We struck the town under cover of darkness, and proceeded to "comb" it,
both heavily armed and with no insignia of rank on or about our citizens
clothes or any indication that we were of the army-- "Now, Corporal, you
are to preserve your incognito-- You are to deal with your Commanding
Officer as though we are simply two friends or acquaintances on a
night's drive through the 'slums'; there are to be no--'Yes, Sir!'
or--'No, Sir!'-- No deference is to be paid--him-- Don't forget your
part! You are to be simply--'Green',--and the other party is to be plain
'Brown'-- Have your guns handy, and at a given signal be prepared for a
quick pull on the trigger-- These are all the instructions necessary,
except that you are under no circumstances to be separated from me for a
moment--and watch me all the time for signals"-- Charlton straightened
up--saluted--replied--"Yes, Sir"! and that was the last recognition of
rank the writer got during this adventure--
All night long we plied our trade of amateur detectives-- No stone was
left unturned-- We worked the "dives", faro banks--brothels, saloons and
questionable resorts, but without avail-- The deserters had been seen
but everybody seemed mum and blind or deaf and dumb-- They had been paid
off for several months--had scattered it--their money--liberally and had
left the town-- Nobody knew where-- At one _gilded dive_ "Green",
becoming bold and watching his chance, assuming the detective role with
some slight show of experience and with a most startling blase air said
to the bespangled proprietress--"Didn't you have a place at one time in
Jacksboro"? "Yes"!-- "Well, then, you must remember Brown, here",
pointing a finger at me-- "Oh, yes!" was the reply-- "I remember him
well, and that he came often and I have often wondered what became of
him"-- Anger came to the front at this joke--but it had to be choked
back--the instructions had been given-- No frowns or even scowls or
anything but a _positive order_ would have disturbed the imperturbable
musketeer Corporal--the d'Artagnan of our adventure at this point. The
writer was married and had left his wife and child in the howling gale
at Fort R----; and had never seen this "Jezabel"-- His outraged dignity
sustained a distinct shock-- The Corporal was mildly rebuked later and
it was passed by as part of the duality of character which Mackenzie had
forced me to assume if success was to be assured-- Nothing was
accomplished by our night's work-- At day break, sending the Corporal
back to the bivouac of the command, it was ordered to meet me in town at
once-- Just as we were deliberating what the next move was to be--Sergt.
Miles Varily of Troop "E" with a mounted detachment rode into
town-- He had been to Huntsville, Texas, where he had conveyed Satanta
and Big Tree, the Ki-o-wa Indian Chiefs--who had been in confinement at
Fort R---- under sentence since July 6--to the State Penitentiary where
they were to be confined for life for the massacre of Henry Warren's
teamsters on Salt Creek Prairie-- Varily had met and talked with the
deserters on the Bear Creek Road to Cleburne-- He said they were all
well armed--and had declared that they would not be taken alive--
This--he gave as his reason for not arresting them with his small
force-- He knew all of them and had identified them as men of Troop
"B"-- They were in a two-mule freighter's wagon, with a low canvas top
drawn down tight for concealment-- It was driven by a medium sized, but
stocky built--civilian-- At last there seemed to be a definite clue--
They were evidently heading for Cleburne and Waxahatchie-- I must
overtake and capture them before they reached Cleburne--which was 45
miles distant, an all day ride-- There was no time to lose--placing
Charlton in the road--and the other Corporal with his men on both sides
fanned out or deployed for a mile or more, and combing all of the
ranches and small settlements, the writer pushed and directed the search
all of the way without any further developments-- Occasionally the
detachments were signalled in to the road-- Cleburne was reached at dark
after a terribly hard ride, the storm still continuing, with a lull in
the wind but growing colder-- Securing the services of the Deputy
Sheriff--we made a thorough search up to one o'clock but with no
results.