Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1905-02-11

bold, and he was never able to come up
with the willy Black Hawk.
One day during this exasperating
campaign Of marches and counter
marches an old Indian, weary, hungry
and helpless, came into camp and threw
himself upon the mercy Of the soldiers.
The men cried out for his blood.
1--WE have come out to fight Indians
said one, land we intend to do it.
The poor Indian In the extremity OF
fear drew from his jacket soiled and
crumpled paper and threw it at the
feet of the soldiers. 1t was a safe con-
duct from General Glass; The men re-
fused to read it or thought it forgery
and were rushing at the defenseless
Indian when Captain Lincoln stepped
between them and their victim.
This must not be DONE" he shouted
in voice that stilled the turmoil.
This man must not be shot and killed
by u.s."
The mob fell away, but there were
mutterings of disappointed rage and
self suppressed EXPLANATIONS against
Lincoln. One man holder than the rest
cried:
This is cowardly on your part, Lin
coin"
The tall captain seemed to grow a
few inches higher and, looking down in
40 q
ers, replied:
IF any man thinks am coward,
he is welcome to test it."
Captain Lincoln's method of quelling
incipient mutiny may not have been
according to the articles of war, but it
was effectua,. There was no more talk
OF harming the old Indian.
The discomfort of the volunteers soon
forced General Whiteside to return to
Dixon's Ferry, where he found General
Atkinson and the welcome supplies,
but by this time the men had enough
Of war, and it was decided to march
them to Ottawa and discharge them.
Lincoln had been as wretched as the
~,
order. and when his regiment was dis
banded be promptly enlisted as pri-
vate in the new spy battalion which
was formed from the remnants of Gen
eral Whiteside's force.
In the meantime the Indians had
overrun the country and had inflicted
severe losses upon the white settle
ments. Galena had been threatened,
and Fort Apple. twelve miles from GA
lena, had sustained an assault Of fif-
teen hours. Buff now on the tide ran
strongly against Black Hawk. Tween
ty-four hundred men under experienced
officers were in the field against him,
and he was steadily forced back upon
the Mississippi, and his dwindling ar
my suffered final and crushing defeat
In the massacre of Bad AK. Black
Hawk, with his son and twenty war
riOrS. escaped, but the old chief was
taken soon afterward by treacherOus
Sioux; and delivered to General Akin
son, who sent MIN to Washington.
There he was given his freedom by
President Jackson. and he returned to
his people to live In peace and content
to the age Of eighty
A short time before the end Of the
war LincOln's company of. spies was
disbanded at Whitewater, Wis, and
most Of the men started for home at
once. Lincoln'S horse, together with
that OF his messmate, George Harri-
son, was stolen, and they had to hoof
it to Peoria. There they bought ca
noe and padded their way to Pekin.
At that point they overlook a raft of
saw logs, which gave them lift as far
as Havana, on the Illinois. Selling
their canoe at Havana, they finished
the journey on foot
Lincoln reached home just in time to
change his soldiers uniform for the
habit of politician and to accept the
nomination for member of assembly
from Sangamon county which the pop
ularity he had gained in the army
thrust upon him. Though he was de-
feated by 40 votes. his immediate
neighbOrs stood by him almost to a
man. Out of $50 votes in his home
precinct he received 277. one more than
the whole number cast for both the
candidates for congress.