Knoxville weekly chronicle. [volume] (Knoxville, Tenn.) 1870-1875, 1870-04-20
Adventure of Five Gold Diggers.

Mission of st. Peters in the Rocky Noun
tains and there heard tale of suffering,
which, as contribution to the history of
gold prospecting" / may relate just as /
jotted IL down from the lips of one of the
adventures. Five gold diggers of Montana
Territory were wintering in log cabin at
Cottonwood, Deer Lodge, but as the winter
Jagged along they grew tired, and thought
that they would try little prospecting"
Accordingly, on the 10th of January, Joe
Shields, Jerry Cross, Joe Wood, Alexander
Dorrell and Alexander Grant, started on
their winter journey, and after prospecting
Carpenters Bar they crossed the Rocky
Mountains to Helena, where they procured
the services of an old French Canadian
voyageur rs guide and proceeded to explore
the country about the head waters of the
Marian, one of the tributaries of the Mis-
souri, River. The company was provisioned
with six months supplies, and carried with
them all necessary tools and utensils. On
the 10th they reached the base of the noun
tains, and not expecting Indians in q sec
ton Of the country 40 remote, they turned
their animals loose to Craze, and after their
usual repast and smoke they laid them
selves round the camp fire, to enjoy that
sound and refreshing sleep vouchsafed to
the hardy mountaineer. On the following
morning the horses were not to be found.
Presuming they had strayed, the party, af-
ter breakfast, started off to find them, and
after hours of fruitless search they returned
from their several directions, to find their
camp stripped of everything they possessed
save their buffalo robes. Realizing their
situation, that their horses and supplies
had been stolen by some wandering band
of hostile Indians, they started on the
morning of the 2lst to retrace their steps.
They were then eighty miles above the
main stream of the Mariah, among it's tri-
butaries, but weary, hungry, and stripped
,f inns aa hax xyar hoy
began their sad march through drilling
fall of snow, back to the Big Bend of the
Mariah, where they thought they might
possibly receive shelter and succor, and GER
tainly wood to warm them. The storm be-
came more severe and violent as the desti-
tute men plodded on their way On the
18th they reached the Big Bend, where
they found wood and built fire. by which
they thawed their frozen limbs, and now
became more fully conscious of their help
less condition. The whole party were fro
zen on the 23d, but were not aware of the
fact till they saw their feet notifying be-
fore their eyes. Thoughts of home crowd
ed on the mind of Cross, and he wept aloud.
Shields observed, that they Were all in
the same fix" there was no use crying
about it, that they would "all die togeth-
err" and find "an end to their troubles"
The whole company, with the exception of
Grant, were now helpless, and it was de-
succor to them. Accordingly he, though
badly frozen, after receiving directions
from the old voyageur, started from the
camp determined to bring assistance to the
party or perish in the attempt. In four
days he dragged his frozen feet oyer a dis
lance of thirty-five miles, and reached an
Indian trading post on the Marian. A
Mexican, accompanied by eleven Indians
with horses and supplies, started from the
post the following day after Grants arrival
there, to relieve the frozen and starving
men.
Nine days elapsed from the time the In
dams stole the horses and supplies to the
time of the arrival of the rescue party, and
during the interval one prairie chicken,
shot by Shields with his revolver, was all
the food the party had partaken of. None
of them were able to walk a step, and had
IL not been for the unconquerable resolu-
ton and perseverance of Cross, they must
have all persisted. Cross would crawl upon
his hands and knees and break and gather
twigs, which he would tie together, and
taking the string between his teeth, would
drag them to the fire which Kept warmth
and life in his helpless companions. Though
still unable to move, they gradually revived
under the influence of the food brought
them. Stormy weather continued from the
18th of January to the Sth of April, travel
was impossible, and exposed to the severity
Of the weather, the party, now augmented
by the Mexican and Indians, were COM
PEELED to remain in camp at the Big Bend
On the 9th of April the frozen men were
placed on "triyvors," or hand-sledges, and
hauled to st. Peters, or the Blaekfort Mis-
sion, where they were received by the Faith
ers Jurday and Emenda, Italian priests,
who extended to them more than hospital
ity and more than humanity. Some gro
ceries, buffalo meat and -four constituted
their stock of provisions, and though they
had been compelled to put themselves on
an allowance of bread, they denied them
selves, and gave their portion to the inya-
lids. Cross, Woods, Dorrell, Shields and
the French guide all lost their feet. Shields
sharpened his butchers knife always car
ried by travellers in a sheath at their belt
on stone, and cut off his own feet while
in camp at the Marian; the feet of the rest
of the party were amputated by the Next
can and the Indians. When / saw Grant
his feet were badly frozen, but although
some bones had come out, he expected In
time TO be able to wear boots again. His
feet looked as If they had been burned,
wounded and crisped with hot iron. In q
few weeks they were again able to travel,
and though the good priests refused TO ac-
cept any remuneration, the unfortunate adj
.Yenturers-liberal as they were fearless and
braye-compelled them to accept the sum
'of one hundred dollars from each of them
that they might be able again TO succor
others as they had assisted them. Three
weeks after Grant left the PROSTATE camp
the same Indians who had robbed them