Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1898-10-20
NOTHING LEFT BUT BLOOD.
How YeIIowstonc dill KILLED n Big
Rnnd of Indinnn.


Martin Francis Walker, known to all
the Indians and trappers OF the west as
Yellowstone Bill, is now resident Of
Minneapolis where his homo is in cave
on the east bank of the Mississippi river.
No tradition tells the history of this cave,
says the Denver News. There it was oven
when Father IIennepiD first gazed on tho
falls of St Anthony; there 1t Is today.
AS interesting as the cave are It's occu.
pants, Mr.. and Mrs. Walker, and equally
interesting is tho collection of relics OF
frontier life-of skins, minerals, lariats,
wild horses, rifles, etc Here many win
ters are spent, and the summers are given
up to overland travel
Yellowstone Bill was born in Titusville,
Pa, in 1889 of American parents. OF a
naturally wild and rowing disposition, no
left his home at an early age. For four
years Yellowstone Bill followed circus,
winding up his career with a duel with an
acrobat whom he had thrown in wrestlc.
The acrobat got mad and challenged him
to n duel. Young Walker accepted and,
having tho choice Of weapons, selected
inch doggers. The battle was fought at 10
O'Clock in tho morning in the dressing
tent. Both mon had bad contracts on
their hands. Walker received four gashcs
In his side and fought until tho blood ran
from his boots. They were removed to a
hospital and lay side by side for weeks.
Recovering first and aided by kindly dis
posed doctor, Walker skipped out at 2
o'clock in the morning, leaving his enemy
to his fate.
Yellowstone Bits life on the plains be-
gan just after this incident, in the carly
sixties. In company with Charles Covillo
Of New York city and william and Frank
Bailey he started out on hunting and
trapping expedition through Idaho Mon.
tana, Wyoming and Arizona. Then he en-
listed rs "a scout under General Reno and
while with him earned the name Of yell
lowstono Bill His experiences with the
Indians were many and varied and includ-
cd narrow escapes too numerous to men
ton. "I'll tell you one I'll never forget, u
he said and added:
1T was while / was with Covile and
tho Baileys. We struck what Is known as
tho Yellowstone valley. / left the party
one afternoon for cruise around, and
got into little canyon. You go through a
gap about three feet wide, closed at the top,
and you find yourself in canyon of about
90 acres, walled in by high, solid, perpen-
dicular rock, the only outlet being the zap
where / got in. l was cruising all around
the place, and the first thing l knew saw
o bunch of about 90 Indians come in the
gap. They had me and had me right.
The minute they saw me they knew it.
There was only one way TO get out, and
they were 20 to !, the worst odds l was
ever up against. saw hole in tho side
Of the rock about three feet up. In went.
The little cave ran six feet in tho rock and
then turned squarcly to the left for an
other six feet and there stopped. was
| stuck tight. The Indians had rushed up
meanwhile and closed the hole. They had
me dead to rights. I played a waiting
game. So did they. They built fire in
| front of tho little hole so that the re1ec.
ton shone in the cave, lighting 1t up, but
was protected In the second chamber.
| Finally put my hat on my gun and stuck
| 1t out just for enough for them to see it,
Every last one Of them fired at it, those
that had guns and those that had arrows
dropped the gun and the hat fell, and
they supposed must be dead. Every last
ono of them rushed pcllmell into the
hole, filled it FULL climbing over each 9th
or in wild scramble to be first to get the
| scalp which they regarded as n prize
! jumped into them with my hatchet slash
ing right and eft and laying out sevcra
of them. They were too surprised at thu