The Houma courier. (Houma, La.) 1878-1939, 1896-12-05
WITH THE CHALK FROM THE
BLUFF PILED AROUND HIM.

|
ing. Almost before he was aware of
it he found himself a prisoner. The
bits of rock had piled up about his feet
until he found it impossible to move.
There was nothing new to hope for,
as he knew we'll that his tormentors
would never give over the fight until
he was either killed by an arrow or
buried alive.
What the poor fellow thought or
how he felt in the face of this crisis we
may not know.
when an hour had gone by and he
did not return a party went to look for
him. In a little while we came within
sight of the band of ]murderers on the
cliff and readily guessed that the con-
ductor was besieged.
Squirting our horses to a dead run
we charged the band, and when within
rifle range began to pour the lead into
them. For a time they withstood the
storm bravely, but never an arrow was
aimed at us.
IAN Indian would hang over the wall,
two or three Of his companions holding
on to his feet, and send a poisoned ar.
row after the conductor. Some of them
were wounded or killed-by u bullets,
but that seemed to make them the
more determined to kill the prisoner.
We were by no can anxious TO APP
proach within reach of their arrows,
but the problem of rescuing the con-
ductor was now becoming a serious one.
Even now he might be dead, for we
could neither see nor hear him, so great
was the din and the dust. Finding it
impossible to drive the red devils away
from their murderous work our COM
mander ordered US to charge, and gall
Looping up to within 100 yards of the
bluff we halted, and taking deliberate
aim, let fly a shower of lead hat sent a
half dozen Indians to the earth. At that
moment an Indian who had just dis
charged an arrow at the imprisoned
conductor leaped to his feet and gave an
eXultant yell. Instantly the whole band,
taking up the cry, disappeared behind
the edge of the cliff. Leaving a MAORI
ty of our force on guard the captain
and I approached toward the point
at which the Indians had been aiming
their arrows. So dense was the cloud of
dust that hung about the hill in the still
morning air, that we were unable, for a
time, to locate the unfortunate man.
To all our calls he made no reply, and
we knew that he was beyond human
aid. When we finally found him he was
still standing upright with the chalk
from the bluff piled ADORE his waist. A
number of arrows were sticking in his
arms and shoulders. Only one small
end of one stood above his coat. 1t had
entered just behind his collar bone,
near the left side Of his neck, and pass
ing downward the point of it had
pierced his heart. His head hung upon
his breast while his helpless hands
rested upon the rocks that had been
heaped around him. 1t would be as inn
possible for me to describe the ex-
preston on the dead mans face as it
has been for me to forget it. 1t was a
sight to take out of a white mans heart
any whitof Christian sympathy he may
have harbored there for his red brother.
1t was hard to look upon there, but
when we had carried the poor fellows
body back to his home and bore it up
to the door of a little white cottage, II
the very spot upon which he had kissed
his wife and baby %'good-by,' only a few
days before, it was harder still.
when his gr~ay-haired mother benz
her stiff knees beside the dead man;
when his wife wept over his coffin, and
his blue-eyed baby stood staring at tht
!. cold white face, unable to understand
there crept into my heart a feeling q
bitter hatred for those red devils which
r 1 am afraid / shall never be able
! to overcome and the sick mar
: sighed and turned away his face tc
: hide whatever he had in his eyes,
/ Atlanta Constitution.