The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1906-03-23

mineral springs.
"The war breaking ont and the call
made for volunteers, l enlisted in Com
many II, Second Minnesota Infantry
and was mustered i'm as second lieuten-
ant July 10, 1861. Being crippled up
with rheumatism, l resigned March 2,
1862, while the regiment was stationed
au Nashville, Tenn. then moved upon
a claim in Lura township, Faribault
county, in 1862. ] broke twenty acres,
living i'm my wagon and doing my cook
ing under Il tree. | was at WORK, open
ing up my farm when the Indian ont
break occurred in August 1862. was
engaged in breaking prairie with four
yoke of oxen on my place three miles
south of Mapleton in the summer of
1862 when | was called upon by dele
CATION from Alankato consisting of ID.
\. II. Thayer. cabinet maker, and
William T. Durkee, a medical student,
with DR.. Clark, asking me to recruit
Company G of the Ninth Minnesota. Both
Thayer and Durkee enlisted in my COM
pany. Durkee was clerk of the court
a number of years. My company rem
deZvoused at Fort Smelling.
"On the 10Th day of August | was
in Governor Ramsey's room in the capt.
tol at st. Paul to get my commission
as captain and to get my papers
Strengthened up when a dispatch was
brought to him announcing the Indian
outbreak. Ramsey just laughed and said
it was another mkpaduta scare. 1t was
but short time, however, before three
others came in greatly excited bearing
dispatches announcing Indian troubles.
Governor Ramsey then said: This
means something and turning to me
and handing me back my papers said
Now you take your papers and keep
them till we get this thing settled. [
will give orders which will be as good
as your commission and you can draw
pay and exercise the same authority till
the mastering officer comes around
Governor Ramsey then called carriage
and invited me to 90 with him to Fort
Smelling. Adiutant General Malmros
and | think Lieutenant Governor Don
nelly were the other two. There were
four of us. As we were driving along
the river opposite the old town of Men
dota, Governor Ramsey exclaimed.
There's Sibley, the old Indian fighter;
I'll commission him colonel and organ
ize an expedition tonight and place him
at the head of it. General Sibley was
sent for and came over to the fort that
night. | got orders to move with my
company at daylight with General Sib-
lev up the Minnesota river. A boat
overlook us at ten o'clock and landed
at Shakopee where we stayed one night,
then went into Belle Plaine where we
disembarked and marched to st. Peter.
Sibley had four companies at st. Pet
er. From Chaska he had sent two com
panies to Hutchinson.
"When we were at Shakopee | asked
General Sibley permission to push on
ahead and visit my family at Mankato,
and l had forty men in my company
whose families lived at Mankato and
near there. Sibley replied that we must
all stay together till we got better ac-
auainted When we reached st. Peter
/ again asked permission to go on to
Mankato that night as the sun was an
hour high but he replied: No, we must
keep together l had scarcely got to
bed in my tent when somebody called
for Captain Dane. 1 found it to be Mr..
Robinson from Lake Crystal and a Mr..
Knapp from Madelia, who had rid
den hard to inform the command that
New Ulm was being burned by the In
dams and that they were burning cab
ms and killing the settlers four miles
west of Lake Crystal. | went to Sib-
ley's quarters with them. After hear
ing their story he told them to 60 out.
Sibley then asked me what | thought
should be done. | replied that l thought
l ought to go on to Mankato and Lake
CRYSTAL and defend the settlers. He re-
piled that if the whole Sioux nation had
turned out it would be sacrificing my
company to allow me to 60. Here we
were in a predicament when we found
that the ammunition was too large to
fit our guns. My company got eighty
muskets at Shakopee and at st. Peter
twenty more, also forty rounds of cart
ridges. General Sibley furnished trans
portation for my company to Mankato
with instructions that the teams be
sent back Immediately and that at Man
kato 1 should press enough horses to
mount my company and furnish trans
po.tation and that when l mad mounted
good squad to proceed to Lake Crys-
tai and establish headquarters there,
and protect the settlers on the south
side of the Minnesota river. AS we
neared Mankato we were met at the
lime kiln by large body of citizens
men, women and children. We march
ed to some vacant lots across from
Sherk's store where we stacked arms.
l then gave the following instructions:
Boys when you break ranks 60 and get
horse and get a good one. Tell the
owner to find Lieutenant Roberts who
will issue certificate of seizure
for time in service or payment if lost.
This is all the voucher they will need
They broke ranks and started up town
on a run. / detailed six men to guard
the tents. I then hid. but Henry Shau-