PART TWO – Somewhere in Wyoming 1866
“Jump down boy,” says Captain Duncan as he approaches the wagon
TE does so, still puzzling over the increasing crowd of men coming his way. He double checks the wagon and the team to be sure everything is ok. THEN HE HEARS THE WORDS THAT WILL CHANGE HIS LIFE FOREVER.
“Son, sorry to be the bearer of bad news, but we just got word that Indians have attack your dad’s wagon, we are now in the process of sending a posse to find the Indians and also to retrieve the survivors”.
The Captain continues talking but TE can’t make out the words for the sudden pounding in his head and he mumbles. “What are you talking about?” “Survivors, why are you talking about survivors?”
Now his mind is starting to clear and he thinks, “Captain would only use the word survivor if someone did not survive – and he said they attack my Dad’s wagon, that means…”
“Come on boy, join Sister Duncan in my wagon and we will wait until the Posse returns and gives us a full report.”
“NO, I’m going with them – I must find out what is happening to my family.”
With that TE grabs a horse tethered to a nearby tree, and without asking permission, jumps on and starts after the Posse. No one tries to stop him.
The 15 miles to the Cottle wagon go by in a haze, TE thinking to himself, “Survivors, I hope they all survived. I’m sure my brother and sister made it, who would hurt such little children? And my mom, she is so nice to everyone, especially me, so I know no one would hurt her. But my Dad and my Grandparents; Oh, I hope not.”
Just then the horse stumbles and almost pitches TE off, so he quits daydreaming and concentrates on staying astride the horse for the remaining miles, which seem to take forever.
The first glimpse of the area around the wagon does not look promising. The wagon itself looks in shambles. One of the oxen has been shot and fell, breaking the wagon tongue. Clothes are scattered everywhere, along with household belongings, supplies and just stuff. Then TE sees what he fears most. BLOOD! The more he looks the more blood he sees. The limp figure of a woman is lying alongside the wagon with a great amount of blood on her dress.
“Oh no, not my mother, I cannot live without my mother!”
As TE gets closer he can see this woman not only has her throat cut, but has been scalped as well, so TE cannot tell if this woman has the bright red hair that is his mother’s pride and joy and her trademark. He holds his breath and turns the women over – It is not his mother but Grandmother Bretell (spelling varies). He has mixed feelings, sorrow at the loss of his Grandmother but with renewed hope that he might find the rest of the family alive. But the next sight is anything but encouraging; a small limp form is laying close to one of the wagon wheels. It is his little brother George, with his skull bashed in – poor little George, it looks like one of the Indians just picked him up and smashed his head against the wheel. This is more than TE can handle, he feels unwell and all at once the events of the morning catch up with him. He slumps to his knees, leans across a washtub, upchucks his breakfast and breaks out crying. As he continues sobbing he thinks he must be growing crazy – the tub is making a thumping sound. What is going on? He gets control of himself, lifts up the tub and there underneath is his just younger brother William – and he is alive! He had forgotten about William when he was thinking of his family earlier. Fourteen years old, and small for his age – and someone TE often fought with – Will is a sight for sore eyes. No sooner has he found Will that he hears a further groaning. He and Will, without saying anything to each other, rush to the other side of the wagon. There is Father, blood running down his face, but alive. Now to find Grandpa Brettell, TE’s little sister Anne and, most importantly – his mother Elizabeth. A quick search of the surrounding area turns up Grandpa, gravely wounded by a blow to the head, but alive (he died of his wounds some six weeks later).
TE and Will hold a quick conference, decide to split up and look for mother and Anne. After more than an hour of frantic searching one of the men from the wagon train arrives with Anne, unharmed, across the front of his saddle. It seems that during the attack she takes off on the dead run to warn the wagon train and none of the Indians notice her leave.
Still no sign of mother, everyone searches until they are exhausted! Finally the survivors set down together to have a talk and plan their next action. Father is still too woozy to think straight, so TE – at 16 years of age becomes the man of the family, at least for the present. The story is pieced together as follows: It appears a group of Indians appear upon a nearby hill – dressed in war paint, but saying, by sign language, they want to trade. Father walks away from the wagon and toward the hill and offers several items in trade, after a lot of haggling father says he will give them all our sugar, bacon and 200 pounds of flour if they will let us pass unharmed. The Indians agree. Then as father turns to go back to the wagon, one of the Indians “shot him down like a dog” (words of William Henry Cottle) and the attack is on! The Indians fire over 500 rounds in and about the wagon. Grandma and little George are killed and Grandpa fatally wounded. Mother grabs William, shoves him under a tub and tells him not to raise that tub, no matter what. Anne clings to her mother’s skirts for dear life. A large buck Indian on a big white horse charges the camp swinging his rifle as a club and in one motion, knocks Anne to the ground and swoops Elizabeth up on the horse in front of him; then takes off across the prairie – with mother’s bright red hair streaming across his shoulder. Anne goes running for help and TE arrives a short time later. In less than an hour, TE’s whole world is turned upside down. TE walks a short distance from the rest and has a good cry, then dries his tears, “sucks it up” and returns to what is left of his family, with one thought uppermost in his mind.
“I will not rest until I find my mother!” TO BE CONTINUED
(Note: This story is true but I have used two different accounts of the incident for my information. One by William Henry and one by Anne Cottle Robson – and each account varies somewhat. Also I took writer’s license to make the story more interesting.)