RECREA TION. 



21 



A plunge or two parted the leash at his 

 collar, and away went game and hound 

 at racing speed, up the ravine. I fol- 

 lowed at the best jog I could get 

 out of the pony, over the rocky 

 ground ; but by the time I had gained 

 the head of the gorge, for such it became 

 before reaching the prairie, the game had 

 left the country. 



A thin haze then hid the face of the 

 landscape, and I could not trail the dog 

 on the hard soil. I was at a loss which 

 direction to take, but rode to the sum- 

 mit of the nearest swell of ground in the 

 vicinity, to reconnoiter. Nothing could 

 be seen of the dog, and I was turning 

 the pony's head to try another direction 

 when I saw something that drove dog 

 and game out of my thoughts. My heart 

 gave one bound, and stopped beating 

 for an instant. The cold sweat stood 

 out in bead-like drops on my face, while 

 down my spine ran a chill that was 

 ice-like in its intensity. Not more than 

 a quarter of a mile away, on the next 

 rise of ground, half a dozen swarthy 

 figures loomed above the fog, and stood 

 out in bold relief against the horizon, 

 and while I looked others cantered up. 

 Then, at a gallop, they started in my di- 

 rection. " How fleet is a glance of the 

 mind !" I was at least six miles from 

 the post, on a pony whose best speed I 

 could almost equal on foot. If I chose 

 to try the ravines for shelter, I might 

 not at once find a place where they 

 could be descended by my animal, and, 

 once in them, I was liable to be lost in 

 the fog, only to be found when it cleared 

 away, with my retreat cut off. If I ran 

 for home, I must ride at least three 

 miles before I could get to a point 

 where my flight could be seen by friends, 

 and assistance sent. All this and more 

 went through my mind like an electric 

 thrill, and wheeling the pony sharply to 

 the left, I plied the "government brass " 

 in a way that astonished him, and got 

 all the speed out of him that was possi- 

 ble. As I looked back I could see the 

 heads of my pursuers, rising and falling 

 upon the mist, though apparently not 

 gaining much. Half a mile to the east- 

 ward of what 1 supposed to be my 



position when I started, the descent 

 from high prairie was smooth and easy,, 

 and 1 had directed my course for that 

 point. I found, however, that I had 

 lost the direction, and was stopped by 

 the perpendicular wall of a branch 

 ravine, which gave no foot hold for man 

 or beast ; so turning squarely to my 

 right, I continued my flight in that di- 

 rection. As I turned 1 looked back, 

 but the fog hid my enemies from view. 



A few hundred yards on I reached 

 the head of the ravine, and turning 

 again to the left, rode in the direction 

 of the garrison. The pace was telling on 

 my steed, and it was only by constant 

 use of the spur that I could keep him 

 in even a moderate canter. My only 

 hope was that he would hold out till I 

 could reach the brow of the slope, 

 whence smoke of shots could be seen at 

 the post ; then shooting him, use his 

 body as a defence, and make the best 

 fight I could, trusting that succor would 

 reach me in time to save my life. By 

 the time I reached the crest of the ridge 

 my pony was down to a walk, and find- 

 ing a slight wash out just at the brow, 

 from which I could see the post, I halted 

 to fight it out. As I faced southward, I 

 found that a slight breeze, before which 

 L had been running, had dispersed the 

 fog behind me, and my pursuers were 

 nowhere to be seen. While I looked* 

 my dog, following the trail of my horse, 

 came into view where I had struck the 

 ravine, and a few hundred yards in his 

 rear were my pursuers — a band of eleven 

 a?itelopes. The dog. which was nearly 

 white, had killed or lost his game, and, 

 with the curiosity which lures so many 

 antelopes to their death, they were 

 following him. 



The reaction was in a degree pleasant, 

 but, the tension gone, I found myself too 

 weak to ride, and man and horse took a 

 good long rest before going on to the 

 fort. 



I said nothing of my stampede, till 

 after I had heard an older officer tell 

 how he had been " scared out of his 

 boots " at the sight of a band of elk, on 

 Laramie plains, thinking them Indian 

 ponies. Then I told my story. 



