The News-Herald. [volume] (Hillsboro, Highland Co., Ohio) 1886-1973, 1896-07-09
DAREDEVIL CREEDE.
HOW HE, SINGLE HANDED, KILLED
SIX or A PARTY OF SEVEN SIOUX.

when He Discovered the Indians He Care
fully Calculated Just How He Would
Dispose of Them, and His Programme
Was Carried Out to the Letter.
From boyhood days Lieutenant Creede
had been noted as q hunter, and during
the years which he spent in the scouting
service his splendid Workmanship End
extraordinary achievements in the pur-
suit of game earned for him the reputa-
tion Of being the best hunter west Of the
Missouri river.
One day at sunset Lieutenant Creede
rode out from Ogalalla, where the scouts
were stationed, guarding the builders of
the Union Pacific railway. Creede was,
aud is yet, for that matter, a famous
rifle shot, quick, cool and sure, and upon
this occasion his skill came in good play.
as it did in later years when he fought
two grizzlies single handed in the pres
ence of two witnesses.
1t was customary for some one to take
look about at the close Of day to see if
any stray Sioux were prowling around.
About six miles from camp Creede came
to clump of trees covering half dozen
acres of ground. Through this grove
the scout rode, thinking perhaps an elk
or deer might be seen; but nothing
worth shooting was sighted, till sud-
denly he found himself at the farther
edge of the wood and on the banks of
the Platte. Looking across the stream,
he saw small band of hostile Sioux
riding in the direction Of the river, and
not more than u mile away. His field
glasses showed him that there were
seven of the Sioux, and without the aid
of that instrument he could see that
they had a majority Of six over his
party. They were riding slowly in the
direction of the camp. Creede concluded
that they intended to cross over, kill the
guards and capture the government
horses His first thought was to ride
back to camp, keeping the clump Of
trees between him and the Indians, and
arrange a reception for the Sioux.
The river was half mile wide and
three feet Deep Horses can't travel very
rapidly in three feet Of water.
In q short time they had reached the
waters edge, and the scout could hardly
resist the temptation to await their ap-
proach, dash out, take a shot at them
and then return to camp That was
dangerous, he thought, for if he got one
there would still be half dozen bullets
to dodge A better plan would be to
leave his horse in the grove, crawl out
to the bank, lie concealed in the grass
until the enemy was within 80 yards OF
him, then stand up and work his win.
chester The first shot would surprise
them. They would look at their falling
friend; the second would show them
where he was, and the third shot would
leave but four Indians By the time
they swung their rifles up another would
have passed to the happy land, and one
man on shore, with his rifle working
was as good as three frightened Indians
in the river.
Thus reasoned the scout and he crep
to the shore Of the stream. He had NJ
time to lose, as the Indian ponies hat
finished drinking and were already OF
the move.
As the sound of the sinking feet O
the horses grew louder the hunter wa
obliged to own feeling of regret. L
he could have got back to his own horst
without their seeing him, he thought i
would be as we'll to return to camp an(
receive the visitors there. Just once h'
lifted his head above the grass, and thel
he saw how useless it would be to at
tempt to flee, for the Indians were bu
little more than 100 yards away
Realizing that he was in for it, he mad
up his mind to remain in the grass unit
the Sioux were SO near that it would b.
impossible to miss them. Nearer ant
nearer sounded the plunkety plunk o
the unshod feet Of the little horses il
the shallow stream till at last the,
seemed to be in short rife range, all,
the trained hunter sprang to his feet
He had reckoned we'll, for the Indian
were not over 80 yards away, ridinl
tandem.
Creede's rife echoed in the littl
grove; the lead leaped out, and the hea.
Indian pitched forward into the river
The riderless horse stopped short. TIL
rife cracked again, and the second re-
man rolled slowly from the saddle, S
slowly that he barely got out Of the wa
in time to permit the next brave, VIII
was almost directly behind him, to ge
killed when it was his turn. The re
manning four Indians, instead Of return
ing the fire. sat still and stonelike.
terrified were they that they never raise
a hand. Two more seconds; two NOR
shots from the rife of the scout an
two more Indians went down, hea
first, into the stream. Panic stricken
the other two dropped into the river an
began to swim down the stream wit
all their might They kept an eye o
the scout, and at the fash Of his gu
they ducked their heads, and the ba
! bounded away over the still water. 500
they were beyond the reach Of the rife
Returning to their own side Of the river
they crept away in the twilight, and tn
ever sad and thoughtful scout stood b
the silent stream, watching the littl
red pools of blood on the broad boso1
Of the slowly running river.
Three Of the abandoned bronchc