Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1896-12-23
CHAPTER XVI.

June haQ come, raQ1anG JUNE, ana
all at Frayne was joyous anticipation,
despite the momentous fact that the
Platte had overleaped its bounds and
was raging like some mad mountain
torrent far as the eye could see. The
fats to the west Of the post were one
broad, muddy lake. The grassy bench
beneath the bluffs to the east was par
TALLY torn away. Part Of Bunko Jim g
frontier stronghold still clung to the
opposite bank. but some Of it was dis
tributed in driftwood long leagues down
stream. Across the river, at point
half mile above the ruin Of the ferry
house, troop Of cavalry, caught on re-
turn from scout, had pitched its tents
and picketed its horses and was waiting
for the falling of the waters to enable
it to return to its station, and with that
troop, the maddest man in all Wyo-
ming, was Lieutenant Will Farar.
Six or seven weeks previously an Or
der had come to Fenton to send two
troops to scout the western slopes Of the
Big Horn and keep the peace between
the settlers and the Shoshones. Time
was when these latter rarely ventured
across the Big Horn river, partly
through fear Of the Sioux, who claimed
sovereignty over all the lands east Of the
Shoshone preserves in the Wind river
valley, partly through regard for the or
ders of their loyal old chief, Washakie,
who for long. long years Of his life had
kept faith with the great white father,
held his people in check and suffered
the inevitable consequences of poverty
and neglect, the policy Of the Indian
bureau being to load with favors only
those Of it's wards who defy it and deal
death to the whites. Settlers seldom
encroach upon the Sioux, those gentry
being abundantly able and more than
willing to take care of themselves, but
the Shoshones had known long years OF
enervating peace and, being held in
subjection by their chief, became the
natural prey Of the whites, who mlstook
subord ination for subservicnce, as Is
natural to freeborn Americans and as
easily adopted by fellow citizens OF for
eign birth and who soon began to en-
croach on their own account, stealing
Shoshone crops and cattle and promptly
accusing the army officer on duty as
agent of cattle stealing and all around
rascality when he reseized the captured
stock.
Then, while this badgered official was
defending himself in court, the Sho-
shones had to defend themselves in the
field, and that peripatetic buffer between
the oppressor and the oppressed, the
corporations and the cranks, the law
and the lawless-the much bedevlled
army-was sent out as usual to receive
the slings and arrows of outrageous for
tune and Of both parties. Finding II
difficult to swindle the Shohones so long
as their new agent-the army agent
remained in power, the obvious thing
was to down him by Misrepresentation
at Washington and, if that didn't work,
by deft manipulation Of the local law.
OF course they didn't expect to prove
him guilty of anything, but there was
no law against lying, and they could
compel him to come into court and
prove himself innocent and leave his un'
armed wards at the mercy of the set 'e1
in the meantime, and so it happened
that there were high jinks up the Wind
river valley and along those wonderful
ranges in the wild valleys of the Gray
Dill tba Moavero tho Meeteetsee north
of the Owl Greek mountains, and, the
cavalry having long since been with
drawn from that section, that was no"
the detail fell on old Fort Frayne.
"You can straighten matters out II
a month";" said the commanding officer
to Major Wayne, who had hastened
back from the east to take command,
and when it came to selecting the troops
to go, even though 1t lacked less thar
two months to his wedding day, Will