USA > California > Lassen County > Fairfield's pioneer history of Lassen County, California to 1870 > Part 22
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day fixed for it, and after laying in ambush, short of provisions and without a fire for fear of showing our position to the Indians for over three days during a severe sleet storm, I supposed the fight would not come off and left the position. On the day after leaving it the Indians passed through the canyon. They had a fair retreat of over forty miles in open country and escaped comparatively unharmed. They boast to this day that they have killed more whites than they have lost men. From the escape of the Indians without receiving a severe blow the chance of the speedy close of the war was for the time lost." Weatherlow scouted on the north and east sides of the lake and then went home, arriving there on the tenth, without seeing an Indian on the trip. "On the news of the volunteers having returned to California reaching our valley a second panic occurred. Nor was this unreasonable for the Indians who had escaped north held the country around the valley. A small party of prospectors who had been driven in by the hostiles had seen them in force some 400 strong at Wall Springs on the emigrant road.
"The troops removed from Honey Lake had left us entirely defenseless. At this critical juncture Col. F. W. Lander, Supt. of the U. S. overland wagon road, arrived in our valley with his company of some fifty men well armed and equipped. Their presence was a welcome relief to our unprotected settlement, for the Indians had grown so emboldened by success that they entered the valley within a few miles of the chief settlement and in broad day killed Mr. Adams, one of our most respected and worthy citizens. Governor Roop with a number of the principal settlers waited upon Col. Lander and besought him to aid them in protecting the valley against the Indians."
Among other Indian depredations was the following: In the fall of 1859 Isadore Goumaz, a brother of Philip J. Goumaz, who was foreman for the Lee Brothers, with a man to help him, took a band of cattle belonging to the Lees, 200 or 300 head, to the lower Hot Springs in this valley. He kept the cattle there that winter, herding them back to keep them from straying where the Indians would be likely to steal them, and in the spring moved them to Mt. Meadows. He left his camp just as it was- didn't take away anything. Probably he was gone four days, and when he returned he found that the Indians had paid the
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place a visit during his absence and entirely destroyed his camp. They burned what they could not carry off, the wagon being burned along with the other things.
THE MURDER OF HORACE ADAMS Told by Wm. Milton Cain and A. L. Tunison.
In 1859 Charles Adams brought another band of cattle from the States and his brother Horace came to the valley with him. He was killed by the Indians June 17th, 1860. There was very little land fenced on the Adams ranch and they kept up a saddle animal, picketing it out in the daytime and keeping it in the corral during the night. This morning Horace got up first and went at once to get the mare and picket her out. Just as he reached the middle of the corral one of the two Indians who lav concealed behind it fired at him from a distance of fifteen feet killing him instantly. "Bijah" Adams, who was the only man on the ranch besides Horace, had just got up and when he heard the shot he sprang to the door in time to see his brother go down. He ran outside at once and fired his pistol two or three times and then ran back into the house, grabbed his gun, ran out and jumped onto the mare, and started after the Indians. One of the Indians fired at him as he came out, but missed him. He crowded the Indians so hard that one of them dropped his gun and Adams got it, but the place was covered with sloughs and it was difficult to get around very fast with a horse and the Indians got into the tules and he could not find them. Adams then went back to the house and set some posts on fire to attract attention. Some one on the south side of the valley saw the smoke and went over there.
Col. Lander with a pack train and about fifty men, thirty of whom were armed with Sharp's rifles and dragoon pistols, arrived at Susanville about the first of June and camped at the Neale ranch four miles below there. When the settlers called on him and asked his aid in protecting the valley from the Indians, he said he would take part of his force and go out to reconnoiter the Indian position if the settlers would raise a company to join him. Lander said he was an Indian Agent and was authorized to make treaties with them. He said he should only seek an interview with Winnemucca, but if he found it impossible to do that or the Indians kept on fighting the settlers or interfered with his road work, he would fight them.
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The murder of Mr. Adams was reported to him on the 18th and in less than half an hour he started with twenty men in pursuit of the Indians. They rode all night and found the route the Indians had taken and probably where they were going. They then returned to camp after a ride of fifty miles.
The foregoing account of Col. Lander's movements and the following account of the expedition taken by a part of his command and Captain Weatherlow's Honey Lake Rangers was taken from a letter published in the "Daily Alta Californian" of July 17, 1860. It was signed by "Knight" who was a member of the expedition.
LANDER AND WEATHERLOW'S EXPEDITION AGAINST THE PAH-UTES
On the evening of the 19th of June, a few hours after Lander got back from his scouting trip, Weatherlow with thirty Rangers and Lander with thirty-five of his men, all mounted, started out into the country to the northeast of this valley. They made forced marches for two nights in succession, halting for a few hours in the heat of the day. When they got out near Madeline Plains (so called in the report of Lieut. Beckwith's survey) they found some moccasin tracks and Weatherlow's scouts saw two mounted Indians reconnoitering the camp. The next morning Captain Weatherlow with one company started out for another scout leaving Lieut. Tutt in command of the Rangers. By sun- rise the whole command had packed up and started. Col. Lander and one man went up the hill to the left where he could overlook a canyon and there saw an Indian in ambush watching their movements. He at once ordered the train up the hill to cut off the canyon and approach it from a commanding position. Lieut. Tutt opposed this style of approach and said that Capt. Weath- erlow had left orders for the command to go through the canyon. Lander said that if a large party of Indians was met, the whole command would be cut off, but as it was a joint command he would follow the orders Capt. Weatherlow had given. He claimed the privilege of leading the train and calling up Mr. Snyder, the commissary of the train, went on with him. When they entered the rocky walls of the canyon Lander said "Remember, gentlemen, I do not bear the responsibility."
Fifteen of the best men were sent to the rear behind the pack train. After they had gone nearly a mile Capt. Weatherlow
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and his company who, as Lander supposed, turned back to meet them and would have taken the trail over the rocky side hill in preference to the canyon, Tutt having misunderstood his orders. It was too late to remedy this and they went on. When they were nearly through the narrow canyon and were just ready to come out on the open ground, the Indians fired on the head of the column where Lander and Weatherlow were riding, mortally wounding Alexander Painter, a brother of Samuel H. and B. B. Painter. The bullet entered the body below the heart and lodged beneath the skin near the spine. He made no outcry, but rode off a short distance to the right near his brother Benj. B. and after dismounting said to him, "I am shot-don't wait for me; leave me my rifle and shot pouch and go on."
The Indians, how many there were of them they could not tell, kept up a continued fire and the bullets flew thick and fast, but they did no harm. Lander sent some men with a flag to a hill on the right and had the pack train sent out of the line of the fire and told the men to hold the hill at all hazards. He then took ten men and started out to drive the Indians away. They ran like scared dogs as the mounted men approached, going over the rocky hill sides where neither horse nor foot could follow them. The train then went out to the edge of a white plain from which the Indians had evidently retreated on the approach of the white men, perhaps taking their women and children with them. The force stayed there that night and were not molested by the Indians.
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Lander moved the camp to a long, rocky hill that ran out from the mountain and then prepared a decoy for the Indians. They had built defenses of stone along this and he thought they would come down there and try some long shots at the whites. About ten o'clock a large number of Indians came down this hill and hid themselves among the rocks. Lander waited for them to hide themselves, ten horses were saddled and led around to the opposite side of the hill, and fifteen men led by Lander went along the base of the rocks. The plan was to encourage the Indians with the footmen and let the cavalry cut them off from the mountain. A skirmish was kept up with a scattering fire and several Indians were seen to fall. Before the cavalry got up the hill the Indians saw them and fled precipitately. Col. Lander now mounted his horse and with a flag rode out
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toward the foot of the mountain, leaving his rifle in plain view leaning against a cedar tree. Seeing no chance for a fight and no chance to get in their rear, he thought he might obtain one objeet of the journey and have a talk with the chief. The Indians, instead of coming forward to talk, kept creeping behind trees toward him rifle in hand. They refused to parley so the white men advanced toward them again and they fled back along the side of the inaccessible mountain. Just at dark an Indian appeared out of the pass leading to Honey Lake-by good fortune two of their best and freshest horses stood saddled-and seven or eight men were made ready to support. The Indian was supposed to be one of the murderers from Honey Lake val- ley. At a given signal two of the most skillful riders started in full ehase after the Indian and in open view of the enemy on the hill. As soon as the Indian saw the men in pursuit he threw off his soldier cloak and made for the hills, but he was too late. The raee was a hard one-his comrades on the hill saw his danger, but dared not come to his help. They counted thirty-one Indians come out of the mouth of the canyon, but they dared come no further. Just then the Indian turned and fired at the foremost of his pursuers who saw his object and threw himself over to the other side of his horse and the ball passed harmlessly over the horse's back. The rider then raised and fired, bringing the Indian to his knees with a ball from his pistol. As he rode up the Indian elutehed at the rope hanging from the horse's neck and the rider again drew his pistol and fired, the ball entering the neck of the Indian, who held his grip and with his last gasp gave the warwhoop which was answered by his comrades on the hill who did not dare to come to his relief. A rope was then tied to his leg and he was dragged into camp. The dead savage was recognized by the Rangers as "Big Jim," a noted warrior of the Smoke Creek band, one of the murderers of Mr. Adams, and the leader of the parties who had made their incursions into the valley. That night they buried Mr. Painter under a cedar tree at the foot of the hill.
That day the Indians were seen to carry off several of their dead, but the whites didn't know how many of them they killed. The Pah-ute who was killed at sunset was buried in an open grave and covered with cedar boughs. They did not
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scalp or mutilate him. During the night the Indians went away and in the morning they could see no signs of them. The whites went on 'in the direction of Granite springs along the emigrant road. On reaching it they found that the fortified point at Wall springs had been abandoned by the Indians whom they met in a much stronger position in the mountains. Nothing of interest took place on their road home and they reached camp on the 30th of June.
There are other accounts of this expedition-Weatherlow's, E. V. Spencer's, and one published in the "Territorial Enter- prise," but in most respects they do not differ greatly from the one already given. The "Enterprise" says that Governor Roop and W. L. Jernegan of the "Enterprise" were members of Weatherlow's company and that Lander gave the American flag carried on this expedition to the family of Alexander Painter. Col. Lander also "publicly complimented Capt. Weatherlow and his company for their conduct while under fire." It also says that on several occasions Col. Lander laid aside his weapons and went toward the Indians and tried to talk with them, but they always retreated and said they wanted "heap fight." Weath- erlow says they fought the Indians for five hours and when Lander tried to talk with them they shot at him. Spencer says that three or four hundred mounted Indians charged them three times, but did not come within reach of their rifles. When Lander tried to talk with the Indians Winnemucca climbed up on a big rock where they could all see that he was dressed in white man's clothes and said "If you want to fight, you come up here. You no want to fight, you go home."
A little explanation will make Knight's story plainer. Mr. Spencer says they went into the country near the head of Smoke Creek Canyon. He also says that the canyon where Painter was killed ran in a northerly direction, was broad, and had higher, steeper walls on the left-hand side than on the right. Judging from what is told about that country by W. D. Minckler, the expedition must have gone from the head of Smoke Creek Canyon over to the creek that drains Painter Flat and followed up the canyon through which it flows. The fight took place just where the canyon comes out into the flat. Painter was buried on the flat which bears his name about a mile and a half north
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of east from where he fell and "Big Jim" was buried near him. Mr. Spencer was a member of the expedition.
The last of June Capt. Lance Nightingale came in with twenty-five men. He stayed here about a week and then went ont towards the Humboldt on an Indian hunt. The third of July First Lieut. Hamilton came from the San Francisco Pre- sidio with fifty men of Company I, Third Artillery. These soldiers stayed in the valley for the protection of the settlers.
On the Fourth of July Col. Lander and his men started out to work on the emigrant road between Honey Lake and the Humboldt river. Before leaving he told the people of Susanville to send, if possible, some friendly Indians to the Pah-utes and try to get Winnemucca to come in and make a treaty with him. The Wagon Road party built some reservoirs at Rabbit Hole springs and at Antelope springs, and also did some work at Hot, Buffalo, and Mud springs. These improvements were of much benefit to the emigrants who passed over the road in after years.
The Pah-utes stole a large band of cattle from Captain John Byrd this summer. He again raised a party of settlers, among whom were Asa S. LeGrow, M. B. Dwelley, William H. Dakin, William Hamilton, Thomas Fairchilds, and Fred Washburn, and prepared to follow the thieves. He also sent a messenger to Ft. Churchill, asking immediate attention and assistance. (This Fort was about twenty-five miles south of east of Virginia City .- F.)
It was twenty-four hours after the stock had been taken before the party was ready to start, but they had no trouble in following the trail. It led to the north through a level country and the pursuers made good time. The second day, after they had ridden sixty or seventy miles, they got near enough to the Indians to see them running away from the cattle. Very fre- quently during the day they had passed cattle that had been killed and once in a while an animal had its heart or tongue cut out. They also saw Indians watching them from the high places, and probably these signaled to the ones who were ahead with the cattle. On the approach of the white men the Indians, as usual, killed all the stock they could and then took to the hills and watched their enemies from a safe distance.
No Indians were killed. Byrd says he lost one hundred and
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fifty-four head of good cattle as the result of this raid, and other people whose stock ran on the same range also suffered loss.
UTT'S ESCAPE FROM THE INDDIANS
Knight's letter from Rabbit Hole springs, dated July 31, 1860, gives the following account of the escape of Hiram Utt from the Indians about the 20th of July: "One of the Honey Lake party out prospecting near Black Rock, Mr. Utt, a few days before our arrival had a narrow escape from massacre by a party of Indians. He had become separated from his comrades and was about four miles from camp. A rain storm had come up and he took shelter with his mule beneath a ledge of rocks at the mouth of a small canyon; while there he was suddenly sur- prised by four mounted Piutes, three armed with bow and arrows and one with a rifle. He leveled his rifle at the later but the gun would not go off ; he then sprang upon his mule, and dashing the rowels deeply into its sides started at full run for the camp. The savages with a yell pursued him and headed him off. The one with the rifle dismounted, and in order to make sure work of it, lay down in a little gully, and resting his gun on the bank, was proceeding to take deadly aim at Mr. Utt. The latter also sprang off his mule, recapped his rifle, and trusting to luck, fired while the Indian was still taking aim. The bullet struck the Indian directly in the forehead and killed him instantly. It was cer- tainly a lucky shot for Mr. Utt, who again mounted his mule and rode towards camp. Two of the Indians followed and tried to cut him off, but he kept them at a respectful distance with his revolver and thus reached his comrades in safety. We afterwards saw the body of the dead Indian at the spot where the encounter took place."
COLONEL LANDER'S TALK WITH YOUNG WINNEMUCCA
The story of this "talk" was told in Knight's letter written from Neale's ranch in Honey Lake valley, August 26, 1860.
The Lander party had finished its work on the road from Honey Lake to the Humboldt river. On the evening of the fifth of August word came that four Pah-utes had come to a trading post about two miles up the river, and knowing that Col. Lander wanted to interview them and have a talk with Winemucca, Mr. George Butler and two others started out and succeeded in
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capturing them and bringing them into camp. Their arms were taken away, but they were treated kindly and finding that they were not to be hurt they were willing to remain in camp until Lander, who was at Rabbit Hole springs, had been notified that they were there and came to have a talk with them. They said that Old Winnemucca was up in the mountains among the Oregon Indians, that Young Winnemucca was in the Snow moun- tains near the Truckee river, and that their people were scat- tered in small bands through the mountains. They promised to bring one of the little captains, who was in the neighborhood, Chief Naanah, to have a talk with Lander. After a delay of two days he came into camp and had an interview with the Colonel. It was a private talk, but the result was that two Indians started out on borrowed horses, furnished them by the Colonel, with the agreement that they would visit their great chief Winnemucca and tell him that Lander wished to talk with him and get him if possible to return with them. They agreed to return in "six sleeps" and meet the train at a certain place (Granite creek) on the route home. Many of the party predicted that neither the Indians nor the horses would ever be heard of again, but the Colonel from his knowledge of the Indian char- acter had confidence that they were sincere in their promises. It proved that he was correct, for on the evening of the 21st at the very place and time agreed on, the Indians came into camp with the borrowed horses accompanied by Winnemucca and some six or eight of the leading men of the tribe. After cordial greetings on both sides and partaking heartily of dinner, prep- arations were made for a talk.
Young Winnemucca was then about thirty years old, six feet tall, with a Roman nose and broad chin and a mouth showing strong will and decision of character. He and Lander lighted their pipes and smoked some time in silence and then Lander asked him through the interpreter to talk plain and straight and tell all that he wanted the great father at Washington to hear. Winnemucca started in slowly and spoke in a deep guttural tone, but he soon warmed up and his whole form seemed to expand with his pent up emotions. He said he was glad to meet the big captain and take him by the hand and have a good talk. He desired peace-not for himself for Winnemueca could die for his people, but for the squaws and papooses who were tired
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of hiding away in the rocks; they were poor and hungry and he was sorry for them. The white men were coming into the country and taking up the finest valleys, driving the red men from their fishing grounds and giving them nothing in return. The white man dug money from the ground and covered it with one hand while he held out his other hand empty to the Indian. The white man had plenty, but the Indians were poor, and when they asked for flour and meat the white man drove them away. The Indians were whipped and kicked and ill treated by the bad white men and they came to him with the stories of their wrongs. He was their leader, their war chief, and they looked to him to redress then. He was compelled to fight the white men while they were yet few in number. Presently they would be so strong that he could not fight them. He had been a good friend to the whites for many years. The other tribes, Shoshones, Pannacks, and Pit River Indians had stolen horses and cattle and killed white men yet presents had been made these bad Indians. The Pah-utes had been good yet received nothing. By and by the white men came to Washoe and they were bad men. They took the horses and squaws of the Indians and one of the chief's sons was killed. The Indians were very mad and they made fight, but now they were willing for peace.
Col. Lander told him that the big father at Washington was very mad when he heard that the Pah-utes were killing his people, and he would send his soldiers to fight them for ten snows or until they were all gone if they killed any more white men; but if they were good and would steal no more cattle from the settlers or the emigrants and kill no more whites, perhaps the big father would pay them for their lands in Honey Lake valley and Carson. They might fish at Pyramid lake and hunt in the mountains and the white men would not disturb them.
Winnemucca listened with great attention to the words of the Colonel and said it was good, but there had been much talk by the whites and no good had come of it. He would try the whites again. He would send his runners out into the mountains and tell his people not to kill the whites. His people were scat- tered far and wide and it might take two or three moons to tell them all, but he would send them word and they would all be good for one year, maybe two years, and wait and see what the big father would do-whether the white man lied or not. He
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said he had visited the cities of California, all the large ones, and saw that the white man lived well. He had plenty and his squaw and papoose sat down in his wigwam and were not afraid. He also desired to have a big house and teach his people to till the earth and raise wheat and corn and squashes. The white men promised to teach them, but they lied. He most positively denied that his people had any hand in the killing of Peter Lassen last fall or the murder of Mr. Demming at Willow Creek during the winter. He said that Lassen was a good man and his friend. The murder was done by bad Indians under a chief named Mia-a-cow, living near Goose Lake, who was a great rascal. Col. Lander told them that Major Dodge would come and talk with them also and tell them what the big father would do.
The Indians stayed there that night and in the morning after they had been given a few presents they got on their horses and departed. Winnemucca was the last to go, and as he went away he extended his hand to each one of them and said "Good bye-Goodbye" in a musical voice. Every look, act, and gesture marked him as the leading spirit of his tribe and a mighty chieftain.
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