Watertown republican. [volume] (Watertown, Wis.) 1860-1906, 1880-03-03
A FEAT ON SKATES.

Uncpapas, six years ago, Company G.
of the TIL regiment, was stationed on
the upper Missouri at Fort Galpin, where
[ was in command.
speak OF it as Company G, though
in point of fact we could not then mus
ter more than seventeen men, and were
altogether in sorry phght-away up
there in the midst of the two or three
hundred Sioux warriors, every one OF
whom had better arms than the govern
ment furnished us.
Trouble had been brewing for four or
five months. 1t is hard to say just what
the cause was In fact the Uncpapas
had been 'egood" Indians about as long
as they wanted to be, and were perhaps
spelling for little war.
Their first hostile act was to capture q
soldier who had received his discharge,
and was on his way east with party Of
transfers. He was wiylaid while ante
lope-shooting at distance from his
party. and taken (still wearing his uni
form) to one of their villages, was tor
tured and killed after their most APP
proved fashion. Such at least was the
report
Three or four weeks later the Indians
attacked q party of transfers about
fifteen miles from this same village.
Every man was killed and the wagons
were robbed. Next day the savages
rode to the fort and had the audacity to
show us the coats they had taken from
the poor men, some Of them stained with
blood
OF course we were indignant and
eager to retaliate. but what could we
do? We were so few that we did not
dare to stir outside of the stockade, and
we lived In hourly expectation of an
attack which we had little hope of being
able to resist. For the Uncpapas were
now being joined by numbers of
the worst characters from other neigh
boring tribes of Sioux, who, like hungry
wolves. were drawn to the place where
there was prospect of bloodshed.
Meanwhile cold weather came on, and
the river froze over. There was not
much snow, but just a thin layer of it
over the hard frozen ground and ice.
For more than a month no couriers from
below had come to us, nor had dared to
send out messengers. But at length it
became necessary, in view of the threat
ening hostility of the Indians, to commu-
nicate with Forts Union and Buford. at
all hazards.
On the morning of the nineteenth of
November the men were called together,
and after telling them of my dislike to de-
tail one of them for such a service, in
quired whether either of them would vol
unteer to take dispatch to Fort Union
distance of nearly or quite one hundred
miles.
fr1, h .toti hoI al
No one responded for some minutes.
Presently a private named Freeman A.
Starbird stepped from the line and said
he would try it If he could be furnished
with good pair of skates.
Starbird was a yong man of about
%, from some of the eastern states, New
Hampshire, [ think His name was
Freeman Amariah Starbird remember
the middle name distinctly, because the
boys used loosely to call him Cam
Maria, " from the similarity of the sounds.
He was long-legged, rather tall
youngster, with clear, brown complex
ion, black eyes and black hair; good
soldier, who took what came and never
grumbled.
'' Can you skate, Starbird?" [ asked.
''Oh, / used to skate a little" said he.
:. [ rather guess can get down to Fort
Union by night-if I don't come to too
many open stretches"
''And the redskins don't shoot YOU
from the bank" some one In the line
added, very audibly.
"You will hardly reach Fort Union in
one day." I said. But I was only too
glad to accept the offer of his services,
Mr.. W, the Indian agent and
trader at the post, had in his stock some
skates. From these Starbird selected q
pair: and meantime / wrote dispatch to
Major p at Fort Union, informing
him of the peril We were in.
Within twenty minutes Starbird was
buckling on his skates at the river-bank.
An ordinary knapsack, stuffed with
bread and meat, and a revolver and knife
in his belt, completed his equipment
Jumping to his feet, he circled out upon
the river, then coming round, he dashed
past US, with a smart military salute, and
SKINNED away down the broad stream,
at the rate of fifteen miles an hour.
The sun had risen bright IN the gauze-
like winter haze. Every bush sparkled
with frosty pendants. There was just a
dust of dry snow on the smooth ice, not
enough to impede skates. Away weIt
our man round high bluff, at bend,
half mile below.
We hoped, and rather thought, that he
might not fall in with any of the Indi-
ans; and no very great uneasiness was
felt for him. Had we known, however.
what perils he was passing through that
morning, our hearts would have thrilled
with fear.
For the first twenty or twenty-five
miles below the fort, the river is very
crooked, flowing in series OF great
bends, or blows, y as they are termed,
first TO north, then to south Round
these bends Starbfrd glided at racing
pace, for he was fresh and the morning
4as bracing. He had gone seven OF