Rock Island daily Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1886-1893, 1892-10-26
AN INDIAN ATTACK.
TA6 HEROINE OF the CABIN AZ
THE SMOKY HILL FORK.


How = Family Was Penned Up In . Cabin,
aud with the Help of Two Rescuins
Scouts Succeeded In RepelIing = Force
of Over Two Hundred S.v.ges-
eCopyright. 1899, By Charles B. Lewis.l
When the Indians turned loose in west
efn Kansas and Nebraska in 1875 the
found hundreds Of scattered ranehmen and
pioneers totally unprepared for either re-
sistance or flight. The red man had no
mercy in his heart for old or young. He
took no prisoners-men, women and chill
dren were tomahawked and scalped a. fast
rs they fell into his hands. From the Mo
brara river, in South Dakota, to the
Cimarron. down in the southwest cornes
Of Kansas he desolated the land with torch
and tomahawk.
At midnight one night q wounded man
rode into our camp on the Smoky Hill fork
of the Kansas river, on the Overland trail.
He had two bullets in his body and he fel!
to the earth as he was challenged by on,
sentinel, but he had a story TO tell before
he died Ten miles to the north of US
pioneer had staked out his claim and set
up his home in defiance of all dangers. He
had come from the Missouri river, and the
family consisted of himself, wife, son
u u
eighteen. 1t was almost criminal on his
part to thus expose their lives, but the
frontiers of the west witnessed thousands
of such instances The family bad re-
manned too long. When il decided tc
abandon the claim and seek safety the
country was full OF war parties thirsting
for vengeance. The wounded man was a
land locker, who Just riding away
from the cabin of the Applegates when
rx.A III. lafa nj
the cabin for a few hours, but unless help
was sent them they would he wiped out
before MONDAY
We were but a detachment of regiment,
with work enough on hand for regiment,
and no force could be spared. The captain
in command shook his head as the story
was finished, and the shadow of death
fitted over the face of the man who had
come riding through the darkness to tell il
as his life ebbed away His entire force
would not have been strong enough to at
tempt Il rescue, even if at liberty to move
He did not return to his sleep, from which
he had been aroused. but sat moody and
silent by himself. and not over twcnty feet
away was the dead man covered with a
blanket.
Look here, captain" said my fellow
scout as we moved up to him after a brief
talk between ourselves, while you ain's
got force huff to drive these reds off ard
bring the family out it seems as il couple
of men might help to stand the Injuns of
till Custer comes up with the rest of the
command"
How would you do its" asked the cap.
tain.
WAL. pard and kin make the distance
afore daylight. IL the family has bin wiped
out we'll come back; if not we'll try to gis
in and help 'em hold the fort till the reds
git tired or Custer drives 'em off"
The captain took five minutes to think ID
over and then gave us permission to go.
The Indians had overreached themselves
in their attack on the ca5in-that is, they
had betrayed their presence by firing upon
the land locker too soon. AS his horse
dashed off with him the Applegates bar |
ricaded doors and windows and prepared
to fight to the end. The cabin was con. |
structed of logs, sods and stones-a tenn !
porary shelter to be replaced the next yeaI |
by something more pretentious 1t stood
on n knoll, with clear ground all around it. I
Fifty feet from the back door was the
spring from which water was obtained.
A mile from the house we turned ouI !
horses loose to find their way back to
camp, and then crept forward We felt |!
certain that Indians were about, but we
reached the cabin without seeing or hear !
ing from them. Lying fiat upon the earth |!
thirty feet away we cautiously signaled 1
and repeated until those inside were aware !
of our presence. They were naturally sus- !
picious of trickery, and it was a quarter OF
an hour later before we got into the house. !
In addition to what the land locker had
told US, we found that Mrs. Applegate hal /
been killed by n bullet which had entered .
one of the portfolios, and another had !
struck the husband in the fieshy part OF
the leg and inflicted painful wound. In !
the darkness we could not see each Others |
faces, and our conversation was in whis
pers. When daylight came the body OF ,
Mrs. Apologize was laid on the bed and
wound to his great benefit. The sister-in- !
law was named Lucy Rogers. She was
surprise to me. She had the voice and
bearing of n born lady, and | never saw
handsomer Srl. Such a girl ought to have
been lying in a dead faint or walking
about and wringing her hands and unnerv-
ing the others Instead of that she was
calm and cool and rather inclined to take
charge of affairs. The boy was only boy
in years, but when | looked him over
knew that he would count for a man in the
attack which we might soon look for.
Now, here's the situation" said old
Bill rs daylight made our surroundings
plain. Thar are five of us here. We've
got three Winchesters, a cavalry carbine
and three revolvers and plenty of ammuni-
ton fur all We kin stand off hundred
fur a couple of days, and nobody need be
scarf. How's the grub and water?'
I'VE have plenty to eat" replied the
girl, but the water is about gone. l am
now going to the spring with the two
pals You two scouts must cover me with