Henry Looked At Us With His Peculiar Humorous
Expression, And Proposed That We Should Follow Ellis To See How He
Would Kill A Fat Cow.
As soon as he was out of sight we rode up the
hill after him, and waited behind a little ridge till we heard the
report of the unfailing yager.
Mounting to the top, we saw Ellis
clutching his favorite weapon with both hands, and staring after the
buffalo, who one and all were galloping off at full speed. As we
descended the hill we saw the party straggling along the trail below.
When we joined them, another scene of amateur hunting awaited us. I
forgot to say that when we met the volunteers Tete Rouge had obtained
a horse from one of them, in exchange for his mule, whom he feared
and detested. The horse he christened James. James, though not
worth so much as the mule, was a large and strong animal. Tete Rouge
was very proud of his new acquisition, and suddenly became ambitious
to run a buffalo with him. At his request, I lent him my pistols,
though not without great misgivings, since when Tete Rouge hunted
buffalo the pursuer was in more danger than the pursued. He hung the
holsters at his saddle bow; and now, as we passed along, a band of
bulls left their grazing in the meadow and galloped in a long file
across the trail in front.
"Now's your chance, Tete; come, let's see you kill a bull." Thus
urged, the hunter cried, "Get up!" and James, obedient to the signal,
cantered deliberately forward at an abominably uneasy gait.
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