Mower County transcript. [volume] (Lansing, Minn.) 1868-1915, 1872-04-04

OWN Falnilics-A Neither. prcs.cI I'.,
Hunger, Sacrifices llcr <;hil.lrcn-In
band nmil Son-Tlle Ola Mnn NIuLi"u
FOO<l iOr the Boys.
Correspondence of the N. Y. finn.
OTTAWA, March 21.-The most aston
ishing stories of cannibalism ut the
head waters of the Ottawa were related
to me this afternoon by man whose
respectability and veracity are un-
doubted. For several years past lum.
bering operations have been condnctad
in the Ottawa valley with unrivallel
enterprise and success, the pine trees
becoming more scarce each succeeding
season, until at length the lumberers
have pushed their way to the head
waters of the Ottawa and it's tributaries
in search of good timber limits.
According as they receded from CIV
lllzation and carried their operations
further north, they began to get more
thorough knowledge Of the Indians of
the Upper Ottawa, and from time to
time almost incredible tales of the
tribes to the northwest of Lake Timis-
comanque were related by adventurous
lllmberers and fur traders. Manv Of
their stories were xlisbelieved and were
looked upon as shantymen's yarns with
out foundation of truth in them. Es-
pecially has it been the case when on
two or three occasions it was asserted
that among the Obitteebee Indians. a
portion of the Algonquin tribe, were to
be found cannibals who occasionally.
when pressed by hunger, satisfied their
appetite by killing some of the younger
members of their families, and then eat
ing them. These horrible stories gain.
ed no credit,a ,as it had never been estab
llshed as fact that any of the tribes of
North American Indians were canni-
balls.
1UMBERMAN's STORY.
This winter, however, Mr.. Wright, a
lumberman, living near Ottawa, had
lumber shanty on one of the tributaries
OF the Obitteebee Lake, within a davis
travel OF Fort Hmiscomanque, one of
the Hudson Bay trading posts, and
while on a visit to his limits, from
which he has returned, he ascertained
the following facts: A camp of Obit-
teebee Indians was established about
ten miles from Mr.. Wright's shanty
early in the winter, and the suuaw with
her children the oldest boy about II
years of age-came occasionally to the
shanty to trade off fur with the foreman
for grease and -four. Provisions were
scarce at the shanty, as supplies had to
pc brought such long distance, and
be had to forbid the Indians from CON-
ing around the place. AS the winter
advanced the snow BECAME Deep. and
game was so: scarce that the Indian
camp was sometimes without food for
two days at a time. Hares, that had
been plentiful other years, had been
decimated by . disease that had at
tackled them during the summer, and
the Indians were reduced to state of
starvation. 49,:
PARENTS EATING THEIR CHILDREN.
The owner of the wigwam returned
one evening in January, after an un-
successful hunt, of two days, and found
that one of his children had been killed
by the squaw, and the family were then
satisfying their hunger with part of the
flesh, which had been half cooked in a
kettle. The old Indian, without asking
any questions, joined with the rest in n
the horrid repast, and satisfied his ap-
petite also: The family lived for three
days on the body of the child, and
when-it was-tetally consumed, the In
dian again started out to hunt, but was
unsuccessful. On returning to the camp
he drove his :tomahawk through the
skull Of another child himself, !. and,
without ceremony, the squaw proceed
ed to boil a sufficient quantity of the
flesh for q meal.
THE WIFE SACRIFICED TO HUNGER.
The weather grew colder, with more
snow, and it was impossible for the In
dian to go on another hunt. He singed
the hair of. some dry beaver skins, and
they managed to keep alive until;this
supply failed. Then, one day when
savage with hunger, without warning,
he tomahawked The squaw, and he and
the boy fed off tho carcass for several
days. In the meatime the weather
cleared up, and the. Indian started in
the direction Of a moose park, several
miles from the camp, to try and secure
some game butthe snow, though deep,
was Light, and he could not get within
rihe-shOt of the dear.