The Charlotte journal. [volume] (Charlotte, N.C.) 1835-1851, 1836-10-14

An Indian dragged her 10 the door, and said
10 her HE. puscha," go" She asked
where, and pointed towarLS the head oil
Black Creek. Al that moment she saw a.
mother Indian level his rltle-she threw up
her arm-the Indian fired and the ball pas
sing lengthwlse through the flesh other arm,
passed through her neck. She fell. The
Indian came up dragged her into the hall
Of the house (the house is what Is called a
double log house, and then taking out her
comb and tearing the string from her hair,
scalped her. lie did not tear the scalp oil,
but cut /, as butchers take the skin from
beet. During this operation Mrs. Johns
was sensible Of what was doing. She saw
the Indians scalping. knife, and says Il was
a round pointed common butcher knlie-she
Law as if dead. The Indians plundered the
house, taking pair fportmanteaus contain.
ing 500, and every thing OF yalue-set me
to the house, and one Indian applicable torch
to her cothes-lelt the house-gave n
whoop, and hurried off IN the direction, she
thought from their noise, of the head OF
Black. Creek. She felt the fire OF her clothes
upon one leg, and as soon as she dared TO
move so much, grappled IN her hand guam
tliy of her own clotted blood, with which
she put out her burning clothes. And then,
when the Indians were out OF hearing, she
rot up-saw her murdered husbands body
unscaped and uumoved from the position
IN which he fell except the Indians had put
one foot on the edge Of table. The house
was on fire-she made her way out OF H.
ialu,ins every few minutes. She reached
the edge OF a swamp-gut some water and
there lay down, unable 10 get iarther.-
There she remained ull 10 O'Clock, Z. NJ,
when three men, Mr.. Johns, the father OF
her husband, Mr.. Lo~der, and Mr.. Nc
Kinney came along. They saw the burn
ing house all fallen IN escep, the corners oi
the logs, the body thsrein burned-and dis.
covered her, whom they took TO be an In
dian al fret, then squaw. On advancing
TO her, what mus, have been the feelings q
her father .ln.law, TO recognize IN the butch.
cred, bloody, almost ,ieless woman, his
daughter.ln. Law and TO know that the
burned human frame IN the house, was that
of his son These three men carried her
to Mr. Lowder's and giving the inmates OF
the house the alarm, and taking them, the
two females and their children, went on to
Mr. Sparkman 's-where our party IN pUr
SUI, OF the Indians, found them as above
stated.
II was the trail Of these men tina, was
mistaken for that Of the iodians. The la
dams we're all mounted and the tra, was
therefore easily mistaken. Mrs. Johns saw
eight Indians and one negro-ihe Negro
was naked except wooilen flap he wore.
She saw no horses and probably there were
more than eight Indians as they would un
doubleday be very likely to leave some
with their horses. 1t vas now ascertancd
that the Indians had taken five horses from
,ir. Eubank, one from ilr. RatclitIaDd three
from Nr. Johns whom they murdered, aud
also that our party was off their trail. Il
vas not possible to follow the trail Of hors.
IS IN the night, aud therefore our. men en-.
camped. Early IN the morning they set
out, and supposlng the Indians turned from
the lett Of the road, they struck into The
woods in order to come upon the trail with
out losing The time Of retraclng their steps
10 the house where Mr.. Johns vas burned.
They struck the trail quite early and fol.
lowed II with all speed possible. They
found where the Indians stopped to take Ii
lunch rs was supposed They continues
the pursuit to the head of Black Creek
where 6nding that the Indians, having, as
was known, SIX hours the start on the day
before, had travelled IN the night, and that
too, with great rapidlty, as the lra4 showed.
Our lownsmen with those Who joined them
making 20 IN number, came to the conclu.
sion that farther pursuit would b. useless,
and with disappointment and regret and re-.
luctance gave up the pursuit and IT bring
near night, on Friday they turned for home,
and reached here to day.
The Indians rode with oil the speed Of
their horses. Those they took were among
the best IN our County, and able to bear
pushing. Our party had good horses and
they pushed them in pursuit all that their
speed ard bottom would bsar. bu, i, was IN
va'n. The enemy expected pursuit and
therefore directed their rapid fight for the
Nation, where IT is supposed they arrived
without stopping. II IL presumed they
made for Payn's Prairie. We had hoped
that thus daring party would have been rash
enough 10 attempt TO drive cattle before
them. In that case our men would have
pushed on till they overlook them. These
Indians came in the same direction they
took on their return. There were plainly
To be seen here and there the remains Of a