THE EXECUTION--THE NIGHT BEFORE.
The date of the execution was fixed for December 26, 1862. On the 22d
instant the condemned prisoners were separated from the others, and
on the same day Colonel Stephen Miller (afterwards Governor), who was
in command, through the interpreter, Rev. Mr. Riggs, called upon the
condemned and announced the decision of the Great Father at Washington.
He said:
Tell these thirty-nine condemned men that the commanding officer of
this place has called to speak to them on a serious subject this
afternoon. Their Great Father at Washington, after carefully reading
what the witnesses testified to in their several trials, has come
to the conclusion that they have been guilty of murdering his white
children; and, for this reason, has directed that each be hanged by
the neck until dead next Friday at ten a. m.
That good ministers, both Catholic and Protestant, are here, and can
commune with them for the remaining four days they have to live.
That I will now cause to be read the letter from their Great Father
at Washington, first in English and then in their own language.
Say to them, now, that they have so sinned against their fellow-men,
that there is no hope for clemency except in the mercy of God,
through the merits of the blessed Redeemer; and that I earnestly
exhort them to apply to that, as their only remaining source of
comfort and consolation.
Rev. Mr. Riggs, the interpreter, had been a missionary among them for
twenty-five years, and he had known them intimately, and it pained him
sorely to be obliged to convey to them as an interpreter the words that
were to condemn them to death. In so doing he said:
I have known you for many years; I have pointed you to the cross;
endeavored to prayerfully convince you that allegiance to God, and
the Great Father at Washington, was your duty. I have with a broken
heart witnessed your cruelty to inoffensive men, women and children;
cruelty to your best friends. You have stained your hands in innocent
blood, and now the law holds you to strict accountability. It pains
me to inform you that your Great Father in Washington says you must
die for your cruelty and murders, and I am directed to inform you
that on the 26th day of February you will be hanged by the neck until
you are dead, and may God have mercy on your souls.
The prisoners received the sentence rather coolly; some smoking their
pipes composedly during its reading, one of them knocking the ashes out
of his pipe, and another putting in his a fresh supply of kinnikinnick.
On Tuesday evening they held a death dance, accompanied by wild Indian
songs, and there were some fears that the excitement might cause an
attempt to make an escape or create a panic; so, precautionary measures
were taken. The Indians' friends and families were permitted to visit
them and take a last farewell. It was a solemn time even to the white
soldiers, for it was plainly evident that while there was a lack of
such demonstration as would be witnessed among the whites under similar
circumstances, yet to the observant eye only, it was plain to be seen
that deep, deep grief had taken possession of their hearts. There
were few tears; no hysterics, but profound sorrow was depicted on the
countenances as the parting word was said, and messages sent to children
and friends. Some were completely overcome; others in bravado laughed and
joked as if it were an every-day occurrence. One said: "Yes, tell our
friends that we are being removed from this world over the same path they
must shortly travel. We go first."
Many spoke in a mournful tone; in fact, the majority of them desired to
say something, and with one or two exceptions they seemed to be penitent.
Why should they not? Their white brethren under like circumstances are
accorded religious privileges. They repent and accept the invitation,
"Come unto Me all ye who are weary and heavy laden and I will give you
rest." The thief on the cross repented. Could not an ignorant, misguided
Indian under religious instruction receive light and repent?
The night before the execution Colonel Miller received a stay for one of
the condemned, as strong doubt existed as to his participation in the
murders, and he was finally pardoned.
It has been said that in the excitement of the preparations for the
execution that the wrong man was pardoned. He was guilty, but the
innocent man suffered in his stead. The last night was spent by the
prisoners in quite a jolly camp-fire, chatting merrily and smoking to
their hearts' content.
Father Ravoux, a Catholic priest from St. Paul, remained with them all
night administering consolation and communion, and the more serious of
them listened attentively to his words of comfort. In the morning, as
the hour for the execution approached, and while Father Ravoux was
speaking to the Indians, the provost marshal entered and whispered
something to the good priest, who in turn spoke in French to one of the
half-breeds, and he repeated it in Dakota to the Indians, who were all
lying down around the prison. The information he gave was that the hour
had arrived when they were to march to the gallows. In a moment every
Indian stood erect, and as the provost marshal opened the door they fell
in behind him with the greatest alacrity. Indeed, a notice of release,
pardon or reprieve could not have induced them to leave their cells with
more apparent willingness than this call to death. At the foot of the
steps there was no delay. Captain Redfield mounted the drop, at the head,
and the Indians crowded after him, as if it were a race to see who would
get there first. They actually crowded on each other's heels, and as they
got to the top, each took his position, without any assistance from those
who were detailed for that purpose. They still kept up a mournful wail,
and occasionally there would be a piercing scream. The ropes were soon
arranged around their necks without the least opposition being offered.
The white caps, which had been placed on the tops of their heads, were
now drawn down over their faces, shutting out forever the light of day
from their eyes. Then ensued a scene that can hardly be described and can
never be forgotten. All joined in shouting and singing, as it appeared
to those who were ignorant of the language. The tones seemed somewhat
discordant, and yet there was harmony in it. It was not their voices
alone, but their bodies swayed to and fro, and their every limb seemed to
be keeping time. The drop trembled and shook as if all were dancing. The
most touching scene on the drop was their attempt to grasp each other's
hands, fettered as they were. They were very close to each other, and
many succeeded. Three or four in a row were hand in hand, and all hands
swaying up and down with the rise and fall of their voices. One old man
reached out on each side, but could not grasp a hand; his struggles were
piteous and affected many beholders.
Those who understood their manners and language said that their singing
and shouting was necessary to sustain each other. Each one shouted his
own name and called on the name of his friend, saying in substance: "I am
here! I am here!"
The supreme moment arrived, and amid an immense concourse of citizens and
soldiers the drop fell, and thirty-eight human beings, whose hands were
steeped in innocent blood and who had spread such desolation and sorrow
to thousands of happy homes, were ushered into the presence of their
Maker.
The arrangements were under the immediate supervision of Captain Burt, of
the Seventh Regiment, and they were so complete that there was not the
slightest hitch.
"Positions of honor were given to the most interested. For instance, the
cutting of the rope was assigned to William J. Daly, of Lake Shetek, who
had three children killed and his wife and two children captured, and who
were at this time in the hands of Little Crow, on the Missouri, and were
afterward ransomed by Major Galpin at Fort Pierre."
The quotation I make here is from a book in the public library, and I
found penciled on the margin by one of those persons who take advantage
of the courtesies extended by public libraries, the following:
"So should every remaining Indian be 'elevated'!" Nay! Nay! scribbler.
We cannot tell why one man's face is black and another red, while yours
and mine are white. Would you mete out the same measure to the whites?
Innocency among the Indians, per capita, is not more rare than among
their more favored white brethren, and we are brethren of a different
hue. Punish the guilty, be he white or black, but protect the innocent.
After the bodies had hung for about half an hour, the physicians of
the several regiments present examined them and reported that life was
extinct. The bodies were carried away in United States mule teams and
dumped in one common grave, dug in the sand bar in front of the city, the
half-breeds in one corner of the hole so they might be found by their
friends if they so desired. There may be times and circumstances when a
Christian people can afford to act as we expect the benighted to do; but
it has not arrived yet. No matter what the crime, the penalty has been
paid, and after the spirit has gone to God to be adjudged, it is part
of our civilization to be decent in our conduct toward all that remains
mortal. It is not necessary to make a great display, but that we perform
our duty according to our law. We have taken a life in accordance with a
human law, and in justification of it we quote, "An eye for an eye and a
tooth for a tooth." No matter how atrocious the deed, after the penalty
has been paid we cannot as a Christian people, apologize for our acts of
barbarism to the inanimate clay.
After the mandate of the President had been executed the telegraph
flashed to Washington the following:
"St. Paul, Minn., December 27, 1862.
"To the President of the United States:
"I have the honor to inform you that the thirty-eight Indians and
half-breeds, ordered by you for execution, were hung on yesterday
at Mankato, at ten a. m. Everything went off quietly, and the other
prisoners are well secured.
"Henry H. Sibley,
"Brigadier-General."
With this the curtain drops on this bloody drama, and thus ended the
great Indian campaign of 1862.