28 The Winning of the West 



ered the corn crops, or ventured outside the walls 

 of the stockades. Hunters were killed as they 

 stooped to drink at the springs, or lay in wait at 

 the licks. They were lured up to the Indians by 

 imitations of the gobbling of a turkey or the cries 

 of wild beasts. They were regularly stalked as they 

 still-hunted the game, or were ambushed as they 

 returned with their horses laden with meat. The 

 inhabitants of one station were all either killed or 

 captured. Robertson led pursuing parties after one 

 or two of the bands, and recovered some plunder; 

 and once or twice small marauding parties were met 

 and scattered, with some loss, by the hunters. But, 

 on the whole, very little could be done at first to 

 parry or revenge the strokes of the Indians. 18 



Horses and cattle had been brought into the new 

 settlement in some number during the year; but 

 the savages killed or drove off most of them, shoot 

 ing the hogs and horned stock, and stealing the 

 riding animals. The loss of the milch cows in par- 



18 Putnam, p. 107, talks as if the settlers were utterly un 

 used to Indian warfare, saying that until the first murder 

 occurred, in this spring, "few, if any" of them had ever 

 gazed on the victim of scalping-knife and tomahawk. This 

 is a curiously absurd statement. Many of the settlers were 

 veteran Indian fighters. Almost all of them had been born 

 and brought up on the frontier, amid a succession of Indian 

 wars. It is, unfortunately, exceedingly difficult in Putnam's 

 book to distinguish the really valuable authentic information 

 it contains from the interwoven tissue of matter written 

 solely to suit his theory of dramatic effect. He puts in with 

 equal gravity the "Articles of Agreement" and purely ficti 

 tious conversation, jokes, and the like. (See pp. 126, 144, 

 and passim. ) 



