Warren sheaf. [volume] (Warren, Marshall County, Minn.) 1880-current, 1902-04-10

him, as it did. 'Biliose Chorlick''
doesn't give a man much of show
for his life, / should judge. This was
on August 10. On the following day,
still quoting from the diary, they made
FLEW preasants to the interpreter,
Mr.. Fanfou, and gave the Indians a
canister of whisky Which shows
that civilization was thus being rap
idly and surely extended to the alb
origines. Sergeant Floyd still got
NO better. and August 20, 1904, he
died. He was buried on the highest
point of land in that vicinity, and the
hill, which is several hundred feet
high, was called Floyd's Bluff, and the
name remains to this day. 1t is still
called Floyd's Bluff. The little river
just north of the burial place Of Floyd
is named for him.
The next day the explorers proceed
ed on their journey, which was to take
them a year or more, and which was
destined to open a territory larger
than the whole United States up to
that time. These facts We're largely
lost and would have remained buried
in oblivion and mystery except that
the diary kept by Sergeant Floyd
himself was discovered by accident
some years ago. The record as kept
by Floyd was found in the Wisconsin
Historical Society among a lot of rub
bish which is common to such insti-
buttons. The further details of the
diary would be of no particular inter-
est to the general reader. But l give
a few Of the notatlons made, which
shows that Floyd was a true sports
man and knew a good fish story when
he saw it. In one para graph he says:
"Capt. Clark and ten of his men and
myself went fishin and caut 300 and
II fish Of difernt Coindes" Isn't that
a pretty good fish story for those early
days? One would hardly expect so
good a fish story from pioneer and
from a man who had not much prac-
tice, but it shows that Floyd had the
making Of a great man if he had lived.
But ''Biliose Chorlick' was too much
for him, too much. But Clark goes
him several better and reports over
LOO fish, and it was perhaps not a
good day for fishing either. It is a
wonder that Clark survived after tell
ing such a whopper.
A cedar post was erected at the
head Of Floyd's grave, which was to
be the only mark of this humble hero
for over half a century. AS the ex-
petition returned that way in 1906
they revisited the spot and found the
grave had been somewhat disturbed.
Whether by wolves or Indians the
explorers did not know. They re-
filled it and went on, leaving their
comrade to sleep till the final awak-
ening of Gods chosen in the great
day of reckoning.
The earliest settlers who came to
Sioux City by way of the Missouri
can remember the cedar post which
stood there as silent sentinel for so
many years until the erection of a
fitting monument to endure forever
Travellers passed the Bluff, and there
are great many references to the
post and to the grave. Almost every
one who passed relates how he replaced
the post which had fallen. 1t seems
from the accounts that the post took
a keen delight in falling down as fast
as one traveller would put it up.
In 1857 the river got very high and
the Bluff began to wash away. A
portion Of the grave was washed away
and the cedar post fell into the flood
and was carried down the river The
old settlers who appreciated fully the
historic Importance of Floyd's grave
organized for the purpose of rescuing
the remaining portion Of the body of
Floyd and for .burying in a safer
place the remains. DR.. Sloane, whose
son is Sam Sloane, editor Of the
Charles City Intelligencer, was one of
the rescuing party, and as he was the
lightest in weight of any Of them he
allowed a rope to be fastened around
his waist and he was lowered over
the Bluff and secured the coffin, OF that
portion of it which had not been lost.
The skull and some of the bones Of
the lower eXtremities were the only
ones found. The rest had been lost,
probably by falling into the river.
Among the rescuing party We're such
we'll knsWn men as Ex-Gov. Carpenter,