Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1894-02-24

or signals farther out. Suddenly he
heard an exclamation ahead, the snort
Of frightened horse. then some muffied
objnrgations. a rider urging reluctant
steed to approach some suspicious OBJ
ject, aud, squirting his own spirited
charger forward, Mr.. Drummond came
presently upon the corporal inst dis
mounting in the darkness and striving
to lead his boon companion, whom he
could not drive, up to some dark object
lying on the plain. This, too, failed.
A low whistle, however, brought one of
the ether scouts trotting in to the res
cue.
"Hold him a minute, Burke, said
the corporal, handing up the reins.
There's something out here this brute
SHE'D at and l can't get him near it
again. With that he pushed out TO
the front while the others listened ex-
pectant. A moment later match was
struck, and presently burned brightly
III the black ard breathless night.
Then came the startled cry:
My God, lieutenant, it's Corporal
Donovan and his horse-both dead
And even there Nh. DI'ummond noted
that Bland was aho,rN the first of the
column to come hurrying forward to
the scene.
Ten minutes Investigation threw but
little hight upon the tragedy. Some
stumps of candles were found in the
| saddlebags and packs, and with these
the men secured the plain for signs
Spreading well out from the center,
they closely examined the sandy level
From the north came the trail of two
cavalry horses, shod alike, both at the
lope. both draggy and weary. From
the point where lay Donovan and his
steed there was but one horse track.
Whirling sharply around, the rider had
sent his mount at laundering gallon
back across the valley; then 100 yards
| away, In long curve, he had refined him
to the southeast. The troopers who
followed the hoof marks out about an
eighth of mile declared that, I'M
wounded, both horse and rider were
making the best of their way toward
Moreno's ranch. Farther search, not
so yards TO the front, revealed the fact
that at the edge of a little depression
and behind some cactus bushes three
human forms had been lying prone.
and from this point probably had sped
the deadly bullet.
"Apaches. by God.' muttered one
of the men.
"Apaches. your grandmother was
the sergeant's fierce reply. ''Will You
never learn sense. Moore? When did
Apaches take to wearing store clothes
and heeled boots: There's no Apache
| In this, lieutenant. Look here, sir, and
here. Move out farther. some of Won
fellows, and see where they hid their
horses. Corporal Donovan was with
Z troop down the ella last week, sir.
They were to meet and escort the pay
master most like. Its my belief he
was one OF the guard and that the am
bulance has been jumped this very
| night. These are ROAD agents, not
Apaches, ard God knows what's hap
pened IT they've got away with Patsy.
Sure he was one OF Inc nerviest men in
the whole troop, SIR
Drulnmond listened, every nerve
a-tinsle, even while with hurried hands
he cut open the shirt at the brawny
throat and felt for fiuttering heart beat
or faintest sign of life. Useless. The
shot hole under the left eve told
plainly that the leaden missile had
torn Its way through the brain and
| that death must have been instan-
tcneous. The soldiers arms and ac-
GOVERNMENTS, the horses equipments.
were gone. The bodies lay unmuti-
lated. The story was plain. Separated
in some way from the detachment, DON
ovan and his companion had probably
sighted the signal blazing at the pass
and come riding hard to reach the spot,
when the unseen foe crouching across