Montana oil and mining journal. [volume] (Great Falls, Mont.) 1931-1953, 1936-11-21
Little Big Horn Valley Was Arena
for Many Bitter Tribal Battles Long
Before Custer Met Disaster There

and sufficiently confident Of success
/ but to give the finishing touch to theil
enthusiasm, the principal chief pre-
I pared an even more convincing test
1 Placing q large stone before him on
the ground, he said to his attentive
hosts:
All Omens Favorable
"All the omens have been in. our
favor, but we are now near the village
OF our enemies and / wish to ascer-
tain If still the Great Spirit is salts
fled with us and viii give us victory
II now ] can carve this rock with my
scalping knife. 1t is proof Of his favor
and we may attack the Crows without
hesitation"
So saying he drew the keen edge
Of his knife across the stone and IL
passed through it as though 1t were
soft clay and the stone lay divided be-
fore the eyes of all. Such token could
not be gainsaid and the Assinniboines
pressed on assured OF an easy triumph.
This was In the summer OF 1917
and the Crow village TO the number of
q thousand lodges, was then located
upon the Little Big Horn river. Few
war parties had gone forth and there
were nearly 5000 warriors in the viz
lage at the moment the AssinnibOines
drew near. Grow hunters discovered
their approach and flying to the VII
lage sounded the alarm.
Grows Out 20 Meet Enemy
In those days the Grows were proud
and confident Of their strength and
never permitted their enemies TO travel
all the way when they sought con-
test A few moments Sufficeo TO pour
forth their hundreds Of warriors, eager
for conflict, and the Assinniboines
soon found that they had q life and
death struggle before them
The AsSinniboines sought the timber
when the Grows, by their superiority
In numbers, wire able almost to sur
round them. The thickets Of the Little
Big Horn rang with the shouts OF the
contestants as the Grows pressed fierce
" forward and the AsslnniboineS, hay
ing no choice between fighting and
death. resisted with desperation.
Crows win the Battle
Superior numbers on the part of the
Crows told in the struggle and after
q few hours fighting they carried the
field, the small number Of Assinniboine
survivors fleeing in every direction.
They found shelter in the brush and
under cover Of night, which was rapidly
approaching they managed to escape.
No quarter was asked and none was
given In the struggle. When the fight
WHH 0Ntk Q4AAF &W0 ~ A1af@A%AD " NA~ 49,
khe hands Of the Crows, but the bodies
az the dead Assinnihoines were strewn |
over the battlefield
The two prisoners were hailed before |
The chief OF the Grows and questioned |
az TO the real objective of the expe- |
ditt0n. The captives stated candidly |
nat 1t had been the destruction OF the 1
Crows. They also said that only q few
II the attacking party had escaped |
alive. They begged to be permitted to
'ollow their trfbcsrnen, but the sem
.exace Of death was pronounced upon /
hem and that same day they were |
.alren 10 the border Of the valley and 4
FILLED.
The fight was 80 costly 70 the at
,aekerw kKlat never thereafter did the /
4 xelz1uss0ines In mass go against the
sxuw nation, bat sent out ANAL raid
rsn end war parties 70 hackle them
sssaz STEAL n0xReN.