Page:The Prairie Flower; Or, Adventures In the Far West.djvu/48

 y, looking

down toward the camp, "they are prepa ring 1 to leave in earnest. So come, Frank," and taking my arm in his, we descended the hill together in silence.

CHAPTER VIII.

OUR CAMP RAISED AND JOURNEY RESUMED

A HALT COTTON'S CHEEK ORIGIN OF

THE NAME ALARM PREPARATION FOR

DEFENCE CAMP, ETC.

BT the time that we had joined the trap pers, the sun was already risen, and stream ing his golden light over the broad prairie with a beautiful effect. Hastily partaking of our breakfast, watering our animals at a small creek which ran bubbling round the base of the little knoll so often men tioned, we prepared to raise our camp, as packing up to leave is termed by the mountaineers. Placing our saddles, pos sibles, etc., on our horses and mules, we mounted and took a northern course over the prairie.

As we passed along, we saw a few deer away in the distance, and occasionally caught sight of a buffalo, while animals of various kinds and sizes appeared here and there, sporting in the glorious sunbeams and seeking their daily fare, both single and in numbers. However, as we had plenty of "meat" laid in for the present, we did not trouble them, but kept quietly along upon our course Black George taking the lead as pilot, and the rest of us following in his track, Indian file.

A little past noon we came to a small creek which flows into the Blue Earth river, or "Big Blue," as I heard it called by the mountain men, and here we paused sixain to water our animals, and allow them a few minutes to crop the luxuriant grass beneath their feet.

"That's time enough, boys, I'm think- in," said Black George; "so what's the use o' hurryin? Spect we wouldn't live no longer for't; and jest to tell the fact, I'm in no particular drive to quit this warm sunshine, for the clouds and snow and ice o' the mountains Eh! Ned! augh!"

"Don't know's the mountain '11 be any better for our waitin," grumbled Ned;

"and as long's we've got to ^o, what's tl'O use o' our throwin away time here?"

"Augh!" grunted the old trapper. "You're al'ays in a haste, boy, and some day you'll git rubbed out in a haste, 01 I'm no beaver. Come, what say you, Torn? you haint opened your face sence you bolted that meat leastwise to my knowin."

"I don't care a chaw which stay 01 go suit yourselves," answered Daring Tom, sententiously.

"Well, boys," rejoined the oid moun taineer, " we'll hold our wind here 'bout a quarter, and then travel."

Saying which, he dismounted his mule, drew his pipe from a little holder suspend ed round his neck, and squatting upon the ground, deliberately filled and ignited it, by means of punk, flint, and steel, and commenced puffing away, as indifferent to everything or person around him, as if he had been paid expressly to pass his lifo in this manner. Fiery Ned, however, waa not pleased; and ripping out a few oaths, on what he termed the " d d laziness of the other," he jerked up his mules and set forward, followed by Rash Will only Daring Tom and ourselves remaining with Black George. The last mentioned puffed away quietly, until the foremost party had disappeared, when taking hia pipe from his mouth, blowing out a large volume of smoke, and watching it as il curled round and round on its ascent, ere it disappeared, he turned to me with a comical look, and shrugging his shoulders and winking his eye, observed :

"They'll not live no longer for it, hoss, I'll be dog-gone ef they will!" Say ing which, he drew his legs a little more under him, and resumed his pipe with the gravity of a Dutchman.

The spot where we were now halted was one of rare .beauty. It was a little valley, nearly surrounded by hills in the shape of a horse-shoe, along the base of which, like a silver wire, wound the little murmuring rivulet, its waters sparkling in the sunshine, becoming glassy in the shade, and mirroring the steeps above it as it gaily took its way to unite with the larger waters of the Blue. Above us, on three sides, rose the horse-shoe ridge, par tially bare with frowning rocks, and par tially covered with a dwarfish growch d/