St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1891-02-12
BAD LANDS BLUNDER.
Serious Charges Made Against
the Seventh United States
Cavalry.
Non-Combatant Squaws, Girls
and Papooses Indiscrim-
inately Killed.
American Horse and Turning
Hawk Discourse Upon
Wounded Knee.
st. Paul'S Public Building May
Get 100000 to Use
Immediately.


Indian conference was concluded to-day
and the Indians will tomorrow or
Friday start for home. going by way of
Philadelphia and Carlisle. The feature
of tO-day's meeting was the story of the
fight at Wounded Knee, which was told
by Turning Hawk and American Horse.
Turning Hawk said: "When our peo-
pie who had been frightened away
were returning to Pine Ridge,a when
they had almost reached the agency,
they were met by the soldiers and sur
rounded and finally taken TO the
Wounded Knee creek. and there, at a
given time. their guns were de-
manded, and when they had
delivered them up, the men
were separated from their families,
from their tepees, and taken TO GER
tain 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
influence, and in fact nobody. among
the bunch of Indians fired his gun, and
of course the firing of gnn must have
been the breaking of military rule of
some sort, because Immediately the SOL
diers returned the fire, and the indis-
criminate killing followed" The COM
missioner of Indian affairs here inter-
rupted to ask:
did the man fire at the soldiers. or did he
simply shoot in the air?''
Spotted Horse-He shot an officer in the
army; the nrst shot killed the officer.
Commssioner-Did the soldiers return the
fire Immediately or did the Indians keep up
their firing?
was fired the Indians Immediately began
drawing their knives, and they were eXhort-
ed from all sides to desst but this was not
obeyed; consequently the firing began imme-
diately on the part of the soldiers
Turning Hawk-All the men who were ina
bunch were killed right there, and those who
escaped that first fire got INTO the ravlne, and
as they went along up the ravine for a long
distance they were pursued on all sides by
the soldiers and Shot down, as the dead
bodies showed afterwards.
Commissioner-In this fight did the women
take any part?
Turning Hawk-They had no firearms to
fight with. The women were standing off at
were stationed, and when the firing began
those of the men who escaped the first on
slaught went in one direction up the ray1ne,
and then the women who were punched TO-
different direction through an open field
and the women shared the same fate as the
men who went up the deep raylne.
American Horse-The men were separated
as has already been said, from the women,
and they were surrounded by the soldiers,
and then came next the village of the Indians,
and that was entirely surrounded by the
soldiers also. When the firing began of course
the people who were standing Immediate ly
around the young man who fired the first
Sh uyara rio
turned their guns, Hotchkiss guns ETC., upon
the women who were in the lodges, standing
there under flag of truce, and of course, as
soon MS they were fired upon, they fled, the
men fleeing in one direction and the women
running in two different directions, SO that
there were three general directions in which
they took flight. There was a woman
with ah infant in her arms who was
killed as she almost touched the flag of truce,
and the women and children OF course were
strewn all along the circular village until
they were dispatched. Right near the flag
of truce another was shot down with her in-
FAINT; the child, not knowing that its mother
was dead was still nursing and that was es-
pecialIy very sad sight. The women. as
they were fleeing with their babes on their
backs, were killen together, shot right
through and the women who were Very
heavy with child were also killed. All the
Indians fed in these three directions after
most of them had been killed, and cry was
made that all those who were not killed or
wounded should come forth and they would
be safe, and little boys who were not wound
ed came out of their places of refuge, and as
soon as they came in sight number of sol
diers surrounded them and butchered them
there.
Commissioner to the Interpreter-I wish
you would say TO him that these are very Seri-
Gus charges to make against the United
States army. / do not want any statements
made that are not absolutely true, and | want
any one here that feels that the statements
are too strong to correct them.
American Horse-Of course it would have
been all right if only the men were killed: I'VE
would feel almost grateful for it. But the
fact of the killing of the women and more
especially the killing of the young boys and
girls, who are to go to make up the future
strength of the Indian people; those being
killed is the saddest part of the whole thing,
and we feel it very sorely.
The Commissioner-Does American Horse
know these things of his own personal
knowledge, or has he been told them?
American Horse-I was not there at the
time before ihe burial of the bodies but did
go there with some of the Indian police and
the Indian doctor and great many of the
people, men from the agency, and we went
through the battle field and saw where the
bodies were from the track of the blood.
Rev. Mr.. Cook, a Sioux half-breed,
pastor of an Episcopal church at Pine
Ridge, who has at times acted as inter
prefer during the conference, rose, and,
among other things. said: Much has
been said about the good spirit with
which the members of the Seventh cav
airy went to that seat of action. 1t has
been said that the desire to avenge Gus
ter's death was entirely absent from
their minds. In coming towards Chicago
in company with Gen. Miles, L talked
with one of his scouts who was almost
killed, because he was compelled to fly
with the Indians, being fired upon by
the men whom he tried to serve and
help. He told me that after he recov-
cred from his flight and succeeded in
getting amongst the soldiers after they
all got in from killing Indians. an Off
Ger of high rank, he did not know who,
came to him and said: Now. we have
avenged Custer's death;' and this scout
said to him: Yes, but you had every
chance to fight for your lives that day.
These poor Indian people did not have
that opportunity to. protect and fight for
themselves. If this is an indication of
the spirit of a number Of the men IN
that company, l am sure the Seventh
cavalry did not 60 there with the kind
est of motives, simply to bring these
poor people back.
After several others had spoken, the
Commissioner declared the conference
at an end.
Final Land Proof
n