Bismarck daily tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, Dakota [N.D.]) 1881-1916, 1913-02-01

On his retur from the Custer battle
field in charge of the wounded, DR.. Hen
ry r. Porter, one Of the surviving he
roes of that expedition, though now call
ed to his long home. gave a most inter-
esting account of the battle Of the Lit
tie Big Horn, so far as it related to Re-
| nos command, and Of the trip down the
| river with the wounded. The story writ
! ten for the st. Paul Pioneer Press at the
| time was as follows: Speaking Of Reno,
"The enemy doomed up in every direc-
ton in front. Their numbers were more
I than his head could stand. His head
began to swim and on his thoroughbred
| Kentucky horse he started for the river.
| He sped like an arrow. The battalion
followed. In the flight Capt. Mcintosh
| fell, and Charley Reynolds, the scout
that Custer loved. Porter was beside a
dying soldier. His orderly and supplies
| were gone. and the command was off
several hundred yards. He was alone.
| The bullets were pruning the trees, ana
terrific yells were sounding the alarm
| OF universal death. Porter left his lost
| patient and led his horse to the en-
%bankment that protected the woods. lie
was startled by Indians dashing by him
| within ten feet. They We're rushing
| along the foot of the little bluff. Their
| aim was so direct in the line of Reno's
| flying battalion that POrter's presence
was unnoticed. He was unarmed and
his powerful black horse reared and
plunged as if lie were mad. Porter saw
| the fate that was in the Immediate flu
ture il, that horse escaped before he was
on his back. He held on with superhu-
man strength. He could hold him, but
| that was all. To gain the saddle seemed
a forlorn hope. Leap after leap, with
| the horse quicker than he. 1t was a
/ brief ordeal, but in the face Of death it
/ was a terrible one. One supreme effort
and, half in the saddle, the dusky charg-
| er bore away his master like the wind.
| He gained the full seat and, lying close
upon the s%avior's neck, was running q
| gauntlet where the chances of death
were a thousand to one. The Indians
| were quick to see the lone rider, and u
| storm Of leaden hail fell around him.
He had no control Of his horse. 1t was
! only a half mile dash, but it was a wild
one. The horse was frenzied. He reach
ed the river in a minute and rushed up
| the bank where, Reno. had gone and was
| then recovering himself. The horse and
rider were safe. 1t was destiny. Por-
| ter's first remark was, Pretty badly
demoralizcd." NO. answered Reno. ut
was a charge Porter took the hint,
but it was a charge different from any
that he had ever seen or read Of. 1t was
a stampede. and by a lucky coincidence
| all who escaped alive crossed the river
at a point where they could reach the
top Of the bluff. Another coincidence
would have carried the 200 into the river
with an impossible barrier of earth in
front of them, and helr and a thousand
devils behind them. 1t was destiny.
Benteen and his hundred men soon join
ed Reno. and then it was the superior
man who commanded and inspired hope
when there was no hope. Porter's asso-
ciate was killed and he was alone. The
afternoon Of the 25th, oil night, through
out the 26th, the night of that date and
| the 9th, Porter worked as few men are
ever called upon. to work. He had no
idea that he would get out alive, and
believed every man around him was
doomed. Stin he was E1e same; cool and
skillful surgeon that he is today. He
had a duty to perform that seldom falls
to a man of 26, and vet he performed it
nobly. He was surrounded by the dead,
dying and wounded. Men were crying
for water, for help. for relief, for life.
For twenty-four hours there was no wa
ter. The sun was blazing hot, the dead
horses were sickening, the air heavy with
a hundred smells, the bullets thick. the
men falling and the bluffs for miles
black with jubilant savages. The work
of the others was not like Porter's. He
must know no fear, no trembling, no
rest. He had every agonizing sight be-
fore his eyes. The afternoon of the Goth,
when the Indians ceased firing and be-
gan to move off, there were on the
ground around Porter fifty dead and ff-
ty wounded. One in every three was
either killed or manned. 1 know little OF
hospital history, but I doubt II there is
much that overshadows Porter's expe-
rience upon the bluff overlooking the
Little Big Horn. If / had the genius OF
Buchanan Reed I would weave it into a
song more heroic than Sheridan's ride.
with the disappearance Of the In
dians there was only q cessation Of the
firing. The dread Of the heretofore ac-
cepted alternative was not ended. The
movement Of the Indians wa believed
to be for bloodier mischief.
There was q temporary advantage, al
least, in the change. Water was brought
and the wounded placed in q more conn
Portable position. The wonder was what
the red devils were going to do. It was
evident that he was not seriously Grip,