Barton County democrat. [volume] (Great Bend, Kan.) 1885-1915, 1895-01-17

[GoaE9 10
GRAVES WAS ROBBED AT MINDEN STA
TON"
the boys shouldn't know what to do
with what remained of their money.
This load he pushed forward on the
heels of the command. Then his own
fine team and spring wagon were sent
down the valley to Allkai station,
whittier he proposed to follow by rail
and meet the paymaster on his arrival,
and to entertain him royalty on the
drive out to the Springs. It was esti-
mated that the battalion, breaking
camp on Bear Fork at $50 a. M, could
unsaddle and pitch its tents at Willow
Springs by noon. 1t was estimated
that leaving Alkali, say six a. M, after
hearty breakfast, the paymaster
would be trundled away up the valley
of the Dry Fork and be landed at the
Springs, twenty-five miles north of the
railway, in plenty of time to meet them,
and Tintop was ordered to detach q
sergeant and ten men to ride over to
AllzaH from their camp on Bear Fork
to bivOuac at the station over night
and escort the paymaster up the next
day. Graves left department head
quarters On the weSt-bOund express,
his clerk, his valise full of funds nee
essary for the payment of the batta1-
ion, and he himself, all comfortably
ensconced in the Pullman car. They
were due at Alkali at four a. m. They
could retire early, have a good nights
rest, and be called by the porter in
plenty of time to be up and dressed
and to enjoy camp breakfast with
their escort at the little statiOn-a
mere siding with some cattle chutes
| and penS-befOre starting on their
| drive.
| Standing where Constance had stood
on the summit of the high, precipitous
butte that lay southwest of the fort,
one could see the valley of the Mini
Ska stretching away to the eastward a
| distance of nearly fifty miles. Then
! the stream seemed to bring up sudden
| ly against line of bluffs that turned
it off the northeast, and this general
direction it followed another fifty
miles. The land was low and undulat-
ing along the left bank, while on the
right, between the stream and the bold
| line of bluffs to the south, there was
barely room for the railway. Forbade
here near the fort, the Mini Ska speed
lily deepened and widened and became
sluggish in flow as it rolled out into
the 1owlands after its -tumbling rush
| through the mountain chain at the
west. Every year since its stab1ish-
ment had cavalry column marched
| away from Fort Ransom to straighten
out matters between the Sioux and the
settlers who were venturing too close
to the reservation. The first year or
two the trail led along the west bank,
hugg;ng the stream, but, as it was
found that this was the longer, hotter.
and duStier way, new route was de-
cided on, cutting across the big bend
and winding along over the foothills
of the range, from which several
streams of clear, cool water came pour
ing forth, speedily to become Inur1y
and turbid on reaching the broad plain
below. The first days march lay al
most due east from Ransom and par
alle1 with the Mini Ska, the next veered
around toward the northeast, and
camp was always made at Bear Fork
Not until the fourth camp at Painted
Lodge did the trail and the stream
again come together, and from that
point down to the disputed territory
the pet raiding- of the restless
''yonng men," the two were never fan
apart. West of Painted Lodge the
Sioux did not often venture, though
the broad bottom-1and within this Ell
bow of the Ska was a fine grazing
ground.
The railway, coming up from the
southeast and over a high plateau
dropped down to the valley by mean;
of long, winding ravine scooped out
for it by the Antelope, little tributary
that joined the Mini Ska just at the
elbow, and here, at the point where
the rail and the river after running
parallel for eighty miles suddenly quit
company, the line shooting eastward
the stream northeast-here stOoC
Alkah station. Cattlemen had built {