The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1900-07-07
FONTANELLE'S LAST RIDE.
How Last Chief of omaha,s Saved
His ComDs0ionr


among the Omaha Indians Iarga ,,,~,
mo ~, WON nave been in Omaha dur
-, ~ as week. no name is more highly
tba 10 I, tusH mat OF Logan FontaneIIs
rIiS laSt chlef Of the Omahas There are
men IN Nebraska who renoeroheI. ~ =
hhlsntly deed which cost the life or - 80
'aheIie ana saved the warriors Of a 1,stioo
It qeed shining with an the cior,e I'm ~.
which the knights of medieval FSS,rI LOT
struggled val EUROPE
IL. In the month Of August. 1855. with . ca
I Poa party OF hunters, says the Omaha
Bee, Fontanelle left the carr ~ ,tii' ia
omahas near the present town IF Ts.i Inc
10 hunJ buffalo unOn the Nah~asl-s
PIdlnS. The party Travelled two 5snr,
PiattT alohS the northern banks of the
fldtte before the buffalo wera fo,,,,5 'i ~
was late in the evening whom III III; II
Louilu lhelr quarry and It was decided -
Us pohe the hunt until the mOrnineg ~
1919, ny SIlldII party was going into camD a
IuLliieF came in and reported that =, -,
party or the Sioux had discovaro5 tI
presence of their hereditary enemies ~
OIIdudS' dno were rapidly apDroachinp,
b1na5 NJ VEINS or Fontanelle flowed The
DIood OF the crusaders of old His fa+ta-
vas a trenchman. who came to This 49,
P .ne country with Joseph Rouhid6I11
S5eI a; Sarpy- and the other vOy-9 geTS
49, 81 az aiieiS VINO hrst carried the arts and
wees OF the white man into the tanea of
IIie aDorlgines Of the trans Nississir,i -
SUI, ne plan Of defense adopted IN fha
1liIIeIIdln was not unlike that of Nano1eoy
III surrounded upon one occasion hv
me austrian army, though FontaneIta's
MdS active while the French ennnero-,e
was passive emperor
Fontanelle ordered his party to start
49, ~ IHelr MONIES on the Missouri rnder
ToNer OF darkness. He, with the Su,iftaSt
horse IN the party. remained behind HaIf
al az npur after the party of Omahas ~
ieit tilelr proposed camp the lurking Sio11T
StW twenty camDfires burning On ~
ground With warwhooD and sbo,+ ff .ne
eoIy they descended upon the canp -
ma II deserted. From the dfstspcap ~, ~
SOUND sound OF the hOofbeats of FontaneIie's
y,bjcb W. waited on the gentle breeze
wien, miiICI SilrrSd the waving grass under fbe
moonlight Ike pillows on the 500 NJ eiI0
ueneq Dl disappointment the northern
~ ',,.i,rl started in pursuit Ten miles
NdnCed with shrek and cry 10 find ~ ~ a.
sSSfIteu' fOur times that night did Tho
sioux follow the wilI-o' -the-w,isT, f ~
lIsItled by the Omaha chief. As morni1s
Platte t5s,. d dg me nat shores of the
1870 iitSe lhey came in sight of the devoted
-,lli tam Ills horse was still fresh and II
maa IT spirit of bravadO LAT he had
" Tbe LOT IoT his foes TO see, him ''''0
+ : ioIItdIelie was depending for his life ILL.,
HlIIlSeli; mad blood in its veins foraio,r - nc
ne son and II showed its thoro,,e-6t,y
Ti, l.,ii. Shat summer day. With a speed
LlNGHnS the plover which flew from it
PAIN II courSed ahead Of its nr,rsi1.J.e ~
.tnen rested while its master waited 80
tnem 10 come in sight again Tbe go
MIN MIN winch he left his foemen made m
CIIIdha careless and he waited for then, -
oiiIg Almost within range Of their pIipg
~. tIls MS morse he started at full sneed'
IN jumping ditch the horse fell ~ -
-l,,li --iTa IN Before horse or man couid
recover their position the Sioux were ,,,r,
" te M a1d' riddled with bullets. the boi1
vi ne Omaha chief gave IN tho hrs,,oast
H"Gl winch ever dwelt in the LODGES 90 ~
red men of Nebraska. % VI 'He
l"e hunting party eSCaDed without To-.
!nS man. In the village on the banks of
me MISSOURI they told of their leadar's
~ IL, - parry went out and found thai
u MdS dead, but could not securo ~
Dody. When they returned and tol5 ',-e
noll'dhelle death there was eDactod -
teIt OF ihdldn mourning never since seev
IN tiie WiSwamS of the OmahaS Tho ,7-ff.
. -. eie tiheI. woman OF great beanie
I'm an lndlan standpoint began To mo-,
anu or SEEING knife she sal lInon ~
HIou1o ana cut deep gashes in her thigbs
~ Gays she cried and took no food a
49,, ~SeE aIler MS death the remains of Fon-
taHeile We're brought TO the VILLAGE A.
Ihey approached tha widow began y f,- -
- song and, removing the bsndaees
Win her hands opened the wounds = $3.50
fohtdEeile was buried at Bellevue m
Tvs oI MS death was carried thrOupboI5t
the territory and western Iowa F fI01'
l@Heiic Was fTlCAd Of the white man -,,,s
Mi.Sh ne was buried a hundred or NOR
E -+-I AT the grave to pay their last
respects 10 the departed hero. ''''
Logan Fontanelle left no desca,,,4.,,....
Ills brother. Henry Fontanelle. lived U,i.b
ne ne irlne until he time Of his death -
$50 nero IN nigh esteem, but baviur none
mowers o. chifftainship- His chilli
uIS SUI i've upon the Reservation