Year: 1877

Half CRAZY with anxiety ana d1stress l
rose up, determined to dash out, but the
bullets came so fast that T was'frightened
under cover again. Few men ever put
in such an afternoon as / did there. Pain
and thirst were terrible enough, to say
nothing of my mental distress. I hadn't
the least hope of getting out alive, and
along toward night I got reckless as to
consequences. I should have made q
dash for the river, which was in plain
sight and not over half mile away, and
was just on the point of rising up when
yells and shots from my cabin held me
back. For about five minutes there was
lively roar of fire arms, and above all
other noises I could hear that carbine
going boom boom ! boom The In
dians who had been left to watch me nov
opened fire and began yelling, and it
wasn't long before suspected the truth.
You see, as I suspected, and as the boy
afterward related, the murderous fends
found they couldn't capture the post by
assaults on the doors. That brave little
woman and those poor children were too
much for forty or fifty Indians. After
losing nine or ten killed and over dozen
wounded, the reds collected at the west
end of the store-room, out OF range, and
went to work to tear out the logs. They
were three or four hours getting things
ready, but when the time came nearly
all the end of the building went down at
once. My wife and children were ready
for 'em. They defended the doorway for
full fifteen minutes, or until all but this
boy were shot dead. When the Indians
finally swarmed in he was the only one
left to wreak vengeance on. They toma-
hawked him, started to scalp him, and lie
was the same rs dead for hours. He is
sure the others were dead before the In
dams got through the door, and I praise
God for that consolation, while it nearly
drives me crazy to think of it,"


There was period Of silence, the boy
weeping bitterly, and then Greer braced
himself anew and continued:


"And what did I do? God forgive
me but couldn't do anything. I was
wild with excitement, and while I was
trying to plan something the reds made
d dash at me. They poured down at me
as if there was no end to the number.
They were right on me the first I knew,
shooting, stabbing and striking at me
with their guns. T got this rap on the
head then, and also this bullet in the
shoulder. but they didn't finish me. I
fought 'em, but how long I don't know,
for I was crazy. I remember of them
dodgine around me, of striking at them,
and of feeling the rage and strength of a
wounded lion. It was long after dark
before I cooled down and knew my situa-
ton. T was then carrying this boy in
my arms to the river. Where I found
him don't know. After plundering my
post the Indians set fire to it. This
child must have crept out and hid in the
bushes, while the bodies of the dead
were burned. He says he was conscious
when I crept upon him, and that when
he begged for water I took him in my
arms and started for the river. Well,
wounded MS T was, I felt better in the
cool night air. I wanted to save the
boy, and that helped nerve me up. The
cool water eased our hurts and refreshed
us, and between ten o'clock that night
and daylight next morning I walked
twenty-five miles, carrying the boy half
the time. You wonder that We are not
dead, but it wasn't to be. The boy has
been pretty tenderly treated, but I
haven't fooled with the doctors much.
They dug out some Of the lead, bandaged
me up, and I'll soon be all rig ght again.
I'm going to take Charlie to Vermont,
and then I'll 60 back to Idaiio and kill
Handians as long as I live. I've made n
vow-I've sworn by all that's good and
sacred-that I'll enter into no other
business and have no other plans but to
kill Indians whenever and wherever I
can find them III shoot down old and
young! I'll keep right on killing through
war and peace !"