Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1910-02-26

40 years ago for the tLen untamed
west and grew up with the country.
He saw the wild life in all it's phases,
became an Indian trader, married a
Sioux squaw, and is now wealthy and
happy and the head of a family that
stands high in the social life of South
Dakota, where there is no disgrace in
Sioux blood
In the March number Of Everybody s
magazine there is an article on 1.-THE
Squaw Man as He Is,'' by Bailey NIL
lard, in which the career of Colonel
Jordan is touched upon at some length.
Additional facts regarding his life
are given in letter to a friend in
Rock Island written only recently il
which he says:
81 went to Chicago in 1869 and Sc
cured a position in a hardware store.
+ l was run over by a street car and
was laid up at my brothers home for
two years. At the time of the fire
3 was proprietor of small livery stable
1 furnished some of the carriages for
my brother, who was an undertaken
I'm 1873 / came west and secured a
position as quartermaster's clerk In the
United States army at Fort Robinson,
Nebraska, near Red Cloud agency, thus
my career on the frontier began. One
Of the new towns in Trip county on
the line of extension of the Chicago
and Northwestern railroad Is named
after me.
had two stores. One put in
charge of my son, aged %, talented
accountant and musician, whom edu-
Gated In the east He was drowned
IL, Tel
ing a widow and baby. My eldest son,
aged 25, died in January, 1905, Of
pneumonia. With these bereavements
have had load to carry.
81 have a nice home here and my
family has 500 acres m Trip and 800
here. have 100 here and just applied
for 160 more at place nine miles
west of Carter. where the railroad
must come and where a town site will
be desirable. I will be under the law
sole heir and can secured patent in
fee simple. 1 am interested in the
Jordan Mercantile company of Rose
bud
"I learn w H. BiI1y) Truesdale is
president of the D., L. & w. Railroad
company and Is quite a railroad mag
nate. Do you remember when we used
to fish together? I recollect distinctly
when coming from the island to town
I saw the flags at half mast because
Of Lincoln's assassination You were
with me. used to sell newspapers
on the island, also take bullets out of
the bank into which the guards fired
at target practice and sold the lead
in town
SET am leading the simple life at
my ranch Some day hope you can
visit me. Yours very truly,
CHARLES P. JORDAN.
"P. s. Got a nice letter from Sena- |
tor CulIom recently. Wants me to buy
fancy Indian blanket for him. can
not be considered an offensive parti- |
san. Never voted in my life. Jim |
Dahlman. mayor of Omaha and w. J. |
Bryan's right bower, is a very init |
mate friend of mine. c. P. j."
The story in Everybody's follows:
Eyes, sir; that's Crazy Horses rife" |
said Colonel Charles P Jordan. the |
old Indian fighter, holding up a rusty |
carbine as he sat among his relics and |
bead-work in the South Dakota shack |
into which l had strolled to buy some |
souvenirs that were not for sale. |
Crazy Horse, you know" he went on, |
was the real leader Of the Custer |
massacre, and not Sitting Bull. He |
surrendered that rifle to me after the |
massacre. I've lived here on the Rose |
bud and other Sioux reservations ever
since. I've made friends and money |
among the Indians, and l wouldn't |
swap places with any of your eastern |
miilionaires. l want to live where life |
is life"
He looked out of the window, down |
the little street, and out upon the |
broad expanse of prairie, with fond, |
appreciative gaze. He had his come
to-town clothes on, for he had brought !
his Indian curios into Dallas from the |
ranch for the land-rushers to stare at.
He was neat and spruce and wore !
soft hat, a white collar, and wonder
full beadwork four-in-hand of many
colors.
ITS a good thing to be satisfied"
said l, gazing, fascinated, at that re-
splendent tie. which would have been
an exclusive affair on Broadway. by
the way. colonel, are there many
squaw men on the reservation"
.'Suuaw men!" The words leaped
out like a bowie knife, there was
flash of the steel-gray eye, curl OF
the lip under the grizzled mustache,
and an impatient wave of the hand.
There's a good many white men on
this reservation and on others who
have Indian ladies for wives, but I'd
advise you not to call 'em 'squaw men
when you run up against EN-. Some
of the biggest and best men who ever
came into the west have married In
dian women. Sam Houston and Kit
Carson were what you'd probably call I
'suuaw men, and so were General Sib- :
ley General Sully and General Patter- ]
son of the regular army. as well as
Commodore Kittson, Marquis Fonta- !
nellie, Pierre Chouteau and scores of
other big men. Colonel James NC I
Laughlin. the senior United States In !