Browning chief. [volume] (Browning, Mont.) 1941-1953, 1942-04-03

which they said was good enough but
nothing remarkable, and the fat sick
ening. (This occurred at Christmas
day, 1870"
Palliser, who Is a very entertaining
writer. mentions that they had bull
at Fort Union which they used to
put to work in a cart. and that one
day a buffalo bull attacked this bull.
but the bull finally got the best OF
the argument. by running his horn
into the buffalo, back of one shoulder,
thus killing the buffalo. Later Palliser
refers to this bull as a thoroughbred
and fine animal. as having been shot
with arrows by the hostile Sioux In
dams, and the bull was just able to
walk back to the flag pole at the fort,
where Palliser says he sank down and
expired at the foot of his country'S
colors." Palliser makes some other ref
erences to cattle at the fort. and COM
ments upon the friendliness between
buffalo and domestic cattle. whereas
the European aurochs will have moth
ing in common with cattle. The au-
rochs is the nearest similar animal to
our buffalo, he goes on to say.
Fresh Butter a Luxury
Henry A. Boiler. who died in Salt
Lake City. wrote an entertaining little
book under the title of Among the
Indians" which was published in
Philadelphia in 1868. Boiler went up
the Missouri river in 1885, and re-
turned by way of Fort Union in 1868.
He says, of that place, on the way
down the river. as follows:
"At one time quite herd of COWS
was kept here, and the luxury of fresh
butter was INDUCED in. But the
attacks of the Sioux became more and
more frequent. the remainder of the
cattle were sent to Fort Benton. :"
This was probably done before 1860,
as Fort Union was losing out as a
trading post before that. 1t goes to
show that cattle we're at Fort Benton
in all probability all the time from the
establishment of the old fort at the
Marias in 1888, by Culbertson, to the
time of which Boiler writes.
Judge F. H. Woody. in his sketch in
Montana Historical Contributions"
volume 2, page SO, says that Neil Nc
Arthur, an old Hudson's Bay Co.
trader, brought with him a band of
horses and cattle in 1855, locating at
the present town of Stevensville. In
November of 1856, Fred H. Burr came
band of cattle Judge Woody says that
the winter of 1S6l-1S62 was one of
the most severe ever known in the
mountains, and many cattle died as
the result of a big thaw and subse-
quent freeze, and no feed put up
In the report of commissioner of
Indian affairs for 1862, the first report
of the government farm at Sun river
is to be found. 1t is as follows. in part:
"Blackfeet Farm, Aug. %. 1862-Our
stock is comprised of mules, 2 horses,
9 oxen, COWS, young cattle, calves.
l bull and II hogS.-Signed by J. A.
Vail, Blackfeet farmer"
The foregoing brings out the most
important facts about it earliest stages
in what is now Montana, so far as
the earliest introduction of cattle isl
concerned, and it seems fair to as
sumo that well bred stock was here
long before the mines were opened up
in the sixties. Judge Gaddis IS credit
ed with having brought in the first
Hereford cattle. This Is upon the au-
thority of r. NJ Sutherlin, in History
Of Montana" 1885.
d. J. Hogan of Augusta, writing
under date of June %, 1885. says. the
first beef drive out Of the territory
was made by me for Bernstein and
Pepper of Salt Lake City, in October.
1868. The cattle were purchased Of P.
Largey, who was then agent for Ed
ward Creighton. and used In the Salt
Lake market and In filling contracts !
along the Union Pacific railroad The
first shipment Of Montana cattle east
was made by James Forbes from o.
den, in 1874. :"
The first reference to pmehred