Here and there little flocks of ravenous birds were sailing and
screaming above those spots where some heavy-footed Teton had met his
death, but every other sign of the recent combat had passed away. The
river was to be traced far through the endless meadows, by its
serpentine and smoking bed; and the little silvery clouds of vapour,
which hung above the pools and springs, were beginning to melt in air,
as they felt the quickening warmth, which, pouring from the glowing
sky, shed its bland and subtle influence on every object of the vast
and unshadowed region. The prairie was like the heavens after the
passage of the gust, soft, calm, and soothing.
It was in the midst of such a scene that the family of the squatter
assembled to make their final decision, concerning the several
individuals who had been thrown into their power, by the fluctuating
chances of the incidents related. Every being possessing life and
liberty had been afoot, since the first streak of grey had lighted the
east; and even the youngest of the erratic brood seemed conscious that
the moment had arrived, when circumstances were about to transpire
that might leave a lasting impression on the wild fortunes of their
semi-barbarous condition.
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