inated by the arrival in St. Louis of General Alfred Sully, who, so the papers announced, had come to begin the accumulation of supplies and to make other preparations for his impen

eral John Pope, who was in command of the Department of the Northwest, embracing

neral Sully's staff, was sent down to the office by the General to check over the requisitions already made. Al was assigned to assist him. The aide, whose name was Lieutenant Dale, proved an agreeable youth, onl

ded his narrative. "I'll tell you what you ought to do; you ought to go up into the Sioux country with us

o do," answered Al, "but I'

o take you in some capacity or other if he knows that you have a good r

e would?" asked

im. He is very kind-hearted, if he is a s

asked Al, eagerly. "You see,

me, they sent him up into Dakota to fight the Sioux again, last Summer. That was the first that I was with him, and we certainly had our share of marching, going up the Missouri Valley, and our share of fighting at White Stone Hill, where we swung away from the Missouri and struck the redskins out on the prairie nearly over to the James River. They had been following up General Sibley

l worth taking part in," replied Al

for wanting to accompany us," Lieutenant Dale said. "Then you c

re she felt he would be in danger, she had also come to realize that the arrangement afforded the best chance of recovering her lost son, Tommy. Mr. Co

ow, of course, that you have plenty of it, but a stranger naturally would not until he had become acquainted with you, and it is always well to make a good first

le in the city. He found little evidence of pomp or ceremony about these headquarters. An orderly was in the outer room, to whom Al told his name and

ent he found himself standing, with a somewhat fluttered pulse, in the pres

heard of you before from General Sibley. I was on the watch for your brother all last Summer but I couldn't get hold

uest that he might be taken along in some capacity and adding that he would try to make himself useful. As he talked, he was conscious that the General was studying him criticall

tood that your father was one of

s shoulders strai

in his voice, "he was. I am named for Col

neral, with evident s

a moment, then

about tactics,-militar

iar with the Government's methods of handling stores and more or less so with other matters of administration. The

line the same as a soldier, even though you are not enlisted; and I understand you are too young to enlist. I can have no favored idlers around. We are g

rs and try to make myself us

and gazed abstractedly out of the window for a momen

like to have young fellows of the right metal; they are often more useful than old stagers. And I believe you'll do. A son of one of Doniphan's daredevils, especially a namesake of his, ought to be all right for courage; and moreover, General Sibley told me of the reports he heard

s soldier. The interview aroused in him more pleasurable anticipation of the expedition than he had

he Northwestern Indian Expedition. Knowing that he was to be with them, General Sully's staff officers took an immediate interest in him, especially Lieutenant Dale, whose friendship proved not only increasingly pleasant but very helpful as well. Dale was able to give Al many suggestions as to how best

ne River, where a depot was to be established so as to have supplies ready for the troops when they should reach that point, as it was planned they should do, after marching overland from the Missouri to the Yellowstone. Many hundreds of tons more were loaded on the eight steamers which General Sully had chartered for the exclusive use of his army, and on them were carried also a great quantity of building materials for use in the two forts which were to be erected, one on the upper Missouri and one on