The Superior times. [volume] (Superior, Wis.) 1870-1912, 1873-06-28
LAST BATTLE SAMARCAND.

LAST BATTLE FOR SAMARCAND.
"That;s the spoil of the infdel, my
father; and be who handled it was brave
man, unbeliever though he was God has
put much bravery in the hearts Of
the Basurmani (heathens); but we have
beaten them, after all !"
SO speaks, with CLEAN of stern pleas
ure in his clear grey eye,a stalwart Rus.
sian grenad!er, whose close-0ropped hair
is just beginning to turn grey. Emerg-
ing from the great mosque OF Tashkent
(now turned into powder magazine by
the practical conquerors,) | find the veter-
an munching his ration bread in the shad-
ow of Il projecting gateway. The un,
mistakably Bokhariote with yataghau in
his belt provoking my curiosity, which he is
evidently nothing 10th to crafty.
1--WE have beaten them,o he repeats,
twisting his huge red mustache < but
we'll have to do it all over again some
day These fellows are like our wolves in
winter-never quiet till their skins are
hung up behind the stove. They've got
to 90 out some day, anyhow for It's not
to be borne that all the best bits OF God
earth should be in the hands of unbeuey-
ing heathens !"
"You took this yataghan in battle, then,
| suppose ?" interpolated /.
That did |, father; and hard battle
it was. They tell me that the story Of it
has gone alb. DAD even to the West; but
perpaps, you haven't heard it."
"And you have, a good story is always
worth hearing twice so I'll just tell you
what we'll do. Wen step across into that
kabak TAVERN on the other side Of the
street, and you shall wash the dust out of
your mouth, and tell me Ill about it,"
Honest Dmitri's small eyes twinkle APP
provipgly, and he follows me across the
street with alacrity. y full measure OF
liquor is speedily set before him, aud sit
ting down n the shadow of the doorway,
he pulls off his cap, crosses himself de
voutly and prepares to enjoy himself The
removal of the cap shows me long,
dark-red scar across bis forehead, stand
ing out strongly upon the sun-burned
skin.
"Hallo, brother! the unbelieyers have
left you II remembrance, see. Did you
get that in the battle you were talking
about ~
Just so, master and from tins ve-v
yataghan that [ have been showing you.
The b asurmani can hit hard when they
like, can tell you and if this Khiva
expedition that everybody talks about
here, really comes Of, we shall find our
porridge hot for us-that we shall and
We'll beat them all the same, please GodE'
"Well, bat about that battle of yonr: ?7
"Ah, to be sure Well, you see, 10 the
year 81 it was settled TO take Samarcand
at any price, and General Kaufman was
our leader. But what q march we had
OF 1t! You've seen something of the mud
en- your way here, | take it-well, that
was just how we had 1t all the way to the
kouranTaulridge. Piump you go Into
the dirt up TO your knees, and get all
Shiny and sticky ike fly in a pot of
milk: then comes stream and you get
over 1t anyhow, keeping only your pow
der and ammunition dry, Then into d lot
of thorn-bushes, that stuck into you like
bay onets; and then more dirt after that,
YOU re Just like a newly-tarred boot. On,
fathers Of the world what .gork we did
have oft y
Dmltrl breaks OF for moment to drown
the horrible recollection III tremendous
swig OF raw spirit; While the landlord,
torseeing that the yarn will need a good
deal OF moistening, mods bis head APPROX
ingly.
AFTER we got over the Koaran Tau
continues my eztempore Othello, we
came out upon the steppe, and there the
ground was hard md rocky, and we had
IL o. ~ ~ l., Il.
phew All day we'd be baking like
loaves ID an oven and then the sun would
set all at once, as II somebody had bowed
him out, and 1t would turn cold in Il mo,
ment, and down would come the dew. and
and we would ali lie shiyering and shaking
like shut out on winter night and then
after tina. the heat again. We didn't much
like 1t, l can tell you; but what's to be
done2 When Il thing is to be it will.
Besides, our Colonel was one Of the rigbt
sort, that be was, Many a time would he
get OF his horse, and march three or four
versus along with the column, Just to show
that he didn't want to be better than the
rest of Us; and when he saw q man be-
ginning to tire; and to drag his feet after
him; he would cali out cheerily, Keep up,
my lad; think what your lass at home
would say, if she saw her man the first to
sall OUT And that wonld go through us
like sup of vozka, and we'd go forward
as briskly as ii we had only Just started.
Eat last we got to hhodjent; sweet
little place 1t is, nestled in the forest like
baby among the standing corn in harvest
time, and its mosques glittering over the
river like cavalry helmets, and there we
halted day to rest. 1t was there we got
word that the heather had come out to
meet US, and at that We rejoiced greatly,
and said we should give Adjar "a battle
gained by Gen. Romanovaki in 1867
over again. But the spiteful beast
hadn't the civility to stand out and give
us fair chance at EN- all they did was
to hang about us, cutting off our strag-
glers, and trying to draw US out in pur-
suit, that they might fall upon us scattered
the cowardly, sneaking, accursed sons