The Fargo forum and daily republican. [volume] (Fargo, N.D.) 1894-1957, 1914-07-11

E. w. Howe in Kansas City Star .
One OF the most romantic characters
in the history of the west vas an At
Gibson county, Kansas, man; Charles
Alexander Reynolds, known among
the Indians as Lonesome Charley,
because he had little to say. He was
a scout, hunter and trapper and was
killed on the Little Big Horn river in
1876, with Custer.
In 1858, he came to Atchison county
with his fathers family. The father
was a doctor n practiced at the viii
lage of Pardee, which Rev. Pardee
Butler made famous. In the summer
of 1860 he crossed the plains as a
teamster. During the winter Of 1861
81 he trapped in the Rocky mountains
and for a time carried mail across the
snowy range on snowshoes. The fol-
lowing summer he returned to Atchi-
son county and enlisted in the Tenth
Kansas, in which he served three
years. He was in the battle at Prairie
Grove, but did not see any hard serv-
ice in the south.
Never Again Seen by His Relatives.
He was mustered out Of the army in
the summer of 1854, n in the fall of
that year left for Colorado, in COM
pany with a German he had known in
the army. They had two yoke of oxen,
a wagon and a lot Of goods with which
IUSy eApSCISu 10 LThu6. somewhere
along the Santa Fe trail Reynolds
and his partner were attacked by In
dams. The German was killed at the
first volley, but Charley Reynolds bar
ricated himself under the wagons and
stood the indians off until night. The
Indians had surrounded the wagon,
but Reynolds slipped through them
and escaped, finally reaching a wagon
train and safety.
| Pnnnhinp q fort on tho rnaJ frnEYa1oI
by the wagon train. he engaged as a
government scout, and was never seen
again by his relatives.
A Brother Still Lives in Atchison.
He talked little and wrote less. His
brother, w. T. Reynolds, still lives on
the old home farm in Atchison county,
and says he heard from his brother but
rarely. It is known hat he acted as
guide for the Grand Duke Alexis OF
Russia on his famous buffalo hunt; that
he was guide for several noted Ameri-
cans, including General Sheridan, Mrs.
Custer mentions him in her book
Boots and Saddles, as a character
around Fort Lincoln, on the Upper
Missouri. 1t was from this point that
Gen. George A. Custer left with his
command on the memorable Indian
campaign which ended in wiping out
Clusters entire command, about 800
men; lot a man was left to tell what
happened. Mrs. Custer greatly admir-
ed the a as did her husband. She
speaks of the romance of his life
although she admits little was known
of him around Fort Lincoln; n Gen
eral Custer mentions him in n of his
letters from the field as brave, silent
Charley Reynolds"
The Sweetheart Story a Myth.
William E. Curtis, the Noted news
paper correspondent. once wrote up
Charley Reynolds and told a romantic
story Of a love affair. But his brother
William, never heard of any such af-
fair. William T. Reynolds heard him
mention a girl in the, west, and thinks
he nay have become acquainted witt
her during his visit to Colorado, but
he never seemed much interested. Will
liam e. Curtis said Charley Reynolds
was a college man, and met his sweet
heart at college. For three years he
attended a little college at Arlington
ILL.,, to which place his father removed
from Kentucky. But as he left ILL
nois for Kansas in 1858, when he was
16 years old, he could not have hac
much of a love affair at Arlington.
There has been almost as much quar-
relins over the battle Of the Little Biz
Horn as there has been over h battle
of Waterloo. General Custer, a popu'