Fergus County argus. [volume] (Lewistown, Mont.) 1886-1946, 1904-10-19
FROM IOWA TO
MONTANAM'64
Story Of the Early Experiences of jos
eph c. Walker and others contin.
ued From Issue of October 5th.
PREPARED FOR THE PIONEERS
Long Journey Across the Plains by OK
Team-oeath Of One of the Party
on the Trail.

Two weeks ago the Argus published
the irst parl uf the Story uf tho carly
experiences of Joseph G. Walker and
Others, in thrir journey from Iowa II
Montana in 1868 and the conclusion of
that article, rcciting lhr pcriIs uf thr
trip back to Iowa and again across
the plains 10 Montana, follows.
Mr. Walker as stated then. propar
ed This article for presentation 1T The
meeting of the Montana Pioneers So
cioty, which was in session in Butte
last week, and through his courtesy
We are permitted to make il public.
Mr. Walker writes:
The LIST of November. 1864. Allen
liardenbrook, brother Milt and my.
self, traded some lots In Nevada City
for pair of mules and a light wagon
intending TO go TO Salt Lake. sell the
outfit at that place, and take the Over
land stage To Atchison, Kas. Before
starting. however, was taken Sick
They waited until the 2Oth of Noyem
ber and still was not able to go. and
ii was then high time those going by
team should be off. told them 10 80
on with the team and that when was
able | would 20 in the coach They
started on November Goth. went the
same day To the stage Office and found
the seats all taken for nine days
ahead. ! engaged seat for Decem-
her LIST. did not feel able then To
start on such "A hard trip, but start.
ed. Snow was one foot deep at Vir
einia City ON December LIST, when the
stage pulled out on the seventeen hun
dred mile trip. When we arrived al
the Pleasant Valley range there had
been an immense fall of snow and
! there had been no stage across the
range for three days. Al Williams
ranch we abandoned the coach. taking
eight passengers. including driver and
messenger. and nine sacks OF mail.
We arrived at Pine Butte station al |
O'Clock a. m, having walked and wad'
ed in snow. There we forced lunch
from the stock tender against his pro
test We pulled out al ~ o'clock, pas
sengers all walking In front OF The
four mules breaking trail for them
Twice that afternoon the team mired
down in deep snow. We had 10 tramp
down a trail for the mules and lead
them out singly and for quite dis
tance before they could get foollng.
Then we carried the mail out TO where
the mules were, then carried ont the
baggage and forty thousand dollars
worth of gold dust; then we took the
wagon box off and carried that out !;
then we separated the forward wagon
gear and rolled and pushed 1t out; al
ter that we gave the hind gear simi-
lar treatment. We then proceeded to
put the wagon together and reload
aud hitch up the mules again. The
passengers then got In front OF the
mules, doing what they could To break
the trail for them. In icss than two
miles further we were again mired
down. and the work of eXtrication was
the same as before. Thus we worked
until dark. having Travelled seven
miles from ~ o'clock until dark. mules
and men being exhausted and no tood
or proyender for either. Six men pro
ceeded To file claims for locations III
the wagon box TO put In the night a
man by the name of Manning ana my
self wanted no location In that wagon
box. We took the hindgate out oil the
wagon and with IL dug a hole in the
snow four by six feet. When we had
gotten to the ground We measured
the depth Of the snow and found II
to be three feet deep. The four mules
were tied TO the wagon, and all nlgh'
long they were busy eating up the har
ness and the wagon box. They also
ate one skirt of of Elk Morse's over
coat from his body as he lay IN the
| wagon, and where Morse laid the waS
ON box was eaten down level with his
legs. Those mules kept these Pull
man passengers" talking all nigh'
long. aud the latter used many words
thai are frequently used in religious
talks-but | would not say they USED
tiren for that purpose. We got very
early start the next morning. Inc
truth Is we did not have one thing To
do except start. We formed in double
file. breaking trail for the mules and
travelled one mile, when the mules
could go no further with the wagon.
We were now within five miles of our
destination. and we held council,
Elk Morse had more gold dust aboard
than any other one member of the
party and | knew the exact amount
he had. lie took me to one side anu
said if / could stay with the wagon
and treasure with three other passcn'
GERS. that he and the other three men
would take the mules To the station,
and he pledged US that If he could get
no assistance at the station. he would
come back and bring as some lood.
| told him | would stay. and the four
men started. We who remained look
our seats in the wagon and watched
the other men as they started on
laundering through the snow. We
very soon decided that at the speed
they were making Morse could not get
back 10 MS that night, and that we
should have TO put in another night
without food. When Morse's party
had gotten about one mile away we
saw a horseman coming from another
direction: directly we saw another,
and then another. We kept counting
nntil we had counted hve men and
fnnrtnen animals When NOISES party