aging parties belonging to the Third regiment
were fired upon in the vicinity of Wood Lake. About 800 of the command
were engaged in the encounter and were opposed by about an equal
number of Indians. After a spirited engagement Col. Marshall, with
about 400 men, made a double-quick charge upon the Sioux and succeeded
in utterly routing them. Our loss was four killed and forty or fifty
wounded. This was the only real battle of the war. Other Day was with
the whites and took a conspicuous part in the encounter. After
the battle Gen. Pope, who was in command of the department of the
Northwest, telegraphed the war department that the Indian war was
over and asked what disposition to make of the troops then under his
command. This request of Gen. Pope was met with a decided remonstrance
by the people of Minnesota, and they succeeded in preventing the
removal of any of the troops until they had made two long marches
through the Dakotas and to Montana. Gen. Sibley's command reached Camp
Release on the 26th of September, in the vicinity of which was
located a large camp of Indians, most of whom had been engaged in the
massacres. They had with them about two hundred and fifty mixed bloods
and white women and children, and the soldiers were very anxious to
precede at once to their rescue. Gen. Sibley was of the opinion that
any hostile demonstration would mean the annihilation of all the
prisoners, and therefore proceeded with the utmost caution. After a
few preliminary consultations the entire camp surrendered and the
captives were released. As soon as possible Gen. Sibley made inquiries
as to the participation of these Indians in the terrible crimes
recently perpetrated, and it soon developed that a large number of
them had been guilty of the grossest atrocities. The general decided
to form a military tribunal and try the offenders. After a series of
sittings, lasting from the 30th of September to the 5th of November,
321 of the fiends were found guilty of the offenses charged, 303 of
whom were sentenced to death and the rest condemned to various terms
of imprisonment according to their crimes. All of the condemned
prisoners were taken to Mankato and were confined in a large jail
constructed for the purpose. After the court-martial had completed
its work and the news of its action had reached the Eastern cities,
a great outcry was made that Minnesota was contemplating a wholesale
slaughter of the beloved red man. The Quakers of