The citizen-Republican. (Scotland, Bon Homme County, S.D.) 1???-19??, 1912-09-26
$4,000 IN GOLD AND
SILVER GO TO ALLA\
HUNGER OF A DELUGE
Last Member Of Famous
Pioneer Family Found Dead
On Cheyenne Reserve.

Pierre, S. D.. Sept. 24.-With th4
death of Joe Narcelle, the half breed,
recently found with a bullet hole
through Kim on the prairie on the
cheyenne liVe reservation. died the
last male member Of one of South Da-
kota'S earliest and most interesting
families. Pierre NarceIle, the grand
rather, came to this ountry in 1925,
a boy of - Years. in the employ o,
a fur trading company which main
tanned Il post near the mouth of Chap
pelie creek. His son Narcisse. Joe's
iather, was a big cattleman, with his
nome ON the headwaters of Cherry
creek, and ranging his stock ovnr the
cheyenne River reservation. He was
Killed in a runaway last winter.
Young Pierre Narcelle first reached
TINS country in July. 1928, in company
Wlth some New York mon. who estab-
llShed the store, as noted, near Chap
peie creek, and made Il mint OF money,
probably netting $25,O 900 annually
through :heir fair dealings with the Da-
kotaS, who brought their pelts in from
hundredS oil miles around. Pierre was
palc LIDO u year and board. and be-
ing thrifty, Unsteady of sending his
money back to the states. invested it in
PONIES, which We're allowed to range
WIN those of the Indians. and articles
winch the fur company did not wish to
handle; and with the Increase gradu-
any pecaIhe Well-to-do, married Il
squaw n settled down.
Plerre'a own narrative as recorded
IN 1900 is as follows: MY money in
those days was always in gold and as
there were no banks within hundreds
OF miles there was nothing to do but
Dank in the ground. In half a dozen
places around my house between the
NGaIS iS5n 4nJ 1SGu I F,-,,..a,- /,
from $4,000 20 $685. 600 buried. These
banks. known only to the members
OF my family, and no other persons
We're good and safe enough until the
spring OF 1851, when three of them
silver" CIV ''"
Around our house on Channels
creek was a beautiful park of five
acres. filled with huge cottonwoods
many OF them directly on the creek
bank, and deep Town beneath their
roots placed my gold and silver
Mlappeu IN pnck$kin. All these trees
We're marked, and in the house | kept
a pat showing the location of each
bahk the amount of money it CON
tanned. The winter of 1S6O-6l was
very severe. with snow at least three
leet deep on the level. With warm
Msather the snow went off rapidly,
with every prospect of nigh water
me little bottom about the house had
never overlooked, so we all felt secure
me house stood fully 40 feet above
hlgh water, and the place where the
money was buried was nearly as high.
SO we felt secure. Day after day the
water rose, until suddenly checked by
a cold snap.
one day some Indians came down
the river and told us there was a great
Ice gorge at Farm island, below Bad
river, and that the water was backed
up for miles. That night it broke and
the water came down. In the morning
it had overfiowed our park. to within
a few feet of the door. All day #
continued to rise and at night was on
the floor of the house. We moved ont
and took up our abode in the barn.
on still higher ground.
In the morning we We're rp bright
and early to view a great change. The
house was still there, but the bank
where the money was buried was gone.
with nothing to mark the location but
q muddy expanse of water. All the
trees had been washed out and foated
the river. After the water sub
sided. the boys and myself hunted for
the money, but not one cent could we
find"