An Adventure with an Indian

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Ironton Register, Thursday, April 02, 1896
OLD TIMES
AN ADVENTURE WITH AN INDIAN
HORSE THIEF
(by John G. Wilson)
No. 38

Submitted by Sharon M. Kouns

For the Register.
About 70 years ago, there lived a man on the bank of Twelvepole Creek, West Va. He had purchased 500 acres of land along the creek, and had put up a log cabin and cleared out a few acres for corn. He depended mostly on game and fish until he could get his farm cleared. He with his wife had moved from eastern Virginia, and had settled down in their western home. Their folks were well-to-do, and lived on the banks of the James river. After he had been about two years on his place, he went on a visit to his people, and they made him a present of a fine blooded mare, which had been brought from England. She was a beautiful animal, five years old and he valued her above all his possessions. A horse at that time was almost a necessity and to lose one was considered a serious loss. He built him a log stable nearby, and was constantly on the lookout for Indian horse thieves, well aware they would steal his mare whenever they got a chance as they were lovers of good horses.
One dark rainy night, when the dogs were driven under cover in the fodder house, where they stayed on bad nights, an Indian stole quietly into the stable, unloosened the mare, put a rawhide halter on her, muffled her feet in pieces of blankets, and led her about a half a mile to a ford in the creek, when he took the blankets from her feet, forded the creek, mounted her and made his way toward the headwaters of the great Kanawha river. In the morning the man discovered his loss and his rage was fearful. He had another horse which was older and had been worked hard so as to stiffen its limbs, and the wily savage knew that it could not keep up. The man mounted his old horse and rode about twenty miles to two of his neighbors, who had been in the Indian war with himself under Wayne, and knew all about the Indians. They proffered their services and came home with him so as to make ready and take the trail, which they did the next morning, armed with their trusty rifles and tomahawks and knives. They took in their shot pouches a lot of parched corn and dried venison, which they had learned from the Indians would sustain life longer than any other food known. (I have heard old hunters say that with a handful of parched corn and a piece of dried venison which they called "Jerk" that they could go for two days.) Their keen eyes soon discovered the trail when they had crossed the ford and they followed it swiftly on horseback, riding single file as the Indians do. The trail led in the direction of the headwaters of the Kanawha, and as one remarked, in a mighty ugly place, as the Indians would be gathered in numbers about the falls to spear fish which they annually did, drying them over a fire to store away for winter use.
On they went as fast as they could go keeping an eye on the trail until night, when they stopped near a small creek in which they watered their horses; then hobbling them they turned them loose to browse on the undergrowth which they liked. It was in the month of May, and the branches were tender. Then, rolling themselves in their blankets (without making a fire which was dangerous) they were soon asleep with the exception of one, who wrapped in his blanket and leaning against a large tree, rifle on lap, was on watch. All you could see was the outlines of his form and the spark in his pipe which told that he was on the alert. About midnight he aroused one of his companions, who took his place and at the first appearance of day aroused the others, who caught and saddled their horses and mounting, eating their venison and corn as they rode away on the trail. Toward evening of the second day, when they were getting on to what they called dangerous ground, they saw the smoke of a fire as the trail led towards it, they knew that they were almost up with the Indian. When about a quarter of a mile they dismounted, tied their horses to small trees, and crept forward towards the smoke, rifles ready. The fire was in a little cave sheltered by the adjacent hills, and creeping up as silently as they could, they reached the point just above the fire on the hillside, from where they could see the Indian seated on the mare, talking to five more Indians, who were sitting on a log with a fire in front of them, where a piece of bear meat was roasting. The owner of the horse whispered to his neighbors, that he would shoot the Indian on the mare, and they should fire at those on the log. When all was ready, the whispered word was given, and the deadly rifles were fired. The Indian on the horse, whose back was toward them, was shot just below the left shoulder blade, the bullet passing clear through the body, killing him almost instantly. He fell forward grasping in his death agony the neck of the mare, which instantly turned and galloped toward home. The other men, also fired their guns, and two Indians fell from the log shot through the head. The other three with a yell of rage, buried themselves in the bushes as quick as they could. The three white men ran with all speed to their horses, mounting them and started for home as fast as they could. The mare passed them before they reached their horses, with the Indian still on her back, his arms clasped around her neck and held on until dead, when the limbs of the trees under which the horse ran, pulled him off. The white men discovered his body as they came along following the mare which they knew would take the nearest course home, and stopping long enough to see that he was dead, they pushed on and reached home the following evening. The mare arrived first and caused quite a commotion, for several of the neighbors had gathered in to stay with the wife, while her husband had gone, and they could see that the mare's mane was full of clotted blood giving evidence that something terrible had happened. However, in a few hours the men rode up and all was explained. The neighbors were all hospitably entertained and were kept until the next day, when they went to their homes leaving the assurance that when horse thieves came they were ready for another hunt. G.