Page:The Indian History of the Modoc War.djvu/52



Not more than thirty feet from them, the Indians piled on one another, trying to get their guns. After the Indians got their guns they gave battle. The soldiers retreated after a few minutes of firing, leaving one dead and seven severely wounded on the field. The Modocs lost one warrior killed and about half a dozen wounded. The Modoc warrior killed was known as Watchman; his Indian name was Wish-in-push.*

When the Indians saw that their comrades on the south bank was into it, they jumped in their dugouts to go across and assist in the fight. When they were about in the middle of the river, the settlers on the north bank fired on them. George Faiuke fired the first shot, saying: "Up at them, boys!" The Indians returned the fire from their dugouts. They turned around and paddled back to the north side. By the time the Indians got on the bank the settlers were way back in the thick, tall sage-brush, shooting all the time with but little effect, only killing one old squaw on the north side, killed one little baby, shot out of its mother's arms while she was running to get in the thick tules. One man had his arm broken. His name w r as Duffey. 1 On the white side three men w T ere killed. On the south side one able-bodied warrior was killed ; one girl about fifteen years old killed ; two small

you think of the situation?' 'There is going to be a fight,' I replied, 'and the sooner you open it the better, before there are any more complete prepara- tions.' He then ordered me to take some men and arrest Scarface Charley and his followers. I had taken the situation in pretty thoroughly in my mind and knew that an attempt to arrest meant the killing of more men than could be spared, if any of the survivors were to escape. I was standing in front of the troop. I called out to the men, 'Shoot over those Indians,' and raised my pistol and fired at Scarface Charley. Great minds appear to have thought alike. At the same instant, Oharley raised his rifle and fired at me. We both missed, his shot passing through my clothing over my elbow. It cut two holes through my blouse, one long slit in a cardigan jacket, and missed my inner shirts. My pistol bullet passed through a red handkerchief Charley had tied around his head, so he afterwards told me. Thefe was some discussion after the close of the war, as to who fired the first shot. I use a pistol in my left hand. The track of Scarface Charley's bullet showed my arm was bent in the act of firing, when he fired. We talked the matter over, but neither could tell which fired first. The fight at once became gen- eral. Shots came from everywhere, from the mouth of the tepees, from the sage brush on our left, from the river bank and from the bunch of braves in which Scarface Charley was at work. As soon as I had time to see that I had missed, I suppose I fired another shot at Charley, at which he dropped and crawled off in the brush. Just then an Indian dropped on his knees in the opening of a tepee a few yards from our right front, and let slip an arrow at me. This I dodged and the subsequent proceedings interested him
 * "Major Jackson finally rode over to me and said, 'Mr. Boutelle, what do

(This is Major F. A. Boutelle' s version of the affair with Scarface Char- ley, as written by him for Cyrus Townsend Brady's book entitled, "Northwest Fights and Fighters," from pages 266 and 267.)

Major Boutelle now resides in Seattle. Major Jackson resides in Portland. iDuffey was the father of Watson Duffey, who resides near the author's place. He died at the Yainax, Oregon, on the 19th day of December, 1897.