BURNING THE WAY STATION

Travel by stagecoach in the Old West was fraught with danger and discomfort. Way stations were vital links, providing water and a change of horses for the next leg of the perilous journey. The men at the way stations would sometimes help fight off Indians who might be attacking the stage as it was coming in. Here, however, a band of Indians have surrounded a way station and are burning it down. It is a sod hut, partly under the ground, built out from a slope. The Indians have raided the adjoining horse corral and are taking away the horses for their own use. The next stagecoach to pass this way may well face a critical problem of survival.