Morgan County Democrat. (McConnelsville, Ohio) 1886-1943, 1935-08-15
GRAVE OF SILVERHEELS
Continual from maze Ouel

Continued from page oheJ
lonely. He had pitched a hut by
rife in the Muskingum which was,
and is still known, as S1lYerheels
Rifle. The settlers were kindly
disposed toward him, for he had
warned them of an impending mas
sacre. and once at the risk Of his
life. had rescued Marie Fontanelle
from Indian captivity.
An outcast Of both the whites
and the Shawnees whose bloods
mingled in his veins, he was pitied
as a lone. melancholy figure that
the receding tides Of warfare had
left stranded on the shore
Seeing that he evidently wanted
more liduor the settlers gave him
the run OF their TASKS. The mask
like rieidity OF his face relaxed.
Souatting beside them in the way
ering glow Of the campfire he began
to talk in reminiscent monotone
of tales of his past glory as a war"
rior. His voice grew feverish and
excited.
Yes, he was half white, but he
was also Shawnee. Seventeen scalps
had dried to his credit. He sup
was Of a man who had two crowns
ON his head. lie had shoI the old
gentleman one evening below the
mouth Of Olive Green creek. He
had no reason to kill him. He had
come suddenly on the white man as
he was stuffing May apples into his
hunting shirt
They had discovered one an
other at the same time, and both
had shot instantly in self-protec-
tion. Yes, he still had a shoulder
wound from it. But he got even.
He hid the white mans gun, a big
musket with queer iron bands, in
hollow log. Then he scalped him,
divided the double crown. and got
$50 for each from a British post in
Detroit.
The men around the campfire
paid little attention to his gutteral
boasts. believing them to be the
idle delusi0ns of a drunken IN
dian But there was one whose fin
gers tWitched to strangle his boast
in his throat. 1t was Eli sherman,
son of Abel sherman, who had been
found scalped at the mouth Of that
run. four years ago. Not a COM
ment did he make, but the next day
he hurried to the run, reached in
the hollow log and pulled out his
fathers gun-rusted, stock rotted
off-but still his fathers gun.
Silverheels disappeared, Here
history stopped.
With a start we tried to reason
ourselves back to reality. This was
1885, and We were sitting in the
shade of a barn reminiscing with
John Roberts, who was reputed to
know the true end of the tale.
What was the final chapter?
Well he said, my father often
told me how Eli confded in his
friends, Matte Chapman and Jesse
Scott. They were wildbee hunters
who combed the woods for bees and
honey to sell at the settlement.
lone day they got their heads to-
gether and decided to go on a deer
hunt. 1t turned out to be a man
hunt. Silverheels was right proud
OF his hunting prowess. He was
known as the greatest man to stalk
deer in these parts. Why that Red
skin could track deer through the
leaves better than any white man
could run them down in the snow.
Yes, sir They had TO be pretty
slick to catch that old boy. You
know, they called him Silverheels
because he was so fleet of foot that
when he ran, the white buckskin
moccasins he always wore flashed
like silver in the sun.
well. as | was saying, Jesse,
Eli, and Nathaniel got Silverheels
to 60 hunting. Pretty soon three
deer came running over the brow
of the hill. The men dropped back,
let Silverheels creep ahead. Three
shots rang out, and Silyerheels was
dead
Then they began to get scared,
because after the war, shooting an
Indian was murder SO they drag
ged Silverheels through the brush
and carried him across that creek
and up yonder hill where they dug
under that ledge and hid him.
They must have buried his gun,
too, because | dug one up, right
near. not so long ago. Yes, sir,
was tramping along with friend
when all of sudden | whicked my
toe on some dern thing sticking out
of the leaves. / says, What the
devil did / cut my foot on?' He
says. why, that a stick / says,
That amt no stick!' and / began
digging. Pretty soon | pulled up
an old iron gun barrel, just 20