José — page 107: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

100 : JOSE. CHAPTER VII. THE SURPRISE. The youth came toward them with the speed of a swallow, and Wood, noticing that the wagons had come toa halt, had just reached the head of the train, when he heard the former exclaim: “Halt! Getready! The Indians!” For a moment the wagon-boss seemed disinclined to credit the evil news, but in another instant he received indubitable proof. On the crest of four or five elevations before him suddenly appeared a number of Indian horsemen who, after a momen- tary pause, as suddenly disappeared. Wood now instantly commanded the wagons to be formed into a park, but before the work was fully completed, troops of mounted Indians began to hurl themselves from the various elevations all around upon the wagons with such fury that had the attack been promptly carried out and with the same energy, the defenders of the train would hardly have had time to fire a shot. It seemed, however, that their chief purpose was to display the superiority of their num- bers, create a panic, and temporarily prevent the formation of the wagons into a defensive barricade, With fearful yells the leaders began to encircle the caravan, brandishing their lances or tomahawks, until the draught-animals reared wildly in their harness and the men seemed to have lost all control of them. It appeared only a matter of choice for — the Indians, growing” 1a numbers each moment, to Eomichbooks.Gco