steam horses.'

'And birds, I s'pose?'

'Perhaps so; it will take some time to get such things in shape, but I hope to do it after awhile.'

'Skulp me! but thar must be some things that you can't do, and I think you've mentioned 'em.

'Perhaps so,' was the quiet reply. 'When you git through with this 'Western trip, what are you goin' to do with this old feller?'

'I don't know. I may sell him, if anybody wants him.'

'No fear of that; I'll take him off your hands, and give you a good price for him.'

'What good will' he do you?'

'Why, you can make more money with him than Barnum ever did with his Woolly Home.'

'How so?' inquired the boy, with great simplicity.

'Take him through the country and show him to the people. I tell yer they'd run after such things. Get out yer pictures of him, and the folks would break thar necks to see him. I tell yer, thar's a fortune thar!'

The trapper spoke emphatically like one who knows.

As it was growing dusk, they deemed it best to look for some camping-place. There was considerable danger in running at night, as there was no moon, and they might run into some gully or ravine and dislocate or wrench some portion of their machinery, which might result in an irreparable catastrophe.

Before it was fairly dark they headed toward a small clump of trees, where everything looked favorable.

'You see we must find a place where there is plenty water and fuel, for we need both,' remarked the boy.

'Thar's plenty of wood, as yer see with yer eyes,' replied Baldy, 'and when trees look as keen as that, thar's purty sure sign thar's water not fur off.'

'That's all we want,' was the observation of the engineer as he headed toward the point indicated.

Things were growing quite indistinct, when the steam man gave its last puff, and came to rest in the margin of the grove. The fires were instantly drawn, and every-thing was put in as good shape as possible, by the boy, while the trapper made a tour of examination through the grove. He came back with the report that everything was as they wished.

'Thar's a big stream of water runnin' right through the middle, and yer can see the wood fur yourself.'

'Any signs of Indians?' asked the boy, in a low voice, as if fearful of being overheard. 'Dunno; it's too dark to tell.'

'If it's dangerous here, we had better go on.'

'Yer ain't much used to this part the world. You may keep powerful easy till mornin'.'

As they could not feel certain whether in danger or not, it was the part of prudence to believe that some peril threatened them. Accordingly they ate their evening meal in silence, and curled up in the bottom of their wagon, first taking the precaution to fill their tank with water, and placing a portion of wood and kindlings in the bowels of the steam man, so that in case of danger, they would be able to leave at a short notice.

Johnny Brainerd was soon sound asleep, and the trapper followed, but it was with that light, restless slumber which is disturbed by the slightest noise.

So it came about that, but a few hours had passed, when he was aroused by some slight disturbance in the grove. Raising his head he endeavored to peer into the darkness, but he could detect nothing.

But he was certain that something was there, and he gently aroused the boy beside him.

'What is it?' queried the latter in a whisper, but fully wide-awake.

'I think thar ar Ingins among the trees.' 'Good heavens! what shall we do?'

'Keep still and don't git skeart! sh!' At this juncture he heard a slight noise, and cautiously raising his head, he caught the outlines of an Indian, in a crouching position, stealing along in front of the wagon, as though examining the curious contrivance. He undoubtedly was greatly puzzled, but he remained only a few minutes, when he withdrew as silently as he had come.

'Stay yer, while I take a look around!' whispered Baldy, as he slid softly out the wagon, while the boy did the same, waiting; until sure that the trapper would not see him.

Baldy spent a half-hour in making his reconnoissance. The result of it was that he found there were fully twenty Indians, thoroughly wide-awake, who were moving stealthily through the grove.

When he came back, it was with the conviction that their only safety lay in getting away without delay.

'We've got to learn,' said he, 'how long it will take yer to git up steam, youngster?'

'There is a full head on now. I fired up the minute you left the-wagon.'

'Good!' exclaimed Baldy, who in his excitement did not observe that the steam man was seething, and apparently ready to explode with the tremendous power pent up in its vitals.

CHAPTER IX. THE STEAM MAN AS A HUNTER.

AT this juncture the trapper whispered that the Indians were again stealing around them. Johnny's first proceeding was to pull the whistle wide open, awaking the stillness of the night by a hideous, prolonged screech.

Then, letting on the steam, the man made a bound forward, and the next moment was careering over the prairie like a demon of darkness, its horrid whistle giving forth almost one continual yell, such as no American Indian has ever been able to imitate.

When they had gone a few hundred yards, Johnny again slackened the speed, for there was great risk in going at this tremendous rate, where all was entire blank darkness, and there was no telling into what danger they might run. At the speed at which they were going they would have bounded into a river before they could have checked themselves.

'Yer furgot one thing,' said Baldy, when they had considerably moderated their gait, and were using great caution.

'What is that?'

'Yer oughter had a lamp in front, so we could travel at night, jist as well as day.'

'You are right; I don't see how I came to forget that. We could have frightened the Indians more completely, and there would have been some consolation in traveling at such a time.'

'Is it too late yet?'

'Couldn't do it without going back to St. Louis.'

'Thunderation! I didn't mean that. Go ahead.'

'Such a lamp or head-light as the locomotives use would cost several hundred dollars, although I could have made one nearly as good for much less. Such a thing in the center of a man's forehead, and the whistle at the end of his nose, would give him quite an impressive appearance.'

'Yer must do it, too, some day My God!'

The boy instantly checked their progress, as the trapper uttered his exclamation; but quickly as it was done, it was none too soon, for another long step and the steam man would have gone down an embankment, twenty feet high, into a roaring river at the base. As it was, both made rather a hurried leap to the ground, and ran to the front to see whether there was not danger of his going down.

But fortunately he stood firm.

'I declare that was a narrow escape!' exclaimed the boy as he gazed down the cavernous darkness, looking doubly frightful in the gloom of the night.

'Skulp me if that wouldn't have been almost as bad as staying among the red-skins,' replied the trapper. 'How are we goin' to get him out of this?'

'We've got to shove him back ourselves.'

'Can't we reverse him?'

'No; he isn't gotten up on that principle.'

By great labor they managed to make him retrograde a few steps, so that he could be made to shy enough to leave the dangerous vicinity, and once more started upon the broad firm prairie.

'Do you suppose these Indians are following us?' inquired the boy.

'No fear of it.'

'Then we may as well stay here.'

The fires were drawn again, everything made right, and the two disposed themselves again for spending the night in slumber.

No disturbance occurred, and both slept Roundly until broad daylight. The trapper's first proceeding upon awakening was to scan the prairie in every direction in quest of danger.

He was not a little amused to see a dozen or so mounted Indians about a third of a mile to the west. They had reined up on the plain, and were evidently scanning the strange object, with a great deal of wonder, mixed with some fear.

'Do you think they will attack us?' inquired the boy, who could not suppress his trepidation at the sight of the warlike savages, on their gayly-caparisoned horses, drawn up in such startling array.

'Ef thar war any danger of that, we could stop 'em by 'tacking 'em.

'Jest fire up and start toward 'em, and see how quick they will scatter.' The advice was acted upon on the instant, although it was with no little misgiving on the part of the engineer.

All the time that the 'firingup' process was under way the savages sat as motionless as statues upon their horses. Had they understood the real nature of the 'animal,' it cannot be supposed that they would rave hesitated for a moment to charge down upon it and demolish it entirely.

But it was a terra incognita, clothed with a terror such as no array of: enemies could wear, and they preferred to keep at a goodly distance from it.

'Now, suppose they do not run?' remarked Johnny, rather doubtingly, as he hesitated whether to start ahead or not.

'What if they don't? Can't we run another way? But yer needn't fear. Jist try it on.'

Steam was let on as rapidly as possible, and the momentum gathering quickly, it was soon speeding over the prairie at a tremendous rate, straight toward the savages.

The latter remained motionless a few moments, before they realized that it was coining after them, and then, wheeling about, they ran as though all the legions of darkness were after them.

'Shall I keep it up?' shouted Johnny in the ear of the hunter.

'Yas; give 'em such a skear that they won't be able to git over it ag'in in all thar lives.'

There is some fun in chasing a foe, when you know that he is really afraid of you, and will keep running without any thought of turning at bay, and the dwarf put the steam man to the very highest notch of speed that was safe, even at the slight risk of throwing both the occupants out.

The prairie was harder and nearer level than any over which they had passed since starting, so that nothing was in the way of preventing the richest kind of sport.

'Are we gaining?' inquired Johnny, his eyes glowing with excitement.

'Gaining? Thar never was a red-skin that had such a chase in all the world. Ef they don't git out the way mighty soon, we'll run over 'em all.'

They were, in truth, rapidly overhauling the red-skins, who were about as much terrified as it was possible for a mortal to be, and still live.

To increase their fears, the boy kept up a constant shrieking of his whistle. If there had been any other contrivance or means at his command, it is possible the red-skins would have tumbled off their horses and died; for they were bearing almost all the fright, terror and horror that can possibly be concentrated into a single person.

Finding there was no escape by means of the speed of their horses, the Indians sensibly did what the trapper had prophesied they would do at first.

They 'scattered,' all diverging over the prairie. As it was impossible for the steam man