Page:The life and adventures of James P. Beckwourth, mountaineer, scout, pioneer, and chief of the Crow nation of Indians (IA lifeadventuresof00beckrich).pdf/219

Rh "Then I will go and kill him, or be killed myself," said I; and away I sped to the lodge of High Lance.

"Go with him—go with him!" exclaimed my father to all my brothers and relatives around. "He is mad; go and protect him."

I advanced to High Lance, who was standing at his lodge, who, on seeing me approach, stepped in and shut his door. I dismounted, and tore his door down in an instant, and demanded of him what he had been doing. I remarked that his lodge was extremely well supplied with goods.

"High Lance," said I, in an authoritative tone, "restore to these men their horses without one moment's delay."

"I have taken no horses," said he, sullenly.

"Send for them in an instant," said I.

By this time my Dog Soldiers, the bravest men in the nation, were surrounding me.

"What does our chief want?" demanded they.

I told them that I wanted all the goods taken out of the lodge of High Lance, for that he had assisted to steal them from a white man, who was my friend, Instantly the lodge was hoisted, and torn into a thousand pieces, and High Lance, the mulatto, and eleven white men, were exposed to plain view.

I then accosted the mulatto: "What are you doing here, you black velvet-headed scoundrel? You come here in my absence to put the devil into the heads of the Indians, who are bad enough already? I will have your scalp torn off, you consummate villain!"

The poor fellow was frightened almost to death, and trembled in every joint. He replied, "The Crows gave me liberty to stay here and trap in their country, and—"

"Not another word," interrupted I; "though I will hang you, at any rate."

Then, turning to the eleven renegade white men, I said, "I give you just five minutes to leave the village; if you are longer in going, I will order my warriors to scalp every one of you. You assume to be white men, and yet think no more of yourselves than to enter an Indian village and set such an example to the savages; whereas, if they were