The Iola register. [volume] (Iola, Allen County, Kansas) 1875-1902, 1900-12-28

copyright, 1907, by r Tennysoa Neely.1
"Full thirty, sir, and every man
armed with rifle as far as ! could
sce," said Carey, "afd If it was MS
they was after, they'd have had us at
their mercy down in that pocket at
the Springs"
shout from one of the men at
tracted the attention of the lead
ers. The storm had spent its
force and gone rolling away eastward.
The thunder was rumbling Par over
toward the now invisible crest of the
Black Hills of Wyoming. The rain
sheets had given place to trickling
.downpour. a dim light was stealing
into the blackness of the gorge.
Louder and fercer roared the Box
Elder, lashing its banks with foam.
And then came the cry again.
II tell you it is. by God! for there
goes another!"
All eyes followed the direction OF the
pointing finger. All eyes saw. even
slough dmly. the saddled form of a
horse plunging and struggling in the
flood, making vain effort to Chamber
ont, then whirling helplessly away
swept out of sight around the shoulder
of the bluff, and borne down on the toss
ing waves OF the torrent. Men mean
no irreverence when they call upon
aheir Maker at such times. even in sol
der oath. 1t is awe. not blasphemy.
"By God, lieutenant. that's what we'd
R-been doing but for your order" 1t
was the sergeant who spoke.
And at that very hour there was eX-
ritement at Fort Emory. At eight
o'clock the colonel was on his piazza
looking with gloomy eyes over the dis
fant rows of empty barracks. The
drum-major with the band at his heels
came stalking out over the grassy pa
Eade, and the post adjutan;, grit with
sash and sword belt, stood in front of
his Office awaiting the sergeant-major,
who was unaccountably delayed. Re
duced TO a shadow the garrison at Fort
Emory might reasonably have been eX-
cused, by this time, from the ceremony
of mounting a guard consisting prac-
ideally of ten privates, three of whom
wore the cavalry jacket; but old Peck
sniff" was determined TO keep up some
show of state. He could have no pa
rade or review, but at least he could re-
qnire his guard to be mounted with all
abe pomp and ceremony possible. He
would have ordered his officers out in
.epaulets and the full dress "Kossuth'
Aat of the period. but epaulets had
been discarded during the war and not
yet resumed on the far frontier. So
-aAe rank and file alone were called
upon to appear in the black-feathered
oddity a misguided staff had designed
a. the headgear of the army. Peck
shifts" half dozen dough boys. therefore
with their attendant sergeants and
eorporals in the old fashioned frock
and felt, and still smaller squad OF
troopers in yellow-trimmed jackets
and brass mounted forage caps, were
drawn up at the edge of the parade
awaiting the further signal of adju'
.Sant's call, while the adjutant himself
kwore savagely and sent the orderly
on the run for the sergeant-m ma jor
When the clock-governed functionary
was missing something indeed must be
going wrong.
Presently the orderly came running
back.
"Sergt. Dineen isn't home, sir, anC
his wife says he hasn't been back since
the lieutenant sent him to town Will
the last dispatch"
Tell the first sergeant of b com
pany, then, to act as sergeant-m ma or al
once" said the adiutant, and hurried
over to his colonel. "Dineen's not back
sir" he reported at the gate. Gar
anything be wrong?'
Il ordered him % bring with him the
answer to my dispatch to the general
who wired to me from the railway de
pot at Cheyenne, Probably he's beer
waiting for that, and the general,
away somewhere. We ought TO hav,
an operator here day and night" sale
Pecksniff, petuIantly. But the irr. TIA
tion in his eyes gave way TO anxiety
when at that moment the sutler's
buggy was seen dashing into the gar