Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1889-04-21
AFTER CHIEF JOSEPH.
A Running Fight Across the Conti-
nent With the Shoshones.
JOSEPH'S SPLENDID STRATEGY
And His Escape Down Glark's Fork Of the
Yellowstone.
TANDCoNQUEREDBY GENERAL MILES
WRITTEN FOR THE DISPATCH i

! WRITTEN FOR THE DIsPArcH.1
| Sherman's ''March to the Sea- was the
dramatic and picturesque episode of our
great war. Tho admirably organized and
disciplined army, complete in its commissa-
riat and transportation and unencumbered
with "deadwood" of any kind, cut loose
from Atlanta and tramped through the heart
of the Ccnfederacy to Savannah, meeting
hardly any opposition that its advance
guard could not easily brush away. In pro-
portion 10 numbers engaged and obstacles
to be surmounted, an Indian chief, Joseph
by name, simply triple discounted this bril-
liant exploit of our brave and brilliant gen.
eral, and despite pursuing forces, despite
incessant efforts to head him off, despite five
times his numbers in fighting foemen, despite
the fact that he was burdened with all the
women and children of his tribe, this cool
headed yet daring Indian general, this mod
ern Moses, led his people through the will
derness from the eastern border of Washing
ton Territory, through the prairies of Idaho,
up the valley of the Salmon river, across
the Bitter Root Mountains, through Mon
tana to the Yellowstone Park, down Clark g
Fork, across the Yellowstone, then straight
way northward for the British possessions,
and, not until within days march of the
Big Missouri-not until two days more
would have landed him safely across the
line, was he finally hemmed in and cap
tured; by which time just about half the
cavalry and one-fourth of the infantry of
| the United States army were in the field
engaged in the chase. Sherman's storied
march to the sea was completed in 25O miles
with little to hinder. Chief Joseph's rush
across the continent carried him some $50
miles by the way he had to go, and it was
fight or dodge every inch of the route.
oUE1LING RIOTS.
At the outbreak of the war, we of the Fifth
Cavalry were stationed on the Union Pacific
Railway headquarters, and six troops (com-
panies) at Fort D. A. Russell, Just west of
Cheyenne, the others at Fort Mcpherson
down in the valley, and at Sidney Barracks
midway. Early in the season General Crook
had sent five of the six troops from Fort
Russell to establish a camp of observation.
way up along the northeastern foothills of
the Big Horn range, where he fought the
Sioux the previous summer, and we had
only the band and Captain Payne's troop
CD to "hold the fort' at Russell. Similar
ly, all the troops from Mcpherson and Sid
ney. except mere postguard. were in the
field, scouting toward the Sioux reservations,
when the great railway riot of IT burst
upon the land. Pittsburg was in flames,
the militia overpowered. Chicago was in
the hands Of the mob and the police ex-
hausted. Then came the order for the reg
ulars, and all the Fifth Cavalry within
reaching distance of the railway were hur-
r1ed in, The Mcpherson battalion rode like
mad for the nearest station; left their horses
with the quartermaster and a small
guard, and were whiried through to Lake
Michigan by special train. The Ninth In
fantry started first from Omaha, but the
strikers "side-tracked" them somewhere, and
the first command to reach Chicago was this
tough-looking battalion of troopers from the
plains; bearded, bronzed, dusty, destitute of
anything like glitter or gold lace; dressed in
their rough scouting rig, flannel shirts,
buckskin or canvas, reinforced breeches,
and old siouch hats, but Chicago gave them
a welcome they have never forgotten.
"These fellers amt got no bouquets in their
muskets" was the remark of newsboy that
made the troopers grin. And while the
regulars in Nebraska were hurried to Chi
cago. those along the railway in Wyoming
and Utah were similarly hurried to Omaha,
and our colonel, General Wesley Merritt,
point. Here we guarded the big bridge
across the Missouri and kept order from
July 26 until the 9th of August, when we
were sent back to our stations, the trouble
being over.
ORDERED TO THE FRONT.
Meantime General Crook had got in from
a scout through the extreme northwestern
section of his department., and the very day
we started for home Gibbon, with mis- little
command, was having its death grapple
with the Indians at Big Hole Pass. The
next thing we heard was that Chief Joseph
was across the mountain, coming east Still
the War Department hesitated. Still it was
believed that despite all his ill-luck so far
Howard with his big force must overhaul
the willy Nez Perce. But day after day
crept by; every dispatch showed the Indian
still ahead, and at last it became suddenly
apparent to the powers at Washington that
he was almost at the Yellowstone Park, and
meant to cross the mountains. Once over,
there were just three ways for him to escape:
northeastward, by way of Cl2rk's Fork;
eastward by the Sinking river to the Big
Horn, or southeastward through the Wind
River Valley.
The Seventh Cavalry, already out along
the Yellowstone, was ordered to block the
first gap. Hart's Battalion, of the Fifth
Cavalry, already up on the Big Horn
range at the headquarters of the Tongue
river, was ordered to march in the Custer
battlefield of the previous year, where some
Sioux and Cheyenne scouts would join \
them, then up PrYor's Fork and the Stink
ing River Valley, until they reached its
head, and to stop the second hole, while
General Merritt, at Russell, received tele-
graphic orders to go at once to Camp Brown
(now Fort Washakie), in the Wind River
Valley, and organize force to meet Chief
Joseph, should he come that way. All the
Third and Fifth Cavalry near the railway
were hustled aboard the cars and shipped to
Green River station, whittier the General
and 1, his Adjutant, hastened by first train,
reached there the morning of the 3oth Of
August, jumped on blackboard, drove
northward all that day, that night, and the
next day, reaching Camp Brown at 4:3O P.
M. The cavalry followed by forced
marches.
WHERE IS JOSEPH?
General Crook soon arrived, and on the
9th of September, with seven fine troops of
veteran cavalry and 35 picked Shoshone
scouts, away we went, still northward, un-
der orders to reach the head water of the
Sinking river and tackle Joseph if we
could possibly find him. 1t was GER
tain he was coming southeast, and General
Crook, who had not been consulted, ap-
parently, in the orders coming from his sr-
periors-shook his head over the plan.
'sYou won't be apt to find him, 2 he said,
che will be over and away long before you
can get there, and he is making for the |
British possessions or I'm mistaken
Never have 1 seen anything in wild |
beauty to match the magnificent mountain |
country through which we marched day
otter dav We climbed and crossed the Owl