The Democratic banner. (Mt. Vernon, Ohio) 1898-192?, 1913-12-30
The Sergeant's
Promotion
By M. QUAD
Copyright. 1913, by Associated Lit
erary Press.
By M. QUAD

"
officers that she was coming-a blue
eyed, fair haired girl of eighteen from
the east named Miss Bell--but the first
we heard of it was when we went to
the depot as an escort.
Miss Bell was a regular chatterbox.
She couldn't understand the wide gulf
separating officer from private, but in
ignorance thought a soldier was sol
dier, no matter whether he carried a
saber or sword. Being left alone
with Sergeant Larkins for few mo-
ments while the captain sent off Il
telegram for her she did not hesitate
to chatter away as if they had been
formally introduced and had met be-
fore, and this action of hers was to
| have strange bearing on after
Savents After couple Of days we no
ticed a change in Sergeant Larkins.
He was young man OF thirty, well
Jeducated and evidently something
above the common. and there were
New Yorker and that the son had en-
! tered the army because of quarrel
between them" | repeat that we saw
, a change in him, and pretty soon it
came to us that he had fallen in love
with Miss Bell ut first sight
| Miss Bell had been at the fort about
month when the Sioux on the reser-
vation began to make trouble, and the
Indian police reported that number
| of them had broken away and were
marauding in the foothills. Such sto-
ries were always afoat and no Gre
dence was given them until some deed
| of violence had been committed. 1t
had been planned by half a dozen of
! fcers and their wives to hold picnic
| at the falls of Buffalo river, and so
| Sergeant Larkins and the same half
dozen of us We're again detailed. 1t
was twelve miles to the falls. and the
| picnickers were loaded into two am
balances. There were five officers.
seven ladies and three children. and
/ the escort was ordered to keep them
in sight
From the first Sergeant Larkins sat
apart from us and seemed moody and
| taciturn. There was no question but
that Jealousy was at work, and he
hadn't the strength of mind to throw it
off and realize the situation. We had
many wink and laugh at his expense.
and yet we felt to pity him. We had
been told to go up for the empty bas-
kets at 4 o'clock. and the hour had
! just gone 2 when a fusillade OF revol-
! yer shots, followed by the warwhoops
! of Indians, jumped every man to his
feet. Ten seconds later we were fol.
lowing the sergeant up the gorge, and
in five minutes we came upon the wo-
men and children hidden away among
the rocks and stricken with terror. A
/ quarter of an hour before the five ofl-
GERS had caught sight of q cub bear on
the other side of the falls. They had
gone mp stream few rods and crossed
on log, but the shots we heard had
not been fired at the cub. A band of
twenty or more renegades who We're
hiding in the foothills had discovered
the picni Tors half an hour before
and were planning wipeout OF every
soul when the officers moved. They
! played right into the hands of the red
men. In their chase after the cub
they left the falls half a mile behind
and as they came slowly back they
found the Indians confronting them.
There was but one course-to make a
dash for it-and 1t was gallantly done,
The Indians were too strong and too
| well posted, however. A lieutenant
was dropped dead In his tracks and a
major and n captain wounded.
The first move on our part, seeing
that the women and children were
safe, was to secure cover behind the
powders and open fire on the Indians.
They had counted on sure thing. and
their yells of rage when they knew of
our presence We're loud and long. We
had them between two fires. and yet
so we'll were they sheltered that they
had no means of knowing that they
had only two unwounded men in front
of them, armed with reyolvers. The
women told us about the officers going
away in body; but. although there
had been severe firing, we hoped none
of them had been hit. After we had
fired three or four rounds apiece the
sergeant called ont to know how 1t
was with the officers The major an
swered, giving the names Of the killed
and wounded. Three of the five were
behind the same bowder and could use
their revolvers. 1t was curious po-
sitlon in which the three parties We're
placed, but as the Indians were in
such Il strong force they could defend
their front and rear at the same time.
If we left cover to cross the creek we
would be exposed to certain death. IL
they left cover to attack the camp we
had only 70 shoot them down. What