self and doesn t try to force himself on the Southern people he really 
has better protection than any ordinary man. 
About the first of October I began to set my trap line. I had 
added two dozen traps to the original four dozen which I had used 
the winter previous, as I wanted to trap some timber wolves, bear 
and panther. After I got my trap line straightened out, day after 
day I. would catch all the beaver, otter and wolves I could skin. 
Sometimes when I would come in on old Beck with a deer, a wild hog 
and my pelts, I would be so tired but would work until 9 or 10 o’clock 
stretching my skins. I kept this up until Christmas, then I went to 
Little Rock and sold a bunch of my furs. They brought me some¬ 
thing over $500.00, so I bought me a nice suit of clothes and things 
I needed and returned to my trap lines. 
I only captured one panther and two bears during the winter, 
but I had caught 168 beaver and otter, mostly beaver, 22 wolves and 
a number of coon and mink, also killed all the deer and wild hogs 
the Shrell farm could consume. 
Spring arrived and it was again time to sell furs and as I had seen 
but little of the Indian Territory on my first trip I decided to return 
and give it a general exploring. So after taking up my trap lines and 
drying the pelts of my latest catches, I bid my friends adieu and told 
them I would return the next fall. “Yes,” said Andrew Climan, “If 
the Indians don’t scalp you we’ll sure be glad to see you back.” 
Uncle Adam took me to Grady where we met the old Grady 
bunch again. We took a few drinks and swapped a few lies and by 
that time my train was due for Little Rock. They all knew then that 
I was going back to the territory and as I boarded the train it was amid 
several remarks such as “Don’t let the Indians scalp you.” I waved 
my hat and the train pulled out. 
I arrived in Little Rock the same day and the following day I sold 
my furs—the winter’s catch netted me over $1200.00 and this roll of 
green bills sure looked good to me as I always could use all I had. 
I stayed in Little Rock about two weeks and my bankroll had 
diminished something like $500.00 and at that time that was pretty 
high stepping, especially for a trapper. But by that time I had plenty 
of city life to do me—it seemed for a lifetime—so I proceeded to the 
Indian territory. 
I arrived at Fort Smith in the evening about 8:00 o’clock and 
stopped at the nearest hotel, which was a three story building. I rented 
a room and the clerk led me up a long flight of stairs to the third 
floor and showed me my room. I sat down on the chair and the clerk, 
after asking if there was anything I wanted, closed the door and bade 
me good night. As we had walked up the stairs I couldn’t help notic¬ 
ing the loud noise our footsteps made and after the clerk went out it 
struck me as rather peculiar that I didn’t hear his foosteps as he went 
down. It aroused my suspicions, but I cleared my mind of the thought 
and retired. However, I could not go to sleep but was lying on the 
bed perfectly quiet, when I thought I heard my door stealthily open. 
I raised up in bed, taking my forty-five from beneath the pillow. In 
— 49 — 
