The Anaconda standard., 1895-05-21
A HERMIT In BUTTE
George Pettingill Of Wise River Taking
in the Sights Of the City.
BRIEF SKETCH OF HIS LIFE
Has Not Been In Butte for 25
Years-An Intelligent But Ec-
centric IndivIduai-He At
tracts q Curious Crowd.

Butte. May 2o.-George PettingilI
the picturesque wild man Of the Wise
river mountains, IL or IL miles from
Dewey's fiat, about whose life and hat,4
its the Standard published a story
some time ago. IL In the city. He ar
rived yesterday and is stopping at the
Road house southwest Of the city,
where he was seen by a curious lot of
people to-day, including a Standard re-
porter. Pettingill is fully as pictur-
esque and interesting as he has been
described, though he wears a few more
clothes than he does when at home"
He talks Interestingly and with intelli-
gence far above the average. Notwith-
standing his wild life he Is a well in
formed man and there are few public
questions he is not conversant with.
This is his first visit to Butte since
1870. He said he came to see the sights
and rustic some money. but the fact
is that he was induced by several
friends to come to Butte after much
persuasion. He does not like civiliza-
ton and he prefers to live by himself
in the mountains. where his only COM
panions are a band of horses. 'T had
a dog once" he said. but he was poi
soned. and I can't find another one to
suit me-"
Pettingill is IS years old. and. ac-
cording to his story. was born in Con-
cord. n; H.. and went TO Wisconsin in
1S4S. He has never been married.
When the war broke out he enlisted In
the 10th regiment at La Crosse and
served three years In the war. In 1866
he came TO Montana and started pros
pecting. and was at Quartz Hill I'm
1868. Two years later he came to
Butte. when there were only few
hfng here Tharo IA n that
tingill had a duel with an officer in
the army and killed him. and that he
escaped to Montana Another story,
the usual disappointment in love, etc,
but he denies both stories and says
he came TO Montana out of a pure love
of adventure. He had heard of a rich
mine named the Uncle Sam. and the
stories of its riches induced him TO
come out here. He had another ven-
turesome scheme and that was to get |
In with the Sioux Indians and tame |
a band OF buffalo and then take them |
and therefore did not push |
his acquaintance with them and aban- |
doned the buffalo idea
Pettingill Is considerable over six |
feet tall and weighs 175 pounds. The |
hair of his head and beard hangs to |
his waist I'm a matted. tangled mass.
which. with pair of keen. piercing |
eyes looking from a hairy face. gives |
him the appearance OF a wild animal or
R gorilla At "home" he goes bare
footed and bare-headed and with very
little clothing on his body. which is
also covered with hair. and in all kinds |
of weather. He believes that man was
by nature intended TO live without |
and that the protection
against nature by heavy clothing is
for all diseases. Since his /
rough life In the west. for nearly 30
years, he has never known a day OF /
sickness. and the only ailment he ever
which troubles him when mountain !
climbing. His common diet is raw and
dried meat and an abundance OF IT,
His breakfast this morning consisted
of a half side OF bacon and a half dog
n eggs. He drinks coffee. but very lit
lie whiskey. Liquor has the same ef-
Icct on him that IL has on an Indian.
md he therefore avoids Il. He lives
almost entirely by hunting and fishing.
he has three good mining
one near Rochester, another
rear Quartz Hill and the third near
lis home. and he expects to work
hem some day. When he first came to
Montana he heard of instances of In
lians running game down by chasing
hem for many days and nights, and he
uccessfully tried IL on a band of five
Tx. He ran them for five days and
lights through four feet OF snow with
tut stopping to rest. Once, while liy-
ng In Wisconsin. he was caught out
n snow storm with the thermome-
er 40 degrees below zero. and took
efuge in deserted cabin. He was in
langer of freezing to death and at
empted to make a fire by rubbing two
ticks together. as he had heard about
indians doing. The experiment was a
allure. but the exercise kept him
Tarm.