Litchfield enquirer., 1872-03-28

Tn a moment the combatants were loos- ed, and all eyes turned to the ne"-co"
 The diseuised Lieut.. Fallon looked and turned faint. He knew what tnls VAsa' meant. if no one else did ssConductor," shouted the leader or tIe troop sswe are here in search Of blne oacA' the noted desperado accused oI tne aI temnted murder of Lieutenant Fallon ol the limited States army, whom he, bru- tally attacked and flung into the peep Canyon as dead. The lieutenant IS now at Fort Kearney, in O critical condluon, and we demand his would be murderer
 The emigrants had listened with breath less amazement to the announcement oi the officer in charge of the small detacn- ment of troops. They were actually spell
 bound. Not so the person most mterest- ed ill the announcement-Blue Jack hiin- self r.g,,,
 The desperate had comprehended the errand of the troops in the first moment of their appearance. After his first sen- | sation of faintness and terror, he had re- covered his coolness and courage, and was himself again.
 At the very commencement of the of- ficer's announcement Blue Jack exchang
 ed glances with the terrified and covering
 Burk. The latter pointed one trembling
 finger over his shoulder to spot at lit
 tie distance, where Blue Jacks horse
 stood grazing, saddled for use.
 In an instant the chief desperado darted
 under the wagons toward the waiting
 horse He reached him and leaped upon
 his back
 And in the next moment that desperate
 rose gracefully in his stirrups at the dis
 tance of few rods, and with the fierce defiant yell of wild Indian, dashed his spurs into his horses side, and was away
 like the wind. -.-... The troops gave an answering yell of
 surprise and anger, and the officer in com , mand led the swift pursuit.
 Blue Jack had the advantage of good . start, and was splendedly mounted, his horse being a seasoned animal, born and bred on the plains, and endowed with
 great life and spirit
 , Blue Jack laughed aloud as the strong
 animal bore him onward as if he had been
 8 feathers weight. He rose again in his
 stirups, and shouted back defantly: "Come on. Take Blue Jack ifyou canr' } The pursuing officer shouted to the out law to surrender, but the only reply was } mocking laugh. The officer then fired
 shot at the fugitive, but the bullet missed its mark, and Blue Jack, bending low to 7 his horses neck, and digging the spurs
 1lIO tuS du1IlH1 SlU6S, swept on ana away with the rush of tornado.
 And after him swept the pursuers.
 The emigrants watched the pursuit with } breathless interest until the foremost fig ] ure upon the powerful Indian steed had
 passed beyond their line of vision. } During the confusion Bnrk escaped also.
 At nightfall they halted upon the south } bank of the Platte, and were at supper around their fires when the troops were , seen to approach, weary and dispirited- f without their prisoner.
 ''The fellow has escaped us" said the 5 officer.
 ''You held on to the chase well, Lieu tenant, said the conductor:
 7 ''I can't bear to go back to the fort
 without him, was the quick reply. l '"There's excitement all through the fort. v Poor Fallon was nearly murdered and 3 was left for dead. He was flung over in- g tosDeep Canyon, and happened to lodge in clump of bushes. There he cane to himself, an hour or more afterward, and, } more dead than alive, he climb d up to the
 ground above, and fell down in a dead faint. A party was immediately organ f lzed, and sent in pursuit of the outlaw.
 The next day they encountered the par ty of soldiers that had been sent ill pur- suit of Blue Jack. They had found no . trace of the desperate or his companion ''No use looking for Blue Jack" said the officer In charge of the party, address ing Landlord. '"There has been a party , of Sioux about this quarter for few days past, and no doubt Blue Jack has fallen
 Tn with them. The party is hardly largo enough to attack your train, and I un- derstand they have gone up toward Da- , kOtah. Blue Jack has an Indian wife
 somewhere up there.
 Upon the second day after leaving Fort McPherson, the emigrants made their midday halt in a grove of cotton-woods. upon the bank of the south fork of the
 Platte, at its junction with wide, tree
 fringed river which descended from north ward, and here they concluded to settle,
 The site of the village was selected ex- actly at the junction of two rivers. upon n low bluff overlooking the two streams. Then public square was carefully laid
 out with mathematical exactness.
 Then each mans lot was assigned him. , Mark Hebers was next to Whitman's.
 on the eastern side of the square, facing
 west, and his future garden ran back to
 the edge of the low bluff
 Mark Heber did Q mans work, and from
 the first day of this hard toll Whitman ceased to class the youth among the boys. In the course of week, eight strong
 log-houses, each story in height, and pierced with loop-holes, and each provid-
 ed with 8 single capacious chimney. were
 finished, and fronted the little naked square. ..
 Mark Hebers house was simply arrane. ed, built upon the plan generally adopted Oy the settlers. There were but two rooms, one being entered through the oth-
 er The inner room was to be Gays. The outer room was to be parIor dinine,-
 room, kitchen, library, and Marks bed 1 room. ..,. s
 '"The house is your province, Gay"
 said the youth, upon the morning after
 the house was finished. 'T shall leave you to furnish it and transform it into 4
 home while l work upon the stock.
 ade. you need my help when the stockade and block-house are finished,
 will turn myself into house-carpenter. sha'nt need you, sir" said Gay
 saucily. "You attend to the farm. and leave the house to me"
 The shelter provided, the eight houses
 were left entirely to the management of
 the women, the men working upon the stockade, which was constructed unon strict military principles, and was a model
 of worth and excellence.
 It required two weeks and the labor of
 sixteen men to complete this work. whitman ana ms family had been living in their house for week. All the fami2
 lies had moved into their homes save the
 Hebers, but Gay with pretty tyranny had not allowed Mark to cross the fhreab.
 old of his house since he had finished if Now when Mark unyoked his oxen. turn
 ing them loose in his own yard, and drew his wagon under Q great cottonwood in his back garden, Gay called to him with , bright smile, saying that he might enter the house with her.
 , He came, pleased and smiling, but