USA > Minnesota > Waseca County > Child's history of Waseca County, Minnesota : from its first settlement in 1854 to the close of the year 1904, a record of fifty years : the story of the pioneers > Part 12
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"I was guided to the place where my children and neighbors were murdered, by the erying of a child, whom I supposed to be Johnny ; but on reaching the spot where he lay, he proved to be Mrs. Everett's youngest child. Her eldest child, Lilly, aged six years, was Jeaning over him, to shield him from the cold storm. I called her by name; she knew my voice instantly, and said : 'Mrs. Eastlick, the Indians haven't killed us yet.' . No Lilly,' said I, 'not quite, but there are very few of us left.' Said she. 'Mrs. Eastliek, I wish you would take care of Charley.' I told her it was impossible, for my Johnny was somewhere on the prairie, and I feared he would die unless I could find him, and keep him warm. She then bogged me to give her a drink of water, but it was out of my power to give her even that, or to assist her in any way, and I told her so. She raised her eyes, and with a sad, thoughtful, hopeless look, asked, 'Is there any water in Heaven ?' 'Lilly,' I replied, 'when you get to Heaven you will never more
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suffer from thirst or pain.' On hearing this, the poor, little, pa- tient sufferer, only six years old, laid herself down again by her baby brother and seemed reconciled to her fate."
Mrs. Eastlick then continued her search for her missing ehild- ren far into the night.
It appears that as soon as the women and children became prisoners they were taken by a portion of the Indians some two miles from the slough where the men were left, toward the Cot- tonwood river, where the Indians murdered a number of their captives.
The other party of Indians returned to Lake Shetek to plunder the houses and gather up the horses and eattle. Of the men left in the slough only one was left unwounded, Mr. Duly; and he left as soon as the Indians disappeared, making his way to Manka- to, leaving the others to care for themselves. Of those left, there were Messrs. Everett, Hateh, Bentley and Ireland, and two children of Mrs. Eastliek-Merton, about eleven years old, and her youngest child, Johnny, about fifteen months old. Mr. Ireland was so badly wounded that he did not expect to live, and begged of some of them to kill him outright and end his misery. Being shot through the lungs, he breathed with great difficulty, and bloody froth issued from his mouth at every respiration. Mrs. Eastliek's children were so young that there was little hope of their being able to go far, and the men left were wounded to such an extent that they could barely get away themselves.
As soon as Messrs. Everett, Hatch, and Bentley beeame satis- fied that all the Indians had gone, they left the place as rap- idly as their wounds would permit, avoiding the course the In- dians had taken, and going in the direction of "Duteh Charley's" -a German settler who lived east of them. They left the slough about the middle of the afternoon. Along toward night they saw a team and wagon aeross the prairie, going east, and, knowing that some settler must be making his escape, Mr. Everett told Bentley to go on and overtake the team. Bentley, who was only wounded in the arm, started in pursuit, but did not overtake the team till night set in. The team turned out to belong to Mr. Meyers, who, with his siek wife, was attempting to escape. They reached Duteh Charley's house after dark, to find it vacated. The Meyers family and Bentley staid in the house over night.
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Mr. Everett was so badly wounded, and so weak from loss of blood that it was with difficulty that he could travel at all; but Charley Hatch staid nobly by him and urged him on with the hope of finding relief at the German's house. Late in the night, Hatch and Everett arrived at Dutch Charley's place, but, fearing that there might be Indians in the house, they lay down near the stable. Just at daylight, Mr. Meyers looked out of the door, and seeing, as he supposed, an Indian peering from behind the stable drew his gun to fire. At the same moment, Charley Hatch looking from behind the stable, thought Meyers was an Indian and aimed his gun at him. Both pulled trigger about the same time. Fortunately both guns missed fire. By this time Bentley saw Hatch and both parties recognized each other.
As soon as possible after the mutual recognition of the parties, the oxen were yoked and hitched to the wagon for a new start. Each one felt that his only safety was in getting as far east as Mankato or New Ulm as soon as possible. They well knew by what they had seen that the Indians would murder them at sight.
They all got into the wagon and soon started, keeping a sharp lookout for Indians. The cattle were so exhausted from travel- ing the day before that they made slow progress. The travelers made about fifteen miles that day and eamped on Little ('reek. They had nothing to eat except a little flour, wet with cold water and dried in the sun, for they dared not build a fire, lest the smoke should attract the notice of the savages.
By this time Mr. Everett's broken arm and wounded leg had become terribly swollen and very painful. The jolting of the lumber wagon over the prairie kept up a constant irritation and caused the most intense pain. Mrs. Meyers, too, was a great sufferer, being very sick, without suitable food or any medicine.
We will leave these here at Little Creek, for the present and return to "Uncle Tommy Ireland." As before stated, he was left at the slough, where the attack was made, with two of the Eastlick children. Soon after Mr. Everett and the others left, Merton Eastlick told Mr. Ireland that he should take Johnny on his back and go to Dutch Charley's. Mr. Ireland tried to per- suade him not to go, but finding the boy determined on going, he told him he would go with him as far as he could. "Uncle Tom-
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my." as the settlers called Mr. Ireland, followed Merton who car- ried his baby brother, Johnny, on his back. After walking about half a mile, Mr. Ireland could go no further and lay down in the grass entirely exhausted.
Merton, still carrying Johnny, pursued his eourse and soon found the trail leading to Dutch Charley's. Notwithstanding the heavy rain storm he eontinued his eourse and reached Buffalo Lake, Murray county, just before dark. The rain was still fall- ing, and the night was very dark. Merton laid his little brother on the ground and bent over him to proteet him from the rain. During the night the prairie wolves came howling around, but the brave boy shouted at them so lustily that they were frightened away. The next morning, at daylight, without food of any kind, he took his little brother and again started on his almost hopeless journey. After traveling until about 5 o'clock p. m., he over- took Mrs. Hurd, with her two children, near Duteh Charley's house. They proceeded to the house to find it empty and desti- tute of provisions. They at last found an old eheese, full of skip- pers, but, having been without food for two days, they were glad to eat of it. After eating, they rested till about dark, and then went into the eornfield to remain over night, fearing that Indians might visit the house before morning.
It will be remembered that the first man killed by the Indians, at Lake Shetek, was Mr. Voight, at Mrs. Hurd's house, and that they ordered her to leave with her children at onee, telling her which way to go and threatening to kill her should she attempt to go to one of her neighbors. After traveling for some time with her children, she became bewildered and hardly knew which way to go. The elder child was only three years of age and the younger less than a year old. They were on the prairie when the storm came on, without food and no clothing except their every day garments. Mrs. Hurd spent the long dreary night watehing over, and trying to proteet her children from the storm and the mosquitoes. Next day, after wandering around and wading sloughs for some time, she struck the road leading to Duteh Char- ley's. By this time her older child was very sick and unable to walk further-vomiting frequently. The poor woman, weak, hungry, and exhausted, was now compelled to carry both chil- dren, or leave them to perish alone on the prairie. The true moth-
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er would never leave her children, under such circumstances, even to save her own life. She was so weak that she could carry only one at a time; so she would carry one a short distance and leave it by the roadside, then return for the other-thus travel- ing three miles to make one. In this way she toiled along until she reached Dutch Charley's on the second night, in company with the Eastlick children as herein stated.
We now return to Lilly Everett whom we last mentioned as being with her baby brother on the prairie, during the stormy night following the day of the massacre, near where the women and children were murdered, after being taken prisoners. It ap- pears that Lilly remained there until the return of the Indians from Lake Shetek, the next day, when they again took her prisoner. It is not known what was the fate of the poor babe- whether murdered, taken prisoner, or left to perish on the prai- rie. The Indians, it appears, on the day following the first day of the massacre, collected a drove of cattle and horses from the settlement, and took them and their prisoners into a camp on the Big Cottonwood. At this camp were Mrs. Wright and her two children, Mrs. Duly and two of her remaining children-a boy and a girl-two of Mr. Irelend's girls, Lilly Everett, and oth- ers. * * *
Mrs. Eastlick, after leaving Lilly Everett, as before stated, continued her search for her children. She came upon the lifeless forms of Mrs. Ireland and Mrs. Smith, who had been outraged and murdered. She took from the lifeless form of Mrs. Smith a heavy apron which she used to protect herself from the storm. She found the young babe of Mrs. Ireland sleeping upon the bos- om of its dead mother. The fate of the babe has never been known, except perhaps to the murderous savages. By groping around in the darkness Mrs. Eastliek found, not far distant, the corpse of her little boy Giles who had been shot by the Indians and killed almost instantly. Not very far from him her atten- tion was called to the hard breathing of some one, and, upon investigation, she found it to proceed from her son Fred, who had been shot and left there. He was unconscious and in a dying condition. Who can picture the sorrow of a mother, alone among the dead beside her dying child, with yet other children upon the prairie exposed to the murderous assaults of savages!
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"O! that I had found him dead," exclaimed the poor mother, as she reluctantly left the dying to search for the living. The poor woman wandered over the prairie in the storm and darkness, thinking at times she heard the crying of her babe, and at inter- vals calling "Merton," the name of her eldest boy. Thus the night wore on and the dawn appeared without bringing to her the children she sought. At daylight she was unable to know where she was, and could see nothing by which to guide her steps. Being afraid to travel by daylight, lest the Indians should dis- cover her, she hid in a patch of tall weeds.
About ten o'clock she heard the report of several guns, and for many hours she could hear the cries and sereams of children be- ing tortured. At last, about the middle of the afternoon, she heard the discharge of several guns in quick suceession, and the wail of the children instantly ceased. It is supposed that the Indians, on their return from Lake Shetek, stopped at the scene of the massaere of the day before and tortured and murdered the living infants, taking with them, as prisoner, Lilly Everett.
Mrs. Eastlick had now passed two days without food or drink. She was wounded in four places. She then believed that all her children were dead. She felt that she had little to live for, and vet the hope of escaping death at the hands of the savages nerv- ed her to renewed efforts. During the afternoon she had looked in every direction, and could barely see, in the dim distance, the outline of what appeared to be timber. She thought this must be near Buffalo Lake, Murray eounty, on the road to Duteh Charley's plaee. We continue the narrative in her own language.
"As soon as it was dark I started on my weary journey toward the timber. I walked some hours and then laid me down to rest on the damp ground. I tried to scoop the dew from the grass in my hand to quench my thirst, but it was in vain that I tried it. I then took up the bottom of my skirt, and sucked the moisture from it, until I had partially quenched my burning thirst. I thought it the sweetest water I had ever drunk. I then curled myself upon the ground for a nap, trying to get myself warm by drawing the apron over my head and face, and breathing on my be- numbed hands. I shook from head to foot. I was chilled through, and my teeth chattered. Soon sleep and weariness overcame me, and I slept for some time. When I awoke, I felt quite refreshed, and started once more on my toilsome journey. But by this time, my feet had become very sore, the flesh being worn to the bone, on the top of my toes, by the sharp, coarse prairie grass. Indeed, it was quite a hardship for me to
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walk at all. * * * I traveled on in the darkness through sloughs and high tangled grass, and finally came to a slough that was filled with water. Here I satisfied my burning thirst, but it was very difficult get- ting through the marsh, as the grass was as tall as my shoulders, and twisted and matted so that I had to part it before me to get along. The water was as much as two and a half feet deep. I got so fatigued in wading this wide slough that as soon as I set foot on dry land again, I lay down and rested a long time before starting again.
It was now nearly twilight, and I could see timber at a short distance. I was so weak that I reeled as I walked; but the sight of the woods revived my strength somewhat, and I dragged myself along, thinking that about five of the sixteen miles to Dutch Charley's were accomplished and vainly hoping that before night I might travel the remaining eleven miles. As I neared the timber 1 heard the crowing of fowls in several directions. It was now broad day and I discovered that this was not Buffalo Lake, but Lake Shetek! I cannot describe my grief and despair at finding my- self back there after wandering two long nights, with feet bleeding and torn, and with nothing to eat for three nights and two days. My fear of Indians caused me to creep into the first bunch of weeds, where I covered my head and face with the apron to keep off mosquitoes. I began to feel sick, and a weak, faint feeling came over me at times. There was a house near by which I knew was that of my old neighbor, Thomas Ireland. Af- ter wavering for a long time between the fear of starvation and the fear of Indians, I chose to risk the danger of being discovered by them, knowing that to remain without food was certain death."
( After giving a description of her difficulty in crossing a slough, with high banks, she continues :)
"By pulling myself up by the bushes, I at last reached the top, and found myself within a short distance of a corn field. I dragged myself to the field, and plucked the first ear I could reach. After many efforts I pulled off the husks, and ate two rows of the green corn. They made me very sick at the stomach; but after lying down for some time, I arose, feel- ing a great deal better and stronger, and soon reached the house. * * *
1 found nothing to eat, but took a cup to the spring, drank some water, and then crawled into a plum-thicket, where I remained until night."
"When it was sufficiently dark, I went back to the house, where I caught and killed a chicken, tore off the skin, and, with my teeth, tore the flesh from the bones. This I rendered eatable by dipping it in some brine that was left in a pork barrel. I then wrapped the pieces in paper and put them in a tin pail that I found. This must be my provision for the next day. I also plucked three ears of corn and deposited them with the meat. * *. * I put on an old coat to keep me warm, and bound up my raw and painful feet, in old cloths, and started anew on my journey.
"I knew the road to be about two miles due cast of this place. This night I kept the right direction by the north star, but did not travel far,
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for I could go but a short distance before I was obliged to lie down and rest. Just at daybreak, I reached the road, having made the distance of two miles in the whole night! This I thought was slow traveling, but I was quite encouraged, now that I had found the road and was sure of go- ing right. I lay down and slept until after sunrise; then, after eating some green corn, I started again. Often did fatigue force me to sit down to rest, and each time after resting, I could scarcely put my foot to the ground. My heel, which had been shot through was badly swollen and very sore, but I still pressed onward till I reached Buffalo Lake, at about 11 o'clock a. m. Here I found that I must cross the outlet of the lake, on a pole. When I trusted my weight upon it, over the middle of the stream, it broke, and I fell into the water. After laborious and re- peated efforts I got out and passed on, but I was soon obliged to stop and repair damages. I took off and wrung out some of my clothing and spread them in the sun to dry. I also laid the meat in the sun to dry, for it had become so slippery that I could not eat it. After this I lay down among the bushes that grew around the lake, and slept very soundly. I arose at length, put on my skirt, coat and apron, dressed my feet again, ate some corn and forced down some meat. Just as I finished my lonely meal, a flock of ducks flew off the lake and soon a crane fol- lowed them. This was proof that something had disturbed them, and fearing that Indians were upon my track and close at hand, I hid behind a tree, and watched the road in the direction I had just come.
"Presently the head of a horse was seen to rise over the hill near by. Indians without doubt, thought I, and shrank down among the bushes, and watched to see a dozen or more savages file along before me!"
"But, oh! what a change from fear to joy! It proved to be the mail- carrier from Sioux Falls to New Ulm. I crept out of the brush and ad- dressed him. He stopped his horse and staring at me in the utmost as- tonishment, asked, in the Indian tongue, if I were a squaw. I answered yes, not understanding him, and told him the Indians had killed all the white people at the lake. 'Why,' said he, 'you look too white to be a squaw.'
" 'I am no squaw,' I replied, 'I am Mrs. Eastlick; you have seen me sev- eral times at Mrs. Everett's house; I am very badly wounded.' He then inquired as to the extent of my wounds, and I showed him my wounded arm and the place where my head was broken. He then helped me on to his sulky, and walked along, leading the horse.
"About 4 p. m. we came in sight of Dutch Charley's when he drove the horse into a ravine away from the road, helped me to the ground, and told me to conceal myself in the grass. He said he would go to the house to see if there had been any Indians about. He returned presently, saying that there had been none there; that the family had deserted the premises; but that there was an old man there that came from Lake Shetek. He helped me to mount the sulky again, and we were soon be- fore the door. As soon as I had got to the ground the man made his ap- pearance at the door, and, wonderful to tell, it was poor 'Uncle Tommy Ireland.' I hardly knew him, for he looked more like a corpse than a liv-
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ing being. His face was deathly pale, his eyes deeply sunk, and his voice reduced to a whisper. I hurried to greet him, rejoiced to find, still living, my old friend and neighbor, who had witnessed the same heart-rending sights with myself. He clasped his arm around me and we both wept like children at the sight of each other.
"He told me that Merton had left the scene of the massacre on the same day, carrying little Johnny, and he thought, perhaps they had reached the house before Dutch Charley's family had left and so gone along with them. I was filled with hope and joy to think that perhaps, two of my children were spared."
As before stated, Mr. Ireland, after following Mrs. Eastliek's sons half a mile from the scene of the first massacre, lay down en- tirely exhausted, expecting to die. He remained stretched upon the ground through all that rainy, stormy night, unable to turn over. All the next day and the next night he remained there with- out food or drink. The following morning, Friday, feeling a little better he made his way to Dutch Charley's, where the mail-car- rier and Mrs. Eastlick found him on Saturday. So far he had been unable to get any food or drink. The mail-carrier furnished some water, and finally found a cheese which he gave to the wounded man and woman.
After feeding the horse and resting a short time, the mail-car- rier took Mrs. Eastlick on the sulky, put some turnips and cheese aboard, and started east again, Mr. Ireland accompanying them. At first, the wounded man made slow progress, but after awhile was able to walk as fast as the horse. After following the road about eight miles, they went abont half a mile from it and camped for the night, eating turnips and cheese for supper. The mail- carrier had a quilt and an oil cloth blanket, and, notwithstanding a heavy rainstorm, during the night, the travelers did not suffer severely.
At early dawn, Sunday morning. they again took the road and traveled eastward. About noon they espied some persons a long distance ahead of them, and, suspecting they were Indians, the mail-carrier went cautiously ahead to reconnoiter, his two com- panions slowly following. After a while he discovered that the ob- jects they had seen were a woman and two children. Upon over- taking them, he found them to be Mrs. IInrd and her two children.
Mrs. Hurd and children, and Merton and Johnny Eastlick had left Dutch Charley's place on Friday morning. Merton and John-
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ny were only a short distance ahead of Mrs. Hurd, and the mail- carrier and Mrs. Eastliek, as may be well imagined, lost no time in overtaking them. Merton had then carried his little brother about fifty miles, with very little food or sleep. He looked like a skeleton, while the babe was so sick that he did not know his mother. His face was a complete seab where the mosquitoes and flies had bitten him.
The little company soon arrived at a Mr. Brown's place, found it deserted, and the door of the house fastened. The mail-carrier crawled through a window into the house, where he found some bread on the table. He brought it out and distributed it among the weary, hungry refugees. After feeding his horse, he started for New Ulm alone, advising the others to remain about the prem- ises, and telling them he would send a team and men to bring them to New Ulm.
The sufferers being afraid to stay about the house, went to the bank of the Cottonwood, some eighty rods from the house, and secreted themselves in a thicket till night. About sunset they returned to the house and erawled in through the window. Here they found bedding and clothing, some forty pounds of pork and a eroek of lard. Mrs. Hurd gathered some potatoes and on- ions from the garden and cooked a meal, which was the first warm meal they had eaten since the Tuesday before. Here they remained in constant fear of Indians until Wednesday night, when the mail-carrier returned with sad news of the situation.
He reported that all the settlers on the Cottonwood river were driven away or killed by the Indians; that he had gone in sight of New Ulm, on foot, leaving his horse hidden some miles be- hind; that he could see the ruins of many burnt houses there, and people, of some kind, walking about the streets, but could not de- termine whether they were Indians or whites; that, as he was traveling along on foot, he suddenly came upon six Indians, two of whom fired upon and pursued him; that he fled and concealed himself in a slough till his pursuers were tired of hunting for him and gave up the search.
All felt that there was no safety in the house, and they again repaired to the thicket-taking with them bedding and clothing. The kind mail carrier then shook hands with them all, bidding them good bye, saying that he would return to Sioux Falls and
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send soldiers to their rescue. When he reached Sioux Falls he found that the settlers had all been killed, and also all the soldiers but two, who managed to escape. After many hardships and dangers, he reached Fort Clark in safety.
Mr. Ireland, the women and children, after great suffering for two days and nights, from mosquitoes and flies, returned to the house, preferring the risk of discovery by Indians to their suffer- ings in the thicket.
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