The San Francisco call., 1896-07-26
a SquaW That
Saved Many Lives
Tls Oldest Inhabitant of
Siskiyou County and
Her Service to
the White
Miners

/
now les vou mass what is called in these
partsthe rancheria. 1t is, practically,
| small Indian reservation. A short dis
/ tance from the road you may notice
! tbjcksrouu of tall mountain pines. 1t is
a loniy spot, and if you think at all about
II yotconclude that the little forest is yet
virgil soil and that the trees shelter no
humn habitation.
Bul you would be wrong in this con-
clusin, for in the midst of this forest
STANG little log cabin, which Is IN
babisd by the very oldest resident in ali
these Wild and romantic parts-by one,
too, gho is, perhaps, better known ana,
at aIevents, more famously and iavorably
know than any other one inhabitant OF
Siskfou and Shasta counties.
ThI name of this oldest inhabitant is
| Old Peggy. and the pure blood OF the
ShasR branch OF the Rogue River Indians
howsin her veins. Her face is wonder
fullyErinkled, yet kindly old face, and
one tat is likedin the region more than
! the solid, red countenances of many
younger Indian. The old settlers remem-
ber vhen Peggy's face had no wrinkles
and hey remember it then with gratitude.
| Once it came to them in the hour OF
| greatperil and brought with it warning
! that averted human slaughter. All the
! youBer general ion know the story and
doubtless it will be handed down in years
! to cGne as one of the folk lore legends OF
the geat Shasta region. 1t is time to tell
it nor, while there are still those living
who an vouch for it being something far
moresubstantial than a legend.
In,lthe early tifties Humbug Greek
/ mines numbered about 200 in all. The
| Shasa Indians were none too friendly at
best,bu for long while there had been
no Pen hostilities, and at this time the
mines had almost forgotten their old
quarRls with the redskins and were in
tent My upon gathering the golden fleece
fromlhe hillside drifts, which repaid their
| untirhg .labors so richly.
| Buithe Shastas nursed their wrongs
| real ,r fancied. It is scarcely remem-
| beredhow just what these were, and the
! bistoies are silent, indeed, concerning the
entireevent. Now, while the gold-search-
ers wicked and slept in fancied security
the rdskins plotted in secret. At last
| they leld great powwow, and the end
of it vas that the edict went forth that all
palefaes on Humbug Creek must die at
midnfht, and the night chosen for the
massare was the one when Peggy and her
sister, Fatty, appeared suddenly in the
miner. camp, after tramp of ten miles
from be headquarters of the assem- bling
braves at the Yreka flats, and warned the
| paIefaes of their impending doom.
TheSarning came not an hour too soon.
Ammunition was scarce and the Indians
greatly outnum bered the miners. Peggy
and Rtty's advice was to hide in the
drifts. This the miners did, taking pro-
visions enough with them 70 last several
days. The two squaws hid with them,
and tie last man had scarcely crawled
into th golden tunnel before down came
the redkins in all their war paint. For
two dlys the Indians camped on the
ground waiting for the miners TO return.
but hal not wit enough to search among
the gdd drifts for them nor daring
enoughto attack them from such a point
of vanAge had they by chance discovered
the hAing-place. Finally the Indians
gave lp the siege. and when the pro-
visions were gone the miners ventured
out, ard some renewed their work in the
mines, while others went to Yreka for
ammunition.
| Peggi and Fatty returned to their camp.
taking With them money, clothes and pro-
visions This was done to make the In
dians think that they had been out on one
of theiIbegging trips. which they were in
the halt of making quite often through
Siskiyoi and Shasta counties, for even in
those dIys the sQuaws had to support the
1 braves,who were too dissipated and lazy
/ to work
The indians did not again attack the
whites Until July of the same year, which
resulted in the Humbug war, in which
Peggy shusband, "Tyee john" son of the
old heal chief at Yreka, Old Tolo, was
killed.
Peggy is now 10 years old and is very
feeble. Her hair is snow white, and her
figure isso badly bent that it is impossible
for her b walk without the aid of a stick.
She ismade a great deal of by the people
of Siskiiou, but she has no better nor more
gratefulfrlend than Mrs. Hit of Cotton
wood.
Whe1 Mrs. Hit visits Yreka she never
fails toinquire for Peggy and leaves dol
lar or two for her, and says that as long as
she has q cent Peggy is welcome to it. And
herein lies another tale that is not to the
od squaw's discredit
When Mrs. Hit and her family were
amplng near the Shasta River for few
teeks in the summer, year after the
aumbug war occurred, it was Peggy who
Baved them from a cruel death by the
Indians.
The redskins were determined to burn
Ithe Hit camp and kill the family, and the
Iday for the deed was set. Peggy heard OF
lit few hours in advance and set out to
lwarn them of their danger.
There was no way to get to the camp
without being seen by the Indians except
Iby swimming the river, which was then
attte low, for a mile or more, but such
lille thing as that could not deter her
frlm her purpose, and she reached the
canp Just in time to warn them and help
Ms. Hit with the two children to the top
ofthe hill. Mrs. Hits husband was alb
seit from the camp that day. When they
relched the top of the hill they looked
bsk and saw the camp in flames, and the
Irhians dancing their war-dance around it.
| SOa old and foahIa