Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1904-11-15
DAILY SHORT STORY
CAPTURING A STRONGHOLD.
lOriginal.1

4 young Ofhcer, Is OFTEN between two
| fires. AS commander lie must keep the
| lead, and yet there may be men under
1 him who are in certain circumstances
better fitted TO command than himself.
| Lieutenant Lyon Hail after being
graduated at West Point spent most of
i his time while a second lieutenant on
some duty requiring him 10 live in n
/ city and on being promoted was order
| ed TO Fort n, Il frontier post. where,
| his captain being absent. be found
himself in command OF his troop. He
had scarcely arrived when news came
that the Indians had risen. captured q
ranch some forty miles away and We're
making themselves at houSe on the
premises. Hail was ordered TO go and
capture or dispense them.
The lieutenant was a good'officer, but
he knew no more about Indian fighting
| than u schoolboy. The colonel eau
| toned him TO take points from his first
sergeant, Stabler, and Hail. if he had
been more used 10 such campaigning,
would not have scrupled To do SO. 1t
was the consciousness of his inexperi-
ence that deferred him from acknowl-
adging IL. Stabler was an old soldier.
thoroughly trained in obeying orders
| without asking questions and not like
Iy to give points unless asked for
them.
When the command reached n point
not far from the ranch the lieutenant
called a halt and went forward alone
to a point where he could see the
ranch. 1t was too far to see indiyidu-
1S lint fn discern "a IL
works thrown up around the house.
Hail was puzzled. Somehow it didn't
seem like the Indians he had read
about to fortify themselves even III the
most primitive style. The responsible
ties attached 10 this new Kind OF work,
TO use an expressive word. ratified him.
and he was incapable of exercising
good. hard common sense. He resolved
TO attack the place even under the dis
advantage of II being fortified. 1t was
fast growing dark. and he would wait
till night came and then order a charge
over the low dirt breastworks.
The command were ordered to dis
mount. picket their horses and get
their suppers. Hail noticed the first
sergeant go TO the front and take
look at the enemy. When he returned
the lieutenant spoke TO him with Il
view to- eliciting anything that might
have occurred to him.
Sergeant" lie said. could you make
out how many of them there are?"
There's about 120 in all. SIR
Just about our NUMBER
ayes. sir"
"See that the mems arms and am
munition are in good condition. We
may have Il longer fight of it than I
anticipate"
The sergeant looked up, with a sim
g,llar surprise On his face. but said
nothing
About 10 o'clock 1 propose 70 draw
the command up in line of battle and
charge over their works"
Still the sergeant said nothing. and
as his commander seemed to have
nothing further TO communicate hc
saluted respectfully ard Joined the
men, who were comfortably eating
their supper. Hail noticed him going
among them and speaking TO them.
He presumed he was transmitting the
order. but was surprised that he did so
in low tone. The men listened to the
sergeant attentively and when he was
d
Hail admired the sang froid with which
they received notice of n fight wherein
some OF them were liable to bite the
dust.
About 8 o'clock the moon rose, and
II was light as day. This did not trou-
BILE the Lieutenant since the attack was
TO be made over a short distance in the
open and the enemy would have no
time to gather for defense. He Or
dered the sergeant to form the men
under cover OF the timber without us
ing the bugle and as silently as posi-
BILE. When they were in line Hail gave
his orders. They We're to charge at a
gallop and when within a hundred
yards OF the earthwOrks to open fire.
Then, turning his horse about and
drawing his saber, in n low tone he
gave the order. Forward and spur
red toward the ranch, leading the at
tack"
IL was a fine sight TO see a line Of
horsemen. the moonlight glittering on
their arms and accouterments, gallop-
ing toward the ranch where the In
dams must have been asleep. with no
pickets ont. for not light was to be
seen. When Hail came near the earth
works he looked back and was surpris-
cd TO see his men moving by fourS to
the left. Astonished that they should
be making such a detour without or
ders when they were TO attack the
works. he refined I'm TO discover what It
meant. Sergeant Stabler led them
around TO where there was an opening
I'm the works. and they all rode inside
without firing a shot
Thunderstruck. Hail spurred his
horse over the works and rode down
on the other side into the Enclosure
There were his men dismounting. while
scattered about in bivouac were q
troop OF cavalrymen like themselves. |
Their captain advanced TO meet him,
and there was a parley, to which Hail |
listened. while the other told him that |