THE BUFFALO. 225 



ashamed of myself; and this feeling was not allayed when 

 I heard that she really belonged to the negro, he having 

 wounded her first, but that she was taken away from him 

 by my companion, on the ground that he did not belong 

 to our party, and he wished to reserve her for me. " But 

 how did you know that I would not be successful?" said 

 I. " Because," said he, emphatically, " that wretched mus- 

 tang you ride can't overtake a buffalo, and, if he did, he 

 would run away from it. I know what he can do ; but as 

 there was no other horse left in town, I thought you could 

 not do better than take him if you wished to join in the 

 hunt; yet I had a hope he would prove better than he has. 

 I know now what he can do, so you may have my spare 

 runner for the next hunt." This assuaged my feelings of 

 abashment somewhat, as it caused me to think that my ill- 

 luck was not entirely my own fault ; hence I took the brush 

 at his suggestion, and left the remainder to the negro. 

 When our party was assembled, I learned that they had 

 killed only three cows for meat, but had captured four 

 calves by lassoing them. 



When the wagon drove up, we obtained some water 

 from the barrel which it carried, and, after moistening our 

 parched lips, we gave some to the horses. The best por- 

 tions of the carcasses were then placed in the wagon, and 

 on top of these the bucking, stubborn youngsters, which 

 insisted on charging everybody that approached them. 



While attending to this duty, which occupied some time, 

 we descried a body of horsemen on a bluff two or three 

 miles away ; and as they appeared and disappeared a few 

 times, it caused our party to think they were a marauding 

 band of Sioux, and that we had better retreat at once if 

 we would keep our scalps on our heads. The resolution 

 was no sooner taken than it was carried into execution, 

 and, after everything was ready, we hastened to the rear 

 at a good canter. When we had placed a few miles be- 

 tween us and our supposed foes, we halted at the remains 

 of a turf cabin, whose inmates had been killed and the hut 

 burned down the year before by the treacherous red men. 



10* 



