The Project Gutenberg eBook, The Young Trailers, by Joseph A. Altsheler

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Title: The Young Trailers
A Story of Early Kentucky

Author: Joseph A. Altsheler

Release Date: October 5, 2006 [eBook #19477]

Language: English

Character set encoding: ISO-646-US (US-ASCII)

***START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE YOUNG TRAILERS***

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THE YOUNG TRAILERS

A Story of Early Kentucky

by

JOSEPH A. ALTSHELER

Appleton-Century-Crofts, Inc.
New York
Copyright, 1907, by
D. Appleton and Company
All rights reserved. This book, or parts thereof, must not be
reproduced in any form without permission of the publishers.
Copyright 1934 by Sallie B. Altsheler
Printed in the United States of America

TO
SYDNEY
A YOUNG KENTUCKIAN

CONTENTS

I.--Into the Unknown

II.--The First Great Exploit

III.--Lost in the Wilderness

IV.--The Haunted Forest

V.--Afloat

VI.--The Voice of the Woods

VII.--The Giant Bones

VIII.--The Wild Turkey's "Gobble"

IX.--The Escape

X.--The Cave Dust

XI.--The Forest Spell

XII.--The Primitive Man

XIII.--The Call of Duty

XIV.--The Return

XV.--The Siege

XVI.--A Girl's Way

XVII.--The Battle in the Forest

XVIII.--The Test

XIX.--An Errand and a Friend

THE YOUNG TRAILERS

CHAPTER I

INTO THE UNKNOWN

It was a white caravan that looked down from the crest of the mountains
upon the green wilderness, called by the Indians, _Kain-tuck-ee_. The
wagons, a score or so in number, were covered with arched canvas,
bleached by the rains, and, as they stood there, side by side, they
looked like a snowdrift against the emerald expanse of forest and
foliage.

The travelers saw the land of hope, outspread before them, a wide sweep
of rolling country, covered with trees and canebrake, cut by streams of
clear water, flowing here and there, and shining in the distance, amid
the green, like threads of silver wire. All gazed, keen with interest
and curiosit