Phillipsburg herald. [volume] (Phillipsburg, Kan.) 1882-1905, 1894-05-03
A COUNCIL OF THE DEAD.
Nine Scouts Went Out, but None OF Them
Ever Came Back.

Nine Scouts Went Out, but None OF Them
Ever Came Back.
We had cited the Cheyenne village
Just before shutdown, and ere the
night became too dark the whole
company had moved up to within a
half mile Of 1t, so as to be ready for
an attack when the moon rose. Be-
tween us and the village was a
wooded hill, and as night fairly set in
two of our Ki0wa scouts were sent
forward to spy out the strength and
location Of the village. The horses
were corraled in a small valley, no
fires were lighted, and the $50 men
looked to be Llotches on the earth as
they rested after the long march.
Half an hour after the first scouts
were sent out two more were dis
patched. The first two ought to
have returned at the end of an hour,
but neither was heard Of. AS none
Of the tour had been heard Of at 10
O'Clock the third pair were sent for
ward. We could hear the barking OF
the dogs in the village and catch the
tinkle Of the bells on the leaders Of
the herd Of ponles and we had the
utmost confidence that our presence
was unsupported and unprepared for.
We had but to pick our w9v carefully
up the hillside, descend to the east
ern base, and there was the village
before U.s. The moon would rise at
1880. We would wait half an hour
after that.
"Can it be that your young men
are afraid and are hiding in the
bushes?" asked the General OF Red
Fox, the chief of the scouts, as the
latter crept up beside him in obedi-
ence to q message.
"a Kiowa afraid" replied the
chief. "Where is the enemy who
dares charge a Kiowa warrior with
knowing what fear is? The village
is large and my scouts wish to bring
you full information. They will even
tell you how many papooscs there are
in the village when they return"
Fifteen minutes later, as nothing
had yet been heard from the scouts,
Red Fox started out with two Others
promising TO send back word within
a quarter Of an hour. 1t did not
come. The general waited for three
quarters of an hour and then we got
the whispered command to move up
the hill. Like shadows we followed
in each others foOtsteps-turn ng,
twisting, and climbing. At the
crest we paused to listen. Here and
there a dog baYed at the moon-now
and then came the tinkle of bell
1t seemed as if every soul in the vii
lage was fast asleep. Now as we de-
scended every man increased his eau
tion, and the only sound a listener
could have heard was a slight rus
thing as of summer breeze moving
twig and leaf We cleared the pines
at last and drew u in a line beyond
them.
"Where was the village?"
Each man asked himself the ques-
ton as he stood staring at the spot
where the village had been and still
ought to be but was not A hundred
men had seen it before sunset Ten
minues ago we had heard the dogs
and bells The valley was clear of
tepees. There was not u campfire.
The full moon showed us every blade
of grass under our feet, and would
have betrayed a pony mile away
We stood aghast and appalled, when
we got the order TO move forward. In
five minutes we were among the
ashes of the extlnguished campflres.
Five minutes later we were looking
in horror upon the tate which had
befallen our scouts. There they were
nine of them-seated in a circle,
each body propped up by a rock at its
back. They faced inward, and their
feet UouChed. Some had been stab
bed, Others killed by blow Of the
tomahawk. Nine dead men sitting
in council, as it were, with the blood
still oOzing from their mortal hurts,
with their Chins on their breasts and
their arms crossed Around the dead
were $50 living men, looking up and
down and across the valley for trace
of what had been. Five hundred
people, 300 ponies, nearly 200 lodges
all had vanished off the face of the
earth, leaving council of dead men
to point out the direction of their
mysterious fight. Chicago Times.
Mhnt seigniornge Is.