The Helena independent. [volume] (Helena, Mont.) 1875-1943, 1891-02-16
White Strategy Got the Better Of
Indian Barbarity on Two
Occasions.
Imported SMALLPOX Broke tho
Power OF the Red
Man.
Good behavior Assured by o Liberal Uso
Of G~unpOwdsr sud Various
Deadly MfesiIess

freightsr to the Indian country and M upper
Missouri river boatman, aayS he has wit
messed several incidents wherein savage
barbarity was pitted against the white
mans strategy, says nm exchange. In esch
instance the savages wers paid back in .
moro than ~decimally increased ratio for the
damage they had done.
One case occurred IN tbs vicinity OF old
Fort Boise, on the upper Missouri. in 1867.
Indians had done great injury 10 4 man
named james Beckwith. They eloated over
what they had done. They were large in
number, the whites were small. and for
business and other reasons it was deemed
impossible TO WACO open warfare. Tho sit
nation, however, WAS such that IL was
deemed best to cuttail the power Of the In
ing. Bsckwith went down the Missouri
I pos existed. Hs Obtained sm sr
virus in 4 form that could be easily trans
ported. Ono story was that he carried the
poison in nm air-tiGht canister like arrange-
ment. When ne reached his destination he
infected some clothing, which was immedi-
stsly put in possession Of the Indians. 80
that the poisonous germs OF the smallpox.
which are short lived, would not lose their
efficacy. The result was that the epidemic
broke out and increased to . pestilence. In
more thar 80 per cent of the cases tho dis
Yhagi0 forms, and the fatality Was not far
from 100 per cent. In their deIirium scores
ron to the river, and death wag thus accel-
Grated in its approach. The white men
shut themselves up in what wa called the
old fort: & large abandoned struct-
made Of frame. Here the indians,
pestllsncs stricken. 6ocked. They
humbly came to the white man.. whom they
had 20 recently abused and sxuited over in
their brutal. ssvage way. After the aban-
doned old fort had been converted from .
Iazar house to q charmed house by the action
Of disease the means Of egrcss was barred,
fire was applied. Scores Of dead bodies
were consumed. The contsgiOn was thus
stamped ont. the power Of the Indians was
broken without the loss Of . single white
man, and the insults avenged.
On another occasion q young German
who was employed in q mental capacity in
a private fort Of A. n. Harvey, which was
located where Fort Benton, Mont, now
stands, in Ignorance or otherwise. disre-
gardsd instructions given him. and on a
certain occasion when there was danger,
strayed from the fort about q quarter of q
mile. He was killed by Indians and cut in
to small pieces. The mutilated remains
were then left AZ q warning to the whites of
tho Indians prowsss. just a. in the small
pox case, the whites did not seem to notics
the indi9nity, ard also as in the smallpox
case the Indians regarded this as an indica-
ton Of cowardice. The Indians, however,
kept away for q short time sitter the muir
der to sec what would b done. Then they
came around to trade. The fort had nm
alley like entrance. guarded by doors or
gate ike arrangements at each extremity.
The sides were walled or boarded high.
The white men managed to get The alley
full Of Indians. They had previously al
lowed Indians in here after the murder in
order to disarm suspicion. The whites opened
the outside barriers, but placed behind a
thin inside barrier . masked cannon. This
was heavily loaded with iron slugs. parts OF
blacksmith shop refuse and material of
that nature. Without warning this was
discharged into the packed mass of saw
ages. Amoment later the narrow way was
filed with dead and manglsd Indians. The
outer way was shut and the others were
killed. For a long time after this the In
dams were well behaved.
Frontiersmen say that il eastern senti-
mentality did not prevail to the extent OF
interference with the army movements and
with the action of men who thoroughly I'M
derstand the Indian character at every turn
the indian problem would soon be solved,
and to this problem there 10 but one solu-
ton.