Page:A Brief History of South Dakota.djvu/134

128 They found that White Lodge's hostile camp had been moved down the river and was then located in the fine timber on the east bank of the Missouri, opposite the mouth of Grand River, in what is now Walworth County, South Dakota. They pitched their tepees near the hostile camp and at once entered into negotiations for the rescue of the captives. White Lodge was not disposed to give them up,—absolutely refused to do so upon any terms; but the boys were persistent, offered to trade their horses and other property for them, and after much parleying, bullying, and jockeying, with threats of bringing their people, the Tetons, and soldiers to destroy White Lodge and his band, they succeeded in purchasing the captives, trading for them everything they possessed except two guns and their tepee.

The weather was severe. It was about the 20th of November, snow was falling, and the captives were brought out to them literally naked. White Lodge himself never consented to the trade, but the majority of his warriors took the responsibility in their own hands, against his will, and the old man threatened to undertake the recovery of his captives. The boys pitched their little tepee in the willows on the river bank a mile or two below the hostile camp, wrapped the captives in their blankets, and themselves tramped around the tepee in the storm to keep from freezing, and to guard their captives from the threatened attack of White Lodge.

The next morning they traded one of their guns to a Yanktonais, who had joined the party, for his horse, to which they lashed one end of an arrangement of poles