The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1883-02-03
HELEN MANSFIELD'S FIGHT.
A TRUE STORY.

western sky as Steenie Burton came
out of his cabin, and glanced down
the gulch towards the naesG-an ele-
waited table land. The hills on both
sides were golden in the light, while
here and there dark shadows between
the high points of rock gave Curl
ously arabseque effect to the land
scape.
"Now, I WONDER" said Steenie. re-
flectiyeIy, "whether the gal has reach
ed home."
Steenie paused, glanced at his boots.
and finding that he had, in a moment
of abstraction, put on his spurs, re.
solved to saddle up and ride over to
find out. 1t did not take many Sec
onds before he was going slowly down
the gulch on his mustang. Reaching
the mesa, he struck to the south in a
lope, and was soon lost to site around
the base of the hills.
Helen Mansfield stood ut the door
of her fathers cabin, glancing un-
eesily northward. The day before
she had come home, and that morn
ing her father had started, with his
wagon, to make trip through the
mining towns, leaving Helen and her
little brother, Tom. who was ten years
old, alone on the ranch. Helen's
anxiety was twofold. She had heard
her father talking with some men
who were prophesying an outbreak of
the Huallapais, and she was wonder
ing whether Steenie would come that
day or not. The two had been en-
gagged for some months, and one of
the chief objects of her visit to Los
Angeles when her father went on to
buy goods for his trade, had been to
purchase the necessary things with
which to set up housekeeping. She
wanted to see Steenie on general
principles. and she wanted to show
him what she had bought. Of her
two subjects of thought. 1 imagine
that Steenie's coming occupied her
the more, but as the evening shadows
heightened she gave up expecting a
visit from him that day, and turning
went into the house. Tom came in
soon afterwards and Helen closed up
the heavy windows and doors, put
the bars into place, and began to
think it was time to go to bed.
About eight o'clock she heard eau.
tious footsteps outside. Going to the
door and looking through one of the
small holes cut through it, she saw.
to her horror, an Indian standing
about forty feet away. She was a
boorder woman, born and raised on
the outskirts of civilization, and she
needed no man to tell her what the
bright streaks of paint which stood
out so plainly in the moonlight across
the redskins face meant.
Hastily calling Tom, she pointed
the Indian out to him and told him
to take down a rifle and watch the
other side of the house. Then taking
one of the long clouded barrels her.
self, she returned to her post and
waited.
She did not have to wait long. A
rap on the door and a summons to
open delivered in mixture of broken
EngIish-and Spanish, told her that
the fight must be. Helen maintained
dead silence. Another rap, enforc-
Ell by a strong kick, followed, and
then she heard, with ears that were
straining with the slightest sound,
some quick. sharp orders given. A
silence of few minutes, and then
Helen could see seven or eight In
dians bringing up heavy post to use
as a battering.ram. Cautiously she
put the muzzle of the rifle through
the hole in the door, and waiting un-
til she got four of the savages in line
fred. The fall of three of them, and
yells from the whole party, followed
by a hasty dispersion, and a search for
shelter, showed the effects of the shot.
The Indians were genuinely surpris-
ed. They had supposed that the cabin
was empty and that there was no
danger in attempting to force it open.
In moment after the shot there
was not an Indian to be seen, but the
flight of some score of arrows and
the sound of three or four rifles
showed that they were still there.
Helen knew that the cabin would
stand all the firing at 1t that large
force could do, but she also knew that
Indians have many ways of fighting
and that she could scarcely hope to
keep them off for anw length of time.
Instinctively, too, her thoughts turn
ed to Steenie and mingled with the
wish that he was there, was the fear
that he would come and fall a victim
to the redskins.
Tom had become wildly excited by
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