The Ekalaka eagle., 1916-11-03

brick manufactured close to the town.
1t hopes soon to have sugar factory.
1t was just below the confluence of
the Bighorn and the Yellowstone that
Emanuel Lisa, in 1907, erected
the first settlement in Montana.
known as Lisa Is fort.
Washington Irving tells of three
squadrons ofe canoes that sailed down
the Bighorn in the fall of 1888. The
first to set out, however, was com
posed of a lone canoe in charge of
Nathaniel j. Wyeth, a newcomer in
the wilderness from Boston, the first
man to propose development of the
Columbia river salmon fisheries.
Voyage Down River Made in
Frail Buffalo Boat.
"His boat was made of three buffa-
10 skins, stretched on light frame,
stitched together, and the seams payed
with elk tallow and ashes," wrote IT.
wing. at was IS feet long and about
five feet six wide, sharp at each
end, with a round bottom, and drew
about a foot and a half of water; a
depth too great for these upper wa
ters, which abound with shadows and
sand-bars. The crew consisted of
two half breeds. who claimed to be
white men, though IL mixture of the
French creole and the Shawnee and
Potawattomie. They claimed, more
moreover, to be thorough noun
taineers, and first-rate hunters-th
common boast Of these vagabonds of
the wilderness. Besides these, there
was a Nez Perce lad of IS years of
age, kind Of servant of all work,
whose great aim, like all Indian serv-
ants, was to do as little work as pos
slble; there was, moreover, half
breed boy Of 13, named Baptiste. son
of a Hudson Bay trader by a Flat
head beauty, who was travelling with
Wyeth to see the world and complete
his education Add to these Mr.. Mil
ton Sublette, who went as passenger.
and we have the crew of the little
bull boat .complete.''
Three Grizzlies Gaze Upon
Voyagers From Bank.
"Milton Sublette was the Pelorus
of this adventurous bark, being some
what experienced in this wild kind of
navigation" continues Irving. cit
required all his attention and skill,
however, to pilot her clear of sand
bars and snags, or sunken trees. There
was often, too, perplexity Of choice,
where the river branched into various
channels, among clusters of islands,
and occasionally the voyagers found
themselves aground and had to turn
back.
''It was necessary, also, to keep a
wary eye upon the land, for they were
passing through the heart of the Grow
country, and were continually in reach
Of any ambush that might be lurking
on shore. The most formidable foes
that they saw, however, were three
grizzly bears, quietly promenading
along the bank, who seemed to gaze
at them with surprise as they glided
by. Herds Of buffalo, also, were NOV
ing about, or lying on the ground, like
cattle in a pasture; excepting such in
habitants as these, perfect solitude
reigned over the land. There was no
sign of human habitation; for the
Crows, as we have already shown,
are a wandering people, race of
hunters and warriors, who live in tents
and on horseback, and are continually
on the move. II
Woman Gives Warning of
Grow Bands Ahead.
"On the third morning they de-
serted some persons at distance on
the river bank. AS they were now, by
calculation, at no great distance from
Fort Cass, a trading post Of the Amer
lean Fur company, they supposed
these might be some of it's people. A
nearer approach showed them to be
Indians. Deserving a woman apart
from the rest, they landed and ac-
costed her. She Informed them that
the main force of the Grow nation,
consisting Of five bands, under the
several chiefs, were about two or
three miles below, on their way up
along the river. This was unpleasant
tldings, but to retreat was impossible,
and the river afforded no hiding place.
They continued forward, therefore,
trusting that, as Fort Cass was so
near at hand, the Crows might re-
train from any depredations.
Floating down, about two miles
further, they came in sight Of the
first band, scattered along the river
bank, all we'll mounted; some armed
with guns, others with bows and az
rows, and a few with lances. They
made wildly picturesque appearance,