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The Battle of Kickapoo |
This story is taken verbatim, warts, run on sentences and all, from the 25 May 1864 issue of
the North Western, a newspaper then published in Viroqua, Wisconsin. There
seems to have been a recurring problem with horse thieves back
then, particularly around Kickapoo..
On Saturday Morning last, Under Sheriff Poland, Ex Sheriff Goode, and Messrs. A. P. Bliss, A. Smith, L.C. Gillett, C. P. Richardson and H. A. Robinson, upon information received from a reliable source, made a descent on some Horse Thieves, who had congregated at one Dr. Hills, in a secluded place on the west side of the Kickapoo River, about one and one-half miles above the little Village of Kickapoo Centre in this County; and after a night ride of about fifteen miles came upon them half an hour after Sun-rise, suddenly.
The two Horse Thieves started for the bush. Hill was ordered to open the gate, which he did upon being threat of being shot by Mr. Goode --- some got through the gate, and others got into the field, through which, the thieves were running some other way, and quickly gathered around the skedaddlers and seized one of them, but the ringleader shot Mr. Goode in the fleshy part of the shoulder, and in the melee caused by the falling of Mr. Goode, Graves, alias Eno, got out of and a little ahead of the crowd, but several of them followed Eno, and two of the Party, Bliss and Poland, fired each two shots at him, and he fired two shots at Bliss, one of which passed through the ear of the horse on which he was riding. [Phew]
The party here run out of ammunition and it being impossible to ride horses into the thick brush and over the logs, he was not taken.
But the other thief and three horses were brought to Viroqua. And since that time, Dr. Hill and other parties, supposed to belong to the gang or know something about them, have been brought to Viroqua --- also Eno's Rifle and a fine mare and colt, that he claims as his property, that was probably stolen.
Eno shot the Sheriff of Lafayette County, some time since. A Reward of $150.00 is offered for the body of Eno in another column. We hope that the Villain will be taken and meet his just deserts.
(Unfortunately, the microfiche this was on was on the reel backwards. Since I did not wind it forward to begin, but was looking at it by moving backward in time, I had already passed subsequent stories by the time I got to this one and I, being somewhat burned out I did not backtrack. However, I do seem to recall that Eno was captured at some point and that Dr. Hill was not really a doctor.)
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