Out of the Windswept Ramparts

At the turn of the 19th century, traders and fur companies resorted to riverboat transportation to foil the ever-increasing Blackfeet raiders on overland shipments. The Indians feared the "fireboats" and the guns they carried, a 12 pounder and two 8 pound swivels. But their anger outweighed their fear; they believed the riverboats harassed the herds of buffalo which forded the river. In "Out of the Windswept Ramparts," this is just such a scene. Under a storm-crossed sky, a raiding party of fierce Blackfeet warriors urges their mounts recklessly down to the riverbank. Their quarry is a riverboat laden with furs. The chief, bearing a distinctive feathered headdress, commands the warriors. The markings denote the number of successful horse raids, stripes indicate the number of coups taken, while the red painted dot with radiating lines means that the Indian had once been shot. With their weapons in hand, the warriors charge toward the enemy in a proud yet futile attempt to recapture their way of life.