The Beaver herald. [volume] (Beaver, O.T. [Okla.]) 1895-1923, 1902-01-02
CHAPTER II.-CoSrrSuEp.


. wooden roof, and more often than
not the sky was his only canopy. That
summer. too, Jessie spent at home,
Pappoose with her most of the time.
and one year more would finish them
a. the reliable old Ohio school. BY
that time Foisom's handsome new
home would be in readiness TO receive
his daughter at Gate City. by that
time, too. Marshall might hope to have
q leave and come in TO Illinois to wei.
come his sister and gladden. his moth
er's eyes. But until then, the boy had
said to himself, he'd stick to the field,
and the troop that had the roughest
work to do was the one that suited him.
and SO Il had happened that by the
second spring Of his service In the regi-
mcnt no subaltern was held in higher
esteem by senior officers or regarded
with more envy by the lazy ones among
The juniors than the young graduate,
for those, too, were days in which grad
mates were few and far between, except
In higher grades. Twice had he ridden
in the dead of winter the devious trail
through the Medicine Bow range to
Frayne. Once already had he been
sent the long march to and from the
Big Horn, and when certain officers
the spring to locate the site Of the new
post at Warrior Gap. Brooks troop, as
has been said, went along rs escort and
Brooks caught mountain fever IN the
hills, or some such ailment, and made
the home trip In the ambulance, leav-
ing the active command of &c" troop
to his subaltern.
With the selection of the site Dean
had nothing to do. Silently he looked
on Es the quartermaster, the engineer
and staff officer from Omaha paced
of certain lines, took shots with their
instruments Mt neighboring waters Of
the fork. Two companies Of infantry.
sent down from further posts along the
northern slopes Of the range, had
stacked their arms and pitched their
dog tents" and vigilant vedettes and
sentries peered over every command
ing height and ridge to secure the in
vaders against surprise. Invaders they
certainly were from the Indian point
Of view, for this was Indian Story
Land. the most priced, the most beauti-
full, the most prolific in fish and game
ID all the continent. Never had the red
man clung with such tenacity to any
section of his hunting grounds rs did
the northern Sioux to this, the north
and northeast watershed Of the Big
Horn range. Old Indian fighters
among the hhcn shook their heads
when the quartermaster selected n
level bench rs the site on which to be-
gin the stockade that was to inclose
the officers quarters and the barracks,
storchouse and magazine, and omin-
ously they glanced at one another and
then ut the pine -skirted ridge that rose,
sharp and sudden, against the sky, not
400 yards away. dominating the site en-
tirely.
'I shouldn't like the job of clearing
away the gang Of Indians that might
seize that RIDGE" said Dean, when later
asked by the engineer what he thought
of II, and Dean had twice by that time
been called upon to help hustle" In
dians out Of threatening positions,
~ shouldn't worry over things
you're never likely to have TO do," said
the quartermaster, with sarcastic en-
phasis, and he WINS man who never
yet had had to face foeman In the
field, and Dean said nothing more. but
felt right well ne had no friend In
Maj. Burleigh.
They left the infantry there to guard
the site and protect the gang Of wood
choppers set to work at once, then
turned their faces homeward. They
had spent four days anA nights at the
Gap, and the more the youngster saw
Of the rotund qunrtermaster, the less
he cared 70 cultivate him. A portly,
heavily built man WAS he. some 20
years of age, . widower. whose chill
dren were at their mothers old home
. keen eye for opportunities and in
vestments, q fellow who was reputed
20 have stock I'm q dozen mines and
kindred enterprises. q knowing hand
who drove fast horses and owned quite
Q stable, q sharp hand who played n
thriving game Of poker and had no
compunctions as to winning. Officers
nt Emory were fighting shy of him.
He played too big n game for their
small pay and pockets, and the men
with whom he took his pleasure were
big contractors or well-known sports"
Md gamblers. who In those days
thr'uged the frontier towns and most
men did them homage. But on this
trip prleigh had no big gamblers
along Nnd missed his evening game,
ana; eS arrived at camp along the
foIk, md "roped in" some Of the
minn.ly ssSEs, but Brooks and the
rns,nse 60. .h. to play, and SO had
.All true cas2 start
.,,. "a take hand 7en ought to be
T,usleign. at the Arst isksr sneered
mere was u pigeon reaK camp ior
piucking, thought ne. DsEcsg,n the
Che field had been so slmple ~ we IN
pensive that he had saved inxch.Sx
Slender pay; but, what BuriNgh%ss
not know, he had sent much VofXl
homo 10 mother and Jess.
NJ know several men who Nuld
have been the better for leav'h u
~Ione." responded Dean. very quttys
They rubbed each other the yong
way from the very start. and I was
bed for the boy. for In tho4@ PayS