The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1891-02-12
STORY OF THE INDIANS.
VIOLATION OF A FLAG OF TRUCE
CHARGED.


dren Declared lnexcusable-A Claim
That Boys Were Shot After Being
Induced to Come From Thsir Hid
ing Places.
WASHINGTON. Feb. 1.-THE Sioux Iu-
dian conference was concluded to-day and
the Indians will tomorrow or Friday start
for home, going by the way of Philadelphia
and Carlisle. The feature of to-day's meet
ing was the story of fight at Wounded Knee,
which was told by Turning Hawk and
American Horse. In beginning his story
Turning Hawk described in pic
turesque language how "a certain
falsehood" (Messiah craze and ghost dance,
came to his agency from the west, and how,
after time, hearing of the approach of
soldiers and frightened because of it, the
Indians fed into the Bad Lands, and how
they were induced to return by their
friends. Turning Hawk then continued:
when our people who had been frightened
away were returning to Pine Ridge, and
when they had almost reached the agency,
they were met by soldiers and surrounded
and finally taken to Wounded Kuee creek
and their guns were demanded, and
when they had delivered them
up the men were separated from
their families, from their tepees and taken
to certain a spot, their guns having been
given up. When the guns were thus taken
and the men thus separated, there was a
crazy man, a young man of very bad infiu-
ence, and in fact moody among the bunch
Of Indians, who fired his gun, aud of course
the firing OF the gun must have been the
breaking of a military rule of some sort,
because Immediately the soldiers returned
the fire and an indiscriminate killing fol-
lowed.n
THE FIRST MAN KILLED.
The commissioner here interrupted to
ask: 'Did the man fire at the soldiers, OF
did he simply shoot in the airn
Spotted Horse-He shot an officer In the
army. The first shot killed this officer. /
was voluntarily q scout at that encounter,
and l had just asserted that | saw exactly
what was done, and that was what /
noticed-that the first shot killed an officer.
The Commissioner-Did the soldiers re-
turn tue fire Immediately, or did the In
dians keep up their flrings
Spotted Horse-As soon as the first shot
was fired the Indians Immediately began
drawing their knives, and they were ex-
horted from all sides TO desist, but this was
not obeyed; consequently the firing began
Immediately on the part of the soldiers.
ALL IN THE BUNCH KILLED.
Turning Hawk-All the men who were In
the bunch were killed right there, aud those
who escaped that first fire got into the
ravine, and as they went up the ravine for
long distance. they were pursued on all
sides by the soldiers and shot down, as the
dead bodies showed efterward.
The Ccmmissoner-In this fight did the
women take any partl
Turning Hawk-They had no firearms to
fight with.
The Commissioner-Th statement has
been made in the public press that women
fought with butcher knives, and this has
been given as the reason why the women
were shot.
Turning Hawk-When the men were
separated and were punched together at
given place Of course only men were there.
| The women were at different place en-
tirely, some distance off.
The Commissioner-W it impossible for
a soldier to tell the difference between an
Indian man and an Indian womana The
statement has been made in the public press
that the soldiers shot the women because
they were dressed in such way that they
could not tell they were mon.
SHOULD BE EASILY SEEN.
| Turning Hawk-I think man would be
very blind IL he could not tell the difference
between man and woman. 1 have told
n
different place from that at which tho men
were stationed, and when the firing began
those Of the men who escaped the first
onslaught went in one direction up the
| ravine, and the women, who were punched
| together at another place, went entirely In
different direction through an open field,
and the women Jared the same fate as the
men who went up the deep ravine.
The Commissioner Ito the interpreter)-
hat aapff fhaf + ka
If he (Turning Hawk makes any statement
which they do not accept that they will
| correct it. / want to get at the truth.
FLAG OF TRUCE VIOLATED.
American Horse--The men were separated,
as has already been said, from the women,
and they were surrounded.by the soldiers,
and then came the next village of Indians,
and that was entirely surrounded by SOL
diers also. When the firing began, Of
course the people who were standing imme-
diately around the young man who fred
gether, aud then they turned
their guns, Hotchkiss guns, etc.,
upon the women who were in the lodges
standing there under the flag of truce, and,
of course, as soon as they were fired upon
they fed, the men fleeing In one direction
and the women running in two different
directions. So that there were three gen
eral directions In which they took fight.
THE STATEMENT REAFFIRMED.
The Commissioner-Doy you mean to say
there was white flag in sight over the
women when they we're fired uponi
American Horse-Yes, sir; they were
fired right upon, and there was woman
with her infant in her arms who
was killed as she almost touched
the flag of truce, and woman and
children, of course, were strewn all along
the circular village until they were dis
patched. Right near the flag Of truce
another was shot down with her infant.
The child, not knowing that its mother
was dead, was still nursing, and that
was especially very sad sight.
The women, as they were fleeing with their
babes on their backs, were killed together,
shot right through, and women who were
very heavy with child were also killed. All
the Indians fled ia the three directions, and
after most of them had been killed the cry
was made that all those who we're
not killed or wounded come forth and they
would be safe, and the little boys who were
not wounded came out Of their places of
refuge, and as soon as they came in sight a
number of soldiers surrounded them and
butchered them there.
ONLY TIE TRUTH WANTED.
The commissioner Ito the interpreter) -
wish you would say to him that these are
very serious charges to make against the
United States army. / do not want any
statements made that are not absolutely
L Uap har ha4