The Pioneer Boys of the Ohio; or, Clearing the WildernessRathborne, St. George
General
The Pioneer Boys of the Ohio; or, Clearing the Wilderness
Rathborne, St. George
Frontier and pioneer life -- Juvenile fiction; Ohio River -- Juvenile fiction
They had made the wounded Indian as comfortable as possible; and he
lay there, apparently content to watch them work. Possibly he expected
that, when the white men, against whom his hand had so recently been
raised, should arrive on the scene, his fate must be a matter of
minutes; but an Indian never shows emotion, and fear, in his eyes, is
the symptom of a coward.
Sandy immediately gathered some wood. He had had long experience in
making fires, and gloried in the opportunity to show his skill.
"There, how does that look?" he demanded presently, when, after having
used his flint and steel with good results, the flying sparks quickly
caught in the dry tinder, and flames began to creep up amidst the
gathered wood.
"As fine as the finest," returned his brother, who knew Sandy's
weakness, and never let a chance to cater to it pass by; "and unless
my ears deceive me I think I heard voices just then up-river."
"You are right, brother," declared the younger lad, pointing; "for
there they come, with Pat O'Mara, bless his heart, at the head of the
line."
The wounded Indian never even started, and yet a quiver of alarm must
certainly have passed through his agonized frame. He simply turned his
gaze toward the setting sun, as though, if the worst came, he wished to
feast his eyes for the last time on that glorious spectacle. For the
clouds floating in space had begun to take on a most gorgeous tint,
as though the mysterious unknown country beyond might be putting on a
holiday dress to welcome him to the Happy Hunting Grounds of the red
man.
Then the long line of horses and pioneers arrived on the spot that had
been picked out by Colonel Boone as the prettiest site for a settlement
he knew of along the upper Ohio.
Various exclamations of rapture and delight broke forth. The magical
beauty of the scene overpowered all alike. Men and women stood there,
drinking in the river view as seen in the fading light of the sun;
and, when they turned to exchange sentiments, they were unanimously
favorable.
"It is Paradise!" cried one woman, who had suffered greatly during the
long pilgrimage across mountains and wilderness.
Pat O'Mara was the happiest of the whole group. He did not expect to
put up a cabin home, for his nature compelled him to be a rover; but,
since he had guided these pioneers along the way into the Promised
Land, naturally he felt elated because they were thrilled and pleased
with their new homeland.
And then again, Pat had the greatest admiration for that chief of
pioneers, Daniel Boone, who had selected this site as the proper spot
for a future white man's town.
"Now, plase lave all thot till another day," he called out, presently;
"and pay attintion till the juties av the hour. Sure, they be fires to
sthart, fuel to chop, and some protiction to be made aginst an attack
av the rids. To worrk thin, iverybody!"
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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