160 IN THE OLD WEST 



science, remained perfectly motionless, until the 

 trapper, rising, placed his hand upon the shoul- 

 der: then, turning up its face, the features dis- 

 played to his wondering eye were those of Chil-co- 

 the, his Yuta wife. Yes, indeed, the " Bending 

 Reed " had escaped from her Arapaho captors, 

 and made her way back to her white husband, fast- 

 ing and alone. 



The Indian women who follow the fortunes of 

 the white hunters are remarkable for their affec- 

 tion and fidelity to their husbands, the which vir- 

 tues, it must be remarked, are all on their own 

 side; for, with very few exceptions, the mountain- 

 eers seldom scruple to abandon their Indian wives 

 whenever the fancy takes them to change their 

 harems ; and on such occasions the squaws, thus 

 cast aside, wild with jealousy and despair, have 

 been not unfrequently known to take signal venge- 

 ance both on their faithless husbands and on 

 the successful beauties who have supplanted them 

 in their affections. There are some honorable ex- 

 ceptions, however, to such cruelty, and many of 

 the mountaineers stick to their red-skinned wives 

 for better and for worse, often suffering them to 

 gain the upper hand in the domestic economy of 

 the lodges, and being ruled by their better halves 

 in all things pertaining to family affairs; and 

 it may be remarked that, when once the lady dons 

 the unmentionables, she becomes the veriest ter- 

 magant that ever henpecked an unfortunate hus- 



