Richmond daily palladium. [volume] (Richmond, Ind.) 1876-1904, 1901-11-25
THE Wild west
As 1t Was...EarIyDays in the
Black HiIlS...Stranue
Scenes in DeadwOOu
...Center of the
Mining Region.
snondence Richmond Palladium.

LEAD, S. D., Nov. %.
A little more than a quarter of a
century ago gold was first discovered
in the Black Hills, and Deadwood
was the center of attraction with its
hundreds of wooden shacks lining
either side of Golden Gulch, little
mountain stream of pure spring
water that flows swiftly down be-
tween the high hills that tower above
in all their rugged grandeur. Like
all mining towns the population was
a mixed one, good, bad and ind fer
ent. Men and women from every
where and from every condition of
life had collected here and for every
conceivable purpose, and to saw that
there were scenes enacted in this
hurly-burly society that would
compare for wildness with that of
apv other mining camp is only half
telling the story. Many incidents
have never seen the light of day and
will only crop out by accident as
told by those who came upon the
stage in after years. Hundreds of
honest men we're here delving in the
rugged hills with pick and shovel and
in the sands of the little stream,
hunting for the glittering gold that
was here. Others were here, gan.
blers, keepers of dives of every charac-
ter filed the new town, shooting
scraps and murders were of every
day occurrence almost, SO frequent in
fact that little note thereof was
taken and passed as a matter of
cou, Sc. Saloons and gambling houses
predominated and IN these high rev.
elry prevailed night and day.
High up on the north side of the
gulcb, clinging TO the side of the
mountain, was little shack Its
sole occupant and owner wa a min
ister of the gospel, who had come
over into Macedonia to work for the
Master. There was no church, the
few who were here had not taken
time to think of building a church
and God S first temple was the only
place of worship.
One Sunday night when redwood
seemed to have on its toughest coat
of war paint and the saloons and
gam bling houses were in full blast.
out In the narrow street the dweller
in the lonely shack on the mountain
otNS " 90 Si lux w Ioiu q uiVCtAIS IL
the street. He had sung a song and
was calling to people to come and
hear the word OF God, but with all
his efforts pot one could be got to
stop long enough to'hear word The
poor man was in despair and was
on the point of giving up the task.
Across the street a man had stood
for some moments attracted by the
good man 5 efforts ard failure to get
any one to listen to him. The man
was tall, six feet two, broad shoul
dered, long blonde hair that came
down over his shoulders, dropping
mustache and broad sombrero, per-
son that would have attracted atten-
tion in any crowd.
He came across the street, took
the now discouraged ministea by the
arm and said. ''oome with me, I'll
find you crowd for your sky scrap
ing act, and into the largest saloon
and gambl ng house in the camp he
led the minister, and, picking him
up as he would a little child, placed
him on the center OF the bar, and
turning 10 the crowd in the room
said in ayoice that every man in the
house recognized rs Wild BIZ, !, the
most fearless man in III the Wild