The National tribune., 1910-02-24
INDIAN WAR VETERANS.
IA Strong Appeal for the Nations Justice
to Them.

| to Them.
Editor National Tribune: The Nation
al Indian War Veterans, an organiZa-
| ton with headquarters at 1643 Market
street, Denver, Colo, has for it's object
| to obtain pensions for all those who
while serving the Government contrib
uted their share to open for peaceful
settlement this great Western country.
The men, as a rule, are old and fee
BILE, by reason of endured hardships and
privations, unable to perform manual
labor and on account of age barred
from obtaining suitable employment.
To give you an idea of the kind of
service rendered and hardships endured
that came under my personal observa-
ton and experience, the 18th Kan. Cav.
were mustered into the service by the
Government mastering officer to assist
in protecting the Western frontiers of
Kansas, at Fort Ellsworth, about July
Is, 1867. Immediately after entering
the service the cholera broke out in
the battalion. and in less than two
weeks we lost 80 of its members out of
400 by this most dreadful disease. When
we reached Fort Larned we found that
Lieut.. Samuel Hyberger, Second Lieu
tenant, Co. II, had died from the chol-
era. / was then in command of Co. ID,
and was detailed with five other men to
bury him. The next morning we buried
four out of the five that helped bury
the Lieutenant. George w, Durand.
now a resident of 96S ). Acoma, Den
yer. and myself survived.
Then the most dreadful disease spent
its fury. and we were ordered TO Fort
Hays to protect the grading camps or
the Kansas Pacific, that was then being
Z ~ tsfN gF
August Charley Bent. q half-breed
Cheyenne Indian. with 500 of his dog
soldiers. made a raid upon the Sharp Il
Shaw and Parks * Lane grading camps,
about IL miles west of Fort Hays. kill
ing many of its graders and running off
the stock. l was detailed with SO picked
men, with William HecoX, better known
as wild Bill" and Charley Cordaro. his
assistant, as our guides, to their relief.
orders to take one day of ration. We
overlook the Indians the next day at
the head of the Solomon River A fierce
battle ensued, and we recaptured the
stock and sent them back to the camp.
Knowing that this band of outlaws were
on a raiding expedition, being headed
for the settlements of the headwaters
of the Solomon and Republican Rivers,
we continued in pursuit. We were
armed with Spencer sharpshooting rifles
that carried from 1900 to 1900 yards,
and enabled us to hit a man that dis
tance The fight was almost n contin-
uous one. We followed them so closely
that they did not have an opportunity
to carry out their intended destruction
and murder. After nine days of almost
continuous fighting we drove them
| outh of the Arkansas River, living prin-
cipally on buffalo meat and cactus and
occasionally a prairie dog, when the
raiders reached their tribes. Being late
in the Fall, they asked for peace. They
were ordered to Fort Larned, and there
peace was negotiated, all the leaders
on the warpath were ordered in, includ-
ing Charley Bent, the half-breed and
leader of the Dog soldiers. There he
acknowledged that he had lost 81 of his
braves on his last raid.
I give this to show the kind of SER
vice that was rendered by the soldiers
in the early days, many OF them having
served from five to 90 years of the best
days of their lives, who are now almost
destitute and in need of assistance. The
hundreds of letters that we have re-
ceived from our comrades, complaining
of their circumstances and their i'll
health. would almost make one feel like
shedding tears.
We therefore ask your kind assist
ance in getting a pension for these men
that so faithfully rendered services to
this Government. 1 have never been
able to ascertain why these men have
been so unjustly Disseminated against
in receiving pension from the Govern
ment for the services they rendered.
1t certainly must be on record the
hard service that was rendered by the
soldiers in defending the emigrants and
the early settlers against the hostile
lndians.-Henry Hegwer, National
Commander, Indian War Veterans, 442s
Elizabeth street, Denver, Colo