The Morning herald., 1878-06-25

HORSES, lew rusty mining tools. ana Otner
relics of white mans camp. They were
found In the centre Of a natural fort or for
tifcation, upon the crest of rocky back
bone or ledge. The large slabs Of loose
stone set up edgeways as a wall of protec-
tion are still in position as left by the un-
known pioneers who were killed there per-
baps generation before The bones were
hleached and decayed, and had certainly
lain there for years. i :
Another positive evidence of the early oo-
cupation of the Black HILLS was furnished
by the Times In 1876, when another and q
larger deserted camp was discovered near
TallaDt's stockade, on French creek. Here
Col. Tallant, the leader of the white colo
nists expelled from the hills In the summer
OF 1875, pointing out the remains Of white
mems settlements. In the bed of the creek
was the rotting remains of rudely copstruc-
ted sluice boxes, formed by choppiug the
heart out of cottonwood logs. There were
four or five of these, two of them In ad-
vanced state of decay. The remains of two
shovels, rusted, rotten and decayed pieces
| of tin, and fragments of iron, evidently Of
frying pans and kettles, were found not far
from the decayed sluice boxes. Near where
| these curious relics were found was seen
| the former home of these mysterious and
unknown pioneers. A few pine poles, rot
ted by age and falling down, were found
leaning against a sheltering rock, not far
from the creek. These had formed the
support to the rude miners home many
years before. h.
The strangest and most interesting fea-
ture about this camp was rude wooden
cross, formed by pins poles tied together
with rawhide, and which stood upright
against a rock not far from the rIips of the
old cabin. On one side of this cross, rudely
cut into the face of the moss -br )wn granite
rock, were two letters, 81. M )" and the
date, "1846." This had evidently been
erected to mark the grave Of some unfor-
tunate pioneer who had died there thirty
years before. The fate of his companions
can only be conjectured but from the ap-
pearance of the camp ground, the broken
tools and camp equipage, 1t Is inferable
that they fell victims to the erocity of the
Minnecouyous or blood thirsthy Uncapapas
who now follow the uncomprimising Sit
ting Bull.
| JULIET pocitlNo cpluCtCe ID DcluS uIuiouCu
from various sources. The Omaha Bee gives
the statements Of Mr.. Wicher, one of the
Black Hills pioneers, who has been talking
with the Oldest settler of the upper Mis-
souri, country, La Plant. La Plant asserts
that be visited the Black Hills twenty six
years ago aud that white men had visited
and explored the hills before he went there
He says he can lead the way to the cave
where he and his companions lived while
exploring the "sombre elevations" and
point to the names and dates inscribed upon
the rocks.
There is no room left for doubt as to the
discovery ofgold in the Black Hills as early
as l846 Evidences of this are being dis
covered in the various parts of that mys'
terious region. The mystery about the
matter Is what became of these early ex-
plorers. A party of ten started from Fort
Laramie in 1864, and were never heard o.
again. La Plant knows of party of Chou
teau's Iaen who went to the hills in 1859
but who never returned. Judging from
the many discoveries recently made in the
valleys of the Black Hills, all the early
pioneer gold seekers met the same fate
death at the hands of the saVages.