The Norfolk Virginian. [volume] (Norfolk, Va.) 186?-189?, 1896-10-06

Il =
I SAW CLOUDS OF noRsEMEN
tire by General Hancock and his staff, to
whom the dashing Custer and six troops of
D the Seventh cavalry from Fort Hayes noted
us IN escort.
At this timo tho Kansas Pacific railrcad
Z was about to send several corps of cngi-
neers toward tho Pacific, and us the sue.
Ssccss Of the survey depended from tho start
on tho friendliness of tho no,nad tribes
< this council was called to secure it,
KIN Roman Nose, chief OF the Arapahocs,
was by NIL odds tho most prominent and
picturesque figure among tho Indians
After tho treaty was made Roman Nose
: took q fancy t2yn cavalry buglo and tho
full dress coaS of Lieutenant Duncan
/, q Graham, ard tho general, to make the
X compact donbly sure, gave him these urti-
ssrles
m Confident that the Indian war was over
= Tor that summer ut least, tho engineer nd
Vance proceeded from Sulina, Kan, then
u Che farthest western railroad point, to Fort
6 Wallace, near the Colorado line.
General Hancock went on to Wallace,
where Captain Keogh was then in com
I mand, and ho took tho troop with him to
Il Denver, thing Hnncocl; would not have
i done had he tho faintest suspicion that the
Indians had already violated the treaty
4 and were then numbering white men along
4 the Kaw and the Smoky Hill rivers.
Lieutenant Beechcr, II nephew of the ia
& NOUS clergyman, was at thGt time quar-
termnster Mt Wallace. He was killed by
tho Indians few weeks after this, but In
the meantime he was busy getting up the
I necessary buildings, and for this purpose
mad opened quarry of magnetism lime.
q stone This quarry was on the southern
edge of tho military reservation, which tho
engineers were then laying out, and some
sse civilians We're employed In getting out
atGne
After Keogh left with General Hancock
e Z tho uniformed fighting force at Wallace
q consisted Of about 35 men, under command
4 OF First Lieutenant Bell
81 One morning early l was startled by
8heaTing the beating of the long roll fol.
lowed by the hoarso shouting of excited
! lneE Then came loud rapping with the
a butt of carbine on my cabin door, and mn
Irish sergeant shouted:
Get up ct once, sirl''
What for?' asked.
Il sihe Injuns are about the fort in
swnrms. They nre attacking the men in
4 the quarry cabins. Just hear the yelling
ascf the devilsp'
iif,1t-A'1 ptitS tiiiO 1 WAS up dressing. Inc
sergeant went on, and looking out the lit.
u le window at the back 1 saw clouds of
6 hofseInen galloping over the rolling plains.
Many time before this 1 had been
S +: startled from weary man g sleep by drum
: 9r bugle, and l awoke to the fierce yells Of
.Sbrnyer mon, and the rattling, irregular fire
4 ol Tedette or skirmisher that always struck
4 me as a weird prelude to the opera of death,
I: pub y was never so completely demoralized
as on this occasion.
dressed, strapped on my pistols and
4 Rhrsw Elyeelf into tho saddle, Beecher hay
ts1Eg thoughtfnlly sent me good mount
We must savo the men at the quarry"
4 sasd Bell, who rode up at the head Of his
ss.littlc band.
II You take so many Inen from the
: zcrs, sold Bennett, tho post scout and in.
Sterpreter, the Indians will sweep in here,
Z s s5or there's no defense and only about 25
ssciytlians. 1t looks to me like suicide
With go men in the main building the
i Sniy one they can't fire." said Beecher,
u contract to stand off 2, 900 till Custer
3 sends or brings help from Hayes; SO wade
In, Bill See! The red dogs have fired the
& nnlding over at the quarryi"
" against the rising sun black smoke
z Pillars rose, and through this the centaur-
4 Ike gayages plunged like demons born of
b Tie fire.
80 gliding '.oaide Bell, and with our heavy
ssArnerican Eorses leaping the buffalo wal.
Il lows md plunging into the prairie dog
/ hplss, p felt that our men were hardly
match for an equal number of the wild
I hcrsem1en in our front.
ne night before the rolling plains were
Esbiack With buffalo This morning 1t
|'stosllied MS IL thousandso Of mounted indiana
SSs}sasi ken their place
s BEYOND Pond creek and few hundred
Il atts from the quarry we dismounted, and
8 single yolley from the srencers of the
Fers opened mp wide path to the front.
'gess s. as ncSs ia poaitiop - tsie In thu