Kingsbury County independent. (DeSmet, Kingsbury County, S.D.) 1894-1929, 1905-11-10

CHAPTER XXXIx.-Continued.

ing of the mountain men. AT noon Ma
ior Ferguson sent a final express &c
Lord CORVALLIS, urging the hurryins
on of the achievements, not knowing
that his former dispatch had been in
tercepted, nor hat Tarleton had not as
yet started to the rescue. A little later
the scouts began to come in one by one
with news OF the approaching rihemen
There was but a small body of them
not above a thousand men in all, so the
spies said, and my heart misgaVe me
They we're without cannon n they
lacked bayOnets; and moreover, when
all was said, they were but militia, all
untried save in border warfare with
the Indians. Could they successfully
assault the fortified camp who's de-
fenders-thanks to the majors ingen-
uity-had fitted butcher knives TO the
muzzles of their long guns in lieu OF
~bayonets? Nay, rather would they
have the courage to try?
Twas late in the afternoon before
these questions were answered. The
rain had ceased, and the chill October
sunlight filtered aslant through the
trees. With the clearing skies a cold
wind had sprung up, and on the hill
top the men covered behind the rock
breastwork and waited in strained ST.
Ience. At the last moment Major Fer
guson sent Captain de Peyster to me
with the request that / take command
Of the Tory force set apart to defend
the wagon barriCade-this II my weari-
ness would permit. 1 went with the
captain to make my excuses In per-
son.
Say no more, Captain" said this
generous soldier, when l began some
lame plea for further exemption; " l
had forgot your sword-cut. Take shell
ter for yourself, and look on whilst we
skin this riffraff alive"
And so he let me off; a favor which
will make me think kindly of Patrick
Ferguson so long as | shall live. For
now my work was done; n had he
insisted, l should have told him fatty
who and what l Was-and paid the
penalty.
l had scarce rejoined Tybee at the
wagons when the long roll of the drums
broke the silence of the hilltop, and a
volley fire of musketry from the rock
breastwork on the right told us the
battle was on. Tybee gave me n last
re]prOaChful look and stood out to see
what could be seen, and 1 stood with
him.
your friends are running" he said,
when there was no reply to the opening
volley; and truly, l feared he was right.
At the bottom OF the slope, scattering
6lOupS VI liC AlliClliCl ~ IN 49,
Fastening to right and left. But l
would not admit the charge to Tybee.
Il think not" I objected, denying the
apparent fact. They have come too
far and too fast to turn back now for
a single overshot volley."
But they'll never face the fire up
the hill with the bayonet to cap it at
the top" he insisted.
That remains to be seen; we shall
I-1A-r .-l-1,yI,v l. L fl,,rrht Q n hagl
they comet
At the word the f~orest-covered steep
at our end of the hill sprang alive with
dun-clad figures darling upward from
tree to tree. Volley after volley thun-
dered down upon them as they climbed
but not once did the lodging charge
up the slope pause or falter. Unlike
all other irregulars | had ever seen,
whose idea of battle is to let of the
piece and run, these mountain men
held their fire like veterans, closing in
upon the hilltop steadily and in a grim
silence broker only by the shouting en-
couragements of the leaders-this init
their circling line was completed.
Then suddenly from all sides Of the
beleaguered camp arose a yell TO shake
the stoutest courage, and with thai
the wood covered slopes began to spi'
fire, not in volleys, but here and there
in irregular %snappings and cracking
as the sure-shot rihemen saw a mari
to pull trigger on.
The effect Of this fine bead large
~practice-for it was naught else-wa'
most terrific. All along the breastwork
front and rear, c~rouching men sprant
up at the rifle crackings to fling thei.
arms all abroad and to fall within:
and wrestling in the death throe. A
our end of the hill, where the rocl
barrier was thinnest, the slaughter wa
appalling; II above the din of tn
firearms we could e h beloved
commands Of the sturdy old Indiai
fighter, Benjamin cleveland, urgini
his men up to still closer quarters. =
little nearer, my brave boys; a littl
nearer and we have them. Press on u
to the rocks. They'll be as good
breastwork from our side as fror
theirs"
You will read in the histories tina
the Tory helpers of Ferguson tough
as men with halters round their necks
and so, indeed, a-many of them die
But thought they were most pitiles
enemies OF ours, bear them witnes
hat they. did fight well and bravel!
and not as men who fight for fear
sake.
And they were most bravely differed
Major Ferguson, boldly conspicuous i
a white linen hunting shirt drawn owe
his uniform, was here and there an
everywhere, and always in the plac
where the bullets flew thickest. HI
left hand had been hurt at the frs
patriot gun fire, but 1t still held til
silver whistle to his lips, and the shri
skirling of the little pipe was III
loyalist rallying signal. Captain q
Peyster, too, did ample justice to III
uniform he wore: and when Campbell
Virginians gained the summit at III
far end of the hilltop, twas de PeystS
who led the bayonet charge that force
the patriot riflemen some little wa
down the slope.
But these are digressions. No ma
sees more of a battle than that lit
circle OF which he is the center: an
|. the fighting was not enough at II
wagon barricade to keep both Tybt
and me from knowing at the time whs
was going on beyond our narrow rams
of sight or hearing. You must pictur
therefore, for yourselves, a very devil
pandemonium let loose upon the lit
hilltop so soon as the mountain me
gained their vantage ground at IL
fronting OF the rock breastwork; cries
frantic shouts of God save the king
yells fierce and wordless; men in re
and men IN homespun rushing mad
hither and yon in q vain attempt
repel a front and e attack at Il
same instant. Twas O hell set FIRE
with no quarter asked or given, ar
where we stood, the Tory defenders
the wagon barrier were present
dropping around us in heaps and win,
rows OF dead and dying, like men SUI
M AA-f.r II. - .Aor~.tA