Ottumwa tri-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1903-1916, 1914-06-27

OIIUM'
they were in, and jumped on the so
der and disarmed him as he wa
bending to finish the job with tn
butt.
"The lieutenant was found uncor
scious, his face streaming with blood
The bullet had plowed creas
through and across his scalp tina
made him look like the whole top o
his head was gone. Just as matte
OF form, we packed him over to tn
hospital tent. where, after an examina
ton, the surgeon allowed he wa
dead.
mo time was lost. Quickly cour
martial was organized and the maj
was placed on trial. The questioning
OF couple of witnesses, the sutler ant
his clerk, did the trick: for of course
there was no defense: the man wa!
condemned to be shot forthwith.
"Weirdest execution l ever heard
tell Of, was that one. Notwithstanding
it was past midnight when hts court
martial was finished the Assembly
was sounded, the entire garrison
turned out and formed.
, Horse and foot were drawn up al
! parade rest, the cavalry on two sides
Of hollow square, the infantry on a
third side, and the condemned was
placed midway of the square, facing
the infantry.
Two big fires. fed with fat pine
.,nots, lighted the three long lines OF
/ serious faces. those of the youngsters
own dragons fierce-eyed as cornered
pumas, faces blazing with resentment,
every last man of them looking liable
any minute to take whack at his
slayer.
The other troops, that had been
using him, seemed to be studying
mighty hard over the fix their part
ner had shot himself into.
"A firing squad Of his own dragon
comrades was lined up in front OF the
prisoner.
While they were marching into
position, the surgeons orderly came
running from the hospital tent holler-
ing for stay Of execution. but the
wind was bowling down the Pecos
Valley out Of the north, like it was in
one hell of a hurry to get to the Gulf,
and none of us heard him until it was
too late.
But barely had the ordered fire
sputtered feebly in the roaring gale,
and the prisoner fallen with five bull
.ets in him, than the orderly reached
the majors side, with advice from the
surgeon that the youngsters skull was
no more than creased, and that he
would recover!
Did bad mess. of course, but it
could not be helped.
When he got up and about, the
lieutenant mighty near threw cat tlts
over the affair; said he had been too
hasty, ought to have called the SER
geant of the guard. which he had;
talked of resigning, which pity he
didn't. Older officers didn't blame
him much, for the offense was OF the
grossest and his life was threatened.
Shortly he got so morose and
brooding that, reckon, the major al
lowed it would do him good to get out
and have a whack at the Navajos, for
he ordered him to take his troop and
patrol the road north beyond Puerta
de Luna, as far as the Canon de los
Enterros.
so out and on up the Pecos ne
marched, scouts well ahead and of on
each flank, trying to spot some war
party he could surprise and cut up.
But nothing showed up. The lower
road was deserted, both Of travel and
of the human wolves that usually
lurked along it.
up Enterros, though, the Navajos
turned the tables on his plans. There
a war party of four hundred lay hidden
up deep side gulch out of sight of
his scouts, and when he turned the
point of that gulch down they came
on him, hell-a-tatilt, no more than
three hundred yards distant when they
were first sighted.
THE little teniente's troop only
numbered ninety men, but he was
game; returned the compliment, gal
loped straight through the bunch in
solid columns of tours, scattering
them like quail lodging hawk. 1t was
pistols and sabers against lances ana
muzzle-loaders, or those dragons, to
the last man Of them, would have been
turned into crow meat that morning.
For the surprise handed them by
little bunch they allowed to eat up
the first clatter, the Navajos put up
great fight. They rallied, and that by
Lut Il1lic IAC JouhSSISA S~NAA
reform and smash back at them.
Twice he sos pitt them apart, IKE
an ak splits backbone, leaving many
struggling pony and writhtng buck
Topping on the ground, like turkey
you've nipped the head from with your
Hawkins
But the fourth round the little
lieutenant tumbled out of the saddle
with four bullets through him.
Quick as they could his men sought
to rally round him, but he only called
up to them:
:" Back at 'em, boys, don't mind me;
back at 'em!' he yelled Hold the
field and save your wounded
Pretty little pack OF raVen1ng
wolves that talk turned them into,
and at it again they pelted, sabers
shearing lances and snawing bones
with hearty hunger that soon had
the befeathered devils on the run anu
left the wreck of the dragon troop
victors.
About a third Of the men were
down, but the two-thirds left, l reck-
on. must have looked like a regiment