CHAPTER IX
INDIAN RAIDS--KATE IS MISSING--"BUFFALO BILL'S" OPINION--"BUFFALO BILL" FINDS HER LITTLE BASKET--THE SOLDIERS RETURN TO THE FORT WITHOUT FINDING HER--GRIEF OF THE FAMILY
IT was after dark when Joe returned from his mission to Fort Harker. Hehad been very kindly received by the officers, who had heard all abouthim from Colonel Keogh. The commanding officer told him that he wantedhim to warn the settlers on the Oxhide that the war had reallycommenced; that General Sully had had a great fight on the Arkansas, andthat it could not be considered as a victory. He told him also to tellthe people on the creek that at any moment they might be visited by ahostile band, notwithstanding that they were in such close proximity tothe post.
"You know yourself, my man, that the Indians have a faculty of goinganywhere they want to go, and all the troops in the army might befooled in regard to their movements. They are here to-day, murdering,and taking young girls captive, and a hundred miles away to-morrow.
"Tell the settlers," continued he, "that they must be on the lookout. Ihave not enough troops to put on guard on every creek. I wish I had;then there would be no danger of any sudden and unexpected raids. Why,do you know, Joe, that only yesterday, a band of Dog-soldiers made anattack on Wilson Creek, sixteen miles from here, and killed two men whowere at work in their hayfield?
"It was reported to me about three hours after the affair had occurred,and I sent a company up there, but as they were only infantry,--I haveno cavalry now at the post,--the Indians were soon out of reach.
"I want you to tell the settlers on the Oxhide to particularly watchtheir girls. The Indians will get some of them if they possibly can.They don't always murder them, but hold them in a terrible slavery inhopes of getting a heavy money ransom from the Government for theirrelease."
Joe related to his parents all the conversation he had with theofficers at Fort Harker, and early the next morning he and his fatherrode through the settlement, warning the people to be on their guard.
Only ten days afterward, when the family at Errolstrath were just goingto sit down to supper, it was discovered that Kate was missing. Gertrudewent up to her room, supposing she might be reading there, for she was agreat devourer of books, but she did not find her.
The boys hunted for her in all imaginable places on the ranche wherethey thought she might possibly be, but could not find her. When Joe andRob returned from their fruitless quest, the family were too thoroughlyfrightened to think of eating. Mr. Thompson mounted his horse andstarted to make the rounds of the nearest neighbors to learn whether shewas visiting any of them.
He returned to the ranche long after dark, but brought no news of herwhereabouts, and found every member of the family in tears, and his wifenearly crazy. He was told that Kate's pony had come home, riderless, tothe corral while he was absent, and a small sumac bush to which hisreins were tied, had been torn up by the roots and was dragging at hisfeet. None of them could conjecture where she could be.
"My God!" exclaimed her mother, "if the Indians have captured her andcarried her off, what shall we do?"
"Something must be done at once," said Mr. Thompson. "Joe, get your ponyquickly, and we will hurry to the fort to learn whether any Indians havebeen seen or heard of in this vicinity to-day. If so, we will get thecommanding officer to send out a squad of soldiers immediately. You mustgo with them, Joe, and trail the savages if you can find any signs ofthem."
Joe and his father rode as rapidly to Fort Harker as their animals couldcarry them; went to the commanding officer's private quarters, as thebusiness offices were closed after night, and reported to him theterrible anguish which the family were suffering.
They immediately adjourned to the Adjutant's office, and the commandersent his orderly for the officer of the day. When he made hisappearance, he asked him whether any reports had been receivedconcerning Indians being in the vicinity. He replied that no suchreport had been received by him, and it was his belief that none of thehostile savages were in the immediate country.
At that moment, Buffalo Bill entered the room. He was chief of scouts atFort Harker, and had just returned from some perilous mission to one ofthe military posts on the Arkansas, and was coming from the stable, toreport to the Adjutant. He was told of the mysterious disappearance ofMr. Thompson's daughter Kate, and the opinion of the famous Indianfighter and courier was asked as to what he thought of the matter, as noIndians had been reported in the vicinity.
"Well," said Bill, "because you gentlemen have received no report of thesavages, it does not follow that none have been here. _I know that theyhave been here, and to-day._ As I crossed Bluff Creek on my way herethis afternoon, about six o'clock, I saw in the distance a band ofIndians, numbering about ten or twelve, riding rapidly south. I hidmyself in a ravine so that they should not discover me, but I got a goodlook at 'em with my field-glass. I think they were Comanches, though Ican't be certain of that; they might have been Cheyennes or Kiowas;they were too far off to be made out exactly. Now, you ask for myopinion as to what has become of the gentleman's daughter. I believethose Indians have her; because they were riding so fast toward theirvillages, and they are, you know, all south of the Canadian.
"But don't let Mr. Thompson worry too much; the simple fact that she isa prisoner among them is bad enough. If among the Kiowas, and the chief,Kicking Bird, is in the village when the band arrives with the girl, hewill not allow her to be harmed. He is a cunning old fellow, and knowsthe value of money. He will have good care taken of her, and get a heavyreward from the Government for ransom. If she should fall into thevillage of Sa-tan-ta, God help her! He is the worst demon on the trail;but anyhow, I don't think they will harm her, as they will want aransom."
"Well," said the officer, "I am sorry that I have no cavalry at thepost, but I will send a detachment of the infantry after them insix-mule wagons. I imagine it will be a useless task to try to catch upwith them if, as Buffalo Bill says, they were going as fast as theycould to their village on the Canadian. Lieutenant Hale," said he,turning to the Adjutant, "make a detail at once of thirty men, and sendthem out under a couple of non-commissioned officers on the trail of thesavages, if it can be found. Anyhow, some sign may be discovered thatwill tell us whether the girl is with them."
Then turning to Joe, he said: "I wish that you would go with thedetachment, for you are the best trailer in the whole country, notexcepting our chief scout here, Buffalo Bill, and he's the prince of allfrontiersmen."
"Well," said Buffalo Bill, "I've just come off a pretty hard trip, but Ivolunteer to go with the party; if I can do anything in a case of thiskind, fatigue doesn't count."
"Thank you, Bill," said Mr. Thompson. "I will return to Errolstrath andtell my family what has been done, and your favorable opinion that thesavages won't harm her: that will be a comfort at least. Good night,gentlemen," said he; and he went out and untied his horse from thehitching-post, and rode slowly home.
The night was quite dark, though there was a little moonlight, but thedetachment did not get away from the post until long after midnight, asthere was so much delay in hitching up the teams and turning out thesoldiers who had gone to bed. By the time the little train of threewagons arrived at Bluff Creek, where Buffalo Bill had seen the Indians,the day was just breaking. They could not travel to that point from thefort very rapidly on account of the rough nature of the trail. It wasnothing but a series of rocky hills after they had crossed the SmokyHill, and was constantly becoming rougher as they approached BluffCreek, which was well named on account of its high bluffs.
The party halted at the ford where they supposed the savages hadcrossed, and began to look for Indian signs. Pony tracks were plainlyvisible in the soft earth where the trail led down to the water, andBuffalo Bill dismounted and examined them carefully. He then asked Joeto get off his horse and count the hoof-marks. Joe did so, and both heand the famous scout agreed that there must have been about a dozen ofthe savages.
Crossing the creek, followed by the wag
ons, Joe and he ascended the hillon the other side. They had not proceeded a quarter of a mile whenBuffalo Bill picked up from the trail a small par-fleche basket, whichJoe immediately recognized as belonging to his sister.
"Look here, Mr. Cody, there is her name which I carved myself when Igave it to her. Now we know for a fact that the savages have capturedher. I know why Ginger came home with that little sumac bush fastened tohis bridle. Kate must have tied him to it, and when the Indians swoopeddown on her, the pony broke loose and tore up the little tree by theroots in his fright, for he was always scared out of his wits at thesight of an Indian."
The little detachment of soldiers rode on for a dozen more miles, whenthe mules showed unmistakable signs of fatigue. They could not be madeto travel faster than a walk, notwithstanding the persuasive efforts ofthe blacksnake-whips in the hands of their drivers. So both Buffalo Billand Joe reluctantly decided that it was no use to follow the Indians anyfarther. They knew the habits of the savages so well, that they were nowprobably a hundred miles ahead of them, for they always took loosestock along with them so as to change animals when their own horsesbecame leg-weary.
Very reluctantly, then, the cavalcade was turned round and headed forthe fort, where the party arrived at about one o'clock. Buffalo Bill, aschief of scouts, reported the result of the trip to the commandingofficer.
All were depressed at the failure of the expedition, but it wasimpossible that it should have turned out differently, and when Joearrived at Errolstrath and related the story of the finding of Kate'sbasket, the grief of the family knew no bounds. All felt keen anguish atthe absence of their favorite, and at her sad fate.
There was nothing to be done except to wait patiently for some action onthe part of the Government in ransoming her if she was alive. The familysettled themselves into a calm resignation, but the sun did not seem toshine so brightly, nor the birds to sing so sweetly as when the pet ofthe household was there. Even her antelope appeared to partake of thegeneral gloom; it evidently missed its loving young mistress, and wouldwander around the house, disconsolately seeking her.