Stories of American Life and AdventureEggleston, Edward
History
Stories of American Life and Adventure
Eggleston, Edward
Readers -- History; United States -- History -- Juvenile literature
"Very well," said the chief sternly, "then,
Man-that-draws-the-handcart, you shall go south."
In the language of these Indians, to go south means to die. They think
the soul journeys to the southward after death. Old-man meant to say
that Northrup should die.
"Very well," said George, looking the Indian in the eye, "I will go
south, then; but if I go south, you shall go with me, and just as many
more as I can take. Remember, Old-man, you must go south if I do."
Old-man knew Northrup very well. He knew that if anybody tried to kill
him, George's sure aim would be taken at Old-man first of all. George
had also told all of his men to shoot the chief if there should be any
trouble.
After lingering for two days, the Indians stole a bag of chopped
buffalo meat, or pemmican, and an old gun. With these they went off,
and George hurried away to a better camping place, where they could not
find him again.
THE LAZY, LUCKY INDIAN.
Out in the country we now call North Dakota there once lived an Indian
known as "Lazy-man." When he was young, he had been lazy about hunting.
When the other Indians had skins to sell, the lazy Indian had nothing.
He grew poor. His blanket was ragged. His leggings were worn out. His
wigwam was so wretched that all the tribe laughed at its tumble-down
look.
Every winter the tribe went off to the great plains to hunt buffalo.
They took their little ponies along, to carry home what they got. They
brought back the skins of the buffaloes and buffalo meat dried over a
fire. They also brought back pemmican, which is made by chopping
buffalo meat very fine, and mixing it with the tallow from the animal.
Lazy-man was ashamed to go on the hunt. He had no ponies to carry the
meat and the skins he might get.
One winter, when the tribe went off on its regular hunt, Lazy-man and
his wife staid behind as usual. They sat lonesome in their teepee, as a
wigwam is called in their language. The weather grew colder. It was
hard to find anything to eat. The lake near them was frozen, so that
they could not fish. There were not many animals living in the country
about. The lazy Indian and his wife were nearly starved.
[Illustration: Buffaloes.]
The buffaloes had never come down to this lake shore. But one day the
lazy Indian looked out and saw a herd of them coming. They were running
out on the point of land where his teepee stood. He knew that when they
got to the ice on the lake they would turn back.
"Quick, quick!" he called to his wife. The two ran right into the midst
of the herd. It was a dangerous thing to do, but they were so hungry
and miserable that they did not mind the danger. By running into the
herd they separated the buffaloes out on the point from the rest.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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