Ottumwa semi-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1899-1903, 1900-09-04

L
paint and finery, shook hands grimly
with the representatives of the Great
Father. critically scanned the prof
fered gifts, disdainfully rejected the
muzzle-loading rifles and old dragoon
horse-pistols heaped before him. Got
heap better" was his comment, and
nothing but brand new. brcech-
leaders would serve his purpose.
Promise them and he'd see what could
be done to restrain his young men.
But they were pretty mad" he. said,
and couldn't be relied upon to keep
the peace unless sure of getting better
arms and ammunition to help them
break it next time. 1t was only tenn
porizing. 1t was only encouraging the
veteran war chief in his visions of pow
err and control. The commissioners
came back bealning. every thing salts
factorily arranged. Red Cloud and his
people are only out for big hunt"
But officers whose wives and children
prayed fearfully at night within the
puny wooden stockades, and listened
trembling to the bowls and tom-toms
of the dancing Indians around the
council fires in the neighboring valleys,
wished to heaven they had left those
dear ones in safety at their eastern
homes-wished to heaven they could
send them thither now, but well knew
that it was too late. Only as single
spies, riding by night, hiding by day,
were couriers able to get through
from the Big Horn to the Platte. OF
scouts and soldiers sent at different
times since the middle of May, seven
were missing, and never. except
through vague boastings of the In
dams, were heard of again.
TT is a treacherous truce. tell YOU"
said Folsom, with grave, anxious face,
to the colonel commanding Fort En-
DRY. 81 have known Red Cloud 90
years. He's only waiting few weeks
to see if the government will be fool
enough to send them breech-loader
If it does, he'll be all the better able
to fight little later on. If it doesn't
he will make it his casus belli"
1t was nearly 300 miles by the wind
ing mountain road from Gate City to
Warrior Gap. Over hill and dale and
mountain pass the road ran to Frayne,
thence, fording the North Platte, the
wagon trains, heavily guarded, had to
drag over. miles of dreary desert, over
shadeless slopes and divides to the dry
wash of the Powder, and by roads
deep in alisali dust and sage brush to
Cantonment Reno. where far to the
west the grand range doomed up
! against the sky--another long days
march away to the nearest foothills,
| to the nearest drfnkable water, and
then, 40 miles further still, in the heart
OF the grand pine-covered heights, was
| the rocll-bound gateway to ii lovely
Sioux some wild combination of al
most unpronounceable syllables, which,
freely translated, gave us Warrior
Gap, and there at last accounts,
strengthened by detachments from
Frayne and Reno, the little command
of fort builders worked away, ak in
hand, rifle at hand, subjected every
hour to alarm from the vedettes and
pickets posted thickly all about them,
pickets who were sometimes found
stone dead at their posts, transfixed
with arrows, scalped and mutilated,
and yet not once had Indians in any
force been seen by officers or man
about the spot since the day Red
Clouds whole array passed Brooks
troop on the Reno trail, peaceably
hunting buffalo. AN divil sowl in
the outfit" said old Sergt. Shaughnes-
sy., that hadn't his tongue in his
cheek
For three months that hard-worked
troop had been afeld, and the time
had passed and gone when its young
first lieutenant had hoped for leave
to go home to see the mother and Jess.
His captain was still ailing and unfit
for duty in saddle. He could not and
would not ask for leave at such a
time, and yet at the very moment when
he was most earnestly and faithfully
doing his whole duty at the front,
SANDER was busy with his name long
miles at the rear.
Something was amiss with Burleigh,
| stllu Ills CTOllleS dU Idte Slly. lie ndQ
come hurrying back from the hills,
had spent day in his office and not a
cent at the club, had taken the night
express unbeknown to anybody but
his chief clerk, and gone hurrying
eastward. 1t was time when his
services were needed at the depot, too.
Supplies, stores, all manner of MAJ
terial were being freighted from Gate
City over the range to the Platte and
beyond, yet he had wired for authority
to hasten to Chicago on urgent per-
sonal affairs, got it and disappeared.
Ayoung regimental quartermaster was
ordered in from Emory to take charge
of shipments and sign invoices during
Rurleigh's temporary absence, and the
only other officer whom Burleigh had
seen and talked with before his start
was the venerable post commander.
One after another the few cavalry
troops (companies) on duty at Emory
had been sent afield until now only
one was left, and three days after Bur-
leigh started there came a dispatch
from department headquarters direct
! ing the sending of that one to Frayne