Barton County democrat. [volume] (Great Bend, Kan.) 1885-1915, 1894-06-14

horses, and were inspired with that SUI
perb self-confid ence and fearlessness
of danger that are characteristic CT
American cavalrymen; and they rode
out of camp as gayly as knights ever
ga1loped to joust, waving careless
farewe1ls to their envious companions
in arms.
All through the hot July day they
rode over the parched plain, keenly
alert to the possible dangers of the
country, and towards evening they
saw the lone pine that marked the
cool and welcome pool among the
rocks in the San Bias pass. They rode
cautiously up the narrow trail, and
carefully scanned the approaches to
the spring; but no living thing was
astir, and there were no tell-tale marks
in the trail to indicate the presence of
evil and aggression in the silent oasis.
But they had not seen the hawks of
the hills, whose keen eyes had watched
their approach for many a mile, and
who were hiding in the pass below for
| the hour to come when they could
pounce upon their unguarded foes. A
dozen Apaches were in the rocks, pa
tient, tireless, cruel. who reckoned
| upon the savage pleasure of capturing
their prey alive, that they might joy
| their piti1ess souls in an exquisite in
genuity of torture.
The soldiers rode boldly to the spring,
into which the whinnying horses
thrust their thirsty mouths and hot
noses luxuriously. The soldiers unsad-
after spreading the moist saddle-blan-
| l-nfS tho V-nalxS fn dx-xy thew 11i0 foH
the animals where the scant grasses
grew thickest.
The habit of caution impelled them
| to climb the trail to the pine before
cooking their frugal supper. to assure
themselves that the plain and pass
were free from danger. AS they clam
bered up the hill the angry snorting of
the horses made them turn and shrink
behind the rocks Their hearts stood
| still, for the philistines were upon
| them. The Apaches had rushed from
! the shelter of the rocks to secure the
horses, to cut off any escape of their
prey, and the frightened animals had
betrayed them, for, snorting and kick
ing, they had broken their lariats and
! gone gathering down the trail to the
plain below.
The two soldiers felt cold tremors
run over them, for they knew they had
| a fight to the death ahead of them, and
they fully understood they would be
dead or free long before any aid could
ever reach them in that sidetrack of
the desert.
Creep up the trail, Mcguire said
| the corporal, calmly. ''I'l cover you
and follow you. We must hurry up,
| for they'll climb the hill down below
and try and head us off. Our only
chance is to reach the pine and the
rocks
Mcguire nodded coolly, and simply
said: Don't shoot in a hurry, corpor-
al We have more time than ammuni-
| tion;" and he went up the trail swiftly;
hating behind bowlder.
Franklin caught glimpse of the In
dams, but only a glimpse, for their
own safety was of more Importance
than the capture of the soldiers. That
was only question of time. The cor
poral Joined the private above, and
then both started on run for the
pine, amid the yelling and firing of
the Indians, who had gained the sum-
nit further down. Just a few PAGES
from their shelter Mcguire staggered,
and as he caught him Franklin saw
the blood gushing from his breast over
his gray shirt. AS the men struggled
into the shelter of the rocks, the
wounded man pitched over dead with
ball through his head, and Frank
lin felt hot, soaring stroke on his
| cheek.
Grief and rage surged through Frank
Inns breast, but he kept his head, and
from behind his rocky breastwork
drove the Indians to the shelter of the
cedars a hundred yards away. His
cheek-bone ached, and the blood from
his wound dripped on his shirt; but,
though painful, he knew his wound
was not dangerous, and he kept watch
on his vigilant foe, glancing betimes
at his dead comrade stretched Imply
at his side. Darkness came, but his
steady watch was maintained, the
strain being relieved by an occasional
shot at his creeping enemies, which
had made them chary OF their wary
and desperate prey. Later, the glare
down the pass told him that the
Apaches were cooking, and their vigi-
lance relaxing. They felt certain OF