Herald and news. [volume] (West Randolph, Vt.) 1878-1943, 1889-02-21
when the wind suddenly shifted to the

when the wind suddenly shifted to the
north and blew very hard.
"We now discovered orr dangerous
situation should the Indians succeed
in putting fire to the small spot which
we occupied, and kept strict watch all
around. The two servant boys were
employed in scraping away dry grass
and leaves from around the baggage,
and pulling up rocks and placing them
around the wounded men. The point
from which the wind blew being favora-
bic to fire our position, one OF the In
dams succeeded in crawling down the
creek and putting fire to the grass which
had not been burned, but before he
could retreat back to his party was killed
by Robert Armstrong.
cat this time we saw no hope of es-
cape, as the fire was coming down rap
idly before the wind, flaming ten feet
high and directly for the spot we occu-
pied. What was to be donel We must
either be burned alive or driven into the
prairie among the savages. This en-
couraged the Indians, and to make it
more awful their shouts and yells rent
the air-they at the same time firing
upon us about twenty shots a minute.
AS soon as the smoke hid us from their
view we collected together and held q
consultation as to what was to be done.
Our first impression was that they might
charge us under cover of the smoke, as
We could make but one effectual fire.
The sparks were flying about SO thiclSly
that no man could open his powder horn
without running the risk of being blown
up. However, we finally came to the
determination had they charged, to give
them one fire, place our backs together,
draw our knives and fight them as long
as any one of us was left alive. The
question was should they not charge
and we retain our position we must be
burned up. 1t was then decided that
each man should take care of himself as
best he could until the fire arrived at the
ring around our baggage and wounded
men, and there it would DO smothered
with buffalo robes, bearskins, deer skins
and blankets, which, after great deal
of exertion, we succeeded in doing.
"Our thicket being so much burned
and scorched that it afforded little or
shelter, We all got into the ring that was
made around our wounded men and bag
gage, and commence building our
breast work higher with the Dose rocks
from the inside and dirt dug up with
our knives? During this last fire the In
dams had succeeded in removing all
their killed and wounded which lay near
us. 1t was now shutdown, and we had
been warmly engaged with the Indians
since sunrise, and they seeing us still
alive and ready to fight, drew off at a
distance of 800 yards, and encamped for
the night with their dead and wounded.
sour party now commenced to work
in raising our fortification, and succeed
ed in getting it breast high by 10 p. IN.
We now filled our vessels and skins with
water, expecting another attack next
morning. We could distinctly hear the
Ildians nearly all night crying over their
dead, which is their custom, and at day
light they shot q wounded chief-it
being also custom to shoot any of their
tribe that are MORALLY wounded. They
after that set out with their dead and
wounded to q mountain about mile
distant, where they deposited them in
cave in the side of it. AT eight in the
morning two Of our party went out from
the fertilization to the encampment |
where the Indians had lain the night |
previous and counted forty EIGHT bloody
spots on the grass where the dead and
wounded had been lying.
Grinding ourselves much cut up
having one man killed and three wound
ed, five horses killed and three wounded
we recommended strengthening our
little fort and continued our labors until !
] p. M, when the arrival Of thiiteen In
dams drew us into it again. As soon as
thev discovered that we were still there,
and ready for action and well fortified,
they put of. We after that remained
in our fort eight days" The company
then set out for San Antonio, where they
arrived safely with their wounded and
horses in twelve days. Christian AdUo-
cate.