Page:The Early Indian Wars of Oregon.djvu/482

464 was slipped out of and down the slide into the river, for it was impossible to longer keep it in the midst of the crowded storeroom.

When the attack was made on the upper cascades a party of Yakimas had attacked the blockhouse at the middle cascades, and one of the local Indians had run with the news to the lower landing, where George Griswold was living, who that morning was at an Indian village on a sand bar between his house and the blockhouse, to engage a crew for one of his boats, which was going to Vancouver for freight. At the village the Cascade Indians informed Griswold that the Yakimas had come, the story being confirmed by the noise of cannon and musketry at the blockhouse; and on this he returned with all haste to the lower cascades, accompanied by others, who were warned on the way by a carpenter at work on the tramway, who cut loose the mules attached to a car, mounted and ran, crying to others, "Run for your lives! they are righting at the blockhouse!!" The fugitives assisted in getting off a couple of boats, with the women and children, for Vancouver, from whence help might be expected.

A wharf boat lying at the lower landing had in it considerable government freight, which the men in charge would have defended by barricading, but had no ammunition to stand a siege. There were also some batteaux and a schooner at the landing, over which the men kept guard until near night, when the Indians appeared and fired on them as they shoved the boats out into the stream, wounding one man. The boats then proceeded down the river, and the Indians burned all the property they could not carry off.

Meanwhile, neither those at the upper or lower cascades knew what was transpiring at the blockhouse, except that it had been attacked, as was evidenced by the firing. The first intimation of an attack was hearing a few shots and the shouts of men running from above warning others. Five of the garrison of nine were in the fort at that moment.