Mineral Point tribune. (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1869-1938, 1886-12-16
A MAN WHO WAS SCALPED,
He Says the Operation Caused Him Consider
able Pain - A Very Narrow Escape from
Death

He Says the Operation Caused Him Consider
able Pain - A Very Narrow Escape from
Death
San Francisco Chronicle.
1t has often been said that man
can not live after being scalped, writes a
Fort Keogh correspondent TO the Chron-
icle. One of the Grow indian scouts with
Custer before that brave officer met his
fate was caught by party of Sioux alone
on the prairie and scalped alive. His
enemies cut pear shaped piece out of
the crown of his head and left him with
ing in agony, supoosing he would of
course die. Notwithstanding all which he
endured, the redskin recovered, and at last
accounts was living with his people on
the Crow reservation and doing well.
There is an old hunter in western Mon
tana whose cabin is located on the east
ern slope of the Rocky mountains, who
had his hair raised some years ago by a
band of savages, and yet he lives and
thrives in most astonishing good health.
The old fellows name is Ganzio, and by
reason of his advanced years would, in
the natural course of events, have white
hair now, only that he has no hair at all
to speak of. Still. what little he has got
is whitened or gray, the rest of his head,
where the hair ought TO grow, being as
bald as a billiard ball. To be exact, Gan
zio did not lose his entire scalp, but only
portion of it, The probabilities are
that he could not have survived with the
loss of the whole top of his head. Some
few years ago, when Sitting Bull was
master of this country, Ganzio was the
guido of an emigrant party en- route to
Fort Laramie.
The story of that dangerous expedition
is an exceedingly interesting one, and
as related by himself it runs rs fol-
folws:
zone day we were coming into the val
ley of Hut creek, on our way to Fort
Laramie, when we thought we saw In.
dams coming down the creek to the right.
Instead of camping there, we thought 1t
safer to water our stock and go on to the
hills and make a dry camp in the
bushes. / had been sent on ahead up the
hill to reconnoiter, and took with me a
boy named Kountze, from Omaha, mere
ly for company. We sat down to wait
for the wagons, which were slowly coming
up out of the valley. When the wagons
reached us L started on alone through the
rocks and pine bushes to seek good
camp. A few hundred yards further on
looked down ravine to the right and
faw five mounted Indiana ride across the
valley. | started to go back to the train,
when at least dozen ran at me out of
bushes, and you bet ran and called for
help. In a minute more two or three of
them shot at me. | felt a sharp, sting
ing pain in my right leg, and another in
my left shoulder, and l fell. Then they
were upon me in minute, and one of
them put his knee on my back, while
another hit me with a club. Another
struck me with the butt of gun and
became partly unconscious. Still | had
reason and feeling enough left to know
was being scalped; for the hair held so
tightly and the pain was so awful that
could not die then even if / wanted to.
| felt hot singing pain all around the
top of my head-the hair being torn out
by the roots, so to speak-and it was too
much. | died, or at least thought | did,
but as it happened my scalp or at least a
part of it, was saved just as it was being
torn off. The boys at the wagon had
seen me running and saw the Indians and
came at run-thirteen of them, arriv-
ing just in time to prevent the red devils
finishing their work. The Indians, as
well as my friends, thought | was dead
but came to again, and what was left of
my scalp was laid back in its place. 1t
was only half torn off you see, and the
place is pretty well healed now"
"What did you do with yourself after
ward?"
"Why, ] hurried into Fort Laramie, got
the attention of a physician, and went
back to the states while; but the western
fever came strong upon me again and
returned to the mounta ms, where | have
been ever since.