The copper country evening news. [volume] (Calumet, Mich.) 18??-1907, 1897-12-08


Just before dawn the train stopped at
salida to change engines and get helper
Tor the hill. 1t was showing even there in
the valley, and was sure to be rough day
on Poncha pass. The train had been well
filled on leaving Denver. At Colorado
Springs 1t had been packed. At Pueblo
we picked up another sleeper and an ad-
ditional day coach at Salida We hit the
heavy grade in two sections, and when the
conductor came through one of the passen-
gers, who knew him, asked, Where in
thunder is all the people goin, Troop?''
"Goin to Creole, replied the ticket TAX
or without looking.
well, Of that's all, they needen CO."
said the passenger playfully, "fur Creede's
right here. He's in the smokin rum"
Now, there were many upon this train
who had nevtq seen the founder of the ia
nous silver camp, and some men followed
the conductor TO the smoking room of the
sleeper. The door was closed and the con-
ductor pushed against it. 1t yielded heav
lily, and he pushed again and crowded in.
A man was lying on the floor against the
door, and when he had been placed upon
the sofa and revived we saw a modestly
dressed man of middle age, medium size,
with blue eyes looking out of sad face
He had tainted, he guessed, and then the
conductor asked his name. "Creede," said
The man, and that was our first meeting.
My interest in the man began when /
met an old comrade of his who had served
with him in the Sioux wars in the sixties.
After that Creole and became very good
friends
He was born on a farm not far from
Fort Wayne, Ind. Crcede put in seven
years as scout and Indian fighter and
helped with his hands to open the over
land route to the Rockies. Some of his
adventures have been recorded and many
have not been told. A most important
event in his life was omitted from all
these narratives. an event that lost TO him
| all the glory he had gained in the Sioux
wars and put shadow on his trail After
the war he went back to his old home in
Iowa where he had the misfortune to fall
desperately in love with his brother S
sweetheart. The brother triumphod, and
| it broke Crecde's heart 1t was his first
and last love. Like the rejected poet, he
was mad with grief and shame. He cross
| ed the plains and changed his name.
So it came about that in the spring of
i
at Pueblo he wrote his name Nicholas G.
] Creole, which till then was not his name.
| In little while Creole became q we'll
known prospector. He was patient and
| persevering, and upon his trail are many
prosperous mining camps, notably Mon
arch and Bonanza. These camps were
| called after the first claim located, and II
the prospector had kept that up Creedc
L l,I INlxy
Many amusing stories have been told as
| to the naming of this claim, but, unfor.
! tunately none of them is true. The first
find at Creole, as at Monarch, proved to
be one of the poorest, but it helped the
prospector. 1t brought him in touch with
Mr. Motfet of Denver and put him In the
way to discover the Amethyst, which
brought him fame and fortune. His share
was one third interest in the Amethys'
mine One day, in his modest cottage al
Pueblo. he showed me small slip OF pa
per from the First National bank of Den
YER upon which was written February
deposit, $50, 900 ="
THAT was my rake off for last month, ,
he said in his quiet, modest way. AT thu
time Creede was not u strong man. sever
| years on the plains and Ii years in thu
hills hunting for mines are enough to wrecl
even the strongest constitution. The ont
companion that he kept through all thes
10 years was little old dog whose shagg.
coat was the color of wood ashes. A
Creole request photographed him ant
the dog
| In June of that year, 1898, Creole SAT-
he would go to California, and we agree'
to meet at San Francisco. From Frisc
we went to Los Angeles, and when Greed
saw the pretty house at 60l Pearl street h
wanted it. Standing in the garden II
took off his hat, smiled and said, This
nv Eden" little dreaming that 1t woul'
be his Gethsemano as we'll
Just as the successful litterateur dis
couraoes young writers did this successful
miner discourage prospectors.
"Stick to your quill" he wrote to
friend who had asked him to buy clan
Mt Cripple Creek, land you have M
friendship. Go prospecting and you los
it," After severe and long illness TIL
same friend wrote gloomily, and Greed
replied: Never give up the ship. Chez
mn. There is much to live for.
Months ago he wrote TO his friend, VIII
was then in Washington, cheerful letter
and il CHANGED to be the last We, too, hav
n baby-a little girl-and do you kno'
that have never known OF such pleasuf
in all my life as the pleasure of caring &c
, this little childY | like to dress her an
undress her. as little girls do with the
9 dolls"
This was the little girl whom he ha
: adopted. 1t seems to me that that ietts
alone shows that Creede's heart was In u
5 right place. What q loving father
. might have bcenl What happy home
a might have maids if things had gone Jul
|, a little differentl Very few people kne
Creole intimately. He avoided people. d
was constantly ashamed of having change
$ his name. He exaggerated this bit OF 100
! isbness into a crime and brooded over
! and the bitter disappointment OF his earii'
8 life staid in his heart and kept 1t sad.
And so people who never knew Greco
= d;sliked him. This is especially true
= those who conceive it to be their duty
who think 1t smart to hate tho rich ar
fortunate. Here follows sample OF q
{ unkipd cuts that are aimed at the unio
tunate dead:
a "Tbe death Of N. G. Crcede remove
1 from earth rather harmonious case
A idiot that never aspired to anything high
!, than eating morphine and figuring co