The Laurens advertiser. (Laurens, S.C.) 1885-1973, 1896-12-29

sword" In the intense cold Of the three
days that succeeded the blizzard, there
was no Interchange of visits, so to
speak, between tho fort and tho Indian
, village, bat tho emissaries of Ben
Thorpe had been busily at work Big
Road and his warriors had been hidden
to attend the stately funeral Of their
kinsman and friend, Grow Knife, on the
morning after Christmas, and had flock.
ed to the scene and lifted up their
mournful chant when tho volleys flash
ed and the crowd Of attendant soldiers
bowed their heads in mingled homage
and sorrow That was as it should be,
but what did it mean that his slayer
should then be accorded equal honors-
aye, that more ers-chiefs-were
present at Graice's grave than when the
son OF Brule warrior was laid to rest?
This they could not fathom, and this,
despite the strained relations that had
resulted in the death of Laramie Pete,
the cowboy emissaries proved eager to
explain in their own way and to explain
to attentive ears.
"Old Fenton thought ho'd done me
when he moved that bloody band up
here to the fort" said the COW boy king
to his admiring audience over at the
saloon across the Platte. eff don t pay
him off with compound interest within
the month and make him wish he hadn't
monkeyed with my business, call me
a coyote. He and the stuck up gang he
heads will wish to God they ID left those
Indians where they were"
And five days after Christmas Colonel
| FentOn heard Of goinRs on within the
village that gave him cause to summon
his adjutant and officer Of the day, to
double his sentries ON every front and
| to realize how much in these few years
| he had learned to lean for counsel and
support on Malcolm Leale: for now: the
rolonel was forbidden, as was everybody
Else, to see him even for moment.
| Not only had the flash of the explosion
wrecked his eyosight, but there was
| grave reason to fear that he had inhaled
the flame. Captain Loale was suffering
torment, yet bearing his burden v'thout
| moan.
| troubled man was the veteran post
surgeon all that woeful week. Ellis
Farrar, delirious in burning fever, NAL
colin Leale PROSTATE OH bed Of pain,
| blind and breathing only in agonizod
| gasps, Mrs. Farrar looking so fragile
and weak that it seemed as though n
breath might blow away tho feeble
| flicker Of her life, others Of the women
more or less overcome and shocked by
the events Of the last few days, and now,
right in the midst Of it all, came indi.
cations Of trouble in the Indian village
up the stream-powwowing speech
making and dancing by night, runners
fitting to and from the Big Horn, mes
sengers durting in from other tribes
and when Fenton sent for Big Road to
come into the Office and explain the
chief temporiZed,- expressed himself as
suspicious of some plot to separate him
from his people and to hold him as
| hostage at tho fort.
If Colonel Fenton desired to talk, let
Colonel Fenton come to the council
lodge at tho village, but leave his SOL
diers behind. Big Roads old men had
seen visions and had heard warnings,
his medicine chiefs had boon signaled
by the Great Spirit, his young men were
excited and alarmed, his women were
weeping and gathering their children
to their knees. If the white chief meant
peace and friendship, let him show it
by coming to his lodge with gifts in his
hands instead Of guns. He (the white
chief) was rich, and his horses and his
young men were fat and strong. Big
Road was poor and his people were
hungry and cold, his sponics dying. Fen
ton indeed would have gono with only
his adjutant and interpreter and q sin
gle orderly but for tho warning Of O
Brule girl who had left her people q
few years before to follow a soldier low
er and had made her home among the
whites, patient, sorrowing woman,
ever since his untimely death. The
Amorys had provided for her in every
way, for the soldier was one Of the cap.
tain's troop, and she had grown deeply
attached to them, even though now oo.
oasionally visiting her kindred.
1t was at luncheon, talking to his
wife, that Amory told Of Colonel Fen.
tons purpose Of riding over to the viii
lage that very afternoon, and the story
was repeated in the kitchen, where it
reached the ears Of the Indian girl In
an Instant she had darted out Of the
house and gone to the colonel's, where
she frightened Lucretia ont Of her seven
senses with the first words she uttered
"Thev kill the oolonell He no aol'
luckily, Wayne was at hand to soothe,
support and explain. Other officers were
sent for, and, despite Fenton's pooh
pooling, 80 strong were their arguments
that at Q O'Clock messenger was dis
patched to Big Roads bailiwick to tell
him tho colonel had card that which
made him say to the indian chief that
now the only way in which he would
meet him would be at the adjutant's g
Office, as originally proposed, or else
alono ind unarmed midway between
the fort and the village, no soldiers or
warriors being allowed to approach
within 400 yards, unless, indeed, Big
Road himself should propose an adju-
tant for each. IL this was satisfactory,
let the time be set for O'Clock and
Fenton would be there.
The BALI breed messenger came back
in half an hour. "Big Road would send
his answer by squaw," and that was
Big Roads way Of saying that the white
chief was an old woman. Utterly for
gotful now Of the service Fenton had
rendered his people and him, duped by
tho visions Of hia medicine men and
| fuddled with the liquor lavished on him
by the cowboys, Big Road was hot for
war.
No squaw came, no conference took
II t.1oco narkraeo, .s.sas entEI;,s