Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1903-02-12
HOW scALPING FEELS.
Man Now Living in England Knows
How It Is.

From the Chicago Tribune.
There is a man living now in England
who can tell how it feels to be scalped. HIS
hair is now hanging in the public library
In Omaha. That is part of it Is there. He
has fringe around his head still and an
other part may still be on an Indian reser-
walton, If the Indians are at all careful
about preserving relics of this sort. Will
lam Thompson, an Englishman, once in the
employment OF the Union Pacific railroad,
Is the man whose hair is scattered over two
continents. He is getting along nicely with
small remnant Of his original headgear.
thompson was one of five men who were
sent on hand car out Of Omaha in the
early days OF the Union Pacific to splice
up telegraph wire. 1t was in August.
1867. The railroad only extended to North
Platte. The rest Of the trip to Denver was
made by stage, and a perilous trip 1t was.
There had been trouble along the line and
the squad of five men were sent out to To-
cate and remedy 1t.
1t was located near what is now Central
City. 1t was discovered that the Indians
had cut the wire. Scarcely had the lines
men stopped their car when they were fired
on by party Of Cheyenne Indians con-
cealed in the prairie grass. The men re-
turned the fire, but seeing that they were
hopelessly outnumbered took to their heels
thompson was shot in the arm while run
ming, and the next moment one of his pur-
suers knocked him to the ground with a
blow with todnahawk. He was stunned
but not rendered unconscious. He had the
presence of mind to feign death, and the
Indian supposed that all that was neces-
sary was to take the scalp. AS to what
follows Thompson says:
with the dizziness of an expert the saw
age whipped out his knife and made Incl
s1ons around the top of my head. When
ne mad cut the skin loose all around, doing
it with great Spaa6 he no ba}r off
The sensation was just as II a red-hot iron
mad been touched to my head"
The Indian in his hurry tucked the scalp
lock insecurity in his belt. That is why it
happens to be now in the Omaha library
Thompson did not dare to move and while
he lay there, pretending to be dead and
suffering from his wounds, another Indian
found him. He decided there was a little
more hair on the dead mans head which
might as well come off so he repeated the
performance Of the first and took off some
more around the corners. In the mean
while other Indians had placed obstruc-
tons the track. From where he Law
Thompson could hear the approach of
freight train carrying government sup
plies. He could not flag it, and he heard
the engine crash into the distractions The
next moment the train was a wreck with
the Indians firing on the train crew.
Ihen began an orgie which the wounded
man was forced to hear. The Indians found
whisky, with which they proceeded to get
themselves into beastly state of intoxica.
tfon They rugged themselves up in cali
Goes and woOlens which they found on the
train. Then they took the still-living en-
-gfneer and fireman and threw them into
the furnace Of the engine. When darkness
came Thompson managed to crawl away
AT Willow creek he fell in with rescue
party which had been sent out and by
which he was taken to Omaha. He had no.
t1ced the scalp lock which had fallen from
the Indians belt, and when he crawled
away he picked it up.