In the latter part of September, 1789, an alarm being given that Indians
had been seen in the Campus Martius, on the Ohio, a party consisting of
five or six rangers, ten volunteer citizens, and twelve regular soldiers
was collected for pursuit.
The men went up in canoes to the mouth of Duck creek, where they left
their water craft. The more experienced rangers soon fell upon the trail,
which they traced across the wide bottoms on to the Little Muskingum. At a
point about half a mile below where Conner's mill now stands, the Indians
forded the creek. In a hollow, between the hills, about a mile east of the
creek, they discovered the smoke of their camp fire. The rangers now
divided the volunteers into two flanking parties, with one of the spies at
the head of each, and three of their number to act in front. By the time
the flankers had come in range of the camp, the Indians discovered their
pursuers, by the noise of the soldiers who lagged behind, and were not so
cautious in their movement. They instantly fled up the run on which they
were encamped. Two of their number leaving the main body, ascended the
point of a hill, with a ravine on the right and left of it.
[Illustration: AN INDIAN BRAVE.]
The rangers now began to fire, while the Indians, each one taking his
tree, returned the shot. One of the two Indians on the spur of the ridge
was wounded through the hips, by one of the spies on the right, who pushed
on manfully to gain the flanks of the enemy. The men in front came on more
slowly, and as they began to ascend the point of the ridge, Ned Henderson,
who was posted on high ground, cried out "Kerr! Kerr! there is an Indian
behind that white oak, and he will kill some of you." Kerr instantly
sprung behind a large tree, and Peter Anderson, who was near him, behind a
hickory, too small to cover more than half his body, while John Wiser
jumped down into the ravine. At that instant the Indian fired at Anderson,
and as John looked over the edge of the bank to learn the effect of the
shot, he saw Peter wiping the dust of the hickory bark out of his eyes.
The ball grazed the tree, just opposite his nose, and glancing off did him
no serious harm, but filling his eyes with the dust, and cutting his nose
with the splinters. At the same time Henderson, with others, fired at the
Indian, and he fell with several balls through his body. The brave fellow
who was killed lost his life in a noble effort to aid his friend, who had
been wounded through the hips, and could not spring up on to the little
bench, or break in the ridge, where he was standing.
While occupied in this labor of love, the rangers on his flanks had so far
advanced, that the shelter of the friendly tree could no longer secure him
from their shots, as it had done while his enemies were more in front of
him. The wounded Indian escaped for the present, although it is probable
he died soon after. The other five Indians, there being seven in the
party, seeing that their enemies outnumbered them so greatly, after firing
a few times, made a circuit to the right and came up in the rear of the
soldiers, who were occupying themselves with the contents of the kettle of
hog meat and potatoes, which the Indians in their hurry had left boiling
over the fire. The first notice they had of their danger was the report of
their rifles. It made a huge uproar among the musketeers, who taking to
flight, ran in great alarm for protection to the rangers. As it happened
the Indians were too far off to do much harm, and no one was injured but
one poor fellow, who was shot through the seat of his trowsers, just
grazing the skin. He tumbled into the brook by the side of the camp,
screaming at the top of his voice, "I am kill'd, I am kill'd," greatly to
the amusement of the rangers, who were soon at his side, and dragging him
out of the water, searched in vain for the mortal wound. The dead Indian
was scalped, and his rifle and blanket taken as the legitimate plunder of
a conquered foe. The other five retreated out of reach of the rangers,
after their feat of frightening the soldiers. They returned to the
garrison, well pleased that none of their men were killed, but much vexed
with the soldiers, whose indiscretion had prevented their destroying the
whole of the Indians, had they encircled them as first arranged by the
leaders of the party. It served as a warning to the Indians not to
approach too near the Yankee garrison, as their rangers were brave men,
whose eyes and ears were always open.[D]
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[D] Hildreth's Pioneer History.
[Illustration: THE DEFIANCE.]