Republican news item. [volume] (Laport, Pa.) 1896-19??, 1899-06-15

This is the true story Of an exploit
of Antoine and Pierre lie Beau, lads
who were born in the little French
Indian village of La Sausoail. Their
father, Baptiste LIE Beau, was trader
in peltries and their mother a half
blood Mandan woman.
Pierre was two years the older and
very Indian and lazy by nature. An
tome was more like the French, and
clever, and therefore was sent away
to school in st. Louis, where he re-
NAMED until his father was killed, an
accidental victim, in fight between
Red Dogs and Three Feathers bands
of Bois- -Brules.
Antoine found that during the four
years of his absence the fur trade had
been ruined. Settlers and stockmen
had come into the country across the
river from La Saussail. He found
Charbonneau, his fathers partner, in
possession of the store and his mother
and Pierre with nothing left them
save few ponies, the log house they
lived in and the Indian title to tract
of land above the village.
Although but Is years old, Antoine,
thrifty and clever, saw his opportunity
In the control of the land, which in
cluded some excellent grazing ground.
The stockmen across the river had
great droves of horses and cattle, and
they were already crowded for room.
So Antoine took horses to herd. He
succeeded in gathering 800 during the
first spring and received two dollars
per head for the season. He lost but
two out of this bunch" and the ami
mails did so we'll that more than 500
were placed in his charge the follow
ing year.
SO the LIE Beans we're again highly
important among the people of mixed
complexion of La Saussail. Pierre
wore the gayest of blanket jackets,
lived merrily and sometimes amused
himself by going fishing. He loafed
much in Charbonneau's dingy store.
which smelled of hides, dried fish and
stale tobacco.
Now it happened one chilly morn
ing, when Antoine had come in to
warm his hands by Charbonneau's
fire, that couple of young men from
the settlements we're in the store seek
ing to buy rope and blankets.
"'This old rope-no good" said
Pierre, as one of the newcomers
stopped to examine coil upon the
floor. "My brudder Antoine, hees
buy some of dat rope las summer, and
de knots dey rot off hees picket-pins. "
At this Charbonneau few into a
rage, called Pierre some hard names
in French and ordered him out of the
store. Then, as Pierre merely grinned,
Charbonneau rushed Mt him and flung
him violently upon the floor.
Antoine's French-Indian blood got
the upper hand of his school training
at this. He seized the irate trader by
the beard, thrust pistol in his face
and said such emphatic things that
Charbonneau's legs shook like willows
in the wind, and his customers left in
alarm.
Charbouneau begged pardon, and
Antoine's wrath quickly subsidized. The
lad was rather ashamed, In fact, for he
knew Pierre had been impertinent in
talking to customers about Charbon-
neau's goods.
The matter would have ended AMIGA
bly, but for Charbonneau's Ogalalla
wife, who was of temper quite as
choleric as her husband and far more
steadfast. She was greatly enraged
when she learned that Charbonneau
had been taken by the beard, which
she seemed to consider most humil-
iating thing. 1t made her despise
Charbonneau and thirstfo revenge on
Antoine.
When the first warm days came after
the going out of the ice Madame Char
bonneau gathered her small effects and
departed in a cYnoe with her children,
we'll grown boy and girl. This little
family padded far down the Missouri
and thence up White River to the big
Ogalalla towns.
Whether the angry squaw-wife ap-
pealed more signally to the spirit of
revenge OF of cupidity among her
friends is not quite clear, but certain
It is that shortly after her appearance
among them party of Ogalallas set
out across the great stretch OF plain to
the northward, descended upon An
toine's horse-corrals one night in June
and drove off all the herded stock.
Antoine had built his corrals mile
above the village. As these horses
were under sacred medicine" and in
charge of zone of the blood" thel .
was no danger that they would be
stolen by Cheyennes, Gros ventres OF
other tribes of the upper reserve.
Another and final element of safety
lay in the fact that most of the horses
were of large breed not much in use,
except for beef, among the Sioux. Thus
Antoine had felt doubly secure in leav.
ing the animals at night unguarded
in the corrals. He could not watcl
all night and work all day, aud Pierre
could not be depended on for guar6
duty.
On the morning of his loss he rode
home from the broken corrals will
despair in his heart. His occupation