The Worthington advance. [volume] (Worthington, Minn.) 1874-1908, 1897-12-23
! A F ata1 u
Indian Rush..
~ CHARLES D. LEWIS.
Observation-Disclosures

TO get the telegraph poles for the
i line from Fort johnson to the rail-
road, or at least for the northern IS
miles OF it, we had to so over on Pine
mountain, ten miles from the fort. As
the poles were cut they were slid down
the mountain side aud then drawn
along the line by span of
mules or carried on mems shoulders.
The work was hard enough for a gang
OF lumbermen, but it was made worse
by the peril from Indians. While there
WIS a peace treaty in force, no Indians
who had chance to pick off a soldier
Or settler felt bound to observe it.
Therefore, when it came the turn of
company &c" to send out sergeant
and six men to cut and distribute and
set up Ave miles of poles, the colonel
ut Fort johnson warned us to be on the
lookout for trouble and to neglect no
precaution to add to our safety.
We went into camp at the head of a
narrow valley. close up against the
precipitous side Of a hill, and were
safe from attack except by the front.
AS it was fine midsummer weather,
we made a foundation of rock, and
then erected a hut of poles and brush;
and in q day or two we were snug
enough. For the first four days there
was nothing to create alarm. One man
was left in camp to act as sentinel and
cook, and the other five were more or
less scattered as they cut and distrib-
uted the poles. The sergeant took
charge of the mules and the hauling,
and this work took him beyond our
support much of the time. He was q
veteran 1ndian-fighter, however, brave
AS lion. and had no fear.
On the morning of the fifth day,
while he was returning with the mules,
after hauling a pole to a spot two miles
away, a party of ten Indians suddenly
confronted him. They were led by Il
sub-chief named Little Bear, who was
frequent visitor at the fort and we'll
known to all the soldiers. During the
war, which had closed only IL few
months before, this sub-chief had hot
and scalped a corporal near the fort,
and after the treaty he had come
staggering into the post with the
scalp-lock attached 10 his bell, an ac-
ton which so provoked Sergt. Mil
ton that he snatched the CHASTITY
trophy away and offered to go outside
and fight Little Bear in any manner
desired. When the Indian demanded
his trophy it was refused, and he left
the post vowing vengeance. Since then
they had not met until now, and the
soldier had but to look into the eyes
of the redskin to see the pleasure he
felt at thus finding his enemy alone
and seemingly helpless. AS the meet
ing took place the sergeant backed up
against mass of rock, got his carbine
and revolver ready for shooting, and
was SO cool and determined that the
Indians were awcd and puzzled. They
were anxious enough to kill him, but
had only just arrived in the neighbour
hood and did not know how many men
Of them might be. For the first ten
minutes they were determined on 4
row, yet the sergeant's quiet way acted
as 3 bluff, and they finally drew Off
Before going, however, Little Bear said
to him:
When my father and other chiefs
signed the treaty of peace I told them
[ would be against it until I had killed
you. There is no war, but I shall not
go into the fort again until can wear
your scalp at my belt.''
The sergeant replied that if his scalp
was wanted it was a good time to take
it, but the Indians had other plans in
view and left him. When the sergeant
returned to camp he related the Incl
dent, and for the next three Or four
days one of us accompanied him or his
trips, and signals were arranged by
which we might quickly come together
in case of need, but nothing was heard
OF the Indians. On the afternoon of
the fifth day we were cutting poles
nearly a mile from camp, leaving man
named Brisbane to act as cook. He
had been instructed to fire his musket
in case he saw Indians, and having
heard nothing from him, we started for
camp at about five o'clock, with feel
ing that all was we'll. We reached
camp to find the man missing. His
lnusket had been left behind, and
nothing about camp had been dis
turbed. For an hour we expected his
return any moment, thinking he had
wandered away, but when night came
and passed swe were sure that the In
dams had had something to do with
his disappearance. They had. Instead
Of being watcbful and vigilant, the
man had carelessly wandered down
into the larger valley in search of ber-
ries, with no weapons, and Little Bears
band had bounced upon him and made
him captive. They took him up into
the hills and at first decided to torture
him. That idea was given up, however,
that they might make him messen-
ger to capture the rest of us. Why.
after Brisbane was captured, the red
skins did not enter and destroy our
camp was puzzle, but as a matter of
fact they fastened away, and we
heard nothing of them until about sun
rise next morning. We were about to
set out in search of our missing man,
when he appeared at the mouth of the
valley with an Indian beside him. He
had been stripped of all clothing. and
the blood of a hare had been daubed all
over him until he seemed to have been
wounded in r dozen places. The In
dian with him could understand Eng
fish very we'll, and Brisbane had doubt
less been told just what to say. As
our attention was attracted he called!
''Sergt. Milton, the Indians captured
me yesterday, and l have message