The Idaho Republican. [volume] (Blackfoot, Idaho) 1904-1932, 1914-03-13
Story rapper during the indian Story of Mack
McCumsey written by w. Powell. In five chapters

were interested; we came to the
country to hunt game, not indians;
after travelling a few miles we found
that the country was literally covered
with bear tracks.
We could not stop to hunt here
for there was no market for our
meat. We were headed for the mines
in the Yankee Fort country, and had
a verbal agreement with the miners
to try and keep them in fresh meat
consequently we were in a hurry to
begin the job, SO we travelled early
and late. At noon one day we
camped on large fiat covered with
grass and fine little stream run
ming into it champaign cheeky
Thousands of antelope were scattered
over the fiat. We were afraid to shoot
any on account of the indians, so we
had grounding for dinner. Let me
tell you right now, that a grounding
tastes better than he looks, and as
there were plenty of them we did not
miss the antelope meat much.
AS usual we secuted around for
indians, but saw none. There were
about 20 or 80 graves scattered pro-
miscuously over the fiat; they were
not grouped together, but just scat
tered all over.
We layed over here one day in
order to look around a little, leaving
our pack horses hid in the lava beds,
we mounted our saddle horses and
started off. A few miles from camp
1.-TWO or three miles east of Dan
Nichols Ranch), we came upon the
dead bodies of five men all shot
through the head. We later buried
these bodies in five separate graves,
side by side. After viewing the corpses
We headed north towards a high hill
covered with timber Climber noun
tain.) On the very top of this hill
we found the remains of breast
works, made of logs and stone. In
side of this wall were several wagons,
which had feen burned too bad to
use, also several old guns and revolt
vers lay around and worst of all
three new made graves.
While returning to camp we saw
six indians riding down the creek to-
ward our camp, but they left the
creek shortly and turned up side
gulch and made camp in bunch OF
willows near small spring (Dan
Nichols ranch). We held a pow-wow
and decided to capture the outfit.
Just before dark we left our horses
hidden in the brush and crawled to
a point of rocks close to their camp.
We watched them eat supper OF
antelope and prepare to go to bed,
but we did not like the actions of
the bunch. they kept walking few
yards away from the fire and would
look and listen as If expecting a
bunch Of their friends to join them.
This We did not wish to happen.
We were willing to fight three to
one, but did not care to tackle a
large force at this time, and place.
Of course we expected to take every
advantage, with little or no risk on
our part, about nine o'clock they all
layed down and we crawled up to the
willows, and within 20 feet of their
fire, they lay close to gether with
their feet toward the fire. We left
our rifles here and with six
shooter in each hand, we crept up
to their heads and each selecting two
victims, we raised to our knees and
fired. The poor indians we fired at
were killed at once and the remain
ing two leaped to their feet, but be-
fore they had their eyes fairly open
they Joined their companions in the
happy hunting grounds. While
Henry returned to bring in our saddle
horses looked over the cayuses that
had belonged to the indians, but
finding them poor and no good, l
took off their picket ropes and turned
them loose.
I found nothing in their packs, so
placed them on the fire and burned
them up. Each of them were armed
with SO calibre Needle guns.
Henry now returning with our
horses, we struck out for our own
camp and made ready to leave at
once. We followed the road along
the edge of the lavas to Big Lost
river. We left the road where it
crossed the river and went up the
west side about two miles to a rye
grass fiat covered with antelope.
Here we met an old prospector who
told us that the Indians had held up
a bull outfit and killed one of their
men at a point about 40 miles above
our oornp (piI1u prrpaf ronob \