Beadle's Dime Library No. 826 — page 18: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

oo. ' : f i il) + oe AJ r) j j { > i ¢ A Vi le me ls ‘s é ay |’ ing them hard iu their flight to safety in the a + aan te . Ce Aa |" | oie A gs fy 7 | Aut rif | eds i < mt J ns ’ i _ ' £ ot oe coh en ~ oe 7 soldiers the scouts and the Pawnees, press- 18 discharge as the shells tore through buman forms, staggering horses and riders alike. Hardly had the roar of the guns ceased when a perfect shower of arrows fell in the faces of the Sioux, followed instantly by the cracking of the cavalry carbines, and with the steady musketry fire of the infantry end- ing up the first clash of the terrible serenade of death. Then the guns were ready loaded again and the battle had begun in such deadly earnest that the Sioux were the surprised ones and they staggered back from the ter- rors of red death, back upon those in their rear, and a wild flight for the timber was be- gun almost before the leaders in the line had reached two-thirds of the way to the camp. Had the chiefs intended to halt their lines shattered, bleeding, surprised and terrified in the timber, the intention was of no avail when loud and clear above the roar of fire- arms came the startling cries of Buffalo Bill and his men, the yelping shouts of the Paw- nees and the cheers of the cavalry led by Captain Emory, as they all dashed out upon the confused, tottering, struggling, dead and wounded mass of warriors and their ponies, With yells, rattling revolvers, clashing sabers and the whirling lassoes of the Red- skin Ropers, the avengers were upon the Sioux, riding them down, cutting them down with keen blades, dragging them from their saddles with merciless lariats, shooting and knifing them at close quarters, and bear- ing them back before the irresistible ava- - lanche of the charging squadron. _ The cannon had ceased their angry boom- ing, the musketry had ceased its rattle, for it was the inning of the mounted men, the cavalry, the scouts, the Pawnee horsemen, and the carnival of. death was a ghastly one, Through the timber the Sioux were driven like a herd of frightened deer, over the meadow-land, all seeking flight now, think- ing only of escape from the foes that rushed them to death and doom. On, on after the flying Sioux rushed the mountains. _ Some of them, to escape the doom that threatened, sprung from their ponies and sought hiding-places in the timber and among the rocks, where the light of day had not yet penetrated. Not wishing to allow his men to go too | -—s- far, Major Melton fired signal-guns to recall | them, and the officers in command soon un- | derstood what it meant and had the buglers | -—s sound the recall. The Pawnees, maddened by the fight, and the Sioux in full flight, pressed on and were ful that the moment the pale-faces eased the pursuit, the fugitives, seeing a ly their red foes upon their track at once | bands of otted to entrap them. : _. They had begun to drop back in force large enough to engage them, and larger ioux were about to surround them, when Buffalo Bill saw through the rS oe _ cunning game and dashed to the rescue with Surgeon Powell by his side and his scouts Be . following him. Bess He was just in time to shout out in the . had ay : 7. are qt “) way through and giving the Sioux revenge - and perhaps part of the victory after all when Captain Emory took in the situation Pawnee tongue that they were being led in- to a trap when the Sioux began to close in upon them in vastly superior numbers. It then became a Npeeears of cutting their at a glance, and disobeying the recall under the circumstances, came charging ahead _ again with his troopers, at 2 *S * | oe QAO RG } _ As the pursuers began to start upon the return to the camp, a lieutenant dashed up _ with orders from recall of all, soldiers, scouts and Pawnees, as 4 a | ait pote ee ay tne guns 46 ee es wie ee, --'s e result was electrical, for the Sioux at stampeded again and the Pawnees and scouts were rescued from their danger and > _ the bugle again sounded the recall, for the | _ battle was won, - ie y + \ ia ) + a8 ps ym e CHAPTER XL. THE INDIAN COURIER. Ola [ajor Melton fora quick os artillery was coming up to take posses- sion and shell the retreating Sioux as far as | joy, but otherwise _ 4 .™ => 2 es’ a i b, ee —__—— and just what the honor meant, — : ‘ aay ; SE ha” EP TE cys we Buffalo Bill’s Sharp-Shooters. Instantly the orders were given toride toa rise ahead a quarter of a mile and form there, and the guns came up at a run, unlimbered and went into action at that point, Under this new encouragement to move on the Sioux continued their flight, the shells bursting over them and in their midst as they climbed the hill until they were out of range. Then every soldier was made a’ Good Samaritan and the wounded were at once looked after. sut though dead Sioux were plentiful few wounded were found, and the soldiers had to look after their own comrades almost en- tirely. The wounded, soldiers and Indians, were borne back to the camp, and Doctor Powell and his assistant surgeon at once had their hands full, all those who could aiding in the good work of caring for the suffering. Major Melton had ordered those in camp to have a good breakfast ready, and the re- turning prisoners of the Sioux were soon x eat ri it, Pawnees and, soldiers side by side. As the loss to the Sioux had been exceed- ingly heavy, and the bodies must be buried, the major knew that he would be detained a couple of days longer in camp, and have to march more slowly on account of his addi- tional wounded, so he decided to send an officer to the fort with the news of this third battle and victory won. As Surgeon Powell had been the one to discover the plot of the Sioux, the honor of being the bearer of the news was offered to him and promptly declined with the words: ‘‘| thank you, Major Melton, but I must decline the honor, as my duty is just as assuredly here with the sufferers as it was in the front in action.” ‘** Just what I knew you would say, Powell, and I would have felt regret had you ac- cepted the mission,” the major replied, and Captain Emory, who had been slightly wounded, was asked to bear the tidings to the fort. ‘* Not I, as the Sioux are as fickle asa woman, and may again attack us and I'd miss it. ‘*Send a courier, major, and that will leave all at the fort to consider that each and every one of us so distinguished himself that to single out one for the honor of bear- ing the tidings would be unfair to the others.” ‘* Yes, senda courier,” cried several of the officers present, while Buffalo Bill said: ‘*Pardon me, major, but may I offer a suggestion, sir, that might do good just now ?” ‘Certainly, Cody, fire away, if you are not tired firing after your splendid work of to-day, for let me say that you covered your- self with honor,” ‘Thank you, sir. ‘‘But I was going to say, sir, that as our new allies would understand that it wasa great honor to carry the news to Colonel arkham, and all can testify to the splendid courage of the young chief of my Red-skin Ropers, Sioux Slayer, that it might be well to intrust him with the letter, and from the looks of his string of fresh scalps, it will be peer positive to the colonel that the Sioux ave suffered very heavy loss.” ° All laughed at this sally of the scout, for they had seen how busy the Pawnees were in scalping the Sioux, no one wishing to in- terfere in the very ghastly work owing to the late treaty of peace having just been con- summated, ‘**Sioux Slayer is my man, Cody, and, as you say, the colonel need not be told that the Sioux lost heavily, when he sees his string of gay trophics. '** We will make the sending of the chief as impressive as possible, just for the effect it will have with his comrades.” ‘The letter*was accordingly written in the presence of the assembled chiefs, the major dictating it to his adjutant in an impressive manner, and making particular meniion of the Pawnees, and especially of Sioux Slayer. It was sealed with red wax and then placed in the hands of the young chief, Buffalo Bill explaining to him just what he was to do er duneed with 5 q : areve Tal ; : + 4 ICAL. Si at ad pleased at the distinction shown their popu- lar young comrade. Having received his orders, Sioux Slayer sprung upon his horse and darted away up- on his ride to the fort, carrying also a note from Buffalo Bill to. the colonei, stating that he had found Singing Dove. CHAPTER XLI. THE FORGOTTEN LETTER. As the days passed and no other word came from Major Melton, Colonel Markham began to feel a little anxious. He knew well the treacherous nature of the Sioux, and though he had perfect confidence in Major Melton and bis officers, still he knew that he was vastly outnumbered did the Indians attempt a blow in revenge. Then he recalled how far the command was away from the fort, the dangerous trail fora courier to follow, and decided that all was well and the scldiers would soon put in an appearance. The colonel also could not but feel anxiety for Buffalo Bill. ‘ He had gone off alone with a party of newly -made allies, and to continue on to the: Pawnee village if there were need to do so in search of the missing girl, Singing Dove. At last the suspense began to be so great that Colonel Markham decided to dispatch an officer with a scout and small escort, to see if anything was wrong at the front. He had just told his adjutant to issue the order, when it was reported that a courier was coming toward the fort, and along the trail that Major Melton’s command had taken, Next came the tidings that it was an In- dian horseman and he was forcing a seem- ingly tired horse hard. In half an hour more Sioux Slayer drew up his tired horse before the colonel’s quar- ters. He could not: speak English, and no one was about the gate who spoke Puwnee, so the officer of the day had a hard time of it until he recognize! the young chief as one who had been with Buffalo Bill and the Red- skin Lasso-Throwers, Then the chief revealed his letter, but. would not part with it, and the officer of the day of the day led him to headquarters, sending to the camps for an old hunter who spoke Pawnee well to come and act as interpreter. The colonel recognized Sioux Slayer ata glance, grasped his hand, fearing evil to Buffalo Bill, and was delighted when he was given the letter, which, beside the ad- dress upon the official envelope had: ‘* Forwarded by “Sioux SLAYER, “ Ohief of Buffalo Bill's Red-skin Ropers,”” Sivuux Slayer looked the picture of con- tentment, though his face showed that he had been a trusty courier, having not once closed his eyes, or halted longer than for the org of his hardy horse, on the long ride. The old hunter had arrived, and Colonel Markham read the letter with exclamations of delight at the third victory won and made: the news known at once through the fort. Sioux Slayer was given a cordial welcome, and through the interpreter the colonel ex- pluined to him how much he appreciated his splendid services, while all examined his string of scalps with great interest if not ad- miration. The letter told of the fight, and how Sur- geon Powell had discovered the plot, also of the arrival of Buffalo Bill and his Red-skin Ropers in time to be of most signal service in the battle. : It gave the list of killed and wounded among the soldiers and sc uts, and Colonel Markham remarked earnestly: **The odds in slain are appallingly against: the Indians, and Melton has gained these victories with the loss of but few of his com- mand, sbowing how well all was planned and executed. | ‘* As usual, Buffalo Bill and Surgeon Pow- ell added to their fame, and each and all of the officers and men deserve the — praise, pea not forgetting our good allies a) . ” , ay ‘ 4 ix, : $ ‘ « x toa ye : i | aes e, = 4 Ss cy pe, yin wa C , Ta} . iaadea Pes » . Ch DiLase@il UW highest igpeat 4 9s t pie Ore coy Be ie the =. Bape 5.8 jhae ~ comicbooks.com