"Pretend to ride out against the hostiles. They will gather in front of the threatened point; I will be on the watch, and, when the way opens, will scoot for Wounded Knee."
Brinton saw that Captain Wadsworth was interested. Once more he came to the erect position, and looking kindly in his face, said—
"Your plan has something in it."
The heart of the youth leaped with hope.
"I am sure of it; but there's not a minute to lose."
This was self-evident, and the captain, having made up his mind, passed among his men and hurriedly explained what he had decided to do. It was for eight or ten of them to mount their horses and move cautiously toward the ridge, as if with the intention of attacking the little signal party there and stamping out their tiny fire. This would cause a concentration (or, more properly, it was hoped that it would) of the hostiles on that side of the camp, of which Brinton Kingsland would take advantage by dashing out on the other side and riding at full speed to Wounded Knee.
It was the only thing that offered hope, and, therefore, was eagerly accepted by all. The firing was so scattered that no fear was felt in moving about within the circle of waggons, for, as we have shown, Captain Wadsworth and Brinton had been exposed all the time without harm. The Sioux kept so far away that it was evident they were waiting for the arrival of reinforcements before making a real attack.
The preparations on the part of the teamsters had hardly begun when Brinton, who had led his pony forth and stood ready to leap into the saddle, called out—
"You needn't do it! Here's my chance!"
The majority of the Indians were near the ridge at that moment, but some of them were quite a distance off, and, in fact, alarmingly close to the opposite side of the camp. The impatient youth was confident that he could dash through the opening before they could stop him.