“Injuns?”
“And a-plenty of them. Hurry up, old man! This is no place for gossip,” urged the scout.
“Wait till I call the corporal,” exclaimed the curious sentinel. Then:
“Corporal of the guard! Corporal of the guard! Rouse up, corporal! There’s somebody at the gate!”
Half the garrison was aroused by the shouting. The corporal came on the run, saw who it was without, and let the scout and his dripping horse within.
“Injuns, sure, Cody?” asked those who were awake.
“Fort Advance has been surrounded for three days by a thousand red devils under Oak Heart!” exclaimed Cody to the officer on duty. “I must see Colonel Royal at once.”
The commander of the fort had gotten out of bed already, and he received the scout in his nightshirt.
“Is this true, Cody?” he cried. “Is Major Baldwin threatened?”
“Why, sir, your scouts must have been hived up for a week past if they haven’t seen Injun signs,” said Cody earnestly. “For three days the Sioux have held the garrison of Fort Advance prisoners, and five men have been killed trying to get to you. They’re pretty nearly out of ammunition.”