The Leavenworth weekly times., 1875-03-25
BLCcDTEIRsTY sAVAGEs.

BLocDTEIRsTY sAVAGEs.
bow they Massacred the Unfortunate Ger
main Family, and Horribly Il-Treated the
Captives, csthsrine and Sophia.
The details Of the Smoky Hill massacre
which occurred in central Kansas in Sep
tember, 1874, are OF such startling charac-
ter as to
CCRDLE THE BLOOD
in ones veins and cause the mind TO sicken
with horror at the recital OF the iendish
acts Of atrocity which stamped the tragedy
as one Of the most barbaric and demon
like that has ever been known since the eX-
termination of the Indian race began.
A Kansas City reporter went out to this
country TO see the German children, and
To him Mrs. Miles
DESCRIBED THE CONDITION
OF the captiyes when brought to her door.
She said: 81 was unprepared to see such
a sight as was presented me when poor
Catherine alighted. Hertiark hair was mat |
ted about her head and her limbs, which |
having nothing on but blanket, were ter
ribly emaciated; and her weak, sickIy con-
dition showed us plainly that her poor sys-
TEN had suffered more than it could bear. |
took her in my arms and kissed her,
and We
BOTH SHED TEARS
Sophia seemed to have fared better. and /
was in stronger condition. Catherine
seemed half-crazed when she came in and
her accounts were not altogether satisfacto-
ry; but she speedily recovered, and Is now
rapidly assuming her former condition"
Going into the pleasant parlor Of Mrs
MileS cosy home, the reporter found him.
self in the presence of the heroines of this
chapters Of real life, far stranger than fic-
ton.
Miss. Catherine shows traces Of beauty. |
and as she told her story her expressive
blue eyes were at times blinded with tears.
She will he
SEVENTEEN YEARS OLD
on the 18th of the present month, and is of
ordinary height, with regular features, a
mass Of dark hair, and face of more than
ordinary intelligence. Her language shows
that she is possessed Of a common school
education, and in her manners she is ex-
4
realizes her terrible situation, but is not
downcast, seeming TO think ii more Judi
c;ous and sensible TO strive and forget her
awful experience
Sophia is only ii years old, but is well
developed and looks older than she really
Il. Her eyes and hair are like her sisters. |
She has been less cruelty dealt with, and
will soon be as well as ever. The reporter :
learned that Catharine
WAS NOT ENuENTE,
and that she had escaped contracting any
disease while being exposed to the severe ,
cold OF the winter. Many heart will be !
shocked with the account Of this poor girls
treatment while in the power Of these lech- 5
erous devils that satiated their beastly de- ,
sires by rayishing this helpless creature s
She was not considered as the wife of any |
one chief, but was
CARNALLY KNOWN
by nearly every demon Of the tribe. And I
this was the unfortunate girl that had been 7
for nearly nine months subjected to such I
hendlsh treatment as this There she sat G
pale, wan Of face, sunken of eye, and :
aeart-broken in spirits. And outside in {
lazy Incidence the vile wretches who had !
lerpetrated these outrages Surely every 9
one of them should be made suffer the full | /
extent of the law. She SAYS she can iden- ,
Rify every one of the party that murdered |
her parents and brothers and sisters, and /
fne government N-hould not be slow in {
bringing these ~
oorrER-coi.-- ->.DEvLs
to justice-such as is served ont to white
men.
Catherine told a portion Of ts history
OF her family, showing that III ey .e re-
spectacle people in moderate on
ces, and that the children had beeft-
with all the care that loving parents coIn~
give. They left Morgantown, Fannin +
county, Georgia, nearly five years ago. and l
removed to Howard county, Missouri,
where they remained until May, 1872
Leaving there they emigrated TO Merry
vile, Stone county, Missouri, living there
until September with an uncle by the name
Of
BURTON BROWN.
Johanna, one of the sisters, being un- !
healthy, the father decided to go TO Kan \
sas, hoping a change would be beneficial. I
They then removed to Elgin, Howard d
county, Kansas, but remained there only I
one year, when they started for Colorado. a
The family consisted of the following, h
d.
John German and lydia c. German. The :
dang 2I; Stephen, 10; Jo- G
hanna, 10; Catherine, IL; Sophia, ii /; Ju- 5
liza, q; and Nancy, ). This was the party O
that started on ,
THE FATAL JoNRNEY r
to Colorado. They had an ordinary cover !, =
ed wagon, some provisions and an OK team
. When they arrived at Smoky Hill river,
about ii miles south of the track of the
Kansas Pacific. and within 80 miles of Fl
Wallace, they encamped. They spent the
night there, and on the morning of Friday, a
September ! 1874, were up early and pre-
pairing TO resume their Journey n
From this point forward il will I've more d
interesting 10 hear the story from Gather II
ines own lips. Il
BEING INTRODUCED :,
TO the girls, the reporter politely asked of n
them the particulars of the attack on them "
at Smoky tIIill and the murder of their cI
family. Catherine spoke as follows, the h
language being hers, with few changes: f
Just As the sun was rising, and while RI
engaged in driving the cattle up the river e
bank towards the wagon. l heard shots and d
yells, and, running closer. saw my father I,
fall, shot through the back by an Indian. / b
was terribly frightened, but can never for G.
get the spectacle that there ensued. h
MY BROTHER STEPHEN
w@ half a mile away hunting up some !,
stock, and he had gun with him. As poor =
father fell mother rushed towards him only y
TO receive a shot from another Indian who
fired at her head, killing her almost in :
stantly. My father was not killed at once, :
for he moved his arm about as he was y
scalped by one of the party. They also :, .
scalPed my mother. An old squaw picked
up our ak and stuck it in my fathers head,
leaSing it fixed
IN HIS SKULL Il
During the time this was going on, one +
party rode after Stephen and shot and
scalped him. NY sister, Rebecca, made a