“I should say, General,” Mackenzie replied, gazing at the Irishman. “You sure have covered some ground, Donegan.”
“I have at that, and haven’t seen my wife since May.”
“A wife, is it?” Mackenzie roared. “Well, now—when did you decide to settle down?”
“Not long after you convinced Parker to come in, General,” Seamus answered. “In many ways, though, it seems like it’s been ages. Feels even longer since I’ve seen her.”
Mackenzie said, “And where is she while you’re out scouting for General Crook here?”
“Waiting for me at Laramie.”
“By glory! You’re no more than a good day’s ride from her now, Irishman. I envy you, I do. Getting to see her by tomorrow.”
Donegan nodded eagerly. “I can’t wait to see how she’s … well, how big she’s grown. She’s carrying … er,
“What, ho! Not only do I learn that you’ve married and settled down—but you’re going to be a family man now!” Mackenzie turned to one of his staff officers. “Lieutenant Otis! Bring me that flask of mine. This truly is a cause for celebration and at least one stout toast all around to this father-to-be!”
Then Ranald Mackenzie turned back to slap a hand on Donegan’s shoulder in that frosty air beside a merry fire. “Who would have thought—Irishman! That I’d go and find one of the finest white scouts ever there was who led my Fourth into battle.”
H. G. Otis came back and handed the colonel his flask of German silver. Taking loose the cap, Mackenzie promptly began to pour a dribble into every one of those cups that suddenly made their clattering appearance out of nowhere.
“Hear, hear, gentlemen!” Mackenzie roared. “To Seamus Donegan! Let’s drink to the Irishman! By Neptune’s beard, let’s all drink to one of the finest scouts it’s been my pleasure to follow into battle!”
Samantha saw Martha Luhn dashing across the parade with a bundle of newspapers under her arm, waving one of them as she shouted, disturbing the peaceful quiet of that Sunday morning right as most of the officers’ wives were gathering on the front porch of Old Bedlam. It was warm and sunny there, a pretty place to wait until the time came when they all walked over for church together.
In an instant women pressed against the whitewashed porch banister, crowded on the steps, every one of them listening as Lieutenant Gerhard Luhn’s wife hurried their way chattering nonstop, her skirts and petticoats billowing about her ankles like a rush of foam.
“It’s true! It’s true!” she shouted as she burst past the flagpole.
Now Samantha could make out Mrs. Luhn’s words.
“They did capture a village!”
“I told you,” Elizabeth Burt declared self-assuredly, moving down to the first step. “When that rumor first got here to us—I told you there was truth to it!”
As Margaret Luhn reached the bottom of the porch steps, a crowd swallowed her, flying hands and arms reaching for the stack of newspapers she held out for the others. This latest edition of the Rocky Mountain
Hugging Elizabeth Burt’s elbow, Sam stared at the banner headlines. The bold letters printed in black ink across the newsprint all but leaped off the front page.
New York
headlines read:
ATTACK UPON A CAMP OF SIOUX
COMPLETE VICTORY FOR THE TROOPS
How quickly her eyes flew from that brave announcement to the smaller type running completely down the three columns against the far left-hand side of the page.
Crook Stumbles Upon and Surprises
an Indian Village.
CHEYENNE, September 16—A courier who left General Crook’s command September 9, brings the following news: Since General Crook’s column turned south toward the Black Hills on the 5th inst. there has been considerable hardship through wet weather and living on bacon and hard bread, and a good deal of grumbling. On the 7th it was decided to send a portion of the pack train ahead under escort of Colonel Mills, with fifteen men on the best horses of each company of the Third cavalry, making 150 in all. Lieutenants Von Lutwitz, Schulle and Crawford composed the subordinate officers, with Lieutenant Babb, Fourth infantry, chief commissary; Tom Moore, chief packer; and F. Gruard, Crook’s chief scout. The latter was to serve both as guide and scout, and on yesterday evening he discovered through the rain and fog, without being himself observed, a hostile Sioux village, consisting of forty-one large lodges and a band of several hundred ponies and a few American horses.
Mills concluded to attempt an attack with his 150 men without waiting to send word to Crook for reinforcements. He fell back a few miles, hid his command in a ravine, and at two o’clock this morning marched for the village, which was situated on a little creek, a tributary of Grand or Owl creek. He formed on the north side before daylight and ordered Lieutenant Schwatta, of Company M, to charge through the village while the rest of the force, dismounted, were to form skirmish lines on either side and pick off the Indians as they came out.
The latter were completely surprised, and scattered out pell-mell, half-naked, returning the fire to some extent. Their ponies were effectually stampeded, but, owing to Mills’ small force he only succeeded in securing the lodges and property therein and about 140 ponies. There was an immense quantity of dried meat, berries, etc., all that Crook’s whole pack train could carry, and sufficient to postpone the proposed purchase of supplies. There were wagon loads of robes and savage spoils of all kinds, including some of the equipments and arms of the Seventh cavalry which Custer used in the Big Horn massacre, and various articles of wearing apparel worn on that occasion was also captured … Von Lutwig was seriously wounded in the knee, and privates Milbury and Charles Foster, of Company B, Augustus Dorm, of Company D, and Sergeant Glass, company E, were wounded, and private Wensall, of company A was killed in the action.
As soon as she could grab a copy for herself, Sam lumbered up the narrow steps to her tiny room and fell upon the bed, where she continued to read the story, regarding each word just as carefully, every bit as slowly as she had been poring over each one of the newspaper stories the women at Fort Laramie always received days, sometimes as much as a week, after the Rocky Mountain
In the morning about 7 o’clock, word reached Crook fifteen miles back, with the main column, and he came forward with two sections of cavalry, reaching Mills at 11 o’clock. The latter had kept up a good picket fight during the forenoon, but Crook was very much disappointed because Mills didn’t report his discovery last night, as there was plenty of time to have got the entire command there and so effectually surrounded the village that nothing would have escaped; but the General is also pleased, all things considered.
About 100 yards from the village is a little ravine, in which a band of seven warriors and fifteen women and children were safely lodged in cavernous rocks, and it was in trying to dislodge them that Mills lost his killed and most of his wounded. General Crook desired to save the women and children and, by means of Gruard’s interpreting, a parley ensued, and three warriors came out, one chief named American Horse being mortally wounded. Before this parley was effected, however, Frank White, a citizen, was shot through the heart, and privates Kennedy and McKenan of company F, 6th Cavalry, wounded. About twenty minutes past four o’clock this afternoon sudden picket firing sprung up, beginning on Colonel Mason’s front, resulting in the wounding of Sergeant Schruber, company K, and private Dorm, company F, Fifth cavalry. It proved to be the result of reinforcements received from Crazy Horse’s band and a running attack began all around the circle, but troops were quickly thrown out and the enemy driven off in every direction. The latter got about a dozen horses too poor to get in to camp back a mile on the line of march.
The village was thoroughly ransacked and the spoils divided around. Colonel Mills and his men got the ponies … Much ammunition and many guns were found in the lodges, and all evidence is to the effect that the Indians were
