Montana oil and mining journal. [volume] (Great Falls, Mont.) 1931-1953, 1941-11-15

BOUT RE-ENACTED
IN INDIAN FIGHT
BLACKFEET CHIEF SLEW HIS BIG
ADVERSARY; SON-R-LAw OF
DEAD MAN REAL WINNER

when the Crows attempted to prevent
the invasion Of a band Of Blackfeet
Indians.
Reeds fort was the name Of the
station at the time Of this conflict
/ between the red men and 1t was IN
! charge Of Major Reed, for whom It
was named, and q Bill Bowles.
Bowles was a squaW man and was
married to a daughter Of Grow chief
Long Horse, whose band made its
headquarters in the vicinity of the
fort
Perhaps BowleS was not married to
this squaw in the conventional man
/ ner, as there was no one in that coun-
/ try legally capable of marrying them
at that time The usual way in those
days was for a man to buy q girl
from her father for a few bottles Of
whisky or some trade goods, stealing
| her, winning her in a horse race or IN
a poker game.
Major Reed never was a squaW man
1t was not considered good etiquette in
those days to ask a man where he
came from, or where he was going
1t simply wasn't done, and curiosity
regarding such things was frowned
upon and discouraged and brought one
decided unpopularity The major was
well-educated, gentlemanly man, who
bore himself we'll. even when in his
cups.
Long Horse Rallies Band
One day an Indian runner came to
the fort and reported that a band OF
Blackeet was coming that way from
the north AS the Crows and Black
feet were mortal enemies, Long Horse
rallied his band, got all the white men
he could to join him, made war medi-
cine and went forth to meet the Black
feet and give battle.
Now Long Horse was a tremendously
big Indian, about 6 feet or 10 inches
tall, well proportioned and about the
biggest, finest looking specimen Of an
Indian in the west. He rode a big,
fine horse that weighed about 1900
pounds-no cayuse or Indian pony
could carry him
The Crows and Blackfeet met on
a creek east of Reeds fort, called Flat
Willow, and the Blackfeet were told
that this was Grow country and they
must turn back, at which they laughed
There was, evidently, some pretty
smart white men with the. Crows and
it was finally arranged between the
two bands of Indians that the two
chiefs, Long Horse and Weasel Calf,
should fight between the two bands |
and whichever was victorious the |
other band should retire. The Crows |
and the smart white men had kept |
the big Long Horse and his fine saddle |
animal In the background. So each |
chief was armed with lance, a knife, |
a tomahawk and a shield Of dried |
buffalo hide and rode forth to fight /
and the Grows naturally expected that
their man with his size and weight
and strength and his big horse, would
ride right over the smaller Weasel Calf
and his cayuse.
David Wins Again
It was kind of a David and Goliath
performance, as it turned out. They
both charged and both lances were
caught on the buffalo hide shields and
both chiefs were endorsed and fell to
the ground, but the WeaseTs lance
had pierced Long Horses shield and
gone through his body and stuck six
inches out of his back and killed him.
while the Weasel had suffered no in
jury except from the fall from his
horse. He jumped up and ran to Long
Horse with his knife in his hand to
finish him, and saw that he was
dead. He did not stop to scalp him
but cut off one Of his long braids of
hair and held it up and gave the war
whoop, then ran back to his people.
Some Of the young bucks among the
Crows wanted to fight and avenge the
ieath of Long Horse but it was pointed
nut to them that their medicine was
bad that day and that they
had better go home as agreed and
make some good medicine and try it
again another day. So they picked up
Iong Horse, laid him across the saddle
md tied him on and started back with
he body.
When they got back and the squaws
lad walled over Long Horse for
couple of days and the medicine man
lad made the medicine to help him on
lis way to whatever place a dead In
Ian goes to, they finally built plat
orm up in a big cottonwood tree.
Long Horse up in some buff
alo robes and buried him up in the
rec.
Long Horse, the father-in-law of
ol1 0OW4CS, AculdnASQ OulAcQ up III
he tree for a long time, until his
zones were well bleached and sun and
ain and snow and the elements had
lone their work
One day along came a scientist from
he University Of Dublin, Ireland.
famed DR.. Jamison whose brother
the famous Transvaal raid
zhich brought on the Boer war.
The doctor was a great student of
thnology. He was browsing around
nd one day he saw the platform I'D
4 the tree and climbed up to see
that it was and found the bones of
ong Horse in almost perfect condi-
lon except for a broken rib where
he Weasel's spear had nicked him.
lie was struck with the tremendous
lie Of the skeleton and its perfect
roportionS and said it was the most
erfect specimen he had ever seen. so
e got it down from the tree and car
led it to his camp near the fort and