The Louisiana Democrat., 1890-09-24
GENERAL cuSrER's END.
Gallant Struggle Against the Most Una
even odds.

even OOuSs
Never realizing, as 1 believe, the
fearful odds against him, believing
that he would find the village ''on the
rum" and that between himself and
Reno he could double them up" in
short order, Custer had jauntily trotted
down to his death. 1t was long five.
milo ride from where he sighted the
northern end of tho village to where
he struck its center around that bold
point OF bluff. and from the start to the
moment his guidons whirled into view,
and his troopers came galloping front
into line" down near the ford. he never
fairly saw the great village-never
dreamed of it's depth and extent. Round
ing the bluff, he suddenly found him
self face to face with thousands of the
boldest and most skilful warriors of the
prairies. He had hoped to charge at
once into the heart of the village, to
hear the cheers of Reno's men from the
south. Instead he was greeted wit h n
perfect fury of flame and kissing lead
from the dense thicket of willow and
cottonwood, fire that had to be an.
swered at once, Quickly he dismounted
his men and threw them forward on
the run, each fourth man holding, cav
airy fashion, the horses of the other
three. The line seems to have swept
in parallel very nearly with the general
course of the stream, but to no purpose.
The foe was ten to one in their front
Boys and squaws were shooting from
the willows (''Oh, we had plenty
guns!" said our story-tellers); and
worse than that hundreds of young
warriors had mounted their ponies and
swarmed across the stream below him,
hundreds more were following and cir
cling all about him. And then it was
that Custer, the hero OF a hundred dar.
ing charges, seems to have realized that
he must cut his way out. Mount"
rang the trumpets, and leaving m any
poor fellow on the ground, the troop
ers ran for their horses. Instantly from
lodge and willow Ogalallas and Brules
sprang to horse and rushed to the ford
in mad pursuit. make for the heights!'
must have been the order, for the first
rush was eastward; then more to the
left, as they found their progress
barred. Then, as they reached higher
ground, all they could see, far as they
could see, circling, swooping, yelling
like demons, and all the time keeping
up their furious fire. were thousands Of
the mounted Sioux. Hemmed in, cut
off, dropping fast from their saddles,
Clusters men saw that retreat was i'm
possible They sprang to the ground,
turned their horses loose," said the
Indians, and by that time half their
number had fallen. A skirmish line
was thrown out down the slope, and
there they dropped at five yards inter-
val; there their comrades found them
two days after. Every instant the
foe rode closer and gained in num-
bers; every instant sons poor
follow bit the dust. AT last, on mound
that stands at the northern end of a
little ridge, Custer, with Cook, Yates
, and gallant Brother Tom," and some
dozen soldiers, all that were left by this
time, gathered in the last rally. They
sold their lives dearly, brave fellows
that they were; but they were as a
dozen to the leaves of the forest at the
end of twenty minutes, and in less than
twenty-tive-all was over.-Captain
Charles King, in Harper's Magazine.