Montana oil and mining journal. [volume] (Great Falls, Mont.) 1931-1953, 1939-04-29
FULL STORY OF YELLOWSTONE TRIP OF 1868 NEVER RELATED

a bluff a. the Indians, who had gen.
/ up a mountain side for safety afte
dawn. The Indians followed for sew.
eral days, and were In sight for SONS
time. Travelling m unknown country
the expedition followed up the Biz
Horn.
One Accidentally Shot
May IL, In rough, mountainous coun-
try. Geery accidentally shot himself
giving the party q new problem. II
spite Of entFeatieSs Geery managed to
eide, thus lifting a burden from his
companions
Several tedious. painful, hungering
days were spent negotiating the noun
tainS now known as the Wind River
range, In the vicinity Of the present
Thermopolts, Wyo., seeking q way TO
get back to the river. The men SUI
fered for water; they were too weak
to negotiate the walls Of the canyon.
Encountering many further hard
ships, mixed with short periods Of cas-
Ter going and occasional kills of fresh
game to augment their meagre fare,
the party-only II men now, and some
of them wounded-reached the Emil
grant road by way Of Wind river and
the POpo Aggie river. To attempt to
detail their experiences would require
many columns Of space.
May "A Stuart recorded: Our route
since the massacre has been through
part of the country too mean for
Indians to either live or hunt In, and I
came through 1t to keep out Of their
way. We are travelling for safety, not
comfort"
May 20 he recorded that they had
found wagon tracks, which indicated to
Stuart, who had Travelled the Emigrant
road years before, that they were on
upper Wind river or the Popo Aggie,
and on an easy route to the EInigrant
road.
They came to the Sweetwater river
10 miles below Rocky Bridge at noon
telegraph poles. "Our feeling at see
ing the road and telegraph, after run
ming the gauntlet for about 400 miles
through the Crow nation can be bet
ter imagined than described" wrote
Stuart. I'm another mile we came in
sight Of train of horse teams about
three miles ahead of us. The boys
couldn't stand 1t any longer, but gave
vent to their feelings in all kinds of
motions and noises. We were equal to q
Chinese camp on drunk for noise.
Company to Fort Bridger
When the train saw us coming, they
we're all IN confusion, like disturbed
anthill, running in every direction and
lallooing TO one another. They finally
.ormed in an irregular square In the |
-oad, In front of their stock, fully pre-
pared to exterminate U.s."
There was Jubilation all around when |
he train discovered 1t had been hailed |
~ white men. Provisions were pur-
biased and there was company down |
he road to Fort Bridger, where the
were cared for and Stuart Wis
ted with mountain men whom he had I
lot seen In three years.
Stuart learned from detachment of
oldiers that they had recently en-
ountered Indians who had flour and
'ther supplies secured from a source
Unknown to the troops. It was evident
heSe were the Indians who had at
acked Stuart's party on the Big Horn;
hey had raided the abandoned camp,
nd followed the refugees for more than
90 miles.
After more or less uneventful trip,
asst Fort Hall and north through
daho, Stuart wrote:
Monday, June %, 1858, Can after
Don entry: after dinner, packed up
nd pushed on to Bannack City, which
re reached late in the evening. Every
ody was glad to see us, and we were
lad to see everybody, although our
air and boards had grown SO, and we
'ere so dilapidated generally, that
carcely anyone knew us at first: and
O wonder, for we had ridden through
800 miles, and for the last 1900 with
ut tents or even change of clothes"