Morgan County Democrat. (McConnelsville, Ohio) 1886-1943, 1937-01-07
THE END OF STLVERHEELS
An Indian Tale
(By Silas Thorla)
Continued from last week.

/ from last week
1t was four years later, in the
spring of 1898, when several maple
sugar camps were in operation along
the river, even up as far as Big Bot
| tom, where the awful massacre had
taken place eight years before. One
| night, while the sugar makers were
| standing around their seething ket-
| ties, who would make his appear
ance but the tall, commanding fig
ure of Silverheels? This was no sur
prise, as he lived but short dis
| tance up the river, and it was a
habit of his to make sudden ap-
pearance among the settlers.
On this occasion it was soon OBJ
served that he was somewhat the
| worse from the effects of liquor. and
was in the mood for imbibing more.
1t must be borne in mind that whis-
ky was used more freely and openly
than now, especially on occasions
| like this, and the sugar makers were
supplied and gave Silverheels what
he wanted from their TASKS. "Whis-
| ky in, wit and good sense out" Sill
verheels' tongue loosened and, los
ing control of his better judgment,
got to Dragging on himself as war
rior, the number of scalps he had
taken, which was seventeen-rather
| it was eighteen, as one man had a
double crown. He had shot this
man way down the river at the
mouth of a run, not far from fort
came onto him suddenly while he
was gathering mayapples and stuff
ing them in his hunting shirt. Had
no malice toward the man at all,
They discovered one another at the
same time and both shot instantly
for self-protection, but the white
man only wounded him. He took
the white mans gun and hid it in a
hollow log Took the scalp and see
ing that it was double crown, he
divided it and got $50 each at the
British post.
Little attention was paid to Sill
verheels' cultural droning, as is
generally the case in drunkenness,
but there happened to be one man
there who sat up and took notice
This boasting of shooting and
scalping man at the mouth Of that
run meant everything to this par
ticular person. He was Eli Sher-
man, son of Abel Sherman, who four
years before, had been slain. What
thoughts were now passing in quick
succession through the mind of this
young Sherman we can only con-
lecture He was now getting the
particulars of his fathers death first
handed. With listening ears he
caught every word. With open eyes
he watched every gesture. and. no
doubt, with clinched fists he would
like to have choked the boasting
tongue to standstill, but no one
man could do that, so he kept his
place and held his peace; he would
know more on the morrow. The
next day Eli Sherman went to the
spot, found the hollow log, and sure
enough, there was his fathers gun,
rusted, but nevertheless the same old
gun.
All! Fateful day! little did
drunken Silverheels realize that he
had signed his own death warrant.
He had sealed his doom, but who
knew 1T? Not soul living except
Eli Sherman.
What has become of Silverheelso
Has anyone seen him? What ever
could have happened him? These,
and similar questions, were doubt
less asked by many of the settlers
strung along the river from Big Bot
tom to Marietta. "His canoe hadn't
skinned the waters of the Moose
Eye (Muskingum) for more than a
moon" "Could it be possible that
he had decided to leave the palefaces
and again attach himself to the
Shawnees?" Not at all likely. He
would never forget or forgive the
taunts and jeers he bore in his
early life-no, he preferred to be
alone, an outcast.
And, besides all this, his hut in
dieated that he expected an imme-
date return. Could he have drown
ed in the river he loved so we'll? |
No: there is his canoe, besides q |
muskfat could drown just as easy, |
Gould he have accidentally shot him !