Milford chronicle., 1889-11-08
TWO SCOUTS REVENGED.


From Fort Abraham Lincoln to Fort Sully,
both on the upper Missouri river, is a bee
line of 100 miles, but the distance as a rider
has to make it is fully 200 1t is on record
that the first dispatch passing between those
posts was carried in my pocket, and
that at a time when hostile Indians al
most besieged both forts It was on this
ride, and about forty miles above Sully, that
a strange incident occurred. From Fort
Union to Yankton, a distance Of COO miles,
tho Missouri runs along chain Of noun
tains on tho east, while on the west side there
Is scarcely hill TO be found. While the
route down the east bank Is naturally more
difficult, it is also more sheltered, and that
was the route took on the occasion refer
red to. While there were plenty Of Indians
In the mountains and mountain valleys, there
were more Of them ON the plains, and my
journey was considered such forlorn hope
that wagers were made at Fort Lincoln that
would never be heard of again.
! had a mustang which had Travelled over
more Of the country than any man living,
and in all matters pertaining to frontier life
he was as well posted as four men out Of five.
Armed with a Winchester and revolver, and
rather proud 70 have been the one selected
out of five scouts TO make the trip, left Fort
Lincoln just at dusk one evening in July and
proceeded five miles down the river before
crossing over. A reconnaissance in force a
day or two before had driven the h0stiles
back, but / might count on finding them
within seven or eight miles. | had scarcely
forded the river, when a mule, which had
evidently been in hiding in n thicket near by,
came forward with a low whinny and ap-
I r-,f., e. A L..e -
spection proved that ne belonged to a scout
named Abner johnson, who had been dis
patched from Fort Lincoln to Fort Ransome,
$50 miles to the east, ten or twelve days be
fore The saddle was in place, blanket,
coffee pot and other articles secured as usual,
and the bride was intact was satisfied
that johnson had been shot from the saddle
Nothing could have induced tie mule to run
away from him while alive. The animal, as
figured it, was making for the fort and was
about fordng the stream when the noise Of
our passage alarmed him and he hid himself
to see whether it was friend or enemy.
sought to drive him into the water and on his
way, but he was determined to accompany
me- and, after finding him Obstinate slipped
the iron bit out of his mouth, that he might
snatch at the grass, and rode off, with him a
close follower.
Between the river and the foothills there
was q level varying in width from 50 to 500
feet. This was grown to grass. Along the
bank Of the stream, with hardly a break for
miles and miles, was a line of trees and
bushes The foothills were covered with scrub
growth, and between them and the base of
the range there was fair travelling and good
cover At every mile or two there were
breaks in the foothills by which one could
turn in from the level did not intend to
travel far that night, the main object being
to get beyond the hostile lines and take an
early start next morning. Up to the time Of
crossing the river my mustangs feet had been
.lufiled with oat sacks, so that he could leave
no trail There had been no rain for two or
three weeks, and no living Indian could have
traced me. Once across the stream removed
the bags. / should leave a plain trail, but
must thereafter trust to luck and my own
sagacity. 1t was a starlight light, and as ]
rode forward routed up deer or other
wild game every fifty rods This satisfied
me that no Indians were near, and contin-
ued my ride until midnight. By this time !
was at least twenty miles below the fort, and
went into camp to wait for daylight Go
ing into camp consisted Of unsaddling the two
animals, rolling myself in a blanket and
pumping down at the roots Of a cottonwood.
l was asleep in five minutes, and when
opened my eyes it was daylight.
The animals we're close at hand, and each
had his nose in the air and was scenting Ikea
dog. | was hardly on my feet before smelled
fire. There was light breeze blowing up the
valley, and the camp fire was below me, or in
the direction proposed to 60. moved into
the belt of timber and began to crawl forward
for an observation, and after going about
quarter Of a mile / saw the smoke waited
five minutes before advancing nearer, but
seeing no movement l crept forward. saw
the body of a white man lying on the ground |
under the trees. j knew it was by the dress, |
and now, thinking l had come upon gov
ernment scout or some white hunter, rose
up and advanced into the camp No man |
ever made a more appalling discovery. 1t |
was the body of Abner johnson, dead and |
horribly mutilated, and between him and the |
river, distance Of twenty feet, lay the dead |
bodies Of nine Indian warriors. While a |
glance sutiiced to provo that they were dead, |
it took me some time to satisfy myself as to |
the cause. ! finally found a stone bottle, |
holding about two quarts, which | remem- |
bered to have seen in Johnson's possession /
1t had contained whisky, but was now empty. |
The posture of the bodies was proof that |
every warrior had died of poison but l did |
not know until a month that johnson fixed |
up the desc before leaving Fort Ransome on
his return. He seemed to have a presentiment
that he would be captured, and he bought
two quarts Of whisky and dosed it with
strychnine, knowing that it would surely re-
venge him.
Johnson had evidently been driven out of
his direct course As l saw by scouting over
the ground he was well in the lend Of his nine
pursuers when a chance shot from a rife
struck him in the right hip and tumbled him
from his saddle His mule had gone on and
the Indians had gone into camp to torture
the wounded man. They had cut off his left
ear, gashed his cheeks severed three or four
toes, and inflicted other cruelties when the
poison which they had imbibed in the whisky
began to work. There must haYe beena high
old time among them for half an hour. during
which interval the prisoner probably bled TO
death. Johnson's eyes were wide open, and
If the eyes Of the dead can reflect anything
his surely reelected exrtation The ponies
Of the Indians were in srassy dell quarter
Of mile away ind 4 was hObbled. It
Don't experiment.