The silver messenger. (Challis, Idaho) 1890-1912, 1899-11-28

recall one of the most horrible pieces
of cruelty ever perpetrated by the Co.
manche Indians.
In 1885 old Capt. Menefee settled on
one of the Yeguas about thirty miles
west of old Washington, on the Bra
EOS. He had large family of boys
and girls and the old settlers had fire.
quently warned him that he was ex-
posing them to great danger by locat-
ing so far out on the frontier. The
old gentleman had built strong log
house with plenty of portfolios and
doors and windows that could be Sc
curely barred. He had several sons
old enough to handle rife, and five
or six negro men who could be depend
ed on to fight for old 'massa's" family.
Although the Comanches raided the
settlement nearly every full moon, they
had never disturbed Capt. Menefee's
house, and he began to feel pretty
safe. His daughter Molly was quite
belle on the frontier, and she had
many suitors for her hand. In the fall
of 1886 she became engaged to
young man by the name of Eugene
Barison.
Providence had crowded into young
Barison's short life almost as many
adventures and narrow escapes as a
dime novelist would accredit to his ia
vorite hero. When a boy about Is
years of age he had been captured by
the Comanches and adopted into the
family of a famous old chief by the
name of Lame Wolf. The old savage
appeared to think a great deal of his
white son, often declaring he would
make him good Comanche and big
chief out of him. Barison stayed with
the Indians three years before he found
an opportunity to escape. After this
his knowledge of the habits of the In
dams, his familiarity with their lam
guage and his desperate courage, made
his services very valuable to the people
of the frontier. Upon several occa-
sions the Texans were indebted for the
advantages they gained over the red
warriors to young Barison's knowledge
of the geography of the country and
his skill in following the trail. Lame
Wolf found an opportunity to send the
boy word that he had given orders to
his people to take him alive. He in
timated that Mr.. Barison was devoid Of
gratitude, and said he intended to cure
him of his sin by fiaying him alive
: and burning him whole day. Lame
Wolf had daughter who was in love
with young Barison, and it is possible
that woman's jealousy and spite had
much to do with the terrible cruelties
to which this young man and Miss
Menefee were afterwards subjected. 1t
seems that the Indians, and especially
the family of Lame Wolf, kept well
posted as to the affairs of young Bari
son. At any rate, they knew that he
was to be married on a certain day, and
about that time they made a raid on
the frontier in greater force than
usual.
The guests were assembled at the
house of Capt. Menefee to celebrate
the marriage feast, when the alarm was
sounded that Indians were in the
neighborhood. The sky was already lit
up at several different points by the
flames from burning dwellings. 1t
was known that there were many fam
lilies in the neighborhood entirely de-
fenseless, and it was hastily deter
mined that young Barison, with ten
or twelve men. should set out at once
to gather all the people that he could
and bring them in to Capt Menefee' s
house. They had hardly mounted be-
fore a volley of bullets and a shower
! &c oil haI
OF their saddles were emptied. The
attack was followed by the usual war
whcop of the Comanches. and the we'd
ding guests realized that the house
was surrounded by Indians. They
might easily have withstood the siege
until help could have reached them,
but it had been an unusually dry sea-
son. and everything was in condition
to burn like powder. The savages set
fire to the barn and some hay stacks
near it. The flames almost instantly
reached the negro quarters. The In
dams rained bullets and arrows
against the dwelling. and kept up such
a series of wild yells that the white
people concluded that they were at
tackled by the whole tribe of Conan
ches. Women and children were
screaming, and in the uproar and con-
fusion hopeless despair seemed to have
seized the stoutest hearts Barison and
few others who had faced danger be-
fore in many forms were making des-
perate efforts to restore order and in
fuse a spirit of courage in the men and
assuage the fears of the women, when
suddenly great light flashed over the
yard and it was discovered that the
roof of the house was a sheet of flame.
Barison then performed an act which
entities him to be forever remem-
bered as a hero. He stepped into the
yard and asked for Lame Wolf The
old man answered him. Then in the
Comanche tongue young Barison told
the chief that he would surrender to
him to be tortured and burned at the
stake to make a Comanche holiday If