The daily worker. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1924-1958, 1929-01-11

The tunes were plaintive and fan
tastic, and sounded much alike to
me. In the night when the fires
We're lighted, the hypnotic rhythm
of the drums and the springy fur
tive dance steps of the Indians, ac-
companied by the low grooming
song, were thrillingly weird.
The story of the massacre Of the
Piute Indians at Thacker Pass was
told to me first by Jim Sackett, one
of the volunteers who took part in
the killing. | also heard the story
from Ok Sam, Piute who had made
his escape, one of the only three
survivors.
l first heard this hair-raising mar
rative when old Sackett happened
to be a chance visitor at the Ohio
mine. 1t began with an explanation
of the many depredations on the
part of the Indians throughout
southern Oregon and northern Ne
vada, which caused the white men
to organize volunteer company
which, he said, was for mutual pro-
lection. This company had been
famous as the crack Indian fighters
of that section. Their quarters were
at Fort McDermitt; from this base
they secured the country looking for
Indians. McDermitt was on the
western slope of the Santa Rosa
range, in the mouth of branch of
the Quin River.
Sackett was an old pensioner who
roamed about the country doing lit
tie, as he was then too old to work
much. There were only a few of
his type left. He was at home in
the mountains at the cabins of the
prospectors or at the ranches along
the river in the valley. He wore his
hair and his beard long, both griz-
zled gray. His eyes were weak and
looked as though they were sore
from alkali dust. AS he talked he
would squirt tobacco juice at an OBJ
ject he had located as target and
hit it with remarkable pre-, ion.
His story started:
"That day we had camped at the
mouth of Willow Greek, just above
where Andy Kinniger's house stands
now. We were settling down for a
good nights sleep when the call
came for boots and saddles. Now
what's up? The outfit was ready
to move in a very short time, mules
! packed and horses saddled The
captain coming up pointed across
the valley in the direction of what
is now called Thacker Pass, saying,
If you look close you can see a
fire there. Before dusk | thought l
could see smoke but now l see the
fire. 1t is an Indian camp. We've
got to get there by daylight. Well
start when it gets a little darker
1t was a long ride across the sage
brush flat and through the mea-
dows as we got close to the river,
which we had to swim. More mea-
dows and then the sage-brush again.
One of the horses stepped into a
badger hole and broke his leg. We
couldn't kill him until next day. They
might have heard the shot and we
did not want to alarm them. Here
the company divided; part were sent
ahead to ride down the pass to the
camp, a small detachment was left
with the pack animals and extra
saddle horses, the rest of US rode
up the pass.
Daylight was just breaking when
we came in sight of the Indian
camp. All were asleep. We unslung
our carbines, loosened our six
shooters, and started into that camp
of savages at a gallop, shooting
! through their wickiup5 as we came.
In second, sleepy-eyed squaws and
bucks and little children were dart
ing about, dazed with the sudden
onslaught, but they were shot down
before they came to their waking
senses. The other detachment came
rushing in but did no shooting until
they were close up. From one
wickiup to another we went, pour
ing in our bullets. Then we dis
mounted to make a closer examina-
ton. In one wickiup we found two
little papooses still alive. One SOL
der said, Make cleanup. Nits
make lice When Charley Thacker
spoke up, saying, sd like to keep
those two if there amt no serious
objection Before it was decided,
some one sang out, There's one get
tin a,ayp He was already mile
off on big gray horse going like
the wind. Some of us began to
shoot, several got on their horses
and started after him. But it was
too late, he escaped. They soon re-
turned. Those of the Indians who
were only wounded. we put out of
their misery, and then mounted and
rode away, Charley Thacker carry
ing his two papooses behind him."
These young ones grew to man.
hood and were known as Jimmy and
Charley Thacker. When l knew
them they had gone back to the no.
madic life Of the Indians. Br.h were
fine, stalwart men; as men,
imagine, much better than those
who helped kill their fathers and
mothers, relatives and friends.
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