He'd been studyin' Injuns all his life
an' he knowed 'em frum a ter izard. They didn't have nothin' but bows
an' arrers then an' he had a rifle thes like mine. He never got
flustered or riled by the way they wuz treatin' him, but let on like he
wuz happy ez er June bug. Dan'l would raise his rifle, put a bullet
twixt a buffalo's eyes an' he'd drap in his tracks. The Injuns wuz
tickled ter death an' thought him the greatest man that ever lived--an'
he wuz, too. So they got ter likin' him an' treatin' 'im better. For
seven days an' nights him an' Stuart helped 'em hunt an' showed 'em how
ter work er rifle. The Injuns was plum fooled by Dan'l's friendly ways
an' didn't watch 'im so close.
"So one night Dan'l helped 'em ter eat a bigger supper than ever. They
wuz all full enough ter bust, an' went ter sleep an' slept like logs.
Hit wuz a dark night an' the fire burned low, an' long 'bout midnight
Dan'l made up his mind ter give 'em the slip.
"Hit wuz er dangerous job. Ef he failed hit wuz death shore-nuff, for
nothin' makes a Injun so pizen mad ez fer anybody ter be treated nice by
'em an' then try ter get away. The Redskins wuz all sleepin' round the
fire. They wuz used ter jumpin' in the middle o' the night or any
minute. Mebbe they wuz all ersleep, an' mebbe they wasn't.
"Old Dan'l he pertended ter be sleepin' the sleep er the dead, an' I
tell ye he riz mighty keerful, shuck Stuart easy, waked him up an'
motioned him ter foller.
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