The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1908-09-06

information that the wood train was
all right, but that when he attempted
to cross the valley to join Fetterman
he found it was full of Indians, who
were swarming about on Lodge Trail
Ridge. and that there was no sign of
the soldiers to be observed. The
alarm caused by this information was
deepened when the sound of heavy fir
ing was heard from over Lodge Trail
Ridge. indicating that a fierce battle
was in progress. General Darlington
dispatched ffty-four infantrymen to
relieve Fetterman, and little later
forty men were sent out, reducing the
garrison at the fort to a very small
number. Indeed, so small was the
number of defenders within the stock
ade that General Darlington released
all the prisoners from the guardnouse,
armed all the quartermaster s employees
and citizens and then mustered only
Il9 men, not enough to defend the
walls in case of attack.
The wives and children of the men
in the first detchment were nearly
crazy with anxiety, and this deepened
when an orderly galloped in from the
relieving party and stated that the
valley on the other side of the ridge
was filled with Indians and that no
sign of Fetterman was to be seen.
General Darlington ordered the two re-
lieving parties to consolidate, and told
them to unite with Fetterman. He
ordered in the wood train, which gave
him fifty-four men to spare for the re-
lieving expedition. Later in the after
noon Captain Ten Eyck s men return
ed with details of the appalling dis
aster. In the wagon were forty nine
of Fetterman men, leaving thirty
four unaccOunted for. Ten Eyck had
remained on the defensive on the brow
of the hill, though the Indians had
tried by every means to make him
follow them into the valley. He found
the bodies of the soldiers where they
had fallen, and there was evidence of
a terrible conflict on the hill. The
soldiers had taken refuge behind some
huge rocks, and the forty-nine men he
had brought back were found in
space about six feet square They had
been shot full of arrows, sealped and
mutilated. Captain Fetterman and
Captain Frederick Brown, the post
quartermaster, were found side by side.
each with bullet wound in his tenn
pie. Evidently they had stood face to
face and each had shot the other
dead rather than be taken alive by
the Indians.
Feared Attack on Fort.
The weather was bitter cold as it
was late in December, and there was
no telling when the Indians, encourag-
ed by their success, would make de-
termined assault on the fort. But the
next day General Darlington went in
person to the scene of that battle with
a force of eighty men, after leaving
strict instructions as to signals to be
fired from the fort in case of an at
tack. The women and children had
been placed in the magazine, and an
officer was left in charge of them |
pledged not to let the women be taken |
alive if the general did not return and |
the Indians captured the fort.
General Darlington found bodies |
strung along the road to the western |
end of the trail furthest from the fort. |
The two civilians who had accom-
panied Fetterman were found behind |
a couple of rocks. By the side of one
many at the side of the other, show
ing that they had make desperate
fight. Wheatley had no less than 105
arrows in him.
Lieutenant Grummond was found
some distance from the others behind
1 pile of rock, with every evidence of
4 terrible struggle having taken place
IN the scene. The bodies of the re-
naming soldiers, which were stripped
# clothing, were taken back to the
,ort.
The weather was almost insufferable,
md men and women were forced to
lothe themselves in furs made from
kins of wolves. AS soon as possible
elief was sent to the fort.
General Darlington was relieved of
ommand pending investigation, but
ventually he was absolved from blame,
S it was proved that he had given
'etterman distinct orders not to ven
ure into the trap which Red Cloud
ad sprung so successfully. The gov
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