The Bozeman courier. (Bozeman, Mont.) 1919-1954, 1927-02-04

chatter Of the "camp-rObber'' commingle
with the "hOO-hoo' of the cat owl. Then,
the shrill cry Of the eagle, the "caws' Of the
crows, and the whiFr Of the ruffed grouse,
add to the echoes which multiply, sink
away, rise again, and finally fade into ut
ter and aweSOme silence.
Yonder, in a small park, silent as the
shadows, he sees a family Of deer, grazing
along over the carpet Of green. Suddenly.
as though rising from some subterranean
depths or as a death knell sounded from a
nOt-far-distant ravine, the baneful sound Of
the female cougar calling her mate to the
"kill'', chills the blood of the traveller
and strikes terror to the heart Of the doe
as she hurries her fawns to cover Of a
bordering thicket. But the mOuntainman
nOiselessly, cautiously wends his way slow
ly up stream, mindful only Of the POSSIBLE
ity of a grizzly's presence, sets his traps
at beaver ponds, and then retraces his
steps back to camp.
Yes, l wish I had been a mountainman
one hundred years or more ago.
The Great Trapper Band
Had it been your favored lot to have
passed by the site of the present city OF
Great Falls one day late in April about
met your eyes a sight that would have
thrilled them. Around a number OF fires,
a band Of white trappers, numbering about
eighty, having just "struck camp, were
Willing away the time, cooking, smoking,
cleaning their guns or mending their buck
skin garments. Grizzled men these, in tat
tered buckskins, with long hair and un-
kempt boards and brOnzed skin. Their
travels in quest Of adventure land fursl
had carried them far from the haunts OF
civilization. and their varied experiences on
plains and in mountains had hardened
them to any emergency.
The Leader Of MOuntalnmen
And, had YOU stopped to drink in this
curious panorama. you would presently
have seen riding into the midst Of this
primitive group, the leader Of the band of
free trappers. Mounted on a white .Nez
Perez pony, tall, erect, with brown hair
flowing beneath a black felt hat, and with
keen, straight forward cOuntenance, Jim
Bridger was all Of a leader among noun
tainmen.
In passing. you could have heard in clear
tones, the hurried and stern warnings:
do zee hyar now, boys, thar's sign
about? Do zee hyar now? This Niger sees
sign ahead-he does. An we'll be. afoot
afore long ef we don't keep our eye skinned
I've will. Injuns is all about, they are
an BlackfOOt at that. Come on, boys. They
can't catch us nappiE'. Wagh!'
Then, If you could have peered, as did
these men, out over a little rise and up
the valley Of Sun river, you would have
seen a great string Of lodges scattered
along the fringe Of cottonwood trees as far
as eye could reach.
A skirmish with the Piegans
AS you watched this trapper camp, you
would have observed quiet preparation.
1.-THE hardy mOuntainmen stealthtly bring
din all their horses, and hObble and stake
.ithem close to the rivers bank. Then, each
trapper, returning to his post, unrOlls his
blankets In such a manner that ali form
a circle around the animals, each man pill
ing his furs. his saddle and packs as a
sort of breastwOrk. Night falls, and double
guards are put on while the remainder
turn In. And, at midnight, the s~entr1es
change, with Bridger, himself taxing a
You. too. rest beneath your blankets,
with the sky's canopy Of starry blue TOT Z
The air is filled with the yells and hlgh-
pitched war songs Of 400 hideOusly painted
Piegans, as they spread out after crossing
the MissOuri's ford, and come at the
white intruders from all sides.
Above the din, in stentorian tones,
Bridger's warning rings forth:
Don't get excited, boys; Hold your IRE ~
/ The battle RACES. At first you reel grave
concern about your own SAFETY, Tor tne
Piegans are trained in their primitive war.
] fare, and they fight well. But, LnaIIy
with but two trappers killed, the Indians
{ are repulsed with heavy loss.
/, Lifts Another Scalp
As the redmen hasten their flight toWardi
l the river, there silhOuetted against a sky
e Redeemed by the mornings sun, sits tn'
= typical mountainman. Bridger has turned
, to take a last shot a a fleeing warrior. a
this moment, II you had listened closet!
you could have heard the phrases or re
monstrance the hardy leader directed {
his gun-shy Nez Perez pony:
"DO zee hyar now, you darneG cr1CUer
Can't you keep quiet your old fleece, now
ISM fbis old coon putting about TO saw
zee from the darned lnjuns now, DO e
His never-failing aim takes it's usual to-
despite the wary mount; and, jumpin
down from his saddle, Jim Bridger saun
tiers over and lifts another scalp-One:m NOR
trophy Of remembrance Of another VICTOR
over the one tribe Of redmen In whom q
could place no trust and by whom ne wa
not trusted.
man.
st. Louis. in 1922
It has often been spoken Of by histol
ians as the greatest primary fur mark'
the world has ever known. Located o
the western bank Of the Mississippi, at
point not far south Of where the waIel
of that great river are swelled by the no
louisiana was coded to the United State
Inv the Standards, 1t became the nucleus {
one OF Americas foremost cities. st. Lou
in 1922 was a bustling little metropolis
approximately 1000 souls. At that tim
the town was in the hey-day Of its exis
ence as the center Of Americas mammOt
fur industry. 1t was also Civilizations on
pOst-the point where West met East.
There was then, perhaps, no other pa
of the American continent where human
could be seen in so varied, curious ana III
usual phases-where the spirit Of the III
tanned frontier was so typical. There we
the merchants, the fur buyers, the outtl
tiers, the French-Canadian ~voyageurs, q
rough Indian traders, as we'll as the maj
different types Of Adventures end ham
ers-On always to found where ctvtlizatiC
met the primitive. Added to all these we
the Indians themselves, who, with Squay
and papOoses. arrayed in the full regal
of savage attire, gave added color to an q
ready romantic atmosphere. Down aloI
the waterfront, daily there arrived and d
parted the rude keel boats hailing frO
and heading for the pays den Hau
where abOunded the beaver, the buffal
mink, otter, martin and other animal
- v,,,ob eo,rrhf oftor hacauqa Of thn ri