Abilene weekly reflector. [volume] (Abilene, Kan.) 1888-1935, 1890-04-17
CAMPFIRE STORIES.
HEROIC JOHNNY CLARK.
a "Reminiscences of the Campaign in the
Powder River Country.

Powder River Country.
Right away after Lees surrender the
Government sent the cavalry brigade to
which was attached to Laramie and
Julesburg, and from these points COM
mands were sent out into the Powder
River country. The Indian was at his
best in those days, defiant, Independent
and aggressive, and the Powder river
expedition was in danger of attack
every hour of the day or night. When
we left Laramie boy fifteen years old,
who gave his name as Johnny Clark, got
permission to go with US. A year before
that his father and mother had been
killed in one of the frontier raids, and
his sister Mary, girl of ten years, had
been carried off prisoner. 1t was in hopes
TO learn some thing of her that he went
along. He was thin in flesh. ragged and
bare-handed, and it was pitiful to think
of boy like that starting out on such
an errand. His case touched the hearts
of the rough men, and before the day
of starting we had provided him with a
new suit of clothes, a Winches-
ter rife, revolver and a horse
on the quiet by the quartermaster, and
when we got started every man felt that
one of the objects of the expedition was
TO help Johnny Clark learn the fate of
his sister. From the day of our start
the Indians kept US in sight, and at
every favorable opportunity they made
an attack. We had lost nine or ten men
when the order was given TO bout face
for Laramie, the command having pene-
trated as far into the unknown country
as required by orders. We took up the
line of march early one morning, and
had scarcely moved out of camp when it
was seen that the redskins had gathered
in force and meant to attack US. We
closed up, threw out fankers and kept
moving, but at eleven o'clock they ap-
peared in such numbers, and seemed so
determined to attack. that we halted in
a natural dip and made preparations for
fight. We had then less than two
hundred men, and the force of Indians
was estimated at fully two thousand.
They encircled MS as soon as we dis
mounted, and for two or three hours we
fought them at long range. They had
some long-range rifles among them,
and several of our men were killed or
wounded while we waited for them to
close in.
At three o'clock in the afternoon a
band of twenty hunters and trappers ap-
peared in the distance, having been at
tracted by the firing, and as portion of
the Indians rode off to hold this rein
forcement at bay, we were ordered to
mount and get ready to charge that
which remained. We were all anxious
enough, knowing this was our only way
out, and presently we got the word and
dashed away, riding straight at the spot
where the Indians were thickest, and
depending on the saber alone. They
gave way at our approach. but not to re-
treat, and we charged time and again
before we finally started panic which
routed them. don't believe one Indian
in twenty had ever seen a cavalry charge
or a saber before. Our blades were
sharply ground, and whenever we got to
them their heads had to suffer. Our
horses knocked their light ponies head
over heels whenever they stood for us,
and as we were constantly on the move, |
we escaped most of the bullets fired by |
their flankers.
just as we got the whole force of In |
dams on the run some one cried out that |
Johnny Clark was missing. A quarter |
of an hour later, when gathering up our
dead and wounded, we found the boy in |
the dip where he had first taken refuge. |
He was dead and scalped. For some |
reason he had not been ready to mount
when we did, and his horse had gone off |
in the charge and left him there on foot
and alone. While we were charging to
and fro mile away, gang of redskins
had set out to capture the boy. One, to
look at his big blue eyes and girlish
face, would have doubted if he had the
courage to shoot at an Indian. The boy
realized his helpless situation, rolled four
or five loose rocks together, used some of
the camp baggage to strengthen the posi-
ton, and then waited. am telling you
what has been officially reported when
| say that he killed seven Indians be-
fore they got his life, and the last two
he killed with his revolver within ten
feet of his body. The seven were living
within rifle shot of him, and there were
two dead ponies besides. The poor boy
had been shot through the neck, and
in him brave and worthy
foe, the Indians had simply taken the
scalp. This we found at the girdle of a
warrior killed on another part of the
feld.-Detroit Free Press.