The Forest Runners: A Story of the Great War Trail in Early Kentucky

by Joseph A. Altsheler

  CHAPTER XVIII

  WHAT THE WARRIORS SAW

  A few nights later a strong band of warriors left the Miami village, ledby the bold chief, Yellow Panther, and the renegade, Braxton Wyatt. Theparty was about thirty in number, and it included the most daring spiritsamong them. They were going against the wishes of the aged Gray Beaver,who foresaw only disaster from such a desecration; but Yellow Pantherfavored the venture, and Braxton Wyatt had urged it for a long time.

  Wyatt was no coward, and he did not believe in spirits. They had seentracks, white tracks, in the snow, and the sight confirmed him in hissuspicion that those whom he hated were hiding on the island in the lake.He burned for revenge upon Henry Ware and his friends, but he had to fightall the influence of Gray Beaver and the power of Indian superstition. Hewas about to despair of moving them when they saw the tracks--tracks thatled almost to the edge of the water. He considered this proof of histheory, and he urged it incessantly. He called attention to the encounterin the woods near the lake, and the later affair with the belt bearers.The latter had particular weight, as enough messengers had now passedbetween the Miamis and Shawnees to show that both had been the victims ofa clever and daring trick. Wyatt, therefore, was reinstated in the goodgraces of the savages, and his words had meaning to them. At last, withthe aid of Yellow Panther and the more daring spirits among the youngerwarriors, he prevailed, and the expedition started.

  It was a really formidable war party, thirty warriors or more, all wellarmed with rifles and ammunition bought from the Canadian traders, allhideous with paint, and all skilled in the lore and devices of thewilderness. Braxton Wyatt had talked to them so much, he had told them sooften that their superstitions were mere moonshine, that they began tobelieve, and they thrilled, moreover, with the hope of securing whitescalps.

  The cold was intense, and the frozen surface of the snow was very smooth;but the warriors, in thick moccasins of buffalo hide, with the hairunderneath, sped with sure step toward the lake. As Henry and Ross haddone, they kept in the thickest of the forest, passing from tree trunk totree trunk, because the Indian loves a surprise, an easy victory beingthe greatest of triumphs to him. It was such that they expected now, andthe blood of every one of them was inflamed by the logic and eloquence ofBraxton Wyatt and Yellow Panther.

  They reached the shores of the lake when the twilight had merged into thenight and the darkness was deep. They had foreseen that it would be such anight, otherwise they would have waited; but all seemed admirably suitednow to their purpose. They paused on the bank, and gathered in a closegroup. Across the white gleam of the snow they could barely see the duskyoutline of the island, and, despite the courageous frame of mind intowhich they had lashed themselves, despite the boldness of their leaders,they felt a tremor. The savage mind is prone to superstitions, and it isnot easy to cure it of them. That dim, dark outline out there in themiddle of the lake, now that they beheld it again with their own eyes,still had its unknown and mysterious terrors for them.

  But Braxton Wyatt and Yellow Panther knew too well to let them hesitate atthe very margin of their great exploit. They urged them forward, and thetwo themselves led the way, stepping upon the frozen surface of the lake,and advancing directly toward the island. Then the warriors came afterthem in a close cluster, their fur-shod feet making no sound, and theirforms invisible thirty yards away. Before them the black bulk of theisland, with its great trees, now loomed more distinctly, and theygathered courage as nothing happened.

  All knew that the ancient burying ground was on the north end of theisland, and so Braxton Wyatt and Yellow Panther led the way to the southend, intending to make a gradual approach to the other portion.

  Braxton Wyatt half expected, as he came near, that he might see a lightamong the trees. In weather so cold one must have a fire, and, relyingupon the ghostly protection, Henry Ware and his band would light it. Buthe saw nothing, and he began to fear that he might be mistaken. If therewas nobody on the island his credit with the Indians would be shaken, andhe was anxious to establish his power among his red friends. But he andYellow Panther pressed boldly on, and they could now see dimly theoutlines of individual tree trunks standing up in rows.

  The low shores of the island rose before them only thirty yards away, thentwenty, then ten, then they were there. But another moment of hesitationcame. Not in a generation had a Miami or any other Indian, so far as theyknew, set foot upon this haunted island, and the beliefs of many yearsare not to be swept away in a breath.

  It was Braxton Wyatt who took the lead again, and he boldly stepped uponthe haunted soil. Then a terrible thing happened. Every warrior all atonce saw two white figures perched upon the low bough of an oak. They wereshaped like men, but the outlines of arms and legs could not be seen.Rather they were the bodies of warriors completely enclosed in buffalorobes or deerskins for the grave, and these figures, swaying back andforth in the moonlight, and bearing all the aspects of supernaturalvisitors, filled the superstitious hearts of the Miamis with the terrorsof the unknown and invincible. The two shapes showed a ghostly white inthe pale rays, and the Miamis, in fancy at least, saw fiery and accusingeyes looking down at the sacrilegious men who had presumed to put foot onthe island dedicated to Manitou and the departed.

  A gentle wind brought a low groan to the ears of every man among them.

  The blood of the warriors chilled quickly in their veins. All theirsuperstitions, all the inherited beliefs of many generations, all the loreof the old squaws, told about innumerable camp fires, came crashing backupon them as those two ghostly white shapes, hovering there in thedarkness, continued to transfix them with an accusing gaze. There was aninvoluntary shudder, a sudden clustering together of the whole party, andthen, with a simultaneous cry of horror, they broke and fled in a wildpellmell far out upon the icy surface of the lake, and then on, bearingwith them in the rout both Yellow Panther and Braxton Wyatt. Nor did theydare to look back, because they knew that the terrible eyes of the longdeparted, upon whose territory they had intended to commit sacrilege, wereboring into their backs. The island was haunted, and would remain so formany a year, despite all that Braxton Wyatt and Yellow Panther had said.

  About the time the Miamis reached the mainland, and darted among the treesin the race for their own village, Paul Cotter and Long Jim Hart leapedlightly from the low bough of the oak, took off the enfolding robes ofwhite tanned deerskin, with holes for the eyes.

  "Jehoshaphat!" said Long Jim, as he threw the robes on the ground, "I'mglad that's over. Bein' a ghost jest about a minute is enough fur me. Iwuz scared to death lest I didn't groan good an' horrible."

  "But you never did a better job in your life, Jim," said Henry, as he camefrom behind a tree. "You and Paul were the finest ghosts I ever saw, andno Indian will dare to set foot on this island in the next hundred years."

  "It shorely was a sight to see them braves run," said Shif'less Sol."Thar's many a tired man in that lot now. I think some o' 'em didn't hitthe ice an' snow more'n twice between here an' the lan'."

  "Paul's made the islan' ez safe fur us ez a stone fort ez long ez we wantto stay," said Tom Ross.

  "It was a great plan, well done," said Henry.

  Paul's face shone with the most intense delight. His imagination, leapingforward to meet a crisis, had served them all greatly, and he was happy.He had fought not with rifle and knife, but with the weapon of theintellect.

  "Now that this job is over, an' we're the big winners," said Shif'lessSol, "I'm goin' to do what a tired man ought to do: go to sleep, wrappedup in buffalo robes, an' sleep about forty hours."

  "We'll all sleep," said Henry. "As Tom says, we're as safe as if we werein a stone fort, and we don't need any guard."

  An hour later all of the valiant five were slumbering peacefully withintheir warm walls, and when they ate a good hot breakfast the next morning,cooked in Jim Hart's best fashion, they laughed heartily and often overthe night's great event.

  "I guess Mr. Braxton Wyatt will hev to wo
rk hard ag'in to prove to themsavages that he's real smart," said Shif'less Sol. "This is another timethat he's led 'em right out o' the little end o' the horn."

  They luxuriated that day, resting most of the time In the hut, but on thefollowing day Henry and Ross went on a longer scouting expedition thanusual, this time in the direction of the Shawnee villages. The three whowere left behind broke fresh holes in the thick ice, and by the use ofmuch patience succeeded in catching several fine fish, which made apleasant addition to their daily diet.

  Henry and Ross were gone nearly a week, but their comrades did not becomealarmed over their long absence. When they returned they brought with thema budget of news from the Shawnee villages. Braxton Wyatt had returned tothe Shawnees, much disgusted with his stay among the Miamis, but stillresolved to form the great Indian alliance, and send it in the springagainst the white settlements in Kentucky.

  "It's too late for them to do anything this winter," said Henry, and alittle exultation showed in his tone, "we've put that spoke in theirwheel; but they mean to hit us a terrible blow on the flank when warmweather comes."

  "What do you mean by 'on the flank'?" asked Paul.

  "They've learned in some manner, maybe by way of Canada, that a big wagontrain is coming up through the Wilderness Road in the spring, to join oursettlements. If it gets there it will double our strength, but the Indiansmean to make a great curve to the south and east and strike it just as itleaves the mountains."

  "They're smart in that," said Shif'less Sol. "They'd be sure to hit themwagons when they ain't expected."

  "Yes," said Henry Ware, "if the train is not warned."

  Paul looked at him and saw that his eyes were full of meaning.

  "Then we are to warn that train," said Paul.

  "Yes, when the time comes."

  "It's the greatest work that we can do," said Paul, with emphasis, and theothers nodded their agreement. It was all that was needed to bind the fivetogether in the mighty task that they had begun.

  Nothing more was said upon the subject for days, but Paul's mind was fullof it. His comrades and he had impeded the making of the great war trail,and now they were to see that reenforcements safely reached their own. Itwas a continuing task, and it appealed powerfully to the statesman sostrong in Paul.

  A very cold winter moved slowly along, and they remained on the island,though Henry and Ross ranged far and wide. On one of these expeditions thetwo scouts met a wandering trapper, by whom they sent word again to theirpeople in the south that they were safe.

  Henry and Ross also learned that Yellow Panther would lead the Miamis, RedEagle the Shawnees, and there would be detachments of Wyandots and others.They would fall like a thunderbolt upon the wagon train, and destroy itutterly.

  "And Braxton Wyatt will be with them?" said Paul indignantly.

  "Of course," replied Henry.

  "Henry, we've got to save that wagon train, if every one of us diestrying!" exclaimed Paul, with the greatest possible emphasis.

  "Of course," said Henry again, quietly, but with the stern determinationthat meant with him do or die.

  "It's a part o' our job," drawled Shif'less Sol, "but it must be nigh athousand miles to the place whar the Wilderness Road comes out o' themountains. I see a terrible long journey ahead fur a tired man."

  Henry smiled. They all knew that none would be more zealous on the march,none more lion-hearted in battle, than this same Solomon Hyde, nicknamedthe shiftless one.

  "When do we start?" asked Jim Hart.

  "Not before the cold weather passes," replied Henry. "It wouldn't be worthwhile. The emigrant train won't come through the mountains until spring,and we can do better work here, watching the savages."

  So they abode long in the hut on the haunted island, and had food andwarmth in plenty. But in the Indian villages there was the stir ofpreparation for the great war trail in the spring, and also the sense ofmystery and oppression. Yellow Panther, the Miami, and Red Eagle, theShawnee, both felt in some strange, unaccountable way that they werewatched. Half-lost tracks of unknown feet were seen in the snow; strangetrails that ended nowhere were struck; three warriors, every one at adifferent time, claimed to have seen a gigantic figure speeding in a palemoonlight through the leafless forest; one of the bravest of the Shawneewarriors was found dead, his head cleft so deep that they knew a mightyhand, one of almost marvelous strength, had wielded the tomahawk. Therewere signs of a terrible struggle in the snow, but who had attacked andwho defended they did not know, and the trail of the survivor was soonlost. A mysterious dread filled both Shawnees and Miamis.

  Braxton Wyatt raged at heart in the Shawnee village, and had theories ofhis own, but he dared not tell them. It was known there that it was he whohad led the Miamis into the sacrilegious invasion of the haunted island,and it would take his credit some time to recover from such a blow. Toreestablish himself thoroughly he must do valuable work for his redfriends on the coming great war trail. So he remained discreetly silentabout the haunted island, and told all he knew of the white settlements,the Wilderness Road, and the way to trap the emigrant train. Here he couldreally be of great assistance to the alliance, and he told the chiefs allabout the emigrants, how they marched, and how they would be encumberedwith women and children.

  Meanwhile, the five never ceased their vigilance. Henry and Ross bought alarge quantity of ammunition from a Canadian trader whom they met on atrip far to the north, and however much they used in the winter, they werenow assured of an abundance when they started southeast in the spring.

  The winter was long and very cold. One snow fell upon another; one freezeafter another thickened the ice upon the lake; and when the wind blew, ithad the edge of a knife. But this could not last forever. One day the windshifted around and blew from the south. Paul, who was outside the huthelping Jim Hart, felt a soft, warm breath on his face.

  "Why, Jim!" he said, "the cold seems to be going away."

  "So it is," said Jim Hart, "or at least it's gittin' ready. Spring ain'tfar off, an' I'm glad, Paul. I'm tired uv winter, an' I want to bestrikin' out on the great war trail."

  "So do I," said Paul.

  "Wa'al, fur the matter o' that," said Shif'less Sol, "we've been on thegreat war trail fur three or four months now. There ain't to be no changeexcept in the shiftin' o' the trail."

  The warm wind continued to blow for days, the surface of the ice on thelake softened, and the snow began to melt. Still it blew, and the meltedsnow ran in rivers, the ice broke up into great sheets and chunks, andthese, too, rapidly dissolved. Then a warm rain came, pouring for a dayand a night, and the ice and snow were swept away entirely. But the wholeearth ran water. Lakes stood in the forest, and every brook and creek,rushing in torrents, leaped its banks.

  The five had remained in their hut when the rain came down, but two dayslater Henry and Ross were rowed over in the canoe, and went away to spyout the country. When they returned they said that the great war party ofthe allied tribes would soon be in motion, and it was time for the five totake their flight.

  A warm sun had been shining for days, and the earth had dried again. Theturbulent brooks and creeks had withdrawn to their accustomed beds, andfaint touches of green were beginning to show in the wilderness.

  "We'll leave our house just as we have built it," said Henry.

  "Unless a white man should come wandering here, and that isn't likely, itwon't be disturbed. It's been a good place for us."

  "Yes," said Paul, "it has been a good home to us. I've spent a happywinter here, and I want to see it again."

  But they had little time for sentiment. They were making the fast touchesof preparation for the second stage of the great war trail--arrangingclothing, light supplies of food, and, above all, ammunition. Then theyleft at night in their canoe. As they approached the mainland, all, as ifby involuntary impulse, looked back at the haunted island, looming darklyin the night.

  "It was no haunted island for us," said Paul.

  "No," said Henry.


  They landed, hid the canoe, and then, plunging into the forest, sped farto the south and east on tireless feet.