| Show INDIAN reminiscences tucson arizona may 11 1896 1 I notice lo in a late le is us ue an item in reference to the first bret discovery of lead and 0 allver ver in southern utah As I 1 resided at the time in that portion of the territory perhaps a reminiscence or two culled frum from my journal may be of in terest the first bret intimation we who lived in ID parowan carowan had of the existence of native lead in utah came from the pah eed indians indiana who lived in that region they had always bought of us all their but all at once they would no do longer buy soy any lead they said they had plenty of their own and soon sold it to us to in considerable quantity it was not cot cast into bars bare or ingoff but had bad evidently been melted into the sand and we soon found out all about it A slight shock of earthquake bad caused a land slide on the steep sleep side ol of a mouD mountain tain and exposed a body of lead ore this the indians piled in a heap with abundant fire firewood to produce the needful intensity of hosts heat and in this rude manner smelted smelter bund hundreds reds of pounds of lead 1 I bought considerable for my own huseas did all my neighbors we found but bul one objection to it ic it was too haid in lo loading siding a gun a ball would not proper properly jy enter the grooves cut in the gun barrel nod and in bullets it was difficult to out cut oft eft the neck of the bullet but it was much cheaper than the eastern article artice and we shot away lots of it not suspecting that we were shoot ing away silver A company worked it as a lead mile mice a considerable time before it was found to be in reality a silver or rather a silver lead mine the same attended the working of the Ls loa vegas lead mines on the route between son south lh ern utah nod and southern california thousands of pounds of load lead were shipped from this mine tu to salt lake city by our people and when finally abandoned by us ue the mine was relocated rc and profitably worked by other bartles as a silver mine lo in the fall of 1861 1851 patriarch joel H johnson and family settled a place named after him fort johnson Job about twelve miles westerly from parowan carowan Pa rowan and in his bis family was an indian girl named Vi virogle Viro rogue gua she bad been cap ared lured during the indian war of 1849 in utah county with her mother the latter soon died but the child then five or six years of age lived and thrived finely sand was treated in all respects as a member of the family when she was about twelve or thirteen years year sod old an indian named squash bead came one day on borim horseback eback to 10 the door of the house bouee where viroqua was alone all the men snout the ibe place bel being dg absent except a son nopal johnson who providentially was in the room fixing up some garden tools the in dlan dian had evidently been waiting for a moment when everyone but bat viroqua would be away and did not suspect the presence of the young man squash head bead came to the door and demanded viroqua Viro gua clah claiming ning that she was his sister she bad a dread of all indians indiana and shrank back into a corner of the room in terror while nepha sprang to the doorway to prevent the he entrance of the savage who intended evidently to seize the girl throw her upon his bis horse home and dash away with her nepal was armed only with a grubbing hoe boe which he held poised in n air ready for a blow and squash head with rifle and kuite knife stood ir daring laring at him in all the fury or of baffled rage neobi told him the girl did not wish to go with him was not his bis sister and even it if she ehe had bad been his hie sister she should riot oot go against her will head seemed a flood fiend incarnate his eyes gleamed with rage and great drops of sweat dropped from his race lace tacui us stood some minute looking tash other ether in the ey the one seeking an opportunity to ue u e knite or r the other warily guarding against any such a move but never flinch izig for a moment but nepal to use a common had the drop on him for before the indian could level his bis gun or use his bis knife could and would awash amash his bise skull kull finding nepha would not yield squash head suddenly leape leabel J upon his horse ar ard d away yelling de flance and future revenge poor VI rogues terrified at her narrow escape had bad no peace ot of mind until father johnson sent her to salt lake city and placed her to in care of his hie sister elster julie julia wife of almon W bab bitt with wh ahm m she ebe remained until her death a few years after she was as well behaved intelligent neat and housewifely as any of the girls around and wais in all respects a goot good faithful latter day saint receiving in due time all the ordinances for the dead dt ad squash bead was found some years later dead in northern norl bern utah with his bis throat rut cut but whether by his own or le band was never knoer but his was a fate he richly deserved for his many cruel murders many were the thrilling scenes through which the hardy pioneer who founded the state of utah have passed very mar mary mariy y of the participants of f those incidents have passed awby away and it seems to me fitting that some slight record ut of them should be kept even though it be a meaner meager one tha the new generation may have some little conception of the toils toile and dangers incident to the founding of is slate late in the c grest great american desert JAMES H MARTINEAU |
