Altsheler, Joseph - [Great West 01]

by The Great Sioux Trail (lit)

  He tried to gather together his scattered and wan- dering faculties and coordinate them to such an extent that he could produce thought. It required a severe effort, and made his head ache worse than ever, but he persisted until he remembered that he had been creep- ing through bushes in search of a sound, or the cause of a sound. But memory stopped there and presently faded quite away. Another effort and he lifted his mind back on the track. Then he remembered the slight sound in the bushes near him, the shadow of a igure and a stunning blow. Beyond that his memory despite all his whipping and driving, would not go, be- cause there was nothing on which to build.

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  He opened his eyes which were heavy-lidded and painful for the time, and saw the figures of Indians that seemed to be standing far above him. Then he knew that he was lying flat upon his back, and that his sick brain was exaggerating their height, because they truly appeared to him in the guise of giants. He tried to move his feet but found that they were bound tightly together, and the effort gave him much pain. Then he was in truth a captive, the captjve of those who cared little for his sufferings. It was true they had bound up his head, but Indians often gave temporary re- lief to the wounds of their prisoners in order that they might have more strength to. make the torture long.

  His vision cleared gradually, and he saw that he was lying on a small grassy knoll. A fire was burning a lit- tle distance to his left, and besides the warriors who stood up others were lying* down, or sitting in Turkish fashion, gnawing the meat off buffalo bones that they roalted at the fire. The whole scene was wild and bar- baric to the last degree and Will shuddered at the fate which he was sure awaited him.

  Beyond the Indians he saw trees, but they were not cottonwoods. Instead he noted oak and pine and aspen and he knew he was not lying where he had fallen, or in any region very near it. Straining his eyes he saw a dim line of foothills and forest. He must have been brought there on a pony and dreadful thoughts about his comrades assailed him. Since the Sioux had come away with him as a prisoner they might have fallen in a general massacre. In truth, that was the

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  most* likely theory, by far, and he shuddered violently again and again.

  Those three had been true and loyal friends of his, the finest of comrades, hearts of steel, and yet as gentle and kindly as women. Hardships and dangers in common had bound the four together, and the differ- ence in years did not matter. It seemed that he had known them and been associated with them always. He could hear now the joyous whistling of the Little Giant, the terse, intelligent talk of Boyd, and the firm Biblical allusions of the beaver hunter. They could not be dead ! It could not be so ! And yet in his heart he believed that it was so.

  He turned painfully on his side, groaned, shut his eyes, and opened them again to see a tall warrior standing over him, gazing down at him with a cynical look. He was instantly ashamed that he had groaned and said in apology:

  "It was pain of the spirit and not of the body that caused me to make lament."

  "It must be so," replied the warrior in English, "be- cause you have come back to the world much quicker than we believed possible. The vital forces in you are strong."

  He spoke like an educated Indian, but his face, his manner and his whole appearance were those of the typical wild man.

  "I see that I'm at least alive," said Will with a faint touch of humor, "though I can scarcely describe my condition as cheerful. Who are you?"

  "I am Heraka, a Sioux chief. Heraka in your lan- 248

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  guage means the Elk, and I am proud of the name."

  Will looked again at him, and much more closely now, because, despite his condition, he was impressed by the manner and appearance. Heraka was a man of middle years, of uncommon height and of a broad, full countenance, the width between the eyes being great. It was a countenance at once dignified, serene and penetrating. He wore brilliantly embroidered moccasins, leggings and waist band, and a long green blanket, harmonizing with the foliage at that period of the year, hung from his shoulders. He carried a rifle and there were other weapons in his belt.

  Will felt with increasing force that he was in the presence of a great Sioux chief. The Sioux, who were to the West what the Iroquois were to the East, some- times produced men of high intellectual rank, their development being hampered by time and place. The famous chief, Gall, who plan ned Custer's defeat, and who led the forces upon the field, had the head of a Jupiter, and Will felt now as he stared up at Heraka that he had never beheld a more imposing figure. The gaze of the man that met his own was stern and de- nunciatory. The lad felt that he was about to be charged with a great crime, and that the charge would be true.

  "Why have you come here?" asked the stern war- rior.

  In spite of himself, in spite of his terrible situation, the youth's sense of humor sparkled up a moment.

  "I don't know why I came here," he replied, "nor do I know how, nor do I know where I am."

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  The chief's gaze flickered a moment, but he replied with little modification of his sternness:

  "You were brought here on the back of a pony. You are miles from where you were taken, and you are the prisoner of these warriors of the Dakota whom I lead."

  Will knew well enough that the Sioux called them- selves in their own language the Dakota, and that the chief would take a pride in so naming them to him.

  "The Dakotas are a great nation," he said.

  Heraka nodded, not as if it were a compliment, but as a mere statement of fact. Will considered. Would it be wise to ask about his friends ? Might he not in doing so give some hint that could be used against them? The fierce gaze of the chief seemed actually to penetrate his physical body and read his mind.

  "You are thinking of those who were with you," he said.

  "My thoughts had turned to them."

  "Call them back. It is a waste."

  "Why do you say that, Heraka?"

  "Because they are all dead. Their scalps are drying at the belts of the warriors. You alone live as we had to strike you down in silence before we slew the others."

  Will shuddered over and over again. He was sick at both heart and brain. Could it be true? Could those men be dead ? The wise Boyd, the cheerful Lit- tle Giant, and the grave and kindly Brady ? Once more he looked Heraka straight in the eye, but the gaze of the chief did not waver.

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  "I have hope, though but a little hope," he said, "that it pleases the chief to test me. He would see whether I can bear such news."

  "If the belief helps you then Heraka will not try again to make you see the truth. What is your name ?"

  "Clarke, William Clarke."

  "Why have you come to the land of the Dakotas?"

  "Not to take it. Not to kill the buffalo. Not to drive away any of your people."

  "But you are captured upon it. The great chief, Mahpeyalute, warned the American captain and the soldiers that they must not let the white people come any farther."

  "That is true. I was there, and I heard Red Cloud give the warning."

  "And yet you came against the threat of Mahpeya- lute."

  "Mine was an errand of a nature almost sacred. I tell you again there was no harm in it to your coun- try and your people."

  "Many times have the white people told to the Da- kotas things that were lies."

  "It is true, but the sins of others are not mine."

  Will spoke with all his heart in his words. De- spite the terrible disaster that had befallen, even if the chief's words were true, and all his friends were dead, he wished, nevertheless, to live. He was young, strong, of great vitality, and nothing could crush the love of life in him.

  "What do you intend to do with me ?" he asked.

  Heraka smiled, but the smile contained nothing of 251

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  gentleness or mercy, rather it was amusement at the anxiety of one who was wholly in his power.

  "Your fate shall not be known to you until it comes," he said.

  Will felt a chill running down his spine. It was the primal instinct to' torture and slay the enemy and the Sioux lived up to it. It was keen torture already to hear that his fate would surely come, but not to know how or where or when was worse. But it ap- peared that it was not to come at once, and with that thought he felt the thrill of hope. His was unquench- able youth and the vital spark in him flamed up.

  "Would you mind untying my ankles?" he said. "You can save your torture for later on."

  Heraka signed to a warrior, who cut the thongs and Will, sitting up, rubbed them carefully until the blood flowed back in its natural channels. Meanwhile he observed the band and counted sixteen warriors, all but Heraka seeming to be the wildest of wild Indians, most of them entirely naked save for moccasins and the breech cloth. They carried muzzle-loading rifles, bows and arrows hung from the bushes and lances leaned against the trees. Beyond the bushes he caught glimpses of their ponies grazing, and these glimpses were sufficient to show him that they had many extra animals for the packs. When he saw them better, then he would know whether his friends were really dead, because if they were their packs and the animals would be there, too. But the chief, Heraka, broke in upon the thought he seemed able to read Will's mind.

  "This is but part of the force that besieged you," 252

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  he said. "There were three bands joined. The others with the spoil have gone west, leaving as our share the prisoner. A living captive is worth more than two scalps."

  Will tried to remember all he had ever heard or read about the necessity of stoicism when in the hands of savage races and by a* supreme effort of the will he was able to put a little of it into practice. Pretending to indifference, he asked if he might have something to eat, and received roasted meat of the buffalo. He had a good appetite, despite his weakness and head- ache, and when he had eaten in abundance and had drunk a gourd of water they gave him he felt better.

  "I thank you for binding up my -wounded head," he said to Heraka. "I don't know your motive in doing so, but I thank you just the same."

  The Dakota chief smiled grimly.

  "We do not wish you to die yet," he said, speak- ing his English in the precise, measured manner of one to whom it is a foreign language. "Inmutanka, the Panther, bound it up, and he is one of the best healers we have."

  "Then I thank also Inmutanka, or the Panther, whichever he prefers to be called. I can't see the top of my head, but I know he made a good job of it."

  Inmutanka proved to be an elderly but robust Sioux warrior, and however he may have been when torture was going forward he wore just then a bland smile, al- though not much else. With wonderfully light and skilful hands he took off Will's bandage and replaced it with another. Will never knew what it was made

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  of, but it seemed to be lined with leaves steeped in the juices of herbs.

  The Indians had some simple remedies of great power, and he felt the effect of the new bandage at once. His headache began to abate rapidly, and with the departure of pain his views of life became much more cheerful.

  "I never saw you before, Dr. Inmutanka," he said, "but I know you're one of the finest physicians in all the West. Whatever school you graduated from should give you all the degrees it has to give. Again, I thank you."

  The Indian seemed not to understand a word he said, but no one could mistake the sincerity of the lad's tone. Inmutanka, otherwise the Panther, smiled, and the smile was not cruel, nor yet cynical. He stepped back a little, regarded his handiwork with satisfaction, and then merged himself into the band.

  "That's a good Sioux! I know he is!" said Will warmly to Heraka. "Hereafter Dr. Inmutanka shall be my personal and private physician."

  Heraka' s face was touched by a faint smile. It was the first mild emotion he had shown and Will rejoiced to see it. He found himself wishing to please this wild chief, not in any desire to seek favor, but he felt that, in its way, the approval of Heraka was approval worth having.

  "Yon eat, you drink, you feel strong again," said Heraka.

  "Yes, that's it."

  "Then we go. We are mountain Sioux. We have a 254

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  village deep in the high mountains that white men can never find. We will take you there, where you will await your fate, never knowing what it is nor when it will come."

  Will was shaken once more by a terrible shudder. This constant harping upon the mysterious but fearful end that was sure to overtake him was having its ef- fect. Heraka had reckoned right when he began the torture of the mind. The chief spoke sharply to the warriors and putting out the fire they gathered up their weapons and the horses. Will was mounted on one of the ponies and his ankles were tied together beneath the animal's body, but loosely only, enough to prevent a sudden flight though not enough to cause pain. There was no saddle, but as he was used to riding bare- backed he could endure it indefinitely.

  Then the chief did a surprising thing, binding a piece of soft deerskin over Will's eyes so tightly that not a ray of light entered.

  "Why do you do that, Heraka?" asked the lad.

  "That you may not see which way you go, nor what is by the path as you ride. Soon, with your eyes cov- ered you will lose the sense of direction and you will not be able to tell whether you go north or south or east or west."

  He spoke sharply to the warriors and the group set off. The direction at first was toward the north, as Will well knew, but the band presently made many curves and changes of course, and, as Heraka had truly said, he ceased to have any idea of the course they were taking. He saw nothing, but he heard all

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  around him the footfalls of the ponies, and, now and then, the word of one warrior to another. He might have raised his hands to tear loose the bandage over his eyes, but he knew that the Sioux would interfere at once, and he would only bring upon himself some greater pain.

  Will felt that a warrior was riding on either side of him and presently he was aware also that the one on the right had moved up more swiftly, giving way to somebody else. A sort of mental telepathy told him that the first warrior had been replaced by a stronger and more dominant one. Instinct said that it was Heraka, and he was not mistaken. The chief rode on in silence for at least ten minutes and then he asked :

  "Which way do you ride, Wayaka (captive) ? Is it north, or south, or is it east or west?"

  "I don't know," confessed Will. "I tried to keep the sense of direction, but we twisted and turned so much I've lost it."

  "I knew that it would be so. Wayaka will ride many hundreds of miles, he knows not whither. And whether he is to die soon or late he will see his own people again never more. If he ever looks upon a white face again it will be the face of one who is a friend of the Sioux and not of his own race, or the face of a captive like himself."

  Will shuddered. The threat coming from a man like Heraka, who spoke in a tone at once charged with malice and power, was full of evil portent. Had an ordinary Indian threatened him thus he might not have been affected so deeply, but with the decree of Heraka

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  "If he ever looks upon a white face again it will be the face of one who is a friend of the Sioux."

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  he seemed to vanish completely from the face of the earth, or, at least, from his world and all those that knew him. His will, however, was still strong. He felt instinctively that Heraka was looking at him, and he would show no sign of flinching or of weakness. He straightened himself up on the pony, threw back his shoulders and replied defiantly:

  "I have a star that protects me, Heraka. Nearly every man has a star, but mine is a most powerful one, and it will save me. Even now, though I cannot see and I do not know whe
ther it is daylight or twi- light, I know that my star, invisible though it may be in the heavens, is watching over me."

  He spoke purposely in the lofty and somewhat al- legorical style, used sometimes by the higher class of Indians, and he could not see its effect. But Heraka, strong though his mind was, felt a touch of supersti- tious awe, and looking up at the heavens, all blue though they were, almost believed that he saw in them a star looking down at Wayaka, the prisoner.

  "Wayaka may have a star," he said, "but it will be of no avail, because the stars of the Sioux, being so much the stronger, will overcome it."

  "We shall see," replied the lad. Yet, despite all his brave bearing, his heart was faint within him. Heraka did not speak to him again, and by the same sort of mental telepathy he felt, after a while, that the chief had dropped away from his side, and had been re- placed by the original warrior.

  Although eyes were denied to him, for the present, all his other faculties became heightened as a conse-

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  quence, and he began to use them. He was sure that they were still traveling on the plains, so much dust rose, and now and then he coughed to clear it from his throat. But they were not advancing into the deeps of the great plains, because twice they crossed shallow streams, and on each occasion all the ponies were al- lowed to stop and drink.

  Will knew that his own pony at the second stream drank eagerly, in fact, gulped down the water. Such zest in drinking showed that the creek was not alka- line, and hence he inferred that they could not be very far from hills, and perhaps from forest. He surmised that they were going either west or north. A growing coolness, by and by, indicated to him that twilight was coming. Upon the vast western plateau the nights were nearly always cold, whatever the day may have been.