The Gigantic Chief Now Stepped Forward, Assumed A Swelling Air,
And, Slapping Himself Upon The Breast, Gave Mr. Crooks To
Understand That He Was A Chief Of Great Power And Importance.
He
signified, further, that it was customary for great chiefs when
they met, to make each other presents.
He requested, therefore,
that Mr. Stuart would alight, and give him the horse upon which
he was mounted. This was a noble animal, of one of the wild races
of the prairies; on which Mr. Stuart set great value; he, of
course, shook his head at the request of the Crow dignitary. Upon
this the latter strode up to him, and taking hold of him, moved
him backwards and forwards in his saddle, as if to make him feel
that he was a mere child within his grasp. Mr. Stuart preserved
his calmness, and still shook his head. The chief then seized the
bridle, and gave it a jerk that startled the horse, and nearly
brought the rider to the ground. Mr. Stuart instantly drew forth
a pistol, and presented it at the head of the bully-ruffian. In a
twinkling his swaggering was at an end, and he dodged behind his
horse to escape the expected shot. As his subject Crows gazed on
the affray from a little distance, Mr. Stuart ordered his men to
level their rifles at them, but not to fire. The whole crew
scampered among the bushes, and throwing themselves upon the
ground, vanished from sight.
The chieftain thus left alone was confounded for an instant; but,
recovering himself with true Indian shrewdness, burst into a loud
laugh, and affected to turn off the whole matter as a piece of
pleasantry. Mr. Stuart by no means relished such equivocal
joking, but it was not his policy to get into a quarrel; so he
joined with the best grace he could assume in the merriment of
the jocular giant; and, to console the latter for the refusal of
the horse, made him a present of twenty charges of powder. They
parted, according to all outward professions, the best friends in
the world; it was evident, however, that nothing but the
smallness of his own force, and the martial array and alertness
of the white men, had prevented the Crow chief from proceeding to
open outrage. As it was, his worthy followers, in the course of
their brief interview, had contrived to purloin a bag containing
almost all the culinary utensils of the party.
The travellers kept on their way due east, over a chain of hills.
The recent rencontre showed them that they were now in a land of
danger, subject to the wide roamings of a predacious tribe; nor,
in fact, had they gone many miles before they beheld sights
calculated to inspire anxiety and alarm. From the summits of some
of the loftiest mountains, in different directions, columns of
smoke be-an to rise. These they concluded to be signals made by
the runners of the Crow chieftain, to summon the stragglers of
his band, so as to pursue them with greater force. Signals of
this kind, made by outrunners from one central point, will rouse
a wide circuit of the mountains in a wonderfully short space of
time; and bring the straggling hunters and warriors to the
standard of their chieftain.
To keep as much as possible out of the way of these freebooters,
Mr. Stuart altered his course to the north, and, quitting the
main stream of Miller's River, kept up a large branch that came
in from the mountains. Here they encamped, after a fatiguing
march of twenty-five miles. As the night drew on, the horses were
hobbled or fettered, and tethered close to the camp; a vigilant
watch was maintained until morning, and every one slept with his
rifle on his arm.
At sunrise, they were again on the march, still keeping to the
north. They soon began to ascend the mountains, and occasionally
had wide prospects over the surrounding country. Not a sign of a
Crow was to be seen; but this did not assure them of their
security, well knowing the perseverance of these savages in
dogging any party they intend to rob, and the stealthy way in
which they can conceal their movements, keeping along ravines and
defiles. After a mountain scramble of twenty-one miles, they
encamped on the margin of a stream running to the north.
In the evening there was an alarm of Indians, and everyone was
instantly on the alert. They proved to be three miserable Snakes,
who were no sooner informed that a band of Crows was prowling in
the neighborhood than they made off with great signs of
consternation.
A couple more of weary days and watchful nights brought them to a
strong and rapid stream, running due north, which they concluded
to be one of the upper branches of Snake River. It was probably
the same since called Salt River.
They determined to bend their course down this river, as it would
take them still further out of the dangerous neighborhood of the
Crows. They then would strike upon Mr. Hunt's track of the
preceding autumn, and retrace it across the mountains. The
attempt to find a better route under guidance of Mr. Miller had
cost them a large bend to the south; in resuming Mr. Hunt's
track, they would at least be sure of their road. They
accordingly turned down along the course of this stream, and at
the end of three days' journey came to where it was joined by a
larger river, and assumed a more impetuous character, raging and
roaring among rocks and precipices. It proved, in fact, to be Mad
River, already noted in the expedition of Mr. Hunt. On the banks
of this river, they encamped on the 18th of September, at an
early hour.
Six days had now elapsed since their interview with the Crows;
during that time they had come nearly a hundred and fifty miles
to the north and west, without seeing any signs of those
marauders.
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