New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1891-01-11
IN RED MAN LAND.
NOTES OF A VISIT TO THE SIOUX RESERvA-
= TION


will be remembered is the place from which most
Of the kilograms concerning the present Indian
trouble are dated 1t is little over twenty miles
from the Pine Ridge Agency on the great Sioux
Reservation in South Dakota. II was then place
Of 400 or 500 inhabitants and | fancy that it
has not since more than doubled in population.
IL indeed, it has done so well as that The reason
that happened in RushVille at all was tAat
two Of us were taking long overland western
"trip out through Nebraska and up through the
Black Hills and across the Indian country, in a
covered wagon drawn by two mules and reinforced
by pony with big Mexican saddle,
yellow dog (verv yellow regards color,
disposition and intelligence, two repeating rfes.
a double barrclled shotgun nlg revolver, an oil
stove, box of provisions half-do2en blankets
q banjo and few other miscellaneous things.
Nashville at this time was queer combination
I Of Eastern and Western civilization The town
was about n year old, having been built when the
Fremont Elkhorn and Missouri Valley Railroad
went through The surrounding country had been
partly settled with few .armerS longer. ana the
srockmen had been scattered throughout the region
for number Of years. Tie land is comparatively
level the country between Gordon and Chadron
being known as the Antelope Flats. Most OF the
town was on one street, which ran at right angles
70 the railroad track and the law Office Of 'Iudge
Trott late of the Des MOncs bar: the liquor store
of Jim Sandoz. late of a Denver bar; the bank
ing house OF Lar cham Brothers. late of ChcaGo'
the Niobrara Gold Mine gambling establishment
of Breckenridge Potter late of s. Louis, ana inc
First Baptist Church. with the kcv. Mr.. Cart
right late of Brooklyn. pastor. stood IN pleas
ing and cheerful proximity. The blacksmith VINO
shod our of mule and got kicked over ms anNi
twice. and whose shop stood next door 10 MIS-
Julia Grannetts millinery store, informed me- III
speaking of the gambling house, which stooo ne
tween the bank and the lawyers office that you
could lose your money in one as readily as IN tte
others: indeed, he would prefer 10 take his
chances in the gambling house having more con-
fdence in the sQuarencsS of the game IL scemeu
that the able Judge TIOu had been eNpeIed
from the Dcs Moines bar. and that the saGaclouS
Langham Brothers lent moEey at the ra'e OF =
per cent month so perhaps the blacksmith was
right.
There was. as said, an interesting combination
Of East and West in Nashville The business
mon were nearly all from the East-from " the
States" at least which expression was used in
its territorial sense, Notwithstanding that Ne
braska had been a State for years-but the stock
men and many of the farmers were Western men
of the most pronounced type. Every man from
outside the town-and they made mp probably
three-quarters of those on the Streets-wore blg
jinging Mexican spurs Indeed. II is part OF the
religion of every man connected with Western
stock ranch 10 never remove his spurs on any
occasion whatever. with the possible exception of
when going TO bed-and there occasions in the
life of the gay and eXuberant cowboy when the
formality is humorously omitted even at the
time of retiring. and the hotel landlord ie con-
fronted in the morning with hopeless tanglc of
spurs, cowboy and bcdclothing Besides their
spurs the men also wore the big felt or buck
skim hats, with the wide leather bands which are
also peculiar to StOckmen, and many of them
leather or goatskin chapapios, or lcggings. The
business men the ordinary attire observed in
any American city: hut it was considered among
them that some concession should be made TO their
newly made Western friends and patrons in the
matter of dress, so they hit upon the happy plan
of wearing the wide, heavy leather bands on their
ordinary stiff soft Eastern hats To see
promising young physician start ont on his pro
lfessional rounds wearing derby hat Of the
latest New-YOrk shape, with a thick, embossed
Heather band two inches wide and fastened with
a big silver buckle around it is a sight only
REASONABLY afforded to mortas. | did not see
nny one wearing silk hat with leather band
Though il gravely stated that Judge Trott
wore such an astonishing combination Sundays
Eo far could learn, the Rev Mr.. Cartriqht,
late of Brooklyn, the only man in town who
was not strictly local idea, found the
same thing obtained al other towns, especially a,
Chadron and Hay Springs.
Besides the business houses there We're of
course. number of residences scattered about on
the prairie near at hand, though. like other
Western towns, a much smaller number in pro-
portion than will he found in an Eastern village.
owing to the fact that many OF the business
men are unmarried There was a busincss-likc
air about the place though il was hard 10 tell
exactly what kind of business was going Oh. Jude-
ing from appearances, only any one would have
said that the leading industry was the buying
and shipping of buffalo bones. Across the rail
road track there great heaps of buffalo,
deer. elk and antelope bones which had been
gathered in tie surrounding country and brought
10 town and sold TO dealers, VINO shipped them 10
fertilizer factories 10 be ground NJ hali dozen
freight cars were being loaded with them. Among
the piles were many magnificent elk antlers and
fine specimens of great, broad buffalo skulls.
some Of them still retaining their black horns
The Antelope Flats were formerly faVOrltc feed
Ing grounds of the buffalo before they were eN-
terminated lay such butchers Buffalo Bill and
other alleged hunters. BILL by the way. 10 not
much thought OF IN this and other parts vi the
West where he is known not from the nOt-tO-bc-
proud-Of part he played i'll helping 10 Kill of
the nObest animal the American Continent.
but because he Is generally considered what they
utc pleased 10 call paper-cOllar scout, more
OF home on Staten Island than ON the frontier and
more formidable on the bill-boarGs than on the
prairie among tie foothills and gulchcs When
il comes to Bits, the West unhcsitatingly nnls
Wild Bill who was asslsslnated at Dcadwood in
1876. above Buffalo Bill
Near the bone piles, and evidently thankful
that il not in them a pet antelope a
young one. and as beautiful as any gazcIle ever
dreamed Of by poet Indeed, il gave a pOetical
touch TO the wnOlc town, and toned down the
ncongruty of the hatbands. IT, was in a ward
in front Of n rea!cStatc Office. and was as tamr
possible. The town dogs seemed to paw no
attention to it, rcscrvlng their Scowling looks
and unfricndly chances for the many Sioux
Indians who "loafcd' about the streets These
Indians were from Pine Ridge and are the truants
who are now ont in the Bad Lands dcfying that
sanguinary institution known as the United
States Government. Most of them were genuine
wild Indians slightly tanned by the use Of cigar