Bismarck daily tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, Dakota [N.D.]) 1881-1916, 1914-01-30
foley Tells Of 7HEf1S
AT Old fort LINCOLN N | !

~ hnYhIl
der, Col. Otis, he called us to him and
asked how about the bacon? When told
lat was in the post he iapp~Ateh relieved,
! then said toathe Major:t'ltEnh now
what made yon' act 80 excited a. while
ago; you thought that I han stolen the
bacon IT was nearly an all nights job
to weigh, mark. sack IN get to the land
ing, hut never after this was n sus-
picion cast upon me during the live
years I spent at the dear old post.
When almost two years had passed,
every one Thought stealing at the post
was q thing of the past. One morning In
the month Of March, 81 one of the men.
on duty with me, came to my house for
the keys to open the office and commence
business for tho, day. lie. returned In q
very short time very much excited, ana
when able ia talk, told me that some
one had broken into the building during
the night and stolen nearly all the stores.
AS there were at least one hundred wagon
loads in the room the night before. felt
Satisfied that 1t was not as bad as stated
Or visiting the building it was found
that soma one lad bored a, hole through
the rear door, II fact several holes, max
ing a place sufficiently large to Insert a
hand and ,rccmoVe. the peg above the bar
which held the door safe. On looking over
the stores it was soon found that twenty
boxes of tobacco, containing fifty pounds
each, and ten sacks of green coffee con-
tanning one hundred and thirty pounds
each. had been taken: and this was all.
eighty cents per pound wholesale, and
coffee about thirty cents, IT was readily
seen that q very valuable load Ind been
removed "A guard was supposed to be-
placed, during the nights. over the store
room, but Col. Otis, from the kindness
of heart, had ordered the sentinel dis
Icontinued during the cold winter montl1ss
The night the stores were stolen had
been a very severe one; atathe same time
q ball had been given in the post llalf:
1t was seen from the tracks that a wagon
had been stopped in the road near the
building, the stores carried from the rear
platform TO the wagon. Owing to nearly
every one being at the bail this was a
very good nigh. for the enterprise.
From the valuable goods taken, in the
dark, as they must have been, it was
Lthc building. arc the location y Of the
stores, must have aided the thieves. The
question was how TO recover what was
taken. 1t was decided to send some In
dian scouts with a detail Of soldiers to
follow the trail, but, under no circum-
stances to visit Bismarck; if the trail
led to the city to return to the post and
report. The detail disobeyd orders, and
went into the city, when, as afterwards
learned, the goods went out Of town.
Lieut.. Chance. the post, commissary. then
visited the city and 1t was suggesteds'to
him that the then chief OF, police, who
was my dear old friend Tom Fortune,
must be asked to recover the goods: that
IL n n could do so, he could; that 1t
might be necessary to pay a reward. as
the chief might have to pay nj one:
that II the goods were returned, no ques.
lions would be asked. Inside of forty
eight hours from the time the goods were
stolen they were all placed back on the
rear platform of the building from which
taken. While we are glad to have II
reputation saved. vet it was amusing to
think. Of the cold, cold trip from Bis.
marck, and the handling of the stores,
and then to have to bring them back
with out even a chew OF tobacco being
toknn n vIyhap 7 !. hoooro wall -oo,IAnd
with Fortune. lie told me who the soldier
was who had taken part. but he never
would tell me who the parties were from
Bismarck. l always Tonored Fortune for
not telling; be had given his word to the
thieves and kept it. There is more honor
II Tom Fortunes little finger than there
is IN many a saints whole body. Dear Old
Tom. may he live long and die happy.
Late. in the year 81. after the river was
frozen over. orders were received Is send
a large shipment Of goods to- Bismarck;
for shipment, by rail, to Glendive, from
there to be forwarded. by wagons, to
Fort Maginnis. The contractor hauling
the stores to Bismarck would make two
trips daily, leaving under charge of the
post guard during the night the loaded
wagons so he could make an early morn
ing start. One night a man Of .L' Troop
9TH Cavalry had, the watch from 2 to IL
from 5 to S a. NIL During, his first
watch q box, containing 5000 cigars, was
taken from the wagon to the troop stab.
les, there the cigars were removed ana
the box filed with old iron and hay, and
returned to the wagon between 3 and s