River Falls journal. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1872-2019, 1886-12-09


unconscious, and threw him on his
mothers insensible body. The Tories
them tied rope around Reynold sneck
and hanged him up TO II beam. Phebe
Reynolds was less than II years old.
but she fought this attempt of the gang
10 murder her father with such fury
that it was necessary for two of the
men TO hold her before it could be exc
cuted. Surprising that they had ac-
complished the death of Reynolds, the
Tories proceeded TO plumber the house
They had no sooner left the room than
Phebe cut the rope by which her father
was suspended, removed the moose
from his neck and carried him to
bed. She had succeeded in restoring
him to consciousness, when of one the
gang reentered the apartment and
discovered what she had done. He
summoned the others. Phebe took her
position in front of the bed. brandished
her knife, and declared she would kill
the first one who attempted to touch
her father. Benjamin Kelley, the lead
er of the gang, shouted:
'Get away, YOU little rebel--,or I'll
iuii NY eNOlu YOU.
The undaunted girl refused to move.
You may kill me, she replied, for
if you kill my father | do not want to
liver
Kelley made liInge at her with his
sword. She knocked it from his hand,
and in trying to catch il before it fell
to the ground he received a wound
from it on the under part of the wrist
from which the blood flowed freely,
one of the others stabbed Phebe with
his sword in the breast, and, seeing
that she would be overpowered by the
Tories, she threw herself upon her
fathers body on the bed, and clasped
her arms about him in order to shield
him from the weapons of his assailants.
While one of the gang prOdded the
girls arm with his sword, the tiend
Kelley tore her clothing from her, and
dashed her bare body with the rope
with which they had hanged her father
In relating the brutal details of this
assault, evCA seventy years afterward,
Phebe never tt, .npted to repress her
anger and Indignation at the memory
of it. During all the severe punish
ment she received at the hands of the
Tories, she never uttered Il moan
or gave any sign of the pain they
inflicted.
The blood ran down her arms from
the wounds made by the sword, and
the rope cut great gashes in her flesh,
the sears from which she carried to her
grave. Beingunable to force the brave
girl from the protection of her helpless
father by this means, the Tories re-
moved her by main force, and hurled
her. weak from her superhuman efforts,
into ii far corner of the room. Her
mother had regained consciousness
by this time, and was crouching in
corner, holding little Caleb, whado
also revived, in her arms. The
assasins again hanged Reynolds from
the beam in sight of the moaning
woman and her two children, and, be-
lieving that Phebe was past rendering
any further aid TO him, proceeded to
the completion of their schemes of
| plundering They had miscalculated
the courage andvitality of the girl how
ever, and the last Tory was barely ont
Of the room before Phebe had once
more cut her father down. She was at
| tempting to remove him to another
room when he fell heavily to the floor,
Phebe ut once threw herself on his
! body and the Tories found them ming
| ling their blood together, the father APP
parently dead, and the girl shielding
| his body with hers. The murderers
| thrust their knives. and swords several
| times into the body of their PROSTATE
/ victim, and twice Phebe was stabbed in
her efforts to protect her father. The
Tories finally dragged her from her
! father and threw him into a chest,
| shutting the lid down upC him. They
| then departed with what booty they
! had obtained first rolling a large stone
tag&inst the door, which opened out
ward to prevent 1t being opened. As
soon as the murderous gang was out of
| the house Phebe, herself covered with
! blood from her wounds. FASTENED to re-
move her fathers body from the chest,
! hopeful that be was still alive, tier
mother was wandering from room to
room, IL Daning and weeping. The
4 bound boy stood as immovable rs stone
| against the wall where Edward Robin
/ had placed him with the terrible threat
half an hour before. He was still afraid
| to stir Phebe's mother rendered n
little aid in removing her husband from
/ the trunk. lie was stiff and pallid, and
apparently dead,
| Phebe got him on the bed and was
ovcrjoyed to hear him grOan. She pri-
/ ed his Jaws open with pewter spoon
a rude tablespoon. still in the family,
with the teeth marks of Henry Reynolds
upon its handle-and poured few
drops of water in his mouth. He be-
1 Gan to revive, and while Phcbe was
4 putting forth every effort to stanch
/ his wounds and aid his restoration, her
mother. who had been aimleSsly wan
/ tcrino about tho house, tOttpred Into
the room, and, dropping TO the floor,
covered her eyes with her hands and
Historically exclaimed:
"Oh, Pheb.. Phcbe The house is on
| fire, 1t is Oh fire in three places, and
| can't pm, it out if it burns down over
our heasls.'
The bound boy still stood motiOnless
by the v-all. rs if he were nailed to the
spot, al Il could not be induced to move.
Phebc was compelled to leave her faith
or, rs lc volGmes of smoke that began
to come from ;in adjoining roc 4 warn
ed her or another impending danger.
1 The Tories had set fire TO some flax
and to two straw beds. Phcbe eXtin-
/ guished the fire and then tried TO
make the bound boy run and alarm the
neighbors, but he would not stir. BY
persistent effort the brave girl, herself
covered with wounds, and her clothing
saturated with blood, brought her
1 father back to consciousness, and then,
/ consigning him to the care of her
mother. who had grown more composed,
she started out to give the alarm. In
/ her relation of the terrible experiences
Of that night 70 her children and grand
children, more than half century
afterward, she dwelt With particular
pride on the fact that she noted the
growing of the cocks a She started
after help. and said to herself. 1T
must be nearly morning. This, she
thought. indicated how cool and col
1 lected she was after the frightful scene
she had just witnessed. She alarmed
the neighbors, and doctor was
| summoned nom Goshen. A party
-tou.ol g., ,,,,rs,,;t &c tho Tories If