The U.S. President's Book of Secrets

I have seen a few monsters in my days.  During one of the deadliest battles I ever fought, the forest floor was strewn with the dead from both sides.  The battle was not over, and recovery of the wounded was impossible.  It was late at night and a fog rolled into the forest.  The men in camp were too exhausted and weary to sleep.  Out in the field amongst the dead we heard a man’s scream.  I commanded a few of my men to investigate.  Worried that it might be a trick I had my men flank from the west.  It was not smart for me to go with them, but I was restless and feared sending them into a trap.  When we peered down on the field, there was something moving amongst the dead.  It walked on all fours but unlike a bear or wolf.  It walked like a man using all four of his limbs and was much larger than any man I have ever seen.  One of my soldiers yelled out in panic and the creature turned to us.  Most animal’s eyes will reflect the light back to you from a lantern, but this creature’s eyes shone green from its own light.  It cast light into the fog creating an eerie glow.  It ran off into the forest and my men were so dumbfounded as to become useless.  We did not hear from the screaming man afterward, and we never found him after our victory.  I will never know if the sounds came from the creature itself or if some poor soul awoke from his injuries to find glowing green eyes staring at him.  I have heard tales from the natives about Wendigos.  They were once men, driven insane after succumbing to cannibalism to avoid starvation.  This creates an insatiable hunger in the man and turns them into a monster.  I am not sure a Wendigo is what I saw that night, but the legends fit.                 

-Ulysses S. Grant 1869