Evening star., 1909-08-28

are applied to for further information.
and two or three hundred such persons
are given trial every year. But the
great majority of the applicants for posi-
tions In the Yellowstone hotels strange
to say, are invalids of small means who
hope to secure an opportunity to spend
the summer In the park and draw wages
at the same time. whereas the work at
these hotels because of the short season
and the crowds that rush through daily.
Is probably more exacting and laborious
than at any other hotels in the world.
When First Hotel Was Built
The first hotel in the park was built
Cartney. a well known frontiersman. 1t
was a rude log house. but the proprietor
never failed to extend cordial welcome
and produce a bottle and two glasses
whenever a guest arrived At one time
McCartney's tavern was well patronized
by prospectors and other gentlemen. who
sought wealth in the neighbor!ng noun
tains and his roots sank so firmly into
this fertile soil that the government OF
the United States had to pay him 5000
damages when IL turned him out after
the passage OF the act of dedication. Jim
then set up a saloon at Livingston. Mont,
where he remained until his death in 1907.
After McCartney's departure the oldest
inhabitant, and the most picturesque
character in the park. was Uncle John
Yancey, the only man We know of who
died from shaking hands with Theodore
Roosevelt. The cause of his death was
never officially established by coroner's
jury, but is well understood by those who
knew him best.
Uncle John claimed to be a son OF the
famous William L. Yancey OF Georgia.
who was one of the fiercest fire-eaters in
the Senate Of the United States and a
leader of the s ,cession movement he
also claimed to be a cousin OF the late
Has taA
States senator from Mississippi. and at
one time Secretary Of the Interior. Yancey
boasted of other aristocratic connections
and, according to his own story, was him.
self prominent figure in the rebellion.
He came up here after Lees surrender
and never left the park again. except once
year in midwinter. when he went to
Gardiner. Livingston. or some other
frontier town to blow in" the money he
had saved since his last visit and renew
his supplies OF coffee. sugar and bacon
for the succeeding twelve months. Uncle
John paid his bills annually before he
had his spree, and then. after his money
was all gone, he bought his supplies and
was trusted for them the rest of the year.
His cabin was always comfortable, he
never kept a servant and he was the best
cook ever known in these parts.
Witnesses the Ceremony.
Uncle John was, however. an unrecon-
structed rebel. and insisted that he never
made peace with the United States gov
ernment after the war. He regarded the
President of the United States as a
usurper and tyrant, and never hesitated
to denounce him as such in the most
violent manner. But. Ike all frontiers
men. he had a great admiration Tor Theo-
dore Roosevelt, and when the latter came
up here In 1903 to dedicate the arch at the
entrance of the park. Uncle John delib-
erately violated his rule Of a generation
and went down to see the ceremony.
He shook hands with Roosevelt when he
arrived in the morning and shook hands
with him again when he departed for his
cabin at night. The boys .joshed him
could not survive shaking hands twice
with a usurper. but didn't dream that
their jest would prove a prophecy. Yet
Uncle John passed in his checks alone
in his cabin three weeks after Roosevelt's
visit. He appeared to be suffering from
no disease, there was no evidence of
violence and the cause of his death was
recorded as unknown"