The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1897-03-08

is more generally known and popular
than this squaw.
At about the year 1912 there was born
in one of the most
DESOLATE REGIONS
OF the Union-the lava beds that ex-
tend from Northern California into
Southern Oregon-an Indian girl. Her
father was Sc Cot, an intractable Mo-
doc sub-ohief, who lost his life in an
attack on a party of whites emigrating
to the Pacific Coast in 1850. Along
about 1857, when adventurous white
men, seeking gold, began to penetrate
the ModOc lava bed region by the sew
eral hundreds every year, there came
that way a certain young Kentuckian,
who had been an army sergeant sta
toned at the Preside, in San Francis
co. He was Frank Riddle. He had
refreshments at the misera bic home of
the squaw widow of Sc Cot, and soon
took a fancy to her daughter, Wine
ma, then fifteen years old, and famous
in that region as the best looking and
most agreeable Indian girl in Califor-
MIA. Riddle got money in gold mining
in Southern Oregon and soon married
the handsome Modoc girl. The couple
took up their abode near the gold dig
gings, and
THE YOUNG WIFE
began to learn her husbands language.
While she visited her savage brothers
and sisters occasionally, and bore them
gifts, she became weared to the life and
tho lights of white people. But she never
dared, on pain of assassination or
poisoning, to reveal her change of faith
or to show that she really loved a
white man.
In 1860, when gold was discovered
in large quantities in the klamath
region, and thousands of venturesome
Americans rushed through Northern
California and across the lava beds
the anger of the Modocs was reused 10
the fullest pitch by the lawlessness of
the invading whites. In June, 1860, the
ModOcs lured IA gold miners into a mar
row canyon, and there, after unspeak-
able cruelties, extending over two days,
let the white men die. The news of
the murders by the Modocs got abroad
a month later, and set on fire the
whole white population of Northern
California and Southern Oregon. In
August a band of
SEVENTY-FIVE WHITES
left Yreka, CAL to punish the Modoc
satvages for the act The avengers were
! led by Benjamin Wright, an old noun
| taineer who had hunted and fought
Indians with Kit Carson, Jim Beck
worth, John Scott and Jim Bridger
| After q long chase through the rough
| country, which was not productive Of
| good results, the chiefs were invited 10
| meet the whites and make treaty
| This they agreed to do, and the war
! ring parties went into camp near each
other on Lost river, the Indians out
! numbering the white men by three to
one. Early on the morning Of the
| conference a young Modoc squaW.
! breathless, her clothing torn and her
! feet bleeding, came into the Wright
camp and asked to see the leader.
! She had run and walked some nine
| miles across the ragged mountain trail
| Her errand was to warn the invaders
! against treachery. The night before
! she learned a. the council fire that her
! people intended to surround the white
| men during the conference and put
! them to death. Wright and his men
| met cunning with cunning They went
| into ambush near the place of confer
| ence and when the
UNSUSPECTING MODOCS
fell into the trap but two escaped from
| the slaughter that enSued This af-
| fair is known in the history of North
ern California as the Ben Wright mas
| sacre. The squaw who conveyed the
timely warning to her white friends
| was Wt-ne-ma, the wife Of Frank Rid
| die. This fact was never found out by
her people, else her life would have
| been forfeited.
Eleven and half years passed. The