The south-western. [volume] (Shreveport, La.) 1852-1870, 1863-04-01
Indian Depredations,

] =
will hastily offer you an account OF the recent
murders in the neighboring county OF Gillespie,
at the same time expressing my fears that our
turn may come next.
One Of the victims of the savages was jim
Little, whose body was found terribly mutilated
the flesh being cut from him as if the Indians
had cooked it!
Two other victims were two children named
Holsten, on Beaver creek, who were waylaid
near the residence of their parents, while the
latter was at church From the appearance OF
their camp in neighboring thicket, would seem
that the murdercrs had been lurking about two
or three days, waiting opportunity to carry
out their fendsh design. ! was told that last
wear the Indians carried off another boy of the
HoStein's and sold him in Arizona, from whence
he was brought back not long since. They ap-
! pear to hayea brutal spite against this family.
Still another victim was Mr.. Hudson, who, with
! his son of II years, were out hunting sheep The
Indians killed the father outright and wounded
| the boy badly yet he had strength to crawl to
house TWO miles distant from the scene, and give
an account of the massacre.
The fifth on the list Of the murdered was Il.
| Anhelger. who has brother working i'll this
town, and who seems to have fought with Spartan
courage, and who achieved even more than Spar
tan success, as he drove ff'his enemies. While
himself and another man were out hunting cattle
some six miles from Fredericksburg, they sud
denly encountered party Of Indians, AnhelgeF
being on mule, was compelled to dlsmouat and
take to q tree; his companion Oh a fast horse,
made his escape into town. We shall learn
the particulars Of the brave Anhelger's fight, bat
we have the results and they tell the story Of
fearful conflict. The next morning party Of
rangers were conducted to the spot, and Ola
searching the tree they found it stuck full Of ar
10 i,FI tl, fr.r .l
that the unfortunate man had been desperately
wounded Following the blood track the dis
lance OF some three hundred yards they found
the body Of poor Anhelger, stiff and cold, lying
with his face downward, bis right hand shattered
and crippled by arrows, and his lett hand clutch
ing with iron grip, the siX-shooter with which
he had kept his foes at bay. o. searching around
the body Of one Indian, stone dead, was found.
while two blood trails, in the track on which they
had retreated, showed that numbers Of his enc
mics had been wounded. Searching still further
the party discovered no less than eighty-threear-
rows in the tree, on the ground, and in tie per
son Of Anhelger, who had been hit over forty
times in the hand arm, right shoulder, leg, aud
body! Few have ever heard or read OF such
col>fict, and it would seem that the lone man vas
in the end victorious. The trail OF the savages
was followed until dark; but Il shower in tie
night unfortunate Y obiteratcd all traces of it.
yet on looking for it on the following morning
they fell upon the trail OF ten Indians, three on
horse back and seven on foot This wa> followed
until the slvages were caught. charged upon.
three OF their number killed and two or Tires
others wounded, but who escaped. Whether il
was the party beaten off by Anhclgrr can never
b. known | have made this account of the
affair as short as posa:bl-; ii deserves a longer
record.
Than the above can give you no names Of
ahose who have been massacred Of late butI ana
told that a few days since a man was killed over
in Bandcra county, and his son, mere youth,
carried off captive. also learn that Judge Star
keys horses, iii Kerr county, We're driven of
few nights since So If goes. " g are m @AqAsA
siJuation. here in the mountlins aud probably
have not seen the worst Of it. One OF the ran
gers, stationed at one Of the frontier camps told
me openly that his company had not been sup
piled with ammunition enough, Of good quality,
to shoot "A rabbit use his own W0rIs--aud am
fearful the handful of men still left on the from
tier are not much better Off
If the enrolling officers are still at work in this
section they should bestir themselves to get ali
the conscripts before the Indians kill them OF,
for il the savage5 keep on ut their present rate
we shall soon have no able-bodied men LETT But
| sincerely trust that Maj. Fiewelien will permit
the few male adults still on the borders to remain
ing would do SO could he 90 over the frontier
counties and examine well into our state It ia
hard-t is too hard--t0 take off all Onr men to
protectthe COWS aud calves Of the people Of the
lower country against prospective or threatened
invasion from the abolitio lists, and leave their
own women and children exposed to a real
positive inroad Of murderous savages, who res
pect neither age nor sex.
| have never been one Of those who believed
that the fcderals really Eneditated an invasion OF
Texas-thc striking low at either Austin or
San Antonio. They have ovcrrroppeQ them
selves in the amount Of work they have cut ous
elsewhere, and have neither the men nor tie
means to spare Tor such an en- erpriSe as the sub
ingation OF 81 State embracing a territory La ger
than the whole Of New England, with the empire
of New York added. From the Sabine to the
Nueces we have now a Gibraltar Of mud to re
pei an invaslon-a wall from thirty to tity lnilea
in thicknesS-through which, until dry weather
ensues, no yankee army could pass Rrsos St
Iago, to the mouth Of the Rio Gtande we learn
that for the last two or three months there have
been but three days in which the lner, hants could
lighter off their cases boxes, aud bales Of inaY-
chandi5e-matters more easily handled tlas can
non, ammunition, military stores, or the horses
and mules to transport them. General TAYLOR
crossed the Rio Grande OH the 10th Of Nav. 183~:
vet it not until September, with the resources
of the entire Union to back him, and the exer-
tons Of such active agents as Kinney and others
in procuring animals and supplies, that he could
move from the river on Monterey, and even then
he WIS but half equipped for the periIous cam
paign Gen Scott entered Vera Cruz in March
l847; but it was not until August that he was
half prepared to move upon the city of Mexico
from Pueba again with the entire power Of the
old United States, and the active exertions Of ths
popular and indefatigable Hargous to aid him.
Taylor had but 1900 men, and Scott little over
COO with Sliph arro;cC ho fo,I,r,I- ,.>,,II