Page:The Early Indian Wars of Oregon.djvu/479

Rh the bridge in front of the store. Along the whole line fell their victims. At the mill, B. W. Brown, his eighteen-year-old wife, and her young brother were slain, scalped, and thrown into the river, and the teamster at the mill wounded, who, however, escaped to the steamer Mary.

Three of the crew of the Mary were on their way to the steamer, whose fires were not yet lighted, when the attack was made. The wind was blowing hard down stream, and even with steam up it would have seemed doubtful whether the boat could be got out without serious delay. They looked in each others faces, and asked, "Have we any guns on the boat?" No, there were no arms. One of the three ran, going up the river to the house of a settler, named Imans. The other two made an effort to get the steamer out, when the Indians fired on them, and they ran to the cover of the woods and up past Imans'. Those who were already on the boat defended themselves, the fireman, James Lindsay, being shot through the shoulder. Buckminster, the engineer, killed one Indian with his revolver; and John Chance, the steward's boy, sprang on the roof and shot an Indian with an old dragoon pistol, being himself wounded in the leg while defending the boat. The cook, being wounded, jumped into the river and was drowned. But the boat's fires were started in the midst of this fight for life, and two wounded men taken on board, when Hardin Chenoweth went into the pilot-house, and lying flat upon the floor, backed the steamer out. When she was fairly out in the stream, he whistled defiance to the savages; but what was of more importance, whistled hope into the hearts of the men on shore, who understood it to mean that the Mary would return with aid as soon as it could be procured. The Wasco also, seeing the situation, had already made a start from the other side, and the men who had escaped by running up the river, were picked up by the boats.

Of the men at work on the island bridge most reached the store, though some were wounded, one mortally. The