Herald and tribune. [volume] (Jonesborough, Tenn.) 1869-current, 1871-11-02
MISCELLANEOUS.
..Censanehc Biir, Interviesxed-A
Trip TO Nor n Wisconsin,:

49,
did you eyer see Comanche Bih?'in n
CURED mine host Baldwin. Of tn, Everett
House. Chicago. the other day.I was
compelled to acknowledge that my 40
ouaipfance with that branch of the red
man family, the Comanebcs. did not IN
eltde Bill. as remembered.
~MelL. Bill is here." said Baldwin, and
i Sou want to see him / viii show him to
x6nI ssHls1tas 4i.ssg> lor-g .xsGrid9g .aral
..Prcsent your Bill" said 7. which he
did very soon after, with that alacr;ty
common to, all Landlords when there is a
Bill to present. Bill proved; to be a tail.
somewhat lank young man, with, a face
bronzed by exposure to the sun and wind,
and hong black hair sweeping his should
ers. He wore buckskin brooches. 1orna--
niented with small steel buttons, a black
frock coat. andon his head vas q black,
sonbrero-leoking hat, with a breadth of
hirm Characteristic of the southwest ranger.
when We were introduced and shook hands,
his bony fingers clasped mine like a wise,
although / was quite unab bic to Uice rersd.
Bill said be was glad to see me, and with.
tears in nay e as | teaderly picked my
fingers out of each other Che had squeezed
the thumb into the little finger and work.
ed the middle finger around into the place
Of the thumb). told him L was glad to
see him. In fact | would rather see him
than feel him. After my experience in
shaking hands with him any surprise L had
previously entertained relative to the red
man succumbing to the vices of the pale
face wholly disappeared.
care you a Mason?" said l at length.
IS Baldwin was bandaging my hands in
splints.
-.No sir" said Bill, / am not. Why?"
.'Pity to fool away so much grip, that's
all"
1 had considerable conversation with
Comanche Bill, and found him both intel
ligent and afable. He and his history
are both we'll known in Minnesota, where
he was born and raised, and in the West
generally. His real name is George
William Porter, and he is twenty seven
years old. He was born in Minnesota, at
the mouth of Red River. His parents
emigrated from Scotland, and they came to
Minnesota as early as 1871. On the 18th
of August, 1862, a band of Sioux Indians
under Little Crow attacked and murdered
the Porter family, with the exception of
George and bis little sister,, three years
Of age. George was at the fort not far
away when the attack was made. and his
sister was carried away a prisoner. The
members of his family who were murder
ed were his father and mother, an uncle
and aunt. When George, then but four
teen years of age, looked upon the bodies
of his murdered relatives, hacked and
-mutilated in a way nothing but the 6end-
ish cruelty of the savage could suggest.
he swore an oath of vengeance against the
red man. One hundred and eighty assert
ed scalps, which be has harvested with
his own hands during the past thirteen
years, attest the fidelity with which this
young Jibbernainosy has kept his oath.
He fought a hand to- hand fight with
Little Crow himself. Chief of the murder
ing band, and very Little Crow will come
from him again. He tells the story of
his adventures in carrying on his work of
vengeance in a quiet unosteDtatiOus way.
but in speaking of the MURDER of his par
snts there is a subdued ~ferocity in his
voice and a dangerous light in his black
I eyes that denote the implacable hatred of
Indian that RACES within his breast. He
Gets no limits to his vengeance. and proba-
Z bly, feels with O;hello, chad they forty
thousand lives, my deep revenge hath
stomach for them all !"
Bill was once captured by the Indians.
together with a brother scout. They
were stripped and bound to trees with
ropes Of bark, and the Indian woman di-
rerted themselves each day by beating
them with clubs. Bill says with a laugh,
he shudders yet whenever he sees club
surn up trump! One night it rained and
The bark bands becoming wet they slipped
them of. Some old squaw who was lying
awake conjuring up some new and entire
ly novel way of playing her ace of clubs
in the morning, observed them and gave
the alarm, and the Indians Immediately
gavo chase. Bill had possessed himself of
knife with which he dispatched the two
foremost to the celestial reservation, and
got away His comrade escaped also.
lie gets tidings of his sister occasionally,
and believes he will yet be able to rescue
her from her captivity. She is now about
~ years of age
aComanche Bilr'E has been worked up
irto a story by one of the blo~od-and-thun-
der romancers of the day. l asked him if
he had read it he said he had. He add
ed that some of the main facts were true,
bat that the novelist had "yarned it like
thunder He had spent several days in
Chicago seeing the sights, but longed to
get back to Arizona, where he now halls
from, and resume his old employment of
hunting. trapping and scouting, varying
his more arduous labors with culling of
Indian scalps, and increasing his interest
ing collection of hairy trophies. 1t occur
ed to me that George William was doing
at least his share of work in settling the
Indian question. His plan is a simple
one-settle the Indian.
Every night Bill was at the Everett
House he rolled himself in his blanket
and slept on the floor. He said he hadn't
slept in a bed since his family were muir
dered and home burned. He admired
the comfort Of the Everett House rooms,
but said beds were not made for him. l
asked him how he liked the Everett.
..Tip-top ranch.'' said William Comanche,
adding something to the effect that the
dinners he got were as good as he Everett
At parting he gave me a warm invitation
to visit him in Arizona. agreeing to take
me out with bin some morning before
breakfast to see him add a few choice
soalps to his collection. He said if the
Indians got away with me he would agree
to double his excrtions in The scalp taking
U,o I tLorEad him and az he oxteuled