The Princeton union. [volume] (Princeton, Minn.) 1876-1976, 1879-07-02
A SCHOOLHOUSE ATTACKED

A young man from the West, Mr.. G..
+. Gleddale, has given the writer the fol-
lowing graphic and thrilling incident of
the last Indian war in Western Iowa and
Minnesota, which I append in nearly his
own words:
l had the fire to build at the school
house that morning, and started early.
1t could not have been more than half
past seven when left home.
The older boys took turns building the
ire and sweeping out. The boy whose
turn it was took the key home at night,
and was expected to have the house warm
before the girls came at the regular
school hour.
1t was about mile from our house to
the school. The road ran along the edge
OF the 'timber,'' and the schoolhouse
stood amongst the ''heavy growth - so as
to be sheltered from the bleak prairie
winds. -
1t was the first ever built there. The
settlers had built it only the year before.
1t was but twenty-three feet square, and
made of logs, "sided down." so as to fit
together and keep out the wind and
snow-for we used sometimes to have
fearful driving SHOW storms up there.
Ours was little frontier district. of
only seven families and twenty-three
scholars in all. All were Americans ex-
cept one family, the Jonsens, who were
Norwegians- honest, kind hearted people
as ever were.
Charley Bean, Clint Gargill and were
the three oldest boys. AS it happened,
we were sixteen years old; and the two
oldest girls, MERGED Bean and Lettie
Eastman, were but fifteen. The rest of
the scholars were younger. 49,.
We had no regular teacher. That fall
Mr.. Fitield, the Methodist minister, had
offered to take the school. His salary
was small; and the agent gave him the
school to help In his support. ~
well remember the poor man. he was
quite young, not more than twenty three
or four years Of age-vcry much freclzled,
and with red hair. But far from having a
1lery temper, ne was SO mild that we said
and did just as we pleased. Even the
"A 3 Z fellows were saying "won't', and
will to him before the first week of the
school had passed. Yet the scholars liked
him SO well that we did not do anything
that would greatly hurt his feelings
Some days, however, he was very 1retfu7
and pcevish
took my gun on my arm as I went tt
school that morning; for the partridges
used to come to the sunny side of thu
timber for the buds on the birches: anc
sometimes there would be a deer ther,
browsing had a pretty little single
barreled shotgun, '. .ys,. -
There had been rumors that fall O
attacks On settlers by the Sioux. In fact
such reports were always going the rounds
in the frontier districts, and this was ;
sort Of excuse for the la rge boys to talk,
their guns with them to school, ~ -. :
The Eastmans lived only little wav
from us; and on my way to school T zen
orally called for Lettie. The schoolhous,
stood at OF near the forks of two roads
She and [ were the only scholars VIII,
came by that road, and we sat next eacl
other in the ''back seat" As schoo
books were scarce with us, we used t.
look together over the same tgeograph,
and the same reader. #a @@:1 ~ ii -
Indeed, I recoilect that when Lett
happened to stay at home a day had
dull time Of it. For she was uncommon
ly bright and quick at her lessons. He
finger would fly over the maps in the &c
ography when we looked out answers t