Wichita eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1886-1890, 1889-08-30
THE RED MANS REVENGE.
AN ACCOUNT OF TWO -MAssAcRES
IN WESTERN COLORADO.

Sixteen Indians Killed for Stealing Cattle.
| A Survivor Tells the Story to the Tribe
| and It Takes an Awful Revenge-A
| Frightened Census Taker.
| In 1875 was appointed census enumerator
of Dolores county, Colorado. ! started from
Rico abont the 18th Of June for the purpose
Of enumerating the settlers outside of the
| town. Iarrivei at ThompsonS milk ranch,
on Beaver creek Climbing up a steep
mountain side, it svas late in the afternoon
| when l halted my waaEy horse at the ranch,
which found to consist Of a log cabin, a milk
house, a corral and stable Strange as it
seemed to me, the door Of the cabin was nailed
up, and pigs, dogs and chickens roalned about
and approached me as If glad of human com
| pany. The usual utensils and fixtures of a
| ranch, such as wagons and other appliances,
| stood about, but no human being was to he
seen. The day being exceedingly hot, ! sat
in the door step, wondering when my in
tended host would appear. l saw number
of cattle, mile or two of, and supposed that
the inhabitants of the ranch were there brand
ing or rounding up their stock for milking
purposes
While waiting noticed some half dozen
buzzards circling slowly above some tall
trees couple hundred yards from the house,
darling earthward and then reanpearing
above, only to repeat the same Inaneuver
again. Ny prairie experience ledme to be-
ieVe that some carrion' was the objective
point beneath those trees, so when the sun
was finally going down and no one,had yet
Ia - 1OnA$ r,4%
catastrophe might have occurreds and, con-
Meeting the buzsards with this thought, l
mounted my horse and rode over to the trees,
and, approaching them, found the bodies Of
sixteen Indians, one Of which was that of a
woman. Examined them, and found that
they had been shot.
l did not wonder at the nailed up ranch
door, nor did I expect any one to appear and
offer me entertainment. The ranchman must
have removed himself and family to some
place Of safety in fear OF retaliatory meas
ures by the4Indians. therefore pulled down
the door and examined the interior. l found
some dry biscuits, coffee and coffee pot and
sheet iron stove; an empty bedstead stood in
one corner, on which were piled a number OF
magazines, while skins covered the floor OF
course, my first thought was for the inner
man, and I sailed forth to the chicken house
to look for eggs I found an abundant sup
ply. Returning to the house, I started fire
and became cook.
In leaving the house to replenish the fire
happened to glance up to the roof of the
house and, to my dismay, discovered the
smoke passing through a stovepipe project
ing from the roof which sent the smoke in
a straight line a hundred feet o.. more up in
the air. AS such volume of smoke is used
by some Of the Plain Indians as a signal to
rendezvous, was apprehensive that this
smoke would call to the ranch any band of
Indians which might be prowhng in that
country Remember, I knew of no Indian
disturbances, but still found so many dead
Indians. However, after supper l found
more clear spot in the sage brush for my
horse slowed my saddle in another place
then retired to the house, lit candle, and
examined the magazines. / soon extinguished
the light and went to sleep on the floor.
Awakened suddenly by some slight noise, ]
had some serious reflections. | thought or
home and friends and of the likelihood of my
being scalped in the night. had no weap-
ons, and therefore could have offered but
slight resistance to any ones attack. Re
lighting the candle, l inscribed the follow
ing in my note book, with my name, occu-
patton and date:
Il am tonight at Thompson's milk ranch.
Have discovered some dead Indians near
here May be murdered by any live one
who may be in the vicinity. Whoever finds
this viii please send it to given address of
brother in New York city"
THE TERRIBLE SEQUEL.
Stepping to the door threw this book far
out into the brush, and a fine time | had the
next morning, On awakening, to find it.
Holding council Of war with myself in the
morning, changed my course and struck
out for the nearest large settlement, which 1
presumed to be some forty miles distant,
called the Big Bend of the Dolores, which is
almost at the head of the famous Montezuma
valley There being no road, l Travelled
over woods and mountains, and after dark
arrived at my destination. l found the
people of the settlement in state of great
alarm On the previous night the house of
Mr.. Genthner had been attacked by a band
of Indians himself killed. his wife shot, and
his house burned. 1t was horrible story
The man had discovered his house on fire
while in the bed, had seized a couple OF pals
and run to the well. In returning he was
shot.
His wife in her night robe, hearing his
cries and seeing him fall, ran to his assist
ance. He begged her TO gather the children
and fee and leave him to his fate. While
handing him a drink of water, loath to leave
him, she herself was shot, receiving a terrible
wound through the right shoulder. Terrified,
she fed to the house, aroused her three chill
dren and ran out into the road, Justify
screaming for help Running into an arroyo
IA gulch), and there hiding III the sage brush
with her small children about her, the poor
woman sat all night partly nude, shiyering
with cold and fevered from her wound until /
found on the following morning by some /
neighbors. All this happened some eight :
miles from the Big Bend. A physician who /
had been summoned from Fenango to attend /
the woman pressed me into service, and to-
gether we dressed the wound, and, at the |
doctors suggestion, took her ante-mertem I
statement. 1t was easy for me to account /
for this outrage; it was but retaliation for |
the killing of those who We're lying at Beaver |
creek /
subsequently being commissioned by the |
governor to investigate this matter, found /
that thirty-six Indians had camped al Beaver /
creek for the ostensible purpose Of killing /
deer. They were accused BY the cattlemen !
of killing cattle and warned 70 leave 1t is +
needless TO say they did not leave. They were
again warned 70 leave within twenty-four 1
hours, and at the expiration, being still |
there, they were fired into, with the result as I
later scertained.
The few survivors one Of whom was a 1
sQuaw, made their way 10 the reservation,
and there met a party OF their tribe and re- I