Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1909-12-17

the Indians and were borne off their
stations without communicating any
alarm or being heard Of after. Death
lurked everywhere. The wooded swamp
came to be called THE Haunted For
est"
This was due to a terrifying detail.
Sentinels disappeared, but not a trace
was left of the manner In which they
had been conveyed away, except that,
upon one or two occasions, a few drops
of blood had appeared on the leaves
and grass. Some officers imputed this
unaccountable disappearance to treach-
cry, and suggested, as an unanswerable
argument, that the men thus surprised
might at least have fired their muskets
and communicated the alarm to the
neighboring posts. Others, who could
not be brought to rank 1t as treach-
cry, were content to consider 1t as a
mystery which time alonc could un-
ravel.
One morning, the sentinels having
been stationed as usual over night, the
guard went at sunrise to relieve post
which extended a considerable distance
into the wood. The sentinel was gone!
The surprise was great, but the thing
had occurred before. They left anoth-
er man and departed, wishing him bet.
ter luck.
You need not be afraid" said the
man with warmth, Il shall not desert!"
= The relief company returned to the
guardhouse.
The sentinels were replaced every
four hours, and at the appointed time
the guard again marched to relieve the
post To their inexpressible astonish-
ment, the man was gone!
They searched round the spot, but no
traces could be found Of his disappear
ance. 1t was now necessary that the
station, from a stronger motive than
ever, should not remain unoccupied.
They were compelled to leave another
man, and returned to the guardhouse.
The superstition Of the soldiers was
awakened, and terror ran through the
regiment. The colonel, being apprised
Of the occurrence, signified his inten-
ton to accompany the guard when
they relieved the sentinel they
had left. At the appointed time they all
marched together, and again, to their
unutterable wonder, they found the
post vacant and the man gone!
Under these circumstances, the colo
mel hesitated whether he should station
a whole company on the spot, or wheth-
er he should again submit the post to
a single sentinel. The cause Of this re.
peated disappearance Of men, whose
courage and honesty were never sus-
pected, must be discovered; and 1t
seemed improbable that this discovery
could be obtained by persisting in the
old method. Three brave men were
now lost to the regiment, and to assign
the post to a fourth seemed nothing less
than giving him up to destruction. The
poor fellow whose turn 1t was to take
the station, though a man in other
respects brave enough, trembled from
head to foot. ~ =.
Il must do my duty" said he to the
officer, II know that; but 1 should like
to lose my life with more credit"
II will leave no man." said the colo
mel, against his will"
A volunteer Immediately stepped
from the ranks and desired to take the
post. Il will not be taken alive" said
he, land you shall hear Of me on the
least alarm. At all events, 1 will fire
If hear the least noise. If bird
chatters, or leaf falls, you shall hear
my musket. You may be alarmed when
nothing is the matter; but you must
take the chance as the condition Of the
discovery"
The colonel applauded his courage,
and told him he was right His COM
rades shook hands with him. They
never expected to see him again.
An hour had elapsed, and every ear
was alert for the discharge Of the
musket, when suddenly the report was
heard. The guard Immediately march,
ed, accompanied, as before, by the COL
onel and some Of the most experienced
officers Of the regiment. AS they ap-
preached the post, they saw the man
toward them, dragging an
other man on the ground by the hair.
When they came up with him, 1t was
seen that the victim was an Indian.
II told you," said the man, that /
should fire II heard the least noise.
That saved my life. 1 hadn't been long
on my post when I heard a rustling
at some short distance. looked and
saw one Of those wild hogs, such as
are common in the woods, crawling
along the ground, looking for nuts un-
the trees and among the leaves. AS
these animals are so very common,
didn't pay much attention to it at first
But, being on the constant alarm, anc
scarcely knowing what was to be con-
sidered a source Of danger, l finally
kept my eyes fixed on it, and marked
its progress among the trees. Still,
there was no need to give the alarm,
and my thoughts were directed to dan
ger from another quarter.
1t struck me, however, as somewhat
singular to see this animal making, by
a circuitous passage, for a thick coppice
behind my post. My COM
rades,' thought l, will laugh at me for
alarming them by shooting a pig! l
had almost resolved to let it alone,
when, just as it approached the thicket,
l thought l observed 1t give an unu-
sual spring. l no longer hesitated. l
took my aim, fired, and the animal was
instantly stretched before me with a
~roan which l knew at once to be that
Of a human creature. l had killed an
Indian. He had enveloped himself with
the skin of one of these wild hogs so
artfully and completely, his hands and
feet were so entirely concealed in 1t,
and his gait and appearance were so
exactly like that of the animal, that
seen through the trees. the disguise
could not be penetrated"
The dead Indian had been armed with
a dagger and a tomahawk. The mys-