On the night of the eleventh of April, 1787, the house of a widow in
Bourbon county, Kentucky, became the scene of a deplorable adventure.
She occupied what was called a double cabin, in a lonely part of the
county. One room was tenanted by the old lady herself, together with two
grown sons, and a widowed daughter with an infant. The other room was
occupied by two unmarried daughters from sixteen to twenty years of age,
together with a little girl.
The hour was eleven o'clock at night, and the family had retired to
rest. Some symptoms of an alarming nature had engaged the attention of
the young man for an hour, before anything of a decided character took
place. At length hasty steps were heard in the yard, and quickly
afterward several loud knocks at the door, accompanied by the usual
exclamation, "Who keeps house?" in very good English.
The young man, supposing from the language that some benighted travelers
were at the door, hastily arose, and was advancing to withdraw the bar
that secured it, when his mother, who had long lived upon the frontier,
and had probably detected the Indian tone in the demand for admission,
instantly sprang out of bed, and ordered her son not to admit them,
declaring that they were Indians.
She instantly awakened her other son, and the young men seizing their
guns, which were always charged, prepared to repel the enemy. The
Indians finding it impossible to enter under their assumed characters,
began to thunder at the door with great violence, but a single shot from
a loop-hole obliged them to shift the attack to some less exposed point,
and, unfortunately, they discovered the door of the other cabin, which
contained the three daughters. The rifles of the brothers could not be
brought to bear on this point; and, by means of several rails taken from
the yard fence, the door was forced from its hinges, and the girls were
at the mercy of the savages. One was instantly secured, but the eldest
defended herself desperately with a knife she had been using at the
loom, and stabbed one of the Indians to the heart, before she was
tomahawked.
In the meantime, the little girl, who had been overlooked by the enemy
in their eagerness to secure the others, ran out into the yard, and
might have effected her escape, had she taken advantage of the darkness,
and fled; but instead of looking to her own safety, the terrified
little creature ran round the house, wringing her hands, and crying that
her sisters were killed.
[Illustration: THE INDIANS KILLING THE WIDOW'S DAUGHTER.]
Just then the child uttered a loud scream, followed by a few faint
moans, and all was silent. Presently the crackling of flames was heard,
accompanied by a triumphant yell from the Indians, announcing that they
had set fire to that division of the house, which had been occupied by
the daughters, and of which they held undisputed possession.
The fire was quickly communicated to the rest of the building, and it
became necessary to abandon it or perish in the flames. The door was
thrown open, and the old lady, supported by her eldest son, attempted to
cross the fence at one point, while her daughter carrying her child in
her arms, and attended by the younger of the brothers, ran in a
different direction. The blazing roof shed a light over the yard but
little inferior to that of day, and the savages were distinctly seen
awaiting the approach of their victims. The old lady was permitted to
reach the stile unmolested, but in the act of crossing, received several
balls in her breast, and fell dead. Her son, providentially, remained
unhurt, and, by extraordinary agility, effected his escape.
The other party succeeded in reaching the fence unhurt, but in the act
of crossing were vigorously assailed by several Indians, who, throwing
down their guns, rushed upon them with their tomahawks. The young man
defended his sister gallantly, firing upon the enemy as they approached,
and then wielding the butt of his rifle with a fury that drew their
whole attention upon himself, and gave his sister an opportunity of
effecting her escape. He quickly fell however under the tomahawks of his
enemies, and was found at daylight, scalped and mangled in a shocking
manner. Of the whole family, consisting of eight persons, only three
escaped. Four were killed upon the spot, and one, the second daughter,
carried off as a prisoner.
The neighborhood was quickly alarmed, and, by daylight, about thirty men
were assembled, under the command of Colonel Edwards. A light snow had
fallen during the latter part of the night, and the Indian trail could
be followed at a gallop. It led directly into the mountainous country
bordering on the Licking, and afforded evidences of great hurry and
precipitation on the part of the fugitives. Unfortunately, a hound had
been permitted to follow the whites, and as the trail became fresh, and
the scent warm, she followed it with eagerness, baying loudly and giving
the alarm to the Indians. The consequences of this imprudence were soon
manifest. The enemy finding the pursuit keen, and perceiving the
strength of their prisoner began to fail, instantly sunk their tomahawks
in her head, and left her still warm and bleeding upon the snow.
As the whites came up, she regained strength enough to wave her hand in
token of recognition, and appeared desirous of giving them some
information, with regard to the enemy, but her strength was too far
gone. Her brother sprang from his horse and endeavored to stop the
effusion of blood, but in vain. She gave him her hand, muttered some
inarticulate words, and expired.