Plentywood herald. [volume] (Plentywood, Mont.) 1908-current, 1927-10-14
200 Whites Stood off 1900
Indians Along YELLOWSTONE
While Hunting Gold in ~

had never seen any Indian fighting. and
after the first two fights we had lots OF
trouble TO keep them from charging on
the indians at all times. In fact, they
had no more fear of the indians than
Of a band Of antelope; they didn't seem
to know that an Indian could hurt them.
There were also about so or so men who
could fight Indians: men who knew In
dams and all their methods, and who
even knew their habits of thought.
Weather Becomes Cold
THE prime object of the movement
was to open up the Wolf creek country.
where. as the party then supposed, rich
placers would be found About the time
1 the expedition commenced to move the
weather got intensely cold n we had
a great deal of rouble in keeping our
herd together. We made the Sweet Grass
all right. but the first night we were
there we kept the horses moving all
night long 30 they wouldn't freeze to
death. This was done at the expense of
having several men frozen. From this
camp we moved on until We got to the
Yellowstone. opposite the Porcupine. The
most trouble we had on the way down
was caused by heavy ~snowdrtfts. Through
these we had to shovel our WY. and &C.
casionally we struck steep hills where
1t would take about so men with ropes
attached to the wagons to help pull them
up the hills.
About the first Of April the party
crossed the Yellowstone On the ice. and
during the day trouble commenced. Two
of u party were quite q distance ahead
OF the advance guard. when a party
Of about q dozen Indians. in Indian
fashion, stripped, made q dash to cut
off our two men. 1t happened that the
advance Of our right bankers discovered
the movement of the Indians, and made
a dash for the indian robes. blankets,
and outfit, which they captured and
then turned their attention to the In
dams, with what success we could not
tell, but some Of them were probably
wounded, and they were left naked on
their horses.
For an outfit like ours, and with nc
better knowledge Of the country thar
we possessed, for two or three days We
had a difficult country to protect our
selves in. On the road we had to make
camp in the bottom Of q deep gulch. We
camped early and made such disposition
as we could for defense. 1t was there
that four or five Of the party. on going
ahead to look out the road for the next
day, were attacked by another party of
Indians from a low ridge in front OF
them, and probably saved themselves by
charging the Indians. instead Of running
from them.
One Man Wounded
1T was here hat one OF the party. who
was more anxious to secure horses thar
he was prudent In his methods, rode up
to get q horse that had been put out
for a decoy. WnGn the Indians got him
where they wanted him they opened
fire n wounded him in several places.
Then riding up to him they commenced
circling him and beating him with their
whips. But the plot was discovered in
time by some of the pickets who got
close enough to get in some good shoot
ing at the Indians, driving them off and
preventing their getting either the horse
or the man, who afterward recovered
from his wounds. That night the In
dams attempted to surprise our pickets
but failed, u men getting in the first
fire. and although We did not kill any
Indians, we got blood. One days more
river. On the river bottom we crossed ar
Indian trail of 400 or 500 lodges that
passed up the river that day.
h the music commenced and O
great many of our party were pulling
their hair and wondering what they were
doing in that country. We made oul
camp on a bench about 500 yards from
the Rosebud, on the east side. We dug
breastworks and then arranged for the
freest possible use of the two guns VIZ
had-one a 12-pound howitzer and the
other a 12-pound Napoleon. Unfortu-
nately, however, we had but very little
ammunition which we could use in the
Napoleon. We had two picket posts In
holes dug for that purpose, two men In
each hole to cover the coulee below us,
the coulee being about 80 feet from the
breastworks. Another picket post was
put out for protection from the river
bottom.