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diff --git a/.gitattributes b/.gitattributes new file mode 100644 index 0000000..d7b82bc --- /dev/null +++ b/.gitattributes @@ -0,0 +1,4 @@ +*.txt text eol=lf +*.htm text eol=lf +*.html text eol=lf +*.md text eol=lf diff --git a/LICENSE.txt b/LICENSE.txt new file mode 100644 index 0000000..6312041 --- /dev/null +++ b/LICENSE.txt @@ -0,0 +1,11 @@ +This eBook, including all associated images, markup, improvements, +metadata, and any other content or labor, has been confirmed to be +in the PUBLIC DOMAIN IN THE UNITED STATES. + +Procedures for determining public domain status are described in +the "Copyright How-To" at https://www.gutenberg.org. + +No investigation has been made concerning possible copyrights in +jurisdictions other than the United States. Anyone seeking to utilize +this eBook outside of the United States should confirm copyright +status under the laws that apply to them. diff --git a/README.md b/README.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000..c135619 --- /dev/null +++ b/README.md @@ -0,0 +1,2 @@ +Project Gutenberg (https://www.gutenberg.org) public repository for +eBook #64137 (https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/64137) diff --git a/old/64137-0.txt b/old/64137-0.txt deleted file mode 100644 index 7a53140..0000000 --- a/old/64137-0.txt +++ /dev/null @@ -1,6571 +0,0 @@ -The Project Gutenberg eBook of History of Early Steamboat Navigation on the -Missouri River, Volume II (of 2), by Hiram Martin Chittenden - -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and -most other parts of the world at no cost and with almost no restrictions -whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms -of the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online at -www.gutenberg.org. If you are not located in the United States, you -will have to check the laws of the country where you are located before -using this eBook. - -Title: History of Early Steamboat Navigation on the Missouri River, - Volume II (of 2) - Life and Adventures of Joseph La Barge - -Author: Hiram Martin Chittenden - -Release Date: December 28, 2020 [eBook #64137] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: UTF-8 - -Produced by: Charlie Howard and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team - at https://www.pgdp.net (This file was produced from images - generously made available by The Internet Archive) - -*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK HISTORY OF EARLY STEAMBOAT -NAVIGATION ON THE MISSOURI RIVER, VOLUME II (OF 2) *** - - - - - IV - - AMERICAN EXPLORERS SERIES - - =Early Steamboating on Missouri River= - - _VOL. II._ - - -[Illustration: KENNETT MCKENZIE] - - - - - HISTORY OF EARLY - STEAMBOAT NAVIGATION - ON THE - MISSOURI RIVER - - - LIFE AND ADVENTURES - OF - JOSEPH LA BARGE - - PIONEER NAVIGATOR AND INDIAN TRADER - - FOR FIFTY YEARS IDENTIFIED WITH THE COMMERCE OF THE - MISSOURI VALLEY - - BY - HIRAM MARTIN CHITTENDEN - - _Captain Corps of Engineers, U. S. A._ - - AUTHOR OF “AMERICAN FUR TRADE OF THE FAR WEST,” “HISTORY - OF THE YELLOWSTONE NATIONAL PARK,” ETC. - - _WITH MAP AND ILLUSTRATIONS_ - - IN TWO VOLUMES - VOL. II. - - NEW YORK - FRANCIS P. HARPER - 1903 - - - - - COPYRIGHT, 1903, - BY - FRANCIS P. HARPER. - - - - -CONTENTS. - - - PAGE - CHAPTER XXI. - - THE CIVIL WAR, 249 - - - CHAPTER XXII. - - GOLD IN MONTANA, 265 - - - CHAPTER XXIII. - - INCIDENTS ON THE RIVER (1862–67), 277 - - - CHAPTER XXIV. - - LA BARGE AGAIN IN OPPOSITION, 287 - - - CHAPTER XXV. - - VOYAGE OF 1863--THE TOBACCO GARDEN MASSACRE, 298 - - - CHAPTER XXVI. - - THE BLACKFOOT ANNUITIES, 315 - - - CHAPTER XXVII. - - COLLAPSE OF THE LA BARGE-HARKNESS OPPOSITION, 324 - - - CHAPTER XXVIII. - - CAPTAIN LA BARGE IN MONTANA, 331 - - - CHAPTER XXIX. - - CAPTAIN LA BARGE IN WASHINGTON, 340 - - CHAPTER XXX. - - THE INDIAN OF THE MISSOURI VALLEY, 351 - - - CHAPTER XXXI. - - THE ARMY ON THE MISSOURI, 365 - - - CHAPTER XXXII. - - THE STEAMBOAT IN THE INDIAN WARS, 382 - - - CHAPTER XXXIII. - - THE PEACE COMMISSION OF 1856, 394 - - - CHAPTER XXXIV. - - THE MURDER OF CAPTAIN SPEAR, 408 - - - CHAPTER XXXV. - - THE BATTLE WITH THE RAILROADS, 417 - - - CHAPTER XXXVI. - - LAST VOYAGES TO BENTON, 425 - - - CHAPTER XXXVII. - - DECLINING YEARS, 438 - - - CHAPTER XXXVIII. - - DESTINY OF THE MISSOURI RIVER, 445 - - - INDEX, 449 - - - - -LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS. - -_VOL. II._ - - - KENNETH MCKENZIE, _Frontispiece_ - - _Facing page_ - LA BARGE ROCK, 299 - - A STEAMBOAT AT THE BANK, 331 - - REMOVING SNAGS FROM THE MISSOURI, 421 - - “IMPROVING” THE MISSOURI RIVER, 424 - - STEAMBOAT WRECK ON THE MISSOURI RIVER, 439 - - - - -HISTORY OF - -EARLY STEAMBOAT NAVIGATION - -ON THE MISSOURI RIVER - - - - -CHAPTER XXI. - -THE CIVIL WAR. - - -In a great many ways the War of the Rebellion affected the commerce -of the Missouri River. Missouri was a slave State, and most of her -citizens along the river were Southern sympathizers. It is stated that -all the Missouri River pilots except two were in sympathy with the -South, and that General Lyon had to go to the Illinois River for pilots -when he wanted to move his troops up the river in June, 1861. - -The steamboat business on the river felt the weight of the war almost -immediately upon its breaking out. Most of the business was with the -loyal people and was, of course, considered by the Confederates as -a legitimate subject of confiscation. Guerrilla bands infested the -country along the river, fired into the boats, and did all they could -to break up the business. They succeeded in driving most of the -traffic off the lower river; but at the same time the demands of the -war stimulated the trade higher up. There was an increased movement of -government troops and stores, and in the later years of the war many -refugees from both armies passed up the river to the mountains. The -discovery of gold in Montana added greatly to the river commerce during -these years. The injurious effects of the war, therefore, were mainly -confined to the river below Kansas City. - -[Sidenote: GUERRILLAS IN MISSOURI.] - -The peril to navigation due to the operations of the guerrillas was -a formidable one. Wherever the channel ran close to the high wooded -banks or other sheltered localities, ambush and attack could always -be expected. The danger was mainly from the south bank. It became -necessary to tie up at night away from this bank, and Captain La Barge -followed the practice of anchoring in mid-stream. The pilot-houses -were regularly equipped with shields of boiler iron, semi-cylindrical -in form, inclosing the wheel, and capable of being moved so as to be -adjusted to the changing course of the vessel. These shields were of -great service on the upper river also, for the Indians at this time -were as dangerous in that section as were the guerrillas farther down. -Occasionally, when there was much government freight aboard, troops -were sent up on the boat until Kansas City was passed. - -The passions aroused by this internecine strife deadened human -kindness, and made men as ferocious and brutal as wild beasts. This was -particularly true of the lawless bands of guerrillas whose desultory -operations have been in all wars the most cruel and most difficult to -suppress or control. Brigadier General Loan, of the Missouri State -Militia, in reporting the tragedy which we shall next relate, said: -“The guerrillas and Rebel sympathizers are waging a relentless, cruel, -and bloody war upon our unarmed and defenseless citizens, and are -determined to continue it until the last loyal citizen is murdered, or -driven from the State for fear of being murdered.” Such was the true -situation along the south bank of the Missouri River, and it was only -by the most vigilant precaution on the part of the steamboat men that -they did not suffer more than they did. We shall relate one instance in -which these precautions did not avail. - -[Sidenote: AFFAIR OF THE “SAM GATY.”] - -In the latter part of March, 1863, the steamboat _Sam Gaty_ was on her -way up the Missouri with a heavy load of freight and passengers, bound -for the far upper river. There were on board several persons of wealth -on their way to the newly discovered gold fields of Montana. There -were besides quite a number of paroled Union soldiers and some forty -contrabands, as the negroes freed by the war were called. While passing -under a high wooded bank near Sibley, Mo., the boat was attacked by a -band of guerrillas under the leadership of one Hicks, who had for some -time been the terror of the surrounding country. The boat was ordered -to come to the bank and promptly obeyed, whereupon the guerrillas -immediately boarded her. The attack was unexpected, and the passengers -were seated around the cabin engaged in games and conversation when -the appalling fact of their situation dawned upon them. A rush was -made to conceal valuable property, and the paroled soldiers made haste -to get into citizens’ clothes. The poor negroes could do nothing. The -guerrillas made quick and heartless work. They robbed the passengers of -all the valuables to be found on their persons, and one man narrowly -escaped summary death for attempting to slip his gold watch into his -boot. All the property on board that seemed to be of any use to the -government was thrown into the river. The safes were broken open and -robbed. Some of the paroled soldiers were taken off the boat and shot. -All of the contrabands were driven ashore, where they were shot down -in cold blood. Their shrieks and cries were plainly heard on the boat. -After this attack the boat was allowed to proceed. - -[Sidenote: AN ATROCIOUS CRIME.] - -Vengeance followed quickly in the wake of this atrocious crime. A -body of Kansas troops under a Major Ransom pursued and overtook the -guerrillas, attacked and destroyed their camp, took twenty-one horses, -killed seventeen men in combat and hanged two, and completely dispersed -the organization.[44] - -[Sidenote: A UNION MAN] - -Captain La Barge had his full share of troublesome experiences that -followed the outbreak of the war. As a slave-owner in a small way, -and as a man born and bred in the old ante-bellum atmosphere that -surrounded the institution of slavery, his natural sympathies were with -the South. But when it came to a decision he did not hesitate a moment. -As between union and disunion he was for union. It required a degree -of self-denial and patriotism which many Northerners have never fully -appreciated to stand by the country when one’s training and natural -sympathies would have led him to the other side. Captain La Barge -remained a Union man, took the oath of allegiance, and throughout the -war rendered constant service to the government. He soon came to see -the wisdom of his decision, and before the war was over his sympathies -had swung into full line with his action. - -[Sidenote: THE GALLOWS CHEATED.] - -In 1861 Captain La Barge was coming down the river on the _Emilie_ from -Omaha, and, as usual, stopped at St. Joseph for freight and passengers. -A good many people got on board, most of them Southern sympathizers -going south. When the boat rounded out into the stream the passengers -went up on deck and cheered for Jefferson Davis. The news of this -event was telegraphed to Colonel R. D. Anthony of Leavenworth[45]. -This distinguished agitator and ardent Union man called a meeting of -the citizens, and it was decided to hang La Barge the moment the boat -arrived. The Captain had a stanch friend in Leavenworth of the name of -Alexander Majors, of the firm of Russell, Majors & Waddell, overland -freighters. He was waiting to take passage to his home in Lexington, -Mo. When the boat approached there was a great crowd on the levee. -The instant the prow touched the bank Majors leaped on board and told -the Captain not to make fast, as the crowd proposed to hang him. The -Captain asked the clerk what business they had for Leavenworth. He -replied that there were only a few bills to collect. “Let them go for -now,” said the Captain, and tapping the bell to depart, drew back -into the stream. When the crowd saw that they were outwitted, they -swung their rope into the air and yelled that they would get him at -Wyandotte. “All right,” replied the Captain, “I expect to stop there,” -but when he reached that place he kept right on. - -[Sidenote: SERVING UNDER DURESS.] - -[Sidenote: AN UNPLEASANT DILEMMA.] - -On one of the down trips in the season of 1861 the _Emilie_ arrived at -Boonville just as the Confederates were evacuating that place upon the -approach of the Federals under General Lyon. La Barge knew nothing of -what was transpiring there, and his first intimation of any unusual -state of things was a volley of cannon shot whistling over the boat. -The Captain signaled that he would halt, and rounded to above the -town. The Confederate General Marmaduke came on board and with him -Captain Kelly and a company of troops. “I knew Marmaduke well,” said La -Barge, “and asked him as soon as he got on board what the matter was. -He replied, ‘I want you to turn around and take General Price up to -Lexington. He is sick and cannot stand the overland ride.’ I replied -that I could not think of such a thing; that I was in the service of -the government. He then took possession of the boat, placed me in -arrest, and forced me to take the boat back to Lexington. I protested -again, saying that the crew would look to me for pay for this extra -work, and the government would hold me responsible for failure to -fulfill my contract. Marmaduke replied, ‘I will pay you every cent you -have to disburse on account of this trip.’ After Price came on board -Marmaduke left, and we then steamed up to Lexington, where the boat -was turned over to me and I was told to shift for myself. I suppose -they thought I ought to consider myself fortunate to get off at all. -They never paid me anything, although they might easily have done so, -for the first thing done upon landing at Lexington, as I was told, was -to sack all the banks of that town. As to my getting away, that was far -from being a matter of much satisfaction. It was, of course, known in -the Federal lines that I had carried Price up the river. How should I -answer for myself upon my return? I went to Price, told him the dilemma -I was placed in, and asked him to help me. He gave me a very strong -letter, stating that I had acted under duress, and had been forced to -go back against my repeated protest. - -[Sidenote: GENERAL LYON.] - -[Sidenote: LA BARGE RELEASED.] - -“It was with no slight misgivings that I turned the _Emilie_ downstream -and started in the direction of Boonville. I knew that there was -trouble in store for me. When I approached the Federal lines a volley -was fired at the boat, apparently with the definite purpose of hitting -her. I promptly rounded to and the firing ceased. A young Lieutenant by -the name of White came on board with a guard of a dozen men to arrest -me. I had known White in St. Louis as a commission clerk, a young man -of no account, but who, having now some authority, felt disposed, like -all inferior men, to exercise it with a severity in inverse proportion -to his ability. He doubtless thought it a great feather in his cap to -have as prisoner a man who would scarcely have deigned to notice him -in any other situation. He was insolent and arbitrary, and lunging his -sword toward me, would order me to walk faster. I was taken to General -Lyon’s quarters, and when in that officer’s presence, he said to me: -‘You are in a very bad scrape here, sir.’ I took Price’s letter from -my pocket and handed it to him, saying, ‘General, please read that; it -may help to straighten matters out.’ He read the letter, but pretended -not to think much of it. After hemming and hawing over the matter for a -while he said: ‘Do you know anyone here who can tell me who you are?’ -He knew very well who I was, for he had been with Harney in the Sioux -War of 1854–55 and we had met then. I asked him to name the members of -his staff, and I could tell. He finally mentioned Frank Blair. I said -with some irony, ‘I know Frank Blair very well, and I think _he_ knows -me.’ We then walked up to Blair’s quarters. He shook hands cordially -and said, ‘I understand that you are in a bad fix here.’ ‘It looks like -it,’ I replied. ‘Rather be at home than here, I presume,’ he continued -jokingly. ‘Much rather,’ I replied. Lyon showed Blair Price’s letter. -They consulted together for a little while and Lyon then said to -me, ‘You can take possession of your steamboat and go home.’ I found -the boat in Lyon’s fleet where it had been taken, and all of her -provisions confiscated. I was not long in getting up steam, and left -the inhospitable region with the utmost expedition. - -“I did not like Lyon. He was a Yankee, and his disposition seemed to be -to crush everyone who did not think as he did. His language and bearing -toward me were so insolent and exasperating that they left a lasting -rancor in my mind.[46] - -“This affair cost me about five thousand dollars, although I was -partially reimbursed for the stores taken. I did not go up the river -again that season, being too much vexed and disgusted with my late -experience. I sent the boat up under charge of a man of the name of -Nick Wall, who ran her until my government contracts were completed.” - -In the year 1862 Captain La Barge was again impressed temporarily -into the service of guerrillas. On October 16 of that year a body of -Confederates was at Portland, Mo., when the steamboat _Emilie_ came -along. The _Emilie_ stopped to put two men ashore, when a gang of -Rebels concealed behind a woodpile took possession of the boat and -compelled Captain La Barge to set them across the river. He was forced -to unload his deck freight and take on 175 horses and as many men. -Scarcely had they started across when a force of Union cavalry of the -Missouri State Militia arrived, but not in time to arrest the operation. - -These were the only occasions on which Captain La Barge had trouble on -the river on account of the War. Like all other boatmen, he welcomed -the close of this conflict and the tranquillity which it brought to the -river business. - -[Sidenote: UNITED STATES VOLUNTEERS.] - -[Sidenote: A NOTABLE CHARACTER.] - -There was an organization in the military establishment of the United -States, growing out of the progress of the war, of which very little -is known. It was called the United States Volunteers, and consisted -of six regiments and one independent company. It was composed chiefly -of deserters from the Confederate army and prisoners of war who had -taken the oath of allegiance to the United States. These troops served -continuously on the Western plains and in the Northwest, except the -1st and 4th regiments, which served mainly at Norfolk, Va. On the -Missouri River, and perhaps elsewhere, they were commonly spoken of as -“Galvanized Yankees.” In 1864, when Fort Rice was established near the -mouth of the Cannon Ball River, it was garrisoned by the 1st Regiment -of U. S. Volunteers under Colonel Charles A. R. Dimon. This officer was -one of the remarkable characters of Missouri River history, and made a -great impression along the valley, considering his brief service there. -He was the particular bugbear of the traders, and the character which -they have given him can be best expressed by spelling his name with an -“e” in the first syllable. It was said that he ordered his men shot -down on the least provocation, and that many of the regiment were slain -in this way. Numbers of his men are said to have deserted through fear -of his tyrannical and ungovernable temper. One of the traders has left -a record of his own special grievance. - -[Sidenote: DRASTIC MEASURES.] - -In the winter of 1864–65, as already stated, the American Fur Company -sold out to the Northwestern Fur Company, more commonly known as the -firm of Hawley & Hubbell. In the following spring these two gentlemen -went up the river with Mr. C. P. Chouteau on the American Fur Company -boat, the _Yellowstone_, to make the transfer of the posts and -property. There were many passengers of different political creeds on -board, including a number of ex-Confederates. At a point about one -hundred miles above Fort Sully news of Lincoln’s assassination was -received, and the passengers of all shades of opinion expressed their -horror of the event. When the boat arrived at Fort Rice, Colonel Dimon, -according to this authority, came down to the boat with a large guard -of soldiers and placed the whole party under arrest on the charge of -jubilating over the assassination of the President. The traders thought -the whole proceeding was a scheme of Colonel Dimon to advertise his -intense loyalty. He told Chouteau, whose Southern proclivities were -well understood along the river, that he would take him out on the -bank and shoot him like a dog. Chouteau was thoroughly frightened and -trembled like a leaf, for there was no knowing what the impetuous -officer might take a notion to do. - -Hubbell and Hawley determined to go down to Sioux City and report to -General Sully the detention of their boat and the conduct of Colonel -Dimon toward themselves and others. Chouteau gave them a yawl and -wrote a letter to the General. Dimon ordered them not to go without -first reporting to him. Although his authority to give such an order -is doubtful, the men did not dare to disobey for fear of being shot. -When they appeared they were required to submit all their letters to -his inspection. The particular letter he was after was one he believed -Chouteau had written, but Hubbell and Hawley had slipped it into the -breech of a Henry rifle and left it in the boat. Finally they were -permitted to go. They made a rapid trip, partly by river and partly -by land, and immediately reported their grievances to General Sully. -The General promptly gave them a written order to Colonel Dimon to -release their boat. Armed with this they returned to Fort Rice by the -steamer _G. W. Graham_, and in an incredibly short time, considering -the distance and mode of travel, appeared before Colonel Dimon. General -Sully’s order eased matters up somewhat, but still the traders had a -good deal of trouble with the irate post commander. - -[Sidenote: FACT AND FICTION.] - -How much there was in the stories about Colonel Dimon is doubtful, but -probably about an equal mixture of fact and fiction. Certainly the -view of the traders concerning him was not shared by General Sully, if -we judge from the following extracts from his own correspondence with -General Pope. Writing from Sioux City under date of June 10, 1865, he -says: - -[Sidenote: GENERAL SULLY’S VIEWS.] - -“I admire his energy and pluck, the determination with which he -carries out orders; but he is too young--too rash--for his position, -and it would be well if he could be removed. He is making a good -deal of trouble for me, and eventually for you, in his over-zealous -desire to do his duty.... His regiment was raised and organized by -Ben. Butler, and he is too much like him in his actions for an Indian -country, but he is just the sort of a man I would like to have under -me in the field.” Upon his arrival at Fort Rice a month later he thus -commented upon Colonel Dimon: - -“I am much pleased with the appearance of this post and the way -military duty is performed. Colonel Dimon is certainly an excellent -officer. A few more years of experience to curb his impetuosity would -make him one of the best officers in our volunteer service.” - -Pope in the meanwhile authorized Sully to take such action in regard -to Colonel Dimon as he saw fit. A board of officers was convened to -investigate complaints against him, and on the strength of their report -he was relieved July 21, 1865. He resumed command of the post, however, -October 10, 1865, but was mustered out of the service on the 27th of -the following month. He was subsequently brevetted Brigadier General of -Volunteers for gallant and meritorious service during the war. - -[Sidenote: A FAIR PROBABILITY.] - -Colonel Dimon probably showed an excess of severity toward the traders -where the average officer showed far too little. That explains their -chief ground of dislike of him. Add to this the “impetuosity” of -temperament referred to by General Sully, and we have a pretty close -analysis of a situation which caused a great flurry on the Missouri -River in its day. As a matter of fact a great many of the men in -the 1st Volunteers died at Fort Rice, but from disease, and not -by execution under Dimon’s order. A number of men did desert, and -seventeen of them walked all the way to Fort Union. One of these men -made a pen drawing of that post which is probably the most accurate now -in existence. - - - - -CHAPTER XXII. - -GOLD IN MONTANA. - - -[Sidenote: FIRST GOLD IN MONTANA.] - -If the Civil War operated to drive commerce from the lower Missouri -River, other forces were at work at the head waters of that stream -to multiply it many fold. At the time when the attention of the -nation and of the world was centered on the tempest that had burst -over the eastern portion of the Republic, a few hardy miners were -prospecting the country around the upper tributaries of the Missouri -in their ever-restless search for gold. It is a singular fact that -the gold-bearing regions of western Montana, the very first in the -mountain country to be extensively frequented by white men, should -have been the last to give up the secret of their hidden wealth. For -nearly twenty years emigration had been pouring into the West. The -Mormons had settled a few hundred miles to the south. Settlement had -gained a permanent foothold on the Pacific Coast from Mexico to the -British line. The Pike’s Peak gold discoveries were rapidly filling -up Colorado. The reflex wave of emigration was rolling back from the -Pacific Coast across the Sierras and the Cascades into Nevada, eastern -Oregon, and Idaho. But as yet there were no settlers to speak of in the -mountains of Montana, and that country was still practically unknown to -the general public. It is a remarkable fact that a section of country -in that neighborhood, which is now considered the most wonderful in the -world, was the very last of all the national domain to be discovered -and explored. - -[Sidenote: FIRST SALE OF GOLD DUST.] - -The wave of gold discovery in the Northwest moved from the west toward -the east. In 1860–61 it made known the rich deposits in Idaho on the -Salmon and Clearwater rivers. Next came the findings just west of the -Continental Divide, and then the rich discoveries on the head waters of -the Missouri. The existence of placer deposits within the limits of the -present State of Montana had been asserted as early as 1852. A Canadian -half-breed of the name of Beneetse is said to have found pay dirt in -that year on a small tributary of Deer Lodge River, one of the sources -of the Columbia. The stream has since been known as Gold Creek, and the -place of discovery is about fifty miles northwest of the modern city of -Butte. Four years later, 1856, the discovery was confirmed by a party -who were traveling from Great Salt Lake to the Bitter Root Valley. In -the same year a man turned up at Fort Benton with what he asserted -was golddust. He came from the mountains in the Southwest, most likely -from the Deer Lodge Valley. None of the people at the post were gold -experts, and they hesitated about receiving the dust; but Culbertson -finally took it on his own responsibility, giving for it a thousand -dollars’ worth of merchandise. Next year he sent it down the river, and -it was found to be pure gold, worth fifteen hundred dollars. This was -the first exchange of golddust in Montana. - -The next step in the progress of discovery must be credited to James -and Granville Stuart, two of Montana’s most distinguished pioneers. -They had been spending the winter of 1857–58, with a number of other -people, in the valley of the Bighole River, a tributary of the -Missouri, and in the spring of 1858 went over to the Deer Lodge Valley -to investigate the reported findings on Gold Creek. They remained there -for a time and found paying prospects, but were so harassed by the -Blackfeet Indians that they were compelled to leave. They moved to a -safer locality, but here James Stuart met with an accident which came -near proving fatal, and the two brothers left the country and went to -Fort Bridger. Although they had made no great discovery, their report -was considered as confirming those already made of the existence of -gold in the Deer Lodge Valley. - -Before these prospects were any further developed attention was wholly -diverted to the important discoveries in Idaho already referred to. A -great stampede to the Salmon and Clearwater rivers began. Emigrants -poured in both by way of Salt Lake and the Missouri River, and an even -larger inflow came from the Pacific Coast. But before the rush from the -East had gathered full force discoveries in Montana arrested its course -and held it permanently in a new and greater Eldorado. - -[Sidenote: BEGINNING OF MINING IN MONTANA.] - -In the winter of 1861–62 a considerable floating population, among them -the Stuart brothers, remained in the Deer Lodge Valley. The Stuarts -commenced sluicing in a systematic way on Gold Creek, and their work -was the beginning of the gold-mining industry in Montana. Although -nothing particularly remarkable was found, it was enough to attract -attention, and reports soon got abroad that the findings were very -rich. The greater part of the emigration from the East in the year 1862 -was bound for the Idaho mines, but did not get beyond the Deer Lodge -Valley, or other points in western Montana. Among these parties was one -from Colorado, including J. M. Bozeman, for whom the town of Bozeman, -in the beautiful Gallatin Valley, is named. The newcomers made a rich -discovery on a branch of Gold Creek, which was named, from the place -whence the party came, Pike’s Peak Gulch. - -[Sidenote: BANNOCK CITY.] - -Another party from Colorado, bound for the Idaho mines, were deflected -north by the difficulty of getting through the Lemhi Mountains and -by favorable reports from the Deer Lodge Valley. Two of their number -discovered gold on Grasshopper Creek, in the southwestern corner of -the present State of Montana. They carried the news to the main party, -who had gone on to the Deer Lodge, and all returned to investigate -the discovery. The report of the two men was found to be true, and -prospecting in that part of the country was carried on extensively. -This work resulted in the finding of a very rich deposit by a party -under one White, for whom the spot was named White’s Bar. Here the -town of Bannock sprang up, and before the end of the year boasted a -population of five hundred souls. Other rich discoveries were made in -that vicinity, while far to the north the deposits on the Big Prickly -Pear Creek were found. It was now apparent that the whole country on -the head waters of the Missouri abounded in gold, and the work of -prospecting assumed enormous proportions. - -[Sidenote: NORTHERN OVERLAND EXPEDITION.] - -Two other important expeditions came from the East this season, bound -for the Idaho mines, but were stopped in their course, like that -from Colorado, by the new discoveries in Montana. One of these was -the firm of La Barge, Harkness & Co. of St. Louis, and the other was -a body of emigrants who accompanied what was known in its day as -the Northern Overland Expedition from St. Paul. This expedition was -of a semi-official character, under a Federal appropriation of five -thousand dollars, and its ostensible object was to open a wagon road -from St. Paul to Fort Benton. It was under the command of Captain James -L. Fisk, who, a private soldier in the 3d Minnesota Volunteers, was -appointed Captain and Quartermaster and placed in charge. About 125 -emigrants accompanied the expedition. The journey was made in safety, -and was full of interesting happenings. It contributed one of the most -important additions ever made to population of the rising State.[47] - -The spring of 1863 was marked by one of the most noted gold discoveries -ever made. During the previous winter a considerable party, under the -leadership of James Stuart, was organized at Bannock City, to explore -and prospect the country on the sources of the Yellowstone. A portion -of this party, including William Fairweather and Henry Edgar, went by -the way of Deer Lodge Valley to secure horses, having fixed on the -mouth of the Beaverhead River as the place of joining the main party. -Through some unavoidable delay the smaller party did not arrive on -time and Stuart went on without them. The Fairweather party discovered -Stuart’s trail and made forced marches to overtake him. The route -lay up the Gallatin Valley and across the divide to the Yellowstone, -and thence down the valley of that stream. Soon after reaching the -Yellowstone the smaller party were plundered by a band of Crows of -everything except their guns and mining tools. The Indians had the -generosity to give them in exchange for their mounts old broken-down -horses of their own. - -[Sidenote: ALDER GULCH.] - -The party gave up their pursuit of Stuart and started back for Bannock -City. On the 26th of May they stopped for noon on Alder Creek, a -little branch of one of the main tributaries of Jefferson Fork of the -Missouri. Here, as a result of a chance examination of a bar by two -men, Fairweather and Edgar, the famous Alder Gulch discovery was made, -and the richest placer deposit in the history of gold mining came to -the knowledge of the world. The news of this wonderful discovery drew -to the spot a large part of the population of the Territory, and the -town of Virginia City sprang up as if in a night. For several years it -was the principal town in the Territory and became its first capital. -In less than two years it had grown to a city of ten thousand souls. - -[Sidenote: LAST CHANCE GULCH.] - -The next important discovery was made in the fall of 1864, in what -was named at the time Last Chance Gulch. The deposits were very rich, -and the history of Alder Gulch was re-enacted here. The town which -arose on the spot was named Helena, and soon outgrew its sister to the -south. It became, and for many years remained, the principal town of -the Territory. In 1874 it was made the Territorial capital, and after -Montana was admitted to the Union, it was made the permanent capital of -the State. - -Other discoveries followed those here mentioned, many of them rich and -of permanent value, but none equaling those of Alder and Last Chance -gulches. The Territory at once took rank with California and Colorado -as a gold-producing territory, and has held its high place ever since. - -The mighty metamorphosis which, in the space of five years, came over -the country at the headwaters of the Missouri, produced an equally -marvelous change in the commercial business of that stream. The river -gave a sure highway for travel to within one hundred to two hundred -miles of the mines. There was no other route that could compete with -it, for this could carry freight from St. Louis to Fort Benton, in -cargoes of one to five hundred tons, without breaking bulk. The -emigrants themselves went in large numbers by overland routes, but a -great number also by the boats; while nearly all merchandise, including -every necessary of life, and all mining machinery and heavy freight, -came by the river. - -[Sidenote: HIGH WATER MARK.] - -[Sidenote: AN EXTRAORDINARY SCENE.] - -The steamboat trade jumped suddenly to enormous proportions. Prior -to 1864 there had been only six steamboat arrivals at the levee of -Fort Benton. In 1866 and 1867 there were seventy arrivals. The trade -touched high-water mark in 1867, and at this time presented one of -the most extraordinary developments known to the history of commerce. -There were times when thirty or forty steamboats were on the river -between Fort Benton and the mouth of the Yellowstone,[48] where all -the way the river flowed amid scenes of wildness that were in the -strictest sense primeval. To one who could have been set down in the -unbroken wilderness along the banks of the river, where nothing dwelt -except wild animals and wilder men, where the fierce Indian made life -a constant peril, where no civilized habitation greeted the eye, it -would have seemed marvelous and wholly inexplicable to find this river -filled with noble craft, as beautiful as any that ever rode the ocean, -stored with all the necessaries of civilization, and crowded with -passengers as cultured, refined, and well dressed as the cabin list of -an ocean steamer. What could it all mean? Whence came this handful of -civilization and what brought it here? Certainly a most extraordinary -scene, flashed for a moment before the world and then withdrawn forever. - -[Sidenote: PERILOUS VOYAGE.] - -It was not the steamboat alone, however, that made up the romantic -history of Missouri navigation in these exciting times. There were -every year many men from the mines who wanted to return to the States -because they were weary of the country or wished to carry down the -crude wealth which they had secured. The steamboats came up only in the -spring, and if passengers were not ready to go down it was necessary -to seek other conveyance. The usual resource in such cases was the -mackinaw boat. It was a perfectly comfortable and very cheap mode of -traveling, with only one drawback--danger from the Indians, who, at -this time, were intensely hostile all along the river. It was regarded -as a sort of forlorn hope to go down in an open boat, and yet many -tried it every year. Generally they got through all right, with their -precious freight, but there were some terrible tragedies as the penalty -of such reckless daring. - -Some statistics have survived showing the magnitude of the steamboat -business on the Missouri River during these years. In the year 1865, -1000 passengers, 6000 tons of merchandise, and 20 quartz mills went to -Fort Benton. In the year 1867 forty steamboats had passed Sioux City -before June 1 on their way up the river. They carried over 12,000 tons -of freight, most of it for Fort Benton. There was not much downstream -traffic, although all the boats carried golddust. In 1866 one boat, -the _Luella_, had on board $1,250,000 worth of dust. - -[Sidenote: FABULOUS PROFITS.] - -The profits of a successful voyage were enormous. The reported profits -for some of the trips of 1866 were as follows: The _St. John_, $17,000; -the _Tacony_, $16,000; the _W. J. Lewis_, $40,000; the _Peter Balen_, -$65,000. In 1867 Captain La Barge cleared over $40,000 on the trip of -the _Octavia_. - -Freight rates from St. Louis to Fort Benton in 1866 were 12 cents per -pound. Insurance rates were 6 1-2 per cent. in the case of sidewheel -boats and 8 per cent with sternwheel boats. The fare for cabin -passengers was $300. It was not everyone, however, who had a share -in the high prices of those times. The master of the boat received -$200 per month; the clerk $150; the mate and engineer each $125. The -pilot was the only member of the crew who could command what salary he -pleased. So indispensable were his services that as high as $1200 per -month was paid for the best talent. - - - - -CHAPTER XXIII. - -INCIDENTS ON THE RIVER (1862–67). - - -In the summer of 1863 a party of twenty-one men and three women went -down the Missouri in a mackinaw boat from Fort Benton. They reached the -vicinity of the mouth of Apple Creek, near where Bismarck, N. D., now -stands, just as the Sioux Indians, whom General Sibley was driving out -of Minnesota and across the country to the Missouri, arrived on the -banks of that stream. They had just been defeated in three engagements -with General Sibley and were in a very angry temper. They attacked the -boat and fought the little party an entire day, and finally killed -them all and sunk the boat. It was reported that the whites killed -ninety-one Indians in the fight, and that the captain of the boat, -whose name is supposed to have been Baker, “made such a brave defense -that the Indians were struck with admiration for him and wanted to save -him.” The boat had a large amount of golddust on board, and some of -it was recovered by the Mandan and Aricara Indians. An air of mystery -has always hung over this affair, and the details will probably never -be known. For some unexplained reason, certain individuals who were -believed to have had some knowledge of it refused to disclose anything. - -[Sidenote: THE STOLEN MACKINAW.] - -In 1864, while Captain La Barge was at Fort Benton, a number of miners -applied to him to purchase a mackinaw boat. He refused to sell because -he felt sure that it meant death to them to try to run the gantlet -of the Indians in that way. They replied that they were afraid to go -overland on account of road agents. The Captain told them they had less -to fear from road agents than from Indians. The road agents might take -their gold, but the Indians would spare neither treasure nor life. -They were unconvinced, however, and as the Captain would not sell the -boat, they stole it and set out. While passing a high cut bank, about -thirty miles below Fort Berthold, where the channel ran close to the -shore, they were attacked by a war party of Sioux and all killed. -Pierre Garreau, the well-known interpreter, went down from Berthold and -recovered a part of the golddust. La Barge saw some of it among the -Indians the following year. - -In 1865 the steamer _St. Johns_, on her way down the river, was -attacked by the Indians and the mate instantly killed. The boat was -under full headway and out of reach before it was possible to return -fire. - -[Sidenote: SOWING THE WIND.] - -In the same year the _General Grant_ lost three men. They had been sent -ashore at a wooding place to make fast a line, when they were pounced -upon by the Indians and killed. - -On April 23, 1865, a band of Blood Indians near Fort Benton stole -about forty horses belonging to a party of beaver-trappers, of whom -Charley Carson, a nephew of “Kit” Carson, was one. On the night of May -22 these men, having gotten on a drunken spree, attacked a small party -of Blood Indians who happened to be near Fort Benton, but were not -known to be the thieves, killed three, and threw their bodies into the -Missouri. The survivors fled toward the south and met a large band of -warriors near Sun River, on their way north. Exasperated at the outrage -upon their brethren, they were ready for any measure of revenge, and -accident soon threw the desired opportunity in their way. - -[Sidenote: REAPING THE WHIRLWIND.] - -At the mouth of the Marias River lay the steamboat _Cutter_. A town -site had been laid off at this point and named Ophir, and some timber -had been cut in the valley of the Marias for use in the erection of -buildings. The principal proprietor of the nascent village was a -passenger on the _Cutter_, and the business of that boat seems to have -been connected with the building of the town. On the afternoon of May -25, about half-past two o’clock, eight men left the boat with a wagon -and three yoke of oxen to bring down some of the timber, and an hour -later two men went on horseback to join them, for it was felt that -there might be trouble from the Indians, and that the party should be -as strong as possible. These men were all well armed. Their route lay -up the valley of the Marias along its right bank, which they ascended -about three miles. At this point the valley, which was quite broad -below, narrowed to a width of four hundred yards. There was a growth -of timber quite dense close to the river, but open farther back. Just -above this point the bluffs crowded close upon the river, seamed with -ravines and gullies, like all the river bluffs along the Missouri. The -roadway at the foot of these bluffs was very narrow. - -Beyond this defile the valley opened out again, and there was another -belt of timber. In the upper opening the Indians seem to have been -in camp and to have been discovered by the wood-choppers just as the -latter were passing the defile. It was probably the same band which we -have noted as being near Sun River two days before. The wagons were -instantly turned about, although in a most disadvantageous situation. -The Indians saw the whites at about the same time. They were lying in -wait for another party with a mule train, and were intending, after -attacking it, to try to take the steamboat. As soon as they saw the -wood-choppers they at once attacked them and killed every man and -captured all the property. The bodies of the slain were found scattered -along the river, fifty to one hundred yards apart, except one, that of -N. W. Burroughs, which was found half a mile further downstream, where -he was overtaken on his flight to the boat. Of the Indians the head -chief and one other were killed and a third dangerously wounded. The -Indians, to the number of about two hundred, immediately moved toward -the British line. - -[Sidenote: ENTIRE PARTY SLAIN.] - -The attack occurred about four o’clock and the firing was distinctly -heard on the boat. A party prepared to go out and investigate when a -hunter came riding in from the bluffs, saying that the whites were -being assailed by a large party of Indians. Three scouts set out -immediately, and after proceeding about two miles and a half found the -body of Mr. Burroughs. It being certain that all the rest had been -killed, and not knowing where the Indians were, it was not thought best -to go farther at the time. Next morning a party went out with wagons -and brought in the bodies, all of which were found. They were buried -in one grave, side by side, with a head board giving the names and -date.[49] - -[Sidenote: YANKEE JACK AGAIN.] - -Captain La Barge arrived at the mouth of the Marias on the _Effie -Deans_ soon after this affair and saw the fresh graves. He remembered -the circumstance particularly, because, among the guard, which had been -stationed there after the massacre, was the identical “Yankee Jack” who -had whipped the two Irishmen on the _Robert Campbell_ in 1863. - -About September, 1865, eight men left Fort Benton in a skiff for the -States. They were attacked by some forty Indians near the mouth of Milk -River and five of their number were killed. The fight lasted over five -hours. One of the men who was killed, T. A. Kent by name, is said to -have actually killed thirteen Indians before he himself fell. - -In the year 1866 there were several noted open-boat voyages down the -river. One of these was made by a party of ten miners, who purchased -a mackinaw at Fort Benton in which to transport themselves and their -golddust. When in camp on an island about sixty miles above Fort -Randall, one of the men, of the name of Thompson, got up in the night, -took an ax, killed one companion and wounded another. He was apparently -bent on the destruction of the entire party. The rest of the men, -suddenly awakened by the cries of their comrades, and believing that -they were attacked by Indians, rushed to the boat with the wounded man -and made off, leaving the murderer and his victim alone on the island. -Whether robbery was the motive of the deed, or whether it was caused by -insanity, was never known. - -More fortunate was another mackinaw party that went down the same -season. It consisted of seventeen men, and made the trip from Fort -Benton to Sioux City in twenty-two days. They brought down over two -hundred thousand dollars in golddust. - -The third party of this season consisted of one man in a yawl and about -twenty others in a mackinaw. They made the entire trip without loss, -although they were attacked, some 225 miles below Benton, by about five -hundred Blackfeet. The river was in flood stage, and thanks to its -great width and swift current the boats were able to keep out of range -of the Indians and to pass quickly beyond their reach. - -[Sidenote: HUBBELL’S MACKINAW.] - -The most important mackinaw trip ever made down the river was in 1866 -under the leadership of J. B. Hubbell of the firm of Hawley & Hubbell. -Hubbell had advertised that his steamboat would leave Fort Benton on -her second trip about September 15, promising, if she did not get to -Fort Benton, to take the passengers down in a mackinaw until they met -her. As late as October 20 she had not appeared, and accordingly about -thirty passengers started down in a mackinaw. The boat was a very -elaborate one, built for this particular trip. It was eighty feet long, -twelve feet beam, housed in on both sides by bulletproof walls for a -distance of fifty feet, with sleeping bunks along the sides, and open -spaces at bow and stern for managing the boat. Two masts rigged with -square sails were provided. - -[Sidenote: A SUCCESSFUL VOYAGE.] - -The boat was run until after dark every night and was started before -daylight in the morning. Wherever possible she was tied to a snag out -in the stream for the night so as to make it impossible for the Indians -to attack by surprise. When the party arrived at Fort Union they -learned that the steamer had been up, but had gone back. After some -deliberation it was decided to undertake the rest of the journey and -trust to luck not to be caught by the ice. Everyone took a hand at the -oars and rapid progress was made. Game was plentiful and the boat was -full of golddust, and in spite of the fear of ice and Indians the party -were in the best of spirits. They arrived at Sioux City November 22, -with the river running full of ice. Two days later and they would have -been frozen in. Mr. Hubbell received $175 per passenger.[50] - -[Sidenote: THE LOST NEGRO BOYS.] - -[Sidenote: INCREDIBLE ENDURANCE.] - -A singular incident happened in the summer of 1867, growing out of -the wreck of one of the river boats. In July of that year the steamer -_Trover_ was wrecked at a point 240 miles below Fort Benton. The -_Ida Stockdale_ happened along about the time, took her freight and -passengers to Benton, and on the way back took off her machinery -and carried it to St. Louis. When she left the wreck there were two -colored boys asleep in the hold, and the boat went off without knowing -they were there. On waking up and finding themselves alone, without a -thing to eat or any means of defense, and surrounded by a wilderness -wholly unknown to them, they were completely paralyzed with fright; -but recovering their presence of mind they saw that they must find -some relief immediately or they would die of starvation. They left the -wreck and started down the river. In crossing a small tributary of -the Missouri one of the boys was drowned. The other kept on night and -day, most of the time back from the river, to avoid the bends and the -swamps and underbrush. He had nothing to eat except a little bark and -some flower blossoms and did not stop a moment for sleep. His keeping -back from the river caused him to miss the boats and trading posts. -Finally, almost famished and exhausted, he beat his way through a -dense willow growth to the bank of the river in the hope that some boat -would come along before he should die. Shortly afterward a steamer hove -in sight--the _Sunset_--on her way up the river. She was a veritable -sun_rise_ to the poor boy, who began waving an old white hat, almost -the only article of clothing he had left. The people on the boat saw -the signal and sent the yawl out and brought the boy in. His face -was almost raw from mosquito bites, and he was so weak that he could -scarcely stand. He was found at a point twenty-five miles below Fort -Rice, or 642 miles, by river channel, below where the _Trover_ was -wrecked. He traveled this distance in nine days. With all the cut-offs -duly allowed for, he must have averaged seventy miles a day during -this time, and all the while without food. Were it not that the facts -seem well established, such an example of physical endurance would be -incredible.[51] The name of this little hero was Frederick Good and his -home was in St. Louis. - - - - -CHAPTER XXIV. - -LA BARGE AGAIN IN OPPOSITION. - - -With a view to entering, upon a large scale, into the newly developing -business at the head waters of the Missouri, the firm of La Barge, -Harkness & Co. was formed in St. Louis in the winter of 1861–62. The -members were Joseph La Barge, Eugene Jaccard, James Harkness, John -B. La Barge, and Charles E. Galpin. Each partner put in ten thousand -dollars. Two steamboats were purchased--Captain La Barge’s boat, the -_Emilie_, and a light-draft boat, the _Shreveport_. In the division of -duties and responsibilities among the partners Jaccard was to attend to -the affairs of the firm in St. Louis, the La Barges were to manage the -steamboat business, Galpin was to look after the trade along the river, -and Harkness was to go to the mines with an outfit of merchandise, and -was to remain there and develop a business with those rapidly growing -communities. - -[Sidenote: VOYAGE OF 1862.] - -When it was known that Captain La Barge was to make a spring trip to -Benton, he was overwhelmed with applications, not merely from those who -wanted to go to the mines, but from business men and capitalists who -wished to join the enterprise. He could easily have organized a capital -of a million dollars, but he adhered to his first plan and pushed his -preparations with vigor. The _Shreveport_ was first gotten ready to -sail and left port April 30, 1862. Captain John La Barge was master. -The _Emilie_ followed on the 14th of May. - -As a performance in steamboating the voyage of the _Emilie_ was a great -success. She was loaded to the guards with some 350 tons of freight and -160 passengers. Captain La Barge himself had never been more than a -hundred miles above Fort Union; yet he made the whole trip, 2300 miles, -in a little less than thirty-two days, and would have finished it -sooner but for the fact that he had to help the _Shreveport_ the last -hundred miles of the distance. The boats arrived at Fort Benton at noon -June 17, and at 6 A. M., June 19, the _Emilie_ started down the river, -reaching St. Louis on the 3d of July. Her speed up averaged 71 miles -per day; down, 152 miles. - -[Sidenote: A DESPERATE GAME.] - -An exciting incident of the trip was the passing of the American Fur -Company’s boat, the _Spread Eagle_. The new opposition of La Barge, -Harkness & Co. was a formidable one, and the Company bestirred itself -with unusual vigor to be first on the ground with its annual outfit. -The _Spread Eagle_ left St. Louis with three days the start, but was -overtaken by the _Emilie_ near Fort Berthold. For the next two days -the boats were near each other most of the time. The day after leaving -Berthold the _Emilie_ passed her rival for good. When the officers of -the _Spread Eagle_ saw that they were beaten they played a desperate -game, which showed to what lengths the Company’s servants would go when -it was a matter of rivalry in trade. - -[Sidenote: THE “SPREAD EAGLE” RACE.] - -At the point where the race took place there was a towhead (a newly -formed island) which at the stage of the river then prevailing was -covered with water. The main channel, and at ordinary stages the only -channel, passed on the right-hand side going up, and this channel the -_Spread Eagle_ took. But the water was now high enough to give a good -channel on the other side of the towhead. As the distance by this -channel was somewhat shorter, and as the _Emilie_ was the faster boat -anyway, it was a good chance to get well ahead and out of the way. La -Barge promptly seized the opportunity. The pilot of the _Spread Eagle_ -with quick eye realized that he had been out-maneuvered, and seeing no -other way to prevent the _Emilie’s_ passage, determined upon wrecking -her. He accordingly left the main channel and made for the chute that -the _Emilie_ was entering. He steamed alongside of her for a moment, -but found that he was losing ground.[52] The boats were scarcely fifty -feet apart, when the pilot of the _Spread Eagle_, seeing that he could -not make it, deliberately put his rudder to port, and plunged the bow -of the boat into the _Emilie_ immediately opposite her boilers. Several -of the guards were broken and the danger of wreck was imminent. La -Barge was in the pilot-house at the time and was not looking for such a -move, for he did not believe that even the American Fur Company would -play so desperate a game when human life was at stake. He instantly -called out to Bailey, the pilot of the _Spread Eagle_, to stop his -engines and drop his boat back or he would put a bullet through him. -The passengers likewise became thoroughly aroused, and some of them got -their arms and threatened to use them if the _Spread Eagle_ did not -withdraw. These threats were effective; the _Spread Eagle_ fell to the -rear and was seen no more on the voyage. She was four days behind at -Benton, and a week on the whole trip. She lost four men on one of the -rapids by the grossest carelessness. A crew had gone to the head of the -rapids to plant a deadman,[53] and having finished this work dropped -down to the boat in their yawl. Instead of passing alongside of the -steamer they made directly for the bow, and on reaching the boat the -swift current instantly rolled the yawl under and the crew were drowned. - -[Sidenote: LA BARGE’S GENEROSITY.] - -When the _Spread Eagle_ returned to St. Louis charges were preferred -against Bailey for having attempted to wreck the _Emilie_. He was -brought to trial before the steamboat inspector and his license was -canceled. It was a hard blow to him, for steamboating was his trade, -and he had a large family to support. About a month afterward he went -to La Barge saying that he had been trying to get the inspector to -reinstate him, but that he would not do it except upon La Barge’s -recommendation. Bailey admitted his guilt, but said that he had acted -at the instigation of the Company’s agents, and he begged La Barge to -reinstate him for the sake of his wife and children. The Captain was -never good at resisting appeals of this sort, and he accordingly went -to the inspector and got Bailey reinstated. - -[Sidenote: CHOUTEAU IN DOUBT.] - -When the _Emilie_ was reported as back from her trip, the old gentleman -Chouteau sent his carriage to bring La Barge to the office. - -“At what point did you turn back?” he asked when La Barge arrived, for -the phenomenally quick trip indicated that the _Emilie_ did not reach -Fort Benton. - -“Fort Benton, sir,” replied La Barge. - -“Tut, tut! I know you could not have done that. Tell me candidly where -you left your trip.” - -“Fort Benton, sir.” - -“We’ll see about it. I don’t believe it, don’t believe it.” - -“Sorry you doubt my word, but it is nevertheless true.” - -“Where did you leave the _Spread Eagle_?” - -“’Way below Benton; found her cordelling.” - -“Well, if you got to Fort Benton you made a good trip; but I don’t -believe it.” - -As soon as Captain La Barge reached St. Louis he loaded his boat with -merchandise for the new posts along the river, intending to go back -until he should meet the _Shreveport_, a much lighter-draft vessel, and -transfer the cargo to her for the rest of the trip. The _Shreveport_ -left Fort Benton July 6, and met the _Emilie_ at Sioux City. The -transfer of cargo and passengers was made, and the _Emilie_ returned to -St. Louis. The _Shreveport_ went as high as the mouth of Milk River, -the farthest of the new posts except that near Fort Benton. After the -_Emilie’s_ return from her second voyage she went to work for the -government, carrying stores from St. Louis to Memphis, and remained in -this service all winter. - -The river portion of the season’s operations of the new firm had been a -complete success. Three large cargoes had been sent up the river, two -to Fort Benton and one to the lower posts. Of these posts there were -four--La Framboise, near old Fort Pierre; another near Fort Berthold; -Fort Stuart, near the mouth of Poplar River, and Fort Galpin, near the -mouth of Milk River. It remains to notice what was done at Fort Benton -and in the projected expedition to the mines. - -[Sidenote: FORT LA BARGE.] - -The operations at Fort Benton and beyond were placed in the hands of -Mr. Harkness. The first step was to build a post at Fort Benton, where -it was intended to locate the principal establishment of the firm. The -site chosen was near the spot where the Grand Union Hotel later stood. -The work was begun June 28, Mrs. La Barge driving the first stake. The -inclosure was made three hundred feet long by two hundred feet wide, -and the post was named Fort La Barge. - -[Sidenote: HARKNESS VISITS THE MINES.] - -Before the _Shreveport_ set out to return to St. Louis, a considerable -party made an excursion to the Great Falls of the Missouri. Among them -were Father De Smet, Eugene Jaccard, member of the firm; Giles Filley -of St. Louis, and his son, Frank; Mrs. John La Barge, Miss Harkness, -W. G. Harkness, Tom La Barge, and Mrs. Culbertson, the Indian wife of -the noted trader. Mrs. La Barge and Miss Harkness are supposed to be -the first white women to have seen the Great Falls of the Missouri. -Four days after their return the _Shreveport_ left for St. Louis, -taking with them all who had come up only for the trip. - -[Sidenote: LA BARGE CITY.] - -The _Shreveport_ having gone, and affairs at Fort La Barge being -well under way, Harkness set out July 9 with an ox train laden with -assorted merchandise for the mines in the Deer Lodge Valley. When the -boat left St. Louis it was expected to go to the Salmon River mines, -but the recent discoveries in Montana gave a better prospect nearer -home. In fact the demand for goods, even at Fort Benton, was brisk, -and the firm had carried on a thriving trade ever since the arrival of -the boats. Harkness followed the usual trail up the Missouri River and -Little Prickly Pear Creek, through the broad valley on the border of -which the city of Helena now stands, and thence to the valley of the -Deer Lodge. Nothing of unusual note transpired on the trip. Harkness -did not like the experience, except the trout fishing. His journal is -full of complaints at the hardship he was compelled to undergo, and -he plaintively asks if he “will ever live to reap the benefit.” He -generally “nooned at 11 A. M.” in order to “catch trout for dinner.” -He reached the Deer Lodge Valley July 23, near the point where the -town of that name now stands.[54] Here he found a fellow passenger on -the _Emilie_, Nicholas Wall of St. Louis, who had reached the mines -some days before, and who was destined to figure prominently in the -future affairs of La Barge, Harkness & Co. - -After remaining in this section and prospecting around for eleven days, -Harkness grew disgusted at the prospect, placed such of his goods as -he did not sell in the hands of Nick Wall to be sold on commission, -and set out for the Missouri “glad to be on the road home.” On the -Sun River he met the Northern Overland Expedition from St. Paul. He -visited the Great Falls on his way down, and arrived at Fort La Barge -August 18. Harkness was now “tired and out of spirits,” and “adjusted -his expense accounts and turned over everything to the store.” He had -evidently had enough of this kind of life, and forthwith ordered “a -boat built to go down the river.” The boat was launched August 26 and -was christened the _Maggie_. Harkness lost no time in getting away, -and left Fort La Barge at 4 A. M. on the 28th. No incidents occurred -on this trip which are of much interest. The party reached Omaha -September 30, where Harkness “sold the _Maggie_ for five dollars,” and -took passage on the _Robert Campbell_ to St. Joseph. From that point he -went by rail and the Mississippi River to St. Louis, where he arrived -October 6. - -[Sidenote: INCOMPETENT HANDS.] - -The foregoing details, taken entirely from the diary of Harkness, show -in what unfit hands the important business of the company in the upper -country had been intrusted. From his arrival at Fort Benton until his -departure was only two months and a half, including a trip of several -hundred miles to the Montana mining regions. Only eleven days did he -spend in establishing his trade in that section, the most important -point of all, and then practically gave his goods away to Nick Wall, -for the company never received a cent for anything left with that -gentleman. Yet Harkness was the partner who was to remain in the upper -country two years. “He was back in St. Louis almost as soon as I was,” -said La Barge, with just indignation, in commenting on the affair. - -[Sidenote: FIRST SEASON’S OPERATIONS.] - -Such were the first season’s operations of the firm of La Barge, -Harkness & Co. In most respects the firm had made a brilliant -beginning. The prospects in the river portion of the business were all -that could be asked. Only Harkness’ weak management of his part of the -enterprise can be criticised. He was not the man for the place, and -lacked the courage and hardihood for that kind of work, and he threw -away an opportunity from which a more enterprising man would have made -a fortune. - - - - -CHAPTER XXV. - -VOYAGE OF 1863--THE TOBACCO GARDEN MASSACRE. - - -[Sidenote: DISASTROUS DELAY.] - -Deferring for the present our narrative of the fortunes of La Barge, -Harkness & Co., we shall recount one of those mournful tragedies and -one of those instances of official corruption which marked the later -history of the Indian tribes along the Missouri River. When Captain -La Barge, in the spring of 1863, undertook to leave the government -service on the Mississippi, to get ready for his trip to Fort Benton, -he was told by the Quartermaster in St. Louis that he could not have -the boat, for the government had further use for it. Not having time to -go to Washington to see about it, he sold the boat for twenty thousand -dollars to the Hannibal and St. Joseph Railroad, and left to that -company the task of securing its release. He then chartered the _Robert -Campbell_, and, with the _Shreveport_, prepared for a voyage to Fort -Benton. It proved to be a notable trip. The cargo and passenger lists -of the _Shreveport_ were made up almost exclusively for the mines and -for the posts of La Barge, Harkness & Co. The _Campbell_ was loaded -with annuities for the Sioux, Crows, Blackfeet, and Assiniboines, -together with some other freight, making a cargo of nearly five hundred -tons. The _Shreveport_ got away from port in the latter part of April, -but the _Campbell_ was subjected to annoying and even disastrous delay -by the failure of the annuities to arrive on time. Captain La Barge, -who had the contract to transport the annuities, had been ordered to -have his boat in readiness on the 1st of April. The goods did not -arrive, and he was held in St. Louis for forty-two days before he could -start on the long journey. It was considered of the highest importance -to start as soon as the ice disappeared in order that the trip, both -coming and going, could be made during high water. As the year 1863 -happened to be a low-water year, the delay which Captain La Barge -suffered made it impossible to complete the voyage. Even on the 12th of -May, the day of starting, only a portion of the goods had arrived, and -the rest were taken on at St. Joseph, whither they were sent by rail. - -[Illustration: LA BARGE ROCK] - -The boat proceeded on her way, determined to accomplish the trip if it -were possible to do so. The water was unusually low for that time of -year, and it took nearly a month to get to Sioux City, which ought to -have been reached easily in a third of the time. Owing to the great -danger from guerrillas below Kansas City, a force of thirty soldiers -accompanied the boat as far as St. Joseph, Mo. This precaution was -very timely. Every boat that was met in the lower river reported -attacks with occasional loss of life. Owing to the presence of soldiers -on the _Robert Campbell_, and Captain La Barge’s precaution to anchor -midstream at night instead of lying at the bank, he got through all -right. At Miami and at Cogswell’s Landing parties tried to board the -boat, but without success. - -[Sidenote: INDIANS HOSTILE.] - -Among the passengers on the _Campbell_ were two Indian agents, Henry -W. Reed and Samuel M. Latta, the former for the Blackfeet tribes and -the latter for the Sioux, Crows, Mandans, and other tribes in that -region. Henry A. Boller, whose work, “Among the Indians,” achieved some -notoriety in its time, was likewise on board, as were also Alexander -Culbertson and his Blackfoot wife. In all there were some thirty -passengers, and this number was considerably increased at the various -landings as far up as Sioux City. The value of the annuity goods on -board was upwards of seventy thousand dollars. - -[Sidenote: CHEATING THE INDIANS.] - -The Indians all along the Missouri above the Niobrara were at this time -intensely hostile, but knowing that their annuity goods were about -to arrive, they held aloof from any desperate measures until these -were received. It would have been a wise thing to have sent a company -of troops all the way on this important trip, but not a soldier was -to be had. The boat reached Fort Pierre June 20, and here several of -the Sioux bands were assembled to receive their annuities. It appears -that the Two Kettles band were in a great state of exasperation over -the recent killing of eight of their number by the soldiers near Fort -Randall. After a considerable amount of parleying the distribution -of the annuities commenced, but for some reason, which Captain La -Barge never heard explained, only a portion (about two-thirds, as he -estimated it) of the goods to which the Indians were entitled were put -off. The Indians could not be deceived in the matter and were very -angry. They went to the Captain and appealed to him to see justice -done them. They had the fullest confidence in him, for they had known -him for years, and he had always treated them honestly. He was now -helpless, however, and could only tell them that he was under the -orders of the agent and had no control whatever over the goods. They -then assured him that they should follow the boat and cause it all the -trouble they could, but they would not harm him if they could avoid it. - -[Sidenote: REVENGEFUL SPIRIT OF THE INDIANS.] - -They were as good as their word. All the way from Pierre to Union, six -hundred miles, these Indians followed the boat. It is a remarkable -fact, when we stop to think of it--this pursuit of a steamboat on -its laborious voyage through the Western prairies, seeking at every -turn to destroy it and kill its passengers and crew. There was some -deep and far-reaching cause that could create and support so bitter -and vindictive a spirit as this. The warning of the Indians to Captain -La Barge was taken by him at its full value. The boat was thoroughly -barricaded with the cargo by piling it so as to protect the vulnerable -points, and all the firearms on board were made ready for use. These -precautions proved to be of the highest importance. At every woodpile -Indians appeared and attacked the crew. At every favorable point shots -were fired into the boat. On one occasion a bullet passed through the -pilot-house, barely missing the pilot, Atkins, who was at the wheel. We -shall relate some incidents that occurred on the way to Union, one more -comical than serious, but one tragic and deplorable as any in frontier -history. - -[Sidenote: THE UPRIGHT HAT.] - -The _Shreveport_ had gone up the river in advance of the _Robert -Campbell_, but being unable, on account of low water, to get beyond -Snake Point, or Cow Island, 130 miles below Fort Benton, had discharged -her cargo on the bank and had returned down the river. She met the -_Robert Campbell_ at Apple Creek, thirteen miles below Bismarck, and -was there stopped by Captain La Barge. A part of the cargo of the -larger boat was transferred to the _Shreveport_, and the two then -proceeded up the river, the _Shreveport_ being sometimes ahead and -sometimes in rear. The hunter on the _Shreveport_ was Louis Dauphin, -already referred to as one of the bravest men and most noted characters -of the upper country. He now acted as hunter for both boats. It was -his custom to go along ahead of the boat, beating up the country and -securing whatever game was worth stopping the boat for. Whatever he -killed, as an elk or deer, he would hang on a pole or tree near the -bank where it could be seen from the boat, and would then continue his -hunt. One day about noon Captain La Barge’s eye, which was constantly -studying the river ahead, fell upon a curious object floating -downstream. It looked like a hat, but, strange to say, was standing -upright on the water, with no tendency to sink at all. It caused the -Captain no little perplexity. In the windy country of the Missouri it -was no uncommon thing for hats to be blown into the river, but he had -never before seen one ride like that. He followed it with his glass -until it was near the boat, when up it rose, securely perched on the -head of a swimmer who proved to be no other than the hunter Dauphin. -“I had to take to the water this time,” he said as he climbed on -board. “They were too many for me. You are going to have trouble at -the Tobacco Garden. The Indians are gathered there to the number of -at least fifteen hundred and intend to capture the boat.” The general -amusement which Dauphin’s subaqueous adventure had caused on the boat -was quickly dispelled by the sad fulfillment of the predictions which -he brought back. - -[Sidenote: A DISASTROUS SURPRISE.] - -Just above the mouth of Rising Water Creek the boats stopped to wood, -and were hailed by some Grosventres (of the Missouri, Minnetarees) -who offered some meat if a boat were sent out for it. These Indians, -a friendly tribe, had been out hunting for two weeks and were just -returning well laden with meat. The women had made some bullboats and -were about to ferry it over the river. The men had meanwhile turned -most of their horses out to graze, keeping only one each fastened by -lariats. Some meat was exchanged for coffee and other articles and the -_Robert Campbell_ resumed her voyage. Just as she was starting one of -the squaws uttered a piercing scream, and the people on the boat saw a -Sioux Indian riding at full speed for the Grosventre herd, brandishing -a red cloth, and followed by a large body of his tribe. The Grosventre -squaws took to their boats and the men to the tied horses. The -_Campbell_ drew in to the bank and took men and horses on board and set -them across the river. The poor Grosventres lost nearly their entire -herd and all the fruits of their hunt. - -[Sidenote: THE TOBACCO GARDEN.] - -The name “Tobacco Garden” on the Missouri River designated the bottoms -at the outlet of Tobacco Creek, on the left or north bank of the river, -eighty-eight miles below the mouth of the Yellowstone. The origin of -the name is uncertain, but the place has long been well known to river -men. Near this point, but on the opposite shore, was a bottom, covered -with large trees, but open and free of underbrush. The south bank of -the river was a “caving bank,” or one that was being undermined by the -river. At this time there was a very narrow beach at the water’s edge, -above which the bank rose perpendicularly to a height of six or eight -feet. The channel was close to the shore and a boat in passing had to -come within thirty or forty yards of the bank. Even if anchored to the -sandbar immediately opposite, it could not get more than sixty yards -away. It was an ideal place to “hold up” a boat, and the Indians were -shrewd enough to understand this perfectly. - -[Sidenote: LATTA NOT AFRAID.] - -It was toward noon of the 7th of July that the two boats hove in sight -of the Tobacco Garden, and there, true to Dauphin’s prediction, they -beheld on the south shore a large body of Indians assembled with the -evident purpose of stopping them. There was no use in trying to run a -gantlet like that, and accordingly the boats made fast to the opposite -sandbar, the _Shreveport_ about one hundred yards below the _Robert -Campbell_. A parley ensued with the Indians, who were so near that -it was perfectly practicable to talk back and forth. La Barge asked -them what they wanted. They said they wanted the balance of their -annuities; they wanted no trouble, but simply their just dues. The -agent refused them the goods, but “requested the Captain to send his -yawl and bring aboard some of the chiefs and head men that we could -have a talk and ... make them a present of sugar, coffee, tobacco, -etc., and by this means quiet them.” The Indians likewise wanted the -yawl to be sent out, but wanted the agent to go with it. They would -then send their principal chiefs back with him to the boat, where -everything could be talked over. They were very shrewd, and the agent -almost fell into the trap.[55] The Captain told him that he could not -possibly think of ordering the yawl out, considering the disposition -of the Indians and their evident purpose of mischief. Latta replied: -“Why, I’ll go; I’m not afraid.” “All right,” answered the Captain, “if -you can get volunteers; I will not order a crew out.” They then went -to the mate, Miller by name, and a crew was made up to take Latta to -the shore. When the yawl was ready the Captain sent word to the agent, -who had disappeared upstairs. The latter sent back a reply that he was -suddenly taken ill and could not possibly go, but to send the men and -bring the chiefs on board.[56] - -[Sidenote: A BRAVE CREW.] - -The crew of the _Robert Campbell_ were not lacking in physical courage, -and the necessary force to man the yawl was easily made up. It was a -little after noon when the yawl left the boat. There is no truth in the -statements of Boller and Larpenteur that the men were forced to go and -clung to the side of the steamer until the mate threatened to cut off -their fingers if they did not let go. It was easy enough for them to -get out of going if they chose to. The crew of the yawl consisted of -seven men. The steersman, a gallant fellow of the name of Andy Stinger, -sat in the stern. Two men of the names of O’Mally and Chris Sharky -sat in the bow. There were four oarsmen, one of them a young man of -the name of Martin, and the other, one of the Irishmen who had been -whipped by “Yankee Jack,” as related elsewhere. The yawl put off, and -as the distance was very short, it quickly reached the opposite shore. -It struck the beach head on and then swung around under the force of -the current, so that it lay alongside of the bank.[57] - -[Sidenote: ANDY STINGER’S PRESENCE OF MIND.] - -A chief and three Indians were under the cut bank on the beach when the -yawl arrived. One of the Indians stood exactly opposite Stinger, with a -gun in his hand covered with a leather case. The other two Indians were -armed with spears. The chief was a fierce-looking man, and it seemed -as if his eye would pierce one through and through. Stinger motioned -him to get into the yawl. The men meanwhile were sitting quietly with -their oars across their laps. The chief gave some quick directions and -in an instant the two Indians with spears jumped into the boat and the -one with the gun stripped the leather case off. Stinger knew what this -meant, and with great presence of mind instantly threw himself into the -water on the river side of the boat, where it was fortunately four or -five feet deep. Slipping up along the boat he seized it by the gunwale -amidships and dragged it from the bank. The movement, however, quick as -it was, was not quick enough. The two young bucks who had leaped into -the boat thrust their spears into the bodies of two of the oarsmen, -killing them instantly. A third was killed by the Indian with the gun, -who had missed his chance at Stinger, and a fourth was severely wounded -by an arrow from the bank. The two men in the bow instantly threw -themselves into the bottom of the yawl. - -[Sidenote: BOATS RETURN FIRE.] - -The Indians had no time to carry the attack further. The crews of both -the steamboats were watching with breathless anxiety the progress -of events. When they saw Stinger jump into the water they thought -him killed. Someone exclaimed, “There goes Andy,” and instantly -both boats responded with their entire armament. This included two -howitzers on the hurricane deck of the _Robert Campbell_ and one on the -_Shreveport_, together with weapons of various sorts belonging to the -passengers and crew. One rattle-brained Irishman was so upset that he -brandished his revolver in the air, firing off into space without the -slightest regard as to the whereabouts of the enemy. The fire, on the -whole, was very effective. Numbers of the Indians were seen to fall, -and Captain La Barge afterward learned through Pierre Garreau, the -interpreter at Fort Berthold, that there were eighteen men and twenty -horses killed and many wounded. The Indians soon withdrew, and in about -an hour some were seen trying to get water for their wounded near a -pile of driftwood half a mile below. It was an intensely sultry day. -The howitzers were turned on them and they disappeared. - -[Sidenote: ANDY ANGRY.] - -Returning to the yawl, we find that Andy Stinger, protected behind the -gunwale, was steadily pulling the boat into the stream and swimming -toward the sandbar as the current drifted him down. When about halfway -across he called to the men to get up, while he himself climbed into -the yawl, which was then rowed to the bank. The people on the two -boats were so absorbed with the battle that no one thought of going to -the assistance of the yawl crew. The wounded man and the two who were -unharmed got out and walked up the beach. Stinger was thus left alone -to drag the yawl and its mournful cargo up alongside the boat. This -apparent neglect fired him to a desperate pitch, and he let go some -powerful language to the mate and others of the crew. Captain La Barge -presently came aft and looked into the yawl. He said not a word, but -turned away shaking his head in a manner that showed plainly enough -what was passing in his mind. - -[Sidenote: HERO OF THE TOBACCO GARDEN.] - -Such was the celebrated “affair at the Tobacco Garden.” After the -return to St. Louis Captain La Barge was talking to a friend about -it when Andy Stinger happened to pass by. He said, loud enough for -Andy to hear: “There goes the hero of the Tobacco Garden.” The brave -steersman treasured up these words as his proudest title during the -rest of his life. Long years passed away before Captain La Barge heard -from him again. He did not even know whether his old boatman was still -alive when, in the fall of 1896, thirty-three years after the massacre, -he received a most cordial and affectionate letter from him,[58] and -two years later had the pleasure of meeting him again. - -[Sidenote: LA BARGE’S CRITICISM.] - -Commenting upon the affair at the Tobacco Garden, Captain La Barge said: - -“This event was one which could not have happened under ordinary -circumstances. Master of both boat and cargo, I should never have -permitted the yawl to go ashore. I was under orders of the agent in -everything except the mere handling of the boat, and was bound to give -him such opportunities to meet the Indians as he desired. I had gone to -the extreme of my freedom of action when I refused to order a crew to -go ashore for him, but could not well decline to let men volunteer. It -was a lamentable affair, and one of the many crimes which must ever lie -at the door of the Department of Indian Affairs in Washington. Here was -an agent who gave every evidence of being corrupt and in collusion with -the Fur Company, for he retained about a third of the annuities due the -Indians and stored them in the Company’s warehouse, from which they -never reached the Indians except in exchange for robes, as in the case -of private merchandise. Moreover, the agent was utterly ignorant of -Indian character, full of the self-assurance which goes with ignorance, -and not knowing himself what to do became the passive tool of the -crafty and trained agents of the company.”[59] - -[Sidenote: CHARLES LARPENTEUR.] - -About 3 P. M. the boats resumed their voyage, as the Indians had -entirely disappeared. On the following morning the burial of the -victims took place at a point about forty-seven miles above the Tobacco -Garden. They were buried on an eminence on the south side of the river -nearly opposite the mouth of Little Muddy Creek, and a cedar cross was -planted at the head of their grave. The boat then pursued her way up -the river and arrived at the mouth of the Yellowstone on the 8th of -July. Here the Indians were seen again, and a few shots were fired by -them at the boats, but no injury was done. - -[Sidenote: HEAVY RESPONSIBILITY.] - -The herculean labors of Captain La Barge on this memorable voyage won -the plaudits of all who observed them. He seemed to be everywhere -present, and the only man on whom reliance could be placed. “We got -to the mouth of the Yellowstone,” says agent Reed, “after the most -untiring efforts, especially on the part of Captain La Barge, who -seemed to know the only channel to be found in the Missouri.” The -Captain was constantly exposed to danger, and personally conducted all -soundings of the river, going far from the boat with a few men in the -yawl. The responsibility resting upon him was very great. The lives -of the passengers, the safety of his valuable cargo, the danger from -the Indians if their expected goods should be lost, and his own large -pecuniary stake in the voyage, all rested upon his own shoulders. - - - - -CHAPTER XXVI. - -THE BLACKFOOT ANNUITIES. - - -[Sidenote: A BAD PREDICAMENT.] - -[Sidenote: OFFICIAL REPORTS.] - -At the mouth of the Yellowstone the voyage of the _Robert Campbell_ -came abruptly to an end. There was only a depth of two feet over the -Yellowstone bar, and it was a physical impossibility to proceed. The -annuities had now been delivered to the lower tribes so far as Captain -La Barge was concerned, but there still remained undelivered those -going to the Crows, Assiniboines, and Blackfeet. The annuities for -the first of these tribes were to be delivered wherever these Indians -could be found, but those of the Blackfeet were to be delivered at Fort -Benton. Fortunately, the Assiniboines came in while the boats were at -the Yellowstone, and their annuities were delivered. Dr. Reed, the -agent for the Blackfeet, then advised La Barge to abandon the idea of -going further, and to store the goods at Fort Union until the following -spring. This the Captain was very loath to do. He knew only too well -the complications that might arise, particularly as such a course -compelled him to place himself in any degree within the power of the -American Fur Company. It seemed, however, the only thing to do. The -_Robert Campbell_ simply could not get any further. The _Shreveport_ -had not been able to get above Snake Point, and since that time the -water had fallen materially. It was now the 8th of July, and no further -rise could be expected; in fact no boats reached Benton that year. The -only alternative to storing the goods was to haul them by wagon to -their destination, and for this purpose the transportation could not -be had. The Captain very reluctantly concluded to follow the agent’s -advice, particularly as the bulk of annuities were for the Indians -belonging to his own agency. An arrangement was made with William -Hodgkiss,[60] agent of the American Fur Company, and five days were -consumed in transferring the cargo to the warehouse. Full receipts -were given by Agent Hodgkiss, and these were witnessed by Captain W. -B. Greer, U. S. Army. In addition to the receipts the Captain secured -from Agent Reed a written statement of the circumstances in order that -his action might have the fullest explanation possible. In those days, -when the government felt that it was being robbed right and left by -dishonest contractors, and every claim was looked upon with suspicion, -the adjustment of any matter of that sort was extremely difficult, and -the innocent were made to suffer with the guilty.[61] - -[Sidenote: THE “SHREVEPORT” IMPRESSED.] - -[Sidenote: AT WORK FOR THE GOVERNMENT.] - -As soon as the business at Fort Union was cleared up the two boats -turned their prows down the river and made the best of their way -toward the lower country. When they arrived at Crow Creek, eighty-two -miles below Pierre, they met General Sully, who was engaged in his -expedition against the hostile Sioux. The General invited La Barge -to his tent and told him he should have to impress one of the boats -into his service for a time. As the _Shreveport_ was much the lighter -boat it was considered best to take her. Captain La Barge’s brother, -however, absolutely refused to remain, and accordingly Captain La Barge -had to. It was also necessary to use military authority to secure a -crew. The _Robert Campbell_ then went on her way to St. Louis, and -Captain La Barge commenced hauling supplies for General Sully. He went -up as far as the mouth of the Little Cheyenne, and there awaited the -result of General Sully’s expedition, which was a victorious battle -with the Indians. He then dropped down below old Fort Pierre, when -he was ordered to proceed to Fort Leavenworth and report to General -Easton. By that officer he was directed to take a cargo to Sioux City. -Though late in the season, the trip was successfully accomplished. -Captain La Barge then returned to St. Louis, where he arrived late in -November, and reported to the commanding officer at that point. He had -now been continuously at work for over six months, during one of the -most trying seasons ever experienced upon the river. His nightly sleep -scarcely averaged five hours, and he was constantly under the weight of -a terrible responsibility. Nothing but an iron constitution could have -withstood the incessant strain. - -As soon as Captain La Barge could straighten matters up at home he set -out for Washington to see the Indian Commissioner in regard to his past -season’s contract. He received full payment for everything delivered, -but nothing for the annuities still undelivered and nothing for his -great loss caused by the delay of the Indian Department in delivering -the goods to him on time. He was, however, given a new contract to -transport the goods to their destination the following year. - -In order to pursue this particular subject to its final outcome we -shall step ahead of our narrative to the year 1864. Captain La Barge -went up the river that year with the steamer _Effie Deans_, leaving -space on the boat for the undelivered annuities. Arrived at Fort Union -he first fell in with Captain Greer, who had witnessed the receipt of -Agent Hodgkiss for the goods the previous summer. Captain La Barge -told him that he had come to take the annuities to their destination. -“I don’t believe that you will find much,” said Captain Greer. “The -Company has traded it nearly all for robes.” - -[Sidenote: MANIFEST FRAUD.] - -[Sidenote: THE GOODS UNDELIVERED.] - -Agent Hodgkiss had died during the winter, and Captain La Barge -presented the receipts to the new agent, Rolette. The latter refused -to deliver the goods except upon payment of the extortionate storage -charge of two thousand dollars. He expected that this charge would -cause Captain La Barge to refuse to take the goods. The sum, however, -was tendered, whereupon the agent refused to deliver them except upon -the prior surrender of Agent Hodgkiss’ receipts. Suspecting that -a large part of the goods were missing, the Captain declined this -condition, but offered to give a receipt for all goods he should take -from the warehouse. Driven from every position, the agent openly -avowed that he could not deliver all the goods, for he did not have -them all. He stated that, under instructions from Commissioner Dole, -transmitted through the Company, he had delivered a large portion of -the goods to the Grosventres and many packages to other Indians. The -delivery of the balance could, therefore, not be made except upon -surrender of the receipts of the previous year. Captain La Barge -asked to see the receipts of the Indians to whom the goods had been -delivered. The agent had none, although it was an invariable rule to -secure such receipts for all annuities delivered. The alleged order -from Commissioner Dole was then called for, but that could not be -produced, the agent stating that it came by messenger, who delivered it -verbally. - -“You acknowledge, then, that a large portion of these goods you have -not got,” asked Captain La Barge. - -“Yes,” replied the agent; “they have been delivered during the winter -and have reached their proper destination.” - -[Sidenote: GOODS TRADED WITH THE INDIANS.] - -All these proceedings were witnessed by the officer, Captain Greer, -whom Captain La Barge had taken the precaution to have present. From -what Captain Greer had told him, and from the trader’s inability to -account satisfactorily for the disposition of the goods, Captain La -Barge became thoroughly convinced that they had been used in trade, -and he very wisely declined to surrender his receipts. As the trader -would not give up the rest of the goods except upon a surrender of the -receipts for all, the Captain went on his way without them. - -[Sidenote: UNPAID DEBT.] - -In the meanwhile Dr. Reed, who had been relieved as Agent of -the Blackfoot tribes, went up on the American Fur Company boat -_Yellowstone_ to turn over his charge to the new agent, Mr. Gad E. -Upson. Mr. Chouteau had received the contract for taking up the -annuities for the year 1864. He took them only to Cow Island, where, -for some reason, possibly low water, they were put on the shore and -the boat turned back. Mr. Upson, who had gone down from Benton to -Union early in the spring, went back on the _Yellowstone_ with Mr. -Reed. The boat, after unloading, turned back, and a day later met the -_Effie Deans_. La Barge reported to Dr. Reed the facts as to the goods -at Fort Union. Mr. Chouteau, who was on the _Yellowstone_, was called -in and professed to disapprove of Rolette’s course, but did nothing -to rectify it. So far as Captain La Barge knew at the time or ever -learned afterward, this large quantity of Indian goods was traded out -to the Indians by the so-called American Fur Company and constituted an -unqualified theft from the government. The final outcome of the affair, -so far as Captain La Barge was concerned, was a loss of nearly twenty -thousand dollars.[62] He died a poor man, with the government in his -debt by a sum that would have given ample comfort to his declining -years. - - - - -CHAPTER XXVII. - -COLLAPSE OF THE LA BARGE-HARKNESS OPPOSITION. - - -The steamboat _Shreveport_, with the annual outfit of the new firm -for the year 1863, did not get above Cow Island on account of the -extremely low stage of the river. No other boat went as far as that -within two hundred miles. Harkness and John La Barge put the cargo -out upon the bank and hastened back to the assistance of the _Robert -Campbell_. This event further illustrated the incapacity of Harkness. -No arrangement was made for the transportation of the goods to Benton, -although he knew that a considerable portion of the freight belonged to -outside parties, and that the firm had contracted to take it through -to that post. This precipitate action was due in part to danger from -the Indians. In the year 1863 the tribes along the river were all in -a state of unrest, and some of them actually on the warpath against -the whites. Fort Union was practically in a state of siege all summer, -and the danger to steamboats was a very formidable one. It was held -by some parties that the sudden termination of the voyage was due to -news received of the famous discovery of the Alder Gulch placers and -the desire to go back and notify the firm; but of this there is not the -slightest probability. Whatever the explanation, the act itself was -disastrous upon the fortunes of the firm. - -[Sidenote: NICHOLAS WALL.] - -Among the number of outside parties who had freight on the _Shreveport_ -was the firm of John J. Roe and Nicholas Wall, both of St. Louis. -Wall represented the firm in Montana and Roe remained in St. Louis. -Some little account of Wall’s career and his previous relations with -Captain La Barge will be of interest, to show how far a man may forfeit -the sentiment of gratitude when his business interests are in any -way involved. La Barge had previously been connected with Wall in a -business way. In 1861 Wall joined the Confederate sympathizers, in St. -Louis, and was captured by General Lyon in the affair of Camp Jackson, -St. Louis, May 10, 1861. The prisoners taken there were all paroled, -but were confined to the limits of the city. At Wall’s urgent appeal La -Barge became bondsman for his good conduct and secured his freedom of -action. He worked for La Barge during the rest of the season of 1861. - -In the winter of 1862 Wall asked La Barge to assist him in getting to -Montana. La Barge gave free transportation on the _Emilie_ to Fort -Benton for himself and his goods, and advanced him seven hundred -dollars to get to the mines. Wall did a successful business in the -Deer Lodge Valley in 1862, and in the fall of that year returned to -St. Louis, where he entered into a partnership with John J. Roe. The -outfit which this firm were to send to the mines was taken up on the -_Shreveport_. It was through La Barge’s patronage that Nick Wall was -extricated from a perilous situation and placed in a position to do a -good business. His method of repaying his benefactor will presently -appear. - -[Sidenote: LA BARGE, HARKNESS & CO. SUED.] - -When Wall heard that the _Shreveport_ could not reach Benton and -had discharged her cargo on the bank at Cow Island, he organized a -wagon train and went down after his own freight and that of several -others. In the spring of 1864 he returned to St. Louis, where he and -Roe presented a claim to La Barge, Harkness & Co. for forty thousand -dollars’ damages, on goods that were not worth at the outside ten -thousand dollars in St. Louis. Captain La Barge agreed to pay the full -price of the goods and charge no freight, but his offer was refused. -He then told Roe and Wall that they could bring suit at once. Roe -replied that he was too sharp to think of bringing suit in St. Louis; -he would bring it in Montana, where he knew that the chances were much -more in his favor. Robert Campbell and John S. McCune, two of St. -Louis’ leading citizens, protested against this proceeding, and agreed -to give bonds for the full payment of all damages. Roe refused all -compromise and Wall returned to Montana and brought suit. - -[Sidenote: COLLAPSE OF AFFAIRS AT FORT LA BARGE.] - -In the meanwhile, affairs at Fort La Barge were showing the effect -of absence from that post of any responsible member of the firm. -Joseph Picotte, brother of Honoré Picotte, a distinguished trader of -the American Fur Company, had been left in charge in 1862; but word -having been received that he was not properly attending to his work, -he was relieved by Robert H. Lemon, who had been highly recommended by -Robert Campbell. Lemon proved to be of less account even than Picotte, -and actually took the wholly unauthorized step of turning the firm’s -property over for safe-keeping to the American Fur Company. The receipt -for this transfer, signed by Andrew Dawson, agent American Fur Company, -is still among the La Barge papers. The transaction took place August -31, 1863, and included not only the storage of all the firm’s property -at Fort La Barge, but the payment of their employees’ wages, and the -removal of the _Shreveport_ freight from Cow Island to Fort Benton. -The sum of one thousand dollars was to be paid for storage, and the -goods were to be held as security for the payment of this sum and all -other liabilities of the firm on account of wages, transportation, or -other cause. Thus the entire business of the firm at Fort Benton was -practically surrendered to their great rival, and the new “opposition” -was crushed almost at its beginning. - -[Sidenote: OUTCOME OF THE SUIT.] - -As soon as Wall began legal proceedings the goods were seized and -held, pending the outcome of the trial. This did not come off until -1865, when a verdict was rendered against La Barge, Harkness & Co. -of twenty-four thousand dollars, which was paid in due course. All -the firm’s property in Montana was absolutely lost, including a large -quantity of furs ruined by the long detention. The total loss amounted -to fully one hundred thousand dollars. - -The lawsuit itself was an important one at the time. It involved the -rights and obligations of carriers on the Missouri River. It was the -first important legal case in the history of the Territory. It brought -into distinguished notice one of the picturesque and leading characters -in the pioneer history of Montana, Colonel Wilbur F. Sanders, who -became one of Montana’s first representatives in the Senate of the -United States. On the part of the defense the case was badly managed. -None of the principals was present at the trial, which was held at a -point nearly three thousand miles from their home. With a skillful -defense it would probably not have resulted so disastrously as it did. - -[Sidenote: CAUSES OF FAILURE.] - -The immediate result of the trial was the dissolution of the firm of -La Barge, Harkness & Co. It went out of business upon an honorable -footing. Every liability was paid in full, but so much of it fell upon -Captain La Barge that it seriously impaired his fortune. He cherished, -not without reason, a very bitter feeling toward some of the parties -who were instrumental in the downfall of his business, and particularly -toward the American Fur Company. There is no doubt that that concern -furthered the result in every possible way. It was a principle of -their business to crush all opposition, and they made no exception in -this case. But it is evident that the real cause lay in the reckless -management of affairs at Fort Benton and at the mines, and for this -Harkness was alone responsible. - -[Sidenote: THE DIAMOND R COMPANY.] - -The collapse of the La Barge, Harkness & Co. business marked the -inception of a system of land transportation in Montana which grew -to enormous proportions. It was known as the Diamond R <R> Company. -Among the ill-gotten gains of John J. Roe, in his successful effort to -break up a rival company, were a large number of oxen which La Barge, -Harkness & Co. had brought up the river to transport freight between -Fort Benton and the mines. Roe organized a transportation company, -using these oxen as a nucleus for commencing the business. By various -changes of ownership it passed into the hands of Montana men. It soon -became a great company, with a complete organization of agents, issuing -its bills of lading to all points, both in and out of the Territory. At -one time it employed no less than twelve hundred oxen and four hundred -mules, besides a large number of horses, and the sustenance of these -animals was a source of no slight income to the small farmers of that -section. It went out of business in 1883. - -[Illustration: A STEAMBOAT AT THE BANK] - - - - -CHAPTER XXVIII. - -CAPTAIN LA BARGE IN MONTANA. - - -Captain La Barge sold the _Emilie_ late in the winter of 1862–63. In -the following winter he made an unexpected sale of the _Shreveport_. -Henry Ames & Co., pork packers, sent their clerk one day to see if the -Captain would sell the boat. He replied that he did not care to, but -would if the price were satisfactory. Being invited to come to the -office of the firm, he was told that the boat suited them and was asked -to name a price. - -“Twenty-five thousand dollars,” he said. - -“Give the Captain a check for twenty-five thousand dollars,” said Ames, -turning to his clerk. - -“Don’t you want a bill of sale and the customary evidence that she is -clear of debt?” asked the Captain, in some surprise. - -“No,” was the reply; “you say she is so, and I will take your word.” - -La Barge went down to the levee, transferred the boat, and then went to -the bank and cashed the check. He recalled this last circumstance by -the fact that the teller handed him the amount in twenty-five notes, -each of one thousand dollars. - -[Sidenote: PURCHASE OF THE “EFFIE DEANS.”] - -This sale took place in the winter, and it behooved the Captain to -cast about at once for a boat for the next annual voyage. A new boat -was being built on the Ohio River by the Keokuk Packet Company, John -S. McCune, President. Not proving satisfactory for their purposes, -she was brought to St. Louis and offered for sale. La Barge found her -well fitted for his work, and negotiated a purchase at forty thousand -dollars. McCune retained a one-fourth interest. She was called the -_Effie Deans_. - -The boat was loaded with the usual assortment of freight, and left -St. Louis March 22, 1864, with forty-nine passengers and a cargo of -160 tons. She succeeded in getting only to the Marias River, where -the cargo was discharged. The boat was sent back in charge of John La -Barge, and the Captain himself remained in the upper country. He hired -wagons and took his property up the river, selling part of it in Benton -and the rest in Virginia City. He remained in the mining regions upward -of two months, although he finished his business in much less time. On -account of the danger from outlaws, or road agents, it was necessary to -await an exceptionally good opportunity for getting away. The Captain -had decided to return _via_ Salt Lake City, because to go by way of -the Missouri in an open boat would have meant little less than suicide. -The feeling of the Indians was so bitter at this time that no one could -pass their country in safety unless well protected. - -The Captain had almost a hundred thousand dollars in golddust to take -with him, and he knew that this was not a secret with himself. He -caused it to be given out that he expected to depart on a certain day, -but actually stole away several days before, and was safely in Salt -Lake City before the announced date of his departure. The coach he was -to have taken was held up by the road agents and a passenger of the -name of Hughes was killed. - -[Sidenote: COSTLY TRANSPORTATION.] - -In Salt Lake City Captain La Barge remained for some time arranging -for the rest of his journey home. He could not hire a coach from Ben -Holiday, proprietor of the overland line, for less than eighteen -hundred dollars. The Wells-Fargo Express Company wanted twenty-five -hundred dollars to send the dust by way of San Francisco, and would -assume no responsibility. These conditions were not satisfactory, and -the Captain purchased a team and wagon, with which he and three or four -others undertook the journey alone. Their golddust was carried in bags -of thick buckskin. - -[Sidenote: TEMPTING INDUCEMENTS.] - -While in Salt Lake City the Captain renewed his acquaintance with -Brigham Young and other Mormons whom he had known on the Missouri. An -old friend of his of the name of Hooper, who had turned Mormon, and -later became a delegate from the Territory to Congress, called as soon -as he heard that La Barge was in town. He also found there another -friend, Hopkins by name, whom he had known from boyhood. Hopkins tried -his best to induce La Barge to join the Mormons. He assured the Captain -that if he would sell out in St. Louis and come to Utah it would be -his fortune. As proof of this, he referred to himself and others, who, -he said, had gone into Mormonism, not for any love of the doctrine, -but as a simple business proposition. Hooper and Hopkins had both been -unsuccessful in St. Louis. La Barge had taken them up on his boat to -Fort Kearney, about 1852, and had always esteemed them good men. He -asked the wife of one of them one day why her husband had never married -again, since the doctrine of the Church and the sentiment of the -community sanctioned it. “He doesn’t dare to; he knows _I_ would leave -him if he did,” she replied. - -[Sidenote: DIGNITARIES OF THE MORMON CHURCH.] - -The Captain called on Young several times. That dignitary received -him very hospitably, took him to the Tabernacle and other places of -interest, and presented him to several of his families. They went to -the theater together, where they sat in a box with Young’s favorite -wife, the other wives being ranged in seats below. Young never said -anything intended to convert La Barge to his religion. Other members -of the Church did, and particularly Orson Hyde, who was a man of -education and a very persuasive talker. La Barge heard a sermon by -Heber Kimball--a rough old fellow who took off his coat, rolled up his -sleeves, and waded in. His language was coarse and vulgar, and would -not bear repetition in refined ears. - -The route of the Captain’s party, on leaving Salt Lake City, was -through Weber Cañon to Fort Bridger. They stopped there a short time -with Captain Carter, who, for many years, did business at that frontier -post. From there they made their way east, and left the mountain -country _via_ the valley of the Cache à la Poudre River. In the valley -of the South Platte they met an old man of the name of Geary, who told -them that a band of hostile Indians was scouring the country between -them and Denver, and that they had better conceal themselves for a few -days on an island in the Platte River. They acted upon this advice, -and when they judged the danger to be past they resumed their journey. -They had gone but a little way when they came to a spot where a party -of emigrants had been massacred only a day or two before. Their timely -measure of precaution was therefore well taken. - -[Sidenote: A LONG VOYAGE.] - -The rest of the journey was made without noteworthy incident. The -party reached the Missouri at Nebraska City just in time to catch the -last boat to St. Louis. They arrived home about December 1. Captain -La Barge found that the _Effie Deans_ had returned and had been -chartered by McCune’s company to go to Montgomery, Ala. She made this -trip in safety, returning to St. Louis before ice closed in. Probably -no other boat ever made so long a trip on inland waters in a single -season, including also a sea voyage, as did the _Effie Deans_ in 1864. -The distance on the Missouri up and back was 4570 miles; that on the -Mississippi to the Gulf and back was 2522 miles; that from Mobile to -Montgomery and back was 676 miles; and that across the Gulf from the -mouth of the Mississippi to Mobile and back not less than 600 miles. -The whole distance traveled was about 8400 miles. - -[Sidenote: ANOTHER DILEMMA.] - -In April, 1865, Captain La Barge started up the river again on the -_Effie Deans_. At Nebraska City came the news of Lee’s surrender, -and at Decatur that of the assassination of Lincoln. There was great -commotion among the passengers at the news of this terrible deed. -There were many ex-Confederates on board, some of whom expressed their -satisfaction at the event, and there might very easily have been -trouble between them and the Union passengers; but Captain La Barge -skillfully avoided all difficulty. - -The voyage, though a tedious one, was completed without serious delay -or accident. Captain La Barge sent the boat back in charge of the -pilot, Captain Ray, and himself started with another outfit of goods -for the mines. This time he went to Helena, which had sprung into -existence since his last trip to Montana. He bought a small house in -which to store his goods and he and his son acted as salesmen. - -[Sidenote: A TIMELY RESCUE.] - -In the meanwhile Captain La Barge’s brother had again involved St. -Louis parties in serious difficulty on account of the non-delivery of -freight. John S. McCune had shipped to Fort Benton a fine cargo of -goods on the _Kate Kearney_, Captain John La Barge, master. The very -hostile attitude of the Indians caused the Captain to abandon the trip -a little above Fort Union. When the news reached the mines suits were -brought against McCune aggregating some three hundred thousand dollars. -As soon as word reached St. Louis, McCune saw the gravity of the -situation, and instantly dispatched a message to La Barge in Montana -_via_ the overland route. It fortunately reached the Captain before he -had finished his business in Helena, and he set out forthwith for Fort -Benton, leaving his son in charge of the store. He felt certain that -Captain Ray, the pilot of the _Effie Deans_, would not abandon the -cargo, and he was not mistaken. When Ray met the _Kate Kearney_, on his -return trip, he transferred the cargo to the _Effie Deans_, and brought -it back to Fort Galpin, a little above the mouth of Milk River, but -could get no further on account of low water. He then sent an express -to Fort Benton for teams. Captain La Barge was there at the time, and -at once procured thirty ox teams of five yoke each, with the necessary -wagons, and started for Fort Galpin. There he took all the freight and -delivered it safely at its destination. It was a prodigious task, but -its timely completion saved McCune from a disastrous loss. The suits -were all withdrawn, and the cost of transportation by wagon was the sum -of the extra expense. - -La Barge left the Territory late in the season with fifty thousand -dollars in golddust. He went by way of Salt Lake City, where he and -two others chartered a coach to take them through to Nebraska City. -When within about fifty miles of Denver the stage driver refused to go -farther on account of the Indians, and the party were compelled to hire -a wagon and go the rest of the way alone. At Nebraska City they found -the steamboat _Denver_, on which they went to St. Joseph, and thence by -the railroad to St. Louis. - -[Sidenote: AN UNEXPECTED DELIVERANCE.] - -Captain La Barge had not been heard from in two months. He at once went -to McCune’s office to relieve the fears under which that gentleman had -so long been laboring. McCune came up to him, looked the travel-worn -Captain in the face, and said: “I don’t dare to ask you any questions. -I am afraid to know the worst.” - -“Don’t be alarmed,” said La Barge; “I think I have straightened -everything out all right.” - -“Are there no suits pending?” asked McCune. - -“No; they are all settled, and here are the receipts.” - -“How much has the misadventure cost me?” - -“Not to exceed ten thousand dollars all told.” - -McCune was overjoyed at the news, for he feared that he was ruined. As -it was, in spite of the extra expense, he would reap a handsome profit. -He threw his arms around La Barge and embraced him for joy at the -unexpected deliverance, and could never thereafter do enough for him. - - - - -CHAPTER XXIX. - -CAPTAIN LA BARGE IN WASHINGTON. - - -In connection with his work for the government it became necessary for -Captain La Barge to make several visits to Washington. Considering the -interesting period through which the national Capital was then passing, -it was to be expected that these visits should present some features of -note. The Captain went to Washington in all three times, once in each -of the winters of 1862–65. - -[Sidenote: INTERVIEW WITH LINCOLN.] - -On the occasion of his first visit he was a member of a party who -called upon the President to present him with a fine robe of fur. Three -years before this Captain La Barge had promised Lincoln to procure for -him a good buffalo robe; but the rapid march of events and the great -matters that weighed upon the public mind had so far kept him from -fulfilling his promise. On the present occasion it was proposed to give -the President an elegant robe composed of ten beaver skins, the whole -richly lined and embroidered. - -The members of the party were Dr. Walter A. Burleigh of Yankton, -Dak.; Captain La Barge, Charles E. Galpin,[63] and several others. Dr. -Burleigh acted as spokesman. The delegation were shown to a room apart -from the general reception room, and Lincoln, after a little while, -came in, saying that he had sent them in there so that he might have -some uninterrupted talk with them about the West. He remembered at once -the old steamboat Captain with whom he had ridden on the Missouri, -and he greeted La Barge with great cordiality. After some general -conversation Dr. Burleigh arose, took the robe, asked the President -to stand up, and then threw it over his shoulders. Lincoln folded it -around him like a blanket and danced about for an instant in Indian -fashion. He seemed greatly delighted with the gift. He then asked the -party many questions about the West, for the Indian troubles were at -that time causing the administration a great deal of annoyance. - -[Sidenote: LINCOLN AND THE INDIAN.] - -In the winter of 1863–64 La Barge saw the President again. The only -subject of importance which was touched upon on that occasion was the -Indian, in whose welfare he always displayed the deepest interest. As -it was a subject which had often aroused the Captain’s indignation and -pity, he made the most of his opportunity to acquaint the President -with the facts. He told him of the gross frauds practiced on the -Indians, and how their annuities, under present conditions, had to -pass through the hands of some of the worst rascals on the face of the -earth, who deliberately cheated the Indians right and left. Lincoln -replied that he knew it; that, under the stress of war, he was not -able to send just the men he would like to into that country as Indian -agents, and that too many of them were importunate place-seekers of -worthless character whom members of Congress were anxious to get rid -of somewhere. “But wait,” said he, “until I get this Rebellion off my -hands, and I will take up this question and see that justice is done -the Indian.” - -The Captain made his third visit to Washington in the winter of -1864–65. His particular business was to secure payment on his -government contracts, which had been approved by the Department of -War and the Bureau of Indian Affairs, but disallowed by the Treasury. -He went to Secretary Chase, but was told by that gentleman that all -Missourians were _prima facie_ Rebels, and that that was why his -account was being held up. La Barge did not relish this very much, as -he had been doing business for the government all through the war, and -had even gone so far as to take the oath of allegiance. He went to -Lincoln and laid the matter before him. The President smiled at Chase’s -remark, gave La Barge a card with his autograph on it to hand to Chase, -and said he presumed that would fix matters all right. La Barge went -back, and the account was paid without further delay. La Barge, with -his usual distrust of the American Fur Company, suspected that some of -its members had been giving him a bad character in Washington in order -further to cripple his opposition. - -[Sidenote: THE BLACKFOOT’S ANNUITIES.] - -[Sidenote: FINAL EVIDENCE.] - -On the occasion of his interview with the President he brought up the -matter of the Blackfoot annuities, explicitly charging that these -goods had been wrongfully disposed of and had not reached their -proper destination. Lincoln sent for the proper officer of the Indian -Department to hear La Barge’s accusation. This officer stated that he -had receipts signed by the Indian chiefs saying that they had received -their annuities. The signatures of the Indians were witnessed by agents -of the American Fur Company. La Barge declared that the receipts were -false; that he had himself carried these goods and knew that the -Indians had not received them, but that they had been appropriated by -the American Fur Company and sold. “Well,” said the official, “there -are the receipts; we cannot go back of them; they have been considered -final evidence in such cases since the foundation of the government.” -And there the matter rested. - -While in Washington on this visit La Barge was summoned before the -Senate Committee on Pacific railroads and questioned by B. Gratz Brown -upon his knowledge of the Western country and his opinion upon the -availability of certain routes for a transcontinental line. - -[Sidenote: LOOK AT YOUR MAP.] - -Before he left Washington the Captain was the central figure in an -amusing little incident that occurred at Ford’s Theater. _Harper’s -Weekly_ had published a story of La Barge’s steamboating experiences -which ran something like this: On one of his trips up the river in the -earlier part of his career there were several Englishmen aboard. They -had a map and applied themselves industriously for the first day or -two in trying to identify the various places upon it with those along -their route. They were in the pilot-house a good deal, and one of them -questioned La Barge rather officiously about the geography of the -country. - -“What place is this that we are approaching, Mr. Pilot?” he asked. - -“St. Charles, sir,” La Barge replied. - -“You are mistaken, sir; according to the map it is ----” - -La Barge made no reply. He stopped as usual at St. Charles and then -went on his way. Presently they came to another village. - -“What place, Captain?” inquired the Englishman. - -“Washington, Mo., sir.” - -“Wrong again. The map gives this place as ----.” - -This experience was gone through several times, the Captain’s temper -becoming more ruffled with each repetition, though no one would -have suspected it from his unruffled exterior. Presently a flock -of wild geese passed over the river and drew the attention of the -passengers and crew. The Englishmen were standing on the hurricane roof -immediately in front of the pilot-house. - -“What kind of birds are those, Captain?” asked one of them in eager -haste. - -The Captain, whose language still smacked somewhat of the French idiom, -replied: - -“Look at your map; he tell you.” - -The printed programme of the evening at the theater happened to have -this story under the heading of “Old Joe La Barge.” The Captain and -some friends occupied a box, and as there were several persons in the -audience who knew him, the fact that the hero of the story was in the -box soon spread itself about. At one of the pauses in the performance -someone called out for La Barge to stand up, and cries of “La Barge” -soon came from all parts of the house. The modest steamboat pilot was -panic-stricken at the occurrence and clung desperately to his seat, -whereupon the audience called for him the more; but nothing would -induce him to stir. - -[Sidenote: AN EXTENSIVE ACQUAINTANCE.] - -We may here properly refer to Captain La Barge’s extensive acquaintance -with public men of the West. His prominence in the carrying trade of -Western rivers, when travel was largely done by boat, brought him into -contact with distinguished characters from all parts of the country. -There were few public men in the West whom he did not know, and his -personal estimate of their character as they appeared to him is not -without interest and value. We have already noted his acquaintance with -Audubon, General Warren, Dr. Hayden, Brigham Young, and others. - -The Captain knew General Lee when the latter was stationed in St. Louis -as an officer of engineers in charge of river and harbor works on the -Mississippi and the Missouri rivers. - -He knew both of the Johnstons,--Albert Sidney and Joseph E.,--and -at the time of the Mormon War transported much of the supplies and -munitions of war used by Albert Sidney Johnston on his arduous and -perilous campaign. - -[Sidenote: GENERAL GRANT.] - -He saw Grant for the first time during the Mexican War, and frequently -in later years when he lived near St. Louis. In Grant’s visits to town -La Barge became well acquainted with him. He saw him in the early part -of the war, while Fremont was in command at St. Louis. He was trying to -get an interview with the General, but that officer was harder to reach -than a king or the Pope. He would keep people waiting for hours, and -then as like as not refuse them an audience. In the winter of 1864–65 -La Barge saw Grant in Washington. The head of the armies of the Union -spoke to the steamboat pilot in as equal and friendly a way as when -he was unloading wood in St. Louis. He asked the Captain if there was -anything that he could do for him, and expressed his desire to serve -him if he could. - -[Sidenote: GENERAL FREMONT.] - -La Barge saw a great deal at one time and another of General Fremont. -He first met him when he went up the river as the assistant to the -distinguished geographer and scientist, Jean I. Nicollet. Nicollet’s -party traveled on the boat which La Barge was piloting. At Leavenworth -there was an extremely rapid current, and La Barge expressed a -curiosity to know what its velocity was. Nicollet at once sent Fremont -to measure it. It was found to be eleven miles per hour in the swiftest -place. La Barge’s opinion of Fremont was that which seems to have -universally prevailed in St. Louis--that he was a greatly overrated -man, and that his success was due more to his fortunate marriage than -to his own merit. We must dissent, in a measure, from this view. In his -proper niche, Fremont was a great man. He found that niche in the work -of exploring the unknown West. In the faculty of making the unknown -known, of doing work in such a way as to make its results popular with -the public, in spreading a knowledge of the Great West throughout his -country and throughout the world, he stood without a peer among the -explorers of that region. In the broader field of national politics or -great military responsibility, he was wading beyond his depth. - -[Sidenote: THOMAS H. BENTON.] - -Thomas H. Benton, Fremont’s father-in-law, and Missouri’s greatest -statesman, was an intimate acquaintance of Captain La Barge, the -two men having known each other from La Barge’s childhood until -Benton’s death. Captain La Barge had a great admiration for the bluff -old Senator, although he did not like the way in which he used his -powerful influence in shielding the American Fur Company on so many -occasions from the just consequences of their illegal acts. Benton -was a frequent passenger on the Missouri River boats, and La Barge saw -a great deal of him there. He recalled particularly a trip which the -Senator made as far up as Kansas City, where he went to meet Fremont, -who was returning from the West. It was a very interesting voyage. -The people all along the river wanted to see him, and calls for “Old -Bullion” compelled him to appear at every landing place. He made -numerous addresses, and the boat was frequently delayed to permit this -interchange of greetings between the people and their distinguished -servant. Benton was in the pilot-house a great deal,--as every traveler -in those days liked to be,--and La Barge never forgot his expression -of deep faith in the future of the West, so unlike that of most of -his Congressional associates from east of the Mississippi. He said -once to Captain La Barge: “You will live to see railroads across to -the Pacific, and up the Missouri beyond the Great Falls.” La Barge, -a much younger man, replied that he scarcely expected to see that -in his lifetime. “But I have,” said the Captain, in telling of this -conversation, “and I have seen far more than even Senator Benton dared -to hope for.” In the same line of thought the Senator once said, as he -pointed to the west, which was overspread with the marvelous glow of -evening: “That is the East”--for he felt that we should yet go in that -direction to reach the treasures of the Orient. - -[Sidenote: NOTED MEN OF THE WEST.] - -The interesting notes of Captain La Barge’s observations of public -men with whom he was thrown in contact would fill a volume. His -acquaintance with the army was very extensive, owing to the Indian wars -along the Missouri, and he personally knew nearly all the principal -officers from General Sherman down. The same was true of the Indian -agents, Territorial officers, and leading business men of the West. -In a time when so much public travel went by steamboat he enjoyed -exceptional opportunities of seeing and knowing the men who made the -history of the Western country. - - - - -CHAPTER XXX. - -THE INDIANS OF THE MISSOURI VALLEY. - - -The course of this narrative has shown that a large portion of the -business of the Missouri River steamboats pertained to the Indians who -dwelt on the banks of that stream. The great valley had been their home -for unknown generations. The tribes were distributed along its course -or those of its tributaries, from its mouth to their sources. First -came the Missouris, whose name the river still bears--a tribe long -since extinct as a separate organization. The Osages and the Kansas -likewise bequeathed their names to the rivers in whose valleys they -dwelt. The Omahas have lived, since the white man knew them, a short -distance above the city which perpetuates their name, while a hundred -miles to the westward in the valley of the Loup Fork of the Platte -dwelt the four tribes of the Pawnees. From the point where Sioux City -now stands, northward nearly to the British line, the great nation of -the Sioux held a wide tract of country on both sides of the river. -Within their territory dwelt the treacherous Aricaras, near the mouth -of the Grand River, and the stalwart Cheyennes at the eastern base of -the Black Hills. The unhappy tribe of the Mandans lived near the river -some distance north of the modern town of Bismarck, and near them were -the Minnetarees, or Grosventres of the Missouri. Along the northern -shore of the river from the Mandans to Milk River, and northward far -into British territory, roamed the numerous bands of the Assiniboines, -one of the most populous of the plains tribes. From Milk River to the -sources of the Missouri was the land of the hostile Blackfeet, where -dwelt the Piegan, Blood, and Blackfoot bands and the Grosventres of -the Prairies. Finally, in the valley of the Yellowstone and its great -tributary the Bighorn, was Absaroka, the home of the proud tribe of the -Crows. - -[Sidenote: GRAVITATE TOWARD THE RIVER.] - -All of these tribes gravitated toward the great watercourses, as man, -in every stage of his history has done. It was not in this case the -use of the stream as a transportation route that made it attractive. -The Missouri Valley tribes, unlike those of the Great Lakes, or the -Coast, or the northern rivers, were not good navigators. The stream -was a treacherous one, and its shores did not yield a timber suitable -to the crude workmanship of the Indian. Skin boats were used to a -limited extent, but as a rule the horse and not the boat was the means -of travel and transportation. The great importance of the river -arose from other considerations. In a region where streams are scarce -and where most of them dry up in the summer, this river furnished a -never-failing supply of as healthy a drinking water as flows on the -surface of the globe. Then its valley was the only timbered region of -consequence for hundreds of miles on either side. Groves of cottonwood, -walnut, cedar, and willow lined its banks, and the Indian here found -all the wood that his simple order of life required. The abundant -groves along the bottoms gave splendid shelter from the heat of summer -and the cold of winter. - -[Sidenote: STRANGE VISITORS.] - -The entire watershed of the river was thus originally occupied by -Indians. Considering its extensive area, their numbers were very -few--scarcely one to ten square miles. But as they mostly dwelt near -the rivers, the country seemed to the early navigators more densely -populated than it really was. Into this primeval domain there came, -more than two centuries ago, strange visitors who never went away. They -were welcomed at first; but every foot of ground they gained was held, -farther and farther up the river to its source among the mountains, -thence to the River of the West, and down its rugged valleys to the -western sea. It was a sad day to the tribes of the Missouri Valley, as -to every other, when the white man came, but a far sadder day when -the emigrant and settler came. Between these two epochs there was -a long interval in which the paleface and his red brother lived in -comparative harmony together. It was the era of the trader. Under the -fur-trade régime the Indian might have continued his native mode of -life indefinitely. The trader never sought to change it. He introduced -but few innovations; had no desire to introduce any; and looked with as -jealous an eye as the Indian himself upon the approach of civilization. -This relation of the two races was ideal, and during its continuance -the Indian is seen at his best. - -[Sidenote: THE COMING OF THE EMIGRANT.] - -All this was changed when the emigrant came. The traders were few in -number and made no permanent settlements. The emigrants came by the -thousand and spread themselves all over the country. They made roads, -discovered rich mines, laid out cities, and declared their purpose -to send the “fire-horse” across the plains, as they had sent the -“fire canoe” up the great river. Before this ever-increasing host the -game wasted away. It was estimated that in the single year 1853 four -hundred thousand buffalo were slain. As the buffalo was the very life -of the plains tribes, its extermination meant inevitable starvation or -hopeless dependence upon the government. - -[Sidenote: AN UNSOLVABLE PROBLEM.] - -All this the Indian foresaw with unerring vision, and it affected -him just as it would any other independent people. A state of unrest -ensued. Depredations and outrages occurred--for the Indian understood -no other way of expressing his displeasure,--and the government was -forced to interfere. The era of the fur trade came to an end, and that -of the treaty, the agent, and the annuity, began--an era whose history -will bring the blush of shame to its readers to the latest generations. -And yet it would be wholly unjust to charge the flagrant wrongs which -followed to this or that particular cause. History will exonerate -the government from any but the purest motives in its dealings with -the Indians. It may have been unwise in some of its measures; it was -certainly weak in carrying its purposes into effect; but it always -sought, with the light it possessed, the highest good of the Indian. -The problem, unfortunately, was beyond human wisdom to solve. The -ablest minds of this country and century have grappled with it in -vain. It was the problem of how to commit a great wrong without doing -any wrong--how to deprive the Indian of his birthright in such a way -that he should feel that no injustice had been done him. It was the -decree of destiny that the European should displace the native American -upon his own soil. No earthly power could prevent it. _This_ was the -wrong; all else was purely incidental; and whatever consideration or -generosity might attend the details of the change, nothing could alter -the stern and fundamental fact.[64] - -[Sidenote: THE TREATY SYSTEM.] - -[Sidenote: POLICY OF INSINCERITY.] - -With this impossible problem our law-givers wrestled for a century -in vain. They sought to deal with the Indian on a basis of political -equality, where such equality did not and could not exist. The treaty -system was the outgrowth of this attempt. Perhaps it was impossible to -deal with the Indians except by treaty, but it is difficult at this day -to see the wisdom of that method. It only deferred the inevitable. It -made promises which, in the nature of things, could not be kept.[65] -Made to be broken, they served no other purpose than to lull the -natives into temporary quiet while the paleface was fastening his -grip ever more tightly upon their country. It was throughout a policy -of insincerity; the fostering of a spirit of independent sovereignty -when in fact the tribes were only vassals. Like all insincerity, it -bred endless wrong. The loss of his lands would not have been so bad to -him if he had understood it from the start; but as it was, he had not -only to bear this loss, but the ever-increasing evidence of the white -man’s bad faith; and he thus came to hate the whites and distrust their -government.[66] - -This, if we were to venture a criticism, has been the government’s -one great mistake in dealing with the Indians. A firm attitude of -authority toward the tribes, with an unqualified claim to sovereignty -of the soil, and an assertion of the right to reduce it and them to a -condition of ultimate civilization, would have eliminated the element -of bad faith which has always characterized the treaty system. But -instead of this the government continued to foster to the last the -notion of tribal sovereignty over the lands of the West. Under the -farce of obtaining these lands by treaty it saved itself from the -charge of wresting them by force from the Indian. It was a distinction -without a difference, and in its effort to save its honor in one -direction, it hopelessly sacrificed it in another. - -[Sidenote: TREATY OF FORT LARAMIE.] - -[Sidenote: A SUCCESSFUL COUNCIL.] - -The first general treaty with the tribes of the upper Missouri was -held at Fort Laramie in September, 1851. It included nearly every -tribe in the valley from the Omahas up, except the Blackfeet. The -Indians came from far and near and pitched their separate camps on -the council ground. Tribes that had never met before here made each -other’s acquaintance. Others, who had met only on the battlefield, -encamped side by side in peace. The government was represented by -men of experience and dignity. In particular, Superintendent D. D. -Mitchell and Father P. J. De Smet were men in whom the Indians felt -the most implicit trust. The council was convened for the purpose of -coming to some understanding among the tribes themselves and between -them and the whites as to their immediate future relations. It was -hoped to put an end to inter-tribal wars and to outrages upon the -emigrants, and to secure the right of way for roads and railroads -across the Indian lands. The several tribes showed the greatest -interest in the work of the council. The deliberations were conducted -with solemnity and evident sincerity on both sides. The presents from -the government were munificent and well chosen, and were received with -deep satisfaction. When the work of the council was completed, the -tribes bade each other farewell, and departed for their several homes -with every appearance of mutual trust and friendship. To all outward -appearances the council had been a complete success. Treaties were -made with all the tribes present. The gifts received were to be in -full compensation for all previous losses caused by the white man, and -the Indians were to receive goods annually to the aggregate amount of -fifty thousand dollars. The treaties, as amended in Washington, were to -remain in force for fifteen years. Four years later a similar treaty -was made near Fort Benton with the several bands of the Blackfeet by a -commission consisting of Governor I. I. Stevens and Alfred Cummings, -Superintendent of Indian Affairs. - -[Sidenote: A MIXING OF GOODS.] - -It was thus that the annuity system came into extensive vogue among the -tribes of the upper Missouri. It probably gave rise to more abuses than -any other one thing in the conduct of Indian affairs. The temptations -for fraud were as great as the opportunities for its commission were -numerous and excellent, and it required more than average public -virtue to resist them. The Indian could not go to the market and -help select his goods; he had no hand in awarding the contracts for -their transportation to his country; nor any means of seeing that he -received what he was entitled to. His only function was to accept -what the agent saw fit to give him. During the Civil War, when the -currency depreciated to such an enormous extent, the annuities shrank -in quantity as prices went up, and the Indian was a heavy loser from -causes that he could not comprehend. The annuities were always sent -up the river in the boats of the traders, generally in those of the -American Fur Company. The agents were given no escort and no separate -residence or warehouse, and were compelled to throw themselves upon -the hospitality of the traders. In this way the annuity goods became -mixed with those of the traders, and the Indian paid in furs for what -he was entitled to as a free gift. This abuse was a grave one and very -difficult to correct, for all that the Department required in evidence -of the delivery was the signature of the chiefs, witnessed in the usual -manner. It is easy to see how wide open the door was in this business -for the commission of almost unlimited fraud.[67] - -[Sidenote: ANNUITY SYSTEM.] - -It is doubtful if, during the period from 1850 to 1870, the Indian -tribes along the Missouri River received more than half the bounty -which was promised them by the government. - -[Sidenote: A CORRUPT ATMOSPHERE.] - -In the early days of the Republic the conduct of Indian affairs was in -the hands of the military authorities, and it has always been a mooted -question whether it ought not to have remained there. The verdict of -history will undoubtedly be that it should. The spoils system came -into absolute control of the agencies, and fitness and experience -received scant consideration. There was more or less friction between -the agents and the military, for the latter always had to be called -in when the former could no longer control their flocks. But the -greatest defect of the system was the total absence of anything like -a fixed and recognized procedure. The annual reports of the agents -show how utterly lacking in all the elements of practical business was -their haphazard management. Every new agent felt called upon, as a -necessary preliminary to his own work, to criticise the conduct of his -predecessor. He put forth new schemes and tried new experiments, until -finally he himself made way for a successor who in turn deplored the -failures of those who had gone before him. - -Probably the majority of the agents were men of average integrity, but -there were many who sought the business solely for “what there was in -it.” The whole atmosphere of the Indian trade was so against an honest -conduct of the business that an agent who should undertake to enforce -strict integrity in his official work was regarded as a fit subject -for an asylum of the feeble-minded. At one time the experiment was -tried of appointing only clergymen to the agencies. But the scheme was -a visionary one. What these agents made up in honesty they lacked in -experience, and were pliant tools in the hands of the shrewd trader. -Their saintly character, moreover, was not always a sure panoply -against the attacks of worldly temptation. To more than one of them, -in the words of Captain La Barge, “a dollar looked bigger than a -cart wheel,” and they, like the rest, learned how to connive at the -crookedness of the traders. But whatever their virtues or intentions, -they were powerless to accomplish any good work. The fault was in -the system, which was inherently vicious, and mere honesty in the -individual could not eliminate its defects. - -[Sidenote: THE SYSTEM AT FAULT.] - -The actual results of the treaty-annuity-agency system in the conduct -of Indian affairs are now matters of history. No treaty that it -was possible to devise could stand. The encroachment of settlement -continually increased. It led to resistance on the part of the -Indians, and resistance to chastisement and to new treaties, and these -invariably to loss of territory and abridgment of rights. At last it -led to war, and the final transition of nearly all the tribes to their -present situation was accompanied by scenes of blood. - -It is not possible to follow here the intricate pathway of the treaty -system through the quarter century after 1850, for it is a long story. -There were treaty after treaty, commission after commission, and a -constant exercise of its best offices on the part of the government -to reach some satisfactory result; but in vain. The life of a people, -like that of an individual, cannot be extinguished without a struggle. -Whether in this case the inevitable struggle was intensified by the -procrastinating policy of the government may be an open question. -It probably was, for it was preceded by years of bad faith, broken -pledges, and cruel wrongs, until the hearts of this unhappy people were -embittered, and they drew the sword in a spirit of hatred and revenge. - -[Sidenote: THE INDIAN AND THE STEAMBOAT.] - -Throughout the painful annals of the river tribes during the past -century there was no more attractive feature of their relations with -the whites than the means of transportation by which the paleface came -to their country. The keelboat and the steamboat are a part of their -life history. The steamboat in particular came to be what the buffalo -had been--their principal resource for the necessities of life. It was -a difficult rôle that it had to fill. To the Indian it was friend and -foe, truth and falsehood, honor and shame, alike. It brought the early -traders with their welcome merchandise, and alas! with their liquor and -the smallpox. It brought the Commissioners to make treaties, and the -annuities which those treaties guaranteed. It brought the Indian agent -and the evils that followed in his train, and finally it brought the -sword. When the Indian at last gave up the fight he and the steamboat -abandoned the river together, and both are now strangers where once -they made the entire valley teem with life. - - - - -CHAPTER XXXI. - -THE ARMY ON THE MISSOURI. - - -The rôle which the army was called upon to fill in the history of our -Indian affairs was a most unpleasant one. It began while the proud -spirit of the tribes was as yet unbroken, but had been aroused by -ever-increasing aggression to the point of active resistance. It then -became necessary to subdue them by force to absolute subordination to -the government, and to remove them from their larger hunting grounds -to small reservations. This thankless task devolved upon the army. It -was not merely a thankless task, but a most arduous and formidable one. -Compared with service in the Indian campaigns, that in the South during -the Civil War was a holiday pastime. What tragedy in all our national -wars can compare with the battle of the Little Big Horn? What record -of retreat and pursuit is there like that of the Nez Percé campaign of -1877? Napoleon’s retreat from Moscow had no terrors for the individual -soldier like those of the winter campaign of Crook in the Powder River -country in March, 1876, when it was so cold that the men were not -permitted to go to sleep at night for fear they would never wake up. - -[Sidenote: THE WEIGHT OF A DREAD POWER.] - -In the course of twenty years after 1855 military posts sprang up -all over the West. There was scarcely an Indian trail in that entire -region that did not witness the passage of government troops. From one -haunt to another his relentless pursuers tracked the desperate Indian. -Ambushes and massacres were met with crushing defeats in battle, but -the general drift of the conflict was uniformly one way. The Indian was -learning the weight of that dread power which had so far tolerated his -independence, but was now to extinguish it forever. The struggle lasted -in its main features about sixteen years, or from 1862 to 1877; but its -extreme limits were the Grattan Massacre of August 19, 1854, and the -battle of Wounded Knee, December 29, 1890. - -For some years the Indians who were parties to the treaty of Laramie -observed its conditions fairly well; but in 1854 an unfortunate affair -occurred which temporarily interrupted the general peace. Some fifteen -hundred Indians of three different Sioux bands were encamped in the -Platte Valley, about six miles below Fort Laramie, in August of that -year. One of the Indians drove off and killed a stray cow belonging to -an emigrant train. The owner complained of the theft to the officer in -command at Laramie, and Lieutenant Grattan, with about twenty men, was -sent to bring in the thief. He probably did not show very much tact -in performing his delicate task, and made the mistake of attempting -to take the culprit by force in the presence of nearly ten times his -number of Indians. The result was the massacre of his entire party. The -Indians then went to the American Fur Company warehouse, where their -annuity goods were in waiting, broke open the building, and carried off -the annuities. - -[Sidenote: BATTLE OF ASH HOLLOW.] - -Thereupon the government ordered General Harney to take the field with -a military force, establish convenient bases of supplies, protect the -frontier and the emigrant routes, and to deal a heavy blow upon the -offending Indians. On September 3, 1855, General Harney attacked a -large force of Indians who had taken part in the Grattan massacre, -completely routed them, killed and captured upward of two hundred, and -destroyed nearly all their property. This affair took place across the -Platte River from Ash Hollow, a noted situation on the emigrant trail, -from which the battle has taken its name. - -General Harney next moved his force to the Missouri River, where -the old trading post of Fort Pierre had been lately acquired by the -government, and there held councils with various tribes, which again -resulted in general pacification. In the following year the important -military post of Fort Randall was built, and Fort Pierre was abandoned -because of its undesirable situation. General Harney discharged his -task in a manner highly creditable to himself and satisfactory both to -the Indians and the government; and seven years were to elapse before -any further difficulty of a serious character should occur. - -[Sidenote: SITUATION GROWING WORSE.] - -[Sidenote: INTRIGUES OF THE HALF-BREEDS.] - -But while the severe lesson of Ash Hollow, the frank counsel of General -Harney, and the presence of a military force at Fort Randall, kept -the tribes in comparative peace, the wrongs from which they suffered -continually increased, and their temper grew constantly worse. The -discovery of gold in Montana brought a multitude of emigrants to and -through this country, with the consequent destruction of game and -threats of roads and railroads and loss of lands. Events were fast -developing into a crisis, when the outbreak of the Civil War in the -United States gave the tribes their desired opportunity. The frontier -garrisons were depleted in order that the regular troops might be sent -south. New levies made up of the able-bodied citizens went away to -the war. The Indian was quick to see how this movement weakened the -frontier settlements. He was made to believe, by gross exaggeration, -that the situation of the Great Father in Washington was a desperate -one, that his capital was about to be taken and his power destroyed. -It has been asserted that the Confederates had emissaries among -the Indians, but there is no proof of any direct intrigue of this -character. Indirectly, however, they exercised a powerful influence -upon them. The people of the British possessions, like those of -the mother country, sympathized ardently with the South, and this -sympathy found effective expression in the intercourse of the British -half-breeds north of the boundary with the Indians south. These -half-breeds knew the border tribes perfectly, and had greater influence -with them than the whites, who were strangers to their customs and -the authors of their many wrongs. Selfish motives of trade combined -with national prejudice to stir up strife against the Americans and -to provide means for making that strife effective. The half-breeds -circulated freely south of the border, and the tracks of their carts -could be seen everywhere from the Red River of the North to the -Missouri River. They brought powder and balls, guns, rum, and regular -merchandise of trade, and their influence at this particular time -was decisive. Their territory, moreover, offered a sure asylum from -punishment for any outrages which the Indians might commit.[68] - -[Sidenote: THE MINNESOTA MASSACRE.] - -Trouble first broke out in 1862 among the Minnesota Indians, where the -evil conditions from which the tribes had been suffering had reached an -acute stage. Under the leadership of a noted Sioux chief, Little Crow, -the Indians in the valley of the Minnesota River above Mankato attacked -the settlement of New Ulm and others in that vicinity, on the 18th -of August, murdering and taking captive the inhabitants, destroying -property, and spreading consternation in every direction. In the course -of three days nearly a thousand persons were killed and two million -dollars’ worth of property destroyed. - -The State and national governments sent instant relief; the outrages -were checked; the Indians were driven up the Minnesota Valley and -beaten in several battles; the captive whites were mostly released, -and a large number of hostiles engaged in the massacre were taken -prisoners. This work was done under the immediate leadership of General -H. H. Sibley, first Governor of Minnesota. The captured Indians were -tried by court martial, and a great number were condemned to death, but -this penalty was commuted by President Lincoln except in the cases of -thirty-eight, who were hanged at Mankato, December 26, 1862. - -[Sidenote: AN INDIAN WAR.] - -In the meanwhile the Indians under Little Crow, though checked and -driven back, were not conquered or discouraged. Their emissaries were -active among the tribes of the Missouri, who were aroused almost to -the point of war. The execution of the Indians at Mankato exasperated -Little Crow to a desperate pitch, and he vowed extermination of the -whites. It was clear that an Indian war was at hand, and the government -at once prepared for it. Its conduct was placed in the hands of General -John Pope, who had been relieved from his command of the Army of the -Potomac after the second Bull Run, and was now in command of the -Department of the Northwest, with headquarters at Milwaukee. General -Pope organized two expeditions, one under General Sibley, to move west -from Mankato against the Indians and drive them toward the Missouri, -and the other under General Sully, to move from Sioux City up the -Missouri and cut off their retreat. The plan was well conceived, but -the extreme low water in the Missouri in 1863 prevented General Sully -from receiving his supplies in time to carry out his part of the -programme. - -[Sidenote: EXPEDITION OF GENERAL SIBLEY.] - -Sibley’s expedition left Camp Pope in the Minnesota Valley June 16, -1863, and two days later that of General Sully left Sioux City. -Sibley’s route lay up the Minnesota to its source, thence by way of -Lake Traverse to the Cheyenne River of North Dakota, and up that stream -toward Devil’s Lake, where the Indians were supposed to be. Learning -that they had left that region and had gone toward the Missouri, -General Sibley changed his march to the southwest, and pursued the -retreating enemy with great vigor. He came upon them and fought three -battles within a week--Big Mound, July 24; Dead Buffalo Lake, July 26; -and Stony Lake, July 28. The Indians were defeated in all three fights, -and then crossed the Missouri River just below where Bismarck, N. D., -now stands. General Sibley reached that stream on July 29, and here his -expedition ended. Two days later his command set out on its homeward -march.[69] - -At this time General Sully was at Fort Pierre. The transportation of -his supplies had delayed him, and it was not until the 14th of August -that he started from that point on his march north. He went up the -east bank of the Missouri, with a great deal of vexatious delay, and -finally reached the scene of Sibley’s third fight just a month after it -had taken place. The Indians, meanwhile, far from being conquered or -dispirited, had recrossed the river and were on their way back to the -grazing grounds on the Coteau of the Missouri. Some of them harassed -the homeward-bound column of General Sibley. Sully pursued them to the -northeast and overtook and fought them at Whitestone Hill, some thirty -miles south and slightly west of Jamestown, N. D. The Indians were -badly defeated, many of them were killed, and a large amount of their -property was destroyed. Sully then returned to the Missouri and built a -new post, Fort Sully, on the left bank of the river, opposite the head -of Farm Island, midway between Fort Pierre and Fort George. With this -work the campaign of 1863 came to an end. - -[Sidenote: CAMPAIGN INDECISIVE.] - -The movements of troops in this campaign and the force of Indians -engaged were the largest yet known in the history of the United -States. The number of warriors was estimated at over six thousand, -while the troops under Sibley and Sully numbered about four thousand. -The campaign, however, was not conclusive. Although the Indians had -been defeated with severe loss in every engagement, they were still -unsubdued, and retained their defiant attitude during the following -winter. Accordingly another campaign was planned for the summer of -1864. General Sully was placed in charge with a cavalry force of about -2500 men. - -[Sidenote: SULLY’S CAMPAIGN OF 1864.] - -General Sully’s first move was to build a post near the mouth of -the Cannon Ball River--Fort Rice, forty miles below where Bismarck -now stands, and on the other side of the river. The Indians being -reported as near the source of Heart River, General Sully concluded -to continue his march in search of them, whether found or not, until -he should reach the Yellowstone River. He took with him only the -necessary rations for the march and sent his steamboats with supplies -and materials for a new post around to meet him at the Brasseau Houses -on the Yellowstone, fifty miles above the mouth of that stream. -Accompanying Sully’s march to the Yellowstone was an emigrant train of -about 125 people bound for the mines of Montana. - -Sully’s route lay up the Cannon Ball River nearly to its source, and -thence across to the head waters of Heart River. Here the General -packed his train and left it with the emigrants under a strong guard, -and himself and command, in light marching order, struck out for Knife -River, where the Indians were reported encamped. He found them as -expected. They were defiant and eager for battle, and an engagement -immediately followed. The Indians were badly defeated, a large number -being killed, and all of their property destroyed. This was the battle -of Tahkahokuty, or Killdeer Mountain, and was fought July 28, 1864. - -[Sidenote: THE ARMY REACHES THE YELLOWSTONE.] - -Sully then returned to his camp on Heart River, and, under the guidance -of a single Indian, who, of all those with him, professed to know a -passable route, started on the perilous undertaking of carrying a wagon -train through the Bad Lands to the Yellowstone River. The route was -west to the Little Missouri, where it turned sharply to the northwest -and struck the Yellowstone about fifteen miles below the Brasseau -Houses. This point was reached on the 12th of August, and fortunately -the supply steamers were close at hand to relieve the necessities of -the troops. This was the first expedition across the Bad Lands of North -Dakota, and was accomplished at the cost of great labor and suffering. - -The command crossed the Yellowstone and then marched to the Missouri -River opposite Fort Union. This stream was forded with much peril, and -the troops then returned to Fort Rice along the north shore. Garrisons -were left at Forts Union and Berthold, but the contemplated post on the -Yellowstone could not be built, owing to the wrecking of one of the -steamers with most of the material on board. - -Thus the military forces of the United States were advanced in -permanent occupation to the mouth of the Yellowstone River. Only twice -before had the uniform of the American soldier been so far up the -Missouri--in 1805–06, when the Lewis and Clark expedition passed this -point, and in 1825, when General Atkinson took his command to a point -about a hundred miles farther up. Neither of these earlier visits -contemplated permanent occupation. - -[Sidenote: SIGNS OF WEAKENING.] - -By this time the Indians began to realize the magnitude of the power -they were contending with, and to show signs of weakening. No extensive -campaign was found necessary along the river for a number of years, -although many of the Indians continued hostile and committed numerous -depredations. The termination of the Civil War, with complete victory -for the government, and the release of so many soldiers from Southern -fields who could now be sent to the frontier, all tended to make the -Indians proceed in their schemes of war with greater caution and -hesitation. Could the evils of our Indian system have been corrected -the tribes might readily have been brought to terms of “lasting peace,” -which was so confidently predicted at the time by Indian agents and -even by some military officers. - -In this matter of the military conquest of the Missouri Valley, as in -that treated in the last chapter, it is not possible, with our present -space, to follow in detail the course of events during the next twelve -years. The army made some new advances every year, not only in the -Missouri Valley, but throughout the entire West. Campaigns, battles, -and some appalling massacres occurred, and the soldiers became as -familiar with the country and as expert in savage methods of warfare as -the Indian himself. Finally, in 1875–77, came the last act in the great -tragedy, by which the power of the Sioux nation was broken and their -career as an independent people brought to an end. - -[Sidenote: NON-TREATY SIOUX.] - -Great efforts had been made for several years to reduce the Sioux -tribes, by peaceable methods, to life on the reservations. Several -government commissions were sent to them, and one in particular, of -which General Sherman was a member, went into the whole matter with -the greatest possible care. Most of the Sioux were finally located on -the reservations and appeared to be peaceably disposed. But there were -some exceptions, estimated to number not more than six or eight hundred -warriors, who had persistently refused from the first to recognize in -any way the treaties or other arrangements with the government. The -agents had failed to get them to quiet down on the reservations, and -they continued to roam over the country as of old, subsisting upon the -fruits of the chase. They were uncompromisingly hostile to the whites -and their Indian allies, and committed outrages without number upon -both. Finally the Indian Department served notice upon them that unless -they settled down on the reservations before January 31, 1876, they -would be turned over to the military authorities and be dealt with by -force. The Indians paid no attention to this ultimatum, and their case -was accordingly placed in the hands of the army. - -[Sidenote: CAMPAIGN OF 1876.] - -An effort was made to reach these Indians by a winter campaign, but -after one attempt, which ended in a battle of no decisive results, the -scheme was abandoned, because the excessive cold made it impossible -to conduct operations in that shelterless country. General Sheridan, -who was charged with the conduct of this important business, thereupon -planned a campaign which was to be carried out as soon as the season -would permit. He determined upon a concentric movement by which bodies -of troops from widely separated localities should move upon a given -section where it was believed that the hostile band would be found. -General Crook was to start from Fort Fetterman, on the Platte, and -move north; General Terry from Fort Abraham Lincoln, on the Missouri, -and move west; and General Gibbon from Fort Ellis, in western Montana, -and move east. The point of rendezvous was to be in the Yellowstone -Valley near the mouth of the Powder River, or wherever in that vicinity -further development might indicate. General Crook left Fort Fetterman -May 29 with about 1000 men; General Terry left Fort Lincoln May 17 with -about 1000 men, sending his supplies around into the Yellowstone by -steamboat. General Gibbon, with 450 men, left Fort Ellis on the 1st of -April, crossed over to the Yellowstone, and marched down the left bank -of that stream. - -[Sidenote: ERRONEOUS ESTIMATES.] - -Up to this time all obtainable evidence indicated that the hostile -Indians did not number more than 800 warriors. As a matter of fact, -discontented Indians from nearly all the surrounding Sioux and Cheyenne -agencies had for some time past been leaving the reservations and going -to the hostiles, until the latter had gathered a force of not less than -2500 men. It was against this force, more than three times as large as -was supposed, that the joint movement of Generals Terry, Crook, and -Gibbon was directed. - -General Crook was the first to encounter the Indians. He met and fought -them on the head of the Rosebud River June 17, and although the Indians -withdrew, the battle was indecisive, and the great number of the -Indians, as disclosed by the fight, induced General Crook not to take -the risk of going further. He withdrew to the valley of Goose Creek and -sent for re-enforcements. - -Generals Terry and Gibbon met about fifteen miles below the mouth of -the Tongue River on the 9th of June, and their combined forces formed -a junction at the mouth of the Rosebud on the 21st of that month. Here -the plan of operations against the Indians was agreed upon. Nothing -was known of Crook’s whereabouts, nor of his recent fight, but it was -pretty well established, from various scouting parties, that the Indian -village was in the valley of the Little Big Horn, from seventy-five to -ninety miles distant. It was decided that General Custer, with the 7th -Cavalry, should proceed up the Rosebud until he should strike a large -Indian trail which had been discovered a few days before, and should -then follow it to the Little Big Horn, feeling well to the south to -prevent the escape of the Indians. General Gibbon, whose column General -Terry accompanied, was to ascend the Yellowstone to the mouth of the -Big Horn, and that stream to the mouth of the Little Big Horn, where -it was expected to arrive not later than the 26th, and where it should -come into touch with Custer. - -[Sidenote: THE CUSTER MASSACRE.] - -In carrying out his part of the programme, General Custer moved more -rapidly than his instructions contemplated, so rapidly, in fact, that -he would have arrived at the appointed rendezvous, had his march not -been interrupted, an entire day in advance of that fixed for the -arrival of General Gibbon. The result was that his command came upon -the Indian village on the morning of the 25th while advancing in -three separate columns not within supporting distance of each other. -Custer’s column was surrounded and annihilated to a man. The other two -detachments, under Major Reno and Captain Benteen, effected a junction -and intrenched themselves on the river bluff of the Little Big Horn, -where they withstood for nearly thirty hours the terrific siege by the -Indians, who were confident and exultant from their late victory over -Custer. The total loss to Custer’s command was about 270 men. General -Gibbon’s column reached the scene of the battle on the 27th, the -Indians withdrawing upon their approach. - -[Sidenote: MILITARY PROBLEM SOLVED.] - -This was the crowning tragedy of the long Sioux wars, which had been -waged at intervals for upward of twenty years. Although a great -disaster to the whites, it marked the downfall of the Indian power. -The various bands into which the hostile force scattered after the -Custer massacre were relentlessly pursued until all were driven into -the reservations or beyond the British line. Once on the reservations -they were disarmed and dismounted, so as to cripple them from further -resistance. Another year was consumed in this work, and the military -posts were further extended into the Indian country; but by the end of -1877 the military problem in our Indian affairs was practically solved. - - - - -CHAPTER XXXII. - -THE STEAMBOAT IN THE INDIAN WARS. - - -[Sidenote: MILITARY USE OF KEELBOATS.] - -Throughout the Indian wars of the Missouri Valley the steamboat played -a part of the very highest importance. It was almost the exclusive -means of transporting men and supplies along the river, except when in -active campaign work in the interior. Its use in the military service -dates from the very beginning of steamboat navigation on the river, as -well as from the first important step toward the military occupation -of the valley. When the first steamboat entered the Missouri, in 1819, -arrangements were being perfected to transport by steam to the mouth -of the Yellowstone a large body of troops designed to establish a post -there. Five boats were brought into requisition for this purpose, and a -sixth, the _Western Engineer_, was built by the government to transport -a party of scientists who were to accompany the expedition. Owing -to the entire absence of experience in navigating the Missouri with -steamboats, this attempt proved a failure. None of the boats except -the _Western Engineer_ got as far as to the old Council Bluffs, and -the troops, after marching a part of the distance, went into winter -quarters at that point. - -Four years later the first Indian campaign west of the Mississippi -River took place, when Colonel Leavenworth, with a considerable body -of troops, went up the river from Fort Atkinson (old Council Bluffs) -to chastise the Aricaras, who had attacked a fur-trading party under -General Ashley and killed a number of men. Keelboats were used on this -expedition. - -Two years later, 1825, General Atkinson took a large body of troops -from Fort Atkinson to a point about one hundred miles above the mouth -of the Yellowstone and return. His purpose was to make treaties with -the Indian tribes along the valley and acquaint them with the power -of the United States. Keelboats were used, and a novel feature was -introduced in propelling them--a wheel, or wheels, which were operated -by hand power, the soldiers being used for this purpose. - -No further use of steamboats in the military service except at Forts -Leavenworth, Kearney, and Croghan, and in connection with the Mexican -War, occurred until Harney’s campaign of 1855. All the troops that went -up the river at that time were transported in steamboats. The transfer -of ownership of Fort Pierre from the American Fur Company to the army, -and the movement of material connected therewith, were also done by -steam. The establishment of Fort Randall and the subsequent maintenance -of that post were mainly accomplished by the aid of the steamboat. - -[Sidenote: A LONG WAY AROUND.] - -The outbreak of the Sioux War in 1863 and the campaigns of 1863–64 -called the steamboat again into extensive use. A remarkable instance -of this use was the transportation of the Winnebago Indians from their -home near Mankato, Minn., to their new home on the Missouri River. The -feeling against the Indians after the Minnesota massacre was so bitter -that it was taken advantage of to move them all from the State. It -does not appear that the Winnebagos were active participants in the -outbreak, but the hand of vengeance fell upon them as upon the others. -They were moved westward several hundred miles, and in exchange for the -fertile lands of the Minnesota Valley were given a home on the sterile -wastes of the Missouri. In making this transfer the Indians were not -taken directly across the country, which was perfectly practicable for -wagons all the way, but were transported by _steamboat_. They were put -on board the _Favorite_ and other boats at Mankato on the Minnesota -River, taken down that stream to the Mississippi at Fort Snelling, down -the Mississippi to the Missouri, and up the Missouri to the mouth of -Crow Creek, twenty miles above the present site of Chamberlain, S. D. -The distance around was 1900 miles, against about 300 miles across. -The Indians arrived at Crow Creek on May 30, 1863. A reservation was -laid off, the necessary agency buildings were erected in a stockaded -inclosure, and the place was named Fort Thompson, in honor of Clark -W. Thompson, the Superintendent of Indian Affairs for the Northern -Superintendency. Mr. Thompson personally supervised the work of -locating the Indians on this new reservation. - -[Sidenote: STEAMBOATS IN SULLY’S CAMPAIGNS.] - -In the campaign of General Sully in 1863 he relied entirely upon -steamboats for transporting his supplies from Sioux City to the field -of operations, and one boat accompanied him from Fort Pierre well on -his way to the scene of actual hostilities. It was on this campaign -that General Sully impressed Captain La Barge’s boat, the _Shreveport_, -into his service for a time. - -The campaign of 1864 from Fort Rice to the Yellowstone River was -conducted in connection with steamboats. Three boats were sent around -into the Yellowstone to meet the troops at the Brasseau Houses. They -were loaded with rations, forage, and material for a new post which -it was proposed to build on the Yellowstone River near the mouth of -Powder River. These boats were the _Chippewa Falls_, the _Alone_, and -the _Island City_. The last-mentioned boat had all the forage for the -animals on board and was unfortunately wrecked just below the mouth of -the Yellowstone River. This occurrence caused General Sully to abandon -for the time his contemplated establishment on the Yellowstone. - -During the next twelve years steamboats were constantly in the service -of the government in transporting troops and supplies along the river. -It is impossible to estimate the great value in the military operations -of the valley of this important line of communication. Forts and -cantonments were strung all along the river from Fort Randall to Fort -Benton, and all of them, as well as the troops in the field, depended -for their support upon the river boats. The conquest of the Missouri -Valley would have been a very different matter had the government been -deprived of this important aid in its operations. - -[Sidenote: STEAMBOATS IN CAMPAIGN OF 1876.] - -In the Sioux campaign of 1876 steamboats bore a prominent part, one -of the very highest importance, and one which had its full share -of the thrilling incidents of that tragic conflict. A considerable -fleet of boats was sent up the river from Fort Abraham Lincoln to -co-operate with the troops under Terry, who marched across the country -to the Yellowstone. They not only carried supplies, but assisted in -patrolling the river to prevent the Indians from crossing, and moved -the troops from point to point as their services were needed. One boat -in particular, the _Far West_, Captain Grant Marsh, master, performed -a service which will go down in the history of the campaign as one of -its most thrilling episodes. - -[Sidenote: THE “FAR WEST.”] - -The _Far West_ was for a few days used by General Terry as his -headquarters boat while his command was moving up the Yellowstone to -the mouth of the Big Horn. The boat, after ferrying General Gibbon’s -command to the north bank of the Yellowstone, was directed to proceed -up the Big Horn, and, if possible, to reach the mouth of the Little Big -Horn. General Gibbon, being ill at the time, remained on the boat with -a company of infantry a part of the way, when he joined Terry’s column -and resumed command of his own troops. The _Far West_ ascended the Big -Horn fifteen miles above the mouth of the Little Big Horn and then -dropped down to that tributary. It remained there until the 30th, by -which time all the wounded from Reno’s fight had been placed on board, -and it then moved down to the Yellowstone, where it arrived on the -same day. Three days later it started down the river for Fort Abraham -Lincoln with all the wounded, and a volume of dispatches, official and -private, relating to the terrible tragedy of which the world had but -just been informed. The very nature of its mission made the voyage of -the _Far West_ one of romantic interest. Its cargo of wounded men, its -greater burden of news to anxious friends and an impatient public, all -mark it as one of the historic incidents of our Indian wars. The _Far -West_ arrived at Fort Lincoln July 5, about midnight.[70] - -[Sidenote: AN HISTORIC VOYAGE.] - -The _Far West_ returned from Fort Abraham Lincoln immediately after -she had discharged her cargo, and remained with other boats on the -Yellowstone until the subsiding waters made it impossible to navigate -that stream. Among these boats was another, well known to the army for -many years, and the only one of the old fleet that still survives. -This was the _Josephine_, which is now in the service of the government -as a snagboat in the work of keeping the upper river free from -obstructions. - -[Sidenote: A STRANGE LAND; AN UNKNOWN RIVER.] - -[Sidenote: DOWN THE SWIFT YELLOWSTONE.] - -[Sidenote: LA BARGE IN CUSTER CAMPAIGN.] - -Captain La Barge also saw service in the Custer campaign. The need -of a light-draft boat for use in the latter part of the season led -the authorities to engage his boat, the _John M. Chambers_, to carry -supplies to Fort Buford. The boat left St. Louis August 5 and reached -Buford September 11. The commissary stores were at once unloaded, with -the assistance of soldiers detailed for the purpose. General Terry and -staff, with a company of troops and a piece of artillery, were then -taken on board, and the boat started for Wolf Point in the hope of -heading off the Indians, who were reported to be in that vicinity. The -boat started early on the morning of the 12th. She proceeded about -thirty miles that day, having made a stop at Fort Union to put off -General Hazen and take on a supply of meat for the troops. Owing to the -low water she made only about twenty miles on the 13th. On the 14th the -party stopped to examine a broken-down ambulance on the shore. It was -found to have belonged to Reno’s troops, who were in pursuit of the -Indians. A little farther they came upon a party of seven men on their -way down the river from Montana, and through them news of Reno and the -Indians was received. These men had been terribly frightened the night -before. The boat had laid up near their camp and had thrown a shell -into a grove of cottonwoods to search for Indians. It struck near their -bivouac and almost paralyzed them with fright. They came on board next -day and went down by the boat on its return home. - -On the 15th the boat reached Reno’s camp. The Indians had already -crossed, and Captain La Barge immediately commenced ferrying Reno’s -command over. This work was accomplished before night, and the boat -left for Buford the following morning, with General Terry and staff and -270 men. Buford was reached on the 17th, and the boat was discharged. -She at once started on her return to St. Louis, where she arrived -October 8. - -[Sidenote: THE NEZ PERCÉ CAMPAIGN.] - -Strange as it may seem, considering the nature of a campaign like that -of 1877 against the Nez Percé Indians, the Missouri River steamboat -played an important, and perhaps a decisive, part in its operations. -Chief Joseph, in his long march from Idaho, had crossed the Yellowstone -National Park, and finding himself pursued and harried in every -direction, struck north for the British line. The pursuing troops, whom -he had so far eluded, he felt confident would not overtake him; but he -did not count on a danger which arose in a quite unexpected quarter. -General Miles, with about 350 men, was encamped on the Yellowstone at -the mouth of the Tongue River, where the news reached him that Indians -had crossed the Yellowstone farther up and were making for the British -line. He at once put his command in motion to intercept them. His first -objective was the Missouri River at the mouth of the Musselshell. As -soon as he came in sight of the river, scouts were sent on ahead to -stop any steamer that might happen along. By the greatest good fortune -the scouts reached the bank just as the last boat of the season was -passing down. Fifteen minutes later and she would have been gone. - -[Sidenote: TIMELY AID.] - -The troops were brought down to the river and ten days’ rations were -put on the boat and taken to the mouth of the Musselshell. The -officers of the boat stated that the Indians had not yet crossed the -Missouri, and General Miles accordingly decided to march up the valley -of the Musselshell to intercept them. The boat was discharged and -dropped downstream, stopping about a mile below to take on some wood. -While there, two men came down the river in a mackinaw and reported -that the Indians _had_ crossed the river, some eighty miles above, -and were making for the British line. General Miles instantly ordered -some cannon shots fired in the direction of the steamboat. A Captain -Baldwin, who had been sent down on account of sickness, was on board. -He at once understood that the boat was wanted, and caused her to -be brought back. The command was ferried over, and on the following -morning, September 27, set out to the northwest after the Indians. -They were overtaken on Snake Creek, where Chief Joseph was defeated -in battle, and the greater part of his people captured. This point -was within fifty miles of the boundary, and about one hundred of the -Indians actually got across the line. But for the timely aid of the -steamboat it is probable that the whole band would have escaped. - - - - -CHAPTER XXXIII. - -THE PEACE COMMISSION OF 1866. - - -[Sidenote: LOSS OF THE “EFFIE DEANS.”] - -We left Captain La Barge in 1865 just as he had returned from Montana -on his second journey by way of Great Salt Lake. His boat, the _Effie -Deans_, had reached St. Louis some time before he did. The boat was -still owned in partnership with John S. McCune and Eugene Jaccard. La -Barge tried to get full possession of her, offering, however, either -to buy or sell. Not being able to negotiate a purchase, he demanded a -dissolution of the partnership, and bought the boat in. He then put six -thousand dollars’ worth of repairs on her, and in the spring advertised -for a trip to Benton. He secured a full cargo, and had every prospect -of a profitable trip, when one of those sudden accidents overtook him -which were so common in the hazardous business he was carrying on. He -had hesitated a good deal about insuring the boat, and finally, upon -McCune’s advice, concluded not to do so. He felt safe if he could get -out of port, the greatest danger being from fire there. The insurance -rates were so high that it was a great object to avoid them, if -possible. It was on Friday that he had his talk with McCune and decided -not to insure. He was to start next morning. He mentioned to his wife -what he had done, and she, with a woman’s intuition, remonstrated -strongly, saying she knew he would repent it. About one o’clock next -morning the doorbell rang. La Barge raised the window and asked who -it was. “Watchman of the _Effie Deans_,” was the reply. “What is the -matter?” asked the Captain. “The _Effie Deans_ is burned up.” - -“The loss to me,” said Captain La Barge, “was difficult to reconcile, -from the fact of my having rejected insurance the day before, as well -as an offer of forty thousand dollars for the boat the same day. The -fire had been communicated to the boat from one of the neighboring -vessels, the _Nevada_, and was in no sense the fault of my crew. Next -morning Robert Campbell came down to the levee and said he understood -I had no insurance on the boat. I replied that such was the case. He -said that he had always put me down as a prudent man, but that such a -course showed great recklessness. I replied that I thought not; that -the loss was the fault of my neighbors, and not my own. ‘Well, if that -is any consolation, I have nothing more to say,’ he replied, and walked -away. His apparent indifference surprised me. I had done business with -him for many years, and had paid him as high as sixty thousand dollars -commissions. Now, in my misfortune, he did not as much as offer the -least assistance. - -[Sidenote: BUILDING OF THE “OCTAVIA.”] - -“Very different was the conduct of John S. McCune. He also came down -soon after Campbell left. He looked at the wreck, said it was most -unfortunate, talked very little, but told me to be early at his office -Monday morning. I called according to appointment. McCune said, ‘You -have got to have a new boat. Let us go down to the Marine Railway -Ways in Carondelet and see what we can do.’ We went down, saw the -superintendent, told him what we wanted, and asked him if he could -undertake the construction of a boat. He replied that he could, and -McCune told him to go ahead on my plans, and he would back me with -his credit. I drew the entire plans and specifications for the boat, -machinery and all, and she was built that summer accordingly. Before -I got back in the fall McCune had named her for me, but I renamed -her _Octavia_, for my second daughter. She cost fifty-seven thousand -dollars, and was a splendid boat. I paid for her partly in cash and -gave my notes for the balance.” - -[Sidenote: NORTHWESTERN TREATY COMMISSION.] - -In the meantime a commission had been appointed to go up the river and -make treaties with certain tribes of Indians in regard to the right of -way for railroads across their lands. It was officially known as the -Northwestern Treaty Commission, but was popularly referred to as the -Peace Commission of 1866. It was composed of Newton Edmunds, Governor -of Dakota Territory; General S. R. Curtis, a well-known officer of -the Iowa Volunteers; Orrin Guernsey, and the Rev. Henry W. Reed, who -so long figured as an Indian agent on the upper river. The Commission -were well provided with presents and proposed to travel in becoming -state. Captain La Barge had secured for the summer, while the _Octavia_ -was building, another boat, a fine new one, the _Ben Johnson_. The -Commission contracted with the Captain to carry them up the river and -back at three hundred dollars per day. One of the Commissioners wanted -the Captain to hire his son as clerk, or in some other capacity, at -five dollars per day. The Captain had made up his crew and did not care -to go to this extra and unnecessary expense. But as the Commissioner -rather insisted, the charter price was raised to $305 per day, and the -young man enjoyed a fat sinecure during the trip--an instance of the -kind of corruption which was almost universal in the period following -the war. - -[Sidenote: PEACE COMMISSION A FAILURE.] - -To Captain La Barge the voyage seemed more like a pleasure excursion -than a business enterprise. The boat moved by very leisurely stages, -always tying up early in the evening and starting late in the morning. -Whist and other games were the order of the day. Long stops were -made at all interesting points, and the party enjoyed exceptional -opportunities of seeing Indian life in all its wildness. As a means -of accomplishing any good, the Commission was looked upon from the -first by the people of the Missouri Valley as little more than a -farce. No end of ridicule was poured upon it, and it was held up -to the general contempt by those who had any definite acquaintance -with the situation. The Indians were generally loath to negotiate, -fearing that the Commission “would want them to sign some paper that -would take from them their lands and houses and oblige them to seek -new ones farther west.” It cannot be said that any good came from -this Commission--certainly nothing to justify its great expense. -It did without doubt create new complications, lead to increased -dissatisfaction on the part of the Indians, and, on the whole, -aggravate an already serious situation.[71] - -Some of the incidents on this trip had a flavor of danger about them, -and we shall narrate one as given us by Captain La Barge. It related -to an interview of the Commissioners with the Yanktonais, who were well -known as the most relentlessly hostile of any of the Sioux tribes. - -“Some twenty miles below the mouth of White Earth River,” said Captain -La Barge, “I saw two Indian hunters on the hills. I hailed them, -landed the steamer, asked them on board, and after feasting them -(an indispensable preliminary to the transaction of any business), -inquired if they were Yanktonais, and if so where were the rest of the -tribe. They replied in the affirmative, and said that their camp was -about ten miles off, on the White Earth River. The Chairman of the -Commission asked them to go to camp and tell the chiefs to move their -whole village down to the mouth of the White Earth and there await the -arrival of the boat for the purpose of holding a council. He inquired -the size of the village, and found it to be six hundred tepees, which -meant about three thousand Indians. - -[Sidenote: A VIGOROUS REMONSTRANCE.] - -“I remonstrated at this proposition, strongly urging that only the -chiefs be invited. Should so powerful a band of these hostile Indians -get any advantage of us they would certainly use it. We had no power of -resisting them, having only thirty people in all, and they were poorly -armed. The Indians would, I feared, make a rush and attempt to capture -the steamer as soon as we landed. Our interpreter, Zephyr Rencontre, -seconded me in this opinion. I had been in the power of these Indians -once before, and, thanks to Rencontre, I was wearing my hair on this -occasion. - -[Sidenote: AFRAID OF INDIANS.] - -“The Chairman of the Commission said he perceived that I was afraid of -the Indians, but not to be alarmed; he would answer for all harm. The -Indians would never dare molest a government officer. To me, who had -spent all my life among the Indians, this gratuitous insinuation from -a mere novice in Indian experience cut me to the quick, and I replied: -‘Very well, I will land as you say, but before we get through we shall -see who is afraid of Indians.’ - -“This was another instance of the mistakes made by our government in -the selection, to treat with the Indians, of men without knowledge of -the native character. It was a universal rule that such men would treat -with contempt the cautious bearing of those who knew the Indians; and -this ignorant bravado has many times led to disastrous consequences. -It is very unpleasant to act with such men, who ridicule one’s honest -knowledge of peril, and are powerless to help when they get you into -danger. It was also a common observation with me that the volunteer -officers of the war were always more haughty and overbearing than those -bred to the profession. They loved to assume, assert, and display -authority, where the trained soldier would see no occasion to do so. - -“I said to Curtis on this occasion, ‘This course is contrary to -my judgment, General; and in order not to be responsible for the -consequences I desire a positive order from you before I adopt it.’ He -gave me the order. The Indians arrived just as we were tying up the -boat. The women immediately commenced setting up the lodges and the men -began to rush on board. They were all armed. Curtis had said, when I -foretold this: ‘We will keep them off, only letting on those we want.’ -I replied, ‘You will see, General. It will be impossible to keep them -off.’ - -[Sidenote: MATTERS BECOME SERIOUS.] - -“As already stated, the Indians at once rushed on board, and -unfortunately did not congregate in one place, but scattered themselves -in every direction. Matters at once became serious. I was thoroughly -alarmed for the safety of the boat and her passengers, but remained -perfectly cool and indifferent in outward appearance, and did not -permit myself to resent the actions of the Indians. An act of that sort -might have precipitated difficulty. We were over a powder mine, and a -spark was liable to fall at any moment. The Indians became insolent, -would elbow us around, sneer at us, display their muscular arms, and -try in every way to provoke us to action. One Indian, an ugly fellow -and noted villain, Crazy Wolf, followed me everywhere I went, armed -with gun, pistol, and bow and arrows. He tried in every way to get me -to notice him. At this time I consulted with Zephyr on the situation, -saying that I feared trouble was brewing. He replied that he thought -so too, and that I had better prepare for prompt measures. I had steam -kept up. Pilot and engineer remained at their posts, and the mate was -kept forward. He had been instructed to cut the line whenever he should -hear a single tap of the bell. - -[Sidenote: FUTILE ATTEMPT AT NEGOTIATIONS.] - -“Meanwhile the Commissioners had been attempting negotiations, but to -little purpose. In front, on the boiler deck, there were a table and -seats for the principal Indians. Curtis tried to call them to order, -but without success. He then summoned Rencontre and tried to talk to -them. He told them he was about to roll some bales of goods on shore -and requested that they would withdraw and distribute them. They -answered to roll them on shore; the women would take care of them; for -their part they would remain on the boat. - -“Nothing whatever could be done. Matters became dubious. One by one the -Commissioners slipped away and locked themselves in their staterooms. -General Curtis was finally left alone, and after a while he also -withdrew, and told me to get out of the scrape as best I could. He -fully realized the gravity of the blunder he had made, and his own -inability to cope with the situation. - -[Sidenote: A SUDDEN PANIC.] - -[Sidenote: ENOUGH OF A GOOD THING.] - -“The Indians as yet had made no attempt on the staterooms, but they -were incensed at the withdrawal of the Commissioners and might do so -at any moment. Rencontre said to me, ‘The Indians don’t like this, -and will give us trouble. We had better do something right away.’ ‘Is -it time to cut loose?’ I asked. ‘I think so,’ he replied. I gave the -signal, the line was cut, the wheels began to turn backward and the -boat slid quickly from the bank. The sudden move astounded the Indians. -Those on shore seized the line and began pulling before they discovered -that it was cut. I knew they would not dare to fire, for fear of -shooting their own people. Those on the boat were panic-stricken and -began to leap overboard. I caused the nose of the boat to be held close -to shore so that they could get to land without drowning, and in a few -minutes the boat was clear of them. Then, reversing the engines, we -steered for the opposite shore and made the boat fast. The danger being -over, I went to Curtis’ room and told him it was safe for him to come -out. When he appeared I said: ‘Who is afraid of Indians now, General -Curtis?’ His only reply was: ‘Who would have thought that the rascals -would dare molest a government officer?’ They cared a good deal about a -government officer, indeed, and the remark showed how little he knew of -the Indian character. I asked the General if he wanted to make another -trial, but he replied that he had had enough. - -“No further attempt was made to treat with these Indians, and we went -on up the river. As on a previous occasion, the Indians followed us. -Durfee & Peck at this time had a post on the site where Fort Buford -later stood. The Indians made a signal from the opposite side of the -river that they had robes to sell, and the agent at the post wanted to -borrow our yawl to go across and get them. I consented, but advised -against it. They crossed and actually bought several hundred robes, but -just as the boat was about to put back, the Indians jumped upon the -crew, killed one, severely wounded another, and would have killed all, -had I not promptly crossed over with the steamboat to their assistance. -Mr. Durfee afterward thanked me very heartily for this action.” - -The Commissioners then went on to old Fort Union, where they remained -for a time treating with the Assiniboines, Crows, and Grosventres. -The Crows and the Grosventres came down by the steamboat _Miner_, -under promise that they should be taken back to their camp on the -Musselshell by boat. The river being too low to take so large a boat as -the _Ben Johnson_ farther up in safety, the Commission impressed into -their service, for the purpose of taking these Indians back, a small -boat, the _Amanda_, which was in the employ of the War Department. -She was then on her way up the river to meet Colonel Reeve, who was -expected back from the Judith, where he had just established a post. -The Crows and Grosventres, with their presents and with copies of the -new treaties, got on board and started up the river. The agent for -the Blackfeet, George B. Wright, was also on board on his way to Fort -Benton. - -[Sidenote: CROWS HAVE TO WALK.] - -At the mouth of the Milk River the _Amanda_ met Colonel Reeve, who -promptly took the boat into his own charge, put the Indians ashore -with their presents and other property, and left them to walk home. -The anger of the Crows was fired to a desperate pitch by this action. -They refused to take the presents, tore up some of the treaties, and -sent others back to the Commissioners, and declared that they would -henceforth fire upon every boat going up the river. Agent Wright -thought the situation too critical for him to attempt to go on overland -to Benton, so he returned with the boat and went to his station by way -of Omaha, Salt Lake, and Helena. The Commissioners criticised him -severely for this action, and he, on the other hand, charged them with -positive misrepresentation in regard to their work. They had already -prepared a report setting forth in glowing terms their success in -treating with the various tribes. Agent Wright had likewise written a -report of his experiences at the mouth of Milk River and the action of -the Crows in repudiating the treaties. As the two reports conflicted in -important matters the Commission requested, and finally prevailed upon, -Agent Wright to modify his report, so as to be in harmony with their -own. - -[Sidenote: MERCENARY PATRIOTISM.] - -After the business was completed at Fort Union the _Ben Johnson_ -turned her prow downstream and proceeded homeward by leisurely stages, -stopping at the various camps, agencies, and military posts. The -property remaining on the boat was put off partly at Yankton, partly -at Sioux City, and partly at Omaha. At Sioux City it was put off at -night. Captain La Barge knew nothing of it. Hearing the noise of -unloading he arose and went to see what was going on, and found the -crew unloading freight. He asked by whose orders they were doing this, -and they replied, those of the Commission. He said no more. It was -clearly the intention to conceal this move from him, and again he saw -how mercenary was the patriotism of many of our government officials. -The boat pursued her way safely to St. Louis, where she arrived late in -August. - -[Sidenote: THE “OCTAVIA” FINISHED.] - -Captain La Barge turned over the steamer to her owners and took -possession of his new boat, the _Octavia_, brought her to the wharf, -finished her construction, and left on her first trip October 1. He ran -in the lower river the rest of the season, and then on the Mississippi -until ice closed in. He laid up the boat for the winter at Kimmswick, -twenty miles below St. Louis. - - - - -CHAPTER XXXIV. - -THE MURDER OF CAPTAIN SPEAR. - - -The voyage of the _Octavia_ in the summer of 1867 was one of the most -successful and important in all Captain La Barge’s career on the river. -It was unhappily marred by a most revolting crime, committed on board, -but in other respects passed off without any untoward incident. Its -narrative will be presented in the Captain’s own words. - -“Early in the spring of 1867 I started in the Weston and St. Joseph -trade, and about April 1 advertised for a trip to Benton. Business on -the river seemed rather dull at this time, and people ridiculed me -for attempting a trip. But within two weeks my boat was filled; in -fact it was the largest trip I ever had up the river. I remember that -one morning, about two days prior to our departure. Captain Walker S. -Carter, a merchant of St. Louis, who was on the levee, said to me, -‘Have you got a trip?’ I replied, ‘More than I can carry.’ ‘It is -astonishing,’ said he. ‘Anybody else than you could not have got half -a trip.’ ‘That shows the value of a reputation,’ I replied. - -“This trip of the _Octavia_ was a very profitable one. The cargo was -composed entirely of private freight, Mr. W. M. McPherson having been -the successful bidder for government contracts. I had freight for -nearly every firm in Helena, besides a good list of passengers, among -whom was Green Clay Smith, newly appointed Governor of Montana, and -also the Surveyor General for the same Territory, Thomas E. Tutt, now -of the Third National of St. Louis, and Robert Donnell, now a New York -banker. - -[Sidenote: GENERAL SHERMAN.] - -[Sidenote: THE MCPHERSON CONTRACT.] - -[Sidenote: THE SHERMAN CONTRACT.] - -“An interesting incident took place just before the departure of the -boat in which no less a personage than General Sherman was concerned. -Colonel Thomas, Sherman’s Quartermaster, had contracted with W. M. -McPherson, as I have said, for all the season’s business up the -Missouri River. The _Octavia_ was to leave port on Tuesday, and on the -Saturday previous General Smith came on board and said to me, ‘Did I -not understand you to say that you had no government freight or troops -to transport this year?’ I answered in the affirmative--that McPherson -had the contract, and I would not carry for him. ‘Well,’ returned -General Smith, ‘I am just from General Sherman, where I went to apply -for an escort. I was told by the General that I would not need one, -for he was going to send a hundred men by the _Octavia_ to Camp Cook, -near the mouth of the Judith River, under Lieutenant Horrigan.’ To -confirm his statement he showed me a dispatch that he had just sent to -Omaha to have the men all ready, so as not to detain the boat beyond -a few minutes. This was a good deal of a surprise to me, as I had had -no intimation of such action, and had my boat about full. I told Smith -I would go and see Sherman about it, and did so at once. I found the -General in his office, and before I could tell him my business he said, -‘I know what you want,’ and he took down his dispatch book to show me -that he had taken all precautions not to cause me any delay. ‘But that -is not the question, General,’ I said; ‘I cannot take the troops.’ -‘Ah! that alters the case. Haven’t you room?’ I replied that I could -probably make room, but understood that this shipment was under the -McPherson contract. The General said it was. ‘Well then,’ I said, ‘I -will not carry them, for I will not work for McPherson.’ The General -asked my reasons. ‘Because McPherson will not pay enough for the -work,’ I said. ‘He gets a good price from the government, but the poor -steamboat man who does the work gets nothing for it. For example, he -gets fifty dollars per man to haul the troops to Camp Cook. He will pay -me fifteen and pocket thirty-five, and do no work nor take any risk. -I will not work for him on such terms.’ ‘I think you are perfectly -right,’ said the General. ‘In your place I would do the same thing. -But you will carry the troops up for General Sherman?’ I replied that -I would if he would contract with me individually and directly and -pay me the McPherson rates. ‘That’s fair,’ said he, and he called in -Thomas and told him to draw up a contract. ‘Well,’ said Thomas, ‘this -work is for McPherson to do under our contract with him. If you pay La -Barge you will also have to pay McPherson.’ Thomas wanted to argue the -matter, but Sherman shut him off by saying, ‘It’s no use, Thomas; you -just draw up that contract as I tell you to.’ And he did. - -[Sidenote: CAPTAIN SPEAR SHOT.] - -“The _Octavia_ left St. Louis Tuesday, May 7, 1867, on the most -important trip I ever made up the river. There were no incidents of -note until the boat reached Omaha, where the troops were taken on -board. We also received at this point a passenger in the person of -a Captain W. D. Spear, 79th Royal Rifles, an officer of the British -Army, on furlough from India. He was on his way to Salt Lake _via_ -the Missouri River, and was going thence to California. He seemed to -be a man of means. This embarkation of the troops and of this officer -was the prelude to one of the most distressing tragedies that ever -occurred on the Missouri River. The troops were mostly Irish Fenians, -and the Lieutenant in charge was an Irishman, all intensely hostile -to the English. This fact may in part explain what subsequently -transpired. Spear himself felt doubts for his safety, and one day -remarked to me that he would be lucky if he got out of this scrape -without accident. I did not know what he meant, for he was a very -fearless man, going on shore frequently in spite of danger from the -Indians. Just after midnight of the 7th of June, or more precisely -about 12.30 A. M. June 8, as Captain Spear and Joseph C. La Barge, -my son, were going up the steps to the hurricane deck, Captain Spear -being a little ahead, a sentinel, William Barry, stationed near -there, fired at Captain Spear, the bullet passing through his head at -the base of the brain and killing him instantly. The following day -an inquest was held by a committee of the passengers consisting of -Thomas E. Tutt, Green Clay Smith, Sam McLean, Richard Leach, T. H. -Eastman, Geo. W. McLean, and W. J. McCormick, Secretary. Several of the -passengers and crew were sworn and their testimony taken. No motive -could be discovered for the deed. The sentinel’s orders required him -to challenge only parties approaching the boat from the shore, and it -was expressly agreed with me, by Lieutenant Horrigan, as a condition -of permitting sentinels to be posted on the hurricane deck, that they -should not interfere in any way with the passengers. The finding of -the committee was that “the shooting was not in accordance with any -instructions given to said sentinel, and that he deserves the most -rigid punishment known to the law.” There was indeed a strong sentiment -among the passengers in favor of lynching him, but the military could -easily have prevented it, and everyone believed that he would meet with -due punishment in regular order. The sentinel was of course at once -relieved from duty and placed under arrest. - -[Sidenote: NEW METHOD OF EMBALMING.] - -“Our trip up the river was a dangerous one, owing to the intense -hostility of the Indians, but by taking great precautions no accidents -happened. I put off the remains of Captain Spear at Fort Buford to -await my return. I asked the commanding officer if he could suggest any -way of embalming the body. He advised the construction of a large box -and the filling of it with green cottonwood sawdust. The experiment -seemed to work well, although I had never heard of such a thing before. -The post commander refused to receive the prisoner, who was taken on -to Camp Cook. The commanding officer there refused to try him on the -ground that the crime had been committed in Dakota. He held him for us -to take back to Yankton. - -“The troops were left at Camp Cook and the boat went on to Benton. -I found many passengers for the down trip and great quantities of -golddust. I filled the office safe and every other available receptacle -with it. There were no incidents of especial importance on the return -trip. The soldier, Barry, was taken down to Yankton and there turned -over to the United States marshal, who held him until orders came from -Washington for his release, when he was sent back to his company. - -[Sidenote: TRIAL OF SPEARS MURDERER.] - -“I took Captain Spear’s remains back to St. Louis, where I found -telegrams directing the shipment of them to Europe. A Lieutenant Terry -of Spear’s company came to St. Louis to get full particulars of the -affair. I was then living with my family on the _Octavia_, and invited -him to stay there with me. He did so, and I gave him as full an account -as possible of Captain Spear’s death. When the news reached England -that the assassin had been released without trial, the government -promptly took up the matter and I understood that a demand was made -upon our government through Minister Thornton for a civil trial of the -soldier. This demand was complied with, and the man was tried before -Judge Kidder at Vermillion, Dak. Myself and several others went up -as witnesses. The evidence seemed to me overwhelmingly against the -accused, there being nothing in his favor except his own statement -that he acted in the line of his duty. The jury returned a verdict of -not guilty, upon instructions from the judge that the man had simply -obeyed his orders. They were given a verdict to sign written out by the -judge, and thus the culprit escaped. - -[Sidenote: TRAVESTY UPON JUSTICE.] - -“To us who knew the facts, this travesty upon justice seemed the -crowning outrage of the whole deplorable affair. Here was as -deliberate, cold-blooded, and unprovoked a murder as the annals of -crime afford, actuated unquestionably by the national hate of the -murderer for the country of the victim. The crime was considered by the -passengers as meriting the severest penalty of the law. The pretense -that the sentinel acted under orders had not the remotest foundation, -or if it had, it only made the officer _particeps criminis_. The final -outcome was the grossest miscarriage of justice which even frontier -annals afford, and it was unquestionably a justifiable ground for -reprisal on the part of the British government. Let those who lament -British obduracy in the case of Mrs. Maybrick ponder upon this far more -lamentable case of the unavenged death of Captain Spear. - -[Sidenote: PHENOMENAL SUCCESS.] - -“Upon my return to St. Louis I called upon McCune, who advised me to -attend promptly to my obligations for the construction of the boat, -which had now about matured. He offered to help me get them renewed. -I told him it was unnecessary, as I should take them all up and clear -the debt off. He was greatly surprised and delighted at the success -of my trip, which was indeed almost phenomenal. I made a clear profit -of forty-five thousand dollars between May 7, the date of leaving -St. Louis, and the date of my return. Yet it was a hard trip. The -responsibility was very great. I was heavily in debt for my boat. I -had on board three hundred passengers and three hundred tons of cargo. -The difficulties of Missouri River navigation, the dangers from the -Indians, and the many other contingencies of such a trip made it -wearing in the extreme. Many boats that had set out weeks before us -were passed on the way.[72] On the trip I was awake the greater part -of the time night and day. I kept up all right and stood the strain so -long as the excitement was on, but the moment we landed at Benton and I -knew the danger was over, I went to sleep and instructed my wife not to -awaken me even for meals. I slept almost continuously for twenty-four -hours.” - - - - -CHAPTER XXXV. - -THE BATTLE WITH THE RAILROADS. - - -The great enemy of the Missouri River steamboat was the railroad. The -impression now exists that the river has ceased to be a navigable -stream. It has ceased to be a navigated stream, but it is as navigable -as it ever was. Let it be known that all railroads in its valley will -cease running for a period of five years and there will be a thousand -boats on the river in less than six months. It is not a change in the -stream, but in methods of transportation, that has ruined the commerce -of the river. - -[Sidenote: ADVANCE OF THE RAILROADS.] - -The struggle between the steamboat and the railroad lasted just about -twenty-eight years, or from 1859--when the Hannibal and St. Joseph -railroad reached St. Joseph, Mo.--to 1887, when the Great Northern -reached Helena, Mont. The influence of the railroads had been felt -to some extent before this on the lower river. The Missouri Pacific -railroad, which parallels the river from St. Louis to Kansas City, was -opened to Jefferson City, March 13, 1856, but did not reach Kansas City -until ten years later. This road did not have much effect upon the -steamboat business of the river. Most of the boats ran far beyond the -points reached by the road, and would have kept on the river whether -the railroad were there or not. Being there, they secured a large part -of the freight, even along the line of the railroad. - -When the Hannibal and St. Joseph railroad reached the Missouri River at -St. Joseph in 1859, that town became an important terminus for river -commerce connected with the railroad. A line of packets including -three boats ran south to Kansas City and north to Sioux City, with -an occasional trip to Fort Randall. The first service of Captain La -Barge’s boat, the _Emilie_, was in this trade, in which he remained for -two years. - -The next point on the river reached by the railroads was at Council -Bluffs and Omaha. On the 15th of March, 1867, the Chicago and -Northwestern railroad reached the former place and on March 15, 1872, -the Union Pacific bridge was opened across the river. Omaha largely -supplanted St. Joseph in the upper river trade, and still further -restricted the business from St. Louis. - -The Sioux City and Pacific railroad entered Sioux City in 1868 from -Missouri Valley, thus connecting with Omaha and Chicago. In 1870 the -Illinois Central reached the same place directly across the State. -Sioux City became, and for a long time remained, a more important -river port than either St. Joseph or Omaha. All during the period of -the Indian wars, in the decade from 1870 to 1880 it was the great -shipping point for the army in all its work on the upper river. Even -the trade to Fort Benton was in great part transferred to this point, -and the St. Louis trade with that port suffered another severe falling -off. - -[Sidenote: FINISHING BLOWS.] - -And now its bold antagonist attacked the steamboat business on every -side. The Union Pacific railroad was opened to Ogden in 1869, and a -freight line was at once established through to Helena, thus diverting -south a large part of the business which had before gone to the river. -In 1872 the Northern Pacific reached Bismarck, and cut off nearly -all the upper river trade from Sioux City. In 1880 the Utah Northern -entered Montana from Ogden and captured a large share of the trade of -that Territory. In 1883 the Northern Pacific reached the valley of the -Upper Missouri, and virtually controlled all the business that had -hitherto gone to the Missouri River except the small proportion which -originated at Fort Benton and below to Bismarck. The final blow was -delivered to the river trade in 1887, when the Great Northern reached -Helena. - -[Sidenote: DOOM OF OLD FORT BENTON.] - -This was practically the end of the steamboat business on the Missouri -River, and the doom of old Fort Benton. A new town arose at the -Great Falls, under the fostering care of the railroad, absorbed most -of the former trade of Fort Benton, and grew into one of the largest -towns of the State. Fort Benton dropped rapidly into a condition of -decadence from which it has never recovered. In the meanwhile all the -regular steamboat owners withdrew from the river except the Benton -Transportation Company, which has maintained to the present day a very -small fleet of boats at Bismarck, N. D. It was a sad day for the marine -insurance companies when the fate of the river commerce was settled by -the railroads. Accidents occurred with astonishing certainty whenever -it was found that boats were no longer needed; and it was left to the -underwriters to close up the final account of this record of disaster. - -[Illustration: REMOVING SNAGS FROM THE MISSOURI] - -The last commercial boat that ever arrived at Fort Benton left that -port in 1890. The victory of the railroads was complete, and every year -since they have extended their lines still further into the valley -and along the shores of the river, gradually cutting off the small -local trade to points not yet reached by rail. The boat was never able -to compete with the locomotive. The river did not run in the right -direction. Mile for mile the transportation of freight upon it cost -more than by rail. As to passenger traffic--what could forty miles a -day do against four hundred! Nothing but the absolute exclusion of -railroads could save the steamboat, and the development of the country -made this as undesirable as it was impossible. - -[Sidenote: IMPROVEMENT OF THE MISSOURI RIVER.] - -In this long and hopeless struggle the steamboats found a strenuous -ally in the government of the United States, which cheerfully undertook -to alter the course of events and maintain a freight traffic along the -river. The history of government improvement work upon the Missouri -River is an instructive one. For many years it consisted solely in the -removal of snags and obstructions, and to this extent was a great and -unquestionable benefit. Of the hundreds of steamboats lost on the river -about seventy per cent. were lost from striking snags, and the removal -of these obstructions was therefore an obvious step of good policy. -Appropriations began to be made for the Missouri River jointly with -the Mississippi and the Ohio as early as 1832, but the first actual -work seems to have been done in 1838. In that year two snagboats, the -_Heliopolis_ and the _Archimedes_, ran up the river 325 miles and 385 -miles respectively, removing altogether 2245 snags and cutting 1710 -overhanging trees from the banks, at a total cost of twenty thousand -dollars. In this same year the river was examined as far up as Westport -(Kansas City), with a view of taking up the question of its general -improvement. The officer of Engineers who made this examination was -Captain Robert E. Lee. - -From this time on to 1879 appropriations continued to be made -jointly for the Mississippi, Missouri, Ohio, and Arkansas rivers, -with occasional lapses of one or more years. The work done under -these appropriations was exclusively the removal of snags, and was -undoubtedly of great value. It was done when the traffic on the river -was at its height, and it was therefore applied when and where needed. -There can be little doubt that the property saved by this work many -times repaid its cost. - -[Sidenote: A DOUBTFUL POLICY.] - -[Sidenote: DEAD BEYOND HOPE.] - -In 1879 the government began a general improvement of the river by -contracting its channel, so as to produce a greater depth at low water -and make navigation possible at all stages. It was a doubtful policy at -best, in view of the rapid and inevitable decline of traffic, but this -consideration seems only to have increased the determination to keep -boats on the river whether the interests of the public required them -there or not. The policy was kept up in ever-increasing measure, and in -1884 Congress created a Commission of five members to take the matter -in charge and conduct the work in a systematic way. A more fatuitous -course has rarely been adopted by any government than this attempt to -reverse the decrees of destiny and accomplish the impossible. Even at -that time the fate of Missouri River navigation was to most men as -clear as the flash of light in the night. It was dead beyond the hope -of resurrection, at least within another century. The desultory traffic -which existed here and there would not amount, in the total value of -the freight carried, to the appropriations made for facilitating its -transportation. - -Nevertheless, in face of this inevitable march of events, the problem -was taken up in earnest. Millions of dollars were appropriated, a -vast accumulation of plant was made, and an astonishing amount of -actual work accomplished. The result? So far as its influence upon the -commerce of the valley is concerned the same as if this money had been -used to build a railroad in Greenland. Not a boat more has followed -the river than if the work had not been done. From that point of -view it has all been wasted effort. From another viewpoint, however, -it has been of great benefit. It has protected many miles of river -front, saved from destruction thousands of acres of valuable bottom -lands, and millions of property on city fronts and along the lines of -railroads. It has developed some of the most effective methods known to -engineering for the control of alluvial rivers, and has made a solid -contribution to the advancement of science. From a purely engineering -point of view and its great value in the protection of property, the -work may be considered a success; from its influence upon the commerce -of the country, something very different. - -[Sidenote: MISSOURI RIVER COMMISSION.] - -For seventeen years the Missouri River Commission dragged out an -unnecessary existence, and was finally abolished by Act of Congress, -June 13, 1902. But the lesson, if a costly one, has been well learned. -So far as government work on the Missouri River is concerned, it will, -in the near future at least, be confined to two purposes. On the lower -stretches of the river it will be devoted to the protection of property -along the banks; in the upper course to the building of reservoirs and -canals, for the utilization of its waters in irrigation.[73] - -Thus the battle between the railroads on the one hand and the -steamboats, with their government ally, on the other, has resulted -in overwhelming victory for the former. It is a victory not to be -regretted. It is in line with progress. The country has passed beyond -any use that can come from transportation methods like those of the -Missouri River steamboat. It served its purpose and served it well. It -filled a great place in the early development of the Western country. -But its day has passed, and henceforth it will be of interest only to -lovers of history. - -[Illustration: “IMPROVING” THE MISSOURI RIVER] - - - - -CHAPTER XXXVI. - -LAST VOYAGES TO BENTON. - - -As soon as the ice broke up in the spring of 1868 Captain La Barge -commenced work on the river, and after two trips to St. Joseph -advertised for a trip to Benton. He received a good cargo and had -a fairly profitable voyage, but in no sense so satisfactory as the -year before. After his return in the fall to St. Louis he received -a proposition for the charter of the boat in the government river -work. Terms were arranged with General McComb of Cincinnati, through -Captain Charles R. Suter, who was later for many years in charge of the -government work on the Missouri River. Captain La Barge remained on the -boat, working for the government, during the rest of the season, when -he sold the boat to the Engineer Department for $40,000. - -[Sidenote: THE MISSOURI HIS HOME.] - -“And here,” said the Captain, “I have to record another of the great -mistakes of my life. I was now well ‘fixed,’ as the world goes. I had -the $40,000 which I had received for my boat. I had about $50,000 in -the bank. My home, forty acres in Cabanné place, was easily worth -$40,000 even at that time; and I was entirely out of debt. I had -thought much of retiring from the river and ought to have done so. It -was only too evident that the steamboat business on the Missouri had -seen its day. It had passed its meridian in the middle of the sixties, -and henceforth it was sure to decline. The reluctance of an active -man, still in the prime of life (I was fifty-three), to lay aside the -pursuits of a thrifty career, may have blinded my eyes to the certain -and early fate of the business I had been engaged in, and have led me -to hope that it would continue to be what it had been in the past. I -had no desire to go on any other river. The Missouri was my home. I had -grown up on it from childhood. I liked it, and knew I could not feel at -home on any other. - -“And so I unwisely concluded to continue at my old business, and went -into it on a larger scale than ever before. I built the _Emilie La -Barge_, a larger and finer boat even than the _Octavia_, costing me -$60,000. The hull was built on the Ohio and brought to St. Louis for -completion. This was in the winter of 1868–69.” - -Government business up the river was still very good, but competition -for it was getting closer, as other lines of steamboat trade declined, -and Captain La Barge failed to secure a contract. He went to work, -however, for the successful bidder and did a paying business during -the summer. He returned to St. Louis in September and made two trips -to New Orleans, when the boat was laid up until the spring of 1870. He -then entered into a contract with the government to transport Colonel -Gilbert and 480 men with over 400 tons of freight to Fort Buford. It -was a low-water season and the trip was slow and tedious; but the boat -got through all right. After his return Captain La Barge ran in the -lower river the balance of the season. But the profits were small, for -the railroads had thoroughly gotten the upper hand. There was no longer -any money in the lower river trade. - -[Sidenote: AN OPEN BAR.] - -“I recall a little incident that amused me somewhat while on this -summer’s trip,” said the Captain. “Colonel Gilbert was a strict -disciplinarian, yet withal much liked by his men. When he came on board -he told me that I need not close the bar on the boat unless I chose -to do so. If any of his men wanted a drink and had money to pay for -it, let them have it. ‘That’s something very unusual,’ said I, for -generally when troops were in transport I had to close the bar. ‘All -right, I’ll take my chances,’ he replied. ‘If any of them get drunk, -they will not get drunk again.’ I noted throughout the trip that there -was not a single drunken soldier, although the bar was open all the -time. - -[Sidenote: COLONEL AND LIEUTENANT.] - -“It was customary whenever we stopped to have a guard posted near the -gangway, and this was done on our arrival at Fort Randall. A guard -from the post was also ordered down, presumably to prevent the post -soldiers from getting on the boat. The young lieutenant in charge made -his way on board past Colonel Gilbert’s guard, on telling who he was. -He inquired of me for Colonel Gilbert, and I took him up and introduced -him. After a few minutes’ conversation he noticed the open bar on the -boat and some soldiers there, drinking. He said to Colonel Gilbert that -he would like to have the bar closed, as such were his orders. ‘Why -don’t you have it closed, then?’ said Colonel Gilbert bluntly. ‘Well, -I don’t like to order it when you are aboard with troops.’ ‘It suits -me to have it open,’ returned the Colonel. The lieutenant explained -that they were afraid that some of the post soldiers would get aboard -and get drunk. ‘You have a guard out there, haven’t you?’ asked the -Colonel. ‘Yes, sir.’ ‘Well, if they get past your guard they won’t -mine,’ and he turned and walked off, leaving the lieutenant quite -crestfallen at the encounter. - -“It was while we were here at Randall that I was subpœnaed by a United -States marshal to appear at the trial of the murderer of Captain Spear. -I had the greatest difficulty in getting permission to continue my -trip, although the trial was not to come off for several months. I had -to give $20,000 bonds for my appearance. - -[Sidenote: DISASTROUS CONTRACT.] - -“After my return to St. Louis that fall I made several Mississippi -River trips and laid the boat up late in the season. In the summer of -1871 I ran in what is called the Omaha line all the season. In the fall -I sold the boat for $30,000. She had paid me just about what she cost. -I remained at home all the winter of 1871–72, when I again got tired -of doing nothing; and being bred to the steamboat business, and not -daring to turn my hand to anything else, commenced building another -boat. She was completed by the middle of the summer, and named _De -Smet_, in honor of the distinguished Jesuit missionary. I at once took -a contract to transport freight from St. Louis to Shreveport, La., for -the construction of the Southern Pacific railroad. This enterprise -was disastrous in the extreme. I found the Red River without water -enough at the mouth for me to enter, all of it going down the Bayou -Atchafalaya. I did not get away from there until January, having had to -import one hundred mules at my own expense to get the freight through. -The enterprise was so disastrous that I was released from the contract. -I secured fifteen hundred bales of cotton for my return trip to St. -Louis, but the winter was severe and I was stopped by ice at Helena, -Ark., and had to send the freight on by rail. Take it all in all, the -season’s venture was a most ruinous one.” - -[Sidenote: AN OLD ACQUAINTANCE.] - -While engaged in this work Captain La Barge found it necessary to run -down to New Orleans with his boat. He went to transact some business -with Jesse K. Bell, a man closely connected with Mississippi River -business and a capitalist well known throughout the valley. While in -his office someone came in and asked to see Dave McCann. “What McCann -is that?” asked La Barge. “Dave McCann.” “Dave McCann?” “Yes. Do you -know him?” “I used to know a Dave McCann over forty years ago.” “Well, -I guess it’s the same man. Let’s see if he knows you,” and Bell sent -his servant to call McCann in. When La Barge was on the _Warrior_ -during the Blackhawk war in 1832 McCann was second engineer on the -boat. The two young men became intimately acquainted and very fond of -each other. They were together for a time during the cholera scourge -and promised to take care of each other if either were taken sick. -Finally their ways parted and neither had seen or heard of the other -since. McCann quickly appeared in Mr. Bell’s office and glanced at -where La Barge was sitting. “Well, if here isn’t Joe La Barge!” he -exclaimed, grasping his old associate by the hand. “And if this isn’t -Dave McCann!” was the Captain’s warm rejoinder. McCann was at the time -president of the Cotton Compress Company and of the New Orleans Foundry -Company. - -Captain La Barge did not reach St. Louis until February, 1873. He -remained there for a while and made a second, and this time profitable, -trip to Shreveport. He then advertised for Benton, secured a good -cargo, and made a successful trip. - -[Sidenote: INCIDENT AT FORT RICE.] - -[Sidenote: CUSTER AND STANLEY.] - -“An incident occurred on this voyage at Fort Rice,” said the Captain, -“which illustrates some traits of General Custer’s military character. -Custer was daily expected to arrive opposite Fort Rice, and General -Stanley, who was commanding there, wanted me to delay a day or two -and ferry him over. I made an arrangement with him to do this, and -when Custer arrived I crossed the river with an order from Stanley -to bring him over. I cleared the deck of the _De Smet_ entirely, and -rigged stages so that the horses and wagons could be driven directly on -board. As the command approached, I saw an officer come riding down, -clad in buckskin trousers from the seams of which a large fringe was -fluttering, red-topped boots, broad sombrero, large gauntlets, flowing -hair, and mounted on a spirited animal. I had never seen Custer, but -of course had heard a great deal of him, and there was no mistaking -this picture. I went out on the bank to meet him. He stopped his horse, -but did not get off. I said, ‘General Custer, I suppose?’ He nodded -assent. I showed him my order for the transportation of the command and -told him that if he would have the wagons brought down I would see to -their proper disposition on the boat. ‘Stand aside, sir,’ he replied; -‘my wagon-master will take charge of the boat and see to ferrying the -command over.’ ‘Not if I know myself,’ I replied, and started for the -boat. Custer sent for a guard to arrest me, but I took time by the -forelock, drew in the stage, and steamed across the river and reported -to General Stanley. Stanley immediately sent me back with an officer -and guard, who arrested Custer and brought him to his headquarters. - -“Custer seemed to me to be generally unpopular, that is, I rarely heard -him well spoken of. Stanley, on the other hand, always appeared to be a -gentleman of rare qualities, one who never forgot to treat a civilian -as a man--something that many officers were little disposed to do.” - -[Sidenote: LA BARGE IN ARREST.] - -While at Benton awaiting passengers for a return trip Captain La Barge -had some new experiences of the character of men who were delegated -by the government to do its business with the Indians. He was one day -arrested by Mr. C. D. Hard, deputy U. S. marshal, sub-Indian agent, -and special Indian detective at this point, on charge of selling -and trading whisky on Indian reservations. The second day afterward -Captain La Barge was brought up for examination, but not being allowed -to introduce any evidence in his own behalf, made no effort to clear -himself. The agent then seized his boat in the following words: “I -seize the boat as sub-Indian agent, and turn her over to myself as -deputy marshal for safe keeping.” Being requested to produce papers -for such a proceeding, he replied that verbal seizure was sufficient -for him, and others would have to accommodate themselves accordingly. -He immediately placed a fellow criminal over the boat and applied -to Captain Kirtland, the military officer in charge, for a squad of -soldiers to aid him in his rascality. This request was peremptorily -refused. Hard became very insolent and abusive after the seizure, and -it was soon evident that the object of himself and his confederates was -to levy blackmail upon the Captain. Being determined to defeat this -outrageous scheme, he left for Helena to consult legal authorities. - -When Captain La Barge reached Helena he had no difficulty in securing -a telegraphic order from Chief Justice Wade, of the Territory, -directing the release of the boat, and he returned to Benton and -resumed possession of her, much to the chagrin of the authors of this -high-handed proceeding. This virtuous public officer had endeavored to -work a similar game on another boat the same season, but was defeated -by some of the passengers. - -The boat had been detained by this incident upward of two weeks, and -it was not until the middle of July that she set out on her return -trip. Among the passengers was the family of Colonel Wilbur F. Sanders, -already known in these pages as counsel for the plaintiffs in the case -against La Barge, Harkness & Co. The Captain and he were always on good -terms, however, and their former relations had nothing to do with their -subsequent friendship. - -[Sidenote: A SERVICE REWARDED.] - -On the way up the river this season two Catholic Sisters came on -board on a begging visit in the interest of the Chicopee Mission in -Minnesota. The Captain gave them passage to Benton and back. They -visited Helena and Virginia City, and were very successful. They came -back from Helena with the Sanders family and returned to Sioux City. -About a month later Captain La Barge received by express a beautiful -specimen of needlework handsomely framed, representing St. Joseph. It -is still in the possession of the La Barge family. - -[Sidenote: LA BARGE SELLS HIS BOAT.] - -After Captain La Barge’s return to St. Louis he entered the Alton -trade, and made daily trips in opposition to the Eagle Packet Company. -He entered the same trade again in 1874 under an arrangement with John -S. McCune, who had long controlled the trade on this part of the river. -But in March of this year, while Mr. McCune was in Jefferson City to -settle some details in regard to the sale of lands constituting the -present Forest Park of the City of St. Louis, he was taken sick with -pneumonia and died one day after his return to St. Louis. This broke up -all the Captain’s plans, and as he was not able, unaided, to compete -with the Eagle Packet Company, he sold his boat to them. - -Captain La Barge spent the remainder of the season in St. Louis, and in -the fall commenced building a new boat, which he christened the _John -M. Chambers_, in honor of the infant son of B. M. Chambers, President -of the Butchers’ and Drovers’ Bank. The boat was ready for use in the -spring of 1877. Captain La Barge made a trip as far as to Fort Rice, -loaded mainly with quartermaster stores. He then entered the Yankton -trade, that being at the time an important terminus for the declining -river business. Certain defects in the boat’s machinery, which could -not be remedied at Yankton, compelled an early return to St. Louis -and the loss of some important work. Captain La Barge remained in St. -Louis until the following spring. He then returned to Yankton under -a government contract to transport goods from that point. He finished -this work early, but had scarcely returned to St. Louis when he was -called upon to go up the river again, as we have elsewhere related, for -service in the Custer campaign. - -[Sidenote: LAST COMMERCIAL VOYAGE.] - -In 1877 La Barge took the _Chambers_ as far up the Missouri as to the -mouth of the Yellowstone, and up the latter stream to the mouth of -Tongue River. In the following year he made a trip to Benton, arriving -there on the 4th day of June. This is believed to have been the last -commercial trip from St. Louis to Fort Benton. Upon his return to St. -Louis he sold his boat and retired permanently from the business of -boat owner and builder. He served as pilot on the lower river during -the summer of 1879, and then finally withdrew from connection with -commercial boating on the Missouri. - -[Sidenote: LA BARGE RETIRES FROM THE RIVER.] - -From 1880 to 1885 Captain La Barge was in the service of the government -as pilot of the steamer _Missouri_, which was then engaged in making -a survey of the river valley. This duty was little enough like the -active business of his better days. It was filled with reminiscences of -his past career which could not but bring regretful reflections. His -intimate knowledge of the river was of great help in recovering the -proper geographical nomenclature of the valley, and might have been -of far greater value had the surveyor under whose charge he worked -possessed an ordinary appreciation of the mine of knowledge which lay -at his disposal. In 1885 the boat was taken from St. Louis to Fort -Benton, this being the very last through trip ever made. The year 1885 -closed Captain La Barge’s career on the Missouri River, and he took his -hand from the wheel after a record of service unequaled by any other -pilot in its history. Three years more than half a century had elapsed -since he made his first voyage up the river. - - - - -CHAPTER XXXVII. - -DECLINING YEARS. - - -It is a sad reflection that, after a life of hard and useful work and -the prominent part he took in up-building the great West, Captain La -Barge should have closed his career in comparative want. But such were -the vicissitudes of the business to which his life had been devoted. -That business had passed away, and like a sinking ship it dragged down -all who clung to it. Captain La Barge struggled bravely against these -adverse conditions, but it was impossible to withstand the downward -tendency. - -[Illustration: STEAMBOAT WRECK ON THE MISSOURI RIVER] - -From 1890 to 1894 Captain La Barge held a position under the city -government of St. Louis. His very last remunerative work of any kind -was for the United States Government, under the direction of the author -of this work, whom he helped compile a list of the steamboat wrecks -which have occurred on the Missouri River. This work was done in the -year 1897, and was published as a part of the report of the Missouri -River Commission for that year. Although the number of these wrecks -lacks but five of three hundred, the Captain’s memory embraced them -nearly all, and most of them with great accuracy of detail. - -[Sidenote: GREATEST WRECK OF ALL.] - -Truly a mournful task was this to the veteran pilot. What reminiscences -of a strange and wonderful past did it bring to mind! He lived over -again his river life of fifty years, saw the old keelboat, the -mackinaw, and the canoe, dodged again the bullets of the treacherous -savages, killed the wild buffalo, sparred his boat over sandbars or -warped it up the rapids, beheld again the wild rush to the gold fields, -heard the tramp of the army going to battle on the plains, and mused -upon a thousand other features of a life that existed no more. And as -he recalled one by one these wrecks of a once flourishing business, -he could not but reflect that the greatest wreck of all was the -business itself. It was gone--buried so deep in the sands of commercial -competition that not even the pennant staff or smokestack caused a -ripple on the surface--passengers, cargo, and all that clung to her a -total loss. - -Captain La Barge survived most of his associates in the river business, -and in his later years was frequently consulted by those who had -occasion to recover facts concerning the early history of the river. -He lived only about two years after the completion of his work for the -government. He had grown visibly feebler during this time, and it was -apparent to those who knew him that the end of his life was near. It -came at last, however, quite unexpectedly. He was taken suddenly ill on -the 2d of April, 1899, and at 3 P. M. of the following day breathed his -last. - -[Sidenote: JESUITS HONOR LA BARGE.] - -The funeral of Captain La Barge was from the St. Xavier Cathedral in -St. Louis, and was largely attended. The Jesuits were under a deep debt -of gratitude to the Captain, who, throughout his career, had extended -to their missionaries the freedom of his boats. Through mistaken -information they had often credited this generosity to the American Fur -Company, for which Captain La Barge worked so much. Upon discovering -their error they made due acknowledgment of it, and upon this occasion -made a particular point to correct it and to acknowledge their lasting -debt to the great pilot. It was probably in line with this purpose that -the Church paid to the deceased its very highest honors. On Thursday -morning, April 6, solemn high mass was celebrated at the Cathedral for -the repose of the soul. Archbishop Kain, assisted by eight priests, -officiated at the mass. Six grandsons of the deceased acted as pall -bearers. Father Walter H. Hill, a lifelong friend of Captain La Barge, -preached the funeral sermon. In the course of his remarks he said: -“Captain La Barge led an honorable life. In the eyes of the Church to -which he belonged he led a good life. There was no stigma upon his -name. No vice marred his character to bring the blush of shame to his -children. His life was an example of which they might well be proud.” - -[Sidenote: A WONDERFUL METAMORPHOSIS.] - -The speaker drew an interesting picture of the changes that had taken -place in the city of St. Louis and in the great West within the span -of this man’s life. In his infancy he had actually been in peril from -the Indians in what are now the outskirts of the city. Then luxury and -plenty, as we now know them, had no existence. The mother cared for -her children and did the work of the house. The candle and not the -incandescent furnished light at night. Water was pumped from the well -and people did not ride to and from their business in swift electric -cars. In the words of a local paper, commenting upon the Captain’s -career, “He passed through all the gradations and progressive steps -of the century until in its very last year the sun of his life set -forever, and his expiring gaze beheld a little village grown to a great -metropolis, enmeshed in a perfect tangle of railways, factories, and -furnaces, teeming with busy activity, converting the crude material -into every possible contrivance imaginable for the use of man; palatial -mansions where, in his youth, was a wilderness; in short, every -improvement that the brain of man had wrought.” - -Father Hill illustrated this marvelous growth by a reference to the -growth of his own Church in St. Louis: “As I stand here to-day,” he -said, “to pay the last sad tribute of respect to the memory of the -friend of my early youth, I cannot help thinking of the marvelous -changes that have been wrought in the last eighty-four years. On the -evening of October 22, 1815, a mother entered a little frame church -on the banks of the Mississippi, bearing an infant in her arms. The -parent had come to have the child baptized. Tallow candles lighted her -way through the aisle to the rude altar where the ceremony was to be -performed. To-day the remains of that babe, grown to manhood’s estate -and full of years, lie before me. The spirit now dwells in his Father’s -house. At the christening were only the most primitive conveniences; -at the burial services his remains rest in a magnificent granite -structure; hundreds of electric lights glare upon the dead; hundreds of -heads are bowed in silent prayer. Which of us can ponder for an instant -upon the span of this life and not be bewildered at the contemplation?” - -[Sidenote: A FIT RESTING PLACE.] - -Captain La Barge was buried in the beautiful Calvary Cemetery, which -lies adjacent to the even more beautiful Bellefontaine Cemetery in -the northern part of the City of St. Louis. His grave is within a -short distance of where he spent his earliest infancy, and is in all -respects a peculiarly appropriate resting place after a life like -his. To the eastward, in full view where not cut off by the foliage, -flows the mighty Mississippi. To the northward the impetuous Missouri -brings down its flood from the dim and shadowy distance. How often had -this individual guided his intrepid bark up the channels of these two -streams, headed for remote and almost unknown ports, and anon, gliding -swiftly on his homeward journey, sped eastward into the Mississippi and -south to the port to which he always returned. Standing by his grave -and overlooking the valleys of these streams, their history through the -past two centuries thrills the mind like a romance of the past. - -[Sidenote: PERSONAL APPEARANCE.] - -In personal appearance Captain La Barge was one of the most -distinguished-looking men of the West in his time. He stood five feet -ten, was well proportioned, weighed about 180 pounds, was erect, -muscular, and alert, with a sharp, quick eye and a quiet energy in -all his movements. He always wore a beard after reaching manhood’s -estate, and in later years bore a striking resemblance to General -Grant. Colonel Thomas of the army, long stationed in St. Louis, always -addressed him by the name, Grant; and only a few years before his death -a gentleman met him on the street and said, “Well, if I did not know -Grant is dead, I should say there he comes.” - -[Sidenote: SUNSHINE AND TEMPEST.] - -Captain La Barge’s manner in social intercourse was mild and agreeable, -and his accent pleasant to a degree. It was a satisfaction to hear him -talk. Although almost invariably soft and unobtrusive, his voice would -occasionally swell, under the influence of emotion, until it possessed -all the power of command. It is said that this characteristic marked -his entire career. His men were not deceived by it. They never dared to -take undue advantage of the sunshine of his manner, lest they call down -upon them the thunder of the tempest. - -Captain La Barge was a lifelong, consistent Catholic in religion, and -in politics a lifelong, consistent Democrat. - - - - -CHAPTER XXXVIII. - -DESTINY OF THE MISSOURI RIVER. - - -What of the future? Is the useful purpose of the Missouri River in -the up-building of the West already fulfilled? Is its great history a -closed book? Such, it must be admitted, is the general view. In popular -estimation that river to-day is little more than a vast sewer, whose -seething, eddying waters bear down the sands and clay and débris from -the far upper country, scattering them along its course, swelling -the floods of the Mississippi, and pushing ever seaward the delta of -that mighty stream. To the railroads it is a million-dollar obstacle -wherever they want to cross it. As a competitive route of commerce it -has sunk beneath their notice. To the husbandman along its borders it -is a perpetual nightmare, for he knows not what morning he may awake -to find his worldly possessions ruthlessly swept away. From all points -of view it now seems like one of those things in the economy of nature -which could be dispensed with and the world be none the worse for its -absence. - -[Sidenote: PAST AND PRESENT.] - -Nevertheless the river is still there--a fact, a thing to be reckoned -with in some way or other. It will not let its presence be forgotten. -In its old-time fashion it carves up the lands, but with vastly greater -destructiveness now that they have become so valuable. Its terrible -ice gorges pile up as of yore, but are now more dreaded than they used -to be on account of the property along the banks. In other respects as -well it is the same peculiar stream that it has ever been. The weird -sandstorms drive over its illimitable bars, the willows bend to the -blast, and the swift-rolling waters are lashed into foam by the prairie -gale. In periods of calm its silvery sheen stretches away under the -morning and evening sun as when the pilot followed its interminable -windings through the prairies; and its resistless tide rushes on, as in -the blithe steamboat days, when it carried upon its bosom the commerce -of the valley. - -But here the likeness between the past and present ends. No aboriginal -savage now roams upon its borders. The buffalo does not come to its -shore to quench his thirst, or to swim its current, or to cross upon -its ice. The lonely dwellers of the valley have long since ceased -to watch the eastern horizon where the river runs into the sky, for -the curling smoke no longer tells them of the approach of those -white-winged messengers of civilization, the Missouri River steamboats. -They are gone, its greatness and glory, never, in their ancient form, -to return. - -[Sidenote: THE GERM OF EMPIRE.] - -But the river itself is still there, and those who dwell on its shores -refuse to believe that its power for good has passed away. For years -they have wistfully looked upon its waters, flowing by in absolute -waste, and then upon the rich lands on either side, parching in a -rainless climate. A vague hope of what the river _may_ be already -possesses their minds. Does it not hold the secret germ of a mighty -future empire? Twenty-five millions of people these wasted waters could -sustain, if only they could be scattered upon the neighboring lands. -With great canals to divert them from the river, with great reservoirs -to keep them from going to waste, there would follow the necessary -millions of money and men to turn them to proper account. - -This is the dream. Can it be realized, or must it always remain nothing -more than a dream? It is an engineering problem purely. The grand -desideratum would be that everywhere, whether upon the main stream or -its tributaries, the water could be saved and used in irrigation. But -the obstacles in the way of so complete a result seem at present almost -insurmountable. The higher tributaries can doubtless all be utilized, -but the main streams, in their lower courses, have so little fall that -it will be very difficult to build canals of sufficient length to get -the water upon the higher ground. Whether the water will ever have a -value that will justify pumping it to the necessary elevation it would -be unwise at present to hazard a conjecture. But even if not more than -half can be utilized, it will still be enough to maintain a population -equal to that at present existing in the entire arid region of the West. - -[Sidenote: A MIGHTY FUTURE.] - -Here, then, is the answer to our question--What of the future? Turn -this river out upon the lands. Unlock its imprisoned power. Where the -rains do not fall let it supply the need. Then the new and greater -history of the Missouri River will begin. Utility will take the place -of romance. The buffalo, the Indian, the steamboat, the gold-seeker, -the soldier, will be seen in its valley no more, but in their stead -the culture and comfort, and the thousand blessings that come with -civilization. Such, let us hope, in drawing the curtain over a mighty -past, will be the consummation of a still more mighty future.[74] - - - - -FOOTNOTES - - -[44] The fact of this attack on the _Sam Gaty_ has been questioned by -some; but there would seem to be no doubt of its truth in all essential -details. - -[45] Brother of Susan B. Anthony, and at the present date editor of the -Leavenworth _Times_. - -[46] This was the opinion naturally held by Southern sympathizers in -Missouri. The unbending will of this stern and ardent patriot would -overbear and crush without compunction anyone who had even a taint of -disloyalty about him. Though La Barge had taken a stand which was quite -as honorable, and more self-sacrificing than that of Lyon, still the -latter could not forget that the Captain’s environment and training had -made him more sympathetic with the Southern cause than a Northerner -could possibly be. Lyon’s temperament, moreover, aggravated the -severity of his patriotism. He was not popular with his associates in -the old army on account of his overbearing disposition. - -[47] Fisk repeated the expedition several times. It virtually amounted -to emigration at government expense. The military authorities did not -think much of either Fisk or his scheme, and officially denounced -both. Thus General Sully, September 9, 1864: “Why will the government -continue to act so foolishly, sending out emigrant trains at great -expense? Do they know that most of the men that go are persons running -away from the draft?” - -[48] In 1866 the _Deer Lodge_, which left Benton about May 20, met the -following boats on her way down: _St. John_ and _Cora_ at Fort Benton; -_Waverly_ at Eagle Creek; _Mollie Dozier_ and _W. J. Lewis_ at Fort -Galpin; _Marcella_ at Fort Charles; _Big Horn_, above Big Muddy; _Only -Chance_ 30 miles below Union; _Favorite_ and _Ontario_ 70 miles below; -_Tacony_ and _Iron City_ 130 miles below; _Amelia Poe_ and _Walter -B. Dance_ near White Earth River; _Jennie Brown_, _Peter Balen_, and -_Gold Finch_ in Big Bend; _Miner_ below Fort Clark; _Luella_ above -Fort Rice; _Helena_ at Fort Rice; _Tom Stevens_ 40 miles below Fort -Rice; _Huntsville_ at Grand River; _Lillie Martin_ at Island below -Grand River; _Sunset_ 20 miles below Swan Lake Bend; _Agnes_ at Devil’s -Island; _Ned Tracy_ and _Mary McDonald_ above Big Cheyenne; _Marion_ 30 -miles above Fort Sully; _Jennie Lewis_ above Pierre; _Gallatin_ below -Fort Sully; _Rubicon_ at Cadet Island; _Lexington_ above Great Bend; -_Montana_ below Crow Creek; and _Ben Johnson_ at Bon Homme Island. - -[49] The names were N. W. Burroughs, George Friend, Franklin Friend, -Abraham Low, James H. Lyons, Harry Martin, Frank Angevine, George -Allen, James Andrews, and James Perie (colored). - -[50] This account is taken from the published narrative of Mr. Hubbell -in the St. Paul _Pioneer Press_ of December 11, 1898. Mr. Hubbell has -published several most interesting and valuable accounts in the St. -Paul papers of his early experiences as a Missouri River trader. - -[51] “The _Ida Stockdale_ reached Fort Benton June 29, 1867. She could -not have returned to Trover Point before the 1st or 2d of July. The -_Sunset_ picked up the boy July 11. The time that he was alleged -to have been lost could therefore not have been far wrong, and the -distance he traveled is known with accuracy.” - -[52] “The _Spread Eagle_ is just along side of us and we are having -a race, probably the first ever run on the upper Missouri. She -passed us and then we passed her, when she ran into us, breaking our -guard and doing some other damage. There was a good deal of angry -talk.”--_Harkness’ Journal_. (This journal of the voyage of 1862 and of -Harkness’ trip to the mines and his return to St. Louis is published in -the Proceedings of the Montana Historical Society, vol. ii.) - -[53] See page 122. - -[54] What is now the town of Deer Lodge, Mont., was first named La -Barge City, and was so known for about two years. The name was given -by two friends of Captain La Barge, John S. Pemberton of St. Louis and -Leon Quesnelle, a descendant of the Quesnelle who seems to have been -the first permanent settler at Bellevue, Neb. Quesnelle had been in the -Deer Lodge Valley for some time, and had a ranch near where the town -was afterward built. Two years later the town site was organized by -James Stuart and others, surveyed and laid out by W. W. De Lacy, and -rechristened Deer Lodge. The original town site plot of La Barge City -is in possession of the Montana Historical Society. - -[55] Letter from S. N. Latta, agent, to W. P. Dole, Commissioner Indian -Affairs, dated Yankton, Dak., August 27, 1863. See report Com. Ind. -Affs., 1863, p. 170. - -[56] The two Indian agents profess in their reports not to have -anticipated any trouble. Latta would hardly have ordered the yawl out -if he had suspected what actually occurred. Reed, the Blackfoot agent, -says that they “continued to hollow to us for some time, and showed -great signs of friendship, and wanted us to come ashore.” The sum of -it all is that the two men who were officially in charge of the trip -entirely failed to understand the gravity of the situation, which was -thoroughly appreciated by those, like Culbertson and La Barge, who had -had long experience with the Indians. The sending of the yawl and the -consequences which followed must ever remain charged to the account of -Samuel N. Latta, Indian Agent. - -[57] The account of what happened from the time the yawl left the -_Robert Campbell_ until it returned was given to the author in an -interview with Andy Stinger, the steersman and rescuer of the party. - -[58] - - “KNOB VIEW, CRAWFORD, CO., MO. - Sept. 2, 1896. - - “MY DEAR OLD CAPTAIN - “JOSEPH LA BARGE, - -“_My Dear Friend_: I should like to hear from you whether you are still -in the land of the living. Thank God for his mercies. Dear Captain I -should be happy to be with you a few hours and have a good talk over -the hardships of our past life steamboating, especially on the _Robert -Campbell_ in 1863 going to the mountains. It would give me great -pleasure to see you and all your family once more. It is a great many -years since I have heard anything from you. Please let me hear from you -soon. My love and friendship to you and all your family. I remain your -true friend untill death. From the Hero of the Tobacco Garden on _Bob -Campbell_ in 1863. - - “WM. ANDY STINGER. - - “P. S. Address - “Wm. A. Stinger, - “Knob View, Crawford Co. Mo. - -“Farewell Dear Captain. May God bless you all with health and strength.” - -[59] There are numerous authorities upon the affair of the Tobacco -Garden. The reports of both the agents Latta and Reed describe it. -Henry A. Boller, in his “Among the Indians,” describes it at length, -as does Larpenteur in his “Forty Years a Fur Trader.” The testimony of -Captain La Barge and Andy Stinger, who in each other’s presence related -the matter to the author, is here produced for the first time. - -In his edition of “Larpenteur’s Journal,” referred to above, p. 352, -Dr. Elliott Coues makes the following statement: “I have offered in -writing to Captain Joseph La Barge to print in this connection any -statement concerning the affair that he might wish to make and would be -willing to sign; but up to date of going to press have not heard from -him.” - -The inference from this is that Captain La Barge could not controvert -Larpenteur’s statements, or he would have done so when the opportunity -was given. This offer was sent to Captain La Barge through the author -of the present work. The old gentleman retained in his old age the same -spirit of haughty disdain for willful attempts to injure the reputation -of others that characterized his whole life, and he indignantly refused -to notice the matter. “Time will set this right,” he said. The truth is -that Charles Larpenteur, although very long in the Indian country, was -never a man of high standing there, and proved a failure in whatever he -undertook. Like all such men, he nursed the delusion that the world was -in league against him, and he took advantage of the opportunity offered -by the preparation of his memoirs to even matters up. Nearly everyone -with whom he deals comes in for a round measure of abuse, until one -is led to believe that Larpenteur was a saint, solitary and forlorn, -wandering disconsolate among the children of Beelzebub. Larpenteur -was probably an honest man in his business relations, but never an -able man, and his attempts to account for the consequences of his own -deficiencies by attributing them to the rascality of others, does not -add to the value of his memoirs as historical material. Bad as the -early population of that country was, it was not entirely composed of -scoundrels. - -[60] This was the same man who served as clerk to Captain Bonneville in -the latter’s celebrated expeditions. He died March 15, 1864. - -[61] Following are the official reports of Agents Latta and Reed upon -this event: - -Report of Judge Latta, p. 164, Report Com. Ind. Aff., 1863. “The Crow -goods, as I have informed you [Commissioner Dole], were stored at Fort -Union by the steamer _Shreveport_. When the _Robert Campbell_ reached -the mouth of the Yellowstone, she could get no further, there being -only two feet of water in the channel above, it requiring five trips -of the steamer _Shreveport_ to convey the _Campbell’s_ freight to Fort -Union some six miles above. We found it utterly impossible to proceed -any further. The _Shreveport_, though a light-draught boat, could not -have passed up empty.” - -Report of Dr. Reed, p. 172, Report Com. Ind. Aff., 1863. “We got to -the mouth of the Yellowstone River after the most untiring efforts, -especially on the part of Captain La Barge, who seemed to know the only -channel in the Missouri, about the 7th of July. After passing the mouth -of the Yellowstone, it was found that the Missouri River was extremely -low; indeed lower than ever known at this season of the year. It was -found that even the _Shreveport_, a light-draught and small boat, could -scarcely get up to Fort Union with any load at all, and as the river -has been constantly falling, it was ascertained that there was no hope -at all of getting to Milk River, the next fort above. Chouteau, with -a light-draught boat and not a large load, had just left his goods on -the bank, not being able to get up to Milk River fort. Under these -circumstances, especially as there were no teams at Fort Union and -the Indians (Sioux) were all through the country, so that no company -could go either with a mackinaw boat or by land, with any safety, -except under escort, it was thought not only advisable but the only -course, to stow away the goods, and leave them until next spring at -Fort Union. The man in charge of the fort said there was an abundance -of room, and there would be no danger unless the Indians should attack -the fort; then the goods would have to share the lot of all the other -goods and the people of the fort. The goods are all safely stored and -every prospect of everything being right. Of course Captain La Barge is -responsible, as the Blackfeet goods are not to their destination nor -the bills of lading receipted; though I must say I never saw men more -anxious to get up, nor do more night and day, to get along; and could -the goods have been at St. Louis by the 10th or 12th of April, they no -doubt would have all been distributed by this time.” - -[62] - - Blackfoot annuities, 142,862 lbs., freight St. Louis - to Fort Benton, at 11 cents per pound, $15,714.82 - Crow annuities, 12,572 lbs., freight St. Louis to - the mouth of Milk River, at 8 cents, 1,005.76 - Demurrage, 33 days at $300 per day, 9,900.00 - ---------- - $26,620.58 - Only payment ever received on this claim, 7,206.55 - ---------- - Balance unpaid, $19,414.03 - -[63] Galpin’s mission to Washington was to secure reimbursement of a -ransom which he had paid for the liberation of a white female prisoner, -who had been captured the year before at the time of the Minnesota -massacres. Galpin had been sent by La Barge from Fort La Framboise to -rescue the prisoner, and had been compelled to pay fifteen hundred -dollars. Captain La Barge took her down in his boat to Sioux City, -whence she was sent home. He had Galpin go with him to Washington to -assist in presenting the matter to the Bureau of Indian Affairs. The -ransom money was reimbursed in full. - -[64] “What consideration will induce you to give up war and remain -at peace?” is the hypothetical question of a certain Indian agent -to a tribe of the Sioux in 1867. And the hypothetical answer, based -upon his many talks with them, was this: “Stop the white man from -traveling across our lands; give us the country which is ours by right -of conquest and inheritance, to live in and enjoy unmolested by his -encroachments, and we will be at peace with all the world.” - -[65] Gruff old General Harney had his own views upon this treaty -business. When Commissioner Cummings came down the river from the -council with the Blackfeet, and, having lost his mules at Fort Pierre, -besought the General to give him some others to complete his journey -with, the General replied: “Yes, Colonel, I have plenty of mules, but -you can’t have one; and I only regret that when the Indians got your -mules they didn’t get your scalp also. Here all summer I and my men -have suffered and boiled to chastise these wretches, while you have -been patching up another of your sham treaties to be broken to-morrow -and give us more work.” - -“It is beyond question that such a system of treaty-making is, of all -others, the most unpolitic, whether negotiated with savage or civilized -peoples, and ... aside from its effect in encouraging and stimulating -breaches of treaties of peace, is always attended with fraud upon the -government and upon the Indian.”--_General John Pope, Report of August -3, 1864._ - -[66] “Send me one man who will tell the truth and I will talk with -him,” was the laconic reply of a celebrated chief who had been asked to -meet a government commission in council. - -[67] “Traders in former years have run the only boats to that region, -and had connected with their stores the only safe places for deposit; -hence a convenient mixture of government and traders’ goods has so -amalgamated matters as to have converted government annuities into -mercantile supplies. - -“Our further progress up to the more remote tribes has disclosed to -us more mortifying evidence of negligence by former agents, and most -probably stupendous frauds and outrages.... Immediate arrangements -should be made to place the present agents independent of traders and -also to enable them to build safe storehouses, where the goods can be -properly protected and preserved.... - -“Deliveries of goods should be witnessed by some Federal officer -who should certify _that he saw the delivery_.”--_Report of the -Northwestern Treaty Commission to the Sioux of the Upper Missouri, -1866._ - -“The government appropriations are supposed to be liberal; but it so -happens that by the time they reach their destination, they have, and -not mysteriously either, dwindled down into a paltry present.”--_Henry -A. Boller, in “Among the Indians.”_ - -“This system of issuing annuity goods is one grand humbug.”--_Report of -Gen. Alfred Sully, August 18, 1864._ - -Evidence like the foregoing could be presented by the volume. - -[68] “I saw, while at Sioux City, Captain La Barge, who had just -returned with his boat from the upper Missouri. Captain La Barge -has been in the American Fur Company employment for twenty-five -years, and says that never before this trip have the Indians been -unusually hostile. He says that now the whole Sioux nation is bound -for a war of extermination against the frontier, ... and that the -British government, through the Hudson Bay Company, are in his opinion -instigating all the Indians to attack the whites. He says British rum -from Red River comes over to the Missouri, and British traders are -among them [the Indians] continually. I have great confidence in his -judgment and opinion.”--_H. C. Nutt, Lieutenant Colonel Iowa State -Militia, to Hon. S. J. Kirkwood, Iowa City, dated Council Bluffs, -September 15, 1862._ - -[69] See page 277 for an account of the massacre of a party of miners -from Montana by these Indians. - -[70] It has been asserted that the _Far West_ bore the first news of -the Custer massacre to the world; but this is not so. General Terry’s -dispatch to General Sheridan, written in camp on the Little Big Horn -June 27, was sent by courier to Fort Ellis, 240 miles distant, and -there put on the wire. - -The following graphic account of the voyage of the _Far West_ is -well worth preserving in spite of its many errors of fact. As a word -picture of what was really a notable performance, it is a fine example -of journalistic writing. It is from the pen of M. E. Terry, and was -published in the _Pioneer Press_ of St. Paul in May, 1878: - -“The steamer _Far West_ was moored at the mouth of the Little Big -Horn. The wounded were carried on board the steamer and Dr. Porter -was detailed to go down with them. Terry’s adjutant general, Colonel -Ed Smith, was sent along with the official dispatches and a hundred -other messages. He had a traveling-bag full of telegrams for the -Bismarck office. Captain Grant Marsh, of Yankton, was in command of -the _Far West_. He put everything in the completest order and took on -a large amount of fuel. He received orders to reach Bismarck as soon -as possible. He understood his instructions literally, and never did a -river man obey them more conscientiously. On the evening of the 3d of -July the steamer weighed anchor. In a few minutes the _Far West_, so -fittingly named, was under full head of steam. It was a strange land -and an unknown river. What a cargo on that steamer! What a story to -carry to the government, to Fort Lincoln, to the widows! - -“It was running from a field of havoc to a station of mourners. The -steamer _Far West_ never received the credit due her. Neither has the -gallant Marsh; nor the pilots, David Campbell and John Johnson. Marsh, -too, acted as pilot. It required all their endurance and skill. They -proved the men for the emergency. The engineer, whose name is not known -to me, did his duty. Every one of the crew is entitled to the same -acknowledgment. They felt no sacrifice was too great upon that journey, -and in behalf of the wounded heroes. The Big Horn is full of islands, -and a successful passage, even on the bosom of a ‘June rise,’ is not -an easy feat. The _Far West_ would take a shoot on this or that side -of an island, as the quick judgment of the pilot would dictate. It is -no river, in the Eastern sense of that word. It is only a creek. A -steamboat moving as fast as a railway train in a narrow, winding stream -is not a pleasure. It was no pleasant sensation to be dashing straight -at a headland, and the pilot the only power to save. Occasionally the -bank would be touched and the men would topple over like ten-pins. It -was a reminder of what the result would be if a snag was struck. Down -the Big Horn the heroine went, missing islands, snags, and shore. It -was a thrilling voyage. The rate of speed was unrivaled in the annals -of boating. Into the Yellowstone the stanch craft shot, and down that -sealed river to pilots she made over twenty miles an hour. The bold -Captain was taking chances, but he scarcely thought of them. He was -under flying orders. Lives were at stake. His engineer was instructed -to keep up steam at the highest pitch. Once the gauge marked a pressure -that turned his cool head and made every nerve in his powerful frame -quiver. The crisis passed and the _Far West_ escaped a fate more -terrible than Custer’s. Once a stop was made, and a shallow grave -explained the reason. He still rests in that lone spot. Down the swift -Yellowstone, like shooting the Lachine Rapids, every mile a repetition -of the former. From the Yellowstone she sped into the broad Missouri, -and then there was clear sailing. There was a deeper channel and more -confidence. A few minutes were lost at Buford. Everybody at the fort -was beside himself. The boat was crowded with inquirers, and their -inquiries were not half answered when the steamer was away. At Berthold -a wounded scout was put off, and at Fort Stevenson a brief stop to tell -in a word what had happened. There was no difference in the speed from -Stevenson to Bismarck. The same desperate rate was kept up to the end. -They were approaching home with something of that feeling which always -moves the human heart. At eleven o’clock on the night of the 5th of -July they reached Bismarck and Fort A. Lincoln. One thousand miles in -fifty-four hours was the proud record.” - -[71] Charles Larpenteur, who was interpreter for the Commission in -their negotiations with the Assiniboines at Fort Union, says in his -journal, “The great Peace Commission was a complete failure.” Such was -the general sentiment along the valley. - -[72] The _Montana Post_ is authority for the statement that this voyage -of the _Octavia_ was the quickest ever made from St. Louis to Fort -Benton. - -[73] See footnote at end of chapter xxxviii. - -[74] On the 13th of June, 1902, Congress passed an Act abolishing the -Missouri River Commission, and virtually abandoning the river as a -commercial highway. - -On the 17th of the same month it passed an act inaugurating a -government policy of reclamation of the arid lands. This policy will -eventually result in an extensive use of the waters of the Missouri in -irrigation. - - - - -INDEX. - - - A - - Abraham Lincoln, Fort, 386, 387 - - Arrival of _Far West_ at, 390 - - Agency system, 362 - - Agents, Indian, situation of, 360 - - Alder Gulch, discovery of, 271 - - _Amanda_, the, impressed by Peace Com. of 1866, 405 - - American Fur Company, questionable methods of, 25, 43, 59, 64, 135, - 159, 183, 215, 290, 320, 329, 343, 344, 360 - sells its business on the river, 239, 260 - sends steamboat to Fort Benton, 218 - - Annuities, delivery of, in 1863, 301 - - Annuity system, abuses of, 177, 359, 360 - - Anthony, Col. R. D., 254 - - Appropriations for improving the Mo. r., 421–3 - - Aricara Indians, Ashley’s fight with, 5 - - Army, the, in Indian affairs, 365 et seq. - - Arrival of steamboat at trading post, 132 - - Ash Hollow, battle of, 367 - - Ashley, Gen. W. H., 5, 8 - transports furs by bullboat, 101 - - _Assiniboine_, the, ascends Mo. r. to Poplar r., 139, 218 - - Assiniboine Indians, 352 - break peace with Blackfeet, 228 - - Astor, John Jacob, 134, 138 - - Astorian expedition, 107 - - Atkinson, Gen. Henry, takes expedition to Yellowstone in 1825, 376, 383 - - Aubrey, Felix X., ride of, 114 - - Audubon the naturalist and the black squirrel, 150 - on board the _Omega_, 141 et seq. - unpopularity of, 150 - - - B - - Bad Axe, battle of, 24 - - Bad lands, first military expedition through, 375 - - Bailey, pilot of the _Spread Eagle_, 1863, 290, 291 - - Bannock City, 269 - - Barry, William, kills Captain Spear, 412 - released from arrest, 414 - tried and acquitted, 415 - - Bell of the _Saluda_, 125 - - Bellefontaine Cemetery, St. Louis, 442 - - Beneetse, discoverer of gold in Montana, 266 - - _Ben Johnson_, the, transports Peace Com. of 1863, 397 - - Benteen, Captain, in Custer campaign, 381 - - Benton, Fort, christening of, 235 - growth of, 237 - head of navigation, 220, 222 - historical sketch of, 222 et seq. - ruined by the railroads, 419 - - Benton, Thos. H., bequeaths name to Fort Benton, 235 - defends Am. F. Co., 27, 159, 235, 348 - faith of, in the West, 348 - - Benton Transportation Company, 420 - - Bercier accompanies La Barge on war party, 46 - death of, 46 - - Berger, Jacob, attacks Malcolm Clark, 232 - goes on mission to the Blackfeet, 223 - - Bible lost on the _Naomi_, 79 - - Big Mound, battle of, 372 - - _Bishop_, the, lost in whirlpool, 122 - - Bismarck, first railroad at, 419 - - Black Dave, adventure of, 149 - - Blackfeet Indians, annuities for, 315 et seq. - enemies of Crows, 223, 228 - sketch of, 226, 352 - trade relations with, 223 - treaty with Assiniboines, 225 - treaty with whites, 237, 359 - - Black Squirrel, Audubon and the, 150 - - Blair, Frank, and La Barge, 257 - - Bloody Island, 185 - - Boats, kinds of, on the Mo. r., 91 et seq. - - Boller, Henry A., cited, 300, 307, 313, 361 - - Bonneville, Captain, ships furs by bullboat, 101 - - Boone, Daniel, burial of, 57 - - Boonville, battle of, 255 - - Bozeman, J. M., 268 - - Bradley, James H., historical researches of, 238 - - Brasseaux Houses, 374, 375, 385 - - Bridger, Fort, La Barge at, 335 - - Brulé, Fort, origin of name, 232 - - Bruyère tries to break up La Barge’s expedition, 61 - - Buffalo, adventure with, 163 - - Bullboat, description of, 96 - Indian type of, 101 - noted voyages of, 100 - - Burgwin, Captain, inspects the _Omega_, 144 - - Burials along the Missouri r., 36 - - Burleigh, Dr. W. A., 341 - - - C - - Cabanné, John P., affair of, with Leclerc, 24–7 - - California, conquest of, 172 - discovery of gold in, 173 - - Calvary cemetery, St. Louis, 442 - - Campbell, Robert, criticises La Barge, 395 - - Canoe, description of, 91 - - Cargo of steamboats, 126 - - Cass, Fort, 228 - - Catholic sisters on La Barge’s boat, 434 - - Catlin, George, on board the _Yellowstone_, 137 - - Championship among steamboat employees, 128 - - Channel of the Missouri, changes in, 76 - - Chantier, description of, 96 - - Chappelle, Phil. A., assistance acknowledged, vi - - Chardon, F. A., and Blackfoot massacre, 231 - relieves Alexander Culbertson, 231 - - Chardon, Fort, 232, 237 - - Chase, Salmon P., La Barge’s experience with, 343 - - Chatillon, Henry, hunter for steamboats, 126 - - Cheyenne Indians, 352 - - Chicago and N. W. R. R. reaches Council Bluffs, 418 - - _Chippewa_, the, reaches head of navigation, 218, 219 - - Cholera on the _St. Ange_, 189 - on the _Yellowstone_, 31 - - Chouteau Bluffs, origin of name, 137 - - Chouteau, C. P., 201, 219 - encounter with Col. Dimon, 261 - - Chouteau, Edward Liguest, La Barge’s companion, 19, 345 - - Chouteau, Pierre, Jr., colloquy with La Barge, 292 - offers stand of colors to La Barge, 240 - quoted, 35, 134 - - Civil War, the, effect of, on Indians, 368 - relation of, to Mo. r. commerce, 249 et seq. - termination of, 368 - - Clark, Fort, 139 - - Clark, Malcolm, attacks Alexander Harvey, 233 - kills Owen McKenzie, 233 - - Clergymen as Indian agents, 143, 362 - - Cook, Camp, 410, 413 - - Cordelle, the, description of, 103 - - Cottonwood bark as forage, 49 - - Coues, Dr. Elliott, quoted, 313 - - Council Bluffs, first railroad at, 418 - - Crazy Wolf, Yanktonais Indian, 402 - - Crook, General, in campaign of 1876, 378, 379 - - Crooks, Ramsay, quoted, 138 - - Crow Indians, 352 - enemies of Blackfeet, 223, 228 - experience with Peace Com. of 1866, 404 - - Crow Indian prisoner killed by Pawnee, 31 - - Culbertson, Alexander, career at Fort Benton, 227 et seq. - - Cummings, Alfred, makes treaty with Blackfeet, 236, 359 - - Curtis, General, mem. Peace Com. 1866, 397 et seq. - - Custer, General, campaign of 1876, 380 - command of, annihilated, 380 - tries to arrest La Barge, 431 - - Custer massacre, first news of, 388 - - - D - - Dauphin, Louis, hunter for steamboats, 126 - subaqueous adventure of, 303 - - Dawson, Andrew, receives property of La Barge, Harkness & Co., 327 - - Dead Buffalo Lake, battle of, 372 - - Deadman, meaning of term in steamboating, 122 - - _Deer Lodge_, the, boats met by, in 1866, 273 - - Deer Lodge Valley, discovery of gold in, 266, 267 - - De Lacey, W. W., 237, 295 - - Departure from port, 127 - - De Smet, Father P. J., at Fort Laramie, arrived in 1851, 358 - goes from Fort Union to Fort Laramie, 193 - on the _St. Ange_ in 1851, 189 - stories of, 194 - - Diamond R Company, 329 - - Dimon, Col. Charles A. R., 260 et seq. - - Dodge, Grenville M., assistance acknowledged, vi - relations with Lincoln, 243, 244 - - Dog, a, causes steamboat wreck, 116 - chloroformed by Gen. Harney, 202 - - Durack, John, lassoes a buffalo, 163 - - - E - - Edgar, Henry, discoverer of Alder Gulch, 271 - - Edmunds, Newton, mem. Peace Com. of 1866, 397 - - _Edna_, the, explosion of, 124 - - _Effie Deans_, the, burned, 394 - length of voyage in one season, 336 - purchase of, 332 - voyage of, in 1864, 319 - - _El Paso_, the, reaches Milk r., 218 - - Embalming, new method, 413 - - _Emilie_, the, 240, 241 - voyage of, in 1862, 288 - - Evans, Dr., on the _St. Ange_ in 1851, 190 - - Exploration of the West, 174 - - Express, the, description of, 41 - - - F - - Fairweather, William, discoverer of Alder Gulch, 271 - - _Far West_, the, part played by, in campaign of 1876, 387, 388 - - Fire canoe of the Indians, 111 - - Fisk James L., leader of Northern Overland Expedition, 270 - - Flood of 1844, 154 - - Floods of Missouri and Mississippi, 83, 155 - - Fremont, General John, as an explorer, 348 - inaccessibility of, 347 - La Barge’s acquaintance with, 347 - - Freight rates on the Missouri, 276 - - Fuel for steamboats, 117 - - Fur trade, relation of, to the Indians, 353 - use of steamboats in, 3 - - - G - - Galpin, Charles E., 341 - - Galpin, Fort, 293 - - Galvanized Yankees, 260 - - Gardner, Johnson, transports furs by bullboat, 101 - - Garreau, Pierre, 197 - - Gibbon, General, in Custer campaign, 378 - - Gilbert, Colonel, incident concerning, 427 - - Gold, discovery of, in California, 173 - discovery of, in Montana, 237, 265 et seq., 368 - - Gold dust, first sale of, in Montana, 267 - great quantity shipped by the _Octavia_, 413 - transportation of, 275, 333 - - Good, Frederick, lost from the _Trover_, 286 - - Government work on the Missouri r., 421 et seq. - - Grant, General, La Barge’s acquaintance with, 347 - La Barge’s resemblance to, 443 - - Grattan massacre, 366, 367 - - Great Falls of the Missouri, 75 - first white woman to see, 294 - - Great Falls City, Mont., 420 - - Great fire of St. Louis, 185 - - Great Northern R. R. reaches Helena, 417, 418 - - Greer, Capt. W. B., witnesses transactions at Fort Union, 316, 320, 321 - - Grismore, Nathan, La Barge’s mate, 181 - - Guerette, Louis, killed on the _Saluda_, 24, 124 - - Guerette, Pelagie wife of Capt. La Barge, 71 - - Guerrillas in Missouri, 250 - - - H - - Half breeds, British, among the Indians, 369 - - Hannibal and St. Joseph R. R. reaches the Mo. r., 241, 417, 418 - - Hard, C. D., arrests La Barge, 432 - - Harkness, James, connection of, with firm of La Barge, Harkness & Co., - 286, 293, 324, 329 - journal of, 290 - - Harney, General, campaign of 1855, 367, 383 - chloroforms a dog, 202 - experience with Captain La Barge’s father, 6 - friend of the Indians, 201 - quoted, 356 - - Harvey, Alexander, attacked by Malcolm Clark, 234 - desperate character of, 229 et seq. - - Harvey, Primeau & Co., 234 - - Hat, Louis Dauphin’s, 303 - - Hawley, Hubbell & Co., buy out Am. F. Co., 239, 260 - - Hayden, Dr. F. N., on La Barge’s boat, 209 - - Helena, Mont., rise of, 272 - - Hill, Father W. H., preaches La Barge’s funeral sermon, 440 - - Hodgkiss, Wm., agent at Fort Union, 316, 320 - - Hoecken, Father, death of, 191 - - Hooper, Mormon acquaintance of La Barge’s, 334 - - Hopkins, Mormon acquaintance of La Barge’s, 334 - - Horrigan, Lieutenant, with troops on _Octavia_, 410 - - Hortiz, Eulalie, mother of Capt. La Barge, 11 - - Hortiz, Joseph Alvarez, 11 - - Hubbell, J. B. assistance acknowledged, vi - cited, 284 - mackinaw voyage of, in 1866, 283 - - Hunters for steamboats, 125 - - Hyde, Orson, Mormon preacher, 375 - - - I - - Ice break up of 1856, 204 - - Ice gorges, 81 - - Illinois Central R. R. reaches Sioux City, 418 - - Improvement work on the Mo. r., 241 et seq. - - _Independence_, the, first steamboat on the Missouri, 90, 219 - - Indian, the, and the fur trade, 353 - and the steamboat, 364 - - Indian agents, character of, 362 - - Indian question, 355 - - Indians attack the _Martha_, 179 - attack the _Omega_, 148 - danger to boats from, 123 - - Indians of the Missouri Valley, 351 - - Insurance rates, 276 - - Irrigation, Congressional Act of, 448 - relation of, to Mo. r., 447 - - Irving, Washington, quoted, 109 - - _Island City_, the, wreck of, 385 - - - J - - Jesuits honor La Barge’s memory, 440 - - Johnston, General A. S., 346 - - Joseph, Nez Percé chief, 392 - captured, 393 - - - K - - Kansas City, first railroad at 417 - - Kansas Indians, 351 - - Keelboat, advent of, on the Missouri, 90 - description of, 102 - - Kernel of corn, the, 152 - - Kidder, Judge, tries murderer of Capt. Spear, 414 - - Killdeer Mountain, battle of, 374 - - Kimball, Heber, Mormon preacher, 335 - - Kipp, James, accompanies La Barge, 70 - builds Fort Piegan, 225 - - - L - - La Barge, A. G., assistance acknowledged, vi - - La Barge Avenue, St. Louis, 198 - - La Barge, Charles S., killed in steamboat explosion, 13, 124 - - La Barge city, 295 - - La Barge, Fort, established, 293 - turned over to Am. F. Co., 327 - - La Barge, Harkness & Co., 270, 287 - collapse of firm, 329 - operations of, in 1862, 293 - sued, 326 - - La Barge, John B., brother of Capt. La Barge, 13 - member of firm L. H. & Co., 287 - takes first steamboat to head of navigation, 219 - - LA BARGE, JOSEPH, Mo. r. pilot accompanies Pawnee war party, 45 - acquaintance with the Mormons, 56 - acquaintance with prominent men, 346, 350 - adventure with Sioux war party, 38 - among the Pawnees, 27 et seq. - ancestry of, 2 et seq. - an authority on Mo. r. history, 439 - as an expert witness, 165 - at Ford’s theater, 344 - before Senate Committee, 344 - birth of, 12, 13 - captured by Pawnees, 160 - carries express to Pierre, 44 - changes during his lifetime, 441 - childhood of, 13 - claim against government, 323 - contemplates retirement, 198, 426 - death of, iv, 440 - dictates memoirs, iii - education of, 17 - enters service Am. F. Co., 23, 56, 67, 200 - enters service H. & St. Joe R. R., 241, 418 - experience with Englishmen, 344 - experience with rattlesnakes, 46 - falls into an air hole, 50 - funeral of, 440 - grave of, 442 - helps prepare list of steamboat wrecks, 438 - in Cabanné-Leclerc affair, 24 et seq. - in Custer campaign, 389 - in meteoric shower, 40 - in Montana, 331 et seq. - in “opposition,” 59 et seq., 287 - in Salt Lake City, 333 - in Washington, 340 et seq. - intimate knowledge of the river, 116 - leaves service Am. F. Co., 56, 184, 199, 210, 214, 215 - marriage of, 71 - meets Dave McCann, 430 - on the _Yellowstone_ in cholera scourge, 32 - opposes Am. F. Co., 59, et seq., 287 - personal characteristics, 443 - politics of, 444 - purchases the _Sonora_, 190 - religion of, 444 - remains with the Union, 253 - rescues boat from ice gorge, 207 - retires from the river, 447 - serves apprenticeship in steamboating, 55 - serves as interpreter, 22 - skill as a swimmer, 53 - works for city of St. Louis, 438 - - La Barge, Joseph Marie, at Council Bluffs, 42 - sketch of, 3 - stories concerning, 6 et seq. - - Laberge, Dr. Philemon, 12 - - La Fayette, visits of, to St. Louis, 15 - - La Framboise, Fort, 293 - - Langford, N. P., assistance acknowledged, vi - - Laramie Fort, treaty of, 358 - - Larpenteur, Charles, cited, 307 - estimate of, 313 - quoted, 398 - - Last Chance Gulch, 272 - - Latta, S. M., Indian agent, 300 - at the Tobacco Garden, 306 - cited, 207 - quoted, 317 - - Leavenworth, Colonel, in Aricara campaign, 383 - - Leclerc, Narcisse, affair of, with Cabanné, 24 et seq. - disloyal to La Barge, 60, 65 - - Lee, General R. E., acquaintance of La Barge with, 346 - examines Mo. r., 422 - surrender of, 336 - - Lemon, R. H., transfers Fort La Barge, 327 - - Lewis and Clark, expedition of, 375 - - Lewis, Fort, 233 et seq. - - Lincoln, Abraham, assistance of, 261, 336 - at Council Bluffs, 241 - commutes sentence of Indians, 371 - election of, 247 - interest in Indian question, 342 - on La Barge’s boat, 246 - on Missouri r., 241 et seq. - presented with fur robe, 340 - - Little Crow, Sioux Chief, incites massacre, 370 - - Liquor, importation of, prohibited, 25, 141 - - Lisa, Manuel, voyage of, in 1811, 106, 107 - - Loan, Brig. Gen., quoted, 251 - - Log book kept by Captain Sire, 139 - quoted, 146, 159 - - Lyon, General, goes to Illinois r. for pilots, 249 - La Barge’s experience with, 257, 258 - - - M - - Mackinaw boat, description of, 94 et seq. - party are massacred, 277, 278 - voyages of, 275, 284 - - Majors, Alexander, saves La Barge, 254 - - Mandan Indians, 252 - - Marine Insurance Companies, frauds upon, 420 - - Marmaduke, General, impresses the _Emilie_, 255 - - Marquette and Joliet discover Mo. r., 87 - - Marsh, Captain Grant, important services of, 387 - master of the _Far West_, 388 - - Massacre, Custer, 380 - - Massacre on the Marias r., 279 - - Matlock, Indian Agent, 178 - - Maximilian, Prince of Wied, at Fort McKenzie, 228 - voyage of, in 1833, 139 - - Maybrick, Mrs., case of, compared with that of Capt. Spear, 415 - - Meteoric shower, 40 - - Mexico, war with, 171 - - Miles, General, in Nez Percé campaign, 392 - - Miller, mate on the _Robert Campbell_, 396 - - Miller, Dr. Geo. L., quoted, 203 - - Miller, Joseph, Indian agent at Bellevue, 156 - - _Miner_, the, caught in a whirlpool, 122 - - Minnesota massacre, 370 - - Minnetarees, or Gros ventres of the Missouri, 352 - - Missouri Indians, 351 - - Missouri Pacific R. R. reaches Kansas City, 416 - - MISSOURI RIVER, THE - burials along shore, 36 - commercial importance of, iv, 73 - destiny of, 445 - discovery of, 87 - early exploration of, 89 - first navigation of, 87 - first steamboat to enter, 90 - head of navigation on, 220 - highest point reached by steam, 220 - improvement of, by the government, 422 et seq. - Indian tribes along, 351 - kinds of boats used on, 91 et seq. - modern view concerning, 445 - navigation of, 115 - origin of name, 88 - physical characteristics of, 74 et seq. - relation of, to gold regions of Montana, 273 - scenery of, 83 - sediment carried, 78 - source of, 74 - - Missouri River Commission, abolition of, 424, 448 - creation of, 422 - - Mitchell, D. D., attends Council at Fort Laramie, 358 - builds Fort McKenzie, 226 - - Montana, first railroads in, 419 - gold fields of, 265 - - Montana Historical Society, 239 - - Mormons, the, in Missouri, 65 - La Barge’s acquaintance with, 175, 333 - migration of, to Great Salt Lake, 171 - relation of, to commerce of Mo. r., 171 - sketch of, 167 - - McCann, Dave, meets La Barge, 430 - - McCune, John S., relations with La Barge, 337, 396, 435 - - McKenzie, Fort, 137 - burned, 232 - founding of, 227 - sketch of, 228 - - McKenzie, Kenneth, 134 - opens trade with the Blackfeet, 223 - - McKenzie, Owen, killed by Malcolm Clark, 233 - - McPherson, W. W., government contractor, 409 - - - N - - _Naomi_, the, discovery of a Bible belonging to, 79 - - Negro boys lost, 285 - - New Mexico, conquest of, 172 - - Nez Percé campaign, steamboat in, 392 - - Nicollet, J. J., 347 - - _Nimrod_, the, injured by hailstorm, 164 - inspection of, at Bellevue, 156 - voyage of, in 1844, 154 - - Northern Overland Expedition, 270 - - Northern Pacific R. R. reaches Bismarck, 419 - reaches Montana, 419 - - Northwestern Fur Company, 239, 260 - - Northwestern Treaty Commission--See “Peace Commission of 1866” - - Nutt, H. C., quoted, 369 - - - O - - _Octavia_, the, built, 396 - great profit on voyage of, 416 - voyage of, 1867, 408 - - Omaha, first railroad at, 418 - - Omaha Indians, 351 - - _Omega_, the, voyage of 1843, 141 et seq. - - Ophir City, 279 - - “Opposition,” meaning of term, 59 - - Orleans, Fort, 88 - - Osage Indians, 351 - - Otrante, Comte de, 155 - - - P - - Passenger fares on Mo. r., 276 - lists on Mo. r. steamboats, 120 - - Pawnee Indians, 27, 351 - capture La Barge, 160 - La Barge’s residence among, 27 - Peace Commission of 1866, 396 et seq. - quoted, 360 - - Peindry, Comte de, 155 - - Piegan, Fort, founding of, 225 - - Pierre, Fort, 137 - transfer of, to United States, 201, 367, 383 - - Pike’s Peak Gulch, 269 - - Pilcher, Joshua, in charge of Cabanné’s post, 37 - interest in young La Barge, 39, 44, 48 - - Pilot, Missouri r., experiences of, 131 - important duty of, 115 - wages of, 276 - - Pilot shields, 250 - - Poles, use of, on keelboats, 104 - - Pope, General, plans Indian campaign, 371 - quoted, 357 - - Price, General Sterling, 255 - - Profits in steamboat business, 276 - - Prou, Mr., botanist to Audubon, 152 - - Provost, Etienne, praises La Barge, 39 - outwits a botanist, 152 - settles championship, 128 - wooding the Martha, 179 - - - R - - Racing steamboats on the Mo. r., 123 - - Railroads, the enemy of the steamboat, 417 - relation of, to Mo. r., 445 - - Randall, Fort, 367, 383 - - Rattlesnakes, 46 - - Ray, Captain, faithful conduct of, 337 - - Reed, H. W., Indian Agent, 300 - advises La Barge to store annuities, 316 - cited, 207 - mem. Peace Com. 1866, 397 - quoted, 314 - - Reeve, Colonel, makes Crows walk, 405 - - Rencontre, Zephyr, aids La Barge, 67 - interprets for Peace Com. of 1866, 400, 402 - - Reno, Major, in Custer campaign, 381, 391 - - Rice, Fort, 260, 374 - - _Robert Campbell_, the, voyage of, in 1863, 298 et seq. - - Roe, John J., organizes Diamond R. Co., 328 - relations with La Barge, 325 - - Rolette, agt. Am. F. Co. at Fort Union, 320 - - - S - - Sail, use of, on keelboats, 106 - - Sailors, lost from the _Nimrod_, 160 - - _Saint Ange_, launching of, 184 - voyage of, in 1851, 189 - - Saint Joseph, first railroad at, 417 - - Saint Louis, great fire of, 185 - - Salaries on steamboats, 271 - - _Saluda_, the, explosion of, 124 - - _Sam Gaty_, the, attack on, 251 - - Sanders, W. F., assistance acknowledged, vi - counsel against La Barge, Harkness & Co., 328 - - Sarpy, Peter A., arrests Leclerc, 26 - in charge of Cabanné’s post, 49 - - Scenery of the Missouri r., 83 - - Sediment carried by the Mo. r., 78 - - Sheridan, General, plans campaign of 1876, 378 - - Sherman, General, Commissioner to treat with Indians, 377 - gives La Barge a contract, 410 - - _Shreveport_, the, impressed by General Sully, 385 - voyage of, in 1863, 302 - - Sibley, General, in charge of operations against Sioux Indians - in 1863, 370 - - Sioux City, first railroad at, 418 - important river port, 419 - - Sioux City and Pacific R. R. reaches Sioux City, 418 - - Sioux Indians, 351 - capture Grosventre herd, 304 - non-treaty, 377 - power of, broken, 377 - - Sire, Joseph A., 140 - master of the _Omega_, 141 - master of the _Nimrod_, 154 - outwits inspectors, 144, 157 - - Sire log book, the, 139 - - Slope of Missouri river, 83 - - Smallpox among the Blackfeet, 229 - - Smith, Green Clay, Governor of Montana Territory, 409 - - Smith, Joseph, death of, 57, 169 - - Snags in Missouri river, 80, 119, 421 - - Snagboats, early, 422 - - Sounding the channel, 120 - - Sparring over sand bars, 121 - - Spear, Capt. W. D., killed by a sentinel, 412 - takes passage on the _Octavia_, 411 - - _Spread Eagle_, the, rams the _Emilie_, 289 - - Stanley, General, arrests Custer, 431 - - Statistics of steamboat traffic, 217, 275 - - Steamboat, the, and the Indians, 364 - architectural beauty of, 111 - description of, 109 et seq. - in the Indian wars, 382 - in the Nez Percé campaign, 392 - last at Fort Benton, 420 - navigation of the Mo. r., importance of, iv - trade on Mo. r., rapid growth of, 174, 216, 274 - wrecks, causes of, 421 - voyages up the Mo. r., 127 - - Stevens, I. I., makes treaty with Blackfeet, 236, 359 - - Stinger, Andy, hero of the Tobacco Garden, 307, 311 - - Stony Lake, battle of, 372 - - Storm injures the _Nimrod_, 164 - - Storms on the Missouri, 84 - - Stuart, Fort, 293 - - Stuart, James, English traveler, 4 - - Stuart, James, Montana pioneer, 267, 268, 271 - - Sublette & Campbell, 36 - - Suit against La Barge, Harkness & Co., 328 - - Sully, Fort, 373 - - Sully, General, campaign of 1863, 371, 372 - campaign of 1864, 374 - impresses the _Shreveport_, 318 - opinion of Col. Dimon, 262 - quoted, 270, 361 - uses steamboats in his campaigns, 385 - - Survey of the Missouri r., 436 - - Suter, Capt, C. R., purchases the _Octavia_, 425 - - - T - - Tecumseh, Fort, 137 - - Terry, General Alfred, in campaign of 1876, 378 - on La Barge’s boat, 390 - - Terry, Lieutenant, English officer, investigates death of Capt. - Spear, 414 - - Terry, M. M., writes account of voyage of _Far West_, 388 - - Thomas, Col., Quartermaster in St. Louis, 410 - - Thompson, C. W., Indian agent, 385 - - Thompson, Fort, 385 - - Tobacco Garden, affair at, 305 et seq. - - Transportation by water and rail, 420 - - Treaty of Fort Laramie, 358, 366 - with Blackfeet, 237, 259 - - Treaty system, abuses of, 356 - - _Trover_, the, wreck of, 285 - - - U - - Union, Fort, 139 - - Union Pacific Bridge at Omaha opened, 418 - - Union Pacific R. R., Lincoln’s interest in, 244 - reaches Ogden, 419 - - Upson, Gad E., Indian agent, 322 - - Utah Northern R. R. enters Montana, 419 - - - V - - Vallandingham, C. L., 244 - - Virginia City, Mont., 272 - - Volunteers, U. S., 259 - - Voyage, last, to Fort Benton, 436, 437 - - Voyageurs, 108 - - - W - - Wall, Nicholas, relations with Capt. La Barge, 258, 295, 325, 326 - - War with Mexico, 171 - - Warping over rapids, 121 - - Warren, General, on the upper Missouri, 208 - - Weather, influence of, on navigation of the river, 86 - - _Western Engineer_, the, 91, 382 - - Whirlpools on the Missouri, 122 - - Whitestone Hill, battle of, 373 - - Winnebago Indians, transported by steamboat, 384 - - Wooding steamboat, 118 - - Wooding at Crow creek in 1847, 179 - - Wounded Knee, battle of, 366 - - Wrecks of steamboats on Mo. r., causes of, 421 - list of, 438 - - Wright, Geo. B., agent for the Blackfeet, 405 - - Wyeth, Nathaniel J., transports furs by bullboat, 101 - - - Y - - Yankee Jack, adventure of, 129 - mentioned, 282 - - Yanktonais, the, experience of, with Peace Com. of 1866, 399 - - Yawl, importance of, to steamboat, 54, 91 - - _Yellowstone_, the, first steamboat on the upper river, 22, 136 - cholera on, 32 - description of, 112 - public interested in voyage of, 138 - - Yellowstone expedition of 1819, 382 - - Yellowstone National Park, 75, 266 - - Yellowstone river, 75 - falls of, 75 - La Barge ascends, 436 - - Young, Brigham, 169, 175 - entertains La Barge, 334 - - - - -Transcriber’s Notes - - -Old English lettering on the pages preceding the Table of Contents is -represented here within =equals signs=. - -Punctuation, hyphenation, and spelling were made consistent when a -predominant preference was found in the original book; otherwise they -were not changed. - -Simple typographical errors were corrected; unbalanced quotation -marks were remedied when the change was obvious, and otherwise left -unbalanced. - -Illustrations in this eBook have been positioned between paragraphs -and outside quotations. In versions of this eBook that support -hyperlinks, the page references in the List of Illustrations lead to -the corresponding illustrations. - -Running page headers are shown here as Sidenotes, usually positioned -just above the paragraph they summarize. When such Sidenotes summarize -footnotes, they are positioned above the paragraphs that referenced -those footnotes. - -This is Volume II of a two-volume set. The Index covers both -Volumes. Volume I, which also is available at no cost at Project -Gutenberg, ends on page 248 and this volume begins on page 249. -The index was not checked for proper alphabetization or -correct page references. - -Footnotes have been renumbered to continue the sequence begun in Volume I. - -Page 254: Missing footnote anchor added by Transcriber. Based on the -context of the text, this likely is in the right place. - -Page 276: “6 1-2” was printed that way. - -Page 306: Missing footnote anchor added by Transcriber. This may not be -in the right place. 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font-size:1.2em; font-weight:bold;'>The Project Gutenberg eBook of History of Early Steamboat Navigation on the Missouri River, Volume II (of 2), by Hiram Martin Chittenden</div> - -<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'> -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and -most other parts of the world at no cost and with almost no restrictions -whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms -of the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online -at <a href="https://www.gutenberg.org">www.gutenberg.org</a>. If you -are not located in the United States, you will have to check the laws of the -country where you are located before using this eBook. -</div> - -<div style='display:block; margin-top:1em; margin-bottom:1em; margin-left:2em; text-indent:-2em'>Title: History of Early Steamboat Navigation on the Missouri River, Volume II (of 2)</div> - -<div style='display:block; margin-top:1em; margin-bottom:1em; margin-left:2em; text-indent:-2em'>Life and Adventures of Joseph La Barge</div> - -<div style='display:block; margin-top:1em; margin-bottom:1em; margin-left:2em; text-indent:-2em'>Author: Hiram Martin Chittenden</div> - -<div style='display:block;margin:1em 0'>Release Date: December 28, 2020 [eBook #64137]</div> - -<div style='display:block;margin:1em 0'>Language: English</div> - -<div style='display:block;margin:1em 0'>Character set encoding: UTF-8</div> - -<div style='display:block; margin-left:2em; text-indent:-2em'>Produced by: Charlie Howard and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at https://www.pgdp.net (This file was produced from images generously made available by The Internet Archive)</div> - -<div style='margin-top:2em;margin-bottom:4em'>*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK HISTORY OF EARLY STEAMBOAT NAVIGATION ON THE MISSOURI RIVER, VOLUME II (OF 2) ***</div> - -<div class="transnote"><p class="center larger">Transcriber’s Notes</p> - -<p class="covernote">Cover created by Transcriber and placed in the Public Domain.</p> - -<p>Larger versions of most illustrations may be seen by right-clicking them -and selecting an option to view them separately, or by double-tapping and/or -stretching them.</p> - -<p>This is Volume II of a two-volume set. The Index covers both -Volumes. Volume I, which also is available at no cost at Project -Gutenberg, ends on page 248 and this volume begins on page 249. Page -numbers referring to Volume I are double-underlined in the Index, while -page numbers referring to this volume (II) are single-underlined. Links -from this Index to pages in Volume I may work with a Browser, but not -with mobile formats (epub/mobi).</p> - -</div> - -<hr /> - -<div class="newpage p4 center vspace wspace"> -<p class="larger">IV</p> - -<p class="larger">AMERICAN EXPLORERS SERIES</p> - -<p><b>Early Steamboating on Missouri River</b></p> - -<p><i>VOL. II.</i> -</p> -</div> - -<hr /> - -<div id="i_frontis2" class="figcenter"> - <img src="images/i004.jpg" width="1584" height="2159" alt="" /> - <div class="caption">KENNETT MCKENZIE</div></div> - -<hr /> - -<div class="newpage p4 center wspace"> -<h1 class="vspace"> -HISTORY OF EARLY<br /> -<span class="larger">STEAMBOAT NAVIGATION</span><br /> -<span class="xsmall">ON THE</span><br /> -<span class="larger">MISSOURI RIVER</span></h1> - -<p class="p2 vspace larger"><span class="smaller">LIFE AND ADVENTURES<br /> -<span class="smaller">OF</span></span><br /> -<span class="large">JOSEPH LA BARGE</span><br /> - -<span class="small">PIONEER NAVIGATOR AND INDIAN TRADER<br /> - -FOR FIFTY YEARS IDENTIFIED WITH THE COMMERCE OF THE<br /> -MISSOURI VALLEY</span></p> - -<p class="p2 larger"><span class="small">BY</span><br /> -HIRAM MARTIN CHITTENDEN<br /> - -<span class="small"><i>Captain Corps of Engineers, U. S. A.</i><br /> - -<span class="smcap">Author of “American Fur Trade of the Far West,” “History<br /> -of the Yellowstone National Park,” etc.</span></span></p> - -<p class="p2 smaller"><i>WITH MAP AND ILLUSTRATIONS</i></p> - -<p class="p2 smaller">IN TWO VOLUMES<br /> -VOL. II.</p> - -<p class="p2"><span class="smaller">NEW YORK</span><br /> -<span class="larger">FRANCIS P. HARPER</span><br /> -<span class="smaller">1903</span> -</p> -</div> - -<hr /> - -<div class="newpage p4 center"> - -<p class="small vspace"> -<span class="smcap">Copyright</span>, 1903,<br /> -BY<br /> -FRANCIS P. HARPER.</p> -</div> - -<hr /> - -<div class="chapter"> -<h2 class="nobreak" id="CONTENTS">CONTENTS.</h2> -</div> - -<table id="toc" summary="Contents"> -<tr class="small"> - <td> </td> - <td class="tdr">PAGE</td> -</tr> -<tr> - <td class="tdc chap notpad" colspan="2">CHAPTER XXI.</td> -</tr> -<tr> - <td class="tdl"><span class="smcap">The Civil War</span>,</td> - <td class="tdr"><a href="#chap_249">249</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> - <td class="tdc chap" colspan="2">CHAPTER XXII.</td> -</tr> -<tr> - <td class="tdl"><span class="smcap">Gold in Montana</span>,</td> - <td class="tdr"><a href="#chap_265">265</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> - <td class="tdc chap" colspan="2">CHAPTER XXIII.</td> -</tr> -<tr> - <td class="tdl"><span class="smcap">Incidents on the River</span> (1862–67),</td> - <td class="tdr"><a href="#chap_277">277</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> - <td class="tdc chap" colspan="2">CHAPTER XXIV.</td> -</tr> -<tr> - <td class="tdl"><span class="smcap">La Barge again in Opposition</span>,</td> - <td class="tdr"><a href="#chap_287">287</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> - <td class="tdc chap" colspan="2">CHAPTER XXV.</td> -</tr> -<tr> - <td class="tdl"><span class="smcap">Voyage of 1863—The Tobacco Garden Massacre</span>,</td> - <td class="tdr"><a href="#chap_298">298</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> - <td class="tdc chap" colspan="2">CHAPTER XXVI.</td> -</tr> -<tr> - <td class="tdl"><span class="smcap">The Blackfoot Annuities</span>,</td> - <td class="tdr"><a href="#chap_315">315</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> - <td class="tdc chap" colspan="2">CHAPTER XXVII.</td> -</tr> -<tr> - <td class="tdl"><span class="smcap">Collapse of the La Barge-Harkness Opposition</span>,</td> - <td class="tdr"><a href="#chap_324">324</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> - <td class="tdc chap" colspan="2">CHAPTER XXVIII.</td> -</tr> -<tr> - <td class="tdl"><span class="smcap">Captain La Barge in Montana</span>,</td> - <td class="tdr"><a href="#chap_331">331</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> - <td class="tdc chap" colspan="2">CHAPTER XXIX.</td> -</tr> -<tr> - <td class="tdl"><span class="smcap">Captain La Barge in Washington</span>,</td> - <td class="tdr"><a href="#chap_340">340</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> - <td class="tdc chap" colspan="2">CHAPTER XXX.</td> -</tr> -<tr> - <td class="tdl"><span class="smcap">The Indian of the Missouri Valley</span>,</td> - <td class="tdr"><a href="#chap_351">351</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> - <td class="tdc chap" colspan="2">CHAPTER XXXI.</td> -</tr> -<tr> - <td class="tdl"><span class="smcap">The Army on the Missouri</span>,</td> - <td class="tdr"><a href="#chap_365">365</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> - <td class="tdc chap" colspan="2">CHAPTER XXXII.</td> -</tr> -<tr> - <td class="tdl"><span class="smcap">The Steamboat in the Indian Wars</span>,</td> - <td class="tdr"><a href="#chap_382">382</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> - <td class="tdc chap" colspan="2">CHAPTER XXXIII.</td> -</tr> -<tr> - <td class="tdl"><span class="smcap">The Peace Commission of 1856</span>,</td> - <td class="tdr"><a href="#chap_394">394</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> - <td class="tdc chap" colspan="2">CHAPTER XXXIV.</td> -</tr> -<tr> - <td class="tdl"><span class="smcap">The Murder of Captain Spear</span>,</td> - <td class="tdr"><a href="#chap_408">408</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> - <td class="tdc chap" colspan="2">CHAPTER XXXV.</td> -</tr> -<tr> - <td class="tdl"><span class="smcap">The Battle with the Railroads</span>,</td> - <td class="tdr"><a href="#chap_417">417</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> - <td class="tdc chap" colspan="2">CHAPTER XXXVI.</td> -</tr> -<tr> - <td class="tdl"><span class="smcap">Last Voyages to Benton</span>,</td> - <td class="tdr"><a href="#chap_425">425</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> - <td class="tdc chap" colspan="2">CHAPTER XXXVII.</td> -</tr> -<tr> - <td class="tdl"><span class="smcap">Declining Years</span>,</td> - <td class="tdr"><a href="#chap_438">438</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> - <td class="tdc chap" colspan="2">CHAPTER XXXVIII.</td> -</tr> -<tr> - <td class="tdl"><span class="smcap">Destiny of the Missouri River</span>,</td> - <td class="tdr"><a href="#chap_445">445</a></td> -</tr> -<tr class="tpad"> - <td class="tdl"><span class="smcap">Index</span>,</td> - <td class="tdr"><a href="#INDEX">449</a></td> -</tr> -</table> - -<hr /> - -<div class="chapter"> -<h2 class="nobreak" id="LIST_OF_ILLUSTRATIONS">LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS.<br /> -<span class="subhead"><i>VOL. II.</i></span></h2> -</div> - -<table id="loi" summary="List of Illustrations"> -<tr> - <td class="tdl"><span class="smcap">Kenneth McKenzie</span>,</td> - <td class="tdr"><a href="#i_frontis2"><i>Frontispiece</i></a></td> -</tr> -<tr class="small"> - <td class="tdl"> </td> - <td class="tdr"><i>Facing page</i></td> -</tr> -<tr> - <td class="tdl"><span class="smcap">La Barge Rock</span>,</td> - <td class="tdr"><a href="#ip_299">299</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> - <td class="tdl"><span class="smcap">A Steamboat at the Bank</span>,</td> - <td class="tdr"><a href="#ip_331">331</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> - <td class="tdl"><span class="smcap">Removing Snags from the Missouri</span>,</td> - <td class="tdr"><a href="#ip_421">421</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> - <td class="tdl"><span class="smcap">“Improving” the Missouri River</span>,</td> - <td class="tdr"><a href="#ip_424">424</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> - <td class="tdl"><span class="smcap">Steamboat Wreck on the Missouri River</span>,</td> - <td class="tdr"><a href="#ip_439">439</a></td> -</tr> -</table> - -<hr /> - -<div id="chap_249" class="chapter"> -<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_249">249</span></p> - -<h2 class="nobreak vspace wspace notbold" id="HISTORY_OF"><span class="larger">HISTORY OF<br /> -EARLY STEAMBOAT NAVIGATION<br /> -ON THE MISSOURI RIVER</span></h2> -</div> - -<hr /> - -<div class="chapter"> -<h2 class="nobreak" id="CHAPTER_XXI">CHAPTER XXI.<br /> - -<span class="subhead">THE CIVIL WAR.</span></h2> -</div> - -<p><span class="firstword">In</span> a great many ways the War of the Rebellion -affected the commerce of the Missouri River. -Missouri was a slave State, and most of her citizens -along the river were Southern sympathizers. It is -stated that all the Missouri River pilots except two -were in sympathy with the South, and that General -Lyon had to go to the Illinois River for pilots when -he wanted to move his troops up the river in June, -1861.</p> - -<p>The steamboat business on the river felt the weight -of the war almost immediately upon its breaking out. -Most of the business was with the loyal people and -was, of course, considered by the Confederates as a -legitimate subject of confiscation. Guerrilla bands infested -the country along the river, fired into the -boats, and did all they could to break up the business.<span class="pagenum" id="Page_250">250</span> -They succeeded in driving most of the traffic off the -lower river; but at the same time the demands of the -war stimulated the trade higher up. There was an -increased movement of government troops and -stores, and in the later years of the war many refugees -from both armies passed up the river to the mountains. -The discovery of gold in Montana added -greatly to the river commerce during these years. -The injurious effects of the war, therefore, were -mainly confined to the river below Kansas City.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">GUERRILLAS IN MISSOURI.</div> - -<p>The peril to navigation due to the operations of -the guerrillas was a formidable one. Wherever the -channel ran close to the high wooded banks or other -sheltered localities, ambush and attack could always -be expected. The danger was mainly from the -south bank. It became necessary to tie up at night -away from this bank, and Captain La Barge followed -the practice of anchoring in mid-stream. The -pilot-houses were regularly equipped with shields of -boiler iron, semi-cylindrical in form, inclosing the -wheel, and capable of being moved so as to be adjusted -to the changing course of the vessel. These -shields were of great service on the upper river also, -for the Indians at this time were as dangerous in that -section as were the guerrillas farther down. Occasionally, -when there was much government freight -aboard, troops were sent up on the boat until Kansas -City was passed.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_251">251</span></p> - -<p>The passions aroused by this internecine strife -deadened human kindness, and made men as ferocious -and brutal as wild beasts. This was particularly -true of the lawless bands of guerrillas whose desultory -operations have been in all wars the most cruel -and most difficult to suppress or control. Brigadier -General Loan, of the Missouri State Militia, in reporting -the tragedy which we shall next relate, said: -“The guerrillas and Rebel sympathizers are waging -a relentless, cruel, and bloody war upon our unarmed -and defenseless citizens, and are determined to continue -it until the last loyal citizen is murdered, or -driven from the State for fear of being murdered.” -Such was the true situation along the south bank of -the Missouri River, and it was only by the most -vigilant precaution on the part of the steamboat men -that they did not suffer more than they did. We -shall relate one instance in which these precautions -did not avail.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">AFFAIR OF THE “SAM GATY.”</div> - -<p>In the latter part of March, 1863, the steamboat -<i>Sam Gaty</i> was on her way up the Missouri with a -heavy load of freight and passengers, bound for the -far upper river. There were on board several persons -of wealth on their way to the newly discovered gold -fields of Montana. There were besides quite a number -of paroled Union soldiers and some forty contrabands, -as the negroes freed by the war were called. -While passing under a high wooded bank near Sibley,<span class="pagenum" id="Page_252">252</span> -Mo., the boat was attacked by a band of guerrillas -under the leadership of one Hicks, who had for -some time been the terror of the surrounding -country. The boat was ordered to come to the bank -and promptly obeyed, whereupon the guerrillas immediately -boarded her. The attack was unexpected, -and the passengers were seated around the cabin engaged -in games and conversation when the appalling -fact of their situation dawned upon them. A rush -was made to conceal valuable property, and the -paroled soldiers made haste to get into citizens’ -clothes. The poor negroes could do nothing. The -guerrillas made quick and heartless work. They -robbed the passengers of all the valuables to be found -on their persons, and one man narrowly escaped -summary death for attempting to slip his gold watch -into his boot. All the property on board that seemed -to be of any use to the government was thrown into -the river. The safes were broken open and robbed. -Some of the paroled soldiers were taken off the boat -and shot. All of the contrabands were driven -ashore, where they were shot down in cold blood. -Their shrieks and cries were plainly heard on the -boat. After this attack the boat was allowed to -proceed.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">AN ATROCIOUS CRIME.</div> - -<p>Vengeance followed quickly in the wake of this -atrocious crime. A body of Kansas troops under a -Major Ransom pursued and overtook the guerrillas,<span class="pagenum" id="Page_253">253</span> -attacked and destroyed their camp, took twenty-one -horses, killed seventeen men in combat and -hanged two, and completely dispersed the organization.<a id="FNanchor_44" href="#Footnote_44" class="fnanchor">44</a></p> - -<div class="sidenote">A UNION MAN</div> - -<p>Captain La Barge had his full share of troublesome -experiences that followed the outbreak of the war. -As a slave-owner in a small way, and as a man born -and bred in the old ante-bellum atmosphere that surrounded -the institution of slavery, his natural sympathies -were with the South. But when it came to -a decision he did not hesitate a moment. As between -union and disunion he was for union. It required a -degree of self-denial and patriotism which many -Northerners have never fully appreciated to stand by -the country when one’s training and natural sympathies -would have led him to the other side. Captain -La Barge remained a Union man, took the oath -of allegiance, and throughout the war rendered constant -service to the government. He soon came to -see the wisdom of his decision, and before the war -was over his sympathies had swung into full line -with his action.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">THE GALLOWS CHEATED.</div> - -<p>In 1861 Captain La Barge was coming down the -river on the <i>Emilie</i> from Omaha, and, as usual, -stopped at St. Joseph for freight and passengers. A<span class="pagenum" id="Page_254">254</span> -good many people got on board, most of them -Southern sympathizers going south. When the boat -rounded out into the stream the passengers went up -on deck and cheered for Jefferson Davis. The news -of this event was telegraphed to Colonel R. D. -Anthony of Leavenworth<a id="FNanchor_45" href="#Footnote_45" class="fnanchor">45</a>. This distinguished -agitator and ardent Union man called a meeting of -the citizens, and it was decided to hang La Barge -the moment the boat arrived. The Captain had a -stanch friend in Leavenworth of the name of -Alexander Majors, of the firm of Russell, Majors & -Waddell, overland freighters. He was waiting to -take passage to his home in Lexington, Mo. When -the boat approached there was a great crowd on the -levee. The instant the prow touched the bank -Majors leaped on board and told the Captain not to -make fast, as the crowd proposed to hang him. The -Captain asked the clerk what business they had for -Leavenworth. He replied that there were only a -few bills to collect. “Let them go for now,” said -the Captain, and tapping the bell to depart, drew -back into the stream. When the crowd saw that -they were outwitted, they swung their rope into the -air and yelled that they would get him at Wyandotte. -“All right,” replied the Captain, “I expect to stop<span class="pagenum" id="Page_255">255</span> -there,” but when he reached that place he kept right -on.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">SERVING UNDER DURESS.</div> - -<div class="sidenote">AN UNPLEASANT DILEMMA.</div> - -<p>On one of the down trips in the season of 1861 the -<i>Emilie</i> arrived at Boonville just as the Confederates -were evacuating that place upon the approach of the -Federals under General Lyon. La Barge knew -nothing of what was transpiring there, and his first -intimation of any unusual state of things was a volley -of cannon shot whistling over the boat. The Captain -signaled that he would halt, and rounded to above -the town. The Confederate General Marmaduke -came on board and with him Captain Kelly and a -company of troops. “I knew Marmaduke well,” -said La Barge, “and asked him as soon as he got on -board what the matter was. He replied, ‘I want you -to turn around and take General Price up to Lexington. -He is sick and cannot stand the overland ride.’ -I replied that I could not think of such a thing; that -I was in the service of the government. He then -took possession of the boat, placed me in arrest, and -forced me to take the boat back to Lexington. I -protested again, saying that the crew would look to -me for pay for this extra work, and the government -would hold me responsible for failure to fulfill my -contract. Marmaduke replied, ‘I will pay you every -cent you have to disburse on account of this trip.’ -After Price came on board Marmaduke left, and we<span class="pagenum" id="Page_256">256</span> -then steamed up to Lexington, where the boat was -turned over to me and I was told to shift for myself. -I suppose they thought I ought to consider myself -fortunate to get off at all. They never paid me anything, -although they might easily have done so, for -the first thing done upon landing at Lexington, as I -was told, was to sack all the banks of that town. As -to my getting away, that was far from being a matter -of much satisfaction. It was, of course, known in -the Federal lines that I had carried Price up the river. -How should I answer for myself upon my return? I -went to Price, told him the dilemma I was placed in, -and asked him to help me. He gave me a very -strong letter, stating that I had acted under duress, -and had been forced to go back against my repeated -protest.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">GENERAL LYON.</div> - -<div class="sidenote">LA BARGE RELEASED.</div> - -<p>“It was with no slight misgivings that I turned the -<i>Emilie</i> downstream and started in the direction of -Boonville. I knew that there was trouble in store for -me. When I approached the Federal lines a volley -was fired at the boat, apparently with the definite -purpose of hitting her. I promptly rounded to and -the firing ceased. A young Lieutenant by the name -of White came on board with a guard of a dozen men -to arrest me. I had known White in St. Louis as a -commission clerk, a young man of no account, but -who, having now some authority, felt disposed, like<span class="pagenum" id="Page_257">257</span> -all inferior men, to exercise it with a severity in inverse -proportion to his ability. He doubtless -thought it a great feather in his cap to have as -prisoner a man who would scarcely have deigned to -notice him in any other situation. He was insolent -and arbitrary, and lunging his sword toward me, -would order me to walk faster. I was taken to -General Lyon’s quarters, and when in that officer’s -presence, he said to me: ‘You are in a very bad scrape -here, sir.’ I took Price’s letter from my pocket and -handed it to him, saying, ‘General, please read that; -it may help to straighten matters out.’ He read the -letter, but pretended not to think much of it. After -hemming and hawing over the matter for a while he -said: ‘Do you know anyone here who can tell me -who you are?’ He knew very well who I was, for -he had been with Harney in the Sioux War of 1854–55 -and we had met then. I asked him to name the -members of his staff, and I could tell. He finally -mentioned Frank Blair. I said with some irony, -‘I know Frank Blair very well, and I think <em>he</em> knows -me.’ We then walked up to Blair’s quarters. He -shook hands cordially and said, ‘I understand that -you are in a bad fix here.’ ‘It looks like it,’ I replied. -‘Rather be at home than here, I presume,’ -he continued jokingly. ‘Much rather,’ I replied. -Lyon showed Blair Price’s letter. They consulted<span class="pagenum" id="Page_258">258</span> -together for a little while and Lyon then said to me, -‘You can take possession of your steamboat and go -home.’ I found the boat in Lyon’s fleet where it had -been taken, and all of her provisions confiscated. I -was not long in getting up steam, and left the inhospitable -region with the utmost expedition.</p> - -<p>“I did not like Lyon. He was a Yankee, and his -disposition seemed to be to crush everyone who did -not think as he did. His language and bearing -toward me were so insolent and exasperating that -they left a lasting rancor in my mind.<a id="FNanchor_46" href="#Footnote_46" class="fnanchor">46</a></p> - -<p>“This affair cost me about five thousand dollars, -although I was partially reimbursed for the stores -taken. I did not go up the river again that season, -being too much vexed and disgusted with my late -experience. I sent the boat up under charge of a man -of the name of Nick Wall, who ran her until my government -contracts were completed.”</p> - -<p>In the year 1862 Captain La Barge was again impressed -temporarily into the service of guerrillas. -On October 16 of that year a body of Confederates -was at Portland, Mo., when the steamboat <i>Emilie</i><span class="pagenum" id="Page_259">259</span> -came along. The <i>Emilie</i> stopped to put two men -ashore, when a gang of Rebels concealed behind a -woodpile took possession of the boat and compelled -Captain La Barge to set them across the river. He -was forced to unload his deck freight and take on 175 -horses and as many men. Scarcely had they started -across when a force of Union cavalry of the Missouri -State Militia arrived, but not in time to arrest the -operation.</p> - -<p>These were the only occasions on which Captain -La Barge had trouble on the river on account of the -War. Like all other boatmen, he welcomed the close -of this conflict and the tranquillity which it brought -to the river business.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">UNITED STATES VOLUNTEERS.</div> - -<div class="sidenote">A NOTABLE CHARACTER.</div> - -<p>There was an organization in the military establishment -of the United States, growing out of the -progress of the war, of which very little is known. It -was called the United States Volunteers, and consisted -of six regiments and one independent company. -It was composed chiefly of deserters from the -Confederate army and prisoners of war who had -taken the oath of allegiance to the United States.<span class="pagenum" id="Page_260">260</span> -These troops served continuously on the Western -plains and in the Northwest, except the 1st and 4th -regiments, which served mainly at Norfolk, Va. On -the Missouri River, and perhaps elsewhere, they -were commonly spoken of as “Galvanized Yankees.” -In 1864, when Fort Rice was established -near the mouth of the Cannon Ball River, it was -garrisoned by the 1st Regiment of U. S. Volunteers -under Colonel Charles A. R. Dimon. This officer -was one of the remarkable characters of Missouri -River history, and made a great impression along the -valley, considering his brief service there. He was -the particular bugbear of the traders, and the character -which they have given him can be best expressed -by spelling his name with an “e” in the first syllable. -It was said that he ordered his men shot down on the -least provocation, and that many of the regiment -were slain in this way. Numbers of his men are said -to have deserted through fear of his tyrannical and -ungovernable temper. One of the traders has left a -record of his own special grievance.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">DRASTIC MEASURES.</div> - -<p>In the winter of 1864–65, as already stated, the -American Fur Company sold out to the Northwestern -Fur Company, more commonly known as -the firm of Hawley & Hubbell. In the following -spring these two gentlemen went up the river -with Mr. C. P. Chouteau on the American Fur<span class="pagenum" id="Page_261">261</span> -Company boat, the <i>Yellowstone</i>, to make the transfer -of the posts and property. There were many -passengers of different political creeds on board, -including a number of ex-Confederates. At a -point about one hundred miles above Fort Sully -news of Lincoln’s assassination was received, and the -passengers of all shades of opinion expressed their -horror of the event. When the boat arrived at Fort -Rice, Colonel Dimon, according to this authority, -came down to the boat with a large guard of soldiers -and placed the whole party under arrest on the charge -of jubilating over the assassination of the President. -The traders thought the whole proceeding was a -scheme of Colonel Dimon to advertise his intense -loyalty. He told Chouteau, whose Southern proclivities -were well understood along the river, that -he would take him out on the bank and shoot him -like a dog. Chouteau was thoroughly frightened -and trembled like a leaf, for there was no knowing -what the impetuous officer might take a notion to do.</p> - -<p>Hubbell and Hawley determined to go down to -Sioux City and report to General Sully the detention -of their boat and the conduct of Colonel Dimon -toward themselves and others. Chouteau gave them -a yawl and wrote a letter to the General. Dimon -ordered them not to go without first reporting to -him. Although his authority to give such an order<span class="pagenum" id="Page_262">262</span> -is doubtful, the men did not dare to disobey for fear -of being shot. When they appeared they were required -to submit all their letters to his inspection. -The particular letter he was after was one he believed -Chouteau had written, but Hubbell and Hawley had -slipped it into the breech of a Henry rifle and left it in -the boat. Finally they were permitted to go. They -made a rapid trip, partly by river and partly by land, -and immediately reported their grievances to General -Sully. The General promptly gave them a written -order to Colonel Dimon to release their boat. -Armed with this they returned to Fort Rice by the -steamer <i>G. W. Graham</i>, and in an incredibly short -time, considering the distance and mode of travel, -appeared before Colonel Dimon. General Sully’s -order eased matters up somewhat, but still the traders -had a good deal of trouble with the irate post commander.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">FACT AND FICTION.</div> - -<p>How much there was in the stories about -Colonel Dimon is doubtful, but probably about an -equal mixture of fact and fiction. Certainly the view -of the traders concerning him was not shared by -General Sully, if we judge from the following extracts -from his own correspondence with General Pope. -Writing from Sioux City under date of June 10, 1865, -he says:</p> - -<div class="sidenote">GENERAL SULLY’S VIEWS.</div> - -<p>“I admire his energy and pluck, the determination<span class="pagenum" id="Page_263">263</span> -with which he carries out orders; but he is too young—too -rash—for his position, and it would be well if -he could be removed. He is making a good deal of -trouble for me, and eventually for you, in his over-zealous -desire to do his duty.... His regiment -was raised and organized by Ben. Butler, and he is -too much like him in his actions for an Indian country, -but he is just the sort of a man I would like to -have under me in the field.” Upon his arrival at -Fort Rice a month later he thus commented upon -Colonel Dimon:</p> - -<p>“I am much pleased with the appearance of this -post and the way military duty is performed. Colonel -Dimon is certainly an excellent officer. A few -more years of experience to curb his impetuosity -would make him one of the best officers in our volunteer -service.”</p> - -<p>Pope in the meanwhile authorized Sully to take -such action in regard to Colonel Dimon as he saw fit. -A board of officers was convened to investigate complaints -against him, and on the strength of their report -he was relieved July 21, 1865. He resumed -command of the post, however, October 10, 1865, -but was mustered out of the service on the 27th of -the following month. He was subsequently brevetted -Brigadier General of Volunteers for gallant and -meritorious service during the war.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_264">264</span></p> - -<div class="sidenote">A FAIR PROBABILITY.</div> - -<p>Colonel Dimon probably showed an excess of -severity toward the traders where the average officer -showed far too little. That explains their chief -ground of dislike of him. Add to this the “impetuosity” -of temperament referred to by General -Sully, and we have a pretty close analysis of a situation -which caused a great flurry on the Missouri River -in its day. As a matter of fact a great many of the -men in the 1st Volunteers died at Fort Rice, but -from disease, and not by execution under Dimon’s -order. A number of men did desert, and seventeen -of them walked all the way to Fort Union. One of -these men made a pen drawing of that post which is -probably the most accurate now in existence.</p> - -<hr /> - -<div id="chap_265" class="chapter"> -<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_265">265</span></p> - -<h2 class="nobreak" id="CHAPTER_XXII">CHAPTER XXII.<br /> - -<span class="subhead">GOLD IN MONTANA.</span></h2> -</div> - -<div class="sidenote">FIRST GOLD IN MONTANA.</div> - -<p>If the Civil War operated to drive commerce from -the lower Missouri River, other forces were at work -at the head waters of that stream to multiply it many -fold. At the time when the attention of the nation -and of the world was centered on the tempest that -had burst over the eastern portion of the Republic, -a few hardy miners were prospecting the country -around the upper tributaries of the Missouri in their -ever-restless search for gold. It is a singular fact -that the gold-bearing regions of western Montana, -the very first in the mountain country to be extensively -frequented by white men, should have been the -last to give up the secret of their hidden wealth. -For nearly twenty years emigration had been pouring -into the West. The Mormons had settled a few -hundred miles to the south. Settlement had gained -a permanent foothold on the Pacific Coast from -Mexico to the British line. The Pike’s Peak gold -discoveries were rapidly filling up Colorado. The<span class="pagenum" id="Page_266">266</span> -reflex wave of emigration was rolling back from the -Pacific Coast across the Sierras and the Cascades -into Nevada, eastern Oregon, and Idaho. But as -yet there were no settlers to speak of in the mountains -of Montana, and that country was still practically -unknown to the general public. It is a remarkable -fact that a section of country in that neighborhood, -which is now considered the most wonderful in the -world, was the very last of all the national domain to -be discovered and explored.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">FIRST SALE OF GOLD DUST.</div> - -<p>The wave of gold discovery in the Northwest -moved from the west toward the east. In 1860–61 -it made known the rich deposits in Idaho on the -Salmon and Clearwater rivers. Next came the findings -just west of the Continental Divide, and then the -rich discoveries on the head waters of the Missouri. -The existence of placer deposits within the limits of -the present State of Montana had been asserted as -early as 1852. A Canadian half-breed of the name -of Beneetse is said to have found pay dirt in that -year on a small tributary of Deer Lodge River, one of -the sources of the Columbia. The stream has since -been known as Gold Creek, and the place of discovery -is about fifty miles northwest of the modern -city of Butte. Four years later, 1856, the discovery -was confirmed by a party who were traveling from -Great Salt Lake to the Bitter Root Valley. In the<span class="pagenum" id="Page_267">267</span> -same year a man turned up at Fort Benton with what -he asserted was golddust. He came from the mountains -in the Southwest, most likely from the Deer -Lodge Valley. None of the people at the post were -gold experts, and they hesitated about receiving the -dust; but Culbertson finally took it on his own -responsibility, giving for it a thousand dollars’ worth -of merchandise. Next year he sent it down the river, -and it was found to be pure gold, worth fifteen hundred -dollars. This was the first exchange of golddust -in Montana.</p> - -<p>The next step in the progress of discovery must be -credited to James and Granville Stuart, two of Montana’s -most distinguished pioneers. They had been -spending the winter of 1857–58, with a number of -other people, in the valley of the Bighole River, a -tributary of the Missouri, and in the spring of 1858 -went over to the Deer Lodge Valley to investigate the -reported findings on Gold Creek. They remained -there for a time and found paying prospects, but -were so harassed by the Blackfeet Indians that they -were compelled to leave. They moved to a safer -locality, but here James Stuart met with an accident -which came near proving fatal, and the two -brothers left the country and went to Fort Bridger. -Although they had made no great discovery, their -report was considered as confirming those already<span class="pagenum" id="Page_268">268</span> -made of the existence of gold in the Deer Lodge -Valley.</p> - -<p>Before these prospects were any further developed -attention was wholly diverted to the important discoveries -in Idaho already referred to. A great stampede -to the Salmon and Clearwater rivers began. -Emigrants poured in both by way of Salt Lake and -the Missouri River, and an even larger inflow came -from the Pacific Coast. But before the rush from -the East had gathered full force discoveries in -Montana arrested its course and held it permanently -in a new and greater Eldorado.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">BEGINNING OF MINING IN MONTANA.</div> - -<p>In the winter of 1861–62 a considerable floating -population, among them the Stuart brothers, remained -in the Deer Lodge Valley. The Stuarts -commenced sluicing in a systematic way on Gold -Creek, and their work was the beginning of the gold-mining -industry in Montana. Although nothing -particularly remarkable was found, it was enough to -attract attention, and reports soon got abroad that -the findings were very rich. The greater part of the -emigration from the East in the year 1862 was bound -for the Idaho mines, but did not get beyond the Deer -Lodge Valley, or other points in western Montana. -Among these parties was one from Colorado, including -J. M. Bozeman, for whom the town of Bozeman, -in the beautiful Gallatin Valley, is named. The newcomers<span class="pagenum" id="Page_269">269</span> -made a rich discovery on a branch of Gold -Creek, which was named, from the place whence the -party came, Pike’s Peak Gulch.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">BANNOCK CITY.</div> - -<p>Another party from Colorado, bound for the Idaho -mines, were deflected north by the difficulty of getting -through the Lemhi Mountains and by favorable -reports from the Deer Lodge Valley. Two of their -number discovered gold on Grasshopper Creek, in -the southwestern corner of the present State of -Montana. They carried the news to the main party, -who had gone on to the Deer Lodge, and all returned -to investigate the discovery. The report of the two -men was found to be true, and prospecting in that -part of the country was carried on extensively. This -work resulted in the finding of a very rich deposit by -a party under one White, for whom the spot was -named White’s Bar. Here the town of Bannock -sprang up, and before the end of the year boasted a -population of five hundred souls. Other rich discoveries -were made in that vicinity, while far to the -north the deposits on the Big Prickly Pear Creek -were found. It was now apparent that the whole -country on the head waters of the Missouri abounded -in gold, and the work of prospecting assumed enormous -proportions.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">NORTHERN OVERLAND EXPEDITION.</div> - -<p>Two other important expeditions came from the -East this season, bound for the Idaho mines, but<span class="pagenum" id="Page_270">270</span> -were stopped in their course, like that from Colorado, -by the new discoveries in Montana. One of these -was the firm of La Barge, Harkness & Co. of -St. Louis, and the other was a body of emigrants who -accompanied what was known in its day as the -Northern Overland Expedition from St. Paul. This -expedition was of a semi-official character, under a -Federal appropriation of five thousand dollars, and -its ostensible object was to open a wagon road from -St. Paul to Fort Benton. It was under the command -of Captain James L. Fisk, who, a private soldier in -the 3d Minnesota Volunteers, was appointed Captain -and Quartermaster and placed in charge. About -125 emigrants accompanied the expedition. The -journey was made in safety, and was full of interesting -happenings. It contributed one of the most important -additions ever made to population of the -rising State.<a id="FNanchor_47" href="#Footnote_47" class="fnanchor">47</a></p> - -<p>The spring of 1863 was marked by one of the most -noted gold discoveries ever made. During the<span class="pagenum" id="Page_271">271</span> -previous winter a considerable party, under the -leadership of James Stuart, was organized at Bannock -City, to explore and prospect the country on the -sources of the Yellowstone. A portion of this party, -including William Fairweather and Henry Edgar, -went by the way of Deer Lodge Valley to secure -horses, having fixed on the mouth of the Beaverhead -River as the place of joining the main party. -Through some unavoidable delay the smaller party -did not arrive on time and Stuart went on without -them. The Fairweather party discovered Stuart’s -trail and made forced marches to overtake him. The -route lay up the Gallatin Valley and across the divide -to the Yellowstone, and thence down the valley of -that stream. Soon after reaching the Yellowstone -the smaller party were plundered by a band of Crows -of everything except their guns and mining tools. -The Indians had the generosity to give them in exchange -for their mounts old broken-down horses of -their own.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">ALDER GULCH.</div> - -<p>The party gave up their pursuit of Stuart and -started back for Bannock City. On the 26th of May -they stopped for noon on Alder Creek, a little branch -of one of the main tributaries of Jefferson Fork of -the Missouri. Here, as a result of a chance examination -of a bar by two men, Fairweather and Edgar, -the famous Alder Gulch discovery was made, and the<span class="pagenum" id="Page_272">272</span> -richest placer deposit in the history of gold mining -came to the knowledge of the world. The news of -this wonderful discovery drew to the spot a large part -of the population of the Territory, and the town of -Virginia City sprang up as if in a night. For several -years it was the principal town in the Territory and -became its first capital. In less than two years it -had grown to a city of ten thousand souls.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">LAST CHANCE GULCH.</div> - -<p>The next important discovery was made in the fall -of 1864, in what was named at the time Last Chance -Gulch. The deposits were very rich, and the history -of Alder Gulch was re-enacted here. The town -which arose on the spot was named Helena, and soon -outgrew its sister to the south. It became, and for -many years remained, the principal town of the -Territory. In 1874 it was made the Territorial -capital, and after Montana was admitted to the -Union, it was made the permanent capital of the -State.</p> - -<p>Other discoveries followed those here mentioned, -many of them rich and of permanent value, but none -equaling those of Alder and Last Chance gulches. -The Territory at once took rank with California and -Colorado as a gold-producing territory, and has held -its high place ever since.</p> - -<p>The mighty metamorphosis which, in the space of -five years, came over the country at the headwaters of<span class="pagenum" id="Page_273">273</span> -the Missouri, produced an equally marvelous change -in the commercial business of that stream. The river -gave a sure highway for travel to within one hundred -to two hundred miles of the mines. There was no -other route that could compete with it, for this could -carry freight from St. Louis to Fort Benton, in cargoes -of one to five hundred tons, without breaking -bulk. The emigrants themselves went in large numbers -by overland routes, but a great number also by -the boats; while nearly all merchandise, including -every necessary of life, and all mining machinery and -heavy freight, came by the river.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">HIGH WATER MARK.</div> - -<div class="sidenote">AN EXTRAORDINARY SCENE.</div> - -<p>The steamboat trade jumped suddenly to enormous -proportions. Prior to 1864 there had been only six -steamboat arrivals at the levee of Fort Benton. In -1866 and 1867 there were seventy arrivals. The -trade touched high-water mark in 1867, and at this -time presented one of the most extraordinary developments -known to the history of commerce. -There were times when thirty or forty steamboats -were on the river between Fort Benton and the -mouth of the Yellowstone,<a id="FNanchor_48" href="#Footnote_48" class="fnanchor">48</a> where all the way the<span class="pagenum" id="Page_274">274</span> -river flowed amid scenes of wildness that were in -the strictest sense primeval. To one who could have -been set down in the unbroken wilderness along the -banks of the river, where nothing dwelt except wild -animals and wilder men, where the fierce Indian made -life a constant peril, where no civilized habitation -greeted the eye, it would have seemed marvelous and -wholly inexplicable to find this river filled with noble -craft, as beautiful as any that ever rode the ocean, -stored with all the necessaries of civilization, and -crowded with passengers as cultured, refined, and -well dressed as the cabin list of an ocean steamer. -What could it all mean? Whence came this handful -of civilization and what brought it here? Certainly -a most extraordinary scene, flashed for a -moment before the world and then withdrawn forever.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">PERILOUS VOYAGE.</div> - -<p>It was not the steamboat alone, however, that<span class="pagenum" id="Page_275">275</span> -made up the romantic history of Missouri navigation -in these exciting times. There were every -year many men from the mines who wanted to return -to the States because they were weary of the -country or wished to carry down the crude wealth -which they had secured. The steamboats came up -only in the spring, and if passengers were not ready -to go down it was necessary to seek other conveyance. -The usual resource in such cases was the -mackinaw boat. It was a perfectly comfortable and -very cheap mode of traveling, with only one drawback—danger -from the Indians, who, at this time, -were intensely hostile all along the river. It was -regarded as a sort of forlorn hope to go down in an -open boat, and yet many tried it every year. Generally -they got through all right, with their precious -freight, but there were some terrible tragedies as the -penalty of such reckless daring.</p> - -<p>Some statistics have survived showing the magnitude -of the steamboat business on the Missouri River -during these years. In the year 1865, 1000 passengers, -6000 tons of merchandise, and 20 quartz mills -went to Fort Benton. In the year 1867 forty steamboats -had passed Sioux City before June 1 on their -way up the river. They carried over 12,000 tons of -freight, most of it for Fort Benton. There was not -much downstream traffic, although all the boats<span class="pagenum" id="Page_276">276</span> -carried golddust. In 1866 one boat, the <i>Luella</i>, had -on board $1,250,000 worth of dust.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">FABULOUS PROFITS.</div> - -<p>The profits of a successful voyage were enormous. -The reported profits for some of the trips of 1866 -were as follows: The <i>St. John</i>, $17,000; the <i>Tacony</i>, -$16,000; the <i>W. J. Lewis</i>, $40,000; the <i>Peter Balen</i>, -$65,000. In 1867 Captain La Barge cleared over -$40,000 on the trip of the <i>Octavia</i>.</p> - -<p>Freight rates from St. Louis to Fort Benton in -1866 were 12 cents per pound. Insurance rates were -6 1-2 per cent. in the case of sidewheel boats and -8 per cent with sternwheel boats. The fare for -cabin passengers was $300. It was not everyone, -however, who had a share in the high prices of those -times. The master of the boat received $200 per -month; the clerk $150; the mate and engineer each -$125. The pilot was the only member of the crew -who could command what salary he pleased. So -indispensable were his services that as high as $1200 -per month was paid for the best talent.</p> - -<hr /> - -<div id="chap_277" class="chapter"> -<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_277">277</span></p> - -<h2 class="nobreak" id="CHAPTER_XXIII">CHAPTER XXIII.<br /> - -<span class="subhead">INCIDENTS ON THE RIVER (1862–67).</span></h2> -</div> - -<p><span class="firstword">In</span> the summer of 1863 a party of twenty-one men -and three women went down the Missouri in a -mackinaw boat from Fort Benton. They reached -the vicinity of the mouth of Apple Creek, near where -Bismarck, N. D., now stands, just as the Sioux -Indians, whom General Sibley was driving out of -Minnesota and across the country to the Missouri, -arrived on the banks of that stream. They had just -been defeated in three engagements with General -Sibley and were in a very angry temper. They -attacked the boat and fought the little party an entire -day, and finally killed them all and sunk the boat. -It was reported that the whites killed ninety-one -Indians in the fight, and that the captain of the boat, -whose name is supposed to have been Baker, “made -such a brave defense that the Indians were struck with -admiration for him and wanted to save him.” The -boat had a large amount of golddust on board, and -some of it was recovered by the Mandan and Aricara -Indians. An air of mystery has always hung over<span class="pagenum" id="Page_278">278</span> -this affair, and the details will probably never be -known. For some unexplained reason, certain individuals -who were believed to have had some knowledge -of it refused to disclose anything.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">THE STOLEN MACKINAW.</div> - -<p>In 1864, while Captain La Barge was at Fort -Benton, a number of miners applied to him to purchase -a mackinaw boat. He refused to sell because -he felt sure that it meant death to them to try to run -the gantlet of the Indians in that way. They replied -that they were afraid to go overland on account -of road agents. The Captain told them they had less -to fear from road agents than from Indians. The -road agents might take their gold, but the Indians -would spare neither treasure nor life. They were -unconvinced, however, and as the Captain would not -sell the boat, they stole it and set out. While passing -a high cut bank, about thirty miles below Fort -Berthold, where the channel ran close to the shore, -they were attacked by a war party of Sioux and all -killed. Pierre Garreau, the well-known interpreter, -went down from Berthold and recovered a part of -the golddust. La Barge saw some of it among the -Indians the following year.</p> - -<p>In 1865 the steamer <i>St. Johns</i>, on her way down -the river, was attacked by the Indians and the mate -instantly killed. The boat was under full headway -and out of reach before it was possible to return fire.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_279">279</span></p> - -<div class="sidenote">SOWING THE WIND.</div> - -<p>In the same year the <i>General Grant</i> lost three men. -They had been sent ashore at a wooding place to -make fast a line, when they were pounced upon by -the Indians and killed.</p> - -<p>On April 23, 1865, a band of Blood Indians near -Fort Benton stole about forty horses belonging to a -party of beaver-trappers, of whom Charley Carson, -a nephew of “Kit” Carson, was one. On the night -of May 22 these men, having gotten on a drunken -spree, attacked a small party of Blood Indians who -happened to be near Fort Benton, but were not -known to be the thieves, killed three, and threw their -bodies into the Missouri. The survivors fled toward -the south and met a large band of warriors near Sun -River, on their way north. Exasperated at the outrage -upon their brethren, they were ready for any -measure of revenge, and accident soon threw the -desired opportunity in their way.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">REAPING THE WHIRLWIND.</div> - -<p>At the mouth of the Marias River lay the steamboat -<i>Cutter</i>. A town site had been laid off at this -point and named Ophir, and some timber had been -cut in the valley of the Marias for use in the erection -of buildings. The principal proprietor of the nascent -village was a passenger on the <i>Cutter</i>, and the business -of that boat seems to have been connected with -the building of the town. On the afternoon of May -25, about half-past two o’clock, eight men left the<span class="pagenum" id="Page_280">280</span> -boat with a wagon and three yoke of oxen to bring -down some of the timber, and an hour later two men -went on horseback to join them, for it was felt that -there might be trouble from the Indians, and that the -party should be as strong as possible. These men -were all well armed. Their route lay up the valley -of the Marias along its right bank, which they ascended -about three miles. At this point the valley, -which was quite broad below, narrowed to a width of -four hundred yards. There was a growth of timber -quite dense close to the river, but open farther back. -Just above this point the bluffs crowded close upon -the river, seamed with ravines and gullies, like all the -river bluffs along the Missouri. The roadway at the -foot of these bluffs was very narrow.</p> - -<p>Beyond this defile the valley opened out again, -and there was another belt of timber. In the upper -opening the Indians seem to have been in camp and -to have been discovered by the wood-choppers just -as the latter were passing the defile. It was probably -the same band which we have noted as being near -Sun River two days before. The wagons were instantly -turned about, although in a most disadvantageous -situation. The Indians saw the whites at -about the same time. They were lying in wait for -another party with a mule train, and were intending, -after attacking it, to try to take the steamboat. As<span class="pagenum" id="Page_281">281</span> -soon as they saw the wood-choppers they at once -attacked them and killed every man and captured -all the property. The bodies of the slain were found -scattered along the river, fifty to one hundred yards -apart, except one, that of N. W. Burroughs, which -was found half a mile further downstream, where he -was overtaken on his flight to the boat. Of the -Indians the head chief and one other were killed and -a third dangerously wounded. The Indians, to the -number of about two hundred, immediately moved -toward the British line.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">ENTIRE PARTY SLAIN.</div> - -<p>The attack occurred about four o’clock and the -firing was distinctly heard on the boat. A party -prepared to go out and investigate when a hunter -came riding in from the bluffs, saying that the whites -were being assailed by a large party of Indians. -Three scouts set out immediately, and after proceeding -about two miles and a half found the body of Mr. -Burroughs. It being certain that all the rest had -been killed, and not knowing where the Indians were, -it was not thought best to go farther at the time. -Next morning a party went out with wagons and -brought in the bodies, all of which were found. -They were buried in one grave, side by side, with a -head board giving the names and date.<span class="pagenum" id="Page_282">282</span><a id="FNanchor_49" href="#Footnote_49" class="fnanchor">49</a></p> - -<div class="sidenote">YANKEE JACK AGAIN.</div> - -<p>Captain La Barge arrived at the mouth of the -Marias on the <i>Effie Deans</i> soon after this affair and -saw the fresh graves. He remembered the circumstance -particularly, because, among the guard, which -had been stationed there after the massacre, was the -identical “Yankee Jack” who had whipped the two -Irishmen on the <i>Robert Campbell</i> in 1863.</p> - -<p>About September, 1865, eight men left Fort Benton -in a skiff for the States. They were attacked by -some forty Indians near the mouth of Milk River -and five of their number were killed. The fight -lasted over five hours. One of the men who was -killed, T. A. Kent by name, is said to have actually -killed thirteen Indians before he himself fell.</p> - -<p>In the year 1866 there were several noted open-boat -voyages down the river. One of these was -made by a party of ten miners, who purchased a -mackinaw at Fort Benton in which to transport themselves -and their golddust. When in camp on an island -about sixty miles above Fort Randall, one of the men, -of the name of Thompson, got up in the night, took -an ax, killed one companion and wounded another. -He was apparently bent on the destruction of the entire -party. The rest of the men, suddenly awakened -by the cries of their comrades, and believing that they<span class="pagenum" id="Page_283">283</span> -were attacked by Indians, rushed to the boat with the -wounded man and made off, leaving the murderer and -his victim alone on the island. Whether robbery was -the motive of the deed, or whether it was caused by -insanity, was never known.</p> - -<p>More fortunate was another mackinaw party that -went down the same season. It consisted of seventeen -men, and made the trip from Fort Benton to -Sioux City in twenty-two days. They brought down -over two hundred thousand dollars in golddust.</p> - -<p>The third party of this season consisted of one man -in a yawl and about twenty others in a mackinaw. -They made the entire trip without loss, although they -were attacked, some 225 miles below Benton, by -about five hundred Blackfeet. The river was in flood -stage, and thanks to its great width and swift current -the boats were able to keep out of range of the -Indians and to pass quickly beyond their reach.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">HUBBELL’S MACKINAW.</div> - -<p>The most important mackinaw trip ever made -down the river was in 1866 under the leadership of -J. B. Hubbell of the firm of Hawley & Hubbell. Hubbell -had advertised that his steamboat would leave -Fort Benton on her second trip about September 15, -promising, if she did not get to Fort Benton, to take -the passengers down in a mackinaw until they met -her. As late as October 20 she had not appeared, -and accordingly about thirty passengers started down<span class="pagenum" id="Page_284">284</span> -in a mackinaw. The boat was a very elaborate one, -built for this particular trip. It was eighty feet long, -twelve feet beam, housed in on both sides by bulletproof -walls for a distance of fifty feet, with sleeping -bunks along the sides, and open spaces at bow and -stern for managing the boat. Two masts rigged -with square sails were provided.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">A SUCCESSFUL VOYAGE.</div> - -<p>The boat was run until after dark every night and -was started before daylight in the morning. Wherever -possible she was tied to a snag out in the stream -for the night so as to make it impossible for the -Indians to attack by surprise. When the party arrived -at Fort Union they learned that the steamer -had been up, but had gone back. After some deliberation -it was decided to undertake the rest of the -journey and trust to luck not to be caught by the ice. -Everyone took a hand at the oars and rapid progress -was made. Game was plentiful and the boat was -full of golddust, and in spite of the fear of ice and -Indians the party were in the best of spirits. They -arrived at Sioux City November 22, with the river -running full of ice. Two days later and they would -have been frozen in. Mr. Hubbell received $175 -per passenger.<span class="pagenum" id="Page_285">285</span><a id="FNanchor_50" href="#Footnote_50" class="fnanchor">50</a></p> - -<div class="sidenote">THE LOST NEGRO BOYS.</div> - -<div class="sidenote">INCREDIBLE ENDURANCE.</div> - -<p>A singular incident happened in the summer of -1867, growing out of the wreck of one of the river -boats. In July of that year the steamer <i>Trover</i> was -wrecked at a point 240 miles below Fort Benton. -The <i>Ida Stockdale</i> happened along about the time, -took her freight and passengers to Benton, and on -the way back took off her machinery and carried it to -St. Louis. When she left the wreck there were two -colored boys asleep in the hold, and the boat went -off without knowing they were there. On waking up -and finding themselves alone, without a thing to eat -or any means of defense, and surrounded by a wilderness -wholly unknown to them, they were completely -paralyzed with fright; but recovering their presence -of mind they saw that they must find some relief -immediately or they would die of starvation. They -left the wreck and started down the river. In crossing -a small tributary of the Missouri one of the boys -was drowned. The other kept on night and day, -most of the time back from the river, to avoid the -bends and the swamps and underbrush. He had -nothing to eat except a little bark and some flower -blossoms and did not stop a moment for sleep. His -keeping back from the river caused him to miss the -boats and trading posts. Finally, almost famished<span class="pagenum" id="Page_286">286</span> -and exhausted, he beat his way through a dense willow -growth to the bank of the river in the hope that -some boat would come along before he should die. -Shortly afterward a steamer hove in sight—the -<i>Sunset</i>—on her way up the river. She was a veritable -sun<em>rise</em> to the poor boy, who began waving an old -white hat, almost the only article of clothing he had -left. The people on the boat saw the signal and sent -the yawl out and brought the boy in. His face was -almost raw from mosquito bites, and he was so weak -that he could scarcely stand. He was found at a -point twenty-five miles below Fort Rice, or 642 miles, -by river channel, below where the <i>Trover</i> was -wrecked. He traveled this distance in nine days. -With all the cut-offs duly allowed for, he must have -averaged seventy miles a day during this time, and all -the while without food. Were it not that the facts -seem well established, such an example of physical -endurance would be incredible.<a id="FNanchor_51" href="#Footnote_51" class="fnanchor">51</a> The name of this -little hero was Frederick Good and his home was in -St. Louis.</p> - -<hr /> - -<div id="chap_287" class="chapter"> -<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_287">287</span></p> - -<h2 class="nobreak" id="CHAPTER_XXIV">CHAPTER XXIV.<br /> - -<span class="subhead">LA BARGE AGAIN IN OPPOSITION.</span></h2> -</div> - -<p><span class="firstword">With</span> a view to entering, upon a large scale, into -the newly developing business at the head waters of -the Missouri, the firm of La Barge, Harkness & -Co. was formed in St. Louis in the winter of -1861–62. The members were Joseph La Barge, -Eugene Jaccard, James Harkness, John B. La Barge, -and Charles E. Galpin. Each partner put in ten -thousand dollars. Two steamboats were purchased—Captain -La Barge’s boat, the <i>Emilie</i>, and a light-draft -boat, the <i>Shreveport</i>. In the division of duties -and responsibilities among the partners Jaccard was -to attend to the affairs of the firm in St. Louis, the -La Barges were to manage the steamboat business, -Galpin was to look after the trade along the river, -and Harkness was to go to the mines with an outfit -of merchandise, and was to remain there and develop -a business with those rapidly growing communities.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">VOYAGE OF 1862.</div> - -<p>When it was known that Captain La Barge was to -make a spring trip to Benton, he was overwhelmed -with applications, not merely from those who wanted<span class="pagenum" id="Page_288">288</span> -to go to the mines, but from business men and capitalists -who wished to join the enterprise. He could -easily have organized a capital of a million dollars, -but he adhered to his first plan and pushed his -preparations with vigor. The <i>Shreveport</i> was first -gotten ready to sail and left port April 30, 1862. -Captain John La Barge was master. The <i>Emilie</i> -followed on the 14th of May.</p> - -<p>As a performance in steamboating the voyage of -the <i>Emilie</i> was a great success. She was loaded to -the guards with some 350 tons of freight and 160 -passengers. Captain La Barge himself had never -been more than a hundred miles above Fort Union; -yet he made the whole trip, 2300 miles, in a little less -than thirty-two days, and would have finished it -sooner but for the fact that he had to help the -<i>Shreveport</i> the last hundred miles of the distance. -The boats arrived at Fort Benton at noon June 17, -and at 6 A. M., June 19, the <i>Emilie</i> started down the -river, reaching St. Louis on the 3d of July. Her -speed up averaged 71 miles per day; down, 152 miles.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">A DESPERATE GAME.</div> - -<p>An exciting incident of the trip was the passing of -the American Fur Company’s boat, the <i>Spread Eagle</i>. -The new opposition of La Barge, Harkness & Co. -was a formidable one, and the Company bestirred -itself with unusual vigor to be first on the -ground with its annual outfit. The <i>Spread Eagle</i><span class="pagenum" id="Page_289">289</span> -left St. Louis with three days the start, but was overtaken -by the <i>Emilie</i> near Fort Berthold. For the -next two days the boats were near each other most -of the time. The day after leaving Berthold the -<i>Emilie</i> passed her rival for good. When the officers -of the <i>Spread Eagle</i> saw that they were beaten they -played a desperate game, which showed to what -lengths the Company’s servants would go when it -was a matter of rivalry in trade.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">THE “SPREAD EAGLE” RACE.</div> - -<p>At the point where the race took place there was a -towhead (a newly formed island) which at the stage -of the river then prevailing was covered with water. -The main channel, and at ordinary stages the only -channel, passed on the right-hand side going up, and -this channel the <i>Spread Eagle</i> took. But the water -was now high enough to give a good channel on the -other side of the towhead. As the distance by this -channel was somewhat shorter, and as the <i>Emilie</i> was -the faster boat anyway, it was a good chance to get -well ahead and out of the way. La Barge promptly -seized the opportunity. The pilot of the <i>Spread -Eagle</i> with quick eye realized that he had been out-maneuvered, -and seeing no other way to prevent the -<i>Emilie’s</i> passage, determined upon wrecking her. He -accordingly left the main channel and made for the -chute that the <i>Emilie</i> was entering. He steamed -alongside of her for a moment, but found that he was<span class="pagenum" id="Page_290">290</span> -losing ground.<a id="FNanchor_52" href="#Footnote_52" class="fnanchor">52</a> The boats were scarcely fifty feet -apart, when the pilot of the <i>Spread Eagle</i>, seeing that -he could not make it, deliberately put his rudder to -port, and plunged the bow of the boat into the <i>Emilie</i> -immediately opposite her boilers. Several of the -guards were broken and the danger of wreck was imminent. -La Barge was in the pilot-house at the time -and was not looking for such a move, for he did not -believe that even the American Fur Company would -play so desperate a game when human life was at -stake. He instantly called out to Bailey, the pilot of -the <i>Spread Eagle</i>, to stop his engines and drop his -boat back or he would put a bullet through him. -The passengers likewise became thoroughly aroused, -and some of them got their arms and threatened -to use them if the <i>Spread Eagle</i> did not withdraw. -These threats were effective; the <i>Spread -Eagle</i> fell to the rear and was seen no more on the -voyage. She was four days behind at Benton, and a -week on the whole trip. She lost four men on one of<span class="pagenum" id="Page_291">291</span> -the rapids by the grossest carelessness. A crew had -gone to the head of the rapids to plant a deadman,<a id="FNanchor_53" href="#Footnote_53" class="fnanchor">53</a> -and having finished this work dropped down to the -boat in their yawl. Instead of passing alongside of -the steamer they made directly for the bow, and on -reaching the boat the swift current instantly rolled the -yawl under and the crew were drowned.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">LA BARGE’S GENEROSITY.</div> - -<p>When the <i>Spread Eagle</i> returned to St. Louis -charges were preferred against Bailey for having attempted -to wreck the <i>Emilie</i>. He was brought to -trial before the steamboat inspector and his license -was canceled. It was a hard blow to him, for steamboating -was his trade, and he had a large family to -support. About a month afterward he went to La -Barge saying that he had been trying to get the inspector -to reinstate him, but that he would not do it -except upon La Barge’s recommendation. Bailey admitted -his guilt, but said that he had acted at the instigation -of the Company’s agents, and he begged La -Barge to reinstate him for the sake of his wife and -children. The Captain was never good at resisting -appeals of this sort, and he accordingly went to the -inspector and got Bailey reinstated.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">CHOUTEAU IN DOUBT.</div> - -<p>When the <i>Emilie</i> was reported as back from her -trip, the old gentleman Chouteau sent his carriage to -bring La Barge to the office.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_292">292</span></p> - -<p>“At what point did you turn back?” he asked -when La Barge arrived, for the phenomenally quick -trip indicated that the <i>Emilie</i> did not reach Fort -Benton.</p> - -<p>“Fort Benton, sir,” replied La Barge.</p> - -<p>“Tut, tut! I know you could not have done that. -Tell me candidly where you left your trip.”</p> - -<p>“Fort Benton, sir.”</p> - -<p>“We’ll see about it. I don’t believe it, don’t believe -it.”</p> - -<p>“Sorry you doubt my word, but it is nevertheless -true.”</p> - -<p>“Where did you leave the <i>Spread Eagle</i>?”</p> - -<p>“’Way below Benton; found her cordelling.”</p> - -<p>“Well, if you got to Fort Benton you made a good -trip; but I don’t believe it.”</p> - -<p>As soon as Captain La Barge reached St. Louis he -loaded his boat with merchandise for the new posts -along the river, intending to go back until he should -meet the <i>Shreveport</i>, a much lighter-draft vessel, and -transfer the cargo to her for the rest of the trip. The -<i>Shreveport</i> left Fort Benton July 6, and met the -<i>Emilie</i> at Sioux City. The transfer of cargo and -passengers was made, and the <i>Emilie</i> returned to St. -Louis. The <i>Shreveport</i> went as high as the mouth of -Milk River, the farthest of the new posts except that -near Fort Benton. After the <i>Emilie’s</i> return from<span class="pagenum" id="Page_293">293</span> -her second voyage she went to work for the government, -carrying stores from St. Louis to Memphis, and -remained in this service all winter.</p> - -<p>The river portion of the season’s operations of the -new firm had been a complete success. Three large -cargoes had been sent up the river, two to Fort Benton -and one to the lower posts. Of these posts there were -four—La Framboise, near old Fort Pierre; another -near Fort Berthold; Fort Stuart, near the mouth of -Poplar River, and Fort Galpin, near the mouth of -Milk River. It remains to notice what was done at -Fort Benton and in the projected expedition to the -mines.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">FORT LA BARGE.</div> - -<p>The operations at Fort Benton and beyond were -placed in the hands of Mr. Harkness. The first step -was to build a post at Fort Benton, where it was intended -to locate the principal establishment of the firm. -The site chosen was near the spot where the Grand -Union Hotel later stood. The work was begun June -28, Mrs. La Barge driving the first stake. The inclosure -was made three hundred feet long by two hundred -feet wide, and the post was named Fort La Barge.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">HARKNESS VISITS THE MINES.</div> - -<p>Before the <i>Shreveport</i> set out to return to St. Louis, -a considerable party made an excursion to the Great -Falls of the Missouri. Among them were Father De -Smet, Eugene Jaccard, member of the firm; Giles Filley -of St. Louis, and his son, Frank; Mrs. John La<span class="pagenum" id="Page_294">294</span> -Barge, Miss Harkness, W. G. Harkness, Tom La -Barge, and Mrs. Culbertson, the Indian wife of the -noted trader. Mrs. La Barge and Miss Harkness are -supposed to be the first white women to have seen the -Great Falls of the Missouri. Four days after their -return the <i>Shreveport</i> left for St. Louis, taking with -them all who had come up only for the trip.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">LA BARGE CITY.</div> - -<p>The <i>Shreveport</i> having gone, and affairs at Fort La -Barge being well under way, Harkness set out July 9 -with an ox train laden with assorted merchandise for -the mines in the Deer Lodge Valley. When the boat -left St. Louis it was expected to go to the Salmon -River mines, but the recent discoveries in Montana -gave a better prospect nearer home. In fact the demand -for goods, even at Fort Benton, was brisk, and -the firm had carried on a thriving trade ever since the -arrival of the boats. Harkness followed the usual -trail up the Missouri River and Little Prickly Pear -Creek, through the broad valley on the border of -which the city of Helena now stands, and thence to -the valley of the Deer Lodge. Nothing of unusual -note transpired on the trip. Harkness did not like -the experience, except the trout fishing. His journal -is full of complaints at the hardship he was compelled -to undergo, and he plaintively asks if he “will ever -live to reap the benefit.” He generally “nooned at -11 A. M.” in order to “catch trout for dinner.” He<span class="pagenum" id="Page_295">295</span> -reached the Deer Lodge Valley July 23, near the point -where the town of that name now stands.<a id="FNanchor_54" href="#Footnote_54" class="fnanchor">54</a> Here he -found a fellow passenger on the <i>Emilie</i>, Nicholas -Wall of St. Louis, who had reached the mines some -days before, and who was destined to figure prominently -in the future affairs of La Barge, Harkness & -Co.</p> - -<p>After remaining in this section and prospecting -around for eleven days, Harkness grew disgusted at -the prospect, placed such of his goods as he did not -sell in the hands of Nick Wall to be sold on commission, -and set out for the Missouri “glad to be on the -road home.” On the Sun River he met the Northern -Overland Expedition from St. Paul. He visited -the Great Falls on his way down, and arrived at Fort -La Barge August 18. Harkness was now “tired and -out of spirits,” and “adjusted his expense accounts<span class="pagenum" id="Page_296">296</span> -and turned over everything to the store.” He had evidently -had enough of this kind of life, and forthwith -ordered “a boat built to go down the river.” The -boat was launched August 26 and was christened the -<i>Maggie</i>. Harkness lost no time in getting away, and -left Fort La Barge at 4 A. M. on the 28th. No incidents -occurred on this trip which are of much interest. -The party reached Omaha September 30, where Harkness -“sold the <i>Maggie</i> for five dollars,” and took -passage on the <i>Robert Campbell</i> to St. Joseph. From -that point he went by rail and the Mississippi River to -St. Louis, where he arrived October 6.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">INCOMPETENT HANDS.</div> - -<p>The foregoing details, taken entirely from the diary -of Harkness, show in what unfit hands the important -business of the company in the upper country had -been intrusted. From his arrival at Fort Benton -until his departure was only two months and a half, -including a trip of several hundred miles to the Montana -mining regions. Only eleven days did he spend -in establishing his trade in that section, the most important -point of all, and then practically gave his -goods away to Nick Wall, for the company never -received a cent for anything left with that gentleman. -Yet Harkness was the partner who was to remain in -the upper country two years. “He was back in St. -Louis almost as soon as I was,” said La Barge, with -just indignation, in commenting on the affair.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_297">297</span></p> - -<div class="sidenote">FIRST SEASON’S OPERATIONS.</div> - -<p>Such were the first season’s operations of the firm -of La Barge, Harkness & Co. In most respects the -firm had made a brilliant beginning. The prospects -in the river portion of the business were all that could -be asked. Only Harkness’ weak management of his -part of the enterprise can be criticised. He was not -the man for the place, and lacked the courage and -hardihood for that kind of work, and he threw away -an opportunity from which a more enterprising man -would have made a fortune.</p> - -<hr /> - -<div id="chap_298" class="chapter"> -<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_298">298</span></p> - -<h2 class="nobreak" id="CHAPTER_XXV">CHAPTER XXV.<br /> - -<span class="subhead">VOYAGE OF 1863—THE TOBACCO GARDEN MASSACRE.</span></h2> -</div> - -<div class="sidenote">DISASTROUS DELAY.</div> - -<p>Deferring for the present our narrative of the -fortunes of La Barge, Harkness & Co., we shall recount -one of those mournful tragedies and one of those -instances of official corruption which marked the later -history of the Indian tribes along the Missouri River. -When Captain La Barge, in the spring of 1863, undertook -to leave the government service on the Mississippi, -to get ready for his trip to Fort Benton, he was -told by the Quartermaster in St. Louis that he could -not have the boat, for the government had further use -for it. Not having time to go to Washington to see -about it, he sold the boat for twenty thousand dollars -to the Hannibal and St. Joseph Railroad, and left to -that company the task of securing its release. He then -chartered the <i>Robert Campbell</i>, and, with the <i>Shreveport</i>, -prepared for a voyage to Fort Benton. It proved -to be a notable trip. The cargo and passenger lists -of the <i>Shreveport</i> were made up almost exclusively -for the mines and for the posts of La Barge, Harkness -& Co. The <i>Campbell</i> was loaded with annuities for<span class="pagenum" id="Page_299">299</span> -the Sioux, Crows, Blackfeet, and Assiniboines, together -with some other freight, making a cargo of -nearly five hundred tons. The <i>Shreveport</i> got away -from port in the latter part of April, but the <i>Campbell</i> -was subjected to annoying and even disastrous delay -by the failure of the annuities to arrive on time. Captain -La Barge, who had the contract to transport the -annuities, had been ordered to have his boat in readiness -on the 1st of April. The goods did not arrive, -and he was held in St. Louis for forty-two days before -he could start on the long journey. It was considered -of the highest importance to start as soon as the ice -disappeared in order that the trip, both coming and -going, could be made during high water. As the year -1863 happened to be a low-water year, the delay which -Captain La Barge suffered made it impossible to complete -the voyage. Even on the 12th of May, the day -of starting, only a portion of the goods had arrived, -and the rest were taken on at St. Joseph, whither they -were sent by rail.</p> - -<div id="ip_299" class="figcenter"> - <img src="images/i062.jpg" width="2289" height="1379" alt="" /> - <div class="caption">LA BARGE ROCK</div></div> - -<p>The boat proceeded on her way, determined to accomplish -the trip if it were possible to do so. The -water was unusually low for that time of year, and it -took nearly a month to get to Sioux City, which ought -to have been reached easily in a third of the time. -Owing to the great danger from guerrillas below -Kansas City, a force of thirty soldiers accompanied<span class="pagenum" id="Page_300">300</span> -the boat as far as St. Joseph, Mo. This precaution -was very timely. Every boat that was met in the -lower river reported attacks with occasional loss of -life. Owing to the presence of soldiers on the <i>Robert -Campbell</i>, and Captain La Barge’s precaution to -anchor midstream at night instead of lying at the -bank, he got through all right. At Miami and at -Cogswell’s Landing parties tried to board the boat, but -without success.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">INDIANS HOSTILE.</div> - -<p>Among the passengers on the <i>Campbell</i> were two -Indian agents, Henry W. Reed and Samuel M. Latta, -the former for the Blackfeet tribes and the latter for -the Sioux, Crows, Mandans, and other tribes in that -region. Henry A. Boller, whose work, “Among the -Indians,” achieved some notoriety in its time, was -likewise on board, as were also Alexander Culbertson -and his Blackfoot wife. In all there were some thirty -passengers, and this number was considerably increased -at the various landings as far up as Sioux City. -The value of the annuity goods on board was upwards -of seventy thousand dollars.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">CHEATING THE INDIANS.</div> - -<p>The Indians all along the Missouri above the Niobrara -were at this time intensely hostile, but knowing -that their annuity goods were about to arrive, they -held aloof from any desperate measures until these -were received. It would have been a wise thing to -have sent a company of troops all the way on this important<span class="pagenum" id="Page_301">301</span> -trip, but not a soldier was to be had. The -boat reached Fort Pierre June 20, and here several of -the Sioux bands were assembled to receive their annuities. -It appears that the Two Kettles band were in -a great state of exasperation over the recent killing of -eight of their number by the soldiers near Fort Randall. -After a considerable amount of parleying the -distribution of the annuities commenced, but for some -reason, which Captain La Barge never heard explained, -only a portion (about two-thirds, as he estimated -it) of the goods to which the Indians were entitled -were put off. The Indians could not be deceived -in the matter and were very angry. They went -to the Captain and appealed to him to see justice done -them. They had the fullest confidence in him, for -they had known him for years, and he had always -treated them honestly. He was now helpless, however, -and could only tell them that he was under the -orders of the agent and had no control whatever over -the goods. They then assured him that they should -follow the boat and cause it all the trouble they -could, but they would not harm him if they could -avoid it.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">REVENGEFUL SPIRIT OF THE INDIANS.</div> - -<p>They were as good as their word. All the way -from Pierre to Union, six hundred miles, these Indians -followed the boat. It is a remarkable fact, when -we stop to think of it—this pursuit of a steamboat on<span class="pagenum" id="Page_302">302</span> -its laborious voyage through the Western prairies, -seeking at every turn to destroy it and kill its passengers -and crew. There was some deep and far-reaching -cause that could create and support so bitter and -vindictive a spirit as this. The warning of the Indians -to Captain La Barge was taken by him at its -full value. The boat was thoroughly barricaded with -the cargo by piling it so as to protect the vulnerable -points, and all the firearms on board were made ready -for use. These precautions proved to be of the -highest importance. At every woodpile Indians appeared -and attacked the crew. At every favorable -point shots were fired into the boat. On one occasion -a bullet passed through the pilot-house, barely missing -the pilot, Atkins, who was at the wheel. We shall relate -some incidents that occurred on the way to Union, -one more comical than serious, but one tragic and deplorable -as any in frontier history.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">THE UPRIGHT HAT.</div> - -<p>The <i>Shreveport</i> had gone up the river in advance of -the <i>Robert Campbell</i>, but being unable, on account of -low water, to get beyond Snake Point, or Cow -Island, 130 miles below Fort Benton, had discharged -her cargo on the bank and had returned down the -river. She met the <i>Robert Campbell</i> at Apple Creek, -thirteen miles below Bismarck, and was there stopped -by Captain La Barge. A part of the cargo of the -larger boat was transferred to the <i>Shreveport</i>, and the<span class="pagenum" id="Page_303">303</span> -two then proceeded up the river, the <i>Shreveport</i> being -sometimes ahead and sometimes in rear. The hunter -on the <i>Shreveport</i> was Louis Dauphin, already referred -to as one of the bravest men and most noted -characters of the upper country. He now acted as -hunter for both boats. It was his custom to go along -ahead of the boat, beating up the country and securing -whatever game was worth stopping the boat -for. Whatever he killed, as an elk or deer, he -would hang on a pole or tree near the bank -where it could be seen from the boat, and would then -continue his hunt. One day about noon Captain La -Barge’s eye, which was constantly studying the river -ahead, fell upon a curious object floating downstream. -It looked like a hat, but, strange to say, was standing -upright on the water, with no tendency to sink at all. -It caused the Captain no little perplexity. In the -windy country of the Missouri it was no uncommon -thing for hats to be blown into the river, but he had -never before seen one ride like that. He followed it -with his glass until it was near the boat, when up it -rose, securely perched on the head of a swimmer who -proved to be no other than the hunter Dauphin. “I -had to take to the water this time,” he said as he -climbed on board. “They were too many for me. -You are going to have trouble at the Tobacco Garden. -The Indians are gathered there to the number of at<span class="pagenum" id="Page_304">304</span> -least fifteen hundred and intend to capture the boat.” -The general amusement which Dauphin’s subaqueous -adventure had caused on the boat was quickly dispelled -by the sad fulfillment of the predictions which he -brought back.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">A DISASTROUS SURPRISE.</div> - -<p>Just above the mouth of Rising Water Creek the -boats stopped to wood, and were hailed by some Grosventres -(of the Missouri, Minnetarees) who offered -some meat if a boat were sent out for it. These Indians, -a friendly tribe, had been out hunting for two -weeks and were just returning well laden with meat. -The women had made some bullboats and were about -to ferry it over the river. The men had meanwhile -turned most of their horses out to graze, keeping only -one each fastened by lariats. Some meat was exchanged -for coffee and other articles and the <i>Robert -Campbell</i> resumed her voyage. Just as she was starting -one of the squaws uttered a piercing scream, and -the people on the boat saw a Sioux Indian riding at -full speed for the Grosventre herd, brandishing a red -cloth, and followed by a large body of his tribe. The -Grosventre squaws took to their boats and the men to -the tied horses. The <i>Campbell</i> drew in to the bank -and took men and horses on board and set them across -the river. The poor Grosventres lost nearly their -entire herd and all the fruits of their hunt.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">THE TOBACCO GARDEN.</div> - -<p>The name “Tobacco Garden” on the Missouri<span class="pagenum" id="Page_305">305</span> -River designated the bottoms at the outlet of Tobacco -Creek, on the left or north bank of the river, -eighty-eight miles below the mouth of the Yellowstone. -The origin of the name is uncertain, but the -place has long been well known to river men. Near -this point, but on the opposite shore, was a bottom, -covered with large trees, but open and free of underbrush. -The south bank of the river was a “caving -bank,” or one that was being undermined by the river. -At this time there was a very narrow beach at the -water’s edge, above which the bank rose perpendicularly -to a height of six or eight feet. The channel -was close to the shore and a boat in passing had to -come within thirty or forty yards of the bank. Even -if anchored to the sandbar immediately opposite, it -could not get more than sixty yards away. It was an -ideal place to “hold up” a boat, and the Indians were -shrewd enough to understand this perfectly.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">LATTA NOT AFRAID.</div> - -<p>It was toward noon of the 7th of July that the two -boats hove in sight of the Tobacco Garden, and there, -true to Dauphin’s prediction, they beheld on the south -shore a large body of Indians assembled with the evident -purpose of stopping them. There was no -use in trying to run a gantlet like that, and accordingly -the boats made fast to the opposite sandbar, the -<i>Shreveport</i> about one hundred yards below the <i>Robert -Campbell</i>. A parley ensued with the Indians, who<span class="pagenum" id="Page_306">306</span> -were so near that it was perfectly practicable to talk -back and forth. La Barge asked them what they -wanted. They said they wanted the balance of their -annuities; they wanted no trouble, but simply their -just dues. The agent refused them the goods, but -“requested the Captain to send his yawl and bring -aboard some of the chiefs and head men that we could -have a talk and ... make them a present of sugar, -coffee, tobacco, etc., and by this means quiet them.” -The Indians likewise wanted the yawl to be sent out, -but wanted the agent to go with it. They would then -send their principal chiefs back with him to the boat, -where everything could be talked over. They were -very shrewd, and the agent almost fell into the trap.<a id="FNanchor_55" href="#Footnote_55" class="fnanchor">55</a> -The Captain told him that he could not possibly think -of ordering the yawl out, considering the disposition -of the Indians and their evident purpose of mischief. -Latta replied: “Why, I’ll go; I’m not afraid.” “All -right,” answered the Captain, “if you can get volunteers; -I will not order a crew out.” They then went -to the mate, Miller by name, and a crew was made up -to take Latta to the shore. When the yawl was ready -the Captain sent word to the agent, who had disappeared -upstairs. The latter sent back a reply that he<span class="pagenum" id="Page_307">307</span> -was suddenly taken ill and could not possibly go, but -to send the men and bring the chiefs on board.<a id="FNanchor_56" href="#Footnote_56" class="fnanchor">56</a></p> - -<div class="sidenote">A BRAVE CREW.</div> - -<p>The crew of the <i>Robert Campbell</i> were not lacking -in physical courage, and the necessary force to man -the yawl was easily made up. It was a little after -noon when the yawl left the boat. There is no truth -in the statements of Boller and Larpenteur that the -men were forced to go and clung to the side of the -steamer until the mate threatened to cut off their fingers -if they did not let go. It was easy enough for -them to get out of going if they chose to. The crew -of the yawl consisted of seven men. The steersman, -a gallant fellow of the name of Andy Stinger, sat in -the stern. Two men of the names of O’Mally and -Chris Sharky sat in the bow. There were four oarsmen, -one of them a young man of the name of Martin, -and the other, one of the Irishmen who had been<span class="pagenum" id="Page_308">308</span> -whipped by “Yankee Jack,” as related elsewhere. -The yawl put off, and as the distance was very short, -it quickly reached the opposite shore. It struck the -beach head on and then swung around under the force -of the current, so that it lay alongside of the bank.<a id="FNanchor_57" href="#Footnote_57" class="fnanchor">57</a></p> - -<div class="sidenote">ANDY STINGER’S PRESENCE OF MIND.</div> - -<p>A chief and three Indians were under the cut bank -on the beach when the yawl arrived. One of the Indians -stood exactly opposite Stinger, with a gun in his -hand covered with a leather case. The other two Indians -were armed with spears. The chief was a -fierce-looking man, and it seemed as if his eye would -pierce one through and through. Stinger motioned -him to get into the yawl. The men meanwhile were -sitting quietly with their oars across their laps. The -chief gave some quick directions and in an instant the -two Indians with spears jumped into the boat and the -one with the gun stripped the leather case off. -Stinger knew what this meant, and with great presence -of mind instantly threw himself into the water -on the river side of the boat, where it was fortunately -four or five feet deep. Slipping up along the boat he -seized it by the gunwale amidships and dragged it -from the bank. The movement, however, quick as it<span class="pagenum" id="Page_309">309</span> -was, was not quick enough. The two young bucks -who had leaped into the boat thrust their spears into -the bodies of two of the oarsmen, killing them instantly. -A third was killed by the Indian with the -gun, who had missed his chance at Stinger, and a -fourth was severely wounded by an arrow from the -bank. The two men in the bow instantly threw themselves -into the bottom of the yawl.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">BOATS RETURN FIRE.</div> - -<p>The Indians had no time to carry the attack further. -The crews of both the steamboats were watching with -breathless anxiety the progress of events. When they -saw Stinger jump into the water they thought him -killed. Someone exclaimed, “There goes Andy,” and -instantly both boats responded with their entire armament. -This included two howitzers on the hurricane -deck of the <i>Robert Campbell</i> and one on the <i>Shreveport</i>, -together with weapons of various sorts belonging -to the passengers and crew. One rattle-brained -Irishman was so upset that he brandished his revolver -in the air, firing off into space without the slightest -regard as to the whereabouts of the enemy. The fire, -on the whole, was very effective. Numbers of the Indians -were seen to fall, and Captain La Barge afterward -learned through Pierre Garreau, the interpreter -at Fort Berthold, that there were eighteen men and -twenty horses killed and many wounded. The Indians -soon withdrew, and in about an hour some were<span class="pagenum" id="Page_310">310</span> -seen trying to get water for their wounded near a pile -of driftwood half a mile below. It was an intensely -sultry day. The howitzers were turned on them and -they disappeared.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">ANDY ANGRY.</div> - -<p>Returning to the yawl, we find that Andy Stinger, -protected behind the gunwale, was steadily pulling the -boat into the stream and swimming toward the sandbar -as the current drifted him down. When about -halfway across he called to the men to get up, while -he himself climbed into the yawl, which was then -rowed to the bank. The people on the two boats were -so absorbed with the battle that no one thought of -going to the assistance of the yawl crew. The -wounded man and the two who were unharmed got -out and walked up the beach. Stinger was thus left -alone to drag the yawl and its mournful cargo up -alongside the boat. This apparent neglect fired him -to a desperate pitch, and he let go some powerful language -to the mate and others of the crew. Captain -La Barge presently came aft and looked into the yawl. -He said not a word, but turned away shaking his -head in a manner that showed plainly enough what -was passing in his mind.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">HERO OF THE TOBACCO GARDEN.</div> - -<p>Such was the celebrated “affair at the Tobacco -Garden.” After the return to St. Louis Captain La -Barge was talking to a friend about it when Andy -Stinger happened to pass by. He said, loud enough<span class="pagenum" id="Page_311">311</span> -for Andy to hear: “There goes the hero of the Tobacco -Garden.” The brave steersman treasured up -these words as his proudest title during the rest of his -life. Long years passed away before Captain La -Barge heard from him again. He did not even know -whether his old boatman was still alive when, in the -fall of 1896, thirty-three years after the massacre, he -received a most cordial and affectionate letter from -him,<a id="FNanchor_58" href="#Footnote_58" class="fnanchor">58</a> and two years later had the pleasure of meeting -him again.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_312">312</span></p> - -<div class="sidenote">LA BARGE’S CRITICISM.</div> - -<p>Commenting upon the affair at the Tobacco Garden, -Captain La Barge said:</p> - -<p>“This event was one which could not have happened -under ordinary circumstances. Master of both -boat and cargo, I should never have permitted the yawl -to go ashore. I was under orders of the agent in -everything except the mere handling of the boat, and -was bound to give him such opportunities to meet the -Indians as he desired. I had gone to the extreme of -my freedom of action when I refused to order a crew -to go ashore for him, but could not well decline to let -men volunteer. It was a lamentable affair, and one -of the many crimes which must ever lie at the door of -the Department of Indian Affairs in Washington. -Here was an agent who gave every evidence of being -corrupt and in collusion with the Fur Company, for he -retained about a third of the annuities due the Indians -and stored them in the Company’s warehouse, -from which they never reached the Indians except in -exchange for robes, as in the case of private merchandise. -Moreover, the agent was utterly ignorant -of Indian character, full of the self-assurance which -goes with ignorance, and not knowing himself what -to do became the passive tool of the crafty and trained -agents of the company.”<span class="pagenum" id="Page_313">313</span><a id="FNanchor_59" href="#Footnote_59" class="fnanchor">59</a></p> - -<div class="sidenote">CHARLES LARPENTEUR.</div> - -<p>About 3 P. M. the boats resumed their voyage, as -the Indians had entirely disappeared. On the following -morning the burial of the victims took place at a -point about forty-seven miles above the Tobacco -Garden. They were buried on an eminence on the -south side of the river nearly opposite the mouth of -Little Muddy Creek, and a cedar cross was planted -at the head of their grave. The boat then pursued her -way up the river and arrived at the mouth of the Yellowstone -on the 8th of July. Here the Indians were -seen again, and a few shots were fired by them at the -boats, but no injury was done.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_314">314</span></p> - -<div class="sidenote">HEAVY RESPONSIBILITY.</div> - -<p>The herculean labors of Captain La Barge on this -memorable voyage won the plaudits of all who observed -them. He seemed to be everywhere present, -and the only man on whom reliance could be placed. -“We got to the mouth of the Yellowstone,” says agent -Reed, “after the most untiring efforts, especially on -the part of Captain La Barge, who seemed to know -the only channel to be found in the Missouri.” The -Captain was constantly exposed to danger, and personally -conducted all soundings of the river, going far -from the boat with a few men in the yawl. The responsibility -resting upon him was very great. The -lives of the passengers, the safety of his valuable -cargo, the danger from the Indians if their expected -goods should be lost, and his own large pecuniary -stake in the voyage, all rested upon his own shoulders.</p> - -<hr /> - -<div id="chap_315" class="chapter"> -<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_315">315</span></p> - -<h2 class="nobreak" id="CHAPTER_XXVI">CHAPTER XXVI.<br /> - -<span class="subhead">THE BLACKFOOT ANNUITIES.</span></h2> -</div> - -<div class="sidenote">A BAD PREDICAMENT.</div> - -<div class="sidenote">OFFICIAL REPORTS.</div> - -<p>At the mouth of the Yellowstone the voyage of the -<i>Robert Campbell</i> came abruptly to an end. There -was only a depth of two feet over the Yellowstone bar, -and it was a physical impossibility to proceed. The -annuities had now been delivered to the lower tribes -so far as Captain La Barge was concerned, but there -still remained undelivered those going to the Crows, -Assiniboines, and Blackfeet. The annuities for the -first of these tribes were to be delivered wherever these -Indians could be found, but those of the Blackfeet were -to be delivered at Fort Benton. Fortunately, the -Assiniboines came in while the boats were at the Yellowstone, -and their annuities were delivered. Dr. -Reed, the agent for the Blackfeet, then advised La -Barge to abandon the idea of going further, and to -store the goods at Fort Union until the following -spring. This the Captain was very loath to do. He -knew only too well the complications that might arise,<span class="pagenum" id="Page_316">316</span> -particularly as such a course compelled him to place -himself in any degree within the power of the American -Fur Company. It seemed, however, the only -thing to do. The <i>Robert Campbell</i> simply could not -get any further. The <i>Shreveport</i> had not been able to -get above Snake Point, and since that time the water -had fallen materially. It was now the 8th of July, -and no further rise could be expected; in fact no boats -reached Benton that year. The only alternative to -storing the goods was to haul them by wagon to their -destination, and for this purpose the transportation -could not be had. The Captain very reluctantly concluded -to follow the agent’s advice, particularly as the -bulk of annuities were for the Indians belonging to -his own agency. An arrangement was made with -William Hodgkiss,<a id="FNanchor_60" href="#Footnote_60" class="fnanchor">60</a> agent of the American Fur Company, -and five days were consumed in transferring the -cargo to the warehouse. Full receipts were given by -Agent Hodgkiss, and these were witnessed by Captain -W. B. Greer, U. S. Army. In addition to the receipts -the Captain secured from Agent Reed a written -statement of the circumstances in order that his action -might have the fullest explanation possible. In those -days, when the government felt that it was being<span class="pagenum" id="Page_317">317</span> -robbed right and left by dishonest contractors, and -every claim was looked upon with suspicion, the adjustment -of any matter of that sort was extremely -difficult, and the innocent were made to suffer with -the guilty.<a id="FNanchor_61" href="#Footnote_61" class="fnanchor">61</a></p> - -<div class="sidenote">THE “SHREVEPORT” IMPRESSED.</div> - -<div class="sidenote">AT WORK FOR THE GOVERNMENT.</div> - -<p>As soon as the business at Fort Union was cleared -up the two boats turned their prows down the river -and made the best of their way toward the lower -country. When they arrived at Crow Creek, eighty-two -miles below Pierre, they met General Sully, who<span class="pagenum" id="Page_318">318</span> -was engaged in his expedition against the hostile -Sioux. The General invited La Barge to his tent and -told him he should have to impress one of the boats -into his service for a time. As the <i>Shreveport</i> was -much the lighter boat it was considered best to take -her. Captain La Barge’s brother, however, absolutely -refused to remain, and accordingly Captain La -Barge had to. It was also necessary to use military -authority to secure a crew. The <i>Robert Campbell</i><span class="pagenum" id="Page_319">319</span> -then went on her way to St. Louis, and Captain La -Barge commenced hauling supplies for General Sully. -He went up as far as the mouth of the Little Cheyenne, -and there awaited the result of General Sully’s expedition, -which was a victorious battle with the Indians. -He then dropped down below old Fort Pierre, -when he was ordered to proceed to Fort Leavenworth -and report to General Easton. By that officer he was -directed to take a cargo to Sioux City. Though late in -the season, the trip was successfully accomplished. -Captain La Barge then returned to St. Louis, where -he arrived late in November, and reported to the commanding -officer at that point. He had now been continuously -at work for over six months, during one of -the most trying seasons ever experienced upon the -river. His nightly sleep scarcely averaged five hours, -and he was constantly under the weight of a terrible -responsibility. Nothing but an iron constitution -could have withstood the incessant strain.</p> - -<p>As soon as Captain La Barge could straighten matters -up at home he set out for Washington to see the -Indian Commissioner in regard to his past season’s -contract. He received full payment for everything delivered, -but nothing for the annuities still undelivered -and nothing for his great loss caused by the delay -of the Indian Department in delivering the goods -to him on time. He was, however, given a new contract<span class="pagenum" id="Page_320">320</span> -to transport the goods to their destination the -following year.</p> - -<p>In order to pursue this particular subject to its -final outcome we shall step ahead of our narrative to -the year 1864. Captain La Barge went up the river -that year with the steamer <i>Effie Deans</i>, leaving space -on the boat for the undelivered annuities. Arrived -at Fort Union he first fell in with Captain Greer, who -had witnessed the receipt of Agent Hodgkiss for the -goods the previous summer. Captain La Barge told -him that he had come to take the annuities to their -destination. “I don’t believe that you will find -much,” said Captain Greer. “The Company has -traded it nearly all for robes.”</p> - -<div class="sidenote">MANIFEST FRAUD.</div> - -<div class="sidenote">THE GOODS UNDELIVERED.</div> - -<p>Agent Hodgkiss had died during the winter, and -Captain La Barge presented the receipts to the new -agent, Rolette. The latter refused to deliver the -goods except upon payment of the extortionate storage -charge of two thousand dollars. He expected that -this charge would cause Captain La Barge to refuse -to take the goods. The sum, however, was tendered, -whereupon the agent refused to deliver them except -upon the prior surrender of Agent Hodgkiss’ receipts. -Suspecting that a large part of the goods were missing, -the Captain declined this condition, but offered to give -a receipt for all goods he should take from the warehouse. -Driven from every position, the agent openly<span class="pagenum" id="Page_321">321</span> -avowed that he could not deliver all the goods, for he -did not have them all. He stated that, under instructions -from Commissioner Dole, transmitted through -the Company, he had delivered a large portion of the -goods to the Grosventres and many packages to other -Indians. The delivery of the balance could, therefore, -not be made except upon surrender of the receipts of -the previous year. Captain La Barge asked to see the -receipts of the Indians to whom the goods had been -delivered. The agent had none, although it was an -invariable rule to secure such receipts for all annuities -delivered. The alleged order from Commissioner -Dole was then called for, but that could not be produced, -the agent stating that it came by messenger, -who delivered it verbally.</p> - -<p>“You acknowledge, then, that a large portion of -these goods you have not got,” asked Captain La -Barge.</p> - -<p>“Yes,” replied the agent; “they have been delivered -during the winter and have reached their proper -destination.”</p> - -<div class="sidenote">GOODS TRADED WITH THE INDIANS.</div> - -<p>All these proceedings were witnessed by the officer, -Captain Greer, whom Captain La Barge had taken -the precaution to have present. From what Captain -Greer had told him, and from the trader’s inability -to account satisfactorily for the disposition of the -goods, Captain La Barge became thoroughly convinced<span class="pagenum" id="Page_322">322</span> -that they had been used in trade, and he very -wisely declined to surrender his receipts. As the -trader would not give up the rest of the goods except -upon a surrender of the receipts for all, the Captain -went on his way without them.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">UNPAID DEBT.</div> - -<p>In the meanwhile Dr. Reed, who had been relieved -as Agent of the Blackfoot tribes, went up on -the American Fur Company boat <i>Yellowstone</i> to turn -over his charge to the new agent, Mr. Gad E. Upson. -Mr. Chouteau had received the contract for taking up -the annuities for the year 1864. He took them only -to Cow Island, where, for some reason, possibly low -water, they were put on the shore and the boat turned -back. Mr. Upson, who had gone down from Benton -to Union early in the spring, went back on the <i>Yellowstone</i> -with Mr. Reed. The boat, after unloading, -turned back, and a day later met the <i>Effie Deans</i>. La -Barge reported to Dr. Reed the facts as to the goods -at Fort Union. Mr. Chouteau, who was on the <i>Yellowstone</i>, -was called in and professed to disapprove of -Rolette’s course, but did nothing to rectify it. So far -as Captain La Barge knew at the time or ever learned -afterward, this large quantity of Indian goods was -traded out to the Indians by the so-called American -Fur Company and constituted an unqualified theft -from the government. The final outcome of the affair, -so far as Captain La Barge was concerned, was<span class="pagenum" id="Page_323">323</span> -a loss of nearly twenty thousand dollars.<a id="FNanchor_62" href="#Footnote_62" class="fnanchor">62</a> He died -a poor man, with the government in his debt by a -sum that would have given ample comfort to his declining -years.</p> - -<hr /> - -<div id="chap_324" class="chapter"> -<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_324">324</span></p> - -<h2 class="nobreak" id="CHAPTER_XXVII">CHAPTER XXVII.<br /> - -<span class="subhead">COLLAPSE OF THE LA BARGE-HARKNESS OPPOSITION.</span></h2> -</div> - -<p><span class="firstword">The</span> steamboat <i>Shreveport</i>, with the annual outfit -of the new firm for the year 1863, did not get above -Cow Island on account of the extremely low stage of -the river. No other boat went as far as that within -two hundred miles. Harkness and John La Barge -put the cargo out upon the bank and hastened back -to the assistance of the <i>Robert Campbell</i>. This event -further illustrated the incapacity of Harkness. No -arrangement was made for the transportation of the -goods to Benton, although he knew that a considerable -portion of the freight belonged to outside parties, -and that the firm had contracted to take it through -to that post. This precipitate action was due in part -to danger from the Indians. In the year 1863 the -tribes along the river were all in a state of unrest, and -some of them actually on the warpath against the -whites. Fort Union was practically in a state of -siege all summer, and the danger to steamboats was -a very formidable one. It was held by some parties -that the sudden termination of the voyage was due<span class="pagenum" id="Page_325">325</span> -to news received of the famous discovery of the Alder -Gulch placers and the desire to go back and notify -the firm; but of this there is not the slightest probability. -Whatever the explanation, the act itself was -disastrous upon the fortunes of the firm.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">NICHOLAS WALL.</div> - -<p>Among the number of outside parties who had -freight on the <i>Shreveport</i> was the firm of John J. Roe -and Nicholas Wall, both of St. Louis. Wall represented -the firm in Montana and Roe remained in St. -Louis. Some little account of Wall’s career and his -previous relations with Captain La Barge will be of -interest, to show how far a man may forfeit the sentiment -of gratitude when his business interests are in -any way involved. La Barge had previously been -connected with Wall in a business way. In 1861 -Wall joined the Confederate sympathizers, in St. -Louis, and was captured by General Lyon in the -affair of Camp Jackson, St. Louis, May 10, 1861. -The prisoners taken there were all paroled, but were -confined to the limits of the city. At Wall’s urgent -appeal La Barge became bondsman for his good conduct -and secured his freedom of action. He worked -for La Barge during the rest of the season of 1861.</p> - -<p>In the winter of 1862 Wall asked La Barge to -assist him in getting to Montana. La Barge gave -free transportation on the <i>Emilie</i> to Fort Benton for -himself and his goods, and advanced him seven hundred<span class="pagenum" id="Page_326">326</span> -dollars to get to the mines. Wall did a successful -business in the Deer Lodge Valley in 1862, and in -the fall of that year returned to St. Louis, where he -entered into a partnership with John J. Roe. The -outfit which this firm were to send to the mines was -taken up on the <i>Shreveport</i>. It was through La -Barge’s patronage that Nick Wall was extricated -from a perilous situation and placed in a position to -do a good business. His method of repaying his -benefactor will presently appear.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">LA BARGE, HARKNESS & CO. SUED.</div> - -<p>When Wall heard that the <i>Shreveport</i> could not -reach Benton and had discharged her cargo on the -bank at Cow Island, he organized a wagon train and -went down after his own freight and that of several -others. In the spring of 1864 he returned to St. Louis, -where he and Roe presented a claim to La Barge, Harkness -& Co. for forty thousand dollars’ damages, on -goods that were not worth at the outside ten thousand -dollars in St. Louis. Captain La Barge agreed -to pay the full price of the goods and charge no -freight, but his offer was refused. He then told Roe -and Wall that they could bring suit at once. Roe -replied that he was too sharp to think of bringing -suit in St. Louis; he would bring it in Montana, -where he knew that the chances were much more in -his favor. Robert Campbell and John S. McCune, -two of St. Louis’ leading citizens, protested against<span class="pagenum" id="Page_327">327</span> -this proceeding, and agreed to give bonds for the full -payment of all damages. Roe refused all compromise -and Wall returned to Montana and brought suit.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">COLLAPSE OF AFFAIRS AT FORT LA BARGE.</div> - -<p>In the meanwhile, affairs at Fort La Barge were -showing the effect of absence from that post of any -responsible member of the firm. Joseph Picotte, -brother of Honoré Picotte, a distinguished trader of -the American Fur Company, had been left in charge -in 1862; but word having been received that he was -not properly attending to his work, he was relieved -by Robert H. Lemon, who had been highly recommended -by Robert Campbell. Lemon proved to be -of less account even than Picotte, and actually took -the wholly unauthorized step of turning the firm’s -property over for safe-keeping to the American Fur -Company. The receipt for this transfer, signed by -Andrew Dawson, agent American Fur Company, is -still among the La Barge papers. The transaction -took place August 31, 1863, and included not only -the storage of all the firm’s property at Fort La -Barge, but the payment of their employees’ wages, -and the removal of the <i>Shreveport</i> freight from Cow -Island to Fort Benton. The sum of one thousand -dollars was to be paid for storage, and the goods were -to be held as security for the payment of this sum -and all other liabilities of the firm on account of -wages, transportation, or other cause. Thus the<span class="pagenum" id="Page_328">328</span> -entire business of the firm at Fort Benton was practically -surrendered to their great rival, and the new -“opposition” was crushed almost at its beginning.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">OUTCOME OF THE SUIT.</div> - -<p>As soon as Wall began legal proceedings the -goods were seized and held, pending the outcome of -the trial. This did not come off until 1865, when a -verdict was rendered against La Barge, Harkness & -Co. of twenty-four thousand dollars, which was paid -in due course. All the firm’s property in Montana -was absolutely lost, including a large quantity of furs -ruined by the long detention. The total loss -amounted to fully one hundred thousand dollars.</p> - -<p>The lawsuit itself was an important one at the time. -It involved the rights and obligations of carriers on -the Missouri River. It was the first important legal -case in the history of the Territory. It brought into -distinguished notice one of the picturesque and leading -characters in the pioneer history of Montana, -Colonel Wilbur F. Sanders, who became one of -Montana’s first representatives in the Senate of the -United States. On the part of the defense the case -was badly managed. None of the principals was -present at the trial, which was held at a point nearly -three thousand miles from their home. With a skillful -defense it would probably not have resulted so -disastrously as it did.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">CAUSES OF FAILURE.</div> - -<p>The immediate result of the trial was the dissolution<span class="pagenum" id="Page_329">329</span> -of the firm of La Barge, Harkness & Co. It -went out of business upon an honorable footing. -Every liability was paid in full, but so much of it fell -upon Captain La Barge that it seriously impaired his -fortune. He cherished, not without reason, a very -bitter feeling toward some of the parties who were -instrumental in the downfall of his business, and -particularly toward the American Fur Company. -There is no doubt that that concern furthered the -result in every possible way. It was a principle of -their business to crush all opposition, and they made -no exception in this case. But it is evident that the -real cause lay in the reckless management of affairs -at Fort Benton and at the mines, and for this Harkness -was alone responsible.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">THE DIAMOND R COMPANY.</div> - -<p>The collapse of the La Barge, Harkness & Co. -business marked the inception of a system of land -transportation in Montana which grew to enormous -proportions. It was known as the Diamond R -<R> Company. Among the ill-gotten gains of -John J. Roe, in his successful effort to break up a rival -company, were a large number of oxen which La -Barge, Harkness & Co. had brought up the river to -transport freight between Fort Benton and the mines. -Roe organized a transportation company, using these -oxen as a nucleus for commencing the business. By -various changes of ownership it passed into the hands<span class="pagenum" id="Page_330">330</span> -of Montana men. It soon became a great company, -with a complete organization of agents, issuing its -bills of lading to all points, both in and out of the -Territory. At one time it employed no less than -twelve hundred oxen and four hundred mules, besides -a large number of horses, and the sustenance of -these animals was a source of no slight income to the -small farmers of that section. It went out of business -in 1883.</p> - -<div id="ip_331" class="figcenter"> - <img src="images/i096.jpg" width="2320" height="1562" alt="" /> - <div class="caption">A STEAMBOAT AT THE BANK</div></div> - -<hr /> - -<div id="chap_331" class="chapter"> -<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_331">331</span></p> - -<h2 class="nobreak" id="CHAPTER_XXVIII">CHAPTER XXVIII.<br /> - -<span class="subhead">CAPTAIN LA BARGE IN MONTANA.</span></h2> -</div> - -<p><span class="firstword">Captain La Barge</span> sold the <i>Emilie</i> late in the winter -of 1862–63. In the following winter he made an -unexpected sale of the <i>Shreveport</i>. Henry Ames & -Co., pork packers, sent their clerk one day to see if -the Captain would sell the boat. He replied that he -did not care to, but would if the price were satisfactory. -Being invited to come to the office of the -firm, he was told that the boat suited them and was -asked to name a price.</p> - -<p>“Twenty-five thousand dollars,” he said.</p> - -<p>“Give the Captain a check for twenty-five thousand -dollars,” said Ames, turning to his clerk.</p> - -<p>“Don’t you want a bill of sale and the customary -evidence that she is clear of debt?” asked the Captain, -in some surprise.</p> - -<p>“No,” was the reply; “you say she is so, and I will -take your word.”</p> - -<p>La Barge went down to the levee, transferred the -boat, and then went to the bank and cashed the -check. He recalled this last circumstance by the fact<span class="pagenum" id="Page_332">332</span> -that the teller handed him the amount in twenty-five -notes, each of one thousand dollars.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">PURCHASE OF THE “EFFIE DEANS.”</div> - -<p>This sale took place in the winter, and it behooved -the Captain to cast about at once for a boat for the next -annual voyage. A new boat was being built on the -Ohio River by the Keokuk Packet Company, John -S. McCune, President. Not proving satisfactory for -their purposes, she was brought to St. Louis and -offered for sale. La Barge found her well fitted for -his work, and negotiated a purchase at forty thousand -dollars. McCune retained a one-fourth interest. -She was called the <i>Effie Deans</i>.</p> - -<p>The boat was loaded with the usual assortment of -freight, and left St. Louis March 22, 1864, with forty-nine -passengers and a cargo of 160 tons. She succeeded -in getting only to the Marias River, where the -cargo was discharged. The boat was sent back in -charge of John La Barge, and the Captain himself -remained in the upper country. He hired wagons -and took his property up the river, selling part of it -in Benton and the rest in Virginia City. He remained -in the mining regions upward of two months, -although he finished his business in much less time. -On account of the danger from outlaws, or road -agents, it was necessary to await an exceptionally good -opportunity for getting away. The Captain had -decided to return <i xml:lang="la" lang="la">via</i> Salt Lake City, because to go<span class="pagenum" id="Page_333">333</span> -by way of the Missouri in an open boat would have -meant little less than suicide. The feeling of the -Indians was so bitter at this time that no one could -pass their country in safety unless well protected.</p> - -<p>The Captain had almost a hundred thousand dollars -in golddust to take with him, and he knew that -this was not a secret with himself. He caused it to -be given out that he expected to depart on a certain -day, but actually stole away several days before, and -was safely in Salt Lake City before the announced -date of his departure. The coach he was to have -taken was held up by the road agents and a passenger -of the name of Hughes was killed.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">COSTLY TRANSPORTATION.</div> - -<p>In Salt Lake City Captain La Barge remained for -some time arranging for the rest of his journey home. -He could not hire a coach from Ben Holiday, proprietor -of the overland line, for less than eighteen -hundred dollars. The Wells-Fargo Express Company -wanted twenty-five hundred dollars to send the -dust by way of San Francisco, and would assume no -responsibility. These conditions were not satisfactory, -and the Captain purchased a team and -wagon, with which he and three or four others undertook -the journey alone. Their golddust was carried -in bags of thick buckskin.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">TEMPTING INDUCEMENTS.</div> - -<p>While in Salt Lake City the Captain renewed his -acquaintance with Brigham Young and other Mormons<span class="pagenum" id="Page_334">334</span> -whom he had known on the Missouri. An old -friend of his of the name of Hooper, who had turned -Mormon, and later became a delegate from the Territory -to Congress, called as soon as he heard that -La Barge was in town. He also found there another -friend, Hopkins by name, whom he had known from -boyhood. Hopkins tried his best to induce La Barge -to join the Mormons. He assured the Captain that -if he would sell out in St. Louis and come to Utah it -would be his fortune. As proof of this, he referred -to himself and others, who, he said, had gone into -Mormonism, not for any love of the doctrine, but as -a simple business proposition. Hooper and Hopkins -had both been unsuccessful in St. Louis. La -Barge had taken them up on his boat to Fort -Kearney, about 1852, and had always esteemed them -good men. He asked the wife of one of them one -day why her husband had never married again, since -the doctrine of the Church and the sentiment of the -community sanctioned it. “He doesn’t dare to; he -knows <em>I</em> would leave him if he did,” she replied.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">DIGNITARIES OF THE MORMON CHURCH.</div> - -<p>The Captain called on Young several times. That -dignitary received him very hospitably, took him to -the Tabernacle and other places of interest, and -presented him to several of his families. They -went to the theater together, where they sat in -a box with Young’s favorite wife, the other<span class="pagenum" id="Page_335">335</span> -wives being ranged in seats below. Young never -said anything intended to convert La Barge to -his religion. Other members of the Church did, -and particularly Orson Hyde, who was a man of -education and a very persuasive talker. La Barge -heard a sermon by Heber Kimball—a rough old -fellow who took off his coat, rolled up his sleeves, and -waded in. His language was coarse and vulgar, and -would not bear repetition in refined ears.</p> - -<p>The route of the Captain’s party, on leaving Salt -Lake City, was through Weber Cañon to Fort Bridger. -They stopped there a short time with Captain -Carter, who, for many years, did business at that -frontier post. From there they made their way east, -and left the mountain country <i xml:lang="la" lang="la">via</i> the valley of the -Cache à la Poudre River. In the valley of the South -Platte they met an old man of the name of Geary, -who told them that a band of hostile Indians was -scouring the country between them and Denver, and -that they had better conceal themselves for a few -days on an island in the Platte River. They acted -upon this advice, and when they judged the danger -to be past they resumed their journey. They had -gone but a little way when they came to a spot where -a party of emigrants had been massacred only a day -or two before. Their timely measure of precaution -was therefore well taken.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_336">336</span></p> - -<div class="sidenote">A LONG VOYAGE.</div> - -<p>The rest of the journey was made without noteworthy -incident. The party reached the Missouri -at Nebraska City just in time to catch the last boat -to St. Louis. They arrived home about December -1. Captain La Barge found that the <i>Effie Deans</i> had -returned and had been chartered by McCune’s company -to go to Montgomery, Ala. She made this trip -in safety, returning to St. Louis before ice closed in. -Probably no other boat ever made so long a trip on -inland waters in a single season, including also a sea -voyage, as did the <i>Effie Deans</i> in 1864. The distance -on the Missouri up and back was 4570 miles; that on -the Mississippi to the Gulf and back was 2522 miles; -that from Mobile to Montgomery and back was 676 -miles; and that across the Gulf from the mouth of the -Mississippi to Mobile and back not less than 600 -miles. The whole distance traveled was about 8400 -miles.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">ANOTHER DILEMMA.</div> - -<p>In April, 1865, Captain La Barge started up the -river again on the <i>Effie Deans</i>. At Nebraska City -came the news of Lee’s surrender, and at Decatur -that of the assassination of Lincoln. There was -great commotion among the passengers at the news -of this terrible deed. There were many ex-Confederates -on board, some of whom expressed their -satisfaction at the event, and there might very easily -have been trouble between them and the Union passengers;<span class="pagenum" id="Page_337">337</span> -but Captain La Barge skillfully avoided all -difficulty.</p> - -<p>The voyage, though a tedious one, was completed -without serious delay or accident. Captain La Barge -sent the boat back in charge of the pilot, Captain Ray, -and himself started with another outfit of goods for -the mines. This time he went to Helena, which had -sprung into existence since his last trip to Montana. -He bought a small house in which to store his goods -and he and his son acted as salesmen.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">A TIMELY RESCUE.</div> - -<p>In the meanwhile Captain La Barge’s brother had -again involved St. Louis parties in serious difficulty -on account of the non-delivery of freight. John S. -McCune had shipped to Fort Benton a fine cargo of -goods on the <i>Kate Kearney</i>, Captain John La Barge, -master. The very hostile attitude of the Indians -caused the Captain to abandon the trip a little above -Fort Union. When the news reached the mines suits -were brought against McCune aggregating some -three hundred thousand dollars. As soon as word -reached St. Louis, McCune saw the gravity of the -situation, and instantly dispatched a message to La -Barge in Montana <i xml:lang="la" lang="la">via</i> the overland route. It fortunately -reached the Captain before he had finished -his business in Helena, and he set out forthwith for -Fort Benton, leaving his son in charge of the store. -He felt certain that Captain Ray, the pilot of the <i>Effie<span class="pagenum" id="Page_338">338</span> -Deans</i>, would not abandon the cargo, and he was not -mistaken. When Ray met the <i>Kate Kearney</i>, on his -return trip, he transferred the cargo to the <i>Effie Deans</i>, -and brought it back to Fort Galpin, a little above the -mouth of Milk River, but could get no further on -account of low water. He then sent an express to -Fort Benton for teams. Captain La Barge was there -at the time, and at once procured thirty ox teams of -five yoke each, with the necessary wagons, and -started for Fort Galpin. There he took all the -freight and delivered it safely at its destination. It -was a prodigious task, but its timely completion saved -McCune from a disastrous loss. The suits were all -withdrawn, and the cost of transportation by wagon -was the sum of the extra expense.</p> - -<p>La Barge left the Territory late in the season with -fifty thousand dollars in golddust. He went by way -of Salt Lake City, where he and two others chartered -a coach to take them through to Nebraska City. -When within about fifty miles of Denver the stage -driver refused to go farther on account of the Indians, -and the party were compelled to hire a wagon and go -the rest of the way alone. At Nebraska City they -found the steamboat <i>Denver</i>, on which they went to -St. Joseph, and thence by the railroad to St. Louis.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">AN UNEXPECTED DELIVERANCE.</div> - -<p>Captain La Barge had not been heard from in two -months. He at once went to McCune’s office to relieve<span class="pagenum" id="Page_339">339</span> -the fears under which that gentleman had so -long been laboring. McCune came up to him, -looked the travel-worn Captain in the face, and said: -“I don’t dare to ask you any questions. I am afraid -to know the worst.”</p> - -<p>“Don’t be alarmed,” said La Barge; “I think I -have straightened everything out all right.”</p> - -<p>“Are there no suits pending?” asked McCune.</p> - -<p>“No; they are all settled, and here are the receipts.”</p> - -<p>“How much has the misadventure cost me?”</p> - -<p>“Not to exceed ten thousand dollars all told.”</p> - -<p>McCune was overjoyed at the news, for he feared -that he was ruined. As it was, in spite of the extra -expense, he would reap a handsome profit. He -threw his arms around La Barge and embraced him -for joy at the unexpected deliverance, and could -never thereafter do enough for him.</p> - -<hr /> - -<div id="chap_340" class="chapter"> -<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_340">340</span></p> - -<h2 class="nobreak" id="CHAPTER_XXIX">CHAPTER XXIX.<br /> - -<span class="subhead">CAPTAIN LA BARGE IN WASHINGTON.</span></h2> -</div> - -<p><span class="firstword">In</span> connection with his work for the government -it became necessary for Captain La Barge to make -several visits to Washington. Considering the interesting -period through which the national Capital -was then passing, it was to be expected that these -visits should present some features of note. The -Captain went to Washington in all three times, once -in each of the winters of 1862–65.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">INTERVIEW WITH LINCOLN.</div> - -<p>On the occasion of his first visit he was a member -of a party who called upon the President to present -him with a fine robe of fur. Three years before this -Captain La Barge had promised Lincoln to procure -for him a good buffalo robe; but the rapid march of -events and the great matters that weighed upon the -public mind had so far kept him from fulfilling his -promise. On the present occasion it was proposed -to give the President an elegant robe composed of -ten beaver skins, the whole richly lined and embroidered.</p> - -<p>The members of the party were Dr. Walter A.<span class="pagenum" id="Page_341">341</span> -Burleigh of Yankton, Dak.; Captain La Barge, -Charles E. Galpin,<a id="FNanchor_63" href="#Footnote_63" class="fnanchor">63</a> and several others. Dr. Burleigh -acted as spokesman. The delegation were -shown to a room apart from the general reception -room, and Lincoln, after a little while, came in, saying -that he had sent them in there so that he might -have some uninterrupted talk with them about the -West. He remembered at once the old steamboat -Captain with whom he had ridden on the Missouri, -and he greeted La Barge with great cordiality. -After some general conversation Dr. Burleigh arose, -took the robe, asked the President to stand up, -and then threw it over his shoulders. Lincoln -folded it around him like a blanket and danced -about for an instant in Indian fashion. He -seemed greatly delighted with the gift. He then -asked the party many questions about the West, for -the Indian troubles were at that time causing the -administration a great deal of annoyance.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_342">342</span></p> - -<div class="sidenote">LINCOLN AND THE INDIAN.</div> - -<p>In the winter of 1863–64 La Barge saw the President -again. The only subject of importance which -was touched upon on that occasion was the Indian, -in whose welfare he always displayed the deepest interest. -As it was a subject which had often aroused -the Captain’s indignation and pity, he made the most -of his opportunity to acquaint the President with the -facts. He told him of the gross frauds practiced on -the Indians, and how their annuities, under present -conditions, had to pass through the hands of some -of the worst rascals on the face of the earth, who -deliberately cheated the Indians right and left. -Lincoln replied that he knew it; that, under the stress -of war, he was not able to send just the men he would -like to into that country as Indian agents, and that -too many of them were importunate place-seekers of -worthless character whom members of Congress were -anxious to get rid of somewhere. “But wait,” said -he, “until I get this Rebellion off my hands, and I -will take up this question and see that justice is done -the Indian.”</p> - -<p>The Captain made his third visit to Washington in -the winter of 1864–65. His particular business was -to secure payment on his government contracts, -which had been approved by the Department of War -and the Bureau of Indian Affairs, but disallowed by -the Treasury. He went to Secretary Chase, but was<span class="pagenum" id="Page_343">343</span> -told by that gentleman that all Missourians were -<i xml:lang="la" lang="la">prima facie</i> Rebels, and that that was why his account -was being held up. La Barge did not relish this -very much, as he had been doing business for the -government all through the war, and had even gone -so far as to take the oath of allegiance. He went to -Lincoln and laid the matter before him. The President -smiled at Chase’s remark, gave La Barge a -card with his autograph on it to hand to Chase, and -said he presumed that would fix matters all right. -La Barge went back, and the account was paid without -further delay. La Barge, with his usual distrust -of the American Fur Company, suspected that some -of its members had been giving him a bad character -in Washington in order further to cripple his opposition.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">THE BLACKFOOT’S ANNUITIES.</div> - -<div class="sidenote">FINAL EVIDENCE.</div> - -<p>On the occasion of his interview with the President -he brought up the matter of the Blackfoot annuities, -explicitly charging that these goods had been wrongfully -disposed of and had not reached their proper -destination. Lincoln sent for the proper officer of the -Indian Department to hear La Barge’s accusation. -This officer stated that he had receipts signed by the -Indian chiefs saying that they had received their -annuities. The signatures of the Indians were witnessed -by agents of the American Fur Company. -La Barge declared that the receipts were false; that<span class="pagenum" id="Page_344">344</span> -he had himself carried these goods and knew that the -Indians had not received them, but that they had -been appropriated by the American Fur Company -and sold. “Well,” said the official, “there are the -receipts; we cannot go back of them; they have been -considered final evidence in such cases since the foundation -of the government.” And there the matter -rested.</p> - -<p>While in Washington on this visit La Barge was -summoned before the Senate Committee on Pacific -railroads and questioned by B. Gratz Brown upon -his knowledge of the Western country and his -opinion upon the availability of certain routes for a -transcontinental line.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">LOOK AT YOUR MAP.</div> - -<p>Before he left Washington the Captain was the -central figure in an amusing little incident that occurred -at Ford’s Theater. <i>Harper’s Weekly</i> had -published a story of La Barge’s steamboating experiences -which ran something like this: On one of -his trips up the river in the earlier part of his career -there were several Englishmen aboard. They had a -map and applied themselves industriously for the first -day or two in trying to identify the various places -upon it with those along their route. They were in -the pilot-house a good deal, and one of them questioned -La Barge rather officiously about the geography -of the country.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_345">345</span></p> - -<p>“What place is this that we are approaching, Mr. -Pilot?” he asked.</p> - -<p>“St. Charles, sir,” La Barge replied.</p> - -<p>“You are mistaken, sir; according to the map it -is ——”</p> - -<p>La Barge made no reply. He stopped as usual at -St. Charles and then went on his way. Presently -they came to another village.</p> - -<p>“What place, Captain?” inquired the Englishman.</p> - -<p>“Washington, Mo., sir.”</p> - -<p>“Wrong again. The map gives this place -as ——.”</p> - -<p>This experience was gone through several times, -the Captain’s temper becoming more ruffled with -each repetition, though no one would have suspected -it from his unruffled exterior. Presently -a flock of wild geese passed over the river and drew -the attention of the passengers and crew. The -Englishmen were standing on the hurricane roof immediately -in front of the pilot-house.</p> - -<p>“What kind of birds are those, Captain?” asked -one of them in eager haste.</p> - -<p>The Captain, whose language still smacked somewhat -of the French idiom, replied:</p> - -<p>“Look at your map; he tell you.”</p> - -<p>The printed programme of the evening at the -theater happened to have this story under the heading<span class="pagenum" id="Page_346">346</span> -of “Old Joe La Barge.” The Captain and some -friends occupied a box, and as there were several -persons in the audience who knew him, the fact that -the hero of the story was in the box soon spread -itself about. At one of the pauses in the performance -someone called out for La Barge to stand up, and -cries of “La Barge” soon came from all parts of the -house. The modest steamboat pilot was panic-stricken -at the occurrence and clung desperately to -his seat, whereupon the audience called for him the -more; but nothing would induce him to stir.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">AN EXTENSIVE ACQUAINTANCE.</div> - -<p>We may here properly refer to Captain La Barge’s -extensive acquaintance with public men of the West. -His prominence in the carrying trade of Western -rivers, when travel was largely done by boat, brought -him into contact with distinguished characters from -all parts of the country. There were few public men -in the West whom he did not know, and his personal -estimate of their character as they appeared to him -is not without interest and value. We have already -noted his acquaintance with Audubon, General Warren, -Dr. Hayden, Brigham Young, and others.</p> - -<p>The Captain knew General Lee when the latter -was stationed in St. Louis as an officer of engineers -in charge of river and harbor works on the Mississippi -and the Missouri rivers.</p> - -<p>He knew both of the Johnstons,—Albert Sidney<span class="pagenum" id="Page_347">347</span> -and Joseph E.,—and at the time of the Mormon War -transported much of the supplies and munitions of -war used by Albert Sidney Johnston on his arduous -and perilous campaign.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">GENERAL GRANT.</div> - -<p>He saw Grant for the first time during the Mexican -War, and frequently in later years when he lived near -St. Louis. In Grant’s visits to town La Barge became -well acquainted with him. He saw him in the -early part of the war, while Fremont was in command -at St. Louis. He was trying to get an interview with -the General, but that officer was harder to reach than -a king or the Pope. He would keep people waiting -for hours, and then as like as not refuse them an -audience. In the winter of 1864–65 La Barge saw -Grant in Washington. The head of the armies of -the Union spoke to the steamboat pilot in as equal -and friendly a way as when he was unloading wood in -St. Louis. He asked the Captain if there was anything -that he could do for him, and expressed his -desire to serve him if he could.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">GENERAL FREMONT.</div> - -<p>La Barge saw a great deal at one time and another -of General Fremont. He first met him when he -went up the river as the assistant to the distinguished -geographer and scientist, Jean I. Nicollet. Nicollet’s -party traveled on the boat which La Barge was -piloting. At Leavenworth there was an extremely -rapid current, and La Barge expressed a curiosity<span class="pagenum" id="Page_348">348</span> -to know what its velocity was. Nicollet at once sent -Fremont to measure it. It was found to be eleven -miles per hour in the swiftest place. La Barge’s -opinion of Fremont was that which seems to have -universally prevailed in St. Louis—that he was -a greatly overrated man, and that his success was -due more to his fortunate marriage than to his own -merit. We must dissent, in a measure, from this -view. In his proper niche, Fremont was a great -man. He found that niche in the work of exploring -the unknown West. In the faculty of making the -unknown known, of doing work in such a way as to -make its results popular with the public, in spreading -a knowledge of the Great West throughout his country -and throughout the world, he stood without a -peer among the explorers of that region. In the -broader field of national politics or great military -responsibility, he was wading beyond his depth.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">THOMAS H. BENTON.</div> - -<p>Thomas H. Benton, Fremont’s father-in-law, and -Missouri’s greatest statesman, was an intimate acquaintance -of Captain La Barge, the two men having -known each other from La Barge’s childhood until -Benton’s death. Captain La Barge had a great admiration -for the bluff old Senator, although he did -not like the way in which he used his powerful influence -in shielding the American Fur Company on -so many occasions from the just consequences of<span class="pagenum" id="Page_349">349</span> -their illegal acts. Benton was a frequent passenger -on the Missouri River boats, and La Barge saw a -great deal of him there. He recalled particularly a -trip which the Senator made as far up as Kansas -City, where he went to meet Fremont, who was returning -from the West. It was a very interesting -voyage. The people all along the river wanted to see -him, and calls for “Old Bullion” compelled him to -appear at every landing place. He made numerous -addresses, and the boat was frequently delayed to -permit this interchange of greetings between the -people and their distinguished servant. Benton was -in the pilot-house a great deal,—as every traveler in -those days liked to be,—and La Barge never forgot -his expression of deep faith in the future of the West, -so unlike that of most of his Congressional associates -from east of the Mississippi. He said once to Captain -La Barge: “You will live to see railroads across -to the Pacific, and up the Missouri beyond the -Great Falls.” La Barge, a much younger man, replied -that he scarcely expected to see that in his lifetime. -“But I have,” said the Captain, in telling of -this conversation, “and I have seen far more than -even Senator Benton dared to hope for.” In the -same line of thought the Senator once said, as he -pointed to the west, which was overspread with the -marvelous glow of evening: “That is the East”<span class="pagenum" id="Page_350">350</span>—for -he felt that we should yet go in that direction to -reach the treasures of the Orient.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">NOTED MEN OF THE WEST.</div> - -<p>The interesting notes of Captain La Barge’s observations -of public men with whom he was thrown -in contact would fill a volume. His acquaintance -with the army was very extensive, owing to the -Indian wars along the Missouri, and he personally -knew nearly all the principal officers from General -Sherman down. The same was true of the Indian -agents, Territorial officers, and leading business men -of the West. In a time when so much public travel -went by steamboat he enjoyed exceptional opportunities -of seeing and knowing the men who made -the history of the Western country.</p> - -<hr /> - -<div id="chap_351" class="chapter"> -<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_351">351</span></p> - -<h2 class="nobreak" id="CHAPTER_XXX">CHAPTER XXX.<br /> - -<span class="subhead">THE INDIANS OF THE MISSOURI VALLEY.</span></h2> -</div> - -<p><span class="firstword">The</span> course of this narrative has shown that a large -portion of the business of the Missouri River steamboats -pertained to the Indians who dwelt on the banks -of that stream. The great valley had been their home -for unknown generations. The tribes were distributed -along its course or those of its tributaries, -from its mouth to their sources. First came the Missouris, -whose name the river still bears—a tribe long -since extinct as a separate organization. The Osages -and the Kansas likewise bequeathed their names to -the rivers in whose valleys they dwelt. The Omahas -have lived, since the white man knew them, a short -distance above the city which perpetuates their name, -while a hundred miles to the westward in the valley -of the Loup Fork of the Platte dwelt the four tribes -of the Pawnees. From the point where Sioux City -now stands, northward nearly to the British line, the -great nation of the Sioux held a wide tract of country -on both sides of the river. Within their territory -dwelt the treacherous Aricaras, near the mouth of<span class="pagenum" id="Page_352">352</span> -the Grand River, and the stalwart Cheyennes at the -eastern base of the Black Hills. The unhappy tribe -of the Mandans lived near the river some distance -north of the modern town of Bismarck, and near them -were the Minnetarees, or Grosventres of the Missouri. -Along the northern shore of the river from -the Mandans to Milk River, and northward far into -British territory, roamed the numerous bands of the -Assiniboines, one of the most populous of the plains -tribes. From Milk River to the sources of the Missouri -was the land of the hostile Blackfeet, where -dwelt the Piegan, Blood, and Blackfoot bands and the -Grosventres of the Prairies. Finally, in the valley -of the Yellowstone and its great tributary the Bighorn, -was Absaroka, the home of the proud tribe of -the Crows.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">GRAVITATE TOWARD THE RIVER.</div> - -<p>All of these tribes gravitated toward the great watercourses, -as man, in every stage of his history has -done. It was not in this case the use of the stream as -a transportation route that made it attractive. The -Missouri Valley tribes, unlike those of the Great -Lakes, or the Coast, or the northern rivers, were not -good navigators. The stream was a treacherous one, -and its shores did not yield a timber suitable to the -crude workmanship of the Indian. Skin boats were -used to a limited extent, but as a rule the horse and -not the boat was the means of travel and transportation.<span class="pagenum" id="Page_353">353</span> -The great importance of the river arose from -other considerations. In a region where streams are -scarce and where most of them dry up in the summer, -this river furnished a never-failing supply of as -healthy a drinking water as flows on the surface of -the globe. Then its valley was the only timbered -region of consequence for hundreds of miles on either -side. Groves of cottonwood, walnut, cedar, and willow -lined its banks, and the Indian here found all the -wood that his simple order of life required. The -abundant groves along the bottoms gave splendid -shelter from the heat of summer and the cold of -winter.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">STRANGE VISITORS.</div> - -<p>The entire watershed of the river was thus -originally occupied by Indians. Considering its extensive -area, their numbers were very few—scarcely -one to ten square miles. But as they mostly dwelt -near the rivers, the country seemed to the early navigators -more densely populated than it really was. -Into this primeval domain there came, more than two -centuries ago, strange visitors who never went away. -They were welcomed at first; but every foot of ground -they gained was held, farther and farther up the river -to its source among the mountains, thence to the River -of the West, and down its rugged valleys to the -western sea. It was a sad day to the tribes of the -Missouri Valley, as to every other, when the white<span class="pagenum" id="Page_354">354</span> -man came, but a far sadder day when the emigrant -and settler came. Between these two epochs there -was a long interval in which the paleface and his red -brother lived in comparative harmony together. It -was the era of the trader. Under the fur-trade -régime the Indian might have continued his native -mode of life indefinitely. The trader never sought -to change it. He introduced but few innovations; had -no desire to introduce any; and looked with as -jealous an eye as the Indian himself upon the approach -of civilization. This relation of the two races -was ideal, and during its continuance the Indian is -seen at his best.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">THE COMING OF THE EMIGRANT.</div> - -<p>All this was changed when the emigrant came. The -traders were few in number and made no permanent -settlements. The emigrants came by the thousand -and spread themselves all over the country. They -made roads, discovered rich mines, laid out cities, and -declared their purpose to send the “fire-horse” across -the plains, as they had sent the “fire canoe” up the -great river. Before this ever-increasing host the game -wasted away. It was estimated that in the single year -1853 four hundred thousand buffalo were slain. As -the buffalo was the very life of the plains tribes, its -extermination meant inevitable starvation or hopeless -dependence upon the government.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">AN UNSOLVABLE PROBLEM.</div> - -<p>All this the Indian foresaw with unerring vision,<span class="pagenum" id="Page_355">355</span> -and it affected him just as it would any other independent -people. A state of unrest ensued. Depredations -and outrages occurred—for the Indian understood -no other way of expressing his displeasure,—and -the government was forced to interfere. The era -of the fur trade came to an end, and that of the treaty, -the agent, and the annuity, began—an era whose history -will bring the blush of shame to its readers to the -latest generations. And yet it would be wholly unjust -to charge the flagrant wrongs which followed to this -or that particular cause. History will exonerate the -government from any but the purest motives in its -dealings with the Indians. It may have been unwise -in some of its measures; it was certainly weak in carrying -its purposes into effect; but it always sought, with -the light it possessed, the highest good of the Indian. -The problem, unfortunately, was beyond human wisdom -to solve. The ablest minds of this country and -century have grappled with it in vain. It was the -problem of how to commit a great wrong without -doing any wrong—how to deprive the Indian of his -birthright in such a way that he should feel that no -injustice had been done him. It was the decree of -destiny that the European should displace the native -American upon his own soil. No earthly power could -prevent it. <em>This</em> was the wrong; all else was purely -incidental; and whatever consideration or generosity<span class="pagenum" id="Page_356">356</span> -might attend the details of the change, nothing could -alter the stern and fundamental fact.<a id="FNanchor_64" href="#Footnote_64" class="fnanchor">64</a></p> - -<div class="sidenote">THE TREATY SYSTEM.</div> - -<div class="sidenote">POLICY OF INSINCERITY.</div> - -<p>With this impossible problem our law-givers wrestled -for a century in vain. They sought to deal with -the Indian on a basis of political equality, where such -equality did not and could not exist. The treaty system -was the outgrowth of this attempt. Perhaps it -was impossible to deal with the Indians except by -treaty, but it is difficult at this day to see the wisdom -of that method. It only deferred the inevitable. It -made promises which, in the nature of things, could -not be kept.<a id="FNanchor_65" href="#Footnote_65" class="fnanchor">65</a> Made to be broken, they served no -other purpose than to lull the natives into temporary<span class="pagenum" id="Page_357">357</span> -quiet while the paleface was fastening his grip ever -more tightly upon their country. It was throughout -a policy of insincerity; the fostering of a spirit of independent -sovereignty when in fact the tribes were only -vassals. Like all insincerity, it bred endless wrong. -The loss of his lands would not have been so bad to -him if he had understood it from the start; but as it -was, he had not only to bear this loss, but the ever-increasing -evidence of the white man’s bad faith; and -he thus came to hate the whites and distrust their -government.<a id="FNanchor_66" href="#Footnote_66" class="fnanchor">66</a></p> - -<p>This, if we were to venture a criticism, has been -the government’s one great mistake in dealing with -the Indians. A firm attitude of authority toward the -tribes, with an unqualified claim to sovereignty of the -soil, and an assertion of the right to reduce it and -them to a condition of ultimate civilization, would -have eliminated the element of bad faith which has<span class="pagenum" id="Page_358">358</span> -always characterized the treaty system. But instead -of this the government continued to foster to the last -the notion of tribal sovereignty over the lands of the -West. Under the farce of obtaining these lands by -treaty it saved itself from the charge of wresting them -by force from the Indian. It was a distinction without -a difference, and in its effort to save its honor in one -direction, it hopelessly sacrificed it in another.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">TREATY OF FORT LARAMIE.</div> - -<div class="sidenote">A SUCCESSFUL COUNCIL.</div> - -<p>The first general treaty with the tribes of the upper -Missouri was held at Fort Laramie in September, -1851. It included nearly every tribe in the valley from -the Omahas up, except the Blackfeet. The Indians -came from far and near and pitched their separate -camps on the council ground. Tribes that had never -met before here made each other’s acquaintance. -Others, who had met only on the battlefield, encamped -side by side in peace. The government was represented -by men of experience and dignity. In particular, -Superintendent D. D. Mitchell and Father P. J. -De Smet were men in whom the Indians felt the most -implicit trust. The council was convened for the purpose -of coming to some understanding among the -tribes themselves and between them and the whites -as to their immediate future relations. It was hoped -to put an end to inter-tribal wars and to outrages upon -the emigrants, and to secure the right of way for -roads and railroads across the Indian lands. The several<span class="pagenum" id="Page_359">359</span> -tribes showed the greatest interest in the work of -the council. The deliberations were conducted with -solemnity and evident sincerity on both sides. The -presents from the government were munificent and -well chosen, and were received with deep satisfaction. -When the work of the council was completed, the -tribes bade each other farewell, and departed for their -several homes with every appearance of mutual trust -and friendship. To all outward appearances the council -had been a complete success. Treaties were made -with all the tribes present. The gifts received were to -be in full compensation for all previous losses caused -by the white man, and the Indians were to receive -goods annually to the aggregate amount of fifty thousand -dollars. The treaties, as amended in Washington, -were to remain in force for fifteen years. Four -years later a similar treaty was made near Fort Benton -with the several bands of the Blackfeet by a commission -consisting of Governor I. I. Stevens and Alfred -Cummings, Superintendent of Indian Affairs.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">A MIXING OF GOODS.</div> - -<p>It was thus that the annuity system came into extensive -vogue among the tribes of the upper Missouri. -It probably gave rise to more abuses than any other -one thing in the conduct of Indian affairs. The -temptations for fraud were as great as the opportunities -for its commission were numerous and excellent, -and it required more than average public virtue<span class="pagenum" id="Page_360">360</span> -to resist them. The Indian could not go to the market -and help select his goods; he had no hand in awarding -the contracts for their transportation to his country; -nor any means of seeing that he received what -he was entitled to. His only function was to accept -what the agent saw fit to give him. During the Civil -War, when the currency depreciated to such an -enormous extent, the annuities shrank in quantity as -prices went up, and the Indian was a heavy loser from -causes that he could not comprehend. The annuities -were always sent up the river in the boats of the -traders, generally in those of the American Fur Company. -The agents were given no escort and no separate -residence or warehouse, and were compelled to -throw themselves upon the hospitality of the traders. -In this way the annuity goods became mixed with -those of the traders, and the Indian paid in furs for -what he was entitled to as a free gift. This abuse was -a grave one and very difficult to correct, for all that -the Department required in evidence of the delivery -was the signature of the chiefs, witnessed in the usual -manner. It is easy to see how wide open the door -was in this business for the commission of almost unlimited -fraud.<span class="pagenum" id="Page_361">361</span><a id="FNanchor_67" href="#Footnote_67" class="fnanchor">67</a></p> - -<div class="sidenote">ANNUITY SYSTEM.</div> - -<p>It is doubtful if, during the period from 1850 to -1870, the Indian tribes along the Missouri River received -more than half the bounty which was promised -them by the government.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">A CORRUPT ATMOSPHERE.</div> - -<p>In the early days of the Republic the conduct of -Indian affairs was in the hands of the military authorities, -and it has always been a mooted question -whether it ought not to have remained there. The -verdict of history will undoubtedly be that it should. -The spoils system came into absolute control of the -agencies, and fitness and experience received scant<span class="pagenum" id="Page_362">362</span> -consideration. There was more or less friction between -the agents and the military, for the latter always -had to be called in when the former could no longer -control their flocks. But the greatest defect of the -system was the total absence of anything like a fixed -and recognized procedure. The annual reports of the -agents show how utterly lacking in all the elements -of practical business was their haphazard management. -Every new agent felt called upon, as a necessary preliminary -to his own work, to criticise the conduct of -his predecessor. He put forth new schemes and tried -new experiments, until finally he himself made way -for a successor who in turn deplored the failures of -those who had gone before him.</p> - -<p>Probably the majority of the agents were men of -average integrity, but there were many who sought -the business solely for “what there was in it.” The -whole atmosphere of the Indian trade was so against -an honest conduct of the business that an agent who -should undertake to enforce strict integrity in his -official work was regarded as a fit subject for an -asylum of the feeble-minded. At one time the experiment -was tried of appointing only clergymen to the -agencies. But the scheme was a visionary one. What -these agents made up in honesty they lacked in experience, -and were pliant tools in the hands of the shrewd -trader. Their saintly character, moreover, was not<span class="pagenum" id="Page_363">363</span> -always a sure panoply against the attacks of worldly -temptation. To more than one of them, in the words -of Captain La Barge, “a dollar looked bigger than -a cart wheel,” and they, like the rest, learned how to -connive at the crookedness of the traders. But whatever -their virtues or intentions, they were powerless -to accomplish any good work. The fault was in -the system, which was inherently vicious, and mere honesty -in the individual could not eliminate its defects.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">THE SYSTEM AT FAULT.</div> - -<p>The actual results of the treaty-annuity-agency system -in the conduct of Indian affairs are now matters -of history. No treaty that it was possible to devise -could stand. The encroachment of settlement continually -increased. It led to resistance on the part of -the Indians, and resistance to chastisement and to new -treaties, and these invariably to loss of territory and -abridgment of rights. At last it led to war, and the -final transition of nearly all the tribes to their present -situation was accompanied by scenes of blood.</p> - -<p>It is not possible to follow here the intricate pathway -of the treaty system through the quarter century -after 1850, for it is a long story. There were treaty -after treaty, commission after commission, and a constant -exercise of its best offices on the part of the government -to reach some satisfactory result; but in vain. -The life of a people, like that of an individual, cannot -be extinguished without a struggle. Whether in this<span class="pagenum" id="Page_364">364</span> -case the inevitable struggle was intensified by the procrastinating -policy of the government may be an open -question. It probably was, for it was preceded by -years of bad faith, broken pledges, and cruel wrongs, -until the hearts of this unhappy people were embittered, -and they drew the sword in a spirit of hatred -and revenge.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">THE INDIAN AND THE STEAMBOAT.</div> - -<p>Throughout the painful annals of the river tribes -during the past century there was no more attractive -feature of their relations with the whites than the -means of transportation by which the paleface came -to their country. The keelboat and the steamboat are -a part of their life history. The steamboat in particular -came to be what the buffalo had been—their principal -resource for the necessities of life. It was a difficult -rôle that it had to fill. To the Indian it was -friend and foe, truth and falsehood, honor and shame, -alike. It brought the early traders with their welcome -merchandise, and alas! with their liquor and -the smallpox. It brought the Commissioners to make -treaties, and the annuities which those treaties guaranteed. -It brought the Indian agent and the evils -that followed in his train, and finally it brought the -sword. When the Indian at last gave up the fight he -and the steamboat abandoned the river together, and -both are now strangers where once they made the entire -valley teem with life.</p> - -<hr /> - -<div id="chap_365" class="chapter"> -<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_365">365</span></p> - -<h2 class="nobreak" id="CHAPTER_XXXI">CHAPTER XXXI.<br /> - -<span class="subhead">THE ARMY ON THE MISSOURI.</span></h2> -</div> - -<p><span class="firstword">The</span> rôle which the army was called upon to fill -in the history of our Indian affairs was a most unpleasant -one. It began while the proud spirit of the -tribes was as yet unbroken, but had been aroused by -ever-increasing aggression to the point of active resistance. -It then became necessary to subdue them -by force to absolute subordination to the government, -and to remove them from their larger hunting -grounds to small reservations. This thankless task -devolved upon the army. It was not merely a thankless -task, but a most arduous and formidable one. -Compared with service in the Indian campaigns, that -in the South during the Civil War was a holiday -pastime. What tragedy in all our national wars can -compare with the battle of the Little Big Horn? What -record of retreat and pursuit is there like that of the -Nez Percé campaign of 1877? Napoleon’s retreat -from Moscow had no terrors for the individual -soldier like those of the winter campaign of Crook -in the Powder River country in March, 1876, when<span class="pagenum" id="Page_366">366</span> -it was so cold that the men were not permitted to go -to sleep at night for fear they would never wake up.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">THE WEIGHT OF A DREAD POWER.</div> - -<p>In the course of twenty years after 1855 military -posts sprang up all over the West. There was -scarcely an Indian trail in that entire region that did -not witness the passage of government troops. From -one haunt to another his relentless pursuers tracked -the desperate Indian. Ambushes and massacres were -met with crushing defeats in battle, but the general -drift of the conflict was uniformly one way. The -Indian was learning the weight of that dread power -which had so far tolerated his independence, but was -now to extinguish it forever. The struggle lasted in -its main features about sixteen years, or from 1862 to -1877; but its extreme limits were the Grattan Massacre -of August 19, 1854, and the battle of Wounded -Knee, December 29, 1890.</p> - -<p>For some years the Indians who were parties to -the treaty of Laramie observed its conditions fairly -well; but in 1854 an unfortunate affair occurred which -temporarily interrupted the general peace. Some fifteen -hundred Indians of three different Sioux bands -were encamped in the Platte Valley, about six miles -below Fort Laramie, in August of that year. One of -the Indians drove off and killed a stray cow belonging -to an emigrant train. The owner complained of the -theft to the officer in command at Laramie, and Lieutenant<span class="pagenum" id="Page_367">367</span> -Grattan, with about twenty men, was sent to -bring in the thief. He probably did not show very -much tact in performing his delicate task, and made -the mistake of attempting to take the culprit by force -in the presence of nearly ten times his number of Indians. -The result was the massacre of his entire party. -The Indians then went to the American Fur Company -warehouse, where their annuity goods were in waiting, -broke open the building, and carried off the annuities.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">BATTLE OF ASH HOLLOW.</div> - -<p>Thereupon the government ordered General Harney -to take the field with a military force, establish convenient -bases of supplies, protect the frontier and the -emigrant routes, and to deal a heavy blow upon the -offending Indians. On September 3, 1855, General -Harney attacked a large force of Indians who had -taken part in the Grattan massacre, completely routed -them, killed and captured upward of two hundred, -and destroyed nearly all their property. This affair -took place across the Platte River from Ash Hollow, -a noted situation on the emigrant trail, from which -the battle has taken its name.</p> - -<p>General Harney next moved his force to the Missouri -River, where the old trading post of Fort -Pierre had been lately acquired by the government, -and there held councils with various tribes, which -again resulted in general pacification. In the following -year the important military post of Fort Randall<span class="pagenum" id="Page_368">368</span> -was built, and Fort Pierre was abandoned because of -its undesirable situation. General Harney discharged -his task in a manner highly creditable to himself and -satisfactory both to the Indians and the government; -and seven years were to elapse before any further difficulty -of a serious character should occur.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">SITUATION GROWING WORSE.</div> - -<div class="sidenote">INTRIGUES OF THE HALF-BREEDS.</div> - -<p>But while the severe lesson of Ash Hollow, the -frank counsel of General Harney, and the presence -of a military force at Fort Randall, kept the tribes in -comparative peace, the wrongs from which they suffered -continually increased, and their temper grew -constantly worse. The discovery of gold in Montana -brought a multitude of emigrants to and through this -country, with the consequent destruction of game and -threats of roads and railroads and loss of lands. -Events were fast developing into a crisis, when the -outbreak of the Civil War in the United States gave -the tribes their desired opportunity. The frontier garrisons -were depleted in order that the regular troops -might be sent south. New levies made up of the able-bodied -citizens went away to the war. The Indian was -quick to see how this movement weakened the frontier -settlements. He was made to believe, by gross exaggeration, -that the situation of the Great Father in -Washington was a desperate one, that his capital was -about to be taken and his power destroyed. It has -been asserted that the Confederates had emissaries<span class="pagenum" id="Page_369">369</span> -among the Indians, but there is no proof of any direct -intrigue of this character. Indirectly, however, they -exercised a powerful influence upon them. The people -of the British possessions, like those of the mother -country, sympathized ardently with the South, and -this sympathy found effective expression in the intercourse -of the British half-breeds north of the boundary -with the Indians south. These half-breeds knew the -border tribes perfectly, and had greater influence with -them than the whites, who were strangers to their -customs and the authors of their many wrongs. Selfish -motives of trade combined with national prejudice -to stir up strife against the Americans and to provide -means for making that strife effective. The half-breeds -circulated freely south of the border, and the -tracks of their carts could be seen everywhere from -the Red River of the North to the Missouri River. -They brought powder and balls, guns, rum, and regular -merchandise of trade, and their influence at this -particular time was decisive. Their territory, moreover, -offered a sure asylum from punishment for any -outrages which the Indians might commit.<span class="pagenum" id="Page_370">370</span><a id="FNanchor_68" href="#Footnote_68" class="fnanchor">68</a></p> - -<div class="sidenote">THE MINNESOTA MASSACRE.</div> - -<p>Trouble first broke out in 1862 among the Minnesota -Indians, where the evil conditions from which the -tribes had been suffering had reached an acute stage. -Under the leadership of a noted Sioux chief, Little -Crow, the Indians in the valley of the Minnesota -River above Mankato attacked the settlement of -New Ulm and others in that vicinity, on the 18th of -August, murdering and taking captive the inhabitants, -destroying property, and spreading consternation -in every direction. In the course of three days -nearly a thousand persons were killed and two million -dollars’ worth of property destroyed.</p> - -<p>The State and national governments sent instant -relief; the outrages were checked; the Indians were -driven up the Minnesota Valley and beaten in several -battles; the captive whites were mostly released, and -a large number of hostiles engaged in the massacre -were taken prisoners. This work was done under -the immediate leadership of General H. H. Sibley, -first Governor of Minnesota. The captured Indians<span class="pagenum" id="Page_371">371</span> -were tried by court martial, and a great number were -condemned to death, but this penalty was commuted -by President Lincoln except in the cases of thirty-eight, -who were hanged at Mankato, December 26, -1862.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">AN INDIAN WAR.</div> - -<p>In the meanwhile the Indians under Little Crow, -though checked and driven back, were not conquered -or discouraged. Their emissaries were active among -the tribes of the Missouri, who were aroused almost -to the point of war. The execution of the Indians at -Mankato exasperated Little Crow to a desperate pitch, -and he vowed extermination of the whites. It was -clear that an Indian war was at hand, and the government -at once prepared for it. Its conduct was placed -in the hands of General John Pope, who had been relieved -from his command of the Army of the Potomac -after the second Bull Run, and was now in command -of the Department of the Northwest, with headquarters -at Milwaukee. General Pope organized two -expeditions, one under General Sibley, to move west -from Mankato against the Indians and drive them toward -the Missouri, and the other under General Sully, -to move from Sioux City up the Missouri and cut off -their retreat. The plan was well conceived, but the -extreme low water in the Missouri in 1863 prevented -General Sully from receiving his supplies in time to -carry out his part of the programme.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_372">372</span></p> - -<div class="sidenote">EXPEDITION OF GENERAL SIBLEY.</div> - -<p>Sibley’s expedition left Camp Pope in the Minnesota -Valley June 16, 1863, and two days later that of General -Sully left Sioux City. Sibley’s route lay up the -Minnesota to its source, thence by way of Lake -Traverse to the Cheyenne River of North Dakota, and -up that stream toward Devil’s Lake, where the Indians -were supposed to be. Learning that they had left that -region and had gone toward the Missouri, General -Sibley changed his march to the southwest, and pursued -the retreating enemy with great vigor. He came -upon them and fought three battles within a week—Big -Mound, July 24; Dead Buffalo Lake, July 26; and -Stony Lake, July 28. The Indians were defeated in -all three fights, and then crossed the Missouri River -just below where Bismarck, N. D., now stands. General -Sibley reached that stream on July 29, and here -his expedition ended. Two days later his command -set out on its homeward march.<a id="FNanchor_69" href="#Footnote_69" class="fnanchor">69</a></p> - -<p>At this time General Sully was at Fort Pierre. The -transportation of his supplies had delayed him, and it -was not until the 14th of August that he started from -that point on his march north. He went up the east -bank of the Missouri, with a great deal of vexatious -delay, and finally reached the scene of Sibley’s third -fight just a month after it had taken place. The Indians,<span class="pagenum" id="Page_373">373</span> -meanwhile, far from being conquered or dispirited, -had recrossed the river and were on their way -back to the grazing grounds on the Coteau of the Missouri. -Some of them harassed the homeward-bound -column of General Sibley. Sully pursued them to the -northeast and overtook and fought them at Whitestone -Hill, some thirty miles south and slightly west of -Jamestown, N. D. The Indians were badly defeated, -many of them were killed, and a large amount of their -property was destroyed. Sully then returned to the -Missouri and built a new post, Fort Sully, on the left -bank of the river, opposite the head of Farm Island, -midway between Fort Pierre and Fort George. With -this work the campaign of 1863 came to an end.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">CAMPAIGN INDECISIVE.</div> - -<p>The movements of troops in this campaign and the -force of Indians engaged were the largest yet known -in the history of the United States. The number of -warriors was estimated at over six thousand, while the -troops under Sibley and Sully numbered about four -thousand. The campaign, however, was not conclusive. -Although the Indians had been defeated with -severe loss in every engagement, they were still unsubdued, -and retained their defiant attitude during the following -winter. Accordingly another campaign was -planned for the summer of 1864. General Sully was -placed in charge with a cavalry force of about 2500 men.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">SULLY’S CAMPAIGN OF 1864.</div> - -<p>General Sully’s first move was to build a post near<span class="pagenum" id="Page_374">374</span> -the mouth of the Cannon Ball River—Fort Rice, forty -miles below where Bismarck now stands, and on the -other side of the river. The Indians being reported -as near the source of Heart River, General Sully concluded -to continue his march in search of them, -whether found or not, until he should reach the Yellowstone -River. He took with him only the necessary -rations for the march and sent his steamboats with -supplies and materials for a new post around to meet -him at the Brasseau Houses on the Yellowstone, fifty -miles above the mouth of that stream. Accompanying -Sully’s march to the Yellowstone was an emigrant -train of about 125 people bound for the mines of -Montana.</p> - -<p>Sully’s route lay up the Cannon Ball River nearly -to its source, and thence across to the head waters of -Heart River. Here the General packed his train and -left it with the emigrants under a strong guard, and -himself and command, in light marching order, struck -out for Knife River, where the Indians were reported -encamped. He found them as expected. They were -defiant and eager for battle, and an engagement immediately -followed. The Indians were badly defeated, -a large number being killed, and all of their -property destroyed. This was the battle of Tahkahokuty, -or Killdeer Mountain, and was fought July -28, 1864.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_375">375</span></p> - -<div class="sidenote">THE ARMY REACHES THE YELLOWSTONE.</div> - -<p>Sully then returned to his camp on Heart River, -and, under the guidance of a single Indian, who, of all -those with him, professed to know a passable route, -started on the perilous undertaking of carrying a -wagon train through the Bad Lands to the Yellowstone -River. The route was west to the Little Missouri, -where it turned sharply to the northwest and -struck the Yellowstone about fifteen miles below the -Brasseau Houses. This point was reached on the 12th -of August, and fortunately the supply steamers were -close at hand to relieve the necessities of the troops. -This was the first expedition across the Bad Lands of -North Dakota, and was accomplished at the cost of -great labor and suffering.</p> - -<p>The command crossed the Yellowstone and then -marched to the Missouri River opposite Fort Union. -This stream was forded with much peril, and the -troops then returned to Fort Rice along the north -shore. Garrisons were left at Forts Union and -Berthold, but the contemplated post on the Yellowstone -could not be built, owing to the wrecking of one -of the steamers with most of the material on board.</p> - -<p>Thus the military forces of the United States were -advanced in permanent occupation to the mouth of the -Yellowstone River. Only twice before had the uniform -of the American soldier been so far up the Missouri—in -1805–06, when the Lewis and Clark expedition<span class="pagenum" id="Page_376">376</span> -passed this point, and in 1825, when General -Atkinson took his command to a point about a hundred -miles farther up. Neither of these earlier visits contemplated -permanent occupation.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">SIGNS OF WEAKENING.</div> - -<p>By this time the Indians began to realize the magnitude -of the power they were contending with, and -to show signs of weakening. No extensive campaign -was found necessary along the river for a number of -years, although many of the Indians continued hostile -and committed numerous depredations. The termination -of the Civil War, with complete victory for the -government, and the release of so many soldiers from -Southern fields who could now be sent to the frontier, -all tended to make the Indians proceed in their -schemes of war with greater caution and hesitation. -Could the evils of our Indian system have been corrected -the tribes might readily have been brought to -terms of “lasting peace,” which was so confidently -predicted at the time by Indian agents and even by -some military officers.</p> - -<p>In this matter of the military conquest of the Missouri -Valley, as in that treated in the last chapter, it -is not possible, with our present space, to follow in -detail the course of events during the next twelve -years. The army made some new advances every -year, not only in the Missouri Valley, but throughout -the entire West. Campaigns, battles, and some appalling<span class="pagenum" id="Page_377">377</span> -massacres occurred, and the soldiers became as -familiar with the country and as expert in savage -methods of warfare as the Indian himself. Finally, in -1875–77, came the last act in the great tragedy, by -which the power of the Sioux nation was broken and -their career as an independent people brought to an -end.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">NON-TREATY SIOUX.</div> - -<p>Great efforts had been made for several years to -reduce the Sioux tribes, by peaceable methods, to life -on the reservations. Several government commissions -were sent to them, and one in particular, of -which General Sherman was a member, went into the -whole matter with the greatest possible care. Most -of the Sioux were finally located on the reservations -and appeared to be peaceably disposed. But there were -some exceptions, estimated to number not more than -six or eight hundred warriors, who had persistently -refused from the first to recognize in any way the -treaties or other arrangements with the government. -The agents had failed to get them to quiet down on the -reservations, and they continued to roam over the -country as of old, subsisting upon the fruits of the -chase. They were uncompromisingly hostile to the -whites and their Indian allies, and committed outrages -without number upon both. Finally the Indian Department -served notice upon them that unless they -settled down on the reservations before January 31,<span class="pagenum" id="Page_378">378</span> -1876, they would be turned over to the military authorities -and be dealt with by force. The Indians paid -no attention to this ultimatum, and their case was accordingly -placed in the hands of the army.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">CAMPAIGN OF 1876.</div> - -<p>An effort was made to reach these Indians by a -winter campaign, but after one attempt, which ended -in a battle of no decisive results, the scheme was -abandoned, because the excessive cold made it impossible -to conduct operations in that shelterless country. -General Sheridan, who was charged with the -conduct of this important business, thereupon planned -a campaign which was to be carried out as soon as the -season would permit. He determined upon a concentric -movement by which bodies of troops from -widely separated localities should move upon a given -section where it was believed that the hostile band -would be found. General Crook was to start from -Fort Fetterman, on the Platte, and move north; General -Terry from Fort Abraham Lincoln, on the Missouri, -and move west; and General Gibbon from Fort -Ellis, in western Montana, and move east. The -point of rendezvous was to be in the Yellowstone -Valley near the mouth of the Powder River, or wherever -in that vicinity further development might indicate. -General Crook left Fort Fetterman May 29 -with about 1000 men; General Terry left Fort Lincoln -May 17 with about 1000 men, sending his supplies<span class="pagenum" id="Page_379">379</span> -around into the Yellowstone by steamboat. General -Gibbon, with 450 men, left Fort Ellis on the 1st of -April, crossed over to the Yellowstone, and marched -down the left bank of that stream.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">ERRONEOUS ESTIMATES.</div> - -<p>Up to this time all obtainable evidence indicated -that the hostile Indians did not number more than 800 -warriors. As a matter of fact, discontented Indians -from nearly all the surrounding Sioux and Cheyenne -agencies had for some time past been leaving the reservations -and going to the hostiles, until the latter had -gathered a force of not less than 2500 men. It was -against this force, more than three times as large as -was supposed, that the joint movement of Generals -Terry, Crook, and Gibbon was directed.</p> - -<p>General Crook was the first to encounter the Indians. -He met and fought them on the head of the -Rosebud River June 17, and although the Indians -withdrew, the battle was indecisive, and the great -number of the Indians, as disclosed by the fight, induced -General Crook not to take the risk of going -further. He withdrew to the valley of Goose Creek -and sent for re-enforcements.</p> - -<p>Generals Terry and Gibbon met about fifteen miles -below the mouth of the Tongue River on the 9th of -June, and their combined forces formed a junction at -the mouth of the Rosebud on the 21st of that month. -Here the plan of operations against the Indians was<span class="pagenum" id="Page_380">380</span> -agreed upon. Nothing was known of Crook’s whereabouts, -nor of his recent fight, but it was pretty well -established, from various scouting parties, that the -Indian village was in the valley of the Little Big Horn, -from seventy-five to ninety miles distant. It was decided -that General Custer, with the 7th Cavalry, -should proceed up the Rosebud until he should strike -a large Indian trail which had been discovered a few -days before, and should then follow it to the Little Big -Horn, feeling well to the south to prevent the escape -of the Indians. General Gibbon, whose column General -Terry accompanied, was to ascend the Yellowstone -to the mouth of the Big Horn, and that stream -to the mouth of the Little Big Horn, where it was expected -to arrive not later than the 26th, and where it -should come into touch with Custer.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">THE CUSTER MASSACRE.</div> - -<p>In carrying out his part of the programme, General -Custer moved more rapidly than his instructions contemplated, -so rapidly, in fact, that he would have arrived -at the appointed rendezvous, had his march not -been interrupted, an entire day in advance of that fixed -for the arrival of General Gibbon. The result was -that his command came upon the Indian village on the -morning of the 25th while advancing in three separate -columns not within supporting distance of each other. -Custer’s column was surrounded and annihilated to a -man. The other two detachments, under Major Reno<span class="pagenum" id="Page_381">381</span> -and Captain Benteen, effected a junction and intrenched -themselves on the river bluff of the Little Big -Horn, where they withstood for nearly thirty hours the -terrific siege by the Indians, who were confident and -exultant from their late victory over Custer. The -total loss to Custer’s command was about 270 men. -General Gibbon’s column reached the scene of the -battle on the 27th, the Indians withdrawing upon their -approach.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">MILITARY PROBLEM SOLVED.</div> - -<p>This was the crowning tragedy of the long Sioux -wars, which had been waged at intervals for upward -of twenty years. Although a great disaster to the -whites, it marked the downfall of the Indian power. -The various bands into which the hostile force scattered -after the Custer massacre were relentlessly pursued -until all were driven into the reservations or beyond -the British line. Once on the reservations they -were disarmed and dismounted, so as to cripple them -from further resistance. Another year was consumed -in this work, and the military posts were further extended -into the Indian country; but by the end of -1877 the military problem in our Indian affairs was -practically solved.</p> - -<hr /> - -<div id="chap_382" class="chapter"> -<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_382">382</span></p> - -<h2 class="nobreak" id="CHAPTER_XXXII">CHAPTER XXXII.<br /> - -<span class="subhead">THE STEAMBOAT IN THE INDIAN WARS.</span></h2> -</div> - -<div class="sidenote">MILITARY USE OF KEELBOATS.</div> - -<p>Throughout the Indian wars of the Missouri -Valley the steamboat played a part of the very highest -importance. It was almost the exclusive means of -transporting men and supplies along the river, except -when in active campaign work in the interior. Its use -in the military service dates from the very beginning -of steamboat navigation on the river, as well as from -the first important step toward the military occupation -of the valley. When the first steamboat entered -the Missouri, in 1819, arrangements were being perfected -to transport by steam to the mouth of the Yellowstone -a large body of troops designed to establish -a post there. Five boats were brought into requisition -for this purpose, and a sixth, the <i>Western Engineer</i>, -was built by the government to transport a -party of scientists who were to accompany the expedition. -Owing to the entire absence of experience in -navigating the Missouri with steamboats, this attempt -proved a failure. None of the boats except the -<i>Western Engineer</i> got as far as to the old Council<span class="pagenum" id="Page_383">383</span> -Bluffs, and the troops, after marching a part of the -distance, went into winter quarters at that point.</p> - -<p>Four years later the first Indian campaign west of -the Mississippi River took place, when Colonel Leavenworth, -with a considerable body of troops, went up the -river from Fort Atkinson (old Council Bluffs) to -chastise the Aricaras, who had attacked a fur-trading -party under General Ashley and killed a number of -men. Keelboats were used on this expedition.</p> - -<p>Two years later, 1825, General Atkinson took a -large body of troops from Fort Atkinson to a point -about one hundred miles above the mouth of the Yellowstone -and return. His purpose was to make -treaties with the Indian tribes along the valley and -acquaint them with the power of the United States. -Keelboats were used, and a novel feature was introduced -in propelling them—a wheel, or wheels, which -were operated by hand power, the soldiers being used -for this purpose.</p> - -<p>No further use of steamboats in the military service -except at Forts Leavenworth, Kearney, and Croghan, -and in connection with the Mexican War, occurred -until Harney’s campaign of 1855. All the troops that -went up the river at that time were transported in -steamboats. The transfer of ownership of Fort -Pierre from the American Fur Company to the army, -and the movement of material connected therewith,<span class="pagenum" id="Page_384">384</span> -were also done by steam. The establishment of Fort -Randall and the subsequent maintenance of that post -were mainly accomplished by the aid of the steamboat.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">A LONG WAY AROUND.</div> - -<p>The outbreak of the Sioux War in 1863 and the -campaigns of 1863–64 called the steamboat again into -extensive use. A remarkable instance of this use was -the transportation of the Winnebago Indians from -their home near Mankato, Minn., to their new home -on the Missouri River. The feeling against the Indians -after the Minnesota massacre was so bitter that -it was taken advantage of to move them all from the -State. It does not appear that the Winnebagos were -active participants in the outbreak, but the hand of -vengeance fell upon them as upon the others. They -were moved westward several hundred miles, and in -exchange for the fertile lands of the Minnesota Valley -were given a home on the sterile wastes of the Missouri. -In making this transfer the Indians were not -taken directly across the country, which was perfectly -practicable for wagons all the way, but were transported -by <em>steamboat</em>. They were put on board the -<i>Favorite</i> and other boats at Mankato on the Minnesota -River, taken down that stream to the Mississippi at -Fort Snelling, down the Mississippi to the Missouri, -and up the Missouri to the mouth of Crow Creek, -twenty miles above the present site of Chamberlain, S. -D. The distance around was 1900 miles, against about<span class="pagenum" id="Page_385">385</span> -300 miles across. The Indians arrived at Crow Creek -on May 30, 1863. A reservation was laid off, the -necessary agency buildings were erected in a stockaded -inclosure, and the place was named Fort Thompson, -in honor of Clark W. Thompson, the Superintendent -of Indian Affairs for the Northern Superintendency. -Mr. Thompson personally supervised the work of locating -the Indians on this new reservation.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">STEAMBOATS IN SULLY’S CAMPAIGNS.</div> - -<p>In the campaign of General Sully in 1863 he relied -entirely upon steamboats for transporting his supplies -from Sioux City to the field of operations, and -one boat accompanied him from Fort Pierre well on -his way to the scene of actual hostilities. It was on -this campaign that General Sully impressed Captain -La Barge’s boat, the <i>Shreveport</i>, into his service for a -time.</p> - -<p>The campaign of 1864 from Fort Rice to the Yellowstone -River was conducted in connection with -steamboats. Three boats were sent around into the -Yellowstone to meet the troops at the Brasseau -Houses. They were loaded with rations, forage, and -material for a new post which it was proposed to build -on the Yellowstone River near the mouth of Powder -River. These boats were the <i>Chippewa Falls</i>, the -<i>Alone</i>, and the <i>Island City</i>. The last-mentioned boat -had all the forage for the animals on board and was -unfortunately wrecked just below the mouth of the<span class="pagenum" id="Page_386">386</span> -Yellowstone River. This occurrence caused General -Sully to abandon for the time his contemplated establishment -on the Yellowstone.</p> - -<p>During the next twelve years steamboats were constantly -in the service of the government in transporting -troops and supplies along the river. It is impossible -to estimate the great value in the military operations -of the valley of this important line of communication. -Forts and cantonments were strung all along -the river from Fort Randall to Fort Benton, and all -of them, as well as the troops in the field, depended -for their support upon the river boats. The conquest -of the Missouri Valley would have been a very different -matter had the government been deprived of -this important aid in its operations.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">STEAMBOATS IN CAMPAIGN OF 1876.</div> - -<p>In the Sioux campaign of 1876 steamboats bore -a prominent part, one of the very highest importance, -and one which had its full share of the thrilling incidents -of that tragic conflict. A considerable fleet of -boats was sent up the river from Fort Abraham Lincoln -to co-operate with the troops under Terry, who -marched across the country to the Yellowstone. They -not only carried supplies, but assisted in patrolling the -river to prevent the Indians from crossing, and moved -the troops from point to point as their services were -needed. One boat in particular, the <i>Far West</i>, Captain -Grant Marsh, master, performed a service which<span class="pagenum" id="Page_387">387</span> -will go down in the history of the campaign as one -of its most thrilling episodes.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">THE “FAR WEST.”</div> - -<p>The <i>Far West</i> was for a few days used by General -Terry as his headquarters boat while his command -was moving up the Yellowstone to the mouth of the -Big Horn. The boat, after ferrying General Gibbon’s -command to the north bank of the Yellowstone, was -directed to proceed up the Big Horn, and, if possible, -to reach the mouth of the Little Big Horn. General -Gibbon, being ill at the time, remained on the boat -with a company of infantry a part of the way, when -he joined Terry’s column and resumed command of his -own troops. The <i>Far West</i> ascended the Big Horn -fifteen miles above the mouth of the Little Big Horn -and then dropped down to that tributary. It remained -there until the 30th, by which time all the -wounded from Reno’s fight had been placed on board, -and it then moved down to the Yellowstone, where it -arrived on the same day. Three days later it started -down the river for Fort Abraham Lincoln with all the -wounded, and a volume of dispatches, official and private, -relating to the terrible tragedy of which the -world had but just been informed. The very nature -of its mission made the voyage of the <i>Far West</i> one -of romantic interest. Its cargo of wounded men, -its greater burden of news to anxious friends and -an impatient public, all mark it as one of the historic<span class="pagenum" id="Page_388">388</span> -incidents of our Indian wars. The <i>Far West</i> arrived -at Fort Lincoln July 5, about midnight.<a id="FNanchor_70" href="#Footnote_70" class="fnanchor">70</a></p> - -<div class="sidenote">AN HISTORIC VOYAGE.</div> - -<p>The <i>Far West</i> returned from Fort Abraham Lincoln -immediately after she had discharged her cargo, -and remained with other boats on the Yellowstone -until the subsiding waters made it impossible to navigate -that stream. Among these boats was another, -well known to the army for many years, and the only<span class="pagenum" id="Page_389">389</span> -one of the old fleet that still survives. This was the -<i>Josephine</i>, which is now in the service of the government -as a snagboat in the work of keeping the upper -river free from obstructions.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">A STRANGE LAND; AN UNKNOWN RIVER.</div> - -<div class="sidenote">DOWN THE SWIFT YELLOWSTONE.</div> - -<div class="sidenote">LA BARGE IN CUSTER CAMPAIGN.</div> - -<p>Captain La Barge also saw service in the Custer -campaign. The need of a light-draft boat for use in -the latter part of the season led the authorities to engage<span class="pagenum" id="Page_390">390</span> -his boat, the <i>John M. Chambers</i>, to carry supplies -to Fort Buford. The boat left St. Louis August -5 and reached Buford September 11. The commissary -stores were at once unloaded, with the assistance -of soldiers detailed for the purpose. General -Terry and staff, with a company of troops and a piece -of artillery, were then taken on board, and the boat<span class="pagenum" id="Page_391">391</span> -started for Wolf Point in the hope of heading off the -Indians, who were reported to be in that vicinity. The -boat started early on the morning of the 12th. She -proceeded about thirty miles that day, having made -a stop at Fort Union to put off General Hazen and -take on a supply of meat for the troops. Owing to the -low water she made only about twenty miles on the -13th. On the 14th the party stopped to examine a -broken-down ambulance on the shore. It was found -to have belonged to Reno’s troops, who were in pursuit -of the Indians. A little farther they came upon -a party of seven men on their way down the river -from Montana, and through them news of Reno and -the Indians was received. These men had been terribly -frightened the night before. The boat had laid up -near their camp and had thrown a shell into a grove of -cottonwoods to search for Indians. It struck near -their bivouac and almost paralyzed them with fright. -They came on board next day and went down by the -boat on its return home.</p> - -<p>On the 15th the boat reached Reno’s camp. The -Indians had already crossed, and Captain La Barge -immediately commenced ferrying Reno’s command -over. This work was accomplished before night, and -the boat left for Buford the following morning, with -General Terry and staff and 270 men. Buford was -reached on the 17th, and the boat was discharged.<span class="pagenum" id="Page_392">392</span> -She at once started on her return to St. Louis, where -she arrived October 8.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">THE NEZ PERCÉ CAMPAIGN.</div> - -<p>Strange as it may seem, considering the nature of -a campaign like that of 1877 against the Nez Percé -Indians, the Missouri River steamboat played an important, -and perhaps a decisive, part in its operations. -Chief Joseph, in his long march from Idaho, had -crossed the Yellowstone National Park, and finding -himself pursued and harried in every direction, struck -north for the British line. The pursuing troops, whom -he had so far eluded, he felt confident would not overtake -him; but he did not count on a danger which -arose in a quite unexpected quarter. General Miles, -with about 350 men, was encamped on the Yellowstone -at the mouth of the Tongue River, where the -news reached him that Indians had crossed the Yellowstone -farther up and were making for the British -line. He at once put his command in motion to intercept -them. His first objective was the Missouri River -at the mouth of the Musselshell. As soon as he came -in sight of the river, scouts were sent on ahead to stop -any steamer that might happen along. By the greatest -good fortune the scouts reached the bank just as -the last boat of the season was passing down. Fifteen -minutes later and she would have been gone.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">TIMELY AID.</div> - -<p>The troops were brought down to the river and ten -days’ rations were put on the boat and taken to the<span class="pagenum" id="Page_393">393</span> -mouth of the Musselshell. The officers of the boat -stated that the Indians had not yet crossed the Missouri, -and General Miles accordingly decided to march -up the valley of the Musselshell to intercept them. The -boat was discharged and dropped downstream, stopping -about a mile below to take on some wood. While -there, two men came down the river in a mackinaw -and reported that the Indians <em>had</em> crossed the river, -some eighty miles above, and were making for the -British line. General Miles instantly ordered some -cannon shots fired in the direction of the steamboat. -A Captain Baldwin, who had been sent down on account -of sickness, was on board. He at once understood -that the boat was wanted, and caused her to be -brought back. The command was ferried over, and -on the following morning, September 27, set out to -the northwest after the Indians. They were overtaken -on Snake Creek, where Chief Joseph was defeated -in battle, and the greater part of his people -captured. This point was within fifty miles of the -boundary, and about one hundred of the Indians actually -got across the line. But for the timely aid of the -steamboat it is probable that the whole band would -have escaped.</p> - -<hr /> - -<div id="chap_394" class="chapter"> -<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_394">394</span></p> - -<h2 class="nobreak" id="CHAPTER_XXXIII">CHAPTER XXXIII.<br /> - -<span class="subhead">THE PEACE COMMISSION OF 1866.</span></h2> -</div> - -<div class="sidenote">LOSS OF THE “EFFIE DEANS.”</div> - -<p>We left Captain La Barge in 1865 just as he had -returned from Montana on his second journey by way -of Great Salt Lake. His boat, the <i>Effie Deans</i>, had -reached St. Louis some time before he did. The -boat was still owned in partnership with John S. -McCune and Eugene Jaccard. La Barge tried to -get full possession of her, offering, however, either to -buy or sell. Not being able to negotiate a purchase, -he demanded a dissolution of the partnership, and -bought the boat in. He then put six thousand dollars’ -worth of repairs on her, and in the spring advertised -for a trip to Benton. He secured a full cargo, -and had every prospect of a profitable trip, when one -of those sudden accidents overtook him which were -so common in the hazardous business he was carrying -on. He had hesitated a good deal about insuring -the boat, and finally, upon McCune’s advice, concluded -not to do so. He felt safe if he could get out -of port, the greatest danger being from fire there. -The insurance rates were so high that it was a great<span class="pagenum" id="Page_395">395</span> -object to avoid them, if possible. It was on Friday -that he had his talk with McCune and decided not to -insure. He was to start next morning. He mentioned -to his wife what he had done, and she, with a -woman’s intuition, remonstrated strongly, saying -she knew he would repent it. About one o’clock -next morning the doorbell rang. La Barge raised -the window and asked who it was. “Watchman of -the <i>Effie Deans</i>,” was the reply. “What is the matter?” -asked the Captain. “The <i>Effie Deans</i> is -burned up.”</p> - -<p>“The loss to me,” said Captain La Barge, “was -difficult to reconcile, from the fact of my having rejected -insurance the day before, as well as an offer of -forty thousand dollars for the boat the same day. -The fire had been communicated to the boat from one -of the neighboring vessels, the <i>Nevada</i>, and was in no -sense the fault of my crew. Next morning Robert -Campbell came down to the levee and said he understood -I had no insurance on the boat. I replied -that such was the case. He said that he had always -put me down as a prudent man, but that such a course -showed great recklessness. I replied that I thought -not; that the loss was the fault of my neighbors, and -not my own. ‘Well, if that is any consolation, I -have nothing more to say,’ he replied, and walked -away. His apparent indifference surprised me. I<span class="pagenum" id="Page_396">396</span> -had done business with him for many years, and had -paid him as high as sixty thousand dollars commissions. -Now, in my misfortune, he did not as much -as offer the least assistance.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">BUILDING OF THE “OCTAVIA.”</div> - -<p>“Very different was the conduct of John S. -McCune. He also came down soon after Campbell -left. He looked at the wreck, said it was most unfortunate, -talked very little, but told me to be early -at his office Monday morning. I called according -to appointment. McCune said, ‘You have got to -have a new boat. Let us go down to the Marine -Railway Ways in Carondelet and see what we can -do.’ We went down, saw the superintendent, told -him what we wanted, and asked him if he could -undertake the construction of a boat. He replied -that he could, and McCune told him to go ahead on -my plans, and he would back me with his credit. I -drew the entire plans and specifications for the boat, -machinery and all, and she was built that summer -accordingly. Before I got back in the fall McCune -had named her for me, but I renamed her <i>Octavia</i>, -for my second daughter. She cost fifty-seven thousand -dollars, and was a splendid boat. I paid for her -partly in cash and gave my notes for the balance.”</p> - -<div class="sidenote">NORTHWESTERN TREATY COMMISSION.</div> - -<p>In the meantime a commission had been appointed -to go up the river and make treaties with certain -tribes of Indians in regard to the right of way for<span class="pagenum" id="Page_397">397</span> -railroads across their lands. It was officially known -as the Northwestern Treaty Commission, but was -popularly referred to as the Peace Commission of -1866. It was composed of Newton Edmunds, -Governor of Dakota Territory; General S. R. Curtis, -a well-known officer of the Iowa Volunteers; Orrin -Guernsey, and the Rev. Henry W. Reed, who so long -figured as an Indian agent on the upper river. -The Commission were well provided with presents -and proposed to travel in becoming state. Captain -La Barge had secured for the summer, while -the <i>Octavia</i> was building, another boat, a fine new -one, the <i>Ben Johnson</i>. The Commission contracted -with the Captain to carry them up the river and -back at three hundred dollars per day. One of -the Commissioners wanted the Captain to hire his -son as clerk, or in some other capacity, at five dollars -per day. The Captain had made up his crew and -did not care to go to this extra and unnecessary expense. -But as the Commissioner rather insisted, the -charter price was raised to $305 per day, and the -young man enjoyed a fat sinecure during the trip—an -instance of the kind of corruption which was -almost universal in the period following the war.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">PEACE COMMISSION A FAILURE.</div> - -<p>To Captain La Barge the voyage seemed more -like a pleasure excursion than a business enterprise. -The boat moved by very leisurely stages,<span class="pagenum" id="Page_398">398</span> -always tying up early in the evening and starting -late in the morning. Whist and other -games were the order of the day. Long stops were -made at all interesting points, and the party enjoyed -exceptional opportunities of seeing Indian life in all its -wildness. As a means of accomplishing any good, -the Commission was looked upon from the first by -the people of the Missouri Valley as little more than -a farce. No end of ridicule was poured upon it, and -it was held up to the general contempt by those who -had any definite acquaintance with the situation. -The Indians were generally loath to negotiate, fearing -that the Commission “would want them to sign -some paper that would take from them their lands -and houses and oblige them to seek new ones farther -west.” It cannot be said that any good came from -this Commission—certainly nothing to justify its -great expense. It did without doubt create new -complications, lead to increased dissatisfaction on the -part of the Indians, and, on the whole, aggravate an -already serious situation.<a id="FNanchor_71" href="#Footnote_71" class="fnanchor">71</a></p> - -<p>Some of the incidents on this trip had a flavor of -danger about them, and we shall narrate one as given<span class="pagenum" id="Page_399">399</span> -us by Captain La Barge. It related to an interview -of the Commissioners with the Yanktonais, who were -well known as the most relentlessly hostile of any of -the Sioux tribes.</p> - -<p>“Some twenty miles below the mouth of White -Earth River,” said Captain La Barge, “I saw two -Indian hunters on the hills. I hailed them, landed -the steamer, asked them on board, and after feasting -them (an indispensable preliminary to the transaction -of any business), inquired if they were Yanktonais, -and if so where were the rest of the tribe. -They replied in the affirmative, and said that their -camp was about ten miles off, on the White Earth -River. The Chairman of the Commission asked -them to go to camp and tell the chiefs to move their -whole village down to the mouth of the White Earth -and there await the arrival of the boat for the purpose -of holding a council. He inquired the size of the -village, and found it to be six hundred tepees, which -meant about three thousand Indians.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">A VIGOROUS REMONSTRANCE.</div> - -<p>“I remonstrated at this proposition, strongly -urging that only the chiefs be invited. Should so -powerful a band of these hostile Indians get any advantage -of us they would certainly use it. We had -no power of resisting them, having only thirty people -in all, and they were poorly armed. The Indians -would, I feared, make a rush and attempt to capture<span class="pagenum" id="Page_400">400</span> -the steamer as soon as we landed. Our interpreter, -Zephyr Rencontre, seconded me in this opinion. I -had been in the power of these Indians once before, -and, thanks to Rencontre, I was wearing my hair on -this occasion.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">AFRAID OF INDIANS.</div> - -<p>“The Chairman of the Commission said he perceived -that I was afraid of the Indians, but not to be -alarmed; he would answer for all harm. The Indians -would never dare molest a government officer. To -me, who had spent all my life among the Indians, -this gratuitous insinuation from a mere novice in -Indian experience cut me to the quick, and I replied: -‘Very well, I will land as you say, but before we get -through we shall see who is afraid of Indians.’</p> - -<p>“This was another instance of the mistakes made -by our government in the selection, to treat with the -Indians, of men without knowledge of the native -character. It was a universal rule that such men -would treat with contempt the cautious bearing of -those who knew the Indians; and this ignorant bravado -has many times led to disastrous consequences. -It is very unpleasant to act with such men, who -ridicule one’s honest knowledge of peril, and are -powerless to help when they get you into danger. -It was also a common observation with me that the -volunteer officers of the war were always more -haughty and overbearing than those bred to the profession.<span class="pagenum" id="Page_401">401</span> -They loved to assume, assert, and display -authority, where the trained soldier would see no -occasion to do so.</p> - -<p>“I said to Curtis on this occasion, ‘This course -is contrary to my judgment, General; and in order -not to be responsible for the consequences I desire -a positive order from you before I adopt it.’ He -gave me the order. The Indians arrived just as we -were tying up the boat. The women immediately -commenced setting up the lodges and the men began -to rush on board. They were all armed. Curtis had -said, when I foretold this: ‘We will keep them off, -only letting on those we want.’ I replied, ‘You will -see, General. It will be impossible to keep them off.’</p> - -<div class="sidenote">MATTERS BECOME SERIOUS.</div> - -<p>“As already stated, the Indians at once rushed on -board, and unfortunately did not congregate in one -place, but scattered themselves in every direction. -Matters at once became serious. I was thoroughly -alarmed for the safety of the boat and her passengers, -but remained perfectly cool and indifferent in outward -appearance, and did not permit myself to resent -the actions of the Indians. An act of that sort -might have precipitated difficulty. We were over a -powder mine, and a spark was liable to fall at any -moment. The Indians became insolent, would elbow -us around, sneer at us, display their muscular arms, -and try in every way to provoke us to action. One<span class="pagenum" id="Page_402">402</span> -Indian, an ugly fellow and noted villain, Crazy Wolf, -followed me everywhere I went, armed with gun, pistol, -and bow and arrows. He tried in every way to -get me to notice him. At this time I consulted with -Zephyr on the situation, saying that I feared trouble -was brewing. He replied that he thought so too, and -that I had better prepare for prompt measures. I -had steam kept up. Pilot and engineer remained at -their posts, and the mate was kept forward. He had -been instructed to cut the line whenever he should -hear a single tap of the bell.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">FUTILE ATTEMPT AT NEGOTIATIONS.</div> - -<p>“Meanwhile the Commissioners had been attempting -negotiations, but to little purpose. In front, on -the boiler deck, there were a table and seats for the -principal Indians. Curtis tried to call them to order, -but without success. He then summoned Rencontre -and tried to talk to them. He told them he was -about to roll some bales of goods on shore and requested -that they would withdraw and distribute -them. They answered to roll them on shore; the -women would take care of them; for their part they -would remain on the boat.</p> - -<p>“Nothing whatever could be done. Matters became -dubious. One by one the Commissioners -slipped away and locked themselves in their staterooms. -General Curtis was finally left alone, and -after a while he also withdrew, and told me to get out<span class="pagenum" id="Page_403">403</span> -of the scrape as best I could. He fully realized the -gravity of the blunder he had made, and his own inability -to cope with the situation.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">A SUDDEN PANIC.</div> - -<div class="sidenote">ENOUGH OF A GOOD THING.</div> - -<p>“The Indians as yet had made no attempt on the -staterooms, but they were incensed at the withdrawal -of the Commissioners and might do so at any -moment. Rencontre said to me, ‘The Indians don’t -like this, and will give us trouble. We had better -do something right away.’ ‘Is it time to cut loose?’ -I asked. ‘I think so,’ he replied. I gave the signal, -the line was cut, the wheels began to turn backward -and the boat slid quickly from the bank. The sudden -move astounded the Indians. Those on shore seized -the line and began pulling before they discovered -that it was cut. I knew they would not dare to fire, -for fear of shooting their own people. Those on the -boat were panic-stricken and began to leap overboard. -I caused the nose of the boat to be held -close to shore so that they could get to land -without drowning, and in a few minutes the boat -was clear of them. Then, reversing the engines, -we steered for the opposite shore and made -the boat fast. The danger being over, I went -to Curtis’ room and told him it was safe for him to -come out. When he appeared I said: ‘Who is afraid -of Indians now, General Curtis?’ His only reply -was: ‘Who would have thought that the rascals<span class="pagenum" id="Page_404">404</span> -would dare molest a government officer?’ They -cared a good deal about a government officer, indeed, -and the remark showed how little he knew -of the Indian character. I asked the General if he -wanted to make another trial, but he replied that he -had had enough.</p> - -<p>“No further attempt was made to treat with these -Indians, and we went on up the river. As on a -previous occasion, the Indians followed us. Durfee -& Peck at this time had a post on the site where -Fort Buford later stood. The Indians made a -signal from the opposite side of the river that they -had robes to sell, and the agent at the post wanted -to borrow our yawl to go across and get them. I -consented, but advised against it. They crossed and -actually bought several hundred robes, but just as -the boat was about to put back, the Indians jumped -upon the crew, killed one, severely wounded another, -and would have killed all, had I not promptly crossed -over with the steamboat to their assistance. Mr. -Durfee afterward thanked me very heartily for this -action.”</p> - -<p>The Commissioners then went on to old Fort -Union, where they remained for a time treating with -the Assiniboines, Crows, and Grosventres. The -Crows and the Grosventres came down by the steamboat -<i>Miner</i>, under promise that they should be taken<span class="pagenum" id="Page_405">405</span> -back to their camp on the Musselshell by boat. The -river being too low to take so large a boat as the -<i>Ben Johnson</i> farther up in safety, the Commission -impressed into their service, for the purpose of taking -these Indians back, a small boat, the <i>Amanda</i>, -which was in the employ of the War Department. -She was then on her way up the river to meet -Colonel Reeve, who was expected back from the -Judith, where he had just established a post. The -Crows and Grosventres, with their presents and with -copies of the new treaties, got on board and started -up the river. The agent for the Blackfeet, George -B. Wright, was also on board on his way to Fort -Benton.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">CROWS HAVE TO WALK.</div> - -<p>At the mouth of the Milk River the <i>Amanda</i> met -Colonel Reeve, who promptly took the boat into his -own charge, put the Indians ashore with their -presents and other property, and left them to walk -home. The anger of the Crows was fired to a -desperate pitch by this action. They refused to -take the presents, tore up some of the treaties, and -sent others back to the Commissioners, and declared -that they would henceforth fire upon every -boat going up the river. Agent Wright thought the -situation too critical for him to attempt to go on -overland to Benton, so he returned with the boat -and went to his station by way of Omaha, Salt Lake,<span class="pagenum" id="Page_406">406</span> -and Helena. The Commissioners criticised him -severely for this action, and he, on the other hand, -charged them with positive misrepresentation in regard -to their work. They had already prepared a -report setting forth in glowing terms their success in -treating with the various tribes. Agent Wright had -likewise written a report of his experiences at the -mouth of Milk River and the action of the Crows in -repudiating the treaties. As the two reports conflicted -in important matters the Commission requested, -and finally prevailed upon, Agent Wright to -modify his report, so as to be in harmony with their -own.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">MERCENARY PATRIOTISM.</div> - -<p>After the business was completed at Fort Union -the <i>Ben Johnson</i> turned her prow downstream and -proceeded homeward by leisurely stages, stopping at -the various camps, agencies, and military posts. -The property remaining on the boat was put off -partly at Yankton, partly at Sioux City, and partly -at Omaha. At Sioux City it was put off at night. -Captain La Barge knew nothing of it. Hearing the -noise of unloading he arose and went to see what was -going on, and found the crew unloading freight. -He asked by whose orders they were doing this, and -they replied, those of the Commission. He said no -more. It was clearly the intention to conceal this -move from him, and again he saw how mercenary<span class="pagenum" id="Page_407">407</span> -was the patriotism of many of our government -officials. The boat pursued her way safely to St. -Louis, where she arrived late in August.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">THE “OCTAVIA” FINISHED.</div> - -<p>Captain La Barge turned over the steamer to her -owners and took possession of his new boat, the -<i>Octavia</i>, brought her to the wharf, finished her construction, -and left on her first trip October 1. He -ran in the lower river the rest of the season, and then -on the Mississippi until ice closed in. He laid up the -boat for the winter at Kimmswick, twenty miles below -St. Louis.</p> - -<hr /> - -<div id="chap_408" class="chapter"> -<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_408">408</span></p> - -<h2 class="nobreak" id="CHAPTER_XXXIV">CHAPTER XXXIV.<br /> - -<span class="subhead">THE MURDER OF CAPTAIN SPEAR.</span></h2> -</div> - -<p><span class="firstword">The</span> voyage of the <i>Octavia</i> in the summer of 1867 -was one of the most successful and important in all -Captain La Barge’s career on the river. It was unhappily -marred by a most revolting crime, committed -on board, but in other respects passed off without -any untoward incident. Its narrative will be presented -in the Captain’s own words.</p> - -<p>“Early in the spring of 1867 I started in the -Weston and St. Joseph trade, and about April 1 advertised -for a trip to Benton. Business on the river -seemed rather dull at this time, and people ridiculed -me for attempting a trip. But within two weeks my -boat was filled; in fact it was the largest trip I ever -had up the river. I remember that one morning, -about two days prior to our departure. Captain -Walker S. Carter, a merchant of St. Louis, who was -on the levee, said to me, ‘Have you got a trip?’ I -replied, ‘More than I can carry.’ ‘It is astonishing,’ -said he. ‘Anybody else than you could not have<span class="pagenum" id="Page_409">409</span> -got half a trip.’ ‘That shows the value of a reputation,’ -I replied.</p> - -<p>“This trip of the <i>Octavia</i> was a very profitable one. -The cargo was composed entirely of private freight, -Mr. W. M. McPherson having been the successful -bidder for government contracts. I had freight for -nearly every firm in Helena, besides a good list of passengers, -among whom was Green Clay Smith, newly -appointed Governor of Montana, and also the Surveyor -General for the same Territory, Thomas E. -Tutt, now of the Third National of St. Louis, and -Robert Donnell, now a New York banker.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">GENERAL SHERMAN.</div> - -<div class="sidenote">THE MCPHERSON CONTRACT.</div> - -<div class="sidenote">THE SHERMAN CONTRACT.</div> - -<p>“An interesting incident took place just before the -departure of the boat in which no less a personage -than General Sherman was concerned. Colonel -Thomas, Sherman’s Quartermaster, had contracted -with W. M. McPherson, as I have said, for all the -season’s business up the Missouri River. The <i>Octavia</i> -was to leave port on Tuesday, and on the Saturday -previous General Smith came on board and said to -me, ‘Did I not understand you to say that you had -no government freight or troops to transport this -year?’ I answered in the affirmative—that McPherson -had the contract, and I would not carry for him. -‘Well,’ returned General Smith, ‘I am just from -General Sherman, where I went to apply for an -escort. I was told by the General that I would not<span class="pagenum" id="Page_410">410</span> -need one, for he was going to send a hundred men -by the <i>Octavia</i> to Camp Cook, near the mouth of the -Judith River, under Lieutenant Horrigan.’ To confirm -his statement he showed me a dispatch that he -had just sent to Omaha to have the men all ready, so -as not to detain the boat beyond a few minutes. This -was a good deal of a surprise to me, as I had had no -intimation of such action, and had my boat about -full. I told Smith I would go and see Sherman -about it, and did so at once. I found the General -in his office, and before I could tell him my business -he said, ‘I know what you want,’ and he took down -his dispatch book to show me that he had taken all -precautions not to cause me any delay. ‘But that -is not the question, General,’ I said; ‘I cannot take -the troops.’ ‘Ah! that alters the case. Haven’t you -room?’ I replied that I could probably make room, -but understood that this shipment was under the -McPherson contract. The General said it was. -‘Well then,’ I said, ‘I will not carry them, for I will -not work for McPherson.’ The General asked my -reasons. ‘Because McPherson will not pay enough -for the work,’ I said. ‘He gets a good price from -the government, but the poor steamboat man who -does the work gets nothing for it. For example, he -gets fifty dollars per man to haul the troops to Camp -Cook. He will pay me fifteen and pocket thirty-five,<span class="pagenum" id="Page_411">411</span> -and do no work nor take any risk. I will not -work for him on such terms.’ ‘I think you are -perfectly right,’ said the General. ‘In your place -I would do the same thing. But you will carry the -troops up for General Sherman?’ I replied that I -would if he would contract with me individually and -directly and pay me the McPherson rates. ‘That’s -fair,’ said he, and he called in Thomas and told him to -draw up a contract. ‘Well,’ said Thomas, ‘this -work is for McPherson to do under our contract -with him. If you pay La Barge you will also -have to pay McPherson.’ Thomas wanted to argue -the matter, but Sherman shut him off by saying, -‘It’s no use, Thomas; you just draw up that contract -as I tell you to.’ And he did.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">CAPTAIN SPEAR SHOT.</div> - -<p>“The <i>Octavia</i> left St. Louis Tuesday, May 7, 1867, -on the most important trip I ever made up the river. -There were no incidents of note until the boat -reached Omaha, where the troops were taken on -board. We also received at this point a passenger in -the person of a Captain W. D. Spear, 79th Royal -Rifles, an officer of the British Army, on furlough -from India. He was on his way to Salt Lake <i xml:lang="la" lang="la">via</i> the -Missouri River, and was going thence to California. -He seemed to be a man of means. This embarkation -of the troops and of this officer was the prelude -to one of the most distressing tragedies that ever<span class="pagenum" id="Page_412">412</span> -occurred on the Missouri River. The troops were -mostly Irish Fenians, and the Lieutenant in charge -was an Irishman, all intensely hostile to the English. -This fact may in part explain what subsequently -transpired. Spear himself felt doubts for his safety, -and one day remarked to me that he would be lucky -if he got out of this scrape without accident. I did -not know what he meant, for he was a very fearless -man, going on shore frequently in spite of danger -from the Indians. Just after midnight of the 7th of -June, or more precisely about 12.30 A. M. June 8, -as Captain Spear and Joseph C. La Barge, my son, -were going up the steps to the hurricane deck, Captain -Spear being a little ahead, a sentinel, William -Barry, stationed near there, fired at Captain Spear, -the bullet passing through his head at the base of the -brain and killing him instantly. The following day -an inquest was held by a committee of the passengers -consisting of Thomas E. Tutt, Green Clay Smith, -Sam McLean, Richard Leach, T. H. Eastman, Geo. -W. McLean, and W. J. McCormick, Secretary. -Several of the passengers and crew were sworn and -their testimony taken. No motive could be discovered -for the deed. The sentinel’s orders required him to -challenge only parties approaching the boat from -the shore, and it was expressly agreed with me, -by Lieutenant Horrigan, as a condition of permitting<span class="pagenum" id="Page_413">413</span> -sentinels to be posted on the hurricane deck, -that they should not interfere in any way with -the passengers. The finding of the committee -was that “the shooting was not in accordance with -any instructions given to said sentinel, and that he -deserves the most rigid punishment known to the -law.” There was indeed a strong sentiment among -the passengers in favor of lynching him, but the military -could easily have prevented it, and everyone -believed that he would meet with due punishment in -regular order. The sentinel was of course at once -relieved from duty and placed under arrest.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">NEW METHOD OF EMBALMING.</div> - -<p>“Our trip up the river was a dangerous one, owing -to the intense hostility of the Indians, but by taking -great precautions no accidents happened. I put off -the remains of Captain Spear at Fort Buford to await -my return. I asked the commanding officer if he -could suggest any way of embalming the body. He -advised the construction of a large box and the filling -of it with green cottonwood sawdust. The experiment -seemed to work well, although I had never -heard of such a thing before. The post commander -refused to receive the prisoner, who was taken on to -Camp Cook. The commanding officer there refused -to try him on the ground that the crime had been committed -in Dakota. He held him for us to take back to -Yankton.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_414">414</span></p> - -<p>“The troops were left at Camp Cook and the boat -went on to Benton. I found many passengers for -the down trip and great quantities of golddust. I -filled the office safe and every other available receptacle -with it. There were no incidents of especial -importance on the return trip. The soldier, Barry, -was taken down to Yankton and there turned over -to the United States marshal, who held him until -orders came from Washington for his release, when -he was sent back to his company.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">TRIAL OF SPEARS MURDERER.</div> - -<p>“I took Captain Spear’s remains back to St. -Louis, where I found telegrams directing the shipment -of them to Europe. A Lieutenant Terry of -Spear’s company came to St. Louis to get full particulars -of the affair. I was then living with my -family on the <i>Octavia</i>, and invited him to stay there -with me. He did so, and I gave him as full an -account as possible of Captain Spear’s death. When -the news reached England that the assassin had been -released without trial, the government promptly took -up the matter and I understood that a demand was -made upon our government through Minister Thornton -for a civil trial of the soldier. This demand was -complied with, and the man was tried before Judge -Kidder at Vermillion, Dak. Myself and several others -went up as witnesses. The evidence seemed to me overwhelmingly -against the accused, there being nothing in<span class="pagenum" id="Page_415">415</span> -his favor except his own statement that he acted in the -line of his duty. The jury returned a verdict of not -guilty, upon instructions from the judge that the -man had simply obeyed his orders. They were -given a verdict to sign written out by the judge, and -thus the culprit escaped.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">TRAVESTY UPON JUSTICE.</div> - -<p>“To us who knew the facts, this travesty upon -justice seemed the crowning outrage of the whole -deplorable affair. Here was as deliberate, cold-blooded, -and unprovoked a murder as the annals of -crime afford, actuated unquestionably by the national -hate of the murderer for the country of the victim. -The crime was considered by the passengers as meriting -the severest penalty of the law. The pretense -that the sentinel acted under orders had not the remotest -foundation, or if it had, it only made the officer -<i xml:lang="la" lang="la">particeps criminis</i>. The final outcome was the -grossest miscarriage of justice which even frontier -annals afford, and it was unquestionably a justifiable -ground for reprisal on the part of the British government. -Let those who lament British obduracy in the -case of Mrs. Maybrick ponder upon this far more -lamentable case of the unavenged death of Captain -Spear.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">PHENOMENAL SUCCESS.</div> - -<p>“Upon my return to St. Louis I called upon -McCune, who advised me to attend promptly to my -obligations for the construction of the boat, which had<span class="pagenum" id="Page_416">416</span> -now about matured. He offered to help me get -them renewed. I told him it was unnecessary, as I -should take them all up and clear the debt off. He -was greatly surprised and delighted at the success of -my trip, which was indeed almost phenomenal. I -made a clear profit of forty-five thousand dollars between -May 7, the date of leaving St. Louis, and the -date of my return. Yet it was a hard trip. The -responsibility was very great. I was heavily in debt -for my boat. I had on board three hundred passengers -and three hundred tons of cargo. The difficulties -of Missouri River navigation, the dangers -from the Indians, and the many other contingencies -of such a trip made it wearing in the extreme. Many -boats that had set out weeks before us were passed -on the way.<a id="FNanchor_72" href="#Footnote_72" class="fnanchor">72</a> On the trip I was awake the greater -part of the time night and day. I kept up all right -and stood the strain so long as the excitement was -on, but the moment we landed at Benton and I knew -the danger was over, I went to sleep and instructed -my wife not to awaken me even for meals. I slept -almost continuously for twenty-four hours.”</p> - -<hr /> - -<div id="chap_417" class="chapter"> -<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_417">417</span></p> - -<h2 class="nobreak" id="CHAPTER_XXXV">CHAPTER XXXV.<br /> - -<span class="subhead">THE BATTLE WITH THE RAILROADS.</span></h2> -</div> - -<p><span class="firstword">The</span> great enemy of the Missouri River steamboat -was the railroad. The impression now exists that -the river has ceased to be a navigable stream. It has -ceased to be a navigated stream, but it is as navigable -as it ever was. Let it be known that all railroads in -its valley will cease running for a period of five years -and there will be a thousand boats on the river in less -than six months. It is not a change in the stream, -but in methods of transportation, that has ruined the -commerce of the river.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">ADVANCE OF THE RAILROADS.</div> - -<p>The struggle between the steamboat and the railroad -lasted just about twenty-eight years, or from -1859—when the Hannibal and St. Joseph railroad -reached St. Joseph, Mo.—to 1887, when the Great -Northern reached Helena, Mont. The influence of -the railroads had been felt to some extent before this -on the lower river. The Missouri Pacific railroad, -which parallels the river from St. Louis to Kansas -City, was opened to Jefferson City, March 13, 1856, -but did not reach Kansas City until ten years later. -This road did not have much effect upon the steamboat<span class="pagenum" id="Page_418">418</span> -business of the river. Most of the boats ran -far beyond the points reached by the road, and would -have kept on the river whether the railroad were there -or not. Being there, they secured a large part of the -freight, even along the line of the railroad.</p> - -<p>When the Hannibal and St. Joseph railroad -reached the Missouri River at St. Joseph in 1859, -that town became an important terminus for river -commerce connected with the railroad. A line of -packets including three boats ran south to Kansas -City and north to Sioux City, with an occasional trip -to Fort Randall. The first service of Captain La -Barge’s boat, the <i>Emilie</i>, was in this trade, in which -he remained for two years.</p> - -<p>The next point on the river reached by the railroads -was at Council Bluffs and Omaha. On the -15th of March, 1867, the Chicago and Northwestern -railroad reached the former place and on March 15, -1872, the Union Pacific bridge was opened across the -river. Omaha largely supplanted St. Joseph in the -upper river trade, and still further restricted the business -from St. Louis.</p> - -<p>The Sioux City and Pacific railroad entered Sioux -City in 1868 from Missouri Valley, thus connecting -with Omaha and Chicago. In 1870 the Illinois -Central reached the same place directly across the -State. Sioux City became, and for a long time remained,<span class="pagenum" id="Page_419">419</span> -a more important river port than either St. -Joseph or Omaha. All during the period of the -Indian wars, in the decade from 1870 to 1880 it was -the great shipping point for the army in all its work -on the upper river. Even the trade to Fort Benton -was in great part transferred to this point, and the -St. Louis trade with that port suffered another severe -falling off.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">FINISHING BLOWS.</div> - -<p>And now its bold antagonist attacked the steamboat -business on every side. The Union Pacific railroad -was opened to Ogden in 1869, and a freight line -was at once established through to Helena, thus diverting -south a large part of the business which had -before gone to the river. In 1872 the Northern -Pacific reached Bismarck, and cut off nearly all the -upper river trade from Sioux City. In 1880 the -Utah Northern entered Montana from Ogden and -captured a large share of the trade of that Territory. -In 1883 the Northern Pacific reached the valley of -the Upper Missouri, and virtually controlled all the -business that had hitherto gone to the Missouri River -except the small proportion which originated at Fort -Benton and below to Bismarck. The final blow was -delivered to the river trade in 1887, when the Great -Northern reached Helena.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">DOOM OF OLD FORT BENTON.</div> - -<p>This was practically the end of the steamboat business -on the Missouri River, and the doom of old Fort<span class="pagenum" id="Page_420">420</span> -Benton. A new town arose at the Great Falls, under -the fostering care of the railroad, absorbed most of -the former trade of Fort Benton, and grew into one -of the largest towns of the State. Fort Benton -dropped rapidly into a condition of decadence from -which it has never recovered. In the meanwhile all -the regular steamboat owners withdrew from the -river except the Benton Transportation Company, -which has maintained to the present day a very small -fleet of boats at Bismarck, N. D. It was a sad day -for the marine insurance companies when the fate of -the river commerce was settled by the railroads. Accidents -occurred with astonishing certainty whenever -it was found that boats were no longer needed; and it -was left to the underwriters to close up the final -account of this record of disaster.</p> - -<div id="ip_421" class="figcenter"> - <img src="images/i188.jpg" width="2128" height="1674" alt="" /> - <div class="caption">REMOVING SNAGS FROM THE MISSOURI</div></div> - -<p>The last commercial boat that ever arrived at Fort -Benton left that port in 1890. The victory of the -railroads was complete, and every year since they -have extended their lines still further into the valley -and along the shores of the river, gradually cutting -off the small local trade to points not yet reached by -rail. The boat was never able to compete with the -locomotive. The river did not run in the right direction. -Mile for mile the transportation of freight upon -it cost more than by rail. As to passenger traffic—what -could forty miles a day do against four hundred!<span class="pagenum" id="Page_421">421</span> -Nothing but the absolute exclusion of railroads -could save the steamboat, and the development -of the country made this as undesirable as it was impossible.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">IMPROVEMENT OF THE MISSOURI RIVER.</div> - -<p>In this long and hopeless struggle the steamboats -found a strenuous ally in the government of the -United States, which cheerfully undertook to alter -the course of events and maintain a freight traffic -along the river. The history of government improvement -work upon the Missouri River is an instructive -one. For many years it consisted solely -in the removal of snags and obstructions, and to this -extent was a great and unquestionable benefit. Of -the hundreds of steamboats lost on the river -about seventy per cent. were lost from striking -snags, and the removal of these obstructions was -therefore an obvious step of good policy. Appropriations -began to be made for the Missouri River -jointly with the Mississippi and the Ohio as early as -1832, but the first actual work seems to have been -done in 1838. In that year two snagboats, the -<i>Heliopolis</i> and the <i>Archimedes</i>, ran up the river 325 -miles and 385 miles respectively, removing altogether -2245 snags and cutting 1710 overhanging -trees from the banks, at a total cost of twenty thousand -dollars. In this same year the river was examined -as far up as Westport (Kansas City), with a<span class="pagenum" id="Page_422">422</span> -view of taking up the question of its general improvement. -The officer of Engineers who made this examination -was Captain Robert E. Lee.</p> - -<p>From this time on to 1879 appropriations continued -to be made jointly for the Mississippi, Missouri, -Ohio, and Arkansas rivers, with occasional -lapses of one or more years. The work done under -these appropriations was exclusively the removal of -snags, and was undoubtedly of great value. It was -done when the traffic on the river was at its height, -and it was therefore applied when and where needed. -There can be little doubt that the property saved by -this work many times repaid its cost.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">A DOUBTFUL POLICY.</div> - -<div class="sidenote">DEAD BEYOND HOPE.</div> - -<p>In 1879 the government began a general improvement -of the river by contracting its channel, so as to -produce a greater depth at low water and make -navigation possible at all stages. It was a doubtful -policy at best, in view of the rapid and inevitable -decline of traffic, but this consideration seems only -to have increased the determination to keep boats -on the river whether the interests of the public -required them there or not. The policy was kept up -in ever-increasing measure, and in 1884 Congress -created a Commission of five members to take the -matter in charge and conduct the work in a -systematic way. A more fatuitous course has rarely -been adopted by any government than this attempt to<span class="pagenum" id="Page_423">423</span> -reverse the decrees of destiny and accomplish the impossible. -Even at that time the fate of Missouri River -navigation was to most men as clear as the flash of -light in the night. It was dead beyond the hope of -resurrection, at least within another century. The -desultory traffic which existed here and there would -not amount, in the total value of the freight carried, -to the appropriations made for facilitating its transportation.</p> - -<p>Nevertheless, in face of this inevitable march of -events, the problem was taken up in earnest. Millions -of dollars were appropriated, a vast accumulation -of plant was made, and an astonishing amount -of actual work accomplished. The result? So far -as its influence upon the commerce of the valley is concerned -the same as if this money had been used to build -a railroad in Greenland. Not a boat more has followed -the river than if the work had not been done. From -that point of view it has all been wasted effort. From -another viewpoint, however, it has been of great benefit. -It has protected many miles of river front, saved -from destruction thousands of acres of valuable -bottom lands, and millions of property on city fronts -and along the lines of railroads. It has developed -some of the most effective methods known to engineering -for the control of alluvial rivers, and has -made a solid contribution to the advancement of<span class="pagenum" id="Page_424">424</span> -science. From a purely engineering point of view -and its great value in the protection of property, the -work may be considered a success; from its influence -upon the commerce of the country, something very -different.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">MISSOURI RIVER COMMISSION.</div> - -<p>For seventeen years the Missouri River Commission -dragged out an unnecessary existence, and was -finally abolished by Act of Congress, June 13, 1902. -But the lesson, if a costly one, has been well learned. -So far as government work on the Missouri River is -concerned, it will, in the near future at least, be confined -to two purposes. On the lower stretches of the -river it will be devoted to the protection of property -along the banks; in the upper course to the building -of reservoirs and canals, for the utilization of its -waters in irrigation.<a id="FNanchor_73" href="#Footnote_73" class="fnanchor">73</a></p> - -<p>Thus the battle between the railroads on the one -hand and the steamboats, with their government ally, -on the other, has resulted in overwhelming victory -for the former. It is a victory not to be regretted. -It is in line with progress. The country has passed -beyond any use that can come from transportation -methods like those of the Missouri River steamboat. -It served its purpose and served it well. It filled a -great place in the early development of the Western -country. But its day has passed, and henceforth it -will be of interest only to lovers of history.</p> - -<div id="ip_424" class="figcenter"> - <img src="images/i193.jpg" width="2306" height="1544" alt="" /> - <div class="caption">“IMPROVING” THE MISSOURI RIVER</div></div> - -<hr /> - -<div id="chap_425" class="chapter"> -<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_425">425</span></p> - -<h2 class="nobreak" id="CHAPTER_XXXVI">CHAPTER XXXVI.<br /> - -<span class="subhead">LAST VOYAGES TO BENTON.</span></h2> -</div> - -<p><span class="firstword">As</span> soon as the ice broke up in the spring of 1868 -Captain La Barge commenced work on the river, -and after two trips to St. Joseph advertised for a trip -to Benton. He received a good cargo and had a -fairly profitable voyage, but in no sense so satisfactory -as the year before. After his return in the -fall to St. Louis he received a proposition for the -charter of the boat in the government river work. -Terms were arranged with General McComb of -Cincinnati, through Captain Charles R. Suter, who -was later for many years in charge of the government -work on the Missouri River. Captain La Barge remained -on the boat, working for the government, -during the rest of the season, when he sold the boat -to the Engineer Department for $40,000.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">THE MISSOURI HIS HOME.</div> - -<p>“And here,” said the Captain, “I have to record -another of the great mistakes of my life. I was now -well ‘fixed,’ as the world goes. I had the $40,000 -which I had received for my boat. I had about -$50,000 in the bank. My home, forty acres in -Cabanné place, was easily worth $40,000 even at that<span class="pagenum" id="Page_426">426</span> -time; and I was entirely out of debt. I had thought -much of retiring from the river and ought to have -done so. It was only too evident that the steamboat -business on the Missouri had seen its day. It had -passed its meridian in the middle of the sixties, and -henceforth it was sure to decline. The reluctance of -an active man, still in the prime of life (I was fifty-three), -to lay aside the pursuits of a thrifty career, -may have blinded my eyes to the certain and early -fate of the business I had been engaged in, and have -led me to hope that it would continue to be what it -had been in the past. I had no desire to go on any -other river. The Missouri was my home. I had -grown up on it from childhood. I liked it, and knew -I could not feel at home on any other.</p> - -<p>“And so I unwisely concluded to continue at my -old business, and went into it on a larger scale than -ever before. I built the <i>Emilie La Barge</i>, a larger -and finer boat even than the <i>Octavia</i>, costing me -$60,000. The hull was built on the Ohio and -brought to St. Louis for completion. This was in -the winter of 1868–69.”</p> - -<p>Government business up the river was still very -good, but competition for it was getting closer, as -other lines of steamboat trade declined, and Captain -La Barge failed to secure a contract. He went to -work, however, for the successful bidder and did a<span class="pagenum" id="Page_427">427</span> -paying business during the summer. He returned to -St. Louis in September and made two trips to New -Orleans, when the boat was laid up until the spring -of 1870. He then entered into a contract with the -government to transport Colonel Gilbert and 480 -men with over 400 tons of freight to Fort Buford. -It was a low-water season and the trip was slow and -tedious; but the boat got through all right. After -his return Captain La Barge ran in the lower river -the balance of the season. But the profits were -small, for the railroads had thoroughly gotten the -upper hand. There was no longer any money in -the lower river trade.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">AN OPEN BAR.</div> - -<p>“I recall a little incident that amused me somewhat -while on this summer’s trip,” said the Captain. -“Colonel Gilbert was a strict disciplinarian, yet withal -much liked by his men. When he came on board he -told me that I need not close the bar on the boat unless -I chose to do so. If any of his men wanted a -drink and had money to pay for it, let them have it. -‘That’s something very unusual,’ said I, for generally -when troops were in transport I had to close the bar. -‘All right, I’ll take my chances,’ he replied. ‘If any -of them get drunk, they will not get drunk again.’ -I noted throughout the trip that there was not a -single drunken soldier, although the bar was open all -the time.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_428">428</span></p> - -<div class="sidenote">COLONEL AND LIEUTENANT.</div> - -<p>“It was customary whenever we stopped to have -a guard posted near the gangway, and this was done -on our arrival at Fort Randall. A guard from the -post was also ordered down, presumably to prevent -the post soldiers from getting on the boat. The -young lieutenant in charge made his way on board -past Colonel Gilbert’s guard, on telling who he was. -He inquired of me for Colonel Gilbert, and I took -him up and introduced him. After a few minutes’ -conversation he noticed the open bar on the boat and -some soldiers there, drinking. He said to Colonel -Gilbert that he would like to have the bar closed, as -such were his orders. ‘Why don’t you have it -closed, then?’ said Colonel Gilbert bluntly. ‘Well, -I don’t like to order it when you are aboard with -troops.’ ‘It suits me to have it open,’ returned the -Colonel. The lieutenant explained that they were -afraid that some of the post soldiers would get aboard -and get drunk. ‘You have a guard out there, -haven’t you?’ asked the Colonel. ‘Yes, sir.’ -‘Well, if they get past your guard they won’t -mine,’ and he turned and walked off, leaving the lieutenant -quite crestfallen at the encounter.</p> - -<p>“It was while we were here at Randall that I was -subpœnaed by a United States marshal to appear at -the trial of the murderer of Captain Spear. I had -the greatest difficulty in getting permission to continue<span class="pagenum" id="Page_429">429</span> -my trip, although the trial was not to come off -for several months. I had to give $20,000 bonds for -my appearance.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">DISASTROUS CONTRACT.</div> - -<p>“After my return to St. Louis that fall I made -several Mississippi River trips and laid the boat up -late in the season. In the summer of 1871 I ran in -what is called the Omaha line all the season. In the -fall I sold the boat for $30,000. She had paid me -just about what she cost. I remained at home all -the winter of 1871–72, when I again got tired of doing -nothing; and being bred to the steamboat business, -and not daring to turn my hand to anything else, -commenced building another boat. She was completed -by the middle of the summer, and named -<i>De Smet</i>, in honor of the distinguished Jesuit missionary. -I at once took a contract to transport -freight from St. Louis to Shreveport, La., for the -construction of the Southern Pacific railroad. This -enterprise was disastrous in the extreme. I found -the Red River without water enough at the mouth -for me to enter, all of it going down the Bayou -Atchafalaya. I did not get away from there until -January, having had to import one hundred mules at -my own expense to get the freight through. The -enterprise was so disastrous that I was released from -the contract. I secured fifteen hundred bales of cotton -for my return trip to St. Louis, but the winter<span class="pagenum" id="Page_430">430</span> -was severe and I was stopped by ice at Helena, Ark., -and had to send the freight on by rail. Take it all -in all, the season’s venture was a most ruinous one.”</p> - -<div class="sidenote">AN OLD ACQUAINTANCE.</div> - -<p>While engaged in this work Captain La Barge -found it necessary to run down to New Orleans with -his boat. He went to transact some business with -Jesse K. Bell, a man closely connected with Mississippi -River business and a capitalist well known -throughout the valley. While in his office someone -came in and asked to see Dave McCann. “What -McCann is that?” asked La Barge. “Dave McCann.” -“Dave McCann?” “Yes. Do you know him?” -“I used to know a Dave McCann over forty years -ago.” “Well, I guess it’s the same man. Let’s see -if he knows you,” and Bell sent his servant to call -McCann in. When La Barge was on the <i>Warrior</i> -during the Blackhawk war in 1832 McCann was -second engineer on the boat. The two young men -became intimately acquainted and very fond of each -other. They were together for a time during the -cholera scourge and promised to take care of each -other if either were taken sick. Finally their ways -parted and neither had seen or heard of the other -since. McCann quickly appeared in Mr. Bell’s office -and glanced at where La Barge was sitting. “Well, -if here isn’t Joe La Barge!” he exclaimed, grasping -his old associate by the hand. “And if this isn’t<span class="pagenum" id="Page_431">431</span> -Dave McCann!” was the Captain’s warm rejoinder. -McCann was at the time president of the Cotton -Compress Company and of the New Orleans -Foundry Company.</p> - -<p>Captain La Barge did not reach St. Louis until -February, 1873. He remained there for a while and -made a second, and this time profitable, trip to -Shreveport. He then advertised for Benton, secured -a good cargo, and made a successful trip.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">INCIDENT AT FORT RICE.</div> - -<div class="sidenote">CUSTER AND STANLEY.</div> - -<p>“An incident occurred on this voyage at Fort -Rice,” said the Captain, “which illustrates some -traits of General Custer’s military character. Custer -was daily expected to arrive opposite Fort Rice, -and General Stanley, who was commanding there, -wanted me to delay a day or two and ferry him -over. I made an arrangement with him to do this, -and when Custer arrived I crossed the river with -an order from Stanley to bring him over. I cleared -the deck of the <i>De Smet</i> entirely, and rigged stages -so that the horses and wagons could be driven -directly on board. As the command approached, I -saw an officer come riding down, clad in buckskin -trousers from the seams of which a large fringe was -fluttering, red-topped boots, broad sombrero, large -gauntlets, flowing hair, and mounted on a spirited -animal. I had never seen Custer, but of course had -heard a great deal of him, and there was no mistaking<span class="pagenum" id="Page_432">432</span> -this picture. I went out on the bank to meet -him. He stopped his horse, but did not get off. I -said, ‘General Custer, I suppose?’ He nodded assent. -I showed him my order for the transportation -of the command and told him that if he would have -the wagons brought down I would see to their proper -disposition on the boat. ‘Stand aside, sir,’ he replied; -‘my wagon-master will take charge of the boat -and see to ferrying the command over.’ ‘Not if I -know myself,’ I replied, and started for the boat. -Custer sent for a guard to arrest me, but I took time -by the forelock, drew in the stage, and steamed across -the river and reported to General Stanley. Stanley -immediately sent me back with an officer and guard, -who arrested Custer and brought him to his headquarters.</p> - -<p>“Custer seemed to me to be generally unpopular, -that is, I rarely heard him well spoken of. Stanley, -on the other hand, always appeared to be a gentleman -of rare qualities, one who never forgot to treat a -civilian as a man—something that many officers were -little disposed to do.”</p> - -<div class="sidenote">LA BARGE IN ARREST.</div> - -<p>While at Benton awaiting passengers for a return -trip Captain La Barge had some new experiences of -the character of men who were delegated by the -government to do its business with the Indians. He -was one day arrested by Mr. C. D. Hard, deputy U.<span class="pagenum" id="Page_433">433</span> -S. marshal, sub-Indian agent, and special Indian detective -at this point, on charge of selling and trading -whisky on Indian reservations. The second day -afterward Captain La Barge was brought up for examination, -but not being allowed to introduce any -evidence in his own behalf, made no effort to clear -himself. The agent then seized his boat in the following -words: “I seize the boat as sub-Indian agent, -and turn her over to myself as deputy marshal for -safe keeping.” Being requested to produce papers -for such a proceeding, he replied that verbal seizure -was sufficient for him, and others would have to -accommodate themselves accordingly. He immediately -placed a fellow criminal over the boat and -applied to Captain Kirtland, the military officer in -charge, for a squad of soldiers to aid him in his -rascality. This request was peremptorily refused. -Hard became very insolent and abusive after the -seizure, and it was soon evident that the object of -himself and his confederates was to levy blackmail -upon the Captain. Being determined to defeat this -outrageous scheme, he left for Helena to consult legal -authorities.</p> - -<p>When Captain La Barge reached Helena he had -no difficulty in securing a telegraphic order from -Chief Justice Wade, of the Territory, directing the -release of the boat, and he returned to Benton and<span class="pagenum" id="Page_434">434</span> -resumed possession of her, much to the chagrin of -the authors of this high-handed proceeding. This -virtuous public officer had endeavored to work a -similar game on another boat the same season, but -was defeated by some of the passengers.</p> - -<p>The boat had been detained by this incident upward -of two weeks, and it was not until the middle of -July that she set out on her return trip. Among the -passengers was the family of Colonel Wilbur F. -Sanders, already known in these pages as counsel for -the plaintiffs in the case against La Barge, Harkness -& Co. The Captain and he were always on -good terms, however, and their former relations had -nothing to do with their subsequent friendship.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">A SERVICE REWARDED.</div> - -<p>On the way up the river this season two Catholic -Sisters came on board on a begging visit in the interest -of the Chicopee Mission in Minnesota. The Captain -gave them passage to Benton and back. They -visited Helena and Virginia City, and were very successful. -They came back from Helena with the -Sanders family and returned to Sioux City. About -a month later Captain La Barge received by express -a beautiful specimen of needlework handsomely -framed, representing St. Joseph. It is still in the -possession of the La Barge family.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">LA BARGE SELLS HIS BOAT.</div> - -<p>After Captain La Barge’s return to St. Louis he -entered the Alton trade, and made daily trips in opposition<span class="pagenum" id="Page_435">435</span> -to the Eagle Packet Company. He entered -the same trade again in 1874 under an arrangement -with John S. McCune, who had long controlled the -trade on this part of the river. But in March of -this year, while Mr. McCune was in Jefferson City -to settle some details in regard to the sale of lands -constituting the present Forest Park of the City of -St. Louis, he was taken sick with pneumonia and -died one day after his return to St. Louis. This -broke up all the Captain’s plans, and as he was not -able, unaided, to compete with the Eagle Packet -Company, he sold his boat to them.</p> - -<p>Captain La Barge spent the remainder of the season -in St. Louis, and in the fall commenced building -a new boat, which he christened the <i>John M. Chambers</i>, -in honor of the infant son of B. M. Chambers, -President of the Butchers’ and Drovers’ Bank. The -boat was ready for use in the spring of 1877. -Captain La Barge made a trip as far as to Fort Rice, -loaded mainly with quartermaster stores. He then -entered the Yankton trade, that being at the time an -important terminus for the declining river business. -Certain defects in the boat’s machinery, which could -not be remedied at Yankton, compelled an early return -to St. Louis and the loss of some important work. -Captain La Barge remained in St. Louis until the -following spring. He then returned to Yankton<span class="pagenum" id="Page_436">436</span> -under a government contract to transport goods -from that point. He finished this work early, but -had scarcely returned to St. Louis when he was called -upon to go up the river again, as we have elsewhere -related, for service in the Custer campaign.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">LAST COMMERCIAL VOYAGE.</div> - -<p>In 1877 La Barge took the <i>Chambers</i> as far up the -Missouri as to the mouth of the Yellowstone, and up -the latter stream to the mouth of Tongue River. In -the following year he made a trip to Benton, arriving -there on the 4th day of June. This is believed to -have been the last commercial trip from St. Louis to -Fort Benton. Upon his return to St. Louis he sold -his boat and retired permanently from the business -of boat owner and builder. He served as pilot on the -lower river during the summer of 1879, and then -finally withdrew from connection with commercial -boating on the Missouri.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">LA BARGE RETIRES FROM THE RIVER.</div> - -<p>From 1880 to 1885 Captain La Barge was in the -service of the government as pilot of the steamer -<i>Missouri</i>, which was then engaged in making a survey -of the river valley. This duty was little enough like -the active business of his better days. It was filled -with reminiscences of his past career which could not -but bring regretful reflections. His intimate knowledge -of the river was of great help in recovering the -proper geographical nomenclature of the valley, and -might have been of far greater value had the surveyor<span class="pagenum" id="Page_437">437</span> -under whose charge he worked possessed an -ordinary appreciation of the mine of knowledge which -lay at his disposal. In 1885 the boat was taken from -St. Louis to Fort Benton, this being the very last -through trip ever made. The year 1885 closed -Captain La Barge’s career on the Missouri River, and -he took his hand from the wheel after a record of -service unequaled by any other pilot in its history. -Three years more than half a century had elapsed -since he made his first voyage up the river.</p> - -<hr /> - -<div id="chap_438" class="chapter"> -<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_438">438</span></p> - -<h2 class="nobreak" id="CHAPTER_XXXVII">CHAPTER XXXVII.<br /> - -<span class="subhead">DECLINING YEARS.</span></h2> -</div> - -<p><span class="firstword">It</span> is a sad reflection that, after a life of hard and -useful work and the prominent part he took in up-building -the great West, Captain La Barge should have -closed his career in comparative want. But such were -the vicissitudes of the business to which his life had -been devoted. That business had passed away, and -like a sinking ship it dragged down all who clung to -it. Captain La Barge struggled bravely against these -adverse conditions, but it was impossible to withstand -the downward tendency.</p> - -<div id="ip_439" class="figcenter"> - <img src="images/i210.jpg" width="2288" height="1531" alt="" /> - <div class="caption">STEAMBOAT WRECK ON THE MISSOURI RIVER</div></div> - -<p>From 1890 to 1894 Captain La Barge held a position -under the city government of St. Louis. His -very last remunerative work of any kind was for the -United States Government, under the direction of the -author of this work, whom he helped compile a list of -the steamboat wrecks which have occurred on the Missouri -River. This work was done in the year 1897, -and was published as a part of the report of the Missouri -River Commission for that year. Although the -number of these wrecks lacks but five of three hundred,<span class="pagenum" id="Page_439">439</span> -the Captain’s memory embraced them nearly all, -and most of them with great accuracy of detail.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">GREATEST WRECK OF ALL.</div> - -<p>Truly a mournful task was this to the veteran pilot. -What reminiscences of a strange and wonderful past -did it bring to mind! He lived over again his river -life of fifty years, saw the old keelboat, the mackinaw, -and the canoe, dodged again the bullets of the treacherous -savages, killed the wild buffalo, sparred his boat -over sandbars or warped it up the rapids, beheld -again the wild rush to the gold fields, heard the tramp -of the army going to battle on the plains, and mused -upon a thousand other features of a life that existed -no more. And as he recalled one by one these wrecks -of a once flourishing business, he could not but reflect -that the greatest wreck of all was the business itself. -It was gone—buried so deep in the sands of commercial -competition that not even the pennant staff or -smokestack caused a ripple on the surface—passengers, -cargo, and all that clung to her a total loss.</p> - -<p>Captain La Barge survived most of his associates in -the river business, and in his later years was frequently -consulted by those who had occasion to recover -facts concerning the early history of the river. -He lived only about two years after the completion of -his work for the government. He had grown visibly -feebler during this time, and it was apparent to those -who knew him that the end of his life was near. It<span class="pagenum" id="Page_440">440</span> -came at last, however, quite unexpectedly. He was -taken suddenly ill on the 2d of April, 1899, and at 3 -P. M. of the following day breathed his last.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">JESUITS HONOR LA BARGE.</div> - -<p>The funeral of Captain La Barge was from the St. -Xavier Cathedral in St. Louis, and was largely attended. -The Jesuits were under a deep debt of gratitude -to the Captain, who, throughout his career, had -extended to their missionaries the freedom of his boats. -Through mistaken information they had often credited -this generosity to the American Fur Company, for -which Captain La Barge worked so much. Upon discovering -their error they made due acknowledgment of -it, and upon this occasion made a particular point to -correct it and to acknowledge their lasting debt to the -great pilot. It was probably in line with this purpose -that the Church paid to the deceased its very highest -honors. On Thursday morning, April 6, solemn high -mass was celebrated at the Cathedral for the repose -of the soul. Archbishop Kain, assisted by eight -priests, officiated at the mass. Six grandsons of the -deceased acted as pall bearers. Father Walter H. Hill, -a lifelong friend of Captain La Barge, preached the -funeral sermon. In the course of his remarks he said: -“Captain La Barge led an honorable life. In the -eyes of the Church to which he belonged he led a -good life. There was no stigma upon his name. No -vice marred his character to bring the blush of shame<span class="pagenum" id="Page_441">441</span> -to his children. His life was an example of which -they might well be proud.”</p> - -<div class="sidenote">A WONDERFUL METAMORPHOSIS.</div> - -<p>The speaker drew an interesting picture of the -changes that had taken place in the city of St. Louis -and in the great West within the span of this man’s -life. In his infancy he had actually been in peril from -the Indians in what are now the outskirts of the city. -Then luxury and plenty, as we now know them, had -no existence. The mother cared for her children and -did the work of the house. The candle and not the -incandescent furnished light at night. Water was -pumped from the well and people did not ride to and -from their business in swift electric cars. In the words -of a local paper, commenting upon the Captain’s -career, “He passed through all the gradations and -progressive steps of the century until in its very last -year the sun of his life set forever, and his expiring -gaze beheld a little village grown to a great metropolis, -enmeshed in a perfect tangle of railways, factories, -and furnaces, teeming with busy activity, converting -the crude material into every possible contrivance -imaginable for the use of man; palatial mansions -where, in his youth, was a wilderness; in short, every -improvement that the brain of man had wrought.”</p> - -<p>Father Hill illustrated this marvelous growth by a -reference to the growth of his own Church in St. -Louis: “As I stand here to-day,” he said, “to pay the<span class="pagenum" id="Page_442">442</span> -last sad tribute of respect to the memory of the friend -of my early youth, I cannot help thinking of the marvelous -changes that have been wrought in the last -eighty-four years. On the evening of October 22, -1815, a mother entered a little frame church on the -banks of the Mississippi, bearing an infant in her -arms. The parent had come to have the child baptized. -Tallow candles lighted her way through the -aisle to the rude altar where the ceremony was to be -performed. To-day the remains of that babe, grown -to manhood’s estate and full of years, lie before me. -The spirit now dwells in his Father’s house. At the -christening were only the most primitive conveniences; -at the burial services his remains rest in a magnificent -granite structure; hundreds of electric lights glare -upon the dead; hundreds of heads are bowed in silent -prayer. Which of us can ponder for an instant upon -the span of this life and not be bewildered at the contemplation?”</p> - -<div class="sidenote">A FIT RESTING PLACE.</div> - -<p>Captain La Barge was buried in the beautiful Calvary -Cemetery, which lies adjacent to the even more -beautiful Bellefontaine Cemetery in the northern part -of the City of St. Louis. His grave is within a short -distance of where he spent his earliest infancy, and is -in all respects a peculiarly appropriate resting place -after a life like his. To the eastward, in full view -where not cut off by the foliage, flows the mighty Mississippi.<span class="pagenum" id="Page_443">443</span> -To the northward the impetuous Missouri -brings down its flood from the dim and shadowy distance. -How often had this individual guided his -intrepid bark up the channels of these two streams, -headed for remote and almost unknown ports, and -anon, gliding swiftly on his homeward journey, sped -eastward into the Mississippi and south to the port -to which he always returned. Standing by his grave -and overlooking the valleys of these streams, their -history through the past two centuries thrills the mind -like a romance of the past.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">PERSONAL APPEARANCE.</div> - -<p>In personal appearance Captain La Barge was one -of the most distinguished-looking men of the West in -his time. He stood five feet ten, was well proportioned, -weighed about 180 pounds, was erect, muscular, -and alert, with a sharp, quick eye and a quiet -energy in all his movements. He always wore a beard -after reaching manhood’s estate, and in later years -bore a striking resemblance to General Grant. Colonel -Thomas of the army, long stationed in St. Louis, always -addressed him by the name, Grant; and only a -few years before his death a gentleman met him on -the street and said, “Well, if I did not know Grant is -dead, I should say there he comes.”</p> - -<div class="sidenote">SUNSHINE AND TEMPEST.</div> - -<p>Captain La Barge’s manner in social intercourse -was mild and agreeable, and his accent pleasant to a -degree. It was a satisfaction to hear him talk. Although<span class="pagenum" id="Page_444">444</span> -almost invariably soft and unobtrusive, his -voice would occasionally swell, under the influence of -emotion, until it possessed all the power of command. -It is said that this characteristic marked his entire -career. His men were not deceived by it. They never -dared to take undue advantage of the sunshine of his -manner, lest they call down upon them the thunder -of the tempest.</p> - -<p>Captain La Barge was a lifelong, consistent Catholic -in religion, and in politics a lifelong, consistent -Democrat.</p> - -<hr /> - -<div id="chap_445" class="chapter"> -<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_445">445</span></p> - -<h2 class="nobreak" id="CHAPTER_XXXVIII">CHAPTER XXXVIII.<br /> - -<span class="subhead">DESTINY OF THE MISSOURI RIVER.</span></h2> -</div> - -<p><span class="firstword">What</span> of the future? Is the useful purpose of the -Missouri River in the up-building of the West already -fulfilled? Is its great history a closed book? Such, -it must be admitted, is the general view. In popular -estimation that river to-day is little more than a vast -sewer, whose seething, eddying waters bear down the -sands and clay and débris from the far upper country, -scattering them along its course, swelling the floods -of the Mississippi, and pushing ever seaward the delta -of that mighty stream. To the railroads it is a million-dollar -obstacle wherever they want to cross it. As -a competitive route of commerce it has sunk beneath -their notice. To the husbandman along its borders -it is a perpetual nightmare, for he knows not what -morning he may awake to find his worldly possessions -ruthlessly swept away. From all points of view it now -seems like one of those things in the economy of nature -which could be dispensed with and the world be none -the worse for its absence.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">PAST AND PRESENT.</div> - -<p>Nevertheless the river is still there—a fact, a thing -to be reckoned with in some way or other. It will not<span class="pagenum" id="Page_446">446</span> -let its presence be forgotten. In its old-time fashion -it carves up the lands, but with vastly greater destructiveness -now that they have become so valuable. -Its terrible ice gorges pile up as of yore, but are now -more dreaded than they used to be on account of the -property along the banks. In other respects as well -it is the same peculiar stream that it has ever been. -The weird sandstorms drive over its illimitable bars, -the willows bend to the blast, and the swift-rolling -waters are lashed into foam by the prairie gale. In -periods of calm its silvery sheen stretches away under -the morning and evening sun as when the pilot followed -its interminable windings through the prairies; -and its resistless tide rushes on, as in the blithe steamboat -days, when it carried upon its bosom the commerce -of the valley.</p> - -<p>But here the likeness between the past and present -ends. No aboriginal savage now roams upon its borders. -The buffalo does not come to its shore to quench -his thirst, or to swim its current, or to cross upon its -ice. The lonely dwellers of the valley have long since -ceased to watch the eastern horizon where the river -runs into the sky, for the curling smoke no longer tells -them of the approach of those white-winged messengers -of civilization, the Missouri River steamboats. -They are gone, its greatness and glory, never, in their -ancient form, to return.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_447">447</span></p> - -<div class="sidenote">THE GERM OF EMPIRE.</div> - -<p>But the river itself is still there, and those who dwell -on its shores refuse to believe that its power for good -has passed away. For years they have wistfully -looked upon its waters, flowing by in absolute waste, -and then upon the rich lands on either side, parching -in a rainless climate. A vague hope of what the river -<em>may</em> be already possesses their minds. Does it not -hold the secret germ of a mighty future empire? -Twenty-five millions of people these wasted waters -could sustain, if only they could be scattered upon the -neighboring lands. With great canals to divert them -from the river, with great reservoirs to keep them -from going to waste, there would follow the necessary -millions of money and men to turn them to proper -account.</p> - -<p>This is the dream. Can it be realized, or must it -always remain nothing more than a dream? It is an -engineering problem purely. The grand desideratum -would be that everywhere, whether upon the main -stream or its tributaries, the water could be saved and -used in irrigation. But the obstacles in the way of so -complete a result seem at present almost insurmountable. -The higher tributaries can doubtless all be -utilized, but the main streams, in their lower courses, -have so little fall that it will be very difficult to build -canals of sufficient length to get the water upon the -higher ground. Whether the water will ever have a<span class="pagenum" id="Page_448">448</span> -value that will justify pumping it to the necessary -elevation it would be unwise at present to hazard a -conjecture. But even if not more than half can be -utilized, it will still be enough to maintain a population -equal to that at present existing in the entire arid -region of the West.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">A MIGHTY FUTURE.</div> - -<p>Here, then, is the answer to our question—What of -the future? Turn this river out upon the lands. Unlock -its imprisoned power. Where the rains do not -fall let it supply the need. Then the new and greater -history of the Missouri River will begin. Utility will -take the place of romance. The buffalo, the Indian, the -steamboat, the gold-seeker, the soldier, will be seen in -its valley no more, but in their stead the culture and -comfort, and the thousand blessings that come with -civilization. Such, let us hope, in drawing the curtain -over a mighty past, will be the consummation of -a still more mighty future.<span class="pagenum" id="Page_449">449</span><a id="FNanchor_74" href="#Footnote_74" class="fnanchor">74</a></p> - -<div class="chapter"><div class="footnotes"> -<h2 class="nobreak" id="FOOTNOTES">FOOTNOTES</h2> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p class="fn2"><a id="Footnote_44" href="#FNanchor_44" class="fnanchor">44</a> The fact of this attack on the <i>Sam Gaty</i> has been questioned -by some; but there would seem to be no doubt of its truth in all -essential details.</p> - -</div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p class="fn2"><a id="Footnote_45" href="#FNanchor_45" class="fnanchor">45</a> Brother of Susan B. Anthony, and at the present date editor -of the Leavenworth <i>Times</i>.</p> - -</div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p class="fn2"><a id="Footnote_46" href="#FNanchor_46" class="fnanchor">46</a> This was the opinion naturally held by Southern sympathizers -in Missouri. The unbending will of this stern and ardent -patriot would overbear and crush without compunction anyone -who had even a taint of disloyalty about him. Though La -Barge had taken a stand which was quite as honorable, and -more self-sacrificing than that of Lyon, still the latter could not -forget that the Captain’s environment and training had made -him more sympathetic with the Southern cause than a Northerner -could possibly be. Lyon’s temperament, moreover, aggravated -the severity of his patriotism. He was not popular with -his associates in the old army on account of his overbearing disposition.</p> - -</div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p class="fn2"><a id="Footnote_47" href="#FNanchor_47" class="fnanchor">47</a> Fisk repeated the expedition several times. It virtually -amounted to emigration at government expense. The military -authorities did not think much of either Fisk or his scheme, and -officially denounced both. Thus General Sully, September 9, -1864: “Why will the government continue to act so foolishly, -sending out emigrant trains at great expense? Do they know -that most of the men that go are persons running away from the -draft?”</p> - -</div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p class="fn2"><a id="Footnote_48" href="#FNanchor_48" class="fnanchor">48</a> In 1866 the <i>Deer Lodge</i>, which left Benton about May 20, -met the following boats on her way down: <i>St. John</i> and <i>Cora</i> at -Fort Benton; <i>Waverly</i> at Eagle Creek; <i>Mollie Dozier</i> and <i>W. -J. Lewis</i> at Fort Galpin; <i>Marcella</i> at Fort Charles; <i>Big Horn</i>, -above Big Muddy; <i>Only Chance</i> 30 miles below Union; <i>Favorite</i> -and <i>Ontario</i> 70 miles below; <i>Tacony</i> and <i>Iron City</i> 130 miles below; -<i>Amelia Poe</i> and <i>Walter B. Dance</i> near White Earth River; -<i>Jennie Brown</i>, <i>Peter Balen</i>, and <i>Gold Finch</i> in Big Bend; <i>Miner</i> -below Fort Clark; <i>Luella</i> above Fort Rice; <i>Helena</i> at Fort Rice; -<i>Tom Stevens</i> 40 miles below Fort Rice; <i>Huntsville</i> at Grand -River; <i>Lillie Martin</i> at Island below Grand River; <i>Sunset</i> 20 -miles below Swan Lake Bend; <i>Agnes</i> at Devil’s Island; <i>Ned -Tracy</i> and <i>Mary McDonald</i> above Big Cheyenne; <i>Marion</i> 30 -miles above Fort Sully; <i>Jennie Lewis</i> above Pierre; <i>Gallatin</i> -below Fort Sully; <i>Rubicon</i> at Cadet Island; <i>Lexington</i> above -Great Bend; <i>Montana</i> below Crow Creek; and <i>Ben Johnson</i> at -Bon Homme Island.</p> - -</div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p class="fn2"><a id="Footnote_49" href="#FNanchor_49" class="fnanchor">49</a> The names were N. W. Burroughs, George Friend, Franklin -Friend, Abraham Low, James H. Lyons, Harry Martin, Frank -Angevine, George Allen, James Andrews, and James Perie -(colored).</p> - -</div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p class="fn2"><a id="Footnote_50" href="#FNanchor_50" class="fnanchor">50</a> This account is taken from the published narrative of Mr. -Hubbell in the St. Paul <cite>Pioneer Press</cite> of December 11, 1898. -Mr. Hubbell has published several most interesting and valuable -accounts in the St. Paul papers of his early experiences as a -Missouri River trader.</p> - -</div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p class="fn2"><a id="Footnote_51" href="#FNanchor_51" class="fnanchor">51</a> “The <i>Ida Stockdale</i> reached Fort Benton June 29, 1867. -She could not have returned to Trover Point before the 1st or -2d of July. The <i>Sunset</i> picked up the boy July 11. The time -that he was alleged to have been lost could therefore not have -been far wrong, and the distance he traveled is known with -accuracy.”</p> - -</div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p class="fn2"><a id="Footnote_52" href="#FNanchor_52" class="fnanchor">52</a> “The <i>Spread Eagle</i> is just along side of us and we are having -a race, probably the first ever run on the upper Missouri. She -passed us and then we passed her, when she ran into us, breaking -our guard and doing some other damage. There was a -good deal of angry talk.”—<cite>Harkness’ Journal</cite>. (This journal of -the voyage of 1862 and of Harkness’ trip to the mines and his -return to St. Louis is published in the Proceedings of the -Montana Historical Society, vol. ii.)</p> - -</div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p class="fn2"><a id="Footnote_53" href="#FNanchor_53" class="fnanchor">53</a> See page <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_122">122</a>.</p> - -</div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p class="fn2"><a id="Footnote_54" href="#FNanchor_54" class="fnanchor">54</a> What is now the town of Deer Lodge, Mont., was first named -La Barge City, and was so known for about two years. The -name was given by two friends of Captain La Barge, John S. -Pemberton of St. Louis and Leon Quesnelle, a descendant of -the Quesnelle who seems to have been the first permanent settler -at Bellevue, Neb. Quesnelle had been in the Deer Lodge -Valley for some time, and had a ranch near where the town was -afterward built. Two years later the town site was organized -by James Stuart and others, surveyed and laid out by W. W. -De Lacy, and rechristened Deer Lodge. The original town site -plot of La Barge City is in possession of the Montana Historical -Society.</p> - -</div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p class="fn2"><a id="Footnote_55" href="#FNanchor_55" class="fnanchor">55</a> Letter from S. N. Latta, agent, to W. P. Dole, Commissioner -Indian Affairs, dated Yankton, Dak., August 27, 1863. See -report Com. Ind. Affs., 1863, p. 170.</p> - -</div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p class="fn2"><a id="Footnote_56" href="#FNanchor_56" class="fnanchor">56</a> The two Indian agents profess in their reports not to have -anticipated any trouble. Latta would hardly have ordered the -yawl out if he had suspected what actually occurred. Reed, the -Blackfoot agent, says that they “continued to hollow to us for -some time, and showed great signs of friendship, and wanted us -to come ashore.” The sum of it all is that the two men who -were officially in charge of the trip entirely failed to understand -the gravity of the situation, which was thoroughly appreciated -by those, like Culbertson and La Barge, who had had long experience -with the Indians. The sending of the yawl and the -consequences which followed must ever remain charged to the -account of Samuel N. Latta, Indian Agent.</p> - -</div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p class="fn2"><a id="Footnote_57" href="#FNanchor_57" class="fnanchor">57</a> The account of what happened from the time the yawl left -the <i>Robert Campbell</i> until it returned was given to the author -in an interview with Andy Stinger, the steersman and rescuer of -the party.</p> - -</div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p class="fn2"><a id="Footnote_58" href="#FNanchor_58" class="fnanchor">58</a> </p> - -<div class="blockquot"> -<p class="sigright"> -“<span class="smcap">Knob View, Crawford, co., Mo.</span><br /> -<span class="l4">Sept. 2, 1896.</span> -</p> - -<p class="in0"> -“<span class="smcap">My dear old Captain</span><br /> -<span class="in4">“<span class="smcap">Joseph La Barge</span>,</span> -</p> - -<p>“<i>My Dear Friend</i>: I should like to hear from you whether you -are still in the land of the living. Thank God for his mercies. -Dear Captain I should be happy to be with you a few hours and -have a good talk over the hardships of our past life steamboating, -especially on the <i>Robert Campbell</i> in 1863 going to the mountains. -It would give me great pleasure to see you and all your -family once more. It is a great many years since I have heard -anything from you. Please let me hear from you soon. My -love and friendship to you and all your family. I remain your -true friend untill death. From the Hero of the Tobacco Garden -on <i>Bob Campbell</i> in 1863.</p> - -<p class="sigright"> -“<span class="smcap">Wm. Andy Stinger.</span> -</p> - -<p> -“P. S. Address<br /> -<span class="in4">“Wm. A. Stinger,<br /></span> -<span class="in8">“Knob View, Crawford Co. Mo.</span> -</p> - -<p>“Farewell Dear Captain. May God bless you all with health -and strength.”</p> -</div> -</div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p class="fn2"><a id="Footnote_59" href="#FNanchor_59" class="fnanchor">59</a> There are numerous authorities upon the affair of the Tobacco -Garden. The reports of both the agents Latta and Reed -describe it. Henry A. Boller, in his “Among the Indians,” describes -it at length, as does <a id="larpenteur"></a>Larpenteur in his “Forty Years a -Fur Trader.” The testimony of Captain La Barge and Andy -Stinger, who in each other’s presence related the matter to the -author, is here produced for the first time.</p> - -<p>In his edition of “Larpenteur’s Journal,” referred to <a href="#larpenteur">above</a>, p. -352, Dr. Elliott Coues makes the following statement: “I have -offered in writing to Captain Joseph La Barge to print in this -connection any statement concerning the affair that he might -wish to make and would be willing to sign; but up to date of -going to press have not heard from him.”</p> - -<p>The inference from this is that Captain La Barge could not -controvert Larpenteur’s statements, or he would have done so -when the opportunity was given. This offer was sent to Captain -La Barge through the author of the present work. The old -gentleman retained in his old age the same spirit of haughty disdain -for willful attempts to injure the reputation of others that -characterized his whole life, and he indignantly refused to -notice the matter. “Time will set this right,” he said. The truth -is that Charles Larpenteur, although very long in the Indian -country, was never a man of high standing there, and proved a -failure in whatever he undertook. Like all such men, he nursed -the delusion that the world was in league against him, and he took -advantage of the opportunity offered by the preparation of his -memoirs to even matters up. Nearly everyone with whom he -deals comes in for a round measure of abuse, until one is led to -believe that Larpenteur was a saint, solitary and forlorn, wandering -disconsolate among the children of Beelzebub. Larpenteur -was probably an honest man in his business relations, but never -an able man, and his attempts to account for the consequences -of his own deficiencies by attributing them to the rascality of -others, does not add to the value of his memoirs as historical -material. Bad as the early population of that country was, it -was not entirely composed of scoundrels.</p> - -</div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p class="fn2"><a id="Footnote_60" href="#FNanchor_60" class="fnanchor">60</a> This was the same man who served as clerk to Captain Bonneville -in the latter’s celebrated expeditions. He died March 15, -1864.</p> - -</div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p class="fn2"><a id="Footnote_61" href="#FNanchor_61" class="fnanchor">61</a> Following are the official reports of Agents Latta and Reed -upon this event:</p> - -<p>Report of Judge Latta, p. 164, Report Com. Ind. Aff., 1863. -“The Crow goods, as I have informed you [Commissioner Dole], -were stored at Fort Union by the steamer <i>Shreveport</i>. When -the <i>Robert Campbell</i> reached the mouth of the Yellowstone, -she could get no further, there being only two feet of water -in the channel above, it requiring five trips of the steamer -<i>Shreveport</i> to convey the <i>Campbell’s</i> freight to Fort Union -some six miles above. We found it utterly impossible to proceed -any further. The <i>Shreveport</i>, though a light-draught boat, -could not have passed up empty.”</p> - -<p>Report of Dr. Reed, p. 172, Report Com. Ind. Aff., 1863. -“We got to the mouth of the Yellowstone River after the most -untiring efforts, especially on the part of Captain La Barge, -who seemed to know the only channel in the Missouri, about the -7th of July. After passing the mouth of the Yellowstone, it was -found that the Missouri River was extremely low; indeed lower -than ever known at this season of the year. It was found that -even the <i>Shreveport</i>, a light-draught and small boat, could -scarcely get up to Fort Union with any load at all, and as the -river has been constantly falling, it was ascertained that there -was no hope at all of getting to Milk River, the next fort above. -Chouteau, with a light-draught boat and not a large load, had -just left his goods on the bank, not being able to get up to Milk -River fort. Under these circumstances, especially as there were -no teams at Fort Union and the Indians (Sioux) were all through -the country, so that no company could go either with a mackinaw -boat or by land, with any safety, except under escort, it -was thought not only advisable but the only course, to stow -away the goods, and leave them until next spring at Fort Union. -The man in charge of the fort said there was an abundance of -room, and there would be no danger unless the Indians should -attack the fort; then the goods would have to share the lot of -all the other goods and the people of the fort. The goods are -all safely stored and every prospect of everything being right. -Of course Captain La Barge is responsible, as the Blackfeet -goods are not to their destination nor the bills of lading -receipted; though I must say I never saw men more anxious -to get up, nor do more night and day, to get along; and -could the goods have been at St. Louis by the 10th or 12th -of April, they no doubt would have all been distributed by this -time.”</p> - -</div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p class="fn2"><a id="Footnote_62" href="#FNanchor_62" class="fnanchor">62</a> </p> - -<table id="table323" summary="trading loss"> -<tr> - <td class="tdl">Blackfoot annuities, 142,862 lbs., freight St. Louis to Fort Benton, at 11 cents per pound,</td> - <td class="tdr">$15,714.82</td> -</tr> -<tr> - <td class="tdl">Crow annuities, 12,572 lbs., freight St. Louis to the mouth of Milk River, at 8 cents,</td> - <td class="tdr">1,005.76</td> -</tr> -<tr> - <td class="tdl">Demurrage, 33 days at $300 per day,</td> - <td class="tdr">9,900.00</td> -</tr> -<tr> - <td> </td> - <td class="tdr"><span class="bt">$26,620.58</span></td> -</tr> -<tr> - <td class="tdl">Only payment ever received on this claim,</td> - <td class="tdr">7,206.55</td> -</tr> -<tr> - <td class="tdl"><span class="in4">Balance unpaid,</span></td> - <td class="tdr"><span class="bt">$19,414.03</span></td> -</tr> -</table> - -</div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p class="fn2"><a id="Footnote_63" href="#FNanchor_63" class="fnanchor">63</a> Galpin’s mission to Washington was to secure reimbursement -of a ransom which he had paid for the liberation of a white -female prisoner, who had been captured the year before at the -time of the Minnesota massacres. Galpin had been sent by La -Barge from Fort La Framboise to rescue the prisoner, and had -been compelled to pay fifteen hundred dollars. Captain La -Barge took her down in his boat to Sioux City, whence she was -sent home. He had Galpin go with him to Washington to assist -in presenting the matter to the Bureau of Indian Affairs. The -ransom money was reimbursed in full.</p> - -</div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p class="fn2"><a id="Footnote_64" href="#FNanchor_64" class="fnanchor">64</a> “What consideration will induce you to give up war and -remain at peace?” is the hypothetical question of a certain -Indian agent to a tribe of the Sioux in 1867. And the hypothetical -answer, based upon his many talks with them, was this: -“Stop the white man from traveling across our lands; give us -the country which is ours by right of conquest and inheritance, -to live in and enjoy unmolested by his encroachments, and we -will be at peace with all the world.”</p> - -</div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p class="fn2"><a id="Footnote_65" href="#FNanchor_65" class="fnanchor">65</a> Gruff old General Harney had his own views upon this treaty -business. When Commissioner Cummings came down the river -from the council with the Blackfeet, and, having lost his mules -at Fort Pierre, besought the General to give him some others to -complete his journey with, the General replied: “Yes, Colonel, -I have plenty of mules, but you can’t have one; and I only regret -that when the Indians got your mules they didn’t get your scalp -also. Here all summer I and my men have suffered and boiled -to chastise these wretches, while you have been patching up -another of your sham treaties to be broken to-morrow and give -us more work.”</p> - -<p>“It is beyond question that such a system of treaty-making -is, of all others, the most unpolitic, whether negotiated with -savage or civilized peoples, and ... aside from its effect in -encouraging and stimulating breaches of treaties of peace, is -always attended with fraud upon the government and upon the -Indian.”—<cite>General John Pope, Report of August 3, 1864.</cite></p> - -</div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p class="fn2"><a id="Footnote_66" href="#FNanchor_66" class="fnanchor">66</a> “Send me one man who will tell the truth and I will talk -with him,” was the laconic reply of a celebrated chief who had -been asked to meet a government commission in council.</p> - -</div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p class="fn2"><a id="Footnote_67" href="#FNanchor_67" class="fnanchor">67</a> “Traders in former years have run the only boats to that -region, and had connected with their stores the only safe places -for deposit; hence a convenient mixture of government and -traders’ goods has so amalgamated matters as to have converted -government annuities into mercantile supplies.</p> - -<p>“Our further progress up to the more remote tribes has -disclosed to us more mortifying evidence of negligence by -former agents, and most probably stupendous frauds and outrages.... -Immediate arrangements should be made to -place the present agents independent of traders and also to -enable them to build safe storehouses, where the goods can be -properly protected and preserved....</p> - -<p>“Deliveries of goods should be witnessed by some Federal -officer who should certify <em>that he saw the delivery</em>.”—<cite>Report of -the Northwestern Treaty Commission to the Sioux of the Upper -Missouri, 1866.</cite></p> - -<p>“The government appropriations are supposed to be liberal; -but it so happens that by the time they reach their destination, -they have, and not mysteriously either, dwindled down into a -paltry present.”—<cite>Henry A. Boller, in “Among the Indians.”</cite></p> - -<p>“This system of issuing annuity goods is one grand humbug.”—<cite>Report -of Gen. Alfred Sully, August 18, 1864.</cite></p> - -<p>Evidence like the foregoing could be presented by the volume.</p> - -</div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p class="fn2"><a id="Footnote_68" href="#FNanchor_68" class="fnanchor">68</a> “I saw, while at Sioux City, Captain La Barge, who had -just returned with his boat from the upper Missouri. Captain La -Barge has been in the American Fur Company employment for -twenty-five years, and says that never before this trip have the -Indians been unusually hostile. He says that now the whole Sioux -nation is bound for a war of extermination against the frontier, -... and that the British government, through the Hudson -Bay Company, are in his opinion instigating all the Indians to -attack the whites. He says British rum from Red River comes -over to the Missouri, and British traders are among them [the -Indians] continually. I have great confidence in his judgment -and opinion.”—<cite>H. C. Nutt, Lieutenant Colonel Iowa State -Militia, to Hon. S. J. Kirkwood, Iowa City, dated Council -Bluffs, September 15, 1862.</cite></p> - -</div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p class="fn2"><a id="Footnote_69" href="#FNanchor_69" class="fnanchor">69</a> See page <a href="#Page_277">277</a> for an account of the massacre of a party of -miners from Montana by these Indians.</p> - -</div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p class="fn2"><a id="Footnote_70" href="#FNanchor_70" class="fnanchor">70</a> It has been asserted that the <i>Far West</i> bore the first news -of the Custer massacre to the world; but this is not so. General -Terry’s dispatch to General Sheridan, written in camp on the -Little Big Horn June 27, was sent by courier to Fort Ellis, 240 -miles distant, and there put on the wire.</p> - -<p>The following graphic account of the voyage of the <i>Far West</i> -is well worth preserving in spite of its many errors of fact. As -a word picture of what was really a notable performance, it is -a fine example of journalistic writing. It is from the pen of -M. E. Terry, and was published in the <cite>Pioneer Press</cite> of St. Paul -in May, 1878:</p> - -<p>“The steamer <i>Far West</i> was moored at the mouth of the -Little Big Horn. The wounded were carried on board the -steamer and Dr. Porter was detailed to go down with them. -Terry’s adjutant general, Colonel Ed Smith, was sent along -with the official dispatches and a hundred other messages. He -had a traveling-bag full of telegrams for the Bismarck office. -Captain Grant Marsh, of Yankton, was in command of the <i>Far -West</i>. He put everything in the completest order and took on -a large amount of fuel. He received orders to reach Bismarck -as soon as possible. He understood his instructions literally, -and never did a river man obey them more conscientiously. On -the evening of the 3d of July the steamer weighed anchor. In a -few minutes the <i>Far West</i>, so fittingly named, was under full -head of steam. It was a strange land and an unknown river. -What a cargo on that steamer! What a story to carry to the -government, to Fort Lincoln, to the widows!</p> - -<p>“It was running from a field of havoc to a station of mourners. -The steamer <i>Far West</i> never received the credit due her. -Neither has the gallant Marsh; nor the pilots, David Campbell -and John Johnson. Marsh, too, acted as pilot. It required all -their endurance and skill. They proved the men for the emergency. -The engineer, whose name is not known to me, did his -duty. Every one of the crew is entitled to the same acknowledgment. -They felt no sacrifice was too great upon that -journey, and in behalf of the wounded heroes. The Big Horn -is full of islands, and a successful passage, even on the bosom -of a ‘June rise,’ is not an easy feat. The <i>Far West</i> would take -a shoot on this or that side of an island, as the quick judgment -of the pilot would dictate. It is no river, in the Eastern sense -of that word. It is only a creek. A steamboat moving as fast -as a railway train in a narrow, winding stream is not a pleasure. -It was no pleasant sensation to be dashing straight at a headland, -and the pilot the only power to save. Occasionally -the bank would be touched and the men would topple over -like ten-pins. It was a reminder of what the result would -be if a snag was struck. Down the Big Horn the heroine -went, missing islands, snags, and shore. It was a thrilling -voyage. The rate of speed was unrivaled in the annals of -boating. Into the Yellowstone the stanch craft shot, and -down that sealed river to pilots she made over twenty miles -an hour. The bold Captain was taking chances, but he scarcely -thought of them. He was under flying orders. Lives were at -stake. His engineer was instructed to keep up steam at the -highest pitch. Once the gauge marked a pressure that turned -his cool head and made every nerve in his powerful frame -quiver. The crisis passed and the <i>Far West</i> escaped a fate -more terrible than Custer’s. Once a stop was made, and a -shallow grave explained the reason. He still rests in that lone -spot. Down the swift Yellowstone, like shooting the Lachine -Rapids, every mile a repetition of the former. From the Yellowstone -she sped into the broad Missouri, and then there was clear -sailing. There was a deeper channel and more confidence. A few -minutes were lost at Buford. Everybody at the fort was beside -himself. The boat was crowded with inquirers, and their inquiries -were not half answered when the steamer was away. -At Berthold a wounded scout was put off, and at Fort Stevenson -a brief stop to tell in a word what had happened. There was no -difference in the speed from Stevenson to Bismarck. The same -desperate rate was kept up to the end. They were approaching -home with something of that feeling which always moves the -human heart. At eleven o’clock on the night of the 5th of July -they reached Bismarck and Fort A. Lincoln. One thousand -miles in fifty-four hours was the proud record.”</p> - -</div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p class="fn2"><a id="Footnote_71" href="#FNanchor_71" class="fnanchor">71</a> Charles Larpenteur, who was interpreter for the Commission -in their negotiations with the Assiniboines at Fort Union, says -in his journal, “The great Peace Commission was a complete -failure.” Such was the general sentiment along the valley.</p> - -</div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p class="fn2"><a id="Footnote_72" href="#FNanchor_72" class="fnanchor">72</a> The <cite>Montana Post</cite> is authority for the statement that this -voyage of the <i>Octavia</i> was the quickest ever made from St. -Louis to Fort Benton.</p> - -</div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p class="fn2"><a id="Footnote_73" href="#FNanchor_73" class="fnanchor">73</a> See <a href="#Footnote_74">footnote</a> at end of chapter xxxviii.</p> - -</div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p class="fn2"><a id="Footnote_74" href="#FNanchor_74" class="fnanchor">74</a> On the 13th of June, 1902, Congress passed an Act abolishing -the Missouri River Commission, and virtually abandoning -the river as a commercial highway.</p> - -<p>On the 17th of the same month it passed an act inaugurating -a government policy of reclamation of the arid lands. This -policy will eventually result in an extensive use of the waters of -the Missouri in irrigation.</p> -</div> -</div></div> - -<div class="chapter"><div class="index"> -<h2 class="nobreak" id="INDEX">INDEX.</h2> - -<ul class="index"> -<li class="pix">A</li> - -<li class="indx">Abraham Lincoln, Fort, <a href="#Page_386">386</a>, <a href="#Page_387">387</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Arrival of <i>Far West</i> at, <a href="#Page_390">390</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Agency system, <a href="#Page_362">362</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Agents, Indian, situation of, <a href="#Page_360">360</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Alder Gulch, discovery of, <a href="#Page_271">271</a></li> - -<li class="indx"><i>Amanda</i>, the, impressed by Peace Com. of 1866, <a href="#Page_405">405</a></li> - -<li class="indx">American Fur Company, questionable methods of, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_25">25</a>, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_43">43</a>, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_59">59</a>, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_64">64</a>, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_135">135</a>, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_159">159</a>, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_183">183</a>, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_215">215</a>, <a href="#Page_290">290</a>, <a href="#Page_320">320</a>, <a href="#Page_329">329</a>, <a href="#Page_343">343</a>, <a href="#Page_344">344</a>, <a href="#Page_360">360</a></li> -<li class="isub1">sells its business on the river, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_239">239</a>, <a href="#Page_260">260</a></li> -<li class="isub1">sends steamboat to Fort Benton, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_218">218</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Annuities, delivery of, in 1863, <a href="#Page_301">301</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Annuity system, abuses of, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_177">177</a>, <a href="#Page_359">359</a>, <a href="#Page_360">360</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Anthony, Col. R. D., <a href="#Page_254">254</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Appropriations for improving the Mo. r., <a href="#Page_421">421–3</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Aricara Indians, Ashley’s fight with, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_5">5</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Army, the, in Indian affairs, <a href="#Page_365">365</a> et seq.</li> - -<li class="indx">Arrival of steamboat at trading post, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_132">132</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Ash Hollow, battle of, <a href="#Page_367">367</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Ashley, Gen. W. H., <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_5">5</a>, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_8">8</a></li> -<li class="isub1">transports furs by bullboat, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_101">101</a></li> - -<li class="indx"><i>Assiniboine</i>, the, ascends Mo. r. to Poplar r., <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_139">139</a>, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_218">218</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Assiniboine Indians, <a href="#Page_352">352</a></li> -<li class="isub1">break peace with Blackfeet, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_228">228</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Astor, John Jacob, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_134">134</a>, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_138">138</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Astorian expedition, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_107">107</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Atkinson, Gen. Henry, takes expedition to Yellowstone in 1825, <a href="#Page_376">376</a>, <a href="#Page_383">383</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Aubrey, Felix X., ride of, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_114">114</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Audubon the naturalist and the black squirrel, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_150">150</a></li> -<li class="isub1">on board the <i>Omega</i>, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_141">141</a> et seq.</li> -<li class="isub1">unpopularity of, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_150">150</a></li> - -<li class="pix">B</li> - -<li class="indx">Bad Axe, battle of, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_24">24</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Bad lands, first military expedition through, <a href="#Page_375">375</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Bailey, pilot of the <i>Spread Eagle</i>, 1863, <a href="#Page_290">290</a>, <a href="#Page_291">291</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Bannock City, <a href="#Page_269">269</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Barry, William, kills Captain Spear, <a href="#Page_412">412</a></li> -<li class="isub1">released from arrest, <a href="#Page_414">414</a></li> -<li class="isub1">tried and acquitted, <a href="#Page_415">415</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Bell of the <i>Saluda</i>, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_125">125</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Bellefontaine Cemetery, St. Louis, <a href="#Page_442">442</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Beneetse, discoverer of gold in Montana, <a href="#Page_266">266</a></li> - -<li class="indx"><i>Ben Johnson</i>, the, transports Peace Com. of 1863, <a href="#Page_397">397</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Benteen, Captain, in Custer campaign, <a href="#Page_381">381</a><span class="pagenum" id="Page_450">450</span></li> - -<li class="indx">Benton, Fort, christening of, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_235">235</a></li> -<li class="isub1">growth of, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_237">237</a></li> -<li class="isub1">head of navigation, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_220">220</a>, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_222">222</a></li> -<li class="isub1">historical sketch of, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_222">222</a> et seq.</li> -<li class="isub1">ruined by the railroads, <a href="#Page_419">419</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Benton, Thos. H., bequeaths name to Fort Benton, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_235">235</a></li> -<li class="isub1">defends Am. F. Co., <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_27">27</a>, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_159">159</a>, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_235">235</a>, <a href="#Page_348">348</a></li> -<li class="isub1">faith of, in the West, <a href="#Page_348">348</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Benton Transportation Company, <a href="#Page_420">420</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Bercier accompanies La Barge on war party, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_46">46</a></li> -<li class="isub1">death of, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_46">46</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Berger, Jacob, attacks Malcolm Clark, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_232">232</a></li> -<li class="isub1">goes on mission to the Blackfeet, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_223">223</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Bible lost on the <i>Naomi</i>, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_79">79</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Big Mound, battle of, <a href="#Page_372">372</a></li> - -<li class="indx"><i>Bishop</i>, the, lost in whirlpool, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_122">122</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Bismarck, first railroad at, <a href="#Page_419">419</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Black Dave, adventure of, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_149">149</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Blackfeet Indians, annuities for, <a href="#Page_315">315</a> et seq.</li> -<li class="isub1">enemies of Crows, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_223">223</a>, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_228">228</a></li> -<li class="isub1">sketch of, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_226">226</a>, <a href="#Page_352">352</a></li> -<li class="isub1">trade relations with, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_223">223</a></li> -<li class="isub1">treaty with Assiniboines, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_225">225</a></li> -<li class="isub1">treaty with whites, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_237">237</a>, <a href="#Page_359">359</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Black Squirrel, Audubon and the, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_150">150</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Blair, Frank, and La Barge, <a href="#Page_257">257</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Bloody Island, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_185">185</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Boats, kinds of, on the Mo. r., <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_91">91</a> et seq.</li> - -<li class="indx">Boller, Henry A., cited, <a href="#Page_300">300</a>, <a href="#Page_307">307</a>, <a href="#Page_313">313</a>, <a href="#Page_361">361</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Bonneville, Captain, ships furs by bullboat, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_101">101</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Boone, Daniel, burial of, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_57">57</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Boonville, battle of, <a href="#Page_255">255</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Bozeman, J. M., <a href="#Page_268">268</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Bradley, James H., historical researches of, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_238">238</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Brasseaux Houses, <a href="#Page_374">374</a>, <a href="#Page_375">375</a>, <a href="#Page_385">385</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Bridger, Fort, La Barge at, <a href="#Page_335">335</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Brulé, Fort, origin of name, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_232">232</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Bruyère tries to break up La Barge’s expedition, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_61">61</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Buffalo, adventure with, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_163">163</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Bullboat, description of, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_96">96</a></li> -<li class="isub1">Indian type of, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_101">101</a></li> -<li class="isub1">noted voyages of, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_100">100</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Burgwin, Captain, inspects the <i>Omega</i>, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_144">144</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Burials along the Missouri r., <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_36">36</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Burleigh, Dr. W. A., <a href="#Page_341">341</a></li> - -<li class="pix">C</li> - -<li class="indx">Cabanné, John P., affair of, with Leclerc, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_24">24–7</a></li> - -<li class="indx">California, conquest of, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_172">172</a></li> -<li class="isub1">discovery of gold in, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_173">173</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Calvary cemetery, St. Louis, <a href="#Page_442">442</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Campbell, Robert, criticises La Barge, <a href="#Page_395">395</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Canoe, description of, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_91">91</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Cargo of steamboats, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_126">126</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Cass, Fort, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_228">228</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Catholic sisters on La Barge’s boat, <a href="#Page_434">434</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Catlin, George, on board the <i>Yellowstone</i>, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_137">137</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Championship among steamboat employees, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_128">128</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Channel of the Missouri, changes in, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_76">76</a><span class="pagenum" id="Page_451">451</span></li> - -<li class="indx">Chantier, description of, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_96">96</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Chappelle, Phil. A., assistance acknowledged, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_vi">vi</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Chardon, F. A., and Blackfoot massacre, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_231">231</a></li> -<li class="isub1">relieves Alexander Culbertson, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_231">231</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Chardon, Fort, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_232">232</a>, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_237">237</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Chase, Salmon P., La Barge’s experience with, <a href="#Page_343">343</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Chatillon, Henry, hunter for steamboats, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_126">126</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Cheyenne Indians, <a href="#Page_352">352</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Chicago and N. W. R. R. reaches Council Bluffs, <a href="#Page_418">418</a></li> - -<li class="indx"><i>Chippewa</i>, the, reaches head of navigation, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_218">218</a>, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_219">219</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Cholera on the <i>St. Ange</i>, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_189">189</a></li> -<li class="isub1">on the <i>Yellowstone</i>, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_31">31</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Chouteau Bluffs, origin of name, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_137">137</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Chouteau, C. P., <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_201">201</a>, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_219">219</a></li> -<li class="isub1">encounter with Col. Dimon, <a href="#Page_261">261</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Chouteau, Edward Liguest, La Barge’s companion, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_19">19</a>, <a href="#Page_345">345</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Chouteau, Pierre, Jr., colloquy with La Barge, <a href="#Page_292">292</a></li> -<li class="isub1">offers stand of colors to La Barge, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_240">240</a></li> -<li class="isub1">quoted, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_35">35</a>, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_134">134</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Civil War, the, effect of, on Indians, <a href="#Page_368">368</a></li> -<li class="isub1">relation of, to Mo. r. commerce, <a href="#Page_249">249</a> et seq.</li> -<li class="isub1">termination of, <a href="#Page_368">368</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Clark, Fort, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_139">139</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Clark, Malcolm, attacks Alexander Harvey, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_233">233</a></li> -<li class="isub1">kills Owen McKenzie, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_233">233</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Clergymen as Indian agents, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_143">143</a>, <a href="#Page_362">362</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Cook, Camp, <a href="#Page_410">410</a>, <a href="#Page_413">413</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Cordelle, the, description of, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_103">103</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Cottonwood bark as forage, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_49">49</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Coues, Dr. Elliott, quoted, <a href="#Page_313">313</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Council Bluffs, first railroad at, <a href="#Page_418">418</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Crazy Wolf, Yanktonais Indian, <a href="#Page_402">402</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Crook, General, in campaign of 1876, <a href="#Page_378">378</a>, <a href="#Page_379">379</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Crooks, Ramsay, quoted, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_138">138</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Crow Indians, <a href="#Page_352">352</a></li> -<li class="isub1">enemies of Blackfeet, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_223">223</a>, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_228">228</a></li> -<li class="isub1">experience with Peace Com. of 1866, <a href="#Page_404">404</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Crow Indian prisoner killed by Pawnee, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_31">31</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Culbertson, Alexander, career at Fort Benton, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_227">227</a> et seq.</li> - -<li class="indx">Cummings, Alfred, makes treaty with Blackfeet, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_236">236</a>, <a href="#Page_359">359</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Curtis, General, mem. Peace Com. 1866, <a href="#Page_397">397</a> et seq.</li> - -<li class="indx">Custer, General, campaign of 1876, <a href="#Page_380">380</a></li> -<li class="isub1">command of, annihilated, <a href="#Page_380">380</a></li> -<li class="isub1">tries to arrest La Barge, <a href="#Page_431">431</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Custer massacre, first news of, <a href="#Page_388">388</a></li> - -<li class="pix">D</li> - -<li class="indx">Dauphin, Louis, hunter for steamboats, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_126">126</a></li> -<li class="isub1">subaqueous adventure of, <a href="#Page_303">303</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Dawson, Andrew, receives property of La Barge, Harkness & Co., <a href="#Page_327">327</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Dead Buffalo Lake, battle of, <a href="#Page_372">372</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Deadman, meaning of term in steamboating, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_122">122</a><span class="pagenum" id="Page_452">452</span></li> - -<li class="indx"><i>Deer Lodge</i>, the, boats met by, in 1866, <a href="#Page_273">273</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Deer Lodge Valley, discovery of gold in, <a href="#Page_266">266</a>, <a href="#Page_267">267</a></li> - -<li class="indx">De Lacey, W. W., <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_237">237</a>, <a href="#Page_295">295</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Departure from port, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_127">127</a></li> - -<li class="indx">De Smet, Father P. J., at Fort Laramie, arrived in 1851, <a href="#Page_358">358</a></li> -<li class="isub1">goes from Fort Union to Fort Laramie, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_193">193</a></li> -<li class="isub1">on the <i>St. Ange</i> in 1851, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_189">189</a></li> -<li class="isub1">stories of, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_194">194</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Diamond R Company, <a href="#Page_329">329</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Dimon, Col. Charles A. R., <a href="#Page_260">260</a> et seq.</li> - -<li class="indx">Dodge, Grenville M., assistance acknowledged, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_vi">vi</a></li> -<li class="isub1">relations with Lincoln, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_243">243</a>, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_244">244</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Dog, a, causes steamboat wreck, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_116">116</a></li> -<li class="isub1">chloroformed by Gen. Harney, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_202">202</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Durack, John, lassoes a buffalo, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_163">163</a></li> - -<li class="pix">E</li> - -<li class="indx">Edgar, Henry, discoverer of Alder Gulch, <a href="#Page_271">271</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Edmunds, Newton, mem. Peace Com. of 1866, <a href="#Page_397">397</a></li> - -<li class="indx"><i>Edna</i>, the, explosion of, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_124">124</a></li> - -<li class="indx"><i>Effie Deans</i>, the, burned, <a href="#Page_394">394</a></li> -<li class="isub1">length of voyage in one season, <a href="#Page_336">336</a></li> -<li class="isub1">purchase of, <a href="#Page_332">332</a></li> -<li class="isub1">voyage of, in 1864, <a href="#Page_319">319</a></li> - -<li class="indx"><i>El Paso</i>, the, reaches Milk r., <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_218">218</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Embalming, new method, <a href="#Page_413">413</a></li> - -<li class="indx"><i>Emilie</i>, the, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_240">240</a>, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_241">241</a></li> -<li class="isub1">voyage of, in 1862, <a href="#Page_288">288</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Evans, Dr., on the <i>St. Ange</i> in 1851, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_190">190</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Exploration of the West, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_174">174</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Express, the, description of, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_41">41</a></li> - -<li class="pix">F</li> - -<li class="indx">Fairweather, William, discoverer of Alder Gulch, <a href="#Page_271">271</a></li> - -<li class="indx"><i>Far West</i>, the, part played by, in campaign of 1876, <a href="#Page_387">387</a>, <a href="#Page_388">388</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Fire canoe of the Indians, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_111">111</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Fisk James L., leader of Northern Overland Expedition, <a href="#Page_270">270</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Flood of 1844, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_154">154</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Floods of Missouri and Mississippi, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_83">83</a>, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_155">155</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Fremont, General John, as an explorer, <a href="#Page_348">348</a></li> -<li class="isub1">inaccessibility of, <a href="#Page_347">347</a></li> -<li class="isub1">La Barge’s acquaintance with, <a href="#Page_347">347</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Freight rates on the Missouri, <a href="#Page_276">276</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Fuel for steamboats, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_117">117</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Fur trade, relation of, to the Indians, <a href="#Page_353">353</a></li> -<li class="isub1">use of steamboats in, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_3">3</a></li> - -<li class="pix">G</li> - -<li class="indx">Galpin, Charles E., <a href="#Page_341">341</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Galpin, Fort, <a href="#Page_293">293</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Galvanized Yankees, <a href="#Page_260">260</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Gardner, Johnson, transports furs by bullboat, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_101">101</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Garreau, Pierre, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_197">197</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Gibbon, General, in Custer campaign, <a href="#Page_378">378</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Gilbert, Colonel, incident concerning, <a href="#Page_427">427</a><span class="pagenum" id="Page_453">453</span></li> - -<li class="indx">Gold, discovery of, in California, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_173">173</a></li> -<li class="isub1">discovery of, in Montana, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_237">237</a>, <a href="#Page_265">265</a> et seq., <a href="#Page_368">368</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Gold dust, first sale of, in Montana, <a href="#Page_267">267</a></li> -<li class="isub1">great quantity shipped by the <i>Octavia</i>, <a href="#Page_413">413</a></li> -<li class="isub1">transportation of, <a href="#Page_275">275</a>, <a href="#Page_333">333</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Good, Frederick, lost from the <i>Trover</i>, <a href="#Page_286">286</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Government work on the Missouri r., <a href="#Page_421">421</a> et seq.</li> - -<li class="indx">Grant, General, La Barge’s acquaintance with, <a href="#Page_347">347</a></li> -<li class="isub1">La Barge’s resemblance to, <a href="#Page_443">443</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Grattan massacre, <a href="#Page_366">366</a>, <a href="#Page_367">367</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Great Falls of the Missouri, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_75">75</a></li> -<li class="isub1">first white woman to see, <a href="#Page_294">294</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Great Falls City, Mont., <a href="#Page_420">420</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Great fire of St. Louis, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_185">185</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Great Northern R. R. reaches Helena, <a href="#Page_417">417</a>, <a href="#Page_418">418</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Greer, Capt. W. B., witnesses transactions at Fort Union, <a href="#Page_316">316</a>, <a href="#Page_320">320</a>, <a href="#Page_321">321</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Grismore, Nathan, La Barge’s mate, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_181">181</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Guerette, Louis, killed on the <i>Saluda</i>, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_24">24</a>, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_124">124</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Guerette, Pelagie wife of Capt. La Barge, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_71">71</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Guerrillas in Missouri, <a href="#Page_250">250</a></li> - -<li class="pix">H</li> - -<li class="indx">Half breeds, British, among the Indians, <a href="#Page_369">369</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Hannibal and St. Joseph R. R. reaches the Mo. r., <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_241">241</a>, <a href="#Page_417">417</a>, <a href="#Page_418">418</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Hard, C. D., arrests La Barge, <a href="#Page_432">432</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Harkness, James, connection of, with firm of La Barge, Harkness & Co., <a href="#Page_286">286</a>, <a href="#Page_293">293</a>, <a href="#Page_324">324</a>, <a href="#Page_329">329</a></li> -<li class="isub1">journal of, <a href="#Page_290">290</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Harney, General, campaign of 1855, <a href="#Page_367">367</a>, <a href="#Page_383">383</a></li> -<li class="isub1">chloroforms a dog, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_202">202</a></li> -<li class="isub1">experience with Captain La Barge’s father, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_6">6</a></li> -<li class="isub1">friend of the Indians, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_201">201</a></li> -<li class="isub1">quoted, <a href="#Page_356">356</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Harvey, Alexander, attacked by Malcolm Clark, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_234">234</a></li> -<li class="isub1">desperate character of, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_229">229</a> et seq.</li> - -<li class="indx">Harvey, Primeau & Co., <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_234">234</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Hat, Louis Dauphin’s, <a href="#Page_303">303</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Hawley, Hubbell & Co., buy out Am. F. Co., <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_239">239</a>, <a href="#Page_260">260</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Hayden, Dr. F. N., on La Barge’s boat, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_209">209</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Helena, Mont., rise of, <a href="#Page_272">272</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Hill, Father W. H., preaches La Barge’s funeral sermon, <a href="#Page_440">440</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Hodgkiss, Wm., agent at Fort Union, <a href="#Page_316">316</a>, <a href="#Page_320">320</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Hoecken, Father, death of, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_191">191</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Hooper, Mormon acquaintance of La Barge’s, <a href="#Page_334">334</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Hopkins, Mormon acquaintance of La Barge’s, <a href="#Page_334">334</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Horrigan, Lieutenant, with troops on <i>Octavia</i>, <a href="#Page_410">410</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Hortiz, Eulalie, mother of Capt. La Barge, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_11">11</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Hortiz, Joseph Alvarez, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_11">11</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Hubbell, J. B. assistance acknowledged, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_vi">vi</a></li> -<li class="isub1">cited, <a href="#Page_284">284</a></li> -<li class="isub1">mackinaw voyage of, in 1866, <a href="#Page_283">283</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Hunters for steamboats, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_125">125</a><span class="pagenum" id="Page_454">454</span></li> - -<li class="indx">Hyde, Orson, Mormon preacher, <a href="#Page_375">375</a></li> - -<li class="pix">I</li> - -<li class="indx">Ice break up of 1856, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_204">204</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Ice gorges, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_81">81</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Illinois Central R. R. reaches Sioux City, <a href="#Page_418">418</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Improvement work on the Mo. r., <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_241">241</a> et seq.</li> - -<li class="indx"><i>Independence</i>, the, first steamboat on the Missouri, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_90">90</a>, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_219">219</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Indian, the, and the fur trade, <a href="#Page_353">353</a></li> -<li class="isub1">and the steamboat, <a href="#Page_364">364</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Indian agents, character of, <a href="#Page_362">362</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Indian question, <a href="#Page_355">355</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Indians attack the <i>Martha</i>, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_179">179</a></li> -<li class="isub1">attack the <i>Omega</i>, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_148">148</a></li> -<li class="isub1">danger to boats from, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_123">123</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Indians of the Missouri Valley, <a href="#Page_351">351</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Insurance rates, <a href="#Page_276">276</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Irrigation, Congressional Act of, <a href="#Page_448">448</a></li> -<li class="isub1">relation of, to Mo. r., <a href="#Page_447">447</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Irving, Washington, quoted, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_109">109</a></li> - -<li class="indx"><i>Island City</i>, the, wreck of, <a href="#Page_385">385</a></li> - -<li class="pix">J</li> - -<li class="indx">Jesuits honor La Barge’s memory, <a href="#Page_440">440</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Johnston, General A. S., <a href="#Page_346">346</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Joseph, Nez Percé chief, <a href="#Page_392">392</a></li> -<li class="isub1">captured, <a href="#Page_393">393</a></li> - -<li class="pix">K</li> - -<li class="indx">Kansas City, first railroad at <a href="#Page_417">417</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Kansas Indians, <a href="#Page_351">351</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Keelboat, advent of, on the Missouri, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_90">90</a></li> -<li class="isub1">description of, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_102">102</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Kernel of corn, the, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_152">152</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Kidder, Judge, tries murderer of Capt. Spear, <a href="#Page_414">414</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Killdeer Mountain, battle of, <a href="#Page_374">374</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Kimball, Heber, Mormon preacher, <a href="#Page_335">335</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Kipp, James, accompanies La Barge, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_70">70</a></li> -<li class="isub1">builds Fort Piegan, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_225">225</a></li> - -<li class="pix">L</li> - -<li class="indx">La Barge, A. G., assistance acknowledged, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_vi">vi</a></li> - -<li class="indx">La Barge Avenue, St. Louis, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_198">198</a></li> - -<li class="indx">La Barge, Charles S., killed in steamboat explosion, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_13">13</a>, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_124">124</a></li> - -<li class="indx">La Barge city, <a href="#Page_295">295</a></li> - -<li class="indx">La Barge, Fort, established, <a href="#Page_293">293</a></li> -<li class="isub1">turned over to Am. F. Co., <a href="#Page_327">327</a></li> - -<li class="indx">La Barge, Harkness & Co., <a href="#Page_270">270</a>, <a href="#Page_287">287</a></li> -<li class="isub1">collapse of firm, <a href="#Page_329">329</a></li> -<li class="isub1">operations of, in 1862, <a href="#Page_293">293</a></li> -<li class="isub1">sued, <a href="#Page_326">326</a></li> - -<li class="indx">La Barge, John B., brother of Capt. La Barge, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_13">13</a></li> -<li class="isub1">member of firm L. H. & Co., <a href="#Page_287">287</a></li> -<li class="isub1">takes first steamboat to head of navigation, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_219">219</a></li> - -<li class="indx"><span class="smcap">La Barge, Joseph</span>, Mo. r. pilot accompanies Pawnee war party, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_45">45</a><span class="pagenum" id="Page_455">455</span></li> -<li class="isub1">acquaintance with the Mormons, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_56">56</a></li> -<li class="isub1">acquaintance with prominent men, <a href="#Page_346">346</a>, <a href="#Page_350">350</a></li> -<li class="isub1">adventure with Sioux war party, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_38">38</a></li> -<li class="isub1">among the Pawnees, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_27">27</a> et seq.</li> -<li class="isub1">ancestry of, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_2">2</a> et seq.</li> -<li class="isub1">an authority on Mo. r. history, <a href="#Page_439">439</a></li> -<li class="isub1">as an expert witness, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_165">165</a></li> -<li class="isub1">at Ford’s theater, <a href="#Page_344">344</a></li> -<li class="isub1">before Senate Committee, <a href="#Page_344">344</a></li> -<li class="isub1">birth of, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_12">12</a>, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_13">13</a></li> -<li class="isub1">captured by Pawnees, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_160">160</a></li> -<li class="isub1">carries express to Pierre, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_44">44</a></li> -<li class="isub1">changes during his lifetime, <a href="#Page_441">441</a></li> -<li class="isub1">childhood of, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_13">13</a></li> -<li class="isub1">claim against government, <a href="#Page_323">323</a></li> -<li class="isub1">contemplates retirement, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_198">198</a>, <a href="#Page_426">426</a></li> -<li class="isub1">death of, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_iv">iv</a>, <a href="#Page_440">440</a></li> -<li class="isub1">dictates memoirs, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_iii">iii</a></li> -<li class="isub1">education of, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_17">17</a></li> -<li class="isub1">enters service Am. F. Co., <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_23">23</a>, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_56">56</a>, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_67">67</a>, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_200">200</a></li> -<li class="isub1">enters service H. & St. Joe R. R., <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_241">241</a>, <a href="#Page_418">418</a></li> -<li class="isub1">experience with Englishmen, <a href="#Page_344">344</a></li> -<li class="isub1">experience with rattlesnakes, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_46">46</a></li> -<li class="isub1">falls into an air hole, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_50">50</a></li> -<li class="isub1">funeral of, <a href="#Page_440">440</a></li> -<li class="isub1">grave of, <a href="#Page_442">442</a></li> -<li class="isub1">helps prepare list of steamboat wrecks, <a href="#Page_438">438</a></li> -<li class="isub1">in Cabanné-Leclerc affair, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_24">24</a> et seq.</li> -<li class="isub1">in Custer campaign, <a href="#Page_389">389</a></li> -<li class="isub1">in meteoric shower, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_40">40</a></li> -<li class="isub1">in Montana, <a href="#Page_331">331</a> et seq.</li> -<li class="isub1">in “opposition,” <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_59">59</a> et seq., <a href="#Page_287">287</a></li> -<li class="isub1">in Salt Lake City, <a href="#Page_333">333</a></li> -<li class="isub1">in Washington, <a href="#Page_340">340</a> et seq.</li> -<li class="isub1">intimate knowledge of the river, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_116">116</a></li> -<li class="isub1">leaves service Am. F. Co., <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_56">56</a>, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_184">184</a>, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_199">199</a>, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_210">210</a>, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_214">214</a>, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_215">215</a></li> -<li class="isub1">marriage of, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_71">71</a></li> -<li class="isub1">meets Dave McCann, <a href="#Page_430">430</a></li> -<li class="isub1">on the <i>Yellowstone</i> in cholera scourge, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_32">32</a></li> -<li class="isub1">opposes Am. F. Co., <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_59">59</a>, et seq., <a href="#Page_287">287</a></li> -<li class="isub1">personal characteristics, <a href="#Page_443">443</a></li> -<li class="isub1">politics of, <a href="#Page_444">444</a></li> -<li class="isub1">purchases the <i>Sonora</i>, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_190">190</a></li> -<li class="isub1">religion of, <a href="#Page_444">444</a></li> -<li class="isub1">remains with the Union, <a href="#Page_253">253</a></li> -<li class="isub1">rescues boat from ice gorge, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_207">207</a></li> -<li class="isub1">retires from the river, <a href="#Page_447">447</a></li> -<li class="isub1">serves apprenticeship in steamboating, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_55">55</a></li> -<li class="isub1">serves as interpreter, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_22">22</a></li> -<li class="isub1">skill as a swimmer, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_53">53</a></li> -<li class="isub1">works for city of St. Louis, <a href="#Page_438">438</a></li> - -<li class="indx">La Barge, Joseph Marie, at Council Bluffs, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_42">42</a></li> -<li class="isub1">sketch of, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_3">3</a></li> -<li class="isub1">stories concerning, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_6">6</a> et seq.</li> - -<li class="indx">Laberge, Dr. Philemon, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_12">12</a></li> - -<li class="indx">La Fayette, visits of, to St. Louis, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_15">15</a></li> - -<li class="indx">La Framboise, Fort, <a href="#Page_293">293</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Langford, N. P., assistance acknowledged, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_vi">vi</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Laramie Fort, treaty of, <a href="#Page_358">358</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Larpenteur, Charles, cited, <a href="#Page_307">307</a><span class="pagenum" id="Page_456">456</span></li> -<li class="isub1">estimate of, <a href="#Page_313">313</a></li> -<li class="isub1">quoted, <a href="#Page_398">398</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Last Chance Gulch, <a href="#Page_272">272</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Latta, S. M., Indian agent, <a href="#Page_300">300</a></li> -<li class="isub1">at the Tobacco Garden, <a href="#Page_306">306</a></li> -<li class="isub1">cited, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_207">207</a></li> -<li class="isub1">quoted, <a href="#Page_317">317</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Leavenworth, Colonel, in Aricara campaign, <a href="#Page_383">383</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Leclerc, Narcisse, affair of, with Cabanné, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_24">24</a> et seq.</li> -<li class="isub1">disloyal to La Barge, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_60">60</a>, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_65">65</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Lee, General R. E., acquaintance of La Barge with, <a href="#Page_346">346</a></li> -<li class="isub1">examines Mo. r., <a href="#Page_422">422</a></li> -<li class="isub1">surrender of, <a href="#Page_336">336</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Lemon, R. H., transfers Fort La Barge, <a href="#Page_327">327</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Lewis and Clark, expedition of, <a href="#Page_375">375</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Lewis, Fort, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_233">233</a> et seq.</li> - -<li class="indx">Lincoln, Abraham, assistance of, <a href="#Page_261">261</a>, <a href="#Page_336">336</a></li> -<li class="isub1">at Council Bluffs, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_241">241</a></li> -<li class="isub1">commutes sentence of Indians, <a href="#Page_371">371</a></li> -<li class="isub1">election of, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_247">247</a></li> -<li class="isub1">interest in Indian question, <a href="#Page_342">342</a></li> -<li class="isub1">on La Barge’s boat, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_246">246</a></li> -<li class="isub1">on Missouri r., <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_241">241</a> et seq.</li> -<li class="isub1">presented with fur robe, <a href="#Page_340">340</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Little Crow, Sioux Chief, incites massacre, <a href="#Page_370">370</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Liquor, importation of, prohibited, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_25">25</a>, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_141">141</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Lisa, Manuel, voyage of, in 1811, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_106">106</a>, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_107">107</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Loan, Brig. Gen., quoted, <a href="#Page_251">251</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Log book kept by Captain Sire, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_139">139</a></li> -<li class="isub1">quoted, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_146">146</a>, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_159">159</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Lyon, General, goes to Illinois r. for pilots, <a href="#Page_249">249</a></li> -<li class="isub1">La Barge’s experience with, <a href="#Page_257">257</a>, <a href="#Page_258">258</a></li> - -<li class="pix">M</li> - -<li class="indx">Mackinaw boat, description of, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_94">94</a> et seq.</li> -<li class="isub1">party are massacred, <a href="#Page_277">277</a>, <a href="#Page_278">278</a></li> -<li class="isub1">voyages of, <a href="#Page_275">275</a>, <a href="#Page_284">284</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Majors, Alexander, saves La Barge, <a href="#Page_254">254</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Mandan Indians, <a href="#Page_252">252</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Marine Insurance Companies, frauds upon, <a href="#Page_420">420</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Marmaduke, General, impresses the <i>Emilie</i>, <a href="#Page_255">255</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Marquette and Joliet discover Mo. r., <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_87">87</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Marsh, Captain Grant, important services of, <a href="#Page_387">387</a></li> -<li class="isub1">master of the <i>Far West</i>, <a href="#Page_388">388</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Massacre, Custer, <a href="#Page_380">380</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Massacre on the Marias r., <a href="#Page_279">279</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Matlock, Indian Agent, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_178">178</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Maximilian, Prince of Wied, at Fort McKenzie, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_228">228</a></li> -<li class="isub1">voyage of, in 1833, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_139">139</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Maybrick, Mrs., case of, compared with that of Capt. Spear, <a href="#Page_415">415</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Meteoric shower, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_40">40</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Mexico, war with, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_171">171</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Miles, General, in Nez Percé campaign, <a href="#Page_392">392</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Miller, mate on the <i>Robert Campbell</i>, <a href="#Page_396">396</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Miller, Dr. Geo. L., quoted, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_203">203</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Miller, Joseph, Indian agent at Bellevue, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_156">156</a></li> - -<li class="indx"><i>Miner</i>, the, caught in a whirlpool, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_122">122</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Minnesota massacre, <a href="#Page_370">370</a><span class="pagenum" id="Page_457">457</span></li> - -<li class="indx">Minnetarees, or Gros ventres of the Missouri, <a href="#Page_352">352</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Missouri Indians, <a href="#Page_351">351</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Missouri Pacific R. R. reaches Kansas City, <a href="#Page_416">416</a></li> - -<li class="indx"><span class="smcap">Missouri River, The</span></li> -<li class="isub1">burials along shore, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_36">36</a></li> -<li class="isub1">commercial importance of, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_iv">iv</a>, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_73">73</a></li> -<li class="isub1">destiny of, <a href="#Page_445">445</a></li> -<li class="isub1">discovery of, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_87">87</a></li> -<li class="isub1">early exploration of, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_89">89</a></li> -<li class="isub1">first navigation of, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_87">87</a></li> -<li class="isub1">first steamboat to enter, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_90">90</a></li> -<li class="isub1">head of navigation on, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_220">220</a></li> -<li class="isub1">highest point reached by steam, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_220">220</a></li> -<li class="isub1">improvement of, by the government, <a href="#Page_422">422</a> et seq.</li> -<li class="isub1">Indian tribes along, <a href="#Page_351">351</a></li> -<li class="isub1">kinds of boats used on, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_91">91</a> et seq.</li> -<li class="isub1">modern view concerning, <a href="#Page_445">445</a></li> -<li class="isub1">navigation of, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_115">115</a></li> -<li class="isub1">origin of name, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_88">88</a></li> -<li class="isub1">physical characteristics of, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_74">74</a> et seq.</li> -<li class="isub1">relation of, to gold regions of Montana, <a href="#Page_273">273</a></li> -<li class="isub1">scenery of, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_83">83</a></li> -<li class="isub1">sediment carried, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_78">78</a></li> -<li class="isub1">source of, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_74">74</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Missouri River Commission, abolition of, <a href="#Page_424">424</a>, <a href="#Page_448">448</a></li> -<li class="isub1">creation of, <a href="#Page_422">422</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Mitchell, D. D., attends Council at Fort Laramie, <a href="#Page_358">358</a></li> -<li class="isub1">builds Fort McKenzie, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_226">226</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Montana, first railroads in, <a href="#Page_419">419</a></li> -<li class="isub1">gold fields of, <a href="#Page_265">265</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Montana Historical Society, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_239">239</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Mormons, the, in Missouri, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_65">65</a></li> -<li class="isub1">La Barge’s acquaintance with, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_175">175</a>, <a href="#Page_333">333</a></li> -<li class="isub1">migration of, to Great Salt Lake, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_171">171</a></li> -<li class="isub1">relation of, to commerce of Mo. r., <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_171">171</a></li> -<li class="isub1">sketch of, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_167">167</a></li> - -<li class="indx">McCann, Dave, meets La Barge, <a href="#Page_430">430</a></li> - -<li class="indx">McCune, John S., relations with La Barge, <a href="#Page_337">337</a>, <a href="#Page_396">396</a>, <a href="#Page_435">435</a></li> - -<li class="indx">McKenzie, Fort, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_137">137</a></li> -<li class="isub1">burned, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_232">232</a></li> -<li class="isub1">founding of, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_227">227</a></li> -<li class="isub1">sketch of, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_228">228</a></li> - -<li class="indx">McKenzie, Kenneth, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_134">134</a></li> -<li class="isub1">opens trade with the Blackfeet, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_223">223</a></li> - -<li class="indx">McKenzie, Owen, killed by Malcolm Clark, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_233">233</a></li> - -<li class="indx">McPherson, W. W., government contractor, <a href="#Page_409">409</a></li> - -<li class="pix">N</li> - -<li class="indx"><i>Naomi</i>, the, discovery of a Bible belonging to, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_79">79</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Negro boys lost, <a href="#Page_285">285</a></li> - -<li class="indx">New Mexico, conquest of, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_172">172</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Nez Percé campaign, steamboat in, <a href="#Page_392">392</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Nicollet, J. J., <a href="#Page_347">347</a></li> - -<li class="indx"><i>Nimrod</i>, the, injured by hailstorm, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_164">164</a></li> -<li class="isub1">inspection of, at Bellevue, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_156">156</a></li> -<li class="isub1">voyage of, in 1844, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_154">154</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Northern Overland Expedition, <a href="#Page_270">270</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Northern Pacific R. R. reaches Bismarck, <a href="#Page_419">419</a></li> -<li class="isub1">reaches Montana, <a href="#Page_419">419</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Northwestern Fur Company, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_239">239</a>, <a href="#Page_260">260</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Northwestern Treaty Commission—See “<a href="#Peace_Commission_of_1866">Peace Commission of 1866</a>”<span class="pagenum" id="Page_458">458</span></li> - -<li class="indx">Nutt, H. C., quoted, <a href="#Page_369">369</a></li> - -<li class="pix">O</li> - -<li class="indx"><i>Octavia</i>, the, built, <a href="#Page_396">396</a></li> -<li class="isub1">great profit on voyage of, <a href="#Page_416">416</a></li> -<li class="isub1">voyage of, 1867, <a href="#Page_408">408</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Omaha, first railroad at, <a href="#Page_418">418</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Omaha Indians, <a href="#Page_351">351</a></li> - -<li class="indx"><i>Omega</i>, the, voyage of 1843, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_141">141</a> et seq.</li> - -<li class="indx">Ophir City, <a href="#Page_279">279</a></li> - -<li class="indx">“Opposition,” meaning of term, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_59">59</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Orleans, Fort, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_88">88</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Osage Indians, <a href="#Page_351">351</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Otrante, Comte de, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_155">155</a></li> - -<li class="pix">P</li> - -<li class="indx">Passenger fares on Mo. r., <a href="#Page_276">276</a></li> -<li class="isub1">lists on Mo. r. steamboats, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_120">120</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Pawnee Indians, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_27">27</a>, <a href="#Page_351">351</a></li> -<li class="isub1">capture La Barge, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_160">160</a></li> -<li class="isub1">La Barge’s residence among, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_27">27</a></li> -<li class="isub1"><a id="Peace_Commission_of_1866"></a>Peace Commission of 1866, <a href="#Page_396">396</a> et seq.</li> -<li class="isub1">quoted, <a href="#Page_360">360</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Peindry, Comte de, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_155">155</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Piegan, Fort, founding of, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_225">225</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Pierre, Fort, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_137">137</a></li> -<li class="isub1">transfer of, to United States, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_201">201</a>, <a href="#Page_367">367</a>, <a href="#Page_383">383</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Pike’s Peak Gulch, <a href="#Page_269">269</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Pilcher, Joshua, in charge of Cabanné’s post, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_37">37</a></li> -<li class="isub1">interest in young La Barge, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_39">39</a>, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_44">44</a>, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_48">48</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Pilot, Missouri r., experiences of, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_131">131</a></li> -<li class="isub1">important duty of, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_115">115</a></li> -<li class="isub1">wages of, <a href="#Page_276">276</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Pilot shields, <a href="#Page_250">250</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Poles, use of, on keelboats, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_104">104</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Pope, General, plans Indian campaign, <a href="#Page_371">371</a></li> -<li class="isub1">quoted, <a href="#Page_357">357</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Price, General Sterling, <a href="#Page_255">255</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Profits in steamboat business, <a href="#Page_276">276</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Prou, Mr., botanist to Audubon, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_152">152</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Provost, Etienne, praises La Barge, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_39">39</a></li> -<li class="isub1">outwits a botanist, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_152">152</a></li> -<li class="isub1">settles championship, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_128">128</a></li> -<li class="isub1">wooding the Martha, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_179">179</a></li> - -<li class="pix">R</li> - -<li class="indx">Racing steamboats on the Mo. r., <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_123">123</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Railroads, the enemy of the steamboat, <a href="#Page_417">417</a></li> -<li class="isub1">relation of, to Mo. r., <a href="#Page_445">445</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Randall, Fort, <a href="#Page_367">367</a>, <a href="#Page_383">383</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Rattlesnakes, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_46">46</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Ray, Captain, faithful conduct of, <a href="#Page_337">337</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Reed, H. W., Indian Agent, <a href="#Page_300">300</a></li> -<li class="isub1">advises La Barge to store annuities, <a href="#Page_316">316</a></li> -<li class="isub1">cited, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_207">207</a></li> -<li class="isub1">mem. Peace Com. 1866, <a href="#Page_397">397</a></li> -<li class="isub1">quoted, <a href="#Page_314">314</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Reeve, Colonel, makes Crows walk, <a href="#Page_405">405</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Rencontre, Zephyr, aids La Barge, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_67">67</a></li> -<li class="isub1">interprets for Peace Com. of 1866, <a href="#Page_400">400</a>, <a href="#Page_402">402</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Reno, Major, in Custer campaign, <a href="#Page_381">381</a>, <a href="#Page_391">391</a><span class="pagenum" id="Page_459">459</span></li> - -<li class="indx">Rice, Fort, <a href="#Page_260">260</a>, <a href="#Page_374">374</a></li> - -<li class="indx"><i>Robert Campbell</i>, the, voyage of, in 1863, <a href="#Page_298">298</a> et seq.</li> - -<li class="indx">Roe, John J., organizes Diamond R. Co., <a href="#Page_328">328</a></li> -<li class="isub1">relations with La Barge, <a href="#Page_325">325</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Rolette, agt. Am. F. Co. at Fort Union, <a href="#Page_320">320</a></li> - -<li class="pix">S</li> - -<li class="indx">Sail, use of, on keelboats, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_106">106</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Sailors, lost from the <i>Nimrod</i>, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_160">160</a></li> - -<li class="indx"><i>Saint Ange</i>, launching of, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_184">184</a></li> -<li class="isub1">voyage of, in 1851, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_189">189</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Saint Joseph, first railroad at, <a href="#Page_417">417</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Saint Louis, great fire of, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_185">185</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Salaries on steamboats, <a href="#Page_271">271</a></li> - -<li class="indx"><i>Saluda</i>, the, explosion of, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_124">124</a></li> - -<li class="indx"><i>Sam Gaty</i>, the, attack on, <a href="#Page_251">251</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Sanders, W. F., assistance acknowledged, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_vi">vi</a></li> -<li class="isub1">counsel against La Barge, Harkness & Co., <a href="#Page_328">328</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Sarpy, Peter A., arrests Leclerc, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_26">26</a></li> -<li class="isub1">in charge of Cabanné’s post, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_49">49</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Scenery of the Missouri r., <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_83">83</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Sediment carried by the Mo. r., <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_78">78</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Sheridan, General, plans campaign of 1876, <a href="#Page_378">378</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Sherman, General, Commissioner to treat with Indians, <a href="#Page_377">377</a></li> -<li class="isub1">gives La Barge a contract, <a href="#Page_410">410</a></li> - -<li class="indx"><i>Shreveport</i>, the, impressed by General Sully, <a href="#Page_385">385</a></li> -<li class="isub1">voyage of, in 1863, <a href="#Page_302">302</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Sibley, General, in charge of operations against Sioux Indians in 1863, <a href="#Page_370">370</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Sioux City, first railroad at, <a href="#Page_418">418</a></li> -<li class="isub1">important river port, <a href="#Page_419">419</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Sioux City and Pacific R. R. reaches Sioux City, <a href="#Page_418">418</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Sioux Indians, <a href="#Page_351">351</a></li> -<li class="isub1">capture Grosventre herd, <a href="#Page_304">304</a></li> -<li class="isub1">non-treaty, <a href="#Page_377">377</a></li> -<li class="isub1">power of, broken, <a href="#Page_377">377</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Sire, Joseph A., <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_140">140</a></li> -<li class="isub1">master of the <i>Omega</i>, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_141">141</a></li> -<li class="isub1">master of the <i>Nimrod</i>, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_154">154</a></li> -<li class="isub1">outwits inspectors, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_144">144</a>, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_157">157</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Sire log book, the, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_139">139</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Slope of Missouri river, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_83">83</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Smallpox among the Blackfeet, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_229">229</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Smith, Green Clay, Governor of Montana Territory, <a href="#Page_409">409</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Smith, Joseph, death of, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_57">57</a>, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_169">169</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Snags in Missouri river, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_80">80</a>, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_119">119</a>, <a href="#Page_421">421</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Snagboats, early, <a href="#Page_422">422</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Sounding the channel, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_120">120</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Sparring over sand bars, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_121">121</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Spear, Capt. W. D., killed by a sentinel, <a href="#Page_412">412</a></li> -<li class="isub1">takes passage on the <i>Octavia</i>, <a href="#Page_411">411</a></li> - -<li class="indx"><i>Spread Eagle</i>, the, rams the <i>Emilie</i>, <a href="#Page_289">289</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Stanley, General, arrests Custer, <a href="#Page_431">431</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Statistics of steamboat traffic, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_217">217</a>, <a href="#Page_275">275</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Steamboat, the, and the Indians, <a href="#Page_364">364</a></li> -<li class="isub1">architectural beauty of, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_111">111</a></li> -<li class="isub1">description of, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_109">109</a> et seq.</li> -<li class="isub1">in the Indian wars, <a href="#Page_382">382</a></li> -<li class="isub1">in the Nez Percé campaign, <a href="#Page_392">392</a></li> -<li class="isub1">last at Fort Benton, <a href="#Page_420">420</a><span class="pagenum" id="Page_460">460</span></li> -<li class="isub1">navigation of the Mo. r., importance of, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_iv">iv</a></li> -<li class="isub1">trade on Mo. r., rapid growth of, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_174">174</a>, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_216">216</a>, <a href="#Page_274">274</a></li> -<li class="isub1">wrecks, causes of, <a href="#Page_421">421</a></li> -<li class="isub1">voyages up the Mo. r., <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_127">127</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Stevens, I. I., makes treaty with Blackfeet, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_236">236</a>, <a href="#Page_359">359</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Stinger, Andy, hero of the Tobacco Garden, <a href="#Page_307">307</a>, <a href="#Page_311">311</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Stony Lake, battle of, <a href="#Page_372">372</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Storm injures the <i>Nimrod</i>, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_164">164</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Storms on the Missouri, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_84">84</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Stuart, Fort, <a href="#Page_293">293</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Stuart, James, English traveler, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_4">4</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Stuart, James, Montana pioneer, <a href="#Page_267">267</a>, <a href="#Page_268">268</a>, <a href="#Page_271">271</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Sublette & Campbell, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_36">36</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Suit against La Barge, Harkness & Co., <a href="#Page_328">328</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Sully, Fort, <a href="#Page_373">373</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Sully, General, campaign of 1863, <a href="#Page_371">371</a>, <a href="#Page_372">372</a></li> -<li class="isub1">campaign of 1864, <a href="#Page_374">374</a></li> -<li class="isub1">impresses the <i>Shreveport</i>, <a href="#Page_318">318</a></li> -<li class="isub1">opinion of Col. Dimon, <a href="#Page_262">262</a></li> -<li class="isub1">quoted, <a href="#Page_270">270</a>, <a href="#Page_361">361</a></li> -<li class="isub1">uses steamboats in his campaigns, <a href="#Page_385">385</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Survey of the Missouri r., <a href="#Page_436">436</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Suter, Capt, C. R., purchases the <i>Octavia</i>, <a href="#Page_425">425</a></li> - -<li class="pix">T</li> - -<li class="indx">Tecumseh, Fort, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_137">137</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Terry, General Alfred, in campaign of 1876, <a href="#Page_378">378</a></li> -<li class="isub1">on La Barge’s boat, <a href="#Page_390">390</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Terry, Lieutenant, English officer, investigates death of Capt. Spear, <a href="#Page_414">414</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Terry, M. M., writes account of voyage of <i>Far West</i>, <a href="#Page_388">388</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Thomas, Col., Quartermaster in St. Louis, <a href="#Page_410">410</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Thompson, C. W., Indian agent, <a href="#Page_385">385</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Thompson, Fort, <a href="#Page_385">385</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Tobacco Garden, affair at, <a href="#Page_305">305</a> et seq.</li> - -<li class="indx">Transportation by water and rail, <a href="#Page_420">420</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Treaty of Fort Laramie, <a href="#Page_358">358</a>, <a href="#Page_366">366</a></li> -<li class="isub1">with Blackfeet, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_237">237</a>, <a href="#Page_259">259</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Treaty system, abuses of, <a href="#Page_356">356</a></li> - -<li class="indx"><i>Trover</i>, the, wreck of, <a href="#Page_285">285</a></li> - -<li class="pix">U</li> - -<li class="indx">Union, Fort, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_139">139</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Union Pacific Bridge at Omaha opened, <a href="#Page_418">418</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Union Pacific R. R., Lincoln’s interest in, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_244">244</a></li> -<li class="isub1">reaches Ogden, <a href="#Page_419">419</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Upson, Gad E., Indian agent, <a href="#Page_322">322</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Utah Northern R. R. enters Montana, <a href="#Page_419">419</a></li> - -<li class="pix">V</li> - -<li class="indx">Vallandingham, C. L., <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_244">244</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Virginia City, Mont., <a href="#Page_272">272</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Volunteers, U. S., <a href="#Page_259">259</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Voyage, last, to Fort Benton, <a href="#Page_436">436</a>, <a href="#Page_437">437</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Voyageurs, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_108">108</a></li> - -<li class="pix">W<span class="pagenum" id="Page_461">461</span></li> - -<li class="indx">Wall, Nicholas, relations with Capt. La Barge, <a href="#Page_258">258</a>, <a href="#Page_295">295</a>, <a href="#Page_325">325</a>, <a href="#Page_326">326</a></li> - -<li class="indx">War with Mexico, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_171">171</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Warping over rapids, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_121">121</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Warren, General, on the upper Missouri, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_208">208</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Weather, influence of, on navigation of the river, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_86">86</a></li> - -<li class="indx"><i>Western Engineer</i>, the, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_91">91</a>, <a href="#Page_382">382</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Whirlpools on the Missouri, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_122">122</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Whitestone Hill, battle of, <a href="#Page_373">373</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Winnebago Indians, transported by steamboat, <a href="#Page_384">384</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Wooding steamboat, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_118">118</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Wooding at Crow creek in 1847, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_179">179</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Wounded Knee, battle of, <a href="#Page_366">366</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Wrecks of steamboats on Mo. r., causes of, <a href="#Page_421">421</a></li> -<li class="isub1">list of, <a href="#Page_438">438</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Wright, Geo. B., agent for the Blackfeet, <a href="#Page_405">405</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Wyeth, Nathaniel J., transports furs by bullboat, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_101">101</a></li> - -<li class="pix">Y</li> - -<li class="indx">Yankee Jack, adventure of, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_129">129</a></li> -<li class="isub1">mentioned, <a href="#Page_282">282</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Yanktonais, the, experience of, with Peace Com. of 1866, <a href="#Page_399">399</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Yawl, importance of, to steamboat, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_54">54</a>, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_91">91</a></li> - -<li class="indx"><i>Yellowstone</i>, the, first steamboat on the upper river, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_22">22</a>, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_136">136</a></li> -<li class="isub1">cholera on, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_32">32</a></li> -<li class="isub1">description of, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_112">112</a></li> -<li class="isub1">public interested in voyage of, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_138">138</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Yellowstone expedition of 1819, <a href="#Page_382">382</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Yellowstone National Park, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_75">75</a>, <a href="#Page_266">266</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Yellowstone river, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_75">75</a></li> -<li class="isub1">falls of, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_75">75</a></li> -<li class="isub1">La Barge ascends, <a href="#Page_436">436</a></li> - -<li class="indx">Young, Brigham, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_169">169</a>, <a class="vol1" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/64136/64136-h/64136-h.htm#Page_175">175</a></li> -<li class="isub1">entertains La Barge, <a href="#Page_334">334</a></li> -</ul> -</div></div> - -<div class="chapter"><div class="transnote"> -<h2 class="nobreak p1" id="Transcribers_Notes">Transcriber’s Notes</h2> - -<p>Old English lettering on the pages preceding the Table of Contents -is represented here in <b>boldface</b>.</p> - -<p>Punctuation, hyphenation, and spelling were made consistent when a -predominant preference was found in the original book; otherwise they -were not changed.</p> - -<p>Simple typographical errors were corrected; unbalanced quotation -marks were remedied when the change was obvious, and otherwise left -unbalanced.</p> - -<p>Illustrations in this eBook have been positioned between paragraphs -and outside quotations. In versions of this eBook that support -hyperlinks, the page references in the List of Illustrations lead to -the corresponding illustrations.</p> - -<p>Running page headers are shown here as Sidenotes, usually positioned -just above the paragraph they summarize. When such Sidenotes summarize -footnotes, they are positioned above the paragraphs that referenced -those footnotes.</p> - -<p>This is Volume II of a two-volume set. The Index covers both -Volumes. Volume I, which also is available at no cost at Project -Gutenberg, ends on page 248 and this volume begins on page 249. Page -numbers referring to Volume I are double-underlined in the Index, while -page numbers referring to this volume (II) are single-underlined. Links -from this Index to pages in Volume I may work with a Browser, but not -with mobile formats (epub/mobi).</p> - -<p>The index was not checked for proper alphabetization or correct page -references.</p> - -<p>Footnotes have been renumbered to continue the sequence begun in -Volume I.</p> - -<p><a href="#Page_254">Page 254</a>: Missing footnote anchor added by -Transcriber. Based on the context of the text, this likely is in the -right place.</p> - -<p><a href="#Page_276">Page 276</a>: “6 1-2” was printed that way.</p> - -<p><a href="#Page_306">Page 306</a>: Missing footnote anchor added by -Transcriber. This may not be in the right place. The document cited in -the footnote is easily found by an online search.</p> - -<p><a href="#Footnote_58">Footnote 58</a>, originally on <a -href="#Page_311">page 311</a>: “untill” was printed that way.</p> - -<p><a href="#Page_461">Page 461</a>: Page numbers for the entry, “Yawl, -importance of, to steamboat” were omitted in the original book and -added by the Transcriber, based on an examination of the main text.</p> -</div></div> - -<div style='display:block;margin-top:4em'>*** END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK HISTORY OF EARLY STEAMBOAT NAVIGATION ON THE MISSOURI RIVER, VOLUME II (OF 2) ***</div> -<div style='display:block;margin:1em 0;'>This file should be named 64137-h.htm or 64137-h.zip</div> -<div style='display:block;margin:1em 0;'>This and all associated files of various formats will be found in https://www.gutenberg.org/6/4/1/3/64137/</div> -<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'> -Updated editions will replace the previous one—the old editions will -be renamed. -</div> - -<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'> -Creating the works from print editions not protected by U.S. copyright -law means that no one owns a United States copyright in these works, -so the Foundation (and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United -States without permission and without paying copyright -royalties. 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