The Hardin tribune-herald. [volume] (Hardin, Mont.) 1925-1973, 1934-01-12

Of valor to have slain q and, like
medals, the claws of the grizzly, when
worn, denoted the proves Of the
er. A necklace Of them was q mark OF
signal distinction.
James relates how one Indian,
Shawnee, killed a bear which had seized
him by his cape and collar. The dying
bear did not release its hold and when
1t fell to the ground the Indian was I
underneath. The fellow was almost
crushed by the immense weight before I
he could be released. This is not to be
wondered at when we hear Of grizzlies
weighing 800 pounds.
One day q trapper by the name OF
Pelton, q Yankee, went out from the
fort to look at his traps. These were
often set In or by streams where there
was thick underbrush, which furnished
wild animals. Pelton must have known
this and taken the usual precaution Of
carefully examining the neighborhood
for any lurking foe. Everything was
quiet and peaceful and he felt perfect
ly safe in giving his whole attention
to his traps when, without warning, he
vas seized by the breast and thrown
down by a grizzly which suddenly rose
before him.
After throwing the man to the
ground, the bear stood over him, ex-
amining him curiously without making
any effort to maltreat him. Pelton,
thus rendered helpless and at the bears
mercy, made no attempt to shoot. IN
stead he yelled with all the strength
Of his lungs, but with no expectation
Of escaping death.
The bear continued to watch him Tor
a time, and then deliberately walked
off, leaving the astonished trapper to
gather himself up and make the short
! | est way back to the fort. Here he re-
lated his experience, attributing his al
most miraculous escape to his "bearish
eyes,"
Another trapper named Marie was
; attacked by q bear but was not so for
} tunate as Pelton. He lost an eye and
received a vicious slash neal the Jaw.
Managing to escape from the bears
z clutches in this mangled condition, he
i ran to a neighboring pond, and plung-
: ing in, started for the opposite shore.
: Nothing daunted, the bear followed him
S into the water where it soon proved
to be the better swimmer. Marie saw
e death inevitably near when q shot from
the gun Of a companion ended the
: grizzly's life.
These are a few Of the bear stories
r James has recorded in his description
of what happened at Three Forks when
he was there. His business, and that
of those who accompanied him to this
d remote station in the midst OF the
: Rocky mountains, was to catch beaver
e They could not undertake this without
y leaving the fort and to do so was peril.
GUS.
l. On the third day after their arrival
one of their number, DrOuillard, start
ed out to set his traps. It was no griz'
lie XIV that lay in wait for him, but In
s dams, who literally hacked him tt
pieces.
le It was repeated occurrences such q
IS these I have related, including the mas
sacre of the 20 or 80 men who went u
y the jefferson to trap, which finally de
Is. cided Menard to abandon the post an
II return to Fort Union. Trappers wei
j. used to a hard life and constantly face
te danger in some form: they ran tn
at gauntlet of bears and Indians else
to where. The trouble at Three Forks wa
that, although they were in a regto
a. teeming with beaver, they u nc
Ill tran them in sufficient numbers to b
he profitable because of the relentless er
e! nifty Of the Indians.
- Then men who went down the Ye
lowstone with Menard made the jour
Ter new in boats of buffalo hide stretche
over frames similar to mackinaws
to shape. There were three Of the
lrs boats; the one on which was Gener
he James held three men, 60 steel trap
as 500 beaver skins, besides guns, amm'
ed milton and other supplies"
its On reaching Lisa's fort, they spel
lily some time in making river-worthy g
he abandoned keel boat, in which tn
ley continued their journey to st. Lou
he They found the eros Ventres hi
AS robbed their cache, leaving III trappe
so much the poorer.
yes Today, as the traveller rolls aloa
= through the beautiful valley where t.
nd three rivers unite to form the Nilsson
q how many Of them are there who 81
Dr. a thought to the gruesome deeds e.
acted in this spot? I heard a not
The educator call the attention OF a stran
er. err to the union of the waters. He tres
ir- ed it as a geographical fact, making
d." reference to the history Of the regit
It was a tame recital. Yet there bra
men once fought against Indians a.
ing wild beasts until, exhausted by t
struggle, what we're left of them q
KY. ~knowledged defeat and gave up in {
ny spair. We know a little Of what ha
pened there at Lisa's post on Thu
ed. Forks, but the half has not been to
aid Although, like other trappers, &c
me eral James had been forced to regs
him Indians as foes, yet he was magnal
nous enough to pay them this tribu
$50 IT nave seen chiefs with the dlgn
of real princes and h eloquence
I'm real orators, and braves with the va
ody of ancient S%partans. Their manner
speakinc Is extremely dignlfled q