The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1886-07-31
A SCOUTS DARING.
Tom Reynolds Neat Escape from Band
of RIondthirstY SiOuX.


of Bloodthirsty Sioux.
The nerve, hardihood and daring Of
the genuine frontier scout was illus
trated time after time during Gen.
Clusters Indian campaign by a favorite
scout named Tom Reynolds. He had
been in the Indian country for ten or
twelve years before Custer attached
him to his command, and he bore
| twenty-five scars of wounds received
| from red men. He was known to them
as 1.-The Snake" and they both hated
and respected him. In one of his raids
among the strongholds to the south
Custer sent Reynolds back to Fort
Laramie with dispatches. The scout
preferred to 90 alone, and the fact that
| the country was ali re with Indians was
taken by him as matter of course.
| He left camp one night soon after dark,
mounted on swift mule and having 4
ride before him of sixty-hve or seventy
miles. That was the last seen of him
for week, when he rode into Laramie
one day and made his apologies for be-
| ing detained on the way.
REYNOLDS made only about fifteen
miles the first night where he had cal
culated on making forty. On several
occasions he narrowly missed riding
into bodies of Indians who seemed to
be scouting all over the country, and
up to midnight he had to move very
slowly. Just after that hour his mule
was bitten by rattlesnake, and the
scout turned into grove of cotton
woods on a little creek to care for him.
He had small package of the Indian
weed used to extract the poison, and
| by daylight the mule was better. 1t
would beimpossible to move for several
! days, however, and he settled down to
pass the time in the grove. There
were Indian signs all about him, and
the chances were that he would not be
left undisturbed many days 1t was
small but dense grove, and the scout
and his mule were well hidden from
any one skirting the timber.
On the fifth day nine Indians were
seen approaching the grove. They
watered their ponies at the edge of it,
and then turned them loose, built a fire
and made preparations for dinner Rey-
nolds had made his mule lie down and
then covered her with brush, while he
reiterated to the other side of the grove.
! The redskins were loafing around for
over an hour before any thing occurred.
They were then joined by twelve 9TH
ers, but as the newcomers did not dis
| mount the scout was in hopes the whole
| band would soon leave the locality
They were evidently about to do so,
when Reynolds mule got up and prayed,
a thing he was never known to do be-
| fore or after in the face of danger. 1t
was accounted for, in this instance by
! the fact that one of the Indians was
mounted on horse which had been
stolen from the cavalry, and the mule
evidently recognized its presence. The
| Indians at once raised an alarm and
rushed into the grove. The mule was
| speedily discovered and led out, and
| five minutes later the scout quietly sur
| rendered and walked among his captors
with smiling face. He nigh have held
| them at bay for time, but the odds
were too great to hope for any thing
turning in his favor
Several of the Indians recognized
| Reynolds as "The Snake" and there
was great eXultation over his capture.
An ordinary prisoner would have been
! insulted and maltreated in the first ex-
| element, but no indignity was offered
the scout. He was disarmed, ordered
| to mount his mule, and the whole body
moved to the east. After travelling all
the afternoon they reached the north
fork of the Platte and went into camp.
The scout could speak the Sioux dialect
| as we'll as a member of the tribe, and
| during the journey he kept up run
ming conversation with the two SUBJ
| chiefs, leading them to believe that he
| had had a personal quarrel with Custer
and was no longer in his service. He
! claimed that he was on his way to pur-
chase trapper's outfit and return to
| the mountains. While the Indians no
doubt kept a sharp eye on him, no one
seemed to do so. 1t was coming on
dark as the band reached the creek, and
! Reynolds was in the midst of them as
they dismounted. He swung himself
| down and seemed to be engaged in
removing the saddle, at the same
| time asking one of the chiefs why they
did not cross over and get better
| grass. Like flash he suddenly
| swung nllllSell lUIO Ule Sauule, ana ike
an arrow the mule darted away. Rey-
nolds had to pass six Indians and their
horses before he was clear of the camp,
| but such were his movements that he
was pistol shot away before a shout
was uttered or shot fired. Every
Indian then mounted in pursuit, and
the foremost kept up running fire
until they were out of ammunition.
The mule seemed inclined to make
up for his bad break in the grove, and
he drew ahead so fast that at the end
of a quarter of an hour Reynolds turned
sharply to the right, rode about half
mile, and then man and mule Rugged
the earth and let the Indians gallop
ahead into the darkness. The scout
| then returned to the stream, crossed it.
and took bee line for Fort Laramie,
where he arrived next morning. Two
arrows struck his saddle, and six bul-
lets Clipped his clothing without draw
ing blood. When he handed his dis
| patches to the commandant he humbly
| exclaimed:
Ought to hev bin here sooner, but
| a snake bit Nancy and n hand of reds