Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1914-02-06

Iorkvlile wan WHO NHo" "a"S W
The Brave Soldiers, and Who Has
Since Visited the Scene of the Fight
ing Tells Interesting Story Of the
I Historic Event.
At the request Of friends, Profs Rob-
ert ]. Herndon, Of Yorkville. has writ
ten an account of the famous battle
in which the brave General Custer
was wiped out by Sitting Bull, and has
kindly placed the manuscript at the
| disposal Of The Enquirer It is with
much pleasure that we give it to our
| readers.
When l was very small boy dur
ing the Ku Klux trouble, quite large
number of U. S. soldiers were station
ed in Yorkville, and among them were
some who went to their death in the
battle Of the Little Big Horn, June
26th, 1875. These soldiers with many
others were sent to the far northwest
to whip into line" many rowing bands
Of wild, recalcitrant Indians Of the
Sioux nation who had committed
many depredations and would not live
at the Agencies provided for them.
On August 14th, 1913, visited the
Custer battlefield on the Little Big
Horn river in southern Montana. This
battlefield is two and a half miles
from Crow Agency, a station on the
Burlington Route &C. B. & Q. r. RI,
and about one mile from the roads
nearest point. The Little Big Horn
river ("Greasy Grass" the Indians call
it, is a branch Of the Big Horn which
in turn is branch Of the Yellowstone,
and from the Custer Battlefield it
flows in a northwesterly direction to
it's confluence with the Big Horn riv-
er. Between the Little Big Horn and
Big Horn lies some of the prettiest
farming land I saw throughout my
trip. Beautiful, level lands Of wheat,
oats and alfalfa just ripening; for re-
member crops mature in that high
country much later than with us. The
country to the northeast Is rough and
much broken when approaching the
Little Chetish Cor Wolff mountains.
Below the foothills where the battle
was fought. runs the Little Big Horn
river, very tortuous and swift but
through pretty and level fields such as
we would call a pretty river bottom"
here. It was in this beautiful valley
and on the banks Of the pretty little
river that the Indians were discovered
in camp. Forty "Rickaree" Indian
scouts accompanied the expedition
and these with some twelve or fifteen
Crow Indian scouts had found the
Sioux Indians under the leadership OF
Sitting Bull. The Sioux Indian nation
was composed of a number Of differ
ent tribes who in turn had their
chiefs. At this battle they consisted
Of the Cheyennes, Brules, Ogalallas,
Minneconjous, San Arcs and Uncpa-
pas. Sitting Bull was an Uncpapa In
dian and during the battle he remain
ed in camp making medicine" that Is
taking care No. l.
He is described as a heavy set, mus
cular man about feet inches in
height and was at the time Of the bat
tie forty-two years of age. He died
about four years ago II remember
correctly His views had great weight
at all Of the Indian councils and he
was a great medicine" man. His
voice and vote equalled that Of the
other chiefs. He had predicted that
the soldiers would attack them and
that the soldiers would be killed. He
was regarded personally as a great
coward and a very great liar, "a man
with a big head and little heart"
Among the principal warrior chiefs
were "Chief Gall" and Grow King"
Uncpapa Sioux; Crazy Horse" Low
Dog" and Big Road" Ogalalla Sioux;
Spotted Eagle" a Sans Arc Sioux;
Hump" a Minneconoju Sioux and
white Bull" Cheyenne Sioux. 1t
was these chiefs who conducted the
battle, the main honor resting on Chief
Gall. whose picture have. l have also
a picture Of Sitting Bull and "Curley'
the scout, the sole survivor OF the
battle. He is a Crow Indian and lives
in a little hut on the Little Big Horn
river in sight Of the battlefield, the
government having allotted small
acreage to him for services with the
Custer expedition and during the bat
tie. At the time Of the battle there
did not exist q ranch west Of Bismarck,
North Dakota, nor east OF BoZeman,
Montana. Today the country seems
we'll settled and at Crow Agency quite
a nice town stands surrounded by the
Crow Indian reservation where 1,7OO
Crow Indians live. / was told that the
government guards very carefully the
conduct Of these Indians and settlers
who live on the reservation, and 1t Is
penitentiary offense to be caught
with any intoxicating drink thereon.
These Crows have ever been friendly to
the white man and this same Indian
scout "Curley" begged Custer to let
him show him (Custer) a way OF es-
cape when he plainly saw that the SOL
diers would all be killed.
1t was these Crow scouts with some
of the "Rees" who succeeded in finally
locating the hostile Indians They told
of the immense camp; OF the great
herds of ponies and the fighting abil-
ity of these Sioux as some Of them had
had previous fighting experience with
the Sioux. 1t has been said that for
two or three days before the battle,
Gen. Custer appeared much disturbed
in mind and just after a talk with
his officers one night Lieut.. (after-
wards Captain) Wallace said to Capt.
Godfrey as they walked to their biv-
ouac: Godfrey l believe Gen. Gus
ter is going to be killed and l think he
believes it also for I never heard him
talk as subdued and conciliating as he
did tonight" Custer is described as
an officer whose manner was "brusque
and aggressive" This same night the
Indian scouts with their half-breed
interpreter were having their talk
also and when an officer passed the
a.lroJ hin, he kpaW how