SURPRISE OF A HUNTER'S CAMP.
On the 28th of January, (1791,) a hunting party, composed
of Joseph Biggs, James Boggs, (son of Captain Boggs,)
James and Alexander Mitchell, Thos. Barr, Thos. Richards,
Elijah Whittaker, Joshua Williamsom, (brother of Colonel
Williamson,) and some others whose names cannot be obtained,
crossed the Ohio from Short creek, on a hunt in the
Indian country. They went out as far as Stillwater, and
having killed considerable game were about returning. As
the party lay around their camp fire at night, a body of
Indians rose up from beneath the creek bank, and fired
directly into their midst. Boggs was shot through both hips
with a large musket ball; the rest of the party escaped
unhurt and eluded pursuit, but lost all their guns, blankets,
game, etc. The Indians scalped their unfortunate victim,—
almost denuding the entire skull, then stretched him out and
placed an old musket across his breast. His arms were
extended at full length, and frozen so firmly in that position,
that when the men went out from Wheeling to bury him,
they had to amputate the limbs to get him in a convenient
sized grave. The ground was so frozen that the men could
not bury the body at any great depth, and the result was, as
afterwards ascertained, that the bears scented out the spot
and devoured the remains. These facts we have derived from
Mrs. Cruger, who was sister-in-law to Mr. Boggs. The
unfortunate man had, during the night previous to his horrible
death, what was called a "bad dream." It was that of a
swarm of
black bees, some of which stung him. His companions
said he spoke frequently of the circumstance during
the day, and that he regarded it as a fatal presentiment.
One of the latest, and perhaps the very last Indian
murder committed on the river near Wheeling, was that of
Uriah McCutcheon, who was killed by a small party of
Indians near the present Harris' Ferry. According to B.
McMechen, Esq., from whom we have obtained this fact, the
unfortunate man was found shortly afterwards, tomahawked
and scalped.
