Gilpin observer., 1914-01-29
LAUGHTER WON A BATTLE
BY JAMES LEWIS.

nel?" asked one of the Boy Scouts.
"A story with punch about some
fight that you saw with your own
eyes?"
The colonel reflected as he rubbed
his stiff knee-the kneecap that was
smashed by ball from the rifle of a
swarthy brave.
Very WE'LL" he said. "I'll tell you
about Olaf and Jens, two young
Swedes we had with us when we went
after some Indians that were on a
rampage in Arizona Olaf and Jens
were good fellows. but Indian fighting
was something new to them.
How they got into the army l de-
clare don't know. They were always
too far ahead, or too far behind, or
too far to one side; and at first we
had almost to hide them when we met
Indians, for they didn't know enough
to come in out of the bullets.
I'VE were in pursuit Of the Indians,
who were retreating through very
wild and dangerous region. We had
marched steadily since sunrise, and
we were dusty, dry, hungry tired and
cross. Moreover, we had good reason
to suspect that Indians, and plenty of
them, were near by.
I'VE approached a broad, shallow
arroyo that was full of scrub trees,
bushes, cact and huge powders. Our
scouts, deploying cautiously, were just
entering the fringe of low thickets on
the edge of the arroyo, when a vol
ley from behind the powders and
chaparrai killed them to man. The
enemy had tricked us in spite of our
watchfulness. They were on exactly
their own kind of battle ground. We
knew what sort of murderous job 1t
would be to oust them from those
powders and brush.
I'VE simply had to get into the ar
royo. where we could hide ourselves
and fight the Indians in their own
style, SO the men scattered, and, yell
ing like the Indians themselves, ran
at top speed for the arroyo. More
were hit on that short run than we
e could afford to lose.
I'VE made another DASH short
a one, diagonally across the arroyo, and
flung ourselves behind a low bank.
Crawling and running on our hands
and feet, we gradually made a flank
movement, until we at last reached
the rocks and had fighting chance.
Our loss was heavy by that time, and,
so far as We knew, not a single Indian
had been killed.
After two hours Of peep-and-shoot-
quick fighting, night began to draw
-on. The Indians got bolder, too, and
began to close in on US. If we showed
an inch of hat brim, it was shipped
on.
Just then a big Missourian named
Bill Humble suddenly bawled out:
Look at the Swedes, will you?
They've gone plum crazy at last!'
"All the men stopped firing to look.
We saw Olaf and Jens waging hith-
eerto unknown kind of Indian warfare"
What were they doing?" asked one
~of the younger scouts, bit inpatient
ZSy.
The colonel smiled. "Olaf and Jens
were hiding behind big bowlder and
athey were shooting straight up in the
sair as fast as they could load and fire.
I'VE watched them, SO amazed that
we almost forgot about the enemy.
-ESill Humble shouted at them:
"'HereL What are you two doing?'
"Jens bla7ed away at the zenith,
and asked:
"Vat ban matter?
why are you crazy men shootin'
up in the SKYE Bill yelled back
"Vell,' called back Jens, we can't
see dem Indian fallars, and We can't
shoot drough de rocks. so We shoot up
in de air SO de bullets fall on dem.'
"A shout of deep throated laughtep
burst from the men who heard him,
and the others took it up as the word
passed along the line. In few min.
utes everyone was laughing. Why, q
man who had a bullet in his back grin
ned in spite of the pain.
"The way that laughter took the In
dams was as strange as 1t was unex.
pected. They were suspicious and be.
gan to peep furtively round and over
the powders. One of them, q big
hawk beaked savage. exposed himself
= too much, and soldier left off laugh
ing long enough to shoot him.
He happened to be the chief, and
his braves. probably thinking that his
end was caused in some way by the
pale face laughter, broke from their
hiding places and were soon going
hotfoot down the crooked gulch."
The colonel paused and the scout
who had proposed the story asked:
Was that all?"
WELL" the colonel answered. at
was-about all. II was the last fight
of any consequence. don't suppose
that the official records mention It,
but Olaf and Jens really ended that
war"