USA > Indiana > Pioneer history of Indiana : including stories, incidents, and customs of the early settlers > Part 46
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that he would go to that point with the five men selected and watch that bridge.
He authorized the two men if they could find any reliable persons to guard the Columbia bridge, for them to do so, as it might be possible they would go that way. Bidding the two men good-bye, he asked them to be prompt and report at. the time named.
That the reader may understand, I will state that the slave-hunting bullies had made themselves so obnoxious to. many good people in and around Princeton, that this bogus. slave hunt was inaugurated to teach them a needed lesson .. The pretended slaveowner was none other than an anti- slavery spy and he had five confederates who were well ac- quainted with the country and the people. The ones selected. to guard the Wheeling bridge were the most offensive ones in that business. The anti-slavery confederates had eight heavy bombs made at Kratz & Heilman's foundry in Evans- ville, which would hold about three pounds of powder, each with a screw attachment so that a time fuse could be put into. the powder.
As soon as it was dark the five men, carrying the bombs, started two hours ahead of the brave negro catchers. The first two bombs were placed near the side of the road in a deep hollow about two and a half miles northeast of Prince- ton, the next two were placed about three-fourths of a mile from the Wheeling bridge, and the other four, two on each side of the bridge about sixty or seventy yards away. A man was left at each station to fire the fuse at the proper time, and the extra man nearly a hundred yards from the bridge down the river to command an imaginary battalion. These bombs were the real thing for a great noise.
At four o'clock the two men were on hand and had the names of three men who would go out and watch the Colum- bia bridge; also said that the other men of their party would be ready at any time set for the start. The slaveowner said that he did not care to see the three men who were to go to. the Columbia bridge, as he thought they had but little chance of success, and he authorized the two men to see that
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they went, and for them and the other three of their party to meet him on the north side of the seminary at one hour after night and they would go to the Wheeling bridge.
The party all assembled on time and then took the Wheeling road to the northeast for the bridge. There had been an agreed signal between the pretended slaveowner and his confederates with the bombs, so he could locate their places, and when the bridge-watching party got to the deep hollow, Indian creek, a deep, loud voice some way to one side said, "Who goes there?" The men stopped and listened for some time, but nothing more was heard. The leader turned to his posse and said, "Did you let it be known that we were going on this hunt?" They all said that they had not. He rode around and called several times, but there was no re- sponse.
They then rode ahead and after passing several miles came to where the second station was located, when from out of the woods to one side of the road, in a deep-sounding voice, came the second challenge, "Who goes there?" The party stopped and the leader said in a loud voice, "Who are you, that you demand who we are?" He waited for some time, but there was no more sound heard. The leader, after locating the place well, turned to his men and asked if they thought it could be possible that the abolitionists would at- tempt to defeat their plans. They all said they did not think they had any idea of their movements. The leader said it was strange indeed that they should have been twice stopped by such an unearthly sound.
They rode on in silence to the bridge, crossed over it and went on watch on the north side, keeping their horses close at hand so they could mount, if they needed to, in a moment, as the slaveowner told them the slaves would run and that there were two desperate characters in the lot. The brave slaveowner had them watch closely. He would walk up and down both banks of the river, pretending to. be watching everything. Finally he came running up the bank and said, "Boys, get on your horses. I am certain there is something going on. I heard a noise as of men slipping through the
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ibrush." At this time one of his confederates called out, "Halt! Dismount; let two men hold the horses; get into line. Shoulder arms!" At this time one of the bombs near the horses went off. The leader called. "Get over the bridge, boys; the abolitionists will blow it down." At this another bomb exploded near them. This put the horses in a fearful panic and they went across the bridge at a great gait.
Soon the two bombs on the south side exploded. The men were on the go and it was a half mile before the leader could stop them. Shaming them for such cowardice, they stopped and listened, and hearing nothing, marched on to where the last voice was heard as they went to the bridge, and were listening there when the two bombs at this point were exploded within a few feet of them. After this there was no more halt, and the man who fired the two bombs at Indian creek said he could not tell that they went any faster, as they were at top speed when they got to him. The leader tried to keep up calling to them to stop. They did not heed him, for they had seen and heard enough for one night and ran all the way back to Princeton.
In 1865 a captain of the 143d Indiana Regiment, who for years after the war lived at and near Francisco, Indiana, and later moved west, while seated on the capital steps at Nash- ville, Tennessee, gave me the data for the above story. He said he was never so thoroughly frightened in his whole life as when the big bombs commenced to go of; it sounded as though the infernal regions had broken loose. Who the five men were who had charge of the bombs he never could learn, but always believed that they lived in the Stormont and Carithers neighborhood northeast of Princeton. There is one fact certain, as he expressed it, it broke him of "sucking eggs," and if any of the other four men ever attempted to "catch a runaway negro afterward, he never heard of it.
AN ATTEMPT TO CATCH RUNAWAY NEGROES WHICH ENDED IN A DESPERATE BATTLE WITH WILD HOGS.
In 1850. Joseph Stubblefield was hunting some cattle which had strayed away from John Hathaway's works on the
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old Wabash and Erie canal just north of the Patoka river op- posite the town of Dongola. Finding that the oxen had crossed the river, he followed on after them until he came to what was then known as the Hazel rough, a large body of land which had but little timber on it, but was completely covered with hazel brush, matted together with grapevines, running in every direction all over the top of the low bushes. At that time there were many wild hogs running at large in all this section, and that large body of wild tangled brush was an ideal home for them and offered them a bountiful supply of food from September to winter when there was other mast they could get in the timber around the edges of that immense thicket. In tracking the cattle it was found they had gone to the bot- toms of Buck creek, which was a short distance west of the rough, where he found them, and in attempting to drive them back they made a rush to get away by going into the edge of the rough. Following on after them some distance, he came to a camp with a bed of leaves that looked as if it had been recently used, as bones of animals and a piece of cornbread were found near the bed, which was completely covered with grapevines and could not be seen unless one should happen on to it as Stubblefield had done. He did not understand what this meant, as he had seen no one. But when he got back with the cattle he related his find to some of the men on the works and learned that it was a bed made by runaway negroes and that a posse had been there that morning inquiring for them and had left a handbill giving a description and offer- ing a reward for their capture.
It was soon noised around that their hiding place had been found by Stubblefield and there was a posse organized to go back with him and capture the negroes. Mr. Hathaway learned what was up and sent for Joe and interrogated him about the bed and where it was. Mr. Hathaway was a just man, and believed if the poor runaways could elude their mas- ters and gain their liberty, that it was right that they should do it, and told Stubblefield, who at that time was not more than twenty years old, that he thought it wrong for him to pilot those human hounds so that they could capture
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these poor unfortunates. Joe at once took the same view of the matter and it was arranged between them that he would do all he could to keep the men from finding the negroes by taking them to a wrong place and fool them all that he could until night would come, and the negroes would then be on their way north. It was arranged that they would start about two o'clock. When the time came Stubblefield, who was equal to any emergency, pretended that he had sprained his ankle very badly and that he would have to bathe it for a while before he could go. In this way he put in as much as an hour, and when he had gone some distance on the way, he found that he had left his pocketbook, with all his money, in his boarding shanty and must go back and get it.
By this time it was four o'clock and an hour later when they got to the rough, at the farthest point from where he had made the find. There was at least two hundred acres of this land which was very brushy and as much as one hundred acres that was a dense thicket. The party had brought five dogs with them and the leader of the posse was named Bev Willis, who owned a boat that was in the river at Dongola, where he supplied the thirsty with Patoka water and whisky mixed. He was the owner of a very large white bull dog, which was a great favorite with all when he was muzzled.
Another one of the posse was Pat McDermitt, who was one of Hathaway's bosses. He borrowed a large Newfound- land dog from his boarding boss, and there were three com- mon dogs along that were of no special value.
All told, there were five men beside Stubblefield in the party, all armed with some sort of a weapon. When they got to the rough, Mr. Stubblefield said that in there, not more than thirty feet from the post oak tree, was where the bed was made. It was so thick that it was impossible to ride in anywhere.
McDermitt, who was a dare-devil, said he would go in and see what he could find. Taking his big dog along, he started to creep in under the tangle but had not gone far be- fore he came to a nest of young pigs. One of the little dogs following him caught one of the pigs and it set up a great.
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cry. In a minute the old mother was on hand charging the dog that was barking at her family. The white bull dog went to the aid of his brother and soon caught the sow by one of her ears when she commenced to squeal and in less than a minute hogs were heard coming from every direction. They charged the white dog who, with bull dog pluck, held his hold of the sow's ear. Finally a large male hog cut the dog open with one of his tusks. By this time there was an awful uproar; dogs barking, hogs rallying and men yelling. .Mc- Dermitt's big dog caught one. This brought the battle on him and in a moment he was surrounded with savage hogs. The continued battle had brought the hogs and dogs near to the edge of the thicket. McDermitt, intending to save his dog, ran his horse up to where he was and tried to catch him by a collar which was around his neck and bring him out.
A large hog hamestrung his horse, which threw McDer- mitt, and before he could get away he was tusked to the bone in several places in both legs. The other men fought the hogs back with their guns and secured their wounded com- panion. This ended the negro hunt. One man was cut to pieces and ruined for life, two valuable dogs killed and a horse so injured he had to be killed. After this the party concluded they had not lost any negroes and were glad to get back home.
Isaac Street, who had laid out and platted the town of Dongola, was a very quiet old Quaker and thoroughly in sympathy with the anti-slavery party. He and his good wife, Aunt Rachel, had many times fed and secreted the poor negroes as they were making their way to the North and lib- erty. They had knowledge of where the negroes were se- creted in the thicket, and while Stubblefield was dilly- dallying time away before he went to pilot the posse to the field of carnage, Mr. Street learned of the proposed raid, and with the aid of Thomas Hart, who was in sympathy with the negroes, took them from their hiding place. under a small load of straw to his barn, and that night carried them to the north of White river and delivered them over to a friend.
Thirty years after the events just recorded, in conversa-
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tion with Mr. Stubblefield about this hog battle, he said that his life had been sweet to him, although he had undergone many hardships and misfortunes, but in all his life there was never any one thing that he had always so thoroughly en- joyed as he did seeing those roaring negro hunters defeated and routed. .
After the canal was finished in this section, Mr. W. H. Stewart, the father of Dr. W. H. Stewart, of Oakland City, bought the immense thicket above described and made a large farm. That farm is now owned by Frances W. Bulli- vant's heirs and Thomas Spore.
JERRY SULLIVAN'S RAID AT THE OLD DONGOLA BRIDGE.
In 1851 Mr. Andrew Adkins came across the Patoka river at Dongola to see my father. It was late in the sum- mer and the farm work was nearly all done, as we were just cutting our fence corners. My father was not at home and Mr. Adkins remained until after dinner to see him. There were three hands beside myself at work on the farm. As Mr. Adkins was coming over that morning, two men from near Kirk's Mills, now called Bovine, overtook and rode to the bridge with him. They showed him a flaming handbill giv- ing a description of seven runaway negroes and offering a re- ward of one thousand dollars for their capture. They in- formed Mr. Adkins that they, with some others, intended to " watch the bridge that night, and invited him to assist them, offering to share the reward with him if they got the negroes.
Mr. Adkins was very anxious for fear they would catch the negroes, and while we were resting after dinner he so ex- pressed himself to the hands. At that time we had a dis- charged soldier of the regular army, named Jerry Sullivan, working for us. In the talk Sullivan asked why it would not be a good plan to rout the bridge-watchers. This, Mr. Ad- kins thought, would be a good thing to do, but the fugitive slave law gave the men the lawful right to catch them, and the courts in this country were so organized that it was danger- ous business to try to hinder anyone from recapturing the slaves. Those capturing them for the reward had the same
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rights under the law as the master had. Sullivan was a full-fledged abolitionist and said, "Fugitive slave law to the winds! Just give me a chance and I will clean out that bridge-watching gang in good shape." Mr. Adkins had the will, but he did not dare go into the conspiracy, as the two men who offered to divide the reward with him were neigh- bors of his, and if it was found out he was in the scrape, they would cause him to pay a heavy fine.
Sullivan was very anxious to get after them and con- sulted us young boys about going with him. The other boys working for us were Wm. B. Dill and Thos. Midcalf. Finally it was agreed that we would all pretend to go fishing late that evening and put out a trot-line and stay until late in the night. Mr. Adkins agreed that he would go home and send his younger brother, Pinkerton Adkins, and Hiram Knight, a neighbor boy, late in the evening to go with us. Before he would agree to do anything, he made us promise not to kill anyone and that we must not injure the horses of the men guarding the bridge. After we made these promises he said he would see Basil Simpson, who lived on the bluff but a little way west of the bridge and who was thoroughly in sympathy with the anti-slavery people, and ask him to watch where the men put their horses. When the two boys. came over late in the evening they were to remain near Mr. Simpson's until the watchers had gotten to the bridge and had hidden their horses; then the boys would come on to the agreed rendezvous, which was about one mile south of the bridge. After these arrangements were made, Mr. Adkins went home, thinking we would not do anything more desper- ate than turning their horses loose and driving them away so they would not find them for some days.
Finally my father came home and we got his consent to go to the river fishing. Sullivan got a number of old newspapers and rubbed wet powder all over them, leaving it in lumps so that it would flash when it was burning and make a regular flambeau. He dried the paper in the sun and then took a lot of fuse which he had been using in blasting stumps. Taking a good supply of flax strings which we made for the purpose,
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he made six large broaches out of the newspapers.
We had plenty of horses and about sundown we took our trot-line and guns and started for the river. When we ar- rived at the meeting place we had to wait until a little after dark, when the two boys came, mounted and armed for the fun. As Sullivan had been a soldier and was much older than any of the rest, it was unanimously agreed that he should have full command and we would do as he directed.
Mr. Simpson and the two Pike County boys had located the horses in a patch of small saplings. As I now recollect it, they were less than one hundred yards southwest of the Don- gola coal mine shaft and there were seven of them. The two Kirk's Mill men told Mr. Adkins there would be six and gave him their names. One of them was a doctor, who at that time lived in Lynnville, in Warrick County. One was a hotel- keeper who lived in Petersburg and another was one of his boarders. The other was a man who lived about half way from Dongola to Winslow on the north side of the river. It was never ascertained who the seventh man was. After the party had assembled, Sullivan took charge, giving each a number and directed us how to form a line and put us through a lot of manoeuvres which were pure nonsense to us then, but which I afterward learned were good military tac- tics.
After waiting until about two hours after night, our commander got us in position two and two, and heading the cavalcade, gave the command to "Forward, march!" We marched on until one of the Pike County boys told our com- mander that we were near the place the horses were hitched. Halting us, the commander took one of the boys and located the horses; then coming back. he marched us up to a point where he wanted us to leave our horses. We dismounted, leaving one man to hold the five horses. One man, mounted, was stationed between the horses and the bridge to look out. for the enemy.
Stripping the saddles off the bridge watchers' horses and piling them at the root of a large tree, we led them out to the road and within about two hundred yards of the bridge,
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when Sullivan unrolled his flambeau material and wrapped one of the broaches inside the hair of each horse's tail. He- securely tied them there leaving about six inches of fuse sticking out. As he had only six broaches he made another for the extra horse by cutting a strip out of a heavy saddle. blanket. He rolled it very tightly, putting about two-thirds of a pound of powder into it and bound the strong material very tightly with the flax strings. The fuse in this case was longer than the others, as he said he wanted it to go off near the bridge.
He lighted all the fuse, then ordered us to turn the horses. loose and start them down the road toward the bridge. We soon had our horses started after them, yelling like so many Indians. The broaches commenced to pop and fizz at a great rate and the horses were going like the wind. In a little while the big bomb went off and I doubt if anyone ever saw such another runaway scrape where there was an equal num- ber of horses.
They went across the bridge at top speed. When we got. near the bridge Sullivan ordered us to halt, make ready and fire, which we did. Jumping off our horses we loaded our guns. Our commander was calling aloud giving orders to an imaginary battalion to rush over the bridge and capture the. villains.
About this time Tom Midcalf, who was a fearless fellow, became very much excited, jumped on his horse and ran over the bridge hallooing like a Comanche Indian, We kept up, a fusilade for some time but there was no one there. The charge of the horses with the snapping and flashing of fire tied to their tails was enough to have scared the devil, let. alone a few cowardly scamps who were waiting to capture a lot of poor runaway negroes trying to get away from the bonds of slavery.
All the evidence of there having been anybody there was the horses and we found a bed made down above the bridge where one relief of negro hunters were no doubt lying when the horses came charging onto them. We found two pair of boots under the bed put there for the purpose of raising their-
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heads. We also found a bushel bashet in which they had their provisions.
Sullivan rolled up a lot of rock in their bed and threw it into the river. He cut their boots into strips and threw them into the river. Then he sent three of the boys back and got the seven saddles, cut them all to pieces and threw them into the river. I don't know how far the horses ran, but probably several miles.
It was believed that the men guarding the bridge were on the go before the horses crossed it and that they made good time until they got clear away from the noise made by our crowd, and the running of the horses sounded like a host of men after them. Sullivan got us into line and escorted the Pike county boys near to their homes and then we went home arriving after midnight. Jerry Sullivan remained at my father's home several weeks after these events. When he went away he said he was going to re-enlist in the army. I have often wondered what became of him. If he was in the war of the rebellion I am satisfied that he made his mark.
The oldest of our crowd except Sullivan was less than sixteen years old. Just a lot of green country boys, and as I recall the scrape, with such a leader we would have run head- long into anything, regardless of danger. I afterward learned that the thing needed was for soldiers to have a lead- er who had the grit and the will and they would follow him into the jaws of death.
With the four young men named I have had many adven- tures and hours of pleasure. They were all brave true-heart- ed men, long since gone to their eternal rest.
Years afterward Mr. Adkins told me that some time af- ter the middle of the night of the raid. there was a knock at his door. On opening it one of the Kirk's Mills men was there and said that early in the night he had a chill and was compelled to go home, that he was very thirsty and asked for a drink of water. Mr. Adkins said he was satisfied that the reason the man stopped was to find out if he was at home.
After the war was over and the negroes free, my father told me that the day Mr. Adkins was at his house waiting
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for his return, he was in consultation with Ira Caswell, of Warrick County, and Dr. Posey, of Petersburg, as to how best get the seven negroes to the north of White river with- out having them recaptured.
The negroes at that time were safely hidden in the thick brush and tall grass in what was then known as the big pond, about two miles east of Oakland City. The pond at that time of the year was nearly dry and had a heavy growth of pond grass all over it. The runaways were kept there during that day and at night were taken over the Patoka river at Martin's ford, about one mile east of Massey's bridge, and were then piloted along Sugar creek for some distance until they came to where a wagon was in waiting for them in which they were carried to Dr. Posey's coal bank and hid- den. They remained there the next day and at night were ferried across White river in skiffs and were turned over to another friend who rushed them on to Canada and freedom. When they had passed White river they were regarded as nine-tenths free.
KIDNAPPING THE GOTHARD BOYS.
These boys were born at the Diamond Islands in Posey county in about 1820. About the year 1824 Gothard moved with his family to a little log cabin a half mile southwest of what is now known as Calvert's Chapel, Vanderburg county. About the year 1825 three men whose names are not known except the leader, named Lynn, stole the boys and took them back to Diamond Island, where they were secreted and after- ward taken away to Missouri, which created quite a commo- tion in the neighborhood. A party was organized to search for the boys, but they were not successful. The party was headed by "Uncle Paddy Calvert," With him were Bob Calvert, Joseph Carter and John Armstrong and two or three others. While they were searching for the boys at Diamond Island, the company had quite a skirmish with the kidnappers with clubs, knives and guns. In the midst of the battle, which was a desperate one from start to finish, Paddy Cal- vert came near losing his life. The kidnappers got between
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