The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1884-05-22
An Episode of the Creek War of 1886.
Correspondence Courier Journal.

! An EPISODE OF Tile CTeek Naf vi 1O0O'
Correspondence Courier Journal.
CRAWFORD, MISS, May 9.-About the
last of June, during the Creek troubles
of 1886, John Landrum, yound man of
20, belonging to Capt. Frederick Cooks
company stationed at Girard, received
permission to 20 down the Chattahoochee
River to visit a sick friend at Fort Jones.
Landrum passed the first night at Fort
Mitchell. The next morning he crossed
the Chattahoochee to its eastern side and
resumed his journey. After two or three
hours travel he came across Capt. Jar
mans company, Of some so men, and as
they, too, were going down the river, be
fell into their ranks. AS noon ap-
preached, Capt. Jarman, with his com.
pany, turned off the road to the right,
and after miles march, came to the
site of house which had been burned
some weeks before by the hostile Greeks.
Adjoining the ruins of the house was a
small oat patch of about two acres. The
soldiers dismounted, tied their horses to
the palings which inclosed the house, cut
some oats and gave them to their horses
Notwithstanding the evidence before
them, no apprehension was felt in regard
to the Indians, as it was supposed they
were all on the western side of the Chat
tahoochee. After having fed their horses
all went leisurely down to creek about
600 wards to the south and there ate their
dinners. The place was primeval pine
forest, the bill gently sloping from the
creek up to the house. After dinner
some of the soldiers went bathing in the
creek; some busted themselves washing
their shirts, while others sat or lay on
the ground in the shade of the trees and
passed away the time in talking and
testing. A general abandon pervaded
the whole camp. Not for one moment
did single soldier there dream that
fierce Muscogee warriors lay crouching
within rifle shot all around, their eyes
cleaning with hate and vengeance, and
all awaiting the signal to begin their
bloody work. In a moment, like sud.
den peal of thunder, the fierce war.
whoop rose loud and clear, accompanied
by the fire of scores of rifles, and the
work of death began. Many of the
soldiers were slain outright, some on
land, some in the water and others
severely wounded, among these Capt.
Jarman. The survivors sprang to their
feet; the weapons of some were not in
reach, others seized such weapons as were
near at hand, and the general cry was to
run to their horses. Some of the men
lifted the wounded Captain from the
ground and attempted to bear him up
the hill. After going few yards they
placed him on the earth, so as to return
the Indians fire, when there came anoth.
er volley, and fatal bullet terminated
Capt. Jarmau's life. With the men yet
surviving it was race for life. The
Creeks were In front and rear and on
both sides of the way leading back to
their horses, and there was an unceasing
blaze of rifles. Nearly every fugitive
perished in running that bloody gauntlet,
a few only reaching their horses, among
these Landrum and Bob Billups. The
Creeks swarmed on every side, and
opened FIRE upon men and horses: The
soldiers were shot out of the saddle as
soon as mounted. Landrum and Billups,
side by side, reached their horses, and
sprang into their saddles. The moment
they wheeled off Billups fell, shot dead,
while another bullet brought Landrum's
horse to the ground. In the twinkling OF
an eye, he sprang upon the horse OF his
dead comrade, and, amid shower of
bullets, rode away at full speed toward
the east. a single glance suficed to
show that he was the sole survivor of the
men who had reached the horses. After
going about $50 yards he saw warrior,
directly in his course, take stand be.
hind tree. There was no way to avoid
him, so Landrum, urging his horse to
the top of his speed, bore straight
toward the tree. AS he came nearly
opposite, the Indian spraDg forth, leveled
his gun, but fortunately for Landrum he
pulled the trigger moment too soon.
The ball passed through the left sleeve
of Landrum's coat, slightly grazing his
arms The warrior gave vent to an ex-
clamation of disappointment as the
white man galloped by unscathed. Lam
drum was now clear of his foes. He
reached the road, turned bis horses head
northward, and slackened not bridle-
rein until he reached Columbus with the
tidinps of death and disaster. Some
hours after his arrival at Girard, that
night, another fugitive came in from the
field of the slain. This man, unlike the
Test, had not attempted to retreat to the
horses, but early in the action succeeded
in breaking through the Indian line on
the west, and thence made bis way
through the woods direct to Girard.
These two were, so far as is known, the
only survivors of the massacre. In
day or so afterward Landrum went down
on boat with burial party to the scene
of the massacre. The dead were found
strewn from the creek all along the slope
up to the house. They had not been
piundered or scalped. All around the
house lay the dead horses, every one, it
seems, having been killed except the one
on which Landrum made his escape. A
few Indians were supposed to have per-
ished in the fight. The soldiers dug
several pits, in which the dead were
buried. Such WAS the fate of Jarman's
company, q sacrifice to the vengeance OF
the fierce Muscogee.
Mr.. John Landrum, from whom the
writer received this episode of savage
warfare, is still living, and is a we'll
known and respected citizen of Noxuoee
County: Miss.