The Camden chronicle. (Camden, Tenn.) 1890-current, 1896-07-17

probably wonld have been useless in
any case. for Indians eyes are like
hawks for seeing. Through nay
glassoa / saw tho Indians stop aud
little knot Of them gathered about tao
leader. could 500 him raise his
field glasses TO his eyesaud bring them
TO bear on us-tho Apaohos. You
know. learned the trick Of using Geld
glasses years ago, before Victories
war, and they carry as good ones as
the officers of .ho troops sent out
against them have. They held q short
council, while / looked on IN suspense,
aud It ended by al Of them turning
for Ms. putting their horses 10 a lope.
"Wo were a scared lot Of fellows
about that time, aud don't mind
saying now that was rs badly fright
ened as any. But as leader Of the
party must keep my head and show
no fear Some Of the men we're for
breaking to the foothills and trying
to reach Gold Hill through the cactus
that hedges them.
Don't think Of it, boys said.
1t would be just the Indians game to
get us where they can come upon MS
under cover. We must keep to the
open plain. Have you all got your
carbines aud ammunition ? Now, al
hands come on for Lordsburg.'
"We left our camp outfit as it stood
and started at a slow run out on the
plain. OF course, we didn't expect to
get far before the Indians overhauled
us, but Lordsburg was the quarter
from which help was most likely to
come to us, and we wanted TO be
working that way oil We could. The
Indians came fast after rs, and when
they we're not more than a mile and
half away I called a halt. Give EN-
a volley, 1 said, and we all faced about
aud blazed away. Our carbines could
not send a ball half way to them, but
the Indians stopped to see what would
happen, and we got a minutes breath
ing spell. Then they started for us
again and we ran on. Twice again
We stopped and fred at the Indians
The third time we had gained little
rise of ground, and here I saw was the
place to make our last stand. There
was a stretch of plain we had come
over covered with the last years grass
that would show white behind the In
dians when they got near, and 80 help
our aim in shooting.
when we stopped this time the
Indians were half a mile away, COM
ing all together at great pace. As
we faced them they scattered out in a
line a quarter of mile long, and came
on without slackening speed, each In
dian darting his horse to left and
right to confuse our aim. SO far they
had saved their ammunition, but now
they began to fire and yell-and the
yelling of a band of Apaches is a
mighty unpleasant sound when there
are only seven of you, and more than
forty of them are charging down to
wipe you out
1--WE fred fast, and an Indian
swayed in his saddle and dropped.
Whose shot did it none of us'knew, or
could tell what became of him, for be-
fore he reached the ground a dozen
of his companions had closed in
around him, and when they scattered
we could see nothing of the one that
had been struck. Whether he had
been able to mount again or was
strapped up behind another Indian
We were too much engaged to search
out.
1.-The purpose of the Indians was
plainly to surround and confuse us
while shooting us to pieces. Already
at 400 yards away they had spread
ol.t in a half circle about us. Theil
chief, Geronimo, directed all theil
movements by signs. They were vel
armed, many of them having repeat
ing rifles, and the bullets whistlet
fast about us as their line closed in.
The sun had just gone down, and they
seemed bent on finishing us befor,
darkness fell. Two lucky shots
dropped two of their ponies almost to