BATTLE OF DEAD BUFFALO LAKE.
On the 26th the command again moved in the direction of the fleeing Indians. Their abandoned camp was passed on that day early in the morning. About noon large bodies of the enemy were discovered, and a brisk fight ensued. Attacks and counter attacks were made, and a determined fight kept up until about three p. m., when a bold dash was made by the Indians to stampede the animals which were herded on the banks of a lake, but the attempt was promptly met and defeated. The Indians, foiled at all points, and having lost heavily in killed and wounded, retired from the field. At night earthworks were thrown up to prevent a surprise, but none was attempted, and this ended the battle of Dead Buffalo Lake.
The general was now convinced that the Indians were going toward the Missouri, with the intention of putting the river between them and his command, and, expecting General Sully's force to be there to intercept them, he determined to push them on as rapidly as possible, inflicting all the damage he could in their flight. The campaign was well conceived, and had Sully arrived in time, the result would undoubtedly have been the complete destruction or capture of the Indians. But low water delayed Sully to such an extent that he failed to arrive in time, and the enemy succeeded in crossing the river before General Sibley could overtake them.
BATTLE OF STONY LAKE.
On the 28th of July Indians were again seen in large numbers. They endeavored to encircle the troops. They certainly presented a force of two thousand fighting men, and must have been reinforced by friends from the west side of the Missouri. They were undoubtedly fighting to keep the soldiers back until their families could cross the river. The troops were well handled. A tremendous effort was made to break our lines, but the enemy was repulsed at all points. The artillery was effective, and the Indians finally fled in a panic and rout towards the Missouri. They were hotly pursued, and, on the 29th, the troops crossed Apple creek, a small stream a few miles from the present site of Bismarck, the capital of North Dakota, and pushing on, struck the Missouri at a point about four miles above Burnt Boat Island. The Indians had succeeded in crossing the river with their families, but in a very demoralized condition as to supplies and camp equipage. They were plainly visible on the bluffs on the opposite side. It was here that Lieutenant Beever lost his life while carrying an order. He missed the trail and was ambushed and killed. He was a young Englishman who had volunteered to accompany the expedition, and whom General Sibley had placed upon his staff as an aide.
Large quantities of wagons and other material, abandoned by the Indians in their haste to cross the river, were destroyed. The bodies of Lieutenant Beever and a private of the Sixth Regiment, who was killed in the same way, were recovered and buried. It was clear that the Indians, on learning of the magnitude of the expedition, never contemplated overcoming it in battle, and made their movements with reference to delaying its progress, while they pushed their women and children toward and across the river, knowing there was no resting place for them on this side. They succeeded admirably, but their success was solely attributed to the failure of General Sully to arrive in time. General Sibley's part of the campaign was carried out to the letter, and every man in it, from the commander to the private, is entitled to the highest praise.