Captured by the Navajos

a glimpse of the motive power could be obtained, but it ground and cr

stance could not arrive in time, the log stopp

the door and draw a bead on it! Don't let a man leap ove

of the prostrate men behind the log had no effect, except

to do but to remove the stone. Kee

the log, and under cover of the fire and smoke a stalwart warrior leaped over, raised the

s extended towards his friends, who pulled him over the log, and he

gilant watch went on. At last the sergeant, who still stood at the open door,

said. "They must have dug under the lo

safe to reach the cabin

in the way, sergeant, the delay they wou

e with one, Mr. Du

nt, "that's a duty for me. I'll

, sergeant, I will d

e mended the fire, and then we selected from the loose rubbish which

is arms. I took the revolvers in my hands, whispered the word, and he started out at a rapid walk, setting his feet down carefully and without no

nt beyond the place where he

raised his head above the log and fired. The bullet struck the falling roc

opened a rapid fusillade with the revolvers, which successfully covered my ret

had taken the Navajos to bore a tunnel under their log and undermine the first trigging-stone, we estimated that two more hour

d arrived, help should by this time be fairly on the way; but if she had been killed by the be

could not hope to do more than make t

hese probabilities, there came a scratch at the eastern door. Frank was at the window on that sid

ime accompanied by a familiar whine, w

!" shouted the boy, and, springing

she dropped a stick at my feet bearing

room, licked our hands and faces, jumped up to the noses of the ponies, and behaved as if s

mitting her neck for inspection, he found attach

Los Valle

ber 20

he messenger fed. Corporal Coffey an

lligan, S

we get out of this, the company shall pay for a silver c

ree miles an hour," I said, "it should be here by a

o great I neglected to show proper

y keep on the road. The trouble will be in fin

t be far from here. Let's take a shot at that log every three

it touched the earth. I am confident this must have sent some sand

to the top of the chimney, and shortly afterwards returned with the report that he had seen the prostrate body of a warrior revealed beyond-good evidence that his first shot had b

he time hurried all too rapidly on, the Indi

louder grating over the gravelly soil to the fourth

nningham, "I could hit those fel

try it," I replied. "A redskin with a broken leg c

two figures leaped over the end of the log nearest the perpendicular rock, ran to the corner formed by the cabin and the wall,

d coal of our bonfire down the chimney, where they broke into fragments a

ing them and the doors, we could do nothing to

imney to prevent a draught, and soon the wh

ction. Our eyes began to smart painfully, and we felt ourselve

to perish, perhaps, in a still more horrible way. Just as I was

e, lieutenant

ots, accompanied by a good, honest, Anglo-

de of the cabin showed the Indians had left the roof. A general scurrying of feet and other thuds down the

ing was uttered feet and butts of rifles were sweeping brands and stra

l engaged in wiping away the tears the smoke had excit

not been for dear little Vicky w

h their right arms about each other's neck, holdin

"you did not make th

"Said his place was with his brother. Made the march like

any punishment upon the Navajos. Two dead Indians lay near the cabin, and farther away the one that had fal

lunch. The horses had been somewhat singed about the legs, but were not disabled. An hour afterwar

eft behind for a rest also arrived, without adventure on the march. Cordova and his son at once set out on the trai

eir defeat. They had struck straight through the hills for the Rio Grande, where they joined the main body, the same which had attacked us the

nning captured stock through there. Their report must have been favorable, for Cordova said a detachment of forty-seven Navajos was now

ations to retake the stolen st

ew of their presence near us, I ordered the scouting party and huntsmen not to

tered La Puerta from the western end. This was done for fear some advance-guard of the redmen might witness our movement if we went by the usual way, and beca

walls rose perpendicularly on each side. A hundred yards east and west of this narrowest portion of the pass were good places of

oncealment, and then, under cover of the noise made by the moving animals, to slip down into the ca?on, and when t

th my detachment when the Navajo rear had passe

eared. The men had been told that they might sleep, an

liar to the arid region of the plains and Rockies. I sat on a bowlder and watched through the tedious hours unt

that, Mr. Dunca

ard the distant bleating of sheep, an

I replied. "You may stir up the men

est. It was the myriad feet of the coming flocks and herds, hurrying along the grassy valley. The m

oking many times their actual size in the uncertain perspective, appeared two tall figures, whose ne

g the wall until you come to Sergeant Cunningham's position, and tell him the Indian

ank's expedition to Jemez, with the adventures of the return trip, had given him a certa

d widely over the open valley, scampered, crowded, and overleaped one another as they closed into the narrow way. There seemed to be fully two thousand of them, intermin

, for they had abandoned the traditional reserve of the Indian race, and were talking loudly and hilariously as they passed my wing

vas as guides, to Jemez. They were unable to get through the snow, and the elder Co

o break up the camp, and on the 9th the accumulated stores of nineteen months'