Beaufort Republican. [volume] (Beaufort, S.C.) 1871-1873, 1871-12-28
Capt: John Hobbs.

Missouri. in the year 1929, but does not
remember the month. When but a mere
lad he gained great reputation among
the hardy backwoodsmen and trappers of
that section as a wonderful shot, as he
had been known to bring down a deer at
four hundred yards. At eighteen he was
successful trapper, and knew every elk
path and otter pond for miles through the
wilderness. His shrewdness attracted the
attention of Bent, the great st. Louis
fur tradder, who secured his services when
nineteen. 1t is to this incident that his
subsequent misfortunes and ten years. cap
tivity and sufferines among the Comanch-
es may be attributed. Shortly after en-
tering the service of the fur company, as
the Captain related, he and a companion,
Jean Battles, French Canadian, were
sent to ihe Cime1one Springs. near the
head waters of the Arkansas river. At
that date the whole country was almost a
howling Wilderness, with but few settlers
scattered here and there, and was swarm
ing with hostile Apaches, Pawnees, and
the seourge of northern Mexico, the
blood. thirsty Comanches. On the 18th of
September, 1S47, as their luck had been
bad, Battles proposed to Hobbs to start
further south, where game was supposed
to be in abundance; the latter acquiesced.
During the evening OF the first days trip
Hobbs trailed buffalo. Ills capture is
i,1h
spurs to my mare" said the Captain. II
soon overhauled the varmint, which
proved to be a COW, which l killed. Bat
ties soon Joined me, and after we cut off
all the meat we wanted we built fire and
bunked in for the night. The following
morning, while preparing our grub, war
party of twenty Comanche braves, with
eight or ten Pawnee scalps, and drove
of stolen ponies appeared on the scene.
The leader of the band advanced toward
me with outstretched hands, and growled
out 'HowY l answered him in friendly
way, still keeping an eye on my shooting
irons. All Of sudden one Of the most
demoniac yells that ever greeted NOR
tails ears was given, and before we could
move the whole pack of hell-hounds were
upon US two poor devils. They killed
poor Battles before my eyes, scalped him,
took Off his moccasins, secured his rifle
and ammunition, and then made for me.
But the Chief somehow, took fancy to
me and drawed off his pack after they
had almost finished me and had the knife
to my scalp Look here" so saying the
Captain parted the thick black hair on the
side of his head and long white scar was
revealed. "That's the commencin, place."
he resumed, land in two minutes time
longer expected they would have raised
my top-knot, for certain. Do you see
this?" Here he pointed to a deep scar
just above his mustache, at the right of
the nose, "That's another mark they gave
me with tomahawk on that occasion.
Well, to make long story short, they
carried me with them up to the noun
tains. They danced around me, sung
and played on the tomtoms nearly all
night, and to wind up they cut off my hair
and commenced to cut up my face, or
what you might call it, to tattoo me. 1
objected so strongly that they stopped it,
but they managed to put a brass ring
through my nose. This wore during my
ten years. captivity. l was made a war
rior, and went out with them on all their
war and marauding expeditions across
the Mexican border, and several times
came near losing my life while fighting the
Apaches and Pawnees. All told, my body
bears seventeen bullet and arrow wounds" -.
Removing his boots, the Captain exhibit
ed to the reporter five buck-shot ''indent-
ures" in his right leg, and three or four
gun-shot and arrow wounds in his left
limb. 81 remained with the red kins two
years before was made warrior. About
six months after this event, while hunting
alone in the mountains of Lower Sonora,
heard the breaking Of twig not far
from where l was standing. l cooked my
rifle, thinking it might be a cinnamon
bear. / did not hear the sound again,
but instead saw the cause of it ID the
shape of big Pawnee warrior who stood
partly concealed in clump of chapparal
about 200 yards distant. We looked at
each other fully five minutes without
drawing bead; suddenly he raised his
gun and fired at me without taking aim.
l jumped to the right and escaped, still
keeping aD eye on the Pawnee; he lodged
around, but soon let him have it square
in the head and scalped him. When near
ing the lodges l got two ash poles and
stuck the ends Of each into the ears Of the
scalp-it's the style OF the COmauches to
take ears and all-and marched into camp.
Five minutes later seven hundred war
riors, headed by Ol&Wolf, whom the Uni
ted States soldiers and MeXicans well
know to their sorrow, surrounded me,
and such shaking OF hands and hugging l
never experienced before. The chief the
next morning gave me his third daughter
as a bride. By our marriage have sew
en- childre..'' ''Where are they now?"
queried the reporter. "Oh, they're run
ming wild on the plains" replied the Cap
tain, laughingly. He said that in the Fall
of 1S47, after numerous fights with the
United States soldiers, during which he