A month before, General Claiborne, who was in command of the United States forces in Alabama, dispatched Major Beasley and one hundred and seventy infantry to this place. Claiborne recognized the seriousness of the situation and thought it best to be prepared. When Beasley reached Fort Mims he found an officer and about a score of soldiers already there; and in taking charge, proceeded to organize the settlers into a fighting force, of which a young half-breed named Dixon Bailey was made captain. A week or so after this force was located at the fort, General Claiborne paid a visit to the place; seeing with a practiced military eye the weakness of its defense, he urged the strengthening of the stockade, and the completing of a blockhouse which had been started some years before, but never finished. Major Beasley was a man of unquestioned courage; but he was a poor officer. Being of a sanguine, optimistic nature, and with little imagination, he belittled the urgency of the occasion. He had a contempt for the warlike qualities of the red men, and did not think it worth while to erect the defenses recommended by the general. There were six hundred people gathered in the enclosure; and with half of these fighting men, he ridiculed the idea of danger. The boys stood in a fringe of woods. From there they sighted the fort, and saw one of the gates standing wide. “And there is no guard,” said the observant Jack Davis. “That looks like a foolish thing to do in a time like this.” The boys were about to ride forward when Running Elk hurriedly, and in a low tone, said: “No go! Creek braves out there!” Drawing in their mounts, Jack and Frank looked keenly about; sure enough, from above the high grass at a point indicated by the young Cherokee, they saw the nodding eagle plumes of a half score savages. “And watching the fort,” whispered Frank. “Creek make ring around fort,” said Running Elk. “It’s true!” said Jack, startled, his roving glance taking in the indications. “They’ve got it surrounded, and are tightening the circle all the time.” [Illustration: THEY SIGHTED THE FORT] “We must warn the people in the fort,” said Frank. “With that gate open they are in danger.” “To stir a step in their direction at this time,” said Jack Davis, “would be to run into sure death. Surely, of all the people who are inside there at this time, some one is on the lookout; and they will see the redskins before it is too late.” Knowing that it would be foolhardy to attempt anything just then, Jack rode his horse into a deep ravine, followed by the others; here they dismounted, and, concealed by a dense growth of trees and underbrush, they crawled up the sides of the ravine and watched the situation with the most acute interest.