Memphis daily appeal. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1847-1886, 1876-07-09
Official Repert OF the Engagement
Which Resulted in so Overwhelming
a Disaster-The Sioux in Strong
Force.
The Brave and Daring CHs'er Evidently
Counted Without his Host -RenO's
Narrow EscaPe-PrePaTatiOns
for Revenge.
Position and Condition Of Crooks Forces
The Indians Uneasy-Den Cam
erOn's Communication
Sketch OF General
Custer.
FOsI' ON AND UcNalIION or GENERAL.
F'R0Ok'S COMMAND

ef General Crooks staff, who want on
with the expectation, yetuFDeS I
Omaha yesttrdsy. He ieFt Cgook on on
OF the small FORKS Of Tongue RIVER, st III
base OF the Big Horn mountains, or
hundred and eighty-six miles from For
tetterm2n, s1d shout two hundred au
sixty-two miles from the railroad, tn
command Is awaiting the arrival OF sue
plies and reinforcenants. The Latter
consisting of Eve Companies, left For
Fettermau July Attn, and is expected :
reach Crock about the tWeFh. He vii
also be joined Monday by ebcus on
hundred and fifty Snake Indians, These
with the troops, viii increase the mum
Der Of zfen in the expedition to owe
fourt ,en hundred. M'Kerson does no
opprebend any danger to the expsdf
ton; neither does Crook. He does no
look upon the attack OF a few weeks ag,
IS defeat, and is confident that Crool
can and will whin the Sioux as soon q,
reinforcements arrive. Crooks ioostioI
is not over fifty miles frona the scene O
the Caster massacre.
OFFICIAL REPORT OF THE ENGAGE
MEET.
CHICAGO, July S.-The following /;
| the official report OF 1energl Terry o
Clusters engagement with the Indians
which was received at the headquartert
Of GsnerEl Sheridan to-day:
"HEADoUARrERs DErr. or DA1o-A. ,
| camp ON LITTLE BIG HeRS RIVER.
"JnGe q, 1876. J
"A5yutsnt General Of the Military Division o.
the missouri, at Chicago:
alt is my painful duty to report ths;
day before yesterday, the twenty-ffth
instant, great disaster overlook Gen
eral Custer and the troops under his
command. at twelve O'Clock of the
twenfy second, hs 5:erted with his
whole regiment and g strong detaci.
| ment Of scouts an0 guards, from ."
mouth Of the Rose Bud. Proc .o,,, ,.ie ,..s
that river about twentv- uo;Ios he i,s sit,,cs,
very heavy I-r,diap trail, which had had
preVious!y Deen discovered, and pursu.
in% It found that IL led, rs was sup ocsed
I that 1t would lead, TO the Little Big
Horn river. Here he found a village Of
almost Hnexampled extent, and imme.
diStely attacked it with that
portion of his command which
was Immediately at hand. Major
Reno, with three compauies-A, G and
Moi the regiment, was sent into the
valley OF the stream at the point where
the trail struck it. General Custer, with
i've ocmpaujes-C, E, f, l and Lat
tempted to enter it about three miles
lower down. Reno forded the river,
charged down its left bank, dismounted
and fought on foot until finally, COM
pletely overwhelm by mum bels, be
was compelled to mount, recgo5s the
river, and seek a refuge on the high
bluffs which overlooked its right b&nk.
Just as he recrosse6, Captain Belton, who
With three c5mpanies-D, 81 and X
was some two miles TO the left Of Reno
when the aston commenced, but VINO
had been ordered by General Custer TO
return down the river, and rightly con-
Guiding that it was useless for his force
to attempt TO renew the fight in the VAL
ley, ne Joined Reno Oh the bluffs. Cap
tain M'Dougal, with his compaBy-B-|
was at arst at some distance ia the rear
with q train Of pack-mules. He also
came up to Reno. Soon this united force
was nearly surrounded by Indians,
many OF whom, armed with rifles, oc-
eupied positions which commanded
the ground held by the cavalry
ground from which there was no
escape. Rife pits were dug, and the
fght was msintsined, though with
heavy loss, from about half-past two
O'Clock of the tWenty-fifth until six
O'Clock Of the twenty-siXth, when the
Indians Withdrew from the valley, TAX
ing with them their village. or the
movements of General Custer, and the
five companies under his immediate
command, scarcely anything is knrwD
from those who witnessed them, for 10
soldier or officer who accompanied him
has yet been found. bis trail from the
point where Reno crossed the stream
passes along and in the Tear Of the crest
of the bluffs on the Fight bank fer nesrly
or quite three miles; then it comes down
to the bank OF the river, but st once Gi-
verges from il, as II he had unsuccess-
fully attempted to cross, then turns upon
itself, almost completes a circle, and
closes. 1t is marked by the remains Of
his officers and men, and the bodies
Of his hOIses-sOme Of them
dropped along the path, 9TH
theirs heaped where halts appear &c
have been made. There is abundant |
evidence that a gallant resistance was |
offered by the troops, but they were be. |
set on all sides by oVeTp0Wering num- |
are: Generals Custer; Captains Keogh, |
Gates and Custer; Lieutenants Cook,
Smith, M'Intosh, Calhoun, Porter, |
Hodg son, Sturgis and Reilly, Of the cav
slry; Lieutenant Critteaden, OF the !
Twentieth infantry, and Acting Assist
ant-SurgeOn DeWoli. Lieutenant Har-
-ingtoD, Of the cavalry, and Assistant
Surgeon Lord, are missing. Captain |
oV,I M A.
,avalry, are slightly wounded. Mr..
Boston Custer, brother, and Mr.. Reed,
nephew, of General Custer, were with /
lim, and were lied. No other officers
han those whom l have named are
among the killed, wounded and missing.
1t is impossible as yet to obtain 3 reIia-
Die list Of the enlisted men who we're
S'lled and wounded; but the number o.
killed, including orficers, must reach two
hundred and fifty. The number of the
wounded is titty-One. At the mouth OF |
the Rosebud informed General Custer |
that ] should take the supply-steamer
'or the west up the Yellowstone |
10 ferry General Gibbons column |
over the river, and that l should |
accompany that column, and |
that il would in Sll probability reach |
NC LlOuNh vi ADC 14ALNlc DIX Oh /
The tWenty-sixth instant The steamer
reached General Gibbons troops near
the mouth of The Big Horn early on the |
morning of the twenty-fourth, and at |
four o'clock in the afternoon all his men
and animals we're acrOes the Yellow |
stone. At five o'clock the column, COZ
sisting OF five companies IF the seventh |
infantry, four companies OF the second
Irxy and %
guns, marched out to and across Tul- |
locks creek. Starting soon after five
O'Clock on the morning OF the twenty
fifth, the Infantry made q march Of
twenty-five miles over the most Gift (
colt country which have ever seen. In
order that scouts might be sent into the
valley of the Little Big Horn, the cav
airy, with the battery, was there pushed
On thirteen or fourteen miles further,
camp st midnight. The scouts
On the morning of the tWenty.sixth.
The scouts discovered Indians, who
were at first supposed to be Sioux, but
when overtsken they proved
10 be Crows, who had been
with General Custer. They brought
he first intelligence OF the
1attle, but their story was not believed. |
L was supposed that some fighting per-
laps severe fighting, had taken place,
,ut it was not believed that disaster
;ould have overtaken 50 large force IS
we've companies Of cavalry. The in
aptry, which had broken camp very |
a ly, soon came up, and the whole col.
nan en'ered and moved up the valley
4 the Little Big Horn. During the 4