Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1889-04-27

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| hole in the bluff side. and we were all chatting
| together and impatiently waiting for our
COOK summons to supper; the infantry battal-
ions had stacked arms under 'Merritts Hill,
| near where the wounded were living in the
middle of the village; the surgeons had just
| Topped off the leg of Lieut.. Won LuettwitZ who
had been shot early in the morning, when, all
| on sudden. out TO the west we heard the bang,
| bang Of rifles. and the boy trumpeter OF &c"
| troop shouted down to US:
| INDIANS FIRING INTO THE HERDsr'
1t seemed as though it was the signal for the
sudden sprouting from earth of hundreds Of
painted. feathered. dartng horsemen. All at
the instant. on every side of US. though six or
seven hundred yards away, from behind the
| sheltering bluffs and buttes and ridges. DASH
| ing down TO the attack, yelling like fends, and
( firing like boys on the 4th of July. on they
came. score after score of Crazy Horses war
riors. bent on stampeding our poor, broken
down horses. and bursting through lines.
| Instantly every officer In our party sprang to
| join his troop. Gen. Carr took one cool glance
| about him. said. sound to arms! Bradley"
to our headquarters trumpeter and babe the
orderly bring his horse. Instantly, too, the
men of Upham's battalion seized their carbines
! and sprang into line. Sound the advance,
Bradley" said our placid commander. and the
| stirring notes rang along the dripping ravine.
| The men scrambled up the slope in front of
! them and ran nimbly out toward the herds now
scamperlng in for shelter.
HuRRAH FOR CORPORAL CLASToy
All but one herd. Look, look at the
grays." is the yell. Sure enough Montgom-
ery's horses, startled by the sudden clamor
and following the lead of one fool of a
! charger. are scampering straight up the long
] wave of prairie and into the very teeth of the
Indian skirmishers. A shout of mingled
| warning and dismay goes up. Another mo-
! ment and they lost to us: but. darling out
beyond them. squirting his steed to the top of
his possibilities" Corporal Clanton turns the
| leader to the left and half drives half guides
him around in broad circle, and in less time
than 1t takes to write it the whole herd comes
| laundering down to camp safely. Such
cheer as goes up for Clanton. Three minutes
| and all the herds-horses. ponies and mules
| are driven down into the ravines out of reach
of Indian bullets. and all the cavalry lines dis
mounted. are jauntily opening out in skirmish
| order and driving rapid and telling fire on the
| foe.
FIGHTING IN EARNEST.
The infantry come rapidly forward on the
left of Upham's men; their Long Toms burst
in to swell the chorus of Indian Winchester
and cavalry carbine. and in ten minutes the roar
| of musketry -breech-loaders with us, maya
zines with the Sioux-sounds like a second
| Spottsylyania. The grand, simultaneous dash.
| planned to surprise Crooks veteran command
and stampede his WORKOUT horses, has utterly
! failed IN its object. The herds are safe under
| cover. and in their place long lines of fire.
| flashing skirmishers are steadily breasting the
| slopes. pushing back the yelling warriors be-
| fore them.
sKILLFUL INDIAN FIGHTERS.
And vet how scientifically and skillfully
these Indians fight! Keeping 500 or 600 yards
away, darting at full speed up and down along
our front they maintain their rapid fire and a
constant watch for any weak or waverng point
along the line. Every now and then some one
of their number will spring from his pony and
! lie down to take deliberate aim at some mounted
| officer. Gen. Carr on his big horse. sitting
right behind Masons men. Is an especial object
| of their attentions. They miss him. but make
1t lively for everybody around him. Brave old
| Sergeant Schriever of *" troop gets "a bullet
/ through the thigh as he stands composedlv
| watching the fire of his men. and two or three
others along this front are compelled to drop
carbine and and go limping off for surgical aid
/ One young warrior in his eagerness ventures
/ too far and Paddy" Mill of IF" troop runs a
! few yards forward, kneels takes deliberate AIM
/ tumbles the Indian out of his saddle and. amid
| the cheers of the whole battalion secures his
pony. Down come scores of warriors from the
/ bluff. full speed. and i'll an instant they have
wheeled about and are scampering back for
| shelter, bearing the body of their conrade
with them.
| AND UNTIL DARK.
And so, too, until It grows too dark to see
every time an Indian drops a rush is made
| and whether killed or only wounded. the body
Is thrown across some sturdy pony and borne
| away behind the screening ridge Right out
| on the skirmish line with the men is that prince
OF good fellows and journalists, Finnerty. of
/ the Chicago Times. He has dropped his pencil
! for the minute and is blazing away with his
rifle. but when he sees the trooper capture the
| pony he runs over to congratulate and take him
/ by the hand-glorying in the exploit of
| brother Patllnder. Learning his name he de-
| hghtedly heads new paragraph .'Nihil Fit"
then resumes his long-range rifle practice
THE RESULT.
On four sides of big square now-or at least
great, irregular circle-the combat is at its
height. First in one place, then in another. by
| furious dashes the Indians strive to break the
lines, but everywhere are met by cool steady
| volleys. Halt" and lie down" have long
since been signaled and the skirm!shers are
now prone upon the sward, for the Indians
| have been pushed so far back that their bullets
| no longer endanger the herds and the wounded
IN the village. Little by little the fire slackens;
! little by little the dripping skies change from
/ gray to dun, then to brownish blue, then night
settles down upon crag and prairie; the red
| flashes grow less and less frequent, and at last
| die utterly away. Slowly the lines are drawn
IN while strong picket guards are posted; slowly
ana tenderly the seriously wounded men are
| borne back to the surgeons lodges The adu-
tants tramp around from battalion to battalion
| making up the list of casualties and when AT
last get back to headquarters to make nv re-
! port some poor devil of half-starved scout or
| trooper has stolen what had been saved as nv
| supper. and i celebrate the victory of Slim
/ Buttes on an empty stomach, but roll in my old
| Navajo blanket. and with a pOncho for mat
/ tress, the prairie for bed and the weeping
skies for roof, sleep as soundly and as bliss
fully as ever man slept on downy pillow.
| CHARLES kIN0