The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1869-06-21

From the journal of j. j. Audoponl
Farlv N tba snrine of 1887 the steamer AT
-. - Il Fort Clark with several
casas Il sroali pox on board. There an Indian
sto,o y Ianket belonging to Waterman on
a. hoat. who was then at the point OF deatn
md took it away to SOW the seeds of this dls-
ease among his tribe, which caused MS own
death and the death of thousands OF MS na'ion'
When it was known that he had taken 1t, De-
nevolent nerson ON the boat went tie one OF the
I chiefs told him the fatal consequences which
woo,,ld follow, and offered q new blanket and a
reward besides, if be would have it returned'
but sus picion, fear or shame prevented the
man from giving it up, and the pestilence broke
out and began to spread among the Mandans
at first, to which nation the thief belonged.
Most of the Indians were distant eighty miles
at that time killing buffaloes and preparing
their; winter food and the whites sent an ex-
press, begging them to return to their villages
| and telling them what would be the fatal con-
sequences. The Indians sent back word that
their corn was suffering to be worked, and tna'
they would return and face the danger "hicn
they Thought was fabulous Word was again
sent them that certain destruo1eon "o1'u .
tend their return. But it was an ~ van, soA.
back they would, and come oacA .n0s wv, AI1
| the plague began in ITS most maiignans ioii"'
| their habits and improper food making mem
ready prey, and few hours sometimes ter
,oinating the loathsome disease by death. The
Mandans were enraged because at first it was
was confined to them, and they supposed the
whites had caused it, and saved themselves
and the Ricarees from the pestilence, and they
threatened the lives of all the former, suppos.
ing they had medicine to prevent it, which
they would not give them; but by and by Ri
cerees and whites died also; the disease in
creasing in malignty hundreds died daily, and
bodies thrown beneath the bluffs, created an
intolerable stencil which added to its fatality
Men shot each other when they found them
selves attacked. One man killed his wife and
children, and then loaded his gun, and placing
the muzzle in his mouth, touched the trigger
with his toe, and blew out his own brains
| One young chief made his friends dig a grave
| for him, and putting on his war robes, he tot
tered out TO it, singing his death song, and
| jumping h,, cut his body nearly in two will
his knife, and was buried there; and Others
committed suicide after they were attacked
rather than die of loathsome disease. The an
| nails Of pestilence do not furnish another such
example Of horrors, or where mortality was Sc
| great in proportion to the population; of thu
once powerful tribe of Mandans only twenty
seven persons remained, and one hundred ani
fifty Thousand persons persisted. and the de
tails are too horrible to relate. Added to THU
the few whites were alarmed lest the Indians
should massacre them as the cause of The
evil One influential chief attempted to insti
gate the Indians to kill all the whites, but he
was himself seized and died before his plan.
were matured; but in his last moments he
confessed his wickedness, and expressed sor
row for it, and begged that his body might be
laid before the gate of the fort until it was
buried, with the superstitious belief that il
/ this were done the white man would always
think of him and forgive bis meditated crime.