Little Falls transcript. [volume] (Little Falls, Morrison County, Minn.) 1876-1894, 1884-06-13
THE CHARGE OF TE., HOUNDS.
An Incident Of the Oreak War.

the British agents had been trying to
persuade the Creeks-A powerful ma
tion Of half civilized but very war-like
Indians who lived in the Alabalna---to
Join in the war and destroy the white
settlements in the southwest.
For some time the Creeks hessitated,
and it was uncertain what they would
do. But during the summer Of 1918
they broke out in hostility, and on the
30th of August, their great leader,
Weathersford, Or the Red Eagle, as
they called him, stormed Fort Minis,
the strongest fort in the southwest. He
took the fort by surprise, with, a thou
sand warriors behind him, and after
FIVE hours Of terrible fighting destroyed
it, killing about five hundred men,
women and children.
This was the news that startled the
settlers in the region where the Alaba
ma and Tombigbee rivers come together.
1t was certain, after such massacre as
that, that the Indians meant to destroy
the settlements, and kill all the white
people without mercy.
In order to protect themselves and
their families. the settlers built rude
forts by setting ti1nbers endwise in the
ground, and the people hurried to these
places for safety Leaving their homes
to be burned, their crops to be destroyed
and their cattle to be killed or carried
Oft by the Indians, the settlers hastily
got together what food they could, aud
took their families into the nearest
forts
One Of the smallest Of these stockade
forts was called Sinquetiela. It stood
in what is now called Clarke County,
Ala, and, as that region was very thin
ly settled, there were not enough men
to make strong force for the defence
Of the fort. But the brave farmers and
hunters tho't they could hold the place,
and so they took their families there as
quickly as they could.
Two families, numbering seventeen
persons, found it was not safe to go to
Sinquefeld on the End Of September,
and so, as they were pretty sure that
there we're no Indians in their neighbour
hood, they made up their minds to stay
one more ri ght at a house Il few miles
from the fort. That same night they
were attacked, and all but five Of them
were killed. Those who got away car
ried the news OF what had happened to
the fort, and d party was sent out to
bring in the bodies.
The next day Ill the peopleln Fort
Sinqueholl went TO bury their dead
friends in a valley at somal title distance
from the fort, and strange as it may
seem they took no arms with them. Be
lievilg that there were no Indians near
the place t'ley left the gates Of the
without their guns.
As IL matter OF TACT there was a large
body OF Indians not only very near them
but actually looking Mt them all the
time. The celebrated Prophet Francis
was in command, and in his sly way he
kept as rear the fort IS possible to look
for q good chance to attack it. Making
his men lie down and crawl like snakes.
he had reached % point only a few hun
dred wards from tho stockade without
alarming the people; and now while
they stood around the graves OF their
friends without arms to defend them
selves with, a host of their savage enc
mics lay locking at them from the grass
and bushes on the hill.
AS soon as lie SOW the right moment
had come, Francis had sprung up with
% savage war-cry and at the head Of his
warriors made dash Tor the gates. He
had seen tuat the men outside were I'M
armed and his plan was to get to the
gates before they could reach them and
thus get all the people of the place at
his mercy in all open field and without
arms to fight with.
The fort people were quick to see
what his purpose was, and the men
hurried forward with al their might.
hoping to reach tho fort before the
savages could get there BY running
at the top Of their speed they did this,
aud closed the gates in time to keep the
Indians ont. But to their horror they
then saw that their wives and children
were shut out too. Unable to run as
fast as the men, they had fallen behind,
and now the Indians were between
them and the gates
Seeing that he lad missed his chance
Of getting possession of the fort, Fran
els turned upon the women and chill
dreu with savage delight in the thought
Of butchering these helpless creatures
in the sight of their husbands, fathers
and brothers.
It was moment of terror. There
were not half enough white men in the
fort to master SO large force OF Indians
and if there had been it was easy to see
that by the time they could get their RI
hes and go to the rescue it would be too
late.
At that moment the hero OF this bit
of history came upon the scene. This
was a young man named Isaac Haden.
He was II notable huntsman: who kept
famous pack OF hounds fierce brutes,
thoroughly trained to run down and
seize any living thing that their master
chose to chase. The young man had
been out in search of stray cattle, and
Just at the moment when matters were
at their worst he rode up to the fort in
company with his sixty dogs. -
Isaac Haden had a cool head and q
very daring spirit. He was in the habit
Of taking in situations at a glance, de-
Gliding quickly what was to be done,
and then doing it at any risk that might
be necessary. As soon as he saw how
the men and women were placed he
cried out to his dogs, and at the head of
his believing pack. charged upon the
flank Of the Indians. The dogs did the
work with a spirit equal to the masters.