w him where to plant the mortars and also
show him the center of the stronghold. Fairchilds told the General that
he would show him, but that he was tired acting as errand boy for Tom,
Dick and Harry--that he had risked his life enough. Under these
circumstances, the General had to go. They started out and had almost
reached the line, bullets were singing around, when the General, rubbing
his hands, remarked: "Mr. Fairchilds, this is a splendid day's work; how
long did it take Gen. Wheaton to get this far?" Fairchilds, as brave a
man as ever trod in shoe leather, replied: "General, I do not remember
exactly, but as near as I can judge it was about twenty minutes." That
remark settled the friendly relations between the two men. I want to say
here that Gillem was not the man for the place. He was self-willed,
self-opinionated, knew nothing about Indian warfare; in fact, got his
shoulder straps through the enterprise of one of his officers and the
treachery of a woman, in killing the Confederate Gen. Morgan. He had
nothing else to recommend him, and would not take advice from old
veterans like Green, Mason, Bernard, Perry and Hasbrook--men who had
grown gray in frontier service.

At 9 o'clock on the morning of the second day, Col. Green ordered an
advance. The men answered with a cheer, and soon reached a position on
top of the ridge next to Jack's camp. Some of the other lines also
slowly advanced during the day. Towards evening another desperate
attempt was made by the Indians to break the line between them and
water. At this time a very near approach to a battle was reached. Volley
after volley of rifles rang out, and mingled with the yells of the
savages and roar of the artillery made some of the old veterans of the
Civil war think they were really in a fight. All the same, men were
being killed and others wounded, even though there was no battle.

Col. Green realized that if the Indians could be kept from the water,
they would have to surrender or leave the stronghold, and he held on
with the tenacity of a bulldog. During the night the squaws went out
under the lines and returned with a load of snow, but the warm spell of
weather melted the snow rapidly and soon this source was cut off. Still
the outlaws held on, and for three days and nights, pressed in by men
and guns on every side, subjected to a fire from four sides, with five
mortars and three howitzers raining shells upon them, they held to the
"hole in the wal