RECREA TION. 



*55 



the search, and one of the first men I 

 found was a private of artillery, who 

 was quite dead, with one shoe off, and 

 lying near his feet. The sight of this 

 shoe made me pause, sorely tempted ; 

 for on the march from camp I had en- 

 tirely worn off the sole of one of my 

 new shoes, and had so cut my foot on 

 the sharp rocks that I could only use 

 my heel in walking. I wanted that 

 shoe ; but the thought of stepping in- 

 to a dead man's footgear was not 

 pleasant ; so I paused to consider what 

 I should do. I was aroused by our sec- 

 ond lieutenant, who promptly grasped 

 the situation, and as promptly ordered 

 me to take both shoes, saying : " You 

 will be wanted to carry a hand litter, 

 and not to ride on one." 



I will not go into all the horrible de- 

 tails of that day's work. All the fore- 

 noon we were finding men, dead and 

 alive, the latter with from one to six 

 wounds, all in a terrible condition from 

 having gone so long without surgical 

 aid. All the men found were carried 

 to a central point, where the dead were 

 placed in one row and the wounded in 

 another. Several were transferred from 

 the row of the living to that of the 

 dead during the day. 



Most wonderful nerve was shown by 

 ail who were alive. One man, who 

 was shot through both arms, both legs, 

 in the back and in the heel, first asked 

 for water, and, having received it, at 

 once began to complain because his 

 arms had become so stiff that he could 

 not handle his rifle when our charge 

 drove some of the Indians back past 

 the place where he was hidden, and 

 where, as he said, he " had such beau- 

 tiful chances at them." Another, the 

 first sergeant of Company " E," 12th 

 infantry, had been shot through both 

 legs, and had started to crawl to camp ; 

 • but after going one-fourth of a mile 

 was obliged to give it up. When found, 

 he had made a pillow of his blouse and 

 was patiently awaiting death. He asked 

 for water ; but made no complaint, 

 though his legs were so swollen as to 

 almosr burst his trousers, and he must 

 have suffered terribly. He died soon 

 after we reached him. 



In a depression in the rocks, the 

 brave Lieutenant Thomas F. Wright, 

 1 2th infantry, was found dead, still 

 grasping in his hand a revolver. Empty 



cartridge shells near him told how 

 bravely he had fought, to the last. 

 Near him sat a soldier, leaning against 

 a boulder about ten feet in height, his 

 head drooping to the front. In his left 

 hand was his rifle, in a vertical position, 

 the butt resting on the ground. His 

 tight hand, palm upward, rested on his 

 knee and held four or five cartridges, 

 which he had just taken from his box, 

 when a ball, fired from the top of the 

 boulder, had entered his brain through 

 the top of his head. No living men 

 were found in this hole ; but so well 

 had it been defended, that the enemy 

 had not dared to enter to secure the 

 arms of the slain. 



All we could find were found before 

 noon. The afternoon was spent in a 

 vain search for Lieutenant Arthur 

 Cranston, 4th artillery, and four or five 

 enlisted men who were still missing. 

 The bodies of these men were not 

 found until several days afterward. 



A pack train arrived from Head- 

 quarter's camp during the afternoon, 

 bringing hand litters and a sma'll sup- 

 ply of water ; and by night prepara- 

 tions for the return to camp were com- 

 pleted. Those of the wounded who 

 could ride were mounted on mules, 

 and the others were placed on the hand 

 litters. As many of the dead as could 

 be carried were packed on mules, and 

 soon after dark the return march 

 began. 



The night was cloudy and very dark. 

 We were all worn out with work and 

 loss of sleep, and, burdened as we 

 were, in such a rough country and in 

 such inky darkness, we could make but 

 slow progress. Stumbling litter-bearers 

 frequently brought their precious bur- 

 dens in rough contact with the rocks. 



There was a slight snowfall during 

 the night, and most welcome it was to 

 those of us who had given the last drop 

 from our canteens to the wounded. 

 Besides quenching my thirst it probably 

 saved my life, as will now appear. 



By midnight I was about exhausted. 

 During one of our halts I had fallen 

 asleep and narrowly missed being left 

 behind, having been found by a mem- 

 ber of the rear guard. I then trudged 

 along with the rear of the column un- 

 til we again halted to rest. I had been 

 thinking seriously of my narrow escape, 

 and had duly resolved to keep awake 



