USA > Nebraska > Douglas County > Omaha > History of Omaha from the pioneer days to the present time > Part 15
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"It was nearly night when we came upon the lodge, and we proceeded but a mile or so before going into camp. Arrangements were made to start out as silently as possible, at three o'clock the next morning. After supper had been disposed of, the cooking utensils and camp equipage were reloaded, and everything made ready for a start as soon as the signal should be given. The arms were put in as good condition as possible; bullets were moulded, and each man
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was instructed with regard to his duties. It was a misty moonlight night. The camp was near the banks of the Elkhorn, whose waters, rising in the far off Black hills, at the foot of the Rocky mountains, rippled past with a monotonous sound. Occasionally the sharp cry of the coyote would be heard, as he wandered forth on a maraud- ing expedition, or the hoot of the owl would break suddenly on the night air. The sentinels paced up and down through the tall grass, watching with vigilant eye, and prepared to give notice at the earliest approach of danger. The tired animals nipped the rich grass, which abounded in the greatest profusion, keeping close to the wagons, as they always do when away from the settlements, evidently be- ing taught by instinct that their safety depends upon keep- ing close to their masters. Orders were given for fires to be extinguished at an early hour, and the men gathered about the wagons in little groups, and talked in low tones of what the coming day would bring forth. There was but little sleeping among us that night, but few jokes, and no boisterous laughter. It will be seen at once that the situa- tion was not particularly exhilarating nor inspiring. We were a hundred miles or so out from the settlements, shut off from all chance of reinforcement. We were in pursuit of and expected to attack the Pawnee tribe, numbering 3,500 in all, and this tribe we found in coming up with it to be reinforced by nearly as many more, so that there would be at least 2,000 braves for us to attack. We were then within a few miles of that body of Indians who were quietly encamped and resting in blissful ignorance of our proximity.
"At three o'clock in the morning the camp was aroused, and in a very short time we were on the move. Orders were issued in a low tone as we passed rapidly along. The trail ran near the river bottom, on the table-land adjoining, and we met with no obstacles whatever until daylight, when we came to a small stream which ran out from the bluffs and into the river. The scouts approached this stream carefully, for it was thought the Indian camp could not be far away. The creek was skirted with timber, which shielded our approach; and when the stream was reached, the Indian camp was seen on the opposite side, near where it ran into the river A large extent of ground was covered
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by the lodges, and here and there Indians were to be seen gliding about, entirely unconscious of our approach. In a very few moments, however, we were discovered. The camp vanished like magic, and in an incredibly short space of time the wide river bottom stretching out before us was swarming with redskins, some mounted, some on foot, but all striving, shouting and yelling to make their escape. They leveled their lodges to the ground, but did not attempt to take them away; they thought only to save themselves. The Omahas did not run, neither did they strike their tents, but remained in them knowing they had no reason to fear the whites Our mounted force crossed the river at once and followed up the flying Indians, but some time was lost in getting the wagons across the miry stream. Finally the entire force, wagons and all, were safely landed on the other side of the creek, and moved up the river at once. The tall slough grass through which we passed concealed a good many of the weaker ones among the Indians, who, finding themselves unable to keep up with the others, had dropped down in the rank grass, hoping to be passed by. On either side of us could be heard the yells and cries of pappooses, who had been thrown away by the frightened squaws, in their endeavors to travel light. Small dogs, pet badgers, wolves and the like, had been left by their masters to shift for themselves, and they added their voices to the noise and confusion. It was a lively time. The sun had just risen, and was tipping the tops of the hills and the trees along the river with golden splendor. In a very short time not an Indian was to be seen, where but half an hour before hundreds and thou- sands had swarmed. They had taken shelter among the willows on the river bank, and in the breaks along the bluffs on either side of it.
" But they did not escape us. An under chief of the Pawnees, a fat old codger, who was trying to get away on foot, was overtaken by a horseman who shot at him and missed him, but just as he had secured a better aim for a second attempt, the Indian threw up his hands and sur- rendered. He was told to call his tribe together for a parley immediately, or he would be killed at once. The Indian was very glad of this chance for saving his life, and he im- mediately set up a series of terrific yells, in answer to
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which one redskin would show himself at this place, an- other at that, and then after an interchange of yells and calls, the Indians gradually approached our prisoner, who explained to them that a parley with the 'Chemokee man' was of the utmost importance at that particular juncture.
"By this time our scattered forces had collected to- gether ; the wagons were corralled ; a line of battle formed, with the six-pound brass piece in front of it, and the horse- men on the flanks. When the Indians, who were lurking about. discovered the full strength, or weakness rather, of the force they had been running from, they left their hid- ing places and approached us quite readily. They were or- dered to keep at a respectful distance in front, and only the chiefs were allowed to come to the wagons. The Indian force constantly received additions to its numbers, and be- fore an hour had passed, we were confronted by about 2,000 redskins. The Pawnee chiefs were told that they could have their choice-give up the braves who had been en- gaged in the robbing and burning about West Point (for it was found that but a small party had had a hand in those depredations) ; pay the expenses of the expedition out of certain moneys due them from the government, or-fight us. One of the chiefs, a black, scowling fellow, with a sort of sheep-thief look about him, wanted to fight us. He said that he had two hundred and fifty braves, and he knew he could clean us out, but the older and wiser heads of the tribe had been to Washington; they had held big pow- wows with the Great Father, and they had gained a some- what correct idea of the number of whites, and of the power and majesty of the nation which we, with our single brass gun, represented.
" It was finally arranged that the terms proposed by us would be acceded to, and then began a hunt for the Indians who had been making trouble back in the settlements. By the middle of the afternoon we had seven young fellows tied behind our wagons, and we were moving off toward a suitable place to encamp for the night. Each of the head chiefs had attached his 'sign manual' to a portentous look- ing document which set forth in the most grandiloquent terms the fact that the individuals whose crosses were thereunto attached, regretted exceedingly the depredations which had been committed by certain unruly and head-
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strong young men of the Pawnee tribe of Indians, and that they, the undersigned, authorized the keeping back from certain moneys due the tribe from the government, a suf- ficient amount to defray the expenses of the expedition, and the signers further agreed that they would make no effort to release the seven young men who had been turned over to our tender mercies, no matter what we chose to do with them.
" When the young Indians were given up to us, a squaw belonging to one of them, insisted on being allowed to go with her brave, and when this request was denied, she screamed and cried, tore the hair out of her head by great handfulls, threw her arms around the young fellow's neck, and gave way to the most violent grief. She was dragged away from him with great difficulty, and we then proceeded on our way, traveling but a few miles before going into camp. One of the prisoners seemed to be suffering a great deal from some cause, and upon one of our doctors making an examination, it was found he had been shot through the body, and that the wound was mortifying. He was one of the party of eleven who had been shut up in the room at West Point, and as he ran off, after getting away from the house, he had been shot by one of the whites, but was not so seriously injured but that he was able to reach the Pawnee camp, since which time his wound had been get- ting more and more painful each day. The doctor said he would not live to reach the settlements, and he was there- fore set free and told to go back to his tribe. He was found the next morning a short distance from the camp, dead.
" We enjoyed a happy, easy time the afternoon and night after the conference with the Indians, naturally sup- posing that all danger was now past, and that we could re- turn home at once. It was arranged that we should pro- ceed up the Elkhorn a few miles farther, then travel in a southerly direction until we should strike the head of Beaver creek, then go down that stream to its intersection with the Loup fork, following the Loup until we should come to the Platte, and then keep along the Platte until we reached the settlements. We had a beautiful camp that night. Huge cottonwood, walnut and elm trees spread their branches over our heads. A noisy little stream rip-
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pled at our feet, and the ground was covered with a rich green carpet of Nature's weaving. Our minds were free from care or the apprehension of danger for the first time in many days, and we thoroughly enjoyed our pleasant surroundings. In due time a supper of black coffee, fat bacon, molasses, and a certain kind of hot bread, peculiar to the plains, was prepared and eaten with a relish.
"We were roused up at an early hour the next morning, and in a short time our cavalcade was on the move. After marching a few miles we reached a high point of ground, from which a magnificent and picturesque scene burst upon the view. Far off to the northwest we could trace the windings of the Elkhorn by the timber upon its banks, while here and there could be seen small streams which found their way from the highlands across the broad river bottoms. At our feet was seen the Indian camp, now a scene of active commotion, for they had just discovered our approach, and were rapidly gathering their herds of ponies from the neighboring hills, It was a mutual sur- prise. We supposed that the Indians would remain the night previous at the place where the pow-wow was held, and they probably thought we had turned back that morn- ing, intending to go home by the route we had come.
"We were in for it now. We wanted to go in a direc- tion that would bring us very near the Indian camp, and if they were disposed to fight us, we would gain nothing by turning aside now. It was decided that we should get everything ready to repel an attack, move along as though the Indians were not there, and trust to fate for the rest. Our six prisoners were tied together and then fastened by a rope to one of the wagons, behind which they walked quietly along, surrounded by a mounted guard. We did not go through the camp, but passed along one side of it. A few squaws and papooses came out to see us as we moved along, but the Indians generally remained about their tents. Among the squaws who had come out from the camp was the one previously mentioned as having torn her hair and exhibited such grief at being separated from her brave the day before, and when the wagon, behind which the prisoners were tied, came up, this squaw rushed among them and gave her Indian a knife with which he stabbed himself in the breast, and fell heavily to the ground. Of
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course the wagon stopped at once, and the attention of the guards was taken up with the wounded Indian, whom they supposed to be bleeding internally, as but little blood was to be seen about the wounds, although a reddish look- ing substance, similar to blood in appearance, oozed from each corner of his mouth. As the guards were doing what they could to assist the Indian who had stabbed himself, his treacherous squaw secured the knife and cut the ropes which bound the prisoners together, and away they sprang like a flash, all the guards but one running after them, firing upon them as they ran. Meanwhile the wounded Indian had stretched out, his eyes sunk into his head, and he gave every indication of being dead while his squaw hung over him, indulging in wild expressions of grief. When she saw that the guards were some distance from the wagon, she gave her buck the signal, and he jumped to his feet as agile as a cat, and started to run. But he did not get far. One guard had remained to keep an eye on the corpse, and when that corpse attempted to run away, contrary to the custom and habits of corpses generally, the guard drew up his rifle and called, halt! The Indian halted, and it was then found that the wound which he had'inflicted upon himself was only skin-deep, and that he had red ocre in his mouth, by means of which he had created the impression that blood was oozing from between his lips. He was immediately recaptured, tied behind the wagon, and the procession moved on.
"We proceeded about a mile, took up position on a high hill, and then stopped for a consultation. The guards who pursued the escaped prisoners had returned to the command, and reported that they had either killed or wounded all the prisoners except the one which had been recaptured. This was well enough, but in the excitement of the chase they had popped over one of the Omahas (down among whose tents the prisoners ran), and had also killed an Omaha pony. The indications just at that time were that we had cut out more work for ourselves than we could get through with conveniently. It was reasonable to suppose that the Pawnees had been thoroughly roused by the occurrences of the last half hour, and if the Poncas and the Omahas would join them, it was quite probable that they would go back on the agreement of the previous day. The Omahas had
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acted very fairly thus far, utterly refusing to have any- thing to do with the trouble into which the Pawnees had brought themselves, but it was a difficult matter to decide what they would do now, since one of their braves had been wounded and a pony killed. We were on a high hill, about a mile from the Indian camp, with no chance to get wood or water, and it would be a very easy matter for us to be surrounded and starved to death. The prospect was some- what gloomy and discouraging.
"While we were deliberating over the matter, we saw a procession of Indians leave the Omaha camp and approach us. The procession proved to be composed of fifty of the wise heads among the Omahas. They marched in single file without a sound being heard, and as they slowly approached us we could see that their minds were filled with serious thoughts. They were decorated in a peculiar manner, their costumes indicating that they were prepared either for war or peace, as circumstances might seem to dictate.
"But they didn't fight us. Our cheek and our extraor- dinary conversational powers saved us for a second time. We reasoned with those chiefs; we talked as we had never talked before. We portrayed in brilliant and glowing colors the evils which would result to the red-skins gen- erally in case the Omahas and the Poncas joined with the Pawnees in declaring war against us. We dwelt especially upon the immense resources possessed by the whites; of their great facilities for carrying on a prolonged and bloody warfare. We deprecated the accidental shooting of the Omaha, promising to hang the man who had fired the un- fortunate shot. We made mention of the fact that the Omahas had been at peace with us ever since the first settle- ment of the territory. We had regular details mnade to talk to those old chaps who had one side of their villainous look- ing countenances painted red and the other black, and as soon as one detail of men could be exhausted, another took their place, and we outwinded them. Their desire for war gradually cooled, and they finally agreed that if we would leave medicines for the wounded Indians, and pay for the pony we had killed, they would let us alone. To this condi- tion we assented cheerfully, and as the Poncas had signified their intention to do as the Omahas decided to act in the
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matter, the Pawnees concluded that they would not fight us alone. We left a horse for the Indian whose pony had been killed, and we were allowed to move on. We did not camp very early that night. Every mile that we traveled, put that much distance between us and the Indians, and we were seized with a desire to make that as great as possible before stopping for the night.
" Soon after leaving the scene of our conference, we struck Beaver creek and followed along its course. We traveled late that night and did not go into camp until near midnight. Keeping along Beaver creek, we came in due time to its intersection with the Loup fork, at the then Mormon settlement of Genoa. Here we were cordially re- ceived by the Mormons, who looked upon us as a band of brave and noble men who had sacrificed home and home comforts for the nonce, going forth with our lives in our hands to do battle in defence of the unprotected settlements, and shield them from the devastating torch of the savage.
" Leaving the Mormon camp-in a manner becoming a band of heroes-we journeyed down the Loup fork, and reached the German town of Columbus that night, at which place we went into camp. We also indulged in a high old time-we felt that the Indians were now safe from any murderous design which we may have harbored against them, and we rejoiced to know it. We left one company of our command at Columbus, it having been organized there, and after leaving that village, our force decreased very rapidly. We were formally disbanded at Columbus, the different companies being allowed to return to the various settlements from whence they came by the nearest and most practicable routes. We were told that each company com- mander would receive the pay due his company, and that the members of the company would be paid by him. It was supposed that the government would enforce the contract we had made with the Indians, keep back enough funds to pay the expenses of the expedition, and that we would re- ceive the money which was due us. But the government recoiled on us, paid the Indians all that was coming to them, and we were left to whistle for our pay. Thus ended the Pawnee war."
When the civil war broke out and the call for volunteers was made, Omaha was not behind its sister cities in offering
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her best men to fight for the Union. Those were exciting days all over the land, and Omaha and Nebraska shared the enthusiasm that prevailed everywhere. Hon. John M. Thayer, who became a major-general and afterwards United States senator, now governor of Nebraska, applied to Gov- ernor Saunders and received his commission as colonel of the First regiment of Nebraska volunteers, which regiment was mainly organized in Omaha and left for the field of action in July, 1861, with the following officers :
John M. Thayer, of Omaha, colonel; H. P. Downs, of Nebraska City, lieutenant-colonel; Wm. McCord, of Platts- mouth, major; S. A. Strickland, of Bellevue, adjutant; Enos Lowe, of Omaha, surgeon; William McClelland, of Omaha, assistant surgeon: T. W. Tipton, of Brownville, chaplain: George Spencer, sutler.
Captains-Company A, R. R. Livingstone, of Platts- mouth; Company B, William Baumer, of Omaha; Company C, J. D. N. Thompson; Company D, Allen Blacker; Com- pany E, Wm. G. Hollins, of Omaha; Company F, Thomas M. Bowen; Company G, John McConihe; Company H, George T. Kennedy; Company I, Jacob Butler; Company K, Joseph W. Paddock.
The first battalion of the Second regiment of Nebraska volunteers (cavalry) was mustered in at' Omaha, about the first of November, 1862, for nine months' service. George Armstrong, of this city, was commissioned as major, and commanded and superintended the organization of the regiment until ten companies were mustered in, when Wil- liam F. Sapp was commissioned lieutenant-colonel. About the first of February, 1863, the twelfth company completed the regiment, and it was mustered into the service of the United States and officered as follows :
R. W. Furnas, of Brownville, colonel ; W. F. Sapp, of Omaha, lieutenant-colonel ; John Taffe, of Dakota City, and John W. Pearman, of Nebraska City, majors ; Dr. Aurelius Bowen, of Nebraska City, and Dr. W. S. Latta, of Plattsmouth, surgeons ; H. M. Atkinson, of Brownville, adjutant.
This regiment, enlisted for nine months and designed for home service, was mustered out in September, 1863, and on the recommendation of several of its officers, and by leave of the secretary of war, George Armstrong was com-
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missioned by Governor Saunders to raise an independent ยท battalion of cavalry to serve during the war, and the fol- lowing year the " First Battalion of Nebraska Veteran Cav- alry" was mustered in, and George Armstrong, captain of Company A, was commissioned as major commanding.
The battalion was afterwards consolidated with the "Old Nebraska First," which had returned from the south and been transformed into a cavalry regiment, and on the 10th day of July, 1865, the new organization, thus consol- idated, was known as the "First Regiment of Nebraska Veteran Cavalry." One year afterwards this regiment was finally mustered out, at which time the officers were : R. R. Livingston, colonel; William Baumer, lieutenant-colonel; George Armstrong and Thomas J. Majors, majors ; William McClelland, surgeon.
"Curtis' Horse" was the name of a battalion of cavalry, consisting of four companies, principally recruited in Omaha, and afterwards consolidated with the Fifth Iowa cavalry. These four companies-A, B, C, and D-composed the first battalion. The final appointment of officers was made February 1st, 1862, as follows : W. W. Lowe, colonel; M. T. Patrick, lieutenant-colonel ; W. B. McGeorge, ad- jutant ; Enos Lowe, surgeon ; B. T. Wise, assistant surgeon; Jerome Spillman, chaplain.
Company A was commanded by Captain J. J. Lowe ; Company B by Captain John T. Croft ; Company C by Cap- tain Morris Young ; Company D by Captain Harlan Beard. All these companies were mustered into the United States service at Omaha by Lieutenant J. N. H. Patrick.
Besides the above mentioned troops, Captain John R. Porter organized at Omaha Company A, First Nebraska militia cavalry regiment, for home service against "con- federate tribes of Indians," and Captain E. P. Childs, of Omaha, raised an artillery detachment of Nebraska militia. In addition to this, the militia was organized throughout the state.
In 1864 a very widespread and serious Indian scare oc- curred in the territory, and it was not entirely without foundation. It was shortly after the destruction of Law- rence, Kansas, by Quantrell's band, that several persons in Omaha received anonymous letters warning them of a sim- ilar attack, and some little uneasiness was thus caused in
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the city. It appears that a considerable amount of money and valuables had been sent to Omaha from the southern part of the territory for safe-keeping, and the banks at that time held more than the usual amount of money. There was a well-grounded fear that the city would be attacked by robbers or guerrillas disguised as Indians. When the attention of the citizens was called to this fact, it became evident to them that it would indeed be an easy exploit, even in 1864, for an armed body of 100 or 150 men to ap- proach within twenty miles of the city without the least resistance and without anyone being aware of their com- ing. They could march up from the southwest through a country where there was not a single settler for hundreds of miles.
Several bands of Sioux and other northern Indians had been in the habit of roaming at will through sections of the territory, and particularly through that portion now known as Saunders county.
About that time a large band of Indians appeared on the west side of the Elkhorn river, in the vicinity of where Waterloo and Valley stations are now located on the Union Pacific railroad, and although they did not at first commit any outrage, or do any damage or violence to the white people, still the settlers in that neighborhood felt so uneasy and afraid of them, that they fled to Omaha as fast as their own limbs or the legs of their horses could carry them. As soon as they had gone, the Indians appro- priated their cattle and horses, and everything else of any value, but did no violence or murder.
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