The Manitowoc pilot. [volume] (Manitowoc, Wis.) 1859-1932, 1897-06-03
LEWIS WETZEL'S SCOUT.
By JAMES ID. MCABE.

One OF the most famous and daring
hunters of the early days of the West
was Lewis Wetzel. He was the son
of John Wetzel, who settled on Big
| Wheeling, in western Nirginiaamong
the first white men who went 30 that
region. His education was that of a
hunter and WARRIOR He imbibed at
an early age many of the wild ana
savage ideas of the Indians, and al
ways seemed more at home with his
r. fie and the woods than in company
of almost sup"rhuman powers OF en-
durance. and cuuld 90 without food
| longer, and incur more fatigue and
| exposure, than any other hunter Of
| his day As marksman, he had very
few equals and no superiors. 1t was
almost an imFossibility for any hu
man being to escape death when onca
the rifle of Lewis Wetzel was aimed
at him with the intent to kill" When
a 10y, he adopted the practice of
loading his rife, as he ran, and by the
time he grew to mans estate, he was
snch Z proficient in this accomplish
ment that ne could load while run
ming at full speed as we'll as when
standing still. TLis was an accom-
plishment peculiar to Wetzel himself,
and owing to it. he rarely failed to
come ont of his encounters with the
Indians victorious. He hated the
red skins bitterly, and it was not long
before he became terror to them.
With his own hand he slew twenty
seven Indians in the single state of
West Virginia, and as many more
along the frontier settlement OF Ken
tucky dnring the Indian wars. He
escaped all their plans and snares set
for him, however. and died IN hi S bed
at a good age, after having the salts
faction of seeing e the power of the In
dians along the Ohio broken for
ever.
When he was only thirteen years
old, he was captured by party of In
dians. together with his brother ia
cob, who was two years his JUNIOR.
He made a bold resistance, however,
and was wounded in the breast before
being taken prisoner, the bullet car
rying away a piece of his breast bone,
which caused him great suffering.
The second night after the boys were
taken, the Indians encamped at the
Big Lick. twenty miles from the Ohio
River, on the waters of M'Mahon's
Greek. The boys were not tied. as
the savages supposed they We're too
young to try to run away. After the
Indians had fallen asleep, Lewis whis
pered to his brother Jacob. that he
must get mp and accompany him back
home. Jacob at first refused, being
afraid the savages might recaptnre
and kill them, but at length consented
&c make the attempt to escape, and
got up and went along With his broth
er After they had gone about hun
dred yards, the boys sat down on a
'og.
We'll" said Lewis, eve can't 90
home barefooted. Sc I'll 60 back and
get "A pair of mocassins for each of
us
With this the brave boy went back
to the sleeping Indians, and absolute
ly took two pairs of mocaSains from
them, and rejoined his brother in
safety. After sitting on the log lit
tie longer he said he would 90 back
and get his fathers gun, which had
been captured wit h them; and this he
also accomplished. The boys then
set ont for home, taking the trail by
which they had come They had not
Travelled far before they heard the In
dians coming after them. 1t was a
moonlight night, and they stepped
aside into the bushes, let the Indians
pass by, and then fell into the trail
again behind Them, and on the return
Of the Indians, they did the same
thing, and when the two Indians pur.
sued them on horseback, they lodged
them in the same way. They pushed
on rapidly. and the next day reached
Wheeling in safety. crossing from
the Indian shore to the Wheeling Is
land IN raft of their own making.
They reached the settlement not
moment too soon. for 10y this time
Lewis had become almost exhaust
ed
This was the first adventure Of
Lewis Netzel with the Indians, and
Will serve to show the character of the
man to whose exploits | propose TO
devote these pages.
In the year 1872. after Crawford S
defeat, Lewis went with a man named
homas Mills who had been in the
campaign, to get his horse, which he
had left near the place where the
town of st. Clairsville now stands.
The two friends were travelling along
lelsurely, never dreaming of danger,
and discussing the events of the cam
paign, and were even laying plans for
an expedition of their own against
the common enemy, when, as they
reached Indian Springs, two miles
| from st, Clalrsville, on the Wheeling
road, they came unexpectedly uIon a
band of forty Indians. With the
swiftness of thought. Lewis brought
his rifle to his shoulder and fired, and
as usual killed an Indian The In
dians then fired volley, and though
| they missed Wetzel, shot Mills in the
heel. The two white men beat has
ty retreat, and the Indians followed
In hot pursuit Poor Mills, being dis
abled by the wound in his heel. was
soon overtaken, and dispatched by
the tomahawks OF the savages.
WetZel, who was famous as being
enc of the tleetest runners of his day,
| fled with the speed of a deer, and his
pHrsuers, finding that their shots were
thrown away at him. undertook differ
ent methods of overhauling him -Four
of the swiftest Indians of the band
were selected, and directed to throw
aside their weapons and catch the da
ring hunter. They obeyed the order
of their chief promptly, and started
off with yell. But Wetzel, calling
to his aid the practice OF ms boyhood
loaded his rifle as lie ian, and watched
his chance to fire at his pnrsGers
| h 4. 1 T