The Coolidge examiner., 1932-06-24

day, others. Perhaps he was all Of
these. One thing is certain, he was
colorful.
The year Of his birth in South Da-
kota, 1884, is almost a hundred
years ago. South Dakota was a
wild country then, inhabited by
Sioux, who fought the other plains
tribes necessarily. The Shoshoni
and the Crows knew the valor of
this tribe, and as time went on,
young Sitting Bull became noted
far and near as a warrior of the
Sioux.
Certainly, his youth was not that
of a coward. He distinguished him
self in hunting buffalo calves at the
age of ten, and at fourteen he had
gone with his father on the warpath
and counted his first coup.
Coups are counted in three ways:
killing an enemy, scalping an enemy,
or being the first to strike an enemy.
AS he grew older, Sitting Bull was
often consulted in the role of peace
maker. He, a leader in war, was
also foremost in peace; but this did
not extend to the white men. For
them, Sitting Bull always had a
sense of disdain and hatred. 1t
shows in his picture, glaring out
from his Indian eyes; it showed
most-and always-in his life.
His first important engagement
against the whites was at Fort Bu-
ford in 1866. The next three years
found Indians from various tribes
flocking to his standard. Then came
seven years on the warpath, when
the band was never at q loss for a
fight; there were frontier posts to
swoop upon, Shoshoni to battle with,
or Crows to raid.
Then the seven years of joyous
warfare came to an end. The gov
ernment stepped in. This was no
longer an Indian land, where the
red man might do as he liked.
Peace was the word Of the day, and
peaceful Indians went on reserva-
tions and behaved themselves.
Yes, but Sitting Bull was not a
peaceful Indian!
The battle of the Little Big Horn,
where Custer and his men fell, is
of course the most famous engage
ment in which Sitting Bull is named.
Here one may always start an ar
gument about him.
Was he a coward? He is said to
have fled with the women and chill
dren on that eventful day. Or was.
he the mighty medicine man who
stayed in the hills and prayed for his
people, although his heart inclined
to the thick of battle? Who can
tell? Gall and John Grass fought
bravely, trained in the same school
which had taught Sitting Bull the
lessons of war. Many other Indian
warriors fought bravely also. Is it
believable that he, who had spent
the last ten years on the warpath,
had fed from the handful of white
men-espeeially when he had al
ready predicted the Indian victory.
But with General Miles hot on
his heels afterwards, no one can
blame him for escaping into Canada.
General Miles was another sort of
enemy, with an uncanny manner Of
achieving his ends in the face of all
sorts of opposition.
The year 1881 saw the return Of
Sitting Bull to his own country. He
had been promised amnesty, and
surrendered at Fort Buford, where.
Is years before, he had made his
first great fight against the whites.
1t is almost impossible, in describ-
ing the Sioux leader at this time of
his life, to avoid using the express
sion "a Gagged eagle" 1t so exactly
fits him. His fighting heart was not
tanned, even if his power was limit
ed. Was this a martyr who urged
his people not to yield to the white
men, prophet who foresaw the fal1
of his race, or an old scallawag with
an Unsuitable desire to make trou-
BILE? The truth. no doubt, lies some
where in between.
There is something a little sad in
Sitting Bulls death. The chief was
of more than middle age; his elo-
quent opposition was his only effec-
tive weapon against the whites.
Two troops of cavalry with two
Hotchkiss guns, and 43 trained In
dian police, were sent at night to
take him. They woke him where he
slept, and told him to go with them,
and bitter-heart that he was, he be-
rated them as he made his prepara-
tiOns.
He was shot as he went out with
his captors. Fearful that his fol-
lowers might effect a rescue, the In
dian policeman at his side killed
him, In front of his people who had
crowded around to save him. Killed
by men of his own race, Sitting Bull
died as he had lived, hating and
despising the white men and their
u