The Lexington advertiser. [volume], January 07, 1904, Image 8

About The Lexington advertiser. [volume] (Lexington, Miss.) 1904-1985

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A Daughter suts Sioux
•By GEN. CHARLES KING.
Copyright, lMtt, by Tb* Hobart CompaAj.
[Continued.]
westward. Number 5 had turned up
safely, and declared that at the mo
ment the scream was heard he was
round by the flagstaff, listening
the night chorus of a pack of yelping
coyotes, afar out to the northwest,
and then he thought he heard scram
bling and running down at the foot
of the bluff just as the shots
fired. Investigation on his part was
hat took him out of sight for the
moment, and
showed that one marauder, at least.
•ay, for a capeless
to
•re
\\
later investigation
had gone that
greatcoat was found close down by
the shore, where some fugitive had
tossed it in his flight. This overcoat
bore, half-erased from
lining, the name of Citlligan, troop
but Culligan had served out his
time and taken the discharge a year
before. The other overcoat was even
ith shorter
the soiled
"K;
older, an infantry coat,
cape, bearing
"47," but no name.
a company number
Both garments
savored strongly «»f the stable.
Then, before quiet was restored,
certain search was made about th®
It was found the intruders
quarters.
had obtaineil admission through the
basement door at. the back.
But what had they taken? The sil
ver was upstairs, infaet, under Mrs.
Blake's bed; so was the little safe
in which was kepf her jewelry ami
their valuable papers. Books, bric-a
brac—everything downstairs seemed
unmolested.
No item was missing
aceustoined place. Mrs.
from its
Blake thought perhaps the intruders
had no, entered her room at all. In
as lu
were "stacks,"
Gerald's dc
said, of relics, souvenirs, trophies of
chase and
the intrinsic value of $50. \\ hat could
have been the object of their mid
night search? was the question all
asking as people
dispersed and went home the doctor
intimating it was high time that Mrs.
Blake was permitted to seek repose.
Not until In* had practically cleared
f all but her most Inii
ar, but no one thing of
Fort Frayne was
the house
mate friends, Mrs.
Ray, would Waller permit himself to
ask a question that had been upper
most in his mind ever since he heard
Dade and Mrs.
her story.
"Mrs. Blake, someone has been ran
sacking Mr. Field's quarters for let
ters or papers,
thing of that kind left by the cap
tain that—someone may have need
ed V
Nannie Blake's head was uplifted
instantly from Marion's shoulder.
She had been beginning to feel the
icaction. For one moment the three
women looked intently into
other's faces. Then up they started
and trooped away into (Jerald's den.
The doctor followed,
drawer of the big. fiat-topped desk
stood wide open, and pretty Mrs.
Blake opened her eyes and mouth in
emulation as she briefly exclaimed:
"It's gone!"
Then Waller went forthwith to the
quarters of the commander and
caught him still in conference with
his quartermaster and the guard,
four or five of ihe latter being
grouped without. The major retired
to his front room, where, with Wil
kins, he received the doctor.
"Maj. Flint," said Waller, "those
overcoats belong to Mr. Hay's stable
men, Pete and Crapaud. Will you or
der their immediate arrest?"
"I would, doctor," was the answer,
"but they are not at the corral. We
know how to account for the lioof
beats in the valley. Those scoundrels
have got nearly an hour's start, j»nd
we've nobody to send in chase. '
Then it presently appeared that the
post commander desired to continue
conference with his staff officer, for
he failed to invite the surgeon to be
seated. Indeed, he looked up into the
doctor's kindling eyes with odd mix
ture of impatience and
ment in his own. and the veteran
practitioner felt the slight; flushed
instantly, and, with much hauteur of
manner, took prompt hut ceremoni
ous leave.
as there any
\
Tlie
upper
'inbanass
And when morning came and Fort
Frayne awoke to another busy day,
as if the excitements of the night
gone by had not been enough for it,
a new story went buzzing, with the
first call for guard mount, about the
garrison; and, bigger even than yes
terday, the two details, in soldier si- i
lence, began to gather in front of the
infantry quarters. Ma j. Flint had or
dered sentries posted at the trader's
home, with directions that Mrs. Hay
was not to be allowed outside of her
gate, and no one, man or woman,
permitted to approach her from with
out, except by express permission of
the post commander,
end "Dan,
tlie trader's stable, despite the pres
ence of the sentry at the front, had
been abstained some time during the
earlier hours of tlie night, and later
traced to the ford at Stabber's old
camp, and with Pete and Crapaud,
doubtless, were gone.
That day the major wired to Omaha
that, he should be reinforced at once.
One-half hi* little force, he said, was
now mounted each day for guard,
and the men couldn't stand it. The
general, of course, was in the field,
but his chief of staff remained at
headquarters and was empowered to
order troops from post to post with
in the limits of the department. Flint
hoped two more companies could
come at once, and he did not care
what post was denuded in his favor.
His, he said, «as close to the Indian
lands—separated from them, in fact,
only by a narrow and fordable river.
The Indians were all on the warpath,
und, aware of his puny numbers,
might be tempted at nny moment to
quit the mountains and concentrate
on hint.
And so another restless day went
by and no more news came from
either front or rear—from the range
to the north or Itock Springs at the
•sMith, nod Flint was just formulating
another fervid appeal to that ioi
Gen. Harney"
the two best horses of
passive functionary, the adjutant gen
eral at Omaha, when toward evening
word came whistling down the line
in the person of Master Sanford Hay,
that«two couriers were in sight
Moccasin Ridge,
and Flint and full.v half the soldier
strength of Fort Frayne gathered on
the northward bluff like the "wan
burghers" of ancient Koine, to watch
and speed their coining. Who cotild
tell what the day might yet bring
scooting" in fr
forth?
Jt was well-nigh dark before the
foremost reached the foTd a scout in
worn and tawdry buckskin, wearied
and impassive. He gave bis dispatch
to the care of the first officer to ac
cost him, and took the way to the
store, briefly saying in reply t<> ques
tions, that lie was "too dry to speak
the truth." So they flocked, at re
spectful distance, about the major
he read the hurried lines. 'The
general bade the post copimander
wire the entire message to Washing
"take all precaution* for
►f the few settlers
The columns under Col.
ton, and I
the protection
about him.
Henry and Maj. Webb bad united
near the head waters of the ( lear
Fork of the I'mvder: had had a rat
tling running! fight with l,ame Wolfs
people; had driven them
mountains and were following- hot <>■
the trail, but that- Slabber's band and
certain disaffeeted Sioux had rut
loose from the main body and gone
Whistling Klk, a young chiei
I
In
into the
south.
of much ambition, had quarreled with
l-tain of the lied ( loud element, and
joined Stabber, with bis entire band.
Book on, for them and watch for sig
nals any day or night fr
But ,e."
Flint read with sinking heart,
dian fighting was something far too
scientific for his
and too much for his skeleton ootn
In the gathering dusk his face
re
Fagls
'duration,
a rl ial
ma nd.
looked white and drawn, and old Wil
kins, breasting bis way up the slope,
he begged for news.
dispatch,
puffed hard, as
There was still another
howe\er, which was evidently adding
to tlie major's perturbation, for it
concerned him personally and for the
ent unheard.
moment Wilkins
The general desires that* you send the
couriers back within 24 hours of their ar
rival, after you have hud time to scout
the line of the Platte say JO miles each
way, giving full report of every Indian
seen or heard of. He enjoins vigilance
and hopes to keep the Sioux so busy
that they
rection.
send no more In yo.ur di
Should they do so, however,
he will pursue at once. He trusts that
you are doing everything possible to com
fort and reassure Mrs. Hay, and that
send good news of Lieut. Field.
you ran
"He is simply fretting his heart out
here," were tlie doctor's words to
him but a short time before, "and,
while unable to mount a horse, he is
quite strong enough now to take the
trip by ambulance, slowly, that is, to
Hock Springs. I fear his father is
failing.
allowed to go. I recommend a seven
days' leave, with permission to apply
to Omaha for 30—lie'll probably need
•
I fear Field will fail if not
it.'
"I can't permit government te'ame
and ambulanees to lie used for any
such purpose," said the major, stout
ly. "It is distinctly against orders."
"Then, sir, lie can go in my spring
wagon and we'il hire mules from Mre.
Hay," was the doctor's prompt reply.
"He can do no good here, major. He
may do much good there."
But Flint was full of information
and official zeal. The matter of
Field's going had been broached be
fore, and. when told of it, the Wilkins
pair had been prompt with their pro
tests. "Of course he'd be wantin' to
get away," said Wilkins, "wid all that
money to account for, let alone these
other things." The Irishman was hot
against the young West Pointer, who
had derided him. He doubtless be
lieved his own word*. He never
dreamed how sorely the lad now
longed to see his father—how deep
was his anxiety on his father's ac
count—how filled with apprehension
on hi* own. for that rifled desk had
brought him reason for th* most
painful thought. Wilkins and Field
had been antagonistic from the start.
Neither could see good in the other,
and, egged on by his worthy spouse'*
exhortations, the quartermaster had
siezed the opportunity to fill the
post, commander's too receptive mind
with all his dTvn suspicions—and this
at a crucial time,
^ cant listen to it. Dr. Waller."
* aifl the ™aj«i\ sternly,
niat-ter of near $1,000 that young man
,,aK £ ot tn answer for the moment he
well enough to stir. And if he
can't account for it—you well know
what my duty will demand."
'Here's a
CHAPTER X7X
The columns of Col. Henry and Maj.
Webb, as said "tlie chief," had united,
-ad here were two men who could he
counted on to push the pursuit "for
all they were worth." Hitherto, act
ing in the open country and free from
encumbrance, the Indians had been
hard to reach. Now they were being
driven into their fastnesses among
the mountains toward the distant
shelter whither their few wounded
had been conveyed, and where the
old men, tlie women and children
were in hiding. Now it meant that,
unless the troops could be confronted
and thrown back another transfer of
teepes and travois, ponies and dogs,
wounded and aged would have to he
be made. Lame Wolf had thought his
people safe behind the walls of the
Big Horn, and the shifting screen of
warriors along the foothills, but the
blue skirmish lines pushed steadily
on into the fringing pines driving the
feathered brave* from ridge to ridge,
and Lame Wolf had sense enough to
see that here were leaders that
"meant business," and would not lie
held. Henry had ten veteran troops
at his baek when he united with.
Webb, who led his own and the Beech
er squadron, making lfl companies, or
troops, of horse, with their psek
mules, all out at the front, while the
wagon twin and ambulances were
thoroughly gunrued by a big battalion
of sturdy infantry, nearly all of them
good marksmen against tirliose spite
ful Springfield* the warriors made
only one essay in force, and that wai
more than enough. The bluecoutu
emptied many an Indian saddle and
strewed the prairie with ponies, and
sent Whistling Elk and his people to
the right about in sore dismay, and
then it dawned on Lame Wolf that lie
must now either mislead the eavalry
leader, throw him off the track, as it
were, or more the villages, wounded,
prisoners and all, across the Big Horn
river where hereditary f Of men, Sho
shone and Absaraka would surely
welcome them red-handed.
It was at this stag£ of the game
he had his final split with Stabber.
Slabber was shrewd, and saw uner
ringly that with other columns out,
from ( uster on the Little Horn and
Washakie on the Wind river-—with
reinforcements coining from north
:ind south, the surrounding of the
Sioux in arms would be but a matter
of time. He had done much to get
l ame Wolf into the scrape and now
was urging hateful measures as, un
less they were prepared for further
and heavier losses, the one way out,
and that was—surrender.
Now, this is almost the last thing
the Indian will do. Not from fear df
consequences at the hands of his cap
tors, for he well knows that physical
ly, he is infinitely better off when
being coddled by Uncle Ham than when
fighting in the field. It is simply the
loss of prestige among his fellow red
men that he hates and dreads. There
fore, nothing short of starvation
or probable annihilation prompts
him, as a rule, to yield himself a
prisoner.
And this was the situation wlien
the general's first dispatches were
sent in to Frayne- this the last news
,o reach the garrison from the dis
tant front for five long days, ami then
one morning, when the snow was sift
ing softly down, there came tidings
that thrilled the little community,
heart and soul—tidings that were
heard with mingled tears and prayers
and rejoicings, and that led to many a
visit of congratulation to Mrs. Hay,
who, poor woman, dare not say at.
fl'e moment that she had known it
all as much as LM hours earlier.despite
the fact that I'ete and Crapaud were
banished from the roll of her auxili
urie*.
Even as the new couriers came
speeding through Ihe veil of falling
flakes, riding jubilantly over tlie wide
rolling prairie with their news of vic
tory and battle, the post commander
at Fort Frayne was puzzling over a
missive that had come to him, he
knew not how-—mysteriously as the
anarchists' warnings are said to find
their.war to the very bedside of the
guarded Romanoffs. Sentry Number
4 had picked it up on his post an hour
before the dawn a letter addressed
in bold hand to Maj. Stanley Flint,
commanding Fort Frayne, and, pre
suming the major himself had
dropped it, he turned it over to the
corporal of his relief, and so it found
its way toward reveille into the hands
of old Medann. wheezing about Ids
work of building fires, and Michael
laid it on the major's table and
thought no more about it until two
hours later when the major roused
and read, and then a row began that
ended only with the other worriei
of his im-timbeiK-y at Frayne.
Secretly Flint was doing his heat to
discover the hearer when rame the
hold riders from the north with their
thrilling news. Secretly, he had beet-,
over at the guard-house interviewing
«s lies, lie could, by tlie aid of an
unwilling clerk who spoke a little
.Sioux, a young Indian girl whom
iT-aliW's eonvaleseen, squad, four in
number, had most unexpectedly run
down when sent scouting five miles
up the I'iatte, ami brought, scream
ing. scratching and protesting, back
to Frayne. Her pony had been killed
in the dash to escape, and the two In
dians with her seemed to he young
lads not ye, well schooled as war
riors. for they rode away pellinell
over the prairie, leaving tlir girl
to the mercy of tlie soldiers.
Flint believed her to he connect
ed in some way with the coming
of the disturbing note, which was wily
he compelled tier detention at the
guaid-house. Under Webb's regime,
she would have been questoned by
Hay. or some one of his household.
Under Flint, no one of Hay's family
or retainers con hi lie allowed to see
her. Me regarded it as most sig
nificant Ilia, her shrillest screams amt
fiercest resistance should have been
reserved until just as her guardians
were hearing her past the trader'*
house. She had the light little prison
room to herself all that wintry morn
ing. ami there, disdainful of bunk or
chair, enveloped in her blanket, she
squatted disconsolate, greeting all
questioners with defiant and fearless
shruggings and inarticulate protest.
.Not a syllable of explanation, not a
shred of news could their lies, en
deavors wring from her. Vet hei
glittering eyes were surely in search
of some one. for she looked up eager
ly every lime I lie door was opened,
and Flint was jus, beginning to think
lie would have to send for Mrs. Hay
when tlie courier* came with thei.
stirring news and he had to drop
other affairs in order to forward "this
important matter to headquarters.
Once again, it seems. Trooper Ken
nedy had been entrusted witli dis
tinguished duty, for it was he who
i-ame trotting foremost up the road,
waving his dispatch on high. A com
rade from Blake's troop, following
through the ford, had turned to the
left and led hia horse up the steep to
the quarters nearest the flag-staff.
This time there was no big-hearted
post commander to bid the Irishman
refresh )iin,seif ail libitum. Flint whs
• lone at his office, a, the moment, and
knew not this strange trooper, and
looked askance a, his heterodox garb
and war-worn guise. Such laxity,
said he to himself, win not permitted
where tie had hitherto served, which
was never on Indian campaign. Ken
nedy. having delivered his dispatches,
stood mutely rxpectant of question,
and struggling. with an Irishman's
enthusiastic eagerness to tell the de
tails of th* heavy fight. But Flint had
but one method of getting at facts—
the official reports and Kennedy
stood unnoticed u^til, impatient at
last, he queried:
"Beg pardon, air, but may we put
up our horses?"
"Wlio'a _w*r\ aalsad the major.
\
bluntly. "And wkere are the others?
"Trigg, sir—Capt. Blake's troop.
He went to the captain's quarters
with a package "
"He should hate reported himself
first to the post commander,'' said the
major, who deemed it advisable to
make prompt, impression on these
savage hunters of *a\age game.
"Thiiu wasn't his ordhers, suit,"
said Kennedy, with zealous, hut mis
guided loyalty to his comrades and
bis regiment.
"No one has h right, sir, to give
orders that are contrary in spirit to
the regulations and customs of tin
service," answered ti)<* commander,
with proper austerity. •'Mr. Wilkins,"
he continued, as the '» y quarter
master came bustling in. "have the
other trooper sent to report at once
to me and let this man wait outside
till I am ready to see him."
And so it happened that a dozen
mernl>ers of the garrison gathered,
from the lips of a participant, stir
ring particulars of a spirited chase
and fight that set soldiers to cheer
ing and women and children to ex
travagant scenes of rejoicing before
the official head of the garrison gave
out the news. Kennedy had taken
satisfaction for the commander's
slights by telling the tidings broad
cast to the crowd that quickly gath
ered, and, in three minutes, the word
was flying from lip to li)) that the
troops had run down Lame Wolf's
main village after an all-day. all-night
rush to head them off, and that with
y small loss they had been able to
capture many of the families and to
scatter the warriors among the hills.
In brief, while Henry, with the main
body, had followed tlie trail of the
fighting band, Webb bad been de
tached, and, with two squadrons, had
ridden hard after a Shoshone guide,
who led them by a short cuty thr
the range and enabled them to pounce
on the village where were most of
Lame Wolf's non-combatants, guard
ed only by a small party of warriors,
and, while Capts. Hillings and Hay,
with their troops, remained in charge
of these captives, Webb, with Blake
and the others, had pushed on in
pursuit of certain braves who had
scampered into the thick of the hills,
carrying a few of the wounded and
prisoners with them. Among those
captured, were Mr. Hay anil ( rapnud.
Among those who had been spirited
away was Nanette Flower. This
seemed strange and unaccountable.
And yet Blake had found time to
write to his winsome wife to send
her an important missive and most
important, bit of news. It was with
these site came running in to Mrs.
Hay before the latter had time to
half read the long letter received
from her soldier husband, am.1 we
take the facts in the order of theii
revelation.
gl
j
|
Think of it, Madie,
she cried,
"Think of it! (Jerald's first words,
Almost, are, 'Take good care of that
pouch and contents.* and now pouch
and contents are gone! Whoever
dreamed that they would be of such
consequence? He says the newspaper
will explain."
And presently the two bonny heads
were bent over Jhe big sheets of a
dingy, grimy copy of a Philadelphia
daily, and there, on an inner page,
heavily marked, appeared a strange
item, and this Quaker City journal
had been picked up in an Ogallala
camp. The item read as follows:
AN UNTAMED SIOUX.
The authorities of the Carlisle School
and the police of Harrisburgh
ing high and low for a young Indian
known to the records of the Academy
Ralph Moreau, but borne on the pay
rolls of Buffalo Bill's Wild West aggre
gation as Eagle Wing—a youth who is
credited with having given the renowned
scout-showman more trouble than all his
braves, bronchos and "busters" thereof
combined. Being of superb physique and
a daring horseman, Moreau had been for
given many a peccadillo, and had fol
lowed the fortunes of the show two con
secutive summers until Cody finally had
to get rid of him as an intolerable nui
sance. •
It seems that when a lad of 18, "Eagle
Wing" had been sent to Carlisle, where
he ran th* gamut of scrapes of every
conceivable kind. He spoke English
picked up about the agencies; had influ
ential friends and, in some clandestine
way, received occasional supplies of
money that enabled film to take French
leave when he felt like it. He was sent
back from Carlisle fib Dakota as irre
claimable. and after a year
his native heath, reappeared among the
haunts of civilisation as one of Buffalo
Bill s warriors. Bill discharged him at
Cincinnati and, at the instance of the
Indian bureau, he was again placed at
Carlisle, only to repeat
his earlier exploits and secure
transfer to the plains where his oppor
tunities for devilment were limited. Then
Cody was induced to take him on again
by profuse promises of good behavior,
which were kept until Pennsylvania soil
was reached two weeks ago, when he
broke loose again; was seen in store
clothes around West Philadelphia xfor a
few days, plentifully supplied with
money, and next he turned up in the
streets of Carlisle, where he assaulted
■n attache of the school, whose life wa.s
barely saved by the prompt efforts of
other Indian students. Moreau escaped
to Harrisburgh which he proceeded to
paint with his favorite color that very
night, and wound up the entertainment
by galloping away on the horse of a
prominent official, who had essayed to
escort him back to Carlisle. It is be
1 laved that ha 1* now in hiding some
where about the suburbs of West Phila
delphia, and that an Innate propensity
for devilment will speedily betray him
td the clutches of the law.
A few moments after reading this
oddly interesting story the two
friends were in consultation with
Mrs. Dade, who, in turn, called in
Dr. Waller, just returning from tlie
hospital and n not too satisfactory
visit to Mr. Field. There had been a
slight change for the better in the
condition of (Jen. Field that had en
abled Dr. Lorain, of Fort Hgssell,
and a local physician to arrange for
his speedy transfer to Cheyenne.
This had in a measure relieved the
anxiety of Waller's patient, but
never yet had the veteran practition
er permitted him to know that he
was practically a prisoner as well as
a patient. Waller feared the result
on so high-strung a temperament,
and had made young Field believe
that, when strong and well enough
to attempt the journey, he should be
sent to Rock Springs. Indeed, Dr
Waller had no intention of submit
ting to Maj. Flint's decision as final.
He had written personally to the
medical director of the department,
acquainting him with the. facts, und,
meanwhile, had withdrawn himself
as far
cially. from the limited circle in
which moved Ida perturbed command
ing officer.
He was at a distant point of the
garrison, therefore, and listening to
the excited and vehement comments
of the vomwrw of the three women
hunt
two on
a larger scale
second
possible, officially and so
0 I upon tins strange newspaper story,
|and its possible connection with
tii*' iu<uu**ut
to
matters at Frayn \ .it
when a dramatic j iu*
was being
guard-i
•ted .
helm d.
i>i". a i I
•r nl
when
li -tellers
little g; 'Ml
•f eng'!
a of tlic trader's
I*ink N..irlnc. factoi
forth from tin*
h
store, cj
adjutant > oi ..t.
by M. . Flint. A .
Huy tint w.iile i *.
to visit t!i
er th • » < k. "I
over under suitable an
til s
followed
toll Mrs.
>t permit Iter
prisoner," lit ♦•ailed all
rill send the girl
to
M -.
T<
icrely
im! went on.
shrugged i D
lie fancied Flint no more Hum did
the relics of the original gunison.
A little later Flint person:.!!y g.r
an order to the ♦•! ..ut of ib guard
and then ea
First there
•re stifled sounds
scuffle from the interior of th
guard-house; then shrill, wrathful
screams; then a v* -man's voice up
lifted in wild upbruidings in fin
known tongue, at sound of v ic
Trooper Kennedy dropped his reii
anil his jaw. stood staring on min
ute; then, with the exelan.it
"Mother of (Jod, but 1 kno\
e commotion.
woman!" burst his way
crowd and ran toward the old I
blockhouse at the gate—the te . u
ry post of the guard. .J ; !
turned the corner of the '» ii:
almost stumbling a
commander.
forth from ili * dark inter!
t'»• .
ion ng
woman- of ti t* • ioiia. < ;-i
raging, and. breaking loose* fro: i .
grasp of the tw
who had her bv the arms, away she
darted down the road, still scream
ing like some infuriated child, and
rushed straight for the open gate
way of the Hay's. Of <•«
hastened in pursuit, the major shout
Stop her! Catch her!
men striving to appear to
shirking the feat of seizing the flee
ing woman. Fa new then, the amaze
; lg. la ;
soldiersi
luckless
and the
•se the guard
ing
ey, yet
of the swiftly following spectators
loot- was
thrown wide open and Mrs. May her
self sprung forth. Another instant
and the two women hud met at me
gate. Another instant still, and,
with one motherly arm twining about
the quivering, panting, pleading girl
and straining her to the motherly
heart. Mrs. Hay's right hand and
artn Hew up in' the superb gesture
known the wide frontier over us the
Indian signal.-Halt!" And halt they
ther's son save Ken
.f tlie
And
trmler's front
lien the
did, every
nedy, who sprang t
girl and faced the men in blue,
then another woman's voice,
the side
deep, ringing, powerful, fell on tie
ears of the amazed, swift-gut lu ring
throng, with the marvelous order:
"Stand where you are! You shan't
touch a hair of her head! She's n.
chief's daughter. She's my own kin,
find I'll answer for her to the general
himself. As for you." she
turning now
at the astounded Flint, all the p* nt
and glaring
st might
*
i
r.r
,V \ya n'.'tQ -
/■'
S
■-.a
'7
■ pL/j
Li) nl
'UVv
f I. I
: T p
if ^
i
I
\
j:
*- in ,
TjhV'J
A
•MRS. HAY'S RIGHT HAND AND ARM
FLEW UP IN THE SUPERB
TURK KNOWN THE WIDE FRON
TIER OVER AS THE INDIAN SIG
NAL, 'HALT!' "
up sense of wrath, indignity, slu
and wrong overmastering any
thought of prudence or of "the di
vinity that doth hedge" the com
manding 1 officer, "As for you," she
cried, "1 pity you when our own get
God help you, Stanley
Flint, the moment my husband sets
eyes on you. D'you know the mes
sage that came to trim this day?"
And now the words rang louder and
clearer, as she addressed the throng.
"I do, and so do officers and gentle
men who'd be shamed to have to
nhake hands with such as he.
got my husband's note about him
now, and what my husband wrote
was this—T charge myself with every
dollar you charge to Field, and with
the further obligation of thrashing
you on sight'—and, mark you, he'll
do it!"
back again!
CHAPTBH XX.
In the hush of tlie wintry night,
under a leaden sky, with snowflakes
falling thick and fast and mantling
tlie hills in fleecy white, Webb's col
umn had halted among the* sturdy
pines, the men exchanging muttered,
low-toned query and comment, tin
horses standing with bowed heads,
occasionally pawing the soft cover
let and sniffing curiously at ttiis tilm
ly barrier to the bunch grass they
sought in vain. They had feasted
together, these comrade troopers
and chargers ere the stin went down
—the men on abundant rations of
agency bacon, flour and brown sugar,
found with black tailed deer and
mountain sheep in abundance in the
captured village, and kited out by
supplies from the pack' train the
horses on big "blankets" of oats set
before them by sympathetic friends
and masters. Then when the skies
were fairly dark. Webb had ordered
little fires lighted all along the bank
of the stream, leaving the men of
Ray's and Billings' troops to keep
them hlnzing through the long night
watches to create the impression
among the lurking Sioux that tlie
whole force was still there, guard
ing the big village it had captured in
the early afternoon, and then, in
silenee, the troopers had saddled and
jogged away into the heart of the
hills, close on the heels of their
guides.
h;i<I be«*n little time to look
tin interest
'
i
The
»r the raptures. The i
• nl both Oilin' 1 s and uini, of
vas found
centered in Mr. Huy,
it* of the t
r ihtriile 1
ran c fr a r-*v«T
4 rung i;. . i • u I e:\ii. -ine'nt.
ill
a j i
i
1
from
1 had lalcr ti<
d
>. than
in*'* th'*m of the health ;
1 little
n what was
own, li » " "hold. One
'stiru he asked: Did
if them know this new Mnj.
Well, find heh) Flint,
! could as
i safef\ of their \
but would not tell the
I sir
111
any ♦
Flint '
No**
g'd hold of him.
I if ♦ •*. t h»\ Hn\
"He's delirious." whispered Webb,
j
•
♦ i .
onviet u:
I firm rone nwny
lea' in -r him to
Three miles out, on the tortnuu.*
! trail of the pursued,
| l :*!t»<l mid dismounted among tre'
! eu
w'
:
tin 1
nui I
an I Bilii
iiiur.
pines. Then there was a brief confer
the
word
"Mount
vas
and
ispered
along the Beecher squad
!'hiHe's men stood fast.
1
1 |
ron.
With a | ar.in
of tin* hand
had rm.-n'd 1
and ills
for, ' >i m.i.'ih tin* Indiun trail
listing ravines
make
fellows to
g ■ f ills;
i»f the
t!i
u-'-h
all
detour
head olV tin*
r.' •.
i- arch.
deteri
•M.rs before they
oenn a captive among the Sinus
through long years
and knew the Big li
Webb did the l
nl 1 is boyhood,
it Kanae as
lanhs of the Wabash,
stand off a thorn-ami sol
guide, "if
the r■ They'd have
•Nov then-'s pi utly - mw."
• to fol
'They et
diers," said tin
go t\ in,
gone there
! no water.
the.
fir.- t on
So Blake's i n.
;
low the]
them feel they tv
wit bout
to let
pushing,
j yet by no mean- to h- ti n i 1
j if tlie general s [it
1 to lie all lie promised
j 'Aeblj
j io l il lK r( *
l>1 ' lirsl at t .' ,R 1 , v
j 1 *' Pn wou '" - * *' 1 ' retr.-at ing *
• sio " x - hamperetl by their few wound- i
certain prisoners whom tin y
Jl <'nmied |,-tween roeky '
I hpi P nts "" every side, and sturdy:
*™„en front and rear.
j H was eight by the watch at the
| P a, l* n ff il ,e ' Vi D '- ^ uas 8F10
I " ,ltm B,alt c
I
ed
>ri tf*
Seoul, pr<
a.-. i*tiitle and
-■loly
!lll
ni ;;ht ridin
at I»reak of
to
*
!
the trail, with
•ants Sehreiher and Winsur, the
lat ter bo it
retook
Se:
I from Huy. far i
tin
!
Even had tin*
ound been hard
keen-eyed
soldier j
scouts c
almost as unerringly ns the 1 ml
Id have foil
:is
ns,
•s of ex
for each had had 1
perjence all
st; but, de- j
spite the steadily failing snow, the r
traces of hoofs and. for a time, of
ver t
1
'a I
•
travois poles con
and followed in tin dim
the blanketed ikies,
aloft, above the film of cloud, tin*
very moon was shining, am) Hint was ;
more than enc
light o
mewhere I
illumination
mcn of their years on the trail.
For over an limit-. BlakeP followed
the winilinps of a ravine that grew
closer anil steeper as it burrowed
re uu
inf
tlie hills.
Old game trails
good ns turnpikes in the eyes of the
plainsman. It was when the ravine
m-gaii to s;
t into branches
i
problem i*
cm,
had not
fleece lain two j
vhite
inches deep on
the level when "Lo"
ado I-i.- ■ dusii I 1 l-SCHt u\
•ion were merely rounded over by
and ruts and depressions Jed on from
midnight Blake I'd, s
•e tilt: quarry
could he I,nt a few miles ahead and
Bear Cliff barely live hours march
ly. the signal
down tiio
(*ni
long, dark, sinuous column of twos*
and every man slipped out of saddle,
some of
numb
staiuphii
were their feet. * With
air had grown keen
every mile the
er and colder.
They were glad
lien l a: next wi ld
whispered was, "Load on!" instead of
"Mount."
By this time they v/ereCfar up
among the pine-fringed height^with
the broad valley of the llig Dorn
lying outspread lo the west, invisible
its the stars above, and neither by
ringing shot nor winged arrow had
the letiders known the faintest
check.
It seemed as
though the
Indians, in their desperate effort to
carry off the most important or val
ued of their e.ha
bending
•xpedi!ing the
all their energies
letreat. Time cik-: w-h to turn on ti,♦ ■
> ■
pi
f'U
closed about them
ed were safe in the fsmtuej.ses and
the pursuers far from Mippo; is. But
nt the foot of a steep ascent, the two
leading scouts—rival sergeants of
rival troops but devoted friends for
nearly twenty years—were seen b\
the next in column, a single corporal
followed them nt thirty yards <iis
v!n*n the
vo und
a
in
some dark object by the wayside.
i again.
. i i- inch coverlet
hat met the eyes of
the silently trudging command us it
followed.
.i.-|;d
nniiei- n
I on - .
of snow was
Tin li!gh-peak.-d
noth'll
saddle tree was still "cinched" to the
Fitter the in
stiffening cnrcasi
tlians were pushed for time or over
stocked with saddlery. Presently
there came a low whistle from the
milltary "middleman" between the
scouts and a little advance guard.
"Him ahead." growled the sergeant
commanding to his boy trumpeter,
i* me Mini* reins." \nd lea'big
'(ii
tiong up the winding trail; got his
message and waited,
tlie captain,
by Sehreiher. and '-this'' was a mitten
of Inffian tanned buckskin, soft and
warm, if unsightly, a niitten too
small for * warrior's hand,, if ever
ar one a mlt
"(jive this to
us the word sent hack
warrior deigned t(
ten the
plain examined curiously,
as he ploughed yhciid of Ids main
body, and then turned to his subal
tern with a grin on his face:
"Boaitty draws ua with a single
hair," said lie, "and can't shake us
even when, she giu-s us the mitten,
Ross," lie added, after a moment's
thought, "remember this. With this
gang there nre two or three sub
chiefs that wc should get, alive or
dead, but the chief end of man, so
far as
to c
"K" Troo|fi concerned, Is
apt lire that girl, unharmed.**
gray and wan
And just at dawn,
and pallid it could hardly be told
ft un the pale moonlight of the ear
|i, r hour . the dark, snake-like col
lulled again, nine mills
id r. 1 1• •.• u.Hided heiir'its.
With Hear < iitl till nut of range and
daH't, .something' had stopped the
and i ;ik<' was needed at the
I found Sehreiher crouching
•. gazing warily
forward along a southward-sloping
if the mountain that was
sparsely covered with tail, straight
I inos. :• i l ':: 1 1 faded into mist a few
hundri
was
furl tier in
BC<
front,
at the foot of a tr«
The trail—the
!. ii.it is—seemed to go
tight away eastward, and, for a
»rt distune* . downward through a
hollow or depression; while, up the
mountain side to the left, the north,
shoulder, there
•ign.« of hoof trucks, half alieet
nway.
ed by the new-fallen snow, and
through this fresh, fleecy mantlet
ploughed the trooper boots in rude,
insistent pursuit. The sergeant's
horses were held by a third soldier
a few yards buck behind the spur,
for Winsor was "side scouting
t lie heights.
Hie snowfall jiad ceased for a time.
Tlie light was growing broader every
mom vij and presently a soft whistle
:[ somewhere up the steep, and
"He wants us,
: r." was all lie said, and in five min
s they had found him, sprawled on
lus stomach on a projecting ledge,
and pointing southeastward, where,
boldly outlined against the gray of
Hie morning sky, a black and beetling
precipice towered from the mist
wreathed pines at its base. Bear (liff
beyond a doubt!
"How far, sergeant?" asked the
captain, never too reliant on his pow
ers of judging distance.
miles, sir, at least; yet some
three or four Indians have, turned off
hero and gone somewhere up there."
And, rolling half over, Winsor pointed
again toward a wooded bluff, perhaps
I half a mile away.
•"That's probably the best lookout
this side of the cliff itself!" he con
tinned, in explanation, as he saw the
up
■ reiber a u. . red.
Fit
. . . . , , - , .
1 " ' ° 1 ' " '' I ' t, " n s faw *
t1l "T„ At
lp V ' 111 l<,ei " t .he one i.it
. A" .T. h,,,' , H It
Zl n A ' , ' , I
:„*'* » ' * 1
Th
him by this
time, Blake and Sehreiher, among the
stunted cedars that grew thickly
Winsor, flat
is stomach, sprawled like
a squirrel close to the brink. Every
skies grew brighter
the panorama before, them became
more extensive, u glorious sweep of
highland scenery, of boldly tossing
ridges east and south and west—tlie
ere crawling t
y
along Ihe rocky ledge.
inin
;>ment as the
trees all
the
itli nature's ermine, and
witji myriad gems, tak
ing fire at Hu* first touch of the day
god's messenger, as the mighty king
himself burst his link) of circling
slopes all*
tipped,
studded
main led,
lipfeKS
PI
- K
pypISvi
iipgvT r . 7 -&***
I,
i
W '' 3
"Zl
i
A3
>
T
mi
■
mm
V
>
S
'V*-.
- '*/
V,
'HE FOUND SCHREIBER CROUCH
ING AT THE FOOT OF A TREE GAZ
ING WARILY FORWARD."
cloud and came peering over the low
eiirtain far at the eastward horizon,
('nill and darkness and shrouding va
por vanished all in a breath as lie
rose, dominant over countless leagues
wild, unbroken, yet magnificent
mountain landscape.
"Worth every hour of watch and
mile of climb!" muttered Blake. "But
it's Indians, not scenery, we're after.
What are We here for. Winsor?" and
narrowly In* eyed Ray's famous right
bower.
"if the major got there first, sir—
and I believe In* did—they have to
send the prisoners and wounded back
this way."
"Then we've got
broke in
Schreiber, low-toned, but exultant.
'em!
"Look, sir," he added, ns he pointed
along the rang-e. "They are signaling
now."
From the wooded height 1,000 yards
away, curious little puffs v of smoke,
one following another, were sailing
straight for the zenith, arid Blake,
screwing his field glasses to the fo
cus, swept with them the mountain
side toward the five-mile distant
c-lifi', and presently the muscles about,
mouth began to twitch—sure sign
with Blake of gathering excitement.
"Vou'fe right, sergeant,
tntly spoke, repressing the desire to
shout, and striving, lest Winsor
should lie moved to invidious compari
sons, to seem as imnchalentj as Billy
Kay himself. "They're coming back
already." Then down the mountain
side he dove to plan and prepare ap
propriate welcome, leaving Winsor
the glasses to keep double-pow
ered watch on the situation.
Six-fifty of a glorious, keen Novem
morning, and 60 troopers of tlie
regiment were distributed along
spur that crossed, almost, at right
angles, the line of the Indian trail.
•Sixty fur-capped, rough-coated fel
lows, with their short brown carbines
hand, crouching behind rocks and
fallen trees, keeping close to
warned to utter silence. Behind
them, 200 yards away, their horses
were huddled under charge of their
disgusted guards, envious of their fel
lows at the front, and cursing hard
their luck in counting off as number
(Continued on page 5.)
he pres
cover