learned that he was skirmishing
around on Laramie Plains at his old tricks. He sent word by the gentleman
from whom I gained this information, that if he ever met me again he
would kill me on sight. He finally was arrested and convicted for
robbery, and was confined in the prison at Laramie City. Again he made
his escape, and soon afterwards he organized a desperate gang of outlaws
who infested the country north of the Union Pacific railroad, and when
the stages began to run between Cheyenne and Deadwood, in the Black
Hills, they robbed the coaches and passengers, frequently making large
hauls of plunder. They kept this up for some time, till finally most of
the gang were caught, tried, convicted, and sent to the penitentiary for
a number of years. Bill Bevins and nearly all of his gang are now
confined in the Nebraska state prison, to which they were transferred,
from Wyoming.

[Illustration: ROBBING A STAGE COACH.]

CHAPTER XXI.

A MILITARY EXPEDITION.

A day or two after my return to Fort Lyon, the Fifth Cavalry were ordered
to the Department of the Platte, and took up their line of march for Fort
McPherson, Nebraska. We laid over one day at Fort Wallace, to get
supplies, and while there I had occasion to pass General Bankhead's
headquarters. His orderly called to me, and said the General wished to
see me. As I entered the General's office he extended his hand and said:
"I hope you have no hard feelings toward me, Cody, for having you
arrested when you were here. I have just had a talk with General Carr and
Quartermaster Hays, and they informed me that you had their permission to
ride the horse and mule, and if you had stated this fact to me there
would have been no trouble about the matter whatever." "That is all
right, General," said I; "I will think no more of it. But I don't believe
that your quartermaster's agent will ever again circulate false stories
about me."

"No," said the General; "he has not yet recovered from the beating that
you gave him."

From Fort Wallace we moved down to Sheridan, where the command halted for
us to lay in a supply of forage which was stored there. I was still
messing with Major Brown, with whom I went into the village to purchase a
supply of provisions for our mess; but unfortunately we were in too jolly
a mood to fool away money on "grub." We bought several articles, however,
and put them into the ambulance and sent them back to the camp with our
cook. The Major a