Bismarck daily tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, Dakota [N.D.]) 1881-1916, 1913-11-09
Dakota Pioneer Tells Of
Historic Dolngs on
Frontier
Relates Anecdotes Of Men
Who We're Characters
Then
Remembers incidents That
Made Every Day Life
Of the Post
By James w, Foley.

" 10y uhSC SAS II
In my first article on Old Fort Lincoln
the statement was made that the articles
to be written would be from merory of 81
years ago, and what had been told me
by others. Far be it from me to 40 an
injustice to either the l wing or the dead.
Comes now my dear friend 2. S. Nell
who claims that too much credit was given
Captain William Harmon for closing the
joints at Point Pleasant; that he was a
county commissioner at the time, as was
my friend King John; that they were the
ones who cleaned up Burleigh county In
the days Of long ago. ! can only say that
Captain Harmon claimed the credit; but
surely there was glory enough for all.
Captain Harmon haS long since passed
the great divide.
In the near nine of the Christian era
there was fought a great battle In the
swamps Of Germany; the Place S was known OWL
between the Roman legions under Quin-
titus Varus and the confederated Germans
under Arminius. The Roman army was
defeated and almost destroyed. Six years
after another Roman army, under com.
battle to pay the last offices to the slain
legions and their leader. With the army
of Germanicus were some OF the survivors
of Varsus. Tacitus, in his history, give
of these survivors: Here the commanders
of the legions were clain; there we lost
the eagles; here Varus had his first wound
there he gave himself another, and per-
place, too, stood the tribunal whence Ar
minus harangued. How many glbbets he
erected for the execution of his captives;
what trenches he dug; and how, in proud
scorn, he made a mock at the standards
and eagles"
How well would this description of Tao
titus describe the field of the Little Big
Horn, and the battle of June 25th 1876.
Come with me to Old Fort Lincoln and
let me show you where Custer, his broth
Cook, Calhoun, Yates, Keough and many
others Of those, who laid down their lives
on the i'll fated field. lived and served;
perhaps some of them loved somebody's
up the hill, which they all SO proudly
marched on that early spring day Of the
long ago. Let me show you the hill up
which a man can scarcely walk; yet six
Indians were after them The water wa
gon a a hose behind and the driver
had the presence of mind to throw the
hose down and let the water out as the
mules were running up the hill. Let me
show you where stood the guard house
in which Rain in-the-F Face was confined,
and from which he escaped. Many inter-
esting things took place at Old Fort Lin
coin. Shall the true history of Battle of
the Little Big Horn ever be written? Per-
haps. 90
Two of the young officers, killed in the
battle of the Little Big Horn, were we'll
known to the writer. or these young men,
cut Off in the flower of their young man
here. James Garland Sturges, son of S.
D.. Sturges. and grandson on the mater
nal side, of General John Garland Of Vir-
ginia: a general officer in the war with
Mexico. General Sturges came from the
Cumberland valley. in Pennsylvania.
From ancestors coming from these states
and from the old stock there. how could
the son be but good. I don't know why
the son was always called Jack" j: G.
deny, class of 1875. ant came to Saint
Louis. where his father was snperintend-
emit of Recruiting Service, with some Of