Frontier and pioneer life -- West (U.S.); West (U.S.) -- Social life and customs
"All right," said Tom. "Well, it was like this. A year ago last August
the Indians began a series of raids, going for everything and everybody
along the stage route from Julesburg _east_. I think they cleaned out
every ranch and attacked every train and stage that passed in that two
hundred and fifty or three hundred miles. More than forty people were
killed by them. The most severe fight was at Liberty Farm, east of Fort
Kearney near where you crossed the Little Blue River. There was a small
train of wagons loaded with goods for George Tritch of Denver. The
entire party of whites were killed, including a stage driver and the
station keeper, and there was a young woman there named Mrs. Eubanks,
and her child, whom they did not then kill, and the Indians run them
off, and that is really what brought on the Sand Creek Battle. The
Indians were Arapahoes. The people of Denver were greatly excited when
the news reached there. Before his train was attacked Tritch had heard
of the troubles, and having so many valuable goods coming along that
line he talked with Colonel Chivington, and they arranged with Billy
Comstock and Oliver Wiggins to go out at once, and ascertain where the
Indians were, and what they were then planning to do. Billy went down
the Republican River and Wiggins went down the Platte. They were good
scouts and spoke Arapahoe well. Billy had been interpreter for the
government several times. He knew many of the Chiefs. Billy's route was
away from the line of travel. He overtook a large party of Arapahoes
quite a way down the Republican, and after he had watched their
movements for awhile, he run up to the Platte and reported, and then he
went back and had a talk with the Indians. He kept watch on that band,
but it was another party of Indians who made the raid that I have told
of. After the Liberty Farm massacre, Comstock and Wiggins with a few
soldiers from the Plum Creek Station started out and followed the
Indians southward and overtook them. They saw the young woman riding
behind Chief Two Face, and then Billy and his soldiers had a fight with
the Indians, but the soldiers were greatly outnumbered and lost most of
their horses.
"In November, Colonel Chivington started out with his forces and after
one long night march, the scouts led them to Sand Creek, where they
surrounded the Indian village and then the fight was on. It was a
slaughter. Chivington said to his soldiers, 'Nits make lice,' which
meant that it was a battle to the finish, and that they need not stop
with the old Indians; women and children were to be killed as well.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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