218 SPOUTING ADVENTURES IN THE FAR WEST. 



hope was soon dispelled by heaving the clatter of many 

 hoofs bearing directly down upon us. We cocked our 

 rifles, and stood in breathless excitement awaiting the at- 

 tack, yet hoping we should escape it, for we had the strong- 

 est objections to losing our scalps and having our bodies 

 mutilated. The horsemen left the hard road when a few 

 yards away from us, and galloped on to the grass. Sup- 

 posing that our position was actually detected, we were 

 thinking of opening fire, when they halted, and a strongly 

 accentuated German voice called out, "Yell, poys, I dink 

 ve'el gamp here ; I see dere's oder poys here." The other 

 boys were delighted at this unexpected turn of affairs; 

 but, as soon as they were over their surprise, how they 

 blessed that man's Dutch heart, and wished he and his 

 party were transferred to a certain region where no winter 

 climate is known ! After a short but emphatic verbal bat- 

 tle, we learned that the strangers were a party of Germans 

 from town who were out for a buffalo-hunt. After being 

 taunted with not knowing a buffalo from a pig, and classi- 

 fying any buffalo that would allow them to kill it as an 

 idiot, a truce was declared, and we were once more rolled 

 up in our blankets. The individual whose hair was pulled 

 was then reviled for his scream of alarm, and he was told 

 that he was anything but a wise man ; and he, to retaliate, 

 said that if he knew who made him scream he would put 

 a bullet in him. "The d n fool did it on purpose to 

 skeer me," said he, " for he pulled out a whole handful of 

 hair, and I thought my head would be histed off of my 

 neck backward." As no person seemed inclined to ac- 

 knowledge doing the deed, though nearly all except the 

 right one were accused of it, we went to sleep once more, 

 our lullaby being sung by the howling gale. 



We were awake with the first streak of dawn ; and af- 

 ter bolting a few mouthfuls of sandwiches and a cup of 

 coffee, we saddled our steeds and rode away, the wagon 

 bringing up the rear. We marched for three or four 

 miles, but saw no signs of buffaloes where they were re- 

 ported to be so numerous, and this caused some of the par- 



