The Logan Republican. [volume] (Logan, Utah) 1902-1924, 1913-12-23

out On tne Wlntry air, ana beyond the
pony herd was restlessly moving
Even as he gazed. half convinced that
the Indians had been warned. the vii
lage deserted, the sharp report of 6
rifle rang out in the distance.
Hamlin saw the General spring up
right. his lips uttering the sharp com
mand. Sound the charged" Ever
while the piercing blare of the bugl,
cut the frosty air. there was a jingl,
Of steel as the troopers behind spurret
forward. Almost ut the instant the
three dismounted men we're In saddle
Custer waved his hand at the band
shouted PLAY" and to the rollickins
air Of Garry Owen" the eager col
umn Of horsemen broke into q mac
gallop, and with ringing cheers ant
mighty rush. swept over the ridge
straight down into the startled village
To Hamlin, at Clusters side, reins In
his teeth. a revolver In either hand
what followed was scarcely memory
It remained afterward as blurred
indistinct picture of action, changing
so rapidly as to leave no definite out
lines. He heard the answering cal
of three bugles; the deafening thut
OF horses hoofs: the converging cheers
OF excited troopers; the mingling rims
OF revolver shots; a sharp order cleav
ing the turmoil; the wild neigh OF s
stricken horse; the cultural yells o.
Indians leaping from their tepees into
the open. Then he was in the hear
of the village, firing with both hands
before him, about him, half-naked saw
ages fighting desperately, striking a
him with knives, firing from the shell
ter of tepees, spyinging at him with
naked hands In n fierce effort to drai
him from the saddle. II was all con
fusion, chaos, a babble of noise, hi
eyes blinded by CLINT of steel and glare
of fire. The impetus Of their rush car
ried them irreslstibly forward; over
and through tents they rode, across tn,
bodies of living and dead; men reelet
and fell from saddles; riderless horse.
swept on unguided; revolvers emptiet
were flung aside, and hands CLOSED
hard on sabre hits. Foot by foot
yard by yard. they drove the wedge
of their charge, until they SWEEP
through the fringe of tepees, out into
the stampeded pony herd.
The bugle rang again, and they
turned, facing back, and charged once
more, no longer in close formation, but
every trooper fighting as he could
Complete as the surprise had been
the men OF the Seventh realized nov
the odds against them, the desperate
nature of the fight. Out from the shell
tering tepees poured a flood of war
riors; rifles in hand they fought saw
agely. The screams of women and
children, the bowling and baying OF
Indian dogs, the crack of rifles, the
wild war cries. all mingled into an in.
describable din. Black Kettle was al
most the first to fall, but other chiefs
rallied their warriors, and fought like
fiends, yielding ground only by inches
until they found shelter amid the trees
and under the river bank.
In the cessation of hand to hand
fighting the detachments came to
gether, reforming their ranks, and re
loading their arms. Squads of troop.
ers fired the tepees, and gathering
their prisoners under guard, FASTENED
back to the ranks again at the call OF
the bugle. BY now Custer compre.
hended his desperate position and the
full strength of his Indian foes. Fresh
hordes were before him. already
threatening attack. Hamlin, bleeding
from two flesh wounds, rode in from
the left flank, where he had been
borne by the impetus OF the last
charge, with full knowledge Of the
truth. Their attack had been cen,
tered or Black Kettles village, but be
low, a mile or two apart, were other
villages, representing all the hostile
tribes of the southern plains. Already
these were hurrying up 10 join those
rallying warriors under the shelter Of
the river bank. Even from where
Custer stood at the outskirts OF the
devastated village he could dlstin-
guish the war bonnets of Cheyennes.
Arapahoes, Kiowas and Comanches
mingled together in display of saw
agery.
His decision was instant, that Of the
impetuous cavalry leader, knowing
well the inherent strength and weak
ness OF his branch of the service. He
could not hope to hold his position be-
lore such mass OF the enemy, with
the little force at his disposal His
only chance of escape, to come off vic
tor, was to strike them so swiftly and
with such force as to paralyze pursuit
Already the reinforcing warriors were
sweeping forward to attack, two thou
sand strong, led fiercely by Little Ra'
ven, an Arapahoe; Santana, a Kiowa
and Little Rock a Cheyenne. Dis
mounting h men he prepared for G
desperate resistance, although the
troopers mmunition was running
low. Suddenly, crashing through thu
very Indian lines, came a four-mul'
wagon. The quartermaster was Of