calped and mutilated just before Blunt and his little command
reached the scene. Despite the grave disparity in numbers, Blunt had
galloped in to the attack, and found himself and his troopers in a
hornet's nest from which nothing but his nerve and coolness had
extricated them. Most of his horses were killed in the fight that
followed, for Blunt promptly dismounted his men and disposed them in a
circle around their wounded comrades, and thereby managed to "stand
off" the Indians, despite their frequent dashes and incessant fire.
After some hours of siege-work the savages had given it up and gone
whooping off up the valley, and were next heard of shooting into the
stage-station at Eagle's Nest. If he only had a hundred cavalry,
thought Miller, he could head them off and prevent their return to the
reservation, where, once they crossed the lines, they were perfectly
safe and could not be touched. All told, however, Terry could only take
with him some thirty men, and he was glad indeed to have McLean as a
volunteer.

It was about noon when the ambulances came in from the Chugwater,
bringing Mr. Blunt and the other wounded. The assistant surgeon of the
post had ridden out with them at midnight, soon after the receipt of
the news; and now, while the soldiers were taken to the post hospital
and comfortably established there, Mr. Blunt was carried up-stairs in
the north hall of "Bedlam" and stowed away in the room opposite
Hatton's. Mrs. Forrest, poor lady, nearly went into hysterics as the
young soldier was lifted out of the ambulance. Day and night her soul
was tortured with the dread that at any moment news might come that her
husband was either killed or wounded,--and in the art of borrowing
trouble she was more than an adept. Her lamentations were so loud and
voluble that Miss Forrest quietly but very positively took her by the
arms and marched her off the piazza into her own room, where Celestine
was "trotting" the baby to sleep and nodding on the verge of a nap on
her own account. The first thing Mrs. Forrest did was to whisk the
half-drowsing infant out of her attendant's arms, clasp it frantically
to her breast, and then go parading up and down the room weeping over
the wondering little face, speedily bringing on a wailing accompaniment
to her own mournful plaint. It was more than Miss Forrest could stand.

"For mercy's sake, Ruth, don't drive that baby distracted! If you
cannot control your own tears, have some cons