Palisadian. [volume] (Cliffside Park, N.J.) 1906-current, 1920-09-04


one knows It. The story of John Golfer and Col
ter's He'll properly begins away back In 1903,
when Thomas Jefferson our third president,
bought the Louisiana territory from Napoleon
Bonaparte.
The western boundary Of the United States
was then the Mississippi, as fixed by the treaty
with Great Britain after the Revolution. Jeffer-
son sent James Monroe to France to cooperate
with Minister Robert r. Livingston in the pur-
chase of the Mississippi's mouth for $2,00OOOO.
Napoleon laughed at them. He had just made
Spain cede him the Louisiana Territory intend
ing TO establish there an empire to replace that
lost TO the British in Canada. Then Napoleon
he must fight the British. He could not fight and
colonze. too So, to spite the British, he told the
two Americans they could have all the country
between the Mississippi and the Rockies (Texas
not incuded) for $l5O0O,0OO. And he made Mon
roe and Livingston agree Jefferson was scared
stiff at the act of his agents There was nation
wide rumpus over the purchase. but congress rati-
fled IL and the people finally approved 1t.
Jefferson had not the slightest idea what the
United States had bought and in the spring of 1904
he started the Lewis and Clark expedition from st.
Louis to find out. This famous expedition went to
the mouth of the Columbia river and returned to
st. Louis in 1906, after having been given up for
lost. 1t passed few miles to the north of the
Yellowstone, without even suspecting its existence.
John Golfer one of the private soldiers of
the expedition. Before 1t reached ST. Louis he got
the headwaters of the Missouri for beaver. In the
spring of 1907 at the mouth of the Platte he met
Manuel Lisa and again turned back. Lisa built
Fort Lisa at the confluence of the Yellowstone and
the Big Horn. Golfer, going alone TO summon the
Crows TO the fort for trade passed to the south Of
the Yellowstone through Jacksons Hole TO Perres
Hole at the west of the Yellowstone. Returning
thence to Fort Lisa he passed diagonally through
the Yellowstone the first white man to see its Won
ders.
Golfer, after adventures and travels that give
him front rank among explorers of the west re-
turned to st. Louis in 1910. He recounted his ad-
ventures and he told of the marves of the Yellow
stone. ST. Louis believed some of his tales of adj
venture, but would have of the geysers. boil
ing springs and pantpots of the Yellowstone.
They derisiyely dubbed it Golfers He'll" laughed
over Ii for time and then forgot it. Gen Will
liam Clark. his commander, the only to
believe him. On the official map of the Lewis and
Clark expedition is dotted line from Fort Lisa
TO the Yellowstone and return, with the legend
Golfers route in 1907"
The Yellowstone was discovered the second
time about 1S2I-this time by Jim Bridger one of
Gen. William IL. Ashley's lieutenants in the Rocky
Mountain Fur company. Bridger was the discov-
srer of Great Salt Lake. map-maker without
equal, mountaineer, plansman and guide with
no superior. But he had hobby-big yarns II
is he who made up those classic "whoppers" of
the west-the ohsidian cliff. boiling spring. echo
and alum creek stories. So, when he told about
the wonders of the Yellowstone, SOOTHING frontier
said, with laughter: "oh. just another of Jim
Srdger's yarns"
Warren Angus Ferris described the Upper Gey-
ser basin of the Yellowstone in lS42-and not
believed Prospeetors in the Montana gold excite
ment Of 1862 again described the Yellowstone they
were set down as liars. Newspapers and maya
zines would not publish the stories; lecturers
stoned. In 1869 the semi-oficial Montana Wash
hurn-Langford expedition did succeed in getting
bearing In 1870 the federal government sent an
official expedition which officially put the Yellow
stone on the map.
Cornelius Hedges, September is, 1870. by a
campfire In the Yellowstone, proposed that the
Wonderland be made n national parx-a play