The Cambria freeman. [volume] (Ebensburg, Pa.) 1867-1938, 1871-01-19
EBENsBURG, PA, THURSDAY JANUARY 70, 1871

1T you do not yield up those men
peaceably, then as many leaves as are on
these trees, and as many blades of grass
as you see beneath your feet, SO many
white men will come upon you, burn your
villages and destroy your nation
"a few m0ments' consideration. few
hurried words of consultation, and the
guilty men were handed over to our troops.
The tribe followed as they were taken
INTO the fort, and, making a small fire
within the walls, the condemned marched
round and round it, singing their death
songs, and then were given up to be put
In irons and held in custody until time
should determine how many lives should
pay the forfeit for it is well known that
Indian revenge is literally a life for a
life, and the Colonel had decided to give
them into the hands of the injured tribe,
to do with them as they would.
''Some weeks passed, and it was found
that five lives were to be paid for in kind
A council of Chippewas decided that the
five selected from the prisoners should run
the gauntlet, and the decision was ap-
proved.
back over the lapse of these many
years pass, and seem to be child again,
standing by the side of my only brother,
at the back door OF my fathers house.
''Ihe day is beautiful and the sun is SO
bright, the grass is SO green, all nature is
SO smiling, it is hard 10 realize what is
| going on, over yonder by the graveyard,
IN that crowd of men and women. For
there are gathered together the Chippe-
was-oid men, women and children, who
have come out TO witness or take part in
this act of retributive justice. There are
the bluecoats, too, and various badges of
the United States uniform, for it is nec-
essary 10 throw some restraint around
these red men or there may be wholesale
murder and borne on the shoulders of
his young men, we can see the form of
the wounded dying chief, regarding all
with calm satisfaction. and no doubt hap
py in the thought that his death, SO near,
| Will not 60 unavenged. And there stands
| the young braves who have been selected
| as the executIoners; their rifles are loaded,
| their locks carefully examined, and all is
| ready when the word shall be given.
There, too, under the guard, are the
i've men, who are to pay the forfeit for
the lives taken 50 wantouly and treacher-
ously.
Away off, | cannot tell how many
rods, but 1t seemed to US young children a
long run, are stationed the Sioux tribe,
and that is the goal for which the wretch
ed men must run for their lives.
"And now all seems ready and we
stand on tip-toe, while the balls and
chains are knocked off and the captives
are set free. At a word one of the men
starts, the rifles with unerring aim are
fired, and under cover of the smoke man
falls dead. They reload, the word is
given, another starts with a bound for
home but ah the aim of these clear
sighted, bood>thirsty red men is too dead
ly !; and SO, one after another until four
are down.
''And then the last, Little Six whom
at that distance we children readily rec
ognize, from his commanding height and
graceful form he is our friend, and we
hope he Will get home. He starts they
fire, the smoke clears away and still he
is running we clap our hands and say
'he will get home ) but another volley,
and our favorite, almost at the goal,
springs into the air and comes down
dead | cover my face and shed tears
of real sorrow for our friend. And now
follows scene that beggars description.
Men who, at the sight of blood, became
fiends, tear Of the reeking scalps and hand
them to the chief, who hangs them around
his neck. Women and children, with
ton,ahawks and knives, cut deep slashes
into the poor bodies, and scooping up the
warm blood with their hands, eagerly
drank then growing frantic they dance
and sing their horrid scalp songs, recount
ing deed of valur on the part of their brave
men, and telling of Sioux scalps taken at
their last horrid feast, they leave the mu-
tilated bodies-festering in the SUM-
cat uightfall they are thrown over the
bluff into the river, and my brother and
myself, 'awestruck k and quiet, trace their
hideous voyage down the Mississippi to
the Gulf of Mexiso. We lie awake that
night, talking of the dreadful sight we
have seen and we try to think what the
people of New Orleans will think, when
they see these CHASTITY upturned faces
and we talk with quivering lips aud tear
full eyes of Little Six, and the many
kind things he has done for US, the bows
and arrows, the mocauks of sugar, the
pretty beaded mocasins he has given
us; and we wish, oh wish he could have
run faster, or that the Chippewa rifles had
missed fire. And we sleep and dream of
scaips and rifles, war whoops and fright
full yells, and awake Wishing it had been
dream.
"Next day the dying chief sat up in
bed, painted himself for death, sang his
death song, and with those five fresh
bloody scalps about his neck. laid down
and died, calmly and peacefully, in the
comfortable hope, no doubt, of a welcome