The Minneapolis journal. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn.) 1888-1939, 1902-07-02
BIG BUNCH OF BLUFFS
Yellowstone Park Buffalo Herd
Likely to Be Enlarged.
EATON OPTIONS FLATHEAD HERD
An Interesting Story of How This
Herd Was Started and Saved .
From Extinction.

| Howard Eaton of Medora, NJ D., was in
| Minneapolis yesterday en- route home
from visit with an old Bad Lands ranch
neighbor, who has given up life on the
range and has resided in the east for
several years. Up and down the Little
| Missouri this ransplanted rancher 1s
! known still to retain his love for the free
| life in the open; he is still called "Teddy'
out there, though in the public prints he
| Is now more commonly known as Presi-
| dent Theodore Roosevelt. HE was a
| good fellow In the early days. says Mr..
| Eaton, land he hasn't changed a bit since
then except to improve with age" Z
Incidentally. Mr.. Eaton's visit in Wash
| ington may result in a considerable en-
| largement of the buffalo herd in the yell
lowstone national park. He did not go
| east for that specific purpose. but he
| knew where a good bunch Of "buffs'' could
| be secured and gave the government a
chance to take over the options he had
already secured on them. Mr.. Eaton is
sort of wild animal broker. Ernest
| Seton Thompson, w. r, Hornaday and
other famous naturalists have been his
guests at Custer Trail ranch, near Me-
dora. and he is in touch with the man
| agement of every geological garden in
the country. He keeps himself thor
oughly Informed on big game conditions
throughout the entire western country
| anu IL was illus he SLIuCk lie CId1l OI
| the Flathead buffalo herd.
History of the Herd.
About twenty-five years ago there
dwelt on the F1athead reserva ton
in westernmost Montana an Indian whose
heart was bad. His badness eliminated
| In the murder Of his wife, the daughter of
one of the prominent men Of the tribe,
| and he was forced to "vamose'' between
| two days. He fed across the main range
| of the Rockies to the Blackfoot reserva-
! ton, some 200 miles northeast, and took
up his abode among the superstitious and
| thoroughly uncivilized Blackfeet. Such
| not rare and the Flathead was soon
| known for what he was. Within a month
| the Blackfeet were visited by an epidemic
| OF smallpox, the most feared scourge
among the Indians, and the Flathead
refugee was speedily picked as the evil
influence whose advent had aroused the
wrath Of the Great Spirit. There was no
things were looking extremely blue for
him. In his dilemma he sought out a
French priest for advice. ,..s- .>.
| Go back to your people," said the mis-
I s1onary. "Take them, if you can, some
| gift to show that your heart has. changed.
1t may be they will take you back
| The Flathead decided to follow the ad-
suitable gift within his reach. He finally
hit upon the buffalo. That was in the
early eighties, when the northern herd
| showed no signs Of diminution. His
residence among the Blackfeet had taught
him how invaluable were the animals to
the Indians. The Flatheads were beyond
the buffalo country and could hunt them
only by facing the perils Of the noun
| tains and mourning the danger of being
'jumped"' by hostile Blackfeet. So he
would take buffalo to the Flatheads.
| A Perilous Drive.
| After persistent effort with the lariat
| the penitent Flathead succeeded in cap
| turing one bull and eight, COWS alive.
| :Hobbling them with 'rawhide thongs, be
began a trip SO full of hardship and dan
ger that nobody but a most determined
| Indian would ever have undertaken it.
Across the plains, where progress was
painfully slow, over the snow, capped
mountains, where feed was scarce, and it
would bother a fly to find footing, he
somehow drove his little bunch of unruly,
wild animals. It took him weeks to trav-
erse the 200 miles, but finally he came
back to his people worn and haggard with
constant watching and priyation. Two OF
the cows had died, the rest of the ami
mails were gaunt and footsore, but they
were alive, and the peace offering proved
effective.
The Flatheads placed their little herd
In valley whence egress was stopped by
mountains. Hide hunters decimated the
herd east Of the Rockies; the railroads
came through and by 1890 the buffalo was
| thought to be extinct, except the few held
in captivity by white men.
| A Big Herd Now.
! It was only a few years ago that the
Flathead herd was discovered. 1t had been
jealousy guarded, for the western In
dian somehow regards the buffalo with a
superstitious reverence, and to-day there
are more than 200 pure bloods, and twice
as many more half breeds.
Mr.. Eaton recently visited the Flat
heads and bought several perfect speci-
mems from the buffalo herd, for which he
found ready: sale in the east. He also Sc
cured options on nearly all the pure
bloods on the reservation. For years he
has maintained the dairy herds at the
Yellowstone Park hotels and posts, and
this spring he was assured by Major
Pitcher that the buffalo herd in the park
was running down and that some new
Here and The