Daily globe. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1878-1884, 1879-06-29
SCHOOLHOUSE ATTACKED

the last Indian war IN Western Iowa ano
Minnesota, which l append in nearly his
own words
| had the fire to build at the school.
house that morning, and started early
1t could not have been more than halt
past seven when left home
The older boys took turns building the
fire 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-thrce feet square, and
made Of logs, "sided down. so as to fit
together and keep out the wind and
snoW-tOr we used sometimes to have
fearful driving snow storms up there.
Ours was little frontier district, of
only seven families and twenty-three
scholars in all. All were Americans ex-
ccpt one family, the Jonsens, who were
wcSians-honest, kind hearted people
as ever we're.
Charley Bean, Clint Gargill and were
the three oldest boys. AS it happened,
we were sixteen years old; and the two
oldest girls, Merced Bean and Lettie
Eastman, were but fifteen. The rest of
the scholars we're younger.
We had no regular teat her. 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 agc-vcrv much freckled.
and with red hair. But far from having {,
fiery temper, he was so mild that we said
and did just as we pleased Even the
A B c fellows were saying "aont', and
''will' to him before the first week of the
school had passed. Yet the scholars liked
him so we'll that we did not do anything
that would greatly hurt his feelings.
Some days, however, he was very 1rctful
and pccvish.
took my gun on my arm as I went to
school that morning: for the partridges
used to come to the sunny side of the
timber for the buds on the birches; and
sometimes there would be a deer there
browsing. I had pretty little single
barreled shotgun.
There had been rumors that fall OF
attacks on settlers by the Sioux. In fact,
such reports were always going the rounds
IN the frontier districts, and this was a
sort of excuse for the large boys to take
their guns with them to school.
The Eastmans lived only little ways
from us; and on my way to school I gen
orally called for Lettie. The schoolhouse
stood at or near the forks of two roads.
She and l we're the only scholars who
came by that road and we sat next each
other in the "back seat" AS school
books were scarce with us, VIC used to
look together over the same geography
and the same reader
Indeed, I recollect that when Lettie
happened to stay at home a day I had a
dull time Of it. For she was uncommon
ly bright and quick at her lessons. Her
finger would fly over the maps in the ge-
ography when we looked out answers to
the questions, and it was much easier to
follow her than to puzzle them out
alone.
When went by Lettie's fathers home
that morning to build the fire in the
schoolhouse Lettie came to the door and
said that she would start for school in
about half an hour.
About half way between Mr.. East
mans and the schoolhouse there was
'sslew,' or water hole, surrounded by
thlckets Of gray alder, and the timber
here came down to the road. It was No
vember, and the night had been so cold
that the "slew" was frozen over
1t was hardly sunrise yet The thin
blue fog lay low on the bri CHIT frosty
ground, and the smoke from the settlers
houses in the distance rose straight up to
a great height, for the air was very still.
AS I went past the "slew" I had a
glimpse OF something, could hardly tell
what, amongst the thick alders, four or
five rods from the road, and in a moment
more l heard the ice crack. Nv first
though was that some hunter was in
there.
"Halloo" I called. "Shot anything?''
There was no answer.
Then thought for an instant that il
might have been a deer. But deer
when started, goes bounding off at full
spring, making plenty of noise in the
bushes; whereas had only heard one
cautious snap Of the ice Then it occur.
red to me that 1t might have been bear
for bears were quite common in that 10,
cality.
l set down my dinner-box and books
went quietly in amongst the alders, and
stood LOOKING about for some moments
but did not see any object nor hear a
sound )
1t seemed odd, for was positive !
had had a glimpse Of some moving OBJ.
ject. However, had the fire to build
and SO went back to the road and hurried
to the schoolhouse. Yet kept thinking
that there was something odd about the
noise and what had seen. r. IL
BY the time I had the schoolhouse
warm and swept, nearly all the scholars
were there except Lettie. a few minutes
after Mr.. Fiield arrived, and raped fol-
Us to take our seets. Lettie HAD said she
would start in half an hour. If she had
started, she ought to have been at the
schoolhouse long before the master came
Then l thought OF the noise 1 had heard
at the sslea," and though did not be.
lieve it was caused by anything that
would hurt her, it made me feel un.
easy.
The windows Of the schoolbouse were
small, and SO high that could not looS
out from my seat. But behind me there
was a chlnk between the logs, from
which some OF the children had pulled
the bass wood bark which had been stuffed
into it. 1t was a little crevice not hall
an inch wide. All the time We were read
Ing III the Testament 1 kept peeping out