Bismarck daily tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, Dakota [N.D.]) 1881-1916, 1908-02-02
AN indian TRADER in THE '7Os
New York Sun Has Interesting Story by John R. Cassel
berry, Once Indian Trader at Standing RoCk.Pre.
lude to Custer Massacre and Other Events

ouu 1uc ClSdI SluOhS CulIS oNSl Ilie
table and rises in a fragrant cloud
above the heads of few friends that
the men who helped in the winning
of the West like to settle back in
their chairs and tell about it-not
about the great deeds always, mol
about the scenes which are in the his
tory books, but about the little ex
periences and troubles, the humors
and the little tragedies, which went
to make up the days work. Jacot
R. Casselberry is such man, and
the occasions when his friends ply
him with a question or two, just tt
get him started, are just such oc
casions of intimate Renaissance
which bring the atmosphere, to USE
a much abused term, home to the
men who were not part of the west
ward movement.
Mr.. CasseIberry was for many
years in the dry goods business in
Philadelphia, being the head of the
retail firm of j. r. Casselberry &
Co. in Eighth street, and member
OF the firm of Pollack, Casselberry
& Co., wholesalers, on Market street
In 1875 President Grant appointed
him trader at Standing Rock, now
Fort Yates, a post on the western
bank of the Missouri river, about
100 miles south of Bismarck, and al
Fort Stephenson, 100 miles northwest
OF Bismarck. With Mr.. Casselberry
was associated the presidents broth
er, Oryille Grant.
The appointment to Fort Stephen
SON was declined, but the other was
accepted, and Mr.. Casselberry made
two trips a year out to Standing
Rock during the four years he ran
the post. 1t is of what he saw or
these trips to look over his western
venture that Mr.. Casselberry likes
to speak.
At the time of his first trip tc
Bismarck there were no passenger
trains on the Northern Pacific be.
tween Fargo and Bismarck, but the
few passengers rode in the caboose
attached to the freight train, which
made the trip twice week. A little
while after leaving Fargo, with the
train running at full speed-abou1
hfteen miles an hour-Mr. Cassel.
berry spied a prairie wolf sitting on
his launches near the track, and
watching the train.
The train was stopped, with nc
hesitation on the part of the con
ductor, while Mr.. Casselberry iump
ed Off with ris rife. The bullet SPIT
in the earth six inches from the wolf
who bounded away over the prairie
The train waited until he was on,
of sight, the passengers climbed bach
aboard, and picked up it's journey
where it had been left off. The mex
stop was caused by man on horse
back standing on the middle of the
track and Waving his hat.
Where am I 2" the man wanted tc
know. "I'm from Michigan, dom
know the country and I'm lost
The strangers horse was badly
tagged, and the conductor advised
the man to take the railroad track
to Jimtown, some six miles away or
the Cheyenne river. Jimtown was
possessed of one rickety building
used as hotel. The man led his
horse down the track in the direction
of Jimtown, and the train resumed
its journey.
The road had been very wei bull
at that time, and an hour after meet
ing the stranger on horseback the
train was running through a shallow
lake which spread over the track in
times OF freshet. The train passed
through all right with considerable
splashing and all went we'll until ths
grade on the west side of the lake
was encountered
railing to ascend it the first time
the train was allowed to coast back
across the depression, was backed
up the grade on the other side of the
lake and with the momentum of the
descent added to the smoky energy
OF the engine the grade was tried
again. The fourth attempt saw the
train crawl slowly over the crest.
But the hard work had told on the
locomotive, and pretty soon it broke
down and refused to pull the train
even on a level. 1t was tinkered un
so that it would run without any
weight behind it, and the cars and
passengers were left standing where
they were-this was at 4 o'clock in
the afteTnoonuntil the next noon,
when another engine arrived and
pulled them to Bismarck, which was
at that time one street town. A
stretch of mile separated it from
the Missouri river-somebody owned
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