Montana oil and mining journal. [volume] (Great Falls, Mont.) 1931-1953, 1937-09-25
Theft Of Gold Watch Led to the MutlatOn of Clusters Body


there IS an AKfcfGMA EB4U WEIGH
q rare heirloom piece-which fig
ured In a train OF events tina
ended with the death OF two mel
during the Custer massacre In june
1876. Billy Mitchell of Livingston tell
the story. Billy came 70 Montana II
1874; in the summer he chopped w0Os
for the steamboats, BentOn-b0u al
the Missouri river; IN winter ne hunte'
buffalo for their hides. BE was IN east
ern Montana and In North Dak0ts
during the time Of the events involv-
ing the watch-even then an ancient
1T was in 1874" says Billy, that 9
surveying crew scouting the route OF
the proposed Northern Pacific railway
was camped at an old cantonmenl
north of the Yellowstone and little
below where Glendive now stands. a
detachment of troops under Custer S
command was military guard for the
surveyors. In the Northern Pacific
party was a veterinarian named
@Both civilians and soldiers we're
under orders not to leave camp while
the preliminary survey was under way
except in working parties under ade-
"But Holtzinger and the camp sutler
chafed under the restrictions. Tney
wanted some excitement. One day
way. They got to chasing antelope.
and soon were some distance away,
northwest Of where Glendtve now Is
A band of renegade Sioux, looking for
trouble came upon them. Both men
were killed.
a detachment was sent in search Of
them. They were found mutilated and
robbed. The bodies were returned to
camp and buried, and relatives were
SHoltzinger's relatives in an eastern
state wrote to Custer that their I'M
fortunate relative had carried highly
prfzed gold watch, family heirloom;
they would like very much that 1t be
recovered and returned TO them. Orders
were sent to all posts TO be on the
I'm the fall of 1875 an Indian en-
tered the post at the Standing ROCK
agency in South Dakota and proffered
a watch for sale or trade for goods. I
The post trader suspected 1t was the
Holtzinger watch. He stalled the In
dian off, and sent word TO Custer that
he had reason to believe he could re-
cover the watch and get a wanted /
prisoner at the agency.
General Custer, then at Fort Lin
coin, sent his brother. Capt Tom
custer, and Puddin'h head Charley Reyn- |
oldS to Standing Rock to get the watch /
and bring in the prisoner Charley |
Reynolds was a scout who died tight |
ing with Reno's command at the Custer I
massacre. The men remained for some |
time at the agency but the indian dld |
not show up again.
Becoming impatient, General Custer
sent Captain Yates and a detachment
Of men to the agency to learn the
cause of the delay. Yates had been
there but few days when the Indian
appeared again. The trader pointed
him out to Reynolds and when he
again entered the post he was grabbed
and turned over to Captain Yates as
the senior officer present.
Captain Yates prepared for immed-
late departure for Fort Lincoln, but
before he could leave note was handed
him which said:
DO not leave the post tonight
yates needed the warning and
placed the prisoner under heavy guard.
In the morning he received another note
warning him to stay IN the open and
away from the badlands for the safety
of himself and his men.
Subsequent investigation revealed
that an Indian girl educated at Car
Isle, had written the notes after dis
covering the plot of several braves to
waylay and massacre Captain Yates
party and rescue the prisoner. The
girl had been much with white people,
She explained, and didn't want to see
any white men killed.
THE detachment returned safely to {
Fort Lincoln and the watch was re-
turned to HoltZinger's relatives.
THE Indian thief was placed in the I
guard house and it was not long before j
he was identified as Rain-in-the-F Face, |
who later was to gain considerable /
fame. /
capt. Tom Custer took violent /
dislike to the Indian, and when he was /
In charge of the guard and handling
prisoners, he put Rain-in-the-Face at ,
the most mental degrading tasks he 8
could devise. Rain-in-the-Face resented :
being singled out for humiliation and :
he told Tom Custer:
g Some day I'll cut your heart out.
There was also in the guard house
white man named Hanna, who was 4
widely known along the frontier and c
who followed the popular paStime of e
appropriating to himself every piece of S
government property he could get his T
hands on. The only thing that distin- .
glIiShed him from his friends was the :
fact that he was unfortunate enough 3
to get caught. He was being held until
he could be removed to Fargo for trial
I'm the spring of 1876 Hanna and t
Rain-in-the-Face we're chained to9eth- {
er. Hannas friends didn't want him /
to go to Leavenworth prison, for he 8