Page:The Prairie Flower; Or, Adventures In the Far West.djvu/72



"Faith, thin, Misther Black George, yees and mesilf is thinking much alike now," interposed Teddy. " I thought all the whiles she was a bir-r-d, barring the feathers which is all beads on her."

"Augh! put out for a greenhorn now," returned the old trapper sarcastically. "She's no bir-rer-renl as you sez. She's a angel, she is ef she isn't, heyars what don't know ' fat cow from poor bull.' '

Talking of Prairie Flower, our present design, together wiih various c f .her matters, we whiled away some two or thiee hours, when Carson notified us it was time to be on the. move. Mounting once more oa>- horses, we set forward, and bearing to the left, descended immediately into the valley in which the foe was camped., instead of keeping along the brow of the ridge as be fore. We were now compelled to use the utmost caution, as the least sound might betray us and thwart our plans.

At length we again made a halt in full view of the dark lodges, which were faintly perceptible in the dim light of the stars, and one or two smouldering fires near the center of the encampment. All was still as the grave, and, from anything we could discover to the contrary, as devoid of liv ing thing. Not a word, not even a whisper, was heard from one of our party. Each sat erect upon his horse, motionless as a statue, his eyes fixed upon some object be fore him, and his mind it may be upon death and the great hereafter. At least, so was mine; and though I rarely knew fear, yet from some unaccountable cause I now felt my heart die within me, as if something dreadful were about to befall me. Our pause was but momentary; but in that short space of time, melhought I lived a year.

"Forward!" whispered Carson, solemnly. "Each man for himself, and God for us all!"

Scarcely had the sentence passed his lips, when, to our astonishment and dismay, a tremendous volley rang on all sides >{ us, and a shower of bullets and arrows came whizzing through the air, accompanied by yells that made my blood run cold; while on every hand we beheld a legion of dark figures suddenly spring from the earth, their murderous knives and tomahawks faintly gleaming in the dim

light, as, flourishing them over tliei and yelling their appalling war-whoop?, they bore down upon us in overwhelming numbers. To add to our consternation, we heard the thundering tramp of a body of horse, in front and rear, rushing up te join our enemies and hem us in completely.

Instead of surprising the enemy as ex pected, we now found ourselves surprised in turn, and drawn into a terrible ambus cade, from which there seemed no chance of escape. Our design had doubtless been betrayed but by whom I had no time for conjecture; for what between the yells of savages groans and curses from our own little band many of whom were wounded and some seriously the rearing and plui.gir.g of the horses, and my desire to do the best I could for myself and friends I had no time for speculation. Two of the enem} f s balls had passed through my hat one of tLem within an inch of my skull and another through the sleeves of my frock, slightly grazing my arm; but fortunately none had injured myself nor horse.

' ' Riddle them tear out thar hearts scalp and send them to h 1!" shouted Carson, in a voice that rose distinctly iibo'ye the din of conflict; and wheeling Ids charger, he dashed into the thickest of the fray, with that utter disregard to personal safety, which Napoleon once displayed at the far-famed bridge of Lodi.

Determined to share the fate of Kit, whatever it might be, I called to Hunfly to join me, and rushed my horse alongside of his. Now it was that I had an oppor tunity of \vitnessirig that coolness and in- trepiuUy, those almost superhuman re sources and exertions, which, together with ether matters, have rendered the name of Kit Carson immortal.

Discharging his rifle and pistols at the first he came to, Carson raised himself in his stirrups, and swinging the former wea pon over his head, with as much apparent ease as if a mere whisp, he brought it down upon the skulls of the duskj L;td around him with fatal effect. Not less than a dozen in the space of twice as many seconds bit the dust beneath its weight, while his horse, madly rearing and plung ing, trod down some four or live more. Still they thickened around us, ( for lluntly