THE RESCUE.

Tuapeka Times, Volume III, Issue III, 26 May 1870, Page 7

THE RESCUE.

In the spring of 1794, while General Wayne, in command of the NorthWestern American Army, was occupying Fort Greuville, which he had constructed the previous winter, news was brought to him that a party of Pottawatomy Indians had surprised and destroyed the block-house of a small settlement not far distant, and massacred all the inmates except a young female, whom they had taken prisoner and were then supposed to be conducting her to their village. This female, a Miss Eggleston, was the daughter of an officer of some note, who was a friend of Wayne's, and he determined, if in his power, to save her. At that time he had some two or three heroic little bands of spies, or scouts, attached to his division ; and he knew if a rescue could be effected at all, the men to entrust with that important enterprise could be found among them, and them

Now it so happened that a small party of three scouts were at that moment in the fort, having come in the night previous with important information, and were preparing to set off again immediately. Sending for one of the most daring of these, Robert M'Cleilan by name, who, though not the regular appointed leader of the band, sometimes acted in that capacity when his commander .vas absent, the General briefly informed him of what had taken place, and asked him if he thought there was a hope of Miss Eggleston being rescued.

"I can't say as to that, Gineral," replied the scout, " but this I will say, if it kin he done, I kin do it." "How many men do you want?" asked Wayne.

" How big is the party 1 " enquired the other.

" From the report, I should judge there were twenty or thirty of them.."

" Then it'll never do for us to make a regular stand-up fight on't, General, unless we has the cap'n and the others all along ; and as they won't be in afore to-morrow, ef then, I reckon it's best to operate by sarcu invention ; and the two that's here with me — Hickman and Hart — will be jest as good for that thar as a dozen more. Only put me whar I can get on their trail, and ef the red niggers arn't too far ahead, I'll soon fetch a good report of them, ef I don't of the young woman."

" But you must bring a good account of her ! " rejoined Wayne in a positive tone. It is to save her I send you ; for she is the daughter of my friend, and her life and rescue are above price."

" Then we'll save her, General, replied the hardy scout — " that is, if the butchering varmints only save her themselves till we kin get to wliar she

is." General Wayne gave M'Cleilan some further instructions, and then bade him set out immediately ; and returning to his temporary quarters in the fort, and informing his companions what was required of them, they at once set about preparing for their new adventure ; and in les3 than half-an-hour, the three were threading the intricate mazes of a great dark forest, -which then stretched away, unbrokenly, for many a long league before them.

With long and rapid strides — M'Cleilan, the fleetest-footed hunter of his time, on the lead — they got over some twenty miles of ground, and reached the ruins of the block-house, where the massacre had taken place, just as the sun was setting. There was light enough to find the broad trail of the retreating Indians, and with no unnecessary delay they set out upon it, and advanced some two or three miles further, when the gathering night compelled them to encamp and postpone further operations till another day.

The night, however, passed off without any distuibance ; and at the first streak of day they arose and resumed they journey ; and ere the sun set again they had travelled far upon the broad trail of their foes in a northerly direction.

It is not our purpose to follow them in detail. Suffice it to say, that near the close of the second day they reached a point where the trail forked, and it became necessary to make a careful examination, in order to decide which party had taken the prisoner with them. To the best of their judgment, the whole number of Indians was not much, short of thirty ; but they were not equally divided at the point of separation, as was evident from one trail being much larger than the other. They soon satisfied themselves that the girl had been taken -wick the smaller party ; and this to them was a pleasing discovery, as it gave them more hope of being successful in her rescue.

This decided, they pushed on rapidly till night, and then encamped — proceeding on the following morning as before ; and at the close, of the third day, just as night was setting in, they came within view of the camp-fire of their foes. Waiting some two or three hours, until .they thought the venture perfectly safe, they carefully proceeded- to reconnoitre the Indian camp, which was in a small, pleasant, but heavily-wooded valley, through which flowed a branch of the Wabash. Creeping up cautiously, under cover of some bushes, they beheld" six Indians carelessly disposed around the fire, thi'ee.of them lying down as if asleep, and the others sitting near together, conversing in low tones,, occasionally laughing' and evidently totally vn r

suspicious of danger. A little apart, and bound to a tree, was the poor captive — a young and beautiful female — whose now pale and dejected features bespoke the despair of her heart, and, combined with her dishevelled hair and torn and disarranged garments, rendered her an object of pity even to men hardened to almost every scene of suffering and distress.

Having fully ascertained the number and position of their enemies, and the fact that the prisoner whom they had come to rescue was still alive, the scouts "drew stealthily back to a safe distance, and held a whispered consultation upon the manner of their future procedure,

" I don't exactly like either of your plans," said M'Cleilan, who had quietly listened to the propositions of the other. " It's our business to get the gal away — that's the Gineral's orders — and the way that we kin do that the best is the best way. Now, instead of trying to steal thar guns, one o' you jest creep up and cut her cords, and start her off towards us as easy as you kin ; but if thar's any alarm, tell her to break for the nearest thicket, and we'll stand atween her and ha.rm. I don't think thar'll be any trouble 'bout our coming out all right, for we've fought bigger odds afore to-day, without the 'vantage of a surprise, and licked 'em too."

After some further discussion, the plan of M'Clellon was acceded to as the best, and Hart was selected to enter the camp and release the girl — the others to be in readiness to pour in their fire in case of an alarm — which, to say the least, would be likely to throw the Indians into confusion, and give our friends so much the advantage — while the girl would be almost certain to escape, and her escape was what they now sought rather than the lives of the savages. Having thus arranged the matter, the three scouts kept perfectly quiet and silent some two or three hours longer, and then began the execution of their final scheme. The fire, which the Indians had fed while astir, had now gone down to mere embers ; but this only the better served M'Clellan's idea, as it would render Hart less liable to be seen in his approach to the prisoner.

Some quarter of an hour more was spent in arranging everything for perfect action, and getting into position, which they finally did in that stealthy and noiseless manner peculiar to men of their profession. Then leaving his two companions where their fire would be sure to be effective, Hart as cautiously and stealthily drew back, and glided round to the captive. He reached her without causing any alarm, but found her fast asleep, sitting on the ground, her back braced against the tree to which she was bound. To wake her, and warn her, and assure her that deliverance was at hand — without causing her to start, or cry out, and so arouse her captors — was a delicate task. He began, however, by whispering in her ear, and so continued till Bhe gradually awoke, and heard, and comprehended his words, when her rare presence of mind came to bis aid, and he was greatly rejoiced and relieved at hsr whispered reply.

" I understand you — I thank you — God bless you, whoever you are ! Have no fear ! lam a soldier's daughter, and will do whatever you bid me."

" Then jest as soon as I cut your cords," whispered Hart, in reply, " get up and foller me, and don't make a bit o noise ; but ef the Enjuns do happen to rouse, don't get too skeered, but run for the nearest thicket, and leave me and my comrades to settle them."

He then cut her bonds ; and quietly l)ut with trembling eagerness, she arose to comply with his directions ; but the first step forward, her long corded and benumbed limbs partially giving way under her, she stumbled upon a dry branch, which snapped beneath her feet.

Instantly one of the Indians nearest the tree started up into a sitting posture, when Hart, feeling himself called upon to act, suddenly presented his rifle at the breast of his foe, and lodged the contents in his body. As he fell back, the scout, with a yell of triumph and defiance, bounded over him to attack the next, the whole party being now fully aroused and armed. Snapping his pistol at the breast of the second, and finding it miss fire, Hart struck out with his tomahawk, but stumbled at the same moment, and, missing the warrior in the act of rising, fell heavily against him. The latter staggered, and was really much alarmed and confused; but comprehending, withal, that he had an enemy within his reach, he quickly grappled him, wipped out his knife, and plunged it several times into his body. He was in the very act of doing this, in fact, when a ball from the rifle of M'Cleilan pierced his brain, and he fell dead over the dying form of Hart, Hickman at the same instant shooting down another ; for with loud, terrifying yells, both had rushed upon the Indians at the same moment with their unfortunate companion.

There were now three nnwounded Indians to two whites; and had the former known of their advantage, the day might have been their own ; but they were surprised, alarmed, half paralysed with the thought that they were attacked by overwhelming numbers^ and before they had time to re-

cover, the smaller weapons of our heroes done their work upon two more of them, the sixth one only making his escape, with a yell of terror. The skirmish, from the first to last, scarcely exceeded a minute ; and probably no regular battle in the world ever showed such a proportion of the killed, to the number engaged, in so short a time. It was a dearly-won contest to our two surviving friends, and sad and gloomy were their feelings as they lifted their poor comrade from beneath his foe, and listened to the irregular breathings which were soon to cease in death. The girl, who had not fled far, now returned and joined them in their grief, for she felt that the poor fellow had fallen in her, rescue and defence. An hour latter, the dying man expired in the arms of M'Cleilan, roused a little at the last moment, and speaking a few words faintingly : — Good bye, boys," he said, " and remember me wharever you see the red niggers." " We'll do that, Hart, you may rest assured," replied M'Cleilan, in an unsteady tone ; and over his mortal remains those two hardy scouts swore undying revenge against their savage foes.

" Drawing the poor girl apart from the bloody scene, and assuring her that they were as ready to yield their lives in her defence as the one who had so fallen, they gave her a blanket, and persuaded her to lie down and get what rest she could, that she might be prepared for the long journey homeward, which would commence on the morrow. Then scalping their slain, and making prize of whatever they considered of any value, they sat down by their comrade, and passed the night beside him, rehearsing tales of adventures in which he had taken a part, and renewing their oaths of eternal vengeance against the whole Indian

At daylight the following morning they dug a rude grave with their hatchets and knives, and having shown their final respect to their late companion, by interring his remains as well as their circumstances would permit, they set out on their return to the fort, which they eventually reached iv safety, and where they delivered their rescued captive into the hands of General "Wayne, who not only kindly thanked, but liberally rewarded them, and expressed a soldier's regret for the loss of their brave companion.

It may interest our readers to know that this same young lady — so providentially preserved at the general massacre of her friends, and so gallantly rescued at the expense of the life of one of those brave heroes of the wilderness — subsequently became the wife of an officer under Wayne, and the mother of one who now holds a distinguished position in the councils of the nation.