I told them at the same time that I should expect their chief on the next morning, on which their speaker intimated that their tribe were encamped a long way off, and Pahajuka had sent them down from there, but when the sun rose for the tenth time he would be here. I promised to wait for him on the appointed morning, and then the savages rode away and soon disappeared behind the last hill on the prairie. Whatever might be the results of the impending conference, I was resolved to make every effort to produce, if possible, more pleasant relations between myself and the Comanches, as by far the greater number of Indians who visited our country belonged to this nation, and the incessant hostilities with them became the more annoying to me in proportion as my cattle and property became augmented.
It was now winter, and in addition to our domestic tasks, we principally employed our time in hunting bears, as I greatly needed their grease on the arrival of the expected new settlers and could sell it very profitably. For the sake of fun we also went out singly at night to shoot deer by the system of pan-hunting, so usual in the Eastern States, but which I rarely employed, although it is remarkably productive. This hunt is effected on horseback: the sportsman carries over his left shoulder a stout stick about six feet in length, to the upper end of which a frying-pan with a high rim is fastened. In this pan he lays some small-cut pieces of pine-wood, which, when kindled, burn for a long time with a very bright flame, and allow him distinctly to see every object for a long distance, while himself seeing nothing of the fire behind his back.
Deer, antelopes, and other animals when they see the moving fire, hurry up to it in order to satisfy their curiosity. The hunter can see the animal's eyes glistening at a distance of eighty yards, while he is scarce visible himself. He rides nearer up to distinguish the body more clearly, but generally contents himself with the eyes, which he takes as his mark, and discharges his rifle at them. Owing to the light which falls from behind on the barrel and the back of the sight, a most careful aim can be taken, and as a rule you can ride up to within thirty or forty yards of the animal. Even after the shot I have seen the unhit animals only run a few yards and then stop curiously, so that I have been able to give them a second barrel. Over the horse's hind-quarters a large wet blanket or hide is laid to protect it from the sparks or coals that might fall out of the pan. It is the easiest way of killing game, and in places not thickly covered with wood this mode of hunting promises an extraordinary charm, through the wondrous illumination which the fire produces on the green, flower-clad foliage. A whole forest may be depopulated in this way, and hence I regard it as quite unworthy of a true sportsman.
For all that, we now and then went pan-hunting for the sake of the fun, but never shot till we could plainly distinguish the animal, which prevented any butchery. In the old States, where people only care about killing the game, this mode of hunting is almost exclusively employed, and in those regions where game still exists, you rarely enter a planter's house without seeing a pan behind the door. Very frequently, though, in those inhabited districts, the nightly sportsman is disagreeably undeceived by the yell of agony from his own steer, mule or horse, which he has attracted from its pasture by its fire, for the flashing eyes do not tell the nature of the animal. I remember going one night on foot, with the pan on my shoulder, round my field to check the deer, which were doing great damage to my beans. Suddenly I saw a pair of large eyes gleaming before me which slowly approached and constantly became larger and more fiery. They came slowly along the fence to me, and seemed such a height from the ground that I could not imagine to what fabulously large animal they belonged. They stopped, but I did not know whether at a distance of twenty or fifty yards. I fired, heard something dash across the field, and the eyes disappeared. The next morning I went with Trusty to the spot where I had fired, and we soon found a dead lynx, which had come toward me in the darkness walking on the fence. In those parts, where the cattle graze at liberty, this sport is consequently most dangerous, as you run as much chance of killing your best horse as a deer or tiger-cat.
We also had great fun this winter in destroying the wolves, which we pursued in every possible way, as they were very dangerous to my cattle. The easiest way of killing them is poisoning with strychnine, but I did not employ it near my house through fear of hurting my dogs. For this object we always rode some miles away, threw a fresh deer-paunch on the ground, and trailed it after us by a long rope. Thus we rode past the wood out into the prairie, where we pulled up the paunch at a spot which displayed little grass, and then scattered the little lumps of poisoned meat. This was always done in the evening, and on the next morning we rode back to the spot, where we found the dead wolves lying about, which rarely went a hundred yards from the spot where they devoured the meat.
It caused us greater pleasure, however, to capture them in traps, a quantity of which we always had set round the fort. They were made in the following way:—Four stout posts were driven into the ground, forming a square of about four feet, and inside of them other longer posts were laid till they formed walls about three feet in height: we then drove four more posts into the angles of the walls, and fastened them securely to those outside. In these chests we placed a flooring, so that the captured animal could not escape by scratching up the ground, and on the top of the cage a cover, weighed down in front by large stones. The other end of the cover was fastened to the trap with very strong withes, and the forepart was raised, a prop was placed under it, which fell at a slight touch, and caused the cover to shut. At night we trailed a fresh deer-paunch from a long distance to the trap, threw meat in, then dragged it to the next trap, and so on till all were baited. We caught a great many wolves in this way, which we often took home alive and let the dogs hunt them to death on the prairie. In order to take them alive out of the trap we used an iron fork, which we struck into the ground over the wolf's neck, and then pressed its head down till we had fastened its feet. It is remarkable what an innate dislike dogs entertain for these animals. Frequently when I had killed one of them, whose skin was not worth taking home, I merely cut off its nose and threw it on the ground near the fort, upon which all my dogs gathered round and kept up the most fearful barking for hours.
At length the day arrived on which the chief of the Comanches had appointed his visit, and at about 7 A.M. three of these savages came up to the fort to inform me that their leader was encamped half-an-hour's distance off in the woods of the Leone, and expected me there. I asked Tiger's advice, and he advised me to ride out, as the Comanches meant honestly. I therefore saddled and rode, accompanied by Tiger, one of my colonists, and Trusty, out to the Indians, and told them they could ride on and I would follow. We soon reached the spot where Pahajuka was encamped, and I noticed to my satisfaction that only a squaw and a single man were seated at his fire.
I dismounted, left my man with the horses, and walked up to the chief, who now rose and folded me in his arms twice. Then his squaw came to me and evidenced her friendship in the same way. Pahajuka was a man of about sixty years of age, of middle height, plump, and possessing a very pleasant, kindly appearance. He was entirely dressed in deer-hide, had very fine beads round his neck, and in his raven black hair he had fastened a tail of plaited buffalo hair five feet in length, on which a dozen round silver plates, four inches in width, were fastened. He wore this tail hanging over his right arm, and it seemed to me as if this ornament was only worn on solemn occasions, as I never saw it again, though I met this savage frequently. The squaw was a powerful, stout, extremely pleasant matron, who appeared to take a great interest in establishing friendly relations between us. She was very talkative, and the interpreter could scarce keep pace with her tongue.
After the first explanations why they desired my friendship, the squaw fetched several sorts of dried meat in leathern bags, spread them on a buffalo hide, and begged me to take the meal of friendship with them. Tiger, too, sat down, and my other companion was obliged to do the same. It tasted very poor to us, whose tongues were spoiled by the culinary art; still we did our best, and the same with the pipe, which Pahajuka sent round afterwards. When these forms had been gone through, the old squaw packed up her traps again on her mule, and mounted it, while the chief seated himself on a similar animal, which was of very rare beauty.
We now rode, followed by the Indians, to the fort, where the latter camped outside, while Pahajuka and his squaw sat down in our parlour. I had coffee and pastry served up to them, both of which it seemed they had taken before, and they disposed of them heartily. Then I gave them both a pipe and tobacco, and then the conversation began, in which the interpreter's services were greatly called upon. They told me that before I came into these parts, the Comanches had always been able to sleep here quietly, and their children and cattle had grown fat; but since I had been here, their hearts had always beaten with terror, and they were unable to sleep at their fire at night. They now wished to make peace with me, and when they came to me, carry their weapons into my house, and fold their arms, so that their cattle might graze in peace, and their children grow fat.