Essex County herald. [volume] (Guildhall, Vt.) 1873-1964, 1884-04-25
A PE2ILOUS ADVENTURE.

The kindness of kinsman of the late
Howard Schuyler has furnished us with
the following interesting story of the
perils of engineering life on the PLAINS
only fifteen years ago:
In recent letter from - he informs
me your request that should write out
in detail the story of Howard s miraculous
escape from the Indians as l had mar
rated it to you. If it is matter of in
terest to you, it will certainly be
pleasure to me so to do.
In the month of June, 1869, when
the grass and flowers on the plains of
Kansas and Colorado were nearly knee
high, the result of unusually abundant
rains which left clear pools of water in
all the little arroyos, corps of Kansas
Pacific engineers, under the leadership of
Howard Schuyler, were engaged in
making certain preliminary surveysin the
vicinity of the terminal town of Phil
Sheridan, near the border line of the two
States They had been out on trip of
several months in the direction of Den
yer, and had returned to the end of the
track to begin the definite location,
which we afterward carried through to
Denver. At this time I had been with
the party some two or three months, tax.
ing my novitiate in engineering, and was
occupying the position of rodman. Prior
to commencing the location, we were
running some rapid trial lines north of
Sheridan, and by the June 10 were
some fifteen or twenty miles out in roll
| lnor NOI1ntry bDra hn hnoIo oc
Smoky Hill and Republican Forks of the
Kansas river interlock. On the evening
before our camp had been brought up to
the end of our work, and we started out
bright and early on this memorable Sat
urday morning, so that by 10 o'clock we
were several miles away from camp. In
oil our work we had been accompanied
by an escort of fifteen infantry soldiers,
under the charge of lieutenant acting
in the capacity of a ampguard, who,
while they were very useful in guarding
our base of supplies, were of no protec-
tion to us in the field. Our party num-
bered thirteen all told, two of whom re-
mained in camp as cook and teamster.
The working party was therefore reduced
to eleven, including Howard, whose Gus
tom it was to ride several miles ahead,
looking out the line and indicating it
by building sod mounds two or three
feet high with shovel. We followed
from one mound to the next, measuring
angles and distances and leveling the
ground. Our progress was as rapid al
most as a man would walk at moderate
pace, and we were exceedingly vulnera-
BILE to attack, as we were all separate,
strung out over distance of mile OF
more, while Howard was always out OF
sight, and several miles ahead, but
having been out several months
without seeing any Indian signs
we had no suspicion of danger and did not
dream there was an Indian in the coun.
try We afterward knew that they had
been watching us some days and were
simply waiting for the most favorable
opportunity to make the attack, having
evidently planned to kill Howard first,
and then come back along the line pick.
ing off the rest of the party one by one
In pursuance of this plan they lay il
wait until they had cornered him in {
trap when they fred shot, stripping hi'
horse in the hip; and looking around ht
saw long line of the red painted devil,
on three sides of him, while on the
fourth, in the direction of his party
was half mile or more of broker
ground, cut up by deep, narrow
ravmes. 1t took but a moment to decide
his line of action. Putting spurs to hi
! horse he turned to the only loophole o
: escape and, to the surprise of the In
dians, went leaping over the ravines, on
after the other, at the risk of his life, bu
with the assurance that they could no
. follow him, as none Of their ponies wer