The Sedalia weekly bazoo. [volume] (Sedalia, Mo.) 187?-1904, 1889-08-06

'Ouf aJlenIlOn was so iully taken
up with the little brute that we did
not appreciate how rapidly our enc
/ mics were gaining upon Us until they
were actually around Us. The scout
had dropped his rife, and the first
Comanche to arrive grabbed mine. and
as the others arrived they grouped
themselves about us, and gave express
sion to their evident enjoyment of the
scene in low chuckles and appreciative
grunts. Had the situation been less
serious should have laughed myself,
for we must have presented a truly
ludicrous appearance.
"Sly Fox gave Il sudden le12 off of
, the pony, but before he had gone two
steps was seized, and his knife wrested
from his hand. The Indians led us
captives back to their camp, and
gathering in the now scattered ponies,
started with us toward their village.
/ was allowed to ride my horse. but
Sly Fox had TO foot it, his right hand
tied to the saddle of one Of our cap
tors.
About noon the next day we neared
the village. Groups of bucks and
squaws came out TO meet us, and well
coined us most warmly, the former
with brutal congratulations for our
! captors, and the latter with graphic
, descriptions of the pleasure that they
would have in torturing us.
s.n,,r ha nd foot mana tod nj
the thong made fast 10 a wooden post
planted in the ground. and here We
were compelled TO lie in the hot sun,
without drop OF water, during that
long afternoon. After dusk we were
! both conducted to an open place near
the center of the village, where a
huge fire had been kindled. just
what the fates had in store for us we
could not tell: something horrible, We
knew.
"Just back of the fire a rude cross
had been erected, so that the rudy
glare fully illuminated its rough sur
face. The Usage was at once bound
to the cross, his arms extending along
the horizontal piece, the hands open
and the fingers extended.
1.-The whole population OF the vii
lage, including the women and chill
dren, had assembled to witness the
sport When all was ready twelve
bucks stepped forward, decked out in
savage ornaments. and with faces and
bodies painted brilliant colOrs. Ten
carried in their hands gayly orna-
mented tomahawks. while the two on
the end were armed with rifles. The
word was given. and one after another
the tomahawks were thrown with
! merciless accuracy, each one cutting
off finger or thumb. The two
bucks on the end then raised their
rifles, and simultaneously sent two
bullets through the already mutilated
hands.
During all this time no expression
of pain escaped the Usage. He re-
viled his tormentors in the most
scathing language. and when one
tomahawk carried away only half
a finger he tainted the marksman
with his lack OF skill; and after the
double shot he glanced at the remnant
of one of his bleeding hands, and, in a
Disguised tone, grunted.
c. Poor shot Not near the center.
An Usage womQn could do better
You can imagine my feelings DUR
ing this brutal exhibition. knowing as
did that / would be the next to suf-
fer. But the poor scouts torments
were not TO end here. The squa~s
now advanced and scared his wounds
with hot Goals to prevent his bleeding
to death. A great quantity of cedar
slivers were then produced and di-
vided into two piles, one for Sly Fox,
and one, as | shuddered to realize, for
me. The squaws went induStriously
to work sticking the slivers into the
scouts quivering flesh. he meantime
reviling them, and, if they came near
enough, tried to bite them. In fact,
ne did succeed, by sudden movement
of his head, in biting quite through an
old hag's ear.
w men the preparatory work was
finished. brand was brought, the
slivers lighted, and the whole party,
with the exception of the two bucks
guarding me, formed circle around
the blazing column. Sly Fox still
bore his horrible sufferings without
complaint, and to show his disregard
for the torture. sang weird Indian
song. But his voice grew weaker and
weaker; his horribly-burned head
dropped forward. and the brave
fellows sufferings were over. With
yells of eXultation the demons still
danced around him, until squaw
dashed bucket of water over him to
extinguish the fire which was injur-
ing the cross.