Red Lodge daily news combined with Carbon County news., 1933-08-09

to take possession of the fort. To make their
success more certain, they prevailed upon as
many as they could to come out of the rort,
while at the same time their squaws, wrapped
in blankets, beneath which they had concealed
murderous weapons, were placed inside the en-
closure. The plot was so ingeniously laid that
no one suspected danger. The discipline of the
garrison was relaxed and the soldiers permit
ted to stroll about and view the sport without
weapons of defense. And even when the ball,
as II by chance, was lifted high in the air.
to descend inside the pickets. and was followed
by four hundred sayages, all eager, all strug-
Cling, all shouting In the unrestrained pursuit
of a rude, athletic exercise, no alarm was felt
until the shrill war-whoop told the startled gar
rison that the slaughter had actually begun.
II did not go myself to see the match which
was now to be played without the fort, because,
there being a canoe prepared to depart on the
following day for Montreal | employed myself
In writing letters to my friends; and even
when a fellow trader, Mr.. Tracy, happened to
call upon me, saying that another canoe had
just arrived from Detroit, and proposing that |
should go with him to the beach to inquire the
news, IL so happened that | still remained to
finish my letters, promising to follow Mr.. Tracy
In the course of a few minutes. Mr.. Tracy had
not gone mUIe LndU ~ PAGES lTUm NY uUUT
when | heard an Indian war-cry and the noise
of general confusion. Going instantly to my win
dow, | saw a crowd of Indians within the fort,
furiously cutting down and scalping every Eng
lishman they found. In particular I witnessed
the fate of Lieutenant Jamette.
81 had, In the room In which / was, a fowl
ing piece, loaded with swan shot. This | Inn.
mediately seized and held 1t for a few minutes,
waiting to hear the drum beat to arms. In this
dreadful interval | saw several OF my country
men fall and more than one struggling between
the knees of an Indian who. holding him In this
manner, scalped him while yet living"
Henry saved himself from the massacre by
hiding In the home of a French trader but he
was later captured and eventually was ran
somed by his friend, Wawatam. OF the garrison
Lieutenant jeanette, Is soldiers and the trader,
Tracy, were killed inside the fort. Captain Eth
rington. Lieutenant Leslie and II soldiers were
taken prisoners, 5 of whom were later killed
A few days after the massacre a party of OF
tawas arrived at Northumberland. They were
furious at the Chippewas for making the attack
without consulting them. SO they took English
captives away from the Chippewas and carried
them to LArbre Croche where they were kept
as prisoners until the end of the war when they
were released or rans0med at Montreal
During the Revolution Michilimackinac was
one OF the most important British posts In the
West and In 1880 Major Sinclair, commandani
Of the post, transferred part OF his troops tc
Macklnac island where a new fort was built
with blockhouses at the corners to protect the
palisaded walls. BY the treaty of 1888 which
ended the Revolution Mackinac became an Amer
lean post and the Stars and Stripes became the
third national flag to fly over 1t. In 1796 the
first American troops under Maj. Henry Bur
beck occupied the post but early In the War
of 1912 1t was captured by the British who held
Il until the close of the war. On July Is, 1915
Colonel Butler of the United States army tool
formal possession of the fort and from that
time until 1895, a period Of 80 years, when the
government abandoned 1t, Fort Mackinac was
an American army post. 1t Is now a Michigan
state park.
90 By Western Newspaper union)