Bismarck tri-weekly tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, D.T. [N.D.]) 1875-1881, 1877-10-22
Miles was plenty. At four o'clock p:

SuiIy SlleIICe,. as Tue NEW LOIh dSIdlu
report from Fort Benton makes it ap
pear, and say to Miles, Il want TO sur
render to YOU Our authority 10 the
contrary is 1t, Howard, who says that
Joseph stepped up to his father and
offered him his gun. Then :t was that
Gen. Howard, although the ranking offs
fcer and the commander of the cam
paign then resulting 80 successfully,
turned Joseph over to Gen. Miles, with
the remark to 'Paddy" that 1t vas his
battle and be should have the honor of
RECEIVING THE SURRENDER. .-.
After the surrender, during the fol-
lowing night, thirty warriors and tive
hundred ponies got away. About 800
Indians and 600 ponies were captured.
Since the capture others have come in,
making the number of prisoners, war
riors, women and children, now with
Gen. Miles at the mouth of the Tongue
river at 375. As soon as Gen. Miles
was covered by the Missouri river and
apparently safe from Sitting Bull and
his 1900 warriors, if they happened to
be wickedly disposed, Gen. Howard en-
barked his 200 infantryan officers up
on the steamer Benton. His cavalry
had already started on the hcmeward
march over land-The steamer left the
mouth Of the MuscIeshell river on the
18th of ofSeptember, arriving here this a.
m. The trip was comparatively pleasant,
notable only for the low wat er and. the
sand bars now and then encountered.
The General was charmed with the
grand moon lights. .>z--7| a.
THE COMMAND ~, 1s..'
on the Benton numbers 400 men and
officers, consisting CT the companies Of
the twenty first Infantry, commanded
by Captains Mills, Burton, Jocelyn
and Pollock, and Lieutenants Haughey
and Etonhead; the companies Of the
fourth, oHicered by Capt. Miller: Capt.
Thtocmorton, Capt. Cushing, Capt.
Field, Capt. Morris, and 1t. Humphreys;
one company of.the eighth, command
ed by Capt Wells, and one Of the
twelfth by Capt. Viven. The comm and
ing officer in the absence of Gen. How:
ard is Capt. Miller, brevet C3lonel,
for gallant services in the Modoc war:
After taking on supplies from here and
Fort Lincolr, the Benton steamed away
for Omaha, from which point the com:
mand goes to San Francisco by rail and
then scatters to--1heirz posts all along
the coast. :: :: - .7y-:s,>..-- -
: :. HowARD's OPINION ..-.s-
of the Nez Perces as fighters, is that
they equal any men on the face Of the
earth. AS an: instance that Joseph was
brave one and not afraid of his bullets,
be cites seven bullet holes in the,
Chiefs clothing when he surrendered.
He speaks of Joseph as an Intelligent
and unusually good Indian. He thinks
he would have given in before he did
but others Of his tribe were for fighting
to the last ditch. He was slow to bat
tie but when in it was a terror. His
warriors thought they were to be hung,
and they naturally enough preferred to
die in the last ditch. :...:
JOSEPH COMING TO FORT LINCOLN.
Gen. Howard was advised on his arrival
this morning, that official notice had
been received at Fort Lincoln that Jo-
seph and his band would be brought to
Fort Lincoln or Bismar for the wint-
er. Gen. Howard expressed himself at
once as opposed to this movement on
account of the promises to the Nez
Perces that they should remain with
Gen. Miles for tho winter. If they are
brought here it will be breaking faith
with the captives and at once they will
be aroused and suspicious that all Of
white mans promises are good for moth
ing. Howard wants them to stay with
Miles, who is good boss, and then IN
the spring have them moved to How
ards department. He thinks he ls en-
titled to them, and we guess he is. He
states Miles was lenient with them for
the reason that they were within 40
miles of the line and Sitting Bull was
not so far off as to make the situation
absolutely free from dire possibili-
ties. Besides, as to the removal Of the
Indians from the post at the mouth OF
the Tongue river, Howard thinks the
scattered and free Nez Perces would
make trouble if ftheir captured breth-
rem were taken so far away as Lincoln
or Bismarck. 80 :--=sz.-,-:.-.- .-,-s..--
Tne General met Catholic Father
from Washington at the Sheridan
House, this morning, who was grat'fied
to learn that there was net u Catholic
Indian in the bad Nez Perces. In gem
ernl conversation the General alluded
to ice an inch thick he found at Henry
Lake in the, middle of September, and
the snow that covered the Ailes-Joseph
battle field. --.. .. .--.E.s-. -
- HowARD's OFFICIAL REPORT. -
Gen. Howard forwarded to Gen. Sher-
idan by telegraph from Bismarck, this
morning, his official report of the final
operations and surrender of the Nez Per-
ces. It was dated Oct. 10, the ssHead-
quarters s,f the Columbia in the held,
steamer Benton, Missouri river. he
first mentions that he assumed command