ve battle.

General Howard hurried. He marched all night. When he got to the
battle-field he found only the Seventh Cavalry there, with three killed
and eleven wounded, and everybody exhausted. Chief Joseph was marching
on, north, in a great half circle. Somebody else must head him off.

General Howard sent a dispatch to Colonel Miles.

"The Nez Perces have left us hopelessly in the rear. Will you take
action to intercept them?"

From Fort Keogh on the Yellowstone, one hundred and fifty miles
eastward, Colonel Miles sallied out. It was a relay race by the white
chiefs. He took four mounted companies of the Fifth Infantry, three
companies of the Seventh Cavalry, three companies of the Second
Cavalry, thirty Cheyenne and Sioux scouts and some white scouts, a
Hotchkiss machine gun, a twelve-pounder Napoleon field-piece, a long
wagon train guarded by infantry, and a pack train of mules.

A steamboat was ordered to ascend the Missouri, and meet the troops
with more supplies. Telegraph, steamboats, trained soldiers,
supplies--all the military power of the United States was fighting
Chief Joseph.

Joseph reached the Missouri River first, at Cow Island. There was a
fort here, guarding a supply depot. He seized the depot, burned it,
and leaving the fort with three of its thirteen men killed, he crossed
the river.

Canada was close at hand. Pretty soon he thought that he had crossed
the line, and in the Bear Paw Mountains he sat down, to rest. He had
many wounded to care for; his women and children were worn out. He had
marched about two thousand miles and had fought four big battles.

"I sat down," said Joseph, "in a fat and beautiful country. I had won
my freedom and the freedom of my people. There were many empty places
in the lodges and in the council, but we were in a land where we would
not be forced to live in a place we did not want. I believed that if I
could remain safe at a distance and talk straight to the men sent by
the Great Father, I could get back to the Wallowa Valley and return in
peace. That is why I did not allow my young men to kill and destroy
the white settlers after I began to fight. I wanted to leave a clean
trail, and if there were dead soldiers on it I could not be blamed. I
had sent out runners to find Sitting Bull, to tell him that another
band of red men had been forced to run from the soldiers, and to
propose that we join for defense if attacked. My people were
recover