Show helen heien FIGHT A TRUE STORY the sun vas slowly sinking in diio western sky as steenie burton barton came out of his hib cabin and glanced down the gulch towards the mesa an elevated table land the hills hilla on both sides bides were golden in the light while here and there dark shadows between the high points of rock roch gave a curiously arabee arabesque que affect to the land landscape scap e now I 1 wonder said steenie reflectively whether the gal has reached home hoine steenie paused glanced at his boots and nad linding finding that he had in a moment of abstraction put on his spurs resolved to saddle saddie up and ride over to fineout fin find dout out it did nol nod take many seconds before he was going slowly down the gulch on his hla mustang reaching the mesa he struck to the south in a lope and was waa soon lost to sight around the base of the hills helen mansfield stood at the door of her fathera father a cabin glancing uneasily easil n northward the day before she ghe za had deome come home and that morning her father had started with his wag wagon to make a trip through the mining minina towns leaving helen heien and her little brother tom who was ten years old alone on oa the ranch helena aexie ty wa twofold two foid fold chobad she bhe h ad heard her father talking with some men who were prophesying ying an outbreak of the and she was wondering erino whether steenie would come that day or not rhe the two had teen enraged engaged for some months and one of the chier ehler objects of her visit to lloa ios Angeles when her lather went to buy gooda goods for his trade had been to pur pui ehase chase the necessary things with which to set up housekeeping house keeping she wanted to see steenie on general principals and she wanted to show him hat what she I 1 had bought of her two subjects of thought I 1 imagine that Ste enies enles coming occupied her the more but as the evening shadows lengthened she ehe bavo up expecting a visit from him that day and turning went into ahn house tom came in soon aften after afterwards warda and helen closed up the the heavy windows and doors put the bars into place and began to think it was time to go to bed about 8 0 bolock look book she heard cautious footsteps outside going to the door and looking through one of the email emali holes hoies cut through it she saw baw to her horror hornor an indian standing about forty feet away bhe she ans a border woman bom and raised on the outskirts of civilization and she needed no man to tell her what the bright streaks of paint which stood out so plainly iu the moonlight bercsa tho the redskin redskins red skins la face meant hastily calling tom she pointed the indian outi outs to 19 him and told him to take down a riffie riffle and wath wata the other side of the house home then taking one of the long clouded barrels hera heri herself eif elf she returned to her post and waited bho bhe did riot fiot havo have to walt wall long A rapo n the door doot and a summons to delivered in a mixture of broken english and abd spanish told hei hel that the fight must be helen maintained a dead BlI ence another rap enforced by a strong kick followed and then she heard heards with ears that wore were for the slightest sound somo some quick sharp orders given A silence of a few minutes anz and and then helen could bee see bereft beaven or bight indians bringing up a heavy post to use as a battering ram cautiously she put the the rifle through the hole in the door and waiting until she bhe got four of the savages in line fired the fall of the three of them and yells yella from the whole party followed by a lasty hasty dispersion and a bearch search fork ea elter eiter showed the enacts of the phol the indians indiana genuinely surp burp surprised rad tibey they had bad supposed that lle lie tio cabin eibin I vlas was yas empty einai ty and that there thelo nf daano a no in a attempting to it open in a moment after the shot there wn wab not an indian to be leen but he the flight of bome some acore ecore of arrows and the sound of three or four rifles bowed that they were still there heien helen knew that the cabin would stand lland all the tha firing at it that a far larger force could do but she also knew that thai indians havo many ways of fighting and that sho she could scarce ay iy hope to keep them off for any L time instinctively too her thou thoughts ilits turned to steeania and mingled witti the weh that she was there was a fear thit ha hys would come and fall a victim to tho the red ekins tom had become lecome wildly excited by the attack attach so galla gallantly fitly repulsed by his sister bister non fon for nor year aho oho had been a chanca to fight In june juns 11 and he felt it was a shame that they should attempt tho side bide of the cabin on which helen was rather than that on which he was posted for he know that unlike himself helen did not dot in the least r want ant to take part in the difficulty tom watched through his hia peep holes with all hia eyes and in a few minutes was ro warded rewarded by seeing a crouching form crawling towards the cabin the boy leveled his weapon but shook so BO with excitement olt cit ement that he could not aim alm A whispered tS teady steady tom 31 from his sister bister seemed to bring hirn him to himself and ea as he palled pulled the trigger the rifle was as firm as a rock A copper colored body that leaped into the air with a yel showed that toms bullet had struck then there was a long silence once more in about ten minutes helen heien saw an arrow with some grass wrapped around it and set bet on fire fly into the air and fall short of the cabin where it burned fiercely another and another were shot until one struck the thatch and went out cut before such a move as this helen was powerless she could not sea the indians who were shooting the arrows and so bo could not fire at them she knew that sho bho had no means of putting the fire out if it once caught another and another arrow with its blazing bisang band of grass went flying through the sir and at last a triumphant yell from the indians told the anxious girl that the roof was on fire at last S teenie barton loped slowly slot aloi g the trail towards the tho cabin where helen lived divided in his own or mind whether h his errand was i ot a foolish one it wa was i tuesday and helen had said that wednesday the would bo be the earliest date at which she could return yet with the tha wild idea that she might be there steenie had marled for a ten mile ride with tha tho prospect often more it if the cabin was empty the rapid change from daylight to dark had hud taken place and steenie was about a mile from the cabin when reheard ariale any idea of a useless errand from his mind instantly riding cautiously within a quarter of a mlle mila of the cabin he dismounted tied ved his horse horre and scouted in the direction of the shots reaching beaching a edge ledge about a hundl hundred ed yards from the back of the house ho he saw the cabin with the roof on fire and the indians indiana gathered outside of rifle shot sho wal wai tin ting g for the flames to do their work steenie did not hesitate a moment climb ing down a crevice in the ledge edgo he ran quickly across the little apace space being hidden from the savages by the walls on in his way however it was only heiens helens quick eye that saved him from being shot for tom had javelet his rifle and was just about to pull the trigger when the girl struck tile me weapon and the bullet flew harmlessly over Ste S enles steeples enies head to open the heavy wooden shutter and fairly drag steenie into the house was for the excited girl but a moments work when he wag inside she for a second lost her coolness but Ste steeples enles enies hasty kiss kies brought her to steenie Ste enle enie the roofs roots on nirm nime broke broko in tom 1 I know it oh Ste steenie enle onie what must we do asked helon helen under the thatch said Ste steenie enle enie reed beed poles answered toni tom promptly weve 9 atto t to git cut of thi the reds is on this side an I 1 reckon if wo we make a dash well get geh to the rocks afore they kin see vs us here tom go and fire your rifle off on that side tom did as he was bid but the bullet fell short of tho tha waiting group now know then helen get got me rome nome slow match un ca tom you load up any an and put your ridle rifle out of tnt tal hole so 80 baying anding hastily fixed two spare rifles in oal po phaltion oai altion tion lashing them to a table which he ha dragged up to the tha side of the cabin on which the indiana were taking he the etow siow match from helen he bouti wound d it la in succession around each rifle over oven the nipple and then lighting the end ond the window on the cliff aldo side tom you yon go first run bun to the clift edt and get in the crevice wait there forme for me il putting the boy bo out he waited until he saw him reach the clial and th tbt n getting out llin liin himself heit beit ran acro across a aa rapidly ad a possible he hnud huld a arcely reached the rocks when he saw helen climbing out of t the e window and croz crossing aing the open space while sho fhe was doing so the first of the rifles went off only to bringa bring a lor iou low lou dyell yell foil orom from ho indian inde who naturally supposed the inmates of the cabin were firing at them by the greatest good guad luck the bullet struck one of the red skins wounding him slightly and the party at once mo moved ed back some twenty yards arther farther and aud hib his little party reached the cliff safely without being been seen and struck down the rock to where the horse had been left here steenie put helen and tom on the animal and taking hold of the saddle saddie with one hand ran alongside as they made their way alon aion along g the road just as they started stalled they heard another rifle shot and another yell frona from the showing that the stratagem etrata gem to which steenie had resorted was doing good work moving as rapidly as possible for about a mile they mot met a band of men coming down with a train of wagons telling them tho the news the wagons were parked at once forming a very good shelter behind which to fight leaving tom and helen in charge of the men who remained with the steenie joined a party of twelve and struck out for the burning cabin once more ho he led the men to a place behind the indians indiana from which thy thay fired killing beven boven and wounding one or two others then t the h e white men man dashed in and a hand to hand night fight ensued which resulted before long in a victory for the whites steenie received a slight wound in the shoulder dex def from a flying knife but was waa otherwise unhurt that indian raid ended within twenty four hours after it begin bedim for the inai inal diina victory over the thirty jurrians war rians wh 4 ho hasit imi ia rd cd it 4 the thereat rest of the ji acon contented re eking shins and thoy stayed at home and helen were married within the week and although thou ah another trip to loa loh angeles had to be made before they could seo see their cabin nicely fitted up they were none the less lesa happy the story etory of iid lyd olens helena biens defense of tho the cabin became videly widely known and as it is an example of what american women have done upon the border it is worth the telling alfred balch |