The Milan exchange. (Milan, Gibson County, Tenn.) 1874-1978, 1876-07-20
kota, distance Of 3, zoo miles. Custer

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had his faults, but if a wife's pure heart
and a character that, meets the type OF
wonanly nobility, purity, and goodness
can encircle inlits halo an object loved,
Custer can partake of her salvation, for
she, if a woman ever did, has plenty of
grace to spare. Long association with
danger, long experience with the priva-
tons and annoyances of frontier life
have sweetened rather than poisoned
her disposition, and she was as well
prepared as wife ever could be for the
pain she is suffering to-day. @
While. was the guest of General
Custer at Fort Lincoln in 1874 | was 3
witness of an incident that impressed
me. | entered his library one evening,
and found him sitting on low stool BY
his desk, with a spelling book in his
hand. Before him were two little girls,
one. white and the other colored, the
children of his servants. Apologizing
for my interruption started to with
draw, when he cried out, in his hearty
way:
"Don't goi Come in and see my
school;n and found it was his custom
daily to spend an hour hearing the reel
tations of these children, for whom at
the post there were no schools.
CUsTER's PRETENsIoNs TO LITERATURE
were not great, although ne wrote
great deal for publication and wrote
we'll. His book, " Life on the Palms,
which was originally published in the
form Of monthly papers for the GALAXY,
was a mere pastime, to occupy the
lonely days of a winters Imprisonment
on the frontier, and his subsequentpub-
locations, were made merely for the
same reason. His life was a succession
of novel and Interesting experiences,
and he had the faculty of telling them
graphically. 1t was his intention to
write series of personal "reminiscences
of the war, the first chapter of which,
a sketch of the battle of Bull Run-has
already been printed. r..... ..
f, i In the army, during the war, Custer
always dressed in what the soldiers of
the old school. called an outlandish
fashion. He had an utter disregard for
gold lace and tfappings His saddle
was always the most comfortable, and
not the most SNOWY, he could find.
When he went into battle he always
wore loose blouse, such as were used
by the ordinary soldiers as an undress
uniform, with the skirts tucked into his
trousers like shirt Under his collar
was always a strip of red flannel for a
neck cloth, with long ends that fioated
out over his Shoulder as he rode. He
always wore some light insignia of his
rank on his shoulders, and that of his
branch of the service on his hat, which
was always broad sOmbrero. This,
with heavy clanking spurs on his rough
boots, from the top of each of which
the handle of pistol was always visi-
BILE, ponderous saber at his side, and
a rifle across his elbow completed his
+" outfit" On the plains, Custer always
wore handsomely embroidered buck
Skin suit, with his red neck tie, and the
remainder of his army dress, with the
exception Of the saber, which is never
carried on the plains. As have said,
CUSTER UNDERSTOOD INDIAN CHARAC-
TER
thoroughly. In his "Life on the
Palms." he embodies his estimate of
the race in these sentences:
In studying the Indian character, while
shocked and disguised by many OF his traits
and customs, L find much to be admired, and
still more of deep and unvarying interest.
Grant that some of its pages are frightful,
and if possible to be avoided, yet the at
traction is none the weaker. Study him,
fight him, civilize him if you can, he
still remains the object of your curiosity,
type of man peculiar and underlined, sub
jecting himself TO no law Of civilization.
cORtending determinedly against all efforts
to win him from his chosen mode OF life.
He stands in the group of races solitary and
reserved, seeking alliance with none, dis
trusting all. Civilization may do much for
him, but he can never be civilized. Nature
intended him for 4 savage; every instinct,
every impulse of his soul inclines to it. The
white race might fall into barbarOus state,
and afterward be reclaimed and prosper. Not
so the Indian. He can not be himself and
be civilized. He fades away and dies. Gull
tivatiOn such as the white man has would
kill him, by depriving him of his identity.
Clusters intimate association with the
Indians, while it had heightened his re-
spect for their ability as warriors, in
creased his confidence that he, with his
regiment, could cope with many times
his numbers, and convinced him of his
superiority to them. He was always
very reckless in his dealings with them,
trusting implicitly in his knowledge of
their nature and habits, and in the gen
eral belief prevalent on the frontier that
an Indian viii avoid rather than seek
an open fight. | remember asking
Custer once if he did not fear sur
prise some time which might result in
his death. / can not recall the exact
words of his reply, but the idea was
that if he had to die he would like very
much to meet on even terms the man
who was to kill him, and die in strug-
rrla He naliznh his uuiSh