The Redwood gazette. [volume] (Redwood Falls, Minn.) 1873-1940, 1879-11-20
MISS MEEKER'S STORY.
Her Account Of the yhite.Rivor Mas
S3cres


Miss Josephine Meeker, daughter of
Agent Meeker, gives the following &C
count of the outbreak at the White-Riv-
er Agency:
The first heard of any trouble with the In
dams at my fathers agency was the firing at
crops according to Government instructions.
The Indians had the idea ard sud that as soon
as the land was plowcd it would cease to be-
long to the Utcs. Two or three councils were
held, and an Indian woman, Jane, the wife of
Panvitts, was the cause of the whole trouble.
1t was finally settled by the agent giving her
corral cor building her house, putting up stove
to the blowing for Il certain distance, half way
to the river. johnson, however who was not
at the council. got angry with the agent and
been resumed. He scri' usly assaulted my
father and forced him from his house. The
agent wrote to the Government to the effect
have protection. The response to this was
that the agent should be sustained. Governor
Ptkin wlOtc that troops had been sent, and we
heard no more until a Ute runner came in
greatly excited and said the soldiers were on
Bear River, sixty miles north of the agency.
On Monday ut noon Mr.. Eskridgc, who took
the agents message to ThOrnburgh, returned,
saying the troops were making a day-and-night
march, and it must be kept secret; but Thorn
burgh wanted it to be given out to Indians
that he would meet five Utcs at Milk Creek,
ngS anS dcsired me i%%eGiate sns%eI
ThOrnburgh was expected to reach the agency
on Tuesday ut noon with the troops. The
Indians, who at first were angry, frightened
up, and Douglass sent two Indians with one
white man, ESkridge, to meet ThOrnburgh.
Secretly, however, the Utcs were preparing
for the massacre, for just before Eskridge left
with the Indians a runner was seen rushing up
to the tent of Douglass with what 1 since
learned was news of the soldiers fighting.
Half an hour later twenty armed Indians came
to the agency from the camp of Douglass and
began firing.
was in the kitchen with my mother wash
ing the dishes. 1t was after noon. looked
out of the window and saw the Utes shooting
the boys who were working on the new build
ing. Mrs. Price was at the door washing
clothes. She rushed in and took Johnnie, the
baby, to fly. just then Frank Dresser, an en-
ploye, staggered in, shot through the leg. 1
said
Here, Frank, is Mr. Prices gum
1t lay on the bed. He took it, and just as we
were fleeing out Of the door the windows were
into the room. Frank Dresser fired and killed
JOhnson's brother. We ran into the milk
room, which had only one small window, and
locked the door and hid under a shelf. Firing
went on for several hours ut intervals. There
was no shouting, no noise, but frequent firing.
We stayed in the milk room until it began to
fill with smoke. The sun was half an hour
high.
/ took May Price, three years old, and we
all ran to fathers room. 1t was not disturbed.
We knew the building would be burned, and
ran across Douglass avenue for field of
sage brush beyond the plowcd ground. The
Utes were SO busy stealing the annuity goods
that they did not see us at first. About thirty
of them, loaded with blankets, were carrying
them toward Douglass camp, near the river.
We had gone one hundred yards when the
Utes saw us. They threw down the blankets
and came running toward us, firing as they
came. Bullets whizzed rs thick as grasshop-
pers around US. do not think they intended
to kill us-Only to brighten us-but they tried
to shoot Frank Dresser. who had almost
reached the sage brush.
Mother was hit by a bullet, which went
through her undertaking and made flesh
wound three inches long. As the Indians came
nearer they shouted:
ave no shoot! Come to us!''
had the little girl. and the Indian named
Pursune said for me to go with him. He and
another Ute seized me by the arms and started
toward the river. An Uncompahgre Indian
took Mrs. Price and her baby, and mother was
taken to the headquarters of Douglass. We
came to wide irrigating canal which father
had the Indians build. said could not cross
through the water. l had on only mOccasins,
and the water and mud were deep. The baby
wadcd, too, and both of us came out wet to the
skin.
AS we were walking in Chief Joseph came
and pushed away Pursune, and, in great anger,
told MIN to give me up. understood 81 mo of
the language. Pursunc refused to surrender
me. Hot words ensued, and feared the men
would fight for a moment. l thought would
ask Douglass to take me, but as both were
drunk kept silent, and aftcrward was glad 1
did not go.
Douglass finally went away, and we walked
on toward the river. Before reaching the
stream. not more than two hundred yards
away, both my conductors pulled out BOTTLES
and drank twice. No whisky was sold at the
Agency. Their bottles were not Agency bot
ties. Tho Indian, Pursunc too mc.to where
his ponies were standing by the river, and
seated me on pile of blankets while he went
for more. The Indians were now on all Sides
/ could not escape. Pursunc packed his cf-
fccts, all stolen from the agency, on Gov
He had two mules, stolen from the agency.
1t was now shutdown. Packing was finished ut
dark, and VIC started for the wilderness of the
We trottcd along until nine O'Clock, when
we halted for half an hour. All the Indians
dismountcd, and blankets were spread on the
ground, and l laid down to rest. with my
mother lying not far from me.
Chief Douglass was considerably excited and
made a speech to me with many gestures and
great emphasis. Hcrecited his grievances and
explained why the massacre began. He said
ThOrnburgh told the Indians that he was going
to arrest the head chiefs, take them to Fort
Steel and put them in the calahOOsc-pcrhaps
hang them. He said my father had written all
the letters to the Denver papers and circulated
wild reports about what the Indians would do,
as set forth by the Western press, and that he
the Indians among the whites in the West.
He said pictures of the agent and all his family,
women and children, had been found on
Thornburgh's body just before the attack on
the agency, and the pictures were covered
with blood and showed marks of knives on
different parts of the bodies. The Threats
were cut. The one of the agent had bullet
hole in his head. He said / was represented in
one of the pictures rs shot through the breast.
Douglass said my father had made these pict-
ures. representing the prospective fate Of his
family, and sent them to Washington to be
used to influence the soldiers and hurry troops
forward to fight the Indians.
Miss Meeker then relates how the
Indians tried to brighten her; describes
her life in the Indian camps and the kind
ness of some of the squaws and finally
the release of the captives. She says:
Il want to thank Chief Ouray, his
wife, and General Adams. To them we
owe our escape"
"A young couple with their first
born child take upper-story rooms
looking out on the street. "Be very
careful about the windows says the
ianitor, who has been showing them
over the apartments. "Be very care
full about the windows, for the balco-
MES are low and the baby might fall
out and -" "You can just bet I'll be
careful about the windows" says the
young mother, folding the precious
child to her heart, 'for if mothers lit
tie darling was to fall out what would
it's poor moth "Oh, it isn't that"
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