The Livingston enterprise., 1889-12-25
YELLOWSTONE PIONEERS.

YELLOWSTONE PIONEERS.
Being Brief "Reminiscences by the old
Yes, I'm holed up for the winter, and
as time hangs heavily with the old man
don't care il do do little bit Of the
reminiscence business for the ENTER
PRISE holiday number, and Nope your
readers won't become literally worn out
listening to an old mans drivel.
Sitting before my te2ee fire the old
boys come before me-the living and the
dead, hard times and jolly ones, comedy
and tragedy-all a jumbled up mess, and
don't know where or how to begin.
When | was little boy was pre-
sented with Kaleidoscope reminding
me that this will be that kind Of an arti
cle
You all know JEFF Standifer tall, sin
ewy, straight H.; IN arrow; long, black
hair, dark, piercing eyes. corteous as q
Chesterfield to Il stranger or friend,
and with foe malignant us old
Appollyon in fact, the beau ideal Of q
frontiersman was poor jeff.
What checkered life he led. He
fought Indians in an early day in Ore
gon and on the Pacific slope generally;
prospected from British America down
to the halls Of the Montezumas; wounded
repeatedly, he soon recuperated and was
again on the trail in quest OF Indians OF
gold, and frequently looking for both at
the same time. 1t was in Mexico that
jeff and his brother had a valuable mine,
erected costly works and were ready to
commence reaping the rich harvest they
were justly entitled to, when one Of
those frequent revolutions took place,
resulting in their plant being destroyed
by fire, several Of their employees muir
dered and jeff and his brother fleeing
for their lives What thrilling story
that was, their escape from Mexican
soil-mostly by night marches as mar
rated by jeff in his quiet manner while
seated at the camp fire.
The old man remembers his once say
ing that in single nights march on
that terrible run for life, they counted,
while passing through the chapparel,
twenty three dead bodies Yes, their
claim against the Mexican government
was settled. but not until after jeff had
been tucked in his blankets for the last
time. jeff, in 1871, with Frank Grounds
and Jack Baronett, piloted govern
ment expedition through the country
now kl. own as the National Park. Re-
turning from that, he hunted and pros
pected in the Cooke region for time
and then went to BrdRer, having been
employed by the government to act a.
chief scout for IL command then prepa,
ing to move against the Indians. AL
was ready to start, when jeff, for the
first time, weakened by going to join the
greater command above. II there are
front seats there jeff will have one, if
for no other reason than for the love he
took from his savage foes. Farewell,
JEFF! The daisies might bloom over the
last resting place OF better frontiersmen
than you were, but they were not in the
circle Of the old mans acqualntances.
Associated with Jetf for some time
was Frank Grounds You remember
him? A perfect Hercules: sandy hair,
bearded like pard, eyes OF a hawk, Of |
quiet demeanor, rarely ever smiling, and
yet, withal, most pleasant camp COM
panion. Frank never laid claim to be-
ing d better man than he was. In pros
pecting he worked diligently and was
rewarded by several finds which, owing
to his love OF nomadic life, he fairly
gave away in preference to settling down
andeleveloping the same. In the chase
he was perfect Nimrod, and when
starting on the red skins trail he fol-
lowed it up until he got hair. No Won
der then that the gallant members Of
the:'.eenowned Bozeman expedition |
ele,ael him as their commander. Have
'yotrst,rgotten how that intrepid band
wuI,oalown the Yellowstone in search of
edlA una found slathers of Indians?
D5. { you remember hearing how the