53

THE CHILDREN'S HOUR

Beteween the dark and the daylight,
When the night is beginning to lower,
Comes a pause in the day's occupations,
That is kown as the children's hour.
-LONGFELLOW

WILD HORSES

As there are herds of buffalows on the wide rolling prairies, so ae here great gangs of wild horses, which the Indians call "Mustangs." Now these wild horses and their brave riders are a great feautre in the exhibition of Buffalo Bill, and so I am sure you will be interested to hear something abou the mustang. One traveller says:-"Where the traveller in the West now finds [Hounahing?] towns and villages, we found nothing but endless and monotonous prairies, rolling in long, smooth, wavy lines, day after day. Descendng one of those gentle declivities about noon, we beheld before and below us, feeding in a grassy plain, a herd of small horses. They were mostly of a bright chestnut colour, although many were curiously dappled with patches of white, red, and brown. The mustang, as the native horse of the North American continent is called, is smaller than the domesticated horse, and generally of a bright chestnut colour. The horses marked with odd colours and patches are called pinto, or painted, by the Mexicans, and calico by the Americans. We had heard of the wild horses of the West. Probably this was a wandering drove of those beautiful reatures that had been detained here by the luxuriant grass on which they were tranquilly feeding, without any suspicion of the approach of man. We knewenough about wild orses to know that we must be war and creep up unperceived. The mustang in his native state is very easily scared, or "stampeded," It often happens that a drove of horses, peacefully feeding, will take right a some rifle, or at a mere [whim?], as one may say, and as soon as one or two start off wildly, the entire herd will joing in flight as if pursued by some deadly enemy. They may be alarmed by the passing of a wolf, or by the playing of the moonbeams among the thunderbrush; no matter what the cause of their alarm, they fly like the wind, crashing and plunging over one another, wild with terror, and blindly scattering ar and wide over the country. This is what the frontiersman calls a "stampede."

Here is a further account of how the mustan is caught and tamed. "The Indian pony or mustang is more easily tamed and tractable when he has [?] been reduced to bondage. In droves of tens of thousands, the wild horse of North America formerly roved the plains from Western Nebraska to Mexico. Even within a few years the native American horse was to be met with as far north as the Platte River. But the setlement of the country has crowded he wandering herds farther southwards, and now they may be found only in Texas, New Mexico, and in regions far to he south-west. The Mexicans are most expert at catching this timorous creature. They throw the lasso with amazing dexterity. Riding at full speed, the Mexicans career over the plains like wild men, whirling their curled lariats or lassos over their heads as they fli. Their horses are covered with foam, and often bleeding from the cruel spurs with wich they are urged on. The earth trembles under the tramp of many hoofs beating the solid ground, as pursuer and pursued gallop madly far and wide. Sudenly the lariat sings through the air, its noose opens itself and drops over the head of the terriried fugitive, the hunter's steed instatly braces itself with its forefeet, and drops on its haunches so as to make an anchorage, as it were, for the caught mustang. And there is no escape now for the captive."

THE INDIANS OF THE FAR WEST

And now me must have a peep at the Indians of he far West, and for this I will borrow an account from another traveller. "The sun was sinking behind the hills as I came in sight of the Indian village. It comprised, perhaps, a dozen lodges made of skins strethed over poles. There were, besides, two or three dilapidated-looking cabins built of drift-logs, and two huge structures of te same material, used for smokin salmon. Below the villae I saw several bands of Indian horses. A number of children were playing round the lodges. There were several garden paces, rudely fenced, and two or three fields of rye and wheat stubble; the crops had been gathered." The traveller advanced to one of the largest tensts, and bodly requested the night's rest for himself and his lame horse that he needed. One of the Indians took his horse, while the other led the way to the tent: "I followed without looking back' to have expressed the least soubt, by word or sign, as to the safety of my beast or his equipents, would have been a sad breach of manners. Lifting a robe that hung over the entrance and served as a door, he motioned me to go in. I did so, and making my way to the opposite side, sat down. The ground was covered with mating, save in the centre, which was bare. The dead coals lying thre showed that this was their fireplace. There were four Indan women seated on one side of the tent. Two were quite old; one of them was busy making a wicker basket; the other, who was partly supported by sundry robes and parcels, seemed to be sick, as she was doing nothing. Of the remaining two, one was extremely homely, apparently about thirty years old, and busy plaiting matting."

A YOUNG SQUAW AND PAPOOSE.

"The fourth and last was young and ver prettyl she was nursing a little papoose, or Indian baby, and her dress and manner seemed to show that she was a invouriate. The first three were dressed in plain dark-coloured calico, with leggings made of strips of blankets, and their blankets were of the ordinary kind used by the Indians-of white, yellow, and blue stripes. All looked rather old, and decidedly dirty. Very different was the dress of the youngest squaw. It was new and very pretty calico; her leggings made of fine white doeskin, with long fringes; her mocassins were gaily ornamented with beads and sundry devices worked into them with coloured thread; while her blanket was a new one, being a bright crimson with a black border. In addition this young mother was adorned wih bracelets of some kind of metal; had several silver rings o her fingers, shell ear-rings in her ears, and a chain of shells woven through her hair. Her papoose was dressed in a single garmet none too long, but adorned with beads and bits of coloured ribbon."

WE SUP TOGETHER

"The two squaws who had been workin set about getting supper. One produced a sack of flour and sitrred up a pan of dough; the other took down a couple of dried salmon from a string of hem which hung from one o the poles of he tent. These she placed each upon a stick, and the, building a fire, set them before it to toast. Next she took down some pieces of dried meat, from which she cut a number of thin slices. The dough having been more or less kneaded, squaw number one raked ou some of the ashes, and then proceeded o divide the dough into small cakes, which she laid in the ashes to bake. Sundry preparations of dried berries were added to the repast; and having eating nothing since the morning, I am free to confess that not only had I a good apptitie, but that I found myself able to make a right good meal. Water was the only drink offered. the food was seved up on ti dishes. The two Indians and myself ate first, and the two squaws who had pepared the meal waited upon us. After we had finished the four squaws took their turn. I noticed that the youngest partook freely of the berries, while the others did not touch them."

"About nine o'clock the squaws began to make up the beds. There seemed to be an abundance of robes and blankets in the lodge, and the process of bedmaking was very simple. First, a robe was spread upon the ground, two pairs of blankets were laid upon that, another robe placed over all, and the bed was ready." One traveller spent rather a restless night on that not too easy couch, and the next morning, after duly recompensing his host and hostess, he and his horse set out on their homeward journey.

Next week we will have a chat about Coyotes of the prairies, I have some interesting stories to tell you about them.

I think it is high time for us to have

ANOTHER FISHING PARTY

What do you say? Are you ready to do a little angling? You will want somehing better than a bent pin o catc these fishes with. Try how many you can find in the following line, and I will give a small prize book to the discoverer of the most witin one week from this date.

BURIED FISHES.

Did Edith err in givin me

A cock? let others say.

Hish! rim put round a dish of eggs

With spinach, looks quite gay.

I saw a skipper on Cape Cod

Go by Him Roach's pike,

With this gilt-headed fishing rod,

To fish at Mullet's dyke.

With pipe and whiteboat he was stocked.

And whiffed the air with glee;

For he saw fishes plump and ruddy

Sailing in the sea.

Gray dawn was winking at the moon,

The stars with minnows played;

A tremor, and the great sun peeped

From out the grayling shade.

Sole dabbler in the waves this morn,

This chubby angler shakes

Again with glee. Search well, you'll see

The number that he takes.

The Historical Acrostic has been correctly gueased by Roy, Anie Spence, Theo. King, S. Lawrence, Harry Balls, Nellie Lee, Eddie King, Davie Malcolm, T. Kerr, Welsh Boy, Ethel Bary, F. Reynolds, Florence, and Kate Ross.

Wrong in one light, Spring.

LETTER BOX.

Dear Aunt Maggie,-Thank you so much for the nice prize I received this morning. It is the very thing I wanted most (two pairs of scissors in case.) I really never thought thtat I should get the prize, so it was quite a surprise to me to see my name in the Hour as the msot successful competitior.-JEANIE PICKERING.

AUNT MAGGIE.

Address all communications to--

AUNT MAGGIE (Symington),

Hunstanton, St Edmunds.