St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1889-10-13

from which Henry Hastings Sibley
came. on his maternal great-grandfath-
er's side. The claim of Capt. Whipple
to the honor of firing the first gun of
the revolution, upon the water, is con-
coded by all critical historians.
GEN. sIBLEY's EARLY LIFE.
Gen. Sibley was educated in the aead-
envy at Detroit. supplemented by two
years study of Greek and Latin. under
the tuition of DE-. Gadle, an Episcopal
clergyman. His father intended to
make a lawyer of him. but the profession
was too tame for one of his active dis
position. Cutting loose from his home
in his eighteenth year he wendell his
way northwest and westward until he
reached Sault Ste. Marie where he made
his business debut as clerk in Sutler
store. Som afterwards he accepted an
agency for the conduct of affairs OF a
lady who was the mOther-in-law to the
celebrated Schoolcraft. This new en-
plOyment famliarized young Sibley
with Indian affairs. His next step was
to take a position with the American
Fur company, of which John Jacob
AstOr was the head.
Bidding adieu to his friends, and to
the esteemed LADY whose affairs ne had
faithfully managed, and her three anna
bic daughters. Whose society 'begulled
the loneliness OF his evening hours, and,
in some measure, compensated Tor the
loss of home, young Sibley,. with half
dozen adventurous youths, embarked for
Mackinac in a small schooner, poorly
supplied, descending theriver st. Mary,
and encountering in Lake George a
large field of lee, in the middle OF
which. to the infinite disgust and an
nOyance of all, the trail craft was
wedged and imbedded for no less than
eight days. The marine lardef soon
exhausted, the gay youths were conf
PEELED, in order to escape absolute star
walton, to make for the shore and shoot
rabbits. prOvidentTaf abundance beng
near. This" says Mr.. Sibley. III his
notes of those times, '''WaS my first ven
ture in the hardshipS and exposures in
cident to the wild life upon which l bad
entered, and it was. luxury compared
with the privatiOnS | was compelled to
endure many long years thereafter"
During his five years service as
clerk with the fur company young Si0-
ley was appointed justice Of the peace
for the county of Maekinac, obtaining
his commission before he was OF age.
The fourth step in his career, and the
one which decided the tenor OF his
whole subsequent life, was. when IN
1884 he became partner IN the FUR
company, and was placed at the head OF
all its affairs in the far Northwest. lie
was in his twenty-third year when he
left Maekinac in the late fall on the long
Journey TO Mendoza, 1.-The meeting of
the WaterS,'' where he established his
headquarters. The impression made
upon Mr.. Sibley when his eyes first
looked on the scenes in the midst OF
which his home was to be long years.
and really for life. is best told in his
own words:
when reached the brink of the hill
overlooking the surrounding country, L
was struck with the picturesque beauty
of the scene. From that outlook. the
course of the Mississippi river from the
north was seen suddenly turning east
ward, to where st. Paul now stands
the Minnesota river from the west, the
principal tributary Of the main stream
and at the junction OF the two was the
military post of Fort Smelling, perched
on a high and commanding point. with
its stone walls and blOekhOuSeS, bidding
defiance to any attempt at capture by
the poorly-armed savageS should such
be made. There was also visible wide
eXpanse of prairie i'll the rear 5t the
fort. But when L descended INTO the
amphitheater, where the hamlet was
situated, was disappointed to ind only
4 group of log hutS, the most pretentlous
of which was the home OF my fellow
Traveller, Mr.. Bailly, in whose family L
became an inmate for the next SIX
months.