The Middlebury register and Addison County journal. [volume] (Middlebury, Vt.) 1883-1885, 1885-02-06
STORIES ABOUT A SCOUT.
THE LIVELY CAREER OF LIVER
EATING JOHNSON"
Episodes i'm the Campaign Against
CHIEF JOseph-HEOw the Scout Got
Ilis Name-SCared Soidiers.

Inv NOV 'iiilC nlCb lIlNtl- EuIlUD
johnson, the scout" said an officer of
the Seventh Horse, "was in 1877, when
we were out after the Nez Perces. 1t
was pretty lively campaigning that sum
mer and what with Howard, Miles and
Sturgis in the field, trying to capture
Chief Joseph, good scouts were in de-
mand, for every small party detached
from either of these three columns
operating against the Indians must have
guide; and he must be one who knew
his business, able to detect the faintest
signs of Indians, and quick and sure
on the trail. Johnson came to us from
the Crow agency at Saltwater, where
he spent most of his time when not en-
gagged in trapping A tall, burly fell
low, standing more than six feet in his
moccasins and weighing over two nun
dred pounds, his strong, wcll-knit, mus
cular frame and his face, framed in am
plitude of flowing beard and curly locks,
would have made him conspicuous in a
crowd anywhere.
Gle was tirst-class scout, bold and
quick to scent danger. You see he had
lived so long among the Indians that he
was up TO all their tricks. But Liver
Eating's forte was telling stories of
frontier life, and he had good stock of
them at his tongues end There was
hardly night during that campaign that
group of officers did not gather at the
amp-fire to listen to him. So admirable
areconteur was he that the thought often
occurred to mc-and, presume, to 9TH
ers-that, with proper education, he
might have made his mark in the world.
OF course, like many frontiersman.
especially when speaking of his own ex-
ploits, he was greatly given to eXaggera-
tion-lying, we call it in Montana but
his stories whether truthful or lying,
were, as l have said, always entertain
ing, and never failed to draw n full
house If remember rightly, he said, he
had spent the summer of rs (the year of
the Custer tight) in Whoop-Up country.
That's the country north of Benton and
near the international boundary line. 1t
is the paradise of smugglers and horse
thieves, where the traders have their
houses built right on the line-half on
American and half on British soil. They
have revolving or reversible bars, so that
when they see the mounted police com
ing to hunt for contraband VIII isky they
transfer the stock to the American side
their villainous 'rotgut.'
"But, with all his keenness while
scouting. l noticed johnson generally
took mighty few chances himself, and
ran no risks that could be avoided
Coming across some very fresh signs oil
bear while hunting, asked him to 90 in
the brake with me and SEQ if we could
find the game. With a perfectly sober
face, he said: well, Lieutenant, you
and your man go in and stir him up, and
III shoot him when he comes out ON the
other side One day, while scouting
near the mouth of the Musselshell, he
pointed to belt of timber near at hand
and remarked: There is where | got
the name of Liver Eating. You see,
said he, there was party of twenty OF
us hunters and trappors camped here in
'6S. The country was just full of game
and Indians, and beaver was almost as
thick as buffalo. We were having sp,en-
did luck, and our camp was Just piled
with peltry. But one morning we were
jumped by band of abont fifty Sioux,
who circled toward us, whooping and
yelling like devils, and firing under the
necks of their ponies. We gave them @
volley, and the Indians, thinking We
were armed with the common rifle,
rushed in. But most of us had repeat.
ing rifles Gt was the first season VIC
had them in the Territory, and
as they came on we gave them another
round, which fairly staggered them, but
when we pulled on them again more
surprised lot of bucks you never saw
They skinned out quick, but we gave il
to them on the run, and dropped nearly
every last one of them.
81 saw one buck tumble from his pony
and crawl into the bush, so | went ir
after him. Putting my knife into him
gave it turn, and when / pulled i
out there was a piece of his liver stick
ing to the knife. So I held it up anc
jim, won't you take q bitter That's al
there is to the story. Some say | ate it
but it's lie" "They do saw" con
tinued Captain -, 'that johnson
really ate piece of the liver as Indians
sometimes do, believing they acquire tn,
brave qualities of the man they nav,
killed. / remember one day Will
scouting with a detachment, we CAM
upon Joseph's trail. 1t was near the foo
of the Heart mountains and miles ava,
from the columns of Sturgis. The trai
was very fresh, and at little distaac
ahead of us could be seen the bodies o
two white men. AS soon as Liver
Eating, who was in the lead. struck tn
trail and saw the bodies lying Their
he came galloping back, and yelled out
"There have been moro than million
Indians here inside OF ten minutes Well
sir, you could have knocked me dow
with feather, for l was scared; an,
when looked around and saw the whit
faces of my men, more than half of whom
were green recruits | was afraid of
stampede, but instantly gave the wor,
TO dismount, leaving every fourth ma
to hold the horses of the others. This
of course, prevented the men from STAN
peding; and then | ordered the scout t.
ascend the hill in front and look for In
dams. He refused at first, but | toll
him he was a dead man if he disobcved
and, seeing meant business land I woul
have shot him, sure) he rode on. eau
tiously ascending the hill he took Oh