Willmar tribune. [volume] (Willmar, Minn.) 1895-1931, 1916-09-27
EXTRACTS FROM THE AUTO.
BIOGRAPHY OF
ZANE GREY SWlSSHELM
First Newspaper Woman Of
Minnesota.
A Remarkable Woman Of Ante
bellum Days-1016-10o6
PIER XIX.
The Indian Massacre Of 81.

CHI A PIT e r XIX
The Indian Massacre Of 81.
The Indians had been ugly from
the fist outbreak of the Rebellion.
and Commissioner Dole, with Senator
Wilkinson, had come out to pacify
them. The party passed through st.
Cloud, and had camped several miles
west, when in the night there came
up one of those sudden storms Pc
culiar to this land. Their tents were
whisked away like autumn leaves, and
they left clinging to such productions
OF mother nature. as were at hand,
we'll rooted In her bosom. to avoid a
witches dance in the air. But 1t grew
worse when the rain had covered the
level ground six inches deep in water,
and they must keep their heads above
the surface.
They returned to St. Cloud in the
morning in sorry plight, and the de-
lay was one of the injuries to the poor
Indians, and counted as sufficient JUS
ttf1cation for the subsequent massa-
Gre. The delay, however. saved their
lives. The messenger who aroused
tho people of st. Cloud in the small
hours was travelling post after this
Dole commission, for whose safety
there was much anxiety, but none for
st. Cloud, since the Indians would not
attack us while there were two CON-
panies Of soldiers in town. True, they
were unarmed, but surely arms would
be sent and their marching orders re-
scinded. The outbreak was myster-
iOus. It was Of course in the interests
Of the South, and meant to prevent
the troops leaving the State; but why
had not the tribes struck together?
The answer was that after the mas
sacre had been arranged in council,
two Sioux visited a white family in
which they had often been entertain
ed, were drunk, and could not resist
the impulse to butcher their enter
tainers. This precipitated the attack,
for so soon as the news reached the
tribe, they went to work to execute
their bloody purpose.
Johnson a converted Chippewa,
hurried to inform us that his tribe
with Hole-in-the-day in council had re-
have made St. Cloud their base of
operations, but the Sioux had broken
out before the arms and ammunition
came, and these they were hourly ex-
pecting. On the same day formal
message came from Hole-in-the-day
that Commissioner Dole must come to
the reservation to confer with his
young braves, who would await his ar
rival ten days, after which time their
great chief declined to be responsible
for them.
A runner arrived from FIT. Aber-
crombie, who had escaped by crawl
ing through the grass, and reported
the Fort besieged by a thousand saw
ages, and quite unprepared for de-
Tense. There were several st. Cloud
people in the Fort, and so far from ex-
pecting aid from it, it must be reliev-
ed. The garrison at Ft. Ripley had
not a man to spare for outside de-
Tense. People began to pour into St.
Cloud with tales of horror to freeze
the blood, and the worst reports were
more than confirmed. The victorious
Sioux had undisputed possession OF
the whole country west, southwest
and northwest Of us, up to within
twelve miles of the city, and had left
few people to tell tales. Our troops
spent their time teaching women and
children the use of firearms, and hop
ing for arms and orders to go to. the
relief of Abercrombie. There was no
telegraph, and the last mail left no
alternative but to start for Fort Smell
ing, with such short time to get there
that every available man and horse
must go to hurry them forward. They
left in the afternoon, and that was q
dreadful night. Many Of the more
timid women had gone east, but OF
those that remained some paced the
streets, wringing their hands and sob
bling out their fear and despair and
sorrow for the husbands and brothers
and sons taken from them at such a
crisis.
When the troops left, we thought
there we're no more men in st. Cloud
but next morning found g. Dozen
counting the boys who were organized
to go out west to the rescue Of set
tiers, and still there were some guards
and pickets, and some who did moth.
ing but find fault with everything any
one else did.
Men and women spoke with stitfen'
ed lips aid blanched faces. Families
in the outskirts gathered to more cen
trail places, and there were forty-two
women and children In my house the
night after the troops left, and for
every night for weeks. We kept large
kettles of boiling water as one means
Of defense. l always had the watch
word, and often at midnight I would
go out to see that the pickets were on
duty, md report to the women that
all was we'll. Brother Harry was ap
pointed General Of State troops, sue
c. eding Gen. Lowrie, and arms were
sent to him for distribution, while wo
men kept muskets by them and prac'
ticed daily. The Office of my demo
cratic contemporary was closed, and
he fed to New England, while his as
sistant went with my only male as
sistant to rescue settlers. I had two
young ladies in the Office, one a grad
uate of a New York high school, and
through all the excitement they kept
at work as coOlly as at any other time
We got out the paper regularly, and
published many extras.
The history of the horrors and hero
isms which reached us during the siz
weeks in which FIT. Abercrombie held
out until relief came, would make q
volume, and cannot be written here
The unimaginable tortures and indie
cencies inflicted on brave men and
good women are something for which
the Christian supporters and excusers
Of the Sioux must yet account at the
bar where sentimental sympathy with
criminals is itself crime; and where
the wall of tortured infants will not
be hu&hed by reckoning of bad bee1
and deficiency in beans
While the Sioux sat in council tC