The Bozeman weekly chronicle., 1888-02-08

for both parties to meet at the mouth oi
the Columbia, and there establish the
post. Soon after the overland party left
St. Louis, in 1910, they met two men
coming down the Missouri from the up.
river posts of the Northwest Fur COM
pany. One of these men was Ramsey
Crooks, whose adventurous spirit would
not allow him TO miss the chance of pen.
etrating the great unknown wilderness
west of the Missouri, and he turned
back with the Astor party. They left
the Missouri somewhere about Cannon
ball river, struggled across what is now
Wyoming, and
AFTER MANY MIsHAPs
| arrived on the bank OF Snake river some
where below Jackson's lake. For many
days they followed down that river sup
posing it would lead them by the short
est route to the Pacific Day after day
they suffered the agonies of thirst as
they Travelled along the brink of the can
yon, while the river surged along
uCb"SCh NCitlNul Nhlio VI lhNd,
tantalizlng them by the continual sight
of laughing waters, SO near, and vet be.
yond their reach. About this time the
party between demoralized and split up.
Ramsey Crooks got sick and was left be-
hind to die, but he didn't die. He fell
in with some Indians who fed him and
cared for him, and he lived with them
nearly year, travelling through the
mountains north of Snake river, in a re.
| gion well watered with clear creeks
most of which ran northward. He and
his savage companions undoubtedly
hunted the region lying between Deer
Lodge creek and the National Park, and
it is quite probable that they spent some
of their time on the creek that long
since was dubbed "Silver Bow" by
THE FIRST PRospEc-ToRs
in these parts. Crooks finally got tired
of his savage companions, and began 10
long for suit of clothes; SO he turned
his face westward, and just year after
he had been left by the Astor party, they
met him at the Dalles of the Columbia
He was then stark naked, and his per-
sonal property consisted solely of an ap,
petite that threatened to exhaust the
supplies of the party. They were ther
going back to the States, and Crooks
having had his system thoroughly
Saturated with solitude, had acquired
such hankering after society that hi
turned back with them. They finally
| reached the Settlements and Crooks wen
home to visit his mother, who lived oI
a farm at little post village called 81
Anne's, in the Township of Nelson
v County Of Halton Canada. While ther
Crooks took great pleasure in telling hi
friends about wonderful series of cave
that his Indian friends showed him il
. the country where the rivers run north
ward. From his description of the coun
try it was evident that the caves wer
somewhere between the
GALLATIN AND MADISON
rivers. He SAID there were two hig
l IluRCb VI lihiSSIohCy l'SIlOCtly
combed BY maze of caves and passage
J, having an area of many acres in exten
The Indians (Shoshones) regarded Il
caves with superstltious awe, believin
them to be inhabited by evil spirit
,. Some years before, while at warfare vii
the Crows, a large party of Shoshon
had taken refuge in the caves, and son
of them who undertook to explore Il
passages never came back, and were su
= posed to have fallen victims to demo
who made their homes in the bowels
y the earth, reached by the passag
= through the limestone. Crooks said
entered one or two of the cave openin
and heared such uncanny sounds in the
that he hastily withdrew, but on reh
IN, tion, he concluded that the soun
m are might have been caused by a creek IL
on ran down gulch, and entered the mot
tain at the foot of a limestone cl
81, Crooks spent most of the remainder
,ye his life about Lake Superior,
VI" IN THE SERVICE
,sns, ofthe Northwest and hudson's Bay ca
r, panies. and many years ago, he diet
the old homestead at st. Anne's. Hav
heard that party of surveyors
visited wonderful series of caves alb
! Spanish Creek, which puts into the "
ing Gallatin, and believing them to be
his same caves visited by Ramsay Crooks
M. 1S10-1l, Miner reporter Yesterday {
cd on Mr.. G. D. Pierce, at the
sw Engineers office, to ascertain the ia
Mr.. Pierce SAID that last October, W
iva iva engaged on the land surveys in the e
lam ern edge OF Madison county, more
nan. ticularlv in Township 4, South of Ra
or. 8 East. he and three friends visited
caves. His companions were Nal,
. Mcdonald, of Santa Rosa, Cal.
,ME C,meron, of River Falls, Wis, and "
Tilton, of Butte. They followed d
ana email tributary of Spanish Creel
the where it disappeared in hole, at
oade foot of a limestone cliff. A little ful
&C is down the gulch there was another {
said ing, where, at high water. accordil
atin anc man named Evans,
,e for ,y,ou,s, ,,>,,
de. "ao mas a hASeh
On of =, =,
issu- in the neighborhood. there isa discl
%nsn 'penr of surplus water. On both sides o
gulch, in two high ridges of lines
there are numerous openings, and
'rk' ridges are evidently honeycombed
described by Ramsey Crooks.
party damned up the creek, so
turn it down the gulch. They toun
gned, creek entrance too small to creep thl
: sonS nf hut they entered another hole nea
yainst and after creeping about twenty
a four found themselves in large cha
ranns 1nls The tallow candles they carried il
T. the of torches, did not afford satist
nty Of light, but they could see that the
- +Lo H., mas about fort,