The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1913-01-03
INDIAN monument IS
TURNED over TO 'KAT0
From Fridays Daily.

From Fridays Daily.
Dedication exercises held i'm the
!. o. o. F. hall in anniversary of
me hanging of the thirty-eight In
dams in Nankato and to formally
turn over to the city the monument
recently erected to mark the spot
where the execution took place. was
well attended and very much en-
loyed by all present A good many
OF the older generation we're there,
many of whom had either witness.
cd the hanging or had lived in or
near Mankato at the time and took
part in the defense against The In
dianS during those troublous times.
AS the stories of the Indian war
fare were recOunted by Thomas
Hughes. c. f. Wise, w. H. Pay and
IL. B. Perrin, the audience listened
attentiVely and those OF the older
ones who had lived in Mankato at
the time grew thoughtful as they
remembered the bloody event which
occurred in this county in .heir
bOyhood days. During the talk by
{. Z. Wise, one of the older gentle
men Joined in and assisted in tell
ing about the hanging of John
Campbell and his face lighted up
as the pages of memory flashed
through his mind. Judge Lorin
Cray acted as. chairman of the
meeting, introduced the speakers
and gave the dedicatory address.
Chase After Indians.
The program opened with beau
tifnl overture by Lamm's orches-
ira. w. II. Pay then related some
"reminiscences of Indian times when
ne was but a boy. He told Of a
chase after bunch OF Indians
who had plundered Il dwelling of
one OF the settlers and killed its
occupant. He said that at that
time, which was in 1864, and IS,
Indian rumorS were rife, but there
was really no terrible outbreaks
Rowing bands of savages would
come round once in while and
plumber a house, scare the women
and children half to death, run off
with the horses and cattle, but were
TOO cowardly and too few to commit
murder We went to Shelbyville
one night" narrated Mr.. Perrin
10 see performance given by Il
man with stereopticon. He had
il in a w2gon and We looked through
peek holes TO see the pictures
thrown on the screen. While there
we learned that 4 settler had been
killed. We all started out TO find
the numbering redskins; few of us
had guns and what there were. were
poor weapons" Mr. Perrin told OF
the chase over the hills, during
q
once, but another party of men
out on the same mission as them.
selves were taken for Indians and
the party was afraid to go on. 1t
turned out that this same party
whom they mistook for savages,
also mistook Mr.. PERKINS, party for
Indians and both parties were pretty
badly scared. ..."
After Mr.. PERKINS, talk D. N.
Jones sang a solo, The Flag" which
was greatly appreciated by the au.
dience.
Hanging of Campbell.
w. ii. Pay continued with his
"reminiscences. and told Of the hang
ing of John Campbell the treach-
erOus half-breed. Mr.. Pay was pres
ent at CampbeIl's trial, which took
place on the site where the court
house now stands. He was not con-
victed by the jury, but the people
demanded his life. The jury rec
commended that he be held until the
meeting of the district court. Camn-
hell was hung on a tree in front
of where the school house now
stands. He was put in wagon,
the rope around his neck, and the
wagon pulled out from under him.
AS he swung clear, he grabbed the
rope and the performance had to
be repeated. Before he was given
the drop this time he called for a
priest, and the reverend father got
up in the wagon with him. Camp
bell asked to be held for trial in
the district court but the crowd
raised a yell of hang the priest"
and that gentleman got out of the
wagon Immediately. Campbell was
then hung without further difficulty.
Mr. Pay did not see the thirty
eight Indians hanged, but said that
his father helped to build the scat
fold. He told how the scaffold was
put up. He also recounted a visit
10 the barracks where the condemn
cd redskins were held, chained four
TO n stake. 'St
Mistook Sheep For Indians.
Mr.. Pay told of chase after a
band of marauding Indians when a
flock of sheep in the distance we're
taken for horde of savages. This
was ascertained by his father, who
volunteered to go ahead and recon.
notre. In closing. Mr. Pay recalled
TO mind that there was in Man
kato somewhere an old bell that
once hung i'm the old city hall. He
thinks that the bell is in the base
ment CT the Presbyterian church
and wants it brought to light and
preserved. Ii was used in his time
for Indian alarms, fire alarms, was
rung on Christmas night, and tolled
for funerals
After song, ITO Thee o Coun-
try" by a quartet consisting of Miss
Mansfield, Mrs. Patterson, DR.. Ben
ham and Mr.. Jones, Judge Cray in
troduced an historian. Attorney