The Roanoke times. [volume] (Roanoke, Va.) 1890-1895, 1894-02-07
FOES IN
AMBUSH
BY CAPT. CHAs. KING, us. A.
Copyright, 1898, by Charles King.
Continued from last Sunday.l
CHAPTER X


plan of starting OH the return soon aft
er daybreak had now to he Abandoned
as Drummond explained, because here
was n man who could not stand the
journey. Surely there would not be
many hours before the relief party from
Stoneman, following their trail, would
come speeding to the rescue. bringing
to the wounded the needed surgical
skill and attention. bringing to the
Harvey girls their devoted father. The
only question III the young lieutenant S
mind as the sun rose, Il burning, daz-
cling disk, over tho distant mountains
to the east was Which will be first to
reach us, friends or foes?
Wearied and shattered though he was
and replete as the night had been with
anxiety and vigil, Drummond climbed
the goat track that led to tho sentrys
perch feeling full of hope and pluck and
fight. He and his men had divided
the night into watches, one being awake
and astlr, not even permitting himself
to sit moment, while the others slept.
The fact that he was able to send back
to the caves, have an ambulance hitch
ell i'll and driven down to where Wing
lay wounded, and to bear him slowly,
carefully, back to shelter, reaching the
caves without further molestation be-
fore darkness set in, had served to con-
vince the young commander that he
could count ON reasonable security for
the night. Unless they know their prey
to be puny and we'll nigh defenseless
Apaches make no assault in the dark
ness, and SO, with the coming of the
dawn, he had about him fit for service
squad of seven troopers most of
them seasoned mountain fighters His
main anxiety now was for Wing, whose
wound was severe, the bullet having
gone clear through, just grazing the
bone, and who, despite the fact that
Fanny Harvey early in the night had
every now and then crcpt noiselessly in
to cool his fevered head, seemed strange
ly affected mentally, seemed unnatu-
rally Tightly and wander ing, seemed
oppressed or excited alternately in n
way that baffled Drummond complete
~, for no explanation WAS plausible.
Two or three times during the night he
h2d been heard moaning and yet the
moment Drummond or, as once hap
pened, Miss Harvey fastened 10 his
side he declared it was nothing. Il
must have been doing and imagined
the pain was greater than it was. ;"
Awake and conscious, so stout Il soldier
as he would he the last to give way to
childish exhibitions of suffering, vet
twice Drummond knew him to be
awake despite his protcstation of doZ-
ing, and he did not ut al like it that
Wing should bury his face in his arms
hiding it from all. What could have
occurred to change This buoyaut joyous,
high spirited trooper all Oh II sudden
into signing, moaning, wolnanish fol-
low? Surely not n wound of which,
however painful. any soldier might be
proud.
Somewhere along toward 4 o'clock
when it was again Patterson S watch
and Drummond arose from his blanket
after refreshing sleep of nearly two
hours and he and his faithful sentry
wero standing just outside the mouth
o. she cave, they distinctly heard the
same moan of distress.
Is there nothing we can do to case
the sergeant, sir:' whispered Patter-
son. This makes the second time
have heard him grooming, and it's so
unlike him..
We have no opiates, and doubt if
he would uso one if we had. He de
clares there is no intense pain
We'll, first off, sir, thought he was
dreaming, but he was wide awake, and
Miss Harvey came i'll only moment
after got to him. Could those devils
poison Il bullet as they do their arrows,
and could that make him go into fever
so soon?''
Il hardly think SO, but why did you
say dreaming?'
Because once it was mother he
called, and again-just now i thought
he said mother.
The lieutenant turned, looking
straight at his soldierly subordinate.
BY Jove. Patterson. so did IT.
There WAS Il little stir across the
canyon. Moreno was edging about I'M
easily and beginning to muttcr bias
phcmy at his bonds
That fellow begged very hard to he
moved down into that wolf hole of a
place where the Mexican women are
lieutenant with those two bungcd up
bandits to take care Of Nice time
we'd have, sir, if the three Of them was
able to move. The boys'd make short
work of them now, the way they're
feeling. went in and took a look at
those two fellows. One of 'em is Il
goner, sure, but they're dead game,
both of 'em. Neither one has word
to say"
NO." answered Drummond, they
refused to give their names to me-said
1t was no earthly consequence what