Fort Worth gazette. [volume] (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1891-1898, 1895-03-07
AGENT jim COOPER
How he Made the Cheyenne Indians Re-
spect Him

vail Keen eyed, square shouldered,
SANDY haired man, with countennncc
tnat bespoke quiet and reserved nature,
strollod out OF the Hotel Lawrence and
walked slowly up Il street toward News
paper row. As he passed the Press club
an army officer stepped forward and shook
nands with him cordially and then re.
Joined his companions.
Do you know who that Isl" inquired
inc military man. moi Well, that's cx-
Special Agent Cooper Of the Indian Office
Everybody in the far west knows Jim
Cooper He has nerve enough to supply a
whole family of mountain lions and have
enough left to equip several companies OF
hard riding Indian fighters. During the
stormy times at Pine Ridge agency several
years ago Cooper was strong factor IN
settling matters with tho Indians, being
present there as Civilian representative
OF the government His fame had preceded
him to Pine Ridge from the Tongue river
reservation of the northern Cheyennes, up
In Montana, where he followed career
that was full of exciting adventures Ono
incident that may give you some idea as
to the character of tho man occurred up
on the Tongue river reservation In tho lat
ter part Of the eighties, when Cooper was
temporarily netting as tho agent there
Two Indian boys, as young unmarried In
dians are called, about 10 or 90 years Of
age, respectively had murdered white
man
Cooper called the Cheyennes together
and they numbered about 400 warriors at
that time and equally as many squaws,
who arc pretty near as good as warriors
when 1t comes TO a ruction, and told them
TINT the boys would have to DO brought in
and delivered up to answer for thoir crime
Tho Indians said they didn't know where
the boys were, and Cooper very plainly
told them that they were lying. Thon
they asked him how many ponies he would
take to let up on tho prosecution OF the
criminals, and Cooper said that he would
not listen to any such talk as thnt, but
that what he wanted was the boys, and
that he wanted them brought In without
any further paluvering or subterfugo or
delay. The father of one Of the boys grew
very indignant at Cooper's determined
stand and said that the boys would come
in all right, but that Cooper was too big
coward TO meet them. This was the In.
dian way Of challenging Cooper to fight.
He never WINGED, hut got mad In turn.
Ho told the gathering that the whole Chey-
emo tribe couldn't scare him, and that he
proposed to get those boys In spite of nil of
them and sec that Justice was done and
dared tho father to let the murderors
know what he said. Then he rhmmod q
fow handfuls Of ammunition into his
pocket took up his rife and started out
THE Cheycnnes ranged themselves
round on the bluffs and waited for tho fun
to begin, ready to take hand In an in
slant, II necessary. Cooper know that II
he showed the slightest signs OF nervous
ness or fear the Indians would make
short work of him, burn everything In
sight and 90 cavortinR on the reservation.
But he grew mighty lonesome, for all the
white employees OF tho reservation had
become scared and gone TO hiding. He
called on the six or seven Indian police
that were on duty ut the reservation to
stand by him, however, and took tho pre-
caution to send one Of them nfter cavalry
troop, 1 think II was Troop A Of the First,
that was camped down on the Lame Deer
l Pretty soon Cooper saw couple of Chey
ennes In full war paint and rcgalia riding
/ like mad down tho trail toward tho agen
cy They were tho boys who Ind murdered
the old man. As they came within range
the agent raised bis rife and plugged on,
OF them so good and hard that he rolled
OIL his pony and gave up the ghost with
out a single kick.
"Tho other ono began oircling around
and around for little while, as indians
do, getting ready for rush. and Cooper
awaited his opportunity to get q good shot
at him, when the cavalry troop appeared
| Then came the strangest part of tho pro
/ oeeding. That young Indian charged di
rectly at tho limo Of United States soldiers
and went right through 1t, wounding foul
horses as he did SO, But whom no had
gone through somebody whirlcd that trnoF
around. and tho result was that In less
than three wags of Sleeps tail MI In
dian boy was us full of holes as any piece
of honeycomb you ever saw in your life.
/ There was no more trouble at the Tongue
river reservation while Cooper was there
and tho Cheyennes respected him.
you mustn't imagine from this that
the northern Cheyenne is weak specimen
of the Indian Those fellows at Tongue
river wero the very same who were taken
down to Indian Territory many ycnrs age
and escaped and were not ovcrhauled OF
stopped until they had gone north TO with
in so or 90 miles of Pine Ridge, and the
government didn't try TO got them to 60
back any more. They are fierce to degree
and the best fighters that 1.-Two today, bui
still they are upright in their dealings
and the character Of their lives may DO APP
procinted when tho fact is known that
there is not woman among tho northern
Chcyennes who IS not perfectly virtuous. .
Washington Star