Page:The life and adventures of James P. Beckwourth, mountaineer, scout, pioneer, and chief of the Crow nation of Indians (IA lifeadventuresof00beckrich).pdf/249

Rh greatly protected from the wind. Being exhausted with our exertions, we wrapped ourselves as well as we could in our frozen robes, and lay down. How long we lay there I could form no idea. When I attempted to stir, it required the exercise of all my strength to free myself from the mass of snow that had fallen upon me while asleep. I saw that if we tarried there it would be inevitable death to us all, and it was still storming furiously. I aroused my second in command, named "A Heap of Dogs," and told him that we must arouse ourselves and bestir our warriors, or we should all perish.

"No," said he, "it is too painful; let us stay here and all die together."

I told him that I should go at all risks, and made a spring thereupon, he laying himself down again. I had not proceeded much more than three hundred yards when I came upon a gulch, or dry creek, in which was a drift pile composed of a large accumulation of dry wood. I made an opening and crawled in; then striking fire, I got it well burning, and returned to my perishing warriors to relate my discovery. They arose and shook off the loose snow from their robes, and essayed to proceed. But many of them were so weak and stiffened that they could but crawl along. After getting thawed and comfortably warmed before a blazing fire, I found there were two of our party missing. I returned with two or three others to search for them, and we had to dig away the snow to arrive at them; but the vital spark had fled—they were stiff in death. We stayed by our fire, which increased in body and warmth, for two days, by which time the storm having subsided, we returned home. The relatives of the lost warriors made a great mourning for them, while the friends of those who returned with me showered presents and blessings upon me for having been instrumental in saving their kinsmen's lives.

It was a time of intense cold. Our whole party were more or less frostbitten; my face and ears were severely frozen, and were sore for a long time. The wild buffalo approached so near to our fire that we could shoot them without stirring from our seats. As an excuse for my ill success, I informed the