THE OLD SANTA FE TRAIL by COLONEL HENRY INMAN (best fiction novels of all time .TXT) 📕

After Leaving Their Village, Went Up On The

          Smoky Hill, And Committed the Most Horrible Depredations

          Upon The Scattered settlers In that Region.  Upon This News,

          General Hancock Issued the Following Order:--

 

 

 

          "As A Punishment Of The Bad Faith Practised by The Cheyennes

          And Sioux Who Occupied the Indian Village At This Place, And

          As A Chastisement For Murders And Depredations Committed

          Since The Arrival Of The Command At This Point, By The

          People Of These Tribes, The Village Recently Occupied by

          Them, Which Is Now In our Hands, Will Be Utterly Destroyed."

 

 

 

          The Cheyennes, Arapahoes, And Apaches Had Been United under

          One Agency; The Kiowas And Comanches Under Another.

          As General Hancock'S Expedition Had Reference To All These

          Tribes, He Had Invited both The Agents To Accompany Him

          Into The Indian Country And Be Present At All Interviews

          With The Representatives Of These Tribes, For The Purpose,

          As The Invitation Stated, Of Showing The Indians "That The

          Officers Of The Government Are Acting In harmony."

 

 

 

          In conversation With The General The Agents Admitted that

          Indians Had Been Guilty Of All The Outrages Charged against

          Them, But Each Asserted the Innocence Of The Particular

          Tribes Under His Charge, And Endeavoured to Lay Their Crimes

          At The Door Of Their Neighbours.

 

 

 

          Here Was Positive Evidence From The Agents Themselves That

          The Indians Against Whom We Were Operating Were Deserving

          Of Severe Punishment.  The Only Conflicting Portion Of The

          Testimony Was As To Which Tribe Was Most Guilty.  Subsequent

          Events Proved, However, That All Of The Five Tribes Named,

          As Well As The Sioux, Had Combined for A General War

          Throughout The Plains And Along Our Frontier.  Such A War

          Had Been Threatened to Our Post Commanders Along The

          Arkansas On Many Occasions During The Winter.  The Movement

          Of The Sioux And Cheyennes Toward The North Indicated that

          The Principal Theatre Of Military Operations During The

          Summer Would Be Between The Smoky Hill And Platte Rivers.

          General Hancock Accordingly Assembled the Principal Chiefs

          Of The Kiowas And Arapahoes In council At Fort Dodge,

          Hoping To Induce Them To Remain At Peace And Observe Their

          Treaty Obligations.

 

 

 

          The Most Prominent Chiefs In council Were Satanta, Lone Wolf,

          And Kicking Bird Of The Kiowas, And Little Raven And Yellow

          Bear Of The Arapahoes.  During The Council Extravagant

          Promises Of Future Good Behaviour Were Made By These Chiefs.

          So Effective And Convincing Was The Oratorical Effort Of

          Satanta, That At The Termination Of His Address, The

          Department Commander And His Staff Presented him With The

          Uniform Coat, Sash, And Hat Of A Major-General.  In return

          For This Compliment, Satanta, Within A Few Weeks, Attacked

          The Post At Which The Council Was Held, Arrayed in his

          New Uniform.

 

 

 

In The Spring Of 1878, The Indians Commenced a Series Of Depredations

Along The Santa Fe Trail And Against The Scattered settlers Of The

Frontier, That Were Unparalleled in their Barbarity.  General Alfred

Sully, A Noted indian Fighter, Who Commanded the District Of The

Upper Arkansas, Early Concentrated a Portion Of The Seventh And Tenth

Cavalry And Third Infantry Along The Line Of The Old Santa Fe Trail,

And Kept Out Small Expeditions Of Scouting Parties To Protect The

Overland Coaches And Freight Caravans; But The Troops Effected very

Little In stopping The Devilish Acts Of The Indians, Who Were Now

Fully Determined to Carry Out Their Threats Of A General War, Which

Culminated in the Winter Expedition Of General Sheridan, Who Completely

Subdued them, And Forced all The Tribes On Reservations; Since Which

Time There Has Never Been Any Trouble With The Plains Indians Worthy

Of Mention.[69]

 

 

 

General Sully, About The 1St Of September, With Eight Companies Of

The Seventh Cavalry And Five Companies Of Infantry, Left Fort Dodge,

On The Arkansas, On A Hurried expedition Against The Kiowas, Arapahoes,

And Cheyennes.  The Command Marched in a General Southeasterly

Direction, And Reached the Sand Hills Of The Beaver And Wolf Rivers,

By A Circuitous Route, On The Fifth Day.  When Nearly Through That

Barren Region, They Were Attacked by A Force Of Eight Hundred of The

Allied tribes Under The Leadership Of The Famous Kiowa Chief, Satanta.

A Running Fight Was Kept Up With The Savages On The First Day,

In Which Two Of The Cavalry Were Killed and One Wounded.

 

 

 

That Night The Savages Came Close Enough To Camp To Fire Into It

(An Unusual Proceeding In indian Warfare, As They Rarely Molest

Troops During The Night), I Now Quote From Custer Again:

          The Next Day General Sully Directed his March Down The

          Valley Of The Beaver; But Just As His Troops Were Breaking

          Camp, The Long Wagon-Train Having already "Pulled out," And

          The Rear Guard Of The Command Having Barely Got Into Their

          Saddles, A Party Of Between Two And Three Hundred warriors,

          Who Had Evidently In some Inexplicable Manner Contrived to

          Conceal Themselves Until The Proper Moment, Dashed into The

          Deserted camp Within A Few Yards Of The Rear Of The Troops,

          And Succeeded in cutting Off A Few Led horses And Two Of

          The Cavalrymen Who, As Is Often The Case, Had Lingered a

          Moment Behind The Column.

 

 

 

          Fortunately, The Acting adjutant Of The Cavalry, Brevet

          Captain A. E. Smith, Was Riding at The Rear Of The Column

          And Witnessed the Attack Of The Indians.  Captain Hamilton,[70]

          Of The Seventh Cavalry, Was Also Present In command Of The

          Rear Guard.  Wheeling To The Rightabout, He At Once Prepared

          To Charge The Indians And Attempt The Rescue Of The Two

          Troopers Who Were Being Carried off Before His Very Eyes.

          At The Same Time, Captain Smith, As Representative Of The

          Commanding Officer Of The Cavalry, Promptly Took The

          Responsibility Of Directing a Squadron Of The Cavalry To

          Wheel Out Of Column And Advance In support Of Captain

          Hamilton'S Guard.  With This Hastily Formed detachment,

          The Indians, Still Within Pistol-Range, But Moving Off With

          Their Prisoners, Were Gallantly Charged and So Closely

          Pressed that They Were Forced to Relinquish One Of Their

          Prisoners, But Not Before Shooting Him Through The Body And

          Leaving Him On The Ground, As They Supposed, Mortally Wounded.

          The Troops Continued to Charge The Retreating Indians,

          Upon Whom They Were Gaining, Determined, If Possible,

          To Effect The Rescue Of Their Remaining Comrade.  They Were

          Advancing Down One Slope While The Indians, Just Across

          A Ravine, Were Endeavouring To Escape With Their Prisoner

          Up The Opposite Ascent, When A Peremptory Order Reached the

          Officers Commanding The Pursuing Force To Withdraw Their Men

          And Reform The Column At Once.  The Terrible Fate Awaiting

          The Unfortunate Trooper Carried off By The Indians Spread

          A Deep Gloom Throughout The Command.  All Were Too Familiar

          With The Horrid Customs Of The Savages To Hope For A Moment

          That The Captive Would Be Reserved for Aught But A Slow,

          Lingering Death, From Tortures The Most Horrible And Painful

          Which Blood-Thirsty Minds Could Suggest.  Such Was The Truth

          In his Case, As We Learned afterwards When Peace (?) Was

          Established with The Tribes Then Engaged in war.

 

 

 

          The Expedition Proceeded down The Valley Of The Beaver,

          The Indians Contesting Every Step Of The Way.  In the

          Afternoon, About Three O'Clock, The Troops Arrived at

          A Ridge Of Sand Hills A Few Miles Southeast Of The

          Presentsite Of Camp Supply, Where Quite A Determined

          Engagement Took Place Between The Command And The Three

          Tribes, Cheyennes, Arapahoes, And Kiowas, The Indians

          Being The Assailants.  The Indians Seemed to Have Reserved

          Their Strongest Efforts Until The Troops And Train Had

          Advanced well Into The Sand Hills, When A Most Obstinate

          Resistance--And Well Conducted, Too--Was Offered the

          Farther Advance Of The Troops.  It Was Evident That The

          Troops Were Probably Nearing The Indian Villages, And That

          This Opposition To Further Advance Was To Save Them.  The

          Character Of The Country Immediately About The Troops Was

          Not Favourable To The Operations Of Cavalry; The Surface

          Of The Rolling Plain Was Cut Up By Irregular And Closely

          Located sand Hills, Too Steep And Sandy To Allow Cavalry

          To Move With Freedom, Yet Capable Of Being Easily Cleared

          Of Savages By Troops Fighting On Foot.  The Indians Took

          Post On The Hilltops And Began A Harassing Fire On The

          Troops And Train. Captain Yates, With A Single Troop Of

          Cavalry, Was Ordered forward To Drive Them Away.  This Was

          A Proceeding Which Did Not Seem To Meet With Favour From

          The Savages. Captain Yates Could Drive Them Wherever He

          Encountered them, But They Appeared in increased numbers

          At Some Other Threatened point.  After Contending In this

          Non-Effective Manner For A Couple Of Hours, The Impression

          Arose In the Minds Of Some That The Train Could Not Be

          Conducted through The Sand Hills In the Face Of The Strong

          Opposition Offered by The Indians.  The Order Was Issued

          To Turn About And Withdraw.  The Order Was Executed, And

          The Troop And Train, Followed by The Exultant Indians,

          Retired a Few Miles To The Beaver, And Encamped for The

          Night On The Ground Afterward Known As Camp Supply.

 

 

 

          Captain Yates Had Caused to Be Brought Off The Field, When

          His Troop Was Ordered to Retire, The Body Of One Of His Men,

          Who Had Been Slain In the Fight.  As The Troops Were To

          Continue Their Backward March Next Day, And It Was Impossible

          To Transport The Dead Body Further, Captain Yates Ordered

          Preparations Made For Interring It In camp That Night.

          Knowing That The Indians Would Thoroughly Search The Deserted

          Camp-Ground Almost Before The Troops Should Get Out Of Sight,

          And Would Be Quick, With Their Watchful Eyes, To Detect A

          Grave, And, If Successful In discovering It, Would Unearth

          The Body In order To Get The Scalp, Directions Were Given

          To Prepare The Grave After Nightfall; And The Spot Selected

          Would Have Baffled any One But An Indian.  The Grave Was

          Dug Under The Picket Line To Which The Seventy Or Eighty

          Horses Of The Troop Would Be Tethered during The Night,

          So That Their Constant Tramping and Pawing Should Completely

          Cover Up And Obliterate All Traces.  The Following Morning,

          Even Those Who Had Performed the Sad Rites Of Burial To

          Their Fallen Comrade Could Scarcely Have Indicated the Exact

          Location Of The Grave.  Yet When We Returned to That Point

          A Few Weeks Later, It Was Discovered that The Wily Savages

          Had Found The Place, Unearthed the Body, And Removed the

          Scalp Of Their Victim On The Day Following The Interment.[71]

 

 

 

After Leaving The Camp At Supply, The Indians Gradually Increased

Their Force, Until They Mustered about Two Thousand Warriors.

For Four Days And Nights They Hovered around The Command, And By The

Time It Reached mulberry Creek There Were Not One Thousand Rounds Of

Ammunition Left In the Whole Force Of Troopers And Infantrymen.

At The Creek, The Incessant Charges Of The Now Infuriated savages

Compelled the Troops To Use This Small Amount Held In reserve, And

They Found Themselves Almost At The Mercy Of The Indians.  But Before

They Were Absolutely Defenceless, Colonel Keogh Had Sent A Trusty

Messenger In the Night To Fort Dodge For A Supply Of Cartridges To

Meet The Command At The Creek, Which Fortunately Arrived there

In Time To Save That Spot From Being a Veritable "Last Ditch."

 

 

 

The Savages, In the Little But Exciting Encounter At The Creek Before

The Ammunition Arrived, Would Ride Up Boldly Toward The Squadrons Of

Cavalry, Discharge The Shots From Their Revolvers, And Then, In their

Rage, Throw Them At The Skirmishers On The Flanks Of The Supply-Train,

While The Latter, Nearly Out Of Ammunition, Were Compelled to Sit

Quietly In their Saddles, Idle Spectators Of The Extraordinary Scene.[72]

 

 

 

Many Of The Indians Were Killed on Their Ponies, However, By Those

Who Were Fortunate Enough To Have A Few Cartridges Left; But None

Were Captured, As The Savages Had Taken Their Usual Precaution To

Tie Themselves To Their Animals, And As Soon As Dead Were Dragged

Away By Them.