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Far below, in the heart of the sunny depression bordering the left bank

of the Little Big Horn, the stalwart troopers under Reno's coazed up the steep bluff to wave farewell to their coht Last of all, Custer halted his horse an

instant, silhouetted against the blue sky, and swung his hat before

spurring out of sight

The plan of battle was most simple and direct It involved a nearly

sie from below and above,

success depending altogether upon the prompt coöperation of the

separate detachments This was understood by every trooper in the

ranks Scarcely had Custer's slender column of horsemen vanished

across the su down the

valley, the Arikara scouts in the lead They had been chosen to strike

the first blow, to force their way into the lower village, and thus to

draw the defending warriors to their front, while Custer's e upon the rear It was an old trick of the Seventh, and not a

man in saddle ever dreamed the plan could fail

A half- the

silence but the pounding of hoofs, the tinkle of accoutre a sharp projection of earth and rock, the scattered lodges of

the Indian village already partially revealed to those in advance, the

riders were brought to sudden halt by a fierce crackling of rifles from

rock and ravine, an outburst of fire in their faces, the wild,

resounding screech of war-cries, and the scurrying across their front

of dense bodies of mounted warriors, hideous in paint and feathers

Men fell cursing, and the frightened horses swerved, their riders

struggling madly with their mounts, the column thrown intobeneath the hot fire