Saint Mary's beacon. [volume] (Leonard Town, Md.) 1867-1983, 1893-06-08
Saint Marv's Beacon
BETWEEN the BLUFFS.

was the situation Of affairs on the
sterile plain south Of Fort Chad
bourne, Tex. There were I6 army
wagons loaded with supplies for the
fort. The cavalry escort numbered
only SO men. Counting the team
storm, We had 81. The Indians had
closed in on both sides and in the
rear, and no one estimated their
number at less than $50, all mount
ed. There was this in our favor
only few had rifles. At least 200
we're armed with lances, and so long
as We could hold them off with our
carbines we need not fear them.
Our route was a narrow valley
bluffed on each side, and these bluffs
were impossible for horses. Here
and there the valley spread out
until it was half mile wide, and
again it contracted until only two
wagons could move abreast. Our
safety was to keep moving and
count on the rear guard to fight
them back.
That valley was three miles long.
When we had debouched on the
plain beyond, the Indians would
charge as. We figured our chance
as one in FIVE. The teamsters might
or might not fight. They were all
Mexicans, and they might even be
suspected of being the allies of the
redskins. Thirty-eight men, doz-
en- of whom were just ont of hospi-
tai and in poor shape for a fight,
seemed a mere nothing compared to
the masses of horsemen closing in.
The last half mile of this route was
not over 20 feet wide from the bluff.
When we struck that spot the wag-
ons were sent on ahead. From the
rearmOst one We took 10 large per-
cussion shells destined for the can
non ut the fort. These shells were
rapidly filled with powder, bullets
and shot, the primers inserted, and
while dozen men held the Indians
at bay we dug holes in the ground
and set each shell on end with ITS
cap just level with the roadbed.
We planted two small kegs of pow
der as well, and over the gravel
we scattered the contents of a third.
When all was ready, the rear
guard was called in, and we retreat
ed for about 80 rods. We only
made a pretense of fighting now, as |
if our object was to let the wagons |
get long start up the main valley. |
AT the end of a quarter of an hour |
the Indian lancers formed for a
charge up the narrow way, and we
retreated in seeming conf"~;
draw them on ~
" --sion to
Ine lancers formed
a.. ranks of six or seven front and
running back farther than we could
see. At a given signal this great
mass set up a yell and charged.
The first IL or IA safely passed the
shells. Then came a series of ex-
plosions which made the earth heave
and shot great black cloud half a
mile high into the sky. 1t rolled
down upon us and enveloped us for
time in midnight darkness, and
with it was an odor to nauseate ey-
cry man. We heard shrieks of pain
and yells of terror, and now and
then that strange sound uttered by
q wounded horse. A dozen of us
kept firing into the cloud, but after
five or six minutes it thinned ont,
and We stood and leaned on our
carbines and were almost alrrighted
at the spectacle. The narrow way
for many rods was literally choked
with the dead and dying. Frag-
ments of men and horses had fallen
all about us.
No man cared to go nearer. 1t
would have been safe, for the In
diaEs who escaped disaster were gal
Looping away in a state of abject ter
ror, but the spectacle would have
been in ones dreams forever after.
We hurried on ont of the narrow
valley, overlook the fast moving
wagons and the pale-faced teams
sters, and thence to the fort the
sharpest eye could not detect the
presence of an Indian anywhere on
the wide sweep of plain. So-called
humanitarians called it a cruel,
-blooded slaughter. Army re-
cords referred to it as q merciful
salvation of troop and train.
NJ. QUAD.