The Portland daily press., 1874-06-06

and populous cities in the East. that far OUT
weighs any tangible reward that could be Of
fered.
Neither the love of gold then, nor the hope
of popularity those two altars upon which
so many men sacrifice themselves in the
crowded haunts of business-temtped them
to the deeds that have made them famous.
Such men, whose story is always so full of ln-
terest, seek danger for the simple charm of it,
and that alone is the secret of their strauge
| lives.
The winter of 1859 south of the Arkan-
| sas and Canadian rivers, was unusually Sc
| we're: the snow fell to depth unknown be-
| fore in the history of that part of the country,
| and the thermometer indicated degree OF
| cold that for days together was far below ze-
70.
The small streams were frozen sold, ana
| the larger ones filled with floating ice max
| ing the fordings excessively dangerous, par
| ticDlarly to the cavalry.
| FraonentIv these large streams-more prop
| eriv rversSwere found completely closed,
| buf the ice too thin to bear the weight OF the
| heavily loaden six mule army wagons, and
| then the men had to stand in the freezing
water, and with axes cut passage through.
| This difficult task always required hours
| for its completion, and required the men to
| be relieved every few minutes, for the cold
was intense, but huge fire of brush and
| dritt-wood was kept burning on both banks
| of the river, around which the choppers con-
| gregated after coming out of the water,
which precaution generally prevented any Sc
| rious results.
| By these means the teamsters, and troops
escorting the wagon train, forced transit
| through the long dreary months of that win
| ter, over those tributaries to the Red River,
| which flow in a general southeast course be-
| yond the Arkansas.
| Five hundred six-mule army wagons COM
posed the train that was constantly travelling
| between Fort Dodge on the Arkansas, and
the base Of supplies at the camp on Beaver
river, afterwards known as Camp Supply,
and whichis one Of the principal posts Of OBJ
servation in the Indian Territory where The
Kiowa and Cheyenne reservations are loca-
| ted.)
| AT the suggestion of General Sheridan and
| the earnest desire of the state government,
the Nineteenth Kansas Cavalry was organ
| lied and mustered into the army for this spe-
cial winter service. 1t was composed of
| young men from all parts OF the state, some
| of whom had experienced the hardships of
an ordinary campaign during the war of the
| rebellion, but the fact that the majority of
the regiment we've born on the frontier, and
had received that peculiar schooling which a
| life on the plains warrants, was their princl-
| pal recon- mendation.
| The regiment left Topeka where the sever
| al companies were organized, splendidly
mounted aud equipped, but after marching
| two or three days, one OF those terrible storms
| incident to the prairies in winter, burst upon
| them in the night, stampeded most of their
| horses, and they reached the main command
under General Custer at Camp Supply, hav-
| ing suffered fearfully, nearly demoralized and
disheartened. A portion of the regiment, in
| consequence of this disastrous occurrence,
| were compelled to serve as infantry during
the campaign, and it was too late to procure
| Others so the number endured greater hard
ships that winter than those who were
mounted.
| One squadron and one hundred and forty
| nine dismounted men of this regiment, to-
| gether with one company of regular infan-
try and five hundred civilians, constituted
| the force necessary to guard and handle the
| immense amount of grain and subsistence re-
quired by the cavalry under General Custer
south of the Canadian river. 1f'L
Over the broad trail marked by the passage
cred in small parties all winter, and through
this line of watchful savages, the courier
scouts perilous journey was effected.
On this dleary route of one hundred and
ten miles, with no place of refuge between
tie camp and Fort Dodge, it was literally, at
times, ride for life. Two of the ''scouts'
usually travelled together, as it is possible for
two determined men to prove more than a
match for twenty Indians, but difficult for
one man to get away from even five.
The most exposed portions of the trail
were ridden over at night, and in the day.
time the scouts secreted themselves in some
rocky canon CT timbered ravine, until dark
ness again favored their lonely trip, for only
when within a few miles of their destination
at either end, were the chances of run by
daylight taken. The characteristic reckless
ness of some, however, in essaying this per-
formance, resulted in a severe fight on more
than one occasion, and the death of two as
the sequel will show on another
Two days Of hard riding, or rather nights,
and untiring watchfulness were required to
effect this hazardous journey, and no other
but the scouts attempted it; as when it was
necessary for any one to go to either post,
they did SO under the escort of the train, and
never with the scouts.
Early in the month of November, two of
these scouts, one half-breed known all over
the plains as ''McDonald," aud the other a
white man named Davis, started from Camp
Supply shortly after dark, with important dis
patches from General Sheridan, and the mail
for Fort Dodge.
M'Donald was a half Cheyenne; his father
had in all probability been Scotch trapper
in the employ of the Northwest Fur Com
pany thirty or forty years ago, but he knew
nothing OF him, and had lived nearly all his
life with the tribe whose blood flowed through
bis veins. He was therefore an Indian by
education, and possessed nearly alitheir char.
aeteristics, with the exception of a decided
friendship for the Whites, whose cause he es-l
poused at the commencement of hostilities.
He never wore any other dress than the
traditional buckskin suit, heavily porcupined
and beaded, with its long fringe dropping
from the seams, and he adhered most Telig
iously to the tribal destinations of the war
paint, which he used in the most extravagant
manner; but that he was the representative
Of the noblest lattribute in human nature,
faithfulness, which rather than break he ac-
cepted death, viii be conceded further ON.
Davis was born in Ohio and wandered to
the great plains when he was only fourteen.
For thirty years he had lived on the extreme
frontier, most of the time on the head wa
ters of the Missouri among the Sioux, whose
language he spoke perfectly. He had lived
south of the Platte only few seasons, but
he had taken Cheyenne squaw as his wife,
and was hunting with that tribe when the
war commenced.
The most important feature in his charac-
ter Was that quick perception and determine
ton, which nearly all men raised on the plains
or in the mountains possess, and which places
them tar ahead OF the Indian in moments OF
great difficulty and peril, but this was over
balanced at times by an excessive reckless
ness that eventually cost him his life. s..
The days dragged slowly along, and more
than week passed without the return of the
two men to Camp Supply. Other scouts re-
ported that neither had they arrived at Fort
Dodge, and of course it was admitted that
they were dead, killed by the Indians, but
how or where no one knew, and as nothing
could be learned in relation to their death ex-
cept from the scouts or the wagon train,
which alone travelled the trail from Camp
Supply to the Arkansas, the information
must come from that source, if any, in re-
gard to their fate, but as yet there was no
news of them.
The train was constantly on the road in
sunshine or in storm. 1t moved between the
camps all winter; it was barely permitted to
remain at either end of the route even for a
day, as the least delay in the arrival of grain
for the cavalry horses would seriously embar-
rass the operations of the troops in the field,
and might, perhaps, defeat the lgreat object
of the expedition.
Nearly three weeks after the disappearance
of M'Donald and Davis, the train started
from Camp Supply in the midst of terrific
snow storm. Not a landmark was visible.
Through the binding seet and cold wind,
guided by the compass alone which the COM
H.. I.1II -. e.