Great changes are at hand in that region. With the stream of emigration to Oregon and California, the buffalo8 will dwindle9 away, and the large wandering communities who depend on them for support must be broken and scattered10. The Indians will soon be corrupted11 by the example of the whites, abased12 by whisky, and overawed by military posts; so that within a few years the traveler may pass in tolerable security through their country. Its danger and its charm will have disappeared together.
As soon as Raymond and I discovered the village from the gap in the hills, we were seen in our turn; keen eyes were constantly on the watch. As we rode down upon the plain the side of the village nearest us was darkened with a crowd of naked figures gathering13 around the lodges14. Several men came forward to meet us. I could distinguish among them the green blanket of the Frenchman Reynal. When we came up the ceremony of shaking hands had to be gone through with in due form, and then all were eager to know what had become of the rest of my party. I satisfied them on this point, and we all moved forward together toward the village.
“You’ve missed it,” said Reynal; “if you’d been here day before yesterday, you’d have found the whole prairie over yonder black with buffalo as far as you could see. There were no cows, though; nothing but bulls. We made a ‘surround’ every day till yesterday. See the village there; don’t that look like good living?”
In fact I could see, even at that distance, that long cords were stretched from lodge15 to lodge, over which the meat, cut by the squaws into thin sheets, was hanging to dry in the sun. I noticed too that the village was somewhat smaller than when I had last seen it, and I asked Reynal the cause. He said that the old Le Borgne had felt too weak to pass over the mountains, and so had remained behind with all his relations, including Mahto-Tatonka and his brothers. The Whirlwind too had been unwilling16 to come so far, because, as Reynal said, he was afraid. Only half a dozen lodges had adhered to him, the main body of the village setting their chief’s authority at naught17, and taking the course most agreeable to their inclinations18.
“What chiefs are there in the village now?” said I.
“Well,” said Reynal, “there’s old Red-Water, and the Eagle-Feather, and the Big Crow, and the Mad Wolf and the Panther, and the White Shield, and—what’s his name?—the half-breed Cheyenne.”
By this time we were close to the village, and I observed that while the greater part of the lodges were very large and neat in their appearance, there was at one side a cluster of squalid, miserable19 huts. I looked toward them, and made some remark about their wretched appearance. But I was touching20 upon delicate ground.
“My squaw’s relations live in those lodges,” said Reynal very warmly, “and there isn’t a better set in the whole village.”
“Are there any chiefs among them?” asked I.
“Chiefs?” said Reynal; “yes, plenty!”
“What are their names?” I inquired.
“Their names? Why, there’s the Arrow-Head. If he isn’t a chief he ought to be one. And there’s the Hail-Storm. He’s nothing but a boy, to be sure; but he’s bound to be a chief one of these days!”
Just then we passed between two of the lodges, and entered the great area of the village. Superb naked figures stood silently gazing on us.
“Where’s the Bad Wound’s lodge?” said I to Reynal.
“There, you’ve missed it again! The Bad Wound is away with The Whirlwind. If you could have found him here, and gone to live in his lodge, he would have treated you better than any man in the village. But there’s the Big Crow’s lodge yonder, next to old Red-Water’s. He’s a good Indian for the whites, and I advise you to go and live with him.”
“Are there many squaws and children in his lodge?” said I.
“No; only one squaw and two or three children. He keeps the rest in a separate lodge by themselves.”
So, still followed by a crowd of Indians, Raymond and I rode up to the entrance of the Big Crow’s lodge. A squaw came out immediately and took our horses. I put aside the leather nap that covered the low opening, and stooping, entered the Big Crow’s dwelling21. There I could see the chief in the dim light, seated at one side, on a pile of buffalo robes. He greeted me with a guttural “How, cola!” I requested Reynal to tell him that Raymond and I were come to live with him. The Big Crow gave another low exclamation22. If the reader thinks that we were intruding23 somewhat cavalierly, I beg him to observe that every Indian in the village would have deemed himself honored that white men should give such preference to his hospitality.
The squaw spread a buffalo robe for us in the guest’s place at the head of the lodge. Our saddles were brought in, and scarcely were we seated upon them before the place was thronged24 with Indians, who came crowding in to see us. The Big Crow produced his pipe and filled it with the mixture of tobacco and shongsasha, or red willow25 bark. Round and round it passed, and a lively conversation went forward. Meanwhile a squaw placed before the two guests a wooden bowl of boiled buffalo meat, but unhappily this was not the only banquet destined26 to be inflicted27 on us. Rapidly, one after another, boys and young squaws thrust their heads in at the opening, to invite us to various feasts in different parts of the village. For half an hour or more we were actively28 engaged in passing from lodge to lodge, tasting in each of the bowl of meat set before us, and inhaling29 a whiff or two from our entertainer’s pipe. A thunderstorm that had been threatening for some time now began in good earnest. We crossed over to Reynal’s lodge, though it hardly deserved this name, for it consisted only of a few old buffalo robes, supported on poles, and was quite open on one side. Here we sat down, and the Indians gathered round us.
“What is it,” said I, “that makes the thunder?”
“It’s my belief,” said Reynal, “that it is a big stone rolling over the sky.”
“Very likely,” I replied; “but I want to know what the Indians think about it.”
So he interpreted my question, which seemed to produce some doubt and debate. There was evidently a difference of opinion. At last old Mene-Seela, or Red-Water, who sat by himself at one side, looked up with his withered31 face, and said he had always known what the thunder was. It was a great black bird; and once he had seen it, in a dream, swooping32 down from the Black Hills, with its loud roaring wings; and when it flapped them over a lake, they struck lightning from the water.
“The thunder is bad,” said another old man, who sat muffled33 in his buffalo robe; “he killed my brother last summer.”
Reynal, at my request, asked for an explanation; but the old man remained doggedly34 silent, and would not look up. Some time after I learned how the accident occurred. The man who was killed belonged to an association which, among other mystic functions, claimed the exclusive power and privilege of fighting the thunder. Whenever a storm which they wished to avert35 was threatening, the thunder-fighters would take their bows and arrows, their guns, their magic drum, and a sort of whistle, made out of the wingbone of the war eagle. Thus equipped, they would run out and fire at the rising cloud, whooping36, yelling, whistling, and beating their drum, to frighten it down again. One afternoon a heavy black cloud was coming up, and they repaired to the top of a hill, where they brought all their magic artillery37 into play against it. But the undaunted thunder, refusing to be terrified, kept moving straight onward38, and darted39 out a bright flash which struck one of the party dead, as he was in the very act of shaking his long iron-pointed40 lance against it. The rest scattered and ran yelling in an ecstasy41 of superstitious42 terror back to their lodges.
The lodge of my host Kongra-Tonga, or the Big Crow, presented a picturesque43 spectacle that evening. A score or more of Indians were seated around in a circle, their dark naked forms just visible by the dull light of the smoldering44 fire in the center, the pipe glowing brightly in the gloom as it passed from hand to hand round the lodge. Then a squaw would drop a piece of buffalo-fat on the dull embers. Instantly a bright glancing flame would leap up, darting45 its clear light to the very apex46 of the tall conical structure, where the tops of the slender poles that supported its covering of leather were gathered together. It gilded47 the features of the Indians, as with animated48 gestures they sat around it, telling their endless stories of war and hunting. It displayed rude garments of skins that hung around the lodge; the bow, quiver, and lance suspended over the resting-place of the chief, and the rifles and powder-horns of the two white guests. For a moment all would be bright as day; then the flames would die away, and fitful flashes from the embers would illumine the lodge, and then leave it in darkness. Then all the light would wholly fade, and the lodge and all within it be involved again in obscurity.
As I left the lodge next morning, I was saluted49 by howling and yelling from all around the village, and half its canine50 population rushed forth51 to the attack. Being as cowardly as they were clamorous52, they kept jumping around me at the distance of a few yards, only one little cur, about ten inches long, having spirit enough to make a direct assault. He dashed valiantly53 at the leather tassel54 which in the Dakota fashion was trailing behind the heel of my moccasin, and kept his hold, growling55 and snarling56 all the while, though every step I made almost jerked him over on his back. As I knew that the eyes of the whole village were on the watch to see if I showed any sign of apprehension57, I walked forward without looking to the right or left, surrounded wherever I went by this magic circle of dogs. When I came to Reynal’s lodge I sat down by it, on which the dogs dispersed58 growling to their respective quarters. Only one large white one remained, who kept running about before me and showing his teeth. I called him, but he only growled59 the more. I looked at him well. He was fat and sleek60; just such a dog as I wanted. “My friend,” thought I, “you shall pay for this! I will have you eaten this very morning!”
I intended that day to give the Indians a feast, by way of conveying a favorable impression of my character and dignity; and a white dog is the dish which the customs of the Dakota prescribe for all occasions of formality and importance. I consulted Reynal; he soon discovered that an old woman in the next lodge was owner of the white dog. I took a gaudy61 cotton handkerchief, and laying it on the ground, arranged some vermilion, beads62, and other trinkets upon it. Then the old squaw was summoned. I pointed to the dog and to the handkerchief. She gave a scream of delight, snatched up the prize, and vanished with it into her lodge. For a few more trifles I engaged the services of two other squaws, each of whom took the white dog by one of his paws, and led him away behind the lodges, while he kept looking up at them with a face of innocent surprise. Having killed him they threw him into a fire to singe63; then chopped him up and put him into two large kettles to boil. Meanwhile I told Raymond to fry in buffalo-fat what little flour we had left, and also to make a kettle of tea as an additional item of the repast.
The Big Crow’s squaw was set briskly at work sweeping64 out the lodge for the approaching festivity. I confided65 to my host himself the task of inviting66 the guests, thinking that I might thereby67 shift from my own shoulders the odium of fancied neglect and oversight68.
When feasting is in question, one hour of the day serves an Indian as well as another. My entertainment came off about eleven o’clock. At that hour, Reynal and Raymond walked across the area of the village, to the admiration69 of the inhabitants, carrying the two kettles of dog-meat slung70 on a pole between them. These they placed in the center of the lodge, and then went back for the bread and the tea. Meanwhile I had put on a pair of brilliant moccasins, and substituted for my old buckskin frock a coat which I had brought with me in view of such public occasions. I also made careful use of the razor, an operation which no man will neglect who desires to gain the good opinion of Indians. Thus attired71, I seated myself between Reynal and Raymond at the head of the lodge. Only a few minutes elapsed before all the guests had come in and were seated on the ground, wedged together in a close circle around the lodge. Each brought with him a wooden bowl to hold his share of the repast. When all were assembled, two of the officials called “soldiers” by the white men, came forward with ladles made of the horn of the Rocky Mountain sheep, and began to distribute the feast, always assigning a double share to the old men and chiefs. The dog vanished with astonishing celerity, and each guest turned his dish bottom upward to show that all was gone. Then the bread was distributed in its turn, and finally the tea. As the soldiers poured it out into the same wooden bowls that had served for the substantial part of the meal, I thought it had a particularly curious and uninviting color.
“Oh!” said Reynal, “there was not tea enough, so I stirred some soot72 in the kettle, to make it look strong.”
Fortunately an Indian’s palate is not very discriminating73. The tea was well sweetened, and that was all they cared for.
Now the former part of the entertainment being concluded, the time for speech-making was come. The Big Crow produced a flat piece of wood on which he cut up tobacco and shongsasha, and mixed them in due proportions. The pipes were filled and passed from hand to hand around the company. Then I began my speech, each sentence being interpreted by Reynal as I went on, and echoed by the whole audience with the usual exclamations74 of assent75 and approval. As nearly as I can recollect76, it was as follows:
I had come, I told them, from a country so far distant, that at the rate they travel, they could not reach it in a year.
“Howo how!”
“There the Meneaska were more numerous than the blades of grass on the prairie. The squaws were far more beautiful than any they had ever seen, and all the men were brave warriors77.”
“How! how! how!”
Here I was assailed79 by sharp twinges of conscience, for I fancied I could perceive a fragrance80 of perfumery in the air, and a vision rose before me of white kid gloves and silken mustaches with the mild and gentle countenances81 of numerous fair-haired young men. But I recovered myself and began again.
“While I was living in the Meneaska lodges, I had heard of the Ogallalla, how great and brave a nation they were, how they loved the whites, and how well they could hunt the buffalo and strike their enemies. I resolved to come and see if all that I heard was true.”
“How! how! how! how!”
“As I had come on horseback through the mountains, I had been able to bring them only a very few presents.”
“How!”
“But I had enough tobacco to give them all a small piece. They might smoke it, and see how much better it was than the tobacco which they got from the traders.”
“How! how! how!”
“I had plenty of powder, lead, knives, and tobacco at Fort Laramie. These I was anxious to give them, and if any of them should come to the fort before I went away, I would make them handsome presents.”
“How! howo how! how!”
Raymond then cut up and distributed among them two or three pounds of tobacco, and old Mene-Seela began to make a reply. It was quite long, but the following was the pith of it:
“He had always loved the whites. They were the wisest people on earth. He believed they could do everything, and he was always glad when any of them came to live in the Ogallalla lodges. It was true I had not made them many presents, but the reason of it was plain. It was clear that I liked them, or I never should have come so far to find their village.”
Several other speeches of similar import followed, and then this more serious matter being disposed of, there was an interval82 of smoking, laughing, and conversation; but old Mene-Seela suddenly interrupted it with a loud voice:
“Now is a good time,” he said, “when all the old men and chiefs are here together, to decide what the people shall do. We came over the mountain to make our lodges for next year. Our old ones are good for nothing; they are rotten and worn out. But we have been disappointed. We have killed buffalo bulls enough, but we have found no herds83 of cows, and the skins of bulls are too thick and heavy for our squaws to make lodges of. There must be plenty of cows about the Medicine-Bow Mountain. We ought to go there. To be sure it is farther westward84 than we have ever been before, and perhaps the Snakes will attack us, for those hunting-grounds belong to them. But we must have new lodges at any rate; our old ones will not serve for another year. We ought not to be afraid of the Snakes. Our warriors are brave, and they are all ready for war. Besides, we have three white men with their rifles to help us.”
I could not help thinking that the old man relied a little too much on the aid of allies, one of whom was a coward, another a blockhead, and the third an invalid85. This speech produced a good deal of debate. As Reynal did not interpret what was said, I could only judge of the meaning by the features and gestures of the speakers. At the end of it, however, the greater number seemed to have fallen in with Mene-Seela’s opinion. A short silence followed, and then the old man struck up a discordant86 chant, which I was told was a song of thanks for the entertainment I had given them.
“Now,” said he, “let us go and give the white men a chance to breathe.”
So the company all dispersed into the open air, and for some time the old chief was walking round the village, singing his song in praise of the feast, after the usual custom of the nation.
At last the day drew to a close, and as the sun went down the horses came trooping from the surrounding plains to be picketed87 before the dwellings88 of their respective masters. Soon within the great circle of lodges appeared another concentric circle of restless horses; and here and there fires were glowing and flickering89 amid the gloom of the dusky figures around them. I went over and sat by the lodge of Reynal. The Eagle-Feather, who was a son of Mene-Seela, and brother of my host the Big Crow, was seated there already, and I asked him if the village would move in the morning. He shook his head, and said that nobody could tell, for since old Mahto-Tatonka had died, the people had been like children that did not know their own minds. They were no better than a body without a head. So I, as well as the Indians themselves, fell asleep that night without knowing whether we should set out in the morning toward the country of the Snakes.
At daybreak, however, as I was coming up from the river after my morning’s ablutions, I saw that a movement was contemplated90. Some of the lodges were reduced to nothing but bare skeletons of poles; the leather covering of others was flapping in the wind as the squaws were pulling it off. One or two chiefs of note had resolved, it seemed, on moving; and so having set their squaws at work, the example was tacitly followed by the rest of the village. One by one the lodges were sinking down in rapid succession, and where the great circle of the village had been only a moment before, nothing now remained but a ring of horses and Indians, crowded in confusion together. The ruins of the lodges were spread over the ground, together with kettles, stone mallets, great ladles of horn, buffalo robes, and cases of painted hide, filled with dried meat. Squaws bustled91 about in their busy preparations, the old hags screaming to one another at the stretch of their leathern lungs. The shaggy horses were patiently standing92 while the lodge-poles were lashed93 to their sides, and the baggage piled upon their backs. The dogs, with their tongues lolling out, lay lazily panting, and waiting for the time of departure. Each warrior78 sat on the ground by the decaying embers of his fire, unmoved amid all the confusion, while he held in his hand the long trail-rope of his horse.
As their preparations were completed, each family moved off the ground. The crowd was rapidly melting away. I could see them crossing the river, and passing in quick succession along the profile of the hill on the farther bank. When all were gone, I mounted and set out after them, followed by Raymond, and as we gained the summit, the whole village came in view at once, straggling away for a mile or more over the barren plains before us. Everywhere the iron points of lances were glittering. The sun never shone upon a more strange array. Here were the heavy-laden pack horses, some wretched old women leading them, and two or three children clinging to their backs. Here were mules95 or ponies96 covered from head to tail with gaudy trappings, and mounted by some gay young squaw, grinning bashfulness and pleasure as the Meneaska looked at her. Boys with miniature bows and arrows were wandering over the plains, little naked children were running along on foot, and numberless dogs were scampering97 among the feet of the horses. The young braves, gaudy with paint and feathers, were riding in groups among the crowd, and often galloping99, two or three at once along the line, to try the speed of their horses. Here and there you might see a rank of sturdy pedestrians100 stalking along in their white buffalo robes. These were the dignitaries of the village, the old men and warriors, to whose age and experience that wandering democracy yielded a silent deference101. With the rough prairie and the broken hills for its background, the restless scene was striking and picturesque beyond description. Days and weeks made me familiar with it, but never impaired102 its effect upon my fancy.
As we moved on the broken column grew yet more scattered and disorderly, until, as we approached the foot of a hill, I saw the old men before mentioned seating themselves in a line upon the ground, in advance of the whole. They lighted a pipe and sat smoking, laughing, and telling stories, while the people, stopping as they successively came up, were soon gathered in a crowd behind them. Then the old men rose, drew their buffalo robes over their shoulders, and strode on as before. Gaining the top of the hill, we found a very steep declivity104 before us. There was not a minute’s pause. The whole descended105 in a mass, amid dust and confusion. The horses braced106 their feet as they slid down, women and children were screaming, dogs yelping107 as they were trodden upon, while stones and earth went rolling to the bottom. In a few moments I could see the village from the summit, spreading again far and wide over the plain below.
At our encampment that afternoon I was attacked anew by my old disorder103. In half an hour the strength that I had been gaining for a week past had vanished again, and I became like a man in a dream. But at sunset I lay down in the Big Crow’s lodge and slept, totally unconscious till the morning. The first thing that awakened108 me was a hoarse109 flapping over my head, and a sudden light that poured in upon me. The camp was breaking up, and the squaws were moving the covering from the lodge. I arose and shook off my blanket with the feeling of perfect health; but scarcely had I gained my feet when a sense of my helpless condition was once more forced upon me, and I found myself scarcely able to stand. Raymond had brought up Pauline and the mule94, and I stooped to raise my saddle from the ground. My strength was quite inadequate110 to the task. “You must saddle her,” said I to Raymond, as I sat down again on a pile of buffalo robes:
“Et hoec etiam fortasse meminisse juvabit.”
I thought, while with a painful effort I raised myself into the saddle. Half an hour after, even the expectation that Virgil’s line expressed seemed destined to disappointment. As we were passing over a great plain, surrounded by long broken ridges111, I rode slowly in advance of the Indians, with thoughts that wandered far from the time and from the place. Suddenly the sky darkened, and thunder began to mutter. Clouds were rising over the hills, as dreary112 and dull as the first forebodings of an approaching calamity113; and in a moment all around was wrapped in shadow. I looked behind. The Indians had stopped to prepare for the approaching storm, and the dark, dense114 mass of savages stretched far to the right and left. Since the first attack of my disorder the effects of rain upon me had usually been injurious in the extreme. I had no strength to spare, having at that moment scarcely enough to keep my seat on horseback. Then, for the first time, it pressed upon me as a strong probability that I might never leave those deserts. “Well,” thought I to myself, “a prairie makes quick and sharp work. Better to die here, in the saddle to the last, than to stifle115 in the hot air of a sick chamber116, and a thousand times better than to drag out life, as many have done, in the helpless inaction of lingering disease.” So, drawing the buffalo robe on which I sat over my head, I waited till the storm should come. It broke at last with a sudden burst of fury, and passing away as rapidly as it came, left the sky clear again. My reflections served me no other purpose than to look back upon as a piece of curious experience; for the rain did not produce the ill effects that I had expected. We encamped within an hour. Having no change of clothes, I contrived117 to borrow a curious kind of substitute from Reynal: and this done, I went home, that is, to the Big Crow’s lodge to make the entire transfer that was necessary. Half a dozen squaws were in the lodge, and one of them taking my arm held it against her own, while a general laugh and scream of admiration were raised at the contrast in the color of the skin.
Our encampment that afternoon was not far distant from a spur of the Black Hills, whose ridges, bristling118 with fir trees, rose from the plains a mile or two on our right. That they might move more rapidly toward their proposed hunting-grounds, the Indians determined119 to leave at this place their stock of dried meat and other superfluous120 articles. Some left even their lodges, and contented121 themselves with carrying a few hides to make a shelter from the sun and rain. Half the inhabitants set out in the afternoon, with loaded pack horses, toward the mountains. Here they suspended the dried meat upon trees, where the wolves and grizzly122 bears could not get at it. All returned at evening. Some of the young men declared that they had heard the reports of guns among the mountains to the eastward123, and many surmises124 were thrown out as to the origin of these sounds. For my part, I was in hopes that Shaw and Henry Chatillon were coming to join us. I would have welcomed them cordially, for I had no other companions than two brutish white men and five hundred savages. I little suspected that at that very moment my unlucky comrade was lying on a buffalo robe at Fort Laramie, fevered with ivy125 poison, and solacing126 his woes127 with tobacco and Shakespeare.
As we moved over the plains on the next morning, several young men were riding about the country as scouts128; and at length we began to see them occasionally on the tops of the hills, shaking their robes as a signal that they saw buffalo. Soon after, some bulls came in sight. Horsemen darted away in pursuit, and we could see from the distance that one or two of the buffalo were killed. Raymond suddenly became inspired. I looked at him as he rode by my side; his face had actually grown intelligent!
“This is the country for me!” he said; “if I could only carry the buffalo that are killed here every month down to St. Louis I’d make my fortune in one winter. I’d grow as rich as old Papin, or Mackenzie either. I call this the poor man’s market. When I’m hungry I have only got to take my rifle and go out and get better meat than the rich folks down below can get with all their money. You won’t catch me living in St. Louis another winter.”
“No,” said Reynal, “you had better say that after you and your Spanish woman almost starved to death there. What a fool you were ever to take her to the settlements.”
“Your Spanish woman?” said I; “I never heard of her before. Are you married to her?”
“No,” answered Raymond, again looking intelligent; “the priests don’t marry their women, and why should I marry mine?”
This honorable mention of the Mexican clergy129 introduced the subject of religion, and I found that my two associates, in common with other white men in the country, were as indifferent to their future welfare as men whose lives are in constant peril130 are apt to be. Raymond had never heard of the Pope. A certain bishop131, who lived at Taos or at Santa Fe, embodied132 his loftiest idea of an ecclesiastical dignitary. Reynal observed that a priest had been at Fort Laramie two years ago, on his way to the Nez Perce mission, and that he had confessed all the men there and given them absolution. “I got a good clearing out myself that time,” said Reynal, “and I reckon that will do for me till I go down to the settlements again.”
Here he interrupted himself with an oath and exclaimed: “Look! look! The Panther is running an antelope133!”
The Panther, on his black and white horse, one of the best in the village, came at full speed over the hill in hot pursuit of an antelope that darted away like lightning before him. The attempt was made in mere134 sport and bravado135, for very few are the horses that can for a moment compete in swiftness with this little animal. The antelope ran down the hill toward the main body of the Indians who were moving over the plain below. Sharp yells were given and horsemen galloped136 out to intercept137 his flight. At this he turned sharply to the left and scoured138 away with such incredible speed that he distanced all his pursuers and even the vaunted horse of the Panther himself. A few moments after we witnessed a more serious sport. A shaggy buffalo bull bounded out from a neighboring hollow, and close behind him came a slender Indian boy, riding without stirrups or saddle and lashing139 his eager little horse to full speed. Yard after yard he drew closer to his gigantic victim, though the bull, with his short tail erect140 and his tongue lolling out a foot from his foaming141 jaws142, was straining his unwieldy strength to the utmost. A moment more and the boy was close alongside of him. It was our friend the Hail-Storm. He dropped the rein143 on his horse’s neck and jerked an arrow like lightning from the quiver at his shoulder.
“I tell you,” said Reynal, “that in a year’s time that boy will match the best hunter in the village. There he has given it to him! and there goes another! You feel well, now, old bull, don’t you, with two arrows stuck in your lights? There, he has given him another! Hear how the Hail-Storm yells when he shoots! Yes, jump at him; try it again, old fellow! You may jump all day before you get your horns into that pony144!”
The bull sprang again and again at his assailant, but the horse kept dodging145 with wonderful celerity. At length the bull followed up his attack with a furious rush, and the Hail-Storm was put to flight, the shaggy monster following close behind. The boy clung in his seat like a leech146, and secure in the speed of his little pony, looked round toward us and laughed. In a moment he was again alongside of the bull, who was now driven to complete desperation. His eyeballs glared through his tangled147 mane, and the blood flew from his mouth and nostrils148. Thus, still battling with each other, the two enemies disappeared over the hill.
Many of the Indians rode at full gallop98 toward the spot. We followed at a more moderate pace, and soon saw the bull lying dead on the side of the hill. The Indians were gathered around him, and several knives were already at work. These little instruments were plied30 with such wonderful address that the twisted sinews were cut apart, the ponderous149 bones fell asunder150 as if by magic, and in a moment the vast carcass was reduced to a heap of bloody151 ruins. The surrounding group of savages offered no very attractive spectacle to a civilized152 eye. Some were cracking the huge thigh-bones and devouring153 the marrow154 within; others were cutting away pieces of the liver and other approved morsels155, and swallowing them on the spot with the appetite of wolves. The faces of most of them, besmeared with blood from ear to ear, looked grim and horrible enough. My friend the White Shield proffered157 me a marrowbone, so skillfully laid open that all the rich substance within was exposed to view at once. Another Indian held out a large piece of the delicate lining158 of the paunch; but these courteous159 offerings I begged leave to decline. I noticed one little boy who was very busy with his knife about the jaws and throat of the buffalo, from which he extracted some morsel156 of peculiar160 delicacy161. It is but fair to say that only certain parts of the animal are considered eligible162 in these extempore banquets. The Indians would look with abhorrence163 on anyone who should partake indiscriminately of the newly killed carcass.
We encamped that night, and marched westward through the greater part of the following day. On the next morning we again resumed our journey. It was the 17th of July, unless my notebook misleads me. At noon we stopped by some pools of rain-water, and in the afternoon again set forward. This double movement was contrary to the usual practice of the Indians, but all were very anxious to reach the hunting ground, kill the necessary number of buffalo, and retreat as soon as possible from the dangerous neighborhood. I pass by for the present some curious incidents that occurred during these marches and encampments. Late in the afternoon of the last-mentioned day we came upon the banks of a little sandy stream, of which the Indians could not tell the name; for they were very ill acquainted with that part of the country. So parched164 and arid165 were the prairies around that they could not supply grass enough for the horses to feed upon, and we were compelled to move farther and farther up the stream in search of ground for encampment. The country was much wilder than before. The plains were gashed166 with ravines and broken into hollows and steep declivities, which flanked our course, as, in long-scattered array, the Indians advanced up the side of the stream. Mene-Seela consulted an extraordinary oracle167 to instruct him where the buffalo were to be found. When he with the other chiefs sat down on the grass to smoke and converse168, as they often did during the march, the old man picked up one of those enormous black-and-green crickets, which the Dakota call by a name that signifies “They who point out the buffalo.” The Root-Diggers, a wretched tribe beyond the mountains, turn them to good account by making them into a sort of soup, pronounced by certain unscrupulous trappers to be extremely rich. Holding the bloated insect respectfully between his fingers and thumb, the old Indian looked attentively169 at him and inquired, “Tell me, my father, where must we go to-morrow to find the buffalo?” The cricket twisted about his long horns in evident embarrassment170. At last he pointed, or seemed to point, them westward. Mene-Seela, dropping him gently on the grass, laughed with great glee, and said that if we went that way in the morning we should be sure to kill plenty of game.
Toward evening we came upon a fresh green meadow, traversed by the stream, and deep-set among tall sterile171 bluffs172. The Indians descended its steep bank; and as I was at the rear, I was one of the last to reach this point. Lances were glittering, feathers fluttering, and the water below me was crowded with men and horses passing through, while the meadow beyond was swarming174 with the restless crowd of Indians. The sun was just setting, and poured its softened175 light upon them through an opening in the hills.
I remarked to Reynal that at last we had found a good camping-ground.
“Oh, it is very good,” replied he ironically; “especially if there is a Snake war party about, and they take it into their heads to shoot down at us from the top of these hills. It is no plan of mine, camping in such a hole as this!”
The Indians also seemed apprehensive176. High up on the top of the tallest bluff173, conspicuous177 in the bright evening sunlight, sat a naked warrior on horseback, looking around, as it seemed, over the neighboring country; and Raymond told me that many of the young men had gone out in different directions as scouts.
The shadows had reached to the very summit of the bluffs before the lodges were erected178 and the village reduced again to quiet and order. A cry was suddenly raised, and men, women, and children came running out with animated faces, and looked eagerly through the opening on the hills by which the stream entered from the westward. I could discern afar off some dark, heavy masses, passing over the sides of a low hill. They disappeared, and then others followed. These were bands of buffalo cows. The hunting-ground was reached at last, and everything promised well for the morrow’s sport. Being fatigued179 and exhausted180, I went and lay down in Kongra-Tonga’s lodge, when Raymond thrust in his head, and called upon me to come and see some sport. A number of Indians were gathered, laughing, along the line of lodges on the western side of the village, and at some distance, I could plainly see in the twilight181 two huge black monsters stalking, heavily and solemnly, directly toward us. They were buffalo bulls. The wind blew from them to the village, and such was their blindness and stupidity that they were advancing upon the enemy without the least consciousness of his presence. Raymond told me that two men had hidden themselves with guns in a ravine about twenty yards in front of us. The two bulls walked slowly on, heavily swinging from side to side in their peculiar gait of stupid dignity. They approached within four or five rods of the ravine where the Indians lay in ambush182. Here at last they seemed conscious that something was wrong, for they both stopped and stood perfectly183 still, without looking either to the right or to the left. Nothing of them was to be seen but two huge black masses of shaggy mane, with horns, eyes, and nose in the center, and a pair of hoofs184 visible at the bottom. At last the more intelligent of them seemed to have concluded that it was time to retire. Very slowly, and with an air of the gravest and most majestic185 deliberation, he began to turn round, as if he were revolving186 on a pivot187. Little by little his ugly brown side was exposed to view. A white smoke sprang out, as it were from the ground; a sharp report came with it. The old bull gave a very undignified jump and galloped off. At this his comrade wheeled about with considerable expedition. The other Indian shot at him from the ravine, and then both the bulls were running away at full speed, while half the juvenile188 population of the village raised a yell and ran after them. The first bull was soon stopped, and while the crowd stood looking at him at a respectable distance, he reeled and rolled over on his side. The other, wounded in a less vital part, galloped away to the hills and escaped.
In half an hour it was totally dark. I lay down to sleep, and ill as I was, there was something very animating189 in the prospect190 of the general hunt that was to take place on the morrow.
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1
narrative
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| n.叙述，故事；adj.叙事的，故事体的 | |
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portraying
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| v.画像( portray的现在分词 )；描述；描绘；描画 | |
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domesticated
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| adj.喜欢家庭生活的；（指动物）被驯养了的v.驯化( domesticate的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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hordes
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| n.移动着的一大群( horde的名词复数 )；部落 | |
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5
devoid
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| adj.全无的，缺乏的 | |
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savages
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| 未开化的人，野蛮人( savage的名词复数 ) | |
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superstitions
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| 迷信，迷信行为( superstition的名词复数 ) | |
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buffalo
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| n.(北美)野牛；(亚洲)水牛 | |
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dwindle
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| v.逐渐变小（或减少） | |
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scattered
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| adj.分散的，稀疏的；散步的；疏疏落落的 | |
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corrupted
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| （使）败坏( corrupt的过去式和过去分词 )； （使）腐化； 引起（计算机文件等的）错误； 破坏 | |
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abased
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| 使谦卑( abase的过去式和过去分词 )； 使感到羞耻； 使降低（地位、身份等）； 降下 | |
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gathering
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| n.集会，聚会，聚集 | |
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14
lodges
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| v.存放( lodge的第三人称单数 )；暂住；埋入；（权利、权威等）归属 | |
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lodge
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| v.临时住宿，寄宿，寄存，容纳；n.传达室，小旅馆 | |
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16
unwilling
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| adj.不情愿的 | |
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naught
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| n.无，零 [=nought] | |
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inclinations
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| 倾向( inclination的名词复数 )； 倾斜； 爱好； 斜坡 | |
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miserable
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| adj.悲惨的，痛苦的；可怜的，糟糕的 | |
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touching
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| adj.动人的，使人感伤的 | |
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dwelling
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| n.住宅，住所，寓所 | |
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exclamation
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| n.感叹号，惊呼，惊叹词 | |
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23
intruding
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| v.侵入，侵扰，打扰( intrude的现在分词)；把…强加于 | |
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24
thronged
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| v.成群，挤满( throng的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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25
willow
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| n.柳树 | |
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26
destined
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| adj.命中注定的；(for)以…为目的地的 | |
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27
inflicted
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| 把…强加给，使承受，遭受( inflict的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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28
actively
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| adv.积极地，勤奋地 | |
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29
inhaling
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| v.吸入( inhale的现在分词 ) | |
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30
plied
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| v.使用（工具）( ply的过去式和过去分词 )；经常供应（食物、饮料）；固定往来；经营生意 | |
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31
withered
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| adj. 枯萎的，干瘪的，（人身体的部分器官）因病萎缩的或未发育良好的 动词wither的过去式和过去分词形式 | |
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32
swooping
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| 俯冲，猛冲( swoop的现在分词 ) | |
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33
muffled
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| adj.（声音）被隔的；听不太清的；（衣服）裹严的；蒙住的v.压抑，捂住( muffle的过去式和过去分词 )；用厚厚的衣帽包着（自己） | |
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34
doggedly
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| adv.顽强地，固执地 | |
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35
avert
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| v.防止，避免；转移(目光、注意力等) | |
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36
whooping
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| 发嗬嗬声的，发咳声的 | |
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37
artillery
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| n.(军)火炮，大炮；炮兵(部队) | |
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38
onward
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| adj.向前的，前进的；adv.向前，前进，在先 | |
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39
darted
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| v.投掷，投射( dart的过去式和过去分词 )；向前冲，飞奔 | |
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40
pointed
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| adj.尖的，直截了当的 | |
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41
ecstasy
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| n.狂喜，心醉神怡，入迷 | |
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42
superstitious
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| adj.迷信的 | |
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43
picturesque
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| adj.美丽如画的，（语言）生动的，绘声绘色的 | |
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44
smoldering
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| v.用文火焖烧，熏烧，慢燃( smolder的现在分词 ) | |
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45
darting
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| v.投掷，投射( dart的现在分词 )；向前冲，飞奔 | |
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46
apex
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| n.顶点，最高点 | |
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47
gilded
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| a.镀金的，富有的 | |
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48
animated
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| adj.生气勃勃的，活跃的，愉快的 | |
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49
saluted
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| v.欢迎，致敬( salute的过去式和过去分词 )；赞扬，赞颂 | |
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50
canine
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| adj.犬的，犬科的 | |
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51
forth
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| adv.向前；向外，往外 | |
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52
clamorous
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| adj.吵闹的，喧哗的 | |
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53
valiantly
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| adv.勇敢地，英勇地；雄赳赳 | |
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54
tassel
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| n.流苏，穗；v.抽穗， （玉米）长穗须 | |
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55
growling
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| n.吠声, 咆哮声 v.怒吠, 咆哮, 吼 | |
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56
snarling
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| v.（指狗）吠，嗥叫， （人）咆哮( snarl的现在分词 )；咆哮着说，厉声地说 | |
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57
apprehension
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| n.理解，领悟；逮捕，拘捕；忧虑 | |
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58
dispersed
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| adj. 被驱散的, 被分散的, 散布的 | |
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59
growled
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| v.（动物）发狺狺声， （雷）作隆隆声( growl的过去式和过去分词 )；低声咆哮着说 | |
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60
sleek
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| adj.光滑的，井然有序的；v.使光滑，梳拢 | |
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61
gaudy
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| adj.华而不实的；俗丽的 | |
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62
beads
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| n.（空心）小珠子( bead的名词复数 )；水珠；珠子项链 | |
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63
singe
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| v.(轻微地)烧焦；烫焦；烤焦 | |
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64
sweeping
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| adj.范围广大的，一扫无遗的 | |
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65
confided
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| v.吐露（秘密，心事等）( confide的过去式和过去分词 )；（向某人）吐露（隐私、秘密等） | |
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66
inviting
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| adj.诱人的，引人注目的 | |
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67
thereby
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| adv.因此，从而 | |
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68
oversight
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| n.勘漏，失察，疏忽 | |
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69
admiration
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| n.钦佩，赞美，羡慕 | |
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70
slung
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| 抛( sling的过去式和过去分词 )； 吊挂； 遣送； 押往 | |
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71
attired
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| adj.穿着整齐的v.使穿上衣服，使穿上盛装( attire的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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72
soot
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| n.煤烟，烟尘；vt.熏以煤烟 | |
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73
discriminating
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| a.有辨别能力的 | |
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74
exclamations
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| n.呼喊( exclamation的名词复数 )；感叹；感叹语；感叹词 | |
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75
assent
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| v.批准，认可；n.批准，认可 | |
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76
recollect
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| v.回忆，想起，记起，忆起，记得 | |
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77
warriors
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| 武士，勇士，战士( warrior的名词复数 ) | |
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78
warrior
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| n.勇士，武士，斗士 | |
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79
assailed
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| v.攻击( assail的过去式和过去分词 )；困扰；质问；毅然应对 | |
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80
fragrance
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| n.芬芳，香味，香气 | |
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81
countenances
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| n.面容( countenance的名词复数 )；表情；镇静；道义支持 | |
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82
interval
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| n.间隔，间距；幕间休息，中场休息 | |
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83
herds
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| 兽群( herd的名词复数 )； 牧群； 人群； 群众 | |
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84
westward
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| n.西方，西部；adj.西方的，向西的；adv.向西 | |
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85
invalid
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| n.病人，伤残人；adj.有病的，伤残的；无效的 | |
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86
discordant
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| adj.不调和的 | |
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87
picketed
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| 用尖桩围住（picket的过去式与过去分词形式） | |
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88
dwellings
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| n.住处，处所( dwelling的名词复数 ) | |
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89
flickering
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| adj.闪烁的，摇曳的，一闪一闪的 | |
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90
contemplated
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| adj. 预期的 动词contemplate的过去分词形式 | |
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91
bustled
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| 闹哄哄地忙乱，奔忙( bustle的过去式和过去分词 )； 催促 | |
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92
standing
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| n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的 | |
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93
lashed
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| adj.具睫毛的v.鞭打( lash的过去式和过去分词 )；煽动；紧系；怒斥 | |
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94
mule
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| n.骡子，杂种，执拗的人 | |
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mules
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| 骡( mule的名词复数 )； 拖鞋； 顽固的人； 越境运毒者 | |
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96
ponies
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| 矮种马，小型马( pony的名词复数 )； ￡25 25 英镑 | |
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97
scampering
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| v.蹦蹦跳跳地跑，惊惶奔跑( scamper的现在分词 ) | |
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98
gallop
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| v./n.(马或骑马等)飞奔；飞速发展 | |
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99
galloping
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| adj. 飞驰的, 急性的 动词gallop的现在分词形式 | |
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100
pedestrians
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| n.步行者( pedestrian的名词复数 ) | |
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101
deference
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| n.尊重，顺从；敬意 | |
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102
impaired
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| adj.受损的；出毛病的；有（身体或智力）缺陷的v.损害，削弱( impair的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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103
disorder
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| n.紊乱，混乱；骚动，骚乱；疾病，失调 | |
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104
declivity
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| n.下坡，倾斜面 | |
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105
descended
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| a.为...后裔的，出身于...的 | |
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106
braced
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| adj.拉牢的v.支住( brace的过去式和过去分词 )；撑牢；使自己站稳；振作起来 | |
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107
yelping
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| v.发出短而尖的叫声( yelp的现在分词 ) | |
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108
awakened
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| v.（使）醒( awaken的过去式和过去分词 )；（使）觉醒；弄醒；（使）意识到 | |
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109
hoarse
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| adj.嘶哑的，沙哑的 | |
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110
inadequate
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| adj.(for,to)不充足的，不适当的 | |
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111
ridges
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| n.脊( ridge的名词复数 )；山脊；脊状突起；大气层的)高压脊 | |
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112
dreary
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| adj.令人沮丧的，沉闷的，单调乏味的 | |
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113
calamity
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| n.灾害，祸患，不幸事件 | |
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114
dense
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| a.密集的，稠密的，浓密的；密度大的 | |
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115
stifle
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| vt.使窒息；闷死；扼杀；抑止，阻止 | |
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116
chamber
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| n.房间，寝室；会议厅；议院；会所 | |
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117
contrived
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| adj.不自然的，做作的；虚构的 | |
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118
bristling
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| a.竖立的 | |
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119
determined
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| adj.坚定的；有决心的 | |
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120
superfluous
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| adj.过多的，过剩的，多余的 | |
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121
contented
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| adj.满意的，安心的，知足的 | |
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122
grizzly
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| adj.略为灰色的，呈灰色的；n.灰色大熊 | |
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123
eastward
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| adv.向东；adj.向东的；n.东方，东部 | |
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124
surmises
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| v.臆测，推断( surmise的第三人称单数 )；揣测；猜想 | |
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125
ivy
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| n.常青藤，常春藤 | |
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126
solacing
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| v.安慰，慰藉( solace的现在分词 ) | |
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127
woes
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| 困境( woe的名词复数 )； 悲伤； 我好苦哇； 某人就要倒霉 | |
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128
scouts
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| 侦察员[机，舰]( scout的名词复数 )； 童子军； 搜索； 童子军成员 | |
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129
clergy
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| n.[总称]牧师，神职人员 | |
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130
peril
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| n.(严重的)危险；危险的事物 | |
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131
bishop
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| n.主教，（国际象棋）象 | |
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132
embodied
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| v.表现( embody的过去式和过去分词 )；象征；包括；包含 | |
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133
antelope
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| n.羚羊；羚羊皮 | |
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134
mere
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| adj.纯粹的；仅仅，只不过 | |
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135
bravado
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| n.虚张声势，故作勇敢，逞能 | |
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136
galloped
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| （使马）飞奔，奔驰( gallop的过去式和过去分词 )； 快速做[说]某事 | |
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137
intercept
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| vt.拦截，截住，截击 | |
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138
scoured
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| 走遍（某地）搜寻（人或物）( scour的过去式和过去分词 )； （用力）刷； 擦净； 擦亮 | |
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139
lashing
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| n.鞭打；痛斥；大量；许多v.鞭打( lash的现在分词 )；煽动；紧系；怒斥 | |
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140
erect
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| n./v.树立，建立，使竖立；adj.直立的，垂直的 | |
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141
foaming
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| adj.布满泡沫的；发泡 | |
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142
jaws
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| n.口部；嘴 | |
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143
rein
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| n.疆绳，统治，支配；vt.以僵绳控制，统治 | |
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144
pony
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| adj.小型的；n.小马 | |
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145
dodging
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| n.避开，闪过，音调改变v.闪躲( dodge的现在分词 )；回避 | |
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146
leech
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| n.水蛭，吸血鬼，榨取他人利益的人；vt.以水蛭吸血；vi.依附于别人 | |
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147
tangled
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| adj. 纠缠的，紊乱的 动词tangle的过去式和过去分词 | |
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148
nostrils
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| 鼻孔( nostril的名词复数 ) | |
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149
ponderous
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| adj.沉重的，笨重的，(文章)冗长的 | |
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150
asunder
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| adj.分离的，化为碎片 | |
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151
bloody
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| adj.非常的的；流血的；残忍的；adv.很；vt.血染 | |
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152
civilized
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| a.有教养的，文雅的 | |
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153
devouring
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| 吞没( devour的现在分词 )； 耗尽； 津津有味地看； 狼吞虎咽地吃光 | |
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154
marrow
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| n.骨髓；精华；活力 | |
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155
morsels
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| n.一口( morsel的名词复数 )；（尤指食物）小块，碎屑 | |
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156
morsel
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| n.一口，一点点 | |
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157
proffered
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| v.提供，贡献，提出( proffer的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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158
lining
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| n.衬里，衬料 | |
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159
courteous
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| adj.彬彬有礼的，客气的 | |
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160
peculiar
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| adj.古怪的，异常的；特殊的，特有的 | |
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161
delicacy
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| n.精致，细微，微妙，精良；美味，佳肴 | |
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162
eligible
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| adj.有条件被选中的；(尤指婚姻等)合适(意)的 | |
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163
abhorrence
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| n.憎恶；可憎恶的事 | |
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164
parched
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| adj.焦干的；极渴的；v.（使）焦干 | |
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165
arid
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| adj.干旱的；(土地)贫瘠的 | |
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166
gashed
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| v.划伤，割破( gash的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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167
oracle
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| n.神谕，神谕处，预言 | |
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168
converse
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| vi.谈话，谈天，闲聊；adv.相反的，相反 | |
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169
attentively
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| adv.聚精会神地；周到地；谛；凝神 | |
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170
embarrassment
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| n.尴尬；使人为难的人(事物)；障碍；窘迫 | |
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171
sterile
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| adj.不毛的，不孕的，无菌的，枯燥的，贫瘠的 | |
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172
bluffs
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| 恐吓( bluff的名词复数 )； 悬崖； 峭壁 | |
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173
bluff
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| v.虚张声势，用假象骗人；n.虚张声势，欺骗 | |
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174
swarming
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| 密集( swarm的现在分词 )； 云集； 成群地移动； 蜜蜂或其他飞行昆虫成群地飞来飞去 | |
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175
softened
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| （使）变软( soften的过去式和过去分词 )； 缓解打击； 缓和； 安慰 | |
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176
apprehensive
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| adj.担心的，恐惧的，善于领会的 | |
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177
conspicuous
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| adj.明眼的，惹人注目的；炫耀的，摆阔气的 | |
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178
ERECTED
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| adj. 直立的，竖立的，笔直的 vt. 使 ... 直立，建立 | |
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179
fatigued
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| adj. 疲乏的 | |
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180
exhausted
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| adj.极其疲惫的，精疲力尽的 | |
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181
twilight
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| n.暮光，黄昏；暮年，晚期，衰落时期 | |
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182
ambush
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| n.埋伏(地点)；伏兵；v.埋伏；伏击 | |
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183
perfectly
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| adv.完美地，无可非议地，彻底地 | |
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184
hoofs
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| n.（兽的）蹄，马蹄( hoof的名词复数 )v.（兽的）蹄，马蹄( hoof的第三人称单数 ) | |
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185
majestic
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| adj.雄伟的，壮丽的，庄严的，威严的，崇高的 | |
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186
revolving
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| adj.旋转的，轮转式的；循环的v.（使）旋转( revolve的现在分词 )；细想 | |
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187
pivot
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| v.在枢轴上转动；装枢轴，枢轴；adj.枢轴的 | |
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188
juvenile
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| n.青少年，少年读物；adj.青少年的，幼稚的 | |
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189
animating
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| v.使有生气( animate的现在分词 )；驱动；使栩栩如生地动作；赋予…以生命 | |
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190
prospect
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| n.前景，前途；景色，视野 | |
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