The Cambria freeman. [volume] (Ebensburg, Pa.) 1867-1938, 1881-02-18
EBENSBURG, A. FEBRUARY Is. 1881

then mounted their horses, huzzaed in tri- !
nmph, as if they had gained victory, and 1
Tie bodies of the murdered were then |
brought out and exposed III the street. till 4
/ hole could be made in the earth to receive /
and cover them. But the wickedness cannot /
be covered, and the guilt will lie on the /
whole land until justice is done on the muir
dereTs. The blood of the innocent will cry
to heaven for vengeance"
These last extracts are from a pamphlet
published in Philadelphia at the time of the
massacre published anonymously, because
80 much had fear seized the minds of the
! people" that neither the writer nor the print
er dared to give "name or place of abode"
! There are also two private letters still PIE
! served which give accounts of the affair a
! part of one from William Henry, of Lancas-
/ ter, to friend ia Philadelphia, is given in
/ 'Rupp's History of Lancaster County" He
! says
"a regiment of Highlanders were at that
time quartered at the barracks in the town
! and yet these murdeTers were permitted to
! break open the doors of the city Jail and
commit the horrd deed The first notice L
had of the affair was that while at my faith
] er's store near the court house, i saw a num-
Der of people running down street, toward
( the Jail, which entlced me aud other lads to
l follow them At about six or eight yards
from the Jail we met from TWENTY-FIVE to
! thirty men, well mounted on horses, and
. with rifles, tomahawks, and scalping knives,
/ equipped for murder. l ran into the prison
yard, and there, oh what hoTrid sight
! presented itself to nv view Near the back
door of the prison lay an old Indian and his
I Squaw, particularly well known and esteem
ed by the people OF tine town, on account of
his placid and friendly conduct His name
was VIII Soc. Around him and his squaw
lay two children, three Years of age, whose
heads were split with the tomahawk and
their scalPs taken of. Toward the middle
Of the jail yard, along the west side of the
wall, lay stout Indian, whom particularly
noticed TO have been shot in the breast. His
legs were chopped with a tomahawk, his
hands cut of, and finally a rifle ball dis
charged in his mouth, so that his head was
blown to atoms, and the brains were splash
ed against and vet hanging to The wall for
three OF four feet around. This mans
hands and feet had been chopped of with a
tomahawk. In this manner lay the whole Of
them-men. women and childreu-Spread
about the prison yard, shot, scaiped, hacked
and cut 10 pieces"
After this the governor of Pennsylvania
issued a second proclamation, still more
stringent than the first, and offering a re-
ward of $500 for the apprehension Of any
three Of the ring-leaders.
But the Paxton Boys were now like
wild beasts that had tasted blood. They
threatened to attack the Quakers and all
persons who sympathized with or protected
Indians They openly Knocked and derided
the governor and his proclamations, and set
off az once for Philadelphia, announcing
their intention OF killing all the Moravian
Indians who had been placed under the pro-
lection of the military there.
Their march through the country was like
that of band of maniacs In private let
ter written by David Rittenhouse at this
time, he says: About fifty Of these scoun-
drcls marched by my workshop. 1 have
seen hundreds of Indians travelling the coun-
try, and can with truth affirm that the be-
havior of these fellows was ten times more
savage and brutal than theirs Frightening
women by running the muZzles Of guns
through windows, hallooing and swearing
attacking men without the least provOcation,
dragging them by The hair to the ground
and pretending to scalp them shooting
dogs and fowls-these are some of their ex-
plots."
1t is almost past belief that at this time
many people justified these acts. An Epis-
copalian clergyman in Lancaster wrote vim
dicating them, bringing scripture to prove
that il was right to destroy the heather, -
AMI the 'Presbyterians think they have a
better Notwithstanding less than the
Word of God, - says one of the writers on
the massacre.
With the scriptures in their hands and
mouths, they can set at naught that express
{ command, "Thou shalt do,no murder" and
justify their wickedneSs by the command
given to Joshua to destroy the heathen.-
Horrid perversion of scripture and religion,
to father the worst OF crimes on the God OF
Love and Peace 1t is trite saying that
, history repeats itself: but it is impossible to
read now these accounts of the massacre of
I defenseless and peaceable Indians in the
! middle of the 18th century without the re-
f Election that we ourselves are leaving the
T. record of the 10Th backened by the same
stains. What Pennsylvania pioneers did in
I 1863 to helpless and peaceabIe Indians OF
t Conestoga, Colorado pioneers did in 1864 tC
{ helpless and peaceable Cheyennes at SAND
creek, and are apparently ready to do agaiE
\ to helpless and peaceabe Utes in 1881. The
4 I word discrimination is as ready on tn,
4 frOntiersmans tongue to-day as it was
!. hundred years ago ; and the threat is NOR
7 portentous now, seeing that we are, by
whole century of prosperity, stronger ant
;, more numerous, and the Indians are, BY
e whole century of suffering and oppression
It fewer and weaker. But our crime is base
and our infamy deeper IN the same proper
d tiOns.-H. H. ia the v. l. Independent.