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About Lincoln County leader. (Toledo, Lincoln County, Or.) 1893-1987 | View Entire Issue (Aug. 21, 1903)
(; i "t 1 i . i 1 ill 0 ill oft the CHAPTER IX. (Continued.) Half an hour's riding again brought them up to the Indians, who had stopped within a mile of their former halting place. "The moon will be up by 1 o'clock, boys, and they mean to remain where they are till then. Do you see that hol low thnt runs just this side of where they are? No doubt there is a small stream there." This time the Indians made no move to retreat further. They knew now that their assailants were only three in num ber. They were armed, indeed, with weapons which in their terrible rapidity of fire were altogether beyond anything they had hitherto seen; but in the dark ness these would be of no avail against a sudden rush. But if the Indians did not run away, neither did they, as before, attack their assailants. Their horses had been plac ed in the middle of the cattle, with a few Indians standing by them to keep them quiet. The rest of the Indians were not to be seen, but Mr. Hardy guessed that they were lying down in the long grass, or were concealed among the animals. "Tho rnxcnls have cot a clever thief, among them, boys. Except those half dozen heads we see over the horses' backs there is nothing to see of them. They know that if wo go close they can pick us off with their guns and bows and ar rows, without giving us a single fair shot at them. Don't go any nearer, boys; no doubt there are many of their best shots hidden in the grass." "We could scatter the cattle with a rocket, papa." "Yes, wo could, Hubert, but we should gain nothing by it; they have got men by their horses, and would soon get tho herd together ng;iin. No; we will ke"p that for the night. Halloo! to the right, boys, for your lives." Not a moment too soon did Mr. Hardy perceive the danger. The chief of the In dians, expecting another attack, had or dered twenty of his best mounted men to separate themselves from the main body, and to hide themselves in a dip of the ground near the place where the first at tack had taken place. They were to al low the whites to pass, and were then to follow quietly upon them. Complete success had attended the ma neuver, and it was fortunate that the party had no firearms, these having been distributed among the main body with the cattle, for they were within forty yards of Mr. Hardy before they were seen. It was, in fact, a repetition of the maneuver which had proved so successful in their attack upon the cattle. They were not immediately in the rear of Mr. Hardy, but rather to tho left. As Mr. Hardy and his sons turned to fly, a number of Imlinus sprang upon their feet from among tho grass and discharged a volley of guns and arrows at them. For tunately the distance was considerable. One of their arrows, however, struck Mr. Hardy's horse in the shoulder, while an other stuck In the rider's arm. Another went through the calf of Hubert's leg and stuck in the Hap of tho saddle. There was no time for word or com pluint. They buried their spurs in their liorses' sides, and the gallant animals, feeling that the occasion was urgent, scenic:! almost to II. v. In a mile they were able to break into n stendy gallop. Mr. Hardy had already pulled the arrow from his arm, and Hubert now extracted bis. As he stooped to do so his father, who had not noticed that ho was wound ed, saw what he was doing. "Hurt much, old man?" "Not much," Hubert said; but it did hurt a good deal, nevertheless. It was perfectly dark before they reach ed their halting place. The saddles were again loosened, a little Indian corn, moist ened with water, given to the horses, and another slight meal taken by themselves. The bojs, by Mr. Hardy's orders, though surely against their own wishes, then lay down to get a couple of hours' sleep; while Mr. Hardy went back about a hun dred yards along the trail that they had made on coming, and then turned aside and sat down at a ('istance of a few yards to watch, in ease any Indians tdiould have followed up their trail. Here he sat for over two hours, and then returned to the boys. Charley ho found fast asleep. The pain of HuWrt's wound had kept him awake. Mr. Har dy poured some water over the bandage, end then, waking Charley, gave them hi nt ructions as to tho part they were to lla.v. ltoth of them felt rather uncomfortable when they heard that they were to be oparated from their father. They raised no objections, however, and promised to oliey his Instructions to the letter. They then mounted their horses and began to retrace their steps, keeping a hund;vd yards or so to the west of the track by which they had come. They rode In single file, and they had taken the precaution of fastening a piece of tape round their horses' nostrils and mouth to prevent their snorting should they approach any of their own species. The night was dark, but the stars shone out clear and bright. At starting Mr. Hardy had opened his watch, and had felt by the hands that it was ten o'clock. After some time he felt again. It was just an hour rrom the time of their starting. "Now, boys, we are somewhere close to the place of your fight." In another minute the boys lost sight of their father and turned their horses. iroceeded In the direction he had ordered. Mr. Hardy hud ridden on for two miles, no that lie was now to the southwest of the enemy; then, turning west, ,1m kept Pampas along for another mile, when he judged that he was a mile In their direct rear. He advanced with the greatest caution, every faculty absorbed in the sense of listening. He was soon rewarded by the sound of the baaing of the sheep, and dismountin and leading his horse, he gradually approached the spot. At last, on ascending a slight rise ho fancied that he could make out a black mass at a distance of a quarter of a mile. He now left his horse, taking the pre caution of tying all four legs. He next set to work to cut some turf, with which he formed a narrow sloping bank,- with a hollow for the rocket to rest in calcu lated the exact distance and the angle Tequired. All being prepared Mr. Hardy took the signal rocket, and placing it at a much higher angle than that- inteuded for the others, struck a match and ap plied it to the touch paper. In a moment afterward there was a loud roar, and the rocket soared up, with its train of bril liant sparks behind it, and burst almost over the Indian camp. Five or six balls of an intense white light broke from it, and gradually fell toward the ground, lighting up the whole surrnund'ns plain. A yell of astonishment and fear broke from the Indians, and in a moment an other rocket rushed out. Mr. Hardy watched its fiery way with anxiety, and saw with delight that its di rection was true. Describing a slight curve, it rushed full at the black mass, struck something, turned abruptly, and then exploded with a loud report, follow ed instantly by a cracking noise, like a straggling fusillade of musketry. It had scarcely ceased before the third followed It, greeted, like its predecessors, with a yell from the Indians. Its success was equal to that of its predecessors and Mr. Hardy was delikhted by the sound of a dull, heavy noise, like distant thunder, and knew that the success was complete, and that he had stampeded tho cattle. He now ran to his horse, which was trembling in every limb and struggling wildly to escape, soothed It by patting it, loosed its bonds, sprang into the saddle, and went off at full gallop in the direc tion by which he had come. He had not ridden very far before he heard in the still night air, the repeated sound of fire arms, and knew that the boys .were upon the trail of the cattle. Mr. Hardy had little faar of the Indians pursuingvthem; he felt sure that tho slaughter of the day by the new and mysterious firearms, together with the effect of the rockets, would have too much terrified and cowed them for them to think of anything but flight. "Hurrah! papa," the boys said as he rode up to them. "They have gone by at a tremendous rush sheep and cattle and all. Wo started the moment we sa your first rocket, and got up just as they rushed past, and we joined in behind and fired, and yelled till we were hoarse. I don't think they will stop again to night." "Did you see or hear anything of the Iudians, boys?" '"Nothiug, pnpa. When the first rocket burst we saw several dark figures leap up from the grass where they had been, no doubt, scouting and run toward the camp; but that was all. What are wc to do now?" "Hide on straight for home. We need not trouble about the animals; they won't stop till they are back. We must go easily, for our horses have done a very long day's work already. They have been between fifty and sixty miles. I think thnt we had better ride on for another hour, lly that time the moon will be up, and we shall be able to see for miles across the plain. Then we will halt till daybreak it will only be three hours ami tho liorses will be able to carry us lu nt a cauter afterward." And so it was done. In on hour tho moon was fairly tip, and, choosing n rise whence a clear view could he obtained, the horses were allowed to feed, and Mr. Hardy and Hubert lay down to sleep, Charley taking the post of sentry with orders to wake the others at daybreak. The day was just dawning when he aroused them. "Wake up, papa. There are some figures coming over the plain." Mr. Hardy and Hubert were on their feet in an Instant. "Where, Charley?" "From the north papa. They must have passed us in their pursuit of the cattle, ami are now returning empty handed, anyhow; for there are only sev en or eight of them, and they are driving nothing before them." Hy this time all three were in the sad dle again. "Shall we attack them, papa?" "No, hoys; we have given them quite a severe lesson enough. At the same time, we will move a little across, so that we can get a good sight of them as they pass, and make sure that they have got nothing with them." "I don't think they arc Indians at all," Hubert said, as the figures rapidly ap proached. "Halloo!" "Halloo! hurrah!" came bnck to them; and id another five minutes they were shaking hands heartily with their three friends from Canterbury, the Jamlesons, and two or three other neighboring set tlers. They told them that Farquhnr, as soon as I,opei brought news of the attack, had. sent mounted men off to all the oth er settlements, begging them to meet that night at Mount Pleasant. l?y nine o'clock they had assembled, and, after consultation, had agreed that the Indians would be satisfied with their present booty, and that therefore no guard would be necessary at their own estaiicins. A good feed and four hours' rest hid been given to their horses snd when tho moo rose they had started. Two hours after leaving they had seen a dark mass ap proaching and had prepared for an en counter; but it had turned out to be the animals, who were going toward home at a steady pace. There seemed, they said, to be a good muny horses among them, and when an Inspection was made of returned animals it was found that nearly all of the Indians' horses had been carried along by the cattle and sheep in the stampede. A council was held, and it was agreed that there was no chance whatever of the Indians returning to renew the contest, as they would be helpless on foot; but that if by a spy they found out that their horses were there, they might en deavor to recover them. It was there fore agreed that they should be driven over at once to Mr. Percy's, there to re main until a purchaser was obtained for them. In the afternoon the party dis persed, with many thanks from the Har dys for their prompt assistance. CHAPTEK X. "After a storm comes a calm," a saying true in the case of the Ilardys, as in that of most others. The settlers were now, therefore, able to give their whole atten tion to the farm. The first operation was the sheep-shearing. It was an amus ing sight to see 300 or 400 sheep driven into an inciosure, and then dragged out by the shearers. Men were paid accord ing to the number shorn, and were very expert, a good hand getting through 100 a day. They were rather rough, though, in their work, snd the giria soon went away from the shearing place with a feel ing of pity and disgust, for the shearers often cut the sheep badly. Each man hud a pot of tar by his side, with which he smeared over any wound. A certain sura was stopped from their pay for each sheep upon which they made a cut of over a certain length; but although this made them careful to a certain extent, they still wounded a great many of the poor creatures. A much more exciting amusement was seeing the branding of tho cattle, which took place after the shearing was over. The animals were let out one by one from their inciosure, and, as they passed along a sort of lane formed of hurdles, they were lassoed and thrown on to the ground. The hot branding iron was then clapped against their shoulder, and was received by a roar of rage and pain. The lasso was then loosened, and the animal went off at a gallop to join his compan ions on the plain. Some caution was re quired in this process, for sometimes the animals, upon being released, would charge their tormentors who then had to make a hasty leap over the hurdles; Terence, who stood behind them, being in readiness to thrust a goad against the animals' rear, and this always had the effect of turning them. For a few days after this the cattle were rather wild, but they soon forgot their fright and pain, and returned to their usual ways. Mr. Hardy had by this time been long enough in the country to feel sure of his position. He therefore determined to em bark the rest of his capital in agricul tural operations. He engaged ten na tive peons, and set to to extend the land under tillage. The water courses from the dam were deepened and lengthened, and side channels cut, so that the work of Irrigation could be effectually carried on over the whole of the low-lying land, the water being sufficient for the purpose for nearly ten months in the year. Four plows were kept steadily at work and the ground was sown with alfalfa or lu cern as fast as it was got into condi tion. Patches of Indian corn, pumpkins and other vegetables were also planted. Mr. Hardy resolved that until the country beyond him became so settled that there could be little danger from Indian in cursions, he would not increase his stock of sheep and cattle, but would each year sell off the increase. He also decided upon entering exten sively upon dairy operations. He had al ready ascertained that a ready sale could be obtained, among the European resi dents of Uosarlo and Buenos Ayres, of any amount of butter and fresh cheese that he could produce, and that Euro pean prices would be readily given for them. Their household had received an In crease. A young Englishman named Fitz gerald, the son of some very old friend of the Hardys, had written expressing a very strong desire to come out, and osk ing their advice in the matter. Several letters hod been exchanged, and at length, at Mr. Fitzgerald's earnest re quest, Mr. -Hardy agreed to receive his son for a year to learn the business of a pampas fanner, before he embarked up on his own account. A small room wis accordingly cleared out for him, and Mr. Hardy never had any reason to regret having received him. He was a pleas ant, light hearted young fellow of about 20 years of nge. Terence and Sarah had two days' holi day, ond went down to Buenos Ayres. where there was an English church, and came back again man and wife. After that each went bnck to work as usual, and the only change was that Terence now took his meals and lived in the house instead of down In the men's huts. (To be continued.) He Hud r, Snnppey So you're thinking ot going lu for politics? Suppoy Ynns, but the thing that wor ries tue Is that I'll have to mingle with such common people. It's pretty hard for one to know Just how to twvat his Inferiors. Snapper Oh, but you won't meet ninny of them. Philadelphia Press. "I he rick Mini." "There'll bo the dmico to pay!" snld the grand vizier, ns he looked over the latest batch of ultimatums. "And that Is not the worst of It," groaned the sultan, "there will bo a few kings and queens to pay." FAMOUS LARGE FAMILY. Berlin Mother of 45 Has Twenty-elstbt Children. There are more things In heaven and earth than are dreamt of In our every- dav philosophy, and one of the most curious among them is the mysterious way In which the birth rate of a coun try goes up and down in accordance with political or even social require ments. This strange phenomenon greatly exercised the ingenuity of Ro man statisticians recently when his holiness the Pope, desiring to commem orate the celebration of his Jubilee, gave orders that every child born in the Eternal City on that memorable day or night should receive a gift of baby linen and a small sum of money. The head of the Papal treasury duly made his preparations accordingly and based his calculations of the cost on the averages as recokned by the sta tistical tables. According to these doc uments, the average number of chil dren who come Into the world daily In the Italian capital Is thirty-five, and for so many Innocents did the treasury of the Vatican make provision. But the Roman mothers, having heard of the windfall In store for their darlings, upset these prosaic calculations by giv ing birth to exactly ninety-three olive branches, the number of the Pope's years In this vale of tears. "Worldly wisdom Is justified of her children," murmurod cue pulled Pupal official. "Fools and children cannot lie," re plied one of the happy parents, and as the certificates were all In order, the Pope's officials thought that they had better believe than Insist upon further proof, although some of the new-born babes looked like "children of a larger growth." Among them were triplets, consisting of two boys and one girl. To the former were given the names or Romulus and Remus, while their unconscious sister was honored by the application Roma. The baptism took place in the Church of St. Pe ter's. It would be dangerous to try In Ber lin benevolent experiments like that of the sovereign pontiff of Rome. For In the Germnn capital a record has been established In every detail. Thus one healthy, active hnuafrau has been fill ing her quiver so rapidly that, although still but 45 years old, she has already twenty-eight olive branches round her table. Another, who Is four years her junior, ushered twenty-three Into the world, while three other women, be tween the ages of 40 and 43, present their husbands with twenty-one de scendants each. Two hundred and forty Berlin women are the mothers of from thirteen to twenty children apiece. London Telegraph. PNEUMETIC LIFE PRESERVER. The steamship companies which did not provide life preservers In number equaling or exceeding Its passenger carrying capacity would be summarily dealt with by the government, and yet every one knows that when the time arrives for their use the passengers and crew may be too much excited to profit by the provision thus made for their safety. The passenger crossing the ocean would rrtnii i i j ...... j lvc, u small degee of added security were he provided with the apparatus shown in the Illustration. No one would think of wearing one of the bulky life pre servers usually provided on shipboard nil the time, but here Is nn apparatus which will answer the same purpose, and yet without discomfort when con stautly worn. The spiral form which the tube Is given enable the wearer to suspend It around his body by menns of the supporting Jacket, beneath the outer clothing, and it takes but a short time to Inflate the reservoir through the mouthpiece, which Is provided with a valve to check the outward flow of the air. The spiral colls lie flat when deflated, and are scarcely perceptible to the wearer, who, even if the device rendered him slightly uncomfortable would hnve the feeling 0f safety to counterbalance the annoyance Wiley P. Tlbbets, of Toledo, Ohio, Is the Inventor. ' If most of us could have the gold That Morgan's got we'd veil And kick because we could 'not hold His stocks and bonds ns well -Philadelphia Press. The average man is never pntlo,,t except when he Is biding his time to get even. lu CONSTANT WEAR OCCASIONS NO DISCOMFORT. An Jdeal Woman's Keifta, So says Mrs. Josie Irwin, ol 325 So. College St., Nashville, Tenn. of Lydia E. Pinkham'i Vegetable Compound. Never in the history of medicine has the demand for one particular remedy for female diseases equalled that at tained by Lydia E. PlnVfcw. Vegetable Compound, and nerer during the lifetime of this wonderful medicine has the demand for It been so great as it is to-day. From the Atlantic to the Pacific, and throughout the length and breadth of this great continent come the glad tidings of woman's sufferings relieved by it, and thousands upon thousands of letters are pouring in from grateful women saying that it will and posi tively does cure the worst forms ot female complaints. , Mrs. Pink ham invites all wo men who are puzzled about their health to write her at Lynn, Mass., for advice. Such corr spoudence is seen by women onlt, and no charge is made. Civic Pride. "I don't know what we're goin'todo about them two leadin' citizens," raid Broncho Bob. 'They're lookin' lor one another with six shooters from mornin' till night." "Has an insult passed?" "No, it wasn't an insult, but some doubt ariz as to which wai the oldest inhabitant, an' they're both determined to settle the question fur good an' all. A Hard Life. Boyle The Korners live very frugal, ly indeed. They have cast iron tules for the spending of their money. Hoyle That is what I should cal. rigid economy. Kansas City Journsll Continuous Performance. "Kisses and drinks are alike in one way," remarked the breakfast cynic. "When a younst man says MuBtone more,' he generally takes a dozen." Preparations. "Is you got a razor you could ten me to shave meree'f?" asked Mr. Eras tus Pinkley. "I'ze gwine to de pahty tonight." "What's de matter wif yoh own razor?" "Well, you see, I jes got it stropped up fine this aftuhnoon, an' I hates to dull de edge." -I- Trains at Drowsyvllle. "We used to miss that accommoaV tion train every morning." "What do you do now that they have taken it off?" "Why, we miss it more than ever." Chicago News. deneva. Only 32 per cent of the inhabiUnts of Geneva are natives of the city; 21 pre cent are fiom other Swiss places, and 47 per cent are foreigners. Hair Falls " I tried Ayer's Hair Vigor to ttop my hair from falling. One half a bottle cured me." J. C. Baxter, Braldwood, IU. Ayer's Hair Vigor is certainly the most eco nomical preparation of its Kind on the market. A little of it goes a long way. It doesn't take much of it to stop falling of the hair, make the hair grow, and restore color to gray hair. II.Makottl. All draulstt. It your drapglst cannot supply yt send os one dollar snd we will expreM you a bottle. Me sure and give the nam ot your nearest expreM office. Adilrwn, J. C. AVER CO., Lowell, UaM. Bstt Cough bjrrup. Tut.. Good. CM ii num. nnin 07 nmpiri.T.- ft . UJ 4