The Redwood gazette. [volume] (Redwood Falls, Minn.) 1873-1940, 1907-11-27
INDIAN CAPTIVE IN '62.
Narrowing Experiences of Mrs. Tarbell
as Captive Of Little Crow.

but to US women and children it
seemed to last for hours. In agony
and despair ] awaited my turn to
suffer, offering an earnest prayer
that death to myself and little ones
might come speedily. An Indian
came running toward US. | thought
my time had come. Putting an arm
about each of my little ones wished
that / could provoke the red fiend so
that he would kill US outright. On
his reaching me | was astonished to
hear him speak in real friendly
tones. He shook hands with me,
but retained his grasp and soon re-
moved my rings.
| said: 'Are you going to kill
me?" He answered mo, the medi-
cine man says he must not kill you,
He says | must save you and take
you and your children to my tepee,
and then you will be my squaw All
the nice women we will not kill:
they will be squaWs for the Indian
braves"
There were 27 in our party when
we started, and eight were killed by
the Indians when they overlook US.
| may here state that more than 800
whites were killed by the savages
within a few days. Several counties
in the western part of the state
were depopulated and thousands of
persons became fugitives and were
left destitute without food or shell
ter.
Mrs. David Carrothers and her
baby; Mrs. Earle and two daughters;
aged Is and Z; Mrs. N. D. White
and baby daughter, and myself and
my two children, a little daughter,
Althea, aged 4, and a little son,
Thomas W., Of 2 years, were put in
to two wagons by our captors and
our journey into captivity began.
The most of the men and boys es-
capped by flight.
We were started for Little Crows
village. on the south side of the
Minnesota, two miles west Of the
Lower Agency. On reaching Mr..
Earle's house the Indians halted,
took from the house everything they
wanted and broke up everything
else, shooting the pigs and chickens.
The same destruction was visited
upon every other white settlers
house that we passed.
After we had proceeded some dis
tace we left the main road and start
ed to cross the Minnesota river at a
ford. While crossing the river one
of the whiff1e-trees Of the wagon in
which | rode became entangled in a
wheel and | was ordered to unfasten
it. / easily did so, but had to stand
in the stream while at work and got
wet to my waist. | was then ord
cred and compelled to drive as fast
as possible. When we reached the
crest of the bluff on the south side
Of the river the wagon containing
Mrs. David Carrothers and child,
Misses Julia Earle and Julia White
separated from US and drove away
towards Shakopee's village:
We reached Little Crows camp
about 3 o'clock in the afternoon, and
halted about 40 rods from the chiefs
house. / was then ordered to I'M
hitch the horses and go into a corn
field and bring some corn to feed
them. The Indian warriors and
their squaws were coming into camp
from every direction, the squaws
laden with plumber, the men with
bloody scalps of their butchered vic
tins at their belts. A great many
white women and girls were brought
in as captives.
About five o'clock Little Grow
came over to see me and | asked him
if could go either to his house or
to the medicine mans tepee. | had
previously asked the leader of the
Indians who captured me to let me
go to Little Crows house, but he
had angrily refused me, saving that
| belonged to him. Little Grow