Montana oil and mining journal. [volume] (Great Falls, Mont.) 1931-1953, 1936-08-01
Random Shot und Bun9ling Help Put Boisterous
Pioneer Twice i'm Jail Where He Ended His Days
By GIendolin Damon Wagner

immense caldron OF the United
States. an types Of people drifted
into ths land Of plains and noun
tains to contribute either intention
ally or for purposes OF their own
toward western progress There
were the true pioneers who
came to Montana earnestly hope
full of creating permanent homes.
There were also get-rich-quick OPP
timists, gamblers, Adventures both
good and bad and prospectOrs and
hunters. There were some who
sought escape from the law on the
vast plains and others 10 whom
fate had been not too kind who
craVed only the mercy Of forget
fulness.
There was one old rough-clad from
tierSman who lived and died mys-
teriously. At his death, he was found
to nave possessed many trunks packed
with richly bound classics He had, at
one time, been a professor in Harvard
The story is told Of an old miner still
living in Cook City, taciturn, habitually
intoxicated, who, when he speaks at all,
speaks the most perfect and beautiful
English. Fifty years ago, in New
York state, he was in love with beau
tiful and talented girl who preferred q
career to domestic happiness. She went
to Europe, studied voice culture and
became one of Americas great singers.
he QIubcQ Oub W ODI WCStClA4 WINS dl4Q
drowned himself in forgetfulneSS and
drink. Among all these types there were
certain TO be many oddities, folks who
played out their pygmy dreams with
an artistic balance Of comedy and
tragedy.
Among these last were Mr.. and Mrs.
Dennis Mitten, who, in the late sew
entities, lived on a small ranch in Hell
Gate a few miles below Drummond,
near New Chicago, which is now little
more than small graveyard, and with
Bear Gulch their nearest marketing
center. 1t is important, in view Of the
comedy which led to stark tragedy, to
keep in mind that both Mr.. and Mrs.
Mttten were portly people, each about
six feet tall and weighing, in their
prime, $50 pounds. The fact that Mrs.
Mitten was an aunt Of Tommy McTague
who, in about 1878 and 1879 was guard
of the penitentiary at Deer Lodge and
later became warden, has some bearing
upon our story.
In the early days, Willis Spear tells
US, Bear Gulch had no wagon road
leading into the town and so rancherS
were obliged to take their produce to
market by pack horse. MIR. Spear, now
prominent Montana rancher, lived in
the gulch at that time with his parents.
Although only a small boy then he
wen remembers their neighbor, Tommy
McTague, and also the Mittens. He can
still recall wildly the spectacle of fat
Mrs. Mitten on her putting horse rid
ing up the canyon to Bear Gulch with
her butter and eggs, usually Flooding
soberly along toward town, but in
eVitably returning homeWard In the
gayest of spirits with few groceries
and plentiful supply Of whisky.
There was enough excitement in those
days, Mr.. Spear says, to satisfy the
most greedy of thrt1-hungry boys, but
no one event SO stirred the entire COM
munity as a funeral Most of the ranch
ers kept their saddle horses down in
the gulch at the Lanning ranch. When
any one died they all sent for their
horses, placed the corpse on a mule
and, with it heading the funeral pro-
ceSsion, wendell their way to New Chi
cago for burial Bear Gulch community,
at that time, was made up chiefly Of
Irish miners and so, naturally, burial
was followed by wake, at which event
MIR. and Mrs Dennis Mitten usually /
took leading parts.
1t CHANGED that about this time, In ]
1877 the Nee Perez Indians had been ]
driven out of Oregon, and came drift {
ing over the Lolo trail into the Bitter ]
Root valley. There were only three mill I
itary forts IN Montana territory at :
that time and the people, so made r
quately protected, were justly alarmed 1
by this intrusion Of the bitterly in
censed Indians on the war path. And so /
the government hastened to issue a /
supply Of needle guns to every post
office in Montana. One day Mrs. Nit
ten, who had heard rumors of the
Redman's menace, came jogging down
through the canyon with laden pack i
horse to do her weekly trading at Bear
Gulch. Having exchanged butter and
eggs for groceries and having taken
several drinks from her whisky bottle
she went to the postoffice and made
requisition for needle gun. Mr.. Spears
remembers the ludicrouS picture Of the
large woman marching solemnly up
and down Bear Gulchs one street, gun
over her shoulder, wheeling, saluting
going through every known military
would shout: Attention. Take aim
Firel" And then, obeying her own
command, she would drop on one knee,
aim carefully and fire at the flags
adjoining the stockade fort.
Finally, urged by hunger, instinct,
or possibly by a vaguely troubled house.
wifely conscience, she went home. At !,
the ranch she found pardonably irate =
spouse who had been left with all :,
the chores to do and supper to get. q
The customary family quarrel ensued. 81
He demanded to know why she had :,
q gun. ITO kill Indians with, of course" = :,
she explained, heatedly You couldn't -
AA44 dA 4AAO4aAAs AAC oCO4lCQ. NOWt Al NJ
was an Indian, what would you do !,
this minute?" IT'D do this" she said, !,
and aimed and fired. =
The bullet went through Dennis Is
right arm, grazed its way across his b
chest and came out by way of his left a,
arm. The loving wife was frightened o.
and deeply penitent. No woman could d
have proved herself a more devoted Ii
or tender nurse than Mrs Aditten dur ',
ing the weeks that followed while a,
Dennis was slowly creeping back to e
health. And Dennis, Of course, hRr- c:
bored no III will. 1t was just one of et
those things. The two understood each te
other whole-heartedly cl
In 1880 the Northern Pacific started n
grading right Of way through that *
mart of Montana and brought many h
faborers into Hell cate oanvo1 All al Ii