The Redwood gazette. [volume] (Redwood Falls, Minn.) 1873-1940, 1914-03-17

have 1t ground ne having threshed
it with the fail, as there were no
threshing machines there at that
time. When he got to where the
road turned to the Agency the
Whites that lived there were all fee
ing away, some bare headed and bare
footed, carrying their children in
their night clothes. One man carry
ing his arm in sling, he being shot
by the Indians that morning. So my
uncle left his team with them and re-
turned for his family and came to
notify my fathers family. About
this time father drove up with his
first load, another boy rode up to tell
US that the Indians were at their
house when he came away.
Packing up such things as they
wanted, they told them they had
better leave, so they took the OK
team, packed the women and children
in the wagon, this being Mrs. Fumes
family, and their ncighbors wife and
child, Mrs. Mike Haden. The men
remained to load some things on Mrs.
Haden's team, and to look up their
cattle to drive them along, as we
were all pioneers and had only lived
there three years and what little we
had was dearly earned and was badly
needed. We had harvested our first
crop a few days before. Returning to
us they upset the hay and put on the
wagon box and we packed the children
and ourselves into it. My fathers
family bible lay on the table, took it
and a half loaf of bread, some knives
and we started to go towards Fort
Ridgely, but intended to stop at Mag
nus Johnson's and consult what to
do. When we got about mile from
home we met two Indians, who upon
seeing us stopped, and loaded their
gun, they having but one shot gun,
SO we stopped they came up to US
and asked where we were going. We
told them what we had heard and they
said we hsuold go back, that the In
dians had broken into the warehouse
to get something to eat, and that they
did not intend to hurt the settlers.
They also told us they were hunting
their ponies so they went on, and we
trned around to go back.
| Now we lived on the Minnesota
River bottom, but we had climbed
the hill where it is level prairie, so
the men went back to the brow of
the hill to look down to the main
road and saw two teams, Mr.. Haden's
and our nearest neighbors wife, Mrs.
! Kirchnes, and some one driving herd
of cattle and our cattle with them.
About a mile to the north was a Mr..
Witt moving hay, his boy would drive
out and he would load on load and
the boys mother would help him
stack it when he came home. Now
when father and uncle turned and
looked into the bottom they saw
thirteen Indian warriors ascending the
hill. about mile to the east Of US
going straight for Mr.. Wits home.
His boy would drive the team to
where his father was moving and he
would load for him and his mother
would help him stack it. Now when
the boy drove to the stack he heard
shooting in the house and saw In
dians, SO be crawled in the hay and
hid. The father thinking the boy
was having trouble with his load
started home to see, but when he got
in the house he found his wife lying
on the floor, shot dead. She had been
down cellar after something for din
ner, the trap door stood open and a
boy about ten years old was shot and
fell in the cellar, having been shot in
the shoulders. A little baby of six
weeks old was in the cradle unhurt.
The rest of the children were hid
around the house, so he wrapped his
wife in blanket, buried her side of
the house, dressed the boys shoulder,
took some bedding, the children, some
cows, and started for the Fort, arriv-
! ing there without seeing an Indian.
Father said let US drive down the hill
where the Indians assembled, so we
came just ahead Of Mr.. Haden's team,
and father stayed back and they plan
ned what to do. When we struck the
road which came from the agency,
the dead body of Mr.. Manly lay by the
side of the road, bare headed and bare
footed, shot in the breast. Just then
three Indians came up the road, one
came to our wagon one to Mrs. Kir-
chnes and the third stock back with
his gun. Father had reached the
wagon as the Indian got there, and