The Fairmont West Virginian. (Fairmont, W. Va.) 1904-1914, 1912-08-10
ever NE wol,;5 si 4 n s,o,,na

AAAzlaAAAAAAAAAAL-- 'sgfft.
Ras oyer We II, tgosia RlR L Is. the ground
utterly. exhausted. The IAN and. win.
ter OF 177s were spent In Ohio, and
the line OF march was taken UP In the
sprirg ot1779, towards Montreal In
Canada. The rout lay along the
shore Of Like Erie for part OF the
way and again 1t was many miles
from the lake so that the streams
emptylng into the lake would not be
SO hard to cross. Several times dur,
ing this journey the Indian hunters
failed to find any game for days 10,
eether; and, they were reduced TO bic
verge OF starvation. One timef%hen
they had had nothing but bark and
roofs TO eat for several days. they
came upon the bank OF a. sman
stream, late in the evening and saw a
large skunk or polecat, which wis
quickly shot by one Of the party. IL
was dressed, cooked and greedily de.
youred BY the starving warriors. The
indians always gave their prisoners
. just Fart OF all their food. Cochran
received the .entrals OF the skunk,
washed them. hung them on a stick
dn The. smoke OF the campfire; threw
ltne9I OH the hot Goals the next morn:
ing; allowed them 10 burn and scorch
a little and ate them. He afterwards
always insisted that that was the
sweetest breakfast he had ever tast-
ed in his life. Many years after that
terrible march was taken In speaking
OF II to his family, he said he was
afraid 10 trust his fingers near his
mouth lest he would bite them: and
that he would have walked n mile for
single grain OF corn. However. there
was one meal prepared one day Of
which he could not eat, and that was
when an old doe was Killed. cut open.
her. two fawns removed, and the two,
head and all placed in Kettle and
cooked, he could not eat. Whenever
abe lndidns could get rum, or fire
water" as they called it, they would
get drunk, and then all the prisonsi
were subject to great abuse. On o;ia
occasion when they were drinking, x
warrior grabbed Cochran by the hair,
jcrked him = across the camp fire,
clutching his scalping knife, made a
savage thrust at his heart. The blow
was n hard one and momentariy
stunned him. but the handle had
PULLED off Of the knife and left the
blade sticking in Its sheath and he
was ngaiS saved from death. Tear.
ing loose from the drunken savage, be
plunged into nearby swamp. and
Hay with his face Just above the mud
and water until dark Just after dark
he heard low cry OF young vol
which, he answered, crawled quietly
from the swamp, met his Indian
mother no led him away short dis:
lance TO log. wrapped his blanket
around him and then covered him
with heap of dry leaves. where he
play secure until morning. This I'm
dian mother" as he called her, was an
old squaw who had lost her arm in
some battle. and who adopted Coch
ran rs her son, took all the care Of
him she could. protected him when
ever possible, hid him whenever the
Warriors were drinking and did every
thing she could to take care OF him
Years after he had returned from
prison, he often expressed the wish
that he could have her al his own
home so he could provide for and
take care or her in her old age, fol
the Indians were not always good ts
the old and feeble, often leaving thof
alone to die Of hunger and res!eaf
kfter many weeks OF hardship. ths
party reached the. Niagara Falls
where they camped ,and rested fol
several days. The Indians bad pro
vlded themselves with wlldt cotton
With which they tightly stopped theil
ears and one morhlng'the whole party
crossed the river under the Fails
When they reached the British foreet
81 Canada, the lndlans. sold all, thsll
;Eprlsoners 70 the English, who tool
him to Montreal and then 10 Quebec
: d, prIsnnlt IfHSe d, Il IN rsstnv ,Ee,nsT,