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Show Stories of j I Great Scouts wJL 1 l . Western Newspaper Union. j" TOM HIGGINS GREATEST FIGHT 'j WITH THE INDIANS " Tom Higgins was a noted Illinois i ranger during the War of 1812. One I morning near Fort Hills the Indians j ambushed Tom's company and killed ' several of them. As thejr fled to the ) fort, Hlgglns stayed behind, vowing J . that he would get ut IcuBt one Indian before he retreated. He got his In-t In-t dlan, but Just as he was preparing to ; mount his horse, Hanger Burgess, who j wnB lying on the ground wounded, i called out to him: "You won't leave j me to the Indians, will you, Torn?" Ulgglns stopped and attempted to lift Burgess onto his horse, but the , frightened animal Jerked tho reins , from Tom's hand and dashed madly away. ! "You'll huve to try to crawl to tho fort. Burgess," said Tom, "and I will toy behind and keep redskins off." As Burgess crawled away, Ulgglns ran in another direction to lend tho approaching Indians away from his wounded comrade. In a few minutes he was surrounded by the savages nnd they wounded him lu the leg as he fled Into a deep ravine. He was nearlng the fort when three Indians rose up before him.. One of them fired and f tho ranger fell, wounded for the sec- ;t ond time. With a wild yell the Indians rushed at him with uplifted tomahawks, but Hlgglns rose onco more and shot ouo of them dead. The other two then attacked at-tacked lilin with spears and tomahawks. toma-hawks. Tom defended himself with his knife until he was knocked to tho 4 ground by a blow, from a tomahawk I which cut off one of his ears. Finally the ranger tore n spear from I tho grasp of one of t)ie Indians and j thrust It through the body of the oth- j r. He was pulled to his feet as the savage fell. The surviving warrior re- 1' v jj treated toward bis rifle , and Tom, un- , , ; daunted by his wounds, staggered aft- I ,v if cr him. The unequal combat had been ' seen by the people In the fort, but they I ,' ",;, were afruld to come to his assistance t & unt uruvo woman, named Mrs. I - .M Pursley, cried out: "I will not see ' such a brave man die I" ' Sho sprang upon a horse nnd started to Hlgglns' aid. Shamed by her ex- ' ninple, several men galloped after her. &.f Tlu-y reached the ranger Just ns a vHBtafe party of Indians were ready to Bpiu'oop down upon him. They threw nigglns, fainting from loss of blood, across n horso and curried" him bock to tho fort In sufely. Hlgglns did not recover from lib wounds for ninny years, but In. his old nge ho was given n pension for hln i- 'Jfi heroic act and wuh made n doorkeeper "In the statu assembly at Vnndulla. " 'V . it (. " -1 ' '' , ' ? . . ' I' '-J |
