The daily star-mirror. (Moscow, Idaho) 1911-1939, 1923-06-30
speed. Dixon fired and dashed for
the stockade on the back of his fright
sned pony.


the stockade on the back of his fright
sned pony.
1t was supposed that the Indians
would pursue their usual tactics and
would merely circle the buildings, kill
Ing such men as were outside and
driving off the live stock But the In
dams had been told by their chief
medicine man that the white men
would all be asleep and could be killed
with clubs. This would have hap
| pened had not the ridge pole in the
saloon broken as it did.
The Indians charged up to the stock
ade and through the gates. They
broke every pane of glass in the build
ings and hammered on the doors with
the butts of their rifles. Dixon had
reached Hanrahan's in safety. The
Shadler brothers, asleep in their wagon
outside the stockade, had been killed
and scalped. The defenders of the
Walls, it developed, had been split into
three parties. Some Of the men found
that the ammunition for their buffalo
guns was in other buildings, but others
of return fire was poured upon the
Indians to drive the attackers away
temporarily. Several Indians had been
shot down, and some of the wounded
were trying to crawl out Of the stock
ade.
The Indians, enraged at the fail
ure of their first attack, now came on
in charge after charge, just as the
Cheyenne chief Roman Nose later at
tackled Forsyth's scouts at Beecher Is
land. They rode up to the stockade
and fred through the pickets. The
horses of the buffalo hunters were in
the stockade tied to the wagons so an
early start could be made. The In
dams shot arrows and bullets into the
horses, killing all of them, in order
to deprive the defenders of any chance
Of getting away.
A Mystery Of the Battle.
Billy Tyler, one of the defenders,
who went to the stockade to get bet
ter shot at the Indians, was shot
through the lungs and died in a few
minutes. The hunters who made a
stand in the saloon were short of am
munition, so Dixon and Hanrahan
made dash for Rath's store, where
there was plentiful supply, and came
back with enough for all the big "50'
guns, with which the plainsmen could |
do deadly work.
The Indians, 700 in number at the |
start, kept up their attacks until |
frro ~ IN, %ha
emily they thought it impossible that |
such a small number of men could hold I
out against such odds But the hide
hunters fought coolly and took no
chances. Behind the thick adobe
walls they were comparatively safe.
They poured forth a deadly fire from
windows and doorways. Every attack
"All the horses in the corral had /
been killed, and, even after the at
tacks slackened, the situation Of the
beleaguered party seemed to be hope
less. Realizing that the hide hunters Il
could not be dislodged by direct attack,
the Indians strove to starve out the
party. They kept up scattering fire.
to show they were watching every ave-
nue. of escape.
After dark on the second day, ;
Henry Lease, a buffalo hunter, took
his big $50" and started for Dodge
City. Nobody had much hope that he
would get through. His exploit ranks /
and Trudeau of the Forsyth scouts, 1
who wormed their way through the in
7esting Cheyennes and Sioux and made
their way to Fort Wallace. Lease
reached Dodge and gave the alarm. 4
tut his journey took several days. and s
he plight of the buffalo hunters grew
worse and worse.
On the fifth day of the siege, short
y before the relief party appeared, +
Dds, the husband of the only woman
present, was accidentally killed He L
vas climbing down a ladder, and in | 4
ome manner his rifle was discharged, f
he top of his head being blown Off.
1t first it was supposed he had been z
.ilIed by an Indian. His wife saw 4
i'm fall. She had gone through the f
iege with the utmost courage, encour- E
ging the men to keep up the fight,
nd seemingly not being alarmed over q
he prospect of death or capture. r
BY the time the relief party ar 4
we'd, the Indians had withdrawn; 200 :
ad been killed. The Indian allies
ad been on the warpath several HI
lonths and had killed nearly 200 peo- Il
lie on raids in New Mexico, Texas, s
colorado and Kansas They were ex- q
liant over their easy progress, and L
leir setback at Adobe Walls came as
stunning blow. :
Il