
Preface.
Chapter One. - The Winter Cabin.
Chapter Two. - A Nocturnal Visitor.
Chapter Three. - A Tragedy of the Wild West.
Chapter Four. - The “Squarson” of Lant-Hanger.
Chapter Five. - The Santorexes of Elmcote.
Chapter Six. - The Indian Village.
Chapter Seven. - The Council.
Chapter Eight. - The Scalp-Dance.
Chapter Nine. - Some Old Correspondence.
A stark winter night grips the Black Hills, where a lone log cabin shelters two hardened frontiersmen. Their fire flickers against the howl of howling wolves and the relentless gale, while the distant peaks loom like silent sentinels. In this raw, frozen wilderness, the men brace against the cold and the uneasy feeling that something unseen moves beyond the storm.
The story opens with a tense exchange between the scout and his companion, each attuned to the subtle sounds of the plains—war-whoops, the cry of wolves, and the whisper of wind through pine. Their conversation reveals a deep familiarity with the land and the Native tribes that roam it, hinting at the uneasy balance between survival and the looming threat of conflict.
As the night deepens, legends of ghostly chiefs haunting the mountains surface, adding a layer of myth to the harsh reality. The opening sets a vivid, atmospheric stage for a tale of courage, cultural clash, and the untamed spirit of the Wild West.
Language
en
Duration
~7 hours (445K characters)
Publisher of text edition
Project Gutenberg
Credits
Produced by Nick Hodson of London, England
Release date
2011-07-03
Rights
Public domain in the USA.

1855–1914
An energetic late-Victorian adventure writer, he built much of his fiction around South Africa, drawing on years spent there and turning that experience into fast-moving tales of frontier life, conflict, and survival.
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