The National tribune., 1892-04-07
On the loye,~ Sabbath morning Of the awful

| On the loveIr Sabbath morning Of the awful
massacre in the lower portion of the valley,
| Winona ssddled Ginger and left home just alter
sunrise to visit Mrs. Aylesford, an old lady Nv
| ing about seven miles north of Twin Groves,
TO whom she had promised the preceding week
she would come that day and read.
| After Winona had been there three or four
| hours. Ginger peacefully grazing the nutritious
| buffalo-grass in front of the house, and she was
seated on the vine-shaded porch of the Old
lady's comfortable cabin, the great wooden
| clock in the sitting-room struck II. Wlnona
| happening at that moment TO look out on the
prairie, she saw suddenly appear III the as
| lance horseman coming up the trail toward
| the house at the top of his animals speed he
rider was hatless and coatless. lie was ger
| n-American, young bachelor, living alone
In rude dugout in the hillside on Lost creek,
near the scene of the massacre.
| From the door of his shelter he saw the In
dams rush out of the ravines on Their terrible
raid, and confident that he could be OF no as
sistance by going where the savages were al
ready numbering and firing the cabins OF the
helpless settlers, he caught his horse, Jumped
| on, fastened turn Of the lariat By winch the
animal was picketed into his mouth for a
bit, and started up the valley as fast as he could
| ride, after the manner of Paul Revere OF Rev.
dictionary fame, TO warn the people IN thst
direction of the outbreak
! The first claim beyond his OWN up the Saline
was that of the Norral's, at Twin Groves
eight miles away. He made the distance in q
little more than half an hour, jumped off his
horse, and rushed into the house. He found
the venerable couple. father and mother OF
Ninona, reading their Bible, unsuspicious of
danger. To them he told the news IN bur-
RED and excited manner. George Schmuz
then urged Worral to hitch mp to his platform
wagon at once and leave for Fort Harker. 1hey
could cross the river at their own ford, only
few rods from the house. and by keeping under
the hills reach the Elk Horn Valley without
being discovered. There was quite settle
ment there, about u miles from the Twin
Groves and Schmutz said he did not believe
that the Indians would dare raid as far south,
because Col. Keoghs company Of the 9TH Cav.
was camped on the creek.
But Worral was an old frontiersman, and
knew nothing of the sensation of fear; SO on
the receipt of the terrible news that Schmutz
had brought. he at first determined to remain
where he was aud fight it out in defense of
his home, for be was no novice in the art of
Indian warfare. having had many q tussle with
them in his younger days when his father was
pioneer in the wilds of Wisconsin.
But Schmutz anxiously pictured to him the
condition of affairs at the other end of the val
ley; assured him that there must be at least
800 SavsgeS engaged in the massacre, and that
be was satisfied that unless the Indians sepa-
rated into small bands there would be no use
in trying to fight them on the ranch. and that
il would be suicidal TO remain. At last, after
much argument Worral reluctantly decided to
leave for the Elk Horn, so he and Schmutz
hSrnessed up, threw couple of rifles into the
wagon. But just all was ready, Mrs. Worral
cried out in her sgony, as she thought Of her
daughter:
My God we cannot leave without Winona!
She is up at the Aylesfords, on the head Of
Spillman.n
I'm look after her and the Aylesfords,"
replied Schmutz. "Im going from here right
up there. Wen overtale you before you reach
the Elk Horn You needn't worry about WI
mona; I'd trust that girl to get away from
whole tribe of Indians if she was on Giugefs
back. ] want to see you folks start; then FL
bring Winona and the Aylesfords along. Be-
sides, / don't believe the Indians will go as far
north as that where the claims are SO scat
tered but il they should, I'll have plenty of
time TO get there and back across the river be-
fore they can reach Spillman. l know they
won't dare go south of the Saline, on account Of
the cavalry camped on the Elk Horn"
Thus assured in relation to Winona, Mr.. and
Mrs. Worral started. Schmutz accompanied
them on foot as far as the ford saw them safely
over, and returned TO the Groves. There be
selected a fresh horse from among four or five
picketed on the prairie, turned his own and the
others loose, and drove them into the timber,
so that the Indians might miss them if they
came up there. He went to the sod stable
found saddle which he took time to put on
the animal, as he already began to feel the ef-
fec,s of his vigorous bareback ride, mounted,
and resumed his solitary way across the valley.
He made straight for the head of Spillman
Creek, stopping long enough at the widely
separated claims on his way-four between
Twin Groves aud the Aylesfords-to tell
the people to fly south of the river for their
lives. The moment he left the last cabin he
urged his horse forward at quick lope toward
the AylesfCrds, still three miles away, from
the porch of whose home WinOna's young eyes
saw him first, as he rode directly for the house.
She closed her book the moment Schmutz
dismounted, and stood up, waiting for him, az
he walked up the steps to where she was. She
knew at once by his strange appearance and
excited look that something out OF the ordi-
nary, everyday channel of the quiet neghbor
hood must have happened, and her first
thoughts naturally were Of her father and
mother.
Schmu tz related in few words what had
occurred, and stranger might have noticed,
perhaps, sudden blanchipg of Winona's
cheeks, but only for moment, as he told of the
departure Of her parents for the Elk Horn.
Winona was not demonstrative in the slightest
degree usually, but possessed the wonderful
power of controlling her feelings under all
circumstances, and was now the coolest of any
one there. Arrangements were hurriedly per-
fected TO start the Alyesford family, comprising
the old lady and two halfgrown sons-her
husband, a Union soldier had been killed at
Gettysburg-for the Elk Horn as they, too
possessed platform wagon.
When everything was ready they left
Schmutz on his horse and Winona on Ginger
accompanied them as far as the ford at Twin
Groves, where they arrived little after noon,
having made the seven miles in an hour.
The Indians had not yet reached there, but
the iugitives could see the smoke of the burn
ing ranches rising in straight columns into the
clear atmosphere far down the valley. How
soon the sayages might arrive In their fendish
rounds no one could surmise.
Schmutz and Winona remained at the ford
until the Alyesfords were safely on the other
side Of the river, when they returned to the
house in order that Winona might get her little
rife, Ballard, with which she was an excel
lent shot. Then mounting Ginger again, she
and George crossed the Saline aud followed the
trail southeast, expecting to overtake the
Aylesfords in less than TWO miles. But when
they had ridden short distance beyond the
ford, SchmutZ suddenly stopped, turned to
Winona, who had refined up Ginger too, and
exclaimed:
My God Winons, have entirely forgotten
Tom Brady and his family! What shall y"
Three miles down the Saline, in a bend
where that stream abruptly curves to the
south, forming peninsula in the shape of q
horseshoe about 300 yards across at its widest
part in dugOut excavated in the side of the
rivers bank, lived Tom Brady, his wife and
only child Molly, nearly year old. Tom was
a veteran with gallant record, and had taken