Alma record. (Alma, Mich.) 1878-1928, 1894-10-12
WHEN INDIANS CAUSED EXCITEMENT.
The strike Recalls stirring Times Ia AZ
Least One Chicago Pioneer.

awful timesl Awful times Never
had EN- when we were young"
The speaker drew out IA spotless
handkerchief in solemn manner
"We didn't. that's fact" responded
his seatnate in the Wabash cable.
WED have done it if we could, but
the population didn't allow of ii. Chi
cago didn't possess million mixed
sons i'm those days, so the Indians had
10 get up all the strikes. Good Lord.
how easy they did it, Bennett, do you
remember that nght-no, you weren't
there. though: you'd come To Chicago
after wagon-load OF winter stores.
Well, ! never shall forget that night.
There's a solid pound OF reasons for re-
membering it,
The speaker paused as the car did
and a bright-iaced girl With bunch OF
sweet pease in her hand got on.
You see, he resumed when the car
was rafting on again, you see, the In
dians had stolen some horses and been
overtaken by the owners, who. of
course. demanded their property. That
made the Indians furious and they
threatened TO scalp everybody in the
settlement before morning. Well. we
all hustled down to Williams cabin
he had the biggest One-and pretty
much everybody i'm the settlement was
there before sunset. Good Lord, what
hubbub there was Some OF the
women were crying and iainting, with
all the kids joining in the chorus; and
we men were busy barricading the
doors and windows.
There was one man there--a Meth
odist preacher that happened to be Wis
ting in the settlement-and he was
wandering around in everybodys way,
circulating: Put your trust in the
Lord, brethren We had everything
in the shape of weapons, for the alarm
had been so sudden that we'd been
obliged to snatch up whatever was
handy. and clubs and pitchiorks out
numbered the rifles. The preacher had
a table fork for his sole weapon. He
said that the Indians believed that a
stab from table fork was always fatal
to them. | hadn't much spare time
just then, but | remember wondering
how many Indians he'd pick before
some OF EN- scalped him. II got darker
and darker and we all began TO listen
for that Indian whoop-remembe how
it used TO sound. Bennett? | never
want to hear it again. BY and by the
last baby stopped crying and we sat
waiting for that whuop.
We'll. it came. Every fellow was on
his feet in IA trice with his weapon lift
ed Then we dropped our ptchforks
and made a rush for the fellow waving
his bowie knife over our heads and call
ing out with laugh III hi, voice 'Now's
the time for scalpsr
He hadn't been with Us when we
shut ourselves IN aud there were red
glints coming in through those barri-
caded windows instead OF redskins. 1t
was morning and we'd al been asleep.
How we did it don't see yet.
Hammond had come home unex-
pectedly in the night and hadn't Of
course heard OF the fuss. SO when he
didn't find anybody in his cabin he
came on TO Williams, the next place to
make inquiries. lie said he cXerted all
his energies to wake Us up, but couldn't
do it, 80 then he assaulted our barri-
cades, and after tough time of it man
aged 10 get into find Us all reposing
on our laurels and our arms.
I'VE never heard the end of it, of
course. but We laid il on to the preacher.
If he hadn't neglected his duty he'd
have pricked our con>ciences with that
fork OF his. and kept us awake to our
dangerous state.
"Of course assented the solemn
man, something ike smile crossing
his seyere visage. Il believe YOU set
tied it with the Indians next morning"
Yes, oir. We went after those In
dams and licked EN-. and took our
horses. - ChicUjD Trib,t4e,