Abilene weekly reflector. [volume] (Abilene, Kan.) 1888-1935, 1894-11-08

He must now wait until darlness
should come to conceal his movements.
Lying down upon the brow Of the hill,
be eagerly scanned the distant camp
Dusky forms moved to and fro about
the Pickering fires, but the one beloved
form for which he sought with aching
eyes appeared not. Although the ap.
preaching storm materially aided In
driving back the gray light Of day, to
his anxious, impatient soul the night
fall came with all too tardy footsteps.
The great black clouds rolled rapid
ly toward him, at times splitting out
vivid flashes Of lightning followed by
peals Of angry thunder. These premo-
nitions Of the coming storm filed his
breast with unspeakable satisfaction,
and he almost shouted with Joy when
the storm burst upon him in all Its
fury. The inky darkness which &C.
companied 1t would hide his move
ments, and the rain beating down upon
the lodges Of the Indians would drown
the sound Of his stealthy footsteps
As he lay there, his brain was busy
formulating q plan Of action. lie must
enter the village, perilous venture,
and when once there how could he do.
termlne in which one Of the twenty or
more lodges his loved one was con.
fined? He could but 60 ahead and
trust TO Providence for guidance. Not
one man In o thousand would under
take such hazardous task; but the
light Of his life-all he cared TO live for
was in that village Of deadly, treach-
erous foes, and II he could not effect
her rescue 1t was his desire TINT he
might die with her
When the storm struck the village
the Indians hastily sought shelter in
their lodges, and the drenching rain
soon cxtlnguished the camp fires. Be-
Ing driven to shelter, the waiting sol.
dier knew the savagcs would soon seek
comfort In their blanket beds, and
after waiting about an hour, that to his
impatient spirit seemed On age, he re-
mounted his horse and rode toward the
village.
Securing his horse to a bush behind
an embankment which marked the bed
OF an old creek near the village, the
soldier took the pistols from the hol-
sters and thrust them through the belt
above his waist, and taking hunting
knife from one OF the saddle pockets
moved stealthily into the camp All
was quiet, save the beating Of the rain
and the occasional volleys from heav-
ems artillery overhead. Even the
snarllng, half-starved ours with which
every Indian village Is infested had
crawlcd into the lodges for shelter
from the storm, and did not discover
his presence.
How would he ever be able to locate
the object Of his search? His lips moved
in prayer to Heaven for aid, as he
moved along like dark specter amid
the lodges. Anon he would pause and
listen intently, hoping to hear cough
or a sigh or q spoken word to tell him
Of the presence of his loved one.
As he cautiously moved onward a
vivid flash of lightning revealed to his
eyes IN object like crouchlng form
near n lodge In the center Of the vii
lagc. Dropping PROSTATE upon tho
wet ground he pcered through the
darkness toward the object, and cngcr-
ly awaited the next flash, 1t came, and
seated upon the ground near the door
of a lodge he saw the form Of an Indian,
his blanket thrown over his head to
protect him from the storm. The heart
Of the young soldier beat with renewed
hope as the truth burst upon him that
the Indian was n guard and that the
sbjcct Of his search must be in that
lodge.
The guard must be disposed Of.
Much as be dreaded the shedding Of
hamnn bl,ed EXCEPT IN the line Of duty
"a the lleIll Of battle, he fels that he
must ALLOW rothing TO stanI between
himself and the sucecas of Iii, mission.
Naii1r detorr IN order to approach
the orouching sentinel from the rear,