The Douglas independent. [volume] (Roseburg, Or.) 187?-1885, 1883-03-24
4 Western Adventure.

remember that the far-away reports
OF rifles reused us from sleep in the gray
OF dawn, and as we stood on our feet and
listened more intontly, we could now and
then catch the echoes of an Internal war
| whoop.
There were twenty of US, miners all !.
and we were in the foot hills of the
Rockies, not more than half mile from
the great Overland trail.
Boys. them sounds means an Iniun
attack and butchery," whispered our
leader as we listened; and without an
other word we picked up onr traps and
headed for the spot at half run.
Two immigrant families, farmers from
Indiana, who had started for the land of
gold and had separated from the train
from whim or accident, had encamped in
bit of green valley beside the trail.
There were thirteen souls of them, and
one might wonder If the bravest among
them did not shudder with fear as the
night crept down and the howl of the
wolf came from the rocky hills.
The men had seen their danger, and
both had set out to act as sentinels
through the long night. Hour after
hour had passed away without an alarm,
and just as dawn was breaking the mer-
ciless savages, creeping along like snakes,
had found one of the sentinels asleep.
A thrust from knife finished him so
quickly that he did not even throw up his
arms. Perhaps ne uttered single cry
or a groan and alarmed the other, for the
second was shot while running toward
the wagon.
Then, with both men dead. came the
rush upon the women and children.
Only fiends could do such work as was
done there. and when We came to look at
it the strongest men in the party grew
white and faint. Every head but one
was scalped, and no doubt the scalps
had been taken while the victims lived.
The bodies were hacked and gashed-
| hands and arms severed, brains beaten
out-children flung into the camp. fire,
and the spectacle was one to live in
| memory when all else had been forgot
| ten.
The fiends had finished their work of
butchery before we were near enough to
open fire, and it was poor consolation to
save the wagons. While all the bodies
were yet warm, life had departed from
each and every one. We were collecting
/ tfem in heap. to make ready for burial
Z.
SOW wow-ow-owl' came the sound, and
each man looked in the air above, and or
the ground below
'sThat ere noise proceeds from baby
or I'm not the father of thirteen children
back in Ohio!' exclaimed Jackson, as ht
| made for the nearest wagon.
He was right. Down beside chest
almost smothe1ed under bed quilts, wal
year-old boy baby, but alas! when b,
was handed out we found that he ha(
been fatally wounded by bullet. Jack
son sat down on the grass and chirped tt
him and rocked him to and fro, while th,
rest of US looked on in wonder ant
doubt, but in quarter of an hour til,
baby was dead. He had gone to sleel
the night before in his mothers arms,
battered old rattle box clutched fast il
his tiny hand, and he never let go of it
There it was in his hand as death stiffen
cd his fingers around it.
Well, there was a general breaking
down when we saw that the little ont
was going. He threw up his hands
gasped once or twice, and then settled
back with such smile on his face as ba
bies wear when their dreams are sweet
Old Jackson was crying like child, ant
some of the men hid from each othe
behind the wagons. 1t was long tim,
before the old man arose, laid the littl,
body among the prairie flowers, ant
huskily whispered:
well bury him by himself. One o
them bodies out there was his mother
but as we can't tell which from which
we'll make no mistake.
There was one large grave for the mu
tilated remains, and when the earth hat
been pressed down above them and rock
had been rolled down to prevent tn
work of the wolves, we went to the cen
ter of the dell and there, under lon,
pine we followed out resting place 70
baby. When all was ready, jackson
took the body up in his arms, droppe'
his hat on the grass, and look aroun'
, and said
Hats off, men ! We are nearer SEER
angels this mornin' than any of US vii
ever come agin =
Slowly-tenderly grievingly the littl
, form was laid away. and it was jackson
coat that came off his back to cover
, before the earth was filed in. Ever
single man in our band took the shove
by turns to fill in and round up the gray
and protect it. and before we went ava
: there was head-board to mark the spo
, and on the board knife had engrave
| the single word: oBARY /"