The daily gazette., 1877-09-27
The Skull at the Doorpost
m Old Man's Reminder of an
indian Story that His Father
Used to Tell. .a'lrD Il

OSe0 TO Tell. .a'h'
. ELMIRA, Sept. ia human skull Law
on a bracket by the side of the door Of a
large farm house ON the banks of the
Chemung. River, and pet ground squir-
rel frisked in and out Of it. An old man
In shirt sleeves, was scattering corn
from basin to chickens in the yard A
shepperd dog, grizzly and fat, lay on the
porch, DOING on the edge Of a bright
square of sunshine.
"Will your dog bite, sir9" said to the
old man. .a.'....-... IL
He put bis hand. up TO his ear and
shouted: "Hey, am leetle deef" 1,
s'Wili your dog bite?" and an echo on
the other side of the river came to my
aid, and repeated the query in different
stages Of fincompleteness. "Will dog bite,
your dog bite-dog bite-bite?
"Oh, Lord, nor' said the old man. CHE
hain't tooth in his head"
So l walked up to the skull and gave 1t
closer inspection. In the middle of the
forehead was a small hole. The old man
called "Dickie! Dickie!" The chipmunk
skipped out of one of the eyes, and
mounted to the top of the skull.
"Thats an Ingin chiefs skull" said the
old man. "They used to be lots o. Ingins
around here, you know. Right over
yunder, not more'n two miles, 3 where
Gen'ral Sullivan cleaned out the Six Ma
tions in the Battle o. Bald'in's creek.
Brant used to hang out round here quite
common, and Red Jacket eat and sleep
ed many time right where we're stand
ing now. That skull belonged to a Sem
eca chief they called the Long Wolf. 1
don't know what they called him that
fur, fur he want very long, though he
were wolf enough, Eve heard my father
ay."
The old'n was talkative, and had on
ly to listen to get the story ofLong VOLTS
skull"
"My fatheriwas sojer in the Revolu-
ton, and fit at Bald'in's creek. This
h yer Long Wolf was one O. Brant's best
chiefs, an my father used to say't he
done good deal o'the plantin' for Brant.
Anyhow Long Wolf scalped folks at
Minisink, way down in Orange county,
an helped slaughter the militia o. that
county, and helped clean out the Cherry
Valley settlements. don't know
whether you ever heered o'them places or
not, but my father used know all bout
em an I've heerd him tell heap o'stuff
with Long Wolf at their head. tackled the
Harpersfield settlement in Delywar'
county. They was some friendly Injins
about there then, an Long Wolf took
young squaw belongin' to 'em and shot
and scalped her. He done that because
she were the squaw of an adopted son of
the Ingin Chief Cornplanter, who was
peaee'ble, and didn't prove o. the lngins
goin' bout the country cleanin' out the
whites. Cornplanter's adopted son and
Long Wolf was the bltterest kind O. ene-
mi es, and the squaw was Killed TO spite
Young Cornplanter. My father knowed
him we'll. an used to tell lots o. his vent
ures. Young Cornplanter didn't know
nothin' bout the massycree O. his squaw
for some time, 'bause he didn't DIong In
that part the country. and the squaW
had been sent by him to the Delywar
county settlements to warn 'em 'gtnst tne
commin' massycree. Lord ! if you could
"a heerd nv father tell o. some o. the vii
laius that used to come down on the SET
| tiers fore they know 1t, yoopin ana
slingin' tommyhawks and slashin' seal,
PIN knives into every head they SEED, II
1T only had hairnough on 1t to glt hold'
on.
"Well, when Young Cornplanter heerd
O. the murder of his squaw, he naturally
got mad, and my father used to say he
swore by all the Great Spirits and happy
hunting grouns they was that he'd be
| even with Long Wolf fore he died, and
nothin' make him even but the hfe'o
the murderin' chief By N by these In
| lin IL assycres got to be so common tnat
Gin'ral Washington made up his mlnd 10
clean Brant an his waryers out. l dont
| resollect this myself, O course, put 1hy
father know'd the whole thing, and used
| to tell. Gin'ral Sullivan were sent up In
! to the Wyomin' region TO foller up the
Iniins't he'd been raisin' the devil down
thar. an Gin'ral Clinton were to come
down the Siskyhanner an meet him
sum'r round hyer. This were Young
| Cornplanter's chance. Long Wolf were
at the head o. a passel o. Senecas, an
they were prawlin' round bald1hs
Creek, on the lookout for the soJers'
Young Cornplanter were send aneau as
scout by Gin'ral Sullivan, havin met tne
soiers at Tioga Pint an offered his seryl,
ces. He were scoutin' long through tn
woods over near whar Welsburgh ls,
now, one day. Pooty quick he SEED
sumethin' movin' some piece ahead, an
he know'd 'tWere an lint had noppeu
down behind tree d been bio IN down.
CornpIauter got behind big chestnut
tree,t STAINS over there yit, aud peekln
out seed th' Injin stickin' his head up,
and pooty soon rise up on his rect. MY
| father used to say, an Cornplanter tole
him, t Cornplanter almos' yelled right
enemy out when he seed't the lnlln were
his Long Wolf. Cornplanter raised his
rife an fired -
The Injun chief dropped in his tracks;
Cornplanter crept up to the spot ana
scalped the great Seneca CHIEF, an iet
him Law where he war. Mex day the
| battle O. Baldins creek were tit, an the
| Iniins was routed boss, foot N dragon.
| rhe sogers follered 'em right up in the
heart O. their country an burned an Kill
led for two or three weeks. That We're
the last O. the Six Nations. Young Corn,
nlanter went further west fightin,' and
didn't come back in this country for
INV father used to say that in the fall
/ n, 1900 Young Cornplanter came t. his
bonse, That were this very house t g
here now, only It's been fixed up some.
1Tonv.n saws Oornplanter, my fathers
name were Anthony, but ne were knowd
as sfightin' rony'-'rony, ne said, Corn,
planter kill IDjin Long Won time O.
Bald'in's creek fight. Cornplanter want
to ind Long VOLTS bones My father
nsed to saw he know'd of Cornplanter's
kiln Long Wolf, but didn't know
where il was. So he went With Corn
nlanter In the woods. The Injin found
tbe snot where he fired the shot. Him
an my father dug 'roand In the leaves,
and booty soon they foun' the Long
| VOLTS skeleton. Cornplanter kicked the
skull way out into the woods, an my
father went an picked it up. 1t had a
hole right in the centre O. the forehead.
w hera the bullet went in. Cornplanter