Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1885-07-25

RADIO, New Mexico, Utah. Montana and
Idaho centered. Hundreds of wagons
loaded there for ali the mountain regions.
All the trappers and traders went there to
spend their money. There was never such
a collection of men who knew no law
but that of the gun. Human life was not
worth the snap of your finger. Money
flowed il streams There was atwo-legged
beast OF prey waiting for every man who
came in, and there was every device under
the sun to rope in the victim and rob him.
Every man was q walking arsenal. lie ,
killings averaged one day for a hundred
days, until the yigilantes hung dozen or
two. The first thing you would see in he
morning would be fellQv hanging from
q telegraph pole, That soon Quoted the
town, and stopped the fun.
Driving up to my office, one morning in
May, saw Charley Afuchmore, the master
of transportation at the front, running to-
ward me. As soon as he came within
speaking distance he said The.Indians
have attacked Sidney Station, killed several
people, wounded two conductors, and
scalped one of them. Get ready as soon as
YOU can and come to the station An en-
CINE and caboose will be ready for you l
was at the depot in five minutes with in
struments. dressings and medicines. The
engine and caboose were ready, and Weeks.
one of the best, and most daring engineers
that ever pulled a throttle, was on the
machine.
We had orders 10 run, regardless OF all
trains, as they had been de-tracked for
US. 1t was l04 miles 10 Sidney. The road
was new and the track poorly surfaced up,
and when Weeks got under way and
pulled her wide open," the little caboose
Jumped and rocked in way to make a
man wish he was anywhere else. We ran
the first twenty miles in twenty-five min
utes. Everybody on the line knew our
GRAND, and, as the two wounded conductors
were universal tavorites, when we shot past
the stations everybody cheered and waved
us on. When we stopped for water
climbed on 10 the engine-the caboose
Here Weeks comforted me by saying
that in all probability we should find the
trestle bridges, of which there were great
numbers, burned by the Indians, and that
we should undoubtedly get a tumble that
would end our little earthly game, but we
were more fortunate and reached Sidney
safely in one hour and fity-siX minutes
running time. There we found everything
in the widest alarm.
1t seems the Indians had concluded that
they might make raid for stock and scalps
while the Commissioners were coming.
They made their way south, and from the
high bluff overlooking the railroad they
saw band of horses grazing in the valley.
\ deep ravine led from this bluff down into
the valley. Once there it would be easy to
stampede the horses and run them off
Just at the mouth Of this ravine was little
brick round-house and machine shop,
which could not be seen from the bluff
where the Indians had stood They came
n0iSelessly down, and rode unawares right
by the doors OF this shop. The maahinists
were armed, and when the cry OF In
dians." was made they seized their arms
and fired but the redskins by that time
were lying Hat on their horses, and riding
obhquely to the fire, and the machinista
were excited, so that not an Indian was hit.
They rode swiftly down the valley TO-
ward the creek, where two young con-
ductors, " Tommy" and wills" were sit
ting on the bank fishing When they
heard the firing they raised up to see what
Il was all about. In a moment the Indians
were upon them, and riding round and
round them. They shot them with arrows
till they fell, and then proceeded to scalp
poor Tommy lie had fallen on his
side III a fainting condition. with his head
resting on his hand The Indian seized
the hair on the front of the head, and with
big hunting knife cut the scalp from 4
point to the right of the crown obliquely
toward the leittemple.
Wills had q small pistol, known then
as q " Davidson It was unlcaded, but
just as dangerous Is # loaded. When the
Indians went to take his scalp he presented
his pistol, which kept them AZ a distance.
There was no time for the Indians TO waste,
as the machine-shop men were coming, so
the Indian who by savage rules was en-
titled to wills scalp, went back TO
Tommy, who by this time had fallen on
his face, and took another scalp from the
back of his head, and then the whole band
rode of.
They went up the railroad and pitched
into gang of section men. and killed one
poor fellow and wounded several more.
At the station l found everybody, men.
women and children, under arms. The
wounded men were lying on the tables in
dining-roOm at the eating-hOuse, ana it
was a bloody-looking place. The section
man was dead, with thirty-three arrows III
his body
Ny story is, however, about the scalped
conductor. He was mere boy. i few
months before he was in q good home on
the banks Of the peaceful Allegheny, but
the spirit Of unrest took hold Of him. He
wanted to 90 West 4 good mother
pleaded with him to stay. She could not
bear to see her delicate boy go from the
hearthstone 50 far away into a wild, IN
known country. He was the one child
that when 4 baby had called for all her
mothcrly care. He had never seemed
stout, and all the wealth Of her mothers
heart had gone out to him on that account
She had no fears for the others they were
strong and sturdy fellows but little Tommy
was always q cause of anxiety. But his
enthusiasm would brook no denial. The
impulse of his race for the western horizon
was 50 strong that he Oyercane all OppOSi-
ton, and with & mothers warm kiss and
earnest blessing he went out 70 try his for
tune in the shadow Of the great mountains
He came to Omaha aud found work on the
great transcOntinentai line. BY efficient
service he was soon a conductor at the
front
I found him lying on q dining-table
covered with blood. He had been shot
with eight arrows, one of which went
through the lower portion Of the right lung
The others had made severe wounds, but
had not penetrated the cavities OF the body.
A strip Of his scalp, about four inches in
width, from the neck To the forehead, had
been cut off II had been done in a very
hurried, bungling manner.
| shall never forget with what an anxious
expression he watched me as ! examined
him. When that was done hes said We'll.
doctor, have l got to die? | am not afraid,
but if | must die ! want to know it, I
want 10 send word TO my mother From
the great loss of blood and the nervous
shock he had no pulse.
1t was a hundred 10 one that he would
never rally. To have put him face to face
with death would have destroyed that one
chance. Looking him steadily in the eye,
I assured him that he was,aIl right, and
that he could go home to his mother within
| six weeks. Every means known 10 surgery
was used to produce reaction, and in six or
| eight hours the hearts action increased so
as to make the pulse at the wrist percepti-
bic and by daylight the first stage Of the
battle for his lie had been won.
The next day, in an extra car hooked on
| to the regular train, We went TO Cheyenne
On that train, in Pullman car, we're Gen
erals Sherman Sheridan, Augur, Harvey,
! Terry and the Commissioner of Indian At