Daily press and Dakotaian. [volume] (Yankton, Dakota Territory [S.D.]) 1875-1880, 1877-10-08

Correspondence Bismarck Tribune.
FORT BUFoRD. D. T., Sept. 9th, ~.
Who is Bill Calverson? I am induced to
ask this Question as the story ofSitting Bulls
expulsion from the British Possessions, now
going the rounds Of the eastern press, intro
| duces this gentleman a. the first cause of
such expulsion.
/ cannot claim personal acquaintance with
S. Bat the same time l may say I have
before now been near enough to the red gent
to drop my up. P. c." and If the card was
not left ct his lodgings it certainly did not
deter US from taking our leave.
I nm, however, intimately acquainted,
and have been for some years, with more
than one individual who is we'll versed in
the "ways'' Of Sitting Bull, though the same
may be dark and peculiar.
From one of these gentlemen with whom
I have recently been converting upon this
subject, I CLEAN some interesting facts con-
corning this now noted savage. may add
in this connection that my informant is
perfectly reliable, has personally met and
conversed with Sitting Bull, and that from
infancy until early manhood his (my inform
ant's) life was passed in the province Of
Winnipeg or Manitoba. Sitting Bull il
then a full blooded Uncpapa Indian, and
previous to the Minnesota massacre when
Santee, Uncpapa and the rest, were the same
as one family, lived with and freequented
the camping grounds of the whole tribe.
But Sitting Bull had no partin the Mime
sofa massacre, always saying, whtn speaking
of that deplorable calamity, that he did not
wish to commit d%epredations on the whites
at that time, and that, taking his own inn
mediate tribe OF family, he struck out on
"his own hook" that in the chasing up and
following of guilty Indians he and his fol-
s1owers were attacked or hunted by the
whites, forcing him from one point to
"another, until his heart got bad toward
"the whites and he declared that he would
always be their enemy" Ny informant
says that 8. B. never was at Fort Garry
this compels ME to retract the statement in
Z former letter that he had visited that
place., and as his own home is in that vicin-
ity and he has for several years been linden
titled with trading posts in S. BIS immedi-
ate country I Am of course inclined to
believe he knows whereof he speaks.
Some seven or eight years ago Sitting Bull
made q treaty with the halfbreeds at Woody
Mountain. On his return from this point
he met ZONE half-breeds in council on the
POrcupine, some twenty-five miles north of
Fort Peck-the gentleman from whom I
have gathered the larger part of this infor-
nation was present at this council and acted
as interpreter during . part ofthe time the
council was in session. It was here that
S. B. made the declaration 30 often quoted (:
"Our hands are red with the blood of the
whites. my heart is black, and when Idle
II want to die riding q good American horse,
lighting the whites"
He has always laid great stress upon one
point 10 his councils with so.called friendly
Indians, i. e, his open and acknowledged
enmity, while they we're drinking govern
ment sugar and coffee" find sneaking out
from the agencies to commit depredations.
All this, however,. says nothing about
"Bill Culverson. Alexander Culbertson,
better known as Colonel Culbertson, was
river. Seek out tn" oldest inhabitant" here
and you have got to interview 'the natives
to do it, and you will learn that Col. Gull
bertson was, moons, yea, many moons ago,
the "boas Of all the traders in this region"
was very wealthy and doing a fine business,
but through the changes time brings to all,
no matter what may the cause; his money
slipped away, and in his declining years the
colonel was compelled to accept q position
as Interpreter at Fort Peck last winter.
Jack, the eldest, whose accomplishments as
a v~iolinist and linguipt a Tribune article
some time since ventilated, is still flourish
ing aud has recently started for the British
Possessions, with a view to securing a posit-
ion. He was for some time in the employ
of Mr.. Joseph Leighton when that gentle
man was trader at Fort Peck.
Now we are nearing the solution of the
%conundrum p%ropounded at the head Of this
article. "Bill Culverson," l take it must
refer to the younger son, or in plain Eng
lish, Joe Culbertson. He cannot be more
than nineteen years of age. or "words to
that effect" It seems hardly creditable that
this youngster exhibited any scars TO- Sit
ting Bull, =, unless he is something Of a
magician, Il would undoubtedly be a hard
matter for him to produce the scars. He
was out with Lieut. Baldwin last winter for
a short time, doing excellent service as a
tgnide. and the present season has, for a
short time, been employed as a scout, by the
government. He is now north of the line"
inthe employ Of the English authorities, as
an inter preter, andis stationed in the close
vicinity Of the camp Of Sitting Bull, Who,
perhaps, better than anyone else, knows
that jos has few scsn that his people In.
L ASAA> Dec