The gold leaf. [volume] (Henderson, N.C.) 1881-1911, 1891-06-04

against Il regiment SO long as his ammu-
milton lasted. This extravagant idea was
all but realized to the letter one summer
day in 1867, in the wilds of Dakota, when
Capt. James Powell and twenty-s seven fol-
lowers kept at bay for three and half
hours over 1000 Cheyenne and Arapahoe
warriors 1t was an accident, of course,
that {. handful of men should be pitted
against such host. 1t was an accident,
too, but very fortunate one, that the
handful had just been armed with the
serviceable repeating rifle. then quite new
on the plains and the Indians were not
aware Of it, and supposed that they had the
little band completely at disadvantage.
Capt. Powell, with his company G, Twen-
ty-seyenth United States infantry, was
guarding the wood train belonging to Fort
Phil kearny and disposed of his men in the
best manner possible in the timber where
the choppers were at work. The pinery
was about five miles from the fort, the
nearest point from which help could be
drawn. Ordinarily the hostility of the
savages was displayed in harassing at
tacks On the choppers at their work and on
the wagons passing to and from the fort.
The summer previous, however, body of
seventy men, including officers, led
by Col. w J. Fetterman, had been inter
copied on the march from the fort to tie
relief of a wood train that had been at
tackled and slaughtered to a man. In an
ticipation Of an attempt by the Indians to
repeat that terrible act of vengeance, Pow
ell, on being assigned to the duty of guard
ing the choppers and trains, prepared for
the worst, The drivers, choppers and
herders were under orders just where to 90
and what to do in case of attack, so that
there might be no confusion or stampede
at the trying moment.
Now in an emergency man with a gun,
standing or lying with an object between
his body and the foe, no matter if the OBJ
ject is only a piece of canvas, feels better
for the bit of cover. To have him feel Just
right at the outset will often make brave
! man of him through long fight. The
better the protection as bullet armor the
better he will feel and the drawer he will
be. Powell constructed cover for his camp
| and reserve guards by removing the wagon
| beds from their gearing and arranging them
| with the right side upward on the ground
| i'll the shape of n circular parapet or a SO
| called corral" The wagon bodies were
| of wood. of course, and were loopholed so
| that men could fire without exposing
| themselves The wagons numbered only
| fourteen, and in order to enlarge the circle
| for the accommodation of all who might
seek. protection there, intervals were left
between the wagon bodies, and filed up
| with OK yokes, sacks of grain, rolled tent
| cloths and other objects that would serve
| to stop bullets and arrows There were
| also defensive positions on rocky hillside
| close to the places where the choppers and
| cattle herders were employed during the
| day, and in these the workmen and their
| immediate guards were to seek refuge in
case of a sudden attack
| Powell and his second in command,
! Lieut.. John c. Jenniss, remained in the
| corral with twenty-five soldiers and five
| armed frontiersmen, who acted as guides,
| Interpreters, etc Thus the muster Of
| fighting men in the corral was thirty 1.-TWO
| IN all, including the officers. Sharp Wig
| lance was practised night and day to pre-
| vent surprise. On the morning of Aug
! faint signs of an attempt on the part of
| the Indians to stampede the animals in
| their grazing ground were disclosed about
daylight, and all OF the men of the camp
| took up their fighting attitudes. In a
very few minutes small mounted parties
of redskins dashed forward toward the
| corral and toward the herd The herders
| with their guards repulsed their assailants,
and Capt, Powell promptly deployed his
| reserves to cover the retreat of the party
| to their hiding places among the rocks,
where the choppers and their guards had
| already taken shelter. The Indians ap-
| peared n force, coming to level out of
ravines where they had mas>ed themselves
while il was dark. A spirited skirmish
| took place along the rocky hillside, but
the Indians were driven off with heavy
loss. Powe!Ps reserve party lost four
| killed. and the remainder retired to the
corral to await the general assault. The
tactics of the savages were to stampede the
cattle and the outlying parties first, and
then overwhelm the principal camp. The
| surprise having failed, they fell to more
serious work, and formed body of several
hundred mounted warriors in sight of the
CORA! Capt. Powell distributed his men