Watertown republican. [volume] (Watertown, Wis.) 1860-1906, 1876-09-20
THE BLACK HILLS.
The Recent Massacre of a Haying Party
"A Night Alone in n Black Hills Thunder
storm and Among Wild Beasts.

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"A Night Alone in n Black Hills Thunder
storm and Among Wild Beasts.
From the Sioux City Journal.
We are permitted to use the follow
ing extracts from letter written by
Ellis L. PIERCE, now in the Black Hills
! to his brother, Joseph PIERCE, of this
city. The letter bears date Of Custer
City, August 26th
"The Indians killed our mail-ride1
yesterday and got the mail; so we will
get no letters this week.
have been up French Creek nine
miles, the present week, cutting hay.
Returning last night, found that they
had just buried my little bunk mate,
Jake Wilder, and three others, whom
the Indians had killed and scalped.
We all hired out to cut hay; but none
OF the men wanted to go up French
Greek, on account of the northern trail
passing through it, and also having had
word to look out for Indians, as they
were coming south in large bodies.
The Saturday before the Indians
jumped the boys VINO were cutting
hay Up there, and came very near TAX
Ing them in out of the wet; but they
found shelter, and, being we'll armed,
they stood the Indians off, killing one
OF them. | volunteered to go as one
hay-cutter, and three more consented
to go with me, but they all backed out.
Little Jake thought he would rather 90
the other way and make a hay camp
out at a point of rocks on
the Sidney road. So he and Sam Wal
lace, half brother of Lawyer Hooper,
of that city, and Thompson, from Den
yer, and another man named Kidd,
started out at z P. M, and had not got
more than five miles from town when
they ran into an ambuscade and were
all killed, scAlped and mutilated. Thew
must have fought like tigers, for there
were piles Of empty shells lying where
they stood when fired upon by the In
dams. Poor Thompson must have
killed a number of them, for they
beat his brains out with new regula-
ton needle gun, breaking it all up over
his head. They scalped all of the
boys and dragged them back into the
road so that they might be seen by
passing trains. The Indians must sure
~ have been a party returning to the
Red Cloud agency from the north, for
the needle gun referred to was one
they had captured in the Custer fight,
and by the trail they left they must
have been nearly 800 strong. They
concluded not to take those fresh
scalps into the agency, so they threw
them away, and the party who went
out for the bodies found them. NV
"pard" was shot through the eve and
powder burnt in his face, besides being
shot in three different places. Two Of
the others were badly mutilated, one
being shot ten times and the other
eight times, and the rest four times
each.
Ihad no gun to take with me up the
creek, SO | borrowed an old shotgun
which happened to be loaded, and off
started with little Buckskin,' the
scout-he mounted and / playing in
fantry. In due time we found some
grass and weeds, and L went to work
with my Armstrong mower and
Buck went back to town, leaving me
and the old shotgun to stand off what
ever might happen to come my way. [ |
worked on until evening, and then, af-
ter preparing my frugal meal, rolled
up IN my blankets for the highland
if ever spent one night in my whole
life that l shall be apt to remember,
That night was this night. Talk about
storms, lightning, etc. This is the
boss country. 1t comm enced to thun-
der Just as soon as 1 got ready to go
to sleep, and the earth sounded as
hollow as bass drum. The gulch is
very narrow and the sides high and
perpendicular, and the thunder gets in
its full work when it goes rumbling
through there. The lightning would
pick out a good-sized tree and strike
and throw it all around the neighbor-
hood. FINALLY went to sleep and don't
know how long / had been asleep when
along came an old bear and gave one
snort, and [ thought I was gone sure.
thought it was an Indian pony and
that was surrounded. [ got my old
shotgun out and prepared for war,
but, nothing came around, SO laid
down and went to sleep again. The
next morning [ saw the tracks and
knew that Mr.. Bear had visited me.
I stuck to my hay cutting for five
days, at the expiration of which time I
StdI tSo 1O1 tuS ClIy' vi o1O way III L
met party of horsemen coming out to
bring in my body, as they thought the
Indians had got me sure. They had
wagon along in which to carry me.
Thus I had the pleasure of seeing my
own funeral procession once. The In
dams crossed right below where was at
work, they being the same ones who
killed the other boys. This was one
stroke of good luck, and the first have
had for many day, for if they had got
their eyes on me, my old Armstrong
mower would have lain idle for the
balance of the season."
The Indians have got train corraled
down this side of Hat Creek, SO man
reports who has just arrived. I look
for them to burn Custer City any night
now.
Tilden and Hayes-The Contrast.
Everyone must have observed the re