Abilene weekly reflector. [volume] (Abilene, Kan.) 1888-1935, 1888-12-13
"REMINISCENCES
or An Old Trapper in the West
Fifty Years Ago.
S. e. Ward Recounts His Early and Event
full Experiences in the Forests and
on the Plains-Fighting Indians
and Trapping Beaver.

Fifty years ago, when Kansas City
consisted of a warehouse and there
was not a single private residence of
civilized man between the Missouri
river and San Francisco, S. Z. Ward
landed from a steamer at Independ-
ence. Then he was a penniless youth
of eighteen years, directly from the pa
ternal home in Virginia, filled with
eager desire to gain a fortune in the
far West. Now at sixty-eight years,
Mr.. Ward is almost twice a millionaire
and one of the most respected citizens
of Western Missouri. He is one of the
few pioneers that are left to speak of
the struggles and triumphs of early
Western life.
1t required but a few minutes, says
correspondent of the st. Louis Globe
Democrat, to become acquainted and to
breach the object of the visit Knock
ing the ashes from a large pipe against
the edge of a marble mantelpiece,
after filling the bowl and lighting it,
Mr.. Ward sank into an easy chair.
Eyes, l have had some experiences
that do not fall to the ordinary lot of
man. Thrown by circumstances into a
new country in my earlier life, have
travelled thousands of miles alone
through the mountains and across the
prairies, and often spent weeks without
meeting a single human being. Ex-
posed to snow, sleet, and rain, with no
shelter but buffalo robe, and at times
with starvation staring me in the face,
the chances seemed slight. indeed, of
ever coming out alive. During my ex-
perience in the West / met Fremont in
his expeditions through the mountains,
saw Brigham Young on the Platte
river, as he was on his way to found
Mormon empire; passed through the
stormy period of the Mexican War, the
California gold excitement, the civil
war, and witnessed the opening of the
Pacific railroad and the mighty influx
of population on the plains of the great
West.
The first seven years of my life on
the frontier were passed largely in
intercourse with Indian tribes, extend
ing from the Red river on the south, to
the upper waters of the Columbia and
Yellow stone on the north. Hunting,
trapping and trading were the only
occupations open to white men west of
the Missouri river in those days. In
little bands of from two to twelve the
hunters and trappers roamed through
out this vast region with little fear of
the red skins. The Indians had not
contracted the vices of civilization,
and were different race of people
from what they are to-day. The cruel
ties we read of as practiced by them in
later years were unknown. l never
knew of prisoner being burned at the
stake, and ordinarily the hunter felt as
safe in an Indian country as in his own
settlement. The Indians were armed
with bows and arrows, not more than
one out of fifty being the possessor of a
gun. When an Indian did own a gun it
was usually light shot gun, that
proved Ineffective at any great distance.
IAN experienced frOntiersman con-
sidered himself proof against any num-
Der of Indians. By means of the sign
language we were able to talk with
the Indians upon all subjects, and as
they were great takers and inveterate |
story-tellers, many is the hour l have
passed, seated by the campfire, hear
ing their adventures or the legends of
their nations. / have often wondered
why the sign language. as recognized
and perfected by the Indians, was not
adopted among civilized people instead
of the deaf and dumb alphabet. The
Indians methods of communicating his
ideas is much more expressive and |
The Cheyennes and Arapa-
hoes were especially noted for their |
skill in sign language"
By the way of illustration Mr.. Ward |
gave many examples of the ability of |
signs to express thoughts upon every |
imaginable subject. The signs were
all given with the hands, each move
ment representing an entire phrase or
sentence.
''Were the Indians good hunters?'
I'm some respects superior to the
whites. They knew nothing of trap
ping beaver until taught by the whites,
but they could give valuable points on
bagging the large game on the plains.
Forty or fifty years ago the plains were
swarming with buffalo. l have often
seen droves so large that no eye could
them. Their numbers were
countless. The Indian hunter riding
bareback would guide his horse head
long into the midst of the herd, sing
ling out the latest, and in an instant
sending the deadly arrow clean through
his victim. In single days hunt they
sometimes killed from 5000 to 1000
buffalo. The dead bodies would lie
scattered over the prairie for miles. 1t
required the greatest diligence to save
the skins and dry the meat for use in
winter. They made wholesale slaugh-
YER OF antelope by forming a surround |