Idaho news. (Blackfoot, Idaho) 1887-1891, 1888-12-22

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alive.
"'Never expect to-
"tAnd how about me?'
Don't expect you will, either. l
hired YOU
" Great heavens, | cried, jumping
up. DO you think ] hired to get
killed for SIC month";"
- Soldiers do it for about that
much, said old Slower, as calmly as
fit were an everyday bargain.
Eyes, but soldiers know what they
are hiring for. ! didn't
Well, you can give me a months
notice and quit if you want to-
"a months noticel Where win we
be in month if the Indians get on
to us?'
swell, next day the old man laid
out system of fortifications and set
me at digging. He ran a shallow
trench down to the river and took
out of one of the boxes a coil of lead
and uncoiled it down the ditch into
the river and fixed up a natty little
pump inside the lines, so that if the
Indians did come they could not cut
us of from the water. Then he COW
cred up the trench, and there we were
AL right, as far as water was con-
eerned, which is an important thing
when you're fighting redskins. One
OF the boxes was fixed so that it was
water tight, and that we pumped full
ofwater. Then Slower left me work
ing at the entertainments, went down
to the timber belt and got out some
logs, which he snaked up to the top
with the six horses, and in the center
of the Notifications he framed his
timbers together, making a mighty
solid structure, partly sunk into the
ground.
when had the earthworks finish
ed Slower had his machine set up,
and it was the queerest looking ar
rangement / ever saw. 1t had all |
been made in Kansas City and |
put together there. Then he /
had taken it apart numbered |
each piece, and it went together |
again without a hitch. There we're
four rows of short rifle barrels, about |
ten barrels in a row, and one row I'M
der the other. The muzzles of the /
barrels were slightly further apart
than the butts, so that the battery
had sort of a fan look. The next 1
row under was the same way, but the
barrels were not exactly under each
other. saw that if the thing would I
shoot it would cover quite a bit Of
territory, and cover it pretty well at
that. The whole affair was very
clumsy looking, but it turned quite
easily on swivel and could be made
to sweep the whole horizon. Then
the old man made me get lot of
poles and sent me out around thefor
and had me set up the poles at diff.
terent points all around, while he
sighted themachine gun. There was
one disadvantage about the thing and
that Wasit could not be raised or low
cred land if the enemy once got within
its range it would be useless. l
pointed this out to old Slower, but
he merely smiled in his superior way
and said he would like to see any one
get past his battery. After the poles
were set all around we tried the gun.
Stover had set out lot of thin steel
bars punched with ten holes, and in
each of the holes was placed a rife
cartridge. He put the four loaded
bars in position, and closed up and
clamped sort of steel door or lid
against the breech. On the outside
OF this door were four bars that cor
with those on the inside,
and when it was closed he pulled a
lever like one on an old fashioned
printing press, and the whole
thing went off with a roar and rat
tie that was TERRIFYING. Every outside
steel bar had ten brads one opposite
each cartridge, and a jerk on the
lever set'em all off. Then he threw
down the door, flung the bars with
the empty shells on the ground and
put in the next loaded set. Then
the first set was loaded up again.
"When the first volley was fred it
Just moved down the bushes around
one of the stakes as if a lawn mower
had been run through them. Now,
Bolder, he said, Il don't see no signs
Of Indians, and we must have been
here over three weeks. / must use
you for bait You get on Sam, the
astest horse, and scour around the
country. Keep sharp lookout, and
5he moment you see an Indian make
or here. Sam will outrun 'em every
time, if you don't get SO close as to
De within range of EN- Igrowled
good deal, but had togo. Mymonth
wouldn't be up for another week.
'The first day didn't get nib
Die. The next day l took a compass
and went further from camp. In the
afternoon thought saw couple
IF moving dots on one ofthe far away
Hills. Anyhow, / made for camp as
quick as | could, and before evening
he Indians were all around the hill,
'ut they kept out of range and I
eemed to be sizing us up. We
Iept watch all night but they made
10 move.
"In the morning they made their
stack. They seemed to have pick /
ted their horses and were crawling
It us through the grass. Old Slower .
4. Al