The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1894-09-21
CARNAGE In HIS MIND.
British Brave Who Fought In
dians and Strikers.
The LETTER ne WROTE HOME.
Ysung Taceman Gives His Parents
Lurtd Details OF Red War I'm
the Railroad Strike.

The great rsisFo strike has prod 1csd
its writer Of fiction. Like other national
commissions. and be appears to live in
Tacoma. The few skirmishe. which
marked that struggle il this state fred the
Imagination Of 7. FL. Adams, who appears
20 be a member OF Troop b. cavalry, y. G.
W, aud caused him 10 picture 10 his
parents At his old home az Birmingham,
England. scenes of carnage which recall
the rebellion. Mr.. Adams letter, which
was published in the Birmingham H'<ssls
Post Of July >. does credit TO his educz-
ton st King Edwards school 81 Burning
ham and must crafty the soul Of King
Edward VI. It's founder. The letter is as
follows:
AFTER my two last letters You must
have teen \ little bit nervous, bat, thank
God, so far | have got through with only
scratch or two. Perhaps, owing to the
tie-np of the trains. this letter viii get
through first, so | will recapisulais
Everitt Griggs is captain of Troop h. First
cavalry. OF the y. Is. w. something be-
tween militia and regulars. He was
ordered oct. with his company, 10 drive
the Indians back TO their reservations.
they having come out on the wa-path as
soon as they thought that the paleface was
handicapped aud haTassed by those awful
OF sixty-three men. bCt only forty-ihree
had courage enough TO respond when
called upon. He came 10 me down at the
mill and asked If |. as q great favor to
him, would join aud 90 out. | reminded
him | was English, he said. Yes; an
Englshman. SO | collected three other
britlsheTs, and We went. We found traces
of their he!lish work between orting and
South Prairie thar made our blood run
cold. Perhaps * got into the English pa
pers; OF course IL was kept out OF these on
account Of their yaunted civilization. We
traiied them into the Olympic mountains
and By enormous forced marches. aud By
swimming our horses through the Ms
quaIly and Snake rivers when they were
nothing but foamlug masses of destruc-
ton, bearing down huge logs, etc. About
a week before the maddest man would
never imagine that there was one chance
in ten OF getting across alive. Forty-four
men and thirty eight horses did IL. The
remains, scattered and almost unrecognlz-
able, OF the three other poor boys were
picked up and tenderly buried several
miles below. The Indians are de-
scendants of the Crows and Black
feet. Men who were out scouting
discovered them encamped IN the bottom
OF a guleh, about 500 TO GOO in number. So
sure were they that il was perfectly impos-
sible TO get st them that they had not
single guard, and. 70 ali appearances, were
going 10 stay day or two 10 feed and rest
up their horses. We went back and re-
ported then We closed up and Law on three
sides of the gulch (needless TO say, not to
windward) about fifty feet apart, and
waited for il get dusk enough to hide our
scarcity of numbers. 1t seemed an eter-
nifty, but il really was not more than half
an hour before one of our horses Weighed,
though We were fondling their noses TO
prevent it, Then came the word to fire.
Three times did We load and fire our
carbines. and deadly was the effect
at that short distance into those groups
of men. Then We turned our revolyers
loose into the disorgauized crowd that was
rushing for their ponies, then. loading our
revolyers and leading our horses as ran,
We formed and mounted at a run at the
top OF the glade, and charged. When We
had emptied our reviewers We drew our
sabres and completed the rout- We were
too few in numbers, aud our blood was
boiling az the things We had seen. SO we
took no prisoners. All our casualties
we're one man with broken shoulder and
another with 4 broken collar bone, both of
whose horses had fallen in that Wild
charge over the rough ground. Then fos
thirsy-six hours We followed them, but
never saw them again, of course, and at
last made junction with the infantry
outside the reservation. They had
marched down fairly decent road for
this country. They brought news Of this
strike of the railroads. and orders for twenty
picked men TO report back at Tacoma
at once. We were thea put in charge of
train, and had TO bring 1t here to the
limits of the state. Four rode on the en-
CINE. two OF Us on the cow-catcher and four
along the top of the coaches. The other
ten slept Every eight hours We relieved,
and the next eight We slept The strikers
swore we should never get through alive,
but We cut the wires ourselves, SO that
they should have no accurate knowledge
of our coming. and so have time to destroy
any really big bridge. We had TO keep a
sharp lookout. and yet 20 fast We
could 10 keep ahead OF the news that we
were coming and TO lessen the likelihood
of the killing OF any one by the volleys
they kept firing into us all along the
route. 1t was ticklish work passing over
the cascade mountains, nos skirting
an awful precipice. then rushing over
a huge trestlework bridge. far away
underneath which torrent was
roaring and next having To stop, and, un-
der a calling fire, remove some obstacle
from the track or strsIghten out switch.
We had 10 stop and rebuild Two bridges
that they had commenced burning. We
had got gang OF men on the tram Tor
that purpose one Was Just round curve
on this side the monutalas-tneY hoped
We should not see IL in time, and so all geE
hurled into eternity together. To make
doubiy sure. at Eilensbarg. the station be-
fore. some fiend managed 10 get under the
train snd cut the pipes of the asr-bTake, so
that ii We did happen to see down that
grade sc should then be unable 10 stop.
I,ncsily. Just after pulling out oi the depot
wa found that our commlssary man
was not on board. and 80 We tried
20 stop short. aud found out the
trouble and vectlhed IL IL was something
higher than mere luck. Ten Of Us take the
vest-hound train back to Tacoma tonight
AZ III ESQ miles away or, rather, ne are
going 10 have q good try TO. aad the other
ten are going to bring one through ionor-
row. The strikers say there has not been
a xest-bound train through yet. and swear
thsr. shall not be, and this tine. un-
fortunately. we cannot conceal the time
OF starting. | must go and tnrn IN snd
-. little rest, as | arm ia command Of
.hr squad. and shsA nos dare close my
ev.- thss side Tacoma. Two OF the En-
gjishnaen are still Jeff. and with me. tut
ne either poor boy viii never answer To
rs roil-cal sgain on earth. stray ballet
found q home on the say Up. / vii write
Immediately on arrival.