Union County courier. [volume] (Elk Point, Union County, D.T. [S.D.]) 187?-1913, 1885-03-04
OUR BISMARCK BUDGET.
he Sessisn Drawing to . Cosc-Sitting
Ball and Chief Gaul-Fort Lin.
coln-Capital Gossip.

The Capital City of Dakota viii o
be relegatcd to its wonted quictness, and
the poker tables and other institutions Of
their class will be closed, or move to more
congenial chimes. Over forty days of the
present session have passed. and the re-
mainder Of the stssion will soon take
wing; yet there have been no such dis
graceful scenes enacted IS are sometimes
witnessed away back in some Of the So
called civilized States. Even Senator
Vest could not find cause for complaint
against the Dakota Legislature, unless it
be for the supreme contempt which the
the unmitigated ignorance which he man
ifests of the rapid progress and wonder
full development of this bright star, which
is now rising above the Northwestern
horizon. Democrats and Republicans
alike demand o division of the Territory
and the admission of the southern half as
. State. The demands and e~ntreaties of
half . million free people may be ignored,
their rights denied, and their intelligence
and honor ridiculed for q time; but q day
will come in the near future when Dakota
will stand in the United States Congress
- strong IS her strongest traducers. You
then look out for Q reckoning. Her
people have adopted Patience and Per-
severance for their motto, and have con
cluded to hammer away at the common
object till they arrive at success, knowing
no such word as fail.
Bismarck is in the near neighborhood
OF the Indian country, as is evidenced by
the frequent appearance of some of the
red race upon her streets. Old Gaul, the
chief who, it is said, planned and con-
Quoted the celebrated Custer battle, has
been showing himself in the opera houses
of Bismarck. So, too, has the aged Sit
ting Bull, to whom the credit ~ of the,
Custer massacre has been universally
awarded. Really, old Sitting Bull is the.
sage, or Big Medicine, while Gaul is one
of the Field Marshals. The former is,
numbered with the old men, while the
latter is numbered with the young.
These bloody leaders are not on very
friendly terms. The one very much dis
likes to hear the other mentioned as a big
chief, or as the victor in the celebrated
massacre above named. No doubt Gaul
is physically superior to his old rival. He
is large of frame, weighs about $50
pounds, and is as fat as a corn-fed steer.
He has been to New Orleans lately, being
shown there as a part of the Dakota ex.
hibit. We have no doubt but Gaul
would draw like Q house on fire at New
Orleans, but it is an open question
whether or not he makes a very good i'm
migration agent. His efforts in the past
in that direction have not produced the
most flattering results. But Gaul was in
trouble while in New Orleans. He found
more to eat than he could dispose of, and
it made him very unhappy. 1t was the
chief anxiety of his mind. He thought
of his people back here on the reservation
on short Government rations and tor lazy
to work for more, and the situation was
ugonizing. His daily prayer was that
when he and his people die they might go
to New Orleans.
Old Sitting Bull is now at peace with
the pale face. His age forbids q contin-
uation Of the pleasures surrounding the
war-path, and there is evidently a tanning
down of the Joy he has had to see the
white man fall. Both Sitting Bull and
Gaul are proud of their greatness and of
their victory over Custer and his little
band Of Spartans, and frequently men
ton the fact that the iron-talkers (tele-
graph tell all about them, and that the
fron-talkers speak only of great chiefs.
Their vanity is as bOundless, their
thoughts as childish, and their personal
manners as offensive as their warfare
is brutal. The civilized quality Of manli-
uC0S ~ III CbtSA INV shSAA pSAh
The people here have a mania for
Indian relics. In the parlors, halls,
and sitting rooms the eye of the visitor
catches the familiar beaded moccasin, the
red-stone pipe with its long, reed-like
stem trimmed with tassels and cords, In.
dian pottery, knives, sheaths, ~feathered
arrows and beaded quivers. 1nfantile
canoes trimmed with beads, porcupine
Quills and metallic buttons, are also
among the objects of interest.
Fort Lincoln is but five miles away,
Just across the river, and can be seen
from the hills heal the city. The Fort is
a place of interest here in both winter and
summer. In winter time it affords a very
fine sleigh ride upon the river, and be
comes quite q resort for ~socials, parties,
etc. The officers and their wives form an
important factor of the society of the
Capitol City. There are no society
doings which are complete without a rep
resentative from the Fort, and, the ofh
csrs in full dress, with swords dangling
0 their feet and Gathering among The
furniture, Villa sometimes an Academia
tear through some Isay's silk dress, lend.
o royal air to the proceedings which
nothing else q do. Bismarck is, in
deed, fortunate in the neal proximity 81
Fort Lincoln; for the Fort is to Bismarcl
Just what Governors Island is to New
York City-though we beg pardon OF tn
city of Bismarck for the ridiculous com
parison!
Electricity is a subject of much inter
est in this polar region. At the Capito
building, by walking a few steps over tn
carpets, q person becomes so charged a
to make it somewhat funny, if not annoy
ing, at times, to shake hands with q friend
or to touch or handle the furniture. A
you extend your hand for the shake. jus
before the contact you are struck b,
lightning-an electric spark that carrie
with 1t shock that is by no means trifinp
Indeed, some Of the members of the Les
i~slature have wholly ceased to put thei
hands upon the steam-pipes which ar
used in heating the hall, as the shock re
ceived is so great at times as to be eA
tremely unpleasant. If a member take
few steps upon the carpet, and comm
up behind an unsuspecting brother, point
his finger at the top of his bald head 9
to his ear. the funny part is at once az
parent; and this little trick has been S
often practiced that members now al
mostly on their guard, and they Away
view with suspicion any attempt to pas
behind them. A notable feature of thl
phenomenon is that all persons are M
affected alike. Some are susceptible
but . very hight eA>-ee, ~hile etAors al
20 powerfully affected as to be feared j
shaking hands; and this electric charge
by no means in proportion to the physic,
strength of the individual, some Of th
stronger and stouter physiques being th
weaker In electrical power. This electr
effect is also greater as we approac
nearer to the earth; but it is sufficient
strong upon the fourth floor to afford u
little amusement.
The Legislature went off again la
Friday on a junketing tour, this time
Fargo. During its absence, O. Saturda,
the third house met and transacted SON
business, introducing several ridiculo,
bills, among which was one proposing
amend the Lords prayer. Your corr
spondent did not learn the nature of Il
amendments proposed, but is of the OPT
ion that the average member of the THU
house has little use for the Lords pray
in in its present form. FEEDER.
DAKOTA DAsHES.