es
dragging the lodge-poles behind them. All that morning, as we moved
forward, tall savages were stalking silently about us. At noon we
reached Horse Creek; and as we waded through the shallow water, we saw a
wild and striking scene. The main body of the Indians had arrived before
us. On the farther bank stood a large and strong man, nearly naked,
holding a white horse by a long cord, and eyeing us as we approached.
This was the chief, whom Henry called "Old Smoke." Just behind him his
youngest and favorite squaw sat astride of a fine mule; it was covered
with caparisons of whitened skins, garnished with blue and white beads,
and fringed with little ornaments of metal that tinkled with every
movement of the animal. The girl had a light clear complexion, enlivened
by a spot of vermilion on each cheek; she smiled, not to say grinned,
upon us, showing two gleaming rows of white teeth. In her hand, she
carried the tall lance of her unchivalrous lord, fluttering with
feathers; his round white shield hung at the side of her mule; and his
pipe was slung at her back. Her dress was a tunic of deerskin, made
beautifully white by means of a species of clay found on the prairie,
and ornamented with beads, arrayed in figures more gay than tasteful,
and with long fringes at all the seams. Not far from the chief stood a
group of stately figures, their white buffalo robes thrown over their
shoulders, gazing coldly upon us; and in the rear, for several acres,
the ground was covered with a temporary encampment; men, women, and
children swarmed like bees; hundreds of dogs, of all sizes and colors,
ran restlessly about; and, close at hand, the wide shallow stream was
alive with boys, girls, and young squaws, splashing, screaming, and
laughing in the water. At the same time a long train of emigrant
wagons were crossing the creek, and dragging on in their slow, heavy
procession, passed the encampment of the people whom they and their
descendants, in the space of a century, are to sweep from the face of
the earth.

The encampment itself was merely a temporary one during the heat of the
day. None of the lodges were erected; but their heavy leather coverings,
and the long poles used to support them, were scattered everywhere
around, among weapons, domestic utensils, and the rude harness of mules
and horses. The squaws of each lazy warrior had made him a shelter
from the sun, by stretching a few buffalo robes, or the corner of a
lodge-covering