Alpena argus. [volume] (Alpena, Mich.) 1893-1909, 1893-09-13


mind was carried back to his
youthful days. 81 came here from
Massach usetts, and ever since have
lived amid these great solitudes."
Some further conversation was
held, and then ! asked him what
those wig-like looking things were
| saw hanging up over his bed.
There were some four or five and
twenty of them hanging there,
looking like wigs made from the
HAIR of horses tails. His face grew
dark with heavy frown as l asked
the question, and his eyes burned
with strange fire.
"Those," he uttered, in hoarse
whisper, "are scalps! Scalps | have
torn from Indians heads, dead and
dying. You see there are twenty
five of them"
"And you slew them all?"
"Yes."
"All at onceP"
mo, sir. | have been a long
while gathering these trophies up"
A few moments silence ensued,
and then he resumed:
"Of course you are curious to
know more about this, and if you
have a mind to listen, | have no
objections to explaining it. | told
you | came here when | was one
and-twenty. came because one
whom | loved as life itself came be-
fore ME. John Garland and his wife
and one child, came out to Ken
lucky, and for that child ! followed
them. Within three years from
the time | came, both the father
and mother died, and Martha Gar
land was left alone with me. She
became my wife (the priest Of st.
Edwards united us, and then we
sought home further west. We
were happy for we had none to hate
and all to love. We had a daugh-
ter, whom we named Eliza, but she
only remained with us a few years.
When she had learned to know our
love, and when the first bloom of
intellect had mantled her brow, and
lighted up her dark eye, she faded
away and died. Another child was
born us, (another girl who re-
manned with us a few years, and
then she, too, died. At length we
were blessed with son. He grew
up healthy and strong, and he took
the place of all we had loved and
lost. We called him Philip, and
when he was only four years old,
he could rest my rifle over his faith
er's shoulder, and hit tree at ten
rods. When he was five years old
a party of Crow Indians came along
and camped near our cabin.
gave them powder and shot, but
would give them no rum. AT
night they seized me while | slept,
and bound me hand and foot, and they
took my wife-and-child, and car.
ried them away"
The old man stopped and wiped
tear from his eye, and then, while
his voice assumed a deeper tone, he
added:
"Oh, l cannot tell the agony Of
that moment, of that hour!
strained with all my power; call
ed upon God to help me; and, you
will not wonder, l cursed the power
that held me! The red demons
laughed and howled at me as they
searched my cot for rum. They
found some in a Jug; some which
| only kept for times Of need-for
never poured the fire down my throa,
they found this, and having
drank it all up they threw the jug
at me, and then started off. My
wife held out her arms to me, and
said: Help me, my Philip! Ant
my little boy held out his hands ant
cried: Papa! papa!"
Here the old scout bowed hi
head and wept aloud.
"Oh," he murmured, in choking
accents, "who can tell such agony
as that with whole heart!
heard the last shrek of my wife
the last cry Of my boy, and then
tainted. When | came to myself
! was still by the tree, hanging for
wards with my whole weight upor
my bound hands; and just as
was fairly regaining my conscious
ness, | fell forward upon my face
The knot in the leathern thong hat
gradually loosened and given way
AS soon as ] could collect my ener
gies, ] started off in pursuit Of tn,