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He was the greatest talker that this country ever saw Until his good old rim-fire went a-driftin' down the draw." Two men had ridden up unnoticed and were watching with no obvious merriment the contest. Now one of them spoke. "Where can I find Homer Webb?" Dad turned to the speaker, a lean man with a peg-leg, brown as a Mexican, hard of eye and mouth.
"I ain't dreaming," hailed back old Masters, not quite catching what he said. "I sees summit as plain as possible out to win'ard. Aye, it be a-driftin' down athawt our hawser, too, cap'en. Why, hullo! I'm blessed. Boat ahoy!" "A boat!" exclaimed Captain Applegarth, his jesting manner changing instantly to one of earnest attention. "Where away?"
Presently I seed somethin' black, driftin' towards the rocks: and lo' ye, 'twas a boat bottom side up, and all hands gone down. Wal! wal! the Lord knew what was right: but it's wuss by a deal to see them things than to be in 'em yourself, to my thinkin'. Wal, after a spell I looked agin, and there was somethin' else a-driftin' looked like a spar, it did: and somethin' was lashed to it. My heart!
Well, I can tell you where she is. She's stuck fast in the reeds at the lower end o' Peter's Pint." "Where's that?" said I. "Oh, it's about a mile furder up. I seed her a-driftin' up with the tide big flood tide, to-day and I thought I'd see somebody after her, afore long. Anything aboard?" Anything! I could not answer the man. Anything, indeed! I hurried on up the river without a word.
"Them two a-roamin' around here, belong to ole Maddy, the ole miner gent. He left 'em here while he went romancin' around up Ripple Creek. He goes up thar, and has got a way out to the top. He goes in North Park, cl'ar over to Granby and Grand Lake. He swings 'round by Steamboat Springs and Hahns Peak, and comes a-driftin' back, mebbe from the north. He left 'em here three months ago.
I seed her disappear through the darkness; but I didn't as much as say good-bye to her, for I wur afeard that my voice mout bring her back agin', an' she mout strike the log with her hoofs, an' whammel it about. So I lay quiet, an' let her hev her own way. "I wan't long on the log till I seed it wur a-driftin', for thur wur a current in the water that set tol'uble sharp acrosst the parairy.
Thet means a considerable bunch o' Injuns thar, er tharabouts. Now I know Black Kettle's outfit is down on the Washita, so the only conclusion is that this yere band thet the Sergeant stirred up is some new tribe er other, a-driftin' down frum the north. I reckon if we ride up ther valley we 'll hit their trail, an' it 'll lead straight down to them Cheyennes."
Then I recollects that I hed seed a piece o' high ground about that part o' the parairy a sort o' mound that hed been made by Injuns, I s'pose. This, then, that looked like a island, wur the top o' that mound, sure enough. "The log wur a-driftin' in sich a way that I seed it must pass within twenty yards o' the mound.
An' we've sure been a-comin' polin', linin' up, and portagin'. But the falls'll stick 'em a solid week. That's where I left 'em a-cuttin' a trail over the tops of the bluffs for the boats. I just had a sure natural hunch to keep a-comin'. So I fills a pack with grub an' starts. I knew I'd find you a-driftin' an' all in." Smoke nodded, and put forth his hand in a silent grip.
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