The Pioneer Boys on the Great Lakes; or, On the Trail of the Iroquois by St. George Rathborne
CHAPTER X
BLUE JACKET'S WARNING
"SHOOT the cabin burner!"
"He made the tracks we've been following! A rope would come in handy!"
"The sneaking hound, to turn on the boys who saved his life! But it'sonly what we ought to expect from an Injun!"
"He ought to be made meat for the crows, men!"
These angry exclamations arose from the group of settlers as they sawwho was coming from behind the giant oak. Both Bob and Sandy, however,never for a moment dreamed of suspecting the young Indian brave ofbeing concerned in the recent outrage.
They had found him seriously wounded at the time of the arrival of theemigrants on the Ohio. True, his hurts had doubtless been receivedduring the preceding attack upon the camp of the pioneers, but the twoboys did not let that influence them.
Something seemed to draw them to Blue Jacket, and they had nursed himtenderly in the new cabin, until one night he had vanished. The oldersettlers, who did not believe that a true heart could beat under a redskin, were loud in their declaration that the boys had only nursed asnake that would come back to sting them.
But, when Sandy was captured and carried away to the Shawanee village,it was by the aid of Blue Jacket that his release was finallyaccomplished.
Since that day they had seen more or less of the young Indian. Heoccasionally turned up at the Armstrong cabin, to spend a few days withhis white friends, of whom he seemed very fond; then he would vanish ina mysterious way without saying good-bye, to once more reappear, weekslater, always bringing in a deer, or a wild turkey, as a present forthe sweet little mother who reigned as queen of the frontier cabin.(Note 4.)
Sandy, more impetuous than his brother, though not any more fond of theyoung Indian, hearing these hasty and ugly remarks, immediately sprangforward, and, placed himself in front of Blue Jacket, spread out hisarms as he exclaimed with a show of anger:
"Don't any one of you dare to lift a hand against him! He is ourfriend, tried and true! Why, sooner than try to burn our cabin, BlueJacket would put his own hand in the fire and let it be consumed. Istand for him. The one who raises his hand against Blue Jacket willhave to fight Sandy Armstrong!"
After that, of course, the guns that had been half-raised were allowedto drop once more; but the dark scowls did not leave the stern faces ofthose who gathered around.
"See here, Sandy, and you, too, Bob," said one of their comrades, as heshook his head gravely; "it may look all right to you; but there aresome of us who fail to see anything good in Indians. We have followedthe tracks of the redskin who tried to burn your father's cabin. It ledus here. And, from behind a tree, comes this young brave. We believe heis the guilty one, and, unless he can prove his innocence, we think wehave a right to punish him, even to the extent of taking his life!"
"You shall not harm a hair of his head!" cried Sandy. "I tell you it isimpossible that he could have done so horrible a thing as try to burnour cabin. It may have been an Indian, as the tracks prove; but BlueJacket, never!"
"Listen," said the cooler Bob; "why should he wish to attract ourattention if he had done this deed? All he had to do was to remainhidden behind that tree, and we would have passed by without seeinghim."
"But tell us why he came out holding his hands above his head; and forwhat reason should he wave the white rag?" demanded a fiery, half-grownfellow.
"You would have done the same had you seen several men armed, and readyto shoot at a sound, passing through the woods with torches," repliedBob, soberly. "Blue Jacket was wise enough to understand that sometimespeople shoot first, and ask questions afterward."
The young Indian had listened with an impassive face to what was beingsaid. From childhood had he been trained to hide all signs of emotionas unbecoming to a warrior. While he did not fully understand thereason for this hot-tempered action on the part of the young whites,still, doubtless, he could draw certain conclusions.
"No burn cabin. Blue Jacket been way off in hills and think best seewhite father, Sandy, Bob. On way when see fire flash through trees.Hide so can know what mean--not want get hurt, so wave white flag. Ugh!Blue Jacket talk with straight tongue; no lie!"
He held up his right hand, and looked aloft through the branches of thetrees, as though calling upon the Great Spirit to witness that what heso solemnly declared was true.
"If he swears that he is innocent, let him prove it!" demanded the sameyoung hothead who had before spoken.
"Just as you say," returned Bob, who had the utmost confidence inhis copper-colored friend. "Come, let us all go back to where thosemoccasin tracks are, which we have followed from our cabin. We willsoon see if they were made by those Blue Jacket has on."
"But that is foolish," remarked one of the others. "All moccasins arepretty much alike; and they make tracks that are as much the same aspeas in a pod."
"Is that so, Reuben?" asked Bob, appealing to the old and experiencedwoodsman, who knew Indians like a scholar would the pages of a printedbook.
"It air not," came the positive reply. "In the fust place, every tribehas its own way o' makin' footwear; and I kin tell at a look jestwhich belongs ter a Shawanee, a Sac, a Pottawottomi, a Delaware or anIroquois. Even among the Six Nations thar's much difference, a Seneca'sbeing built different from the moccasin of a Mohawk or an Oneida."
"I thought so," said Bob, smiling as though pleased. "And, Reuben, tellus if even Shawanee moccasins may not be known apart by some peculiarmark?"
"A-plenty of times I've seen it. This one might have a patch at thetoe; another show some mark whar the skin had been worn; or p'raps acrease straight acrost the foot," the old man replied, frankly.
"And did you notice any such mark about the track we have beenfollowing--anything you would know again, no matter where you saw it?"Bob went on; for his own eyes had told him something far back, that hadto do with this very thing.
"Yes, thar war such a mark, Bob," returned the experienced woodsman."Many times I saw it in the track. It looked like the Indian's moccasinkept comin' off, and he hed tied a piece of deerskin thong around hisfoot. Besides, it was bigger nor any footprint I've run acrost thismany a day."
"Look down at the feet of Blue Jacket, Reuben; and here is one of thetracks we followed. Tell me, did the same foot make both prints?" andBob, as he thus spoke, pointed at the ground where the young warriorstood.
The settler was already on his knees. He took a slender stick, andcarefully measured the marked track of the moccasin. Then he appliedthe rule to the plainly seen imprint left by Blue Jacket as hevoluntarily moved aside.
Every eye saw immediately that there were fully two inches differencebetween the length of the unknown cabin-burner's foot and that of BlueJacket.
"I knew it!" cried Sandy, as he turned with flashing eyes toward theone who had demanded speedy justice on general principles. "You seehow foolish you were, Abner; to want to do him harm without the leastevidence against him, only that he is an Indian. Blue Jacket is afriend to the Armstrong family, even if there are others who do notlike him."
The Indian stood with folded arms. He cast a quick glance of affectionin the direction of Sandy when that impulsive individual spoke sowarmly in his defence; but toward the others of the group he maintaineda cold reserve. Like all of his kind he scorned to show what was inhis heart, when the eyes of those who were unfriendly to him watchedhis every move.
"Shall we go on?" asked old Reuben, looking dubious as he spoke.
"It would be useless, I think," Bob observed. "We know by now that theman who put the torch to our cabin has fled. He can travel twice asswiftly through the forest as we could follow on his trail. Let him go.After all, no great harm has been done; and another time we may catchhim at his work, if he comes back."
"Besides," added Reuben, "we stand a chance of runnin' into ambush,if so be he has friends near by. If you ask me, I say return to thesettlement."
Of course, after that, even the impetuous Abner could not venture aprotest; and he certainly had no de
Bob and Sandy kept Blue Jacket between them. They had also fallenback a little, so that they could talk undisturbed; for Bob had seensomething in the manner of the Indian to convince him the other hadsought the home of the Armstrongs with some important message.
"It has been long since Blue Jacket visited his white brothers,"remarked Bob, who, when holding converse with the other, usually spokeafter the manner of the Shawanees.
"Blue Jacket has been far away to the land of the rising sun, and thecountry of the big waters," replied the other, in his low musicalvoice. "Everywhere the war drum is sounding and the dance keeps upnight after night. The great chief Pontiac has sent the wampum belt toall the tribes, and they thirst for blood. It may come with the newmoon; it will not keep long. Blue Jacket is an Indian; but he loves hiswhite brothers, Bob and Sandy. Long distance he come to tell them tobe ready. Soon along border cabins go up in smoke, and many pale facesquaws and papoose mourn for white braves who come not back. I havespoken!"