On the Kentucky Frontier: A Story of the Fighting Pioneers of the West

No less than twenty families had come down with the volunteers, and were encamped together, nearby where the men had their quarters. Counting men, women and children, there could not have been less than four hundred and fifty people, three times as many as I had ever before seen in one place.

The greater portion of this gathering was asleep; but I could well fancy what bustle and confusion there must be when all were moving about, and the mere idea bewildered me.

Simon Kenton led us directly to the hut set apart for the use of Major Clarke, and there introduced us to the commander of the expedition, who bid us welcome in such a hearty fashion that even Mr. Sampson must have forgotten what he had said about "accepting charity."

Mother was taken in charge by some of the women, and we four, meaning Simon Kenton, the Sampsons, father and son, and myself, were given the use of a lean-to made of brush – not a substantial shelter; but to me, who had well-nigh come to an end of my endurance, it was most inviting.

Even Kenton himself felt the effects of the long tramp; and we indulged in no conversation that night, each member of the party falling asleep as soon as he was on the ground.

Paul and I were early abroad next morning. To him there was no novelty in such a throng, for he told me solemnly that he had seen in Maryland many more people bent on merrymaking than could be found on Corn Island, and I was forced to believe the lad, although it hardly seemed possible.

As I have said, there were no less than twenty families who had come down with the major's force to find homes in the wilderness, and, learning in some way, I know not how, that I was the son of a settler, many of them gathered around to learn how we had fared on our clearing.

There was more than one pale face among the women and younger children when I told of my father's death, and I dare say but few would have remained to build homes nearabout the Ohio River if it had been possible for them to get back to the settlement they had just left.

Mr. Sampson appeared like a different man now that he was with a throng of people. He no longer seemed to think it necessary he should return to Maryland, where a wife and two children awaited his coming; but declared that he would join his fortunes with those who counted on building up a village on the frontier.

Paul kept close by my side as I talked with the men concerning the expedition on which Major Clarke was to lead them, and when, late on that first day in camp, I told him of my intention to join the force as a volunteer, he declared that nothing would please him better than to be my comrade.

"If my father is willing, I shall go," he said quietly; but in a tone which told me that he was one with a will of his own, and not likely to be led by the nose against his own desire or inclination.

At the first opportunity I sought out Simon Kenton to tell him of Paul's plans, and the young scout said heartily:

"I like the lad, and will be glad to have him with us, although for a time he may cost us some trouble."

"He is quick to learn, I fancy, and by observing those around him, will soon be able to get about in a proper fashion," I replied confidently, whereupon the scout surprised me by saying:

"There will be none save you an' me for him to see."

"What then will have become of all this gathering?" I asked in astonishment.

"They will be far behind us, lad. Was it in your mind that I would march in line like a soldier?"

"What else can you do?"

"Remain in advance to make certain no danger threatens. You and I will act as scouts; I reckon there may be others, but I have been hired to conduct all this party, first to the British outpost at Kaskaskia, and then to Cahokia."

"You alone?" I cried, overwhelmed to learn that this young fellow was of so much importance in the eyes of a soldier like Major Clarke.

"Not alone, for I count on takin' one Louis Nelson with me, an' he has it in mind that Paul Sampson will make the third."

"But I am far too ignorant to share such an important duty!"

"The lad who is willin' to face a gang of painted wolves such as besieged your cabin, and to do so almost single-handed, gives promise of bein' a comrade to my likin'. We'll lead the men, Louis, an' I dare venture to say there'll be no ambush we shan't scent out before the murderin' redskins succeed in doing any mischief."

"And are you willing to take Paul Sampson?" I asked, still in a maze of bewilderment.

"Aye, that I am, an' venture to say he'll turn out to be your equal after a little experience."

I could hardly contain myself for joy at the thought that mine was to be a man's work; but ran off at full speed to make my mother acquainted with what I believed was rare good fortune.

She, kind soul, was saddened because such an opportunity had presented itself to me, and although she spoke not a word against the enterprise, I understood what was in her heart, and said quickly, even though it cost me a pang to utter the words:

"You are not pleased, mother, and I had thought it would make you glad because Simon Kenton had so much of faith in me. I will tell him I cannot go, and you may forget I have spoken of it."

The tears were very near her eyelids as she drew me closer and said softly, hardly daring to trust her voice:

"I would not keep you, my son, even though the parting give me great pain. On the frontier boys must speedily learn to be men, and it may be best for you to go. Perhaps we will join these settlers who intend to build up a town nearby, when you come back covered with glory."

"Now you are making sport of me, mother," I replied reproachfully. "There is no glory to be gained in fighting savages."

"To my mind you gained very much, Louis, when you ventured your life to save Mr. Sampson and Paul."

I was at a loss to understand exactly what she meant, nor did I try very hard, for the look of pain was gone from her face, and I wanted to repeat the good news to Paul.

I found him on the shore of the island, gazing across the water as if he saw in the muddy stream some wonderful vision, and instead of being surprised or elated when I told what proud position we were to occupy in the expedition, he said with a sigh:

"It is enough if I am to be with you, Louis."

"And your father? Will he give his consent?"

"He is laying plans for the new settlement which is to be made, and when I told him it would give me pleasure to go with you and Simon Kenton, he said he had other things of which to think."

"Does that mean you are free to go?"

"Now that he has companions there will be no thought of me. We will go, Louis; but do you think we will come back?"

The question almost frightened me. I had thought only of being a scout for such a brave party as was here encamped, and had given no heed to the possible danger which awaited us, until reminded of it by Paul's words.

CHAPTER V.

DOWN THE OHIO

Paul's question as to whether we would ever come back caused me to be attacked by timorousness, the first sensation of the kind I had experienced since the venture was proposed.

Now the matter had been brought home to me in such an innocent way, I began to realize all that this journey might mean. I had not spent my life on the frontier without having heard of Major Clarke, and knew full well he would not turn his back because of danger; in fact, should he chance to lead his men into a place where their lives were imperiled, the major's first thought would be as to how he might get the best of the foe – not as to how he and his following could escape.

In addition to this, only a single glance was needed to show that the work would be hot, once the force had come within striking distance of the enemy. Major Clarke had enlisted none save old frontiersmen, each one of whom had battled for his life against the painted wolves a dozen times over, and I question if there was a man in the forest who had not some private wrongs to avenge upon both savages and Britishers.

Knowing all this, one need be a simple who did not understand how sharp would be the efforts to strike a telling blow once the company was in the vicinity of the enemy, whether that enemy was a red-coated soldier, or a half-naked, feather-bedecked brute such as had lived a life of murdering and plundering since the first day the white men came into that section of the country.

And Paul and I were to act, as best we might, the part of scouts in advance of such a force as was this which followed Major Clarke! We who, because of our ignorance, should have remained in the rear, would lead the way, taking perforce the hottest of the fights because of being the first to encounter the foe.

It is little wonder that I was overwhelmed with timorousness on realizing for the first time what I had taken upon myself; but Paul, who never dreamed of all we might seek out, remained calm and placid as if ours was to be the most innocent of pleasure excursions.

The lad was surprised at finding me silent when he had done no more than repeat what I had said to him a dozen times over, and asked solicitously if I was ill.

It would have been little more than the truth had I told him I was sick with fear; but such words would have shamed me, and I held my peace, allowing him to believe that I who had never known a day's sickness, had suddenly been overcome in some womanish fashion.

It was Simon Kenton who broke in upon our not overly pleasant conversation, by saying gleefully, as one might who had just come into some good fortune.

"If you lads have settled all your business, we'll be off 'twixt now an' sunset, for I'm countin' on gettin' a good view of the river before we make a halt."

"Are the men ready to move?" I asked in surprise.

"They will follow twenty-four hours later, provided we learn of nothin' to prevent the movement. It's our task to spy out the land, an' we're bound to keep well in advance."

I glanced quickly at Paul in order to see how the news affected him; but not so much as a tremor of the eyelids followed this information. Perhaps if he had known all the danger as well as did I, he might have presented a different appearance.

It would have been shameful had I shown fear when this lad who knew nothing of life on the frontier remained unmoved, and I stiffened my lip as best I might, resolved that neither he nor Simon Kenton should guess of that which was in my heart.

Not only did the scout intend to set forth on this day; but I understood from his movements that he was eager to begin the work as soon as possible, despite the fact of his having spoken as if an hour earlier or later could make no difference to him, and I said with so much of calmness as might be forced into my voice:

"If it so be you are minded to go at once, I can make ready within five minutes."

"It would please me to be rid of this place. A crowd of people is not to my likin' an' by settin' out now there will be no call for any great haste, whereas the same cannot be said in case we are but a few hours ahead of the volunteers."

"I wish only to have a word with my mother, and then we cannot leave the island too soon to please me," I replied, and added on observing in Paul's face what I fancied was a wistful look, as if he was saying to himself that it would be a consolation to have some one bid him God speed, "will you come with me, lad? I dare venture to say she will treat us both alike."

He sprang forward eagerly, with the moisture of a coming tear in his eyes, and we went toward that portion of the encampment where were the women, all of whom found ample occupation in cooking for the volunteers.

Perhaps it is as well if I set down nothing regarding the parting with my mother; it was painful to me, and cannot deeply interest any who reads these lines, if peradventure they really have a reader.

It is enough if I say that both us lads, for she gave Paul the same show of affection as was bestowed upon me, promised to be as careful of our lives as one could who had set about such work as ours might prove, and in less than half an hour from the moment Simon Kenton announced his intention of leaving the island, we were standing by the water's edge awaiting his commands.

The young scout did not delay once we were ready. A canoe such as is known by the name of "dugout," was moored to a tree, and in her had been loaded our scanty outfit.

A supply of ammunition, pepper, salt, a few potatoes and three loaves of corn bread made up the list of our belongings such as we could not carry in the pockets of our hunting shirts. As a matter of course each had a knife and a rifle, which last would serve to provide us with more food, and we really needed nothing else.

Paul had made an attempt to speak with his father before leaving; but Mr. Sampson was so deeply engaged in laying plans for the future village which was to spring up on the banks of the Ohio, that he had no time to spend on his son.

Major Clarke was the only member of all that company who knew we were to set out at this time, and he remained in close conversation with Simon Kenton a good half hour after Paul and I had taken our places in the dugout. Then, seeing that the scout was eager to be off, he stepped back, saying to us lads:

"See to it that you follow closely the instructions given by Kenton; your lives may depend upon obedience, for the work you have undertaken is in the highest degree dangerous."

He might have spared himself that much breath, so far as I was concerned, for there was in my mind a very good idea of the perils we would be called upon to face, and I had little relish for such a reminder, because my courage at this moment was none of the best.

"So long as we remain in advance you may count on it that there is nothin' to fear," Kenton said as he unmoored the boat and sent her moving out into the current with a single stroke of the paddle. "We shall give you fair warnin' if we come across anything worth knowin', unless – "

He did not finish the sentence; but I knew full well how to conclude it. "Unless we are taken by surprise and all killed," is what he would have said but for the fear of alarming Paul and me.

Before we were half a mile from the island I came to realize that I was playing the part of a fool by allowing my mind to dwell upon the possibilities of the future, and, forcing thought into a different channel, I began to speak of the village which it was proposed to build on the bank of the river, little dreaming that it would one day be a great city known as Louisville, as if named for me.

During ten minutes or more, not a word was spoken, and then as if talking to himself, Kenton said:

"The volunteers will set out sometime to-morrow, an' should move along as fast as we can."

"Are all the men coming down the river?" Paul said:

"Some will be left behind to look after the women and children; but the remainder are to set off in the flat boats that were moored at the other side of the island."

"If they are to come in boats, I do not understand why we push on ahead," I said stupidly, whereupon Kenton replied:

"It's our business to know if the painted snakes are nearabout the river in any great force."

"And how may we learn that, unless we tramp along the shore?"

"The chances are that the snakes would fire at us, not countin' on the main force bein' so near."

"In which case we should gain the information by being shot – perhaps killed."

"I reckon one of us would come out alive, an' he could get back to give the news," Kenton said quietly, as if the possibility of our losing our lives was as nothing so long as the volunteers were warned. "But there's a good chance we'd all slip through without a scratch, even though the reptiles had gathered in full force, for they're not the best marksmen to be found hereabout, an' by keepin' well in the middle of the stream it should be safe sailin'. Now I'm thinkin' we'd better keep our tongues quiet, and set our eyes at work, else there's a show of slippin' by what we've been sent to find. If you see the least auspicious looking thing, sing out, and we'll know what it means before goin' any further."

Paul listened to these words as if they had no especial concern for him, and I was near to being vexed with the lad because of his seeming indifference when life was in danger; but checked myself with the thought that he would put on a different look if he fully understood the situation.

By this time Simon Kenton was keeping his eyes at work as he labored at the paddle, refusing my proffer of assistance, and I question if a single bent twig or broken bough escaped his notice. It was as if he saw both sides of the river at the same instant, listening as eagerly as he gazed, and it can be fancied that I did not dare attempt anything in the way of conversation.

It is needless for me to explain at length in what fashion we rounded this point, or skirted that cove half hidden by the overhanging foliage, for all know full well how voyagers on the Ohio in the days of the revolution guarded against ambush or sudden attack.

To my mind we might as well have remained with the volunteers during this portion of the journey, for in case we came upon any considerable body of savages there was little chance either of us would succeed in carrying back the news to those who virtually placed their lives in our keeping.

We had been sailing three hours or more; the sun was low in the heavens, and the shadows were already so dense on the western bank that a hundred painted brutes might have been concealed beneath the low hanging branches without our being any the wiser.

To me it seemed foolish to continue on any further, if our only purpose was to scan both sides of the river carefully, and I was on the point of saying as much to Kenton when a tiny puff of smoke darted out from amid the foliage to the right of us, hardly more than fifty yards away; a sharp report like unto the crack of a whip could be heard, while the splinters flew from the paddle in the scout's hand.

It goes without saying that I was startled; but not to such an extent as to deprive me of my wits.

I knew full well none but a savage would have fired at us, and the knowledge that the villainous enemy was so near served to make me forget the fear which had beset me a short time previous.

Within five seconds from the instant the tiny puff of smoke darted out like the tongue of a snake, I had fired, using the curl of vapor for a target, and Simon Kenton said approvingly, but with no trace of excitement in his tone:

"That was well done! A lad who is so quick with a shot should not be taken at a disadvantage, whatever turns up."

He had forced the bow of the dugout from the shore even before I fired, and, bending low, was paddling with all his strength as if the one idea of escape was all that occupied his mind.

Paul had neither spoken nor moved; at the moment his back was toward me, a fact which I regretted because I could not see his face to learn if he changed color.

We were no more than in mid-stream before a second shot was heard, this time coming from a point lower down the river; but the bullet flew harmlessly over our heads.

I made no effort to return the shot, for the very good reason that there was no chance I could do any execution at such a distance, even though he who had fired remained motionless, which was hardly to be expected.

Kenton pulled around the next bend, hugging the eastern shore closely, and when we were come to a small creek he forced the canoe up the tiny water course until it was completely hidden by the foliage.

"We might have gone on without fear," I said in a whisper, surprised by this manœuver, "We were traveling faster than the savages could walk, and might easily have outstripped them."

"Which is exactly what we don't count on doin'," he said quietly, speaking in an ordinary tone, and thus showing he had no thought of danger while we remained on this side the river.

"Why not?" Paul asked mildly.

"Because it's our business to know how many of the reptiles are on yonder bank."

"But how will you find out?"

"Go back there, an' have a look at 'em. In less than an hour we can do the trick in fine style."

Paul and I looked at each other in mingled fear and amazement while one might have counted ten, and then I turned my eyes away, understanding by this time that to gather such information was the only reason why we had come down the river ahead of the volunteers.

Kenton sat like a statue in the center of the canoe, we lads being at either end, and it seemed to me as if a full hour passed before a word was spoken.

Then the night was so near upon us that, save directly in the middle of the river, it was impossible to distinguish objects twenty paces distant.

"I reckon we may as well get to work," and Kenton cautiously forced the canoe out from amid the tangle of foliage until the current carried her down stream.

He did not use the paddle save to keep her from running afoul of dry brush or logs on the bank, and we had drifted two miles, perhaps, when he suddenly bent to his work, sending the light craft across the river at a speed I had never before seen equaled, even by my father.

I fully expected to hear the report of a rifle, or feel the sting of a bullet when we were in the middle of the stream where a sharp-eyed savage might see us; but nothing occurred to check our progress, and in a marvelously short space of time we were once more screened from view; but now on the same side of the river where we knew the painted snakes lurked.

"You are to stay in the dugout," Simon Kenton whispered to me as he raised his rifle. "If it so chances that I'm not back here by sunrise, you must work your way up stream to warn Major Clarke."

Had he given me the opportunity I should have urged that he take us with him, or wait till near morning before undertaking so dangerous a venture; but the words had no more than been spoken when he was gone.

At one instant he was speaking with me, and at the next he had vanished as completely and silently as if the waters had covered him. No Indian who ever lived could have equaled him in swiftness and noiselessness.

Paul was mystified when he turned and failed to see Kenton, and I felt forced to explain in whispers what had happened, else I believe of a verity the lad would have cried out in his bewilderment.

It is not possible for those who have always lived in large settlements or towns to realize the desolateness of such a position as was ours while we waited for the return of the scout.

He had ventured into the forest where we knew to a certainty were bloodthirsty enemies, and that he realized all the possibilities had been shown by the order for us to work our way up-stream to warn the on-coming boats, in case he failed to return by sunrise.

My heart was almost in my mouth as I sat there holding Paul's hand, starting at the lightest sound, and hearing even in the rippling of the water some token of the savages. My tongue was parched; I could not have uttered a single word had it been necessary to speak, and only with the greatest difficulty did I prevent my hand from trembling, thus exposing to my companion that I was wofully afraid.

When perhaps an hour had passed it seemed to me as if we had been there a full night, and then came that sound which I had at the same time been expecting and fearing to hear.

From the distance, half a mile away, I guessed, came the crack of a rifle; then another and another, and after that the same deathly silence as before.

"Think you any harm has come to him?" Paul whispered tremulously, and I replied as I believed truly:

"Not unless he met with an accident before that first shot was fired. If there had been a large number of savages nearabout, he would have used every effort to return without loss of time, that we might go to warn the volunteers. There may have been only a few, with, perhaps, a captive, and he has attempted a rescue."

I was heartened by my own words, which sounded plausible, and remained on the alert ten minutes or more, expecting each instant to see Kenton appear as silently as he had vanished.

When that length of time had elapsed, however, and he yet remained absent, fear crept over me, and I imagined the worst.

After half an hour went by, and I kept note of time by counting, there was no longer any hope in my heart.