Page:Don Coronado through Kansas.djvu/379

362 WASBASHAS-RBAtilZBS HIS AMBITION. times th6 distiilLee of the average white man. ■ But returning to the story of Wasbashas. He has at last located his man, and now the question is how to take his hfe and not get killed himself. And again, he wishes to size up, as it were, his oppo- nent, who he soon discovers to be a strapping big fal- low, and concludes he must not take chances of get' ting the worst of it.- His mind is now fully decideid how to proceed; he silently creeps to a tree where he resolves to act the moment an opportunity affords, and it is not long before the Indian who has been reclining on the ground gets up. But the in- stant his face is in the proper position, whiz! goes the arrow from behind the tree, passing through both cheeks which was so planned that he could not cry out and alarm the others; then the Osage custom of cutting the jugular vein was quickly accomplished, and in a moment the tattooed rattlesnake on the dying man's breast was taken off with the small flint knife; and away went the young man carrying everything with him found with the enemy, and especially his bow and arrows, which were to be kept as souvenirs. He had thought out beforehand what course he would pursue* so hiding every article except the trophy of trophies, which was the skin with the picture of the coiled rattler tattooed thereon and which he concluded to only part with at death, he runs down the bank of the river and in he plunges with the human skin be- tween his teeth; and after being carried down the stream for over a mile, he succeeded in reaching the other side and was soon with his two friends. Like a sensible man(for he is now entitled to