204 
KANSAS. 
venture down street thus early, and one of them had started down 
the hill. The others looking out, already saw the troops on the 
prairie, about a mile distant. A tap on the window, and a look 
in the direction to which a friendly hand pointed, was sufficient to 
bring the youth back. Hastily crowding into the pockets of the two 
cold meat, bread, cake, and apples, for their dinner, should they 
be where no dinner could be had, they started in an opposite 
direction from the one they had proposed earlier. By taking a 
circuitous route, they reached another house, where their welcome 
was always sure. 
Soon a gentleman came up on horseback. The movements of 
the troops could be seen so far from our house, that it was a good 
standing-point for observations. He had scarcely seated himself, 
before the dragoons, their sabres flashing in the sunlight, came 
prancing out of town, and took the road which led near his house. 
He rose hastily, saying, “ I ’ll call again some other day. I 
must go and tell the boys, now.” 
Mounting his horse, he was soon dashing along at a wild rate. 
Horse and rider were down through the valley, and over the sum¬ 
mit of the hill, a half mile distant, as the dragoons came into 
sight around the brow of the hill north of us. The hills are in such 
a position that they did not notice the swift horseman, and as he 
rode up to his own door, more than a mile away, we knew that 
the fugitives were safe. 
We at all such times left our doors unlocked, so the guard could 
come in for luncheon, or a short nap, and often in the morning we 
found as many again had slept beneath the roof as we supposed 
there would be on retiring. 
The family of one of the men so savagely hunted for, removed 
from town to a little cabin a mile or two out. On coming home 
one night from a retreat still further in the country, about eleven 
o’clock, thinking to see his family for a short time, as he ap¬ 
proached the house he heard a horseman coming slowly, then a 
voice from the ravine said something to him, and thej T held a low 
conversation. His suspicions were at once aroused. Could they 
have learned where his family are, and were they looking for him ? 
are the quick suggestions of these circumstances, and, heeding 
