r, seated upon the back of one of the buffaloes, had plunged his
claws and teeth into him. The blood was streaming down his sides, and the
poor animal, struggling to shake him off, rushed into the midst of the
herd. This frightened the rest, and they went bellowing and dashing
through the woods. Daniel Boone raised his rifle, and sent a ball through
the panther. He fell dead. Not far off they met a pack of wolves,
following as usual in the track of the buffaloes. For the fun of seeing
them scatter, Squire now fired his rifle, and away they went, scampering
in all directions.

In due time they came to the mountains. After trying to ascend in various
places, at length they found a narrow and rugged gap, through which with
great difficulty they made their way. It was, however, the best pass they
could discover, and they blazed their track, that they might find it
again. In a little time now, Daniel Boone was again in his cabin on the
banks of the Yadkin. I need hardly say there was a joyous meeting; he was
once more happy in the bosom of his family. He had been absent nearly two
years.

Amid the joys of home, however, he did not forget his chosen spot in
Kentucky; his heart was filled with the thought that his happy home might
be happier there. As this was to be his final move, it was necessary to
settle all his business on the Yadkin; and as he had tried the
wilderness, he felt that a few trusty companions would be invaluable in
that new region. He commenced, therefore, making what he thought proper
preparations for a return. To beat up such neighbors as they desired, he
and Squire gave glowing accounts of the new country; the rich lands, the
forests, the streams, the flowers, and the game, were all talked of. They
saw only, and consequently spoke only, of the bright side of the
picture. But there were numbers of people to talk of difficulties; these
spoke of the folly of the Boones, in thinking of making such a country
their home, and the madness of any man who should think of following
them; the country was wild, and all who settled there must suffer many
privations: then, too (according to their story), it was afflicted with
terrible diseases, and they might all expect to die there, or, if they
escaped the climate, they must fall into the hands of the fierce and
cruel Indians who roamed through those forests; the place they declared
was so dangerous that it was known, wherever it was known, as "the dark
and bloody gro