Page:Don Coronado through Kansas.djvu/369

THK CHtBF'S HKTORY. It was wlien WjiiSlbaafaari had passed his;e^j^ ieeath year that he had th« followingr experience: He ADd three other boys -had constr acted a nice canoe, withth^ idea of gfoi^g^ down the Osage river to its mouth, then up the Missouri to visit the Little Osages then located on that stream. This was not considered much of a journey, and so was easily accomplished. But on their return home, soon after entering the mouth of the Osage river, wlSfe hugging the bank as closely as possible to keep out of the swift current, all at once a flight of arrows came at them; and so sud- den and unexpected is the attack that the boys are taken completely by surprise, and two of thera drop their paddles and sink down in the canoe. Bafc our young brave hero has escaped injury as well as the other young man, who is at least two years older. And again young Wasbashas' quick perceptive facul- ties stand him in hand, for like a flash he instinctively realizes that it is a sneaking party of Padoucas, who are in hiding to kill some of his people, and before th& assailants had time to rush into the water and seize hold of his canoe he called to his companion to kneel down and paddle for dear life. Several missiles again pierced the skin of the frail craft, which has several arrows sticking through and four below the water line, thus causing quite a leak. But the boat is now in the current, and getting out of range; but by intu- ition the Padoucas realize that if they could follow, it would only be a question of time when the caaoo would fill with water; so four Indians strike out to fbUow the craft, which u now fiiirly in the middle of the stream. The sitnation is critical, not on account