Adventures of the party of ten—The—Balaamite mule—A dead point—The mysterious elks—A night attack—A retreat—Travelling under an alarm—A joyful meeting—Adventures of the other party—A decoy elk—Retreat to an island—A savage dance of triumph—Arrival at Wind River
THE ADVENTURES of the detachment of ten are the first in order. These
trappers, when they separated from Captain Bonneville at the place where
the furs were embarked, proceeded to the foot of the Bighorn Mountain,
and having encamped, one of them mounted his mule and went out to set
his trap in a neighboring stream. He had not proceeded far when his
steed came to a full stop. The trapper kicked and cudgelled, but to
every blow and kick the mule snorted and kicked up, but still refused
to budge an inch. The rider now cast his eyes warily around in search of
some cause for this demur, when, to his dismay, he discovered an Indian
fort within gunshot distance, lowering through the twilight. In a
twinkling he wheeled about; his mule now seemed as eager to get on as
himself, and in a few moments brought him, clattering with his traps,
among his comrades. He was jeered at for his alacrity in retreating;
his report was treated as a false alarm; his brother trappers contented
themselves with reconnoitring the fort at a distance, and pronounced
that it was deserted.
As night set in, the usual precaution, enjoined by Captain Bonneville on
his men, was observed. The horses were brought in and tied, and a guard
stationed over them. This done, the men wrapped themselves in their
blankets, stretched themselves before the fire, and being fatigued with
a long day's march, and gorged with a hearty supper, were soon in a
profound sleep.
The camp fires gradually died away; all was dark and silent; the
sentinel stationed to watch the horses had marched as far, and supped
as heartily as any of his companions, and while they snored, he began to
nod at his post. After a time, a low trampling noise reached his ear. He
half opened his closing eyes, and beheld two or three elks moving about
the lodges, picking, and smelling, and grazing here and there. The sight
of elk within the purlieus of the camp caused some little surprise; but
having had his supper, he cared not for elk meat, and, suffering them to
graze about unmolested, soon relapsed into a doze.
Suddenly, before daybreak, a discharge of firearms, and a struggle and
tramp of horses, made every one start to his feet. The first move was to
secure the horses. Some were gone; others were struggling, and kicking,
and trembling, for there was a horrible uproar of whoops, and yells, and
firearms. Several trappers stole quietly from the camp, and succeeded
in driving in the horses which had broken away; the rest were tethered
still more strongly. A breastwork was thrown up of saddles, baggage,
and camp furniture, and all hands waited anxiously for daylight. The
Indians, in the meantime, collected on a neighboring height, kept up
the most horrible clamor, in hopes of striking a panic into the camp, or
frightening off the horses. When the day dawned, the trappers attacked
them briskly and drove them to some distance. A desultory fire was kept
up for an hour, when the Indians, seeing nothing was to be gained, gave
up the contest and retired. They proved to be a war party of Blackfeet,
who, while in search of the Crow tribe, had fallen upon the trail of
Captain Bonneville on the Popo Agie, and dogged him to the Bighorn; but
had been completely baffled by his vigilance. They had then waylaid the
present detachment, and were actually housed in perfect silence within
their fort, when the mule of the trapper made such a dead point.
The savages went off uttering the wildest denunciations of hostility,
mingled with opprobrious terms in broken English, and gesticulations of
the most insulting kind.
In this melee, one white man was wounded, and two horses were killed.
On preparing the morning's meal, however, a number of cups, knives, and
other articles were missing, which had, doubtless, been carried off by
the fictitious elk, during the slumber of the very sagacious sentinel.
As the Indians had gone off in the direction which the trappers had
intended to travel, the latter changed their route, and pushed forward
rapidly through the "Bad Pass," nor halted until night; when, supposing
themselves out of the reach of the enemy, they contented themselves with
tying up their horses and posting a guard. They had scarce laid down to
sleep, when a dog strayed into the camp with a small pack of moccasons
tied upon his back; for dogs are made to carry burdens among the
Indians. The sentinel, more knowing than he of the preceding night,
awoke his companions and reported the circumstance. It was evident that
Indians were at hand. All were instantly at work; a strong pen was soon
constructed for the horses, after completing which, they resumed their
slumbers with the composure of men long inured to dangers.
In the next night, the prowling of dogs about the camp, and various
suspicious noises, showed that Indians were still hovering about them.
Hurrying on by long marches, they at length fell upon a trail, which,
with the experienced eye of veteran woodmen, they soon discovered to be
that of the party of trappers detached by Captain Bonneville when on his
march, and which they were sent to join. They likewise ascertained from
various signs, that this party had suffered some maltreatment from the
Indians. They now pursued the trail with intense anxiety; it carried
them to the banks of the stream called the Gray Bull, and down along its
course, until they came to where it empties into the Horn River. Here,
to their great joy, they discovered the comrades of whom they were in
search, all strongly fortified, and in a state of great watchfulness and
anxiety.
We now take up the adventures of this first detachment of trappers.
These men, after parting with the main body under Captain Bonneville,
had proceeded slowly for several days up the course of the river,
trapping beaver as they went. One morning, as they were about to visit
their traps, one of the camp-keepers pointed to a fine elk, grazing at a
distance, and requested them to shoot it. Three of the trappers started
off for the purpose. In passing a thicket, they were fired upon by some
savages in ambush, and at the same time, the pretended elk, throwing off
his hide and his horn, started forth an Indian warrior.
One of the three trappers had been brought down by the volley; the
others fled to the camp, and all hands, seizing up whatever they could
carry off, retreated to a small island in the river, and took refuge
among the willows. Here they were soon joined by their comrade who had
fallen, but who had merely been wounded in the neck.
In the meantime the Indians took possession of the deserted camp, with
all the traps, accoutrements, and horses. While they were busy among
the spoils, a solitary trapper, who had been absent at his work, came
sauntering to the camp with his traps on his back. He had approached
near by, when an Indian came forward and motioned him to keep away; at
the same moment, he was perceived by his comrades on the island, and
warned of his danger with loud cries. The poor fellow stood for a
moment, bewildered and aghast, then dropping his traps, wheeled and
made off at full speed, quickened by a sportive volley which the Indians
rattled after him.
In high good humor with their easy triumph, the savages now formed
a circle round the fire and performed a war dance, with the unlucky
trappers for rueful spectators. This done, emboldened by what they
considered cowardice on the part of the white men, they neglected their
usual mode of bush-fighting, and advanced openly within twenty paces of
the willows. A sharp volley from the trappers brought them to a sudden
halt, and laid three of them breathless. The chief, who had stationed
himself on an eminence to direct all the movements of his people,
seeing three of his warriors laid low, ordered the rest to retire. They
immediately did so, and the whole band soon disappeared behind a point
of woods, carrying off with them the horses, traps, and the greater part
of the baggage.
It was just after this misfortune that the party of ten men discovered
this forlorn band of trappers in a fortress, which they had thrown up
after their disaster. They were so perfectly dismayed, that they could
not be induced even to go in quest of their traps, which they had set in
a neighboring stream. The two parties now joined their forces, and made
their way, without further misfortune, to the rendezvous.
Captain Bonneville perceived from the reports of these parties, as well
as from what he had observed himself in his recent march, that he was in
a neighborhood teeming with danger. Two wandering Snake Indians, also,
who visited the camp, assured him that there were two large bands of
Crows marching rapidly upon him. He broke up his encampment, therefore,
on the 1st of September, made his way to the south, across the
Littlehorn Mountain, until he reached Wind River, and then turning
westward, moved slowly up the banks of that stream, giving time for his
men to trap as he proceeded. As it was not in the plan of the present
hunting campaigns to go near the caches on Green River, and as the
trappers were in want of traps to replace those they had lost, Captain
Bonneville undertook to visit the caches, and procure a supply. To
accompany him in this hazardous expedition, which would take him through
the defiles of the Wind River Mountains, and up the Green River valley,
he took but three men; the main party were to continue on trapping up
toward the head of Wind River, near which he was to rejoin them, just
about the place where that stream issues from the mountains. We shall
accompany the captain on his adventurous errand.
