The Columbia herald. [volume] (Columbia, Tenn.) 1850-1873, 1871-10-27
TALK WITH CAMANCHE BILL.
The MNn who lsnS Killed Ore Hun
drc<l and Eighty.Three Indians.
From the Davenport Uowa) Gazctte.l


From the Davenport Qowa) Gazette.l
There has been stopping i'm this city
for a couple of days past, one of those
characters who have made for them
selves a celebrity for their bravery
and daring, on the plains of the far
West among the Indians and the
buffalo; i'm recOunting whose deeds,
hair-breadth escapes and peculiar life,
the pages of romance are filled. The
person to whom we refer is no les a
character than "Camanche Bill" who
is reputed to be the slayer of no less
than 1888 Indians. He has been nine
years on the plains, part of which
time he has been i'm the employ of the
government rs scout. He has hunted
and killed Indians for the pleasure
and sweets of revenge, and hunted
and trapped of necessity. He is now
OH his return to his old lifa i'm the
West, having been an 4 visit to his
early hame in Minnesota. He is
about twenty-eight years of age, of
slepder build, sandy cOmplexiOned,
with a prOfusiOn of hair that he wears
long on the neck. His dress is a pair
of buckskin pantaloons, Orname nted
from the outer seams with row of
steel buttons, a coarse shirt, an old
coat and broad brimmet hat. His
eyes are piercing keen, and he has q
grip like 2 dazen hlatksniiths. In
RESPONSE tn our questions, he said:
'fMy namo IL George w. Potter; I
have been on the plains since '62; /
was in the Minnesota massacre, near
Ulm, the Sth of August of that year;
all my folks were killed except me
an-l my little sister, three years old,
whom they took prisoner.
"Whcre Wa.S y0us''
81 was away at the military station
on business; went the day before; the
first l knew of the massacre 1 was
coming along the road on my way
home, when | saw little ways ahead
of me wagon filed with women and
children, that the settlers had sent to
the station for protection; just then
saw the Indians pOunce upon them
and lodged into the woods; | could
hear the hatchets crushing into heads;
they killed 'cm all, every one" :
"What did you dos"
+" hey scalped 'en,, and when the
coast was clear | got out, aud pretty
soon along came a company of cavalry
and we buried them.".
"Why didn't you follow the In
dians?'
~ had no horse, and the captain
didn't want his men to go. You see
that was i'm '62, and everything was
topsy-turvy."
ibid you visit the scepe uf,ne mas
sacre at New Vim?"
"fes, L went there the next day,
and saw my father and mother all
cut up, and my sister was gone, I
swore By the eternal God would
never rest until ! had revenge-a
hln0dy revenge
"Dld you get any traces of your
sister.n
"Why, yes; they was the Yankton,
Swanee and Sioux Indians, and /
knOwed them pretty well. / learned
that they had her. / knowed what
they'd do with her"
"Have you not been successful i'm
your efforts to secure herr"
"NO. You see, single handed and
alone, a man don I stand much chance.
Once, in Arizona, i Was ri.hi ia sight
Of her: ba Nay kn0wed 1t was
her was, had been on the trail of the
band of Sioux that had her for long
time, and she was the only white per-
son they had. This was i'm rs. and
then she looked Just like mother. /
waited and watched and watched, and
picked an Indian off every little
while, when ho'd get mile or two
from camp, Tut was no use. They
kept too good "a watch over her"
"Were YOU ever capture,l?"
"fes. 4he Blackf9ets captured me
aud Jim Branden i'm "a, when we
were out hunting. They came on us
with rush, but they didn't get Us
though until l had killed one young
buck"
"What did they do with yousn
.'Thcy marched ABOUT Twenty-Five
miles t9 their CAMP, and there they
stripped us'of everything we had, and
tied US up to a stake. and LEI the
women pound US with clubs. They
did this every day for eight days. we
We're tied with bnekskin thongs, aud
enc Right it fained, and we slinped
out of them when they got Wet, Jim
got away all right, bi,t just as / was
getting my things an old squaw woke
up and gave the alarm. There was
but four Indians In camp. The rest
had gone on hunt. run with only
a knife: They come up to me, and /
had desperate fight. One shot had
hit me in the left arm,' Exhibiting
scar. II cut and slashed the buck
that got hold of me, and finally giysI
him one under the ribs, 60 me- cRtH
tie any mcre .ip0ss, aid lie dut me,
hp, RFre, 'alil here, and here" lslsow-