Port Royal standard and commercial. [volume] (Beaufort, S.C.) 1874-1876, 1876-01-20
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THE TERRIBLE SURP RISE.

HL
The Story Retold Of Osceoln's Slaughter in
,xza1F tie Seminole War.
On the twenty eighth of December.
1885, says a writer in Rarper's, General
Thompson and a lieutenant left Fort
King, near the present site of the town
of Qcala south of Silver SPRING Flori-
da, Mr "a Afternoon stroll. They were
walking talong, chatting and smoking,
going toward the suffers store, when
suadmlys alf funsuspicious- Of danger,
they, received in their breasts the fire Of
Osceolas band, who were hidden In the
thicket near by. General Thompson fell,
dead, pierced with twenty-four balls,
Lienfenant Smith with thirteen. This
massacre may be called the opening of
the long Florida war. The little garrison
in the fort, hearing the firing, prepared
hastily for defense. They congratulated
themselves upon the re endorsements
theyswere hourly expectiDg-two COM
panies of troops from Fort Brooke,
Tampa.
That. very day, the twenty eighth,
these two expected companies, under
the-eommaHdof Major Francis J.. Da ie,
of the .Hbofth ihfantry5 we're marching
northward along the road which ledfrom
Brooke tpsKing, when, rs they were ad-
vaAdag cGaessl and IN perfect seed
rity, they were attacked by large body
of Indians posted IN the thekets not
thirty yards from the road. Major Dade
and the adyance, guard fell dead at the
irsssfre; hdsed, half of the command
were killed. Fhe remaining officers raj
lied their men,fred biindly back into
the thicket, and fought desperately for
an hour, when the Indians retired for q
consultation. With the energy of q des-
perate purpose the forlorn band be gan
to build . breastwerk of logs, but before
it was knee -high-shat poor little unfn-
ished breastwork that :mutely told us
sucha story Of despair--the Indians re-
turned over the ridge with yell, and
recommended firing, having almost GER
tain aim, so near were they, and gradu-
ally closing ia aronnd the little fortifica.
tion, until, when all had fallen, they en-
tered it in triumph. -
An eyewitness, a negro who had fol-
lowed the Indians told us that as they
entered, a handsonae young officer dress
ed In blue froek coat, the only man
who was not either dead or mortally
wounded, stepped forward TO meet them,
and offered his sword in token of surren-
der; but the Indian to whom he offered
it shot him dead on the spot. This
young officer was Lieutenant Basinger.
Another poor fellow, one of the officers,
with both arms broken early In the fight,
had sat, 30 the negro said, propped
against the tree, with his head bent, and
minding, nothing that went on around
him, until at last stray shot killed him; !;
and third, with one arm disabled, had
continued. to fire until hs,. too, was
killed. After taking the arms and some
of the clothing from the troops, the
Indians went off ito meet the band Of
Osceola, who had the same day accom-
plished the massacre at Fort King.
can,a Great 5Ssi2isIsSs yeps 0n u the Indian
On the twentieth Of, February follow
ing General Gaines passed over the
same road on his way from Brooke to
King, and came upon the scene Of the
massacre. was with him, and We found
the advance guard Tying where they fell,
with the bodies of Major Dade and Cap
tain Fraser,1 the oxen attached to the
cart, with the yoke still on them as If
asleep, md there stood the forlorn lit
tie breastgork, 1 thickly5 studded with
balls, and within it Our men, kneeling
or lying, upon their breasts just as they
were when they fired their last shot. In
the dry air of the Florida winter they
were but little changed We. recognized
all the poor dear fellows, and buried
them, with rnoistened eyes the detach-
ment moved round the little breastwork
to slow music, and the cannon which the
Indiaas had tarewn into the swamp was
recovered. and placed vertically at the
head of the mound. But shall never
forget the sight Of the men lying there
in thers blue clothngs SO still and
silent, under the lovely Florida sky.
After the war was over they were rein
tered in the military cemetery at St,
AupnstirSeS where there is q handsome