The Kevin review. [volume] (Kevin, Mont.) 1922-1929, 1923-05-03

He was ever alert and his command.
ing officers kept him moving on mill.
tary errands whenever the occasion
required. His researches into the
early history of what is now Mon
tana was with him a labor of love,
and the diary published herewith is
but a small part of the manuscripts
which he left at his decease.
Through the intelligent interest of
General Gibbon, who was his COM
handing officer here, seconded by
the efforts of Lieut.. B~radley's wife,
these papers came into the posses
sion of the historical society. In
the shadow of the Rocky Mountains
Lieut.. Bradley gave his life for his
country. AS in Montana, and to de-
fend her pioneers, he died dutifully,
it seems fitting that the historical
society should perpetuate his fame.
Bradley was with General Gibbon
at Fort Shaw at the time when orders
were issued to the troops in Montana
and Wyoming to round up Sitting.
Bull and Crazy Horse and their bands
of Sioux and to drive them back up
on their reservation, this being the
campaign made memorable by the
Custer massacre.
Gibbons, with his command, left
Fort Shaw at noon, March II, 1875,
with the weather 20 degrees below
zero.
According to General G. A. Wood
ruff, Lieut.. Bradley located Sitting
Bulls village shortly before the mas
sacre. In his story of the battle of
the Big Hole, Gen. Woodruff digres-
ses to this extent:
II would here remark that Lieut..
Bradley located Sitting Bulls vii
a short time before Custer
struck it, and but for an unforeseen
incident, Gibbon would have attacked
It. Bradley was the one, also, who
discovered the remains of Clusters
/ remember we'll how he
.ode up to Gibbon, saluted, and said:
General, I have the honor to report
hat I have counted 1914 dead bodies;
presume they r soldiers, but they
lave been stripped and some are
BADLY m~utilated."
1t vas the year following the Sioux
;ampaign that Bradley lost his life
the Nez Perces, who had
General Howard, and had
the mountains into Montana.
General Gibbon, starting from Fort
shaw with three companies, crossed !
he Rockies through Cadotte pass,
.aught up with the Nez Perces in
amp in the Big Hole, and engaged
hem in a bloody battle, the casual
les of which were related by General
Woodruff as:
"Of the II officers, IA bullets
ound their billets in their bodies.
'hree were killed or died OF wounds
nd four were severely wounded.
he entire command lost 81 killed
r MORALLY wounded, and 38 wound
all but five severely, a larger per-
than that of the Light Bri-
ade at Balaklava, but Gibbon had
OF ~blundered. 1t was magnificent.
ut it was war.
ssThe Indians left SO dead unburied
q the field, and Joseph admitted a
,ss of 208 killed or m~ortally wound
l.; 26 more than Gibbon took into
10 fight"
The courageous part which Lieut..
radley took in this fight and the
DRY Of his death are told in 1.-THE |
of the Big Hole" as follows:
''The valiant band of regulars and
)lunteers who had been sent down
le valley under Lieut.. Bradley to
rike the lower end of the camp,
wv turned and fought their way up
rough it; through the willow thick
s: through the willow sloughs and
lyous; through the windings of the
-xo-. Zi11in0 on Jndion onI 111.--IjI
man at every turn, and finally
ined the command in the woods.
"But the gallant young leader of
e band was not there. He had fall
n early in the fight; in fact, the
white man killed. He was lead
e the left wing of the army in it's
sault on the camp. General Glib |