Page:The History of the American Indians.djvu/348

 336 An Account of the Choktah Nation.

falo : By this means, I was a confiderable way before the pack-horfes, when we entered into that winding and difficult pafs, which was a continued thicket. After riding about a mile, I difcovered the frefii tracks of three Indians. I went back, put the white people on their -guard, gave my horfe and fword to a corpulent member of the Sphynx- company, and fet off a-head, munning the path in fuch places where the favages were moft likely to poft themfelves. Now and then I put up the whoop on different iides of the path, both to fecure myfelf and intimi date the oppofite fcout-party ; otherwife, I might have paid dear for it, as I faw from a rifing point, the canes where they were palling, to make. I became more cautious, and they more fearful of being inclofed by our party. They ran off to their camp, and fpeedily from thence up the craggy rocks, as their tracks teftified. Their lurking place was as artfully chofen, as a wolf could have fixed on his den. When our friendly Indians came to our camp, it was too late to give chafe : they only viewed their tracks. At night, the Chikkafah war-leader gave out a very enlivening war fpeech, well adapted to the circumftances of time and place, and each of us lay in the woodland-form of a war-camp. As we were on our guard, the enemy did not think it confident with their fafety to attack us ambufcading is their favourite plan of operation. The next day by agreement, the Indians led the van, and I brought up the rear with the French prifoners. A fhort v/ay from our camp, there were fteep rocks, very difficult for loaded horfes to rear and afcend. Moft of them had the good fortune to get fafe up, but forne which I efcorted, tum bled backwards, this detained us fo long, that the van gained near three miles upon us. I polled myfelf on the top of one of the rocks, as a centinel to prevent our being furprifed by the Choktah, and difcovered them crawling on the ground behind trees, a confiderable way off, on the fide of a fteep mountain, oppofite to us. I immediately put up the war whoop, and told a young man with me the occafion of it ; but he being fatigued and vexed with his fharp exercife, on account of the horfes, only curled them, and faid, we were warriors, and would fight them, if they durft come near enough. As I was cool, I helped and haf- tened him off: in the mean while, I cautioned the captives againft at tempting to fly to the enemy in cafe they attacked us, as their lives mould certainly pay for it and they promifed they would not. We at laft fet off, and met with no interruption : the enemy having a lharp i dread

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