Told by the Pioneer's - Washington Secretary of State

Told by the Pioneers
she knew an enemy was near, human or animal. She could not tell
which. Mother and the older children went out to close the barn and
shut the stock snugly in the enclosure, taking the dogs along. She left
11S younger children at the house. Near the barn the dogs stalked a
panther and pressed him so close that he took to the house. ·We looked
up and saw the head of a huge panther thrust down over the open
door. We were greatly frightened. To get that door shut was our
first thought. Not knowing it was the best thing to do, we lit a pine
knot and with it blazing in our hands, we made a dash for the door and
slammed it. Mother came with the dogs alld routed him from the house
and shot him. Our dogs were less savage than the animals they hunted,
but they were faithful to their masters. 'Ve youngsters could not
control them, yet they would defend us from harm. If they came into
the house we could not make them leave unless we took a fire-brand
and held it to their heads, tl en they would go, snarling like some wild
beast.
·When we went to school the woods were so dense that after we left
the clearing at home we could not see the sky except in two or three
places. Such a place was infested with wild animals. All the scholars
had to take their dogs to school and sometimes the big boys would slip
the chains on the dogs. They would go to fighting. Then school would
be dismissed and teacher would take a fire-brand to separate them.
For several years matters went on: the whites who had joined the
tribes were in rather delicate position. 'Ve had the right to sit in their
council and it was not denied us, but we did not go. At last they came
and told us, "'Ve cannot stand much more imposition and if it is not
stopped we will have to go to the woods." This meant they ·would go to
war. It was about this time that Governor Stevens arrived, a brave
and noble man, liked by all, both whites and Indians. He 'Yith a few
others realized the situation and tried to make peace, but ·was too late.
The Indians had been preparing for several years and were much better
prepared than the whites thought. They now began to hold war
dances and as our house was built on the council grounds, we received
full benefit of it all. The dances and whoops were something terrible,
as we understood every whoop. Terrible were the scenes we had to
witness and fearful were the noises to hear. Their beating tomanamus
night and day, was the worst. \Varwhoops, war dances and tomanamus
they stripped to the clout, their faces painted in spots and
btripes of black. Their bodies were oiled until they were slippery as
salmon. Their faces were sullen and their coarse black hair was braid~
cd up tightly, stuck full of feathers. Clam sticks, war clubs and guns,
they had cunningly hidden away.
The whites thought they had very few, but alas, they found the dif-
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