The Cheyenne daily leader. [volume] (Cheyenne, Wyo.) 1870-1884, 1879-08-05
INDIAN NE WIS.
Some Interesting Paragraphs About
Gen. Miles Movements.

FROM the special correspondent oil
the Chicago Times we extract the fol-
lowing paragraphs relating to the new
Indian war on the British border:
Next morning we were off again,
Lieut.. Clark and his Indians in advance
because some Cheyennes had seen pony
tracks, which indicated the %neighbor-
hood of a hostile hunting party.
In advance, Gen. Miles placed a sig
nal station on Tiger butte, some dozen
miles from Fort Peck, and kept up
communication by means OF the hello
stat, the same kind of apparatus used
by the English in Afghanistan and
Zulpland. 1t is an idea borrowed from
the Indians of both hemispheres, and is
simply a method of telegraphing infor-
nation by reflections OF the sun in
small mirrors. The flashes, bright as
lightning, a be seen Mt an immense
distance on a clear day, but when the
sky is cloudy the heliostat is powerless
to operate. Some genius might gil the
gap by means Of electric-light signals.
The system is very efficient, if careful
men are employed, but a steady hand
and aquick eye are needed to read or
receive messages correctly.
Notwithstanding Gen. Miles ac-
knowledged capability as a leader, 1
much doubt whether with this small
command he al do more than hold
his own against the r~edoubtable INCA
papa. l don't care what everybody
says about Sitting Bull not being a
warrior. If he has not the sword, he
has, at least, the magic sway of a Mo-
manned over the rude war tribes that
engirdle him. Everybody talks of
Sitting Bull, and whether he be a figure
head, or an idea, or an incomprehensi-
BILE mystery, his present influence is
undonbted. His very name is potent.
He is the Rhoderic Dhu of his wild and
warlike race, and when he s'faints or
falls or dies' the Sioux confederation
will wither, wen as dropped the pine
of Clan Alpine when the hero sank be-
fore the sword of the Knight of Snow
don. III the old chief would confine
himself to chasing the bison there
would not be much objection to his
crossing the line, but, unfortunately,
his ''young men, have an unpleasant
habit of lifting hair and stealing stock,
which makes them n terror to the
frontier. But in spite of this some of
the woodmen along the Missouri de-
clare they would rather have the hos
tiles hunting around them than the
Yanktonnais Of Poplar Creek agency,
who are supposed to be friendly.
Speaking Of the French half breeds
and the part they play in encourage
ing Indian wars, the correspondent
says:
These French, or Red river, half
breeds are "a chief medium for suppl y-
ing the hostile Indians with arms and
ammunition. Consequently the traffic
between the British possessions and the
Missouri river cannot be tolerated so
long rs they persist in arming the saw
ages of this region. But how is Miles
going to stop them and fight Sitting
Bull with the force now at his disposal?
Will no lesson in irremediable disaster
teach the gentlemen at the head of our
army that the Indian, armed with a re-
peating rifle, and finely mounted, is no
ordinary enemyp VIII no amount of
massacre in other wars teach them that
it is a blunder to send insufficient force
to fight the powerful Indian tribes of
the northwestP The half breeds and
our scouts concur in saying that the
number o flodges now with the Sioux
chief on Little Rocky creek is not less
than sixteen hundred. With an aver
age of only two warriors to each lodge
AN average that everybody ~acquaint-
ed with Indian warfare knows to be
small-a proportion of more than five
to one. How ridiculous it is to expect
Gen. Miles to drive the Indians, with
loss, over the frontier with a command
so disproportioned TO the task before
himl If Sitting Bull wished to fight he
will give our people enough to do in
standing him off, not to speak of cap
turing or annihilating him. If this be
not the result, should Miles assume the
offensive, the Sioux will fight much
worse than they have been in the habit
of doing.
l sent you a telegram by courier last
night which contained some account
of an engagement between Lieut.. Clark
with two companies of soldiers and the
Indian scouts, and a hunting party of
hostiles, some distance up the creek.
The Sioux made a running fight,
falling back ON their main body. Clark
pursued, but Immediately notified Gen.
Miles, who moved with all his available
men to the assistance of the lieutenant.
1t was a regular forced march for
twenty miles or so-the cavalry and
mounted infantry trotting or galloping
most of the way, The Crows and most
of the Cheyennes stood faithfully by
Clark, but the Assinaboines and BAH
nocks came streaming back disconcert-
ed. They hardly bargainedf for hostiles
so soon. The head of the supporting
column came up just as Clark drove the
Sioux over a tributary of the Little
Rocky. Lieut.. Rice, by making great
efforts, brought up two Hotchkiss guns
and she He'd the %retreating hostiles with
good effect. They hate the sound of
-l l.z.l