The evening times. [volume] (Grand Forks, N.D.) 1906-1914, 1906-09-24
connecticut SOLDIER
TELLS Of INDIAN WAR
Special to The Evening Times.

"SASS ASOuCt(S VI NulStSO. 90 years
old. and a grandson Of Gideon Rob.
erts of Bristol. the first clock maker
in this town, is here for a month
visiting his sister. Mrs. Catherine
Root. He Is native of Bristol. but
when 10 years old went west. He tells
this story Of how he took part in the
famous Indian hanging of 1862:
In April. 1861. at the breaking out
of the civil war. | was living in Fair
bault. MINI. At the first call for 75.-
900 three-months' men. enlisted with
one hundred others. and We were the
first Minnesota volunteers for the
civil war. Our regiment was offered
to ths government. but after several
weeks delay. word came that unless
we re-enlisted as three-year men tn.
regiment wouldn't be accepted. Then
about half the regiment fell out. as
they didn't care to be out 80 long.
was not ready to remain in the
army for SO long period then. and l
went back to business. When Lin
coins call for 100000 men came was
ready to go into the army and enlisted
and served until the last rebel gun
was fired.
The month of August. 1862. was ia
nous for the breaking out fthe In
dian war in the northwest. was on
my way with company of volunteers
from the south part of Minnesota and
We were still thirty miles from our
destination. Fort Smelling. when we
met a party on horseback who gave
us the first account of the uprising of
the Indians at Yellow Medicine on
the upper Minnesota river.
We were incredulous for We had
just come from near that part of the
state. and many of us. myself among
the rest. were acquainted with some
of the Indians who were reported to
be killing the settlers on what was
then the frontier of Minnesota. Short
ly after We met Old Fairbault him.
self, from whom the town was named.
He was French half-breed of the
same tribe and resident of the town
of Faribault. He was coming from st.
Paul with thirty or forty civilians on
horseback. fastening to the scene of
trouble. They We're armed with hur.>.
ing rifles and revolvers. They con-
firmed the first report.
We decided to stop and hold coun-
Gil of war. for some of the company
were anxious about the safety of their
families and wished to turn back and
Protect them if in danger. We fnall!
decided to go into Fort Smelling, as
We were then only twenty miles dis
tant. and learn something more
definite about the massacre. Accord
ingly we started on and arrived there
to find all reports We had received
along the way only too true. An ap-
palling massacre had been committed;
one of the worst in Indian warfare
up to that time.
After waiting few days we were
mustered into the United States SER
vice on August 10. 1862, and were
drilled there until the authorities or
dered us forward. Our company was
a part of the Tenth Minnesota volun.
teers. We were mounted on horses,
armed with Sharpes carbines and
Colts navy revolvers. and were sent
to join the campaign against the In
dams.
found myself therefore in the sum-
mer of 1862 full fiedged Indian
fighter from Connecticut, although l
had started out to fight rebels and
assist in putting down the rebellion.
The Sixth and Seventh regiments
with part of the Third regiment,
also, were already at Fort Ridgley,
which was then the headquarters and
the base of supplies for the army.
During the month of September we
were employed most of the time in
picking out our horses or drill with
them. October II, we had marching
orders to join the expedition at Fort
Ridgeley. and that afternoon we start
ed out on our $50 miles march. A.
sunset we were ordered to hault and
camped that night near farm house
which l shall never forget. 1t stood
on the bank of the Minnesota river,
and after We had taken care of our
horses. we built camp fires. and all
showed our inability to successfully
handle this part of camp life. We
managed to I'LL up" however, and
that night | crept into the barn Of
the farm house and slept on a hay
NOW. l did not appreciate that hay
NOV SO much as l did afterwards.
The next morning we saddled our
horses and proceeded on our march,
which was the commencement of three
years of active army life. We follow
ed the Minnesota river to St. Peters
a distance of sixty miles from Fort
Smelling without anything happening
of any consequence. We learned at
this town that the Indians had re-
treated up to the headwaters of the
Minnesota river near Big Stone Lake.
They were said to be about 5000
strong, and armed with the best rifles
that were made, but that they had no
show against US shoulders. who were
thoroughly organized at that time and
only too eager to fight them and ac-
tually kill an Indian.
After leaving st. Peters on our
march west we entered a hostile coun-
try where all the hardy settlers had
either been killed or driven from their
homes two months before. Most of the
houses we saw were empty, as their
occupants had fled in terror. We went
into camp about the middle of the af.
ternoon, and for the first time had
ammunition for our carbines and re-
volvers issued to us We then realized
that we were In an Indian country
and in danger of being attacked. We
posted guards and secuted the coun-
try for several miles around our
camp.
The next morning we took up our
lineof march and passed through the
small village of New Ulm. which was
settled by Germans. This was the first
town and the only one that the In
dams had attacked in a body They
would have killed all the Inhabitants
and burned the village had not some
commercial travellers or traders who
were stopping there, organized a re-
sistance.
The Indians had made thinqs decid-