Watertown republican. [volume] (Watertown, Wis.) 1860-1906, 1878-08-07
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RED RAY tGERS.
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Some Of the Sights Which the Soldiers
Saw Along the Indians Track in Ore
gone.
Portland OregOnian.


After depredating at and around
STEMS mountain and running off $4O,-
900 worth of the finest horses on the
Pacific coast, the hostiles were appar-
entity undecided which way to turn, SO
they travelled slowly along in the vicini-
Ety of Harvey valley, gathering up all
the loose stock and INDUCING in q glut-
tenous3 carnival ION the settlers fat
beeves, until first struck by Bernard on
Silver river or creek. This is a fine
open country, abundantly covered with
bunch grass on the hills = with redtop
and rye grass on the creek bottoms.
The settlers, receiving warning in time,
barrel escaped with their lives; their
houses were ransacked and everything
destroyed. Every little article in the
various houses the red fends could not
carry. awaywas rendered utterly useless,
even to such little affairs as coffee mills
and milk-pans. The command, after
1lHoward's arrival, started in hot pursuit.
The trail was fresh, and in many in
stances SO closely were they pushed that
their fresh fires were still burning. A
night march by the cavalry took place
! from the south fork of the John Day
river over country that has few paraI-
| lels for roughness IN eastern Oregon. In
! the darkness of night mountains were
climbed and descended that under 9TH
er circumstances. would have been
deemed impossible, but the men, in
tent on overhaulingI and Furnishing She
depredators, made light of all obstacles
and pushed without a word of COM
plant. So closely were the cavalry on
their track that arriving on the noun
tains north of Murderer's creek, the
rear. guard Of the enemy were, seen in
hundreds covering the mountains on
the other side, ust going oyer the sum-
nit. The horses Of the soldiers being
worn down with over twenty four hours
steady work, further pursuit was i'm
possible, and the command halted to
| feed and rest. The only settler here
was a man named Stewart, q large sheep
| farmer hishOusehold gOodswere destroy.
ed and scattered to the four winds. All
his fine rams were killed, and showed
by unmistakable evidence that they
had been skinned while yet alive. 7f
BLOODY RELICS.
| After four hours rest the command
again started with the intention Of get
ting into the John Day valley and pre-
venting much damage being done
About three miles from the ranch on
the old immigrant road, the troops
| came upon the scene of fight in which
the Canyon City volunteers had partici-
pated. Here was found the naked
body of man, completely scalped and
his nose cut off. Having no tools the
advance scouts built a huge grave of
rocks over him, with paper describing
his appearance, mode of death, etc.
The troops then advanced on down the
south fork, and at dark entered the John
Day. valley. The appearance of the
houses too plainly showed the hostiles
had been ahead. At the bridge two
sheep hearders were killed; the valley
was abandoned and nearly desolate.
At a farm owned by Cummings. the
! citizens had made q stand for time,
but were finally driven off, with no
| dead of their own to grieve for, and
cause for rejoicing from the fact that
they had at least removed one redskin
off the earth. The house was burned,
but barns, stables, haystacks, and out
houses were intact. For some strange
reason only. in exceptional instances
have the Indians burned houses, and
theyhave worked hard to destroy W hen a
match would have made the thing COM
plete without trouble. et a7l. 80
The John" Day valley is essentially a
wool-growing country. 1t has been
settled over twenty years, and the set
tiers generally were well off. Thousands
Of sheep are now scattered in the hills
unattended, and the losses will foot up
into many thousands. 2i1 lG.2o
From here the troops followed the
Indians over the hills into Fox valley
a high valley, luxuriantly covered with
grass and surrounded with fine pine.
Here one sheep-herder was killed. al,
/ bfodt3e .go.F REFUGEES. 5a
2 At Long valley, six miles further on,
the settlers, aggregating some seventy
five men, women, and children, were
found forted up in a rickety stockade.
The men were Of the, true frontier
stamp, and owed their lives to the bold
stand they made. Baf1ed in not sur
prising, numbering, and mutilating the
defenseless, the Indians; directed their
hellish propensities to wrecking every
thing Imaginable. Wells we're filled
up, houses burned, and horses, mules,
sheep, and cattle wantonly killed. The
land here is exceedingly fertile, being
composed of a fine black loam, ex-
tending even to the tops of the. hills,
1t is a new settlement, and the citizens
were just beginning to get along when
the raid took place, completely running
many, who lost their all. s.,,.f III.
On Can1as prairie, another sheep
farming community, nearly all the
he -ders were killed, The command
found three bodies. One was found
dead lying on his face with his scalp
taken, his head smashed in and a long
pine branch driven into his body.
Further on butter and cheese ranch
was burned and everything else de-
stroyed and rendered useless. Fine
machinery was broken up and ruin
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