Part 32 (2/2)

”Is it on our way?”

”It is not far from the river. If we can get a dozen or more horses it will make the heart of Colonel Clark rejoice.”

In explanation of the hunter's words, it may be said that stealing horses from the Indians was not looked upon as any crime by the early pioneers. Such a conviction may have been due in part to the fact that the tribes and white settlers were usually in a state of war with one another. The Indians' intense distrust of the early settlers had, as we know, long ago deepened into enduring hatred.

There were few who believed the Indians were governed by any other than treacherous, bloodthirsty motives. So intense had become this belief along the border that it was well-nigh impossible for the men of that time to look upon the simple questions of right and wrong in any way that might favour the red men or even do them simple justice. To them they simply were enemies that must be driven from the region or exterminated.

Late in the following afternoon Sam Oliver, when his friends halted, donned his Indian garb. In his disguise he was scarcely to be distinguished from one of the warriors.

”I have learned the lingo, too,” he said laughingly. ”A good many times I have gone right into their villages and no one has suspected that I was a white man. I want to get about fifteen horses,” continued Sam, ”and I want almost as much to get one of the Indians alive.”

”What for?” demanded Peleg in surprise.

It was seldom that prisoners were made of the warriors at that time, because whenever a fight occurred it was usually a struggle to the death. The Indians, however, occasionally, as we know from the experiences of the great scout himself, not only made captives of their prisoners, but at times adopted them into their tribes in place of young braves that had been killed in battle.

”I want one for a pet,” laughed Sam Oliver.

”I would sooner have a rattlesnake,” declared one of the party.

”That is what I used to say,” said Sam, ”but then that was years ago when I was young and slender. I know more about them now, and if I can get one alive I am going to make a pet of him.”

”You will be making a mistake,” declared Schoolmaster Hargrave, who also was one of Peleg's band. It had been long since he had wielded the ferrule or had taught the boys and girls in Boonesborough. In recent years he had been toiling in the fields, as had the great scout and Peleg. He was, however, scarcely more successful in raising tobacco than he had been in training the children in his school. The t.i.tle of ”Schoolmaster” still clung to him, and when Sam Oliver laughed loudly and turned to answer his protest, he said, ”Well, Schoolmaster, I can understand how you do not like the Indians. You had some pretty wild experiences yourself, in the schoolhouse. I understand that two or three of the boys disguised themselves the way I have and put you out through the window. Is that true?”

Whether the statement was true or not it was never explained, for the hunter suddenly warned his companions to become silent as they were approaching the village he was seeking.

Advancing with three of his companions and leaving Peleg and the remainder of the party behind to await their return, Sam stealthily began to make his way toward the little Indian village which he said was located only a few yards distant from the spot where a halt had been made.

Sam was absent only two hours. His approach was heard by his waiting companions long before the hunter could be seen. It was plain, too, that he had been successful. The noise of snapping branches and an occasional whinny indicated that Sam was not returning empty-handed.

”Did I not tell you what I would do?” boasted the hunter, when he returned. ”I said I wanted a dozen horses. I have six, so that I am only half as happy as I ought to be.”

”You are happier now than you soon will be,” retorted Peleg, ”unless we leave this part of the country right away.”

The horses which had been secured were all young and only partly broken.

It was impossible for the party to mount them, and there were times when it was difficult even to lead them by the leathern straps which were fastened about their necks.

Sam acknowledged the seriousness of the situation, and no urging was required to make the men push forward rapidly.

When night fell they selected for their camp a spot on the bend of a little stream. Two of the men were a.s.signed positions in the rear of the camp to watch for any pursuing Indians. There was no fear of an attack from the opposite side of the stream.

At midnight the guard was relieved, and as it was Peleg's turn to take the position, he said quietly, ”I can do this alone. All the rest of you turn in and get your sleep.”

His directions were speedily followed. The night pa.s.sed without alarm, and the young scout was beginning to think that either the warriors of the village were aware of the plan of Colonel Clark, and had departed to join their own bands, or that they were absent from the village at the time, and had not yet learned of Sam's theft.

The first faint streaks of the dawn had appeared, and Peleg, taking a little bucket, stepped to the brook to secure some running water. The fire which had been kept alive throughout the night was burning low.

When Peleg returned to the camp he was startled when he discovered by the dim light that the water in his bucket was muddy. There could be but one explanation, and the young scout hastily aroused his companions.

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