The Bottineau pioneer. (Bottineau, N.D.) 1885-1895, 1893-01-14
TRAGEDY.
Rattle between Bucks


Carleton, Mimi, Special, Jan. lO-Ine
Vidette saws that Wednesday was the
day when the Indians OF the roma uu
Lac reservation received their dole OF gov
eminent money, and soon our streets
were literally sprinkled with red men TOO
drunk to have my of the noble element
left in them. Our citizens then We're not
very much surprised to find Oh Thursday
morning that an appalling aboriginal
tragedy had been enacted at Barker on
the previous night. At first it was four
Indians killed and a large numbe
wounded, Their the number of killed was
put at three; then two, and there it re-
manned until the facts were known.
Coroner Sukeforth and Sheriff Mckinnon
went to Barker OH Thursday morning.
Here they were met by some Indians who
took them to the cabin of John Laundry,
a half-breed, we'll known around here.
The first indication of tragedy they had
was a large pool of blood crimsoning the
snow about thirty feet from the cabin.
Inside lay John Laundry himself, on his
poor couch, dead, with the deep pallor
and sunken face and form of a man who
has bled to death. Splashes and pools OF
blood were everywhere, and his VIE,
surrounded by some sympathizing friends:
sat on the floor and rocked herself to and
fro in her misery. uttering walls of sor-
to the death of her husband, she said
that Joe Kingbird, a half-breed lad of
about sixteen, had come to their house
the evening before to get a rifle and am
munition belt. There was some dispute
about the rifle, when Kingbird, taking it
up, shot her husband and then
committed suicide. The indications,
story and according to both coroner a"d
sheriff, the matter came about in this
way: Kingbird got the rifle and started
from the house with it; he was followed
by Laundry, who seized hold of it. In
the struggle for it's possession the we lpon
was discharged, the ball striking King
bird. Seeing what had happened Laun-
dry ran back to his house, and peeped
cautiously from the window. He WIS
not cautious enough, however, for the lii
dian boy, with a bullet i? his head, took
deliberate aim at him and fired. The bull
let struck him near the right arm pit, cut"
ting open one of the great arteries of the
body, and Laundry bled to death before
any proper assistance could be brought
to him. The boy was traced to bis par.
ents' tepee, his trail being plainly marked
by the same CHASTITY status that they mad
first noticed upon their arrival at the
tepee. They realized for the first time
the almost unparalleled feat the half
breed boy had accomplished. The bullet
from the rifle struck him about an inch
and a half from the point of the chin and
went upwards, SCATTERING the jaw, cut
ting the tongue to pieces, destroying the
palate and coming out between the eyes
at the base of the forehead. Enough,
one would say, to kill OF disable almost
any man. Yet in spite of that awful
wound, and with the blood streaming
from him in torrents he raised the gun
and shot Laundry, then distant from him
about thirty feet. After doing this he
turned, and blindly stumbling. made hi:
way to ,h his parents tep e a distance an'e.. OF
and logged determination which the
Spartans would have diff Guilty in sur.
passing, or indeed in equalling. He lies
there yet, and is rxpe ted to recover
Laundry and Kingbird We're, it was said
both sober when the shooting occurred.