Page:Don Coronado through Kansas.djvu/373

356 356 WASBASHAS' AMBITION of the Missouri river, and after arranj^ng for t^ re- turn of the caape and signals, in case it is. nec^- Bary, the young brave is left alone, the other re- turning to care for the sick, hiding the canoe in the bnshes. ' The great longing of our young man vras to be able to say he had killed a Padouca; not with an ar- row, but in close combat. That would brand him as a brave in every sense of the Indian meaning. Pre- suming on the fact that the enemy will not have the slightest thought of his coming across the wide river, he hopes to meet one far enough away from the oth- ers so he can make a personal attack and procure a trophy. But he takes no chances in leaving tracks, for he knows how keen are all Indians in finding traces of the enemy by trails lef t,.thus when he got out of the canoe, it was several feet from the shore, so no mark would be left of his feet; and instead of springing ashore as would seem natural, he knelt down and crawled on his knees, being careful to keep his toes from touching the sand and mud of the bank. And now he feels his responsibility, realizing the necessity of resorting to every method he has been schooled in to keep from being seen; he glides stealthily from tree to tree, down the river toward the place where he is sure the party is located, as they naturally think the canoe has entered the creek only to care for the sick Indian. Now he observes that the game appear restless, and the birds act in a manner which he knows means something, but to the uninitiated would be meaningless; then a wolf barks, and an owl hoots, so he is more than sure he is near the enemy, as from